Scents to Success

Jesus in the Passover - Part 3

2010-04-02T10:12:00.005-04:00

Second Cup Section

The Second Cup represents the plaques or judgements. The head of the household takes up another piece of Matzah and tells the people that "This is the bread of our affliction." It is pointed out how the Matzah is pierced and striped. Since there is no leaven in the flat bread it leaves the bread pierced and striped. Remember Isaiah 53:5? It says: "For He was pierced through for our transgressions and with His Stripes we are healed." A blessing is recited and then everyone eats of the Matzah bread. Next is the Maror. The Maror is the dipping of the bitter herbs. A piece of Matzah is dipped into horseradish, enough to bring tears to the eyes. Everyone eats the Maror together after more recitation and blessing.

The Charoseth (this is the good stuff, sweet) is taken next. The Charoseth is a mixture of apples, nuts, and grape juice (or wine) that signifies the mortar the Israelites used while in bondage to Pharoah. The sweetness of the Matzah dipped in the Charoseth helps one to look at the joy in the midst of the troubles., "for the redeemed have both His promise and His presence (Nadler, p.11)."

The Baytsah is the egg or Haggigah. This recalls the fact that Temple sacrifices no longer exist. As mentioned in the Haggadah, " the egg is round, endless, like life eternal coming out of bondage is like being brought back from the dead. For our redemption, Messiah was raised from teh dead. The redeemed of the Lord shall be with Messiah forever! We have been released from our bondage in sin, and the fear of death. Hallelujah (pg. 11)!"

A tradition of the Passover is the reciting of four questions performed by a child. Usually after this a responsive reading of Exodus 12:1-13 is led by the head. This is where the plagues are remembered. The significance of the blood on the doorposts and lintels is mentioned at this time.

Mr. Nadler points out in The Messianic Haggadah that:
"God was looking for a sign; for He was not going to redeem people merely of the flesh, but people of faith. The blood had to be applied for judgement to 'pass over' their homes. The blood applied as the Scriptures prescribes makes for a sign of redemption that speaks of great redemption from a far more terrible judgement that sign takes our attention to 100 B.C. and Psalm 22:16... They pierced My hands and My feet, describing how Messiah would die. That sign then takes our attention to 700 B.C. and Isaiah 53:7, He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, describing Messiah's identification with the Passover Lamb in His death.
Finally, our attention comes to Golgotha, Calvary, where the Messiah Yeshua, the true lamb of God was nailed to the executioner's stake and God fulfilled His promise for our eternal redemption.
Whether it was Abraham, Moses, David, or Isaiah, people have alwaya been redeemed the same way, at all times: by faith (Gen. 15:6). Prior to Messiah's coming, people had faith that anticipated what God would provide. After Messiah's coming and in our day, people have faith that appropriates what God has provided: All with the same faith trusting Yeshua, the centerpiece of history (Nadler, 14-15)."

Next Zoroah (the shankbone of the Lamb) is mentioned. It is on the Seder plate as a reminder of the last and final sacrifice that was made for our redemption, THE Lamb. The Zoroah means literally 'arm' or 'the arm of the Lord that delivers us from bondage forever.' The second Cup ends with a blessing and a drink of the second cup.

After the Second cup a meal is eaten which is called Shulcan Orech.

Third Cup Section

The Third cup stands for redemption. The children look for the Afikomen, and whoever finds it receives a reward from the Head of the household. Then everyone takes and eats part of the Afikomen which is the broken Matzah. This is the last bite of food that is taken as a reminder of the Passover Lamb, the last sacrifice for our redemption. For those who do not recognize the Messiah this part is a reminder of the redemption out of Egypt, but for those who are Christians the broken Afikomen is eaten in rememberance of Him. A blessing is recited. After the head leads with more responsive reading, this time about the New Covenant, another blessing is said over the third cup.

I hope you can see what the third cup section is. Every time that one participate in the Lord's Supper or Communion you are taking part in the Third cup section of the Passover. This is significant. As Nadler states in The Messianic Passover Haggadah,
"this bread and third cup remind us of the eternal relationship we have with our God, that we know Him, not merely know about Him. To know Him is relationship; to merely know about Him is religion. But how do we know Him, by way of the first two cups.
At the first cup, the broken Afikomen pictured that God would provide for our redemption. We could never redeem ourselves, but God alone would provide The Lamb...
At the second cup we recognize that the lamb was not only to be slain, but that the blood has to be applied to the door. If all the lambs of Egypt were slain but the blood unapplied, there would have been no Passover and no redemption.
So also, the fact that Messiah has been slain for our redemption does us no good, unless 'the blood has been applied.' By trusting in Messiah's sacrifice, we apply His blood as atonement to our heart's door. This is how we come to the third cup, the place of remembering the relationship we have by faith in Messiah, the provision of God (Nadler, 19)."

Fourth Cup Section

THe final cup is called the Hallel which means praise or Elijah's cup. In most homes that celebrate Passover this is the time that Elijah's seat is recognized as empty, and that neither he not the Messiah will come this year. They say: "La Shana Haba'ah B'Yerushalaim," meaning "Next year in Jerusalem." They have to wait another year for Hope to arrive, never understanding that He has already come. For the Christian this time is ended in praise and rejoicing for the coming time of Messiah's return. The final cup is blessed and drunk, and with joy the people look forward to being with the Lord in the New Jerusalem. The head of the household closes the Seder meal in prayer.

I hope that you see more clearly Jesus in the Passover. I know when I had the opportunity to first go to a Messianic Passover Seder and we got to the third cup section I got so excited to realize and comprehend more fully the significance of the Lord's Supper that we, Gentile Christians, celebrate. My hope is that you too will be excited at the significance of the Pasover as it relates to the Lord's Supper, and the importance that it has on life, our redemption from death's bondage that was paid by the atoning Blood of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. He paid a price we could not pay, and He paid a price He did not owe. What joy we should have in our hearts because of the Sacrifice of One Lamb, the Lamb of God.

Works cited:

Nadler, Sam. The Messianic Passover Haggadah. Word of Messiah Ministreis, 2000. Charlotte, NC

Jesus the Passover Lamb, Part 2

2010-04-01T20:22:00.005-04:00

Each household was to take a lamb on the tenth of the month (Nisan) for the purpose of guarding the household from death. Blood from the slaughtered lamb was to be put on the doorposts and lintel of the home as a sign to the Angel of Death to pass over the home. The Blood was a sign to the destroyer of the redemptive sacrifice that was made for the home, and like that sign of the blood on the doorpost, the redemptive blood of God's sacrifice, Jesus Christ, His firstborn and only Son, was made for ALL who accept Him as Savior and Lord. It is a sign of the pass over from death His blood freely gave us with all fullnes of mercy and grace. For those who have accepted Christ as their Savior, we have been marked by Christ's bloood, which covers us with his sufficient grace. Without the sign of the blood upon our lives we are lost without hope and in turn are left to the chains of eternal bondage that death imposes upon the lost, hardened heart.

Today, Messianic and non-messianic Jews, celebrate Passover in remberance of the deliverance or Exodus out of Egypt. In Exodus 12:24-25 the people are given a command by God to observe the Passover feast forever. Verse 27 states: "you shall say 'It is a Passover sacrifice to the LORD who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He smote the Egyptians, but spared our homes. '" For the most part the Jewish nation, as a whole, has kept the ordinance. However, among those who do observe Passover, there is a difference: whether or not they recognize Jesus, Yeshua, as the promised Messiah of Old Testament Scripture.

Preparations for Passover are very strict and thorough. The actual meal itself is called a Seder. Homes are prepared with the removal of unleavened bread. During the seven days of Passover only unleavened bread is to be eaten. Unleavened bread is bread without yeast. The unleavened bread symbolizes the haste in which the Israelites came out of Egypt. They were even told to eat with their loins girded (meaning their outer robe was to be tucked into their belt), their sandals on their feet and staff in hand. They were to be ready to travel, to leave, on a moments notice. The unleavened bread also has a Scriptural meaning. Leaven represents pride, sin and unbelief. The unleaven bread represents a purification from defilement of pride, sin and unbelief.

There were specific instructions on the preparation of the lamb. First, it was to be a year old lamb without blemish. The lamb actually represents Christ and His sacrificial atonement for sin; He was without blemish or in other word without sin. The Israelites were given a specific time span on when to kill the lamb. As mentioned earlier they were instructed to place the blood on the doorposts and lintels. Of course finding an unblemished lamb is difficult today for a modern observation of the Passover due to the urbanization of families.

Preparations in the heart also had to be made. Just like Gentile Christians, Messianinc Jews are under the New Covenant. (Messianic Jews are Jews who recognize and believe in their hearts that Jesus Christ was and is who He says He was, i.e. the Messiah.) The New Covenant emphasizes that unconfessed sin and pride (leaven) defiles the soul and disrupts our relationship with God. Any unconfessed sin or pride causes us to miss out on the blessings of God that He has promised we will have.

In Corinthians 5:6-8 we see the words: "Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough? Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavned. For Christ, our Passover also has been sacrificed. Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with unleavened bread of sincerity and truth." The blood that was placed on the doorposts and lintels signifies that the household had been purged of overy unclean thing meaning preparations had been made of cleaning out any and all leaven in the household. Our hearts must be purged of any sin. Acknowledging our sins to God and accepting His Son as Savior satisfies the condition of ridding our life of the leaven, but we still need to confess any sin in our life, because it keeps us from being in the right relationship with the Father. Christ's sacrifice, and our acceptance of Him as Lord and Savior, makes us unleavened since we are covered by the blood He shed on the cross.

Prepearions of the Hearld are also made in the home that is celebrating Passover. This means that the head of the house sits across from an empty seat in hope that Elijah, the prophet, will come heralding the coming of the Messiah. Sadly non-messianic Jews continue to wait for Elijah, when John the Baptist, who came in the spirit and power of Elijah (Luke 1:17) has already heralded the Lamb of God (John 1:29).

The actual Seder meal is divided into four parts. The Seder begins with the woman of the household reciting a blessing and lighting candles. The blessing (Messianic form ) states: "Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who has sanctified us through faith in Yeshua the Messiah, the Light of the world, and in His Name we kindle the Passover Lights." The head of the household then begins the Seder making sure that everyone present has a cup of the "fruit of the vine" (grape juice or wine). The cup of the "fruit of the vine" has great significance in that it is drunk a total of 4 specific times during the Seder as a remembrance of the blessings of redemption from Exodus 6:6-7.

First Cup Section

The First Cup Section signifies Sanctification. The first cup is blessed with a recitation of a blessing. "Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, Creator of the fruit of the vine." Then the Urchatz or washing of hands is performed in which the head of the household leads. At the Last Supper Jesus himself girded with a towel began to wash the Disciples feet and then wiped their feet with the towel (John 13:5). Throughout the First cup the head of the household leads the people with a series of recitations from Scripture. The head leads with a comment and verse and is followed by the others in attendance reading from the Haggadah (like an order of service).

Next they eat the Karpas (parsley or celery dipped in salt water). Eating the bitter herbs is done to identify with the bondage and the redemption from the bondage. The Karpas is eaten after another blessing and then the head leads in more recitation. The final part of the First Cup is the Echad. The Echad stands for unity and is signified by the threefold Matzah plate. The head takes out the middle piece of bread and breaks it in half, and then takes one half to place back on the plate, and the other piece, the Afikomen, in a napkin which he hides, only to be found by a child during the third cup. The Afikomen is hidden until the third cup because this signifies that the Messiah was raised on the third day. The head leads in the final recitation of the first cup and ends with "Glory to God for Yeshua is our Echad, even salvation in our Unity", followed by the people: "Behold how good and pleasant it is for brethern to dwell together in Unity."

Tomorow, part 3

Jesus in the Passover

2010-03-31T07:49:00.005-04:00

This article was originally written for our Adult class newsletter (published April, 2001) at our former church. My husband and I use to teach an adult class and part of the way we ministered to our class members was through a monthly newsletter. It gave me a chance to do what I love...write, and share a few tidbits. Hope you enjoy it. This will be a 3 part series! .....Oh....I'm back....more on that later....

Revised addition: Part 1

I have often heard the comment that the Old Testament is not relevant to the New Testament Church. I beg to differ. Without the Old Testament the New Testament is without full contextual meaning, and without the New Testament, the Law of the Old Testament has no fulfillment. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Old Testament Law and Jesus is the promised realized in the New Testament. Even though we are no longer under the law, but under grace, a full understanding of God's love for us cannot be obtained without first looking to the Old Testament Scriptures. Jesus Christ is all thoughout the Old Testament. He is present at Creation. He is also known as the Angel of the Lord throughout the Old Testament Scriptures. He is the Branch of David in Jeremiah. He is the Suffering Servant in Isaiah 53. He is the promised Messiah, our Passover Lamb.

The Jewish people were in bondage to the Egyptians for 100s of years. Whereas, the Jews were once in Egypt with blessing, the Jews of the Exodus were at that time under persecution and hardship. The Jews, with Joseph gone, were seen as a threat to the nation of Egypt by the new Pharoah because they were great in number as a result of God's blessing upon them. The Pharoah appointed taskmasters over the people of Israel, and imposed hard labor onto them thinking that this would decrease their number. However, it did not (see Ex. 1:12). No matter the attempt to decrease their number, the Jewish Nation continued to grow. No man can deter the hand of God.

Because of a mother's faith, a child, Moses, was saved from death and came to live within Pharoah's household (see Ex. Chapter 2). Moses, who grew up in affluence and wealth, was later on the run for his life, because of the murder he had committed and had tried to cover up. He came to the land of Midian and found refuge there with the family of Jethro, who was the Priest of Midian. Jethro was to eventually become Moses's father-in-law.

Moses had a lifechanging experience with God on the mountain of God (Horeb) as a result of the nonconsuming fire of the burning bush and his encounter with the Angel of the LORD, Christ of the OT (Exodus chp. 3). God had seen the affliction of His people, and came down to Moses to give him a mission to deliver the people out of the bondage of slavery.

God sent down plagues throughout Egypt. The Pharoah did not recognize the God of Israel and his heart was hardened in spite of the horrible plagues. God allowed pestilence to cover the land and His people too. The last plague was the turning point for Pharoah and the Jewish nation. God gave specific instructions to Moses concerning the last plague in order to protect the people, and as a means to reveal the Messiah.

Passover was ordained by God. It shows clearly the redemption and deliverenace from death that only God can bring. Each Jewish household had to prepare their homes, their hearts, and the Passover Lamb in accordance to God's specific instruction. There were no shortcuts! Period! God had declared that all the firstborn thoughout the land would be killed unless these instructions were followed. God have the Jews a means of protection to escape the impending sentence of death for the firstborn that even the animals would not be spared. God did this in order for His people to understand the distinction between Israel and Egypt. The people of Israel were God's Chosen People, and He wanted them to understand that fact. He chose them out of all the people groups He had created in order to bring to ALL people the ultimate form of deliverance and redemption, His Son, Jesus Christ, the Passover Lamb.

Part 2 Thursday 4-1-10

Who Knew?

2009-02-24T23:13:00.004-05:00

Who knew that keeping up with a blog, running a home business, home schooling and now trying to sell our home could keep me from spending at least two times a week writing on this blog. ROFL! Life; that is it!

Not too long ago an old friend of mine sent me a Wonder Woman gift on Facebook. Believe me I do not feel like a Wonder Woman. Far from it! My kids and my husband would be the first ones to say: "Are you Kidding?" Wonder Woman is suppose to be able to solve all the problems of those around her, have strength, agility, smarts, and look fabulous all the time. That DOES NOT describe me. BY NO MEANS!

Some days I just don't put on the makeup! Now I do brush my teeth, get out of my jammies, and brush my hair, cook my kids their breakfast, teach them from home 5 days a week, and squeeze my work in between!

But you know what? I'm just like you or any wife, mother or person that you know. You see I mess up; lots. I try to do what I can each day in hopes of accomplishing everything on my to do list.

BIG SURPRISE!

I don't!

Yeah....you too, huh!

Simply put, we are humans; people with faults, time constraints, surprises, and seemingly unending disorganization no matter what we do to keep from being disorganized. I take a comment wrong, I say the wrong thing, I just goof up! There it is...LIFE. IT always gets in the way.

Your child gets sick, you get sick, a friend needs your help, a family crisis or you are just over stressed, over tired, and over worked. Again....LIFE!

But what is the key to handling it all? How you react to your present situation.

It is all about training yourself to wait, reassess your situation, think a little more, and then react or respond. Yeah, you will miss up, but it is okay. But there will be days, 'oh glorious days', that everything seems to go into place.

We learn , we grow, and we learn to say we are sorry. We even learn the act of forgiving our own misgivings or those who have hurt us.

You have too! It is...Life!

How are you going to live your life today? Choose to live it to the full and with wisdom!

Sanctity of Life: Abigail's Legacy

2009-01-12T11:29:00.003-05:00

In February of 1999, I had a routine sonogram scheduled to see our unborn baby. My husband, Billy, and I were very excited and filled with anticipation of seeing this new life that was forming inside of me.

Shock is not the word to describe our heartbreak; it was more like distraught numbness as we heard the doctor tell us that our sweet baby had no hope of living due to a neural tube defect called anencephaly. Our world was shattered! Our life was turned upside down!

We were appalled at the suggestion of taking our child's life, since it was still a legal possibility in our state. I remember telling the attending doctor, through my tears, that there was no way I would take my baby’s life. I said to him, “God is the Author of life and I have no right to choose to take my baby’s life, and I will not do it. If He wants to take my baby’s life that is His decision and not mine to make!” My view of life comes from the knowledge of God that all life is precious and created for a purpose, no matter the circumstance of that life.

At this time I was about 3 months along in my pregnancy, and what was suppose to be a joyful moment had turned into a time of sadness and pain. The knowledge of her life inside of me and the dire prognosis of the outcome brought up a battle that raged inside of me. I had to face it every moment of every day.

I also knew I served a strong and mighty God, a God who could heal, but also a God who knew ultimately what His plan was for not only my life, but the life of this beautiful baby inside of me. We had not only the prayers of our family, friends, and church going forth on our behalf, but we had the prayers of people all over the world who were praying for us. It was amazing to feel those prayers of strength, hope and blessing upon our unborn baby, myself and my family. Those prayers helped both Billy and I press on to what God had called us to.

We wanted so much for God to create a miracle in the life of our baby. We prayed for her healing, but God began to move us to pray for His best to be done through this time whatever the outcome. We knew without a doubt He could heal, but we didn’t know what His call in this matter would be ultimately be.

It often made me angry when a couple of people would question my faith because I was not specifically praying for a miracle. It hurt! They had no idea what their words meant to me. They did not understand, instead of this being a faith stealer this was a faith giver of ultimate proportions.

I remember one particular time, while I was working on an Architectural Rendering project, I cried out to God and asked Him at the debts of my pain: “Why! God, I cannot do this anymore! I cannot continue going on with knowing what I know when I see my belly growing. I just don’t understand why You want us to go through this. I don’t want this!” But in the quiet of that room I heard His sweet soft whisper, “You are not going through this alone.” That is when I began to realize that God had chosen to allow us to go through this pain and yes, healing, in order that He could be glorified through it. I didn’t know how or even completely understand the why of it all, but on that day I became thankful to Him for allowing me the privilege of not only carrying this sweet baby, but allowing me to grow more into the person He was grooming me to be.

Believe me there where many moments of tears, and heartache as this human, motherly mind came to somewhat grasp that there was a possibility that I may not raise her. It grieved within my soul. But that time period of turmoil, growth, and moments of joy was what God had called me to go through. At the same time I was dealing with my heartache, Billy, was dealing with his own. Even through his pain God was moving incredibly through him. Billy was going through his own grooming.

Abigail Grace was born on Aug. 3, 1999. It was a bittersweet moment for us all as we realized that the healing we desired would not be. Abigail was indeed born with anencephaly, but our doctor was amazed to see how beautiful she was. Anencephalic babies normally are very deformed in their facial features. Except for Abigail’s forehead and the top of her skull, her other facial features were barely deformed. I was completely amazed myself because in my research I had seen pictures of babies extremely deformed. As expected Abigail could not see, hear or feel us touching her. With only a brain stem the ability to see, hear, and feel was not possible for her.

When she was born there was not a dry eye in the room. My mom, Marjorie, and Billy’s mom, Susie, were there to give us their love and support during her birth. Also the doctor that I had prayed would be there for her birth was able to be there. Not only was he a Christian, but our nurse was as well. In fact, her nurse’s shift was already well over, but she stayed to support us through Abigail’s birth. God had given us several miracles that day!

Holding her in my arms was the most precious thing to my heart, but I wanted to make sure that everyone who wanted to hold her did while we were blessed with her life. I had held her tight for 9 months and it was important to me for everyone to have some time with her. Throughout the hours after her birth she would peep out to the world, but mostly she kept her eyelids shut. It was sweet and sad at the same time because with those peeps her eyes lacked a focus.

That night she slept in the safety of her daddy’s arms.

The very next day she started showing signs of hunger. This surprised us as she wasn’t supposed to be able to feel hunger. Everyone left the room to give us time to see if she would nurse. In those last moments it was the three of us: Billy, Abigail and me. Her big sister, Morressa, had already had some time with her as best as a 2 year old could with a newborn. It was not long before I realized that our hopes of nursing her would be impossible. Since she did not have a complete brain the connections could not be made that would allow her to nurse. A moment later, as I was holding her in my arms, she turned her head toward us as though she heard our voices. It was then that she opened her eyes to really look at us. A few labored breaths later she took her last breath as she left this earth to go home to Heaven.

Some would say that those last moments we experienced with her was a reflex as she was dying, but I choose to believe that in those last moments God gave us one last gift of her seeing, hearing and feeling us love her with all our hearts. She knew that as she left us and went onward into the glorious presence of Jesus that she was loved beyond measure, all because we gave her a chance to live.

We had the miracle God meant for us to have.

“For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in the secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me. When as yet there were none of them.” Psalms 139: 13-16 NKJV

Copyright 2009 Latanya Wagner

The Story Behind Living Life with Grace Post

2008-07-22T11:39:00.004-04:00

Last month I went by my son's school to close out his IEP. My son has special needs as classified by our local school system, but truthfully, at times, I forget that he is a little different from most kids his age. To me he is just Luke, what you see is what you get.

Background:
Luke was an answer to prayer for my husband and I. We had lost our first baby through miscarriage, and then were blessed with our oldest daughter. Then we lost a baby in 1999 as a result of Anencephaly, a neural tube defect. When I found out I was pregnant, after loosing our baby girl in 1999, what a relief it was when our little boy had no birth defects.

As Luke grew we relished all his successes and just the sweetness that he was (and still is). Luke was not the typical child. He didn't quite hit the growth milestones as he was suppose to, but the Doctor did not seem concerned, so we weren't. We just took it as Luke being who he is, nothing more, nothing less.

Instead of crawling Luke scooted on his little behind. We thought it was ingenious that he had decided to get around differently than other babies. We even got a lot of laughs out of seeing him get around. He was SOOOOOOO CUTE!

Luke also did not talk. We just figured he was a late bloomer. It wasn't until he was about 3 that he actually really started talking. My husband and I, along with his big sis, were about the only ones that could understand what he was saying and even then we had difficulty.

It wasn't until he was in school that we finally dicovered that his delayments were all because of something far beyond our control. For whatever reason God designed our boy a little different, a little unique, and filled with a whole lot of love and kindness of heart. He designed Luke to be Luke, a little boy who just learns a little different, and has some diffiultiy accomplishing a few tasks that we take for granted. Luke is also gifted with his unique prespective of the world. I am amzes everyday by him and how he sees the world. He is so much fun! (By the way, he talks ALL the time now!)

He has made milestones in the public school system, but I felt also that not everything was done to help him on his path to being all that he can be. So with the ending of this school year my husband and I chose to pull him out permanently to teach him from home.

And with that the reason why I was at school to close his IEP. I had already been looking for manipulatives to help Luke with his schooling from home. I was very excited to bring them with me to show his teachers, physical therapist, speech therapist, county school system psychologist and the school prinicipal. They were helpful and full encouragement for the seemingly huge task before me, all except for one. The Prinicipal was already not happy with me because the year before I had pulled our oldest daughter out of the system, and now I was doing the same thing with my son. After sharing with them briefly some of the things I was going to teach Luke this upcoming school year she just had to comment on my lack of considering creative writing. She commented that she seriously doubted my ability to take care of his learning needs.

Needless to say I was hot under the collar. Why would a school principal feel so highly of herslf as to right out insult a very capable parent?

My mother hen mentatlity was SOOOOO wanting to come out and just tell her what I thought of her and the public school system.

But...

I decided to handle it with grace and respond sternly, but with kindness, that I, as his mother, was fully capable of taking care of his learning needs, and that there was no way I could share in that brief time everything I was going to do with him. I told her I understood her concerns, and that I was going to do creative writing with Luke, but only when he was ready. I also told her I wanted him to feel successful, not incapable.

Not long after that I left.

After having to deal with a year of Luke feeling like he could not do his work, and not seeing more improvement as we were promised that he would have, I made a conscious decision to pull him out for his own good. I know there will be many days ahead filled with difficulty, but also there will be many, many successes for Luke. He will begin to see himself as someone who is capable of reading, writing, and arithmetic. And we will do it with grace, tears, hoorahs, and determination, because it is the right thing to do for our family, and most importantly for Luke.

Latanya

Where did I go?

2008-07-22T07:18:00.004-04:00

Oops, I do not know what happened to me! I really don't!

Where did I go this month? Boy did I get sidetracked!

Do you ever get those moments when you just don't do what you need to do? I kept telling myself that I needed to get on this blog and write.

Do you see the date? Yikes!

Well, I am back! Hopefully I WILL NOT get sidetracked again. You are laughing! You know what? I am too!

I will post a REAL blog post in just a few minutes. You see I just got up and there are things I need to do before I am ready to really think!

See you in a bit! Hopefully I won't get sidetracked!

Latanya

Living Life with Grace

2008-06-30T21:17:00.005-04:00

As we live life, life just happens. It doesn't always run smoothly, in fact, most times it can be right out chaotic.

I don't know about you, but when things happen that I am not particularily thrilled with my instant reaction is often with disgust or wanting to do something about it right then and there. I want to react without giving the situation or myself the proper time to take it in and think about it. Especially, if it involves my kids. All I can say is watch out for Momma Hen!

I know I can absolutely blow it sometimes! In those moments I am definitely not handling the situation with grace.

Far from it!

Certainly, I want to act calmly and gracefully in the intense moment.

When living your life with grace you actually build your character. So next time when you just want to react to a situation, handle it with grace. If that means walking away then do so. But if it is a situation that really requires a verbal response, be firm, but watch your words. It is so much easier watching what you say instead of bringing embarassment to yourself, and then having to say you are sorry for how you handled the situation.

Latanya

Natural Networkers

2008-06-03T07:33:00.003-04:00

Ants? Yes! I learned some lessons from a massive move of ants on my North Carolina pantry last year. After returning from a last minute trip to the Myrtle Beach, SC, we discovered ants, thousands of them, eating our cereal, cookies, and breakfast pastries. They had even managed to find their way into sealed packages! Yes, we were frustrated! Not to mention feeling the pains of having got in the way of their work.

After spending a day cleaning up after the ants, throwing away boxes of food, vacuuming the ants, and screaming at the kids to stay away, I started thinking about those ants. I thought about how they worked with great determination. It was apparent they had a goal. Then I began to see that I had a lot to learn from them.

I grabbed a piece of paper and brainstormed the qualities in ants that make them great networkers. Ants are goal oriented, determined, know what they want and go after it, are over comers, persistent, team oriented, and they never make a conscience decision to quit.

If you have ever taken the time to look at a trail of ants when they are in the process of gathering food for their colony it is clear that they are goal oriented. They know what they want. Food! And they go after it! They don’t wonder around without a plan. They know they have to have food. Their lives depended on it.

Networkers have to have goals also. Clear goals are necessary to stay on course; to reach the prize.

So what are your goals? Those ants knew my baseboards, walls, cardboard boxes and sealed plastic packages would not keep them from attaining food for their colony. They knew what they wanted, knew how to get it, and then they went after it. Do you know what you want in your business? Do you know how to get it? Have you gone after it?

Determination was another quality that I saw in the ants. Determination is important to obtaining success in Network Marketing. If you don’t have determination you’ll never get anywhere. Imagine for a minute if those pesky little ants had not had determination. They would have wondered aimlessly around my floors and walls never getting anywhere. So activate determination in your Networking adventure and with it you will see things happen in your business that you have never seen before. You’ll reach your prize!

Know what you want and go after it. Those ants knew what they wanted. They knew what would give them fulfillment. What is it that you need? Make a list of what you want. Create a dream board or a dream book. The dream board or book will keep you focused. Write down your why on the dream board and put a picture beside it that represents your why. Place your dream board or book somewhere you can see it every day so it will be that perfect reminder of what you want.

Have you ever observed Ants as over comers? Are you an over comer? Ants will not let barriers get in their way of their goal. They don’t suddenly come to a dead end or a huge barrier and throw their legs up in frustration. They look for another avenue to travel. And if you are like me, you know what it is like when you get in the way of a determined, goal oriented ant: they bite! Don’t let barriers and dead ends get in your way and hurt you, "attack" back and overcome it by looking for creative ways to go around the barriers and the dead ends. It is possible!

Those ants…. they are persistent little creatures. I remember when I was a kid, I would sometimes interrupt an ant trail. I would run my foot through their ant trail and then watch the ants scramble to find their pheromone path again. No matter how many times I would disrupt their trail they always managed to find their original pathway. Dealing with the ants in my home was the same way, no sooner had I vacuumed them up then more ants would appear under the baseboard going along the same trail as their predecessors had done. We need to be persistent too! Don’t let something that seems bigger than you disrupt your pathway to success.

Ants are also team oriented. They don’t do the work of gathering alone; they work together with consistency, strength, and knowledge. Ants consistently do their job. They don’t lie around, use excuses, or work half heartedly. They put their all into their work. What kind of excuses are you using today to not work your business? Or is your "business" really just a hobby wanting to be a "business?

Ants are very strong insects and they can carry anywhere from 10 to 20 times their own weight. Why not try carrying 10 to 20 times your own weight! Great mental picture! Right! Ants know their strength and they use it to succeed. Have you ever seen an ant struggling with a dead insect or food particle that exceeds that 10 to 20 pound range? They struggle. They wobble. Their load shifts. What happens next? Quickly their team mates pitch in to help carry their load. They don’t tug and fight with who gets to carry the lighter or heavier end. They just take their side and go. They work together!

What are you doing to work together with your personally sponsored team? Even your crossline? Your upline? Find ways you can share your strengths with others in your organization. You will be surprised with how it makes you feel, let alone those you help.

Ants also use their knowledge to help the life of their colony. It takes knowledge and instinct to forage for food and then to move that food to their ant hill. What knowledge do you have that you are sharing with others? Hope you aren’t keeping it all to yourself! What good does that do? Nothing! You might get lots of immediate signups, make lots of money at first, but then if you are not the type who is willing to share your knowledge, what can happen to your team? They begin to give up on your abilities to lead them, and they leave disappointed. Don’t let your team down. Share with them what you have been given! And even if some do fall by the wayside, you at least know that you did your part to share your knowledge with them. Just do not take it personally.

Finally, ants never make a conscience decision to quit before they have gotten what they came for. Ants simply are not quitters! Don’t ever make a conscience decision to quit before you reap the benefits of what you have worked so hard to obtain. Give yourself time to develop your business. Ask for help! There is always someone out there willing to help. Find that mentor! Set a timeline to get your business going if you need to, and then commit to genuinely work your business with consistency and steadfastness. You never know what might happen next! Just make a conscience decision to succeed no matter what and then GO FOR IT! You will reap the rewards in time!

Blog Header Redesign Contest

2008-05-31T09:40:00.005-04:00

Wanted to let you know about a contest going on at Joyfully Living for His Glory. You can win a redesign of your blog header by entering the contest!

Thanks Chelsey and Blue Yonder Designs for the contest.

Latanya

I have not forgotten the blog...

2008-05-07T09:39:00.004-04:00

and I will be back as soon as possible. More than likely I will post a real thoughtful blog post the week of May 18. I am now currently working on all the finishing touches with a meeting that I have coming up on the 17. So bare with me, I will be back.

Thanks, Latanya

By the way go to my website and register for a free candle and soap bar drawing . The candles are made from renewable resources (plant and vegetable waxes), are are practically soot free. They smell yummy too! By the way no black on the jar means no black in your lungs or in your home! The soap is wonderful too! It is great for your skin, your hair (YES, YOUR HAIR!...Scalp too!), and I have even been able to get out dried and set in mud out of a pair of Khaki capris. It is a funny story! maybe I will share it with you one day.

So here is the link to my company website. Once on the site just click the candle icon in the top right of the page! Hope you win!
http://latanyawagner.scent-team.com/

Have a great week! Come back soon!

Get it Organized!

2008-04-11T21:48:00.008-04:00

I almost laugh at the title of this post. You know why? I am a mom of three busy children in a home that most days seems about to burst forth from its seams. You know... the stuff you accumulate! Like most moms who decide to tackle their kids closets to organize the toys or to clean out the clothes that have gotten way too small, you get it looking great, BUT...! Yes, you know what I mean! Disaster strikes....again, in the form of your wonderful children. I could share lots of organizational tips on cleaning out the closet, the toys, etc. except around our house that type of organization lasts for almost 30 seconds. Even before I step out of the room there they go diving into the closet, again! Oh, well.

Anyway, I thought I would share with those who have found me by way of Lysa Terkeurst's blog (visit the link through the title above or through the button tab below) about organizing something that doesn't deal entirely with the kids. (Well, almost!) What is it? My pantry! This bit of organization came about last year by way of some pesky little creatures called ANTS!

While we were away from our house for a few days in 2007 a hungry Army of Ants decided that it would be awesome to have a dandy picnic in my pantry! Imagine my horror when we got back to find ANTS in our cereal boxes, cookies, snacks, and even in Ziploc bags still wrapped Easter candy! I was "enraged" enough to battle those determined little creatures that had invaded my territory and seized my family's food! Needless to say we got rid of them! One Battle won!

But....

What could I do to keep those determined creatures from finding an "unguarded"way back into my house to come back for a second invasion? I went to Wally world! I commandeered a few plastic see-thru storage boxes in various sizes and I went to work. Those ants were not going to get back in my cereal boxes, cookies, snacks, and ziploc bags of candy! Not my chocolate! Oops, the kids chocolate!

So this is what I did: I placed my cereal boxes in the larger sweather box, and then I divided the remaining boxes into categories. I labeled each "air tight" storage box with a waterproof pen according to the contents inside. Not only do I have an orderly pantry shelf with our food protected from the invading Ants, but now everything has its place. It has actually cut down on the number of boxes of prepackaged snack food items, and the clutter (for the most part). Plus the kids know where to find what they love to eat for an afternoon snack!

I did learn a thing or two from the ants. I will have to share my Ant article with you another day, but it has to do with their sense of teamwork and determination to reach their goals no matter the obstacles. Come back and visit with me often. I would love for you to!

(Even though I started organizing my pantry I did stop at the snack foods. If you have some additional ideas for how I could further organize my pantry that would be great...I do need some additional help with it. I do tend to buy items that I already have one or two of in the pantry when I don't need them. With food cost rising I need to get it streamlined to cut my shopping costs down. My 6 yr old son eats like crazy and any little tips you can give would help me from overbuying plus save some cash.)

Latanya

Living in Success

2008-04-05T16:43:00.007-04:00

Living in Success! That statement probably brings up many ideas in your mind, but what exactly does it mean to live in success. Does it mean that everything you touch is successful or is it more about an attitude of success; a way of living your life on target with a set purpose in mind?

Great question for thought. Right!

I see it more as an attitude!

Do you remember learning to ride a bike or learning to skate? Lots of bumps and bruises, probably even a scar or two were the results of your first few attempts. Did you quit? I would say...probably not.

What happened when you fell down that first time? Did you cry? Did you just walk away? Did you have a temper tantrum?

OR...

Did you have someone in your corner encouraging you to get back up and try again? And again! And again! Most likely you had your mom or dad there telling you "Get back up. You can do it!" Their encouragement and belief that you could motivated you to keep on going. Even through the tears, the aches, the dirt, and the bruises, you persevered until you did it! Success!

Now go back to what you felt in that moment of triumph. What did it feel like? Unbelievable? Exhilarating? Joyous? Probably all those emotions and more.

Were you glad that you did not quit? Were you glad that you had someone there keeping you on target? There is something to say for having someone there to encourage you to keep pushing; to keep following through.

So what is your attitude right now about some huge task ahead of you, or about some obstacle that has gotten you off focus from the road you know you are to take? What are you going to do about it? You could give up and just walk away? Or have a temper tantrum? Or will you choose to live in success by persevering by trying again and again until you break through to triumph?

Choosing to LIVE in Success,
Latanya

I would love any feedback or comments to todays post! What are your thoughts on this topic!

I am hosting a training event on May 17, 2008 in Charlotte, NC for the Net Work Marketing company I am with. Our theme for the day is Living in Success. If you would like to find out more about this event visit the link above in the title. Or if you would like to know more about what I do from home visit: http://www.successfulcandlebiz.com .

We will also be taking up donations to send to a few US soldiers who are serving overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan. See the event registration site for more info.

Thank you, Lysa....

2008-04-04T07:44:00.005-04:00

As I read your post from Thursday this morning it really spoke to me. You see, right now, I am in the process of planning a May meeting (http://livinginsuccessevent.com/) in the Charlotte area for the company I am with.

This is our second year for the meeting to help distributors and those thinking about our joining us with our opportunity. We have a stellar line up of leaders and business ideas to help our fellow candle business entrepenuers launch their businessess to the next level.

Last year we had a great first year turn out, but this year registrants haven't been registering as often. Truthfully, it has gotten me worried. We are no where near the number I have indicated to the hotel that we were planning to have.

Truth be known it is a little scary, and I am worried. However, your post has gotten me to rethink my perspective on the situation. I have not allowed the peace of Jesus Christ to freely flow in my life at this time, because I am worried about the outcome not being what my mind's eye has imagined it would be this year. When Jesus said, "Peace, be with you" He was telling the disciples that HE had already GIVEN them peace, but they had not taken hold of the PEACE. His presence is Peace!

Thank you for reminding me that I need to live in His presence and His peace! This meeting is in His hands. He will be there. And so will those that He wants to be there.

"Lord, help me to live in your Peace. Amen!"
Latanya

Fun in the Sun? Or is it cold on the Beach?

2008-04-02T12:54:00.006-04:00

Notice anything missing? Nobody is out by the pool and lazy river! BRRrrrrr!

We are in the hot tub at the indoor pool!

Last week our family went to Myrtle Beach, SC. Normally you think of warmth, the hot sun and sand, and tons of warm water. Or ... that is the normal picture of a vacation at the beach. Not exactly so for our trip to the beach! Not in March!

It was cold and the breeze was cool while we were there. And I was not feeling at my best. In spite of the circumstances we did have fun.

Sometimes what we believe is the typical normal way to think of something is in fact just a belief about what we perceive in our mind's eye. You know that perfect day. Everyone and everything being just right. Then reality strikes.

The weather is chilly, the water is cold, the sun is not so hot, and the sand...well ...you don't want it in your shoes. But then you accept that the water and the sun aren't so warm, that you can't exactly sink your toes in the sand, and by no means do you stick your toes in the water. However, if you bundle up and prepare yourself for the weather outside then you can enjoy the present chilly or not! It is all in you mindset.

And you can perhaps find some fun out of the sun!

So what can you do today to change your view in your mind's eye?

What steps can you take to make changes to your mindset if your current path is way off from what you perceived it to be originally?

Next, how can you regroup and renew you so you will be prepared for changes in the weather?

Be prepared for whatever the weather.

Latanya

Oh, the joy of living in the South...Spring has arrived

2008-03-18T16:15:00.006-04:00

With the arrival of warmer weather our trees in North Carolina start to bloom and the pollen starts producing.

Oh, joy, joy! I love Springtime...just not the pollen.

Any allergy sufferers reading this will know what I mean! If we could only have Spring without the pollen, but on the flip side we would not have food! Not good! We need the pollen and the bees and other insects, etc. that pollenate everything!

One thing I do enjoy is the warmer weather. I love the 70's - degrees that is! I for one do not like the cold that much. Give me warmth and the flowers blooming and if I have to deal with the pollen, then sneezies, icthy eyes, allergy headaches just go along with the territory of the joy of Springtime.

Even with the pollen issues, Spring is a great time of year. It is the time for rebirth, renewal, and regrowth. Gone are the humdrum blues of winter.

Since we don't get a lot of snow where we are in NC, I normally can't wait to start seeing the buds come out on the trees, even if it signals a window of sufferering for me.

Spring can truly be a time of rebirth, renewal, and regrowth, if we let it.

A rebirth in old dreams that you thought were dead.
(Wipe those cobwebs away from dreams that you thought could not possibly come true. Revisit them and then rebirth them).

A renewal for a tired and weary spirit!

(Take the time to watch the birds welcome in Spring and take in the joy the Earth seems to have at the anticipation of newness of life).

Experience the regrowth of your old dreams.

(Remember those old dreams that you wiped the cobwebs off of? Yeah those! Reflect on them and give them the proper nourishment this time. Give them some TLC and some positive affirmation. Wait for it! There ...they are springing forth! Watch them grow into something more beautiful then you could have ever dreamed they could be.)

Enjoy Spring...maybe not the pollen....ehhh, aaaachoooooo!!!! But definitely enjoy Spring and the new life that it brings.

Latanya

Welcome to my BLOG

2008-03-10T19:49:00.006-04:00

Thank you so much for visiting my new blog!

After procrastinating for a long time I finally decided to go for it! And you are seeing the result!

I hope that you will take the time to come back often. As my introduction states I am a network marketing mom. Within this blog I will write about my success principles, trials, and the day to day life of a mom working from home. I hope that I will inspire and challenge you to life your life for the better and create your legacy.

My faith in Jesus is a big part of who I am. It is natural for me that my faith would pour out in the way I do my business and in this new blog. I can't just turn it off. It is all that I am and without it I am nothing.

Here are some facts that I know about you...

You were created with purpose!
You were created for a purpose!
You were created to live your life trying to find that purpose!
You were created to find your purpose!
You were NOT made by chance!

You were made to glorify GOD!

You were intentionally made by an intentional God for an intentional purpose!

Now it is up to you to discover the purpose that you were made for. It gives you an intentional life looking for an intentional purpose. You were not made just for you. You were made to BLESS others with your LIFE!

Maybe you already know your purpose...

or...

Maybe you are seeking your purpose...

or...

Maybe you are living your life now discovering how to live your life on purpose...

Whatever it is I hope that in some way I will inspire you to find, live, and share your intentional purpose with others. I am glad you are here.

Come learn with me!
Latanya
Scents To Success

Move those Mountains

2008-03-10T19:15:00.005-04:00

Ever felt like you were loaded down with huge mountains that seemed impossible to move?

When you think of a mountain you think of some impenetrable mass of earth, trees, rocks, and snow. Seems impossible to move right?

But what if one person, you, started hacking away at that mountain, slowly you would move a few bucketfuls, then a few dump loads, and then more and more. All the while you are hacking away the mountain is getting smaller until FINALLY the mountain begins to look a little less massive. "Yeah right," you are thinking, "it would take a lifetime to move a huge mountain." Yes, maybe a lifetime, but you would be moving that seemingly impenetrable mountain. You didn't let its massiveness get in your way. You did not let the imposing task keep you from succeeding at your goal of moving it out of your way.

Many times life gives us mountains. Those mountains could be a lost job, the lost of a child, selfishness, depression, a chronic or life threatening disease. A mountain could be anything that is holding you back from being who you were created to be. But that mountain presents itself with a solution to breaking down the massiveness of its presence...it lies in you!

You, yes, you! It really does! It is all about how you view it and then what you choose to do about it.

We are all given a choice to how we are to react to a crisis. No doubt we can choose to let that huge mountain crush us or we can choose to overcome the mountain. That huge mountain can be moved whether you go thru it, around it, over it, under it, or completely remove it one rock at a time. It is just a matter of how you see that huge mass looming ahead of you. Don't let it get the best of you, just perservere.

Through those tough times tackling your perilous mountain a new you is born!

Will that new you be a person of Hope, Strength, and Endurance, or will that new you be beaten down, discouraged, and hopeless? Choose to be that first person.

Use what you have learned and go teach someone else. Teach them that their mountains can be moved!

"For I know the plans I have for you," delcares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jer. 29:11 NIV

Latanya

I was inspired to write this as a result of our worship celebration this past Sunday at Southbrook Community Church in Weddington, NC.