Memorial Day

Today is Memorial Day. Thank you to all those veterans still with us, and especially to those not with us anymore. Your sacrifice is most appreciated and never taken for granted by me.

But as my mind was thinking of veterans, I got to thinking about our church veterans. Those that have gone before us and established the foundations we have today– thank you!

To the missionaries on the front lines – Thank you! You fight the good fight daily to save people. I appreciate your sacrifices and the hardships you go thru in order to save others.

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Clutter

I swear sometimes my head feels like an episode of Hoarders. I gather all this junk up in my mind and have so much going on in there, I miss some pretty big things.

God reminded me today that he has been missing me. I haven’t been spending the time in prayer and praise with him that I normally do. I know the culprit. This thing right here, my computer. I have been passing up my time with God in favor of surfing the latest blog, or checking my Facebook, or a million other things. He reminded me multiple times today that he wants that time with me. The rest of that stuff will either make way or just go away. But my time with him can’t.

So today I am bulldozing my mind. I am about to head back to church for some time with my BFF. I hope you’ll spend some time with him today too… He’s been missing you as well!

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God’s Treasures

So I have something to confess….

I love me some yard sales.

I am not quite sure why, but I really like digging thru other peoples junk to find my treasures. And yard sale season is on with summer here. But as I was reviewing the newspaper for the sales on today, I had a thought.

God would enjoy a good yard sale too I think. He loves digging thru societies junk to find his treasures. He loves a good refurbishing project. A few dings, dents, or bruises? No worries, He can fix that. A post I did last month came to mind : https://testingstuf.wordpress.com/2010/04/24/least-of-these/

God can find a gem in someone we wouldn’t give a second thought to. I love my God!

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Climbing in

Out of curiosity, how many people do you suppose believe our God is a hands off kind of God?

The best way I can think of to describe this is the Great Wall of China versus a suit of armor. What an awesome,massive structure that is. And I am sure it did its job in a removed kind of way. Like you knew it was out there, but did it really give the people of China a warm fuzzy thinking about it? Did it offer them personal comfort and safety? Probably not so much.

Psalm 7:1

O LORD my God, I take refuge in you

I take refuge IN you. Not I have a vague idea that you’re out there somewhere protecting me. I climb in you, like a suit of armor and am surrounded by your protection and love.

I think it is so awesome that I have a personal God that I can take refuge in any time I want to.

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Dipping Your Toe In…

If you aren’t one of these people, you know someone who is. They approach getting into a swimming pool on a hot day the same way someone about to jump into the arctic would. Let’s just say they show something less than enthusiasm. They just poke a toe in as their friend barrels by and performs the most enthusiastic cannon ball ever done.

Why can some people just run and jump in with boundless joy while others may never make it off the side of the pool?

I think it’s all in how you approach the pool (life). If you approach life with the expectation of fun, good, joyful things to come then most likely that is exactly what you will get. If you know God will accomplish thru you what needs to be done, it will be done.

If you approach life with trepidation, worry, a vision of how terrible it is going to be then most likely that is exactly what you will get. If you are too afraid of messing up, or overly concerned with your own personal situation, you most likely will never let go of the edge.

Habakkuk 3:19 (NIV)

¹⁹ The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights.

He will provide the strength when you’re not sure if you have enough, the words when you don’t know what to say, the wisdom to make the right choices, the talent or resources to do what He has asked of you.

I dipped my toe in a bit today with someone who quite frankly makes me nervous. He can be quite adversarial when he wants to be. But I prayed about it and know that what I shared was intended for him. God gave me the words to speak, he will take care of the rest.

I’m about ready to do that cannon ball though. How bout you?

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My Prayer

Found this new song on youtube and am in love with it. It’s like listening to my prayers in music. Stillness, Speak to Me by Aaron Shust. What an amazing artist! Hope you all enjoy!

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Our Assignment

Something Bill Vanderbush (visiting pastor) said last night just stuck with me.

Your destiny is to go to heaven.

Your assignment is to bring heaven to Earth.

That is so awesome to me. So simple, but it says it all. Our divine destiny is to go home to be with the Lord. It is our destiny – not a task to be worked at. Our assignment on the other hand is to bring the kingdom of God to the world.

There are many words used to describe it: the great commission, assignment, mission, duty. No matter what you call it, the Bible is very clear on this. We are to share God’s love with those that haven’t seen. There are different ways we are to do this:

By example

^{Ephesians 4:17-18}

¹⁷So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. ¹⁸They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. (emphasis mine)

By teaching

 ²⁰You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. ²¹Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. ²²You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; ²³to be made new in the attitude of your minds; ²⁴and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

By Forgiveness and Love

Ephesians 4:32 & 5:1-2

³²Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

¹Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children ²and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Awesome how so few verses say so much. We each have a role to play to further God’s kingdom. Are you ready to take up your part?

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Getting Excited!

T-minus 3 weeks until my trip to Cherokee, NC. I am so excited! This is going to be my first missions trip ever. And I get to do it with my two of my favorite girls- my sister and my cousin.

I am so looking forward to seeing what the Lord has in store for me. I hope you all will begin praying with me that the trip is fruitful. That we are able to plant seeds in fertile soil. And that we see God move in a miraculous way.

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Good Guys Finish Last

If you are anything at all like me you have felt that way at some point in your life. For me it has most often occurred in work situations.

Employee A is a hard worker. They apply themselves, go the extra mile, and are not satisfied with a sub-standard work product.

Employee B is the opposite. While charming, employee B devises plans and plots to avoid doing actual work daily. If there is any way to lie, cheat, or steal their way to the top, they are all about it. Be honest… someones face popped up in your mind.

Now the way it has generally worked in my experience, Employee B becomes the district manager while Employee A gets another 20 page project dumped on their desk.  There never seems to be any justice in these things. If you aren’t willing to whine, complain, or forsake all morals you can’t get anywhere these days.

But here is what I read today:

Psalm 37:1-3

^{1 [a]} Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong;  ² for like the grass they will soon wither,
       like green plants they will soon die away.³ Trust in the LORD and do good;  dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

So basically, don’t be jealous of an Employee B’s success. That success will only last for so long before it fails them. Do what you know is right and trust in the Lord. That is a really good lesson. If you work in an office I highly recommend having that scripture somewhere so that you can read it when you are feeling wronged.

I need to remember that if I keep my eyes on the Lord, and continue to do what’s right I will certainly receive my reward… the only true reward worth having.

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Being deaf in a .com world

A local church is having a conference this weekend on signs and miracles. I have been watching a lot of it via live stream. One of the speakers just imparted something that struck me so hard.

Back in the day, and depending on how far back you go determines the degree of difficulty, communication was hard. It was something you had to actively work at. You had to go to someone to talk to them. You had to physically write a letter. You had to be able to listen because there was no recording, no way to playback what was said. You actually had to listen.

I think so many amazing things have come from technology. Thru Facebook I am connected to pastors and missionaries from all over the world. Thru this blog I get to share with family thousands of miles away. I can email with the best of them. Not great at texting, but I can hold my own. But with all the stuff going on around me: phones, computer, radio, tv, the list is endless…. do I still know how to listen?

I could cry thinking about how much I have probably missed due to my rusty listening skills. How well can I hear with all the buzz going on around me? Something to really think and pray about.

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