Christ is risen from the dead.

I think it is amazing that Jesus loves us so much that he suffered and died so that we could be forgiven for our sins.  Jesus died for us.  To pardon our sin.  I am so grateful that God chose to raise Jesus from the dead and show his disciples that he was alive and that his words were true and that their duty was to pass on these great teachings and his story.  Can you imagine being those disciples and how they must have felt? How honored they must have felt to be in his presence, but how scared to. 
I am so amazed by the amount of love God has for each of us.  He saves us when we sincerely pray to him and offer our belief in Jesus's life, death and resurrection, and ask him to forgive us of our sins.  We are instantly and permanently saved at that moment.  Forever our salvation is secure.  However, we do not become sin free after being saved.  We are still sinful beings.  We have to keep striving to be more Jesus like.  By studying His word, scripture memory and with the help of the holy spirit, we can become more and more like Christ.  Yes, we are still going to stumble and fall and sin, we are sinful by nature, but once we are saved the holy spirit resides inside of us, throwing out warning signs to us when we are behaving or acting the wrong way.  God is an amazing God.  He equips us with the holy spirit that lives inside of us to guide us to be more holy, more Christ like.
I am so thankful today that Christ paid for my sins.  My many, many, many sins.  He paid for my sins of the past, my sins of the present and for my sins of the future.  I am so thankful that He rose again and lived here on Earth and then ascended into heaven and promised that He will return for us all.  I hope and pray that if you've never accepted Christ's call into your life that you will today.  Your eternity is secure with Him. 
Today I have been thinking of the first scripture I probably ever memorized in about 2nd or 3rd grade in Sunday school, John 3:16, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that who so ever believeth in Him, should not perish, but have ever lasting life."  Amen. 

On the Outlook for Bugs and Crazy Love Chapter 3

We do a lot of playing bug watching these days.

Kaden is always looking fascinated by bugs!  All kinds of bugs.  Lady bugs are a favorite, he'll say, "grab it!"   But, he will collect June bugs and grasshoppers  "hoppers" as well.
We have had so much fun outside with this little ball of energy.  He is FAST!  Sometimes we can not catch him when he takes off running.

This poor baby boy is so fair complected like his momma, we will have to buy stock in the Water Babies sun block company, for sure.

That's a ladybug on his hand.

Crazy Love  Book-Chapter 3
I should get the worst friend of the year award for getting  my friend, Megan to buy this book, then not having the time to get together and discuss it like I had really hoped and prayed to do.  I'm sorry Megan!  I also bought this book for Hilary and my friend Crystal told me she bought it to after reading my first post.  I will I had time to get us all together to talk about the wonderful truths in this book.  I hope that you are all at least still reading it.

I have only read through Chapter 3, gonna start 4 this week.  Today actually.  So, Chapter 3 really spoke to my heart in many ways, very personal and stirring ways.  Things in my life I had not thought about in years came up for me in this chapter.  I can't share them all here, unfortunately, but I was moved.  I think it is a lot easier to understand God's true love for us once we become parents ourselves.  I remember thanking Jesus for Kaden everytime I fed him as a new born.  I would literally say, "Thank you Jesus for this baby."  Every single time I fed him in my nursing rocker, countless times per day.  I couldn't believe this miracle, and love and life that God had shown me through my new baby.  I remember watching Kaden while he slept, and just crying because he was so sweet and praying for him to have a good life full of people who loved him, and that he would be a man after God's heart.  I remember thinking that I could teach Kaden everything about Jesus and God, but ultimately I couldn't make that most important decision in this life for him.  I pray that God leads him to that decision when it is time.  I finally can see how much God loves us and desires time with us.  It's so much greater than that love we have for our babies and desire we have to be with them.  In this chapter Chan says, "I am just an earthly, sinful mother and love my child so much it hurts.  How could I not trust a heavenly, perfect Father who loves me infinitely more than I will ever be able to love my kids." 
Most of us are taught to set aside a daily prayer/scripture time and when we fail, we feel guilty.  But, in reality, when we love God, we naturally run to Him, frequently and zealously.  Jesus didn't command that we have a regular time with Him each day.  He tells us to "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul amd with all your mind."  He called this the first and greatest commandment.  -Matthew 22:37-38

The results are intimate prayer and study of His word.  Our motivation changes from guilt to LOVE. 
God wants us to come to His word or into His word with Love in our hearts for Him.  Not because we feel guilty if we don't or because we have to spend a set time with God each day. 
Francis Chan talks about a trip he took into the woods for four days, where he had absolutely no contact with another living soul.  He meditated on Jeremiah 1 the entire trip.  Jeremiah 1 verses 4 and 5 speak God's intimate knowledge of me.  "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."  Wait a minute!  God knew me before he MADE me?  God knew you and me BEFORE we existed.  Think about that for a while.  God has been with me from the start, in fact, from well before the start. 

He determined what Jeremiah would do before he was born, is this also true for me? 
Ephesians 2:10 "We are created to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."  That verse is meant for me and all others who have been saved by grace through faith.  My existence was not random, nor was it by accident.  God knew who He was creating, and He designed me for a specific work.  God's next words to Jeremiah, assured me that I need not fear failure:
"Ah, Sovereign Lord," I said, " I do not know how to speak; I am only a child."  But, the Lord said to me, "Do not say, 'I am only a child.'  You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you.  Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you." declares the Lord.  Then the lord reached out and touched his hand to my mouth and said to me, "Now I have put my words in your mouth.  See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant."  Jeremiah 1:6-10

blowing momma a kiss!

When Jeremiah voices hesitation and fear, God reaches out and touches his mouth.  It's a gentle and affectionate gesture, something a loving parent would do.  Through this illistration I realize that I realize that I do not have to worry about not meeting His expectations.  God will ensure my success in accordance with His plans, not mine.  This is the God we serve, the God who knew us before He created us.  The God who promises to remain with us and to rescue us.  The God who loves us and longs for us to love Him back. 

"No one is good, except God alone."   Luke 18:19  So why does He love us, despite us not being good?  Because, if God's mercy didn't exist there would be no hope.  Isaiah 64:6, "All our righteous acts are like filthy rags."  Our good deads can never out weigh our sins .  God's mercy is a free, yet costly, gift.  It cannot be earned.  The wages of sin is death.  But, because of God's mercy, sin is paid for through the death of Jesus Christ, instead of the death of you and me.  Jesus wants us, chooses us, even considers us His inheritance.  (Ephesians 1:18)  The greatest knowledge we can ever have is knowing that God treasures us.  He treasures us and anticipates our departure from this Earth to be with Him.  And, we wonder-indifferently- how much we have to do for Him to get by?
The greatest good on this earth is God.  Period.  God's one goal for us is Himself.  Do you see Him and know Him as Abba?  The Great Father.  Watch the videos again at http://www.crazylovebook.com/  It will remind you who you are and of the crazy, totally undeserved love of God.
What a wonderful relationship I am building with my Maker.  I hope and pray that you all are building that relationship as well.  Have a great week! 

Smile for me my Texas Baby!

It is so hard for me to believe that this is already our third year for bluebonnet pictures with Kaden.  We go to the same spot every year.  Kind of a tradition now.  I love living in Texas.  The weather is just as moody as I am.  If you don't like the weather, hang around a few hours, it'll change before the end of the day to the extreme opposite of how the day started.  Texas weather is crazy, but I love it here, and really have no desire to ever live anywhere else.  Texas born and Texas is where I'll die, I hope.  We didn't get any pictures that I just love this year.  Mainly because I can't do too much with my camera right now.  I still haven't gotten it fixed. 

 

Just for fun, do ya'll remember this chunky monkey from 2009?  Only a couple of months old here.

And this one is in 2010, at about 14 months old! 

I can't believe how fast he has grown!

What have we been up to lately?  Besides working ourselves to death.  We have been growing some windowsill herbs in antique pots from Lance's Memaws house.  If you recall, Lance's grandmother passed away this past year at 100 years old.  We were able to get several old things from around her house and make them into planters. 

We have planted a very small garden in comparison to last year.  Just don't have the time or energy for it this year. 

My friend, Megan, has started selling Thirty-One bags.  It's a really neat company, Christian based, and they just have the cutest things.  Here are some of the things I have ordered over the past two months.

I am in LOVE with my draw string purse bag, and my matching Bible bag that I had monogrammed.  Isn't this a cute set?  I love it!  They both go with me everyday, and every where I go.

Also, I ordered this basket as a wedding gift and I'm going to fill it with all kinds of kitchen goodies.  I like it so much I am going to order some for the house now.  And I know it will be so cute as a wedding gift.  You can do so many things with this basket.  It can be a toilet paper roll holer and magazine rack or towels; it can hold gift wrapping station stuff; it can hold cleaning supplies, etc.  And, it comes in different sizes, this is a small one.

And, last but certainly not least, I ordered this insulated lunch bag, with my name on it.  I take it to school everyday with my lunch in it.  It's a great size, but if anything I would buy the next size bigger. 

My Mom made these WONDERFUL signs for me for my classroom.  I can't wait to take them to school Monday and hang them up!  They are hand painted, custom ordered by me on canvases.  My Mom would be happy to special make any of these you would like to have made as teacher gifts or just as gifts.  She can do what ever size and color and design you want.  If you are interested in a canvas of your own, just email me at kellymabe@yahoo.com

I hope ya'll are having a great weekend! 

2 Year Well Visit & More

This is Kaden in his two year old Sunday School class with his Daddy.  There are three sweet boys in his class.

We were delayed getting to the two year well check at the pediatricians office.  The day it was scheduled for the first week of February, Kaden's actual 2 year birthday, was a snow day.  So, we had to rescedule for a whole month later.  He went for his well visit with his Daddy.  This is the very first time I did not go to the doctor with Kaden.  I was the only one who felt bad about it, I don't think Kaden cared, in fact, he'd prefer to go with his Daddy over me anyday.  Kaden is CRAZY about Daddy!  He's a Daddy's boy for sure!  :)

Kaden now can TALK to his doctor.  He says her name and told her all kinds of things at the visit.  Our pediatrician is pregnant and expecting her third baby boy.  She was trying for a girl. 

This is Daddy and Kaden putting on stickers, this was Valentine's Day week and he learned how God loved him.  This is Mrs. Judy his teacher, she is a wonderful Christian lady that has been leading choir at our church my whole life.

The visit went well.  My child, as usual, is HUGE!  He weighed in at 34 pounds and 2 ozs.  (95%)  Last week at my doctor visit that he had to go one with me, he weighed 34 pounds and 6 ozs.  He's such a heavy boy!  He is 37 1/2 inches tall. (95%)  That's just over three feet at TWO!  If the old saying is true that you can take their height at two and add the same height to it and that is how tall they will be.  If this is true he will be over 6 foot tall!  CRAZY!!!  I'm 5'8 and Lance is 5'10.  Kaden head measured 19 3/4 inch (90%).  Kaden had to get one booster shot at this visit and he took it like a champ!

Kaden is very healthy and happy and for that I couldn't be happier or thank God more.  My prayers have been answered for a healthy child.  

This is the three boys playing music with their songs they are singing.  They love this!

We are working on discipline a lot these days.  Kaden is VERY strong willed (like his Mother).  He has starting telling me and Lance "NO!" when he doesn't want to do something.  He tests us to the max!  I am consistent in telling him No firmly once and telling him if you do that again you sit on the couch.  He does it again, he gets a spanking (pat on the diaper!) and a sit down on the couch for two minutes.  It works because he cries and hates this time-out time!  He is definitely a child that will have to be spanked to know his limits.  After about a minute and a half, he starts saying this... "I SOWRY MOMMY!"  "I SOWRY!"  It's so cute.  He always says he is sorry when he gets up and I always give a hug and tell him that Mommy loves him very much but you can't blah, blah, or blah.  For the most part this goes well.  So far.

Playing music in Sunday School.

Kaden is unfortunately NOT sleeping in his own bed.  He sleeps with us, terrible to admit, but true.  With both our work schedules and how tired we are in the evenings it has been impossible to fight the screaming and crying all night if we try to put him in his bed.  The only way he sleeps in his bed is if one of us sleeps with him in it.  This is something we are about to change.  I am going to put a small toddler bed beside our bed in HOPES that he will sleep in it and that will be a great start to getting him out of our bed.  Kaden did sleep in his own crib PERFECTLY until last July, at which time Lance switched to a day shift from a night shift job.  Kaden slept in his bed when it was just me and him here because he knew I made him.  Lance won't make him though, and he can't stand it if he cries, so he rescues him.  A couple nights of rescues turned into Kaden in bed with us every night, because at the same time I started my Ag teaching job and was exhausted at night to the point of "I don't care what ya'll do, just let me get some sleep so I can function tomorrow!"  This is how it happened, and 9 months later, he's still in our bed.  It is getting ridiculous!  He is WAY to big and we don't sleep well with him in the bed.  It's time to CHANGE this pattern.  Just wish Daddy would jump on board.  Pray about that for me.



This is who Kaden looks forward to seeing at church.  He loves his Peepaw (my Dad) and Granny Cay (My Step-Mom)  These pictures are blurry because my lens is jammed, this being the reason for not so many pictures.  Urrrggghhh!!!

This is what Kaden does between Sunday School and church time, climbs up in the choir.  See his little head up there?

 These are horrible pictures of myself, but Lance and Kaden got to attend a Saturday FFA Event with me. I was so proud to have them there.  It was nice to finally have my family at work with me!  Loved having them there.

  There's my boys!  Love THEM!!!!

Spring Break Wrap-up!

This is for you, Amy!  :)
How can Spring Break be almost over so quickly?  Why does it seem the time just flies away when we are on a break?  I am not, for any reason, looking forward to work on Monday.  I need another week.  :)
I haven't taken many pictures of Kaden in the past two months because my new (bought in July) Cannon Rebel T1i decided to break.  The smaller lens has a jam in it, and I CAN NOT make it work.  Therefore, no pictutres.  Luckily, the other day my friend Crystal let me borrow her lens to take pictures at our trip to the zoo. 
Crystal and I taught together three full years ago at the same school, and she has Mason, who will be 2 in May.  Kaden and I went to the zoo with them on Wednesday this week.  It was so much fun!
This is Mason hugging Kaden...

Kaden hugging Mason...

My little monkey...

Isn't he precious?

The boys looking at SNAKES!!!  YUCK!  Says Kaden!!!

Mason thought this was FUN to go down the stairs in the stroller!

Oh Mason, you little cutie!

Kaden standing in an elephant track!  :)

And Mason!

Look how little our boys are in comparison to an elephant.

This little boy loves the zoo!  He walked the entire zoo, never set down or rode in the stroller.  He was a trooper.  And a very tired little boy in the early afternoon.

After we left the zoo, we went to Chick-fil-A for lunch. 

Kaden loves the chicken nuggets there, he also got chocolate milk and a fruit cup.  He ate every bite! 

I am so thankful for the time I got to spend with my little boy this week.  He is getting sweeter and sweeter every day.  I love him so!

Crazy Love II

I just really feel like this book is something important that I want to remember and be able to refer back to often, therefore it is worthy of my blogging time.  After all, these are the most important lessons in life.
Again, a large part of these notes are straight from Francis Chan's book, Crazy Love, I am not taking credit for his words here.
{Chapter 2} You may not finish this chapter.
On the average day we live caught up in ourselves.  To-do lists, (Amen! I feel like a walking sticky note most days with my job!)  appointments, focus on family, thinking about our desires and needs.  On the average day we don't consider God very much.  We forget that our life truly is a vapor.  There is nothing normal about today.  Think about everything that must function properly just for you to survive.  It's crazy that we think today is just another day to do what we want to with it. 
James 4:13-14 "Come now, you who say, Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business, and make a profit.  Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow.  You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away." 
Do you really believe you could vanish at any moment?  That perhaps today you will die?  Or do you instead somehow feel invincible? 
Justified Stress
Heart Palpitations related to stress?  When I was honest, I knew what the problem was, I was immersed and overcome by stress.  When I surrendered all of my worries and stress to God and my symptoms slowly went away.  ( I have PERSONALLY experienced this first hand, I KNOW that God is faithful when we surrender our fears and worry to Him)
Natural Worries, I was the worrying kind, I'm a problem solver, I have to focus on things that need fixed. 
Then, there's the command:"Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say again: "Rejoice!"  -Philippians 4:4 
You'll notice it doesn't end in "...unless your doing something extremely important."  It's a command for all of us, and it follows with the charge, "Do not be anxious about anything." (Verse 6)
When I am consumed by my problems and stressed out about my life, my family, my job~I actually convey the belief that I think the circumstances are more important than God's command to always rejoice.
Worry  implies that we don't quite trust God is big enough, powerful enough, or loving enough to take care of what is happening in our lives.  (Kaden's 2 year old class in learning a song in Sunday School that we sing each week, it says, "My God is SO BIG, SO STRONG and SO MIGHTY, there's nothing my God Can NOT do!"  I love that he is learning this truth so early in life.)
Stress says that the things we are involved in are important enough to merit our impatience, our lack of grace toward others, or our tight grip of control.  These two behaviors communicate that it is okay to sin and not trust God because the stuff in my life is somehow exceptional.  Worry and stress reek of arrogance.  They declare our tendency to forget that we've been forgiven, that our lives here are brief, that we are headed to a place where we won't be lonely, afraid, or hurt ever again, and that in the context of God's strength, our problems are small, indeed. 
Why are we so quick to forget God?  Who do we think we are?  I am still dumb enough to forget that life is all about God and not about me at all.  Basically, our life is worth about 2/5ths of a second in the movie of God's life.  Corinthians 10:31 says, "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."  That is what each of our 2/5ths of a second is about.  What does that mean for you?    Frankly, you need to get over yourself!  God has allowed struggles in your life so you can show the world that your God is great and that knowing Him brings peace and joy, even when life is hard.  Psalm 73:3 "For I was envious of the arrogant as I saw the prosperity of the wicked."  (Verse 13) " Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and washed my hands in innocence." (Verse 16-17) "When I pondered to understand this, it was troublesome to my sight, until I came into the sanctuary of God; then I perceived their end."
It doesn't matter what place you find your life in right now, your part is to bring Him Glory!  The point of your life is to point to Him!  Whatever you are doing, God wants to be glorified, because this whole thing is His.  It is His movie, His world, His gift.
Thank God we are weak.
We forget we are not in control.  Isn't life always fragile?  As I sat holding my son, I realized that I couldn't control whether he would love God.  We should acknowledge our lack of control and reach out for God's help.  If life were stable, I'd never need God's help.  Since it's not, I reach out to Him regularly.  I am thankful for the unknowns and that I don't have control, because it makes me run to God.
Throughout time, 125,000,000,000 people have lived on this earth.  In about 50 years no one will remember you.  Everyone you know will be dead (give or take a few years).  Certainly no one will care what job you had, what car you drove,  what school you attended, or what clothes you wore.  This can be terrifying and reassuring. 
Are you ready?  Matthew 10:32-33 "Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven, but whoever disowns me before men, I will disown before my Father in heaven."
Be Faithful to Christ!
Ecclesiastes 7:2 " It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man; the living should take this to heart." 
Stories of those who died after living Godly lives are stories with happy endings.  Sadly, many people die while living selfishly.  The truth is, some people waste their lives.  All that matters is the reality of who we are before God. 
1 Corinthians 3:13-15 "His work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light.  It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work.  If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward.  If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames."
We have to realize that we can be the next person to die.  We have to believe it enough that it changes how we live.  We need to stop living selfish lives, forgetful of our God.  Our lives here are short, often unexpectedly so, and we can all stand to be reminded of it from time to time.  Nothing in life matters except our KING and our GOD.  Don't let yourself forget.  Soak it in and keep remembering that it is true.         HE IS EVERYTHING!
Now, I will be reading Chapter 3 throughout this next week.  Notes on Chapter 3 coming next weekend. 

Crazy Love.

I bought the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan back in July!  I had every intention of beginning the book as soon as I finished reading the Old Testament.  Well, it took me until the very end of the year to finish the Old Testament.  So, I didn't actually put off starting the book that long.  I am now reading the New Testament with this amazing book.  I read the first chapter and then decided it would be nice to have someone read along with me to converse about this book with.  Just to Talk about the things in the book and have someone to pray with.  Well, I invited my friend, Megan, to read the book with me.  She bought the book, and I'm pretty sure we've both read through Chapter 2 and we haven't been able to get together to talk about the book yet.  My schedule is INSANE!  So, I thought I would type out some of my hand written notes from my notebook on Chapter 1 here.  Some of this, (MOST of this), of course, is Francis Chan's words, straight out of his book.  I am not taking credit for any of his words here.  He is an amazing Christian man.  And this is an amazingly well written book.  I highly recommend it to you all. 
Here goes!
{ Chapter 1}
Stop Praying -  Stop talking at God and take a long hard look at Him before you speak another word.  Don't rush into God's presence with words.  The wise man comes to God without saying a word and stands in awe of Him.  Romans 1:20 "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and devine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse."
Video 1- Amazed that God created such a massive universe with such detail to our tiny planet in the grand scheme of things.  My response is, "Who do I think I am?" "Why should I be worthy?" It blows me away to think of the details God put into little things-like insects and a leaf.  God definitely has a sense of humor!  Think of all the different laughs your friends have and then think about them all laughing together!  God's art speaks of Himself, reflecting who He is and what He is like.  Psalm 19:1-4 "The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the works of His hands.  Day to day pours forth speech and night to night reveals knowledge .  There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard.  Their line has gone out through all the earth, and their utterances to the end of the world.  In them He has placed a tent for the sun."  This is why we are called to worship Him.  His art, His handiwork, and His creation all echo the truth that He is glorious.  There is no other like Him.  He is the King of Kings, the Beginning and the End, the One who was and is to come.
Video 2- Just stop and think.  On some mornings I don't feel like loving God, or I just forget to.  Hundreds of things distract us from God. 
We forget that we already have EVERYTHING we need in HIM. 
What is God Himself like?  And, how do we learn to know Him?  What are His characteristics?  How are we to fear Him?  To Speak to Him? 
God is holy. We don't get to decide who God is.  God said to Moses, "I am who I am" (Exodus 3:14)  God is set apart, distinct from us.  Our words can not contain Him. 
God is eternal.  Each of us had a beginning; everything had a beginning but God.  He always has been, since before there was an Earth.  God is so much bigger, so far beyond our time incased, air/food/sleep-dependent lives.  Psalm 102:12 "But you, O Lord, abide forever, And Your name to all generations."  Psalm 102:27 "But You are the same, And Your years will not come to an end."
God is all knowing- Isn't this intimidating?  We can fool our friends and family, but you can never fool God.  He knows each of us, deeply and specifically.  He knows our thoughts before we think them.  We can not escape Him, not even if we want to.  David wrote Psalm 139, that even in the darkness he couldn't hide from God; that while he was in his mother's womb, God was there.
Hebrews 4:13 "And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him  with whom we have to do."
It is sobering to realize that the same God who is holy and eternal, the maker of the billions of galaxies and thousands of tree species, that this same God takes time to know all the littlest details about each of us.  He doesn't have to know us so well, but He chooses to. 
Psalm 139 is a favorite of mine and I wrote it OVER and OVER while I was pregnant with Kaden.  It just REALLY speaks to me.  Here it is:
"O Lord, You have searched me and known me.  You know my sitting down  and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off.  You comprehend my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways.  For there is not a word on my tongue, but behold, O Lord, You know it altogether.  You have hedged me behind and before, and laid Your hand upon me.  Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high, I cannot attain.  Where can I go from Your Spirit?  Or where can I flee from Your presence?  If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.  If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me.  If I say, "Surely the darkness shall fall on me,"  Even the night shall be light about me; Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, But the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You, but the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You.  For you formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb.  I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.  My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.  Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.  And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.  How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!  How great is the sum of them!  If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake, I am still with You.  Oh, that You would slay the wicked, O God!  Depart from me therefore, you bloodthirsty men.  For they speak against You wickedly; Your enemies take Your name in vain.  Do I not hate them, O Lord, who hate You?  And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?  I hate them with perfect hatred; I count them my enemies.  Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting." 
I just LOVE Psalm 139 for SO many reasons!  I hope you can find special meaning in it too!
God is all-powerful
Colossians 1:16 "For by Him all things were created both in the heavens and on the earth,visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things have been created through Him and for Him.
Don't we live instead like God is created for us?  To bless us, to take care of our loved ones?  I heard something this week that REALLY stuck with me, "Don't tell God how big your mountain is, tell your mountain how big your God is."Amen!  Isn't that the truth?  And don't we all need that reminder from time to time???  I LOVE that saying, I will use it FOREVER!
God has more of a right to question us, than us Him.
Daniel 4:35 "All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, but He does according to His will in the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of earth; And no one can ward off His hand or say to Him, "What have You done?"
God is fair and just
God is the only Being who is good, and the standards are set by Him.  God hates sin, He had to punish those guilty of sin.  (This is portrayed over and over and over again in the Old Testament, which I just spent the last year reading.)  God says in Proverbs 8:13 "I hate pride and arrogance."  God never excuses sin.  Whenever we start to question whether God really hates sin, we have only to think of the cross, where HIS SON was tortured, mocked, and beaten because of sin.  Our sin.  No question about it:  God hates and punishes sin.
Many facets of God expand beyond our comprehension.  He can not be fully explained by our vocabulary, or grasped by our understanding.   Revelations 4 & Isaiah 6 describe a Heavenly Throne Room.  In Revelations, when John recounts his experience of seeing God, its as though he is scrambling for earthly words to describe the vision he was privileged  to see.  He describes the "One" seated on the throne with two gems, "jasper and carnelian,"' and a rainbow that looked like an emerald.  God resembles radiant jewels more than flesh and blood.  Imagine the most beautiful sun set you've ever seen and the lack of words to describe it.  John describes flashes of lightning and rumblings of thunder coming from God's throne, there were 7 blazing torches before the throne and a sea of glass that looks like crystal.  He described those who surrounded God, 24 elders dressed in white wearing golden crowns.  Four 6-winged beings with eyes all over their bodies and wings.  One has the face of a lion, one an ox, one a man, one an eagle.  It would be terrifying to see one of these creatures out in the woods.  He tells us what the beings are saying.  24 elders cast their golden crowns before the One on the throne, fall on their faces before Him, and say, "You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being."  At the same time the four creatures never stop day or night saying, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come!"  Just imagine being in that room.
The prophet Isaiah also had a vision of God in His throne room, "I saw the Lord seated on the throne."  Isaiah saw that and lived?  The Israelites hid themselves whenever God passed by their camp because they were too afraid to look at Him.  They were scared they would die if they saw God.  But Isaiah looked and saw God.  The bottom of God's robe filled the whole temple and the seraphin appeared above Him.  Each had six wings similar to John's description.  Isaiah says they called out to one another, saying, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Alimghty; the whole earth is full of His glory!"  Then the foundations shook and smoke filled the house.  His words to God,"Woe is me...I am ruined!  For I am a man of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty."  And then one of the seraphim brings Isaiah a piece of burning coal that had been smoldering on the altar.  The creature touches Isaiah's mouth with the hot coal and tells him that his guilt is taken away. 
John's description helps us imagine what the throne room of God looks like, while Isaiah reminds us what our only response to such a God should be.
May Isaiah's cry become our own.  Woe is me!  We are a people of unclean lips! 
This is how we should approach God, I am unclean...
Go read Isaiah 6 and Revelation 4. 
Stand in awe of God, stand in silence before God who's tremendous worth becomes even more apparent as we see our own puny selves in comparison. 

This concludes Chapter 1.  Chapter 2 notes to come very soon.  I also bought this book for my best friend, Hilary last night and gave it to her.  She is going to be reading as well.