Category: Building Christian Character

One Sunday, a few months back, when the time came for the choir to go to the front of the church and sing, my friend Linda, had to leave her grandson Malachi, in the pew with his mama, so she could sing. As soon as she left his side, he began to wail loudly. It was of no concern to him where his grandmother was going. All he knew was that she was leaving him.

But, when the music began and she joined her voice with the rest of the choir in worship, he quieted down. When the song was over, she returned to his side.

I thought about that incident long after that Sunday. So often, when God calls us to do something, those around us might not understand. They might not have the vision that we do, that like a church choir, we are joining in with others to produce something beautiful for God, something much bigger than we are alone.

I also reflected upon the fact that Linda didn’t turn and go back. She kept walking to where she was called, knowing that she needed to go. She knew that not only was Malachi completely safe with his sweet mama, but that he was about to witness why she left him for those few minutes.

When we choose to walk with Jesus, we are sometimes called to make difficult decisions. We can find ourselves called to a different job, or a different vocation altogether, or a different city, or sometimes even a different church.

Sometimes the people around us will cheer us on. Sometimes they won’t. Change is often hard for everyone involved and some people are going to react like little Malachi did that morning. But, when we are deep in prayer over our dilemmas and opportunities and we know we are going where we are called to be, our friends and loved ones will eventually see what we knew all along: God always has a plan and He was always working in the situation even when He was unseen.

Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you did too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

After combing the internet for several weeks, looking for end tables for my daughter’s college apartment, and not finding what I was looking for, I went to my hubby and asked him if he could make her some. He asked me what I had in mind. I showed him a couple of pictures and he told me that he would be happy to make them.

We went to Lowe’s and gathered the materials. Now, I can spend plenty of time in that store, looking for everything from plants to light fixtures, but I tend to get bored when we are buying building supplies. I love to paint the finished product, but I’m terrible in the planning process and truthfully, in the building process too.

We wandered through Lowe’s, and he looked for a type of screw I had never heard of and a special bit for his router and some wood to trim them out. While I wasn’t super interested in what we were looking for, I trusted that these items were important because he’s the builder and I am not.

When we got home, sure enough, there was an important use for all of those items and he made the tables I described to him, just beautifully.

Later that evening, I found myself reflecting on how often we ask God to give us something. Sometimes, He starts building our dreams and we aren’t even paying attention. He puts together all kinds of abstract pieces, using our experiences and circumstances like little nuts and bolts.

We often don’t understand the why He does what He is doing, like I had no idea why my hubby was buying the items he was buying at Lowe’s, but do we trust that the end there will be something beautiful and useful?

If I’m honest, I often find myself frustrated in the building process. I want to hurry up and get to the finished product, so I can decorate and use it right away. I sometimes forget that building something important always takes time.

My hubby’s tables reminded me the importance of planning and that patience is so very important, when it comes to building. All that time consuming measuring and waiting is for a reason. In the end, we have to make the intentional decision to trust the Builder.

Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

I was taking a walk a few weeks ago and ran into a neighbor who I hadn’t talked to in a while. We were talking about our kids and our summer. I told her I had been refinishing furniture all summer. When she asked me where I got it from, I told her my parents had a barn full of stuff no one wanted and that we had a few pieces stashed in our own storage, that needed to be used.

She laughed and said that at least I hadn’t put it all in my closet. She went on to say that after her mother-in-law passed away that they didn’t know what to do with a lot of her things, so she just kept putting sticking things in her closet. She confided that her closet had already been a mess with things crammed everywhere, but all of the extra items actually collapsed her floor.

I thought she was joking at first, but she wasn’t. She had to get a contractor to come in and rebuild her floor. She laughed and said the entire incident was incredibly embarrassing, but that now her closet was so uncluttered and organized that we could probably eat dinner there if we wanted.

I thought about my neighbor’s closet long after our conversation ended. I couldn’t quite wrap my brain around having that much stuff in my closet, but as I looked around my own closet, there were things in there I hadn’t worn in years. Why was I holding on to that stuff?

I also thought about the things we keep piling into our hearts and souls that do nothing, but create clutter and weight. Things like old hurts that we refuse to let go of, anger at people or situations that have long since passed, all kinds of fear ranging from getting hurt to failing, or anxiety about circumstances that we just can’t change, can fill us up completely.

Like the old bride’s maid dresses hanging in my closet, those emotions probably were needed at some point. But now, at best, all of the heart and soul clutter causes unnecessary crowding that takes up space that should be for the good stuff, like hope, trust and love. At worst, it can get so heavy to carry around, it can collapse us completely, like my neighbor’s closet.

My neighbor’s story inspired me to go home and go through my own closet and weed out what I no longer need, items that once served a purpose, but don’t any longer. Her story also inspired me to do a heart and soul check and rid myself of unneeded baggage there as well.

I was reminded that there’s freedom that comes from traveling light. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

My son is not a fan of the ocean. He’s a self-proclaimed mountain man. Much to his dismay, my family usually takes a trip to he beach every summer. He grumbles. He spends as little time as possible on the beach and is always looking for some activity that doesn’t involve swimming in the ocean.

I suspect his feelings stem from a trip to the Atlantic Ocean in Florida, when he was younger. The waves were fairly high and he was playing on a wave rider. At some point, he was knocked off of his board and his face was scraped up on the bottom. It wasn’t a serious injury by any means, but enough to make him leery of the ocean.

Our next few beach trips were also on the Atlantic side of Florida, and he liked the ocean less and less. The Atlantic is often not very clear and there was a time or two, when people around us said they saw sting rays. We even saw a few jelly fish on the sand, both sea creatures, that can sting.

Last summer, we went to the Gulf of Mexico. The water there was very calm and clear. When we were driving down, he announced that he would not be getting into the ocean. I assured him that this ocean was different than the Atlantic was. I don’t think he believed me.

All he knew was what he had experienced personally, and he was not impressed.

When we finally walked to the beach the first time, he saw the difference. It wasn’t long before he got into the crystal clear, calm, water, where we could actually see our feet. His opinion of the ocean changed.

I was reminded of how, like my son, we often judge everything, by our limited experiences. If we have a bad break up or two, we decide that all of the opposite sex are bad. If we were involved in an unhappy marriage, we believe all marriages lead to misery. If we have been hurt in a friendship, we can avoid forming close relationships, because we feel we can never trust anyone.

And then there’s church, if we have been involved in a church where God is not in the driver’s seat and people are looking out for their own interests and not Kingdom interests, we can become disillusioned and decide that all churches are bad too.

Of course, all of those scenarios are false.

All aspects of our lives are a bit like the ocean. From relationships, to jobs, to church. All of them have the possibility of having high waves or dangerous sea life. Sharks are everywhere.

But, there are many of those scenarios that are beautiful, calm and clear as well. Strong friendships are an amazing blessing and the comfort and security of a good marriage, is priceless. A solid, loving church, can be an unshakable foundation for road weary travelers on this side of Eternity.

My son’s ocean conversion reminded me to be careful not to judge the world around us through the lens of our limited experiences. When we judge all, based on just a few, we may miss out on something incredible. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

I grew up in the country, ten miles out of town. We had a really long driveway, but about half-way to the end of it, there was a tree. When my sister and I rode our bicycles, which we often did, Mama told us not to go past that tree. She didn’t want us to get too close to the road.

She told us the road was dangerous. There were very few cars that traveled down it. I didn’t really see what the big deal was, but we complied. We probably pedaled a hundred miles during the summer time, up and down that driveway, but we didn’t venture much further than that boundary she had set.

We had a poodle when I was growing up and she had puppies. We were allowed to keep two of them. We loved those little yippee dogs. One morning, before school, one of them didn’t return from their morning bathroom break, when we called for them.

We lived on many acres and it would have been impossible to fence it all. We waited and waited, but Mama said we had to go to school.

When we reached the end of the driveway, the dog had been run over by a car. We were devastated.

It turned out that the road was in fact, a dangerous place. Mama knew things that our little minds couldn’t possibly comprehend. I had a brand new respect for the dangers of the road.

Fast forward some forty years. We are living in the information age. If we don’t know the answer to something, we just Google it. Brand new, infinite knowledge, is always at our fingertips.

It’s easy to start to think that we know everything.

It’s interesting that the one tree in the Garden of Eden that Satan tricked Adam and Even into eating from, was the tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Satan wanted them to believe that they could know all that God knows and thus began the fall of man.

When we become Christians and walk with Jesus, we acknowledge that we don’t have all of the answers and we never will on this side of Eternity. How else do we wrap our limited minds around the concept of grace?

We begin to understand that we can’t know what God knows and that wisdom and knowledge are not the same thing.

There are boundaries set for God’s children, just like that tree in my driveway. We sometimes don’t understand them, just like I didn’t understand mine as a child, but God has His reasons, just like Mama had hers. He knows things that our little minds can’t possibly fathom.

Boundaries aren’t meant to hurt or restrict us. They are meant to keep us safe and true wisdom comes from understanding that.

An old tree in a driveway reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂