The Lord is risen--He is risen INDEED!

He is RISEN!

In the past few weeks, I've talked about my struggles and how trying to keep them to myself and not bother the Lord is like putting Jesus back up on the cross every time and saying, "The first time wasn't good enough."  But Jesus' sacrifice was good enough, and it was more than enough!  We can honor that sacrifice by taking our concerns, troubles, trials, and issues to him and allowing Him to give us the solution, be our Comforter, and direct our path.
This weekend as we celebrate His victory over death, remember the Cross was a done deal.  Every healing we need, He conquered.  Every sickness was overcome.  Every area of lack (poverty, relationships, health) He won the battle over that when He sacrificed Himself on the altar of the Cross.  He is not dead--HE IS RISEN!!!

One Word--IMAGINE!

IMAGINE!

Imagine...what can you imagine?  What can you not imagine?  Have you ever heard someone say, "I can't imagine..."?  For me, I usually heard, "I can't imagine having eight children!" or "I can't imagine homeschooling my kids!"  I'll admit I have thrown that word around here and there, but less that I used to.  You see, with the Lord, our possibilities are limited only by what we can or can't imagine!
We've been talking about vision boards once again, and on my vision board, just this month, the Lord has caused a "favor flood" to overtake me.  I've had four of the things on my vision board happen!  This is so exciting for me, and one of the secrets to my success was keeping the vision the Lord gave me in clear sight. The other thing I did was never once say, "I can't imagine ever doing that."

If you are still waiting for things to happen, that's okay.  Your time is coming, too, SOON!  Get ready!  Terri Savelle Foy says, "When you're ready, get ready!"  So when you get ready for those things to start happening, get ready because He's going to flood you with favor and the Blessing beyond what you can already IMAGINE!

Blessings!!!

The Exchange CD Giveaway!!

We're having a CD Giveaway!!
Christ Church International's InnerCourt Worship CD will move you to realize just what Jesus did for us on the Cross--The Great Exchange He made on our behalf!
Songs include:
My Freedom Song  by Jesse Spencer
The Great Exchange  by Duane Farquhar
Eternity Has found Me by Patty Spencer
You Took My Place by Krystyna Farquhar
The Exchange by Patty Spencer
Dance With Him by Matthew Spencer

The Worship team members, Patty Spencer, Duane Farquhar, Matthew Spencer, Jannette Rogers, Jesse Spencer, Krystyna Farquhar, and Patrick Farquhar combine their individual talents to bring this encouraging message of Jesus exchanging our lack in every area of our lives that we might live abundantly in Christ.

Enter the Giveaway HERE:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

You've Reached Your Goals--Now What?!

When Vision Board Dreams, Goals, and Visions Are Reached

Last year our church women's group was challenged with creating our own vision boards.  These boards were to include things that we felt the Lord leading us into and stretched our faith that they would, or even could, be accomplished.  I have discussed vision boards before and you can read the article on them HERE.  On our vision boards we include the things that the Lord has put on our hearts to accomplish in a measurable amount of time in a measurable manner.  For example, one thing on my vision board is writing a novel and having it published by the end of 2013.  Guess what?  I'm getting ready to DO that!  And several more things that I had placed on my vision board are coming to pass, too.

So what do you do when you reach those goals that you originally placed on your vision board?  Well, you create new goals that add to the original vision!  What I mean is that while I'm going to be publishing these books this year (I believed for just 2 books published, and I believe now that I'll have at least six!) I'm not simply checking that off or removing that vision from the board.  Instead, I'm going to add to it how many books I'll write, speaking engagements I'll schedule, trips to other states that I will write about, etc. I will build on what the Lord has shown me and how I can increase the Kingdom through the talents and tools HE'S given me.

Guidelines for Vision Boards:

• Don't take something off of your board.  Once you put it on, leave it and complete it!
• Pray about what sorts of pictures, words, phrases, and Scriptures to put on your vision board and ask the Lord how they fit in with your vision.
• Include a way to measure the accomplishment. (For example, I will write two books by the end of 2013 OR I will learn a foreign language by September 2014. You get the idea!)

When you've added so much to your board that it's literally and figuratively full, make another board!  Terri Savelle Foy makes a new list every year, but her vision board in her office is for her lifelong vision.  Consider which goals are lifelong and which are short term, like when I write my books this year (short term) and when I schedule speaking engagements (long term or ongoing).

Remember, Habakkuk 2:2 says: "Write the vision plain on paper so that you can see it in your comings and goings." And Proverbs 29:18 says "where there is no vision, the people perish."  

So if you have never created a vision board, start today!  And if you have one and are seeing things come to pass on it, renew it, add to it, and enhance those visions!!

For more information about creating a vision board, visit Terri Savelle Foy's Website:  www.terri.com.

Blessings!!!

Inland NW Christian Writer's Conference--Reflections

Conference director Jan Cline and me

This weekend was an amazing time at my first writer's conference!  I am now hooked on learning all I can to hone my skills as a writer and as a follower of the Lord.  Dr. Dennis "Doc" Hensley was the keynote speaker, and I am so blessed to have been able to attend and glean from him.  Doc passed along many points for us to follow in our writing, but it was the information he presented to us as Christian writers that I believe encouraged me the most and will empower me in my writing.




His five points were:

1. To do more you have to become more.
2. Some people know when they've been blessed by the Lord while others fear gifts of God.
3. Some people think they can tread water and others know they can only stay afloat if they move forward.
4. You need to realize that staying on top is a team effort, not a solo act.
5. Be vigilant about expecting enemy attacks: know your enemy better than he knows you! 

These five points can be applied to any Christian in their faith walk.  

• We need to become more, become what the Lord fully intended us to be.
• We need to not fear the Lord and His gifts and blessings.
• We need to more forward in our walks with the Lord, in fulfilling our passions and goals.
• We need to realize that we need other Christians in our lives to build us up, polish our armor, and hold us accountable.
• We need to be vigilant:  in pursuing our passions, in the expectations of the Lord, and in the attacks of the enemy.

Finally, I was encouraged by the many people I met at this conference.  Many of the women I was privileged to sit and visit with were encouraging and so supportive to me as an independently published author.  I didn't know exactly what I expected them to say, but I felt nothing less than encouragement, support, and wonderful advice from everyone I talked with.

Author Vicki V. Lucas, me, and author Virginia Ann Work

When God puts a passion in your heart, you have the duty to follow that passion, carrying out to the best of your ability, and to allow Him to fully direct your path to pursue that passion and see it through to completion as the Father planned for you.

Faith Leaps--Book review

Is This You. . .

Do you believe God has placed a purpose and plan in your heart for business?

Do you need help channeling your passion into profits?

Are you scared to death to pursue the plans you believe God has placed in your heart for business?

This book helps readers to focus on their passions, explains in practical terms how to take a leap of faith and trust God with the passions He's given us, and ways of profiting from those passions-turned-income-potential!  What I liked was how Alyssa backed up each section with Scripture.  Passions are a part of God's intricate handiwork in our lives and He gave us those talents and passions for us to use them.  I also found it very helpful to see ways of incorporating social media, blogging, writing, products, press releases and more!  Alyssa stresses that in order to succeed, each one of us needs to understand the risks and be ready to accept them to fulfill a goal or dream.  One of my favorite parts explains how we can know our specific gifts, talents, and skills through Max Lucado's "S.T.O.R.Y."

This Book is for You If . . .

You’ve Ever Considered Taking . . . A Leap of Faith

You wish to FIND or FOLLOW your Passion

You wonder . . . Why Not Just Get a Job?

You Just Want to Be Heard

You Know You Have What It Takes

You Have Considered Choosing to Follow Your Passion and Purpose . . . Even if it Scares You to Death

You Want to Shine

You Just Want to Share a Message that You Feel Strongly About

Deep Down Inside, You Just Want to DO IT!

You Want to Feel Connection With Other Moms Who Are Like-Minded

You Wonder . . . How Will I Balance Everything?

You Are Concerned about the Money
This book is a wonderful and highly beneficial addition to your Kindle library!

"God has placed that dream inside of you, and it’s okay to follow it."--Alyssa Avant

Heading to Inland NW Writer's Conference!!

I am so excited for this conference for a number of reasons!
First, I get to travel with my husband!  He's a photographer and seldom has the opportunity to spend time honing his skills.  While I am in session, he will venture out around Spokane and Coeur 'd Alene doing nothing but taking his time capturing the beauty God has put in this world.
Second, I get to meet so many wonderful people that I have been talking with on Facebook!  Many of these people have offered advice, prayers, and been a great armor polisher for me in my faith walk and as a writer.  Next, I am attending my first EVER writer's conference and taking a big step in my writing career.  My passion was given over to the Lord and HE is orchestrating the direction and path I am on with all of this.  It has been so awesome to see what He has in store for me and I am grateful for this opportunity to build my sisters and brothers up in the Lord and to learn new ways of mastering my writing skills.














Finally, we've been talking about vision boards over the past several months.  Well, each of these things are things ON my vision board!  The Lord is so gracious and merciful by allowing these goals to be accomplished through HIM!

I will try to Tweet and post Facebook updates throughout the conference, so be sure to follow those.

Twitter:  @suprmomillusion
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SuperMomtheIllusion


Be blessed!!

Q&A with Alyssa Avant: Faith Leaps: The Christian Moms Guide to Passion, Purpose and Profits

I am so excited to be a part of the Launch Team for Alyssa Avant's book, "Faith Leaps: The Christian Moms Guide to Passion, Purpose, and Profits"!  Tuesday, Alyssa held the official launch and today, I'm sharing my interview with her.  This book will present you with beneficial tools to discovering your passion, finding your purpose with that passion and how to make a profit from that passion!

What inspired you to write your first book?  The reason I wrote the book is that I dealt with a lot of trial and error and struggles in my journey and wanted to help others to see that they weren't alone in their own struggles and journey.  

What books have most influenced your life most?  The Cure for the Common Life by Max Lucado,  If you Want to Walk on Water by John Ortberg are my favorites, both of which I reference in my book.

  

If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?  I really appreciate the writing of Elizabeth George, I have read all of her books and she writes in a very conversational tone which I attempted to do as well.  

What book are you reading now?  I am currently reading The Same Kind of Different as Me. 

Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest?  I have been reading a lot from Shelley Hintz because she writes on topics of self-publishing and has been a mentor to me in this area.  

What are your current projects?  My current focus is the book launch, but next on my plate is to revitalize my Beauty by Design Ministries blog (http://beautybydesignonline.com) God has truly renewed my passion for it.  

If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book?  You know, I don't think I would.  

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?  My biggest challenge is to not over think things.  I am a perfectionist, therefore I could rewrite things to death. 

Who designed the covers?  Christine Dupre 

What was the hardest part of writing your book?  Editing!  I didn't think that process would ever be over.  

Did you learn anything from writing your book (about yourself, the overall writing process, publishing, etc.) and what was it?  I absolutely did.  I learned just how much fear was holding me back from in my life.  It was a faith leap in itself to even publish the book.  I was so afraid of the "what ifs".  

Visit:  Amazon.com to purchase Alyssa's book!!

Mid-week updates!

Did you see that our new Website launched on Monday?
     Visit  www.supermomillusion.com and check out the information about me and my passion for empowering, encouraging and entertaining my sisters in the Lord!
What did you think of my real-life post about leaning on the Lord in times of trial and in the joy?
     Leave me a comment and share your experiences with leaning on our most glorious God!

This Thursday, my husband and I are going on an adventure to Washington State for my very first EVER Writer's Conference!  I'll be posting tweets and Facebook updates during my time there, so be sure to watch for those:
     Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SuperMomtheIllusion
     Twitter:  @suprmomillusion


UPCOMING:
--Faith Leaps:  The Christian Moms Guide to Passion, Purpose, and Profits book review
--Q&A with author Alyssa Avant on her book Faith Leaps

COMING SOON:
--Falls Like Lightning book review
--Q&A with Shawn Grady, author of Falls Like Lightning, Tomorrow We Die, and Through the Fire

Out of Control: Insecurities in disguise

(C)www.worshiphousemedia.com

This past month, I've been processing changes occurring in my life: an adult son and his wife moving to a new state; a disobedient son and the consequences of his disobeying; an adult daughter making choices that go against her own moral and Bible-based upbringing.  All of these situations have left me feeling drained emotionally and like life was out of control!

I began meditating and talking to the Lord about why I felt so out of control.  Why did I even feel like I needed to be in control of those things in the first place?  The Lord spoke to me and said that feeling out of control is just being insecure.  Well, I certainly didn't feel insecure!  But I was, and I am still struggling with those feelings.  Insecurity is simply not being sure of what is going to happen, what others might think of a certain situation, doubting and lacking confidence.

Dictionary.com says insecurity is "lack of confidence or assurance; self-doubt."  Some synonyms relevant to our Christian faith are:

• alarming                                                             
• built upon sand                 
• critical
• dangerous
• exposed
• hazardous
• helpless
• in the lion's den
• perilous
• unadvised
• under fire
• unprepared
• unprotected
•  unsafe
• unshielded
• unstable
• unsteady
• untrustworthy
• vulnerable

A few of those words caught my attention!  "Built upon sand", "in the lion's den", "unprepared", "helpless."  Those first two groups are right out of the Bible!  My house is built on Christ the rock, not the sand (Matthew 7:25).  And God delivered Daniel out of the lion's den and didn't let any harm come to him while he was in there (Daniel 6:16-23).  How much more will He do for me?

The next group stopped me in my thought.  Am I unprepared?  Am I helpless? My hope is built on nothing less that Jesus Christ and righteousness (1 Corinthians 10:4)!  I am prepared in season and out of season (2 Timothy 4:2).  NOTHING surprises the Father!  I have spent countless hours building up anger, getting frustrated with situations I can't control, wanting things this way or that, and being disappointed instead of trusting in God to work all things for my good (Romans 8:28).

As one of my favorite Casting Crowns songs says, "The voice of truth, tells me a different story.  The voice of truth, says do not be afraid!"

Website launch!!

We've had some exciting new things going on here at Super Mom the Illusion!  We have a new Website!

Once there, you will find out a little more about me, and you can contact us with prayer requests.  You can also request me as a speaker for your upcoming MOPS meetings, homeschooling workshops, or women's groups.
There's a link back to the blog Website, too!  So feel free to check it out and send me your feedback!

Visit:  www.supermomillusion.com

Homemade things!

I enjoy finding inexpensive, easy solutions to many home cleaning products.  A few years ago, I began making homemade laundry soap (inspired by the Duggar Family!) and have since grown to making my own dishwasher soap, glycerin soaps, candles, body scrubs, and homemade remedies.  Today, I thought I would share recipes of my favorites with you!!

Drain Clog Remover:

Recently, we had a slow draining, clogged bathtub drain.  I'm not one to keep a lot of chemical cleaners around, mostly out of habit from having eight little ones running around.  So I did what every frazzled woman does when she needs answers and needs them NOW:  I searched Google for homemade ways to attack the clog!  I found that pouring baking soda followed by vinegar easily and quickly "eats away" whatever is clogging the drain!


  
Dishwasher Soap:
1 cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda (NOT baking soda!)
1 cup 20 Mule Team Borax
Mix well!  
This makes a powder solution, but you can add the mixture to 2-4 quarts of hot water to make a liquid soap, too.
Store in an air-tight container.

Homemade laundry soap (from www.duggarfamily.com):
4  Cups - hot tap water
1  Fels-Naptha soap bar
1 Cup - Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda
½ Cup Borax

- Grate bar of soap and add to saucepan with water. Stir continually over medium-low heat until soap dissolves and is melted.
-Fill a 5 gallon bucket half full of hot tap water. Add melted soap, washing soda and Borax. Stir well until all powder is dissolved. Fill bucket to top with more hot water. Stir, cover and let sit overnight to thicken.
-Stir and fill a used, clean, laundry soap dispenser half full with soap and then fill rest of way with water. Shake before each use. (will gel)
-Optional: You can add 10-15 drops of essential oil per 2 gallons. Add once soap has cooled. Ideas: lavender, rosemary, tea tree oil.
-Yield: Liquid soap recipe makes 10 gallons.




Easy Salt Scrub:
1 cup of finely ground sea salt
1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
8-10 drops of essential oil (Such as peppermint, tea tree, grapefruit, or bergamot) 

For more information about body scrubs, visit:  http://www.homemade-gifts-made-easy.com/homemade-body-scrub.html

Spring Cleaning: Kids Edition

When my kids were younger, I fought trying to find ways to organize them so that I wasn't constantly cleaning up after them.  It seemed at times as though I would get one area all picked up and cleaned, moved to the next area, and the kids had drug toys out or changed clothes for the third time in a day!  That had to stop, especially because I was not teaching them to appreciate and care for their own things.  Organization had to happen!

(C) www.instructables.com

When I only had three little ones, I got three different colored milk crates:  blue, red, and pink.  We had two boys and a girl, so this was a simple way to organize things.  We bought a dresser with five drawers and painted two drawers blue, two drawers red, and the bottom drawer pink.  I bought children's hangers in, yep!  Blue, red, and pink!  So now I was armed with a color coding system, and I began to train them to put their toys in their crate, hang up clothes on their hangers, and put folded clothes into their drawers.  I was investing in a tool that would serve them as adults and that they might also pass on to their children one day.
Fast forward to a house of eight children--color coding became a bit more difficult as there really weren't many options for milk crate colors.  Hangers and painting drawers was somewhat simple because the older two boys shared a room, the younger three boys shared a room and all three girls shared a room.  So long as the hangers never left their rooms, they could choose identical colors.  As odd as it may seem, this color coding actually drifted over into our dishware and cups!
Now that my children are older, some are adults and have moved into their own homes, color organization is less frequently used.  The kids who are still at home have developed their own sense of organization.  In many cases, it is not how I would organize, but at least they understand that organization has to happen if they are to have an organized spiritual life and personal life.
I regularly have the children bring all of their clothes into my room where we decide what to keep, give away, and throw away (because it's just too far gone to even donate!).  Toys are minimal at this point as only the youngest two children really play with them any more.  But we regularly downsize those as well.

(C) AGirlandHerMutt.com

Finally, the last aspect of organization that I almost demand but definitely expect is for their beds to be made, bedroom floors picked up.  The rule is usually that I have to be able to get to their beds without tripping over something!  A room that is picked up will increase the likelihood that other areas will be maintained as well.  Although, this is not a guarantee, it does make the room (and whole house really!) feel more in order, calm, and peaceful.

I hope this article has given you some ideas!  If you have suggestions for moms to keep children organized, I'd love to hear them!



Blessings!!