Consistent

As I took a walk this morning I was struck by an encouraging thought.  It occurred to me how incredible consistent the Lord is.  Every morning the sun is there to greet us and each evening the moon lulls us to sleep.  Every spring the grass greens up and the flowers start budding.  Summer always brings warmth and beauty from the ashes of winter. God is a faithful father, a consistent and reliable father.  Oh how I long to be that kind of parent to my children.  To say what I mean and mean what I say, to never break a promise or fail to be consistent in anyway.  Lord that is my prayer today.  Please help me to be consistent with my children so that they know what to expect from me.

            I wonder if that is why we get complacent.  Is it because we just expect the sun to rise? What if we woke up one morning and the sun didn’t rise??  What if spring never came to chase winter away?  I bet it wouldn’t take us long to begin grumbling and questioning God.  Why is it we often only notice the blessings when they are gone?  Maybe that is why sometimes things don’t go as WE plan.  How many of us have heard the stories of how a near death experience awoke someone to the everyday blessings in their lives.  How that kept them from taking these things for granted. But is it that God has failed to be consistent when someone gets sick or passes away too soon from this earth?  No, God never promised that life would be fair or that there would be smooth sailing.  He only promises to comfort those who mourn, to love us unconditionally, and to never give up on us.  And of course He sent His one and only son to bring us the promise of an everlasting life, should we choose to accept.

          As we head into this Thanksgiving season, will you join me in thanking God for the things we might have been taking for granted?  

                                                                                   

Watch Your Words

Have you ever noticed how quick people are to speak and how slow they are to listen?  I even find myself doing this all the time with my kids.  They start to tell me something and I interrupt to "correct" their thinking, without ever really listening to what they had to say, or to see if their thinking even needed correcting.  Maybe it comes from thinking I am wiser than them and I have some sort of need to share that wisdom, but the truth is a truly wise person rarely speaks!  The book of Proverbs is full of verses that tell us things like, "Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent, and discerning if they hold their tongues." (Proverbs 17:28) and "The prudent keep their knowledge to themselves, but a fool's heart blurts out folly."  Proverbs 12:23 Ouch!


Recently, my husband and I have been on the other side of the advice cart.  We have been receiving loads of advice, and honestly, most of it is not helpful.  You see, we are expecting another child.  Not in the traditional sense, as I am not pregnant, but a sibling to my niece and nephew (whom are in our custody) is about to be born and we have been asked to consider taking the child in.  For us, this means child number 7, and I know that it seems crazy to even think about.  My husband and I are not rich. He is a pastor and I am an unemployed teacher.  However, we live in a house that is overflowing with love and acceptance, and isn't that what children really need?  We have sat down and talked as a family, we have prayed about the decision before us, and then we made it.  From the outside looking in, it may not seem like a wise decision. 

What I am learning is that there is a difference between wise words and helpful words.  There are a lot of well meaning people who say things like, "You guys have no business taking in another child." and "There are plenty of other foster homes this baby could go to."  And in truth, there is some wisdom in their words.  However, their words are not helpful.   The decision has been made.  On the other hand do you know how many offers I have had for someone to come help with laundry or cooking or cleaning or any other type of support we might need?  There have been some, but I can count them on one hand.

I am not saying all of these things to make anyone feel bad, but I am hoping to wake all of us up, me included.  We can see a situation from the outside and think we have all the answers, but the truth is, unless we know all of the details, we probably don't have all of the answers.  I was the best parent in the world BEFORE I actually had kids!  Now, I have more questions than answers! 

I have a friend who has been going through some life changes due to circumstances beyond her control.  She lost her job and has decided, to return to school and get a degree in a different area.  She recently shared with me some of the hurtful comments people have made to her regarding her decision.  Now I bet if we asked those people, they would be surprised to hear that their words caused her pain.  The intent of their words was to help but the effect of their words was pain.

The truth is your words are either a blessing or a curse...they cannot be both.  They either bring life, or they bring death.  So the next time you go to speak, stop and think about what effect your words are going to have.  God gave us 2 ears and only 1 mouth!

In the wise words of James (1:19) "Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak..."

What Would Matter to Your Son

I woke up this morning

overwhelmed by all that needed done.

Then this thought crossed my mind,

“What would matter to Your son?”

If the halls are neatly vacuumed

the laundry - not piled high.

If dinner is served right on time

and the dishes are clean and dry?

Is that what really matters

on Your scale of one to ten?

Am I serving God

or am I serving men?

So, I need to focus

on the people in my life

and serving You completely

 to be a better mom and wife.

When I stand before you,

when all my days are done

What will I have accomplished

that mattered to Your son?

Don't Touch my Tuesdays!

"Busy, busy, dreadfully busy. More than a bumblebee, more than an ant. Busy, busy, dreadfully busy, I'd love to help but I can't." These are the lyrics of an old Veggie Tale tune but they ring in my ears and sadly sum up many of my days. With six kids (three in high school) life is never dull, and never slow!

This summer, my husband and I went away together for a whole week. It was the first time we had gotten away by ourselves for more than a night or two since we were married 18 years ago and it was delightful. We took part in an amazing ministry called, Broomtree (www.broomtreeministries.org). It is a ministry for pastor's and their spouse to get away from the busyness of life and regroup. One of the conditions of the retreat was that you leave your computers and home and your cell phones off. That was quite a challenge for me because I am plugged in....I love to connect with people over the phone, through texts, via facebook, or email. So I have a confession to make, I did leave my computer home but I brought my phone. Now I left in my room most of the time but it was there just in case someone needed me (or I needed someone??) But you know what I did every time I walked back into my room? I ran over and checked to see what I had missed. Not only that, but I have a smart phone, which means I can still see facebook and check my emails. I could still be connected.

As the week progressed though I began to realize how I was affected by being connected. I spent one of my "retreat" days in tears because of a phone message I had gotten. Of course that never would have happened had I not had my phone on but I justified it by telling my husband that our kids might need us, or something might go wrong back home and we wouldn't know. I realized how much being connected was draining me. The Lord began to work on my heart through others at the retreat and through His word. "Be still..." (Psalm 46:10) If you know me, you know I don't really have it in me to "be still." I rarely sit through a whole movie or even television show without getting up to do something. If you call me you can be certain that I am folding laundry or doing dishes while we are talking. And finish a meal without hopping up ten times? Don't be ridiculous! Of course, part of that is just being a mom, but part of it is that I just can't be still.

Years ago, when the kids were younger, I started a routine of seeking God's face during my quiet time. I must admit it was very difficult at first. My quiet time folder was dived into sections: Study, Prayer, Praise, Listening. When I got to the listening section I would just sit quietly and try to process what I had read in the Scriptures and then just listen to what God had to say to me. This is when I would remember that we needed milk, or that I needed to switch loads of laundry, or call to make an appointment. So to help, I always brought along a notepad where I could jot those things down and then get back to listening. As I think back on it now, I realize how much I grew in my faith during that time and even as I write this, I am yearning to begin this practice again. In fact, I will start today!

One other thing that came from my Broomtree retreat was the realization that everyone doesn't need me...if I don't answer a phone call or a text right away, the world will not end. (This was a shocking reality for me :) I love helping people, and God made me to be a servant to others, but it is okay to take a step back from time to time and regroup! So I am working on a new challenge that I have decided to call, "Don't touch my Tuesdays." I am going to stay off facebook and not check my emails on Tuesday. This is a day I will save for blogging, for stepping back to listen and seek God's face. I am even going to try to limit my phone calls and text to my children and hubby only. It will be difficult for me (I have already taken several calls today and spent time on Facebook...and it is Tuesday so I am going to have to work on this!) But I am going to work on this! I wonder if any of you would like to join me in this challenge to choose one day a week to disconnect? Let me hear your thoughts!

I see Jesus!

While doing my devotions this morning, I was struck by this phrase: "When the people recognized Jesus..." I mean how did they recognize Him? Had they seen his picture on the evening news? Did they see his latest sermon on youtube? No, of course not! They hadn't even seen a photo of Him, because the camera had not yet been invented. So how is it that they recognized Him?

I think two things come into play here: 1- the people were talking, and everyone knows that word of mouth is the best advertisement! and 2- they recognized the face of hope, the face of salvation, because we all long for that.

The people were talking, and what a challenge to us today! We have so many more resources than the people of Jesus' day had. They didn't have facebook, twitter, blogspots, newspapers, televisions, youtube, etc... and yet they managed to spread the word about Jesus. It should be so much easier for us to spread the message. So my challenge here is simple, who are you going to tell today? D.L. Moody never went to bed until he had shared God's word with at least one person. Will you agree to do the same? I am going to give it a try!

They recognized the face of hope, the face of salvation! I know I have shared this analogy before but I can't resist the truth of it so here it comes again! Matthew 5 tells us that we are a city on a hill, that CANNOT be hidden. Think about the light of a flashlight, if you look at it, even in the daytime, you can see the light coming out. That is how we, as believers should be, when people look at us they should see the face of Jesus, shining through. But, you and I know that the world is not always "daytime." In fact, there is much darkness in the world we live in. Let's think about that same flashlight on a dark, moonless night. Your eyes are drawn to the light it sheds, you cannot help but seek it out. That, too is how we as believers should be, when the world around us is walking in darkness, their eyes will be drawn to the light of Christ in us, they won't be able to help it! And then we can be ready to give an answer for the hope that lives within us. (1 Peter 3:15) My second challenge is as simple as the first, be the light of Jesus today!

Steps to PEACE

Boy oh boy has it been a rough summer, for the first time ever, I am actually glad to see summer end. You see, in April, I found out I was losing my job, in May I turned the big 40 (ugggh), in June we found out that the baby we have loved for almost a year was going to be leaving our home, Jeremiah had an emergency appendectomy and Jerry left for 2 weeks on a mission trip, in July the baby went home and Jerry became very sick with what we now know is Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. It was a rough summer!

In the midst of the sadness, disappointment, and chaos I must admit that I began to lose focus and there was no peace in our home. Then God began to get my attention. First I met with a friend who reminded me that fear is the opposite of faith, then I picked up a book by Joyce Meyers, The Battlefield of the Mind, and began to read realizing where I began to lose the battle of having peace despite my circumstances.

I am going to guess that I am not the only one who has faced hard times and I am probably not the only one who has allowed myself to lose sight of the peace that comes from Christ. So today I wanted to share with you some steps to finding peace.

First, We MUST keep your eye on the Savior rather than the situation. Matthew 19:26 tells us of a time when the disciples were baffled by some teaching Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” It is so easy to get bogged down with our circumstances and lose sight of the promises of Christ. For goodnes sake, we are standing knee deep in the circumstance and it demands our attention, but we have to make a conscious choice to keep our eyes on Christ.

Second, We need to pray and not panic. I don't know about you but I can tell you that when a crisis hits I often forget to just stop and pray but Matthew 7:7-11 tells us to “7 Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. 9 “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" We need to go to God first, not to our friends, not to the box of chocolates or bowl of ice cream, not on a retail therapy trip, or whatever else it is that would distract us from going to Christ.

Third,we must have faith and not fear. I admit it is hard when we face unknowns but Hebrews 11:1 tells us that faith is, "confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." So that means choosing faith over fear even when we don't know what the tomorrow holds, because we know WHO holds the future. In fact Hebrews 11 goes on to say in verse 6 that "without faith it is impossible to please God."

So my question to you today is, what is holding you back from having peace? Remember satan is a thief who comes to steal, kill, and destroy but Jesus came so that we may have life, not just a barely surviving life but an abundant life, to the full. (John 10:10)

There Is A Balm in Gilead

Jeremiah is one of my favorite Old Testament figures. He had a heart for his people and spent countless hours crying out to the Lord on their behalf. The rest of his time was spent trying to redirect the misguided steps of his fellow Israelites.

Perhaps you have heard the popular song by Three Dog Night entitled, "Joy to the World." Well if you are familiar with it then you can smile at my rewrite in honor of my own sweet Jeremiah, "Jeremiah was a prophet, in Old Testament times, people never listened to a word he said and he was crying all the time, singing,'woe to the world, all the boys and girls, woe to the fishes in the deep blue sue, and woe to you and me."

Truth is though, there wasn't too much to smile about in Jeremiah's day. The Israelites were in exile in Babylon. They had been use to living the good life but that time had come and gone. Along comes Jeremiah and he is brokenhearted at the fate of his people. So he cries out to God in Jeremiah chapter 8, "Since my people are crushed, I am crushed. I mourn and horror grips me. Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then is there no healing for the wound of my people?" (Gilead was a city that was known for its herbs and medical spices used in healing)

Essentially Jeremiah was asking, "Where is God in all of this suffering?" And that is a question I have asked a time or two (or ten) myself. In fact, I've been asking it pretty often here lately, but I met with a friend today who helped me see that I am exhausted, not because God hasn't shown up but because I am running ahead of Him, not waiting to see what His plan is or what He is doing that I cannot see. I may have been a little distracted by all the work that has gone into planning my pity party also.

As humbling as it is to admit, I have been feeling pretty sorry for myself and bordering dangerously on the edge of becoming like Job's wife. I have been thinking about all I have done to make this situation right with my nephew and niece and grumbling about the fact that it seems that I am doing all the work and God isn't showing up to do His share. And then I read Isaiah 43:19, "For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland."

Maybe you have heard the old Spiritual, "There is a Balm in Gilead" but the words ring just as true today as when it was first penned: "There is a balm in Gilead to make the wounded whole. There is a balm in Gilead to heal the sin sick soul."

Are you weary? Are you hurting, too wounded to crawl out of bed and face the day? Jeremiah could relate, hey, I can relate! So let me first say that I am sorry for whatever life has handed you that is taking the wind out of your sails, and second I want to remind you that there is a balm in Gilead, and in LaMoille, and in whatever city you are sitting in right now. The same God who heard Jeremiah's cries hears yours. And just as He was faithful back then, He is faithful today. Maybe you can't see what He is doing, but trust me friend, He is doing something!