The other night I was lying in bed and I was thinking what am I doing with my life? What kind of legacy am I leaving, what kind of mark am I leaving in the world...and how I need to get my butt in gear and share the good news with people and not only that but be an example, living by faith...and as much as I know you can't get to heaven by good works alone if you have the Holy Spirit living in you, you want to do good works...but faith without good works is dead but that's not to confuse you with thinking that you can get to heaven on your own just by being good...do me a favor and click on the video directly below and go to time 9:27 out of 10:58 to watch what this girl has to say >>>


When I heard this it made me think of this Bible verse in Ephesians 2:8-9 that says "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast" ALSO...when she said "well I'm a lying theif but that doesn't make me a killer of murderer..." The next verse that came to mind is James 2:10 that says "For the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as a person who has broken all of God’s laws." I think those ones should have been used to help convict her but doing so in a loving way...although Ray Comfort is very good at that himself

So anyway back to leaving a legacy...the song that speaks exactly how I feel is by Nicole Nordeman titled "Legacy" below is the song please listen

Last night I wanted to go to bed early but my husband likes to watch T.V. when he falls asleep but I can't with noise so I ended up choosing to watch 2 and a half hrs of it with him b/c there was just no squeezing my eyes shut and drifting off to sleep so once he started getting sleeping I was gonna shut off the T.V. and he told me to set the timer for the T.V. to shut off in another hr...I was so mad and I slammed my head in my pillow knowing it would be awhile till I got the chance to fall asleep but I knew he had work so I just left it. So usually every night I say my prayers but I remember being so ticked off and so very sleepy that I thought to myself (oh yeah I had a horrible headache all day and even last night) so I thought to myself I have this excruciating headache I'm so tired I'm not gonna say my prayers tonight, I can't concentrate with all that tv noise and so I guess eventually after stewing for awhile and after the tv turned itself off at about 12:30am I finally fell asleep only to by awoken by humming of some sort and vibrating of a big truck so all delirious and sleepy I looked out the window and there was a fire truck back at an older woman's apartment who keeps having late night trips to the hospital so I was so upset b/c I was awoken up after only 30 min of precious sleep b/c of a false alarm, I wasn't mad at the older woman but I thought it was for her...so I thought....

A lil while later I heard a lot of commotion and lights everywhere and a voice over a speaker saying something mine and Erics tired minds couldn't understand so we sat up in bed to see smoke everywhere outside our window and a voice saying "This is an evacuation" I ran to the window and couldn't tell if the smoke was coming from our bldg or the one next to us...so we saw about 8 fire trucks and one with a ladder to the bldg next to us and people coming out all sleepy and hugging tight to there pets...THERE WAS A FIRE! It was in the attic and had been going for quite awhile before people noticed...my senses could not believe the sounds of sirens and voices and windows being smashed out and a saw sawing a hole in the roof, I could smell smoke and burning wood, I could barely see for all the thick gray wafting around and the bright lights fire trucks had brought in...Instantly at the sight I began to cry and felt so awful

If I hadn't been so mad about my headache I had all day and the non stop pulsating, that all I wanted to do was sleep, but me wanting to make my husband happy suffered through the tv, and to be spiteful I didn't pray as I do every night since I've lived in this comlex... I usually pray "God please be with all my family, friends, those that I know, and those that I don', and be with them helping them to come to know you more, and if they do know you help them to tell other about you. I pray that you protect this apartment and every building in this complex from fire and that you protect us from any evil, harm, or danger that may be lurking, I pray this for my parents, my siblings, family, friends, and Lord those that I do not know..." so I was very upset and I was sitting at the window and I told Eric when I was shaking b/c of the cold and th adrenaline that "It was the one night I didn't pray and figures the fire happens" And Eric said to me " Avree I doubt your not praying had anything to do with the fire" and I said "Oh honey you'd be surprised maybe if I just said it and it only takes a few seconds, God would have heard my prayer and maybe it could have prevented the fire" Now Eric said something similar to me on my Birthday a few weeks ago...it was a rainy day and all morning I knew we were going to a place that was outdoors and I prayed all morning that God would please make the sun come out in time for our arrival at our destination...and you know what? THE SUN CAME OUT! and I was jumping up and down and Eric said to me "Avree God doesn't work like that I seriously doubt that he would change the sun of the whole earth to shine down and answer your one lil prayer" And I said "You better believe he does...if we ask with a faithful heart we will receive"

so anyway luckily no one was hurt but I was hurting for my own selfishness...I know I didn't cause it but what if my lil voice could make a big change! but a few of the apartments are uninhabitable due to smoke and water damage and I'm sitting here watching them busily working out cleaning up this very moment as I'm typing this! Last night I didn't go to bed until 5:00am after everyone was safely gone and all was quiet again...I thought for some reason "how could I possibly sleep soundly and cozy in my comforter when there are some standing around out there cold, not knowing if there home is okay, sleepily standing around...so I stayed awake and with them until the end"

Has this type of situation happened to you? Last night looking at all the happening it made me think of the firefighter story by Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron...please watch below



__________________________________________________________
I FEEL SO SO AWEFUL FOR BEING MEAN LAST NIGHT AND I TRY SO HARD TO BE HAPPY ALL THE TIME BUT I REALIZE FRUSTRATION AND ANGER CAN SOMETIMES SLIP IN! I HOPE IN SHARING THIS STORY IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY OF YOU THINK LESS OF ME I WAS HAVING A BAD NIGHT AND APPARENTLY SO WERE THESE NEIGHBORS OF MINE

A woman I used to work with emailed this to me and I wanted to take the time to share it with y'all


Wow, what a story]
>
>
> >I was walking around in a Target store, when I saw a Cashier hand
> this
> >little boy some money back.
> >
> >The boy couldn't have been more than 5 or 6 years old.
> >
> >The Cashier said, 'I'm sorry, but you don't have enough money to buy
> >this doll.'
> >
> >Then the little boy turned to the old woman next to him: ''Granny,
> are
> >you sure I don't have enough money?''
> >
> >The ol d lady replied: ''You know that you don't have enough money to
> >buy this doll, my dear.''
> >
> >Then she asked him to stay there for just 5 minutes while she went to
> >look around. She left quickly.
> >The little boy was still holding the doll in his hand.
> >
> >Finally, I walked toward him and I asked him who he wished to give
> this
> >doll to.
> >'It's the doll that my sister loved most and wanted so much for
> >Christmas. She was sure that Santa Claus would bring it to her.'
> >
> >I replied to him that maybe Santa Claus would bring it to her after
> all,
> >and not to worry.
> >But he replied to me sadly 'No, Santa Claus can't bring it to her
> where
> >she is now. I have to give the doll to my mommy so that she can give
> it
> >to my sister when she goes there.'
> >His eyes were so sad while saying this. 'My Sister has gone to be
> with
> >God. Daddy says that Mommy is going to see God very soon too, so I
> >thought that she could take the doll with her to give it to my
> sister.''
> >
> >My heart nearly stopped. The little boy looked up at me and said: 'I
> >told daddy to tell mommy not to go yet. I need her to wait until I
> come
> >back from the mall.'
> >
> >Then he showed me a very nice photo of himself. He was laughing. He
> then
> >told me 'I want mommy to take my picture with her so she won't forget
> >me.'
> >
> >'I love my mommy and I wish she didn't have to leave me, but daddy
> says
> >that she has to go to be with my little sister.'
> >
> >Then he looked again at the doll with sad eyes, very quietly.
> >
> >I quickly reached for my wallet and said to the boy. 'Suppose we
> check
> >again, just in case you do have enough money for the doll!''
> >
> >'OK' he said, 'I hope I do have enough.' I added some of my money to
> his
> >without him seeing and we started to count it. There was enough for
> the
> >doll and even some spare money.
> >
> >The little boy said: 'Thank you God for giving me enough money!'
> >
> >Then he looked at me and added, 'I asked last night before I went to
> >sleep for God to make sure I had enough money to buy this doll, so
> that
> >mommy could give it to my sister. He heard me!''
> >
> >'I also wanted to have enough money to buy a white rose for my mommy,
> >but I didn't dare to ask God for too much. But He gave me enough to
> buy
> >the doll and a white rose.''
> >
> >'My mommy loves white roses.'
> >
> >A few minutes later, the old lady returned and I left with my basket.
> >
> >I finished my shopping in a totally different state of mind from when
> I
> >started.
> >
> >I couldn't get the little boy out of my mind.
> >
> >Then I remembered a local news paper article two days ago, which
> >mentioned a drunk man in a truck, who hit a car occupied by a young
> >woman and a little girl.
> >
> >The little girl died right away, and the mother was left in a
> critical
> >state. The family had to decide whether to pull the plug on the
> >life-sustaining machine, because the young woman would not be able to
> >recover from the coma.
> >
> >Was this the family of the little boy?
> >
> >Two days after this encounter with the little boy, I read in the news
> >paper that the young woman had passed away.
> >
> >I couldn't stop myself as I bought a bunch of white roses and I went
> to
> >the funeral home where the body of the young woman was for people to
> see
> >and make last wishes before her burial.
> >She was there, in her coffin, holding a beautiful white rose in her
> hand
> >with the photo of the little boy and the doll placed over her chest.
> >
> >I left the place, teary-eyed, feeling that my life had been changed
> for
> >ever.. The love that the little boy had for his mother and his sister
> is
> >still, to this day, hard to imagine. And in a fraction of a second, a
> >drunk driver had taken all this away from him.
> >
> >Now you have 2 choices:
> >
> >The quote of the month is by Jay Leno: 'With hurricanes, tornados,
> fires
> >out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up
> >the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu
> and
> >terrorist attacks, 'Are we sure this is a good time to take God out
> of
> >the Pledge of Allegiance?'
> >
> >For those who prefer to think that God is not watching over us delete
> >this, for the others .. pass it on!
> >
> >
> >
> >God Bless

My brother Jeff holding his new baby, Noah

My absolute FAVORITE picture of my nephew!


Aww what sweet looking parents...my brother and my sister-in-law Christine

If you are visiting my blog for the 1st time here is a run down of some stuff you may find and that may interest you that I talk about!
NOTE: The page numbers at the very bottom are a little hard to see but please take a look at previous blogs
NOTE: If you have seen this blog post b4 no u rn't craZ I repost it every so often for the new viewers

>My Own Brush with Death!


>Making Sense of Noah's Ark & The Flood (A 15 part series)


>Funny Stories with kids


>Where do all the races come from?


>Alcohol...my stance


>Smoking...my stance



>Are you suited in armor?



>Is your key bent out of shape?



>Do you have lead feet?



>Making sense of dinosaurs (A 15 Part series)



>What is lightning?



*PLUS OTHERS*

And MORE