The Buck Does Not Stop Here

I know God doesn’t have an actual desk, but if He did, there’d be one of those signs on it that reads “The Buck Stops Here.”  He gave me that image the other day when I was letting myself get weighed down with concerns.  How often I forget that I’m supposed to pass burdens on up to Him, I’m not supposed to try to carry them all by myself.  Have you ever seen a little child wanting to help or prove how big they are by dragging a suitcase or carrying a bag too heavy for them?  “Here let me take that,” the mom says.  “No,” the child says as they strain and grunt to pull it along, “I got it.” They eventually have to give in because they just can’t do it without help.

Jesus said to come to Him when I’m worn out from trying to lug heavy stuff along.  He said that His way of life is light and easier to carry and besides that He’ll be with me, helping the whole time.   (Matt. 11:28)  The buck of burdens doesn’t stop with me, it stops with Him.  He’s the only One who really knows what to do with them.  He is the only One strong enough, wise enough, patient enough.

The buck of decision-making doesn’t stop with me either.  I used to work in a doctor’s office as receptionist and enjoyed greeting the patients and getting to know the “regulars.”  Continue reading

Tags

If you look to the right column on my blog, maybe scroll down a bit, you’ll see a bunch of random words jumbled up.  Those are “tags.”  Bloggers tag posts by choosing words that people might use when searching the Internet or their blog to see posts about that topic.   So, if you want to see all the posts I’ve tagged about “parenting,” click on that tag and you’ll see a list of those posts.

Some of the words listed there are larger than others – that’s because the more I’ve used that word as a tag, the larger it appears in the list.  I’ve used “parenting” quite a bit Continue reading

Can we survive the fire swamp?

Buttercup: We’ll never survive.
Westley: Nonsense. You’re only saying that because no one ever has.
This was Buttercup’s response when with Prince Humperdink and his men catching up behind and the fire swamp the only way in front of them, Westley suggested they forge ahead through the dark, foreboding woods.
You know how when you’re scared it helps to have someone with you who actually makes fun of the situation or who doesn’t seem frightened in the least?  That’s how Westley was for Buttercup.  He led her in by the hand with confidence, thinking no one would follow them through the swamp so they were surely going to find freedom and the chance to be together on the other side.
After her gown caught on fire from bursts of flame shooting up out of the ground and almost “drowning” in a deep quicksand pit, Buttercup became a bit frazzled. Continue reading

Tied down

I’m so glad God never changes.  He is the same as He was from the beginning of time and will be the same until time ends.  That’s a really good thing for all of us puny humans because everything and everyone else in this life changes all the time!  Just as sure as I start to count on something it falls apart, blows away, shape shifts, or turns out to be something other than what it appeared to be. Continue reading

Can I get an Amen??

This morning I wrote to my mom and sis to vent, as I often do.  I’ve been praying and thinking about ways John and I can tackle the $24,000 2nd mortgage that we’re responsible for, even though our house foreclosed in Missouri this month.  Rather than feel sorry for us, I know we just need to buckle down and do what we can, one day at a time.  I wanted to share my sister’s reply with you because they lifted me so and made me smile:

I love you so much and just want to write and support you and remind you that to God, $24,000 is nothing!  In the grand scheme of things, when you are are the creator of everything and the owner of every cow on every hill…what’s $24,000?!  Continue reading

Daredevils

What some find entertaining, I often find too stressful to enjoy watching:  daredevils.  Those reckless, bold, wild people who love to walk a tightrope way too high over a busy street or catapult themselves across canyons or jump long rows of semi-trucks, just for fun, just to prove they can do it.  Have you noticed that a single danger isn’t usually enough?  “Not only will I jump my motorcycle over these trucks, I’ll do it BLINDFOLDED!  And we’re setting all the trucks on FIRE!  AND I’ll be holding my tiny, helpless kitten ‘Snuffy’ as I jump across!  I SPIT in the face of fear and death!”  Did Snuffy get a say in this??  The crowd leans forward on the edge of their seats to watch, holding their breath, loving every minute.  Continue reading

Jodi came along

I looked up some quotes about sisters today.  It’s my sister Jodi’s birthday and I wanted to wax eloquent about her and the complex and wonderful relationship sisters share.  Here are a few I found, some sweet, some funny:

Sisters by birth, friends by choice – Author Unknown

The mildest, drowsiest sister has been known to turn tiger if her sibling is in trouble.  ~Clara Ortega

Sisters are different flowers from the same garden.  ~Author Unknown

Big sisters are the crab grass in the lawn of life.  ~Charles M. Schulz  (Haha!  I hope that’s not too true for her!)

When sisters stand shoulder to shoulder, who stands a chance against us?  ~Pam Brown  (I love this one)

When I was about 2 1/2 years old, God provided me a playmate and friend. Continue reading

Kaitlin Elizabeth, Kaity-kait, Kaikin

I remember so well the day we met her.  Early in the morning she let us know she was coming.  Of course, at that point we didn’t know if she was a she or a he.  Before long the mystery was revealed (as the nurse eloquently exclaimed “there’s no pee pee!”) and we were holding our tiny, soft treasure with black fuzzy hair and dark eyes.  I love the moment when they first handed my baby to me and I held her to me, eyes locked on each other.  So you’re the one I’ve been waiting to see all this time!

Some thoughts about Kaitlin on this her 18th birthday: Continue reading

Really trusting

It’s one thing for a little girl to say she trusts her daddy, it’s another for her to crouch down and jump up away the firm concrete, out into his arms over the deep end of the swimming pool.

It’s one thing to say you believe in heaven and another to keep believing when you’ve lost someone you love and your faith means they’re actually in heaven now.  Are they really?

It’s one thing to proclaim God will provide and another to have to depend on that claim, waiting for some miracle or revelation of something you can do because you’re out of money and have rent to pay or an empty pantry. Continue reading

Follow Jesus

I like Twitter.  It helps me keep up with friends I’m not with every day, including my two older daughters.  Each of their tweets is a little glimpse into their day, their hearts and thoughts and it makes me feel connected.  Sometimes on the home page Twitter gives recommendations of people to “follow.”  There are some I comedians I follow that crack me up, some well-known pastors I follow that encourage or challenge me, and so on.  For a while I followed some Olympic athletes like Apolo Ohno.  He’s such a positive, enthusiastic person.   Some people I follow and would love to hear more of what they’re thinking, but they just aren’t into twitter and rarely say anything.

I’d like to recommend that on this path we call everyday life on planet Earth, that you follow Jesus.  He’s always got something to say and it’s not self-promoting, nonsensical blather.  Whatever he says gives life.

I’m sure you’ve experienced something similar to what I did when I was little.  Continue reading