Storms

Storms come in all shapes and sizes. Our lives are full of them. Some are treacherous, even hurricane like; Some are just plain messy and annoying. The storms I find most annoying are not those that affect me, but those who have the potential to harm those I love. And even more annoying are those I can not do anything to control. There you have it....the "big" problem is my need to fix/control the situation to obtain an optimal outcome for all involved.

Recently, God spoke loudly to me about the "need to fix/control" the problems/storms around me. It's really nothing new, but something He's been trying desperately to get through to me all forty eight years of my life. Nearly half a century and I might get it this time. I am trying.

As I walked, God spoke these words to my heart:

"You are NOT in control. You have never been in control and even if you were, you could NOT fix any of these situations on your own. I am not asking you to do NOTHING, but what I am asking you to do is trust ME to do the work in each area/person while you pray, love, and encourage and keep walking toward ME."

It seems so simple, yet we humans make it difficult. So, if you are struggling with storms in your life join me in fully surrendering the storm(s) to our Heavenly Father while walking in love toward HIM.

"Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, Lord." Psalm 89:15 NIV

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue

Looks Are Deceiving

Today, my article "Looks Are Deceiving" is published at Women Walking With Jesus. I pray each of you will hop over, read, and be blessed by what God is doing in and through my heart and life. God is faithful!

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,
Andrea Bowling Perdue

Blessings

A house
A dwelling
Beautiful
Glorious

Yet, built only from sticks, nails, and a few stones.

Without a doubt this beautiful home sits in all it's glory waiting to bless it's next guest with a wondrous experience. The house on it's own can not fulfill the hearts of those within. Only God can heal their pain and restore their hearts.

Over the last few years, Doug and I have been blessed to share in the experience of visiting this home in Pine Island, N.C.  Our friends have invited us year after year to partake of the blessings they inherited through a hard working, God-honoring father and husband. None of us take our experience here for granted and while each of us would be just as happy in a tent with an air mattress we recognize the sacrifice of those who have gone before us to provide such amenities. We praise GOD for preparing the way before each of us and helping us to remember our happiness is found in HIM and not the material possessions around us. We are thankful for the deer who graze on the dunes around this home and the butterflies that light all around us. Each sunrise and sunset beseech us to draw closer to our Heavenly Father and listen intently to HIS voice.

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,
Andrea Bowling Perdue

Keep Hiking

Do you ever feel overwhelmed or like you are standing a little to close to the edge of life? I know I certainly do. Today, I'm reminded of God's presence no matter where life takes me. There will always be scary times and unbelievable adventures this side of heaven. However, God gives us the Holy Spirit to live within us as a comforter and guide. He will  never fail us no matter how unbelievably difficult life seems.

Having the strength of Jesus within me puts new meaning in my heart to "...the joy of the Lord is my strength." Nehemiah 8:10

Join me as I embrace the strength our Creator places with within each of us. Keep hiking through this life, dear friends!

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,
Andrea Bowling Perdue

HOPE

At birth, my parents had chosen my first name, Andrea and I've been told the doctor who delivered me chose my middle name, Hope. In fact, when I was a small child the same doctor was my family doctor and he quite often called me by my middle name, not the name everyone else calls me.

Over the years, I've thought a lot about my name and what it means. I've often wondered why Dr. Miller chose the name "Hope." I've come to believe God used Dr. Miller to plant a seed in my life. When there is nothing else, there is HOPE!

 "It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone." Ephesians 1:11-12 The Message

"We who have run for our very lives to God have every reason to grab the promised hope with both hands and never let go. It’s an unbreakable spiritual lifeline, reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God where Jesus, running on ahead of us, has taken up his permanent post as high priest for us, in the order of Melchizedek" Hebrews 6:18-20 The Message 

So, today I cling to "hope" in Christ and I pray this hope is contagious to all those I love.

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue

The Garden Of My Heart

 

Today, you will find my article "The Garden of my Heart" over at Women Walking With Jesus. I hope you will be encouraged as you read how God is weeding and working in my heart.

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue 

The Little Girl

Visit me over at "Women Walking With Jesus" and read my article "The Little Girl." Everyone leaves an impact on the lives of those they nurture. You may not realize the impact you are leaving. Be encouraged, your impact may be far greater than you realize.

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue

What "Prayer" means to me.

What "Prayer" means to me:

Indwelling presence and power much greater than my own, continually translating my groaning and fear into gentle whispers entering the heart of God. All the while each prayer transforms my heart and spirit. With each heart-transformation, Jesus is reflected through my responses to adversity and pain sweeping fear out of the deep recesses and crevasses of my heart and filling it with His peace.

"And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people." Ephesians 6:18 NIV

No request is too great for God. He cares about every detail of our lives.

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,
Andrea Bowling Perdue

Perfect, not me!

If you struggle with the "Need to be PERFECT," I've written an article for Women Walking With Jesus you may want to read. I pray God will speak through my words to each of you and work miraculously through each heart and life. Healing is yours, my friends. God wants you to soar in freedom with Him.

As you read, "Perfect, not me!" May you find strength and courage to fully surrender those unhealthy needs to Jesus and begin living the life He created you to live.

By His mercy and in the grip of His grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue

Healing

'Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track. Don’t assume that you know it all. Run to God! Run from evil! Your body will glow with health, your very bones will vibrate with life! Honor God with everything you own; give him the first and the best. Your barns will burst, your wine vats will brim over. But don’t, dear friend, resent God’s discipline; don’t sulk under his loving correction. It’s the child he loves that God corrects; a father’s delight is behind all this." Proverbs 3:4-6 The Message


While biopsies may not be fun, Doug has settled into a regimen of obtaining them yearly. It's been two and half years now since his diagnosis of prostate cancer. Initially, we were in a state of grief and emotional distress. The word "cancer" evoked countless emotions within each of us. Over time, God has taught us many things about ourselves and also about Himself, the Great Physician.

In January, Doug had his third biopsy. This is our second "cancer free" biopsy. The doctor can not explain where the cancer went, because the course of treatment we chose was holistic.  Doug's  treatment plan was a change of diet and a decision to pray our way through it. Our initial decision was based upon the type of cancer and fully supported by his doctor. In fact, Doug and I were inclined to seek surgery or other options, but his doctor recommended we proceed slowly. He said, "research showed the type of cancer he had was slow growing."  We chose to have yearly biopsies and bi-annual check-ups with blood-work, etc.

In January, Dr. Morgan said, "I don't know what you are doing, but keep doing it. I can not find the cancer. We know it was there and we know we have not done anything to remove it. I know I am biopsying in the correct area, yet it is NOT showing up."

Doug said, "God can take it away!"

Dr. Morgan jumped up and hugged Doug and said, "Stay focused on that!"

Doug was Dr. Morgan's last patient of the day. It was a beautiful sight to see Doug and Dr. Morgan basically skip down the halls chatting about how good God is as we prepared to leave.

Doug will continue to have biopsies and tests as scheduled. With each positive result we are thankful for the time we have been given and pray God continues to bless us with many more years together. Doug and I have learned to trust God with each moment of our lives. We have also learned to embrace the blessings and adventures in our path. Each day is a new day; keep your focus on God and trust Him with every detail of your lives.

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,
Andrea Bowling Perdue

Grace Happened

GRACE:

~undeserved, yet given
~beautiful, yet misunderstood
~forever, yet forsaken
~free, yet longed for

It doesn't make sense, yet "Grace" happened. So, let's stop stumbling over what we don't understand and embrace the fullness of Christ and all He has to offer.

~His forgiveness
~His grace
~His love
~His acceptance

It's already there....available and free to all who accepts. Jesus has already given/sacrificed "all!" That happened on the Cross.

The Cross is the only place in this life where we always win.

We win:

~grace
~forgiveness
~love
~acceptance

The Cross frees us to be the people God created us to be. Lord, help us to find this person within ourselves.

“This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again." John 3:16-17 The Message

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue

Tragedy

The shock of tragedy intensifies grief. One moment life is normal and the next moment normal is gone. We spend the rest of our lives searching for a new normal. God graciously supplies the strength through His presence to step back into the race He's called us to run. However, we must choose to embrace and trust Him. We do not choose tragedy, but we choose how we handle it.

" The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory. This is my God, and I will praise him— my father’s God, and I will exalt him!" Exodus 15:1-3

By HIS mercy and in the grip of His grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue 

Questioning GOD

 

 Today, I am sharing about a season of life where I "Questioned GOD!" Actually, I share about several seasons and how important it is to journey on with our Savior, Jesus. Please join me over at "Women Walking With Jesus." I pray each of you will be encouraged.

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue

One Pebble at a Time

"Never stop praying." 
1 Thessalonians 5:17 NLT


Over the years, many people have called me a prayer warrior. The name seems overwhelming and unattainable. Yet, as I began tossing each pebble size prayer at God I suppose I was building prayer warrior skills. They were not pretty prayers and many times they were more like inaudible groans from a dying animal or a flood of tears from a broken damn. They were my prayers to a loving, gracious, and merciful God; a God who sent His son to save and restore me to the person He created me to be.

Each person who prayers and seeks God is a prayer warrior. Our prayers range from fragmented pebbles to giant boulders as we continue on our journey through this life. We must warrior on, one pebble at a time.

One pebble at a time
We build
We grow

One pebble at a time
We live
We know

One pebble at a time
His love
We show

One pebble at a time
With grace and mercy
Our prayers go

One pebble at a time

By His mercy and in the grip of His grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue 

New and Exciting Ministry

I am excited to share a new ministry site with each of you,  Women Walking With Jesus. You will find daily encouragement, love, and much more through real life stories from women around the world. I am thankful to be a part of this uniquely designed group of ladies. May the love, mercy, and grace of Jesus be your constant blessing as you visit Women Walking With Jesus!

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,
Andrea Bowling Perdue

~ Needs

Thought for the day:

~When you don't have everything you need.......all you need is what you already have!

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,
Andrea Bowling Perdue

MUD PUDDLES!

After Sunday morning church, Savannah and Elijah climbed a big hill. I thought I would take their picture by the "three wooden crosses" standing atop the hill by our church (New Life UMC), with my I-phone.

On the way back down, they began to stumble. Stumbling became rolling and rolling became crawling out of the the only mud puddle in sight. At least and acre of land around the crosses and they land in the only mud puddle we could see.

Lauren (our daughter and Elijah's mom) and I laughed hysterically as did Savannah and Elijah. Both children were muddy and wet from head to toe. Elijah's little wool dress coat will be going to the dry cleaners, today. Lauren and I could see it was going to happen, but there was nothing we could do to stop it.

Isn't that the way life is sometimes? We are moving along, making wise steps, climbing mountains hand in hand with those we love, and the next thing we know we slip and fall into a messy mud puddle. It's in that moment we have two choices:

1)Get angry and wallow in the mess flinging mud on all those around us.

2)Help one another out of the mud puddle, clean up the mess, and move forward with hearts full of love and laughter.

So, the next time you unexpectedly land in one of life's mud puddles, clean up the mess and embrace the next step God has for you. Life's too short to linger in the muddy places consumed with anger and/or guilt about the fall. Be thankful for the journey and watch your step.

Remember, we are all one step away from a slip-sliding mess. Keep your eyes on Jesus and enjoy the journey.

"Show me the right path, O Lord; point out the road for me to follow."
Psalm 25:4 NLT

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue

~If you are wondering, the series of pictures I took did not come out. Too much glare! 

Loving the "Bad Apples!"

Remember the seemingly wise words your parents or grandparents  use to admonish you with?

"All it takes is one bad apple to ruin them all!"

For me this implied one of two things:

1) Don't be the bad apple and lead others to ruin.

2)Don't socialize with bad apples or you might become one.

Lately, I've been thinking about how this applies to my walk with the Lord and the church (fellowship of believers). Let's presume our church (fellowship of believers) is a healthy spiritual community. Now, what happens or what should happen when we have one apple exhibiting unhealthy choices?

While there are admonitions in scripture for those who offend and directions on how to handle ourselves, rarely do I see them carried out effectively. There are cases handled beautifully and lives are redeemed, but I find those few and far between.

After much prayer and thought, I believe the radical difference is actually very simple. It's all in the heart and attitude of the community (fellowship of believers). When God speaks to my heart admonishing me the first thing I hear is "how much HE loves me and will continue to love me whether I choose to make wise decision or I choose sin!" Once I've felt the presence of the Lord's love, HE begins to radically work within my heart cleaning up the mess I've independently made of things.

If that's how God approaches us, shouldn't we approach others in and outside the fellowship in the same way? Shouldn't we continue to love while setting healthy boundaries?

We can "lovingly" stand firm!

Many times I've messed up.
Many times I've sinned.
Many times I've been in a pit of my own choosing and in some cases a pit caused by others actions.

I will be forever thankful for those who loved me through life's messes whether I caused them or they were the result of others actions. They loved me when I wasn't capable of being lovable. At my worst moments, God sent earthly angels to stand alongside me, pray for me, and most importantly love me.

Today and every day, as we ( fellowship of believers) face the unlovable what will we do?

Remember: NONE of us started out with a strong faith. We start as babies and grow daily into the people God created us to be.

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue

Normal or Not?

Normal, what does it look like?

To most of us, normal means fitting in; being a part of; a look-a-like. Normal seems to be associated with a steady, unshaken state where everyone does the same things, wears the same styles, and doesn't disagree. Now, I know this is not the Webster definition for normal, but when I listen to others say, "you/they aren't normal," I realize normal is in the eye of the beholder or group of beholders.  We humans often deem normal as a state of comfort or a safe place. Normal in these terms doesn't really exist and when it does it is both boring and does NOT promote spiritual or emotional growth.

I don't know about you, but in my world  normal is usually no where in sight. In fact, the more abnormal the circumstances the greater God's presence seems to be. I, too fall into the trap of longing to be surrounded with people who agree with me at all times. I'm reminded, Jesus was found time and time again with people who were "different/not normal."

God continues to pour Himself out to me as I step out of my comfort-zone and into uncomfortable situations. He is stretching and growing me in different ways than those around me, but just maybe He is using my presence in their lives, too. God uses "the not normal" to grow me and help me stay the course He's called me to.

So, if someone says, "You are NOT NORMAL!" It's a compliment. You are probably stretching them. Evaluate your decisions based upon God's word and what He's called you to do, NOT what others think is normal or not normal.

Now, get out there....walk, run, grow, and don't forget to stretch! Stretching is good for all of us whether we like it or not.

By HIS mercy and in the grip of His grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue

Love, A Living Legacy!

Pictured above are two of my three grandchildren, Savannah and Elijah. Baby Charley, our newest edition is too little to come out in the snow. If you asked me what legacy I would like to leave them it would be to:

“........You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind......."
Matthew 22:36-40 NLT

I know it's not easy, but I pray each of them will learn to embrace this greatest commandment with all their heart, soul, and mind!

My thoughts on how to "LOVE!"

Love God...
Love others...
Love self...

It really is a matter of the heart. The only time in scripture where Jesus became extremely angry...to the point of throwing tables is with the money changers in the temple. God recently brought this passage to my mind. As I pondered Jesus actions and anger, I thought of tables flipping over and money flying everywhere. WOW! What a scene that must have been. Again, I pondered his anger and the actions of all those present. Certainly, many had sinned and done it in the presence of Jesus, but this time He became furious.

Why was Jesus so angry?

His anger was not so much what they were doing and where they were doing it, but WHY they were doing it! It really was a matter of the heart.

Their motives: All selfish.
They put money before God.
They "loved" money more than they "loved" God.
Their hearts were filled with greed.

Any thing, person, or possession we place above God puts us in the same position. It's a matter of the heart. Do we truly love GOD more than anything and do we show it in our actions towards others. Loving GOD with all our heart, soul, and mind, and our neighbor as ourself truly is the greatest commandment.

We are selfish by nature. It's probably why we are to put ourselves third. Now, before you go out and abuse your body trying to take care of everything on your own, hear me out.

Self-care is very important. Our bodies house "the Holy God!" So, we must treat them as the gift and treasure they are. In doing so, we are healthy enough to be "present" in the moment and participate as God's living vessels.

As simple as it is; it's pretty complicated. Well, we make it that way.

I pray my grandchildren will be healthy spiritually, emotionally, and physically and will run an awesome race here on planet earth. And for each of you, my friends....I pray this same prayer.

By His mercy and in the grip of His grace,

Andrea Bowling Perdue