I Will Give Thanks

(taken from the Bible App)

I Will Give Thanks

The beginning of this verse in my NIV Application Bible actually says,

“I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart...” — Psalm 9:1a

Now that has a better ring to it than just saying, “I will give thanks to the Lord,” doesn't it?!

“With all my heart.”

Those four words really stand out to me.

As I've grown older and experienced a lot more of life, my appreciation for the Lord has grown immensely. Giving thanks to Him when you're my age becomes much easier than it was when you were younger and wanted to hold tightly to your own wants, your own plans and, especially, the illusion that you were in control of your own life.

When we're young, it's easy to think we know what we need. We have plans for how we think our lives should go. We want what we want, and sometimes we don't understand why God doesn't give it to us on our timetable.

But the older I get, the more I realize just how much God has already done for me.

God has been faithful to me through every season of my life.

I grew up poor. Very poor.

Our food came from that famous grocery store called the government😂.

Our clothes came from those famous clothing stores called the Salvation Army and Goodwill. And on occasion, when Mom could afford it, our clothes came from K-mart through the layaway plan.

I bought my first-ever pair of Nikes when I was a teenager. I earned the money myself by mowing lawns and delivering newspapers. Other than that, our shoes came from those same places I mentioned above.

At Christmas, our stockings were often filled with fruit and a candy canes because that's all my folks could afford.

Today's kids know very little about that sort of thing.

And I'm not sharing any of this because I'm ashamed of where I came from. I'm actually grateful for it.

Those experiences taught me things that I probably wouldn't have learned any other way.

They taught me to appreciate what I have.

They taught me that having more doesn't necessarily make you happier.

They taught me that you can live without the things you think you absolutely have to have.

And most importantly, as I've gotten older, they've given me a greater appreciation for God's provision.

Today, I'm married to an amazing man of God. I have a wonderful son. We have a home, food on our table, vehicles to drive, clothes to wear and so many things that I didn't grow up having.

We live comfortably compared to the way I was raised.

But having more today doesn't stop me from giving thanks to the Lord with all my heart.

If anything, it makes me even more grateful.

Because I know where I came from.

I know what it was like to not have much.

And I know that everything I have today isn't something I should take for granted.

God has brought me a long way.

And when I look back over my life, I can see His hand in places where I didn't necessarily recognize it at the time.

There were things I wanted that God didn't give me.

There were things I thought I needed that I eventually realized I didn't.

There were difficult seasons I didn't understand while I was walking through them.

And there were times when I probably thought I was doing a pretty good job of running my own life.

But God was there through all of it.

He was faithful when I wasn't.

He was patient when I didn't understand.

He provided when I didn't know how things would work out.

And He brought me through things that I never thought I'd have to walk through.

That's why my thankfulness to Him isn't based simply on what I have today.

I'm thankful for Who He is.

I'm thankful that He never left me.

I'm thankful that He has carried me through the good times and the hard times.

I'm thankful for His provision.

I'm thankful for His protection.

I'm thankful for His grace and mercy.

I'm thankful for the blessings I can see and the ones I probably don't even realize I've received.

And I'm especially thankful that I don't have to look at my life and believe that I somehow got here all by myself.

I didn't.

God has been with me every step of the way.

Psalm 9:1 doesn't simply say, “I will give thanks to the Lord.”

It says,

“I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart...”

That's different.

That's not half-hearted gratitude.

That's not thanking God only when things are going well.

That's not thanking Him only for the blessings that are easy to see.

That's giving Him all of me and recognizing that He deserves my gratitude in every season.

When I think about where I started and where I am today, I can honestly say that my thanks for all He's done runs very deep.

Deeper than words could ever express.

And I hope I never get so comfortable with what I have that I forget to thank the One who gave it to me.

I will give thanks to the Lord—with all my heart.

And I pray I always will.

Record Holder

(These numbers are in kg so you have to convert them to #'s)

Record Holder

Tim is officially a record holder!

Tim now holds the record in the Men’s Junior 70kg Division for the Carolina WSO (Weightlifting State Organization), which includes lifters from both North Carolina and South Carolina.

This is something I’m pretty proud of because it’s not just a record for a particular competition or gym. The Carolina WSO records include lifters across North Carolina and South Carolina, so his name is now part of the record books for his state organization.

He actually beat the requirements for the States record by a long shot when he competed at Junior Nationals this past summer.

There is a little bit of a story behind how his results ended up in the 70kg category.

When Tim competed at Junior Nationals, he was competing in the 71kg Junior division, which was the weight class at the time. Since then, USA Weightlifting has changed the weight classes, and the 71kg division no longer exists. When Tim weighed in at Nationals, he was actually under 70kg, so his results qualified to be placed in the new 70kg Junior division.

And now his name is at the top of that record.

How cool is that?

As his mom, I am incredibly proud of everything Tim has accomplished this year. He won Junior Nationals in his division, set personal records, and now has his name in the Carolina WSO record books.

But here's the part that means just as much to me...

Tim is currently out with an elbow injury.

This is the first time since he started his Olympic weightlifting journey that he has had to sit out of States. And I know that's not easy for him.

He misses lifting.

He misses training.

He misses making gains and working toward his next goal.

When you're used to walking into the gym, putting in the work, seeing your numbers go up and constantly pushing yourself to get better, being told you have to stop can be incredibly frustrating.

But even in the middle of that disappointment, Tim is keeping a positive attitude and making the best of a tough situation.

That makes me proud too.

Because being an athlete isn't just about what you can do when everything is going right. Sometimes it's about how you handle the seasons when things aren't going the way you planned.

And this is one of those seasons for Tim.

He won't be competing at States this year, but he will still be there.

He'll be there supporting his teammates, cheering them on and helping his coach wherever he can.

That's the kind of thing I love seeing in him.

He's learning that being part of a team isn't dependent on whether you're the one standing on the platform. Sometimes your role is to compete. Sometimes it's to encourage. Sometimes it's to help. And sometimes it's simply to stand beside the people you've trained with and support them.

And while I know he'd much rather be lifting, I'm proud of the way he's handling this setback.

What a year this has already been for him.

He became a Junior Nationals champion.

He hit some huge personal records.

And now he's officially a Carolina WSO record holder.

That's a pretty incredible list of accomplishments for one year.

But as I've said before, the medals, the records, the numbers and the titles are just part of the story.

What matters most to me is the young man behind all of it.

I'm proud of the lifter Tim has become, but I'm even more proud of the person he's becoming.

This injury may have temporarily taken him off the platform, but it hasn't taken away his accomplishments, his work ethic, his determination or his place on his team.

The platform will still be there when he's ready to return.

For now, we're taking this one step at a time, trusting God through the process and making the best of where he is right now.

He Goes With Us

(I snagged this off social media)

He Goes With Us

I really like the way the picture above reads, but I wanted to share what the NIV version of the Bible says as well:

“For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.” — Psalm 91:11 (NIV)

No matter where life takes us, we are never truly alone. God is with us, and He commands His angels concerning us to guard us in all our ways.

Think about that for a moment.

We don't always know what is ahead. We don't know what tomorrow will bring. Sometimes we step into a new season excited about what is coming, and other times we step into one wondering how we're ever going to get through it.

But God already knows what's ahead.

There have been times in my life when I have looked back and realized that God was protecting me in ways I didn't even recognize at the time. There were things I didn't see coming, situations I didn't understand, and moments when I wondered why God was allowing certain things to happen. Yet looking back, I can see His hand was there all along.

Sometimes I think we have a tendency to look for God's protection only in the things we can see. We recognize it when something bad almost happened and somehow didn't. We recognize it when a door closes that we really wanted opened, only to discover later that God was protecting us from something we couldn't see. We recognize it when we look back on a difficult season and realize that somehow, through all of it, God carried us.

But what about the things we never knew about?

What if there were dangers we never saw? What if there were situations God kept us from that we will never know happened? What if there were times His protection surrounded us and we were completely unaware of it?

We may never have the answers to those questions. And that's okay. We don't have to see everything God is doing in order to trust Him.

Faith means trusting the One who sees what we cannot see.

That doesn't mean we will never face difficult things. It doesn't mean that nothing painful will ever happen to us. Scripture doesn't promise us a life without trouble.

What it does remind us is that we don't walk through those things alone.

God is with us in the good seasons, and He is with us in the hard ones. He is with us when we understand what He's doing, and He is with us when we don't have a clue what He's doing.

And there is something incredibly comforting about knowing that He commands His angels concerning us—to guard us in all our ways.

We may not always see the protection God provides. We may never know the dangers He kept us from or the things He prevented from happening. But just because we don't see it doesn't mean God isn't working.

Sometimes faith is simply trusting that God is watching over us even when we can't see what He's doing.

So wherever life takes you, don't be afraid of the road ahead.

You may not know what tomorrow holds, but God does.

And wherever you go, He goes with you.

That is such a comforting thought.

Great Is Your Faithfulness

Great Is Your Faithfulness

This was written during one of the bleakest times in Judah’s history.

The Babylonians had destroyed Jerusalem and exiled the Jews.

God’s temple was torn down, and the temple articles were stolen.

The writer of Lamentations records this tragedy and its aftermath with gut-wrenching detail—you’ll have to read it for yourself.

But in the middle of this book come these verses of remarkable assurance:

God’s love and mercy never fail.
God’s faithfulness is great.

So that tells me this: God’s love and mercy won’t fail. God will remain faithful even through—and beyond—disaster.

When life seems chaotic and unpredictable, we need to be reminded of God’s faithfulness.

Storms can come and tragedy can strike, but God will always be faithful. His faithfulness doesn’t mean He will remove us, His children, from the storms. But it does mean that whatever storm we find ourselves in, He will be there with us.

We have been promised that Christ will always be with those who follow Him (Matthew 28:20). That includes even the darkest seasons of our lives.

I know this to be true because Christ was with me, helping me through the darkest season of my life in my mid-twenties.

He opened so many doors for me so that I could get the healing I needed in order to really live—and live my life for Him.

I had some of the greatest friends during that time in my life. Friends who helped me walk through open doors that led me to the ultimate place where I would receive deep healing for all the hurts and pains I had experienced in my young life.

God made a way in my life where, at the time, there seemed to be no way.

The right help at the right time can make all the difference in a life.

I had been living such a lie up to that point in my life.

I had been raised in church because of a wonderful old lady in my neighborhood who took us kids to church.

What I experienced at home was the very opposite of all I had learned in church.

My life was torn apart and confused.

But God!

Because of His great love for me, I didn’t have to be consumed by all that I was struggling with in my life at that time.

His compassion and faithfulness toward me was everything.

I received the healing I needed in such unexpected ways because of the people God brought into my life during that season. And through those people and those circumstances, I experienced God in such a real, tangible way for the first time in my life.

I had a lot of knowledge about God. I had even said the salvation prayer during VBS when I was 12 years old, and I meant it.

But it didn’t become real for me until those years in my mid-twenties.

Looking back now, I can see that God was always there.

He was always working in my life.

I had no clue at the time, but looking back, I can see it.

I can see it in ways that really aren’t explainable with words. I can feel it in the depths of my soul with a sweetness that can’t fully be described.

And that’s what I love about these verses in Lamentations.

They were written in the middle of devastation. Not after everything had been fixed. Not after the storm had passed. In the middle of it.

Yet even there, the writer could declare:

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” ~Lamentations 3:22–23 (NIV)

What a reminder for us today.

Our circumstances may change. People may change. Life can change in ways we never saw coming. We may walk through seasons that leave us wondering how we will ever find our way through.

But God doesn’t change.

His love doesn’t fail.

His compassion doesn’t run out.

His faithfulness doesn’t depend on our circumstances.

And every morning, His mercies are new.

I can look back over my own life and see His fingerprints everywhere—especially in the places where, at the time, I couldn’t see Him at all.

What looked like closed doors were sometimes protection. What looked like impossible circumstances became the very places where God made a way. And the people He placed in my life at just the right time became part of the healing He was bringing into my life.

I didn’t understand it then.

But I see it now.

God was faithful then.

God is faithful now.

And I know He will be faithful tomorrow.

Great is Your faithfulness, Lord.

The Mind Governed by the Spirit

(taken from the Bible App)

The Mind Governed by the Spirit

This verse has no hidden meaning.

The lifestyle of the flesh flows from a mind that is focused on the flesh, and the lifestyle of the Spirit flows from a mind that is focused on the Spirit.

It's really that simple.

The “flesh” and “Spirit” language isn't talking about our physical bodies. It's describing what is directing our thoughts, our desires, our decisions and ultimately our lives.

What is governing your mind?

Are you allowing your flesh to call the shots, or are you allowing the Spirit of God to lead you?

God gives us free will to choose. We get to decide which direction we are going to go.

The way of the flesh or the way of the Spirit.

Those are two totally opposite directions.

Let's be honest. The way of the flesh can be very appealing.

Our flesh wants what it wants.

It wants comfort. It wants pleasure. It wants recognition. It wants revenge when we've been hurt. It wants to be right. It wants to do what feels good instead of what is right. It wants things on our timetable.

And sometimes we convince ourselves that if we can just get what we want, we'll finally be happy.

But here's the problem:

Getting what we want doesn't always give us what we need.

Something can make us happy for a moment and still leave us empty afterward.

We can buy something we've wanted for a long time and be excited about it—until the excitement wears off.

We can get the job we wanted, the recognition we wanted, the relationship we wanted, the success we wanted, and still discover that something is missing.

We can spend our lives chasing one thing after another, always thinking the next thing will finally make us content.

That's because happiness and peace aren't necessarily the same thing.

Happiness can be based on circumstances.

Peace can exist in the middle of circumstances.

And that's what catches my attention about Romans 8:6.

Paul doesn't say the mind governed by the Spirit is temporary happiness.

He says it is life and peace.

I've learned that there is a huge difference between being happy because I got what I wanted and having peace because I know I'm where God wants me to be.

Choosing a life led by the Spirit is the best decision I've ever made.

That doesn't mean I don't make mistakes.

I do.

It doesn't mean I don't take detours.

I do that, too.

It doesn't mean I always get it right.

Far from it.

I'm human.

There are times when my flesh wants to grab the steering wheel and take control. There are times when I want to do things my way because, in that moment, I think my way makes more sense.

And sometimes I have to remind myself:

Lisa, you don't have to understand everything to trust God.

That's where being Spirit-led comes in.

Following the Spirit doesn't mean that life will always be easy. It doesn't mean we won't experience disappointment, loss, heartache, uncertainty or things we don't understand.

It means we don't have to walk through those things alone.

It means we have a God who is with us.

A God who guides us.

A God who corrects us when we get off course.

A God who can take our mistakes and our detours and still lead us toward the destination He has for us.

A detour doesn't mean the journey is over.

Sometimes we simply have to turn around and get back on the right road.

And I'm thankful that God doesn't abandon us every time we make a wrong turn.

Think about a GPS.

You can completely miss your exit, make a wrong turn and get yourself headed in the wrong direction.

What does the GPS do?

It recalculates.

It doesn't say, “Well, you messed up, so I guess you're on your own now.”

It finds another way to get you where you're going.

I think sometimes we look at our mistakes that way.

We think we've messed up too badly. We've gone too far. We've made too many wrong choices.

But God is still there.

He can redirect us.

He can restore us.

He can lead us back.

That's one of the reasons I want my mind governed by His Spirit.

I don't trust myself enough to believe that every desire I have is a good one or that every direction I want to take is the right one.

I need God.

I need His wisdom.

I need His guidance.

I need His correction.

I need His peace.

And I would much rather have God directing my life than spend my life being directed by whatever my flesh happens to want at the moment.

Now, I know there are people who don't believe in God.

You might read this and think I'm wasting my life.

You might think believing in God, following Jesus and allowing the Holy Spirit to direct my life is foolish.

That's okay.

I'm not writing this to force anyone to believe what I believe.

I'm simply telling you why I've made the choice I've made.

If I live my life for God, experience His peace, have purpose, love people, serve others, and find fulfillment in Him—and when this life is over there is no God—what have I really lost?

But if I live my entire life without God, following only what my flesh wants, and there is a God, then I've risked everything.

I'd rather risk it for the biscuit, as the saying goes.

I'd rather live my life for God.

I'd rather follow the leading of His Spirit.

I'd rather put my faith in Jesus.

I'd rather spend my life pursuing the things that have eternal value than spend my life chasing temporary pleasures that will eventually disappear.

And yes, some people might call that fire-and-brimstone preaching.

Maybe it is.

But what I know is what the Bible tells me.

According to Scripture, eternity is real. There is life with God, and there is separation from God. And that's not something I'm willing to gamble with.

I don't want to live my life asking, “How much can I get away with?”

I want to live asking, “God, what do You want me to do?”

Those are two completely different ways of approaching life.

One puts me at the center.

The other puts God at the center.

One says, “My will be done.”

The other says, “Your will be done.”

And honestly, I know which one gives me more peace.

There are still days when I struggle.

There are still days when I worry.

There are still days when I question.

There are still days when I get impatient and want answers right now.

But even in those moments, I know where I want to turn.

I want to turn toward God, not away from Him.

Because Romans 8:6 gives us a choice that really isn't complicated.

The mind governed by the flesh is death.

The mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.

There are two roads.

One is governed by what I want.

The other is governed by the Spirit of God.

I won't always walk the right road perfectly. I may stumble. I may take a detour. I may even find myself trying to grab the steering wheel and take control again.

But I know where I want my life headed.

I want the Holy Spirit leading me.

I want God directing my steps.

I want the peace that comes from knowing I'm walking with Him.

And when I have to choose between getting what my flesh wants and following where God is leading...

I'll choose life and peace.

Every time.

Just saying.

Don't Let Yesterday's Empty Nets Determine Tomorrow's Decisions

(from Rick Renner on Facebook)

Don't Let Yesterday's Empty Nets Determine Tomorrow's Decisions

This is the quote that Rick Renner put with this picture on Facebook:

“In Luke 5, after Jesus finished teaching, He looked at Simon and gave what must have seemed like a very unusual instruction: ‘Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught’ (Luke 5:4).

Peter was a professional fisherman. He knew these waters. He had spent the entire night fishing and had caught absolutely nothing. The nets had already been washed. The work was finished. Everything had been cleaned and put away.

Yet Jesus asked Peter to undo all of it.

I can almost hear Peter explaining why it wouldn't work. ‘Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing’ (Luke 5:5).

But then Peter said something that changed his life forever: ‘Nevertheless at Thy word...’ (Luke 5:5).

Peter chose to trust the Word of Jesus more than his own experience.

How often are we tempted to do just the opposite? We allow yesterday's disappointments to determine today's decisions.

My friend, never let a season of empty nets keep you from obeying the voice of Jesus. One word from Him can accomplish what an entire night of human effort never could.”

— Rick Renner

I love following Rick Renner's ministry. He's an amazing author, and I love how on point his teachings from the Bible are. Some might disagree with me on that, and that's okay. I've been studying God's Word since I was in my twenties, and the more I study and learn, the more I appreciate what Rick shares when he teaches from Scripture.

But it's the way he ended this particular thought that really grabbed me.

“Never let a season of empty nets keep you from obeying the voice of Jesus.”

Wow.

Just how often are we tempted to do the opposite?

How often do we allow yesterday's disappointments to determine today's decisions?

How many times do we think, “Well, that didn't work before, so why would I try again?”

We've all been there.

Peter certainly had reason to be discouraged. He wasn't some inexperienced fisherman who didn't know what he was doing. He was a professional. He had worked all night. He had done what he knew to do, and at the end of it all, his nets were empty.

And then Jesus told him to go back out.

I wonder how many times Peter's experience was telling him one thing while Jesus was telling him another.

His experience said, “We've already tried this.”

Jesus said, “Go back out.”

His experience said, “There's nothing out there.”

Jesus said, “Let down your nets.”

His experience said, “We've worked all night and caught nothing.”

Peter's response was, “Nevertheless at Thy word...”

That's the part that gets me.

Nevertheless.

Nevertheless means even though.

Even though I don't understand.

Even though I've tried before.

Even though I've been disappointed.

Even though the circumstances don't look promising.

Even though my experience tells me otherwise.

Nevertheless... at His word.

That's faith.

And I'll be honest—this is something we've had to remind ourselves of more than once.

For us and for our son, we've definitely been tempted to allow yesterday's disappointments to determine today's decisions.

But God.

Those two words can change everything.

We've had moments where circumstances have made us question what comes next. We've had disappointments. We've had things not go the way we hoped they would. We've watched doors close that we thought were going to stay open.

And sometimes the easiest thing to do is to let those experiences become the lens through which we look at the future.

“We tried that.”

“That didn't work.”

“We've been down that road before.”

“Maybe we shouldn't expect anything different this time.”

But God keeps reminding us that our past experiences are not His limitations.

What happened yesterday does not mean I know what God is going to do tomorrow.

And an empty net doesn't mean Jesus is finished.

Sometimes God asks us to go back out into the deep when everything inside of us is saying, “Why?”

Sometimes He asks us to try again.

Sometimes He asks us to wait.

Sometimes He changes the direction completely.

And sometimes He simply asks us to trust Him when we can't see what He's doing.

That's where we are learning to say:

“Nevertheless, at Your word.”

We know God has got Tim, Scot and me. Ultimately, He is in control.

Not us.

Not our circumstances.

Not our disappointments.

Not our plans.

Not even the things we think we understand.

God.

And if He tells us to launch out into the deep, then that's where we're going.

Even if we've been there before.

Even if we've come back with empty nets before.

Even if we're tired.

Even if we're afraid of being disappointed again.

Because the truth is, we don't need to understand the instruction to obey the One who gave it.

Peter didn't know what was waiting beneath the surface when Jesus told him to let down his nets.

He simply had to trust the One who knew.

And that's something I'm learning more and more as I get older:

Faith isn't trusting God only when the outcome makes sense to me. Faith is trusting Him when it doesn't.

I don't know what tomorrow holds for our family.

I don't know what God is going to do with every situation we're facing.

But I do know this:

He is faithful.

So I'm not going to let yesterday's empty nets convince me that there won't be a catch tomorrow.

I'm not going to let disappointment make my decisions for me.

I'm not going to let fear of what happened before keep me from what God may be asking me to do now.

Instead, I'm going to keep listening.

Keep trusting.

Keep believing.

Keep going into the deep when He says to go.

And when I don't understand?

Nevertheless, at His word.

Because one word from God can change everything❤️.

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. — Isaiah 55:8

Never Ever Underestimate

Every single day, God is protecting us from things we don't even know about. His angels are keeping watch over His children.

That doesn't mean bad things don't happen, because they do.

We live in a fallen world—a world where we have choices. God gave us the ability to choose. We can choose Him, or we can choose the things that satisfy our own whims.

I've made many really bad choices in my lifetime. I'm fixing to be 57 years old in November, and no, I don't mind telling my age.

I've lived enough of life to look back and see just how many times I've missed God. I've also seen how many times He protected me, because my life should have been snuffed out long ago with all the bad choices I've made.

I always say this, though: "But God!"

I say that because if it weren't for God, I wouldn't even be sitting here writing this blog to you today. With all I've done in my life, there's no reason why I should still be here, but I am.

That tells me that God isn't finished with me yet. And if you're here reading my blog, then God isn't finished with you either.

I've underestimated God a lot in my life. It's not something I'm proud of; it's just a fact.

God has been there for me in ways I can't explain throughout my entire life. He's watched over me and given me guidance, even when I made choices that weren't in line with Him or His Word.

As followers of Christ, we're all just going through life doing our best to live for Him. But that doesn't mean everything is always going to go according to plan. We have free will, and our decisions have consequences.

Something I've learned, though, is that no matter how often I've made bad decisions, sooner or later, it all comes back to God.

God never lets go of our lives when we are His children. We may stray like a sheep that has wandered away from its flock, but God lovingly brings us back to Himself. His gentle hand guides us, even when we don't realize it.

I've gotten to a place in my life where I know the quote in the picture above is true because I've lived enough life to experience God's protection firsthand.

I don't ever underestimate how much God is protecting me from things I don't even know about.

When there's a delay in my day, I sometimes wonder if God is keeping me from something that could hurt me.

When things don't go as planned, I remind myself that God is still in control.

When everything seems to be falling apart and there's no way out, I know God is there.

He will never leave me or forsake me, because I am His child.

I'm ever so thankful that He's always there, protecting me in ways I don't even know about. And I'm thankful that He's doing the same for my loved ones and friends too because He is no respecter of persons.

I was just telling a friend recently that I don't know where my life would be today if it weren't for God.

Everything in my life, from the time I was five years old, when a wonderful older woman in our neighborhood asked my parents if she could take me to church on Sundays, to now, has been a part of God's plan for my life.

He knew me before I ever was. He knew what my upbringing would be. He knew how I would respond to all that happened in my young life before I came to Him. He knew the exact moment when I would choose Him and ask Him to be my Lord and Savior.

He knew when I would surrender my life to Him, but He also knew that I would continue to make mistakes—and that He would continue to forgive me.

That doesn't give me license to live like a hellion, though. It's quite the opposite.

If I fall, He's there. If I fail, He's there. He's always there, leading, guiding, and directing my life along the path He wants me to take.

The path I'm on now is a blessed one.

I feel so blessed because I have a husband who loves God, whom I adore. I have a son whom I adore, too. God has blessed me with an amazing family life after all the troubled years I went through growing up.

There's such a deep sense of acceptance and love in my life that I can't fully describe, but I feel it in the depths of my soul.

God protected my life so that I could experience these blessed days. He knew what I didn't. 

And He knows what you don't know yet.

So, never ever underestimate how much God is protecting you from things you don't even know about!

I know I never do.

This Is Just Another Chapter

This Is Just Another Chapter

It’s with a sad heart that we let you know that Tim will not be competing at States this year. This will be the first time he has had to miss a competition since he started his journey in Olympic weightlifting. He will still be there at States supporting his teammates and helping his coach wherever he is needed. Even though he won’t be on the platform this time, he’ll still be part of his team—and I know he’ll be cheering them on every step of the way.

Now, let me give you the backstory on his injury.

A couple of months before Nationals, Tim started having some pain in his elbow. It wasn’t anything unbearable, and his body guy was able to get it under control pretty quickly—or so we thought.

You just never know what may be lurking underneath.

His body guy could only treat the symptoms Tim was experiencing. He did dry needling and shockwave therapy on the area, and for a while, it seemed to be doing the trick.

When Tim went to Nationals in June, his elbow was feeling good. He went on to make PR lifts and win his first USA Weightlifting National Junior Championship. It was an incredible Championships week, and we were so proud of him.

Then we came home, and he went back into training.

His elbow progressively started getting worse.

After doing everything he could, his body guy advised us to have Tim seen by an orthopedic doctor. We put in for an appointment, which took some time to get, and now we are going through all the hoops trying to figure out exactly what is causing this issue.

Here’s what we know so far.

His X-rays show nothing broken and no loose particles. An MRI without contrast showed fluid on his elbow. The medications they gave him haven't helped resolve the fluid issue. Blood work also showed that he does not have an autoimmune issue causing the problem.

The next step is to aspirate the fluid from his elbow and have it tested—which happens later this morning. After that, we may need to do an MRI with contrast to get a better look at the tendons surrounding the elbow.

So, what initially seemed like a minor issue could very well be just that—a minor issue.

But it could also be that his elbow is so pointy that it's irritating his tendon or there could be a small tear in one of his tendons that is being irritated by the movement of his elbow. In the case or the first scenario, that could possibly mean surgery to round the bony part that is irritating the tendon. In the case of the second scenario, we are fairly sure that it would simply require some rest time for it to heal. With either case that would mean Tim is done competing for the remainder of this year. 

And that's hard.

Not just because he loves competing, but because weightlifting has become such a huge part of his life and he absolutely loves it. He has worked incredibly hard to get where he is, and he has some pretty big dreams for where he wants this journey to take him.

So we’re asking our family and friends to pray in agreement with us🙏.

Pray for quick healing of Tim’s elbow. Pray that the underlying cause is revealed to his orthopedic doctors so they know exactly how to treat it. Pray for wisdom for everyone involved in his care.

And pray that he comes back stronger than he was before.

It is also our prayer that, Tim heals in time to train and prepare for The Arnold in March 2027. This will be the 50th Anniversary of the event, and being able to compete there would be an incredible opportunity.

Tim's passion is weightlifting. His dream is to compete at Worlds and, someday, carry the title of Olympian.

We don't know what this detour is going to look like yet.

But we do know Who holds the road ahead.

God has brought Tim through so much in his young life. We have watched God's hand on him in ways that are impossible for us to deny. And while we don't understand why he is dealing with this injury right now, we trust that God does.

I truly believe God has a plan for Tim’s life—and that plan is bigger than a medal, a competition, a championship, or even weightlifting itself.

This injury doesn't erase everything Tim has accomplished. It doesn't take away the work he has put in. It doesn't change who he is.

It's simply an unexpected part of his journey.

And maybe, just maybe, this is another opportunity for Tim to learn that strength isn't always found on a platform.

Sometimes strength looks like sitting on the sidelines when you'd rather be lifting.

Sometimes it looks like patience when you want answers.

Sometimes it looks like trusting God when you don't understand what He's doing.

And sometimes the biggest victories have nothing to do with medals.

Scot and I know that Tim will continue to honor God and his family through this journey because he knows just how much God's hand has been on his life. He's seen God carry him through things before, and we believe God will carry him through this, too.

So for now, we're taking it one day at a time, trusting God, praying for healing, and believing that Tim's story isn't over.

This is just another chapter.

And whatever comes next, we'll be right there beside him.

More Than the Medals

This quote hits home with me because it describes exactly how we've tried to raise Tim.

We've never wanted to raise a child whose entire identity was wrapped up in winning. We wanted to raise a young man who could face life—both the good and the hard—and know that he could handle whatever came his way.

Unfortunately, that's not always the message Tim received from coaches along the way.

Some of the coaches he's had put so much emphasis on winning that the message became, If you don't win, you didn't accomplish anything worth accomplishing. And honestly, that mentality turned both Tim and us off big time.

Winning is great. Who doesn't love to win? 

But winning isn't the only measure of success.

The coach Tim has now understands that. He doesn't focus solely on the wins. He focuses on the gains—the progress, the improvements, the little victories that happen along the way. He's more interested in helping Tim become better than he was yesterday than simply making sure he beats everyone else.

That's the kind of coach every athlete should have.

I wish Tim could have had a coach like this all along because I think there's something incredibly valuable about learning early that your worth isn't determined by a scoreboard, a podium or a medal.

The goal was never to raise an athlete who wins all the time.

The goal was to raise someone who knows they can handle anything life throws at them.

That's the ultimate goal.

Because one day the competitions will end. The training will slow down. The medals will eventually stop coming.

And yes, those medals will hang on a wall and tell a story. They'll remind us of the hard work, the sacrifices, the early mornings, the disappointments, the victories and all the moments in between.

But at the end of the day they're still just medals.

They are not who you are.

When there are no more competitions and no more medals to win, you have to be able to look at the person you've become and love who you are.

What kind of person are you when nobody is keeping score?

What kind of heart do you have?

How do you treat people?

Do you encourage others to succeed, even when they're competing against you?

Do you get back up when you fail?

Can you handle disappointment without allowing it to define you?

Can you celebrate someone else's success?

Can you walk away from something knowing you gave it everything you had, even if the outcome wasn't what you wanted?

That's what matters.

I want Tim to leave behind more than a collection of medals for people to talk about.

I want people to talk about his character.

I want them to say he had an amazing heart for people. That he cared about others. That he encouraged people. That he wanted to see others succeed. That he worked hard, stayed humble and didn't let either success or failure determine his worth.

Our son is an athlete, and he's had some incredible successes in his sports journey. We're incredibly proud of what he's accomplished.

But there's so much more to him than what he can lift, how much he can lift, how many competitions he's won or how many medals hang on his wall.

You just have to take the time to get to know him.

And that's what we've always wanted for him—not simply to raise a winner, but to raise a young man who knows who he is, whose worth isn't determined by what he accomplishes, and who knows that no matter what life throws at him, he can handle it.

Because at the end of the day, the medals may tell part of his story.

But his character tells you who he really is.

My Rock, My Refuge, My Stronghold

I love this verse.

There is something so comforting about knowing that I don't have to be strong all by myself. I don't have to have everything figured out. I don't have to know what tomorrow holds. I have a God who is my rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my refuge, my shield and my stronghold.

That's a lot of protection packed into one little verse.

And honestly, I've needed every bit of it.

Life doesn't always go the way we think it will. There have been times when I've felt overwhelmed, worried, disappointed, hurt or simply tired. There have been things I've faced that I couldn't fix, situations I couldn't control and circumstances I couldn't change.

But I've learned that just because I can't handle something doesn't mean God can't.

He is my rock when I feel unsteady.

He is my fortress when I feel vulnerable.

He is my refuge when I need somewhere safe to run.

He is my shield when I need protection.

He is my deliverer when I need Him to make a way where I can't see one.

And He is my stronghold when I need something—or Someone—to hold me up.

I think sometimes we make our faith harder than it needs to be. We try to carry things God never asked us to carry. We worry about things we can't control. We try to figure out every detail of tomorrow when God is asking us to trust Him with today.

I've done that more times than I'd like to admit.

But God keeps reminding me that He is my safe place.

I can run to Him in prayer. I can pour my heart out to Him. I can cry when I need to cry. I can tell Him what I'm afraid of, what I'm struggling with and what I don't understand.

And I don't have to clean myself up first.

I can come just as I am.

That's what I love about having a relationship with God. He isn't only there when everything is going well. He is there in the middle of the mess, in the uncertainty, in the waiting and in the moments when I don't have the answers.

He has been faithful to me over and over again.

When I look back at my life, I can see His hand in places where I didn't recognize it at the time. I can see moments when He protected me, provided for me, redirected me and carried me when I didn't have the strength to carry myself.

Sometimes I didn't understand what God was doing.

I just had to trust Him.

And that's still true today.

I don't know what tomorrow will bring. I don't know what challenges are around the corner. But I know Who will be there when I get there.

That's enough for me.

My circumstances may change. People may change. Life may change. But God does not change.

He is still my Rock.

He is still my Refuge.

He is still my Fortress.

He is still my Shield.

He is still my Deliverer.

And He is still my Stronghold.

So today, I'm choosing to remind myself of what I already know:

I am not alone.
I am not without help.
I am not without hope.
And I am not without a place to run.

When life gets shaky, I can stand on the Rock.

When life gets hard, I can run to my Refuge.

When I feel afraid, I can hide in my Fortress.

When I don't know what to do, I can trust my Deliverer.

Because my security isn't found in having a perfect life or knowing exactly what the future holds.

My security is found in Him.

And He has always been—and will always be—my Rock.