Month: August 2016

See You in Heaven

Posted on by Wendy
I will always treasure the lessons I learned on my mission trip.
I will always treasure the lessons I learned on my mission trip.

There’s a man who has been a leader on both of my Salkehatchie mission trips. He’s a retired navy fighter pilot. He’s completely white-headed and a force to be reckoned with. He’s tough as nails, just as you would hope one of our soldiers would be. He loves Jesus and he loves working with and sharing his faith with teenagers.

The kids have a deep respect for him as do I, even if they are a little intimidated by him at first.

On our last trip, we were finished up on our work site and we were headed out for milkshakes at a local restaurant called Rush’s. We were in three different vehicles. As we loaded up, he said, “I’ll see you at Rush’s or I’ll see you in Heaven.”

I kind of laughed and I must have had a puzzled look on my face, because he went on to explain that he always tells his wife that when he leaves home. He tells her he will see her when he returns or that he will see her in heaven.

I thought about that statement long after we finished our milkshakes. I thought about the faith behind the words. I thought about the dangerous job he had has a fighter pilot and then as a commercial airline pilot. Those are both jobs that I would think, would take great faith to engage in everyday.

But, I also thought about how we are never certain which day on earth will be our last. We could all go at any time. No one knows when tragedy will strike. But, my friend’s words are such a beautiful reminder that none of us are permanent residents here. We are all just travelers.

When he says confidently to his wife, when he leaves the house, that he will see her when he returns or he will see her in heaven, it serves as a daily reminder who he is, who he belongs to and where he is headed. It reminds him to make his days count, to make his actions count, to make his words count.

It reminds him to tell the ones he loves that he loves them.

The words are not morbid or pessimistic. They are a promise that when we belong to Jesus, something better awaits us. If we don’t make it back to our earthly home, today, or tomorrow, or next week, or next year, we are assured and our loved ones are assured, that we will see them again. We will one day be reunited.

They are words of hope that I feel blessed that he shared with me and I felt led to share here. See you next time or I’ll see you in heaven. I think those are words worth repeating.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Carefully Watched

Posted on by Wendy
When the world looks at Christians, what does it see?
When the world looks at Christians, what does it see?

On Sunday, our sermon was about the pitfalls for people who seek status in the world. It came from Luke, Chapter 14, and centered around people trying to get a spot at the head table. It was a good sermon. But, as the pastor read the scripture, the very first verse stuck with me, so much so, that I jotted it down.

Jesus went to eat at the house of a prominent Pharisee, the religious people of the day. They would most likely translate in modern terms to people who are regular church goers, who thought they were in the know, righteous, and living a holy life.

The part that caught my attention was, “he was being carefully watched.” That’s in the second part of the very first verse.

We can find phrases like that throughout the Gospels. Jesus was always being “carefully or closely watched,” but not for reasons we might think.

Most of the religious people of the time were not seeking to learn from Him or to emulate Him; they were seeking to trap Him. They were hoping to catch Him breaking Jewish laws. They were seeking to disprove his goodness, His Godliness.

When I think about how the world looks at Christians today, don’t we find the same pattern?

The word Christian, from the Greek, means follower of Christ.

When the secular world looks at Christians, what does it see? What does it seek to see? What do we show it?

Jesus’ three year ministry, consisted of a lot of prayer, a lot of time in the synagogue, a lot of teaching, a lot of healing, a lot of compassion and a lot of community. He did seem to get frustrated from time to time when people refused to listen. He got downright angry when people were using His Father’s house to make money. He also exhibited lots of patience and forgiveness.

When we go through our daily lives and we claim to be Christians, what does the world see? How do we behave at work? How do we treat the cashiers we come into contact with? How do we act when we are driving down the road? How do we treat our family members? How do we treat our neighbors? How do we react to the homeless guy on the street?

The world carefully watched Jesus when He was on earth. The world carefully watches His followers today. Are we carefully watching Jesus? Are we seeking to emulate Him?

What is it that we are showing the secular world that would make the people in it, want to become one of us?

Jesus wants our hearts, not our lip service. Our faith is one of free will. What are we doing to share with this sometimes dark world, the beautiful light and love of Christ?

The answers of course are as individual as every person who reads this, but in the end, we are all called to do something, to be a walking, living, advertisement and invitation, to be a part of the Greatest Story ever told.

A Bible verse reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

He’s in the Seemingly Trivial Too

Posted on by Wendy
There are times when we are simply called to rest.
There are times when we are simply called to rest.

On Sunday, after a church fellowship lunch, my family returned home. My hubby took our son out to practice his driving and I was running around doing some chores. I had a load of laundry to do. I had to make some more sugar water for our insatiable hummingbirds. I needed to iron.

My daughter was sitting on her bed playing on her phone. She’s been fighting some kind of allergy/cold deal for a couple of weeks. She hasn’t been sleeping well and she was exhausted. I told her she needed to take a nap.

She was kind of reluctant. I smiled to myself, thinking about how she didn’t want to nap as a three-year-old either. Mommy knew, however, that rested children are happier and much easier to get along with children than those who aren’t.

This mommy also knew that rested seventeen-year-olds are also much easier to get along with than those who don’t get enough sleep. Not to mention, they heal better too.

When she finally agreed to take a nap, I found myself tip-toeing around the house, struggling not to make any noise, a habit I picked up when she was still in the crib. She always had a difficult time falling asleep.

But, as I moved about my quiet house like a ninja, thinking about all of the things I needed to accomplish before Monday, I realized that I too, was completely exhausted. I had been cramming lots of to-do lists into my weekends and left very little down time for myself.

I had an internal debate. The house was quiet. I had some time to write without answering anyone’s questions or trying to block out the noise of the television. It was a very rare event these days. It was a gift. Right? Wasn’t it foolish not to take it?

But, I also felt another nudge, a stronger one, that reminded me that I too, needed rest to function well. I needed rest to communicate well. I also needed rest if I didn’t want to be a cranky member of my family. Didn’t they deserve the best of me?

Upon retrospect, it was so ironic that I could easily see how much my own child needed to rest, but I couldn’t see it in my own situation.

But, God knew. I pray daily that I can hear His voice and that He will guide my thoughts and steps and I know that the nudge for some rest came from Him.

I gave in and took a thirty minute nap. I woke refreshed and ready to write. I had a better attitude and the chores I needed to do, they got done anyway.

If I knew that my own child needed to rest, why wouldn’t my need to rest matter to my Heavenly Father? Am I not a child of His?

The answer is of course, yes. That’s the awesome God we worship.

He is with us in the everyday, in the seemingly mundane details in our lives. There are no cares or concerns of ours that are too big or too small for Him.

My tired seventeen-year-old reminded me. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

 

Lessons from a High School Dance

Posted on by Wendy
The Creator of the peacock, created us to be creative too.
The Creator of the peacock, created us to be creative too.

Last weekend, my hubby and I volunteered to chaperone at the Bandathon, which is a dance held every year for the members of the high school marching band. I’ll have to admit that I was not looking forward to it. It was on a Friday night and I was tired from a long week.

But, band dances are different from other school dances and I was in for a treat.

First of all, there’s always a theme at those dances. This year was simply music and anything that had to do with it.

There was a girl who simply showed up with musical notes on her shirt. John Lennon was represented. There were rappers present and so were the Village People. The children’s group, the Wiggles, was there. We saw a disco era John Travolta and the more recent group, One Direction. Weird Al was there too.

It was a never-ending parade of different genres and musical styles and that was before the first song was played.

The DJ played music almost exclusively requested by the teens. It certainly wasn’t what I expected to hear at a school dance in 2016. There were line dances like the Electric Slide and the Cha Cha Slide. There was disco music by the Bee Gees. There was a ton of 80’s music and some newer tunes as well.

As I looked out across the dance floor at the eclectic group of teens, I was amazed at how they all danced together in big groups to whatever music they heard. Nobody sat out and no one got left out. From time to time, the parents jumped in and danced too and what did the kids do? They just danced along side us.

I have thought about that dance all through the past week. I have thought about how those band kids weren’t afraid to use their creativity. In fact, they were encouraged to be creative and no one was afraid of feeling stupid. They laughed and clapped for each other as they entered the room.

They cheered each other on. When the DJ played a song from the children’s television show, the Wiggles, the group dressed as the Wiggles, danced together and the other kids danced with them and clapped.

Can you imagine the average teenager, being willing to express themselves like that?

High school can be a rough place and so often, fitting in, is every kid’s mantra. Grown up life can be very similar, can’t it? Things from saying the right thing, to wearing the right clothes, to having the right job, to living in the right neighborhood, to having the perfect kids, can wear us out emotionally, physically and spiritually.

We can get so focused on being just like everyone else that we forget that God made each of us wonderfully unique for a purpose, His purpose.

We weren’t meant to all look alike, or act alike, or think alike. We are different and different is good, because when people of all different ideas, colors, styles, shapes and sizes, come together to let our light shine and build the Kingdom of God, the world takes notice.

And this world is in desperate need of all of our individual gifts and graces. A high school band dance reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Clearing Away the Overgrowth

Posted on by Wendy
When we remove the things that don't matter, we can sometimes be stunned by the view.
When we remove the things that don’t matter, we can sometimes be stunned by the view.

There’s a window in the office I work in. It’s a rather large window. Until this week, it had a very large Japanese maple tree growing in front of it that almost completely covered it. I love Japanese maple trees. They are beautiful, ornamental trees. But, this particular one had grown so big that it totally blocked the window. We couldn’t see out.

Our principal put in a work order to have it trimmed. A few weeks passed and no one showed up.

Last Saturday, he brought his son and his own trimmers and trimmed the tree.

I can’t tell you the difference the trimming has made to those of us who work in the office and use the copier, which happens to be under the window, a hundred times a day. Every time we make a copy, we can now see the yellow cone flowers blooming beside the building and the gourds that are climbing the fence. We can see the sunshine and the clouds. We are now able to appreciate all of the landscape.

Almost everyone who has used that copier has commented on the view.

It’s amazing what a huge difference a couple of people could make when they rolled up their sleeves and got to work.

I have thought about that tree trimming all week. I have thought about how removing the overgrowth in our lives can have such a huge impact on the world we see around us. I have thought about how much beauty we miss by allowing our lives to become so overgrown.

I was reminded that overgrowth happens over time. I’m sure that tree took years to get that big. The problem with overgrowth in our own lives, is that it’s often so gradual that we don’t realize it.

When did we get too busy to have lunch with a friend? When did we get too busy to sit down to a family dinner? When did we get too busy to sit out on the porch or to take a walk? When did we get too busy to read a book? When did we get too busy to pray or read the Bible? When did the people in cyberspace become more important than the people who are standing in front of us?

The great thing about overgrowth, is it can be trimmed away and we can be left with a beautiful new view that we didn’t even know we had.

We can simply wait for something to happen to clear it, or we can pick up some trimmers and do it ourselves. Personally, I can’t imagine why we would want to wait.

My principal and his son, reminded me that clearing away the overgrowth and making changes, is a choice that can have beautiful results. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Changing the View

Posted on by Wendy
I couldn't change what was going on outside, but I could change his view.
I couldn’t change what was going on outside, but I could change his view.

Last weekend, I was up before my teens and having some much needed quiet time at the kitchen table, with a cup of coffee, my laptop and my Bible. Silence is a rare thing for me these days and I was basking in it.

Then, the dogs started barking. They ran to the window in the dining room and barked to the top of their lungs. I kept shushing them, but they kept barking. There was someone walking another dog in the cul-de-sac and they were upset and stressed and no amount of shushing them would make them stop.

Have I mentioned that they aren’t the most obedient dogs on the planet?

Exasperated, I finally pulled the curtains closed, so they couldn’t see out. It worked like a charm. Immediately, all barking ceased and my peace and quiet were restored.

It was really kind of amazing. Covering up what was agitating them, was all that it took.

I thought about the resulting peace from my action over the next few days. I couldn’t remove what was going on outside of my house, but I could limit their vision of it.

What other things would have the same results?

Well, for one thing, there’s social media. Depending on who you follow and the pages you like, your news feed may be full of inspirational quotes or it may be full of political rants. If social media stresses you out our makes you angry, or makes you feel badly about your imperfect life, stay off of it. Life will go on, and quite likely, more peacefully.

Then of course, there’s the news, this election cycle is a hot mess to say the least. There’s been nothing that’s ladylike or gentlemanly like about it. Sure, we need to stay informed, but reading through the headlines in the evening before bed will probably suffice. If we all refused to watch all of the mudslinging, it may even get better.

But, here’s the bottom line, we can’t change it at the moment. The election is not until November. Is watching the daily negativity helping us in any way? If it’s causing stress and anger, we can simply turn it off, pull the curtains, like I did with my dogs.

As I continued to think about it, there are many things in daily life we could choose to block out, things ranging from office gossip to squabbles among friends.

In each situation, we could ask ourselves if participating or watching can better ourselves in any way? Will it cause us stress? Will it draw us closer to God?

If the answer is no, then perhaps, we should pray about it because that always works. We can give it to God on a spiritual level, but physically, we can just close the curtains and block it out. We can’t always change what’s going on, but we can change how we view it.

We might find ourselves living with a little more peace.

My barking dogs reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Shedding the Bullets

Posted on by Wendy
Healing is a choice.
Healing is a choice.

My pastor told a story on Sunday about preaching at a revival in Maryland, many years ago. He said that during his visit, he took a walk with the pastor of the church he was visiting, to the Battlefield of Antietam. That spot marks the single bloodiest day battle in American history. There 22,717 men killed, wounded, or missing when the battle was done.

As they walked around the area, the other pastor pointed to the houses that had been built around the area. Almost every single house had members in it with cancer.

As it turns out, the tens of thousands of bullets that were shot during that battle, settled into the ground, and scientists believe, into the ground water. The bullets were made of lead.

Over two hundred fifty years later, the bullets shot so long ago, are still killing and wounding people.

I suppose that’s not too surprising, because our hearts work the same way.

We can carry around hate and hurt for generations allowing it too, to slowly kill us if we aren’t careful. We can pass down anger and distrust that stem from situations so far back we don’t even remember. Things like, someone refusing to go to church because of some hurt from the distant past, can keep the next generation out of church too. Racism can get passed down from generation to generation.  Distrust of authority, because it was abused at some point, can get passed down to future generations and hatred of police officers is born.

Sometimes those festering bullets can be a little more recent. Sometimes something was done or said to us personally, as children, and we are still allowing ourselves to be poisoned from them, carrying around pain and anger, refusing to let it go and let it heal.

But, walking around hurting, hating, distrusting, and angry ,is not God’s plan for His children. Jesus offers us another way.

He is willing and able to heal anything that we bring to Him, no matter how old or new those bullets may be.

Jesus said: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 12:28-30

We know that carrying around unresolved anger and pain causes all types of stress and even physical sickness. Those people who lived in Antietam probably didn’t know the physical danger they were in. They probably didn’t have a choice until it was too late.

We do. The question for us, is are we willing to be healed? Are we willing to remove all of the bullets? Jesus always gives us a choice.

A Civil War battle reminded me. Perhaps you need reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Leaving Clear Space

Posted on by Wendy
Respecting the margins, can earn us some much needed blank space.
Respecting the margins, can earn us some much needed clear space.

When I was a kid, and learning to write, I remember my teachers being downright fanatical about writing in the margins. There was a clear red line on both sides of the page. One teacher even had us hold our papers up to the light to see the line on the other side of the page. We were taught that under no uncertain circumstances, were we to write in the margins.

The margins were the place where the teacher could write her comments or make her corrections. They also just helped to keep everything a little neater. And believe me, with my handwriting, every little bit helped.

Even word processing software, has built-in margins. The program automatically knows when to start on the next line. The margins are kept clear.

Kids these days, don’t give much thought to the margins. They often will write all over them, leaving themselves no clear space and no room for correction.

I wonder if it’s somehow a reflection that comes from the fact that they are often overscheduled and have very little clear space of their own.

We all need some clear space in our day, space to breathe, space to pray, space to exercise our bodies and our minds, space that allows us to have some quiet time.

But, when we live to please others, feeling guilty for saying no, we can find ourselves with zero clear space. We can find ourselves with scheduled activity from the minute we wake up, until the minute we fall back into bed. We can find our reserves completely empty, yet we can’t understand why we are so exhausted.

When we change our focus from what others think about us or what they might say about us, to what God thinks about us, the clear space can change dramatically.

When we come to understand that clear space isn’t a luxury, but a necessity in our walk with Jesus, we can shift our priorities, and saying no, becomes a type of obedience.

Those of us who call ourselves Christians, have an enemy who would love to steal our peace and even though he knows he can’t have our souls, he’s also content to stunt our growth. If we can’t spend regular time in prayer and reading the Bible, how can we grow our faith?

If we leave ourselves zero clear space, how can we have time to spend with God?

The world is not a peaceful place at the moment. Turning on the news for five minutes, can make your stomach hurt. But, the peace that Jesus offers is different because it’s supernatural. It’s not of this world. It’s for our souls.

Jesus said: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” John 15:27

Sounds pretty good. Right?

We can have that peace, but we have to be willing to provide the clear space to get it.

A sheet of paper reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Faith in the Messy

Posted on by Wendy
When we yield to God, it's amazing where He shows up.
When we yield to God, it’s amazing where He shows up.

I was driving down the road yesterday after dropping my son off at marching band practice. I was annoyed that the band director didn’t cancel it. I mean seriously, the skies were dark. The thunder was rumbling and the radar showed storms heading our way. But, no, practice was on. Sigh.

I was on the way to the pharmacy to pick up a couple of prescriptions, stuck in our ever worsening traffic situation in our little Mayberryesque town, wondering what I would write about for today’s post, when a rainbow caught my attention.

It was faint, but definitely there. All of a sudden, sitting through two cycles at the same stop light, wasn’t annoying. Being stopped, gave me the opportunity to snap a photo. I figured I could edit it when I got home.

Computers make it easy to crop out all the not so pretty stuff, we don’t like. With the help of the right software, we can make any picture look perfect.

I said a prayer of thanks on my ride home. I thanked God for showing Himself in the monotony of the traffic, in the tedious times like doing errands, and in the times when the skies look positively frightening.

I worked out in my mind how I would write encouraging words about how that rainbow reminded me God is always with us, in times that are mundane, and in times that are exciting, when skies are blue and life is grand, and when times are dark and scary.

And I planned to produce the perfect rainbow picture that I snapped while stuck in traffic. But, like they say, a picture is sometimes worth a thousand words.

When I reviewed the pictures, the yield sign caught my eye. The yield sign reminded me that the true path to the peace that passeth understanding is to yield our hearts to Jesus. I felt like that ugly, ordinary, yield sign, spoke God’s truth as much as the rainbow did.

And the power lines and the building, represented the busy life that most of us lead. It’s not always picture perfect. It’s sometimes messy and unattractive, yet through it all, just like the rainbow in the distance, God’s love for us still shines through.

If I would have cropped out the unappealing parts of the picture, I would have cut out an important part of the story and it’s probably a part someone needed to read.

Everyone’s life is a struggle sometimes despite what people would like for you to believe on social media. No one has the perfect family, or marriage, or job, or friends, or house. I know this because I know that perfection does not exist on this side of heaven.

The rainbow right there in the middle of the messy, reminded me that Jesus came to earth to become one of us and He walks with us through the good and the bad. His death and resurrection mean we will one day live in perfection, and that truth makes life beautiful no matter where we may find ourselves at any particular moment.

Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you did too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Being a Naomi Woman

Posted on by Wendy
Famous words from Ruth
Famous words from Ruth

I just finished a Bible study on Ruth. I love her story. I have read it quite a few times. It’s got all of the elements of the ideal love story. There’s a marriage and then there’s tragedy. There’s some dark days, but in the end, the main character, Ruth, finds true love and the son she has gets to be in the bloodline of Jesus.

I love the story because I know how it ends. I imagine while Ruth was living it, it wasn’t so great. She married a foreigner. Her father-in-law died. Her husband died and her brother-in-law died. I’m sure this was not the happy ending that the young bride was dreaming about.

At least she has her little family with her sister-in-law, Orpah and mother-in-law, Naomi. Perhaps they brought comfort to one another. But, then Naomi decided she was going back to her people. She tried to send Ruth and Orpah back to their own families, but Ruth refused to go.

That’s the part of the story that has really intrigued me this time. I could easily write about how Ruth is a perfect example of how God doesn’t judge us on where we came from. Ruth was a Moabite and they were enemies of Israel. I could point out that God will use and bless anyone who willingly worships and follows Him and I would be right.

I could write about how even when our world is at the very darkest, our sovereign God is at work, even when we can’t see Him or feel Him. Ruth teaches us that even on days where getting out of the bed is more effort that we feel like we can handle, He has a plan.

Ruth lost her husband, father-in-law and her sister-in-law. Naomi lost her husband and both of her sons. Her days were surely dark too. But, we know that God was at work providing a new husband for Ruth, a Godly man and eventually a grand baby for Naomi to bounce on her lap. I would be right about those observations too.

But, this time, Naomi’s faith is what stayed with me, for days after I was done reading it. In the end, it was Naomi who led Ruth to her God, to her people, and eventually to a new husband. It was Ruth’s deep love and trust in Naomi that led her to Boaz on the threshing floor.

What was it about Naomi that made a young Ruth leave her birth family and travel into enemy territory where she would likely be judged and looked down upon?

Perhaps it was her deep abiding faith. Perhaps Ruth knew that she just had to get to know Naomi’s God and her people better because Naomi was so different from the women Ruth knew. Even in deep grief, Ruth clung to Naomi.

Ruth and Naomi’s stories are intertwined. We can’t read one without the other. Their story reminds me how important it is that we live our faith and not just talk about it. The only way to really bring others to God is through our actions.

Naomi’s actions must have seemed so insignificant at the time. She was returning home destitute, yet she took the young woman who God had put in her life, with her, because Ruth didn’t want to leave her and in agreeing to do so, those two women helped to change the course of human history and play a part in the greatest story ever told.

Ruth and Naomi remind me that no one is insignificant in God’s plan. We all play a part and we are all intertwined. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂