Five-Minute Friday |

Five-Minute Friday: “View”

24 May, 2013 by Celeste Vaughan 9 Comments

It’s Five-Minute Friday again when we write for five minutes unedited. Today’s topic is “view.” One, two, three…Go!

Your view of the world is uniquely yours.

It is how you look at life. Not just through your eyes, but through your ears, nose, mouth, and fingertips…and your heart.

As life happens, your view changes.

Standing at that sacred altar, vowing to leave your mother and father to create a life with the one you’ve chosen.

Touching tiny toes, captivated by the awe of a new baby, wondering how your heart can possibly stay within the confines of your ribcage.

Sitting beside a hospital bed while your daddy moves from this life into the next.

Realizing you are not perfect when addiction has blindsided you and permeated every facet of your existence.

Experiencing the extraordinary love of Christ when the word “miracle” becomes so personal and real you are forever changed.

When you realize complete wholeness can only be understood after complete brokenness. Click HERE to tweet Smile1

Your view of the world is uniquely yours.

Learn from it. Embrace it. Share it.

To check out some other posts on the word “view,” hop on over to Lisa-Jo’s blog to see who else linked up. Be ready to be amazed…some great writer’s over there

Just click on her button:

Filed Under: Five-Minute Friday, Miracles Do Happen

Five-Minute Friday~”Comfort”

10 May, 2013 by Celeste Vaughan 8 Comments

Comfort…

Snuggling with our puppies

A white goose-down comforter

A fire in the fireplace

A warm cup of tea on a cold day

Cuddling with my kids to watch a movie

Sleeping late with my hubby on a Saturday morning

Reading a book in my loft watching the rain out the window

A hot bubble bath

But the ultimate comfort: Knowing that God sent His son to die on the cross for our sins so we can spend eternity with Him in Heaven!

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16 )

In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. (John 14:2-3 ESV)

But honestly, my greatest comfort right now is knowing that this week is over, my hubby is on his way home, and I have medicine waiting at the pharmacy to nurse my strep throat.

My five minutes is up, my day is over, my week is done.

Have a great weekend and don’t forget to check out the other great “comfort” posts over at Lisa-Jo’s blog

And say a quick prayer for my throat

Filed Under: Five-Minute Friday

Five-Minute Friday~ “Brave”

3 May, 2013 by Celeste Vaughan 8 Comments

Five minutes: Go

When I think of the word “Brave,” I think, “What does it take to be brave?”

Fear. Without fear, there would be no need for bravery. So it takes fear to be brave.

Courage. Without courage, it would be impossible to be brave. So it takes courage to be brave.

Then there’s that verse: If God is for us, who can be against us? That verse that we hear so often, but it’s so hard to really believe…absorb…down deep to the core. But it really takes God to be brave.

Of course there are people against us. Sometimes, it seems like the whole world is against us. But when all is said and done, who is the One that really matters? Who is the One that we will spend eternity with in Heaven? Who is the One that created us for His pleasure?

So many things in this world require us to be brave.

Sending your child to college away for the first time
Watching your daddy die of cancer and your mom carry on without him
Announcing to the world that you have an addiction
Explaining to your child the process of having to put her beloved pet to sleep
Flying across the ocean in an airplane

And those are big things. Life…every single day…requires us to be brave.

But because we have the hope and power of an almighty God on our side, we really have nothing to fear.

Fear + Courage + God = Brave. Click HERE to tweet that

Because if Him, we’ve got this!

Five minutes up: Stop.

(That one took more thought than usual…didn’t get too many words out in those 5 minutes!)

What does it take for you to be brave?

Linking up with Lisa Jo over at the Gypsy Mama for Five-Minute Friday. Click on her button to check out some others thoughts on “Brave.”

Filed Under: Fighting Your Fears, Five-Minute Friday

Five-Minute Friday: “Friends”

26 April, 2013 by Celeste Vaughan 11 Comments

My brain explodes as I try to write for only five minutes about friends.

Friends shape who you are.

My very first friend I met standing in the middle of the street at 2 years old as she instructed me, “never say the word ‘damn’.” We are still best friends today. I love you Jacqueline!

My best college friend waits for me in Heaven. Oh how I wish I could turn back time, though I’m sure I couldn’t have changed the outcome. We were the best of friends, but circumstances were too much for her to bear. I long for the days we talked on the phone so long I couldn’t straighten my arm. I miss you Patty.

My best Jesus-loving friend taught me so much about my friend, Jesus. Can’t wait to come see you in Prague in July Betsy!

I married my lifetime best friend. He still works on shaping me every day. It’s hard for me to admit I need it, and that he’s usually right. Ugh! I’ll pay for writing that sentence. Just watch for a comment… I love you anyway honey!

I had a friend who turned her back on me many years ago. I still don’t know why.

Friends go through good and bad together. It’s the good ones who stick out the bad.

High school friends. College friends. Church friends. Work friends. I love them all dearly as they have all made me who I am today.

As I watch my children grow, I pray that they will choose their friends wisely. And they will be best of friends to each other.

Most of all, I pray that they will always keep Jesus as their closest and most treasured friend. For He is a friend who loves like no other.

Five minutes up….Stop.

Linking up with The Gypsy Mama today for Five-Minute Friday on “friends.’ Click on her button to Hop over to Lisa-Jo’s blog and and check out the other links!

Filed Under: Five-Minute Friday

Five-Minute Friday~”Jump”

19 April, 2013 by Celeste Vaughan 13 Comments

Linking up with Lisa-Jo over at The Gypsy Mama for Five-Minute Friday. One word topic, write for five minutes, stop.

Today’s word is “Jump.”

Go…

When I was 8 years old, I was determined to break the world record for jumping rope. I was pretty good at it, and just knew I could do it. Three hours later and days from the record, I was pooped! But I tried. I jumped.

In the days after the Boston Marathon bomb and the school shooting in Newtown, CT, fear seems to creep in to my mind easily. The older I get, the more tragedy I see in this world. Part of me wants to homeschool the kids, put away non-perishable food in storage, and get bullet-proof windows put on the house. But that would be living in fear.

As a child, I never though of these things. My kids, after living these tragedies, don’t want to hide from the world.

Terrible things happen. We can’t explain them. But I know that God has a plan. God is in control. God has already overcome all of the turmoil in this world.

In this world you will have trouble, but take heart. I have overcome the world. (John 16:33)

We don’t have to live in fear. Through Jesus, we have the power to live on faith. (Click here to tweet )

So don’t hesitate… JUMP!

Stop. Time’s up!

Click on the button below and check out some of the other great posts linked up with Lisa-Jo!

Filed Under: Five-Minute Friday, Living in Faith Tagged With: faith, fear, jump

Five-Minute Friday~”Here”

12 April, 2013 by Celeste Vaughan 6 Comments

{Now honestly, here is where I want to be}

Just one from all the gems

But “Here” is somewhere for everybody. “Here” may be:

On the Peter Pan ride at Disney World
In the hospital surrounded by concerned family
On a soccer field being cheered on by fans
Sitting at your desk at work thinking, “how is it only 8:57 Am?”
Writing a Five-Minute Friday post in my pj’s with my dog snoring beside me.

I used to wish away my “here.” If only I could…

Get married
Have a baby
Make enough money to be a stay-at-home mom
Organize my house so it’s easier to keep clean
Lose that extra 15 pounds
Finish that scrapbook
Finish writing this book I may never finish

Somewhere along the way, I realized I was wishing my life away. My life is “HERE.” Not tomorrow, not 5 minutes from now, not yesterday. No more “If only I could do this, then I could relax and enjoy my here and now.”

Here I am happy.

Here I am content.

Here I am blessed.

Here sometimes I’m sad.

Here sometimes I’m frustrated.

Here sometimes I’m mad.

But here is where I am, and I’m choosing to enjoy the moment.

There will come a day when “Here” is no more. I hope I get to see the rapture in one of my “here” moments. But whether or not I do, when I’m no longer “Here,” I’ll be with Jesus!

Linking up with Lisa-Jo today for Five-Minute Friday. Click on the button and jump over to read more five-minute posts!

Filed Under: Five-Minute Friday

Five-Minute Friday~”AFTER”

5 April, 2013 by Celeste Vaughan 18 Comments

Linking up with The Gypsy Mama (Lisa-Jo) today for Five-Minute Friday.

Today’s prompt is “After”

Ready…Set…Go!

Defining moments. They tend to occur AFTER something happens…whether it’s an event, an accomplishment, a tragedy…and it made me think of the defining moments in my life.

AFTER I graduated from high school

AFTER I graduated from pharmacy school

AFTER I married my high-school sweetheart

AFTER my life was uprooted to move to Atlanta

AFTER the birth of my first baby girl

AFTER my marriage almost fell apart due to unmet expectations

AFTER we decided to keep the commitments we made before each other and God and chose to fall in love again

AFTER the birth of my baby boy

AFTER the death of my daddy to lung cancer~he’d never smoked a cigarette in his life

AFTER the remarriage of my mom to an incredible man I’m proud to call my stepdad

AFTER the birth of my third child…second little girl

AFTER a grand-mal seizure struck me down at a birthday party

AFTER more seizures resulting in broken bones and sinus surgery

AFTER realized I’d gotten addicted to the narcotics I’d taken to get through the pain

AFTER I went to the most horrible place in my life I’d ever been

AFTER seven years of searching for a cure while struggling to hide my addiction

AFTER I stopped praying for healing and the rapture and began praying for God’s purpose

AFTER God healed me on September 25, 2010 in an overnight miracle

AFTER God restored my soul and my family

Many defining moments, all occurring AFTER the event. I think this is why God doesn’t let us see the future. How many of these awesome defining moments would we miss?

Filed Under: Five-Minute Friday

Five Minute Friday~Broken

29 March, 2013 by Celeste Vaughan 9 Comments

Broken.

I get so frustrated over broken dishwashers, piled up laundry, and dog hair on the floor. I forget what’s important. I am broken.

Young school children happily carrying on their day have their lives abruptly and horrifically taken by a crazed gunman. Our community is broken.

Pornography is readily available to anyone on the Internet. Many dollars and days are being spent in Washington DC arguing gay marriage. Drug addiction is rising faster than ever before. Our nation is broken.

Orphanages are overflowing in Russia and Romania. Thousands of children in India are enslaved in rock quarries where they work, sleep, and eat one meal a day. Our world is broken.

Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” (Matthew 26:26 ESV)

Thankfully, Jesus is not broken. He died on the cross to make us whole, bearing the burden of all our sin.

He is whole, and through him I can be whole. Our community can be whole. Our nation can be whole. Our world can be whole.

Why won’t we accept Him?

It takes less than the five minutes I took to write this post.

Linking up with Lisa-Jo over at The Gypsy Mama today for Five Minute Friday. Check out all of the other posts linked up today!

Filed Under: Five-Minute Friday

Five-minute Friday~Remembering to be Thankful

22 March, 2013 by Celeste Vaughan 13 Comments

Five minutes. Okay. I can do this. This is my first time participating in the five-minute Friday linkup, but I thought it would be a great exercise to hone my writing skills…or just randomly throw my thoughts out to the world-wide web I’m linking up with Lisa-Jo Baker over at The Gypsy Mama and today’s topic is “Remember.”

My hubby has been out of town for the last three days, so it’s been just me at home with the kiddos. Three years ago, I wouldn’t have been capable or trustworthy enough to handle it. Headaches, seizures, depression, insomnia, addiction…I was a mess.

So this morning, though I really wanted to stay in bed, I got up, got the kids ready, and made it to school with time to spare. Sounds so simple, doesn’t it? For me, it used to be impossible. Besides the fact I was a wreck personally, I couldn’t drive anyway because of the seizures. Way too much responsibility fell on my hubby. Those memories make me sad, but I do remember. I do remember all that he did. And does.

I don’t praise him enough, usually because then I never hear the end of it. But he is awesome.

So honey, I hope you read this! This Five-Minute Friday is in honor of you…because when you’re gone, I realize all you had to do for the seven years I was gone…or at least not completely present.

I love you!

Filed Under: Five-Minute Friday

Five-Minute Friday: “View”

Five-Minute Friday~”Comfort”

Five-Minute Friday~ “Brave”

Five-Minute Friday: “Friends”

Five-Minute Friday~”Jump”

Five-Minute Friday~”Here”

Five-Minute Friday~”AFTER”

Five Minute Friday~Broken

Five-minute Friday~Remembering to be Thankful

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