A Cup of Tea With Me

Many of you know I work in the mall, in a kiosk in the middle of the mall. What many of you do not know is that I am close to one of the busiest entrances to the mall and there is a ton of foot traffic passing almost every day.

There is something about this location that attracts people. I do not know what it is. I do know that the hand of God is on this location, because I have had some of the most amazing religious experiences there. I was saved in that location. The Holy Spirit entered my life and has blessed me dramatically there. When I think about that day, I can still think of the depression lifting and the Holy Spirit filling me. It is amazing. The man that stopped and talked to me was a spanish charismatic evangelist, who was also active in prison ministry. I know that God sent Eli into my life at just the right time.

A few months ago, a man came up to me and asked me if I believed in Christ. I gave him a hearty “YES!” with a sparkle in my eye. He asked me what church I went to, and when I told him I attended a Baptist church, he asked me if I spoke in tongues. When I told him I did not he tried to convince me that I was not saved. When I told him that I knew without a doubt that I was, and described to him my experience, he agreed that he may be wrong and that I might be able to be saved without speaking in tongues. He also said “Well, we will find out, if I see you in heaven or not.” and left. While irritated at first, I had to begrudgingly admire his willingness to step outside th box and talk to people about their faith.

Ok, now we are up to last week: There was a family that was hanging around my kiosk for about an hour and a half. Being at a major intersection, I thought that maybe they were just waiting on someone. At one point the dad sat down. The mom and the grown daughter both put their hands on him. I assumed that he was not feeling well.

A little while later, the dad walked up and started asking me about the pecans. Nothing unusual about that. He then asked me about the cross on my hat. I tell him that it is a symbol of my faith, blah blah blah. He asks me about my church, I tell him I attend Central Baptist Church. He proceeds to tell me he is a pentecostal. I get hesitant to continue a conversation with him because the guy I mentioned earlier was pentecostal. I tell him my views on denominations, so that he knows where I stand and that he is not going to change my mind that I am going to heaven. Here is the shocking part. He agreed with me! My jaw dropped.

Anyway, he tells me I have 3 children. I go to correct him, but then I think of Morgan and tell him, “Sort of. Two boys and an angel in heaven. ” He tells me that he has the gift of prophecy, and that he feels there is a message I need to hear, but it is just not coming to him. Yeah, I know he is fishing, but I am intrigued by this point.

I tell him about my husband’s faith, thinking that is what it is. He talks to me about it. Then he says “I sense you nag at him a lot about going to church.” I called him on that one. Pointed out what Peter says about showing our faith with our actions, not our nagging. He graciously admitted he was wrong.

He tells me to get anointing oil and anoint the walls of my house, while praying. He also tells me to anoint my husband’s head, while he is sleeping and pray, asking the Holy Spirit to fill him. **Honestly, I feel like that is manipulating the situation. **

Then just before he leaves he says, “You are in a unique place to witness to people. You are set aside to do mighty work for the Kingdom.” My jaw dropped.

I do not know what part of my life he is saying is in a unique place. I thought he meant the mall, but I am not 100% certain of that. I just know that his message, much like Eli’s came to me at just the right time. I do not know where God is leading me, but I know I am ready for the journey.

I will admit, if he is talking about me staying in the mall, I just might cry. I want out of retail so badly, and to be honest, the retail hours are hurting my family.

So, here is the start of yet another spiritual journey.

Good morning! My day got off with a good reading and some blogging. How about yours?

1) Refresh your spirit:
Today I read my Thursday reading of “Light of The World” in Praying the Names of Jesus.

Matthew 5:14-16 (NASB):
¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;
¹⁵ nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.
¹⁶ “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

Philippians 2:14-16 (NASB):
¹⁴ Do all things without grumbling or disputing;
¹⁵ so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world,
¹⁶holding fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain.

These are the verses that I will be meditating on today, as I go about my day, looking to Him to guide my path.

2) Take Time to Plan
I work today, so my planning will be centered around that.

• Work
• Buy dishwasher detergent that I forgot at the grocery store yesterday
• Pick up the living room
• Finish my last load of laundry from yesterday
• Do one load of laundry from today
• Pay bills
• Buy that last gift for Christmas
• Make the returns that need made
• Clean the bathroom

For dinner tonight we are having Cube Steak and Mac & Cheese. I know it is not a “fancy” dinner, but Hubby loves it, and that is what matters.

3) Do Something!
Today’s “Do Something!” is to maintain the rooms we have cleaned and to clean the bathrooms. I will just be able to pick up the bathrooms and clean the toilet in the boys bathroom. I am not sure I will have time to do the rest of the bathrooms, but I will certainly try.

I will not be home most of the day to mark things off the list as I finish them. I will update this when I get the chance.

God bless you all and have a great day, making your home a haven for your family. Stop by and see Crystal for more details on this challenge.

Over at Faith Filled Wives, I am sharing a 30 day challenge on encouraging our husbands, written by Nancy Leigh DeMoss of Revive Our Hearts. I thought I would blog my personal challenge here, so that you all would know I was doing the challenge, too.

Today’s challenge is:

Day One:
“The heart of her husband safely trusts her; so he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil all the days of her life.” Prov. 31:11-12

To refresh your memory . . . here’s the 30-Day Encouragement Challenge: for the next 30 days:

• You can’t say anything negative about your husband . . . to your husband . . . or to anyone else, about your husband.
• Say something that you admire or appreciate about your husband. . . to your husband . . . and to someone else, about your husband!

To help you get started, have you ever thanked your husband for “choosing you” above all other women? He found you attractive as a person, and appreciated you. Though many circumstances in your marriage may have changed, let your husband know that you are glad God led you together, and that you want to be a blessing to him for the rest of your marriage. Let him know that he can trust you to be in his corner.

One of the best opportunities to express your gratitude is first thing in the morning. How do you greet your husband each morning? Is he confident in your love? Give him a “wake up call” that he’ll never forget-a big “I love you” and an “I’m so glad I’m your wife!”

© Revive Our Hearts. Used with permission. www.ReviveOurHearts.com. Info@ReviveOurHearts.com.

I have been guilty of sharing negative things about my husband. I need this challenge as much as the next person does. However, with the main part of the challenge being “have you ever thanked your husband for “choosing you” above all other women?” oddly enough, I do that on a very regular basis. I love that he chose me over the other women that he could have. I tell him often what it means to me to be the one that he chose to spend his life with.

My Beloved is a good man. I am honored to be his wife and want to make sure that he knows it every day for the rest of our lives.

I thought I would list as many reasons as I can think of, in 2 min that I love my husband:

1. He is kind
2. He is loving
3. He is romantic (When he wants to be)
4. He is a good husband
5. He is a good father
6. He loves me.
7. He is a good man
8. I can trust him
9. He hates lies
10. He is sexy
11. He has beautiful eyes
12. He has a cute butt *blush*
13. He is a good provider for our family
14. He cares about what happens to us
15. He is patient
16. He is understanding
17. He forgave me when I messed up
18. He trusts me
19. He trusts our boys
20. His parents raised him well.
21. I have great in-laws.
22. He is generous
23. He is a good brother in law to my sister, who needs all the support she can get right now.

I know there is a ton more, but I am out of time.

Happy Valentine’s Day, Love!