“Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vine; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the Lord!  I will be joyful in the God of my salvation.”  Habakkuk 3:17-18

With an economy that is still affecting so many people financially, it can be difficult to find joy in many circumstances.  This passage from Habakkuk reminds me that God is good all of the time, even through barren resources, failed attempts and loss of positions.  Our salvation alone is reason to find joy and strength.  No matter how much we lose in the physical world, we will always have our salvation to cling to.

We sang a great old hymn this past weekend at my church that I can’t seem to get out of my mind this morning. 

On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross the emblem of sufferin’ and shame
And I love that old cross where the dearest and best
For a world of lost sinners were slain
So I’ll cherish the old rugged cross till my trophies at last I lay down
I will cling to the old rugged cross and exchange it some day for a crown

Now, I don’t know about you, but that is pretty amazing news.  That exchange is one I can find joy in no matter what my circumstances may be.  Even death can’t keep this joy from me.  So for this week, even if our circumstances don’t allow us to buy the biggest and best turkey, or our loved ones can’t join us due to lack of means to travel, we can cling to that old rugged cross, and find our joy in Christ.  A thankful heart is a wonderful gift to our Maker and a great way to show gratitude for all He has so freely given us.  Happy Thanksgiving from SweeT-Shirt!!

1 Thessalonians 5:18 Give thanks in all circumstances

Thankful. It’s a word I didn’t utter often enough my first decade as a parent. My children, like all kids can be turkeys at times. I focused on their behavior when it was a bottom and for the most part ignored opportunities for praise. That all changed in 2002 when my life shattered.

I found myself a single mother of two children – desperate, lonely, unwanted. In the midst of sadness, hope ambled into my life on the legs of an East Texas cowboy. He brought with him a renewed faith in God, marriage and eventually two more children. God gave me a second chance at life.

Now my days are filled with less turkey and more thanksgiving. It’s hard to notice what your kids are doing wrong when you’re holding them tight and whispering prayers of gratitude to God. This November why don’t you join me and form a new Thanksgiving tradition? One where gratitude fills the everyday spaces of our lives.

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Shannon is married to Scott Milholland, Chief Operating Officer of Hope Church, Cordova, Tennessee. God has blessed Scott and Shannon with four daughters – Hannah, Hayleigh, Clara and Carynne. Shannon finds joy, purpose and contentment among laundry, dishes and endless errands and delights in helping other women find that place of joy in life.

Shannon is the author of a blog entitled “Jesus and My Orange Juice”. In her blog, she offers inspiration and practical advise on how God’s word speaks into the crazy life of an ordinary wife and mom. She also speaks on a variety of topics bringing messages packed with encouragement and wisdom.

We were up against a rock and a hard place.  There was literally no way humanly possible for the package to arrive in Memphis in time to get it to Little Rock.  There were 10 women counting on rhinestone tee shirts with the breast cancer ribbons and their company name above so they could walk for the cause in unity and spirit.  SweeT-Shirt had done everything possible to get the designs in plenty of time, but due to a series of frustrating setbacks, the package was held in customs for 2 full days and it was completely out of our hands.

So I called Brandy on Wednesday to let her know how things were unfolding, starting to doubt that this would truly happen for her customers.  Yet, she remained faithful and I must say, after getting off the phone, I found a little faith again.  On Thursday morning, I began to doubt again realizing mid-day that the package was still in Hong Kong in tansit to Anchorage.  The race was in Little Rock in 2 days and we would be lucky to have the designs by end of day Friday in Memphis.  All UPS representatives we spoke with said there was no way to get the designs early until the first delievry attempt was made, so even if it got to Memphis by some miracle, we still could not recieve until late Friday.  Every time I spoke with Brandy, we agreed that God can always make a way.  We went to bed on Thursday night with a peace neither one of us could explain.   Each of us had spent the past 2 days in prayer about it.  We would text prayers to each other and it was a unity that brought me peace.  We each agreed that having the same faith together made each of us stronger in circumstances we would have typically come unglued in.  We were living proof of Matthew 18:20, “For whenever 2 or more are gathered in my name, there I am among them.”

So I drove to UPS store on Friday morning with blind faith.  I had no idea if the package was there, but I believed that everything would be taken care of either way.  On my way home, I found myself in laughter.  I was reminded in no subtle way how God continues to be in control, even when we think it is up to us.  It had taken not even 5 minutes to realize the fate of the little package, and I resolved to know what God’s plans had been for the delay.  If I had it to do all over again, I wouldn’t change the circumstances for the little nugget of faith that was learned from it all.  The breast cancer ribbons sparkled in the seat beside me and I couldn’t stop smiling as me and Brandy discussed the details like little kids on Christmas morning.  How delightful for our father to experience our joy in trusting Him through a very doubtful situation.  I wish I always had faith like that.  Maybe finding a faithful friend to lean on during our experiences and trials is the answer.  Maybe believing when we ask God in prayer that the answer is taken care of is what we are called to do.  All I know is this:  God answers prayer and is always right on time!

Hebrews 13:5 Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.

I was walking around the living room frothing and working myself up into Threat Level Red mom fit as I picked up a trail of candy wrappers that would cause envy even in the likes of Hansel and Gretel. It was a just a few days past Halloween and my home had been converted to a candy wrapper trauma center.

As I huffed, puffed and picked up wrappers, I flashed back to a Christmas over a decade ago when I had “graciously” provided the candy wrapper pick-up duty for my nieces and nephews. As I did so, I thought to myself what a great mom I was to my solitary child whom I had in my watchful eye at all times. She would never be so inconsiderate because I was after all a superior mother and wouldn’t raise a child with such poor manners.

Turns out I was absolutely correct. I didn’t raise a child with sub-par candy wrapper manners; I raised four of them.  Ouch!

Immediately my candy wrapper pity party evaporated as I considered my heart – past and present. I realized that long ago I set unrealistic standards for mothering that no person could ever uphold.

Are you ever tempted to rate your performance as a mom based on imaginary standards such as candy wrappers?  I am and it catapults me straight into the eye of a mommy storm.  I feel like a failure as a mom and project my children’s foolish behavior onto myself.  I mark my grade with the proverbial “F”.

When I’m tempted to go this bad mommy place, I think of my parent – the Heavenly One.  He doesn’t throw a fit when my heart gets polluted by sinful attitudes.  He doesn’t get huffy when cross words float from my lips as easily as litter flutters to the floor.  He knows my behavior is not a reflection of Him.  He sees beyond my packaging to my heart.

There He inserts the sweetness of His grace as He whispers, “Pick up the wrappers and hand them to me.  I can handle your litter.”  What freedom in knowing He doesn’t keep a report card.  What great comfort in realizing God stands with me even in my worst moments as a mom.

When my serving tank runs low, I can pull into His filling station.

If I feel under qualified or overworked, I can access His resume.

When feelings of inadequacy or failure threaten to flood, He will dam the river.

Jesus, You never grumble when I drop candy wrappers or any of my other garbage in Your lap. No matter how many times You’ve taught me a lesson, You just gently remind me of Your truth once again. You love me.  Period.  No expectations.

This morning You are a “Post-it note” to my heart of how important it is for me to stay tuned into You. Today may Your patience with me be reflected in my dealings with my kids, my spouse and anyone else who happens along my candy-wrapper ladened life.

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Shannon is married to Scott Milholland, Chief Operating Officer of Hope Church, Cordova, Tennessee. God has blessed Scott and Shannon with four daughters – Hannah, Hayleigh, Clara and Carynne. Shannon finds joy, purpose and contentment among laundry, dishes and endless errands and delights in helping other women find that place of joy in life.

Shannon is the author of a blog entitled “Jesus and My Orange Juice”. In her blog, she offers inspiration and practical advise on how God’s word speaks into the crazy life of an ordinary wife and mom. She also speaks on a variety of topics bringing messages packed with encouragement and wisdom.

When I first became involved with SweeT-Shirt, I was already  a loyal customer. I love the bling and my jeweled shirts were quickly taking over my closet.  So, I decided it might be a good idea to become a SweeT-Shirt rep, not only because I loved the shirts, but also as a way to fund my daughter’s competitive dance fees.

My daughter, Brooke, is a precious ray of light whom gives me so much joy. Since she started dancing when she was 2 years old, the number of hours we spent at the studio gradually continued to grow.

As our family time continued to dwindle, my heart began to ache.  My son, Brady, and I found ourselves resenting the long hours we spent, sitting in that parking lot waiting on Brooke to come out. So, I went to God.

I knew He would help me with all things. I also, knew I had to change the way we spent our time. How I could say that we put God first in our family life while we spent far more time on extra-curricular activities?

God helped us see how precious time is and that we need to make the most of every minute together. So although Brooke still dances, she no longer competes.  We have more time together as a family and we have time to enjoy all of God’s sweet blessings without so much rushing around.

Brooke and I now do SweeT-Shirt shows together.  Whether we sell 2 shirts or 20, we love that precious time together as mother and daughter. When we have a show or wear our jeweled shirts, we are able to share the story of SweeT-Shirt and the ministry it represents.

Although I am still a busy mom, God is in control of our time now and helps us to enjoy each minute together!

Luke 19:10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.

Lately my youngest has taken a keen interest in putting together puzzles. My middle two daughters showed little fascination with puzzles so she’s pulling out boxes untouched for as long as a decade. She dumps out the pieces, sorts them and in no time has all the pieces together. The problem is quite often the puzzle is missing a piece. The picture just doesn’t look right without the final piece in place.

Some of these puzzle boxes have resided in six different homes located in three different states. No matter how long I searched, I could not locate the rouge shapes. For us, those pieces are gone forever.

Each of us starts out life as a missing piece. We are disconnected from God by wrong thoughts, words and actions. But no matter how far away from the puzzle we move, God never loses track of us.

He searches for and finds His missing puzzle pieces. All we have to do is agree to be reconnected.

Do you feel disconnected from God today? Allow Him to pick you up and place you back where you belong – connected to the One who fashioned you to be perfectly intertwined with Him.

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Shannon is married to Scott Milholland, Chief Operating Officer of Hope Church, Cordova, Tennessee. God has blessed Scott and Shannon with four daughters – Hannah, Hayleigh, Clara and Carynne. Shannon finds joy, purpose and contentment among laundry, dishes and endless errands and delights in helping other women find that place of joy in life.

Shannon is the author of a blog entitled “Jesus and My Orange Juice”. In her blog, she offers inspiration and practical advise on how God’s word speaks into the crazy life of an ordinary wife and mom. She also speaks on a variety of topics bringing messages packed with encouragement and wisdom.

I have the most unusual yet entertaining story to share with you involving a very old reptile and a friend of mine.  Sam, a Galapagos Tortoise, decided to take a stroll from his suburban home in Germantown TN, when he was discovered by a neighbor nearly 4 blocks away.  Imagine the shock to see such a creature meandering through the quiet streets of her home.  This is no box turtle mind you, this is a creature weighing in about the same as your average sixth grader.   Sam had made his way into April’s yard where there were plenty of fresh plants and grass to feed on.  My animal loving friend was bewildered to find Sam, yet quickly prayed about what in the world to do next.  No one had heard of Sam or had seen him before, so it was uncertain that anyone would ever claim him.  After a few days of care, she decided to place Sam at a nearby greenbelt area known as Wolf River and let him live out the rest of his long life in a natural environment.  Dropping Sam off on the North side of the river, April and Sam parted ways and she prayed that she had made the right decision in leaving him there.

Well…a few days later,  Sam’s owner was found on her street posting flyers in search of his…yes, you guessed it… Galapagos Tortoise!  As it turns out, Sam had been in the family for 3 generations and was 80 years old!!  Sam had somehow escaped his home and his owner had been searching ever since.  April was devastated to know that she had given away such a family pet!  She drove the owner to the place where she had let Sam roam free and made herself available as a search party volunteer should he need one.  She immediately prayed to God about Sam and wanted so badly for Him to redeem the situation.  She prayed that God would allow her to be a part of the recovery process of the animal and believed in her heart that God would answer.

Anything is Possible if a person believes…Mark 9:23

About a week later, April received a phone call from her son who was biking through the Wolf River Trails and had stumbled upon Sam the tortoise!  The interesting thing is that he was biking on the South side of Wolf River, not the North side where Sam was dropped off.   Tortoises may enjoy wading in very shallow water, but they do not have limbs or bodies built for swimming.

With God, everything is possible…Matthew 19:26

April joined her son and husband at Wolf River and promptly returned Sam to his home.  This is a picture of Sam when he was lost.  Now he is found and is back at home…

Psalm 119:30, 32 I have chosen the way of truth; I have set my heart on your laws. I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free.

One of my all-time favorite movies is The Shawshank Redemption. The main character, Andy Dufresne, is falsely accused and wrongfully imprisoned in Shawshank prison. After nearly twenty years of incarceration, Andy escapes. As his intricate plan of departure unfolds, the audience realizes that Andy had spent many painstaking years chipping away at the prison walls with a tiny pickax he had hidden in the pages of his Bible. The vile warden had quipped years earlier that, “salvation lies within.” That certainly proved true for Andy Dufresne.

I‘ve been reading 2 Timothy. Paul writes Timothy while shackled in prison. He even invites Timothy to join him in his suffering. That is one party invitation I do not want to find in my mailbox. In reality, rain falls into the life of every person. God doesn’t skirt storms around the homes of those who love and worship Him. The difference between one walking with God and one who is not isn’t whether the storms come, it is how they react to the weather.

As Paul writes from his dank confinement, he relates to Timothy that “God’s word is not chained.” Power, promise and provision lie in those pages. Andy Dufresne found logistical freedom tucked between the covers of his Bible. It appears, however, that he missed the greatest treasure – what was written on the pages he destroyed while concealing his implement.

God’s Word isn’t chained but all to often we keep it neatly tucked on our bookshelf instead of hiding it in our hearts. When we do so, we render its’ life-changing power useless. For many years I knew about the Bible. I even knew all the major stories, characters and passages. Like Andy, I was wrongfully imprisoned. My cell was a joyless life devoid of knowing the pleasure of walking with God. As I began to open the pages of God’s love letter, I found the secret to handling the storms of life. My rain clouds gave way to sunshine. No the weather did not change but my reaction to it altered dramatically.

Jesus, thank you for Your Word that delivers Your people from chains. Salvation truly lies within the timeless pages of Your book. Today I will escape away with You and find salvation within.

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Shannon is married to Scott Milholland, Chief Operating Officer of Hope Church, Cordova, Tennessee. God has blessed Scott and Shannon with four daughters – Hannah, Hayleigh, Clara and Carynne. Shannon finds joy, purpose and contentment among laundry, dishes and endless errands and delights in helping other women find that place of joy in life.

Shannon is the author of a blog entitled “Jesus and My Orange Juice”. In her blog, she offers inspiration and practical advise on how God’s word speaks into the crazy life of an ordinary wife and mom. She also speaks on a variety of topics bringing messages packed with encouragement and wisdom.

Brandy Cross Fitted Shirt

By Jill Dyson

I have a cousin who I connected with last Fall for the first time really.  We were introduced as toddlers, but didn’t come to truly know each other until last season.  I was in Little Rock during a big show put on by the Jr. League and I can remember my mom saying that my cousins were going to stop by perhaps and see my booth for SweeT-Shirts.  Since I was away from home for the week, it was comforting to know some familiar faces would be there.  Brandy Vines and her mom Joy showed up as promised and the connection was instantaneous.  Brandy and I spoke about the ministry a bit, she purchased a couple of tee shirts and I gave them each a “Jane” cross SweeT-Shirt in honor of my mother since they knew her story.  Little did I know that God had planned on connecting me and Brandy through that cross…  Now, almost a year later, the two of us speak every week about our growing ministry.  As a SweeT-Rep, Brandy not only spreads the ministry to people of Little Rock, but also uses it to financially bless her family.  Not long ago, Brandy sent me the following e-mail and it made me smile to see the impact that the ministry is making and how God continues to bless us with amazing partners!  I had to share her personal testimony…

“It’s crazy how I have not had to “market” these designs to make it successful.  I’ve only had one home show so far too….I just know that the Lord is going to bless my family through all of this…

I finally understand that there is a bigger purpose to this whole endeavor than I am able to visualize thru my “here and now” perspective.  I have no idea what  God has in store but I’m learning so much everyday about just being still and knowing that He has a plan that will become more and more clear in HIS time.  In the mean time, I’m just blindly trusting that He knows my needs and will continue to meet them as I follow and heed to His will.  I’ve learned so much these past few months about the business world and about trusting God when I can’t see the purpose or even possibly visualize the outcome of what I’m doing.

And I just thought I was signing up to sell some shirts….