Shelby Shares

Heart vs Head Really Equals Spirit vs Flesh

2009-11-10T07:05:00.000-04:00

It occurred to me yesterday that if I could get my brain to shut up and just listen to my heart I'd be good. My heart wants to love full-out, no holds barred. It wants to be generous and merciful and do God's work. In my heart, I am God's girl. It is, in essence, where God's Spirit lives. My head, on the other hand, is where my flesh lives. It's where I think about all of the risks in

James 1:5-12

2009-11-08T17:45:00.001-04:00

5 But if any of you lacketh wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all liberally and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.6 But let him ask in faith, nothing doubting: for he that doubteth is like the surge of the sea driven by the wind and tossed.7 For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord;8 a doubleminded man, unstable in all his ways.9 But let the brother of

Soul Searching of the Literal Sort

2009-11-08T12:22:00.004-04:00

I've been trying to understand why I'm stuck -- why I'm feeling so distant from God, why I can't function as God's servant right now. I'd like to say that it's because I'm so tired from having been (and still being) so busy taking care of my son through his illness and my husband through his surgery and recuperation. But that's not really it. If I were living a right life, I fully believe that

James 1

2009-11-07T09:50:00.000-04:00

Over the last day or so, something in me or, rather, SomeONE in me, has been screaming at me to study in James. So here I go with whatever meager impressions I have as I go along. I'm no scholar and my brain is still in overdrive so any reactions I have are from the heart. 1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are of the Dispersion, greeting.2 Count

Getting Real

2009-11-07T09:46:00.000-04:00

Fair warning folks: I'm kind of mired in some deep nasty spiritual and the way-I-view-myself-and-my-life stuff and I'm going to be using my blog to get quite real about it. I am going to share here because I have faith in the outcome -- a deeper and more abiding faith -- and a hope that it might help anyone who stumbles in here feeling lost. I don't expect this to be a fun ride but ultimately

Thankful Thursday

2009-11-05T09:40:00.000-04:00

Much to be thankful for today: My son is hale and hearty once again My husband's surgery went well and he is recovering without complication My Father above is with me and faithful to me even in the midst of the latest sea change in my life. It is a big one and I haven't really processed it yet but He has given me reserves of strength that I didn't have even a year ago and I'm so thankful to him

Big Doings

2009-10-31T08:25:00.001-04:00

Okay, I'm not the most dedicated blogger but this time there's a reason for my overall internet blackout through the 13th and I'm finally able to share it with you. My husband had a scheduled surgery on Tuesday to try to regain the use of his left arm, rendered useless in a fall nearly three years ago. Because his legs don't work, it seemed pretty vital to take every opportunity to get the arm

Offline Through November 13

2009-10-25T07:24:00.002-04:00

I'll be offline pretty much completely through November 13. You guys be happy, healthy and blessed. Love ya!

Through The Storm

2009-10-18T07:19:00.000-04:00

Thank you. Thank you for your prayers, your emails, your comments, your encouragement. What a fabulous group of people you are. We have come through the worst of the storm. My son is beginning to be on the mend after nearly 6 weeks of being increasingly sick. He ran a course of bronchitis, followed by a fairly serious bout of H1N1 (confirmed), followed by the pneumonia that is a secondary

Becoming A Yes Girl

2009-10-05T15:50:00.000-04:00

I want to be a yes girl. The kind of girl who says yes to God no matter what He asks of me. Whether it sounds crazy or makes sense, whether it's convenient or not, whether there seems to be a reason behind the request or not, I want to just say yes. I'm working on this. A study at Spiritually Unequal Marriage is helping. Yesterday was a great "yes" day. I did church online at home in the

Flooded

2009-09-29T07:36:00.000-04:00

This is a picture from the Georgia floods. My niece took this about a mile from their house. I'm so sorry for all the folks in GA who were impacted by these floods. But this picture puts me in mind of my heart and my life. I often feel flooded -- sometimes with bad stuff and sometimes with good. Sometimes it's a mixed bag -- like today. I feel flooded bad in that my son has H1N1 and my

Cloud Gazing

2009-09-25T18:45:00.000-04:00

Lately, I find myself gazing at our Florida skies, as the afternoon thunderstorms build in, and I am just fascinated by the clouds. There are so many Scriptural references to Jesus coming back to earth with clouds, that sometimes when I see them building in, I can't help but pray "Come, Jesus." I love nature; everything in nature speaks to God's glory (okay, I have to be honest and say maybe

Thankful Thursday

2009-09-24T07:06:00.001-04:00

Thanks to Laurie at Women Taking A Stand for this Thankful Thursday. Having gone through a period of real struggle the last 2-1/2 weeks, I finally broke last night and requested prayer for me, that I might be relieved of my burden of guilt and forgiven for the sins I've committed against the Lord during this time. My sins were primarily a lack of completely faithfulness and trying to take back

Self-Discipline Versus Legalism

2009-09-20T09:06:00.000-04:00

I think that we would all agree that a certain degree of self-discipline is a good thing. Necessary even. But where does self-discipline start and legalism begin? I've been pondering this question since last night. Legalism Can Masquerade As Willpower I posted my weekly stats yesterday. Did you notice that I'm kind of getting obsessed with the numbers? As I was writing it, I really didn't.

Stats Day 5th Week

2009-09-19T11:39:00.000-04:00

Okay, technically this is the 6th week but I didn't post stats last weekend because that was the end of the week in which my stepdad died and I was just not motivated to do much of anything. So I'm just not gonna count that week. I did weigh last Sun or Mon and found I had gained 2 pounds which really made me mad at myself but then I got over it. I shall refer to that week as the nonweek.

"God Helps Those Who Help Themselves"

2009-09-16T18:32:00.000-04:00

This is what my 19-year-old, super-intellectual, nonbelieving son said to me today. We were in the car listening to Christian talk radio and there was a very sad story of a woman on and my son and I were just waiting to hear the happy ending at the end of the story. I finally turned the volume down because I couldn't stand to hear this woman's pain anymore. My son said to me that it seemed

Indie Christian Music

2009-09-15T16:59:00.000-04:00

Well, since i started the C25K program, I found that they have some great indie Christian music to use for your walk/run intervals. The mp3s do have some coaching, like letting you know when it's time to run or walk, but the guy who does it is happy and encouraging and, beyond that, he tells you who each indie artist is and where you can find their stuff sans the coaching! I have found some

Stepping Out

2009-09-15T13:50:00.000-04:00

I've signed up to walk a 5K on November 14 to benefit the American Diabetes Association. A lot of you guys are aware that my husband is a diabetic who has had many complications, including kidney failure and the inability to walk, so this is a personal fight for me. I would welcome your donations in any amount and, if you can't donate, I'd welcome your prayers over me during the walk. Here's

Fearless Winner

2009-09-13T09:24:00.000-04:00

Oopsy, I forgot to draw yesterday, sorry! So, with no further goofups, the winner is .... Wendy!!!! Wendy, just zip me an email with your mailing info and I'll get the book out to you tomorrow! You're gonna love it! Shelby

Peace Again

2009-09-11T18:12:00.001-04:00

I am very happy to let you guys know that God has restored peace to my heart. For the first time since I got the news of my stepfather's death, I awoke to a glorious feeling of peace and the child's song "I've got the joy joy joy joy down in my heart" singing through me even before I fully awoke. As I looked at Scripture today, I was led to this: O LORD my God, I called to you for help and you

In Memory of Laurie Neira and All Those Lost

2009-09-11T06:38:00.000-04:00

We remember and we weep and mourn you still. May we all love one another more freely and generously.

Accountability

2009-09-10T11:03:00.003-04:00

Wow, these last few days have really been enlightening. My stepfather's sudden death on Sunday threw me for a loop on a lot of levels but it also provided a chance to really look into my heart and see what's lurking in there. There was still a lot of residual gunk in there that I have been lifting up to God and for which I have been asking forgiveness.I blew off several days of Setting Captives

Fearless Giveaway

2009-09-08T06:36:00.003-04:00

I am giving away the copy of Fearless that I received from Thomas Nelson for my review. It was a great book, very helpful in learning to deal with the fears that plague us all to one degree or another. If you'd like a chance to win a copy, just leave a comment about some fear that you can't seem to shake on your own. Entries will close at 11 pm on Friday, September 11, I'll draw on Saturday

Fearless: Book Review

2009-09-08T05:55:00.004-04:00

BuyReada.widgetLink, a.widgetLink:visited {text-decoration: none;font: 10px/10px arial;color:#ffffff}a.widgetLink:hover {text-decoration: underline;}div.widgetDiv {width: 100%;line-height: 22px;cursor: pointer}div.widgetDiv:hover {text-decoration: underline;cursor: pointer}Book: Fearless, by Max Lucado Thomas Nelson 2009Book Description: In Fearless, Max Lucado takes the reader on an

Monday Manna 09/07

2009-09-07T05:26:00.003-04:00

The verse today for Monday Manna is God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill? Numbers 23:19Somehow, when I did my Old Testament read-through earlier this year, I missed this verse or just didn't grasp it. Everybody lies or has lied. People break promises every day. People let you down