Where Would You Go to Meet God?

Hi there Bon Mot readers!! I'm Lauren from Living By Faith and it's a joy and honor to be a guest blogger while Sarah's on her trip - I'm thrilled to be with you today! : ) I thought long and hard about to write and I confess that I came up blank for awhile. That is, until Sunday, when I heard one sentence in the sermon that stopped me in my tracks and struck a chord in my heart.

"He meets us in places where we think He is not."

Where would you go if you wanted to get away and spend time in the presence of the Lord? Would it be the living room couch with a cup of tea and your Bible? Would it be a quiet bench in the park with birds chirping and the distance sound of children laughing? What about the church you grew up in, would it be there? When we think about all the places we could go to meet with God they are usually quiet, peaceful, serene, wonderful places that bring us happiness. There is nothing wrong with that - that's a good thing! But, I have found (as have many others) that God is with us in the times when we never expect Him to be. It's those times of extremity when we think He can't possibly be in that situation...

Like the night I got home from the hospital after losing our first baby. Despair doesn't begin to cover what I felt as I lay in bed. I begged God to show me He cared and to give me something to get me through. I opened my Bible and the pages fell to Isaiah 54:10 "Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed," says the Lord who has compassion on you." In that moment I knew He was there. I was in His presence.

Or how about that horrible day when our foster children were taken back to their parents? I went through the motions of packing their things while they took their nap. They woke up just 10 minutes before the social worker arrived and we sat on the coach with them trying to explain and love on them. As we buckled them into their car-seats in the back of that van Avery looked up at my tear streaked face and said, "it's okay - Jesus with me when I go bye bye car." He was just 2 years old. The van drove out of sight and took my boys away from me forever I sobbed in the front yard... but God was in the backseat of that van... as impossible as that seemed.

I've gone through many experiences and been in so many places in life that I never wanted to be. I've wondered, how can I praise God in this? How can I worship in this experience? But then God shows up, and in His presence it suddenly doesn't seem so difficult to sing praises to my Father... it just seems right. It's that moment with Jesus that makes all the suffering worthwhile... 

I have asked God for a mountain top experience and there I assume I will meet Him. But instead here I am... and here is God... with me in the painful, difficult moments... with me when I never thought I'd find Him... with me when it's hard...

Change the world tuesday: Feed My Starving Children

I’m Cole over at lettersfromcoco. Sarah Ann kindly asked me to write a guest post for today and being that I simply love her sweet blog I said yes. And even better she asked me to write on a Tuesday. Sarah Ann’s Tuesday posts have inspired me so much. It’s really a breath of fresh air to see someone filled with so much compassion for hurting people, that she’s not only talking about it but out there right now serving. Thanks for asking me to share Sarah Ann. Praying for you this week.

Charities that have to do with saving children always touch my heart. As a mother of two small boys I can’t even imagine what it must be like to not have the resources to feed them. My mind can’t fathom what it must be like to watch children die of starvation. I know that may sound harsh but the truth is children are dying every single day because they don’t have food to eat. We are so fortunate that we live in a country where we will never have to witness such extremities first hand, but that doesn’t give us an excuse to not do something about it.

Feed my starving children is one of many non-profit organizations out there saving children around the world. They have volunteers that hand-pack special nutritional meals and ship them out to nearly 70 countries. Just $1 will feed five children. That’s 19 cents a meal. I bet every single one of us has that hiding under our couch cushions.

It’s too easy to get absorbed in the culture around us that we forget that people all over the world desperately need us. We show tangible love in how we take care of people who are suffering and need help. Think about what you could give up this week and instead give that money towards feeding someone who is starving. Maybe a trip to McDonalds, or one cup of coffee?

For more information on how you can help visit here.

(photos found here)

true love

I wanted to be a wife as far back as I can remember.  I wanted a man that would tell me how beautiful I was and how much he loved me. I wanted to make him dinner and vacuum a house and iron his clothes for him.  I wanted to cuddle on the couch.
I had really high expectations of love and marriage.  I longed for an intense commitment that got me heartbroken before I found my husband.
I blame my parents.

Today is their anniversary, I'm sure that whatever they do will be romantic, no matter how simple or inexpensive.
I'm so thankful for their weird PDAs my whole life, and for the way that my dad just dotes on my mom.  I love the way you would walk around the corner and he'd be chasing after her in the kitchen.  I love their openness with how cute they think the other one is.
I also love their shared goals.  They love people and dedicate their life to them.  They have taught us so much about selflessness.
I also blame them for my wonderful view of marriage.  And for my desire to stick everything out.  And for my second-nature to run toward God for answers.

They're my heroes.

anticipating...

1. Lunch with my friend Chelsie.  She's wonderful.

(doing her hair on her wedding day last July)

2. Hanging out with an awesome couple for coffee tonight.

3. Deciding where to move next (apartment-wise).  Our lease is up in August, and unless we buy a house (doubtful) then we will just move to a bigger apartment!  I can't wait!  I'll post pictures when we move in...

4. The mission trip that is 3 days away.  I can't wait. God is going to do some awesome things.

5. Buying mexican vanilla (or should I say vainilla) while we are down there.  If you have a chance, get some.  The authentic stuff is the best.

6. A giveaway that might come around at the return of my trip.  You'll just have to wait and see.

7. Last, but definitely not least, I can't wait to go to Barnes & Noble today.  In the past 4 days, I've read through two books already.  I'm eating up the time I'm getting to spend on fun reading.  I should do reviews on the ones I read.  I just finished this one yesterday:

Change the World Tuesday: Voice of the Martyrs

Thanks to my real-life/blog friend, Carissa's suggestion, this week's feature is:

Voice of the Martyrs.

It's hard to imagine that there are real-life, Bible-like Martyrs for the faith in modern times, but they are very real.  Voice of the Martyrs focuses on bringing attention to the atrocities committed against Christians all around the world, and connecting them to Christians here.  Here is a recent video that attests to an specific attack on Christians in Nigeria:

The great thing about this organization is that there are numerous opportunities for you to get involved.  You can: 

pray for the people,

write to the prisoners, 

give to the ministry,

volunteer short-term or long-term,

or just learn about the cause and spread the word.

I want to be a part of my brothers and sisters across the world.  What courage and boldness to preach Christ, no matter what the cost.  What better way to have unity and harmony with Christ's body?

Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. (Philippians 2:1-2)

Again, please send any ideas for Change the World Tuesdays to sarahannsbonmot@gmail.com.