6/30/2013 0 Comments When It Thunders Tonight, or rather this morning, I was woken up for the umpteenth time by the thunder. I have been up most of the night with Wes, who has a serious diaper rash and wakes up every time he is wet. So after finally falling somewhat asleep, I was really irritated when the thunder, or "booming" as the girls would call it, woke me up again. If you know me you know that when I wake up I'm up for good, or at least a while before I fall back asleep. So in the case of the thunder, I opened the drapes to see a better picture of what was happening outside. Our view from the new house isn't stellar, but it's pretty good with the lake behind the house. There's lots of space to see the sky and the water that reflects it. And the lightening was definitely something to behold. It didn't last but a few minutes, with a short but heavy rain, but the sound and show of light was remarkable. I'm not scared of the fee storms, but there's a healthy fear and reverence that comes into play every time I see or hear it. A healthy fear that tells me to back up a few feet from the door or to get out of the pool. You know the feeling. But tonight, in all my sleepiness, or should I say sleeplessness, I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed with the peace an comfort of God. He was clearly telling me something in the thundering sound, but I didn't know quite what it was. I whipped out google like all good smart phone users do, and found the trusty 'ole bible gateway search bar where I found every reference to thunder in the bible. Did you know that every single one of those me ruins of thunder has to do with sound or more often than not a voice? Usually God's voice as well. I googled some science info as well, and from the most reliable of all sources- Wikipedia- I found some awesome information. Try it the next time you are in the midst of a storm. Literal or one being personified through life's situations. I'm laying here totally in awe of the creator, and also healthily terrified of his awesomeness. He is so huge and so powerful and so mighty and so magnificent that His voice is like thunder! That loud, sharp, billowing, and unmistakable sound is the faintest and most comprehensible way for me to know his voice. It's terrifying and yet reassuring at the same time. He is beautiful and yet so very fierce. While reading about the science behind thunder, I was reminded that the thunder is merely the result of the lightening. It's not just loud and obnoxious for nothing. There is a clasp and a bang and a rumbling something fierce because there is a fabulous light show in the moments before. What's so funny to me is that because the light is so remarkable, the sound actually has to catch up to it. We see the flash and brightness before hearing the sound because light just happens to be so great and fast. How amazing that the glory and light an splendid beauty of God the Father is so great that the sound of thunder will have to play catch up with his greatness!!! How awesome that the two don't exist independently - but coexist together - meaning that when we see his glory and his majesty, we WILL hear his thundering powerful voice!!! His words of truth and freedom will pierce through the darkness alongside his righteous glory! I was overwhelmed with sadness a few days ago, after watching a movie about child predators. It was a true story, an my heart broke as I watched two college-aged kids search for this missing girl. They found the place she was being kept, and there beneath layers, upon layers of mattresses to keep her screams silent, she was found in a dog cage like an animal. It was a true story and it left me grieving for the thousands upon thousands of children who have, are, and will face the same travesty everyday until Jesus returns. But tonight, as I listened to the thunder I was reminded of how quickly he is coming and how loud and howling he will come in!! Jesus come soon!!! I never really understood the phrase "the spirit and the bride say 'come'". But in recent years I have learned the meaning to be truer than true. While the Holy Spirit has been grieved since creation and the fall of man for Christ to redeem the earth and mankind, it wasn't always so for the human race. But I can honestly say with full honesty that my heart- this piece of his bride - is saying "come!" Jesus come quickly and save the kids who are being exploited and kidnapped and tortured. Jesus come quickly and end hunger for families in third world countries, as well as our homeland. Jesus come soon and comfort the broken in spirit and in heart and mend the sadness of those who have lost greatly and need loved so deeply. Jesus make your way to us sooner than ever before because without you we are nothing and we are longing for you to return and have redemption poured out to the ends of the earth! And when He comes!!! Oh when he comes!!! His light will flash brighter than any lighting display you've ever seen in the sky! And His voice will thunder louder than any boom you've heard! And the trumpet will sound calling the redeemed home! What a glorious day that will be! Beth Moore says that we can always always always expect the real thing to be so much more incredibly eyed than what we can imagine or expect. And the second coming of Christ is no exception! It will be glorious and marvelous and majestically better than any picture we can conjure upon our finite minds!! I'm so glad God can speak through the thunder. And I pray that both you and I would be reminded in every thunderstorm until his return, that he is coming soon. That he is supreme. And that there will come a day when the remnant, the ransomed, the redeemed, are reunited with the King of Kings! "Daddy don't sleep Daddy don't slumber I don't wonder When it thunders 'Cause I'm safe Safe in daddy's arms" -Jason Upton
0 Comments
6/20/2013 0 Comments Pour It OutThe Curzio Crew has been under the weather the last few days, and with that I would ask for your prayers. Through it though, I've had quite the revelation and wanted to share! {Insert Shout Out to all of you lovely people who read these posts!} McKenna (3) started Sunday evening with a fever and a cough. She has carried the cough and fever since then, gradually getting cooler, but also cough-ie-er. The cough sounds awful like someone held her underwater for hours and she was resuscitated to breath water for the rest of her life. You can hear all the junk that should come up when she coughs. She actually had a moment at dinner the other night (Monday) when she was crying (from biting her tongue) which aggravated the cough and sent her into a gag-session, after which ended with a ball of phlegm being dispelled somewhat violently like she was barfing. GROSS! The rest of us have slowly accumulated the symptoms as well. I woke up yesterday morning with the cough out of nowhere and had so much deep gunk in my chest I was amazed! My cough - even though other parts of me are ailing- has not gotten worse, but better. Why? Because I know how to hack up all of the crud that comes up. McKenna being only three, has had no experience with the like, and struggles to get it out. Now: As disturbing as that may have been I do have a point.... When someone accepts Jesus and you're aware of it- it is critical to impart to them wisdom and help as a believer. What the heck does this have to do with phlegm? Simply this: McKenna's cough continued to get worse because she didn't know how to deal with it. It became so aggravated it eventually was a violent outburst of what had been brewing inside. New believers (and sadly sometimes not-so-new) tend to hoard and hold onto bad habits. Not because they want to habitually do things in a spiritually damaging way- but because they have never been shown how to correct the problem. And if not corrected and lovingly shown how to remedy the problem, it will lead to an outburst - usually much more violently and disturbing than should have been - which could have been prevented. Needless to say I am teaching McKenna to cough and "spit". Who around you is drowning in a bad spiritual habit? Maybe its a friend, but maybe its your kid. Help them develop good habits by discipling them. Showing them right ways to forgive, give, be honest, kind, and faithful. Teach them virtues by the way of your living so they aren't forced into a snowball effect that lasts a lifetime. That said, Jesus help me be the example to my kids as You were the example to me. Help me to disciple my children as I am discipled. I heard a great mentor and friend once tell me, "Bri you should always be pouring into someone, and always be poured into". So who are you pouring out to? And more importantly, who is pouring into your life? 6/11/2013 0 Comments Birth Control As a mom, I couldn't help but read this article from FOX, and laugh...all the while feeling sad because as a mother it comes down to my responsibilities. The whole article isn't seen here- and that's not the point. I don't believe in abortion as a morally acceptable practice because the Bible says so. So now that we've covered that basis- the synopsis of the article is the summarization of the choice to overturn prescription requirements for the "Plan B" pill by the federal government. Ironically, sources from supporters of the overturn stated- and I quote - "the absolute right to control our bodies without having to ask a doctor or pharmacist for permission"- is what's in debate here. See that's just it: the right to control your body is given up to a pill when using this drug. You give up the right to control your response to the pill. Allergic reaction, failed use, even fatality- you leave the choice up to the pill, not your body. Control of your body is only e getter when plan "A" is used. What is that you ask? Abstinence. Only when given the choice to choose or not to choose sex, allows a woman or man for that matter, to be fully in control of their bodies. Not some prescription. Not a parent. Not a doctor or pharmacist. I laughed because the twisted counterfeits of the world have obviously crept deep into them da of plan b supporters who believe control only lies in those who an access the drug. Even though society exemplifies loss of control in substance addiction and abuse. But my heart ached because as a mom I'm responsible for how my daughters- and son for that matter- will view their choice of "control". I am someone who chose to give into sexual temptation and know first hand just how much "control" an individual must or must not have. And I will do my very best- slathered in grace from above- to teach my kids that plan "A" is the only real choice for control their is. As a parent my heart grieves for the children who will never learn this valuable lesson. Who will watch broken parents try to fill their choice of control with substances, people, and pleasures that just leave emptier wholes. My spirit longs for the youth of the nations who will see prostitution as the only means for a living or place to stay. The babies who will only understand cheat and deception as truth. Kids who will be taught plan "B" as the norm. And worse for those who only have ever known plans "c" or "j" or "x". Oh Jesus come quickly! Parents I urge you to teach your children the plan God intended for mankind, which is abstinence. That we would see a generation of people who understand that control does in fact lie in their hands to choose a single mate in marriage. Teach your kids plan "A". |
AuthorBri is the mom to four little people, the wife to a gentle giant, and a lover of Jesus. She's figuring out the best ways to parent by trial and error, and sharing her struggles, successes, and stories with you! Archives
June 2018
Categories |