Your Purpose

March 23, 2022March 22, 2022 RefreshHer10 Comments

Over and over again my heart goes to the word, purpose. Why does God save a soul and leave them on this earth, rather than take them to heaven? Because He has a purpose for each of us. We have a life to live that can be full and so blessed because of the God of our life IS our life!

What is it? What is your purpose?

It’s greater than just making it through the day so we can plop down somewhere and scroll, or fasten our eyes on a rectangular box and “chill” while we doze. That’s what a cat does!

For those who have trusted Christ as Savior, we have a soul that has been rescued from hell, and people all around us are without the hope of Christ. They need the Gospel!

Our purpose is to use what God has given us in the place where He has put us
to share the Gospel, disciple believers, to live out a full and fruitful life!

I look at Paul in Philippians one and see that he is in prison. His help came through the supply of the Spirit of Christ by the prayers of the people of God. He believed that no matter what happened, God would not cause him to be ashamed or turn against him. He was confident that he was in the center of God’s will. He wasn’t being punished by God. Christ would be magnified if he lived or died. Paul didn’t dictate how God would be glorified – he left that up to God.

According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. Philippians 1:20, 21

Where has the Lord put you? It’s no accident. Serve Him there.

What has God entrusted to you? What possessions? What talents? Use them for His glory.

Who has He placed around you? Spouse? Children? Neighbors? Use your voice to share the Gospel, encourage them with the Truth, and help bear their burdens.

You are alive and breathing today due to the kindness and the plan of God. You have a significant purpose that no one else could fill. Don’t waste a moment, but get up and ask God what you should do next. Watch how He will use your life if you simply recognize He has purpose for YOU!

Are you living out the purpose for which God has designed for your life? There’s no greater joy!

What questions do you have about your purpose in life?

Eternity · Life

The Biggest Mistake of a Lifetime

February 16, 2022February 16, 2022 RefreshHerLeave a comment

I recently watched a decorating video entitled, The Biggest Decorating Mistake We All Make. The title drew me in! I mean, who wants to make a BIG mistake in their home decor? While watching, I found that I, too, am guilty of making this “Huge blunder!” The good news is, it’s fixable! (Read on and I’ll tell you what was shared as the biggest decor faux pas.)

The video didn’t just make me want to go take care of the problem areas in my home, it also got me thinking about BIG MISTAKES we make in other areas of our lives – things that could be avoided.

Let’s start today with the one that is the most detrimental. I’m calling it The Biggest Mistake of a Lifetime.

Before I watched the decorating video, I was trying to anticipate what the decorating mistake was. It was all about perspective – too small a picture over a sofa, or too large a television for the small table, for example. Maybe you’re doing that same kind of guessing right now with my statement. What comes to your mind when you consider The Biggest Mistake of a Lifetime? Some may say…

Marrying the wrong person!
Not following your dreams! One blogger put it this way,
“Not doing the inner work to create the outer life you dream of.”
Not saving for retirement!
Not believing in yourself!
Not getting more education!
Not completing a personal goal!

The list could go and on…but these are all incorrect.

For the answer of life’s biggest mistake, we’re not opening up a popular blog. We’re not listening to a dynamic motivational speaker, we’re going to the One Who gave us life – our great God.

In Luke 12, Jesus speaks to a group of people who had gathered around Him. Listen to His warning to them and to us ~

And He spoke a parable unto them, saying, “The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully.
¹⁷And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, because I have no room to store my fruits?’
¹⁸And he said, ‘This will I do. I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there will I store all my fruits and my goods.
¹⁹And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years. Take thine ease; eat, drink, and be merry.’

²⁰But God said unto him, ‘Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee. Then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?’
²¹So is he that layeth up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

This man planned out his business,

“I’ll get more!”.

He planned out his life,

“I’ll build barns to store everything!“,

but he had no control over his death.

Jesus called this man a fool, not because he was rich, but because he put all his value in the things of this life with no consideration of where he would spend eternity. His soul was the most valuable possession, but he made no provision for it.

People of this world would look at this rich man and think he was successful, but God says this is foolishness. One author said,

It isn’t only sin to give material things too high a place in your life – it is also stupid.

If that seems too blunt for you, stop and consider the weight of this parable. Eternity banks on it! The mistake of a lifetime is to pour our best efforts into the temporal things of this life and never think about where we will spend eternity. Jesus is giving a warning to not be foolish like this man. In a moment, this life is ended. None of us knows when that moment will be, so we must not delay considering that Christ has made the provision for us to have a relationship with Him now, and then a home with Him forever when this life is ended.

The Biggest Mistake of a Lifetime would be to pour all our time and efforts into this world and miss out on the blessing of knowing Christ, both now and after our death. The Biggest Mistake of a Lifetime is to think that accumulating more stuff and climbing higher and higher on the ladder of success is where real life is. Friend, that’s a lie from the pit of hell. Christ came to give us real life through Himself.

If you’ve never trusted Christ as your Savior for your sin and you’re wondering why you’re feeling empty and unsatisfied, even though you have lots of worldly possessions, it’s because your heart is craving what God created you for – a personal relationship with Him. To know Him is to truly be rich in this life and in the next.

Don’t make the biggest mistake and miss it. Just like the decorating mistake, this is fixable. Just don’t be like the man in the parable and wait too long.

If you want to read more about how to know Christ as your Savior, I invite you to go here. Feel free to email me at Refreshherblog@gmail.com. with any questions you may have.

Christmas · Life

Without Christ in Christmas

December 20, 2017December 19, 2017 RefreshHer4 Comments

Image result for chocolate chip cookies without chips

A heavy tray is extended towards you full of fluffy, golden brown cookies.

“Take one, please!” your host offers. “They’re Chocolate Chip Cookies, except they have no chocolate chips. We just don’t do those.”

Odd.

The outside of the bookstore is inviting and charming. Signs in the windows boast of new titles and the arrival of authors who will be in house soon. A lover of good books, you step inside, anticipating lingering over the newly bound pages and reading in a comfy chair. But your head jerks back and forth across the shelves that are…empty.
“You have no books?” you ask the clerk at the cash register.
“Oh, no. We just like having a store. We don’t do books.”

Image result for empty shelves at bookstore

Bizarre.

A jolly clerk at the retail store had to wait to finish ringing up my purchase, because a price check was needed. The awkward wait was broken when he asked,
“Where will you spend Christmas this year?”
“Lexington, KY! How about you? came my response.
“Oh, I’ll stay right here.”
I continued the dialogue, “And how do you celebrate Christmas?”
“How? Oh, just with giving gifts – that’s all.”
My husband chimed into the conversation by asking, “Do you know the Christ of Christmas?”
“Oh, we usually don’t do the religious thing at Christmas” was his answer.

Don’t do the religious thing?

Me either. Rather, we Do Jesus. He is the reason we have Christmas! Without celebrating His coming to earth to die for my sins, there would be no Christmas, and certainly nothing to celebrate!

My first two scenarios in this post were totally fictional, but I use them to make a point. If you’re celebrating Christmas and leaving the worship of Christ out of your celebration, you have a far greater crisis than a chocolate chip cookie without chocolate chips or a bookstore without books! You have life without meaning. When the tinsel has lost its glow, the wrapping paper is stuffed into the trash can, the last cookie is eaten, and the final gift unwrapped, you are still left with that empty hole in your heart. The void in your life will still be unfulfilled on December 26th, because without Christ in Christmas you…

have no meaning all the other 364 days of the year.
don’t understand the sacrifice Jesus made to come to earth for you.
have no hope for eternal life with God.
have no peace in your heart.
don’t understand true satisfaction and contentment.
have just another party.

But if you will receive the greatest gift – the gift of eternal life THROUGH Jesus Christ, you can celebrate the joy of Christmas every day of the year.

If Christ is your Savior, I challenge you to make Him the center and focus of your celebrations this year. Without Him you’ll have just a plain ol’ holiday, but when you center everything around Him, you’ll have CHRISTmas!

Lovingly,

Denise Signature 150 px

Cleaning · evangelism · Fall · home · Home decor · Husband · Life

Things I’m Loving This Fall

October 20, 2017October 20, 2017 RefreshHer5 Comments

Fall brings some favorite things we don’t have the rest of the year. I thought I’d share some of the things I’m especially loving this fall (though they’re not all seasonally related). Look for the ARROW in the picture to see my favorite thing!

favorites 1 — This Kroger Washing Machine Cleaner is really reasonably priced and does a GREAT job getting any residue out of the washing machine. The rubber gaskets don’t get completely clean, but it’s much better. Look at that shine inside! My mom recommended it to me, and I’m recommending it to you!

favorites 6a — It’s the time of year for the great flavored creams! This one reminds me of Christmas because in years past, it was the only time you could get it. Now it comes out in the fall. Mmmm, it’s so good in my morning cup of coffee!!

favorites 2a — Yankee Candles have me all smiles. I love all their products! I especially love their fall scents. This one is Sugar and Spice and it goes great with any pumpkin scent I may have in another part of the house. I love the apple burner. You set a container into the burner, turn it on, and it melts in the plastic container. So easy and no open flame.

favorites 4a — I’m still chalkboard crazy! I had a mirror over my mantle all summer, but I decided to put the chalkboard up and do a picture. What is it about chalkboard art that makes a space so cozy? I don’t know, maybe just the opportunity it gives me to be a little creative. It might be tacky to some, but I love it on the mantle!

favorites 3a — My last love isn’t a thing, it’s a person. It’s the man you see talking to our sweet neighbors that we love. That man, my husband…loves people. He has a burden for people. Everywhere he goes, he’s looking to pour into people the love of Jesus, and I love that about him! I snapped this picture from my laundry room window. I loved looking out and seeing him chatting with the children. They love him, too!

What are you enjoying this fall? A new product? A place you’ve visited? A person who’s been a blessing? I’d love to hear about it in the comments!

Have a refreshing weekend as you attend a church that preaches the Word of God in Truth! Our church will be celebrating its 61st anniversary this Sunday, so it will be a special day, and I’m looking forward to it!

Lovingly,

Denise Signature 200 px

Encouragement · Life · trials

The One Thing You Can Change

September 13, 2017September 12, 2017 RefreshHer6 Comments

If you could change one thing about your life right now what would it be? If you could change that, do you think it would really alter your life? Would it make everything better? Maybe. Maybe not.

Recently I was out and I saw a quote hung on the wall of the establishment. The truth of it struck a chord in my heart. I know it will encourage someone today as it did me then and as it does every time I remind myself of its message. There is only one thing that we’re all really in charge of and able to change. What is it? Read on:

Now think back to that thing you would change if you could. What about if you simply changed your attitude about that instead? That alone could make the difference you’re really desiring.

Today try to be intentional about what kind of attitude you have, and ask the Lord to show you if you need to make a change. Only you are in charge of that!

Denise Signature 150 px