His Way Or The Highway

February 20, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres1 Comment

{Note: Please view this post within a browser to see the included video.}

Ah, choices. The famous Robert Frost poem “The Road Not Taken” was written about our difficulty in making decisions:

The Road Not Taken

BY ROBERT FROST

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

Choices and our reactions to them are discussed in the Bible, as well.

Mark 8:27-33 says,

“Jesus and his disciples set out
for the villages of Caesarea Philippi.
Along the way he asked his disciples,
“Who do people say that I am?”
They said in reply,
“John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others one of the prophets.”
And he asked them,
“But who do you say that I am?”
Peter said to him in reply,
“You are the Christ.”
Then he warned them not to tell anyone about him.

He began to teach them
that the Son of Man must suffer greatly
and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed, and rise after three days.
He spoke this openly.
Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
At this he turned around and, looking at his disciples,
rebuked Peter and said, ‘Get behind me, Satan.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.‘ ”

Rebuke. Interesting word. I was pretty confident I knew what it meant, but I looked it up to be sure…because I really wanted to understand what was being said here.

re·buke

verb

to express sharp disapproval or criticism of (someone) because of their behavior or actions.

So Peter criticized Jesus for what He said…Wow. Can you imagine making that choice?!?!

WAIT A SECOND…

Peter may have criticized the Lord in His physical presence, but don’t we often do the same thing exactly the same thing? And with the Holy Spirit living right in our souls…

How many times have you read or heard something Jesus asks of us as Christians to do and rolled your eyes or talked your way around obeying Him? How often do we doubt His Word and His promises? If you’re human (and I’m guessing most of us are), you are guilty of it every single day. I know I am.

But let’s look at Jesus’ reply:

‘Get behind me, Satan.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.‘

S. Michael Houdmann head of Got Questions Ministries says,

” …we must also see how easily we can become an unwitting spokesperson for Satan. This is especially true when we lose sight of God’s plan for us. This comes about when our focus is on our careers, our possessions, our security, the things of the world rather than upon sacrifice and service and the proclaiming of God’s message. When Peter’s focus shifted to his own desires and plans, Jesus rebuked him in order to get him back on track. May our focus always be on God and His plans, that we may never experience a similar rebuke from our Lord.”

I think our loss of focus on GOD’s will for our lives can sometimes stem from prayer we feel has been unanswered. I know I am guilty of losing grasp of any understanding of His purpose for my life when things take an unexpected turn.

But the more I pray, the more I force myself out of my comfort zone and into my Jesus zone, the more I push myself into scripture reading and singing…the more I fall back into God’s grace.

Isaiah 55:8

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.

Let’s make a steadfast effort to make the choice for HIS WAY… because I don’t even want to fathom what awaits us heading the other way…

Last night on my way home this song was on and it brought me to tears and my newly found up-raised arm…How powerful.

Make the choice and the change for Christ.

PS – Here are the lyrics for the song above. I just have a feeling you’ll want to know them, and pray them.

“Keep Making Me”

Make me broken
So I can be healed
‘Cause I’m so calloused
And now I can’t feel
I want to run to You
With heart wide open
Make me broken

Make empty
So I can be filled
‘Cause I’m still holding
Onto my will
And I’m completed
When you are with me
Make me empty

[Chorus:]
‘Til You are my one desire
‘Til You are my one true love
‘Til You are my breath, my everything
Lord, please keep making meMake me lonely
So I can be Yours
‘Til I want no one
More than You, Lord
‘Cause in the darkness
I know You will hold me
Make me lonely[Chorus]

What's Up Wednesday

Out @ Opulent & A Completed Great Room!

January 15, 2014January 16, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres2 Comments

Yay! We have finally made it to the middle of the week! I’m in the midst of Pure Barre’s January 21 Day Challenge, and boy, the week is dragging by!! 5-7 days/week of leaving the house at 4:45 am. {Yawn.}

But I must say that I am LOVING getting this workout in every day! (No, we aren’t being sponsored by PB) But seriously, if you have a studio near you, try this work out. It’s 55 minutes of pure BURNING, while doing NO cardio whatsoever.

As you can tell from the title of this post, between all the Pure Barre classes & work, we have finally completed our great room/den/family room. I found a pillow & throw for our new French barrel cane chair:

Here is a close-up of the fabric:

Against the silver of the draperies and the flat grey of the chair, I am loving the way this fabric is both metallic and flat flax-colored linen in one. Perfect blend of opulence and tranquility – The whole theme I designed this room around.

And if you’ll notice in the back left corner of the picture above, you can just barely see our final addition:

This antiqued brass and wood inlay Threshold Target Bar Cart was originally $129.99. NO WAY. (Although, apparently, much better than the price at Crate & Barrel – see link!)

But when I found it the other day for 70% off, making it right around $38?!?!? Yes, ma’am. It needed to come home with us. Not only does it fit the character of our room really well, it also alleviates a storage issue as we ~~have way too many things~~ don’t have enough cabinet space. 🙂

I found that great set of dessert plates with various gold and white designs, the striped and polka dotted paper straws, & those awesome coasters toward the back made for us by my sister-in-law, Mandy to go with the cart…. And yep, you guessed it! Everything I bought was on DEEP discount. Everything else was a wedding gift, and I’m so excited they now have a space to be displayed!!

I even found this little gem you can’t see in any of the pictures:

I remember describing my ‘vision’ for this room back before I even lived in this house, when Craig & I were engaged. He was a bit skeptical back then. 😉 But the other day, he told me he can see my ‘vision’ in the room now, and he says I achieved it (YES!!!). Win!

I think one of the most important aspects of interior design (or probably any design work, for that matter) is to create a space based around a feeling, an experience you want to have when you walk into that room. You are able to, then, pick colors, fabrics, and pieces that reflect that feeling. Pretty soon, the room has come together and you never had to fret over which style you are – traditional, modern, farmhouse, because it is all based around pieces you love and a feeling you desire.

Remember us telling you we went to Opulent for dinner the other night with my parents and brother? Thought we would share these two cute pics today:

Just like all of our family, we really wish we could spend more time with this bunch! Dinner was delicious and alot of fun!

One other note for today, keep your eyes and ears open for Jesus. Yesterday, we talked about how God has been really speaking to us with the book of Isaiah…Well, yesterday, He put yet another verse from Isaiah in front of us. Sometimes God’s Will for your life, and His promises are right in front of you.

Join us tomorrow!

xoxo,
Pier & Craig

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Let Our Desires Be His

February 13, 2013 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres1 Comment

In honor of Ash Wednesday and the beginning of the Lenten season, I wanted to share a really awesome tool I found today: A Lent Calendar – much like an Advent Calendar. For each day of Lent, there is a mini “thought” or “challenge” and then a call to Fast, Pray and Give.

I like today’s prayer challenge: For the desires of our hearts to be put behind God’s will for our lives. I know I certainly struggle with praying for what I want for Craig and I, rather than His will for our lives. So that’s one of the things I am going to do in a faith-building regard for Lent. I am going to be diligent about praying for God’s will to be done, rather than for the things I want for us.

Also, in the box below, please let us know of any ideas you might have for a Bible Study for Craig and I to do together. It’s one of our focuses as a couple for Lent, and we would love your help!

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