Spring To Winter = Severe Weather

We are about to go from spring-like temperatures outside to it feeling like winter, all in 24 hours time, so get ready! Anytime the temperatures make such a large swing, you know the possibility for severe weather exists.

A strong cold front with a series of disturbances will enter the state today and linger through Saturday. Tornadoes, large hail, damaging winds and heavy rain will be possible, so please have your weather radio on. I have attached the NWS's graphic depiction of what is the expected and the time frames we're all looking at. Find your county and note what is possible.

The worst of the weather should be gone towards dawn Saturday morning, however much colder air will move in behind the front. There will be enough wrap around moisture filtering in behind the front that some snowflakes could fall for portions of the state. I've attached the graphic showing where a few of you may see a late February treat!

So hang in there with me...it could be a rough day ahead. I'll be at work through the duration and break in on WLBT as needed. I'll also be on Twitter & Facebook intermittently. Have a great weekend and if you experience some snow, let me know about it!

Rejoicing In The Lord

Last week, I shared with you how God is showing me how to be more grateful for everything, literally, in my life. I'm also learning how to rejoice more. Now let me start by telling you that I was born and bred Southern Baptist. The only rejoicing we did growing up was when an ice cream supper was announced on a Sunday night! So I'm exaggerating a bit here, but you get my point. I believe rejoicing in the Lord is a form of humility.

In 2 Samuel 6, the Ark of the Covenant was coming into the city of Jerusalem. When King David heard about it, the Bible says he danced before the Lord with everything he had. The scripture says he threw off his royal digs and danced in his under clothes because David loved to be in the presence of God and the presence of God traveled with the Ark. David got excited! It goes on to say that after David danced before the Lord, David fed the whole country. But his wife told him he looked like a fool and despised him in her heart because of David's response to the presence of God. David's wife thought he should've been more dignified. She wanted him to sit down and hush! In verse 22, David tells her "I should be more vile than this. I will humble myself in the sight of the people and I will lower myself in my own sight." James 4:6 says, "God resisteth the proud, but gives grace to the humble." When David was rejoicing in the Lord, it was a form of humility.

Yesterday in church, our choir sang the song "When I Think About The Lord". Here are some of the words:

When I think about the Lord
How He saved me, how He raised me
How He filled me with the Holy Ghost
How He healed me to the uttermost
When I think about the Lord
How He picked me up
Turned me around
How He set my feet on solid ground
It makes me want to shout
Hallelujah! Thank you, Jesus!
Lord, you’re worthy
Of all the glory, and all the honor
And all the praise!

I, for one, can tell you there was some shoutin' going on in that service. People who had never fully grasped what Jesus has done, got it! And they didn't worry if anyone was watching whether they were praising Him.

If you and I are more concerned with what people think about us and our praise than with what God thinks about us, we will never walk in victory.

What Has He Done?

A couple of weeks ago, I shared with you that I'm praying Ephesians 1:17-23 everyday for myself. The Apostle Paul wrote these words to the church in Ephesus as his prayer for them. So I thought, why can't I pray this for myself--to be given wisdom and revelation in my life? I committed to praying this prayer every day for 6 months. Two weeks down and I can tell you one thing..don't ask for wisdom and revelation in your life if you aren't real serious about receiving it!

I've always considered myself a grateful person. If someone does something for me or gives me a gift, I'm quick to jot them a thank you note. And how many times have I heard of someone's misfortune and said, "Thank God that didn't happen to me!" Well, God has been whipping me upside the head with the fact that I need to be more grateful for His provisions.

While I was driving home from work the other night, I noticed the shiny cars at the local car dealership. I was moved to thank God at that very moment for giving me a car that cranks every day. As I passed by businesses that had closed for the night, I was pressed to thank God for providing me a job to do so I can bring money into this household. I passed by the hospital and thanked God for my health and the health of my husband and small children. I looked ahead and saw the motels that line the frontage road. I thanked God I have a home to go to every night and a bed to sleep in. Then I saw people coming out of a restaurant and thanked God for the food that I can so easily go and buy anytime I want. The whole ride home, the Lord was revealing to me how He has consistently provided.

I believe this prayer in Ephesians is not really asking that God would do something for us, but that we would see what God has already done for us and what already belongs to us in Christ. That's powerful...

Stormy Weather

More rain is headed this way along with a cold front sweeping across the area tonight. Some thunderstorms could form later in the day as we heat up. If this happens, these storms could be strong to severe. Once the atmosphere loses the daytime heating late in the day, the front will be sliding east. Much cooler temperatures will welcome us Thursday morning. Here is the National Weather Service's graphical depiction of today. Note where your county is and the type of weather possible for today.

Thunderstorms today, snow later this week? It is possible. We'll have a blast of cold air to arrive Friday night and Saturday with another cold front. Should the freezing temperatures come in at the same time as the moisture, we could see some snow flakes. As always, many things could change and I'll keep you updated on here and WLBT should that be the case. So stay tuned!

The First Valentine

Yesterday's blood drive was a success although we received half of the donations from last year. Last year's blood drive netted 457 donors. Thursday's blood drive had a total of 200 donors. With the flu season underway, stomach virus and strep throat running rampant, we knew the numbers would be down. But the 200 that showed up were shown a good time and more importantly, 600 people could potentially benefit from it (one pint of blood can save the lives of 3 people). Marshall and I had a blast visiting with the volunteers and signing their new t-shirts. I saw co-workers come in together, mothers and daughters donate, husbands and wives, and people of every color and socio-economic background...and there were more first time blood donors yesterday than at any time! Here are a couple of pictures of Marshall and me just before he donated on WLBT and another one afterwards, where he's all smiles.














As a middle schooler, I remember hating Valentines Day. Each year, a club within our school would sell carnations to help raise funds for various projects. Someone from the club would come to our classroom every morning for a week and take orders. I would see the guys in my classroom go to the front of the room, talk with the club member, give them money for their carnation purchase and wish that maybe someone was ordering a flower for me. Then on delivery day, the club would bring the flowers to our classroom. Every year, I watched as girls in my class walked away with arm loads of red, white and pink carnations. At recess and at lunch, it was always the question of the day: "Who did you get a Valentine from?" And every year, I walked away empty handed.

Who gave the first Valentines gift? I would say it would have to be God. God sent His Son, Jesus, from heaven in the form of a baby as a gift to the world. Can you imagine giving up your only child to someone you love and you hoped they love your child as much as you do? That's a sobering thought. Romans 5:8 says it all, "But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Giving a Valentines gift to someone you love is not fun if they don't love you. Its a waste of time and emotional energy.

Have you been loving Him back by loving His Son? Are you wasting His Valentines gift to you?

Give Blood Today!

I was up before the chickens today--4:30am. I put my face on, did my hair and hopped in the car to do a LIVE shot for the WLBT morning news with Marshall Ramsey at Mississippi Blood Services to promote our Valentines blood drive. The blood drive goes all day and I'll be making a few stops there again and will join Marshall once more for the noon hour before heading into the station to work. Also tonight, I have the pleasure of speaking at the Canton Rotary's husband & wives dinner. It's going to be a long day, but an exciting one!

Severe Weather Possible

Be on alert to the possibility of some severe weather late tonight through midday Wednesday. A potent disturbance in the form of a cold front will be pushing closer to the Mississippi River after midnight and will produce thunderstorms ahead of the front. Once the front gets closer to the river, a squall line senario will be possible and all modes of severe weather will be as well---mainly straight-lined winds, strong storms, and isolated tornadoes.

As the squall line marches east across the state, it should begin to lose alot of stream and break apart for the eastern portion. I showed the approximate time frame for all of this last night and it looks like areas west of I-55 will see the storms arrive sometime between midnight and 6am Wednesday; east of I-55 will see the storms from 6am-Noon Wednesday. The worst of the weather should be over by afternoon.

Temperatures behind this cold front won't be cold, as this is a Pacific cold front. Our temperatures will remain in the 60s & 70s for the rest of the week. Another cold front arrives Friday with more thunderstorms.

Here is the latest graphic from the NWS. Before you go to bed tonight, make sure you have your weather radio on. By the way, WLBT is programming the Midland Weather Radios at various Walgreens across the area for the rest of the week from 3pm-6pm. Today, we'll be at the Walgreens in Flowood.

Valentines Blood Drive

This Thursday, February 12, is our annual Valentines blood drive. Since Valentines is this Saturday, we moved the donation drive to Thursday and are hoping and praying for a large crowd. Once again, Marshall Ramsey has penned an original t-shirt design for all donors. This shirt is more unique in that Marshall actually drew himself in the t-shirt, which never happens! A flurry of businesses are also lending their support including Carter Jewelers who have given us a beautiful chocolate pearl necklace (I've never seen chocolate pearls until I put them around my neck last week. They are fabulous!); Earthly Delights Spa is giving $25 gift certificates to the first 20 "first time" donors and 10 more gift certificates to use for other donors; Backyard Burgers will have free food for every donor; and various merchants at The Renaissance mall will be donating other gifts and prizes---too many to name. Marshall and I will be at Mississippi Blood Services throughout the day on Thursday and hope you will consider swinging by and donating with us.

On Friday, Mix 98.7's EJ will be at The Renaissance with the Mississippi Blood Service's donation bus so you can donate there in case you can't come on Thursday.

Last week, a friend of mine had a daughter to lose a baby through a miscarriage. The hospital in Alabama where she was being treated was scrambling trying to find the right blood type for her, as she had lost so much blood during the miscarriage process. This is a prime example of how important blood donors can be at saving someone else's life.

Here is this year's Valentine's blood drive commercial, which is currently running on WLBT. By the way, I think Marshall looks like a very convincing Cupid!

Looking For Wisdom & Revelation

Before I found out Lilly Faith was coming into our lives, the Lord gave me Ephesians 1:17 to claim. Each one of my children have a scripture that I prayed, well before we knew they were coming into this world. Here lately, I'm seeing Ephesians 1:17 in a different light.

The Apostle Paul wrote Ephesians. He was given the revelation of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. He prayed for the believers in Ephesus to have a Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of God. Revelation isn't something you see with your natural eyes or learn in school. A revelation comes when the eyes of your heart, or your spiritual eyes, are opened. We walk by faith or by revelation knowledge. That revelation is revealed by the Holy Spirit. Our earthly eyes can't see it, but our hearts can.

God created you and me to know that there is more than what we have right now. God is looking for somebody who will believe what He said. While everyone is scared about the economy, the state of the world's affairs, sickness, disease and loss of jobs, God is looking for someone who will act in faith. However, we won't get this Spirit of wisdom and revelation if we don't ask for it! A breakthrough in revelation helps us to see what God sees. Revelation also changes our perspective on things.

So, I've been challenged to pray Ephesians 1:17-23 everyday for the next 6 months, asking God to give me that Spirit of wisdom and revelation in my own life. Here is what Paul said, "I keeping asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him as his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, no only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way."

Do you need wisdom right now in a decision you need to make? Is there some direction you feel the Lord is sending you in and you're not quite sure how to go about it? Perhaps you need a breakthrough in some area of your life. I hope you'll consider praying this prayer for yourself with me, if you are so moved. Because when you are filled with the Spirit, then you and I will know the voice of God.

Happy Groundhog's Day!

A cold front moved through this morning and took all of last night's rain with it. Its about to get cold again. Not only will it be windy today, but we've already hit our high temperature. Bundle up and prepare for some cold nights this week. On top of all this, the groundhog saw his shadow this morning, so if the legend hold true, spring won't arrive until March 21 and not a day earlier. Then again, Punxsutawney Phil has never lived in Mississippi and probably doesn't realize that we can have some wacky weather in this state! And by the way, wouldn't you hate to be Phil and yanked from your cubby hole like this. I, for one, would be none to happy. No wonder he predicted six more weeks of winter; talk about getting your day off to a bad start! Just look at that sweet face....

Next week, Marshall Ramsey and I will be hosting our bi-annual Valentines Blood Drive with Mississippi Blood Services. The t-shirt is even more unique this year because Marshall drew himself (so true to form, too). I'll be showing you the artwork, commercial and details on all of the freebies over the next few days. I hope you'll come out to Mississippi Blood Services on February 12 (next Thursday) and join us. Come meet Marshall...you'll love him!