The Porch

The Porch :: Penny (re-post) {Please Pray}

January 5, 2011 By stacey 10 Comments

***please read update below post.

Penny is a Pastor’s wife and Women’s Minister who is currently serving on staff and alongside her husband at Journey Christian Church in New Orleans, La. She is the mother of a beautiful 6 year-old girl and very active 3 year-old boy. She adores her family and considers them her most important ministry! She has a heart for women to truly know the love of Christ. She mentors and disciples women in cities dotted across the country and currently writes devotionals that are sent to both men & women coast to coast. I am honored that Penny has said yes to my invitation to spend some time here with us today on the 29lincolnavenue porch.

Want to REALLY know your God? Learn His many names!

I recently completed a Bible study with the ladies of our church, and it truly transformed the way I pray and even approach my God.

Kay Arthur’s book, Lord I Want To Know You, covers the many Old Testament names of God. I was truly amazed at how many different names my Lord has!! We learned that the better we know His names, the better we will know how to communicate and relate to Him.

Think about it… how many names do you have?!

My friends call me Penny, but my closest friends call me Pen. My children call me Mommy, and my husband calls me Babe. Kids in the church call me Mrs. Penny and my daughter’s teacher calls me Mrs. Franklin. I know how to respond, often times by the name that I am called. Our God is much the same way!

Proverbs 18:10 tells us that, “The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe.” The NAME of the Lord. How in the world can we run to something that we don’t even know! I think often times we don’t run to God, because we don’t really know Him!!

In this study, I spent time, really getting to know my God! At the end of the study I asked all the ladies to take a small note card and write the names we studied with a small “take home phrase” that reminds them of that specific name.

Here’s what I wrote on my card:

Elohim – my Creator who made me fearfully & wonderfully
El Elyon – my sovereign God who handles the whys of life when I can’t
El Roi – You see me, even in my laundry room and care that I’m there
El Shaddai – You nourish me from who You are – You are All-Sufficient
Adonai – You are my Master and therefore I don’t get to say, “God, I can’t or I won’t.”
Yahweh – You are so holy that only to breathe Your name doesn’t live up to Your worthiness. You are the Self-Existent One and I can exist in You.
Jehovah-jireh – You provided for my eternity, You’ll provide for my life!
Jehovah-rapha – You heal bitterness and turn it into something sweet
Jehovah-nissi – You are my rallying point when I get lost
Jehovah-mekoddishkem – You refresh me and sanctify me all at the same time. I don’t have to live defeated.
Jehovah-shalom – when my life seems unsettled I can have peace in You
Jehovah-sabaoth – You are my mighty Warrior and You win my battles for me
Jehovah-raah – You call me by name and lead me to beautiful places
Jehovah-tsidkenu – You give me the opportunity to make things right with You
Jehovah-shammah – You are here. When I feel alone – You’re here! What a view this is no matter where I am.

Update: This post originally ran on September 3, 2010. I am re-posting it today in honor of Penny. She lost her husband last week in a tragic hunting accident. My heart is broken for her and her two sweet children. I am asking you to join me in praying for every day for the rest of January. I think using this post and the names of God would be an awesome way to pray. If you would like to make a donation to help her family, you can do so through the Seeds of Faith Community by clicking, here.

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The Porch :: TeriLynne

November 5, 2010 By stacey 16 Comments

One of my favorite parts of Relevant was meeting many women who have impacted me from the blogging world. Seeing them face to face showed me that this URL community works. I believe that is because God is not bound by addresses or computer screens. He is limitless, and He connects hearts no matter where they live!

I was thrilled to hug the neck of my friend Terilynne Underwood. She is a pastors wife, MODsquad mom, writer, blogger and has the gift of encouragement. If you were at the conference, you might have noticed that we stood in the lobby of the hotel and talked for 1 hour straight Saturday afternoon. If we had some Starbucks and comfy chairs it would have been at least twice that long. I love her heart, her knowledge of God’s Word and her desire to minister to women. Oh, and she has the cutest new blog home! Be sure to check it out after you read this amazing post!

Live the God-Dream

Deep inside, beneath the years of rebellion, beneath the layers of pride, beneath the scars of sin, the heaviness of the God-Dream still simmered. Barely acknowledged and nearly forgotten, the God-Dream called out … quietly at first. Pen to paper … inconsistent, incoherent. Prayers and poems scattered in notebooks and journals with months, even years, between entries.

Gradually, the God-Dream moved from a slow simmering to a lively bubbling and the words flowed more freely. Day after day, the activities and insights, thoughts and ponderings, were carefully recorded, meticulously dated. The written words of one gave way to the Written Word of The One … as the God-Dream boiled.

The words poured out and over, steamy with the heat of passion for the One who was Word. Filling page after page of Word seared to flesh … the God-Dream moved from pen and paper to keyboard and screen. The words of a grace-needer poured out, timidly and cautiously.

The God-Dream is powerful … and with every click and post, the God-Dream grew. And still grows.

My God-Dream is writing and teaching, encouraging and equipping … and I am thankful for this cyber-world that allows me to reach into the homes and hearts of women. My God-Dream grows each day into something more … not more of me, more of Him. More ways to reveal His grace. More ways to share His love. More passion for His Word. More love for His people.

And so I write, no longer merely in private journals … now I write, almost daily, to share. I share my heart, my failures, my struggles, my faith. Using stories about moldy shower curtain liners and contemplating submission in the context of being simply being polite, the Lord has given me a passion to encourage lives where the sacred and the secular collide. Lives where cleaning our houses is holy work and serving others is valued as serving Him. The God-Dream has led to book proposals and new websites … but most of all the God-Dream has pushed me headfirst into the God of the Dream.

Daily I write … on paper, on screen, in note cards, in journals, through email, through tweets … I write for the God-Dream is alive. I live the God-Dream, the one He has given me. And my prayer is that you are living the God-Dream as well. The one He has given you.

Oh my sweet friends! I don’t know about you, but this truly draws me to the dream giver! And it makes me realize that He has great plans for us if we will join Him in that work! Terilynne, thanks for inspiring us to take steps of faith and that He is always there to lead us when we do!

Now, I’m sure you want to know where to find Terilynne on a regular basis. Try these lovely places where she works out her gifts to God’s glory and for your encouragement:

Looking Forward,

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The Porch

June 10, 2010 By stacey Leave a Comment

The first time I met Tiffany, was in a moment of desperation. My husband was away on a business trip for about 14 days, and I was home alone with 3 small children. A mutual friend ‘gifted’ me an afternoon alone by loaning me her babysitting services. She has been caring for my girls ever since. I am so glad she is hanging out on the Porch with us today. I think you will love her sweet story of being in His presence.

in His presence

i love babysitting. seriously, there is nothing better than watching someone’s kids and getting to leave at the end of the night and get a full nights sleep. i mean, i want to be a mom someday, but babysitting is really as good as it gets! its like the best of both worlds!

i love when i get to a house and the kid(s) have one thing that they love to do with me. at one house, its painting fingernails for 3 bright eyed energetic girls. at another house, its watching Tinkerbell the movie with another little girl that dreams of being Ariel one day. this is the same girl that thinks her daddy is prince charming!

God doesn’t babysit me, although i think sometimes my behavior warrants babysitting, but that is besides the point. but there are things i LOVE to do with Him. i love to rest in His presence. i know that sounds so general, but have you ever been there? have you ever been so fully wrapped in Him that you get goosebumps?

it happened on my way home today. i was singing How Deep The Father’s Love For Us (sung by Nichole Nordeman) in my car and felt it. the goosebumps traveled all the way from my ankles to my head. you know, that kind that overwhelms you? it came at this part:

it was my sin that held Him there
until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life
i know that it is finished

sometimes i cannot even imagine how or why He loves me the way He does. i don’t think i am supposed to.

like i said, i love babysitting, and the fact that the kids love doing one special thing with Miss Tiffany. but what the kids don’t know, is that as much as they love doing that with me, i love just being with them. i like to think God thinks that too. in fact, i know He does.

Zephaniah 3:17
“The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with his love, He will rejoice over you with singing.”

Thanks Tiffany for sharing your heart with us today! And thank you for loving my girls, showing them how to serve the Lord with your whole life . I believe that God is using you as one of the 1 Million Arrows that is striking a blow in the darkness!

Looking Forward,

You can visit Tiffany’s personal blog by clicking here. And by the way, my girls are the ones who love the finger nail painting!

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The Porch

June 3, 2010 By stacey Leave a Comment

I am so thrilled to introduce you to Joann. She is a M.O.D Squad mom of two and every time she shares her heart I am inspired to love Jesus more and be a mom of purpose. Recently, she shared this story about her daughter for our home school program. If you read one blog post today, read this one! I know it will be so glad you did!

The Finish Line
by Joann

This weekend, our family celebrated the graduation of our oldest daughter Jordynn. We have crossed the finish line and we are overwhelmed with joy!

Jordynn’s graduation journey began her Freshman year of high school. As a family, we decided to attend graduation each May until it was our turn. We would ask her to visualize herself walking across the stage to receive her diploma. My husband and I would visualize ourselves walking across the stage to meet her. One year I even remember grabbing the back of a church envelope to practice writing what our recording would say. Would we be funny or serious? Would we let the audience know all of our daughter’s funny nicknames? Would we share congratulations for her academic accomplishments or for the growth of her tender heart? We practiced this moment for four years…we had an end picture.

For our family, parent directed education was an unexpected turn on our journey. God had called us to remove our daughter from private, Christian school at the onset of seventh grade and bring her home. This was an act of obedience and required total reliance on the Lord.

Can I tell you the most amazing part of our family’s story? The Lord knit our hearts together in a new way. We fell madly in love with our daughter all over again! Was homeschooling hard? You bet! Were there disagreements? Of course! Did we love each other? Yes! Did we like each other? Most of the time. (wink!)

Crossing the finish line requires…

- Full engagement
- Intentional preparation
- Unrelenting perseverance
- Whole-hearted commitment
- and lots and lots of Love!

Moms, I encourage you to develop your end picture. I encourage you to visualize your finish line. I encourage you to practice celebrating the moment for He promises that His good work in your family will come to full completion.

“And I am convinced and sure of this very thing, that He Who began a good work in you will continue until the day of Jesus Christ [right up to the time of His return], developing [that good work] and perfecting and bringing it to full completion in you.” — Philippians 1:6 AMP

This mother’s heart rejoices today for the finish line is so sweet…He has completed what He started in our graduate!

When I asked Joann if I could post this for my 29lincolnavenue friends, she said, “Mom’s are my passion and anytime the Lord allows me to encourage them, I’m thrilled!!” Don’t you just love her! Thanks so much Joann!

Looking Forward,

Have you become a fan of 29lincolnavenue on facebook yet? You can click here and choose ‘like‘ By doing this, each time there is a new post here, it will show up as a news item in your daily feed. Thanks!

Filed Under: Parenting, The Porch

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A Few Things

May 21, 2010 By stacey Leave a Comment

First of all, it is Friday and today is special because:

(Insert cheers and dancing here!!!)

I don’t think I have ever been more ready to enjoy summer than I am right now! It has been a great year, but it has also been a hard year. Earlier today I put all our pictures in an album (on my Mac of course because I do not scrapbook!) Then I picked a few songs and played it as a slide show. By the end, I had tears in my eyes…every mother should do this. What is it about music and pictures of our children that makes us cry? Seeing those sweet faces and all the fun things we did this year really brought it to a nice close for me.

Here are a few things I want to share with you:

The Modsquadblog is coming! This is an exciting new blog for Mother’s Of Daughters. I am thrilled to be co-laborating with these awesome mom’s: Amy of Girlfriends Get Real, Megan of Halfpint House, and Traci of tsj photography. Between the 4 of us we have 15 girls. We found each other on Twitter of all places. The most amazing thing is that each of these women have a heart to raise girls who love and follow Jesus with passion. And, they also desire to encourage mom’s who are raising daughters. We are hoping to launch this site in the next couple of weeks! If you have daughters or know anyone who does you can follow us now on Twitter @momsquadmoms and look for us soon on Facebook. I will let you know the blog launch date as it gets closer.

Next week be sure to check out the One Million Arrows Blog Tour right here. I have been so challenged to be a mom of purpose as I have been reading it. I can’t wait to share it with you. I will also be guest posting for OMA on May 31, so be sure to check that out as well.

I have been blessed by the recent guests we have enjoyed on the 29lincolnavenue porch! I want to thank Michelle at SomeGirlsWebsite, Stef at Layton Family Joy, and Lara at My Adventure with God Unrehearsed for stopping by to hang out with us! My heart has been so encouraged by these great women of faith. I can’t wait to see who stops by next! Maybe it will be you. Be sure to check out the submission guidelines here.

I hope you have a great weekend!

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The Porch :: Penny (re-post) {Please Pray}

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