Wild Geese that Fly with the Moon on their Wings...

Happy October 1st!

Without further ado...here are my OCTOBER favorite things! 

Orange  goodness I love this color
Pumpkin Spice is there ANYTHING that tastes better than pumpkin spice?
Candy Corn why not ingest artificially colored blobs of pure sugar?
My Philip's birthday! What a celebration it is each year.  I ADORE all of my children, but this birth story has a bit of a twist. Look for a future post. ;-)

Apples in abundance
calm  it is SO nice when all of the tourists go away.
crisp night air
mudlove These bracelets are so awesome.  I have been wearing my "act justly" bracelet for a bout a year now, It looks as good as it did the day I got it AND they have a bunch of new workds, verses and customization options.  Check them out! www.mudlove.com

Very Best Supply Company hi-lighting pencils- I use them for everything, but they are SUPER great for Bible hi-lighting.

tall boots...need I say more?
Giant Gorgeous Mums
Costumes...the countdown has begun.


Thieves oil blend fight the flu the NATURAL WAY! (YoungLiving #1401485)
dark nail polish...YEAH DADDY!

Community:  I can not express the importance of this word.  Of this concept. we were created to live and thrive together.  There is no greater joy than participating and building a community of and for Christ.

Converse: always have been and always will be a Chuck Taylor fashionista

Thrive Moms-  Warrior retreat 11/8/14-  it's free.  Register now.  www.thrivemoms.com
Check out the marketplace on the website as well!

The Story of Marriage by John and Lisa Bevere I had the PLEASURE of meeting Lisa at a Women of Faith event last month.  She is one fierce Mama and her testimony is just as intense.  This book, written by her AND her husband takes a new and improved approach to creating, maintaining and sustaining a Good, Biblical and Happy marriage. get it. read it. love it.
LOGOS Bible software i am obsessed. seriously- OB-SESSED. {donations accepted so that I can purchase my OWN access to this amazing program  :-)  }

Guilty Television  Do I need to elaborate?  With October comes the season premiers of just about...EVERYTHING. I don't watch much television, but when I do...it's good stuff. Am I willing to admit WHAT I watch?  nope! :-)

Farm Bureau I can not advocate enough for this amazing organization.  Our county annual meeting is at the end of this month. If  you are a member and live in Wayne County, PLEASE join us on October 25th.  If you are not a member...JOIN. (email me for details)

Cider

Papermate inkjoy pens  I LOVE fun colored pens.

Xyron Sticker maker ya'll this thing is riDICULOUS!

Erin Condren Planner NO ONE has come close to the amazement of the EC planner.  I am on my 4th one! I can't believe that I have FINALLY found an organization system that #1-works, and #2- I haven't gotten bored of!


fall decorations

$5 couches YES, you read that correctly. Long story short:  put a reserve on your stuff if  you don't want the auctioneer to sell it for 5 bucks! (Cute baby is worth WAY more!)

Coconut Nectar This is a new sweetener option for me.  All natural- a bit sweeter than honey, thinner than honey - more like the texture of maple syrup.  I have used it on pancakes, on oatmeal, in tea and whenmaking granola bars.
Tazo decaf chai latte in a box
"meet me at Starbucks" movie  go to youtube, search "meet me at Starbucks", watch it, love it.
apple pie  need I say more?
Starbucks soy Chai tea latte with 2 pumps of pumpkin spice 2 pumps of vanilla order it just like this.  you WILL thank me.


{beBlessed} and have a GREAT month!

Ya Ya NO MORE!

Ya’ll-  I just quit a support group. Yup.  You read that correctly.  Straight up quit.  I emailed the mediator, asking her to please remove me from all future mailings and meet-up invitations and didn’t give a reason.

My reason? Hmm. Well- if I had given a reason, well, I guess it probably would have been more fuel for the fire. MY reason for quitting is crazy.  It is absurd.  It is really awkward to describe.  My reason for quitting, is because the community that I had hoped to find within this group was not a community AT ALL.  There was NO hand-holding-bonding-love like the picture up there. 

Yes, It’s title was “Christian Homeschool Mom’s of XYZ”  [I won’t call them out…I will respect them in this realm]…but this title was NOT all encompassing.  These ladies were:

1.Moms...CHECK

2.Home schooling their children...CHECK

3.Christian…NOT SO SURE

Let’s rewind a few days.

A Mommy-lady posted a question to the group’s online forum :

“How many of you allow your children to wear costumes and dance with the devil?”

…I, obviously, knew that she was referring to Halloween, and truly thought that she was being humorous…maybe a bit sarcastic. {“have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moon light?” – Jack Nicholson as the Joker in the BEST version of Batman} I kind of chuckled at it, actually.

WELL…what began after that question, was U-G-L-Y.

Every single Mother who innocently answered the initial question was returned with:

·        What denomination are you?

·         Do you realize the history of this “ritual”?

·         Do you really believe in Jesus? (seriously?)

·         Do you know that you are going to go to Hell? (WOW…seriously?)

I, abstained, from partaking in this bullying of women BY women who proclaim to be “Christian Women”. [AND IT TOOK RESTRAINT TO DO THAT]

Over the next few days, the topic of conversation was not that of actual SCHOOLING our children, or CURRICULUM, but turned into who was which denomination, and then which denomination was the REAL Christianity etc… It was U_G_L_Y!

I didn’t even want to let me heart get involved in such negativity and evil…that was supposedly spoken in the name of our Lord? [Again, I know, I know, I could have taken this as an opportunity to speak  some truth and spread some love…but honestly, the “instigator” Mommy-Lady  scared me and I didn’t want to get involved]

So…I let things go.

WELL.  Last night, I fell asleep with all of my babies on my bed, after their bath and reading bunches and bunches of books. {my FAVORITE way to fall asleep}  My poor husband slept in the spare bed, as my little tribe and I lay sprawled across our bed.  I woke up at around 3am, and went to find my dear husband who was sound asleep. I, however, couldn’t fall back to sleep.  My mind was racing and amidst my thoughts of harvest, which apples I needed to replenish on the stand, how I wanted to tackle making my Bubby’s Shark-Boy costume, and then…this horrible feeling of missed opportunity to minister and guide some {obviously} hurting ladies- came over me. I could have helped them. I could have tried to deflect the negative and bring it back to Jesus. But, I didn’t. I quit instead. I let FEAR take over.

But…I’m going to take the opportunity, now, to say what I would have said.

Jesus Loves EVERYONE.

Jesus is the ONLY way into heaven.

NO human could EVER condemn ANYONE to hell.

Christianity has many facets. It has many denominations.

Similar to the worlds languages (which the LORD created when he forbid the Tower of Babel to be built), as Christianity has spread and grown and changed and reformed and gone back to its most primitive, original form.- There are MANY differences in the practices and daily walk of all Christians.

I guarantee that my walk with Jesus is different than yours, is different than the family I sit next to in worship on Sunday, heck, I GUARANTEE that my walk is different, yet, to my husbands! That is why we are all individuals! God gave us ALL free will…BUT, with that- He gave us the tools necessary to survive this crazy ride called life, and ALSO gave us the KEY to unlock the door to His kingdom. How we choose to navigate the route to the Kingdom gates is ours and OURS alone.  NO ONE, human or not, other than the Great God Almighty,  our Lord Jesus Christ or the Spirit can condemn ANYONE. We, as a people, need to STOP DOING IT!

SPEAK LIFE. SPEAK LOVE.  SPEAK TRUTH.

I have said over and over again, this month, that I am going to SPEAK LIFE!!!

Maybe that is why I held my tongue when this all went down?  They say that once you do something 14 times in a row it becomes habit. Today is the 23^rd, that means that for the last 23 days I have not spoken ill of, nasty to, and prayed for my adversaries.

 I pray that we, as Christians-

-Whether we are Non-Denominational, Baptist, Methodist, Lutheran, Presbyterian,Catholic, Assembly of God, Messianic Christians,  7^th Day Adventists etc.

- whether we are blue, green, purple or red

- whether we are married, divorced, single or widowed

- whether we have children or not- whether we attend worship as part of a church family, or if we worship alone with a bible in our bedroom.

WE ARE FOLLOWERS OF CHRIST.

WE must love one another as HE LOVES US! 

We need to stop judging each other by who is a “Better” Christian. Who practices the correct holidays.  Who gives more money to what charity.  Who does better mission work. Who loves Jesus more.  It is not OUR call. It is not OUR job.  It isn’t remotely in our job description here as an earth dweller.  GOD is the judge.

We need to  work on becoming a peaceful union to GROW our church.  

WE are the CHURCH. 

It’s not a building.  It’s not a denomination. It’s not a pastor. WE, as Christians, are the church. Things in the world are getting ugly. The end times are near. It may not be in our lifetime, it may not be in our kids’ lifetime, but MAN, don’t you want to make the CHURCH stronger for our future?

 For our grandchildren? 

For our great- grandchildren. 

For ourselves?

Speak Life.

Support each other. Love one another. GROW our CHURCH!

Amen.

{beBlessed} and have a GREAT day!

Dani

"And greater is the One living inside of me than he who is living in the world."-Mercy Me

Another suitcase in another hall...

I am SO excited about the next {BeBlessed} Women's Ministry retreat that I have been working on. I find so much joy in studying scripture,  structuring and sharing with women.  It gives me a feeling of wholeness...as if I was CREATED to do it. Maybe I was?

That is the focus of this particular retreat. Spiritual gifts.
What are they? How do you recognize them? How do you use them?

HOW did I get here? Not a a loaded question in the existential respect, but loaded in its concrete answer.
1. I was raised in a close knit Italian Catholic family
2. I have a degree in Musical Theatre Performance
3. I have a graduate degree in Education.
4. I have always been a writer.
5. I took a personal goal of reading the Bible, in its entirety, to the next level, by leaving the denomination I was raised in and confirming my Faith in another.
6. I homeschool my children
7. My husband and I are best friends, study the Bible together and worship and pray together.

Now....looking at the 7 statements above, one might think that one has nothing to do with the other...or why I believe that God grooms us to do...what HE wants us to do.

Still with me? I'll break it down...

Ok... My awesome family taught me the importance of attending church as a family and how a congregation of similar beliefs can guide and encourage each other. Performing and teaching are skills necessary to be an effective speaker. Reading the Bible in its entirety, forming my own conclusions and beliefs,  along with the ability to write this information down, in a clear and concise manner, aids in the creation of retreat materials. Being a servant to the Lord fuels my soul. Lastly, having an awesome partner while spending my days home with my kids is the icing on my cake.

I believe that God perfectly crafted these seemingly random aspects of my life as stepping stones of the path of my future.

Looking back on the last 36 years, I remember so many moments that have pointed me towards this current season of my life. I didn't always listen or follow the call or the pull. ..but hey..I am human.

Knowing, Christ, the way that I do now...is such a light in my life. Knowing what HE wants me to do - as I walk this earth, is an amazing feeling.

If you would like to see what you are called to do...send me an email, contact me via Facebook etc. Register for my Saturday Women's retreat on May 3rd here in Upstate NY.
Or, book your own retreat! I can come to your church!

{beBlessed} and Have a GREAT day!