Author: Wendy

Faith’s Blessings

Posted on by Wendy
We worship the God who created the universe. Is anything too had for Him?
We worship the God who created the universe. Is anything too hard for Him?

Last October, my family visited a new church, well, new to us. This church had been started fourteen years earlier by a core group of believers who were looking to worship together. They began as Independent Methodists and they met at a local school.

Over the years, they bought a building and then realizing they had no room to expand, sold it. They met at a local funeral home for a while and became part of the Wesleyan Denomination. They were always looking for something permanent, but were unable to find the space they could afford. There was an  empty church in a nearby town, but it was too expensive and needed a fair amount of renovation. That group of believers was adamant on staying together as a church.

The summer before my family visited, they were given thirty days notice to vacate where they had been worshiping. They had nowhere to go and could find no viable, rental space. Many newer members, abandoned ship for greener pastures. But, the core group, continued to pray and hold fast to what they felt they were called to do, worship together and stay together.

A garage-type space opened up, no rooms, no sheet rock, just walls. That core group of believers did what amounted to an Amish barn raising and created a space that would work. It was small, but it was theirs and they had a lease. They had some breathing room while they searched for something else.

My family visited that little store front space and we were immediately drawn in by how welcome we felt and the amount of love we felt there. We could feel God. We ended up joining.

In May, the leaders of the church were informed that the little church that they had looked at earlier, but found too expensive had dropped in price. They invited the entire congregation to take a look. While it was small, it sat on seven acres. We took a vote and everyone voted to purchase it.

Here’s where God got busy. We were told by our denomination, if we could raise $50,000 in six months, that they would match our funds. The entire idea seemed incredibly out of reach. Our church is very small, with less than 100 members, but a capital campaign was kicked off in July. Yesterday, 40 days later, we had surpassed our goal.

We were all in shock, although I don’t know why. We worship the God who can turn water into wine, the God who parted the Red Sea, the God who called the stars into being, the God who fed thousands of hungry people with a few fishes and loaves of bread, the God who sent us His son to save us. Is there anything He can’t do?

For fourteen years, this particular Body of Christ has remained obedient and faithful and they have waited on God and His timing even though all seemed lost at times. They stood fast and today, they were rewarded for their faith.

In October, we will move into a little white church on a hill that will have been completely renovated to welcome all who would come, to know Christ. While we are all giving stunned thanks for the amazing blessings which we have been given, we wait in wonder to see what God will do next.

Yesterday, we were all reminded of Gabriel’s famous words to Mary, “For nothing is impossible with God.” Luke 1:27

Maybe you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

He Calls Out

Posted on by Wendy
It's not the flower that makes the gardenia so special; it's the scent. It's not something we can touch or see, but sense.
It’s not the flower that makes the gardenia so special; it’s the scent. It’s not something we can touch or see, but sense.

On the first day of my summer mission trip, we were told to keep an eye out for something at the house we were working at, that we could bring back to our host church and share with the rest of our mission team. It could be anything, but it was supposed to be something of significance to us that represented something special about our week.

I heard the teens talking about it all week. Some of them had no trouble finding an object and some of them struggled to the very last minute. After we all shared communion together, we all went up one-by-one and shared our objects and our stories and left them on the altar.

It was a very moving ceremony and there wasn’t a dry eye in the sanctuary. Some of the teens were very nervous, but it was amazing to see how they supported one another in love and friendship after only a week together.

There were shingles, nails and all types of items that though they seemed insignificant at first glance, the accompanying story that linked them with God made them extraordinary. Of course, God has the power to do that in all of our lives. We can give Him the tiniest, everyday, anything and He can make it magnificent. We just have to be willing to give it.

When it was my turn to share, I went empty-handed. I didn’t have a physical object. I had plenty to share. I saw God at every turn that week, but not necessarily in the physical.

I have shared on my blog before that I pray when I walk in my neighborhood and quite often, when I am really struggling with an issue, God sends a hawk across my path. It has happened way too often for me to discount. I mean, it will fly right in front of me.

I have always reasoned that if God can call every animal on the planet to get on a boat two-by-two, He can certainly send hawks across my path. If He can make a donkey talk, He can send me a hawk. It’s a spiritual connection I have with Him.

A large part of my work on the trip was working on the roof. Roofing isn’t really that hard, but it’s very hot and very tedious. The entire week that I was on the roof, a hawk cried out close by. I mentioned it to my daughter, several times. I would smile and look at her and ask, “Do you hear it?” She would smile and nod.

I never saw the hawk that week. I only heard it, but I knew God was close. I could feel Him.

The second thing I shared was that there was a huge gardenia bush next to the house, the largest I had ever seen. Every time I passed by it, I got a whiff of its sweet scent and I found myself thanking God for planting it there. I couldn’t see Him, but I could sense Him. That gardenia bush could have been anywhere, but it wasn’t. It was right beside the house.

The entire experience reminded me that God calls out to us in so many ways. We can see Him and feel Him in the world around us if we seek Him. We don’t have to be able to hold these encounters in our hands; we only have to hold them in our hearts.

Perhaps you needed a reminder today to seek Him.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Living by Faith Not Fear

Posted on by Wendy
Maybe if we depended more on God and less on self, we would see more Divine intervention.
Maybe if we depended more on God and less on self, we would see more Divine intervention.

I was recently having a conversation with my pastor about the need to start some new Sunday school classes at our church. We were talking about people who might be good leaders. He named one person in particular, who had said she felt completely unqualified to teach. He said he thought that made her very qualified.

God’s kingdom work has always worked in kind of an upside-down fashion like that. He seems to delight in calling those who seem the least likely in human terms to do His work. The last shall be first thread runs throughout the Bible.

But, when you think about it, it makes perfect sense. Those people who think they know everything or consider themselves invincible, don’t feel the need to call on God. They feel like they can handle anything on their own. Then the plan becomes, man’s plan, not God’s. I think God seeks out the humble and sometimes the least likely to do His work, because they are more willing to acknowledge Him and listen.

I think it’s no accident that some of the greatest modern miracles often come from missionaries who are living day-to-day sharing their faith. They don’t have a 401k or a nest egg and often not even any type of health insurance; yet they often have the most powerful stories of Divine intervention.

I can think of two missionaries right off-hand, who survived Ebola decades apart. Coincidence? Perhaps, but not likely.

My hubby had a missionary visit his prayer group yesterday. He and his wife travel the United Sates, sharing the Gospel. They were far from home and completely out of money, when in a parking lot, they saw a man who was standing alone. The missionary said he felt drawn to the man and talked with him for a couple of hours. He gave him his card and told the man to feel free to contact him if he ever needed him. When he and his wife returned to their motel room, the guy from the parking lot had transferred $1,000 into their checking account. Another coincidence?

The missionary had several other miraculous stories and they all made me wonder if we would all see more of God if we were less worried about our financial security and things that make sense to us and were more focused on following Him.

What would today’s church look like if we all decided to put God first and had faith that all of the rest would be provided. What if we put our insecurities about not being enough, aside and blindly followed where He calls, despite our fears? What would today’s world look like if Christians walked in fearless faith, depending on God and not on self?

We might get to witness a lot more of the miraculous. We might be unbelievably surprised at the outcome. It might be worth a try.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Seeing God at the DMV

Posted on by Wendy
God is everywhere. We just have to take the time to look for Him.
God is everywhere. We just have to take the time to look for Him.

I recently took my sixteen-year-old to get her driver’s license. My little town doesn’t have a DMV so we had to travel to a neighboring county.

After our arrival, we were filling out paper work, when a very large teenage boy walked in the door. I’m sure he played football for some lucky high school team because he looked like a linebacker. He was grinning from ear to ear and saying, “yes!” over and over in a loud whisper. He was making deep sighs of relief and actually broke into a happy dance.

This kid’s joy was infectious. I couldn’t help but smile at him and call across the room.

“Did you pass?”

“Yes!” he said, grinning wildly.

I gave him a thumbs up and he returned the gesture. My daughter, who was nervously waiting her turn, relaxed a little. It was impossible not to. This kid was so excited that it spilled over to all who sat in the room. I found myself saying a little prayer of thanks for getting to witness his utter joy.

As I thought of it later, I wondered what the world would be like if all Christians walked around with that kind of joy. We have so much to be joyful about. We have the best retirement plan ever made. We get to spend eternity in Heaven. Our biggest enemy has already been defeated. We have forgiveness and grace. We are loved beyond even our own understanding. Does it get any better than that?

But, we live on this side of Heaven and we get bogged down in the worldly. We sometimes forget. Sometimes we need a little reminder from a teen doing a happy dance, or snuggling puppies, or a babies’ tiny feet. Our world is full of reminders of God’s presence. We merely have to look for them. God shows us His handiwork at every turn if we pay attention.

After the happy teen left, an elderly lady came and sat behind us. She asked me where to get a number and we got to talking. She told us that she was 78 years old and I was amazed. Her face was remarkably unlined and she was incredibly spry.

She shared with us that she had five children, had been a foster mother, worked at Head Start and still volunteered several days a week. She said that was why she felt so young. She was also very active in her church. We talked about church and prayer and I told her we had been praying that my daughter would pass her driving test. She looked at my teen directly in the eyes and told her that she needed to be praying herself and not to rely on her mama. My daughter assured her that was the case. She left shortly after and wished us luck.

I pondered the conversation and marveled about seeing God everywhere. Who would have thought a woman would talk to my teen about prayer at the DMV? It settled her nerves. She passed her test. Did God put that teen boy there at that moment to help my daughter relax? Did God send that sweet lady? Who knows? Is it possible? Oh, yeah.

With God, all things are possible. (even at the DMV) Never stop looking.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Staying Full

Posted on by Wendy
We can keep our own wells filled like the hummingbird feeder with some attention and commitment.
We can keep our own wells filled like the hummingbird feeder, with some attention and commitment.

My hummingbird feeder is right outside my kitchen window. I have had it in the same spot for years. I usually only refill it every few weeks, at most. I just rarely have that many hummingbirds. I have always enjoyed them, but I just haven’t had that many.

This year has been different. I have had at least six dive bombing and squawking at each other for a turn at the feeder. It gets empty quickly. I keep a very close eye on it because I read somewhere that once you hang a feeder, they really depend on it.

I have found myself refilling it at least once a week this year. I have even had to go and buy more sugar for them. I try to keep some sugar water in the fridge, so they never have to be without.

As I was making another pot of sugar water for them today, I began to think about how convenient it is to actually physically see when they are running low. They never have to run out because I keep a watch on the level of water in the feeder.

Wouldn’t it be nice if we kept a close eye on our own emotional and spiritual levels, like the hummingbird nectar? Wouldn’t it be nice if we knew when we were starting to run low on all that we give to everyone around us, so that we could come to a complete stop and refill?

I think the problem is that we so often pay attention to everyone else and all that is expected of us, that we don’t give any thought to our own inner wells and we allow them to run almost completely dry.

We find ourselves frazzled and grumpy and at wits end in general. We snap at the ones we love and find ourselves saying things that we regret. We can apologize later, but once words are out, it’s really difficult to take them back. We can also find ourselves making decisions we might not have made. We can even make ourselves sick from too much stress and busyness.

So how can we keep our wells properly filled like the little hummingbird feeder? I think we have to spend some daily quiet time with God. It can be close to impossible with all of the noise, but I have found that it’s worth it. Even if I have to wake up thirty minutes early, (ugh!), I have always found it to be worth the sacrifice.

Beginning the day with a little Bible reading and a little prayer, really can make all of the difference. If you can’t seem to find the time, I challenge you to try getting up early for a week. I think you will be delighted with the results.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

The Downside of Having it Your Way

Posted on by Wendy
Our way or God's way, it's always a choice.
Our way or God’s way, it’s always a choice.

Yesterday, my pastor preached from the Gospel of John. In John 6:15, the crowd decided to force Jesus to be their king and knowing this, he slipped away. Humanity  has always wanted God to do things our way and it’s never worked out well for us. Yet, we keep trying.

My pastor said that perhaps the reason that America seems to be at odds with God at the moment, is the fact that we always want things done our way. This notion plagued my mind long after the sermon was over.

Just stop and think for a moment about the American way. McDonald’s even has the slogan, “Have it your way.” Big business has taken on the motto that, “the customer is always right.” And, boy, do we believe it. We can send back a meal that we ordered, just because we don’t like it. We can take back just about anything we order on the internet for no reason at all.

We can spill hot coffee on ourselves and then sue the restaurant because it was hot. We have also been blessed with lawyers who will convince juries that it should always be “our way.”

What happens when a nation with the entitlement issues of a two-year-old, goes head to head with God?

When the people in Jesus’ time tried to make him their kind of king, he simply withdrew. That doesn’t mean that God rained down hell, fire and brimstone from Heaven. It just means that Christianity is about freely loving and following Jesus. When we decide to stop following and insist on our own way, he steps back and let’s us.

He doesn’t push us off of a cliff. But, he will allow us to jump. He will gently and sometimes urgently ask us not to, but he will not forcibly stop us.When we hit rock bottom as we inevitably will, and cry out, he will give us a hand. He will help us up and he will help us mend.

But, the damage, well the damage is done. It can all be redeemed, but perhaps not erased.

So, why jump in the first place? That depends on whether or not, we are willing to trust that God and His word are true and for our best interest, or whether we decide to “lean on our own understanding.” The problem is we often really believe that we know what is best for us.

More often than not, we are wrong. Just think back to all of the prayers you have prayed that you thought were unanswered, from the perfect job to the perfect spouse. Looking back, we can always find a reason for prayers that got a “no.” It was always for the best, even if we couldn’t see it at the time.

It takes some serious discipline to trust in God’s will and His way. It so often seems contrary to the ideas of the society we live in. But, if we we read just about any part of the Bible, we will find that this has always been the case. It’s about the will of the Divine verses the will of humanity.

While the story is as old as time, the choice is new for us every single day. Which will you choose today, your way or His?

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

School Prayers

Posted on by Wendy
God's hands are never tied..
God’s hands are never tied.

This weekend is the last weekend before school starts for my kids. (sigh) It’s been a fabulous summer for us and I’m really sad to see it end. School starts entirely too early in Georgia if you ask me. I mean, it’s not even August yet. What happened to starting after Labor Day? But, like it or not, school starts next week.

There’s been a lot said about prayer in schools. I regularly get those posts to “like” and “share” if I believe prayer should be allowed in public school.

The truth is that no one can stop prayer in public school or anywhere else, for that matter. God hears our every thought and knows our hearts. What’s stopping our teachers and kids from saying a silent prayer at the beginning of the day? Christians aren’t required to go to a certain place to pray or to pray at a specific time. God’s hands cannot be tied.

Here’s another question, “Are we praying with our children before they leave our house?”

Government can’t stop God. He can flourish in the hearts of all followers as long as we keep praying. I always encourage my kids to pray before they start their day. I always pray for them after I drop them off. I feel that they are covered. My hubby and I have taught them that they can pray anywhere and anytime. God always hears.

Instead of being annoyed the next time you see the Facebook post complaining about the fact that prayer isn’t allowed in public schools and lamenting that things aren’t like they used to be, I would like to ask you to join me in praying for the students and the teachers. Just stop for a moment and say a prayer.

As Christians, that’s a powerful gift we can offer all of our educators as well as the kids. In fact, maybe we should just add our kids’ teachers to our daily prayer lists. We might find a very different school year ahead.

If parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles all just added a daily prayer for teachers from pre-school to college, as well as for our students, the entire school experience for everyone involved could change dramatically. We may be wonderfully surprised.

I think it’s worth a try. Maybe you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Spiritual Cicadas

Posted on by Wendy
This little bug looks like something from a horror movie.
This little bug looks like something from a horror movie.

I was taking a walk yesterday and I saw a cicada lying dead on the pavement. But, when I stepped over him, I discovered he wasn’t dead as he flew away. I was really startled and chuckled to myself over how scary those bugs actually look.

As a life long Southerner, they have always been a part of my summer time. My sister and I used to delight in pulling their shells off of the pine trees and putting them in our bicycle baskets. They make a bizarre noise that sounds like  some kind of an alien invasion.

I have no fear of them because I know from my parents’ teaching and life experience, that they are completely harmless. They don’t sting or bite. But, if I didn’t know that, they would fall into one of my granddaddy’s favorite categories, “they won’t hurt you, but they’ll make you hurt yourself.”

We have a lot of situations in life that fall into that category, though, don’t we?

We walk in fear of everything ranging from getting a scary medical diagnosis to financial issues. So often, our fears are completely without merit. They are a bunch of “what ifs?” not even based on fact.

We also fear trying anything new because we might fail. We fear speaking a dream out loud because we are afraid of sounding dumb to others.

But, the Bible is full of far-fetched crazy sounding schemes that worked because He was behind them. Who would have thought that a hot-headed fisherman named Peter would lead the new church after the Ascension? Peter’s faith grew so strong that his shadow alone, could heal people. Who would have thought that a killer of Christians could preach the Good News to the Gentiles and write the New Testament? Paul did just that.

Who would have thought that a ninety year old woman named Sarah, could give birth to the Nation of Israel?

Fear is not only a dream killer. It’s a faith killer. Fear of failure and ridicule do not come from God. They come from our enemy. As Christians, we worship the “God of angel armies.” Should we fear anything?

Perhaps we should prayerfully search our hearts and ask God what is it that He is calling us to do that we are hesitant to do because of fear. It could be something really simple like reaching out to a neighbor or visiting a new Sunday school class. It could be something much bigger like pursuing a lifelong dream. Either way, if He calls us to do it, we should be fearless.

Because, those things that make us hesitate, well those are just spiritual cicadas. They just look and sound scary. We should pay them no attention.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Grace and the Law

Posted on by Wendy
Sometimes we should ask ourselves is Christianity a lifestyle or a weekly event?
Sometimes we should ask ourselves if Christianity is a lifestyle or a weekly event.

When I was growing up, going to church was an event. We had to wear special shiny church shoes. We had to wear tights and we always wore a dress. No woman would have dared to wear pants to church. My sister and I had special Sunday bows to wear in our hair as well and little white purses to carry.

Church was a formal place where voices were kept low and children wouldn’t dare to make noise or run in the aisle. Looking back, it seems like we were really big on the law and not so much on grace.

Fast forward thirty plus years and blue jeans are the norm in many churches. People regularly bring their coffee and snacks right into the sanctuary. There’s a very much come as you are attitude. Nowadays, we seem to focus a lot on grace and very little on the law.

I can see both sides of the argument here. Does God really care what you wear to church? But, doesn’t making an effort and wearing your best, show respect? Which side is the right one?

I certainly don’t have the all the answers. But, perhaps the better question is, do we consider Christianity to be a lifestyle or an event?

Do we go to church on Sunday because it’s a requirement in our minds, (that’s the law talking); or do we go because we want to spend some time with other Christians in worship? (that’s grace) Do we come hungry for knowledge and grace and leave so filled that we just have to share with others, or do we show up so we can feel good that we checked going to church this Sunday, off of our to do list?

Do we come in comfortable clothes because we are comfortable with God and our walk with Christ or do we wear blue jeans because we just don’t care to get up early enough to iron?

It seems to me, like most things involving Jesus, that it’s a heart matter. Every individual will have a different answer and while I love that the modern church has embraced grace, the law is still in play. We are still supposed to follow the Ten Commandments. The Bible is still God’s word.

Grace simply acknowledges that we will fail and can ask for forgiveness. Grace doesn’t allow us to go out and keep on sinning, just because we can. I think maybe we have come to see Jesus’ sacrifice as a “get out of jail free card.”

If Christianity is a lifestyle and not a weekly event, then we will try to honor God and love others everyday, not just when we sit in church. We will try not to break the Commandments and live like the Bible tells us to, not out of fear of the law, but out of respect for grace.

Of course, we will fail, but not because we didn’t try, but because we are human. That’s when we can truly embrace grace. I think it really takes both the law and grace to see the entire picture.

What does your heart say?

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Lighting Up the Virtual World

Posted on by Wendy
The humming birds can now feed without fighting the ants.
The humming birds can now feed without fighting the ants.

I have had an all out war this summer with ants on my humming bird feeder. The feeder hangs on the edge of our house and it has been covered with them. I have no interest in feeding ants. The feeder is for the birds and the ants were interfering.

The problem is sugar water draws more than one type of creature. Sure, it draws the birds, but it draws ants and yellow jackets too. I figured I couldn’t do much about the yellow jackets, but I felt like I could get rid of the ants.

I thought maybe the ants were living in the gutters, so I had them cleaned. It made no difference. The ants kept coming. I told my hubby that I read in several places, on the internet that I could grease the wire holding the feeder and keep the ants off. He didn’t think that would work.

Exasperated, I tried it anyway, and as a further measure, I wrapped it with packing tape, sticky side out. I also read about that online. I filled it with fresh sugar water and waited. The birds didn’t return for a little while, but then one came, and then the others followed and guess what? There were no ants.

I was just tickled with my low tech success. I was so grateful that different people had shared their success with the ant battle. The fact that they took the time to share helped me with my own little battle.

Now, I’ll be the first to admit, that we live in a world with a lot of over sharing. I mean, there are folks who insist on taking pictures of their lunch for Facebook and Instagram as well as keeping us all updated on their recent trip to the grocery store.

But, wouldn’t it be great if people shared more of their success stories, like how they beat cancer or how they were able to save a hundred bucks on their grocery bill? What about if we shared more praises and less complaints?

What about if we shared our faith? I often see prayer requests on Facebook, but I don’t see the thank-yous for prayers answered, nearly as much.

Cyberspace is a busy and noisy place. We all have the ability to bless people who are surfing the internet or checking their social media. Just as in the real world, we have the ability to let our light shine and we also have the ability to rant and spread negativity.

The choice is ours. Now if I could just get rid of those yellow jackets!

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂