Author: Tammy M Cardwell

The Power of Journaling

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I discovered the power of journaling decades ago when I was going through an especially hard time. The thoughts in my head stayed confused, whirling about so fast I could seldom catch them and hold them still long enough to actively think on them. I had become frustrated, judgmental, constantly anxious and unsatisfied. I was a Christian at the time, and I prayed, but even my prayers were unfocused and frustrating. And then, one evening while sitting in a laundry mat with a room full of other people,  something wonderful happened.

Since I couldn’t pray openly, like I usually did, I began to write my prayers down in a notebook. I poured out my heart to God in a different way and discovered something totally unanticipated. I was finally able to actually catch the thoughts and put them into some order. I felt, for the first time in a while, that what I was saying was actually making some sense, and having finally grasped those myriad words and crammed them onto paper, I was able to sit back and actually hear God’s voice for the first time in too long.

He told me to go back and read what I’d written, and as I read He pointed out every time I used the word *I*. It was humbling. Right there, in black and white, in my own handwriting, was proof that I had completely lost focus. My attention had wandered away from Him and onto every bad thing I perceived to be in my life. I had become completely focused on ME and how I felt everything was wrong.

The words on the page truly represented the attitude I’d had for a long time, and I knew it. He’d known it all along, but my brain had been so busy griping, moaning, and complaining that I couldn’t hear Him. Like an avalanche carries away an unprepared skier, they had completely consumed me and I was alone in the noise until I found the way to still them.

That experience taught me a great lesson about journaling, and I have kept many journals through the years – some prayer journals and some just records of things I’ve been thinking about that I don’t want to forget. I even have a small journal I carry in my purse today so that I can remember the special things God shows me no matter when I happen to see them.

I also have a formal prayer journal, one I was given on my birthday last year, and it has revolutionized my prayer life. Just this morning I was thanking God for it, because I was trying to pray during my first “get ready” minutes, before I pulled the journal out, and I found my mind wandering all sorts of rabbit trails instead of talking to Him about the things I wanted to discuss. My brain can be like that at times, especially in the morning, but the journal helps it wake up and focus, helps me stay true to what I want to do.

It also serves as a permanent record. I may have only had the journal about a month and a half, but I’ve gone back and reread some of its entries multiple times so that I can keep myself on track, so that I don’t forget the things God has revealed to me and the path I want to walk. This has proven to be a great help in keeping me on the right path in my walk with God.

Whether for prayer, or only for personal use, I highly recommend the journal. Write it down so that you can get it out of your head. Write it down so that you can read it again and actually see what you’re really saying (Just be prepared for a shock, because we can be much more self-centered than we realize.). Write it down so that you can remember, later, what you’ve learned today. The pen really is a mighty tool.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Slow Down!

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Hello. My name is Tammy Cardwell, and I move too fast.

I have moved too fast most of my life. In school, I learned that moving quickly from class to class gave me more time to read. This began a habit of walking fast that still gets me in trouble today as my shorter friends and relatives have to call out from somewhere behind me, “Slow down!” Truly, unless I’m on a deserted road in the country, intentionally idling away the time, I forget there is a such a word as “amble.”

All of which is bad enough, but when you hear God calling out, “Slow down,” as I have, you know you’ve gone beyond a lack of courtesy and are veering into dangerous territory.

He reminded me, recently, that it is those who wait upon the Lord that renew their strength. Too often, I listen to one part of what He says and move forward without hearing Him out completely. This is something I do to people as well, and I assure all of you that I really am working on it!

So, in a recent conversation, God reminded me that it is the warrior who waits to hear everything his superior has to say that is strengthened for battle, and the server who waits to hear everything his customer has to say that is strengthened for service.

It’s bad enough when my friends have to tell me to slow down. It’s far worse when it’s God sitting there, patiently waiting for me to return and actually hear Him out so that I can be strengthened for what lies ahead.

So if you hear me muttering, “Slow down, Tammy.” Don’t worry about me talking to myself. I’m just reminding me before someone else has to.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Peppermint Essential Oil

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Peppermint Oil

As is true for any regular essential oils user, I definitely have my favorite oils. One of these is peppermint.

Historically, it’s been used for centuries to “soothe digestive difficulties, freshen breath, and relieve colic, gas, headaches, heartburn, and indigestion.”* I drink of a drop in an ounce or two of water regularly to help support my digestive system and fight off symptoms that might indicate acid reflux. (Not prescribing here. just sharing my story.) I also use it in the diffuser to support my respiratory system; on my skin to soothe itching, muscle pain, and hot flashes; and more.

Most Young Living oils can be ingested anyway, but peppermint is one of the essential oils that are generally regarded as safe (GRAS) for human consumption regardless of who produces it. (Not recommended for children under 6) I’ve already said I use a drop in an ounce or two of water, but you can also mix it with other liquids and even cook with it.

I diffuse it fairly often both because I appreciate the scent and I find that it helps me maintain a stronger respiratory system. It also repels rodents and insects, a fact that has been a big blessing this winter! It does more, though, and there’s one thing in particular that parents and college students should bear in mind. It helps you think!

Seriously! Dr. Dembar, of the University of Cincinnati, did a study and found that inhaling peppermint oil increased the mental accuracy of students by up to 28%.*

A few things to be aware of concerning peppermint oil.
1. Using it repeatedly in the same place on your skin might result in contact sensitivity. I just don’t use it in the same place twice in a row.
2. There is some concern that it may adversely affect people who have high blood pressure.
3. You should use it with caution during pregnancy.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

*Reference Guide for Essential Oils, by Connie and Alan Higley, 3013 Edition

Those People

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Everyone seems to have a few of “those people” in their lives. You know the ones I mean. They’re the paranoid person who constantly complains about all of the plots people are hatching against them, the OCD person who has to carefully script every conversation, the one who is always asking for your help but never offering theirs even when they can clearly see you need it… It seems they have only one things in common; they can rub you raw… and if they’re Christians, they can REALLY rub you raw.

The Word of God says, in Proverbs 27:17, that “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” When I said they rub you raw? There is a reason. God often puts people like this in our lives for this very purpose, to teach us what it is to truly love as He loves.

It is easy to love those who treat us well, who love us the way we expect to be loved or at least behave the way we expect them to act. That type of love is good, but if we aspire to love like Jesus loved, we must go further – a lot further. One step along that path is to learn to love “those people” – to genuinely feel compassion for the one who is so consumed with paranoia that all of their conversations center around the enemies that surround them. True love listens, true love responds by encouraging them in the Lord and giving them the Word of God to stand on, and true loves prays for them with a heart that genuinely cares for their well-being. Yes, frustration may enter in – we see in Scripture that even God got frustrated on occasion – but true love responds as God is inclined to respond, with mercy and compassion.

If we genuinely wish to learn to love as God loves, we should thank Him for putting those people into our lives and let Him use them to push us closer to Him.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Shut Up, Devil!

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Have you ever heard someone argue with their electronic navigator, be it Siri, Tom Tom, or something else, talking back to it as if it’s a reasonable being and they can somehow change its mind? For the onlooker, it can be funny or frustrating, but one thing is sure – it’s pointless. Siri may be giving you completely wrong information, but simply talking to it… or yelling at it… won’t accomplish anything; you have to shut it up.

The same is true in our dealings with the devil. Arguing with him is every bit as productive. It accomplishes nothing but raising your fear level and blood pressure. We have to shut him up too. How do we do that? The same way Jesus did.

Jesus spent forty days fasting in the desert. Fasting is interesting in that it does tremendous things for your faith while challenging your body. The devil knows this, so he comes in right away to try to steal what God is giving you. So here he is, challenging Jesus at the end of this fast, and what does Jesus do? Argue? Not even!

“It is written,” He says, then He hits the devil with God’s Word. The third time He says, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written…” In other words, “Shut up, Devil. God says…”

Here, then, is our example. We don’t argue with the devil, we remind him of what God says. God’s Word is a mighty weapon, and proper use of it by us can shut him up as completely as it did on that day. Of course, this means we must know it, must have the Word hidden in our hearts so we can pull it out as soon as the devil speaks.

If he’s been speaking to you lately, and you don’t quite know how to fight back, get into the Bible. You can even go to sites like www.blueletterbible.org and search by keywords to find what you need.

Here’s one verse for starters. Is the devil telling you that you can’t do something God wants you to do? Tell him that, according to Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!”

Yes, you can. You can shut the devil up!

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Give Thanks

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I’ve been working through a new prayer journal I was given for my birthday in December, and one of the things I most appreciate about it is that it reminds me daily that we are to come to Him with thanksgiving.

Psalm 100:4 says, “Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise; be thankful unto him, and bless his name.” This is how we should come before God. He blesses us constantly. When we come to Him in prayer, we should first bless Him: Thank Him for all He has done, is doing, and will do, and praise Him for Who He is.

Putting thanksgiving and praise first changes our whole attitude toward prayer. It reminds us that He is not a server at a fast-food window, but a loving father who wants to sit down with us and give us the very best. It builds our faith as we remember all of the wonderful – even wonderfully small – things He’s already done for us; and if we plan to ask Him for anything, we need faith to believe He will answer!

I tried keeping a thanksgiving journal once before, and it was reasonably successful, but I found myself thanking Him only for what I saw as…well, not necessarily “big” things, but readily noticeable things. Now, though, beginning my days in thanks as I do, I find myself coming more like a child who thanks her daddy for every small thing – and in doing so I am reminded over and over again that a lot of those “small things” aren’t really that small after all.

At the very least, they are a continual reminder that He is interested in every area of my life – every minor incident, every dark corner… and I am truly thankful for this, because there have been quite a few of both. Honestly, some days I get so caught up in thanking God in my morning prayers that I don’t make it much further through the journal, and you know what? I find the requests I was going to make still get answered anyway…thanks to Him.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Fasting

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You’re seeing Christians fasting all over the net. It happens every January. Why?

Answer: More than you can imagine if you’re not one of them.

Fasting is too big a topic to truly cover in one blog entry; it would take books. Fortunately, books have been writing about it – including some excellent books by Jentzen Franklin.

I can tell you this. It is probably the thing most Christians are least likely to want to do, but it is one of the most powerful things we can do. The benefits of a true fast (which, at its simplest, is abstaining from things you very much want and spending more time with God instead) are mind blowing.

For me, one of the most exciting things about fasting is the way it hits a spiritual reset button in my life. It brings my focus back to God and His thoughts and intents. Spending more intentional time with God, like you do with a friend you love dearly, also leads to hearing things from Him that are truly life changing.

These are both reasons why many fast in January specifically. After the busy lives we’ve led during the last two months, it helps to stop, sit, and really focus on God so that He can help you get back on the right path if you’ve strayed any, prepare you for what is coming, and help you grow even more than usual.

Usually, when you hear of people fasting, they’re fasting “for” something – seeking an answer – which is fine too. Even when I fast simply out of obedience however, because God told me to, I do it with expectancy, because miracles usually come as a result of genuine, spiritual fasts: open doors, healings, favor in situations…

Like I said, mind blowing.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Forgive Me

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I’ve been thinking some more about unforgiveness. I’m pretty good at forgiving. I try hard to give people the benefit of the doubt and accept them for what they are instead of having unrealistic expectations…to let go.

Other people, that is.

Forgiving myself is another matter entirely. It seems like every time I turn around God is saying, “Tammy, we’ve had this conversation before. I forgave you. If I forgave you, you can certainly forgive yourself.” Most recently, it was…

We’ve been over this. Holding onto your own past mistakes is twice as destructive as holding onto the mistakes of others… Don’t you realize how much Paul had to forgive himself for? You’ve never murdered anyone; he did. He had so much wrong in his life… but he was able to forgive himself so completely that he was able to stand before the very people he had been killing and say, “I have wronged no man.” And he meant it.

You are a new creation every time you ask me for forgiveness, Tammy. Let that old creature go!”

None of us are perfect. This is one fact we should always remember as we are put in positions were we need to forgive – especially when the ones needing forgiven are Me, Myself, and I.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Love One Another Part 4

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To continue my previous thoughts, I return to Matthew Henry.

Our love to one another must be free and ready, laborous and expensive, constant and persevering; it must be love to the souls one of another. We must also love one another from this nature, and upon this consideration – because Christ has loved us.

Just as Jesus told us when the widow gave her two mites, Matthew Henry reminds us that true love costs us something. It is easy for me to hug a friend and tell her I love her; it costs me something to take time out of a busy schedule to run her on errands when she can’t drive herself.

We should also love our brothers and sisters in Christ genuinely, as the individuals they are with all their faults and failures. I like how he puts it: “to the souls.”

Finally, he points out that this showing of love isn’t merely to be something we do, but it is to be part of our very nature because Christs has loved us.

Part of our nature…

Observe, we must have love, not only show love, but have it in the root and habit of it, and have it when there is not any present occasion to show it; have it ready.

And again…

When our brethren stand in need of help from us, and we have an opportunity of being service able to them, when they differ in opinion and practice from us, or are any ways rivals with or provoking to us, and so we have an occasion to condescend and forgive, in such cases as this it will be known whether we have this badge of Chris’s Disciples.

It’s a challenge; there’s no doubt about it. Even so, it is the love Jesus demonstrated for us, and since He said we can do all He did… We can do this!

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C