Examples of Reckless Abandon

To be recklessly abandoned for Christ is to be completely surrendered to Christ without restraint, inhibitions, or moderation and to be completely unconcerned and at total peace about the consequences of what could happen.

I have been really asking God to show me more about reckless abandon. I really want to become more abandoned to Him every day. As I have been praying, God has brought more examples to my mind.

Ruth had reckless abandon. She knew she had to stay with Naomi and she did not care what the consequences were she was going to stay. If she did not stay then she would not have been able to complete her role in the coming of Christ. Ruth was David’s great grandmother. She left all that she knew including her religion to go to a land and people she had nothing in common. They were poor and had no food, yet Ruth stayed with Naomi. I know why she has been likened to the Proverbs 31 woman. She was a woman of noble character who had reckless abandon.

Esther had reckless abandon too. She obeyed Mordecai (he had reckless abandon too) about not revealing that she was a Jew to King Xerxes until she had to in order to save her people. She risked death to see the king without being summoned and she had not been summoned for over a month, it was as if he had lost interest in her. Nevertheless, she went to the king prayerfully and humbly in faith that he would extend his scepter to her and allows her to live. Because she did this, her people (God’s people) were saved.

Hosea had reckless abandon. God told him to marry a prostitute! He did, his life was miserable, she cheated on him, and he remained faithful and forgave her when God told him too. He reconciled with her. This example just shows you that God did not promise happiness when we follow his commands. God used Hosea to prophesy to Israel when Israel was not being faithful to God.

Reckless Abandon
Doing what God tells you to do regardless of the consequence or how hard it will be.

Ruth 1:16-17
And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me.

Esther 4:16
Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish.

Hosea 1:2-3
The beginning of the word of the LORD by Hosea. And the LORD said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from the LORD. So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which conceived, and bare him a son.

More Thoughts About Reckless Abandon

Reckless abandon means absolute obedience without question. Noah obeyed God and built a huge ark - cruise line ship for animals. Imagine the years of ridicule that he endured as he built this thing. (I wonder if that was the first boat ever built. Or, did they build little canoe boats before that? hmmm) Shadrach Meshach and Abednego had reckless abandon and were thrown into a fiery pit that was so hot the guards that tossed them in were burned alive. Daniel was thrown into a den of hungry lions because of his reckless abandon.

Absolute obedience can incur some very grave consequences but through it all God was with them and saved them. God’s greater plan is so much bigger than we could ever fathom. As I think more about this reckless abandon and my responsibility to teach it to my kids I realize that I am teaching them that they have to trust that God knows what He is doing in the midst of the situation and that I could be teaching them to obey even though faced with death. Can I do that?

As a mom we are to protect our children it is instinct so can I have reckless abandon and teach my kids that they might have to actually die or be tortured or loose their job or whatever fire they must go through for Christ. However, Christ promises through it all no matter the cost, that He will be there in the fire with us.

Gen 6:9

These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.

Gen 6:22

Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he.

Dan 3:17 & 18

If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.

Dan 3:25

He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.

Rev 3:15 & 16

I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.

Reckless Abandon For Christ

John Paul Jackson spoke this phrase over me 13 years ago when he came to speak at the church I was attending. That was the first thing he said to me. Then he said that I was a spiritual nurse. (I wanted to be a nurse by profession at that point and actually took prerequisite courses for this. However, God changed my plan and steered me towards teaching. I have seen myself in the role of spiritual nurse many times.) Also, he said I had the gift of teaching. (I taught preschool for a long while along with many other jobs that involved me teaching and now I am a teacher to my kids.) Then the last thing he said to me was that God was preparing my spiritual mate for me. (I was extremely good friends with my now hubby at that point and just a few months later we started dating.) The words he spoke over me were all-true and confirmed every one of them. A few months later, someone else uttered the words “reckless abandon” to me, this person did not go to my church and had no idea what had been said to me before. God is good about confirming everything that is of Him. However, reckless abandon is something that I have thought about a lot lately. Do I still have that?

To be recklessly abandoned for Christ is to be completely surrendered to Christ without restraint, inhibitions, or moderation and to be completely unconcerned and at total peace about the consequences of what could happen.

Do I still have that? Am I still unconcerned about the consequences of what it means to serve Christ? Paul is one of my favorite Bible authors I know that he was recklessly abandoned for Christ. Serving God landed him in so much “trouble” all the time. But, all of that “trouble” made him so much more effective in ministry. God uses everything for his glory. I believe Job was also recklessly abandoned. He did not waiver or falter throughout his trials. How about Mary? She carried Jesus in her womb even though that I am sure brought her a lot of ridicule from those on the outside. She accepted that task knowing she could have been stoned to death.
I know that I do serve the Lord without concern about what could happen or what people will think. I know that most of the time I speak the truth without being worried that the person might be offended. I do struggle sometimes with that. I know that it is only the enemy trying to shut me up.
What I question most is; am I teaching my kids how to be recklessly abandoned? I have seen them in action and I am sure that they are headed in the right direction but my heart is that no matter what the consequence they will not waiver in their devotion to God. In these times, it is so much more important than ever that I am diligent in teaching them and showing them how to be recklessly abandoned to Christ.
Philippians 1:20 & 21 -- According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
Job 1:22 -- In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.
Luke 1:38 -- And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.

Location, location, location

So… Baby G has taken up a new habit. I have to completely laugh at pretty much all she does because if I do not, I would probably pull all my hair out. She has decided that everything needs to be relocated to a new area in the house. Nothing is to stay in the same room; in fact, if possible, each item needs to be located at the opposite end of the house. She decided that Mommy (that’s me) needs more exercise running from one end of the house to the other in order to get anything done. And, Mommy does not really know where things belong, but Gia, she does.

Items I have found relocated include every plastic kid cup in the one cupboard she can reach (after all, it is the kids’ cupboard). The bibs and kitchen towels now belong strewn on the floor in every room. I caught her grabbing them out one in each hand and running from room to room dropping them on the floor and then getting more. I think she was trying to make them fly or may be she was trying to fly… not sure here. Daddy’s dirty socks do not belong in the laundry anymore, just the socks mind you; belong in the bottom drawer of his nightstand. And her current milk sippy cup, it now belongs in Mommy’s bathroom in the cupboard under the sink where the toilet paper is kept. Oh and the toilet paper no longer belongs under the sink but on the living room coffee table. The girls clothes do not belong in their dresser either, they belong all over the floor in the girls’ room so that you can walk on a sea of pink and purple. And last but certainly not least, the bathroom garbage does not belong in the garbage can, no it belongs in the………………………… toilet! Of course, why didn’t I know that? I caught her the other day running out of my room with a white streak behind her, I was unloading the dishwasher so I did not register that the white streak was not just the trail she leaves behind from running so fast like in the comic books. As I walk into the living room to check on her I discover that the white streak was, you guessed it, the toilet paper from the roll in the bathroom. She thought it was soooooo cool that it was following her.

So okay, I am really struggling with training her. All three of the other kids were easier than this. All of them really learned quickly that no means no. With Gia, it is entirely different. She tests every boundary over and over again. Even Vincenzo was easier and man was he difficult to train. He has so much energy that even his pediatrician and the nurse on separate occasions have said repeatedly that they have never seen anyone with more energy than him. And neither have I after teaching preschool for 5 years, you would think I would have seen at least one kid with more energy than him but nope, he takes the cake. And he was easier to train than Gia. He understood (and still does) that when Mommy and Daddy said no we mean it. I know that she is learning and that she is being trained she shows me every day one small success. They are just really tiny successes. I will just rejoice in those knowing that in the end all of my hard work will pay off. Until then I will just laugh at the silliness.

God's Amazing Grace

If you have not yet seen the movie Amazing Grace, you must absolutely see it! It is a very phenomenal movie about William Wilberforce a great man of God who was instrumental in the abolishment of the slave trade in England.

Amazing Grace can be defined as the freely given unmerited favor, love and mercy of God that is so remarkable and overwhelming that it is unbelievably astonishing. That is what John Newton (1725-1807) the author of the hymn felt of the forgiveness and love that God had shown him. He was a slave ship captain who saw God’s mercy when his ship was almost sunk during a storm. God softened his heart and transformed him and Newton became a minister a little bit after. Amazing Grace was probably written between 1760 and 1770 perhaps written for a weekly church service. Over the course of time, various people added more verses to what eventually became the most famous hymn in the world. The six stanzas below are the oldest printed version, found in the first edition of Olney Hymns printed in 1779 along with a reference for 1 Chronicles 17:16 & 17

Amazing Grace

Amazing grace! (how sweet the sound)

That sav’d a wretch like me!

I once was lost, but now am found,

Was blind, but now I see.



’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,

And grace my fears reliev’d;

How precious did that grace appear,

The hour I first believ’d!



Thro’ many dangers, toils and snares,

I have already come;

’Tis grace has brought me safe thus far,

And grace will lead me home.



The Lord has promis’d good to me,

His word my hope secures;

He will my shield and portion be,

As long as life endures.



Yes, when this flesh and heart shall fail,

And mortal life shall cease;

I shall possess, within the veil,

A life of joy and peace.



The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,

The sun forbear to shine;

But God, who call’d me here below,

Will be forever mine.

1 Chronicles 17:16 & 17 (NKJV)

Then King David went in and sat before the LORD; and he said: "Who am I, O LORD God? And what is my house, that You have brought me this far? And yet this was a small thing in Your sight, O God; and You have also spoken of Your servant's house for a great while to come, and have regarded me according to the rank of a man of high degree, O LORD God.

Romans 3:21-26 (NKJV)

But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

A Glory Adventure

I have been wanting to blog all week however, it has been so crazy I haven't had the chance, but now I am. So here goes.

The power went out last weekend due to a storm system (one of 3) that swept through where we live. Friday morning at about 8 am, we were without power. However, we had prepared and planned for it because we had a feeling there would be power outages. (It couldn’t possibly be the 3 emails my husband received at work, or the fact that he was put on call all weekend to come into work should the need arise, or the news casts for the week prior that said be prepared or the newspaper that had the same warning…) Whatever the case, we were ready. Thursday night I was rummaging through boxes searching for our extra batteries, candles, flashlights… I had filled up several containers with water just in case we lost that luxury but we did not. Friday morning we had cereal for breakfast. (The only time I opened the fridge was that one time for the milk) We boiled water on the gas grill outside (our stove is electric) for coffee and hot cocoa. I crushed coffee beans with my manual mini food chopper so we could have coffee using our coffee press.

I made pumpkin muffins the day before so we could have a good snack to eat so we munched on those while drinking our coffee and cocoa for the kids and played Mexican train (a domino game) by candlelight and the little bit of light that came in through the window. We also did a little bit of school by playing a game with the map of the world and the president chart we have up on the wall in our dinning room. We had lunch still enjoying ourselves in the midst of a huge storm blowing outside. However, by about 2 it was only about 62 degrees in the house as the only thing we did not have was heat. So we packed the kids and went to our in-laws!

When we got there, we discovered that Mario’s siblings that are in town were also taking refuge over there. They had no power, but they had heat from the woodstove. We stayed there over night (for obvious reasons) we told stories, played games, and just hung out as a family. It was tons of fun and I highly recommend it. We stayed at the in-laws until late Saturday, as our power did not come back on until Saturday night at 8pm. Their power came back on around 9:30 Saturday morning. Thankfully almost none of the food spoiled and the damage from the trees in our yard was practically nothing just a few little twigs.

Looking around as we drove to my in-laws practically the whole city was without power except some very small pockets. There were fences down everywhere, whole trees uprooted and laying on houses or in the road. There were over a thousand calls to 911 during the weekend and thankfully, my husband was able stay home instead of going to work. I know that other places in the country have suffered so much more than that from storms of all kinds but I honestly cannot remember a time here that we have had so much damage form a storm. There are still people without power I think they are projecting that power will be restored completely by the 11^th.

We are still being hit with rainstorms but nothing like that. I have boxes now half-unpacked all over as my candles were in separate boxes depending on the room they were in when I was packing up all the home décor stuff and then there was of course another box to dig through to find the batteries. I am finally starting to feel like I am caught up from not doing anything for a day and a half and then cleaning up after the messes we made searching for stuff. I am so thankful that I have power and none of the systems that have come through sense have been as powerful as this past weekend's.

I hate the cold and rain because I have a hard time getting and staying warm. I really wish all the really cold weather and rain would just move on so that I can enjoy being warm again. I am trying to be thankful that we have the much-needed rain. I am trying to remember that God created this beautiful weather even though it seems dreary. I am now where close to being thankful like I should, but I am trying to be thankful for the weather God has chosen to give us. We really do need the rain; it has been a very dry season so far.

Psalm 118:24

This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

Thessalonians 5:18

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Happy New Year!

I am not one to make New Years resolutions. I cannot keep them; by February, whatever the resolution was I have already failed miserably. But New Years has come at a good time for me this year because I have only been at our new place for two and a half weeks which means I am at a point of a lot of new fresh starts. Therefore, instead of a resolution I am going to have New Years expectations. I pray that God will continue to direct my path and show me more of Him. My expectations are:

- God is going to continue to provide in every way.

- God will continue to lavish His unfailing love on me.

- God will stretch me and cause me to grow in Him daily.

Those are my expectations. With that, everything else will follow.

Psalm 23:5

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. (NKJV)

Psalm 25:4&5

Show me Your ways, O LORD; Teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the day. (NKJV)

Jeremiah 31:3

The LORD has appeared of old to me, saying: "Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.” (NKJV)

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (NKJV)