Change... Who likes change. I am not talking money, but things being different than "the norm".
Thinking back on it, I have had quite a bit of change since I got married. Part of that is due to the fact I married someone in the military so the first 5 years of our marriage was constant change.
But when we moved back to Iowa the change kept coming. No home, new jobs, schooling, years of infertility, home buying, children being born, staying at home and going to one income, private schooling, then homeschooling, death of family members, and on & on.
Some was easy and a no brainer, but some of the other stuff was hard.
In thinking about this I read in my quiet time that God told Joseph and Mary to leave and flee, move to Egypt with a infant/toddler.... Now I am pretty sure, no accounts in the gospel told Mary that because she was giving birth to the MESSIAH that her life would be easy and free of change. So if Mary did not receive an easy road why should I??
I am uncomfortable when plans change for family holiday get togethers, I am sad when my Dad is not at the head of the table anymore....These changes can drag you down.
Just as God provided for Mary & Joseph a place of refuge in Egypt, a safe place to return to once Herod died. HE PROVIDES FOR ME!!
The NEW faces around the dinner table, the abundance of LOVE & FOOD around that table. All those provisions need to be louder than my sadness or me being uncomfortable.
I find it rather ironic that our presidents motto was hope and change...... I see hope and change but not in a man or in worldly things but in JESUS CHRIST, who gives me real HOPE in the midst of all my CHANGE.
Kids
The reason I do what I do!
Monday, November 19, 2012
Friday, November 16, 2012
CONTROL FREAK!!!!
In my quiet time this morning God spoke again through one of the stories I had heard 100's of times. In the story of Jesus healing the sick woman I am amazed at the grace throughout the story. See Luke 8:40-48
First of all who wants to bleed for a week, let alone 12 years......Next this chick must have had a terribly hard life for the last 12 years. Custom would be, because she was bleeding, she would have been removed from her household till she was "clean". She had to live in a tent outside her home. Now there is no mention of a family, but there had to be someone she would have been removed from.... So she was more than likely lonely. She was more than likely mocked or at least the "talk" of the tents. And she must have been desperate. Desperate enough to take matters into her own hands.
It seemed like she had encounter with Jesus planned out. A "touch and go" if you will. After that she would be on her merry way and returned to her normal life. First emerged herself as part of "the crowd" then she went in for the move. I need to give this girl credit, 1st she was hanging with other believers, 2nd she knew who could heal her. Her down fall was that she wanted all this on HER terms.
OH how many times have I done the same. My idea, my plan, my manipulating the circumstances so everything is just so...
She was called out. Not only called out but, HEALED and called out.
"Who touched me?"..... really?
Like Jesus really needed to ask this, He is Mr. all knowing.
But that question moved her to a place of fear.
And that FEAR and ADMITTANCE of her plan to touch Him to be healed was where her healing became COMPLETE.
I am usually pretty happy and maybe even smug when a "plan" of mine goes as I planned. It is when it does not go according to my plan when I get upset. During that time, I need to hear Jesus calling ME out.
Now I am not saying I am giving up planning things, (NO WAY!) but what I need to do is check my heart and make sure that what I am planning is for God's glory and not my own.
First of all who wants to bleed for a week, let alone 12 years......Next this chick must have had a terribly hard life for the last 12 years. Custom would be, because she was bleeding, she would have been removed from her household till she was "clean". She had to live in a tent outside her home. Now there is no mention of a family, but there had to be someone she would have been removed from.... So she was more than likely lonely. She was more than likely mocked or at least the "talk" of the tents. And she must have been desperate. Desperate enough to take matters into her own hands.
It seemed like she had encounter with Jesus planned out. A "touch and go" if you will. After that she would be on her merry way and returned to her normal life. First emerged herself as part of "the crowd" then she went in for the move. I need to give this girl credit, 1st she was hanging with other believers, 2nd she knew who could heal her. Her down fall was that she wanted all this on HER terms.
OH how many times have I done the same. My idea, my plan, my manipulating the circumstances so everything is just so...
She was called out. Not only called out but, HEALED and called out.
"Who touched me?"..... really?
Like Jesus really needed to ask this, He is Mr. all knowing.
But that question moved her to a place of fear.
And that FEAR and ADMITTANCE of her plan to touch Him to be healed was where her healing became COMPLETE.
I am usually pretty happy and maybe even smug when a "plan" of mine goes as I planned. It is when it does not go according to my plan when I get upset. During that time, I need to hear Jesus calling ME out.
Now I am not saying I am giving up planning things, (NO WAY!) but what I need to do is check my heart and make sure that what I am planning is for God's glory and not my own.
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
BULL!
God will never give you more then you can handle.... BULL!!
I hear this over and over again from well meaning church going people and it drives me CRAZY! People refer to 1 Corinthians 10:13 as where they get this faulty quote.
God continually gives us more than we can handle to make us stretch, grow, and lean on Him. I have had this happen many times in my life. And it is all through out the Bible. Look at Abraham, Job, Mary, Martha, and Paul as a few examples.
When my oldest daughter was 6 months old she was sick and the doctor could not figure out what was wrong with her. She had run a fever off and on, it would spike then recover. They drew blood and found nothing. One night as I consoled her as she was crying for the 5th night straight, I started crying out too.
After I got her to sleep and literally crawled into bed I heard a CRACK and a THUD. My husband and I jumped out of bed to find the 50 year old tree in our front yard had fallen across our driveway and on the sidewalk. We were in shock.
In the morning as the baby woke up with a high fever and a doctor appointment looming we considered how to get out. My husbands 1st call was to work, 2nd call to the city, 3rd call to the doctor.
The city came in a matter of an hour and had the tree removed from across the drive way and sidewalks. I did not say they hauled it away.... they are only liable to clear a path for pedestrian and motor traffic.
So we head off to the doctor's office and have no further insight on the cause of our daughters illness with a HUGE tree laying in our front yard. The doctor decides to admit her to the hospital because she is now getting dehydrated and not eating well.
By the afternoon we are in the hospital and getting fluids awaiting test results. I stay at the hospital and send my husband home that night to sleep. As the morning dawned we got the test results of ecoli. I thought it was the straw that would break my back....
Then my cell phone rang. It was a tree service my husband had called to remove the tree. It would be $946 to remove the tree and haul it away. I told them okay figuring we would have to get a loan or charge all these unplanned expenses.
As I am hanging up the phone, my husband comes in the room and I lost it! I bawled like my daughter had the night before uncontrollably. After about 10 minuets of a good hard cry, my husband reaches into his pocket and pulls out his handkerchief and a $950 bonus check from his place of employment.
God DID give me WAY MORE than I wanted to handle. But today I can look back at that and see how the Lord provided for me in my time of need. These struggles made me STRETCH in my faith, GROW in endurance and LEAN on HIM.
He is Jehovah-Jireh, the Lord God our PROVIDER.
I hear this over and over again from well meaning church going people and it drives me CRAZY! People refer to 1 Corinthians 10:13 as where they get this faulty quote.
God continually gives us more than we can handle to make us stretch, grow, and lean on Him. I have had this happen many times in my life. And it is all through out the Bible. Look at Abraham, Job, Mary, Martha, and Paul as a few examples.
When my oldest daughter was 6 months old she was sick and the doctor could not figure out what was wrong with her. She had run a fever off and on, it would spike then recover. They drew blood and found nothing. One night as I consoled her as she was crying for the 5th night straight, I started crying out too.
After I got her to sleep and literally crawled into bed I heard a CRACK and a THUD. My husband and I jumped out of bed to find the 50 year old tree in our front yard had fallen across our driveway and on the sidewalk. We were in shock.
In the morning as the baby woke up with a high fever and a doctor appointment looming we considered how to get out. My husbands 1st call was to work, 2nd call to the city, 3rd call to the doctor.
The city came in a matter of an hour and had the tree removed from across the drive way and sidewalks. I did not say they hauled it away.... they are only liable to clear a path for pedestrian and motor traffic.
So we head off to the doctor's office and have no further insight on the cause of our daughters illness with a HUGE tree laying in our front yard. The doctor decides to admit her to the hospital because she is now getting dehydrated and not eating well.
By the afternoon we are in the hospital and getting fluids awaiting test results. I stay at the hospital and send my husband home that night to sleep. As the morning dawned we got the test results of ecoli. I thought it was the straw that would break my back....
Then my cell phone rang. It was a tree service my husband had called to remove the tree. It would be $946 to remove the tree and haul it away. I told them okay figuring we would have to get a loan or charge all these unplanned expenses.
As I am hanging up the phone, my husband comes in the room and I lost it! I bawled like my daughter had the night before uncontrollably. After about 10 minuets of a good hard cry, my husband reaches into his pocket and pulls out his handkerchief and a $950 bonus check from his place of employment.
God DID give me WAY MORE than I wanted to handle. But today I can look back at that and see how the Lord provided for me in my time of need. These struggles made me STRETCH in my faith, GROW in endurance and LEAN on HIM.
He is Jehovah-Jireh, the Lord God our PROVIDER.
Sitting......
I am by trade (haha!) a stay at home/homeschool mom and have been now for over 17 years.. As the years have past, I decided to keep me from hurting my children and to make sure I can still carry on an adult conversation, I took on a very part time job at a local University. As this was only 1-2 days a month it was good for all.
I have the most WONDERFUL in-laws who came and played with my kids while I was gone on those afternoons. My mother in law, former teacher, would always show up with a game in hand. Which was great for teaching the children different aspects of life. Taking turns, counting money, and even what a house note was. THANKS LIFE!
One aspect she taught them came back to me very loudly this week, and you know what they say sharing is caring.
The children would get so excited it was there turn and they would just start counting and moving their token around whatever game they are playing. She would lovingly recount with them and get everyone to the right spot. After doing this several times, she has the patience of a saint, she decided to implement a new saying to help the kids start moving the token at the right time. She would say SITTING.... 1..2...3 ect.
It is the word SITTING that is screaming in my head!!! God speaks so loudly. Especially when he wants to make sure I am listening.
I need to practice the SITTING. Resting and thinking before doing. In Luke 10 Mary was caught SITTING. It ticked Martha off, bad. But Jesus said she had chosen what was better!
I am such a Martha. WOW!!! Sitting is okay. This is a radical! Not only that but Luke is telling the story... a doctor? coincidence?? Then you have the GREAT PHYSICIAN saying it is ok.
So if you need anything today and find me sitting, my MASTER says it is ok for me to rest in HIM.
I have the most WONDERFUL in-laws who came and played with my kids while I was gone on those afternoons. My mother in law, former teacher, would always show up with a game in hand. Which was great for teaching the children different aspects of life. Taking turns, counting money, and even what a house note was. THANKS LIFE!
One aspect she taught them came back to me very loudly this week, and you know what they say sharing is caring.
The children would get so excited it was there turn and they would just start counting and moving their token around whatever game they are playing. She would lovingly recount with them and get everyone to the right spot. After doing this several times, she has the patience of a saint, she decided to implement a new saying to help the kids start moving the token at the right time. She would say SITTING.... 1..2...3 ect.
It is the word SITTING that is screaming in my head!!! God speaks so loudly. Especially when he wants to make sure I am listening.
I need to practice the SITTING. Resting and thinking before doing. In Luke 10 Mary was caught SITTING. It ticked Martha off, bad. But Jesus said she had chosen what was better!
I am such a Martha. WOW!!! Sitting is okay. This is a radical! Not only that but Luke is telling the story... a doctor? coincidence?? Then you have the GREAT PHYSICIAN saying it is ok.
So if you need anything today and find me sitting, my MASTER says it is ok for me to rest in HIM.
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Sweet aroma
Deciding to write a blog.... what do I have to say that anyone would want to hear.
Well even if this is just therapy for me it will be effective. I am not making any promises to write once a week, month, I might write 2-3 times a day. I will be prompted by Spirit, the Word and God.
Sweet aroma.... that is what we are to be. All through Genesis, Exodus, and Leviticus it references the "aroma" of offerings to the LORD.
In my quiet time the other day in Mark 14 right before Jesus was to die, a woman took expensive perfume and poured it as an "offering" on his feet. The disciples questioned her wasting it, but Jesus said "leave her alone".
I have been struggling with this for several weeks now with someone in my life who does not see value in how I "pour" out my offering. God has given me many gifts. I am BLESSED with a very giving spirit and love to do things for others as a service to Him.
My goal this week has been to hear Christs words as He says "she has done a beautiful thing for me", and remember that it is Him I am bringing glory to, not others.
And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Colossians 3:14
Well even if this is just therapy for me it will be effective. I am not making any promises to write once a week, month, I might write 2-3 times a day. I will be prompted by Spirit, the Word and God.
Sweet aroma.... that is what we are to be. All through Genesis, Exodus, and Leviticus it references the "aroma" of offerings to the LORD.
In my quiet time the other day in Mark 14 right before Jesus was to die, a woman took expensive perfume and poured it as an "offering" on his feet. The disciples questioned her wasting it, but Jesus said "leave her alone".
I have been struggling with this for several weeks now with someone in my life who does not see value in how I "pour" out my offering. God has given me many gifts. I am BLESSED with a very giving spirit and love to do things for others as a service to Him.
My goal this week has been to hear Christs words as He says "she has done a beautiful thing for me", and remember that it is Him I am bringing glory to, not others.
And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Colossians 3:14
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