Thanks for all of your fun comments on my “Why I’m Not Super Woman” post! Y’all make me smile!    Doesn’t it feel good to take off our capes?

I have a confession to make.

I never celebrated Memorial Day until last year.

I didn’t even think about it until last May. I was with Jill, and she asked what our family was doing Memorial Day weekend.

When I shared (besides having a BBQ with Jen), I didn’t know ~ Jill was in shock.

She said, “Cindy, you mean you celebrate EVERY holiday ~ even Groundhogs Day ~ but you don’t celebrate Memorial Day?!”

I guess when you put it like that ~ it is a little crazy! Especially when 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays ~ and I have enough red,white, and blue decorations for our whole street!

Last year I began a quest to come up with a memorable, honoring, fun Memorial Day celebration. It worked so well we’ll be doing it again this year!

**Here’s our New & Improved Memorial Day Celebration Plan**

This weekend we will be…..

• Discussing the True Meaning of Memorial Day
• Decorating our home with Red, White, and Blue (Amazing ideas from Tip Junkie)
• Hanging up our American flag (using Memorial Day flag etiquette) and taking a moment of silence at 3:00 PM.
• Heading to a parade~ one of my favorite pasttimes ever! (West Michigan parades listed here)
• Visiting a local cemetary
• Thanking a soldier

In case it rains, we can do…..

• Patriotic crafts ~ideas here or here or here
• Coloring Sheets, Word Searches, Mazes ~ here or here
• Of course, it wouldn’t be a holiday without BINGO with red, white, and blue M & M’s ~ here

And for our Memorial Day cookouts, here are some of my favorite simple kid-friendly food ideas I cook up…

• Red and blue finger jello (star shaped, of course)
• Cupcakes for the kids (Fun Recipe here and here)
• Flag cake (Recipe here) Always a huge hit!

Whew ~ now I’m ready to head into this Memorial Day weekend!

Do you have any tradition or family fun ideas to honor Memorial Day?? Share with us please ~ I’d love to hear from you!!!

Thanks for stopping by *She Sparkles*! Have a safe, joy-filled Memorial Day weekend!

Many blessings to you!!

P.S. The winner of the A to Z Memory Verse “fun pack” is Robin V. Thank you to all who entered!

Hey Friends ~

The past few weeks have been a bitty nutty for me. Anyone else??

Besides the excitement of the “He Loves Me” release – we’re in full fledge “May mode” over here – which means baseball games, every field trip imaginable for my 3 young kids, one zillion “end of school year” projects and events, not to mention Jake is graduating this month (holy cow!), plus we’re trying to help him navigate his plans for Fall. 

Just thinking about my schedule makes me need a nap.

You too?

Last week I was so exhausted emotionally, physically and mentally that I thought I could burst out in tears at any moment.

Although I wanted to crawl into bed, I was a good girl and showed up for recess duty as scheduled (although no one else did. Ahem). After 60 minutes of hanging out with 200+ elementary kids in 85 degree heat – I was done.

Stick a fork in me, done.

Just as I was leaving, the principal saw me and said, “Oh good, Cindy, you’re here. I need to talk to you. It’s not good”.   I spent the next hour 30 minutes hearing about the poor choice my normally “rule-follower” child made on the bus.  Ugh.

Super Woman, me? Not hardly.

In case any one else has that mis-perception, it’s time I take off my cape. Quickly.

Here are a few of the many reasons I am not Super Woman….

• I left Benj at baseball practice on Thursday night. Yes, I am that mom. I was helping plan Jake’s Open House when I got a text from Jake.  ”Mom, does Benj need a ride? I just drove by the baseball field and he’s the only one left”.  At 8:30 at night. AHHH!

Thank you to my friend Sally who helped make light of the situation after my meltdown. She said, “That’s the first time you left a kid? Really? With all you have going I thought you’d have left a kid long before now.” Thanks, Sally! You are a gift!

• Although I helped coordinate Benj’s Bake Sale, Benj did the baking (plus extra baked goods from the two grandmas). I am still not a baker. I will confess to throwing some cup cakes in the oven quickly when we almost ran out of baked goods…but that’s it.

  

  Jake’s Open House

• For Jake’s Open House, I went in with 3 other moms. For the other moms this was their last kid, so they had done this before and were seasoned Open House planners. My responsibility? Helium balloons.  :)
• I need to call my Grandma. I told my Grandma we’d call her on Mother’s Day…then Manda had hives, Benj had baseball and I still haven’t called her. Super Woman would not leave her Grandma hanging (Sorry, Grandma).

I could go on and on…but I think the # 1 reason I am not Super Woman…

• We still have a Christmas tree up in our house.

Woo Hoo! There you have it…I may be wearing lipstick and appear like I am semi non-frazzled (some days) but I am definitely NOT Super Woman! No siree!

How about for you? How are you doing this month? Do you qualify for Super Woman status? Or is it time for you to retire your cape? I would love to hear from YOU!

Thanks for stopping by *She Sparkles*! God’s richest, non-frazzled blessings to you!

Cindy

Hey Friends ~

Welcome to “Please Repeat” Tuesday! As I prepare for my son Jake’s graduation, I’m borrowing an idea from my pastor and repeating one of my most frequented previously shared posts. Enjoy!

The other night I went to bed but, even though I was completely exhausted, I couldn’t sleep.

I tossed and turned and tossed some more. As I often do when this happens, I asked God if I should be praying for someone.

My 17 year old son Jake came to mind, so I started praying for him and his safety.

Jake was at BW3 (a local restaurant) watching the Red Wings hockey game on TV with a friend.

After praying for Jake, I got out of bed and came downstairs to read/pray some more.

There was Jake (and his buddy Travis) just entering our foyer. They both had eyes as huge as saucers and were obviously very shaken up about something.

My first thought is that they had been in an accident. My heart stopped!

It turns out that while they were at BW3, two big tables near them (one on either side of Jake & Travis) started to trash talk to each other. At first they thought the guys were joking with each other, but tempers escalated quickly. In a matter of minutes, a huge fight had started!

One guy picked up a chair and broke it on another guy (and almost hit Jake)! As fists were flying, Jake nearly got punched in the face in the midst of this brawl (yes, in the restaurant!). Travis ended up jumping over a wall, landing on a table (while patrons were eating) and both guys ran for safety.

I am praising God Jake & his friend made it home safe ~ and thankful that the Holy Spirit prompted me to pray! Thank You, God! ♥

James 5:16 reminds us the prayers of a righteous man are powerful and effective. I might add so are a mama’s prayers!

For more ideas of how to pray for your children, check out this resource. (I have my copy hanging right by my bathroom sink. I read it/pray it every day while I brush my teeth).

How about for you? How has God answered your prayers? I’d love to hear from you!

Thanks for stopping by *She Sparkles*! Have a wonderful, prayer-filled day!

P.S. Thankfully God protected Jake yet again just a few months later. I’ll never forget when I received the phone that Jake had slid on ice, hit a tree and totalled his truck (recap here).

Welcome to the A to Z Memory Verse Challenge 2012! Can you believe we are almost 1/2  way there?! Woo Hoo!

Now please know – not all of my family members are up to date. Trust me. If you are still back on “D’ or are joining us for the first time – it’s ok – you are not alone!

If you are new to the A to Z Challenge, you can read all about it here ! Join in at anytime! If you’re wondering why I’m so passionate about Scripture Memory, it’s because…

My life has been transformed, because my mind has been transformed – and that’s come by memorizing God’s Word – one verse at a time.  

Today is the perfect day to memorize a new verse! Woo Hoo!

You can check out the verses we’ve learned so far in 2012 here.

And now for our newest verse, the “K” verse….drum roll please….

wordstolivebybackgrounds.blogspot.com

K – Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.  Psalm 34:13

Is that not a good verse to memorize, or what?

You may recall when we were on Spring Break, my friend JJ’s whole family was current with their A to Z verses (way to go, JJ!). Here are some things I noticed that were working for her family….

Memorizing Ideas observed at the Landis Home (shared with permission)~

* The verse was written in its entirity on a chalkboard in their dining room. As I sat at her table, I was always reminded of the verse.

(It reminded me of my friend Chellie’s homemade chalkboard hanging in her kitchen. See pic to right)

* JJ had one of Darlene’s A to Z Versepacks hanging on a ring in their downstairs bathroom.

* JJ had a set of A to Z Memory verses hanging by their backdoor where they put their shoes on.

* JJ gives her kids a sticker every time they say their verses all the way through (one sticker per day). She doesn’t insist they say the verses for a sticker, only if they choose to. Stickers added up equal fun prizes.

* Mostly I just noticed how JJ and her husband Lee are making memorizing scripture a priority and are being intentional about doing it together.

Now if JJ’s precious Emma (in Kindergarten!) can tell me all of her verses - we can do it too!!!

**Feel free to share your favorite tips, ideas, even pictures. I’d love to share your suggestions and/or link to you in the weeks to come!

Giveaways ~

I am thrilled to share another GREAT GIVEAWAY with you! One of my favorite locally owned bookstores is Parable Christian Bookstore.

Parable has a great selection of Christian books, cards, gifts and music.  I can always find what I’m looking for at Parable – either in one of their three Grand Rapids stores, or through their online catalog.

To encourage us on our Memory Verse Challenge, Parable has graciously donated a “fun pack” of books especially designed for a Mom of preschoolers/young kids.

Here’s what you’ll find in the Parable Christian Bookstore A to Z “fun pack”…

* Candle Prayers for Toddlers and Candle Bible for Toddlers
* Jigsaw Fun (6 Great  Puzzles to Make)
* God is Great by Carolyn Larsen
* Jumbo Bible Activity Book
* Jumbo Bible Activity Book 2

All together this Parable Book House “Fun Pack” of books is worth more than $75.00! This would be a GREAT resource gift for a mom/teacher/grandma or Sunday School teacher!

To Win this week’s Parable “Fun Pack” Giveaway: Share with us who you are, where you are from, and what verse you will memorize this week (whether it’s from the A to Z or not doesn’t matter, just pick one verse to memorize!).

Extra Entries:

•Follow *She Sparkles*
•Subscribe to *She Sparkles*
•Add my *She Sparkles* button to your blog
•Tweet about this giveaway including a link to this post

Please be sure to leave me a comment to let me know your extra entries.

RULES: Starts today, Monday, May 21st and ends Thursday, May 24th at 9 PM. Winners will be posted on my blog during the week of May 28th.

If your email address is not connected to your ID, please leave your email address with your comment or email it to me at cindy.bultema@gmail.com with the subject “Giveaway”.

Thanks for stopping by *She Sparkles*. Happy Memorizing!

P.S. A huge note of thanks to the Parable gang for their willingness to share this great resource with a *She Sparkles* friend!

P.P.S. Verseability has also made a custom A-Z Versepack that contains all 26 of the verses for the year (this is what my friend JJ put on a key ring). The Versepacks are business card sized and are available for a special price of $ 5.00, plus shipping. You can order them by e-mailing: darlenedykstra@yahoo.com. Be sure to mention *She Sparkles* to get the special rate.

Disclosure: I was not provided with any financial compensation for this giveaway, and as always, all opinions are mine.

Hey Friends!

Happy Thankful Thursday to you! What are you thankful for today? 

I’ll be honest, I feel like I’ve been thrown a big “detour” this week. My Manda came down with a horrible case of hives (completely covering her face and even impacting her eyes – poor thing!) ~ so “my plan” for the week was thrown out the window and it’s been a bit nutty over here!

Today is a perfect day to pause and intentionally reflect on God’s goodness. I’ve been sitting in the sunshine, naming my blessings one by one. So many. no doubt about it ~ even in the midst of our challenges ~ I am blessed.

Here is my Top 5 Thankful Thursday list for today….

1. My “baby” is graduating! 

It’s so hard to believe that in less than 2 weeks my son Jake will be a high school graduate!

When did he go from being my little sweet guy to a big, tough hockey goalie?!  

It’s true – you blink and they are all grown up!  I am thankful for Jake and the chance to celebrate him at his Graduation Open House this weekend! 

(And he may be a big tough goalie – but he’s still a sweetie if you ask me. Just don’t tell him I said that!)

2. “He Loves Me” DVD

Not a day goes by that I’m not reminded of who I was before Christ.

Only God could take a lonely, broken, single mom and not only rescue, deliver, and save me – but give me a clean heart and a brand new reputation. 

And now to see how God is using my life story through the DVD “He Loves Me” – I am more in awe of God than ever!

The emails and letters I’ve received have made me weep. One viewer recently shared this on the Day of Discovery website -

“Thank you so much. I normally don’t watch TV, but today I turned on the TV to get a weather report and God touched my heart through this story. I’ve been saved for over 20 years, and had a fairytale marriage and it all came to end. I found myself doubting GOD and everything I know about him and all he’s done for me. Ultimately, I’ve begun to turn to sin to heal my pain. Your message today that GOD can handle my pain was a blessing to me. Thank you and God bless you.”

Only God! How do you even process what God is up to? I’ve given up – and instead just prayerfully say, “Thank You, God!”

(If you haven’t had a chance to see “He Loves Me” yet, you can watch it online here)

3. New Bible Study

One of the hardest parts of this past year was stepping down from my Magnificent Monday Bible teaching to work on writing/filming Red Hot Faith. I missed my Monday Night friends so much, and longed to share God’s Word with others.

Thankfully God has opened a door for me (and my bff Julie) to serve together again this summer. I’ll be teaching a series called “Living Balanced in an Unbalanced World”.

I can’t wait! I’m so thankful! I love, love, love sharing God’s Word with others. Woo Hoo!

(I’d also be thankful if you wanted to join us! West Michigan friends, you can read more about it here)

4. My Friends

Do you have friends in your life who know how you are doing – really – and love you anyway? (smile!)

The past few weeks my “insecurity” and “fear of rejection” levels have been through the roof. Ugh.

I’m so thankful for my sweet friends who have helped talk/speak/and pray TRUTH over me. (You know who you are!). And I’m so thankful God doesn’t intend for us to journey alone!

 5. My Marriage

John and I are in such a sweet spot this season. Now please know, this has not always been the case. We’ve been through some very difficult, painful times….which makes this season that much more special.

I sure love my handsome, hunk of a man, if you know what I mean?!

Whew!! So there’s my Thankful Thursday Top 5 list!

What about for you?? On this Thankful Thursday, what are you thankful for today?? I’d love to hear from you!!

Thanks for stopping by *She Sparkles*! I am THANKFUL for you!

Hey Friends ~

Welcome to “Please Repeat” Wednesday! As I prepare for my son Jake’s Graduation Open House this weekend, I’m borrowing an idea from my pastor and repeating one of my most frequented previously shared posts. Enjoy!

You may recall that I hate swimsuit season! (I bared my soul about this topic here.)

In many areas of my life, I am experiencing God’s victory and “promise land living” -however, bathing suit season brings out my every fear and insecurity. Until this week, I hadn’t been in a bathing suit since April 2008!

The other day I decided I would face my fears and take my kids to the pool. I was PRAYING like crazy about it all morning (Please, Lord, please don’t let me see anyone I know…please).

Of course, before I am out of the parking lot, I see a friend who shares that she thinks about me everytime she puts on her bathing suit (so she must read my blog and know my “issue”…how embarassing)

Then as I head into the pool area, a lady yells “Hey Bible Study lady!”. Great, I’m thinking…this is going to be a great day, God….

The kids and I stayed at the pool until nearly closing time. My kids had a blast ~ going down the slides, splashing and swiming, being kids. And would you know…I survived.

Nobody teased me. Called me a bad name. Made a funny comment to me. I made it!

Isn’t it crazy how our fears can become so irrational and huge – and almost paralyzing?!

Not until we step out into those areas of fear…out of our safety and comfort zone…can we see things more clearly. And Truthfully.

Like why in the world when I am 40+ years old do I still think someone is going to tease or reject me?

Where does this all come from??

Most importantly, how in the world do I move forward??

As I spent time praying about it later that evening, I rememembered something I recently learned in a Bible Study that was eye opening for me.

Kelly Minter, in her book No other gods shares, “Satan will tell us what’s true, but he never tells us the TRUTH“.

Remembering that simple statement was like an “AHA” light bulb moment for me!!

•  Yes, it is true I was teased as a little girl for being “the chubby cousin”.
•  Yes, it is true, I am not a size 6 (or an 8 anymore).
•  Yes, it is true, I have given birth to 4 children.
•  Yes, I’m not comfortable in a bathing suit. Yes, those things are true.

But the TRUTH is…..

• I am beautiful and accepted by God….just the way that I am!!
• God delights in me!!
• I am secure, significant, set apart in Christ!
• I am dearly loved by the Lord God Almighty!
• My worth and value is NOT defined but what I look like on the outside. 

“Satan will tell us what’s true, but he never tells us the TRUTH“.

Satan tries to deceive us by telling us what may be true…but he never tells us the TRUTH!

True vs. TRUTH.

How about for you?? Are there areas of your life where the enemy is trying to deceive you? Is he filling your mind with things that may be true…but are not God’s TRUTH??

May the Lord reveal to you ANYTHING that is getting in the way of experiencing all of the FULLNESS and FREEDOM that He has for you!!!

And if you see me at the pool this summer ~ please feel free to say Hi!!

A good friend helped me reframe my pool experience from the other day. When I said, “Obviously God wasn’t listening to my prayers on the way to the pool. Everywhere I looked there were people I knew”.

My dear friend challenged me and said, “What if Dana in the parking lot, and Rachel from Bible study, and the other people you knew at the pool were actually reminders from God Himself that you were not alone?? That He was with you.” Hmmm….sounds just like Him, doesn’t it?!

Let’s pray…Oh Lord, THANK YOU that Your Word says TRUTH will set us free. Please, Lord, set us free from any fear, lie, habit, attitude, addiction that is getting in the way of the full LIFE that You have for us. Eradicate any unhealthy roots. Plant seeds of Truth. For Your Purpose. For Your Glory Alone! Amen

Thanks for stopping by *She Sparkles*. Have a victorious, Truth-filled day!

P.S. The picture is for my friends that still don’t believe I put on a bathing suit. Watch out ~ by the end of the summer, I might be going down the slide!!!

Hey Friends ~

Happy “National Clean Purse Day”!

Today I’m excited to join Kathi Lipp and women everywhere as we clean out our purse!

Trust me, this “Clean out your purse” project is exactly what I needed. Badly.

True confession….last December I was traveling with my husband John to Charlotte, NC. On our first flight, I noticed some sparkle powder in one of the gifts shop. And it was on sale.   All weekend long I thought about the sparkle powder and wondered how I could talk John into buying some for me on our flight home.

Would you know as we headed home, one of our connecting flight’s waiting area was right next to the gift shop with the sparkle powder?? Yay! John gave me the A-ok to purchase the powder and I was a happy girl…..until this….

Yes, the sparkle powder exploded all over everywhere when we boarded the plane, including the inside of my purse.

What did I do?

I started using a new purse.

Until now. It’s time I tackle the sparkle covered purse, don’t you think?

Thankfully Kathi Lipp is the woman to help. Not only is Kathi a busy conference and retreat speaker, she also just wrote a book called, “The Get Yourself Organized Project – 21 Steps to Less Mess and Stress“.

After reading Kathi’s new book and studying her purse cleaning and organizing tips, I was ready to tackle this sparkle-covered handbag.

Look for a new “after” picture coming soon!

Want to join us on National Clean Out Your Purse Day? 

Kathi has lots of fun prizes and giveaways to share at her website. She’s also asking women to share what was the weirdest thing they found when they cleaned out their purse. This could get interesting!

Speaking of giveaways, I’m thrilled to have a copy of Kathi’s new book to share with one blessed *She Sparkles* reader!

Here’s more about ”The Get Yourself Organized Project – 21 Steps to Less Mess and Stress“.

Finally, an organizational book for women who have given up trying to be Martha Stewart but still desire some semblance of order in their lives.

Kathi Lipp, author of The Husband Project and other “project” books, is just the author to address this need. In her inimitable style, she offers
• easy and effective ways women can restore peace to their everyday lives
• simple and manageable long-term solutions for organizing any room in one’s home (and keeping it that way)
• a realistic way to de-stress a busy schedule
• strategies for efficient shopping, meal preparation, cleaning, and more…!

Trust me, you will enjoy this book! It is helpful, fun, and filled to the brim with helpful tips and tools! Kathi’s style is engaging, humor-filled and insightful.  Most importantly, her book inspired me to tackle some of the projects that have been on my “To Do” list (like cleaning out my sparkle covered purse!) for far too long!

I love it….and I’m confident you will to!

To Win my “Get Yourself Organized  Project” Book Giveaway: Leave a comment in the comment section answering this question:

Why would you like to win??

Extra Entries:
• Follow me on my new Facebook page (here)
• Share this giveaway on FB (including a link to this post)
• Tweet about this giveaway (including a link to this post)

Please be sure to leave me a comment to let me know your extra entries.

RULES: Starts today, Tuesday, May 15th and ends Friday, May 18th at 9 PM. Winner will be posted on my new website during the week of May 20th.

If your email address is not connected to your ID, please leave your email address with your comment or email it to me at cindy.bultema@gmail.com with the subject “Giveaway”.

Also, I’m curioius…what’s the craziest thing you’ve ever found in your purse? Share with us your true purse confession stories!

Thanks for stopping by *She Sparkles*. Here’s to an organized, joy-filled day!

P.S.  As an added bonus, head over to FB and “like” Kathi’s Author Page, and you will receive Kathi’s free download “30 Ways to Save 30 Minutes in the Next 30 Days” to kick start your way to a more organized you!

Thanks for your prayers and support for the “He Loves Me” official Premiere on Mother’s Day! Wow!

I set my alarm and rolled out of bed to watch the Day of Discovery program. My Amanda was already awake so we shared the special, sacred moment together.

Who would have ever thought when I was in the midst of such addiction and pain that not only could and would God rescue me from my self-destructive pit, but then He would heal, redeem, restore and turn my story into a program for national television.

How do you even process something like that?

I guess that’s why I’ve been singing this song all weekend long…

If you’d like to watch “He Loves Me” (the full program) you can view it online here.

If you’ve had a chance to view the program, I’d love for you to share your thoughts here or in today’s comments section.

I’ve also been blessed by e-mails and FB messages from all over the nation (and Canada!) sharing how the “He Loves Me” program encouraged and inspired them on their faith journey. Thank You, God!

Speaking of Turkey…I now have some short video clips from our recent trip to Ancient Laodicea.

Look for the clips later this week….

And now it brings me great joy to share the 42 winners from my Birthday Giveaway! (If your name is on the list, will you please send me your mailing address?)

Drumroll please….

1. Anne Lewis

2. Margay

3. S. Doorn

4. T. Otte

5. Deb Schmenk

6. Lisa Littlewood

7. M. Gabrielse

8. Angela Owens

9. L. Dekker

10. Heather Kellogg

11. D. Lund

12. Suzanne G.

13. Suzanne Tyria

14. Jenny C.

15. Amanda Jones

16. Beth Hutchings

17. Tracy Suzanne

18. Kim deBlecourt

19. Wendy Badeau

20. Sherrie Ashcraft

21. Ellen Schumaker

22. Hope B.

23. Brenda Johnson

34. Jill Winchel

35. M. Wondergem

36. Denise Dykstra

37. Melinda T.

38. Crystal Frens

39. Lee Mulder

40. Lorri Ruffrage

41. Grace and Peace

42. Melissa at Mult-Tasking Mom

 Thank you to all who entered!

Lastly, thank you for journeying with me through prayer through this amazing adventure! I thank God for you!!!

Sweet blessings,

CIndy

Wedding Day ~ August 2000

Thanks for your sweet notes after the TV Premiere of “He Loves Me”. What an amazing weekend! As I recuperate after a full week of celebrating (thank You, God!), I’m going to spend my normal “blogging time” at the bookstore reading, resting and praying. 

Enjoy a Marriage Monday repeat….!

First, I should let you know ~ I am not a marriage expert. I am not a trained therapist or counselor. I’ve not written any profound marriage books.

I am just a simple girl, passionately in love with Jesus and my man, trying to figure out how to enjoy marriage and celebrate life together. 

Thankfully, by God’s grace, we celebrated 11 years together this August! (Can I get a “woo hoo”?!)

I wish I could tell you it’s been 11 years of pure bliss. 

I’d be lying. Big time.

I now look at marriage like a roller coaster ~ an adventure filled with its ups (and downs), twists and turns, excitement and fun, and unfortunately, sometimes, hang on tight, “why did I say yes to this thing?!” times as well.

Thankfully, John and I are enjoying a “Wow, this is really fun” season!

And do you know what’s the number one thing I’ve learned to strengthen our marriage over the past decade of being together? The power of prayer!

Years ago, I read Stormie Omartian‘s book the The Power of a Praying Wife. Stormie does an awesome job of reminding us of the power and importance of lifting our husbands in prayer.

After a very difficult season of our marriage a few years ago (one that I wasn’t sure we were going to make through) ~ I made a promise that I would pray for John and our marriage every single day.

Unfortunately, at first, I struggled with how to make my promise a reality. You know how it goes ~ life gets busy, right?

Kids take up our time, energy, affection. Family members get sick. Life keeps going. We get sidetracked with so many other things to do.

But what I’ve learned is this….I must make time to pray for John and our marriage.

Even if it’s while I’m brushing my teeth, washing the dishes, or sick on the couch ~ I’ve made the predetermined decision, regardless of my circumstances, I will pray for my husband and our marriage every single day.

Like Nike says, “Just do it”

If you feel like it or not….

If he was loving this morning or not…

If he’s praying for you or not….

JUST DO IT!

One thing that has really helped me make my promise a reality is my Prayer Guide (click here for my Prayer Guide recap).

Using my prayer guide, I can look at John as I pray, record my prayers, and have a list of specific things to pray for him.

See the yellow post-it notes in the pic? My little Sarah used to sit on my lap while I prayed for “Daddy” and write out her prayers too. Aren’t her little notes sweet??

In the prayer book picture you’ll notice on the left is a download called “31 Days of Praying for your Husband“. You can print it off here.

Please know, I do not use my Prayer Guide everyday (I sure wish I did).

There are some days that my prayer time is while I walk the dog, or sit at the bus stop waiting for the kids ~ but thankfully, I can see the FRUIT from committing to praying for our marriage and John every single day. Prayer has breathed new, fresh life into a marriage that was fading fast. Prayer works…of this I am sure!

What about for you?? What have you found has been helpful to strengthen your marriage?? I’d love to hear from you! Also, be sure to join my friend Julie at Marriage Mondays for more great marriage tips!!

Many blessings to you this week!! Thanks for stopping by *She Sparkles*!

Hey Friends

Have you ever had a week filled with so much of God’s goodness that your mouth hurt from smiling so much?!

That was my week this week. Woo Hoo!

Before I go into my launch of how God showed up during my birthday week BIG TIME, I’ll be honest and share I’ve been struggling. Wrestling with “stinking thinking”. Needing new coping skills. Wanting to be grown up and mature, and sick and tired of being pelted with lies.

I’ve been crying out to God in prayer…especially as I headed into a week where my biggest fears and insecurities would be brought to the forefront.

Not only did God answer my plea, He has lavished more love and grace on me than I ever deserve. Amazing grace, how sweet the sound….

Tuesday Night was the Video Premiere for He Loves Me!

My best friend Julie rented out a theater at hosted a private viewing of my testimony.I was nervous about what it would be like to bear my soul (on a huge screen, no less!) in front of 200+ family members and friends.

As I was lamenting with one friend of what a crazy idea it was to view all of my junk, hurt and poor choices in a theater with hundreds of other people – she said, “Cindy, that’s not crazy, it’s victory!”

My friend was right! What a night of victory and celebration!I couldn’t have asked for a better reception, and thanks to the generosity of RBC Ministries, everyone who came left with a DVD copy of “He Loves Me”. For a photo album of the night, check out my FB page here.

Picture by M. Wondergem

I’ve had a blast sending out DVD’s this week. I love sending surprises in the mail, and it’s blessed me to surprise my prayer partners around the nation with a copy of “He Loves Me”.

Lastly, on this amazing, whirlwind week, I’ve been overwhelmed and blessed by my amazing partners in ministry and their support. All around blog world, dear friends have shared the kindest blog posts from “He Loves Me”. If you have a minute, I’d love if you’d stop by and say hello and read their encouraging posts!

• Karen Ehman
• Amelia Rhodes
• Lisa Koster
• Denise @ Life with 4 boys…
• Kathy Bruins

Mother’s Day is the official airing of “He Loves Me” across the nation (and more!). You can also watch it in its entirety here.

Would you please join me in praying that God would use this DVD to turn hearts towards Him, and for His glory alone?

I was chatting with a friend last night….reflecting on the fullness of my week, and shared, “Most importantly, I just want Jesus to be KNOWN. It is so not about me, about me being known, or about anything else… It’s all about Jesus. That’s it”

It’s all for Him!

Whew! What a whirlwind week! What have you been up to, my friend? What has God been teaching you? When was the last time you experienced a miracle in your midst? I would love to hear from you!

Thanks for stopping by *She Sparkles*! God’s richest blessings to you!