"God's kingdom is like a farmer who planted good seeds in his field. That night, while his hired men were asleep, his enemy sowed thistles(weeds) all through the wheat and slipped away before dawn. When the first green shoots appeared and the grain began to form, the thistles(weeds) showed up, too." Matthew 13:24-25
A couple of weeks ago I finished weeding several gardens in our yard, I noticed that the gardens had an overabundance of weeds. The plants that were supposed to be growing there were tall ornamental grasses and the green stuff that was taking over looked amazingly similar, like a copycat. To the untrained gardener, nothing would have appeared out of place. But to a Master gardener, there was a big problem. You see, the weeds will multiply and grow, choking the plants originally intended to grow there. Then you are left with nothing but a huge weed patch where only good intentions started.
I have found this to be true in our lives as well. I've got weeds in my heart. I never intended for them to take root and grow there but I haven't focused on pulling up the weeds I knew were there either. It has just been easier to ignore them and hope they would eventually die off or go away. Now it seems like it'll take a forklift to dig up some of the tough stuff entangled among the good in my heart. But unlike me, our Master Gardener knows how to handle the weeds growing inside of us.
With some soaking and a gentle tug here and there, He can pull out from our hearts what does not produce worthwhile stuff and give room for all the good things in us to grow, as He intended. Sometimes we hang onto the weeds in us because we are too afraid to release them. Sometimes we don't even know that we are holding a weed instead of a flower. Dandelions are pretty but they are weeds, after all. Don't be fooled by the copycats!
Sometimes pulling the weeds can hurt but the results are so worth it!
For as long as I can remember I’ve been wearing skirts or dresses. Why? Because my parents decided it would be the best thing for us ladies in our family. Only when we were real tiny, like 1-6 we were allowed to wear pants. I accepted this until I was like 13. I still wore skirts but deep down in my heart I was very rebellious against skirts or dresses. I wanted to be like the world and wear pants and tight tops. I finally got my mom to buy me some jeans which were definitely immodest and then I bought some shirts that were immodest also. When I saw a girl dressed immodestly, it made me feel like I needed to dress that way to be beautiful. And in turn when I wore something immodest, I caused other girls around me to feel like they needed to dress that way, too. Plus, I was causing guys to sin by looking at me lustfully, which isn’t the way God wants guys to look at girls. He wants guys to appreciate female beauty, but not in a dishonoring way. Soon after realizing these things, I knew I had to change. I didn’t want to be part of the circle that caused other girls to dress immodest, and I didn’t want to cause guys to fall into lust!
I started by reading Bible verses that would help me focus on inner beauty. I posted 1 Peter 3:3-4 on my closet wall: “Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight.”
I went through my closet, but it wasn’t easy. I got rid of anything that looked immodest. There were a few shirts I loved, but they were just a little too tight. Sometimes I ended up in tears as I was getting rid of clothes. I realized my appearance was way too important to me, and I had stopped focusing on my inward beauty.
After redoing my wardrobe, I decided to work on my inward beauty. I would write down the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) in my journal every night and rate myself on them. Using a scale from one to 10, I would rate how well I lived each one that day and make note of which ones I needed to pray about and work on improving.
By focusing more on God and inward beauty, my view of outward beauty dramatically changed. But every now and then, I still get caught up in it. Girls are girls, and we’ll always want to be beautiful. But it’s how we view beauty that really makes us beautiful.
My clothes are still fashionable (well, sometimes!), and I still don’t like to leave the house without brushing my hair. But the difference is, I don’t focus on it. I don’t spend hours in front of the mirror trying to look like celebrities. My beauty comes from withinmy character and the condition of my heart.
So I’ve decided to be part of this circle instead: the circle that motivates and encourages other girls to respect themselves and the guys around them by not flaunting their bodies in revealing clothing. Do you? Which circle do you want to be part of? The one that makes a difference and turns hearts toward true beauty or the one that makes girls feel insecure and guys fall into lust? I want to be part of the circle of true beautythe kind of beauty that lasts for eternity.
From a guy’s perspective:
"Hey, girls! I hope you'll hear me out for a second. Do you have any idea how VERY important it is to Christian guys that you dress modestly?
As guys even though we're Christians we have the desire to see as much of a girl as we can, but that's the problem! We're Christians, and we're desperately striving to hold ourselves to a higher standard. Most girls in our culture are incredibly immodest, and unfortunately many Christian girls just join right in.
When you wear low-cut tops or short shorts, we interpret that as your not caring to help us become all God wants of us spiritually. Do you really think it's easy for us to concentrate on purity at a youth event when the girls are wearing tops that show their stomach when they raise their hands during worship?
Girls, you have the power to help us become all God wants us to be. Please consider doing so!"
So What’s Your Story? To view the original “rules” about this challenge, please read them HERE
Here’s how my week has been going. I know this is unusual for me to write about my own life for a change but I think I’ll do fine (if not let me know ha-ha).
Sunday, we all went to church as normal and I got to Sunday school for a change. I think I woke up at 5:00 am but that’s a long story. Anyway, my mom, my brother, and I went to evening service which is very unusual because usually my whole family will go. But as you read on God has surprises – BIG surprises. Mom got a call from dad during church and she tried calling him back but he didn’t answer. We called like a total of 15 times. We drove home a little worried but we were sure everything was just fine. Then we pulled into the garage and guess what!?! My grandfather was here!! And we didn’t even clean the house for him. It was such a mess with finishing school, starting yard work, messy house, you get the picture. We hadn’t seen him for 3 years and now he’s staying with us for a week. That is so great!!! Please pray for my grandfather and our family because he is not a believer. It can be really hard at times.
On Monday I cleaned the house a bit (the whole downstairs and bedrooms) since my grandfather had to come when the house was the worse. Also my brother was fixing the heater and air conditioner in our house but he couldn’t back to one of the dampers because the opening is really small. We all tested who could fit in the opening best. You have to be really skinny but long enough to reach the damper. So who got the job, well me of course!! I got out after many tries - who knew I didn’t know how to work a socket. Let’s just say I was VERY sore (even have a bruise) after that and I got some fiberglass in my skin. But now I have heat in the winter and cold air in the summer in my bedroom. It used to be the other way around.
Tuesday, I cleaned our freezer because the motor was burning and producing mold. It was very gross looking! We were able to shut it down so it would stop burning but that took forever. Then I got attacked by our cat because my sister hadn’t fed her yet. She bit and clawed my leg and its not very nice looking. We also went to two museums but they weren’t what I fully expected (thankfully they were free). It nice though to be out of the 90 degree weather *ugh.*
On Friday I'm going to an Apologetix concert with my brothers and my friends. I'll write about that later...
That’s how my week has been and I’m to sure what I’ll be doing the rest of the week but. Hopefully we’ll get to go to the beach and cool off. I had fun writing about my life for once and I’ll try to do this more often.
-Miss Elizabeth
"A little bird I am, shut from the fields of air
and in my cage I sit and sing to Him who placed me there.
Well pleased a prisoner to be, because my God, it pleases Thee."
One year ago from today, May 30th, 2007, I was sitting in my room trying to think of what I would name my blog. I wanted to start a blog for one many reasons, actually to many to list. I had a list of a couple of blog names but none of them really stuck. So around this same time that I was starting a blog, I stumbled upon the verse 1 Peter 2:21 and I thought that’s what I’ll name my blog “Walking in His Steps.” That is what it was from the beginning and still is. I wasn’t to sure how my blog would do but I decided if it didn’t do well I could just delete it. But I decided to continue this blog because I like writing, and doing stuff like this anyway. Plus I was noticing that people were actually reading my blog, and they all enjoyed it.
Here are my stats because I thought you would be interested:
Entries Written: 69 entries
Comments Written: 1099 comments (this is no including Superangel's and Jocelyn's blogs)!
Well I actually don’t have to give away for this special occasion (like the Dixon’s) but maybe next year…just maybe :) For this special occasion I decided to start a challenge. The challenge is called "Why Homeschool Blogger?" So what is this exactly? Well, I would like all of you, whether it is just a paragraph or more, write why you started a blog on homeschool blogger, why you wanted a blog, and what are your goals to achieve with your blog.
**EDIT - I've had a few questions about this challenge so I'll try to answer them here:
How long is this challenge going on for? Well I'm doing it though all of June so feel free to post it anytime. Just don't forget to sign Mr. Linky so I check it out.
So I just write a paragraph thats all? Yeah pretty much. You can write more or less than a paragraph but be sure to put the banner on your blog so others can join also.
Here is beautiful icon to spread the word on your blog. You can just copy/paste the code right out of the textbox below. It was made by Jocelyndixon (thanks MJ!).
If you would like to join please sign Mr. Linky and don’t forget to comment. Please join in this challenge with me! Oh- and guess what? Today was my last day of school. Yipee!!!
Isaiah 46:10 I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please. (NIV)
For a while, I’ve been praying hard about something that I think is important and I’ve been trying to convince God of the same. My prayers have been carefully spoken and well thought out. I’ve been looking to God to do what I want and I’ve been disappointed that he hasn’t acted sooner.
A couple of days ago, I stopped praying about it and started to accept that this wasn’t what God wanted. It was hard to let go, but it was important for me to understand that God decides, not me. Instead of being agitated, I have a great peace. Instead of being disappointed, I am content. God’s purposes stand and he chooses to do as He pleases. His sovereignty is supreme. His decisions are final.
It may be that you’ve praying hard for something, too. Perhaps you want God to do you a favor, get rid of an obstacle, or give you a sign. Maybe you’re tired of asking and frustrated by God’s inaction. I know I was until I realized that God was saying “No.” Perhaps it’s time you also surrendered to His will and let God be God. He decides; we serve Him, not the other way around.
I personally know that it can be hard to yield to God’s sovereignty, but this message may be the vehicle that God is using to tell you, “No; not now, never.” Think about it and when you’re ready, take a leap of faith – let it go. (Hebrews 11:1)
Also, I read an encouraging post this morning by Christian musician, Rebbecca St. James. In her post, she challenges students to be open with each other. Here is a snippet of what she said:
Hearts wide open before others. That’s a very cool thought! If we live with a purity of spirit we’ll have nothing to hide. We have nothing to be ashamed of, no fear of being found out. What a liberating feeling! That doesn’t mean we’re perfect, just that we are committed to living openly and honestly before others.
I agree with her and likewise encourage you to be honestly open with someone today. I have several close friends that have the right to ask me anything they want about my walk with the Lord, my personal sins, and the way I’m leading my family to know the Father more deeply. I have found that the more honest I am with them about such things, the greater the opportunity the Holy Spirit has to use them to convict and encourage me. Accountability is something that doesn’t have to happen in structured groups at designated times. Biblically, it happens while we simply live our lives together as brothers and sisters under our God and Father.
Happy Birthday dear Jocelyn!! I pray this birthday will warm your heart and may God’s warmth not ever depart for all year round and the years ahead may you find in friends God’s love is shared.
Now for the cake:
Also at this party we will be having dancing. We even have a person to teach us how to dance like Jane Austen. Thanks Ben (DeusPrimus) HEHE...just joking!!
"It may be possible to do without dancing entirely. Instances have been known of young people passing many, many months successively without being at any ball of any description, and no material injury accrue either to body or mind"
--Jane Austen, Emma
Hope you had a fun one MJ!!
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Hey Everyone,
I am participating in the 20-day challenge of prayer. I will be praying for my country (USA) because it really does need so much prayer right now, with the elections, war, and everything else.
So what is prayer?
Basically, prayer is communication between you and God. "Call to Me, and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know." Jeremiah33: 3
Just try to think of trying to cope with your problems if there was no way to communicate with God. Remember that God created us for fellowship with Him. He desires that we learn to spend time with Him in prayer.
Why Do People Fail to Pray?
We often convince ourselves that we can make it without prayer.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding: in all you ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs3: 5-6
How to Pray:
Be real; be yourself. You must be honest, genuine, open with God. "Who may stand before the Lord? Only those who do not practice dishonesty and lying." Psalm24: 3-4
Come before God as a child. "The greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven is the one who humbles himself and becomes like this child." Matthew 18:4
Talk to God as you would a friend. "Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend." Exodus 33:11
Pray without ceasing. "Pray at all times." 1 Thes. 5:17
Pray with persistence. "Pray and never give up." Luke 18:1
Pray believing. ".... all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you." Mark 11:24
Prayers must be specific. Pray generally -- you'll never know. Pray specifically -- you'll see God at work.
God always answers prayer, in His time.
God sometimes says, "No."
God sometimes says, "Wait."
God sometimes says, "Yes," and can even say "Yes" but in a different way than you expected. Usually when you seek God, and you are praying according to His will, He will answer your prayer far beyond what you could ever dream.
Pray with Action.
A prayer can never take the place of action. Like love, it must be expressed in action and not merely words. "Be ye doers of the word." James 1:22
Don't just pray:
"Dear God, please help John today. I know that he is having a problem and needs Your help."
Example of How to pray:
"Dear God, I really hurt for John. I want Your will for his life to be accomplished today. If there is any way that You can use me, I am available. Please make me sensitive to any doors that You might open to use me in his life today." Be specific for his needs according to God's will and for your needs in this request as well.
Elements of a Prayer
Remember A-C-T-S.
A - Adoration is praising God for who He is. This can be done by reading scriptures of praise or through music.
C - Confession is agreeing with God about your sin. True confession always includes repentance, which is a change in your life. Confession is important for spiritual growth.
T - Thanksgiving is thanking God for when He has done.
S - Supplication means requests. These are the things that you ask God for. There are 2 categories.
1. Petition is praying for our own needs. We pray when we are in a bind. We pray for our daily needs. We need to pray for character development, physical abilities and material needs.
2. Intercession is praying for others. Praying for salvation as well as areas listed above. "....... far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you" 1 Samuel 12:23
Please join in this challenge with me!!
Love, Miss Elizabeth
P.S. Many thanks to Jocelyn for giving me a new template. I love it so much. How about all of you?
When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other. Therefore, a man cannot discover anything about his future. Ecclesiastes 7:14
Everything that enters our lives, the good and the bad, is filtered through the hands of an all-powerful God. The main reason for this is so that we can realize that He is in control of every aspect of our lives, not just some of it. This fact belies another great truth of God in our lives; only He knows the future for certain. We do not. The New Testament also refers this truth in James 4: 13 "Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." 14 "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."
So, you may think, does this mean that we should not make plans or decisions? No, it does not. For example, some decisions have to be made very quickly, such as stopping for a red light. Other decisions do not need to be made immediately. In fact, they often need to be thought about and prayed over first. For example, should I leave my spouse? Do I spend a great deal of money on this car, or take a trip to Hawaii?
Man does not know the future, only God does. We are not promised tomorrow. We can merely hope that it will come for us. When it does, be thankful and praise God for another day to do something wonderful for the Kingdom. Look to the future with expectancy and hold onto the dreams that God gives you. Step into every new day you receive with the hope and assurance that God will use you in the way He knows best, as you follow the dreams that He has planted in your heart.
I absolutely love spring. Everything comes to life. The flowers start blooming, the grass turns green ( unless you live at our house were we always have brown grass and green weeds, lol), the trees start having leaves, and the birds sing early in the morning.
Imagine the first day of creation. One moment, there was nothing. The next moment, God had created the heavens and the earth with a word. During the next seven days, He continued to speak and everything burst forth into full life. Can you imagine that in less than a millisecond, every single flower burst forth? Wow so amazing!! Animals suddenly appeared showing God’s creativity and sense of humor. Yes, I think God has a sense of humor…have you seen a baboon or a giraffe’s neck?
When I think of creation I think of spring. Everything bursting forth at God’s word. I find it amazing how he can speak and it will be done. If you need something in your life, remember that God can speak one word and make your life anew, like spring.
Here is a picture that will remind you of spring. Tell me what it is and I will tell you the answer.
Have fun!
Love, Miss Elizabeth
P.S. I took this picture while I was doing school one day and I thought it cool so I posted it......
Congrats to all the Dixon's (JacqueDixonSoulRestES, SuperAngel, Jocelyndixon. and rjdjohn316) for their 2nd anniversary of blogging with HSB!!! I will be having mine in May which makes me very excited! I already have plans. Well now back to the subject. Since the Dixon's are having a party for this special occasion I have decided to participate. Before we start here is a pin for each one of the very special Dixon's.
Here is the cake I made (did not) for this wonderful occasion. I hope you all like chocolate.....
I hope you all enjoyed the party for the Dixon's! I would like to say a few words about them:
Somehow in this great world wide web I found my way to the Dixon blogs. They are my friends across the computer lines. They make me smile with the emails they send me. Whenever I come home with something, I must share. I find it so comforting that they are always there to read it. They give me encouragement and a friendship that is true. I'm blessed to have of found someone like them.
Rules of Participation:
1. Leave a comment on all the Dixon’s blogs
2. Grab the Blogoversary icon, and put it on your sidebar
3. Post about it on your blog… have a little party of your own
4. Invite 5 friends to your party by leaving them your party link in a comment or send them an email
5. Party!
Prizes that the Dixon's are giving away:
All four of them will be giving away a TOS Magazine subscription along with some other prizes.
Bundled In Prayer
2 winners will get their choice of a poncho, shawl, or apron
Good and Evil Comic-book Bible by No Greater Joy
Greenleaf Press: Famous Men of Rome history book
I Spy: Extreme Challenge book
One last thing, Easter is this Sunday. Can you believe that? Wow it came by too fast! I was reading these verses today in my bible reading and thought I would share it with all of you.
"On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went into the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground and the men said to them, 'Why do you look for the living among the ? He is not here He has risen! Remember how He told you, while He was with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again' " (Luke 24:1-7)
Every time I read these verses I get chills. I try to imagine what the women were thinking when the angels came. That would be an incredible experience. That isn't the only thing that I think of. I think about the fact that Jesus is alive. Jesus is alive; that is powerful. Now, I have a small question to ask each of you. Just think about it, and pray about it. Who is able to see that Jesus is alive in you? If someone didn't know anything about Christ, would they be able to see Him living in you? I think that this is the most important thing for each of us to ask ourselves this Easter. Yes, Jesus is alive, and that is GREAT! But, who can see Him alive in me? Just think about that, and pray about that if you need to. I'll be praying for each of you. Can others see Jesus in you? May He bless you this Easter!
Love, Miss Elizabeth
EDIT:
Today is Paulie's 18th Birthday. I thought this was just right for him with the penguins and everything (and yes, I got the idea from Amanda). Paul- I am really glad to know and count you as a friend. May God bless all your years on earth and may you follow in His footsteps! Everyone please stop by Paulie’s blog and tell him HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
Oh- and yes Paulie these penguins are you!!! No doubt!!!
I am 14 years old. I have 8 brothers and sisters. I and my brothers and sisters are homeschooled by my mom.
I am a born again Christian and I love the Lord so much and He is very dear to me and can I never doubt it. I strive to love Him more, to attain His image, and to live only for Him! I blush and am ashamed when I consider how inadequate are the returns I am making Him; yet I can praise Him for the past and trust Him for all that is to come. I long to make progress every day, and each minute is precious, and I tremble if I should loose one. In Jesus Christ alone is the only way!!
I hope you all enjoyed the party for the Dixon's! I would like to say a few words about them:
Thank you 
