Pray. Even On A Bad Day. Pray.

June 26, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres2 Comments

Y’all.

It’s one of those days where I am so fired up about something at the office that I don’t even think I can write a blog. Not a soul-searching, Thirsty for Christ Thursday one for sure.

My mind is flooded with which e-mail to send to whom, what day which meeting is on and who to invite…and then there are the catty/chatty goings on about the office; my boss in my ear about my counterpart here at work; rumors that changes are ‘about to take place at the company’…. A lot of noise.

But it dawned on me that really, when you need to pray and worship most, you usually aren’t ‘in the mood’…

When you feel like praying the LEAST, that’s when you should the MOST.

{Watch the video above (in a browser) for a great song about prayer!}

He will get you through. Whatever storm cloud you’re caught up in – stress, sadness, worry, discouragement – Jesus, and Him alone, can pull you through your troubles.

John 8:12

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world.Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Colossians 2:7

Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

Let Him be your light. Even on the worst or most stressful day, He makes all things work together for the good.

TTC Tuesday

Children Of The King

June 24, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed LefebvresLeave a comment

As you all know, or probably know, Craig and I have been ~~patiently~~ waiting on God for a child for exactly:

After what seemed to have been forever, we heard from the Holy Spirit concerning our future child, and we are so very thankful, expectant and thrilled for little Jonah Elizabeth to arrive!! I can’t tell you how many people during the past month have told us she’s going to be here sooner than we felt! It’s been unbelievably amazing to realize that the Lord hasn’t spoken only to Craig and I, but to those around us, as well!! How awesome is our God!?!?!

Thinking about our future little angel made me examine more closely who she will be and who I am in Christ.

Gill’s Exposition Of The Entire Bible (a comprehensive Bible commentary) says this: “…akin to God, he being their Father, and they his children by adopting grace, and which was made manifest by their new birth; and also akin to Christ, he being their head, husband, Father, and brother, and they his members, spouse, children, and brethren…”

“His children by adopting grace” – how BEAUTIFUL is that?!? The One who breathed the world – and the stars! – into existence adopted us as His Children, even though we aren’t good enough, or thankful enough, or faithful enough. He chose us.

Baby Jonah isn’t even here yet, and Craig mentioned the other day that he just loves her so much – he can’t even imagine the love he will feel for her once she makes her grand arrival! That love? The love a parent has for his child…The amount of that love is outrageous. Most parents will tell you they had no clue until they held their child in their arms how much they were capable of loving.

But take that amount and multiply it by infinity.

That’s just beginning to skim the surface of how much God loves His children.

Ephesians 2:4-7

4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

Our Father in Heaven love US so very much that He allowed His Son to die in our place. Really. Think about that for a second. As a parent. As a future parent. As someone who knows love. He allowed His very own Son to die a criminal’s death, not just a peaceful death in his sleep…but a tortuous, death-row slaughtering. Can you even imagine? That’s how much He loves us. He allowed that for His own Son. To save US.

That’s the LOVE of our Heavenly Father.

Embrace that amazing love, and consider what a special gift He gives when He blesses us with children.

My Choice Monday

Restored By The Master

June 24, 2014June 24, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed LefebvresLeave a comment

Better late than never, right? 🙂

Today, we are sharing a beautiful devotional from one of our favorites, Our Daily Bread.

http://odb.org/2014/06/23/restored-by-the-master/

Our Lord calls us to become RENEWED and RESTORED, to turn from our old lifestyle to follow Him! And trust us when we tell you, His restoration is miraculous…and I feel like that’s a ridiculous understatement!

If you enjoyed this devotion, be sure to check out Our Daily Bread in our sidebar. They have a great FREE app, as well, with included reminders to spend time with God! Not that any of us forget…right? 🙂

Have a great night all!
Love,
Pier & Craig, straight from our kitchen tonight to your computer screen

Posted from WordPress for Android

Thirsty For Christ Thursday

Relief

June 19, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres8 Comments

Aaaah…I can honestly say that one of my favorite parts of the week is going to the chiropractor. Each week I go, during lunch, and have an adjustment and then an hour-long massage. All the tense muscles from the stresses of daily life become relaxed, and I feel like a brand new girl.

Seriously. Hands-down. Best. Lunch. Ever. 🙂

But as I was lying there today, my muscles relaxing, my tension releasing, I heard the familiar PING of a text message come from my phone.

When my massage was complete, I checked my messages and saw the one that had arrived during my moment of relaxation. It was from my dad:

Ma is doing much better now. They moved her to a regular room; sodium levels are up and white count is down…Prayer does work. I’ll keep y’all updated.

Love, Dad

Wow.

The relief of that message took more tension out of my neck than the massage I just had had. And then, it hit me – The relaxation. The release. The awesome feeling of having a massage. That’s what God wants us to get from prayer.

Being in His Presence should be a wave of warmth and comfort and peace over us. Our faith in Him should lead us to healing. Out reliance on Him should cause tension to leave us because we don’t have any reason to worry when we are following the Lord with all that we are.

Matthew 11:28 (AMP)

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and overburdened, and I will cause you to rest. [I will ease and relieve and refresh your souls.]

Do you truly realize that we serve the God of the Universe who wants to hold us tight and make us feel like a million bucks?!

Just as I laid on the massage table this afternoon and my tired muscles found relief, so is the feeling for your whole body, soul, mind and spirit when you lift your heart up to God in prayer and worship. He wants to have a “Daddy” relationship with you!

Let him be your relief from this world.

P.S. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to all of you who lifted up my grandmother in prayer! He listens. He answers. He is The Healer. He is The Sustainer. We are blessed with your prayers, your love and your friendship!

What's Up Wednesday

Let Us Experience The Glory Of Your Goodness

June 18, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres3 Comments

This has been a busy week, following a busy week last week.

But this Wednesday, instead of posting about what WE are up to, can you do a favor for us?

Can you please pray for my dad and the sweet lady in blue, pictured below?

My grandmother, “Ma”, went to ICU last night, with a very high white blood cell count and very low levels of potassium, sodium, etc. Please pray for God’s healing hands, and the peace of His presence for both her and my father, and his siblings…all of us.

{please view this video/song in a browser}

My Choice Monday

He Calls Us Out Upon The Waters, The Great Unknown…

June 16, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres3 Comments

So “My Choice Monday” means we can post about whatever we want to today, right? 🙂 It doesn’t have to be a product recommendation or a recipe, does it? Because I don’t have that for you today…

I do, however, have a recommendation in the way of life, though…

Have you ever sung or listened to a song a million times…and then FINALLY been struck – off guard – by the lyrics, and what the song actually means?

About 5 (+ or -) months ago, I was listening to the radio (Victory 91.5 – for all you Atlantans!) and one of the morning dj’s from Rise & Stein – my favorite show – mentioned this song that she just LOVED and was SO MOVED by: “Oceans” by Hillsong.

Although I love and adore Hillsong, I had never heard “Oceans”, nor had I even heard of it…So I set myself to looking it up as soon as I arrived at the office. I listened. And then I listened again. I liked the song…but it wasn’t my favorite. I’m certainly somewhat OCD when it comes to music – I like symmetry: A verse, a chorus, a verse, a bridge, a chorus. End of song.

But this song is not written that way. So I was a little distracted from the words.

At the same time, I felt like I needed to sing something on my own. And the Holy Spirit told me it was this song.

I wasn’t thrilled. It’s a little bit of an odd range for my voice. It isn’t the symmetrical type of song I jive with most of the time. And I hadn’t sung something so ‘full-of-spirit’ since my high school youth choir touring the U.S. days.

But, we got the backing track and Craig and I set to work on practicing and recording and perfecting this song over the months. And somewhere along the way, the Lord led us to FullTurn Church – where, as I was leaving my first Wednesday night, they played “Oceans” as the recessional-esque song. And then He led us to the knowledge of our future baby “Jonah Elizabeth” and we began ‘building our ark’, so to speak, in faith. He asked us to take a giant leap (of faith) and plug into a new church…and as we have moved at His Word…the lyrics of this song began to really sink in. It was like an ocean wave slapped me in the face with all of the truth standing right in front of me.

Read those lyrics. Whoa.

So, the recommendation for this My Choice Monday? Listen for the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit. Let your soul rest in His embrace, and allow Him to lead you – where your trust is without borders.

And while you’re at it, listen to this song {open in a browser}, and we will share the recording of my singing it on Sunday very soon!

Thirsty For Christ Thursday

Encounter!

June 12, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres2 Comments

{To View The Video Below, Please Open This Post In A Browser By Clicking The Title (If Opening Within An E-Mail)}

We would absolutely truly appreciate your prayers during this time. We are so excited to see what God is going to do this weekend and how He will touch and change our lives!

Galatians 1:13-20

The Message (MSG)

13-16 I’m sure that you’ve heard the story of my earlier life when I lived in the Jewish way. In those days I went all out in persecuting God’s church. I was systematically destroying it. I was so enthusiastic about the traditions of my ancestors that I advanced head and shoulders above my peers in my career. Even then God had designs on me. Why, when I was still in my mother’s womb he chose and called me out of sheer generosity! Now he has intervened and revealed his Son to me so that I might joyfully tell non-Jews about him.

The Apostle Paul’s encounter with Christ completely changed the entire course of his life, and we know that God can – and will! – reach out and dramatically alter our hearts, minds and souls to advance His kingdom – If we only open our hearts to Him, and say YES.

Until Monday, we bid you farewell! Happy Fathers Day to all the dads out there, especially ours and the two NEW SOON-TO-BE DADS in our life – Mike & JW!!! All our love!

TTC Tuesday · What's Up Wednesday

Worry

June 11, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres5 Comments

It feels like I haven’t posted in forever – even though you guys got an update on Monday. I wrote that post last week because I KNEW this week was going to be just craziness!

The past two days WORRY has been on my mind – and not so much in the way of things I am worrying about, but more so about what I am not worried about. Last Tuesday, we posted about Future Baby Jonah and got something very rare for this blog. A true first, actually. A nastygram, in the form of a blog comment. It was supposed to be anonymous. The person used a fake, and very rude, e-mail address, and said something very hurtful, but thanks to technology, know that whatever you post or write on the internet, your identity can be found out. That said, we know who this comment came from.

Rather than WORRYING about what that person said, and if it might be true, I was first angry with her and then later – after much prayer and cooling off time 🙂 – sad for her. Her comment made me remember what my life was like without Christ at the center. It makes me look back on how unbearably bleak an existence without hope is.

I love the way The Message translation of the Bible reads. Try this one on for size:

James 1:2-4

The Message (MSG)

Faith Under Pressure

2-4 Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.

My faith in Christ means that I don’t have to worry. His Promises are real. His Word is true. His Spirit is our comfort.

The Holy Spirit has revealed and continues to reveal to me and to those around Craig and I truths and promises about our Baby Jonah. He asks that we continue to follow Him – no matter what, and the more closely we follow, the more He shows us we are on the right path. It is an uphill journey. It has not been easy.

He doesn’t promise easy. As a matter of fact, He warns the road is a hard one.

Matthew 10:16

The Message (MSG)

16 “Stay alert. This is hazardous work I’m assigning you. You’re going to be like sheep running through a wolf pack, so don’t call attention to yourselves. Be as cunning as a snake, inoffensive as a dove.

So don’t worry. Be diligent in your prayer life and follow Him – no matter what.

1 Peter 5:7

The Message (MSG)

6-7 So be content with who you are, and don’t put on airs. God’s strong hand is on you; he’ll promote you at the right time. Live carefree before God; he is most careful with you.

If God is for you, after all, who can POSSIBLY be against you – and stand a chance?

My Choice Monday

A Gift For Any Occasion

June 9, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed LefebvresLeave a comment

My mom’s birthday is TODAY (Happy Birthday, Mama!!) and trying to decide what to get for the woman in your life who has everything is a difficult task!

So, where is one of the absolute best places online to buy the ladies in your life something special – in most any price range?

Check out Marley Lilly! Clicking on the image above will take you directly to their online store! We have had so much luck and great experiences ordering from them, and (don’t tell Craig!) I have a definite order to place for us prior to our upcoming beach trip!

That’s only just a sampling of the many gifts and ideas you’ll find at Marley Lilly! Check out their site, and find something your wife, mother, sister, daughter, best friend or co-worker will just love!

To my mother:

Have a wonderful birthday! We love you!

Food For Thought Friday

A Quick Fix Delicious Chicken Dinner

June 6, 2014June 6, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres4 Comments

Happy Friday Y’all!

Sad to say, I am NOT feeling well…still…but at least I am home today, with my sweet husband. Always looking for that silver lining… 🙂

As promised, we have a DELICIOUS recipe for you today. It’s simple and easy to make, and you can easily alter it based on your own personal taste!

Because we love spice, we chose seasoned pepper, and red pepper flakes as two of our seasonings. Also, we used a spicy relish in addition to the heirloom tomato and roasted red pepper. Seriously, this was a DELICIOUS dish, and easy to make after getting home from a long commute and a long day at work! 🙂

Enjoy this meal, and you won’t be sorry! What are some of your go-to recipes for a quick homemade meal?

Have a great weekend folks!