Author: 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 🙂

Pockets of Quiet

Posted on by Wendy
Finding some quiet time is always worth it.
Finding some quiet time is always worth it.

Last week, my pastor’s wife, subbed at the school where I am working. She just retired from there and she was thrilled to be back. She also happens to sit right beside me in the choir and we laugh together a lot, mostly at ourselves and our inability to get the notes just right. I’m thankful that God put her in my path and made us friends.

At the end of the day, she came up to my desk and asked me how things were going with my new job. I told her that everyone was so nice and that I was really enjoying it, but that I also really missed having quiet.

It’s never quiet in the office of an elementary school. The phone rings. Children regularly parade through to the clinic. Parents come to check their children out and then to check them back in. And the bus radio, the bus radio is AM radio on steroids. It’s static and bus drivers from like ten schools talking over each other and ours sits right at my desk in my ear. Remember the seventies? It’s like that.

She smiled and told me that she completely understood, that she too, needed quiet, when she was working and that a lot of people didn’t understand that, but that it’s something that we all need.

She leaned in and told me that I had to find pockets of quiet. She told me that she would sometimes go home and just sit on her porch for a few minutes after work, but that she had to search for and create those pockets.

I thought about our conversation over the next few days. It made so much sense. I had always been one who liked a big chunk of quiet, like an hour or so, but what if I just tried to snatch 10 or 15 minutes here and there?

What if I turned off the radio when I was driving? What if instead of returning phone calls when I got home before my children, I just enjoyed the quiet time? I think she’s right about the pockets and I’m choosing to think of them as peace pockets.

I am choosing to seek out several times a day, whenever I can, to find a few minutes of peace, a few minutes where I can have some quiet and take a deep breath, to say a little prayer, to get back to center, and to ask God for guidance on my journey.

Sometimes, we have to be willing to fight for the quiet and insist on it, but I feel like it’s totally worth it. We can’t hear God, if we aren’t quietly listening.

A dear friend reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Seeing the Hand of God

Posted on by Wendy
After experiencing God's power in a huge way, we were rewarded with this sunset.
After experiencing God’s power in a huge way, we were rewarded with this sunset.

Today’s post picks up where yesterday’s left off. My family and I had just left Walmart and we were traveling home on Loop 10 at fifty-five or so, miles per hour. My hubby and I were discussing with our kids the ability, and the call, to extend kindness to others when we can, whoever that person may be, when our conversation was stopped in its tracks.

A car traveling in the opposite direction, ran off of the road, over-corrected and rolled in mid-air (a complete flip), and landed on its tires, facing the opposite way, in the median. The driver and her passenger in the backseat, were securely fastened in their seats. No one was ejected.

Since we were traveling in the opposite direction, and noted that drivers on the other side of the road were stopping, I called 911, with a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes.

There was no one traveling on her side of the roadway when she flew across. Mere, seconds later, several cars came flying by. If she would have made the same mistake seconds later, it may have resulted in serious injuries for her and her passenger, as well as several other drivers traveling on that roadway. It may have even cost them their lives.

That road is notoriously busy and the traffic moves rapidly. What if an eighteen-wheeler had been driving by? What if she had landed back in the road going the opposite direction; she would have had a head on collision. What if she would have ended up on our side? What if the car had landed on its roof; the occupants would have been crushed.

All of these scenarios raced through my mind as I drew the only conclusion that I could. My family and I had just witnessed the Hand of God at work.

There were a hundred reasons why those people should have been seriously injured, but they weren’t. There were many scenarios where other people should have been injured, but they weren’t.

I couldn’t stop thinking about it for the rest of the day. I am still in awe as I write about it.

My teen daughter often tells me that her friends struggle with their faith because the can’t “see” God. I am amazed that we had just left Walmart and were discussing with our kids, being the face of Jesus, to a world that desperately needs it, when God showed up and showed us His mighty hand.

He’s here with us everyday. We probably miss His handiwork more often than not, but sometimes He shows up in huge ways that are impossible to miss. And it’s in those moments that I am reminded that the God we worship, called the stars into being, and parted the Red Sea, and tumbled the Walls of Jericho with a horn blast, and helped a child slay a giant, when an army could not.

There is nothing that is impossible for Him or for those of us who put our faith in Him. Last weekend He sent me a mighty reminder. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

More Faith Lessons from Walmart

Posted on by Wendy
Sometimes what we think were poor decisions, turn out not to be.
Sometimes what we think were poor decisions, turn out not to be.

Last weekend, my family and I did a supplies run at Walmart. As I have noted here before, I really dislike going there. It’s always so crowded, and you can’t find a parking space, and the people who shop there are rude, and it takes forever to check out, and since we live next to a college town, when thirty thousand people move back into town, everything is picked over. Sigh.

Interestingly enough, I have had quite a few occasions while shopping there, where I had the opportunity and the nudge, to extend a kindness to someone who seemed to really needed it. I have a dear friend who says she has often had Christian kindness extended to her when she’s there.

My daily prayer is always to watch for God in the world around me, but it’s also for me to be the face of Jesus in a world that desperately needs to see Him. I’ll admit I sometimes struggle with the second part. I’m sure the Good Lord knows that Walmart in a prime place for a little light shining, whether or not I may grumble about that particular mission field.

Upon arrival, hubby and I went one way and the teens went another and we divided and conquered in the hopes of getting out of there quickly. Hubby even found a line with only one person in it. We jetted over to it, patting ourselves on the back. A short line at Walmart on a Saturday, is like winning the lotto.

But, alas, we chose poorly, or so we thought.

The gentleman ahead of us was on some sort of public assistance. He had a pre-printed check. He had to separate his groceries into separate stacks. He was arguing with the cashier. A manager came over. Now, my tendency would have been to get super annoyed.

But, I said a prayer of thanks that we had money to buy groceries. Who knew what his story was? Maybe he had just lost his job. Did I really have anywhere I needed to be? Was it that big a deal for me to have to wait? I found that I was infused with a brand new wave of patience. Isn’t it funny how gratitude and prayer work together?

When our turn finally came, we were making small talk with the cashier when she blurted out how mean the man had been to her. I looked her in the eyes and told her I was really sorry about that. She proceeded to tell us the story and to scan our groceries very slowly and my hubby and I listened intently and offered her some encouragement.

She only had thirteen minutes before her shift ended and we assured her she would make it.

Who hasn’t been there? Who hasn’t been in the position where you felt like if you had to spend one more minute at work, or if one more person was rude to you, you might scream?

She was smiling when we left.

When we started on our way home, we talked to our kids about how we were supposed to be in that check out line with that cashier. That woman really needed a little kindness and we were able to offer it.

Kindness is such a small thing; it costs us nothing, but it can have such a huge impact. It’s one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit and I sometimes miss it.

I often find myself desperately seeking the face of Christ, but I easily forget to be His face.

Whether I like it or not, God often reminds me at Walmart. As it turned out, we didn’t choose poorly. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Too Good Not to Share

Posted on by Wendy
It only takes a spark.
It only takes a spark.

My daily prayer is for God to show Himself to me in a way that I can share with others and hopefully, inspire them on their faith walk. One of my favorite Bible verses is: “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11

There are some days, however, when God is hard to see and hear and I sometimes find myself wondering if I will spend hours staring at a blinking cursor with nothing to write. Do you ever have days like that? Do you ever wonder if He’s really near or if He’s really listening?

But, God is always faithful to those who seek Him, even when we insist on doubting.

At the end of my day yesterday, when I was getting ready to go home, one of our teachers came in and was chatting with some of our office staff. They were talking about never knowing when they should help someone who claims to need help. There are so many people out there who are scammers.

Quite honestly, I was only half-way listening. I think this is a struggle that most people have, when to doubt and when to trust, but then the conversation grabbed my interest.

The teacher was giving an account of the story her priest had told the Sunday before.

He had been at a gas station when a woman approached him for money. Said she had a long drive and no gas. He said he was skeptical at first, but there was something desperate in the woman’s eyes that made him want to help her.

He looked at her car and it was full of children.

He told her he wouldn’t give her cash, but that he would pay to fill her car up. He went into the store to pay for her gas and since he was one of eleven children himself, he bought her a bunch of snacks for the road for her kids and two more gas cards.

He told the grateful woman that he wished he could do more, but that was all he had. (After all, priests don’t make much money.)

The woman went on her way and he went back to the rectory.

When he arrived, there was an envelope lying on his desk containing the exact amount of money that he had given the desperate woman, apparently donated by some new parishioner.

Do you have chills yet? Is your heart warmed?

I thought about that priest and the choice he made long after I left work.

I was reminded that God is always there for those who seek Him. The Holy Spirit guides us to give and share when we should. Perhaps we should spend less of our time worrying about being cheated and more of our time listening to the nudges of the Spirit.

That’s what that priest did and look at what his faithful obedience produced, a story that was just too good not to share. Hopefully, you will feel the same.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Kindergarten Wisdom

Posted on by Wendy
We can learn a lot from children.
We can learn a lot from children.

In my new job, in an elementary school office, my desk sits in front of the nurse’s clinic. Now, in a kindergarten through fifth grade school, I’m sure you can imagine that we have a steady stream of visitors. The little guys have all kinds of boo boos. That doesn’t even account for the upset stomachs resulting from nerves that naturally accompany a new school year.

We are blessed with one of the sweetest nurses on the planet. She is soft-spoken, calming and kind-hearted. I mean she’s one of those people where kindness actually radiates from her. The kids feel calmer just being in her presence. I feel calmer being in her presence.

One day this week, we had a kindergartner come in who wasn’t feeling well. It’s been a long time since I’ve been around little guys like that and they are adorable. This little fellow was running a fever and our nurse called his mama to come and get him.

While she was on the way, another student came in and the little guy had to come out of the clinic and wait in the office for her. He sat on the floor for about two minutes before he just went ahead and lay down. He pulled his jacket over him. When my coworker asked him if he was cold, he said he was, so she put her sweater over him.

He put two little fingers in his mouth and went right to sleep. His mama arrived very shortly and took him home.

I thought about that little guy all day the next day and what I could learn from him. I thought about how Jesus said we should have the faith of a child.

When that kindergartner felt bad, he sought help from the nurse and then he just lay down and waited for his mama to come and help him feel better. He didn’t worry or fret. He rested, knowing that help and comfort were on the way. He wasn’t embarrassed about feeling bad. He didn’t try to soldier on, plastering a smile on his face and powering through it. He readily admitted that he couldn’t keep going at the moment.

Have you ever been there? I know I have.

How many times have we been so overwhelmed by what life has thrown at us, yet we plaster a smile on and keep on going. We have been programmed not to show weakness. How often do we end up with stomach-aches of our own, or headaches, or sleepless nights? Stress can manifest itself in a hundred ways that can harm us.

What would our lives look like, if we modeled that kindergartner, and we sought help from God when life gets chaotic and out of control? What if we went to Jesus in heartfelt prayer about what is troubling us and then rested at His feet, trusting that help and healing is coming?

What if we always remembered that God is in control and that it’s okay to rest, and to heal, and to admit that our lives are messy sometimes? What if we remembered that what God thinks is the only thing that really matters, so what others think doesn’t?

I was reminded of some beautiful truths from a kindergartner. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Lessons from a Box Truck

Posted on by Wendy
We don't have to know what lies ahead; we only have to trust the One who does.
We don’t have to know what lies ahead; we only have to trust the One who does.

I was recently driving down the road when I got behind a big box truck. I really dislike driving behind them because I can’t see what’s up ahead. Sure enough, we came to an intersection with a stop light. He blasted through it, but I couldn’t see the light. It was obviously green for him, but was it still green for me?

I couldn’t see it. If it was yellow for him, then it might have switched to red for me. Someone barreling through in the other direction, could have gotten a brand new green light and t-boned me at full force.

What was I to do? Should I hit the gas and pray for the best?

Ummm, no, what I needed to do and I did, was to slow down, which turned out to be a good thing because the light had turned red. Hitting the gas instead of the breaks, would have been a dangerous decision.

But, hitting the gas is our nature, isn’t it? We don’t like to wait. We don’t like to go slowly and we definitely don’t like not knowing what lies up ahead. That’s why we don’t like box trucks.

That box truck stayed on my mind in the days to follow. Walking with Jesus is often like traveling behind a box truck. If we are in a hurry and insist on our own way, we will often find ourselves frustrated.

Faith teaches us to take one step at a time, one day at a time, and to trust that God has a plan. Faith teaches us that His plan is better than ours and that He will provide for us in His way and in His time.

In a world that asks us what our ten-year plan is and seeks to have us plan every minute of every day until we retire, that path often doesn’t sit too well. But, His path is not and has never been a worldly path. The journey with Christ is a daily walk where we sometimes walk the same road for years and then sometimes we take a new turn everyday.

We don’t have to know the way or even see the road ahead. We only have to know and trust the One who does and it can be excruciatingly difficult at times. Yet, that’s what we are called to do.

When we willingly follow Him, we will always arrive at the destination He intended for us and it will always be much more than we could have imagined.

The question for us is really a matter of trust, faith and obedience. I sometimes struggle with those, but thankfully, we have grace and redemption on a daily basis and the Holy Spirit to light our way. When we get off track, Jesus always reaches out for us to pull us back, closely to his side.

A box truck reminded me. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Walking in Faith

Posted on by Wendy
The light of Christ changes everything.
“For we live by faith, not by sight.” 2 Corinthians 5:7

I was recently praying as I was getting ready for my day. I was in my bedroom and it was quiet. I had so many things on my mind, so many people and circumstances to pray for. I felt certain I was missing some of them.

I had been praying about our current political scene in this country. I had been praying about the recent violence involving police. I had been praying about people who I hold close who are battling sickness as well as other emotional issues. I had been praying about a new chapter in my own life.

My heart was a little heavy and I briefly wondered if I had met my prayer quota for the day. Was God getting all of this? Did I need to back up and repeat?

Of course, I know that is not how God works. The Bible says He knows what I need before I even ask it, but at that moment, the world around me from my little space to globally, seemed to me, to be in great need of His guidance and intervention.

As I finished my prayer, I went to the windows and opened my blinds for the day. The sun was bright and flooded the room with light and tiny rainbows dotted my ceilings and walls. The scene took my breath away. I grinned as I grabbed my cell phone to snap a few shots that don’t even begin to do justice to the moment.

Within minutes, they were gone, but the message was received. Yes, He was listening. Yes, He is in control. No, my list of prayers is never too much for Him. I looked heavenward and whispered, “thank-you.”

Now, those of you out there who may be the Doubting Debbie types, I am fully aware that the sun was reflecting off of something in my bedroom that acted as a prism. I am well aware that it wasn’t some kind of miracle. But, the fact that I just happened to open my blinds at the same exact time I said, “Amen,” and at that precise moment, the sun just happened to hit the right spot at the right time to produce those little rainbows…..

That, my friends is faith. I know that God was letting me know that He was listening. The amazing thing is that when I seek Him with my whole heart, in a quiet place, He always has a way of showing Himself, if I am diligent about looking.

There are so many Bible verses that pop into my mind here: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” Matthew 7:7 or “This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all.” 1 John 1:5  or maybe, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Hebrews 11:1

They all point to the Amazing God who we worship. They all point to Jesus. God is always listening to our prayers. Perhaps you needed reminding today.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂