A Little Background

I grew up in Oklahoma and worked my way through college at a great Law Firm. After graduating with a B.A. in Criminal Justice, I moved to Alaska where I worked as a Transport Officer via bush plane flying between the Kenai Peninsula and Anchorage transporting incarcerated offenders to and from court appearances and correctional facilities. 

I reluctantly left Alaska in 1996 and returned to Oklahoma. I met my husband, Mike, shortly thereafter. It was a once in a lifetime storybook romance! A year later we eloped to Hawaii and got married barefoot on Anaeho'omalu Beach on the Big Island! 

We love to travel and we've been very blessed to spend time in Niagra Falls, Washingtonn State, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Alaska, Missouri, and Canada. We are so grateful to have spent a lot of time scuba diving in Puget Sound, British Columbia and Cozumel. 

We moved to Oahu in 1998 where I taught scuba on Hickam Air Force Base. Mike and I also started our own business at that time. You can learn more about our businesses at this link: www.starterman.com In 2005, we moved to Missouri where I attended Life Christian University. In 2010 we moved back to Hawaii. 

I am involved in various operations of our businesses on Oahu, Maui, Big Island & Kauai; however, my priority is home school. God continues to bless us in all areas of our lives!

Straight Ahead!

I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. Let all who are spiritually mature agree on these things. If you disagree on some point, I believe God will make it plain to you. But we must hold on to the progress we have already made. (Philippians 3:12-16 NLT)

For Christmas, we bought a pair of remote control cars for our girls. They've had a great time buzzing their dolls all over the house in their miniature convertibles.

I was watching them play when I noticed, the cars whiz around in forward but in reverse they get slow down substantially and spin their wheels.

I thought, that is exactly why God tells us to forget the past and press on to what lies ahead! He doesn't want us getting tripped and spin our wheels.

In Proverbs 4:25-27, He tells us:

• Look straight ahead!
• Fix our eyes on what lies before us!
• Mark out a straight path for our feet!
• Stay on the safe path!
• Don’t get sidetracked!
• Keep your feet from following evil!

• Look! Look where? Straight ahead! (Not deviating from what is usual or expected.)
• Fix! Fix what? And where? We must fasten our physical and spiritual eyes securely on what lies before us!
• Mark out! We must set boundaries to and delimit everything that keeps our feet from a straight path!
• Stay! Stay where? In His Word!
• Purposefully refuse to be sidetracked. Let's pause for a moment. At times, it can be seemingly minor circumstances that side tracks us. (Solomon 2:15) A cranky kiddo, a rude comment on Facebook, computer problems. Trust me, this month, I know all about computer problems. It is critical for us to immediately recognize when we are tempted to get sidetracked and fix our eyes on the things that are eternal, thank Him for progress, and keep our feet from evil!

Wow, His goodness never ceases to amaze me. He tells us how to map out our daily life! He has given us everything we need for life and godliness! (2 Peter 1:3)

My prayer for every reader today is to immediately recognize when we are tempted to get sidetracked, then immediately get back on track looking straight ahead and fixing our eyes on Him! I pray we purposefully mark out our path, setting boundaries that keep us on His straight path, in the name of Jesus!

Please say this out loud and make it your confession with me today
We are not looking back, we are pressing on and praising Him for the progress we've made!

Outside the Hedge

Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)

Over the past month, Mike and I have been bombarded with a lot of “stuff”. Thankfully, all of which has been indirect through work, extended family, and close friends. We’ve helped with divorce court, child custody, and we also had to replace a manager, which was long overdue but never easy.

And although none of it directly affects us (our children or our marriage…thank God) the "stuff” affects us indirectly and has a very real impact.

Mike came home about an hour early from work yesterday. Our girls were outside playing so we put everything aside, actually sat down together and really talked. As I listened to Mike, I thought, we haven’t done this in almost two months….how DID that happen?!

My day was very uneventful (praise God!) so it didn’t take long for me to catch him up. He had quite a bit more to deal with than I and as I sat listening to him I thought, “He looks so tired.” And not the kind of tired that a quick nap would alleviate but weary, the type of weary from carrying heavy burdens.

We love our extended family, close friends and the people we work with (employees, customers,and suppliers alike). When we love people, we mourn when they mourn. (Romans12:15) We have a heart to help others and we praise God for allowing us to be light in dark places. (Matthew 5:16) But we have to be mindful to not allow the enemy to distort gifts God has placed in us and become imbalanced; thus, robbing us and others of those gifts. (John 10:10, 1 Peter 4:10)

We threw together a very easy dinner and went to bed early. At 4:00 a.m. God woke me up and said, “You’ve got to get back inside the hedge.” (Psalm 91)

THANK YOUFATHER!

• Thank God there is a hedge!
• Thank God for telling me to get back inside the hedge!
• Thank God for showing me how to get back inside the hedge!
• Renew our thoughts and attitudes with His Word! (Ephesians 4:23)
• Stay in His will! (1 Thessalonians 5:18) 
• Rest in Him!(Matthew 11:28)

My prayer for every reader today is to stay in the hedge! Protect your heart and mind and stay close to the vine bearing much good fruit, in the name of Jesus! 

(Proverbs 4:23, John 15:5)

911

For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways. (Psalm 91:11, NKJV)

Yesterday, I had a lengthy conversation with my oldest child, Cortni. She was with her youngest child who was home from preschool because she had been sick the night before. We made Christmas plans and plans for an upcoming shower we are giving for our friend. 

During our conversation, my phone battery ran down so I plugged in my phone and turned it off to charge. While my phone charged, I gathered things together to take my youngest children for an afternoon on the beach. Suddenly, God dropped in my spirit, “Pray for your kids.” I immediately prayed for all my kids.

Once I turned my phone back on, Cortni told me after she and I had gotten off the phone, she heard someone attempt to open her door by rattling the door knob. Thankfully, the door was locked.

Cortni ran to the baby’s room. Not wanting to overreact, she called Ryan thinking it may be him coming home from school and maybe he forgot his house key. But it wasn’t him, he was at an appointment. He hung up and immediately dialed 911. Cortni heard the door rattle again.

Thank God for the police department!

Thankfully the police arrived very quickly. While she was waiting, she received two phone calls from dispatch insuring she was ok. The police interviewed the neighbors but wasn’t able to find the person who tried to enter Cortni’s home.

Cortni and I discussed what possibly turned the would be intruder away. I said, “I would not be surprised if the person was met by a huge warrior angel!”

She said, “Funny you say that. When I went to bed, I had to control my thoughts on a serious level. I fell asleep with a vision of angels surrounding my house with their arms linked together not allowing any space between them to let anything in.”

Praise God for providing us with our very own angelic security system!

It's Too Late...

It’s better to have a partner than go it alone. Share the work, share the wealth. And if one falls down, the other helps, But if there’s no one to help, tough! (Ecclesiastes 4:9, MSG)

This morning I took a long walk on the beach. When I ran out of beach, I extended my walk along a rock wall on the ocean. The wall was approximately three feet in height and had been built to keep the surf from washing up on the park. The big surf rolled in and hit the wall sending big splashes over the rock wall leaving puddles of water along the path.

On the path, I saw a fish that had been caught up in the rough surf and thrown over the wall as the surf rolled in. I walked up to the fish, planned to pick him up and throw him back over the wall into the water. But I was too late to save the fish. He had been out of the water too long. He had most likely jumped and flopped but was unable to get himself back in the water because the rock wall was too tall. And he had no one to help him.

I envisioned the process that landed him in his predicament. I had a mental image of him as the rough water caught up in the surf, and threw him over the wall.

It occurred to me, at times, we get caught up in processes that land us in predicaments. The water of life gets rough, we get caught up in storms and rough “surf”, and at times, we get thrown over the wall and we are a "fish out of water"!

Thank God for the praying friends He places in our lives to help us up when storms of life toss us around! They come alongside us and help when we fall down!

Today, my prayer for you is to be surrounded by friends who lock into covenant with you and weather the storm through to victory so that you are never a fish out of water!

Life Changing!

Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you. (Luke 6:38, NKJV)

Tuesday, I was given the amazing opportunity to volunteer at SpiritFM during their annual fundraiser, Days of Glory.

I started listening to SpiritFM in 2005 when my family initially moved to the Lake of the Ozarks. We had moved to a new town and I had not had time to make new friends. I was home alone all day with an infant and a toddler.

We attended Walk on Water Faith Church and someone mentioned the Christian Radio Station, SpiritFM who advertises they are “Life Changing Radio”. I tuned in and immediately found that to be true.

The transition from Hawaii to Missouri was a very difficult one for me. Some days, without family and friends near, the days at home with two little ones could be very long. Some days, there was a lot of crying going on…some days, that crying was mine!

I was at a turning point in my life. I had just truly began to understand relationship over religion and I had many questions regarding faith. I started playing SpiritFM 24/7. It was this radio station and their staff who helped feed me spiritually during that transition. God mightily used SpiritFM to change my life. During the day and oftentimes during the night while awake with one or both of my little ones, a phrase from a song, or a teaching, or something a SpiritFM DJ would say strongly impacted me. The staff and volunteers at SpiritFM became my friends and family, a source of support and encouragement.

As my children, grew an amazing thing happened. They quoted what they heard on SpiritFM! They repeated the songs and pretended to be SpiritFM disk jockeys!

Once I saw the impact of this radio station on me, my husband and my little girls, we started playing SpiritFM on our boat dock through outside speakers so we could plant good seeds in boaters! Everyone who drove their boat past our house heard SpiritFM, day and night!

We also started playing SpiritFM at our business locations and witnessed amazing changes. One employee in particular, was going through a very difficult time. He had been on antidepressants for years. After listening to SpiritFM for 8-10 hours per day, he started saying things like, “I am blessed and God bless you!” Soon thereafter, he was taken off the antidepressants! He often told me how having a workplace playing SpiritFM for their customers and employees really blessed and changed his life!

After witnessing the positive impact of SpiritFM on my family and those around me, Mike and I decided it was time for us to give back. We made a pledge to financially support SpiritFM. Our initial pledge was $15.00 per month, which at the time, we thought would be a challenge because we had moved a family of four from Hawaii, started a new business and had just built a new house. But, you know what? God was always faithful to provide the amount of the pledge and even more. SpiritFM is a ministry we believe in because we see the fruit in our lives as well as the lives of everyone who listens.

SpiritFM sows into our lives in a powerful way. In return, we sow into SpiritFM who is not just a Christian radio station but also available for teachings, prayer and encouragement. It’s a true partnership!

Even though we have moved away from the Lake area, we continue to listen to and support SpiritFM via their website at www.spiritfm.org.

Please do me a huge favor. Listen to SpiritFM at their website and consider making a pledge to support them. I believe as you give, it will be given unto you good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom!

Your Race is Set!

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, (Hebrews 12:1 NKJV)

I read this scripture today and I saw something I've never seen before. 

"the race that is SET BEFORE us" Does this mean, we aren't just haphazardly bouncing from place to place but we have a race that He has set before us? 

What happens "in the natural" when a race is "set"? The Ironman was just completed on the Big Island. The Ironman is one big race! I've never been involved in setting a race so I am unsure of what all goes on behind the scenes prior to race day. I do know, for the Ironman,  there are parades, community events, highway and street closures, road blocks manned by police (do not ask me how I know that *grin*), store and bank closures, flights, hotels/resorts are booked, and there are no rental cars available. Triathletes fly in from all over the world to compete with local triathletes. There are Ironman Tshirts and memorabilia available for purchase everywhere we look. 

To further elaborate:

An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC) consisting of a 2.4-mile (3.86 km) swim, a 112-mile (180.25 km) bicycle ride and a marathon 26.2-mile (42.2 km) run, raced in that order and without a break. Most Ironman events have a strict time limit of 17 hours to complete the race, where the Ironman race starts at 7:00 AM, the mandatory swim cut off for the 2.4-mile (3.9 km) swim is 2 hours 20 minutes, the bike cut off time is 5:30 PM, and all finishers must complete their marathon by midnight. The name Ironman Triathlon refers to both the original Ironman triathlon and the annual Ironman World Championship. Also called Ironman Hawaii, the world championships of the event, held annually in Hawaii since 1978 (with an additional race in 1982), are now preceded by a series of qualifying events. Ironman Triathlon became known for its grueling length, harsh race conditions, and television coverage.

Thank you Wikipedia!

So, experiencing the sights and sounds of Ironman and witnessing the preparations I COULD actually see made me think of "the race that is set before us".  The race that is set before us is no small event. 

• He has blessed us with every spiritual blessing! (Ephesians 1:3 NKJV)
• He has commanded His angels to keep charge over us in all our ways! (Psalm 91:11, NIV)
• His race is perfect! (Jeremiah 29:11)
• We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses! (Hebrews 12:1)

He has set the race for you!

Dumpster Diving!

For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light. (Luke 8:17, NKJV)

When I fly, I remove all excess cards: credit/debit/library, etc from my bag. I strip my purse/wallet/Daytimer down to the bare bones, taking with me, my driver's license and one credit card. We are business owners. We have five locations on four different islands...that is a lot of cards. Once I return home, I put them all back in my Daytimer. 

I flew interisland last Friday (removing the cards, as usual) and was going to put all the cards back in my bag on Monday. Except on Monday, they were nowhere to be found. The last time I remembered seeing them was on my kitchen countertop. I did remember throwing a shopping bag away full of what I believed to be trash. Yes...gasp. I immediately contacted Mike and asked him to pray. 

Replacing them wouldn't be as easy as making a few phone calls and having them replaced because to be honest, there are so many cards I didn't know what cards were missing. No...I didn't put them all in a copier and make a copy to put away for safe keeping; however, now I know why people suggest we do that. *grin*

I had removed rewards cards, gift cards, library cards, insurance cards, I.D. cards,  etc. Even my blood donor card! To compound the issue, we are in the process of changing banks (business and personal), so I literally have two sets of all our banking cards. How can so many cards go missing you might ask? Well, I keep them in card holders that fit in my Daytimer. They weren't all loose cards, there were four sets of cardholders. After I looked in all the obvious places, I got a little nauseous at the thought of someone dumpster diving and getting every card I own except the one credit card and my Driver's License that I had taken with me.

I was a little dizzy as I started trying to make a card list from memory, girl's ortho rewards cards ($10.00 replacement fee), owner's beach card key ($75.00 replacement fee), several gift cards...what if they were accidentally thrown away? Mike had taken out the trash at least three times since Friday and the trash man came on Monday morning! 

To accompany the nausea, a headache attempted to ensue, then I quickly said...nope, not going there. I determined, "I will not be mentally tortured!"

I said to myself...well then, if I did throw them away, God will somehow make them be somewhere else...safe and intact. After all, Jesus said, "All things are possible to him who believes." That's me...I'm a believer, not a doubter!

 I started proclaiming:

"Thank You God for working all things out for my good, I love You!" (Romans 8:28)

"I thank You for sending Your angels to keep charge over me in all my ways! That includes finding my cards...intact and unharmed, right now in The Name of Jesus!" (Psalm 91:11)

Then I called my cards forth saying, "Cards, you listen to me! I call you forth in The Name of Jesus! Make yourself known to us right now! Nothing, including you, cards...shall remain hidden!" (Matthew 21:22 & Luke 8:17)

My girls said, "What are you doing Mommy?" I told them. They got excited and said, "Yay! We will help you!" Our house was buzzing with excitement and speaking The Word, waiting to see God's glory be made manifest!"

Shortly thereafter, in my "see-er" (I don't know how else to explain it.) I saw the middle console of my car. My initial response was, "That can't be...I'd NEVER leave all those cards in my console of my car parked at the airport!" I searched my memory. I could not remember ever placing them in my car. 

I also had emptied out my small make up bag that was in my purse. When I left, I left all my lipstick, nail clippers, etc on the kitchen counter. Which is where they were when I put them back in my purse. So it only made sense for the cards to be with the make up items since that is where I cleaned out my purse. Neither Mike or my girls remembered me putting the cards in the console.

I sensed so strongly that the cards were in the console even though I rarely even use the console for anything. I said, "Mikea, can you please go look in the console of my car." She did and GLORY be to GOD, there they were!

Incidents such as these are not at all odd or foolish! (1 Corinthians 2:14, NKJV)

Am I saying I accidentally threw my cards away in the shopping bag and God miraculously placed them in the console of my car? To be completely honest, I still don't remember where I put the cards after I removed them from my purse; however, if He did work it out that way, I would not be surprised. After all, Jesus called to a dead man in a tomb and He came forth! (John, 11:43, 44) Some may say, "Uh, well, yeah...THAT was Jesus!" To that response I'd have to say, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father." (John 14:12, NLT). In light of Jesus' statement, I'd have to conclude cards in the console is completely doable. 

His Word is alive and we speak His Word to change our circumstances! (Hebrews 4:12 & Romans 4:17)

We would love to hear from you!

How do you use God's Word to change your circumstance?

Ouch ... .....

And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. (Jeremiah 29:13, NKJV)

We are currently on vacation. It's ok to post that, we have friends watching our house and dog. *smile*

We have been having the time of our lives catching up with family and friends. We've been spending our days at the park, going to football games, and hanging out at friend's houses. We are meeting up with friends at church, going out of town with friends, shopping, and hunting. Every day has been a new adventure! We are having a new reunion every day! 

Yesterday, while texting a friend to finalize our schedule, I intended to text, 

"I  am so excited, and looking forward to seeing you!" 

But instead, autocorrect texted, "I am so excited, and looking forward to seeking you!"

I sensed God asking, "Are you this excited, and looking forward to seeking Me?"

Ouch... .....

During all our packing, traveling, and running around catching up with everyone, the lion's share of my attention had not been turned to Him. 

RECALCULATING! 

http://keytovblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/recalculating.html 

Big Doofuss!

Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. (Matthew 18:21, NKJV)

Last week, Mike and I planned an interisland trip, partly business, partly leisure. We scheduled our sitter who just happens to be the best sitter in the world, thank you Julie, we love and appreciate you! Everything was all set and ready to roll and we were so excited.

We had an early plane to catch and had a lot to get done before we left for the day so our house was buzzing. It was crunch time and right before I walked out the door, Mike made a negative comment under his breath, which by the way is one of my hugest pet peeves…ever. If he is going to say something, I say belt it from the rooftop! Well, not from the rooftop, but I’m sure you get the idea.

I took a slow…deep…breath, determined to ignore what he mumbled, and determined to overcome the temptation to scream, “WHAT DID YOU SAY?!” I was home free...almost…when all of the sudden my middle child decided to loudly proclaim what he said!

That's about the time I heard Pastor Larry in my head repeatedly saying, "Choose not to be offended. Choose not to be offended. CHOOOOOSE NOT TO BE OFFENDED." I wanted to scream, "SHUT UP PASTOR LARRY!" But I couldn't because that would be like telling my dad to shut up and I just can't do that no matter how loud my flesh screams!

I remained silent. No, despite popular belief, that is not an impossibility. We were driving down the road and I quietly tried to put on my bracelet which it is a tiny bit too short so I generally ask Mike to help me. But this day, I was determined to do it by myself! He saw me struggling and calmly said, "Do you want me to help you with that?" I softly answered, "No" but he knew what I was thinking. I was thinking, "No! I never want you to help me with anything, ever again!"

That's about the time, I…again…heard Pastor Larry repeatedly saying, "Choose not to be offended. Choose not to be offended. CHOOOOOSE NOT TO BE OFFENDED." Please refer to the previous “Pastor Larry” paragraph.

As we quietly drove down the road and this mental war waged, Mike finally said, "Your eyes are so beautiful, sometimes you remind me of an Egyptian Queen." At which time I wanted to roll my eyes in the back of my head and scream, "OH SHUT UP YOU BIG DOOFUSS!" And, for good measure, also add scriptural reasons why a “compliment” of comparing my eyes to an Egyptian queen’s eyes were totally unbiblical! I didn’t know how, but for a split second I was going to use my phone to research the subject and prove my point!

But...alas…I didn't…for many reasons.

One of which, even though he used bad judgement and made a mistake…he is still the authority placed in my life…by God. I believe God called him to be my husband, this includes imperfections. God didn't give me a "mistake loophole". God has never told me, "Mike is your authority as long as he never makes a mistake." As a result, the way I respond to Mike is between me and God. Mike is affected by how I treat him; however, I answer to God for how I treat him. I chose life over death. (Deuteronomy 30:19)

Secondly, I didn’t want my girls to see me respond to their father (the authority God placed in their life) with disrespect.

So...I purposefully laughed...I laughed really hard! Then he laughed! Then my girls laughed!
(Nehemiah 8:10, Ecclesiastes 3:1,4, Proverbs 15:15, Proverbs 17:22)

See, I had two choices.

1. Break the Cycle of Offense (or)
2. Continue the Cycle of Offense

“you must make the decision that regardless of how you feel, you are not going to be offended”, Dr. Larry Ollison, Breaking the Cycle of Offense (www.faithman.org)

I felt like smacking him...but, I’ve read the book…twice. I continue to refer back to it when needed. Personally, I believe there should be an app for that! The book is life changing when the principles are applied.

• Get it.
• Read it.
• Apply it.

You will be glad you did!

Screaming Point

But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too. (Mark 11:25, NLT)

Last week, one of my children was having a very difficult day. She continually refused to cooperate in school, she threw a tantrum when I told her to help her sister clean the kitchen and at one point, she screamed, “Why do moms have to be so mean?!”

It was at the screaming point that I notified her father via telephone of her struggles.

! DUN-DUN-DUN !

Our day progressed much in the same manner as it had started. That is, until right before Dad was due home. Then said child moved into suck up mode which seemed like less of true repentance and more of manipulationtance (I needed a "tance" suffix for rhyming purposes). About five minutes before Dad was due home, she said, “Mommy, I apologize for making so much strife today.” I accepted her apology and referred her to her father. 

Once their meeting was adjourned, she sincerely apologized and promised to change.

This made me search my heart, and ask God to reveal to me incidents that I need to make amends for by sincerely approaching those I’ve hurt (known and unknown). I also asked Him to show me where my attitude needed adjusting to align with His Word. He is faithful to flood my heart with light! (Ephesians 1:18)

How about you?

Are there amends you need to make by asking for forgiveness?

What about one step further? Is there anyone you can forgive today? Even if that certain someone doesn’t or can’t approach you and ask for forgiveness, you can still choose to release the offense from your heart, forgive and walk in freedom.

My prayer for you today is, Father God, in the precious name of your Son Jesus, I pray You move on the hearts and minds of those who read this blog post today. Open the eyes of their understanding, flood their hearts with light so that they can understand the confident hope You have given to those You have called! I thank You Lord, in advance for the many praise reports that will come flooding in and the lives that will be changed because of your gift of amazing grace and forgiveness. I count it all for Your glory, amen!