A Firm Foundation Through this World's Temptations

1 Corinthians 10:12-13

New International Version (NIV)

12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! 13 No temptation[a] has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted[b] beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted,[c] he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it

You may be like me and have heard the second part of this many times. You may also be like me and not noticed verse twelve. I want to start there and we'll work our way through these two verses.

"If you think you are standing firm" 

It's easy to think we are doing a good job, resisting temptation and staying on track. If you look up the word firm it has two definitions. The first is a solid, unyielding surface. The second is strongly felt and unlikely to change. It's important to have a "firm foundation in Christ.

Luke 6:48 says

He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.

We have to have a firm foundation if we are going to stand through Satan's trials. Verse twelve is also a warning though. We may think we have a strong enough foundation but Satan knows exactly what to do to shake that foundation and make us fall. Whether it's a test of our faith by some major life event happening or a test of our will power and reliance on God when it comes to food. He knows what to do to make us fall if we don't rely on God.

Then we get to verse thirteen and that is where we find a few promises. First we are told that we will be temped and "overtaken" by things common to man. Common means it happens often and overtaken refers to something passing us by without it being expected. That's the bad news of verse 13. We will be tempted by things that are usual and happen often. Secondly, it wil happen when we least expect it! Many of us have thought we had a firm foundation in Christ until something unexpected happens and their faith is greatly tested. Now for the second part of the promis and this is the good news! 

And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted[b] beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted,[c] he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. v. 13

God is faithful! If we turn to Him, He will help us through! He will help us endure whatever trial that may be.I want to share my own experience of God helping me through a major temptation in my life. It has nothing to do with food but instead, my marriage. 

 In 2012 my husband was going through major anxiety and depression. He disconnected from everyone around him and hardly left our bedroom. Many times he was quite mean to me and the kids. For a while I was listening to what people around me said, 

"Give up, he's not going to change. Why put yourself through that?" 

And I was miserable. I almost did give up on my marriage many times. Then one day I realized something. I had to do things His way, not the world's. Making it through that year taught me to rely on God's strength to get through each day. You know what? He is faithful and helped me through! He made it so that I could endure each day of watching my husband disconnect from everything around him. In the end though we were both brought through it and our family is once agan as it should be! It's not perfect but I learned to endure by relying on God and He didn't let me down! 

Whatever the temptation may be, food, marriage issues, drugs, alcohol, Satan's tricks may seem too strong at the moment but if we make our foundation strong and rely on God He will not let us fall. 

What temptations or trials has your firm foundation in Christ helped you through? 

"It Had to Be You" Review

I want to share with you about a great book that Tyndale House Publishing has given me a free copy of. "It had to Be You" b Susan May Warren. Have you ever felt like everyone around you led a spectacular life, that God had great plans for them...but not you? That's how Eden Christiansen, the main character in the book feels. She has dreams and goals and ideas of what she thinks is best for her. She's always the cheerleader for her siblings and their dreams but feels like she has failed to reach her own dreams.

Emotional Triggers

 We all turn to something when we are triggered by our emotions. For many of us, that is food but as Lysa points out, it can be a wide variety of things that we turn to. I've noticed  it in myself this week more often than I'd like to admit. You know how much energy kids have and being cooped up in the house for the past three months is starting to build up a LOT of excess energy in them. With three of them playing off of each other I'm starting to go crazy too. What happens when I get stressed out? I instantly want to walk into my kitchen and find some kind of sugary goodness to make me feel better!

Homeschooling + Baby = ?

Have you welcomed a new baby into your family or expecting one soon? Congrats! Last summer we welcomed my little Allison into our family. I've shared about surviving the newborn baby days but what about when you're ready to get back to schooling? I'd like to share what I've learned over the past several months.

Taking Time for Mom: 5 Ideas

I apologize if you got a partial post this morning! Here's what was supposed to be posted!

It's easy to get caught up in the busyness of motherhood. Cleaning, cooking, caring for little ones, schooling, and a myriad of other things that pull you in a hundred directions for your precious time each day.

Today I have a reminder for you.. Take time for you! 

Pity Party or Seeking God?

Reading Made to Crave for the Proverbs 31 online Bible study this week has me thinking about my own battles with eating the right foods. It also brings to mind, people around me who have struggled with many other things. Someone who is a recovering drug addict, a friend who's been through a very rough time and for a while was turning to other things for her happiness, using alcohol to forget your troubles, men who turn to porn to feel good, etc. The list can go on and on.

Severe Speech Delays: Chelsea's Story Part 2

Part 2

A few weeks ago I shared the beginning of the story of my oldest daughter's severe speech delays. You can read about it here  if you missed it or need a refresher. I promised to tell more of the story so today I want to share about the surgery experience for both of us.

After going to speech therapy for over a year, we finally decided to take her to a clinic at a children's hospital. The clinic specialists talked to us, listened to her speech, and did a few basic tests. When we told them that my husband had to have surgery to speak they knew she had the same problem and that it was genetic. We were sent for blood tests for my husband, daughter and son. The tests confirmed the specialists' suspicions. Both my husband and daughter have what is called Di George Syndrome or 22q11.2 deletion. Basically a part of the 22nd chromosome is missing and there's a giant list of possible effects of this missing piece.

Delight in Obedience

At first I wasn't sure what I wanted to write about for this week. Last week I shared about the idea of Desperation and degradation and the week before I shared what I've learned that made me feel empowered. This is something I've never really thought about before but Lysa did it again as I'm reading "Made to Crave" this week. In chapter eight she describes an experience that made her resent her body even if it was something that most would consider "silly." To her it was a big deal and made her dislike the way God made her!

I think most of us have moments like that. Some point in our lives where we felt that our body was inadequate. The sad part is that usually it's somebody else that gives us that idea in the first place! For me it was in high school. You could say my sister and i were complete opposites and frankly we still are but as adults we love each other for those differences. She was "popular" going out with friends all the time, into fashion etc. I had a few close friends, hated all the gossip and talk that went along with being "popular." I was happy staying home reading, being on the computer, doing puzzles. You get the idea. My sister and I fought often. Like most siblings. she knew just what to say to make me upset. "You're FAT!"

Did you know....Meal planning is easy?

One of the things I have come to realize is that when I don't have a set meal plan I'm not prepared. It gets to 4pm and I am scrambling to figure out dinner without meat thawed or any sense of direction. BUT if I set up a meal plan I already know what I'm making and can not be stressed out come dinner time. Now that doesn't mean that I strictly stick to that plan no matter what, I often change things due to schedules or if we forgot something at the store etc. 

Here are a few tips for getting started with meal planning.