Stretching, Shrinking, Growing, Thinking ~ Are You Ready to be Renewed?

Marvelously Magnificent Miraculous Monday. Mike Lincoln has come under the realization that he is madly in love with me. He is speaking a language I have never before heard him utter before. I know he is being stretched. I know he is growing. He is in the process of waking up, of allowing himself to be convicted and my heart soars because of it. God is AMAZING in how he works. During our separation we have both begun changing. God will never work on just one of you. No if you think it is all your partner, probably better take a deeper look into that mirror. Just being honest. Not one of us is perfect. I think that's the whole reason Jesus said, "Let he who has not sinned cast the first stone." I'm sure it's where the saying, "Those that live in glass houses should not throw stones.", came from. It is what it is. I'm happy I don't have to pretend to the world that I am perfect. Wow. What a prison that would be!!  This brings me to K-Loves encouraging word of the day: 

I will walk in freedom, for I have devoted myself to your commandments. ~ Psalm 119:45, NLT

Freedom. My father always quotes Janice Joplin and says, "Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose." There is a ton of truth in that. When you become a follower of Christ there is nothing you can lose. You have salvation. True freedom that never goes away. I am a follower of Christ. I am blessed beyond measure for I was shown the truth. You see just like gaining or losing weight, it doesn't happen over night. Oh we all want it. Instant success, instant understanding, instant solutions. Life just doesn't work that way. I do know this though it all begins with a renewing of something. To lose weight it begins with a new diet and exercise routine and when it comes to following the Lord, well, that begins with a renewing of ones mind. Which I truly think stems from a desperate call from the heart for change. At least that is how it worked for me. When my heart truly longed for a relationship with the Lord, when I banged on that door and said, please, help, your will not mine, I don't have a clue how I will do this but I do know if I'm going to do it, I'm going to need your help, well, He spoke to me. He told me to get off my knees and then shared a few things with me. You could say that was a pivotal moment in my life. After that he worked on my faith a little further by stretching me through a house fire that by all rights I should have died in. You'd think that would totally wake a person up to God's love and grace and mercy but no. I was still thinking I was unworthy. Next I was on my knees praying again and again and again over my relationship with Mike and God sent a human messenger to me. That honestly rocked my world. I was in awe of what had happened and I shared this story with all who would listen, but I myself still did not understand salvation, grace or any of that. I was beginning to search for it though. A renewing in me had begun. It was through finding Moody radio and then through the death of my first love, finding fellowship and studying the word that the renewing has continued. Speaking of Moody radio, finding that station is a story all in itself. I must tell it soon. I have so much work to do. So much to share. Stories about wisdom being bestowed upon me through prayer, and so much more.

This Sunday our talk was on finding your passion. Mine is for sure my love for the Lord. He called me forth to tell my story and I have been sidetracked and am now committed to getting back to it this week. I am ready to 'bust a move' where my writing is concerned. 

I started this blog out by saying that God works on both partners when He is asked for help involving a marriage He was asked to bless in the beginning. He has stretched Mike and He also is stretching me as well as helping me shrink. My grandma always warned me be careful what you pray for, you just might get it. With Mike being removed, which my prayer was, 'convict this man or remove him from me.' I needed to focus my pent up energy on something. What better something than exercise. After all, I had also prayed for God to give my health back to me which included my body before my twelve pregnancies. Through fasting due to what I went through this summer with my mother and my children, as well as the turmoil I was in over Mike and I separating after almost ten years, I was prepped for diet and exercise. So, I began a diet and a workout on September 15th, Tomorrow is my thirty day mark but for fun, I am going to share my results after just 29 days of renewing my body with both better nutrition and a devoted workout. I must admit, I have not paid one bit of attention to the scale. I believe the evil one likes to use this evil device to torment you, so I avoid it. Instead, I pay attention to what I see in the mirror and I take measurements. Something you can truly track progress with. I am thrilled to announce that in twenty nine days, I have lost the following:

4 full inches off my chest!
1 1/2 inches off each arm!!
5 1/2 inches off my waist!!!
5 full inches off my hips!!!!
3 full inches off each thigh!!!!!

That is a total of 23 1/2 inches in the major places. We all know you shrink around these zones as well. I still have two full weeks of this diet and exercise before I hit my six week commitment mark. The only thing I'm changing is busting a move with a little more umph for my endurance, strength and determination have grown massively over these first four weeks. It is amazing what you can change in a mere 30 days if you truly decide to 'renew yourself'. 

My challenge to you, start with your mind. It is the most powerful part of your human side. It is the place that Satan attacks so put on your fighting gear and join my army. I'll help you in every way I can by sharing what the spirit leads me to share. I will fully reveal my wellness secrets and anyone wanting to truly know exactly what I have done to rock this diet of mine, send me a message. I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to help you get results like mine. I Love my Life. God truly set me free and He is wanting to do the same for you. All that you need to do is start out by giving Him 30 days. That's it, 30 days. If you're up to it, write me and let's do this together!!

Father, today I come before you with laughter and praise you are so Amazing. I love you. I giggle like a child over how you are changing me. No wonder you sent a lovely angel to tell me I am beautiful! I am beginning to see what you see and I want nothing more than to resemble to the world how you see me. Let me be a mighty light Lord. Help me shine to the darkest corners. Let my story be heard. Let others see your Glory. Oh it is so breathtaking my Lord. Thank you for allowing me to see what life is without Mike. I truly love him Father. Thank you for not allowing me to be deceived from this truth. Through our separation we have become wonderful friends again and for the first time since I fell on that ledge Father, I feel Mike's love for me. Thank you for working on him and stretching him. Thank you for our time apart where you have stretched and strengthened both of us in the ways we each needed work on. How do you do it Father? Oh to know your ways. To be able to implement them. Thank you for all my blessings, so numerous I don't know where to begin in thanking you for them. You know my heart father. I love that. I truly do. Please lift all my lost brothers and sisters Father. Send them your hand and foot servants to touch their hearts and open their eyes. Allow me to serve you in greater ways Father and help me with time management. I have so many more God stories I must get to sharing. Help me be more efficient. I love you in Jesus name I pray. Amen.

** Footnotes: Previous blogs that are touched on in this post:
(1)  Face to Face with an Angel (being told I was beautiful by a true angel) 
(2)  Saved by an Army of Angels (The house fire I should have died in)
(3)  On my Knees (Praying over a pregnancy I was not ready for)
(4)  Show me a Sign ( Praying about Mike and I where I received the message from God from another believer) 
(5) Unpacking Treasure, show me a sign Part II ( The believers letter to me almost a year later ) 

Wendy, walks with God,
Mom of Many


© Wendy Glidden 2013

Are You Dressed For Daily Battle?

Totally Tripping, Tremendously Thankful, Thoroughly Thoughtful Thursday! So makes sense that K-Love would have this as the encouraging word of the day:

Worship the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy. ~ Psalm 100:2, NLT 

All that the Lord does for us every day why would you not willingly almost without thought come before him worshiping with gladness and singing with joy in your heart. I find myself overwhelmed by God's Love for me. I haven't always been that way though. There was a span of almost 30 years where I felt completely unworthy of God's love so it was my own self that denied myself much joy and peace of mind and in return did not sing praises or worship my Lord. I was blind. I allowed the enemy to keep me in bondage, holding me hostage for the majority of my life. Me! A girl who was told in her youth by an angel that she WAS indeed a Child of God!! This is why it is so important to understand that Satan is REAL. He is the SOURCE of ALL EVIL. BIG Evil and Almost Unrecognizable Evil. Let me see if I can break this down so that it makes undeniable sense. 

Let us pretend that you have a child whether you do or not. Now, due to a divorce, you are separated from said child. From now on you only get to see this child when they call you and ask you to come get them because this is the way your visitation was set up. They must seek you for you to have a true relationship with them. Your child spends the majority of their time with their other parent who is always 'in their ear' with negative thoughts. Every day they are being told that they are a disappointment.  They are told that they are stupid, unworthy, a failure. They are told they are not really loved by you. They are told so many negative things about themselves and you, that when they finally do pick up that phone, their trust level is incredibly low. They long to be loved by you, they just don't feel enveloped in your love. All due to NOTHING you yourself have done to this beautiful child of yours that you long to lift, for you see the pain they are carrying in their heart. 

Would you not classify that other parent as both destructive and evil? I believe all of us would. Consider yourself fully introduced to Satan because he does this exact thing to EVERY CHILD OF GOD!!! This is why you must both KNOW the ENEMY is REAL and you MUST LEARN how to ARM YOURSELF AGAINST him, the Father of Lies!!!!

So, what is the real armor against such an evil unseen entity? It can all easily be found in Ephesians. This was one of the first Books in the Bible that I fully dove into with my small group. I find it priceless. Allow me to share the attire you should put on daily with you:

Straight out of my MacArthur Study Bible, from the Book of Ephesians, Chapter 6, beginning at Verse 10. My subtitle begins as: The Armor of God

verse 10: Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.

verse 11: Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.

verse 12: For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. 

verse 13: Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything to stand firm.

verse 14: Stand firm therefore, HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH, and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, 

verse 15: and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE;

verse 16: in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith which you will be be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 

verse 17: And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

verse 18: With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints,

verse 19: and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in that opening of my mouth, to make known with the boldness the mystery of the gospel, 

Often when we read the bible, it is hard to make sense of what is meant to be taken from the text. This is what I get from these particular verses:

I need to read or listen to God's word EVERY day. The truth within the pages when read/heard every day, even if it is just a verse or two, will help to armor and renew your mind. You will have God's truth inside your head and it will be growing daily. As you learn more about your Lord and the Love He has for His children, your Faith will grow. It is your shield of faith that helps you when the attacks begin. I KNOW THIS FOR TRUTH because when the evil one came after me hard and strong this last summer, I KNEW, I mean with every fiber of my being I KNEW MY GOD Had me. I didn't understand the attack and the viciousness of it but I cast my own understanding to the side and I leaned on God and trusted Him with all my heart and even in the midst of one of the most brutal storms of my life, I managed to not only function, I was able to press head on! I could not have done that on my own strength for in my own strength I wanted to crumble to pieces and hide under my blankets. SERIOUSLY. It was my FAITH that allowed me to stand firm. A major part of your Armor is your Breastplate of Righteousness. This plate guards your heart. This righteousness comes from Jesus Christ. We can never become righteous through our own good works. IMPOSSIBLE to do! When Jesus died on the cross, his righteousness was credited to all who believe in him, through justification. Because of this, when you believe, God sees you as sinless. Accept your Christ-given righteousness and let it cover and protect you. This belief will keep your heart strong and pure for God. Do the Romans study if you are still unsure of who you are in Christ! Next we come to our foot ware. We must shod our feet with the Gospel of Peace. When in battle it is important to have the right type of shoes on. Any soldier knows this! So where do you find these shoes? How does one go about getting a pair to wear? First you have to discover 'True Peace'. True peace comes only by being reconciled to God through Jesus Christ. That is salvation from sin and its consequences of condemnation by God. Since that reconciliation takes place because of God's initiative, God is called the God of peace. You can verify this by reading Hebrews 13:20 as well as Philippians 4:9. It is This good news that is the message of the gospel of peace. We are to stand firm in the gospel of peace and when we do, we can remain calm regardless of whatever may come our way. Regardless of any temptation we might face or any lie someone claims, even slander or any persecution Satan may bring against us. We are controlled by God's peace instead of fear. Satan operates through fear. If you are controlled by peace rather than fear, you my friend will win the battle Every time! Next we must carry the shield of faith as well as the Helmet of Salvation and the sword of the spirit. The Helmet of Salvation protects our mind. Jesus Christ said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:31 - 32, NIV) The truth of salvation through Jesus Christ indeed sets us free. The shield of faith can be whipped out when you are under attack. Again, Satan's biggest weapon against you is Fear. With Faith you easily distinguish the fiery arrows he will launch at you during an attack. The sword of the Spirit is God's word. This is why it is wise to read God's word every day, even if it is only a verse at a time, within one month you will have renewed your mind with over 30 verses. There is something about picking up God's word and reading it. It becomes something you crave, even more so than food. Suddenly during times of trials and tribulations rather than pacing back and forth full of fear and anxiety, you are able to rest in peace and dive into God's word. Suddenly you will be floating through storms that you used to almost die in. This is the difference of fighting in your own strength and allowing yourself to rest and lean on God's strength. 

Just like with anything we do, don't think you are going to become well versed and full of faith in one day of reading a little bit of scripture. You must make this a practice. Kind of why it is called your DAILY armor! I promise if you truly seek God and His truth, your world will change. In all the things you do in your lifetime, getting to know your heavenly Father and building a relationship with Him is the most important thing you can do. It truly makes all the difference in the final outcome. 

Father, today I pray that your children come to know the truth. May they seek you Father and find all that you have to offer. May they suit up for battle daily and begin to turn back to help more fellow brethren as they grow strong themselves. May we feed upon your word father. May we thirst for it. The other day when as a lady heard about my circumstance she said, "Oh honey you really have it hard. Even prayer won't help you." I laughed and quickly said, "Oh prayer helps me every day." May countless of us begin to pray and believe in the power of prayer Father. I truly know faith can move mountains. May this truth become more visible to countless across the world. May we get on our knees and pray as the spirit moves us. More and more often the spirit moves me to pray for others. May I get more in tune with this Father. May I not doubt where the draw to pray for someone comes from. May I begin praying in the Spirit with Full Faith in Knowing I am being used to help heal others. Please use me more often and in greater ways Father. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

Wendy, walks with God

Mom of Many

© Wendy Glidden 2013

I AM a Daughter of the Most High!

Terrific Testimonial tell all Tuesday. Today my tell all is this. KNOW who you are in Christ. Sometimes when you put your foot down all the way, God intervenes for you. Keep praying and listen to the voice of truth. It will never steer you wrong. 

This was part of my morning post on my "You Are Worthy Too" page on face book. If you are wishing there was a way you could follow my blog without having to subscribe, you could always hop on face book and like my fan page (hint hint here is the link should you feel so inclined! https://www.facebook.com/YouAreWorthyToo ) Anyway, this morning, I woke with so much joy. I just knew my blog was going to rock today.  I could feel the spirit moving me. All day long, what I felt I was being drawn to share, has been built upon with a teaching here and a word there that I caught on Moody radio and then a song on the radio kind of helped tie it off. With that being said, here is what I learned today:

My day started out with hearing several directions for all believers to follow. I was so cracking up by this lesson. It was about 10 AM. I do not know who it was teaching it and I'm sure I won't do it complete justice, but here is what I caught. When you become a follower of Christ, you are called into ministry. When you answer the calling, life is not going to be all roses. Much the opposite. You see people are busy. They are not interested in what you have to say. They are hard headed, set in their ways, it is hard to get their full attention, and even when you do succeed at gaining their attention, many will call you names, make fun of you, you will even be taken advantage of. I encourage you to answer the call anyway! I laughed out loud. He went on to say something like this:

1. When you go about doing good, there will be those that accuse you of doing so for personal reward. Do good anyway.

2. When you go about your life being kind to others, no matter how kind you are, you will often be treated badly. Be kind anyway.

3. While helping others, you will be accused of doing so for some type of personal gain.  Help anyway.

4. When you succeed you will make false friends and real enemies. Succeed anyway.

These all made me laugh. While sad, these claims bear much truth. I have been accused of having false motives. I have caught the ire of complete strangers while doing no harm to them. I have even collected a few false friends. It is what it is. However, I am going to keep doing what I am doing. Sharing my story. Testifying about Jesus, my Savior. Spreading the message of the good news. I am a follower of Christ and I simply have no choice. I honestly cannot help myself. Nothing brings more joy to me than receiving a message from someone touched by my writing. I love to be an encouragement to others. I love to inspire and give others hope. This life is full of pain. There are always moments of joy for all who live but it seems the daily grind wears us down quicker than the good moments lift us up. When you concentrate on the "things of this world" you lose sight of the real cause of joy. Most of us have fallen into this trap. The evil one is a clever liar. Usually you don't even realize he has your ear until it is too late. Fear not, there is a way to protect yourself better. All you need to do is build your relationship with the Lord. Please do not misunderstand me. I am not saying you need to become religious. Much the opposite. Just read God's word, pray and knock on that door. Build your relationship. He is your Father and he has a message for you. "Come Home, you are loved."

As I look in the review mirror and see how far I have come on my own journey back home, I am amazed at not only God's grace, but His amazing timing. Many place blame on Him and say He put me through this to help me grow. I don't believe that for that would take away from free will in a way. I believe the evil one is always on the prowl watching for those he can force to stumble and he is the true cause of destruction and pain. Many times when bad things or pain enters into our life, it is of our own doing. By not following the narrow path we subject ourselves to much of this and then there are the various players we come into contact with in our daily walk. They all have their own free will and the evil one can use them against us even when we are walking the narrow path. What we must remember is that God will use all evils for good for those who trust in Him. I get how crazy scary letting go and letting God, trusting in Him when the whole world seems to be falling apart, but that is the biggest illusion. That is the devil's game. Having you believe you can do something to save the situation on your own, in your own strength. Think of it as an awful dream. It is just this world. It's already fallen. It's going to continue to fall. The good news is we have eternal life after we leave behind this body that Satan can attack. On the other side, the father of lies cannot touch us. Let him do what he may in the here and now. Profess the love the Lord has for you and you will begin to see it more evident in your day to day walk. I encourage you to step out in faith. Read my story. Hear my joy. I have not led an easy life. The majority of hard times were of my own doing. When I do what I want out of fear or jealousy or pride or whatever, man things just go wrong. When I do what the Lord puts in my heart to do regardless of how crazy it may seem at the time, it always turns out good. Take this blog for example. You have no idea how blessed I am in sharing my story. Blessed beyond measure. Does the evil one still come at me? Are you kidding?!? DAILY! I just know he is out there and I put on my full suit of armor. 

I had really meant to post this blog on Tuesday but time simply was not on my side! I attend a fellowship meeting with a few awesome, God seeking woman every 3rd Tuesday of the month. If you are in Indianapolis or anywhere close by, you should check us out. This is my challenge / dare to you, if this affirmation we say every day and meeting speaks to you at all, I dare you to come and hangout with us. We have dinner together, discuss goals and plan ways to help and encourage other women!!

Hagar's Affirmation

I am a Daughter of the Most High. I am fearfully and wonderfully made. I am beautiful, whole, and complete. Everything I need can be found in and provided by my Father. I don't have to beg for anything or any one's attention. I realize that I am the prize, the good thing to be found. I will not beg for scraps when I know that my Father has prepared a table for me. I am empowered, encouraged, educated and edified. God has opened my eyes to see that I can do all and be all I've been called to be through Christ who strengthens me. I will allow the Holy Spirit to guide and direct me as I begin again the kingdom way and receive all that my Father has for me. I am beautiful and whole and perfectly me. I am a Daughter of the Most High, just who I've been called to be!

This is K-Loves encouraging word from Tuesday

So let's not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't give up. ~ Galatians 6:9, NLT

Indeed! I just love it. Here I am on Thursday finally back to my blog post I began Tuesday to finish it up. Busy would be a good word for my life. I do manage to post an encouraging statement everyday on my face book fan page, so if you desire to see what the Holy Spirit has me sharing on a daily basis, just like my page and you won't miss a thing! Here is my post for today. 

Totally Tripping Thoroughly Thankful Tremendously Thoughtful Thursday! How my heart lept with joy as I read this truth from God: 

There is a time to cry and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance.

~ Ecclesiastes 3:4, NLT

In the last 45 days I have done all of these to the most extreme forms! There is healing in crying and letting go of past hurts and laughter, well it truly is the best medicine . . . and grief . . . it let you have a taste of true total overwhelming engulfing pain and then you dance because you realize you made it through the storm and you are more alive than you were when you went in. No matter what is going on, hang onto your faith, call upon your Father, you will survive . . . after all, You're an Overcomer! I dedicate this song to you my beloved friends  

Father, thank you so much for the life you have blessed me with. I am so amazed at how you work and move and take the bad and flip it to good. I am humbled to be adored by you. Me, a beloved. I only desire to please you Lord. To say thank you and sing your praises. Teach me how to be a fisher of men Father. Move me, work through me. Allow me to be an extension of you. Help me to burst forth with so much fruit that those around me have no choice but to witness your Love. I am super excited today for I am being baptized. Not a requirement by law but a symbol of my belief and choice to follow Christ. I am so elated my Lord. So overwhelmed by my journey. Thank you, thank you, thank you. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

** On a side note, I think it is so cool that this morning I received a message from a fellow believer with the following scripture to read. Mark 16: 15-20. My study bible is in my car, so I googled it on the Internet. Here it is:

Verse 15: He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.

Verse 16: Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

Verse 17: And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

Verse 18: they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people and they will get well."

Verse 19: After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God.

Verse 20: Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.

I am telling you, that really fired me up. I often wonder how many people would be reading the heck out of their bibles were they to understand the incredible thrilling stories inside. Stories from those who witnessed the Lord and those who listened to God before the arrival of our Savior Jesus Christ. I hope you find yourself interested in God's word today. May you be moved by the spirit. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

Wendy, walks with God,

Mom of Many

© Wendy Glidden 2013

Clear the Clutter

It's Tremendously Thankful Thoughtful Thursday. Tonight I am going to the send off for The women's Cross Roads Great Banquet # 46. How the memories come rushing back. I will forever be thankful for how I grew that weekend.  It cost me nothing to go yet it was priceless. Pardon the pun! With the event coming up this week and in knowing I was going to be attending the send off, my heart has been overflowing with elated emotion. There is nothing that can compare to knowing God LOVES you. There is nothing that can compare to understanding His Grace and Mercy. There is nothing that compares to laying it all at His feet, accepting Christ as your Savior and understanding forgiveness. When these things take place in your life, you truly do become a new creation!

On my way to work I heard a couple of awesome songs I had never heard before. I am including this one today for it is so fitting to how I feel, what I desire. It's by Addison Road and it's a newer song of hers I believe "My Story"

I truly desire to serve the Lord. I honestly long to help my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ lift their heads and understand there is nothing, NOTHING God doesn't already know about them. All He is waiting for is for you to come to Him. I was lost for so long myself. While I believed in God, I did not believe I was worthy of saving. The evil one had me fooled. Even with all the signs and wonders God had made visible in my life, I was blind in a way that was detrimental to my well being. I know that place so well. I lived there for years. I finally get to do what I always wanted to do. I get to help God's children, my brothers and sisters in Christ. By allowing Christ to work on me and through me I am able to be a light for others.

I have been praying for a way to raise money for my ministry that won't take money from others. Recently God helped me recall a funny idea he had given me in my twenties. I shared my idea with my 14 year old daughter and she laughed. While she says I embarrass her with my thoughts, actions and dance moves, I know she loves me just the way I am! Last night, God clicked it together for me. Today I am here asking if you would clear out the clutter and help a girl with her mission! I am asking for donations of all broken, useless, unwanted crayons you may have. I am also asking for any and all empty vitamin bottles. If you would kindly collect these items and send them to me I would greatly appreciate your much needed donation! Simply address your packages to: Wendy Glidden, PO Box 481, Westfield, IN 46074

I can hardly wait to unveil the items God gave me to create as gifts. I promise, I have a smile on my face and laughter bubbling inside of me as I envision the laughter, joy and hope they will deliver.  

I love the road I am set on. While I understand I live in a fallen world and chaos is bound to cross my road, I will not be driven from my purpose again. I am keeping my focus on Jesus and I know I will be just fine through all my future storms. I am Free. 

Father today I come before you with laughter in my heart. Oh how good you are to me. I am blessed beyond measure. Others may see my life as full of hardships, yet as I look back I see loads of laughter. I would not change my shoes with anyone. It is my prayer father that those who too have had a bumpy road and have been fooled into believing they are not worthy come to find Joy in you. I pray the evil one's connivery is counted as useless against my fellow brothers and sisters. Trials and Tribulations are a given. They stretch us, they prepare us, they strengthen us. Thank you for always holding me up through the storms I have lived through. It saddens me that so many are blind to just who you truly are and what Grace and Mercy truly mean. The world is so upside down Father. It must break your heart for I know it breaks mine. I pray your light shines through me. I pray it shines through others. I pray we begin to act like one body. I pray we discover our true purpose. I pray the blinders come off. I pray eyes are opened and ears begin to hear, understand and recognize the truth when it is spoken. I pray for broken hearts may they find you Father. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

Wendy, Mom of Many

© Wendy Glidden, 2013

Terrific Testimonial Tell-All Tuesday

Sometimes I catch myself laughing so hard when it comes to the way that God works. Yesterday I was sharing this letter about the evil one and how he gets us busy being busy with everything but God's purpose for us. In the midst of that Jordan, a wonderful brother in Christ, had called to check on me to make sure I had managed to get my car back. I was at work and busy but wanted to tell him something. I quickly typed him a message. Then about an hour later I received an email from Bridget, the Leader of my Great Banquet. I wanted to share my news with her too. Since I was in a crunch on time as well as energy I simply went into my message from Jordan and pasted it over to her . . .  I was so tired I then went about pasting what I thought was the letter about the evil one. This morning I checked my notifications on Facebook and saw another friend of mine had liked a comment I had made in a group room on Facebook that we are both in. I was confused at first as it was my message to both Jordan and Bridget. I busted out laughing wondering how many places Our Father had me share it. Who am I to object? So today my this is my testimonial tell-all! 

Jordan, I wanted to tell you that when I was in my prayer circle with our Shepherd I prayed for strength through the ridicule I was sure to face come Monday morning.

Sure enough I came in quietly because I wanted a moment to myself before I faced my earthly father, however you know how hilarious Our Heavenly Father is . . . I brought some of my books in with me . . . as soon as I walked away from my desk to check on the credit card machine I heard one hit the floor . . . I whipped around as the final 3 hit the floor right behind the first.

My father called out . . . "Who's in there banging stuff around?" 

I said, "It's me" and I walked back to his office to say good morning and give him a hug as I do every day. 

Two of our foremen were back there with him. In front of them he asked, "So how did your religious outing go?"

I said, "I didn't go on a religious outing." 

He looked confused and said, "I thought you went to a church event."

I said, "Well . . . kind of but not how you are thinking." He looked at me confused and I said, "Sheesh dad it's not like I went off to learn how to be a Pharisee . . . I just hung out with the hands and feet of Christ and learned about God's Love. That's cool right? You do think I deserve to feel the Love of God don't you?" As I said those last two sentences I walked around and gave him a hug and kiss on the cheek. Then I turned and walked back out to my office. The back room was completely silent for an entire minute.

Thought you might enjoy that. Thank you for checking on me . . . sorry my phone is off . . . the battery is dead. Haven't had much time other than for work and responding to letters I received that I am able to write back. I set yours and Chalices to the side as I wanted to put more thought into my responses . . . God already let me know what to say to Chalice . . .

I am ready to drop as I type this . . . funny to think I'm going to the Y after work to check it out and possibly work out a minute or two. I bought a family membership.
You and your wife have taught me so much in the last year and a half and I love you like family. I am praying on what to write back to you. I am humbled by your letter.

2:54pm

Jordan Dailey

Wendy there is no need for a response to my letter. Just knowing you enjoyed yourself is a huge blessing to me. I'm glad this weekend wasn't Pharisee training for you, but instead a time to draw closer to God. I'm glad you made it home ok. Much love and prayers headed your way. Love Ya

So, again it was God's strength and knowledge and words that helped me when I came face to face with what I knew would happen I just didn't know how it would come to pass. No since in playing anything out in my head. Pointless . . . I simply prayed for strength and I was given it and the perfect thing to say. 

Today I pray you find a fellowship of friends and begin your own journey getting to know Our Father.  I pray I am able to be a Fisher of people. I pray I walk as close to Jesus that my light shines bright enough for others to long to follow me and learn what I am up to! I pray for healing of hurts of the heart and the opening of eyes who have been blind to the Grace being offered to them. May I be a perfect representation of the Glory of God. I pray I never lose sight of my purpose. I am a servant of the Most High. I pray he finds Joy in Me.

Wendy, Mom of Many

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