Tag Archives: God

Take 15,330

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clapboard1sm copyThe alarm clock sounds, I drowsily hit the button and sit up in bed.  I can almost hear it:  the clacking sound of God’s clap board as he gives me a new day.  Today He said, “Take 15,330!”  Lamentations 3:22-23 tells me, “The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease.   Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.”  That means that every morning I live with God I have a fresh start, a new take, a clean slate.

God wipes the sin and mistakes from the previous day away and forgets.  He doesn’t hold them over my  head or rewind the blooper reel from the day before and say regretfully, “Wow you botched that didn’t you?” or “yesterday you lost your temper,” or “You know, you didn’t do what I urged you to do right then.”    Instead He says, “I love you!  Good morning!  I’ve got some great things planned for this day, wanna hear about it?”

Sometimes the enemy tries to unearth past sins and hurts to distract and discourage me but the Bible tells me that God casts my sins as far away from us as the east is from the west.  When I ask forgiveness, they’re gone.  Gone.  They’re not there to hinder me in this new day.

My mom wisely advised me as a young mom to wipe the slate clean for my girls every day, to not hold past day’s tantrums or disobedience against them, to extend mercy to them.  It was one of the best pieces of advice I’ve ever gotten.  Jesus would agree with her.  In one of his most well-known messages He told us one way to be truly “happy” is to be merciful, just as God is merciful to us.   So, in the morning when you wake up, thank God for your clean slate and wipe the slate clean for your family and friends, for everyone you have relationship with.  Even if they haven’t asked you to.

However many days you’ve had so far, listen for God’s voice and big clap board as he says “Let’s do another take.  Start over!  It’s a new day!”

“…His unfailing love toward those who fear him
is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.
He has removed our sins as far from us
as the east is from the west.
The Lord is like a father to his children,
tender and compassionate to those who fear him.”   Psalm 103:11-13

“Light is sweet; how pleasant to see a new day dawning.”  Ecclesiastes 11:7

You didn’t expect that did you?

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susan-boyleMany have seen the You Tube video of Susan Boyle, a middle-aged single woman who appeared on the TV show “Britain’s Got Talent”.  When she walked out onto the stage the judges practically rolled their eyes with contempt.  One could almost hear their thoughts, “What on earth is this frizzy-haired, plain-faced woman in an old-fashioned dress and heels doing here?  She’s way out of her league.  Delusions of grandeur, here we come.”

Once she opened her mouth and began to sing their judgments were proven premature.  A strong beautiful voice came from this unlikely performer, a voice and interpretation of a song that touched hearts and moved some to tears.  So much for judging someone based on their appearance!  The co-hosts who stood backstage looked at the camera and said to viewers while smiling, “you didn’t expect that did you?”

For some reason humans are so quick to make judgments, usually based on what we see in a split-second.  Think about it, the next time you drive down the road or sit in a mall watching people, pay attention to the label-making that goes on in your mind as people walk or drive by.

David_anointedI read this morning in I Samuel about the anointing of King David.  King Saul had proven to be a disappointment to God so God told Samuel He was going to choose a new king.  Samuel went to the house of Jesse, a man with seven sons.  Six of the sons walked in front of Samuel – tall and strong, strapping young men.  As each one passed Samuel thought, “Surely this is the one” and each time God said “Nope.”  Continue reading →

Bed Bug Brouhaha

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Have you ever encountered something that made you wonder, “Why, God?  Why did you feel the need to create this?”   A few things come to mind:  mosquitos and roaches top the list of course.  I’ve even pondered and snickered over the fact that when we expel gas from our bodies it makes a funny noise, whichever end it escapes.  That just confirms to me that God is funny – He’s the inventor of humor.

The newest addition to the “No purpose at all” list is bed bugs.  They don’t go on the “funny” list, however.  Somehow my family and I have been invaded.  We don’t know where they came from or when, just that they’re in our townhouse and we’re trying to get them OUT.

These little pests bite us for our blood, like mosquitoes, only crawling instead of flying.  They start out as practically invisible eggs, then teensy white or yellow “teenagers” until they turn reddish-brown as adults.  They leave behind little black specks of excrement – a tell-tale sign that they’ve moved in.  Lovely isn’t it?  The tricky part is until you see the signs you don’t know they’re there and that could be weeks after they’ve made a home in your home.

Apparently they can live for almost a year without eating (!) and are so thin and flat they can hide in cracks in furniture or door frames, even under carpet seams.  They can withstand temperatures ranging from freezing to 113 degrees.

They don’t flinch at most pesticides but steam seems to do the trick.  It’s hot enough to roast ’em.   We had to pretty much empty our girls’ room and our room, strip the beds, wash everything in hot water, bedsheets, clothes, blankets, pillows, curtain…everything.  We’ve thrown away two box springs so far.  An exterminator came out to do a steam treatment and will probably come out again to help us make sure we’ve gotten them all.

If you travel and stay at a hotel, peel back the sheet corners and look at the seams of the mattress for the little black dots or worse, the actual bugs.  They seem to especially like congregating at the head of the bed.  I’ve heard that although once thought practically eradicated there has been a resurgence and even in some of the nicest hotels they’ve shown their ugly little selves.

We’ve been trying to find the good in this ordeal and so far the best I can do is say that our apartment is now really clean, our linens are all freshly washed and clean, and we’re educated about bed bugs.  The latter is my least favorite “finding the good” lesson.   Thankfully they don’t hurt you or make you sick – -they’re just plain creepy!  Once I realized I had been sleeping innocently in my bed while not a foot beneath my head on the box spring they were gathering and strategizing I got a severe case of the heebie-jeebies.

Be aware and check beds when you travel.  Don’t set your luggage on furniture in hotels, maybe the edge of the bathtub or one of those luggage stands.   Just giving you a heads up.   I’m sincerely saying to you, “don’t let the bed bugs bite!”

I haven’t figured Him out yet

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God, who made this expansive, mind-blowingly big universe chose to create life on this little ball of dirt called Earth.  Then He chose to love the little fleshly beings who were made in His image.

These little beings, who are irritatingly fickle, turn away from God too many times to count but He keeps taking them back, never once proving fickle to them, but faithful to His promise.

God shrinks himself, all his massive glory and power, to be contained by a tiny zygote which becomes an embryo, which grows into a baby and is born to a human woman.

This baby grew into the man named Jesus, who was fully God and fully man at the same time.

Mary and Martha grieved over their brother’s death and wondered why Jesus didn’t come when they first told him his friend Lazarus was dying.   He waited for days.  Of course when he did come something greater than just healing happened.  Lazarus got a second chance at life.

One night the disciples panicked as a tempest just about washed them into the sea.  While they tried to bail out the water filling their boat Jesus slept peacefully at the front.   It wasn’t until they woke him up that he did something.  He silenced the storm with a word.

Jesus told his followers that unless they ate his body and drank his blood they had no life in them.

Jesus promised eternal life if we trust in Him.  Eternal!  No end?!  Sometimes just thinking about it makes me afraid because I can’t wrap my mind around the concept.

A young mom is miraculously cured from stage 4 cancer.  Her family rejoices in awe and celebration.  Her husband and small children will get to keep their wife/mom.  Three years later the cancer recurs and soon after takes her life.

Christians around the world are beaten, tortured and killed for their faith.

A couple who has prayed and prayed and PRAYED for a baby cannot get pregnant, no matter what they try.  Another couple who weren’t planning on having any more kids gets pregnant.

I’m celebrating with friends of mine who put their house up for sale and in two days have it sold!  They don’t even know where they are going next or what they’re going to do.  I ache for another friend of mine who has had her house on the market for months, her husband living in another state for his job.  They are apart, they have prayed and prayed…nothing.

I have choices when I am face to face with something I don’t understand about God.  I can become bitter and angry, I can lose faith and think He’s not who He says He is, I can wait and watch, I can keep praying even if the silence from heaven is deafening, I can trust, I can feel sorry for myself, I can be jealous of other’s answered prayers, I can be thankful for having what I need today, I can look for a lesson and hope to grow through it all, or I can withdraw and give up.   I’m sure there are many other choices or possible reactions, good or bad, right or wrong, helpful or destructive, in times like this.

space-stars471The truth is God is a mystery.  I cannot fully understand Him.  When I read about the massive size of our universe, the millions, billions and quadrillions of light year miles between galaxies and stars, and then think about our tiny planet and little lives in comparison, I’m blown away and bewildered.  What kind of God do I really serve?  How big is He, really??  How does He know each of us, hear my voice among all the others in prayer, or orchestrate good outcomes for my life?  How is that possible??

If I had a god I could explain completely would I respect and revere Him?  Would having a small god only as wise or knowing as me make me trust Him to answer my prayers the best way?  Would having a god with limitations give me hope?  Would a god who only loved as much as I do on one of my best days cause me to willingly surrender my life to Him?

Instead of becoming indignant when God is “slow” to answer my prayers or answers in a way I didn’t expect, what if I embraced the mystery of my God and continued to trust Him?   Continue reading →

refocus, redirect, remember

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I’m learning lots of lessons lately and have been thinking about them, trying to process them, mulling over them so they will sink in and take root in my heart.  Here are two that God’s been bringing me through this week:

Lesson #1:  Contentment.  True contentment in God.  How many times have I said or sung that God is all I need?  Many, many times.  When it comes down to possibly never buying a house or having some material things that before seemed like “givens” in life, however, does my heart change its tune?  Can I hold onto that claim when my paradigm is shifting?  Just because I’ve always thought something doesn’t necessarily make it true or necessary, I’m learning.  It’s been time for me to put my money where my mouth is in regard to relying on God and being content with just Him and what He provides.  We may not be able to buy a house for a year or so, or several years due to the situation we find ourselves in.  Does that matter?  Really?  Continue reading →

I love free stuff

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I’ve been watching it for the past few weeks:  a new gas station going up on the corner where I turn to go to work every day.   Now, I’m not thinking of buying gas there, although I probably will, but I’m wondering what type of soda fountain they’ll have.  You know, I have to stake out all the best diet coke stops along any path I take more than once so I’ll be prepared.

I saw a “Now Open” sign as I drove up today so I stopped in.  There were lots of great soda choices – including caffeine free Diet Coke!  Obviously the one running this new establishment has good taste.  I filled up my cup, sauntered around the place just for fun, checking out their price for 5 gum (another favorite of mine), then went to the cashier.  She asked if I had a Crystal Flash reward free-signcard.  “Why no, I don’t” I replied.  “Well then, fill this out and take this,” she said as she handed me this tiny card to put on my key chain.  “And,” she added, smiling, “since you’re signing up for the card today your drink is free.”  Cha-ching!  Bonus!

What a fun way to start the day.  Isn’t it fun to get something for free, especially when you weren’t expecting it?  Continue reading →

Another chance

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As we sat outside Starbucks on the patio, enjoying the sunshine and cool breeze, we laughed and laughed.  Rather than feeling awkward like I feared it might be, I was actually completely at ease and felt like I did the last time I got to be with these friends.  “How long has it been?” we asked each other.  “16 years?  That doesn’t seem possible!”   We took turns catching each other up, going back to 16 years ago and giving the nutshell version of life for us since then.  So much has happened since we lost touch with each other – much blessing, much hurt and growing.

I actually didn’t think this day would ever happen.  The friends I’m talking about were very close and dear friends to John and I when we were first married.  We shared community and prayer like never before with them and several other couples in our first small group experience.  We spent lots of time together, talking, laughing, walking, praying, sharing.  A few years into this great friendship, John and I moved to Florida to work in a church there.  Coming back to visit one summer was fun, but already felt a little different.  You know how things change in a relationship when you’re not able to spend much time together.  You tell yourself that it will probably never be quite like it was.

God began leading us different ways, as if I saw my special friend and her husband walking farther and farther away from me until I couldn’t see them at all.   Life has a way of becoming so busy that unless we’re really intentional about staying in touch with people, it just doesn’t happen.  We lost touch.  Continue reading →

Hopeful Reminder

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When I got a cancer diagnosis more than 5 years ago, my dad sent me this poem.  I’ll never forget sitting at my computer that morning reading it and how it renewed my hope. Sometimes we just need a gentle reminder of what is true and what is not.  Fear can distort perspective big time! I post this today in honor of my many friends who have fought cancer – many of whom have beat it and are living strong today.  I also post it in honor of my friend’s Aunt who is facing cancer now.

Cancer is so limited…

It cannot cripple love
It cannot shatter hope
It cannot corrode faith
It cannot destroy peace
It cannot kill friendship
It cannot suppress memories
It cannot silence courage
It cannot invade the soul
It cannot steal eternal life
It cannot conquer the spirit. – anonymous

Whatever you’re facing, no matter how ominous or threatening it may seem, know that it can’t keep you from or remove you from God’s love.

“Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? … No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”            Romans 8:35-39 NLT

21 years and counting

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21 years ago today I stood in a beautiful dress, in a sun-filled sanctuary, with many happy faces watching – facing the man I knew God had chosen for me.  We confidently and happily vowed faithfulness and love to one another and as a couple, to God.  We walked out of that room as husband and wife.  It was a beautiful, sunny April day.  Surrounded by many friends and family members, we celebrated what God had given us.

There have been lots of joyful times along the way.  Lots of good memories.  Lots of laughter and blessings.  There have also been lots of challenges, troubles, obstacles, and “opportunities for growth” individually and as a couple.

Before we were married, John felt a call from God to serve full-time in ministry.  As we made our way through the years of seminary, working extra jobs, raising 3 little girls, barely making it by, and then starting our first pastorate in New Mexico, I realized God was calling me too.  He called me to stand beside John, to serve alongside Him, to use my gifts to enhance whatever John was doing.  I don’t feel like it was an accident – it was on purpose.  The call to be a pastor’s wife is real – it’s not just a role you accidentally fall into.

We’ve faced a lot together and I know there will be more in the future that requires us to pull together rather than apart, to lean on each other and on God, to pray, to wait, to be there for each other.  All of the fearful times, the sad times, the disappointing and discouraging times, dumb decisions and better ones, misunderstandings and making up times, waiting and trusting times have deepened our love for each other and strengthened us.  I wouldn’t want to face it with anyone else.  I’m so glad God gave me John.

So here’s to 21 years, Honey, and to many more.

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No Agenda

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Today I met Jesus for lunch.  I had no plans and was thinking of what to do when I heard him suggest it to my heart.  I gladly went to one of my favorite nearby eateries and sat down, imagining Him seated across from me.  I sat quietly and prayed silently, “Here I am.  I’m just going to be quiet so you can talk today.”  I could almost see him smile at me.  I smiled to myself and waited some more.  He just kept smiling.  I felt such peace and contentment.  I thought about lunch yesterday, how I had met two girlfriends and how much fun it was to visit with them.  We didn’t need to talk about church stuff or conflict or issues, we just wanted to be together and it was wonderful.  As I thought about that, I heard Jesus say, “That’s how I feel.  I’m just glad you wanted to be with me.  I have no agenda today.  I just want to spend time with you.”  The love in His words overwhelmed me.  What freedom!  “You mean sometimes we can just be – I don’t need to pray anything.  I can just sit here and enjoy You being here?”   Jesus smiled again.    Thinking about it now still moves me.  How many times do I come to Him with a long list of prayer requests or guilt over the fact that I haven’t actually said the names of everyone on my list out loud so he can answer my prayers?   How often do I feel He has a big agenda for our times together, that it’s always going to be a time to discipline me or train me?

Could it really be okay to just sit in his arms or across a table from Him and let Him love me?   Continue reading →