Everything Old is New Again

Have you ever had one of those times when you think of something from your past, something that you've known forever and it just seems like a new thought? Let me explain what I mean.

About 5 years ago I was taking the boys to basketball camp. We were driving down a back road and we were singing away to one of the songs we'd recently learned at the camp my parents helped run. Thank the good Lord I had both boys buckled safely in their booster seats because suddenly the cars in front of me stopped and I had no choice but to veer off the road. Unfortunately, where I veered was right into the wooded lot on the side of the road. There was quite a bit of damage to my car but God was watching over us and no one was hurt.

The other day I was driving down the road and for whatever reason I started thinking about that wreck and how blessed we were that the damage was only to the car and not to any of us. We came so close to truly being harmed. It happened long ago but suddenly it was new again.

Maybe the most recent and most meaningful of these little moments was actually more of an epiphany for me.

Webster defines as epiphany as "a sudden, intuitive perception of or insight into the reality or essential meaning of something, usually initiated by some simple, homely, or commonplace occurrence or experience. "

So here's what happened. I was cleaning house and listening to music on my iPhone. My newest favorite song came on and I started listening- really listening- to the lyrics. Suddenly I realized something that I had known for many years- but I heard it with new ears. I saw it with new eyes. I understood it with a depth that I hadn't before.

Here are the lyrics that suddenly took my breath away:

"One of these days I'm gonna see the hands that took the nails for me"

Yes, I have known for most of my life that one day I'm gonna die and when I do I'm gonna go to heaven. But wait...did you see what those words above said? Did you really SEE them?? Did you understand them? I "knew" them. I "understood" them, or I thought I did until I heard the song again.

Let me type them out again for you.

"One of these days I'm gonna see the hands that took the nails for me"

Suddenly I KNEW something NEW. One day I'm gonna get to SEE JESUS! Did you hear that. One of these days I'M GONNA GET TO SEE JESUS. Yes, I know I'm shouting it. But goodness gracious, if there is anything worth shouting it's those words.

People, I AM GONNA SEE JESUS!!! Do you understand how wonderful that is? Do you realize what that means?? I sure hope you do 'cause boy I no now.

Like my title says- "Everything old is new again." I've known this for a long time- but now I KNOW it!!!

Listen to the song- I hope it will bring new meaning to your life as well!

Billy, The Untold Story

Billy, The Untold Story is a book about two evangelists. One I have known about almost my entire life and one I had never heard of before reading the book.

Billy Graham was a household name in my home in NC. Though I never saw him preach in person, I watched his crusades on television many times and was repeatedly overwhelmed by his love of the Lord and his enthusiasm in sharing that love with others.

Charles Templeton was a name I had never heard of before receiving this book to read. Reading about his rise to fame as an evangelist and his eventual downward spiral into the deep depths of disbelief was both enlightening and unsettling.

Reading about the friendship of these two men was interesting but my interest was most peaked by having the opportunity to learn about how Billy Graham got his start in his religious career. The Billy Graham I had been accustomed to, was the beloved silver haired gentlemen on television. It was a blessing to gain knowledge about his true “early years”. It was inspiring to see Mr. Graham as a “real man” and to see the struggles that he faced-not only in his rising career but in his faith. Reading of the torment and anguish that Mr. Graham suffered as he struggled with his faith in one particular section of the book was life changing for me.

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in reading a faith building book.

You can check out more about the book here.

Podcasts, Podcasts, So Many Podcasts!

Hello, my name is Beth and I am a podcast addict!

I absolutely love listening to Podcasts. I have so many downloaded on my iPhone right now that I have a difficult time deciding which one to listen to.

I listen while I'm drying my hair in the mornings. I listen while cleaning house. I listen while I iron. I listen in the car! I listen all the time.

Here are a few of my current favorites. I not only listen to the current podcasts but lots of the past ones as well. I think that is really what has caused the addiciton!!

The Diva Cast- this is a group of "Five, Fun, Fabulous, Forty Something Friends" that get together and talk about many different topics! They chat about everything from friendships to fashion. Kids to Kindness. Diva Dos to Diva Don'ts! These ladies are awesome! You've got to listen to them. Just beware- when you search for them on iTunes use TheDivaCast (all scrunched together) or you'll get a podcast of a whole different nature!

River Valley Church- Women's Ministry-Moms Group and Chick Night. These podcasts are wonderful. The ladies that conduct the studies/podcasts have chosen excellent topics that most women are dealing with. Their current study is about challenging ourselves to work for a marriage that surpasses the ordinary. They discuss topics such as: bringing fun back into your marriage, working through money issues, investing in your spouse, and more. I have really enjoyed this study. The past studies have been just an informative and fun. Chick Night is a monthly podcast that is also great to listen to. These podcasts are very encouraging and uplifting! You can find them on iTunes by searching for River Valley Church.

Faith Chapel Billings Montana- Relevant Women of the Bible- There are actually several different studies here. I have really enjoyed listening to the Women of the Bible series. They've also done a study on the book of James in the Bible. Just search for Faith Chapel in iTunes.

Mission Valley Christian Fellowship- Sandra Giovinetti- there are several series located at this site. You'll have to download each podcast individually and then import them into iTunes. They only have the current series in iTunes now. I really enjoyed the Proverbs 31 Woman series.

Ocean Hills Church-Women of the Bible Series- This was another great series on different Women of the Bible. You can get the whole series on iTunes or you can go to the link I've provided and search under "series".

Calvary Chapel Brentwood-Lou Taylor- Mrs. Taylor is the Women's Ministry Director and she is an awesome speaker. I've really enjoyed all of the series that she has taught. Just search for Lou Taylor in iTunes.

Chip Ingram- I love to listen to Chip Ingram speak. I had not heard of him until last year when I participate in one of his studies at our church. I went through the Effective Parenting in a Defective World study. It was awesome. He has tons of different studies. His current series on iTunes in House or Home and it is excellent!! I highly recommend it!

I guess that's about it. Believe me- if you go to any of these and decide to listen to them you will have PLENTY to keep you busy! I've even listened to a few of them several times over!

If you get hooked like I did, let me know! I'd love to hear your feedback!

A Nation's Theme Song?

At this critical time in our nation, oh how I wish we could adopt THIS song as our nation's theme song!

You're the God of this City

You're the King of these people

You're the Lord of this nation

You are

You're the Light in this darkness

You're the Hope to the hopeless

You're the Peace to the restless

You are

There is no one like our God

There is no one like our God

For greater things have yet to come

And greater things are still to be done

in this City

Greater thing have yet to come

And greater things are still to be done

in this City

There is no one like our God

There is no one like our God

For greater things have yet to come

And greater things are still to be done

in this City

Greater things have yet to come

And greater things are still to be done here

There is no one like our God

There is no one like our God

Greater things have yet to come

And greater things are still to be done

in this City

Greater things have yet to come

And greater things are still to be done here

My own NaBloPoMo-down the drain

Ok, so obviously I bit the dust on this little challenge. Terrible I know. But I promise I really am going to try to do better about posting.

I have no excuses-other than letting life get in the way.

I have of these great ideas for posts rolling around in my head but never seem to find the time or rather make the time to sit down and write.

so, here's hoping that I'll get it in gear and do some writing. Please don't give up on me. Keep checking back in! PLEASE!

My own NaBloPoMo

Well, I totally missed that October was National Blog Posting Month. Which is really not all that surprising considering I have been behind in almost everything lately. Why not be a whole month late for this exciting challenge.

So, I've decided that I'm going to make November my own NaBloPoMo. It is my intention to write a post everyday for the month of November. I'll go ahead and say upfront that the posts may be short on some days but there will be posts never the less.

Experts say that it takes at least 30 days for something to become a habit. Let's see if it works for me!

Anyone want to join me in the challenge and agree to write a post everyday for the month of November? Come on, don't make me do this alone!