Tired of Walking in the Dark? Allow the Light to Enter You!!

Totally Tripping Tremendously Thankful Thoroughly Thoughtful Thursday! Thank God for everything. Yes, everything. Should you be blessed to turn back and see how things really went down you would without hesitation throw your arms around Him and give Him a gigantic hug. I know it sounds crazy, but I promise it is true. He is always there. We, as humans, want to blame others for all that is wrong in our life. The only thing you can blame on God is Your FREE WILL. He made you to live. He wants you to live abundantly but honestly he gives you the choice. He gave us this awesome book full of wisdom and insight. If we just read it a little every day, life becomes more abundant. The more you seek God, the more you will begin to recognize not only His work in your life but you truly begin to recognize the spiritual war you are in. Better to be fully awake for this battle then asleep. 

How does one wake up? Well, start by starting. If Jesus is the light of the world and you are in darkness as to how you got to where you are today, search out the light. You will find what you need in countless places. Even places such as my blog. Your transformation won't take place over night. I grow daily in countless ways. I pray that never stops. I want all the wisdom the Lord will bestow upon me. I want to have the heart of Christ. I read my bible daily. I listen to uplifting lessons. I read a devotional. I subscribe to K-Loves encouraging word. I surround myself with fellow believers. I know the closer I draw to Him the more I love who I am. I am redeemed. I am a Saint. This is who I am in Christ. When I allow the evil one to distract me from who I am in Christ, I fall flat on my face. It does not feel good. Thank God today I know the difference between allowing myself to be beat up by my sin and being convicted by the voice of righteousness. I don't need to beg God daily for forgiveness. I have been forgiven. Christ died on that cross one time for ALL SINS. End of story. He ROSE and Conquered Death. Therefore, what do I truly have to fear? Nothing but fear itself. The evil one cannot destroy me for my Savior saved me. I am His. I hear His voice. Last year He called me forth to tell my story. I will openly admit when I first realized what I was being called to do part of me wanted to run away. I mean, I have done a lot in my lifetime, even more than I wanted to face. I have barely shared my life with you and yet I have had countless women reach out to me and thank me and say I share part of your life, my mom shares another part and my grandma shares another part. It's like you are all of us together and I love it because I give them hope and in return they encourage me to share more for giving others hope is what God wanted me to do. I was created to shine my light. Those that read my posts and reach out to me, encourage me to burn a little brighter and share a little more because there is so much more. Years ago I thought I had so missed the boat when it came to life and living it, but through God's eyes, when I sit down and look back, I laugh and I cry. I tear up and I chuckle. I gasp hold my pillow tightly. What a roller coaster, daydream, nightmare life I have lived and through it all He kept me safe. That's the beauty of it. I am so thankful I became weak enough to get back on my knees and begged for God to have His way with me. I told Him, your will not mine and wham my world shifted. While the journey has stretched me, it has changed me into a new creation and I LOVE WHO I AM IN CHRIST!

Mike is reading my blog and claims he is enjoying it. That is a good thing because before he was not into me blogging. Well, if you have been reading you know that. He called it a hobby and suggested I find a new one shortly before this big break between us. I find it amazing what God is doing inside of Mike, but maybe even more so, I'm amazed at what God is doing inside of me. Turns out I had plenty of work to do to be a better partner. So easy to point that finger and make that line in the ground. Before we even realize it we have built an entire brick wall around our heart. Oh, I see so clearly where I laid that first brick in the wall around my heart that I had so freely given to Mike in the beginning. God gave me the title back in May to write on and I have left it in the closet on a hanger. I was not quite ready to pull it out and put it on. I think it's because I still felt a little unloved by Mike at the time. Through this separation, that has changed. It brought both of us to our knees and back to the beginning. Before the week ends, I will be writing out that chapter. The title God gave me was 'Landing on a Ledge' for the next chapter involving the story of Mike and I. If you have already read the posts titled, How I Fell in Love With Mike and Dissed, Disowned, Disgraced and Darn Near Destitute, this will be the continuation of that story. For those that have not read those posts, I will leave the links for them at the bottom of this post should you find yourself interested. 

With that being shared, I started out this post today by pasting in today's encouraging word by K-Love to get myself prepared to allow the spirit to lead me into what I was to share today. So, here is their encouraging word of the day:

Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, "I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won't have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life." ~ John 8:12, NLT

This is true my brothers and sisters. You truly will have the light that leads to life. An abundant life. One full of fruit. The Fruit of the Spirit is PRICELESS. Reminds me of a poem I wrote. Allow me to copy it again here. It actually has a post of it's own. I have a bit of a poet in me. God indeed loves music, poetry, and dance. 

The Fruit of The Spirit

Too much to do and not enough time

Chaos & Craziness filling my mind

I'll give the devil his due

He's an expert at tricking you

When something causes you worry

Slow down ~ what's your hurry?

Take a moment to pray for what you need

With God on your side you're sure to succeed

When I feel life's pressures are becoming too demanding

I remember Proverbs 3:5 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart

And lean NOT on your own understanding."

I call upon the Lord I do and I sing his praises

I bathe in his Glory oh the way he amazes

So I say to Satan, "You've got no hold on me!

My God came here so I could live abundantly!"

The fruit of the spirit ~ that's what I'm after

This life is mine and I'll fill it with laughter!

Today Father, I pray we begin to add more laughter into our days. May we seek out the Light. May we discover the abundant life you intended for all your children to live. May we love one another as we are meant to. May we listen to the voice of righteousness and snuff the voice of the liar. May the body of Christ begin to come together. May we win begin to shine like never before. May others who are sleepy eyed see the light and be drawn to it. May they fully awaken. May they thirst and hunger for your word Father. Please use me in all ways you see fit. Give me a voice and I will shout from the mountain tops to all the world your Glory. Father you saved me and have given me such beauty. I am so grateful and could never begin to give enough thanks. Your grace amazes me. The way you work, I shall never question what happens in my life I shall always give all glory to you and even in the midst of great pain I will turn to you Father in praise for I know who you are. Thank you for allowing me a glimpse of heaven. I look forward to coming home. Until then Father, I am yours, stretch me, give me more, expand my world Father. In Jesus name I Pray. Amen.

As promised here are the first two posts regarding Mike and I. I touch on us throughout other blogs like the one entitled Show Me a Sign and Down on My Knees as well as the one Saved By an Army of Angels. If you are in a relationship you are praying over may reading our story be a blessing to you. May You too find the answers you need. May you grow yourself <3. 

** http://youareworthytoo.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-i-fell-in-love-with-mike.html

**http://youareworthytoo.blogspot.com/2013/07/dissed-disowned-disgraced-and-darn-near.html

I leave you with this song. It is the one I found myself singing the loudest this morning!

Wendy, walks with God,

Mom of Many

© Wendy Glidden 2013

Do You Feel Like You Are Missing Something in Life?

Wild Wacky Wonderful Wednesday What Whimsical Wonders Will you bring my way today?! I awoke this morning to an extra child in my bed. Delightful Delilah is under the weather. Currently her and Jeffrey are laying down in the other room watching a movie. Somehow last night I managed to help everyone with their homework, reading and book reports. Yes. Book reports in the second grade. I don't know who school is more stressful on the children or me! It is tough to squeeze in quality time in three hours after work when you have to help with homework, have 3 children read books to you, serve dinner, clean up, make sure everyone takes a shower and put them all to bed after a 9 hour work day with a 3 year old assistant for the entire day and 4 additional helpers for the last hour and a half! I have also implemented a workout routine into my day that I do at night after all of that! It's crazy, it's hectic but I am finally getting into the full swing of it. Or at least I think I am. This morning I discovered one child's homework was not successfully packed away into her folder and it is now sitting on my desk. It will be late. I have no help today so taking it up to school to save the day like a super hero mom is just not going to happen. Life. It is what it is. Thank God I know I am not perfect or something as small as that might put me right over the edge!

Last night I went to my monthly meeting with mom's who are seeking God's heart, so dinner was already prepared for us. I have been getting more and more back into the mentality of a more organized mom. I have turned Sunday into my prepare for the week ahead day. I make sure we have enough folded socks in each drawer. I reorganize drawers and closets as well as shoe and coat bins. The most awesome thing I do to make the week easier is I prep the meals we are going to have for the week. I purchased a little mini oven and have it in my back office. Now at 4:30 pm I take out the meal we decide on that I prepared on Sunday and I throw it in my oven. At Five when I get off work, dinner is done! This simple little change in the way I do things gained me an hour of meal time each day of the week. There are countless things on the Internet to help with this. I just simplified it for myself. I brown all the hamburger I will need for my five meals or cook some chicken, then I divide it all up into the daily portions and prepare the individual meals. I let them cool off and then I pack them up and in the freezer they go. Each day I grab what meal the kids vote on and that is what we have for dinner that night. It truly has made a difference in how smoothly things run through the week. If you too are a single mom in the midst of craziness, I encourage you to try this for just one week and see if you find it helpful at all. If you aren't into this style, I would highly suggest working in a crock pot meal or two each week. I did that when I was younger and only had two children and two full time jobs! Like I said, there are countless moms out there that have taken the time to put up websites full of tips just like this but in much much much greater detail. A friend of mine just sent me a link to a great site the other day. Here is the link:  http://lifeasmom.com/2013/10/freezer-cooking-will-save-you-time.html

As I do each weekday morning, I check out what K-Loves encouraging word of the day is. Here is what I found:

Jesus replied, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty  ~ John 6:35, NLT

I am blessed to understand the truth in this. For me, before I came to know Jesus as my Savior, I would have days when I knew I was missing something but I just couldn't put my finger on it. Those are the days I would go shopping looking for that certain something that would somehow simplify my life or bring me a little joy. Sometimes those are the days I would go out to eat because I was looking for something better than what I had in the refrigerator. I think that emptiness we feel is the call to come back home. We just don't have anyone pointing in the right direction. Somehow in our society we have come very far from even mentioning God. Even more so openly talking about Jesus. It's almost still okay to openly discuss your thoughts on God but you have to be schooled on how to approach the whole Jesus subject for fear of how you may be taken. To label yourself as a Christian can get you killed in some places in the world. The united States is not too far from getting a little on the crazy side with the whole same sex issues. When you listen to what the Supreme Court said as far as the opinion one might hold regarding same sex marriage, well, it just sends chills down your spine. His basically said if you have a problem with same sex marriage, you are an enemy of the human race. An enemy of the race! That is a bit scary. I mean let's really get down to this whole issue of what is labeled as sin in the bible and take it to it's most extreme basic idea. We are even warned to not get angry. Allow me to share with you Matthew Chapter 5, verses 21-22:

verse 21: "You have heard that the ancients were told, 'YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.'

verse 22: But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.

So, if I warn others that getting angry is a gateway to hell, pardon the pun, am I too an enemy of the human race? I beg everyone, please let us not use the word of God and twist it into a court battle. It is the word of God for crying out loud. How can mere men pass judgement upon it? Why on earth would they believe they are so grandiose? It truly baffles me. I believe that mindset is the work of the evil one, Satan, the father of Lies. By following Christ and walking the narrow path we are in a way helping ourselves stay out of the clutches of the evil one. Think of the bible as a safety manual set up to help you walk through this life with as little theft as possible. Remember the evil one's purpose is to steal, kill and destroy. God wants you to live life and live it abundantly. Jesus came to complete the law and He did just that. This is the message of Grace. God, His Son, His word, it is not something for us to debate over. It is just what it is. It is meant to encourage us not to tear us apart. The evil one is the one that gets in your ear and bends it saying you can not believe in this Most High God for you are '_____' whatever he has labeled you. You must remember he is the father of lies. Protect yourself daily with the proper attire. Trust me what ever really is sin will begin to not feel right to you. You will be convicted by the voice of righteousness that reminds you that you are a holy redeemed saint, you are a child of God and you just simply will begin to know and recognize when you are walking in the flesh. You will begin to mature spiritually. It will happen. However if you put up walls and say that is not for me because I prefer this, well, in the flesh you will continue to walk until you take those walls down. It is a choice. You can talk Gospel and truth to a non believer until you are blue in the face and as it says in the bible, they are blind and deaf to it. It just does not penetrate. All you can do is pray for that person. That way when and if they should seek, others have already intervened on their behalf and it is my belief that they can instantly be 'blinded by the light' so to say. People really can and do change. When they become believers and followers of Christ, they simply become a new creation. You will witness their fruit. It becomes undeniable that they indeed are different. 

Like I said, it is wild Wednesday and I never know what the day will bring. We never do. One of my favorite things (laughing because there are too many favorites to count) is when God suggests that today has enough trouble of it's own so don't fret about tomorrow. Stay in the moment. Great advice. Today I encourage you to stay in the moment. Enjoy life. Seek God. Read a bit out of his word. Get hungry for it. It truly will pump you up and fuel your days and sustain you through the rough times. 

Father, today I pray more and more of us realize what that emptiness inside of them is. A call to come home. I pray that we begin to shake off this slumber and wake up fully. May we crave your word Father and thirst for your direction. Oh Father what a glorious Life we would all live were we to invite you into our lives. I know all you have done for me even when I had walls up Father and you amaze me. I understand the footprints picture even more today. Thank you for carrying me so many times. I am thankful that I have sought you for you are Faithful. It is true. All your promises are true. May countless brothers and sisters seek you Father. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Wendy, walks with God,

Mom of Many

© Wendy Glidden 2013

It's All in the Soundbite!

Tonight while working out at the YMCA I was trying to piece together what my next blog was supposed to be on. I have had so much flash across my head today. So many topics. I was climbing on the Olyptical (I think that's what it is called.) The machine says I'm climbing but I feel like I am jogging without impact. I like it a lot! Anyway, I was on the machine and I was talking to God as I often do these days. All of a sudden I heard "Be Still and Know that I am God". I thought I KNOW you are God. Why do I keep hearing this verse? And then it hit me like a ton of bricks. Knowing that He is God means knowing when it is Him speaking to me. I need to listen closer. It dawned on me, I recognize the voice of the enemy quicker than I recognize the voice of God!

This realization came at me so hard and quick I actually laughed out loud. How funny God must think I am. Takes some of us a little longer to hear what is being said! There is a big difference in hearing and listening. So now that I was focusing on listening and knowing when God was trying to tell me something, I voiced to God, "You have flashed so many things to me today. What am I to focus on? What is my next assignment?" I then heard, "It's all in the soundbite."

As I often do I questioned. . . is this me thinking about one of my favorite catch phrases at Glidden Fence? I tell someone every day, "You know, It's all in the soundbite." and then I'll explain a little deeper what I mean. This is usually brought up when talking about Cedar.

Again, I heard, "It's all in the soundbite." and then I had soundbites from the past that I no longer 'buy into' flashed to me. God was showing me some of the 'Lord of Air's' soundbites that had been whispered across my own mind just a few short months ago. And I was like, "Oh! Wow!! Right. You want me to share this again."

Next I heard "The Top Ten Soundbites God Wants To Share With You" and I thought, "Is that to be the title?" and again clear as day I heard the title of this Blog, "It's all in the Soundbite" and I saw the top 10 list as a subtitle inside this blog.

Again I laughed out loud. You see all my life my big dream has been to work for God. If you have read my story you know as a child I thought it would be awesome if He made me into a well known author. I reasoned I could be wealthy enough to change the world and how people felt about life and themselves.

Today, I AM working for God. I am thrilled every time one of my blogs receives 100 page views or more in one day. I am positive at least one of those 100 strangers have read something that resonates within them. I am simply a tool for the Holy Spirit to begin to work in others. Glory be to God! All you need for this to begin is to be open to taking a look into the word of God for yourself! I am not going to give the Devil his due by quoting his soundbites. I will simply say if it is not good and it is not from Love then chances are pretty darn good what you are hearing are the 'Lord of Air's' soundbites. I promise you they are lies! Recognize this for Truth. If you find yourself doubting what I proclaim, I challenge you to take a look at God's Top Ten Soundbites for yourself. Don't just look up the scripture I quote, give each one a thorough glance. Read before and read after. Read as long as the words make sense. You see, God's Word will leap off the pages at you. Like a good book that you can't put down. To understand that and know it as Truth, you will need to first pick it up!

Here are this weeks Top Ten Soundbites from Our Heavenly Father.

1.  Be Still and KNOW that I am God *Found in the book of  Psalms, Chapter 46 verse 10 **  Seriously         cool Chapter. I would advise reading the whole thing it's short but Wow!

2. Little children guard yourselves from idols * Found in the Book of 1st John, Chapter 5 verse 21     ** Again wild chapter. Worth reading!!

3. Beloved do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. * Found in the Book of The 3rd Epistle of  John, Chapter 1 verse 11   ** Sounds like common sense doesn't it?!?

4. The Thief comes in the middle of the night to steal and to kill and to destroy, BUT I CAME so that you may have life and have it abundantly.  * Found in the Book of John Chapter 10 verse 10. ** If that doesn't give you cause to take notice at what God has to offer you, I honestly don't know what will!

5. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and Lean not on your own understanding  * Found in the Book of Proverbs, Chapter 3 verse 5 ** This was my scripture for last year. It really helped me.

6. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.  * Found in the Book of Hebrews, Chapter 13, verse 2

7. Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. * Found in the Book of Philippians Chapter 4, verse 8

8. Grace to you  and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  * Found in the Book 1st Corinthians, Chapter 1 verse 3

9. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you Free from the law of sin and of death.  * Found in the Book of Romans, Chapter 8, verse 2. ** Romans is an awesome Book!

10. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus. * Found in the book of Philippians Chapter 2 verse 5

I don't know about you but I personally think those are some fabulous soundbites. Worthy of one's attention. I am 100% positive no harm will come to you should you do a little reading on each one of these soundbites! What you gain from it is up to you!

Tonight my prayer is that more people who have never given God an honest chance will begin to open themselves up to the Word of God. I pray that more and more and more people looking for an answer to their purpose turn to the one book that has been around longer than all of the self help books ever published. If you are looking for "the key" tonight I pray you find yourself a study bible and invest a little time in learning what God has to say about life here on earth and how to survive the death trap. Today I pray for the seeds of Hope, may they land on fertile ground. I thank you Father for all the blessings you have bestowed upon me. I thank you for allowing me to be a tool in your hands. I thank you for allowing me to witness your never ending love for others. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

Wendy, Mom of Many


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Wild Wacky Wonderful Weds! Boy is it Ever!!

Good Morning Everyone! Today is Wild Wacky Wonderful Wednesday and boy is it ever! March 13th and I walked out the door into a mini snowflake snow storm! Is that groundhog wacky or what? Little prankster. . . gotta admit these last couple of year the weather has been interesting . . . with all the computer technology our forecasters get it wrong . . . what makes us so interested in where this guys shadow falls?

This month I have something going on every night. Tonight I get the honor of hanging out with the incredible Brenda E Taylor. It is our 4th meeting! Brenda created an online Group called The Journey of Women. We are not big yet but we are dedicated to making a difference. This is our Facebook page. http://www.facebook.com/groups/274161102711294/ She has a mission in mind. If you are a woman in any walk of life looking for a place to make lifelong true-blue friends we invite you to join us tonight for dinner and conversation! All I know is it’s on US 40 on the East side and we are meeting at this AWESOME Mexican restaurant. The food is delicious and the company will be downright real.

Guess this is kind of a long status post but today is going to take me by storm and I intend to ride it out calmly . . . who knows if I’ll get back to facebook today so . . .If you have nothing else to do but watch TV, why not come out and join us? For information either friend Brenda or message me or like her page and leave a message!

** This was my status update today on facebook. STATUS UPDATE . . . I think I issue news bulletins! I really am excited about meeting with Brenda again this month. She is down to earth. I was drawn to her the first time we sat in a meeting for Christian Women's Business Connection. The leader of that group is Cathy Padgett. She is my life coach! I love her. She prays for me and motivates me to reach for the stars. She is the one who helped me capture the negative soundtrack loop that was playing out in my head daily. I promise you, life changes when you put a little focus on the thoughts that whisper across your brain during the day. I look back over the last 6 months and I am left grinning. 

You see, I have stepped so far out of my comfort zone it has completely changed my life and everything about it. It was the spark that started the flywheel. If you are unhappy with one element of your life I encourage you to get more active in your life.  Do something that will draw you out of your shell. I admit it going to places where a lot of busy people are frightens the heck out of me. I don't even know why. Once I get settled in I'm fine. I have figured out that being me is perfectly okay. I like myself. Why wouldn't others? 

I'm not sure where this confident Wendy has been over the years but I'm happy she found her source of strength again! Yes, I did talk in 3rd person ha ha . . . sometimes it's just the best way to get the point across at how even you notice a difference in yourself . . . almost as if before you were hanging out with a different person. 

** As promised, here is the update on my YMCA experience: I am excited. Amazing how less overwhelming a facility becomes once you have the full tour and understand how and where everything is. The place is endless and the rooms for my children to access are rocking! I have two hours of childcare available every day except Sunday. I was absolutely elated again last night. I was promised a wellness assessment by next week which include setting up a workout plan for myself as well as an explanation on how to use the machines! Even cooler my information gets plugged into this program and the machines are tied into it so that I keep an actual true log of my activity! Oh yea, a little accountability never hurt anyone! Last night I walked on the treadmill for 1/2 an hour again. It's the only machine I have braved. Monday I walked 1.3 miles and last night I walked 1.4 miles. Even cooler, I was more relaxed last night and even managed how to figure out how to input my weight into the machine so it calculated how many calories I burned! After my walk and cool down I went over to the subway inside the Y and ate a tuna sandwich loaded with spinach, onions, black olives, tomatoes, banana peppers and jalapenos. Yum! Then I changed into my swimsuit and went to the Hot Tub. The jets are so powerful I'm telling you it's heavenly. 

I have a busy day ahead of me . . . I've been slammed via the phones so I apologize if this is a little jumbled. I write as I think . . . you never know what you are going to get! I have been getting flashes of memories the last couple of days so I know I am being prepared to continue on my story and enter the dark ages once and for all. 

Today I pray you step out of your comfort zone in some way. I pray it starts a spark that fires a flywheel of movement for you. I pray that you put yourself out there for honest friendship possibilities. I pray that you become more active in multiple ways. I pray you begin to enjoy life and see the beauty in living it to the fullest. I pray you draw closer to God and lean upon his strength. I pray you too realize there is no cause for fear. Our God is bigger than anything! I pray you begin to see the beauty in your life and you begin to give thanks. Today I also pray for all believers of Christ. I pray We step up and get active in spreading the good news. We can't do that closed up inside hiding our light from the world. I pray all believers wake up and get in motion. Today I thank Our Heavenly Father for so many blessings He has bestowed upon me and all the blessings yet to come my way. I love my life. I know my purpose. I plan on enjoying my mission and I'm so thankful that I was chosen for this life. What an incredible life it has been thus far. Thank you Father. In Jesus name I pray,

Wendy, Mom of Many


Copyright © 2013 Wendy L Glidden. All Rights Reserved.