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So I have this little addiction. It's not necessarily a bad, bad addiction...nothing like drugs or even alcohol (although at one point in my life that may have been true...thank God for salvation and transformation through His son, Jesus Christ!)...but none-the-less it is an addiction.

I can't get enough of it. If I have a free moment I find myself surrounded with it. I think of it when I am not engaged in it and I just constantly want more of it.

Yep...addiction!

You see it's this little 'ol website some of you have probably heard of:

P-I-N-T-E-R-E-S-T

People post pictures of all kinds of everything...
         from recipes
             to room ideas
                to clothing options
                   to Bible verses
                      and much much more.

And you can steal that picture and "pin it" to your board.

Now, you see I rarely go back to my pins. I mean once in awhile I will try a new recipe and my kids will say, "Mom, was this a Pinterest find?"  But other than that, it's not like my wardrobe has magically changed into what the pins look like (or my hair) (or my house).

So in some sense it is like a little fantasy world.

Some people even have boards that allude to that...called "some day" or "one day when I am rich" or "when I have my own place".

It's a world we would LOVE to have, but don't quite yet.
     Perfectly curled hair with the simplest little highlights,
                 a wonderfully painted sign on pallet boards above the bed that says,
                                 "all because two people fell in love",
                 and a pair of camel colored boots with just a bit of sock showing
                  flanking our tight fitting blue jeans and off white sweater.

It's a fantasy world really.

So I started thinking about Pinterest and for some reason I made a connection to what my prayer world can look like sometimes.

"God, please remove this problem I have at work."
"God please heal my cold."
"God please bless our efforts at the fundraiser today."
"God please let my children become perfect little beings who never disobey and always tell their mother they love her and go on to be amazing missionaries for you."
"God please let the 10 pounds of Christmas candy miraculously fall off my body despite this extremely non-healthy, 1 stick of butter and a packet of ranch dressing chicken from Pinterest I am about to eat."

It's my little fanstasy world playing out to my God. To the creator of the universe I am asking for a fantasy world. Not HIS WILL. Not what will help extend His kingdom. Not what He wants or desires or knows will bring my co-workers, my neighbors, my friends, my family, the lady in the convenience store, or myself closer to HIM....but my little fantasy world of help me be comfortable and be able to eat what I want and oh yeah, look adorable while doing it.... prayer life!

YIKES!
Can anyone taste the conviction alongside my cup of peppermint mocha this morning?

So today, today I will try to stop "Pinning" to my God. Today I will try to start praising Him. In the good and the bad. In the hard and the easy. In the known and the unknown. I will praise Him!

"Our father who art in Heaven, HALLOWED BE THY NAME!"
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Today I will try to focus on His will. On His plan. On His desires. And rest in knowing that the creator of the universe probably has more in mind for me than brownies with a strawberry on top that looks like a Santa Claus hat (Yes, one of the top "Pins" of 2012!)

"Thy kingdom come, THY WILL BE DONE, on earth as it is in heaven."
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Today, I will ask for what I need. What God believes I need. I will accept what I am given, whether in abundance of simple contentment.

"Give us this day our daily bread"
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Today I will remember I am a sinner in front of a HOLY GOD. I will remember that I need forgiveness daily but that my sins are blotted out and become white as snow when I approach the throne of my father in heaven with the blood shed by his son! And I will remember to forgive others as he has forgiven me...if the recipe doesn't work, if the laundry isn't done, if the words are not kind...

"and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us"
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Today Lord I will remember that not all things that look good are truly good. I will remember that I am easily led astray by the fantasy world of Pinterest or other online sites or the lives of my friends and families that I may covet. I will remember that Satan is real and alive and hates the Christian faith. He prowls around waiting to devour us and others. I am in need of a leader in you  Lord....let me remember to simply follow.

"and lead us not into temptation but deliver from the evil one"
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Today Lord...let me take my life, the life you give me, the breath you provide every second and just live it for you...right now. Not a fantasy, not a dream, but a reality of the wonderful works you have and are about to do in my world!

Jen