Ridley Barron Ministries has been working on our new website for several months now. It is up and running full speed ahead. We continue to pray and dream about new things coming under our umbrella of ministries. I can't wait for you to see what God is up to.
This will be my last post on blogspot. Please take just a moment and go to http://www.ridleybarron.com and click on Blog. Then click on Lisa's Blog. There you can simply click on RSS feed or enter your email to keep receiving my blog updates. I am so grateful that you have been a follower of my crazy writings. I am always open to hear what your interest, thoughts and comments are in regards to what I share.
I pray for you, as my readers and I would ask that you continue to pray for me as I am in the middle of writing my book.
Big Jesus love!
Lisa
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
What Does Your Table Look Like?
With Thanksgiving only a day away, I keep coming back to the table. I am not referring to decorating because my mom is hosting Thanksgiving this year. I am not referring to going back for seconds although her cooking is worthy. I am referring to the table itself and what it represents.
My mom is know for some of the prettiest table decorating. She puts thought and effort into it. There are amazing colors, candles, napkins and inviting themes that make you want to hang out there well beyond the last crumb. If you think about it the table represents so many things. The table is not only a place of provision and abundance. It is a place where conversations happen. It is where business transactions may occur. It is a place where friends gather. It is a place of laughter or prayer. It even has religious symbolism.
I have a glass top table in our kitchen and the finger prints that once stressed me, now remind me that with four teenagers, there is still table activity. I still believe whoever is home should be at the dinner table. There were times growing up when the world would call and my dad would step away from the table. There was the time I sat at the table for the last time before heading out to my own apartment. There were the times I sat by myself and reheated my dinner as a single mom. There was the conversation at the table when Morgan let her wall down with Ridley. There were the nights Ridley sat with a calculator and went back and forth from praying and figuring on how to make the church budget work. Ahhhh, the table and all its memories.
In reading my Bible this afternoon I found this verse, "May the table set before them become a snare; may it become retribution and a trap. May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see, and their backs be bent forward." (Psalm 69:22 & 23) At first reading, this didn't sound anything like the sweet table memories I have. I did some digging and realized that God is referring to the unbelieving. The message was to those who feast on the things of the world and become blind to the things that are good for them. When the delights of the world combine with corruption of our nature, then we don't see what we really need to feed ourselves in a healthy way. False desires become the fuel for sin in our lives and our feasting table becomes a snare.
As you pull up a chair tomorrow to some of the most beautiful tables and some of the tastiest foods, I pray that your focus and your heart is healthy. May you smell the aroma of Christ in your life. May you be completely filled with the love of Christ. May you desire His best in your life. May you let Him prepare the table where you can find the most complete satisfaction. May you be grateful for His grace and faithfulness. Sit with a new awareness of gratitude. God may have decorated your table a little different than you pictured this season, but He is absolutely the best at knowing what you needed. Taste and see that the Lord is so good and stay a while. Sit at His table and rest. He is waiting for you to pull up a chair.
My mom is know for some of the prettiest table decorating. She puts thought and effort into it. There are amazing colors, candles, napkins and inviting themes that make you want to hang out there well beyond the last crumb. If you think about it the table represents so many things. The table is not only a place of provision and abundance. It is a place where conversations happen. It is where business transactions may occur. It is a place where friends gather. It is a place of laughter or prayer. It even has religious symbolism.
I have a glass top table in our kitchen and the finger prints that once stressed me, now remind me that with four teenagers, there is still table activity. I still believe whoever is home should be at the dinner table. There were times growing up when the world would call and my dad would step away from the table. There was the time I sat at the table for the last time before heading out to my own apartment. There were the times I sat by myself and reheated my dinner as a single mom. There was the conversation at the table when Morgan let her wall down with Ridley. There were the nights Ridley sat with a calculator and went back and forth from praying and figuring on how to make the church budget work. Ahhhh, the table and all its memories.
In reading my Bible this afternoon I found this verse, "May the table set before them become a snare; may it become retribution and a trap. May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see, and their backs be bent forward." (Psalm 69:22 & 23) At first reading, this didn't sound anything like the sweet table memories I have. I did some digging and realized that God is referring to the unbelieving. The message was to those who feast on the things of the world and become blind to the things that are good for them. When the delights of the world combine with corruption of our nature, then we don't see what we really need to feed ourselves in a healthy way. False desires become the fuel for sin in our lives and our feasting table becomes a snare.
As you pull up a chair tomorrow to some of the most beautiful tables and some of the tastiest foods, I pray that your focus and your heart is healthy. May you smell the aroma of Christ in your life. May you be completely filled with the love of Christ. May you desire His best in your life. May you let Him prepare the table where you can find the most complete satisfaction. May you be grateful for His grace and faithfulness. Sit with a new awareness of gratitude. God may have decorated your table a little different than you pictured this season, but He is absolutely the best at knowing what you needed. Taste and see that the Lord is so good and stay a while. Sit at His table and rest. He is waiting for you to pull up a chair.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
What Is Going On With This Marriage Stuff?
I don't even want to answer the phone lately. I have received too many calls where I hear devastating news about people I care about. In the last several weeks, I have had five phone calls asking for prayer and encouragement because another marriage is falling apart. A couple of weeks ago I was parked in the Walgreens parking lot when I got one of those calls. My heart fell as I literally covered my mouth in shock. The story sounded all too familiar but the characters were different. It is a story that I only want to share about myself. I never want anyone else to experience. I know they will.
Last week Ridley and I were headed to the airport and my phone rang. I looked at the caller ID and I immediately looked over at Ridley. He asked why I wasn't answering the call and I explained that I was afraid to. As I dialed the number back, I began praying that the news or need would be a good one. It wasn't. Adultery had reared its ugly head once again and this time I was mad. After hanging up, I blurted out, "What is going on with this marriage stuff?"
So what IS going on? I know commitment is thrown out the window at the first sign of difficult. I know that Americans have "rights" and maybe that perspective is flowing over into their marriage. Maybe entitlement trumps honesty and integrity. Whatever the case may be, I am praying for marriages to be strengthened. ALL marriages. I am praying for families to heal and be restored. I am praying for husbands and wives to be best friends.
If you find yourself at the window ready to throw your commitment out or you are too tired to try, let me help just a bit. Almost about every man or woman has bills. They all have issues and they have bad days. They all age and their bodies change. The things they own can be gone in a minute. I say that to simply say, if you think replacing your spouse with someone else is a better life ....you couldn't be more wrong. You are just starting the cycle all over again. The Bible says in Proverbs 5:32, "But a man (or woman) who commits adultery, lacks judgement; whoever does so destroys himself.
Love your wife. Love your husband. Fight for your family. Choose to do the right thing. A selfish decision can bring self destruction. Proverbs 5:32 says so.
Last week Ridley and I were headed to the airport and my phone rang. I looked at the caller ID and I immediately looked over at Ridley. He asked why I wasn't answering the call and I explained that I was afraid to. As I dialed the number back, I began praying that the news or need would be a good one. It wasn't. Adultery had reared its ugly head once again and this time I was mad. After hanging up, I blurted out, "What is going on with this marriage stuff?"
So what IS going on? I know commitment is thrown out the window at the first sign of difficult. I know that Americans have "rights" and maybe that perspective is flowing over into their marriage. Maybe entitlement trumps honesty and integrity. Whatever the case may be, I am praying for marriages to be strengthened. ALL marriages. I am praying for families to heal and be restored. I am praying for husbands and wives to be best friends.
If you find yourself at the window ready to throw your commitment out or you are too tired to try, let me help just a bit. Almost about every man or woman has bills. They all have issues and they have bad days. They all age and their bodies change. The things they own can be gone in a minute. I say that to simply say, if you think replacing your spouse with someone else is a better life ....you couldn't be more wrong. You are just starting the cycle all over again. The Bible says in Proverbs 5:32, "But a man (or woman) who commits adultery, lacks judgement; whoever does so destroys himself.
Love your wife. Love your husband. Fight for your family. Choose to do the right thing. A selfish decision can bring self destruction. Proverbs 5:32 says so.
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