Choosing to Live by Faith...

I sat in the living room on the couch, staring at my bible and devotion, with a knot in my throat.

I knew what I needed to do, but I was afraid to do it. I didn't want to do it. 

The Holy Spirit was impressing on my heart that I needed to call and forgive my father. I had cut off all contact 7 months ago.

It was he who continued to break promises to me time and time again!

It was he who decided to live his life and excluded me!

It was he who tried to harm me!

As I sat on my couch, I said something like this out loud to God, "He hurt me! I will not find him."

Like the loving Father that God is, I sensed Him whisper in my soul, "You hurt Me with your sin, Meghan, but I found you. I'm rich in mercy and I have made you alive with My Son Jesus, so you can forgive your father."

At that moment I had a choice: Would I live by faith or not?

To live by faith meant that I would extend the same forgiveness to my father that Jesus extended to me.

I sent a text to the number I had. Wrong number. Told them thank you and God Bless. 

Then I told God... See I tried I have no other number and there is no point. God told me "Meghan, keep trying and don't give up." I sent a message to my Aunt. She gave me his correct number. Eventually I found him.

I hesitated. I got knots in my throat and stomach.. I prayed time and time again "Lord.. WHY... WHY now. What are you trying to teach me, what are you wanting me to say? "

A few days went by. The Lord pressed upon my heart what he was trying to do. "Meghan, you are to call him and let him know that no matter how he may never know how much he has hurt you or the pain he has caused you that you FORGIVE him, that you LOVE him but most of all that I LOVE him." 

I called him. 

2 Corinthians 2:10 came to my heart. "When you forgive this man, I forgive him, too. And when I forgive whatever needs to be forgiven, I do so with Christ's authority for your benefit." I finished telling him what I needed to say.... He told me "Thank you. You picked a heck of a time to call. I am supposed to be moving back soon.. (turns out he isn't, he got a job somewhere else), I am sorry if I ever hurt you and I love you."

I have only talked to him 1 time since.

I will see how this turns out. I am still not sure what the next step is, but I know that with timing God will tell. 

I love him and he loves me, all because I chose to live by faith.

My Thoughts vs. God's Word

"The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." John 10:10 (NKJV)

Do you ever question if you are good enough? Are you more likely to dwell on what's wrong with you than what's right with you?

One day I realized I was scrutinizing myself to find out what my problem was. The more I picked myself apart, the more it dawned on me another voice was egging me on; the voice of the enemy, Satan. As I listened to his lies, my sense or worth and security were zapped.

For a long time I didn't even recognize him for who he was. The negative thoughts and deceitful suggestions simply sounded like my own voice.

The Bible opens with a serpent slithering into the lives of Adam and Eve. He filled their heads with lies they believed which separated them from God. Jesus, too, was tempted by this liar. He was ready though, with the Word of God, to defeat the evil one.

We too can have this weapon in our arsenal. As we fill our hearts and minds with Truth, we can defeat the lies we tell ourselves and the lies Satan whispers to our hearts.

When I compare my negative thoughts to God's Word, the differences amaze me:

My thoughts: I want to give up.
God's Word: Be committed. Matthew 5:33-37

My thoughts: I'll feel lost.
God's Word: He watches my paths and establishes my ways. Proverbs 5:21, 4:26

My thoughts: No one loves me.
God's Word: He loves me more than life. John 3:16

My thoughts: I'm ugly.
God's Word: I'm wonderfully made. Psalm 139:14

My thoughts: I'm all alone and no one understands me.
God's Word: He will never leave me. He has plans for my life. Deuteronomy 31:6, Jeremiah 29:11

My thoughts: I'm just not good enough.
God's Word: I was created in His image. Genesis 1:26

Are you ready to replace lies with God's truth, so when the enemy tries to slither back in with false accusations, you'll be ready to combat him with what God's Word says about you?

To get started, evaluate your thoughts and pray for wisdom to distinguish the voice of the enemy. Condemning thoughts that steal your confidence of who you are in Christ aren't from God. Let's commit today to renew our mind with the Word of God each day, and replace those worn-out, deceitful lies with Truth.

Dear Lord, thank You for Your life-giving truth. Please fill me with Your Word so that I can live in freedom and confidence! In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Discovering Hope Through Faith

1 Peter 1:6-7 says: In All this you greatly rejoice, through now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith - of greater worth than goldm which perishes even though refined by fire - may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

Man.. That speaks directly to J and I. I mean in the past month and a half A LOT has gone on. Here are some key points.

• Daycare didn't go as planned. We find out that we have to pay for part of J's school out of pocket and we are living pay check to pay check.
• Exhausted all of our option at that point and gave our notice on June 1st. We didn't know what we were going to do but we just know that God was telling us that we had to move out. M absolutely hated this. I was so emotional through the whole thing. It was my first place on my own and with my husband. We both just felt like failures dispite the fact that God was leading us down this road.
• by June 15th we have moved into M's parents camper for undetermined amount of time. None of us knew how it was going to be or work. We all knew that God was pointing us in that direction to be able to save money for J's school bill.
• July 10th money that was coming in STOPPED... SKREECHHH.... We both at this point felt COMPLETELY down. We didn't know what to do. We both became debbie downers. FOR A MINUTE. :  ) Litte did we know God was still at work just as he had been and M received a phone call literally not even 30 minutes after we had found this out. A friend that is in our small group called and asked if M would be interested in a subbing house manager position at a non-profit organization that houses homeless pregnant. God is so good.
• I was here for about 2 weeks before the Overnight manager gave her notice. Well sorta.. We knew that she would be done at the end of August well needless to say it got bumped up by a month, and the 26th (today) is her last day. J and I prayed because the house didn't know how everything was going to work because they weren't prepared for it, all they knew was that they wanted a young married couple. After praying we both felt that God was calling us to be the overnight manager's at the house, I talked to the Lead House Manager and the Executive Director about it. They thought about it. We interviewed for the position on the 20th and found out on Monday that we got it and we move in on the 29th. EKKKKKKK...

We are so excited about what God is doing for us and through us. He has sent us here to be a missionary in our own back yard. You think that you know things until you are in the environment and hear stories for you to really realize how bad not just homelessness but pregnant homelessness. But while it has been exciting it has also been WIERD. God put me hear to answer the house's prayers and they were put in my life to answer my prayers. I also think that this has been so weird because I feel like I am FINALLY at the age that I can see and understand that GOD is WORKING in MY life. Its so great to be a woman of God and FINALLY see and understand. Not that he hasn't worked in my life before because he has and I know it, but to finally realize that I had no part in this working out.

I hope that you will join us on this wonderful journey that we are about to embark on. We also that you be in prayer for not only us but the other staff members and the residents of the house. The prayers of these moms and their child(ren) are so greatly needed.

From Our Heart To Yours,

The Rigdons

What Do We Do?

In the world we live in, we are going to have all kinds of problems, frustrations and difficulties. That's just life. So knowing this, what do we do?

We must remain steadfast and persevere. In other words, the answer is never give up! No matter what's going on in our lives, the victory is in refusing to quit.

Keep in mind that in the heat of our struggles, the Holy Spirit is probably doing His greatest work within us. He is not moved by the circumstances. If you and I really trust Him, we shouldn't be either! He's not in our lives for good times only, but for the difficult times as well.

He will lead us through anything if we'll just hang in there and follow Him. This means being diligent in prayer, relentless in our resolve, unwavering in faith, and determined to stand firmly on God's Word and His promises to us.

So many times we can be sidetracked by how slowly things seem to be going. In fact, the enemy loves to point that out! But remember, that's when God may be doing some of His greatest work. You see, it's not all about you and me. The Lord's work in us is preparation for the work He wants to do through us!

I know life can be hard sometimes. But I also know that God will help us if we remain steadfast. Let's stand on Galatians 6:9: "So let's not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't give up".

So let me ask that question again: What do we do? My answer is, never give up! What's your answer?

Wishy Washy.

I can't stand all this wishy washy-ness and drama going on in my life with the people I love and care about. 

Here is my 2 cents, not that you asked:

You're this way because you're just never comfortable with your decisions. You're indecisive; you never know if it's the "right" decision or if there's a more "fitting" decision. The fact is, more often than not, you will always have one or two doubts. But, trust in yourself that you're making the right decision in that moment and go with it. 

All this does is make you sound uncertain, and discourage firm stances.

Now here is my solution:

Something that helps is thinking about the pros and cons or causes and effects of a decision. You don't have to make a list or anything, but sit down and think for a bit. What will the consequences be if you choose this over that? What will the next step be if you choose this over that? After thinking it over...the "best" decision out of your current options should be clear. Then you just need to feel confident and trust that you've made the right decision in that moment in time and follow through on it. Just trust yourself and your decision making skills.

Heres to the non wishy washy-ness from here on out.

Trying to Live Like the Jones’

I know someone who purchased a luxury car because she did not want to drive around in the old clunker she owned because others in her neighborhood drove a nicer car. I know a person who told me they were treated better by people once they purchased new furniture. I have so many stories that I could post about how people felt that the “material” object they purchased led other people to view them differently. Again, why do you care? I don't understand why people get into debt because they are afraid how other people are going to view them or their family.

People fall in this trap all the time. For example, one person in particular told me that her and her husband live in a house in a poor neighborhood. They received a settlement and decided to purchase leather couches and a huge armoire. They had trouble with their brand new A/C unit and had to get it serviced a couple of times. When their A/C repair man came to their house for the 2nd time that month, they strongly believed they were treated better than the first time the man came out because the man saw how their living room changed with the newer goods.

I am shocked that people really believe this. And let’s say it is true, what does it prove? I just don’t understand it. I demand to be treated with respect regardless of what kind of furniture is in my house. The truth is yeah, there are some people out there who treat people a certain way because they have “better’ or “classier” things. Do you really want to associate with people like that? I could care less. I’m not perfect. There are things that bother me about people, but honestly, if someone doesn’t like me because of my fashion style, the kind of car I drive, the house I live in, then I don’t want to be friends with you.

Don’t Be Jealous Either

Another thing about trying to impress people is when people fall in the “jealousy” or “envious” trap. That is dangerous. Yes, everyone wishes they were in a better position financially. One of your friends might have more than you. Maybe they have no debt and you are up to your neck in debt. Maybe they have your dream house and you don’t.

A slight touch of envy is normal probably. However, being jealous and out right envious to the point where you make subtle or even direct comments to that person is unhealthy. That can lead to an unhealthy relationship with your friend, yourself, and your family. Jealousy can eat you up.

Life Isn’t Fair

Believe it or not, most people work for what they have. Not everyone was handed a silver spoon in their mouth. Don’t bash the people that do have something because you are jealous. Don’t rack up your credit card bills trying to compete with them either. Some people work their tails off and don’t ever seem to make it. Unfortunately, that is when we have to make real hard sacrifices. Some people were thrown extraordinary curve balls that landed them in a sad situation. For example, a couple’s child has tons of medical bills they can’t afford that landed them in poverty (yes, even with health insurance, this can happen).

Maybe you are the person that is not getting a head because you are not managing your money right. We are all guilty of that. If someone else is paying some or all of your bills (family, government, etc), then you do not have money for any extracurricular activities. Hate to play hard ball, but if you don’t have the money to pay your light bill, then you don’t need to be eating out, buying toys, etc. Oh, and don’t make an excuse saying, “but I need this”. Believe it or not, you don’t always need it. If it is not shelter, food cooked at home (not junk food), gas, utilities, medical, clothing (not designer jeans here), then you probably don’t need it.

Okay. Enough venting for now. 

Heres to the Weekend Wrap-up and trying something NEW!!

Weekend Wrap-Up...

So Friday we left around 4:30 for Missouri. We headed outta town with Nick (J's older brother), we were going to move Nick's family down here. We got to Missouri at 12:30-12:45. Not bad timing at all. We went straight to sleep. Woke up at 7 and was packing the moving truck up by 8:30 and on the road back to Texas by 11. Got home around 9:30-10:00 last night. Yes we had spent 18 of the 29 hours on the road.. EXHAUSTING. But we did it. Today we are just relaxing and will unload the moving truck tomorrow.

Now onto the trying something new.

I have always want to have a theme night for dinner. So I am starting it NOW.. well actually technically Monday. So here is what our themes are going to be.

Monday- Quick Meals or meals that I can whip up and throw into the oven/crockpot.
Tuesday- Taco Tuesday. Some form of Tacos. Fish, beef, veggie, fajitas, etc.
Wednesday- Wich Wednesday. Some form of sandwiches.
Thursday- Tasty Thursday. This will be my night to try new recipes out.
Friday- Fish friday. Healthy fried shrimp, Tilapia, Salmon, etc.
Saturday and Sunday will probably consist of fridge clean out.

Thats all for now.

Happy Weekend :  )

Meghan