Barbie is away hosting the Halloween Blood Drive with editorial cartoonist and radio talk show host Marshall Ramsey. The blood drive started at 6am this morning and will continue until 6pm tonight. She will return to the blog this Friday.

(Barbie is also the guest speaker of the Mississippi Singing Churchmen's banquet in Jackson.)

This & That

Central Mississippians have a chance this weekend to be the FIRST to screen a new movie that will be released in the Spring 2012. Jackson and a couple of other cities were pre-selected to "test market" the movie called "Octoberbaby". This movie is from the creators of "Facing the Giants", "Fireproof", and "Courageous". "Octoberbaby" is about a naive college student who embarks on a road trip to find her biological mother and discovers hope, love and forgiveness in the process.

The limited release of this movie will occur tonight, Saturday and Sunday at Tinseltown Movie Theatres in Pearl and the Malco Grandview Theatre in Madison. Check those theatres for times. If you're interested in supporting a movie that has a meaning and purpose, check it out and show up:

http://www.octoberbabymovie.net/

Monday is Halloween and a day I always look forward to because of the opportunity we have to make a difference in the lives of many by donating blood. This year's Halloween Blood Drive at Mississippi Blood Services proves to be another fun one as each donor receives Marshall Ramsey's limited edition t-shirt, free pizza provided by the Pizza Shack and is entered to win Malco movie theatre passes and an inflatable movie screen! Here is this year's commercial (oh, what a blast this was to work with Marshall & Dracula!):

Here is a sneak peak at the t-shirt Marshall has created just for the blood donors. As always, Marshall exceeds the expectations of his fans:

Doors open at 6am Monday at Mississippi Blood Services. I look forward to seeing you there!

(Barbie will be signing her first book, "Forecasts & Faith: 5 Keys to Weathering the Storms of Life", Saturday from 1pm-2:30pm at Apricot Lane at the Renaissance in Ridgeland. This book has sold out of the retail stores & limited quantities are available for the next few months.)

Trusting God Is Not A Feeling

I had a blast speaking at a room packed with women at First Baptist Raleigh Saturday. We had lots of laughs and hugs and I got to see some faces I hadn't seen in a while.

I was told about a young girl in the church who had recently made a public profession of faith and been baptized only to be bullied and made fun of my her classmates at school. It brought back old memories for me and just some of taunting I went through as a child and continue to go through as a grown woman. I even have the 'anonymous' posters to this blog who like to call me a religious freak every now and then.

To that young girl and anyone else who is made fun of because of their being a Christ follower, I say to God be the glory! Psalm 112:6-8 says, "A righteous man will be remembered forever. He will have not fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. His heart is secure, he will have no fear; in the end he will look in triumph on his foes." Isn't that why Christians are persecuted anyway--those who see them living out their faith are fearful of their own future here and in eternity?

Trusting God is not a feeling; it's a decision, even when the doubt and adversaries come.

(Barbie will be speaking at the Mississippi State University BSU Tuesday night.)

Abiding

My parents have a small vineyard in their backyard with muscadine grapes. Those vines are always so full with grapes they begin to sag close to picking time. My children love to pick them off the vine and eat the fruit right there on the spot. What's happening on the inside of the vine is what counts.

Jesus said in John 15:9, "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love." Jesus was suggesting we find real love in His love. If we really abided in His love and time with Him, we would come away feeling so full, so cherished, that we would rush back to Him whenever we could.

You can read all of the devotions and Bible reading for years without actually abiding in the love of Jesus. Reading a book about a person isn't the same thing as knowing the person who wrote the book. Our challenge in abiding is to go from dutiful activities to a living, budding relationship with God.

Just as with the vine, in abiding, what happens on the surface doesn't count; what's happening inside does.

(Barbie will be speaking at First Baptist Raleigh Saturday morning & to the Mississippi State University BSU Tuesday night.)

Do You Have Peace?

Peace is hard to define, but if you have it, you know it.

Even when the hounds of hell are belittling you, Psalm 91:1-2 spells it out: "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, 'He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.'"

Colossians 3:15 says, "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts." The Bible says God prepares a table before you in the presence of your enemies (Psalm 23:5). That means even through your darkest days of conflict with others, God blesses you for your enemies to see. (He did it all through scripture for His children; He's not finished yet!)

God's peace transcends the human resources you and I may try to use to bring ourselves peace.

God cannot fill a cup that's already full with everything else going on in your life. So how do you have peace in the presence of every circumstance? You allow God to be your refuge. Psalm 32:7 says, "You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance."

If that doesn't make you want to shout "Amen!", then your shouter is broken!

(Barbie will be speaking at First Baptist Raleigh's ladies luncheon this Saturday. Dates for 2011 are almost gone! If you are interested in getting Barbie booked to speak at your event, go to www.barbiebassett.com and click on "Contact".)

Stop Caring What Others Think of You

How long as it been since you've been so hungry for God that it consumed you to the point where you couldn't care less what people thought of you?

A lady viewer recently called the tv station and complained, "The blouse Barbie is wearing is too revealing. A Christian woman such as herself should never wear something like that." I think the producer who answered the phone was so shocked and offended by HER complaint, that the producer hung up on her!

It's time to rise up and pursue His presence and chase after God. God is uncomfortable with our self-righteous selves. We aren't as "all together" as we think we are. So what are we to do? John the Baptist suggested one thing: repentance.

Matthew 3:1-3 quotes him saying, "Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, 'The voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.'"

Repentance prepares the way and makes the road of our hearts straight. You cannot live in His presence without repentance. Repentance permits the pursuit of His presence. It builds the road for you to get to God or for God to get to you!

So here it is: how long has it been since you said, "I'm going for God"? How long has it been since you laid aside everything that ever occupied you and ran down the road of repentance to pursue God?

(Coming Soon: Barbie's new book, "Carry An Umbrella When There's No Rain in the Forecast: 365 Days of Living by Faith")

Prophetic Words

The Lord is not against you. Jeremiah 29:13 says, "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."

I believe in the prophetic word. When I was given a prophetic word, I knew it was for my future and not my present. My mother and others have spoken prophetic words over me at a particular time and I knew it was coming from God. It propels you forward and repels things off like the attacks of the devil, temptations and other things designed to make you stumble (all the more reason for you to prophesy over your children, your home, your marriage and yourself).

A few weeks ago, we totaled my husband's truck in a head on collision with a black bear on our way to Florida. Last week, I had a head on collision with a deer at night. Having had a few days to think about both instances, I remembered some prophetic words spoken over me years and even weeks ago.

The devil may try to get you to second guess what God is doing in your life or the direction in which God is leading you. But this is not a time to be conferring with flesh and blood, but a time to get a Word from Heaven.

I think of the Passover story and how the Angel of Death passed over the homes and families of those who had the blood over their doorpost.

In the same way, God still has a future for you!

Barbie had a collision last night with a deer. She is okay but is busy tending to personal affairs. She will return to the blog Monday.

High Entertainment Worship

It seems like our church services today are designed to be more man-pleasing services set to itch a tickling ear and to be full of entertainment. Unfortunately, these kind of meetings have very little of our sacrificial love poured out to God who alone deserves our praise and worship.

I believe God would rather have moments with a few people who really love Him than for everyone to come and be entertained. It's like we're hosting a party for God in which we trade presents with each other while totally ignoring His presence.

Psalm 103:1 says, "Bless the Lord, O my soul." It doesn't say "O Lord, bless MY soul." God is tired of reaching into His pocket to dispense the blessings of His hand. He wants us to enjoy the fellowship with His face.

(Barbie will be speaking at MADCAAP's Hope for Today event Tuesday night & First Baptist Church of Vicksburg Thursday night. This event is SOLD OUT.)