Passionate with a Purpose: March 2014

Friday, March 14, 2014

Praise His Holy Name!

It is my great pleasure to share today's post with you. It is written by my wonderful friend, Tonya Sanchez. I have already read it twice and cried both times. If you know Tonya, you know she is a beautiful, quiet, reserved woman of God. As she will tell you, this is out of her comfort zone to share. This testimony is very encouraging. As my friends, I'm asking that if you read a something on my blog by a guest writer that touches, encourages, or speaks to you, please leave them a comment, email, or send them a text and tell them what it meant to you. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:11

I ♥ y'all,

Tera

Tonya and Mitchell Sanchez!

I am a follower of Tera's Blog. She's quite inspiring and an Amazing Friend. I've never done this before but here I go... I might be all over the place so I'm sorry in advance!! :)

Well, as I sit here, there's so many things I want to write about. How the Lord has changed me, Set me free, Healed me, Saved me, Delivered me and Restored my Life. How he's wiped away my past and made me NEW!! Wow I sit in Awe of His Goodness!!! He truly makes my heart Burst with Joy when I think about the things He's Done!!!!!

Praise the Lord Oh My Soul

all my Inmost being,

Praise His Holy name!

Psalm 103:1

Brother Shannon was preaching at the end of service last night. He was talking about how Satan tries to keep you bound in your past. Well, I was one of those people he had bound for a long time. Satan IS A LIAR and the father of Lies. John 8:44. He had me believing I wasn't good enough to be around certain people at church, then I'd feel intimidated. But Gods Mercy and Grace is so Great. His word says in Psalms 103:12, "As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us!!!"

Psalm 103 is my most favorite scripture to read. I've read it over and over. I went up to the altar at church one night for prayer. An amazing lady was praying for me. I didn't tell her what I needed prayer for, and she said as I was praying, "For you, The Lord gave me this scripture." and it was Psalm 103. She quoted some of it to me, and it was the very thing I went up to get prayed for. God knows just what we need!

2 Timothy 1:7

For God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power and of love and a sound mind.

I was bound up with Anxiety. I was searching for a way to fill the emptiness I felt. I tried to fill it with drinking and going out with girlfriends. Of course that didn't work. My husband passed away suddenly on Aug 9,2006. It was a hurt like I'd ever felt. I had an 18mth old and a 5 year old. I remember thinking how in the world am I going to do this? Satan was trying to destroy my life. The thief comes only to kill, steal, and destroy, But I have come that you may have life and Have it more abundantly - John 10:10. Then, in Aug of '06, I gave my heart to Jesus. Oh how He Rescued me and Set me free!! He came in and gave me a peace like nothing I've ever felt before, healed this broken heart, and Redeemed my life. I found what I had been searching for, my Jesus!

In him, we're made whole. Jesus is all we need!! Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all things will be given to you as well! Matthew 6:33

The Lord is so Faithful! He has Blessed me with this man I'm So crazy in Love with. Mitchell is an Awesome husband and father, most of all He Loves the Lord! I would have to agree with Tera, Mitchell and Bill are quite the pair!! LOL! I had to throw that in there! I don't know what we did to deserve him! There's not a day goes by that I don't Thank the Lord for Him!

Oh I could go on forever! I just want to say no matter what it is we go through in this life, God is with us!! Never will I (Jesus) leave Nor Forsake you! Hebrews 13:5

For I know the plans I have for you",

Declares the Lord , plans to prosper you and not harm you

Plans to give you a Hope and a Future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with you all your Heart. Jeremiah 11-13

^{Psalm 103}

¹Praise the Lord, my soul;
    all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
²Praise the Lord, my soul,
    and forget not all his benefits—
³who forgives all your sins
    and heals all your diseases,
⁴who redeems your life from the pit
    and crowns you with love and compassion,
⁵who satisfies your desires with good things
    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

⁶The Lord works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.

⁷He made known his ways to Moses,
    his deeds to the people of Israel:
⁸The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
    slow to anger, abounding in love.
⁹He will not always accuse,
    nor will he harbor his anger forever;
¹⁰he does not treat us as our sins deserve
    or repay us according to our iniquities.
¹¹For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
    so great is his love for those who fear him;
¹²as far as the east is from the west,
    so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

¹³As a father has compassion on his children,
    so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
¹⁴for he knows how we are formed,
    he remembers that we are dust.
¹⁵The life of mortals is like grass,
    they flourish like a flower of the field;
¹⁶the wind blows over it and it is gone,
    and its place remembers it no more.
¹⁷But from everlasting to everlasting
    the Lord’s love is with those who fear him,
    and his righteousness with their children’s children—
¹⁸with those who keep his covenant
    and remember to obey his precepts.

¹⁹The Lord has established his throne in heaven,
and his kingdom rules over all.

²⁰Praise the Lord, you his angels,
    you mighty ones who do his bidding,
    who obey his word.
²¹Praise the Lord, all his heavenly hosts,
    you his servants who do his will.
²²Praise the Lord, all his works
    everywhere in his dominion.

Praise the Lord, my soul.

Thursday, March 13, 2014

Food with Friends:Breakfast Frittata

Today's post is written by Mitchell Sanchez! Seriously, I can not wait to make this recipe! I would just like to add how much I appreciate everyone who sends me posts to put on this blog. There is no way I could keep it up without help. So if you have something to share, a testimony, recipe, advice/encouragement on marriage, family, raising children, a fresh revelation of scripture, natural living, etc., please do not hesitate to send it my way at terabill6 @gmail.com. Thank you and I hope you have a great Thursday!

Mitchell picked this picture for the blog because, AND I QUOTE, "It really captures my essence as a man." Hmmm

I love me some breakfast, it’s the most important meal of the day!!! I’m the early riser in the house so I normally get to cook breakfast, and I haven’t really had TOO terribly many complaints yet. The kids really like this one so I decided to surprise them with it. Frittatas are great because you can make them with just about anything you like. I did a vegetable version and everyone seemed to like it a good bit so we’ll be doing this one again.

Breakfast Frittata

7-8 eggs, Half whole, half egg white will trim it up some

¾ cup yellow onion, diced

¾ cup tomato, diced

2 cups cubed potato (any kind) cut into smaller cubes

1 8oz pkg frozen spinach, thawed and drained

¾ cup roasted red pepper

1 poblano pepper

Salt and pepper to taste

Get everything diced up and ready to cook. Beat the eggs and set them aside. Preheat a cast iron skillet and set your oven to 350 degrees.

Boil the potatoes. I cubed them a little bigger and boiled them till they were just about done. Then I cut them into smaller pieces to add later to the skillet.

Sautee the green poblano pepper and onion in a little bit of extra virgin olive oil until lightly browned. While they are sautéing, heat or defrost the spinach in the microwave until it is completely ice free. Remove it from the package and drain the water as best as you can. You might need to place it between two paper towels and press out the excess as much as possible.

Once the onions and pepper is sautéed, Add the remaining ingredients and add some salt and pepper. Give it a stir to incorporate everything pretty evenly.

Add the egg and mix it around just a little bit to even things out. Let it cook for about 5 minutes on medium heat, just enough to set the bottom and sides.

Right before you add it to the oven, cover the top with some cheese. Cook at 350 for about 15 minutes, or until the egg is cooked through. When you pull it out, it should look something like this.

I was fortunate enough to have some of Kayla Buckner’s salsa on hand to enjoy this with. If you’ve never had it before, then beg her to make you some!!! Hope y'all get to try this, it’s a really good recipe that you can really make your own with whatever ingredients you choose!

Monday, March 10, 2014

My VBAC Journey!

I am really excited to be sharing today's post by my sweet sister-in-love, Helen, Sumner. I have had a lot of requests asking me to tell my story and give my advice on birth and homebirthing. As of yet, I have not taken the time to do that, but today, Helen will share with you her encouraging story of having a natural birth after having a C-section. She will also give great tools and advice for pregnant women.

Helen Sumner

I first started researching VBACs (vaginal birth after cesarean) when my first baby was about six weeks old. When I went to my six week check up with my OB, I asked him about a natural birth next time, and he told me that it was too risky, my baby was just to big for my body, and he didn’t want to have to be waiting around the hospital the entire time I was in labor. (It’s a law that a Dr has to be at the hospital the entire time his patient is laboring during a VBAC.)

So I left feeling a little sad, but hey it’s what my Dr said, and we have to listen to everything our Doctors say because they are the ones who went to medical school, and they have our best interests in mind, right?

A few weeks later I couldn’t stop thinking about it, so I did a quick google search, and found out that there are a lot of other women who do not want to be forced into another c/section. I found an amazing vbac support group, and I started asking everyone I knew who had had a cesarean if they were considering a vbac next time? A lot of responses were “what is that?” I heard the stories of why people who had multiple C/Sections went that route. “Well because that’s what their Doctors said to do.” Honestly, a lot of ladies think they have no other choice - “Once a C/section always a C/section.” That’s what I had always thought too.

I’m going to back track a little because if I could give first time moms any advice it would be do not go into your birthing experience feeling like the Doctor has your best interest in mind. Do not go to the hospital trusting the system. Do your research. If I had done just that, I am positive that my c/section could have been prevented, but that’s another story for another time. Oh and by the way, I’m sure you’ve figured this out, but in case sarcasm is lost on you, I do NOT think we always have to listen to our Drs.

So when I realized that other people did have babies naturally after a C/section, I started researching the risks. I’m not going to get into all of the statistics and studies. I’ll provide links to some great information though. What I found was surprising! There are risks, but they are smaller than I thought. I’m not going to say that everyone should have a vbac, I think it’s a very personal decision that you should research, and pray about. There are risks to which ever you choose, you just have to decide which risk is right for you. We decided that vbac was the right risk for us. It took a little bit to convince James, but once he saw the research he was convinced. It also took a little bit to convince a few of my friends and family I heard “please just don’t risk it” a few times, but I think I bored them with enough evidence that it was a safe option, to hush them up.

So once everyone was on board, I started trying to figure out where I could actually have a vbac! I quickly discovered it was not going to be in Beaumont, no Doctors will do vbacs (I wasn’t pregnant at this time, just wanted to be prepared.) I starting thinking I was going to have to drive to Houston. At this point, I had decided I didn’t want another hospital birth, and I had started trying to find a birthing center. Then I heard about a birthing center in Orange! I called and asked if they take vbac patients and they did! I talked to my midwife for a few minutes and told her my first birth story. I think I was dancing a jig while I talked to her. She said I sounded like a good vbac candidate. I told her I wasn’t pregnant, but would be giving her a call when I was. I felt so happy to have found a provider. James still wanted to go the hospital route, but said he would meet her. When I was about 1 month pregnant with Benjamin, we went to Orange to meet my midwife. After that first meeting James was convinced. She put us both at ease, and we realized that I would be in very capable hands.

I was ten days late when I had Benjamin. My midwife realized that I was worrying so much that I wasn’t letting myself go into labor, so I made a list of all of my fears, and then put a bible verse to go with that fear. I had so many people praying for me, I knew deep down that the Lord was with me. When I was on my way to the birthing center, I was crying for joy because I had so much peace and could feel the presence of the Lord!

Natural birth was the biggest adventure I’ve ever been on; don’t let the fear of pain keep you from a natural birth. There is nothing like the feeling of pushing your baby out, and then pulling them into your arms. Birth isn’t something we should fear, it’s what we were made for. It’s what our bodies are designed to do, and there is something amazingly powerful about being able to do it all on your own.

If you are considering a vbac, or have already decided you want one, then get a little determination! I had decided that if I did end up having a C/section, I wanted to be able to look back and say without a doubt I had done everything to make my vbac possible.

My sweet sister, Tera, paid for me to have a birth photographer, and I’m so very thankful to her for that. I will forever cherish the pictures from that morning, and I would like to share them with you all. Here’s a link to my birth pictures.

The Landon study proved that vbac is a safe option, link.

This is written by a midwife and puts the risk of vbac into perspective, link.

I think this last link is what made me decide I definitely wanted a vbac after I weighed the pros and cons of vbac or repeat C/section, link.

Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord:

and the fruit of the womb is his reward.

Psalm 127:3

Thursday, March 6, 2014

Food with Friends:Crock Pot Potato & Sausage Dinner

Thursday, already!?! I'm not sure where the time goes, but it goes quickly. I have to share with you that last night I read my post from yesterday. I got so cracked up at myself! There were words missing and about 100 typos. I think I need to hire a proofreader or editing service. It does not help that the shift button, and several letters like a, s, d, w, and e are sticking on my keyboard. We'll just be playing a game like Let's Find Waldo, but it will be Let's Find the Typos! ☺ (Just a note-If you find something that needs to be corrected, it will not offend me if you tell me. I will gladly fix them! Thank you!)

This recipe is perfect for our church family since Kilpatrick Sausage is being sold to raise money for the building fund. This is somewhat of a spin-off of my father-in-law's recipe, Sausage Supreme, except it is done in a crock pot. Now, do yourself a favor and buy some sausage for a good cause!

Crock Pot Potato & Sausage Dinner

10 medium potatoes (sliced 1/4 inch thick.....just do it if you want it to get done!)
1 lb. Kilpatrick smoked sausage (I guess, really, any will do! LOL )
1 large onion, diced
2 cans Cream of Potato Soup
3/4 cup evaporated milk
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Slice sausage into rings. Toss potatoes, sausage, and diced onion into your crock pot. In a large mixing bowl, mix soups, milk, pepper, and cheese. Gently stir soup mixture into potatoes. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, until potatoes are tender. Stir once about 1/2 way through cooking time. Serves 6!

1. As you can tell, some of my potatoes are bigger than 1/4 inch. I just chopped, instead of sliced, like the directions say to, and it took FOREVER for my potatoes to get done. (Longer than 8 hours) Don't make this mistake if you like eating supper on time. Oh, I almost forgot. You can always peel your potatoes if you prefer. Ain't nobody got time for that!

2. This is the soup and cheese mixture. It's yummy!

3. All together in the crock pot!

4. Only 6-8 hours to go!

My family really loved this recipe. I really love this recipe because it is so easy that the kids can make this for dinner! Score!

In case you don't have Bro. Shannon's Sausage Supreme recipe I mentioned earlier, I'm going to give that to you as well! I want to give you a lot of ideas of how to use Bro. Shannon's sausage! NOW GO GET SOME! ☺

Bro. Shannon's Sausage Supreme

1 1/2 pounds Kilpatrick smoked sausage
2 medium onions
4 medium taters
Dutch oven

Cut sausage into 3 inch lengths. Slice onion, crossways. Peel and cut taters into big chunks. place a layer of onions in the bottom of your Dutch oven, then a layer of sausage on onions. Put a layer of taters on sausage and repeat until ingredients are gone. Add 1/2 cup of water and put on low heat with lid on Dutch oven, slightly cracked. Cook until potatoes are tender. You can double, triple, and quadruple this recipe for a big crowd!

This is the day the Lord has made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalm 118:24 NKJV

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Wedded Wednesday:Happily Ever After

Have you read or watched very many fairy tales? I was quite a reader, even when I was young, and now I have 4 girls, so I am on my way to becoming an expert! ☺ Most of the stories could be summed up into one story outline. It would go something like this.

Once upon a time, there was a fairy tale couple, the Princess and Prince Charming. Every time they turned round, the evil villain was plotting and scheming to kill one them or keep them apart. The evil villain wanted to rule and reign in their kingdom, generally passed down by one of their fathers, The King. In the end, good always triumphs and the evil is defeated. And they live HAPPILY EVER AFTER!

Am I wrong? Give or take a little, that is probably a basic synopsis.

It is funny that we grow up imagining ourselves to be the princess and marrying our prince, but we forget that even in our 'Once Upon A Time' there is an evil villain, Satan, trying to kill us and keep our marriage apart.(John 10:10) Our Father, The King of All Kings, has given us the keys to the kingdom. We are royalty. (1 Peter 2:9) The Kingdom still belongs to him. If we endure, we will also reign with him. (2 Timothy 2:12)

As the Lord was giving me this word last night, this is what he spoke into my heart.

Everyone wants their 'Happily Ever After, but few want to go slay the dragon!' (Including me!)

I knew exactly what that meant. We all want happy marriages that thrive in love. We want all the Bible says we can have in a marriage: spiritual covering, love, progeny, respect, etc. But when the dragon of selfishness, anger, jealousy, pride, bitterness, or any tactic Satan uses against your marriage, few of us will take the time to slay that dragon in our lives.

Sometimes the dragon seems impossible to face. Other times, you just don't think it's fair that you are the one to have to face it or deal with it.

We can become the worst enemy of our own marriage when we don't deal with sin issues in our heart. I have seen it time and again. I nearly destroyed my marriage years ago when I would not slay the dragon of bitterness in my life. It is so easy to be selfish, bitter, or angry......it takes a WARRIOR to slay those dragons and save your marriage. When I say 'save your marriage' that might seem extreme, but it takes a tiny seed of sin to grow into a tree that bares fruit. Everyone around you starts smelling the rotten fruit on your tree. It is obvious to all....especially your spouse. These trees destroy a marriage.

My friend, Naomi sent me this quote the other day. It is so true! And because I believe her and her husband, Dale, have such an awesome testimony in their marriage (read here), what she has to say about marriage, I listen intently!

Bad marriages are easy.

Awesome marriages take

hustle,

focus,

and HERCULEAN STRENGTH!

It takes great strength and determination to make the sacrifices necessary to have a good marriage. If you feel like you have already given so much, and maybe it wasn't reciprocated, give a little more. Your marriage is worth it!

My prayer today is that we will get our armor on and slay some dragons through the power of the Holy Spirit! Go fight for your HAPPILY EVER AFTER!

When I say I Do by Matthew West

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

I am ALL He says I am!

Do you ever need to be reminded of who you are? No, I don't mean literally like your name or who your parents are. Those things are just a fragment of who you really are and what you are really capable of. Your name, your past, your family tree, your career, your church-those are all just pieces of who you really are. They don't define you if you are a Christian!

Coming from a divorced family or having gone through a divorce yourself, does not define you as broken. If you are adopted, that does not mean you are Fatherless. If your family has a long line of mental illness or depression, that label does not belong to you.

I, often, need to be reminded of who God says I am.....because THAT IS WHO I AM! I am nothing else the enemy tries to label me as. I love the song by Cody Karnes and Kari Jobe from Gateway called All He Says I Am. The chorus says, "I am ALL He says I am! I am ALL He says I am! I am ALL He says I am, and He says I am His own!" Yes, Sweet Jesus, I am yours! (How quickly tiny reminders from the enemy of my soul makes me lose sight of the truth.)

I have made a list of some of the things the God says I am in His Word.

-I am chosen by God. (Ephesians 1:4)
-I am new and my past is gone. (2 Corinthians 5:17)
-I am His Child (John 1:12) and His heir (Romans 8:17, Galatians 4:7).
-I am His friend. (John 15:15)
-I am not fatherless. (Psalm 68:5)
-I am whole and healed. (John 5:11)
-I am not a slave to sin. (Romans 6:6)
-I am accepted by Him. (Romans 15:7)
-I am FREE! (Galatians 5:1)
-I am alive. (Ephesians 2:4-5)
-I am made to do good works. (Ephesians 2:10)
-I am a temple and dwelling place of the Holy Spirit! (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19)
-I am not controlled by fear or depression. (2 Timothy 1:7)
-I am the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21)
-I am NEVER ALONE! (Deuteronomy 31:6)

Today, I am just going to read through this list a couple of times and just proclaim it over my life and to remind the enemy just who I am. Because God sent His only son, Jesus, to take my place, I can be all that He says I am. Glorious Day!

I have sincerely missed you guys the last two weeks. I know I say it frequently, but I appreciate you spending even this tiny portion of your day with me and calling me friend. I feel blessed beyond words to belong to a community, a family, of believers that believe they are that He says they are. Each one of you are precious to me! Hugs!

Passionate with a Purpose

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