6:33 Is the Directive

This morning, I suddenly awoke before the alarm to see the clock scream 6:33 am. Tired and unambitious about getting up, I rolled over. But the Lord struck my heart for the next hour with Matthew 6:33 repeating over and over again in my mind.

"Matthew 6:33," I thought. "Lord, what is that verse?" I know that verse, but what is it? When I finally dragged myself to the coffee pot an hour later, and then stumbled into my chair, I opened my Bible to find Matt 6:33,

"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

Ahh. Yes, the whole passage has been on my radar screen over the past few weeks and been brought into a understanding by the teaching of the Holy Spirit. It is in the section of Jesus admonishing to not worry, especially about what we will eat or drink or wear -- to trust God to provide! To have faith! Jesus clearly directs us to seek His kingdom -- a question my husband and our small group have been discussing for months. What is God's kingdom on earth? How do we seek it? While we didn't walk away with conclusive answers, we all felt that seeking the Kingdom means loving the way Jesus does those that we have contact with and sharing the Gospel with others.

Extravagant Grace has been a wonderful place for me to do that over the past year. It is something I want to continue doing, but the Lord is clearly showing me that the Kingdom work He has in store for this season is in the flesh and not through the internet. It makes sense, in a way. I was mostly homebound for the past three years with the twins, but as they have grown, we have been getting out more and doing more with friends. Now is the season to re-emerged with my community and church, and invest in the people that need to hear the Gospel right before my eyes -- first and foremost, my children, their friends, our extended family, our school community, our local community, and those at my church.

While the whole picture is not painted together in my understanding, I am choosing to trust God and walk in obedience. The lump in my throat for months over this is just confirmation of my mounting rebellion toward the Lord, and I don't want to continue in that regard. Plus, the counsel I've sought, all supporters of EG, also feel it is wise to obey God and sense this direction as well.

I am still struggling, however, with the investment of time I've already made at EG. I wonder, too what will happen to Designs by Elisa (as in, does God want me to lay that down, too?), and most of all, what about 8 in 2008? I don't want to just let that go, but I have to trust God to provide in this matter. My heart's desire to pass the hosting on to one of the participants. If you are interested, please email me (extragrace at gmail dot com) or leave a comment. I would be honored and blessed to give this to a woman that has been touched by the endeavor and excited about offering it to others for the remainder of the year.

I can not believe I am writing this post. It was never in my wildest dreams that EG would be put on permanent hiatus, but that is the case. I hope and pray that one day, the Lord would, by His grace, allow me to return. I trust Him for the outcome no matter what. Please join me in giving Him the glory and praise.

Thank you for all your support and encouragement over the year. It has been a privilege to know you and be inspired by how the Lord has worked in each one of your lives as revealed through your blogs. Be blessed, extravagantly, and seek the kingdom of God first in all that you do.

Love, in Christ alone,

Where am I?

Well, I am here, in a lovely new house that is suiting our family just perfectly. I see God's blessing every day. Thank you Lord! We're still settling in, although that has been put a bit on hold as our school year is beginning. I spent three hours last night merging everyone's calender, trying to figure out how my schedule will play out this new school year.

Praise the Lord that my commitments involve helping teach my daughters' Sunday school class and continuing with Women with a Mission, as well as leadership at church. My husband and I will get some good time together, as we open our home seven times to share our "Love & Respect" DVDs and continue to host our small group twice a month, too. He's the driving force behind that and I am glad to support him. So, as my priorities are to care for my family and share God's grace with others, I see God bringing those things together in an inter-related and exciting way.

The one piece that doesn't seem to have a place at this time is Extravagant Grace, or the joy of jumping around to other blogs, especially while the kids are home. I'm not ready yet to call this season at EG done, but I don't foresee being around much for the rest of this month. I'll be back for 8 in 2008 in September, as that endeavor provides much provide much accountability for living intentionally. I hope to see you then!

Blessings, extravagantly,

8 in 2008: August Check-In Time

Psalm 37:4

Delight yourself in the LORD and
he will give you the desires of your heart.

This month will be a quickie update, as I am on vacation and preparing for my daughter's birthday tomorrow. In a nutshell, I am thankful for this month, grateful for this life, and feel God's mercy and grace in any effort I put toward living intentionally for Him. I pray the same for you, as well!

1. To keep before me a theme the Lord has put on my heart to Live like Romans 12:1 declares, to Love the 1 Cor 13:4-7 way, and to Laugh as did the woman in Proverbs 31:25. To learn more about this theme, click here!

Last month, I decided that I really needed to refocus on this "Live, Love, Laugh" theme, but I can't say that that has been the case. Instead, I found myself declaring, usually at the point of tears, that "I feel like a square peg in a round world. I just don't roll like everyone wants me to." God, however, used the difficult moments to show me that offering my life as a living sacrifice, loving like Jesus, and laughing at the days to come needs the real moments of trials as a part of the training process. I'm learning, slowly, and feeling a sense of God's presence in the process.

2. Host 8 new people (either new friends and/or their families) to my home for coffee or a meal!

Does feeding over 30 on our moving day count? Probably not, especially since feeding our friends and family a thank you for their huge blessing of helping us and my dear friend was the one to make a fantastic tuna salad to accompany the delivered pizza pies!

3. On the 8th of every month, I'll pray for 8 people whom I care for deeply and have yet to know the Lord.

Yes. Oh, Lord Jesus, become their Savior today!

4. Memorize 8 verses, which is so hard for me! These are the first five I know the Lord wants me to know backwards and forwards: Rom 12:1, Eph 5:33 amp, 1 Cor 13:4-7, Pro 31:25, 2 Cor 10:5, added Phil 2:13, Phil 2:1-4, added Ephesians 5:21

This month has been spent revisiting verses, like Psalm 46:10 and Phil 4:6. Plus Isaiah 43:18-19,which I wrote about in Streams in the Wasteland, will have a permanent placeholder in my heart.

5. Read thru Bible in a year, not giving up no matter how far behind we fall. I say "we" because we're doing this as a family--the girls are sure to keep us in line!

We haven't read at all in the past few weeks. We've been in the Word through morning devotions and Scripture readings, but haven't kept up with our year plan. We hope to get back to it when we return from vacation.

6. Get all photos updated ~ my goal is at least 8 pages per month, even if it means scrapping the scrapbooking in order to get caught up!

Done!

7. Be able to run 8 laps by October.

Oh, bummer! I completely lost ground this month, having not been on the treadmill since mid June. The move really rocked my routine, for longer than I expected, and my back took a toll, too! But the benefits of working out 5 days a week is still fresh in my mind and I am committed to getting back to it this month!

8. Weigh _ _ 8 by July 8th! And keep it off rest of year! The process is all about submitting to the Lord, which really is the desire of my heart!

I have no idea what I weigh. My clothes are baggy on me, but I need to get on the scale again. My goal for next month is to be two pounds from my goal, to drink more water, and limit the sweet indulgences to half of what I partake of!

Thanks for taking the time to read my update. Be sure to link up your post using Mister Linky. I so look forward to reading your posts! Here's the link to the first post, for those that would like to read about the purpose of 8 in 2008. It is never too late to start!

Remember our commitment, too -- We'll praise Him no matter what, for the successes and for the lessons learned. We'll walk in His extravagant grace and begin again with His mercies that are new every morning!

This month, join with me in taking Isaiah 43:18-19 forward as our word of assurance from the Lord,

Forget the former things;
do not dwell on the past.
See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the desert and
streams in the wasteland.

Blessings and love in Christ,

8 in 2008 is this week!

My friends, 8 in 2008 for August is this coming Friday! Yikes! I've been falling behind on the dates, as it is already the 4th today. So check out your lists and offer an update, even if it is just a "Hello, I'm still living, breathing, and trying to live intentionally!"

I'm on vacation with my family and about to leave the kids with nana and auntie so that I can take a three day get-a-away with my husband. I think I'll barely be able to squeak out my update post for Friday, too!

Blessings, my friends!

To God be the glory for all that is good in our lives!

P.S. Thanks for all the wonderful and encouraging comments to my Streams in the Wasteland post. I've felt the hugs and prayers!