Week 16: Our journey to the fasted lifestyle, pt. 26

This week has been amazing, sad, joyful, heartbreaking, encouraging, humbling all wrapped up into one.  We are feeling the stirrings of revival in our church.  Lots of stuff in my heart is coming to the light and being swept away.

I made some hard admissions and felt things that I thought were gone, but they were just buried and festering.  I had my whole being shaken in ways I never knew existed.

I prayed and the answer was no and then I was left wondering why?  I prayed and the answer was yes, but I was left wondering why now? 


The biggest thing that came out of this week is a closer relationship with Jesus.  When I was asking my "why's" to the Lord, He showed me Job 40:2a- Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him? 


I'm having to learn that the why's don't matter, but that His judgments and timing are perfect.  With the why's I was telling God how to do His job.  Not my place.  Just my place to trust.  


That's where I'm at, I will elaborate more as the Lord leads.  

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you."-Matthew 7:7

Image courtesy of Bliss Photography

Rest

The day is hectic.  Rain off and on for days can make things feel a little closed in.  While I'm thankful for the rain, I'm ready to go back out into the world.

I get my opportunity and it starts raining yet again.  I come home feeling slightly defeated.  My daughter is sleepy, I am too.  I go put her in her crib for a nice afternoon nap and she cries.  She keeps crying.

I go back to her and think, "you are tired, just rest already".  The conditions are perfect for a nap: rainy weather, light thunder, dark afternoon, cozy sleeping arrangement.  What else do you need?

I begin to rock her and hold her like a little baby.  The baby she no longer is.  I'm holding a toddler.  She drifts off and I don't really notice because I'm rocking and singing.  I look down and there is my little baby again.  Her weight, features, and length completely different, but the look is the same as the day she was born.  The look of peace, comfort, and rest.

How I remember those days rocking, nursing, or snoozing together on the couch when she was little.  Those times are few and far between now.  She wants her independence and most times fights to stay awake until she is in her own bed.  But looking at her peaceful countenance I flashback to one and half years ago and play all those memories back like a movie.  I cannot fathom the precious gift each one is.

I long to have that comfort, peace, and rest in my life.  It is free to obtain, but my independence is in the way.         I can run to my Father and lay in His lap, but I don't.  I fight to stay awake.  I fight to handle things my own way.

Why can't I rest?  He knows I'm tired and the conditions are perfect:  I'm thirsty for the Word, I have wounds that need healing, and I want to know Him more.  Why do I think I know better?

He longs for me to rest in His arms.  To see peace wash over my face.  To know that I know that I'm protected, safe, and completely comfortable in His presence.  Yet I don't.  Stubborn as a mule, I don't budge closer than I dare.

Am I afraid? Sometimes.  Do I trust Him? Yes and no.  I'm sometimes afraid that if I trust Him, He will give me more sorrow or anguish than I can bear.  So I hold Him at an arms length.  And for that I'm sorry Lord.

I look down at my daughter again and I think of how she trusts me wholeheartedly.  I know that the feelings she has for me are a picture of what I should have for the Lord.  And the love I feel for her is just a fraction of what the Lord feels for us.  I want to be wholeheartedly trusting of the Lord.  Even now, my heart breaks at just the thought of loving on the level I need to love.  I long for it as He longs for my heart.

Zoe asleep on Mommy, 1 Month

I know He won't leave me where I am.  "He won't relent until He has it all."  Remove the things that hinder love, Lord.  I want to dance after You with joy, fall into Your arms and rest in perfect peace.

Week 15: Our journey to the fasted lifestyle, pt. 25

We are slowly but surely making it back to the right path.  We ate out twice this week which is getting closer to the mark.

We learned a lot this week through warfare, repentance, and pressing.  

1.  Things will come at you when you least expect.  The enemy can attack in any way, shape, or form.  

2.  Eating your emotions is not a healthy way to deal with your circumstance (one of the times we ate out).  

3.  Close friends and family are priceless!  A friend who will pray for you is invaluable.

4.  There is a definite need for people who will mirror a healthy, honest image of you back to yourself.  If you have mud on your face and you don't have a mirror who will tell you?  A true friend.

5.  Meditate on the Lord's thoughts for you and no one else's.  

6.  Bitterness hinders revival (and miracles).  Turn from it, repent, and you will see true freedom.

7.  A snippet from the message at church today:  Prayer and fasting is not a substitute for obedience.  (Will expand on that in a little bit).

8.  There is no Junior Holy Spirit.  Some kids will blow you away with their knowledge and wisdom.

9.  You don't know your strength until you are tested.

10.  Envy causes the Lord to crush the object of envy in order to produce compassion. (Finished up reading Envy by Bob Sorge.  LOTS of wisdom and revelation!)

We have so much to learn about God's will.  That's the ultimate lesson this week.  

As for the snippet from the message- The revelation is that we can fast and pray but if we are not obedient, then the fasting and praying won't produce what we are desiring.  The Lord cannot move without obedience.  

Another pastor wrote on his facebook status:  "If your intentions don't lead to obedience then your good intentions are just hidden rebellion"-Luke Holter.  Yikes!  So I'm really rebelling when I don't walk in obedience to the Holy Spirit.  How many times have I said, "Lord, I will get to it" and never really do.  So today, I'm restarting this whole thing.  

As I'm walking out obedience, I'm contending for many things, but mostly I contend for a transformed life.  A life that brings glory to God.  

Week 14: Our journey to the fasted lifestyle, pt. 24

This week was somewhat better, but we are still off track.  All three of us came down with a bug.  Daughter-Ear infection, Husband-Strep Throat, Me-Pink eye that turned into bronchitis (huh?).  So this week was more about convenience than anything.

However, I did conquer the storage room purge so YAY!  Got alot done around the house too.  In between coughing fits I would clean until I got too tired.  Then sit for a little bit.  So our house is looking pretty good at the moment.  Which makes me feel pretty good mentally.  Clutter everywhere makes me insane.

Also, yesterday we visited the lovely new Trader Joe's in our area for the first time.  LOVE IT!  I think this will be instrumental in getting us back on track.  We have been spending lots of money on fresh organic food at the store and here comes Trader Joe's with fresh organic food at a much lower price.  Hooray!

Onward we march!  Have a great Sunday tomorrow everyone!

Zoe touching the cheetah statue at the Zoo.  That's one big kitty cat!

Naturally Frugal, pt. 1

For the past year or so, I have been experimenting with natural cleaners, health, and beauty products.  It was mostly born out of my vehement dislike of bleach (the smell makes me sick), the concern about what our cleaners do to our bodies, and the desire to spend a lot less at the grocery store.

Lots of research and prayer has gone into this.  It was really a 180 from where I used to be.  All this organic, natural business was "hippy dippy crap" in my opinion a few years ago.  (Sorry for the use of crap, I'm trying not to but I needed it for emphasis.  Sorry again for using it twice.)

As of now, I make our own laundry soap, all purpose cleaner, dish detergent, window cleaner, grease cutter cleaner, soft scrub, and some beauty masks for myself.  I also want to try making our own soap, lotion, sunscreen, bug repellent (personal and household), and deodorant.  I'm going to try to include a recipe a week so you can see what we have been up to.

This week I will talk about our All Purpose Cleaner.

Recipe:
- 3 Tablespoons vinegar
- 1/2 Teaspoon washing soda
- 1/2 Teaspoon castile soap
- 2 Cups hot water
- A few drops of essential oil for scent and disenfectant properties (make sure it is very diluted.  Too much can harm the spray mechanism.)

This ingredients for this 409 replacement cost about 20 dollars up front, but you can use them many, many times and in other recipes.  I love Lavender scented castile soap and lavender essential oil for the antibacterial and antiviral properties.  All in all, I would say it's about $1.50 for a very large bottle (4 cup bottle).  And it lasts forever!  Ok, not forever, but a really long time.  I have three huge bottles: one in each bathroom and one in the kitchen.

A lot of my recipes and tips I have found on Pinterest.  That site has EVERYTHING!  Some I already knew from grandparents teaching.

I hope that I can pass on any tips and tricks to help your family stay healthy and stretch your dollar.

Happy Independence Day

Hello all,

Happy Independence Day!  Hope you are spending it with the ones you love and in the manner you choose. We are home (for the most part) still recovering from illness.  Hubster has strep throat, Zoe has an ear infection, and I have pink eye.  We have been on antibiotics for a couple of days so it's getting better and we hope to be able to rejoin the world tomorrow.  We are sad that our plans were sidelined, but we know the Lord is using this to teach us something.  We are praying for revelation.  


I'm also praying for revelation for this upcoming political year.  Lord reveal to me what you would have me seek you for this year.  I need peace about the way our country is going.  I'm praying for our nation to turn and seek you.  To repent from wickedness and proclaim righteousness over our land.  To go back to the beginning when this land loved You.  


God bless America through her collective repentance and submission to You.  Lord show America what it truly means to be the "land of the FREE and home of the BRAVE."

Pray with us for our nation.

Blessings,

The Niemeyers

Encouragement in the nick of time

Yes, I just posted, but I just read a blog post from David Wilkerson's Devotionals that his son keeps updated after he went to be with the Lord.  It's called Hunter and you can read it here.

Seeing as how I have felt so beaten up by satan lately this really helped.  He hunts us down because of God's love for us.  We have the authority to make him flee!  So right now "I claim the Blood of Jesus over our lives!"  Hear that satan, time to go!

Week 13: Our journey to the fasted lifestyle, pt. 23

So yeah, this week was not much better.  =(  I have learned though that in our "busiest" months, we need to plan, plan, plan.  I feel brokenhearted, but I know I will get back on track.

Tomorrow starts a new chapter in the journey.  That means diving back in and going deeper than before.  We are going to purpose to eat right and not spend anymore.

As of now, we have gone off the deep end with eating out and need to get back to the beginning.  We are resubmitting to the Lord's will for our lives.  The comfort I have is knowing He is moved by our repentance.  He is so faithful even in our disobedience.

To date we have paid off around $2,500 worth of debt.  We have the two credit cards and the two items of debt on my credit report to pay.  Of course there are the student loans, but those are going to be around for awhile and we have peace about that at the moment.

This has been a hard fought battle in our lives and we are ready to defeat this once and for all.

This quote spoke to me this evening:

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." Teddy Roosevelt

I feel like we have been in the arena the past few months and have been slugging it out.  There has been tons of grace and freedom from temptation which we are so thankful for, but the past 3 weeks have been so tough.  I feel like we were knocked down and we kept trying to stumble back up, but would be knocked down by the slightest breeze.  

I'm tired of being satan's punching bag!  He only has the power that we allow him to have.  Which by our disobedience, he was having a field day.  If there is no ground for him to stand on, then he has no right to our lives.  We need to get back in the game, reclaim our ground and stand it.

At VBS, the theme this year was Daniel's courage in Babylon.  Daniel had the courage to stand firm for the Lord.  I want to have that same stance.  I don't want to soften my stance at the first sign of stress.  Our chant this year was "S-T-A-N-D, I will stand won't bend my knee".  I'm done bowing to food and money.  It's time to stand up and move on from this.