Tiffany Harper

What Would You Do?

Say you are serving in ministry as a pastor in one state and you feel God is directing you and your family elsewhere.

Would you listen or would you hesitate?

What if God was prompting you to plant a new church in a different state.  Would you and your family instantly say "Yes Lord!" and pack your things? Or would you stay put, certain you heard the Lord incorrectly?

What if you found out you were expecting a brand new baby and you are in a new city, new state, beginning a new life and new ministry?  Would you stomp your feet in frustration and stress over how to provide for such a child? Or would you thank God for this brand new little life and trust in His provision.

What if you just found out that that very unborn baby now had an uncertain future?  Doctors tell you that chances of survival are slim to nothing. That your baby is very sick and will most likely die. 

What would you do?  Would you cling to your Heavenly Father, praying to Him and trusting in His goodness even though the situation looks bleak?  Or would you throw your fists up in anger and curse Him?  

What would you do?

On Monday, friends of mine shared heartbreaking news with us all.  

Would you visit their blog and share some encouragement with them today?  They are in the midst of a grand adventure in creating a brand new church in Indiana and they need our prayers.  Please pray for their little boy as they travel along this painful journey.

I believe in a God who can perform miracles and I believe in a God of comfort in our darkest moments. I believe in a God who does not abandon us during the storms of life, but instead chooses to renew our strength and mount us up with wings like the eagles when we wait for Him.

Praying for my friends today.  

Tiff~

Isaiah 40:30-31

True Beauty

"An excellent wife who can find?

She is far more precious than jewels." Proverbs 31:10 ESV

I long to be an excellent wife to my husband.  After listening to yesterday's conference online, I was just convicted at how selfish I am a lot of the times.  How often I don't serve my husband because I have my own agenda.  I want my husband's heart to completely have peace and trust in his wife. If I am selfish and choosing to not meet his needs, then he will experience unnecessary anxiety and hurt. I truly don't want to bring that on him.

I feel like our relationship series at Illuminate is just as much for me as it is for our group.  Dan and I are married and have definitely disappointed each other.  I think a lot of times we try to look good in the eyes of others (at least I have) instead of focusing on pleasing and obeying God in who He designed us to be.

I long to be beautiful in God's eyes. Not the world's.

The bible describes an excellent wife as "far more precious than jewels". That means she is valuable, rare and of worth. When the world places value on the material and superficial, God is teaching me that a wife, one that loves the Lord and is obedient to Him and cares and loves her family, is of real value. 

A rare jewel. 

In the New King James version, she is described as a virtuous wife.  Virtuous in the bible was used to describe a man or an army strong and mighty.  So I choose to thing of this woman as strong  and mighty.

But not just in the physical. 

She is also strong mentally, emotionally, spiritually as well as physically. She is no shrinking violet.   She works hard.  She doesn't wait for work to be handed to her. She knows there is work to be done...and does it.

Her characteristics show evidence of a life yielded to God:

*Nurtures a peaceful heart (Proverbs 14:30)

*Knows patience (Proverbs 19:2)

*Does not pick fights, create drama (Proverbs 19:11)

*Restrains her emotions (Proverbs 25:28)

She masters her tongue:

*Speaks less often (Proverbs 10:19)

*Speaks only after she thinks about what she is going to say (Proverbs 15:28)

*Speaks only what is sweet and pleasant (Proverbs 16:21)

*Speaks only what is wise and kind (Proverbs 31:26)

She is truly a beautiful woman. Not by the world's standards, but by God's.

That is who I aspire to be.

Tiff~

Encouragement in Written Form

I love receiving cards in the mail. To me, nothing says "I love you" or "thinking about you" than a personal, hand-written note from a loved one.  They often come unexpectedly, and I believe that is the beauty of the note.  

To bring unexpected, joy, hope and encouragement into one's life. 

Yesterday, on September 11th, I attended a Memorial Service for a dear friend and attendee of Illuminate.  Watching a mother grieve the loss of a child is so hard to view.  It is something I pray to God everyday that I never have to experience, regardless of the age of my children. While I was getting ready, I knew she would need encouragement.  I decided to give her a card of encouragement.

I also knew that she would probably be receiving lots of cards.  Written words from those who loved Kelly. From those who may have had a hard time finding the words to say to bring comfort, but a card they found spoke it perfectly.

That is the beauty of a card.

I picked out my card from Dayspring's Hope and Encouragement set.   It said exactly what I was thinking that morning. My heart heavy knowing we were celebrating a life that was no longer with us.  Praying for Kelly's Mom and brother. Praying for other family members and friends who would be with us that morning.  There was joy in my heart knowing that her mother and brother had accepted Jesus. Joy because Kelly was in heaven in a new body, no longer in pain.  Joy because others would get to hear about the Jesus Kelly loved so deeply.

That is the beauty of experiencing pain. 

I don't wish to dwell in pain, or even experience it regularly.  But it is when I am hurting or I see others hurting that I know our Heavenly Father is really present.  That He carries us and calls us to lean on Him so much that we can't imagine being anywhere else.  And it is with that experience with pain that we know to bring encouragement to those who experience it as well.  

Through a card. Encouragement in written form. Sometimes, our mouths don't form the words we want to say. 

But a card can.

Tiff~

P.S. Today is National Day of Encouragement.  If there is someone you know who could use a beautiful, encouraging note from you, please send one today. 

*Huge thank you to (in)courage for sending me the beautiful package of cards from their Hope and Encouragement collection.  They are absolutely beautiful and I have several more being mailed out to friends and family as we speak.*