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| December 21, 2008 Blessings from the Bittinger family! We wanted to take a moment to reflect on the joy of this season and express our love and gratitude to our Loving Father for our friends and family and tell you all that you are loved deeply, celebrated daily and missed terribly! Brian and I started the year in a whirlwind of wedding plans preparing for the day we would become one. Since that day, we’ve embarked on an amazing journey together that has moved us both physically and spiritually As you know, Brian and I moved from Virginia to Tucson for “just a season” in order for Brian to accumulate more flight time towards his career. This officially marked the 5th state I would live in from 2007-2008! Although our “season” in Tucson started out feeling like “somewhere between Canaan and Eqypt”, God met us in our “desert” experience and poured out His compassion and great love yet again by giving us an incredible gift. . . The Rock of Sahuarita Church. Not only were we given a dynamic place to serve and worship . . . He gave us a family to love and grow with. We were adopted and grafted into the family of believers at the Rock . . . as well as the family of the Pastor! Brian and I have had the incredible honor of blending our lives with Tim and Christy Olof, their amazing children, Chandler, Collin, Cade and Chad when we moved in with them in October! We have fallen in love with each of them and cannot wait for all of our family across the country to meet them. We were also blessed as Brian was assigned students to train in Tucson. We officially adopted Kiran, Rakesh, Saurabh, and Mandar; four Indian students from across the globe, as family as well. These young men were not only Brian’s students, but our friends and we have developed a deep love for them. What an amazing journey we have all begun. Called to a majestic and powerful commission. . . To know Him and make Him known. I mean that is the real meaning of Christmas, isn’t it? To accept and intimately know the Savior sent from heaven born as a tiny baby full of all the power of the Kingdom. To worship Him with the offering of our gifts, our hearts, our lives. Are we not to be continuously captivated by His gaze? To be so in love with Him we are compelled to announce to the world that He has come to set the captive free and an empty tomb is bursting with life more abundant! As I mentioned earlier, God has moved us spiritually this last year as well. Something has been awakened in us both. It wasn’t just a book or a sermon series or a retreat that moved us. It was the Spirit of God and the people He used behind those things that made us come to grips with where our lives are heading as the body of Christ in light of His Word. It’s been a deepening of our love that is spurned us to leave behind the material things that have gripped us so long. To live our lives in such a way that leaves us slave to nothing except Christ and His kingdom. This is our Christmas prayer. To be emptied of us. To be full of Him. To love without prejudice. To reach out to others without fear or boundaries. To awaken others to the glory of His Power! Our heart is to tell each of you that you are amazing in his eyes. You are the work of His hands. You are the child He longs to hold. Yes . . .this is the season to celebrate the birth of the Savior of us all! How better to honor Christ than to let Him be glorified in us. We love each of you so much. You are the courageous prophets of OUR lives. We need your correction, your prayer, your grace and your love and we long to be used in your lives for the same end. We want to share a video with you that provoked us to these prayers. It is a simple thought and a clever package. But at the root of the message is the heart of God. Less of us . . . more of Him. All our love, prayers, and blessings, Brian and Cassie | | |
| some random thoughts and the journey of a heart
Somehow I found harmony within the heartache, almost beyond reach. There is something beautiful about these ordinary days. My heart is bruised but not broken . . . Oh how I feel so frail; this heaviness stealing my youthful soul. I need to clear my busy mind cause I don't feel like myself at all . . . as if the blue had left my skies. Please give me a reason to breathe. Somewhere between the dreaming and the coming true. . . my heart betrayed me - left alone by silent rings. Inhabit me again - time has taken it's toll. I bend - I break - but I don't give up. It's the way I mend - tear it down and start again. Hard to negotiate the exit from conversation - consumed by every crumb like honey on my lips. Threads and shadows of dark and lonely streets - unraveling edges -- this path where I was led - I am not alone. Ever present in time of need . . . You whisper to me and embrace the adultress . . . carry me as I run for my life precious, celebrated, beautiful -- Your words take me higher. *thank you shawn mcdonald | | |
| I am part of the Fellowship of the Unashamed. The die has been cast. The decision has been made. I have stepped over the line. I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. I'm finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap giving and dwarfed goals. I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits or popularity. I don't have to be first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, love with patience, live by prayer and labor with power. My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions are few, my Guide is reliable, and my mission is clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured way, turned back, deluded or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of he enemy, and ponder at the pool of popularity or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I won't give up, shut up let up or slow up until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up and spoken up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all know and work till He stops me. And when he comes for His own, he will have no problem recognizing me. My banner is clear: I am a part of the "Fellowship of the Unashamed". ~Author: Fellow Warrior It's been a long time since I've been here - but this HAS to be posted EVERYWHERE! | | |
| This entry** is a comment I posted in response to an entry from Christopher_Warrior, an incredible blog worth reading whenever you get a chance. Just thought the ideas he wrote and what God has been showing me lately was worth sharing. Love all of you here in Xangaland. Happy Thanksgiving my brothers and sisters in Christ! May you and your families be blessed beyond measure as you celebrate family and friends this season. ~In Christ~ Cassie **Ah . . . those proverbial dangling carrots. Thank you for the prophetic encouragement . . . you do have a way with words my friend. Just a note on the season thing . . . God has been dealing with me about seasons in my life and the things I tend to pine for out of His will. They are my ignorant attempts at moving my life ahead of or out of the season He is using to change me. But I know even when I pursue selfish fulfilment or foolish "carrots" - I am assured that Christ is all about giving us hope that a new season is on the way. I was praying about the holidays coming up and the single life and what would honor God the most in my life as I walk out yet another holiday season alone. His Spirit was so sweet and real to me in that moment and He led me to Song of Songs (which is the last place a lamenting singlet wants to go:) . Chapter 2 verse 10 says "My beloved speaks to me: "Arise, my love, my beautiful one, and come away, for behold, the winter is past; the rain is over and gone." I felt as if He had spoken it to me personally in that moment, and yet those words were penned hundreds of years ago. It was a sweet reminder that God knew where my heart was and that I needed to be reassured that this season will pass -- whether it be lonliness, brokeness, discontent, impatience. . . .whatever the season - He is bringing it to pass and the winter of the soul will come to an end. Not sure if any of this speaks to you or if I've just wasted 5min of your life . . . but take heart . . . spring is in the air! Happy Thanksgiving Warrior . . .be blessed! | | |
| I've been spending a lot of time lately on God's exam table. Where surgery is done without anesthetic and without apology. Not that God is slicing and dicing without my knowledge or permission. However, I find myself to be very complacent in the fact I consider myself to be "ok" most of the time. I don't "feel" the need to walk into the surgery suite and climb on up to invite God to examine and cut away the disease that eats at my gut. Deadly issues of my spirit that I hardly ever look at because my heart and mind are focused on the temporary issues of my flesh. Disease that, if left undiscovered or ignored, will kill me . . . spiritually. Soul cancer.
The reason I share this is due to the state of the heart I have found myelf to be in as of late. As repulsive as it is for me to admit , I have become selfish and complacent on levels I have never known. I have found myself wrapped in self-pity and isolation because I was unaware how dark my heart had become. Blame it on living 6 hours from home, financial stress, missing family and friends or a loosening of spiritual disciplines. But the bottom line is that much of this "soul cancer" cannot be mended with a simple procedure. It has brought me, yet again, to a place of major brokeness and a crisis of character . . . major surgery.
Throughout the Word - God instructs us that we need to examine our heart (1 Cor 11:28) In fact, times of examination should be constant in the life of a Christian, although as I have grown in the Lord, I have found the incisions seem to be go deeper and the healing process is longer. We also need to circumcise our heart (Deu 10:16). The idea of circumcision speaks of purifying the heart. "Cutting" away that which can block or hinder God reaching the most tender, intimate and responsive part of our being . . . the heart. We should also beware of our heart's deceitfullness (Jer 17:9). We need to be aware of the fact that our hearts can lead us astray and paint pictures that are far from God's plan for us. This sheds light as to why many fall away from God when THEIR plans fall through, THEIR bright ideas are not blessed and THEIR selfish desires are not fulfilled.
So today, I encourage you to be bold enough to climb up on that table.
It hurts. But from ashes comes beauty.
It's humiliating. But God honors the humble.
Sometimes it's a cold hard reality check. But thank God His love IS our reality.
But without exception, God is there as a compassionate loving surgeon, looking into your eyes knowing that His hand and His love will bring miraculous healing and recovery to the worst case scenarios.
Those who enter the suite never come out the same. Forever changed for the glory of God!
Less of us and more of Him!
The fear of the LORD teaches a man wisdom, and humility comes before honor.
To man belong the plans of the heart, but from the LORD comes the reply of the tongue. All a man's ways seem innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the LORD. Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.
Proverbs 15:33-16:3 | | |
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