An open letter to Candace Cameron Bure

I am sure your feed is blowing up like mine is. It seems like every other post or comment is regarding the Netflix series "Fuller House". Let me start by saying that I have not watched the new "Fuller House" and I personally can not comment on my thoughts regarding this show. I will say that I have 2 very excited young ladies in my home that are looking forward to seeing it. I have concern tho. It seems like all the comments and posts I keep seeing are explaining why I should not let my girls watch this new series. Yes, I grew up watching the show "Full House"and in our home we own the DVD set of the entire series and so my kids have also watched it.
There were lots of things even in those shows that we could have all made a stink about. As my teenage daughter has even said, "Uncle Jessie had a lot of love interests." Many of those ladies were not exactly dressed in a manner that I would feel is suitable for my girls. And of course DJ pushed the limits with some of her actions.
I bring this up to remind everyone that we all can find things that we don't agree with in most shows. But again I am not writing about the show. I am writing a letter to Candace. A fellow believer, women, mother and wife.

Dear Candace,

I want to take a few minutes and explain my feelings about all this mess in Social Media relating to your newest endeavor. I think it is wonderful that you have such a huge following of fans that have supported you along your amazing career in show business. I will admit I have a few of your books & have watched most of your movies. Overall they have not disappointed.
However, there have been a few times that I have had to answer questions from my kiddos following a movie, because they didn't understand why a women proclaiming to be a Christian would kiss another man when she is married. Or explain some of your outfits choices, because they would not be appropriate for our home. ALL OF THAT is between you & God. I am not here to judge you or shame you. I really just want to warn you.
You see I too am a Christian. I realize I am not famous, I don't have an amazing platform in which I can reach millions with the gospel. But you do. Most would even say you are a minister. You have spoken at women's events and shared the gospel in books, and on national television.  So you see, the people who are concerned with this new show are looking at you as such! They are looking up to you as a role model. I realize that we need to look to Christ but I also understand that in today's world people look to so many others. You are one of those people they look to. And when you release a show that (from what others are saying) is strongly against what most Christians view has moral. You are allowing "your good to be evil spoken of"

 Romans 14:16-19 (KJV)

¹⁶ Let not then your good be evil spoken of:

¹⁷ For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.

¹⁸ For he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God, and approved of men.

¹⁹ Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.

I realize you are an actress and are playing roles. But I also know that people know you as the person you present to them when not on the screen. That is the person that they are "judging". They are not judging your roles!

Scripture tell us to come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. Actually most of 2 Corinthians chapter 6 fits what I believe people are concerned about.

We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.

² (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)

³ Giving no offence in any thing, that the ministry be not blamed:

⁴ But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses,

⁵ In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings;

⁶ By pureness, by knowledge, by long suffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned,

⁷ By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,

⁸ By honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true;

⁹ As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed;

¹⁰ As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.

¹¹ O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you, our heart is enlarged.

¹² Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own bowels.

¹³ Now for a recompence in the same, (I speak as unto my children,) be ye also enlarged.

¹⁴ Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?

¹⁵ And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?

¹⁶ And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

¹⁷ Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.

¹⁸ And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

I prefer to let the scriptures speak for themselves. I am not a theologian by any stretch of the term. But I can say that as Christains I know we are called to a higher standard. People will look for anything to tear us down and destroy our witness. The roles you choose to play and the way you choose to live your life are between you & God. I am not going to tell you how or what to do. Frankly, that's none of my business. But it does become my business when I have to explain things to my teenage daughter. And I know others out there think the same way. Please know that my husband & I tell our kids that everyone has their own standards, and live their life how they feel God wants them to. Its not for us to judge. But I believe that when you place yourself in the eyes of millions and you represent your self as a child of the King, you have to think about others. Consider if you might be a stumbling block for someone else. I ask that you please take into consideration what your witness is. What are you wanting people to see in you or better yet WHO do you want them to see THROUGH you?

Sincerely in Christ & with LOVE,

LeAnne

P.S.  to those who so quickly pointed out the splinter. Let's not forget our own planks! We all have things that people could point out as "not Christ-Like". I know I do. But I am so thankful to serve a God of Grace, Mercy & Forgiveness, among so many other things!

STRUGGLES

Hi all! I wrote this a little while back, when our family & some of our friends were under personal attack. I am finally ready to share it with you all. God has been so FAITHFUL and His hand has been moving in our lives and I want to make sure to give HIM the glory!

I am struggling! I think we all do at some point. We all struggle with something. Sometimes its a daily struggle, sometimes it is a season of struggles. Sometimes it is over the simplest of things and sometimes it over big issues. What is your struggle lately?

Well mine...seems like a lot of things these past few months. I struggle with the everyday stuff a housewife & mom deals with. You know...is the house clean enough...NOPE! When will they invent self cleaning toilets for crying out loud!  Did I spend enough time with the kids today....Nope. Surely they are creative enough to find things to do on their own. Did my Husband feel appreciated...nope! But hey, I made sure to let him know yesterday!

Here is the thing, recently I have been struggling with even bigger things....I am talking about the things that we wrestle with that are not of flesh & blood. 

Ephesians 6:12

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

I really believe that all Christians will deal with this. I know that if we didn't then maybe we are not in a place that scares the devil.

Why me? That is an easy answer...Christ himself had to deal with these types of struggles. I am definitely not better than Christ!

The details aren't important, I can tell you that this is not the first time we...(I am going to switch to we because my hubby & I are in this together) have ever faced these types of challenges. These are the types of things that make you second guess yourself but at the same time make you want to fight for what you know is truth.  These are the types of things that make you question why its even happening, what is the purpose, who is to gain from it & what are they really gaining? A great answer to that last question came from a great friend & she simply said "evil doesn't need a reason." To which I replied "but I do!"  

  But do I?

 Do I need to always have the answers to evil things. Unfortunately we have to just trust. I say unfortunately because in our human nature we want all the answers. We want to know the who, what, when, where & whys of life. Do you think Job had to have an answer when he lost every Earthly thing?

Job 1:1

There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.

Job was perfect...not I! And yet he questioned. But in Job 13:5 Job says,

Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him.

I certainly am not saying my struggles are as Job's, no way. I am so thankful that we are all healthy, we have a home & all is well over all! But I look at Job's life and wonder what was it about him that even when his wife said "why don't you curse your god and die"...HE DIDN'T! How would you have handled loosing EVERYTHING? Silly as it sounds, I loose the pictures off my computer when it crashes and it seems devastating...imagine loosing all your kiddos that were in those pictures. How would you go on? I pray none of us ever has to deal with that. But job did and he still trusted God. Mine & hubby's struggles have been nil in comparison but they are ours. Yours are yours and who am I to say either are bigger than the other persons. Here is the thing....God gives us these struggles so that HIS glory will be made known. Remember the story of Joseph & the pit! His own brothers tried to destroy him. But Joseph was faithful to God and when his brother's realized it was him, they fell before him in fear. He then told them

 Genesis 50:20

 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good

God uses our struggles to make us stronger. He uses them to make us more reliant on Him. He uses them so that others will look at us and know the God in whom we serve is Faithful! Life is not easy and God never promised us it would be....He actually says to take up the cross....what? That is not easy in my book.

Luke 9:23

And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

But we also know that in

 1Kings 8:57, it tells us

The LORD our God be with us, as he was with our fathers: let him not leave us, nor forsake us:

So what was it about Job? He was upright & he feared God!  We want to be upright & fear the Lord as well. However; sometimes we doubt and question but you see... through everything lately God has not forsaken us. He has been there all along. Leading the battle. It has also been one of the most amazing times of our lives. I have told those who have been praying for us, that it has been amazing to just sit back & watch God work. You see most of those people who have said they were praying...didn't even know what was going on, I had not told them. The Holy Spirit lead them to pray. He does such amazing things.

 So sometimes He uses our struggles to remind US that HE LOVES US, HE WILL BE WITH US, HE WILL NOT FORSAKE US and HE IS FAITHFUL!

I am so thankful for Christ, for without Him I am nothing!

Frustrated but Real!

UGHHHHH! That is my "word" for today! It has been a day where NOTHING that I had planned on doing got done! NOTHING!!! I cleaned up several spills, tried to get the homeschooling done but the printer refused to do its job, I didn't get the bathrooms done,  I still need to put my laundry away, I failed at making a healthy dinner, and the list goes on. But, I did color with my little two, sat on the porch swing with the kiddos, read some lines of my daughter's play with her, cuddled with my sweet girl, laughed with my oldest son, chatted with my hubby, watched my little two climb in a tree to do their school work (got pics too), served hot dogs for dinner (kids & hubby love em), sat down and watched little videos my kids made on the ipad, and the list goes on! 
So I suppose ughh was my word for the morning. After my hubby gently reminded me that the housework can wait & the kids are trying new things & they are learning....I relaxed! I enjoyed moments with my kiddos. Moments that I wont get again.
Here is the thing. I love blogs! I enjoy reading about all the ways other moms & wives do life. Some are so scheduled and organized. I think to myself how wonderful life would be if I could be that way. Others have beautiful school rooms that I would just LOVE to have. Some bloggers have amazing food & recipes. If only I could cook gourmet meals like those....and if only my family would eat them! There are those bloggers who seem to have spotless homes. Ok if you were to walk in my home right now you would be amazed...not in a good way! I have 4 kids home with me all day! Not a museum here...a real home....lived in! Then there are the bloggers who have such convicting posts that they make me feel like I am the farthest thing from a "Super Christian".
All of these bloggers are wonderful. I really enjoy reading their work. I enjoy getting a peek into their world. BUT...I am me. God created me unique. Just like He did them. Sometimes I am more organized. Sometimes my house is spotless (if only for a moment). There are days that I make awesome healthy meals that get devoured. But those things do not always happen on the same day! That is my real word! Frustrating sometimes but definitely REAL and WONDERFUL.
Its ok that I am not perfect. No one is! But what is perfect is that I get to spend my days enjoying the moments! The dust & dishes will be there later, but my children will not be in my home forever. I have to remember to stop & spend those moments with them and in the end...I did get the kitchen cleaned & the dishes done. Not in my time but in time! 
And on the point of not getting anything done.....those cute pics I got of the kids doing their school work in the tree...the computer is refusing to let me load them on here! SO....tomorrow is a new day & God's mercies are new every morning. I look forward to seeing what He has in store, even if it is not what I have planned!  

WALLS

Today I was blessed with an opportunity to guest post on the blog 31days of Open Hearted Living. I have recently read the book "The Wall Around Your Heart" by Mary DeMuth and so I give you my take on the wonderful book!  Follow the link to not only my review but many others as well!

http://openheartedpower.com/2013/10/20/walls-healing-open-hearted/

Making It Beautiful in the Meantime.

It has been a little over a year since we moved into our new home. We lovingly refer to our new place as Titus Grove. When we moved in we had grand dreams of making it wonderful; starting the actual "grove" part, putting in the gardens & decorating the inside in the primitive style that we love. BUT, things do not always go as planned. Yes we got the garden in, then I started having heart issues. The garden was sick right along with me. We didn't get any of the trees in, not even ordered. We did get the foyer & hall painted, but haven't pulled the carpet off the steps yet! You should see the list of things we want to do...the list keeps getting longer but nothing really seems to get marked off.

There are a few reasons as to why we haven't moved forward with many...well most of the things on the list. Reasons like time, money, sickness etc! But one of the biggest reasons is because we wanted to do it all! If we were going to makeover a room, we were going to do it right. Start to finish it would be exactly the way we want it. So if we were going to do the living room, 1st we needed to do the ceiling, then the floors, then the painting, then all new molding & trim, oh don't forget the new light fixture & we need new seating for that room etc etc etc. Get the picture. And we had to do it in that order because of the design. Well when we realized how much it would all cost, it became overwhelming. So we didn't start it. We did the same with the main bath, need to take a wall down & get a new cabinet etc etc etc! So that was put on hold. I had it in my mind that if we couldn't do it all then it would have to wait till we could afford to do it all. I had the mindset that all those beautiful homes in the magazines and on TV shows are so wonderful, that my home had to be picture/TV perfect! RIGHT?

I also have to admit that the ugly head of jealousy has been known to pop up from time to time! Several of my friends have beautiful homes, with amazing décor & great kitchens. I am truly happy for them but I return home to my humble abode & wonder when will my home look like that?

I have been reading a book called "A Life That Says Welcome" by Karen Ehman. A fun read with lots of great tips & wonderful ideas. Come to find out (of course I really knew this deep inside) its not all about making your home perfect! As Karen says in the book ...."I believe wholeheartedly that God delights in our desire to provide a pleasant atmosphere for our family and others who will grace our home, AS LONG AS WE KEEP PROPER PERSPECTIVE."  What? Proper perspective....according to the World's standards, that perspective is all about the look! Having people desire what you have & think that your way is amazing.  Well, that's not proper or God pleasing. Karen goes on to write "Our homes by their very décor, atmosphere, and surroundings help others to forget the cares of the outside world and be refreshed by the love of the Lord."

So is my home, as it sits, that type of place? A place that exudes Gods love, mercy & grace. Is it a place; like Karen states, that when people leave they feel refreshed & not impressed? What is the motive to wanting my home beautiful? Well, I pray that it is! We do pray that God is always present here. We have a plaque in our home that says,

"Christ is the head of this home, the unseen guest at every meal, the silent listener of every conversation." And we pray that everyone who enters will feel His presence.

So now that I have my priorities back in order. Thanks Karen for the knock upside the head! We decided to YES work on our list, but make sure to put things in perspective! We are not going to go for perfect! And with that, we took on the Master bedroom.  Deciding to make it beautiful in the "meantime", beautiful in a way that is restful for us, so that in turn we can be refreshed & ready to help others. Beautiful in a way that wont break the bank (we all know we need to be good steward's of the money God has given us). And a little at a time we will work on things, but always in perspective. I say in the "meantime" because as we work through things eventually it will look the way I have it pictured in my head. Just not in the time I was hoping for. And so I need to remember a few verses that Karen points out  Philippians 4:11-13
¹¹ Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.

¹² I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.

¹³ I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

 

I will be content in the "meantime" knowing that what we really desire is to know that God is showing thru in all we have & all we do! Yes, we will make changes and make things look beautiful. There is no reason to live in an "as is" style when we can make a few changes at a time, in order for it to be beautiful in the meantime.

 

On a side note: The book is great. There is so much more about hospitality & opening your heart & home to others. It contains cleaning tips, decorating tips, recipes and more!  You can find it at Karen's website http://www.karenehman.com/

 

Also I will be posting a few before & after pics when we are finished with the room, so stay tuned!

Scars of the Heart.

I am back from a small blogging break! I took some time off for several reasons. One of them was I WAS TIRED. Physically tired. I found it hard to get up in the morning & wanted to take a nap during the day only to retreat to my bed by 9 or 10 at night. Needless to say, not much got done during these months, much less blogging. So today I was inspired to return. You see, today I viewed a trailer for a new book by Mary Demuth titled "The Wall Around Your Heart". A book I am really looking forward to reading. I will post the trailer below. But the book is about allowing God to break down the walls we have built up around our hearts. The walls that were there because of pain & hurt.

If you can give me a minute of your time I would like to tell you about my hurt. You see I was tired for a good reason. In late May I learned after a visit to the ER, that my heart "was talking to me" & that I "needed to figure out what it was saying. After many Doctor's appointments, tests & heart monitors, I was told that I would need to have a procedure to fix my heart. I underwent a 4 hour invasive heart procedure on August 2nd. I am doing well & praying that all is taken care of. I had no intentions of blogging about it, and I will spare you all the medical details; but after watching that trailer I was inspired to write.

I have to admit that the surgery was very painful. I dozed in & out but was not sedated for the procedure. I saw the inside of my heart on the big computer screen by the side of the table. I must admit that I didn't look at it much because the pain was all I could concentrate on. The pain & hurt was intense & my mind could not focus on anything else. Life is like that sometimes. We focus so much of our time & energy on the pain & hurts of our life that we don't take the time to look at out heart!

Now I have bruises & scars. Scars that no one can see. They are not in the center of my chest where most heart surgery scars are. No one can tell that I endured such hurt & pain. No one can look into the inside of my heart & see the burns & scars that were left behind. I can go about my life & NO ONE will ever know! We all carry scars on our heart just the same. They may not be from a physical heart procedure, but they are from pain & hurts of our past. They come from someone who misled us, emotionally damaged us, a decision we made, physical abuse, backstabbing, lies, mistrust...and on, and on the list goes. We go about our lives thinking that NO ONE KNOWS. I will put on a smile go about my life & fake it till I make it.
                             But the truth is....YOU CANT HIDE IT!
In some way those scars, that pain shows. That pain begins to steal your joy. Those scars make you hide from people that you will never get to know. That hurt stands in the way of you successfully doing God's will for your life. You may think that no one knows but
                                      GOD KNOWS. GOD SEES!

I find it interesting how quickly we run to the Doctor when we think we are having a heart problem (physically speaking...you should) but, why are we not so quick to run to the great healer with our spiritual & emotional heart problems. He is JEHOVAH RAPHA ~ THE LORD OUR HEALER. He does not just heal the physically sick & wounded, He heals the wounded, scarred, burnt, & hurting heart of ANYONE who carries the pain from their past. The Psalmist writes:

O Lord my God, I cried to You and You have healed me (Psalms 30:2).

In the book of Isaiah we read

But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5)

He is the great physician and He is always on call! He wants us to live in peace. Peace from the pain of our past. He wants to heal us so that we are fully able to live for HIS GLORY.

He is able to heal the emotional & spiritual damage. He sees your scars, He knows your pain. He is there; not just for ourselves, but others as well. We need to run to Him who is able to heal. Cry out to the only one who is able to make all things new. Do not carry the scars of your heart any longer! 

http://youtu.be/-WJU7LjorRc 

If I Only Knew....

I have been known to say....Coulda, woulda shoulda! I realize this is not proper English but it gets the point across. I stop and think about something in the past and how I should have done it different or a decision I could have made differently. I sometimes have thought what if I could have done this or that. Truth is we cant change the past!

If I had only known what a blessing homeschooling is, I would have started with my first born right off the bat. But I cant dwell on that. I must embrace the time I have with them now. The years that the Lord is willing to give me. My prayer everyday is that I am a better mom today then I was yesterday, and that He allows me to see all the blessings He has given me, and that He continues to  give me His grace & mercy to be able to teach & love on my kiddos!

If only I knew that hubby & I really would want more than 4 kids, we would not have made the decision to handle things in our own way & not fully rely on God. Instead I have to thank Him for the wonderful 4 I have & pray about what God has in store for us as parents, and what He wants for our children.

I really wish I had known that the way I was raised to eat, was not the best. Don't get me wrong...my mom did a great job of feeding us well rounded meals and not a lot of junk. But maybe they were a bit too rounded. And the pairing of foods was actually not the best for me. BUT, I have now learned and am thankful for the ladies who have opened my eyes & are teaching me now. I am down 9 pounds, almost 2 dress sizes and still going. (see previous post re: THM)

So the big one...while we are planning our Evan's Birthday party (he will be 8 ,end of the month) I think back thru the years past with all of my kiddos. Birthdays always do that to me, and I think: Have I done everything the way I shoulda, maybe I coulda been a little calmer at times, what if I woulda taken that extra minute and played a little longer? I cant get this past year back...what if?

What I do know is this...I have prayed for my kiddos without ceasing! My husband and my kids are the first ones on my prayer list. I cover them with prayers of peace, protection, mercy, guidance, joy, humbleness, self control etc. Apostle Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18  Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.(the Message) 
So for me I really need to just let God have all my coulda, woulda, shouldas, and be Thankful no matter what, and KNOW that God knows the plans He has for us and despite my past, HE is in control! 
God Bless!