Category: Building Christian Character

As Christians, people should be able to look at us and see Christ. People should be able to see who we serve in the way we act.

Seeking the Wonder

Posted on by Wendy
“After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.” 1 Kings 19:12

A couple of weeks ago, I was driving to work. It was foggy out, but it was a normal day. There was nothing going on good or bad for me, but I was tired and I was running late. I prayed that God would show Himself to me in some small way.

Years earlier, I read a book called, “Wonderstruck,” by Margaret Feinberg. It was about rediscovering the wonder in her relationship with God. She prayed that God would show her a piece of the wonder He was capable of and He obliged.

That premise stuck with me, so from time-to-time, when I find myself in a spiritual doldrums of sorts or I feel that God is far away, I pray for God to show me His wonder. So, that morning, I said that prayer.

As I made the next right turn, I was greeted by a burst of sunshine. It was really hard to miss. I smiled and said a quick prayer of thanks as I whipped into a spot in the parking lot. I jumped out of my car and headed towards my building, I found myself looking over my shoulder to catch another glimpse of the wonder, as I kept walking. I was running late after all, but something deep inside urged me to stop.

So, I did. I stopped and I turned around. I took a deep breath and I took that beautiful light in. I said a heartfelt prayer of thanks. I even snapped a picture.

This time, when I turned around to walk to my building, my soul felt lighter and I didn’t feel like I was rushed. I felt truly thankful.

I thought about my morning encounter for the rest of the day. I thought about how often we ask God to intervene and how often He does and we miss it, because we are busy and distracted. I thought about how often He shows up in a whisper instead of a roar and again, we miss it because of all of the noise.

I was reminded of Elijah’s interaction with God in 1 Kings 19:11-13; “The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by. Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.”

A morning sunrise reminded me not to miss God in the quiet. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

The Courage to Choose Restoration

Posted on by Wendy
The path to restoration takes courage.

I recently had a gum graft. I put it off for a long time, but my dentist finally told me my time was up. My gum recession had gotten to the point that I was going to eventually lose my tooth if there wasn’t an intervention. I reluctantly made an appointment with a periodontist. The procedure was successful, but there was a lot of scraping to prepare the tooth for the new skin and I went home with a bunch of stitches.

I was really sore the next day as expected, with a good deal of swelling and a huge purple bruise on my chin. As I was sitting on my porch, reading my daily devotion, feeling the morning breeze on my skin and listening to the birds singing, it occurred to me that restoration is rarely easy or comfortable and is always a decision that takes courage.

I was reminded of my Daddy’s knee replacement years before. He was in a lot of pain and walking with a limp, before he finally agreed to the surgery. His rehab was painful, but he always went and in the end, it was all worth it. He no longer limped and and the daily pain that he had resigned himself to live with, was gone. Nothing would have changed if he hadn’t had the courage to seek restoration.

Whether it’s something physical like a knee replacement that can restore normal movement and quality of life or something even harder like the decision to restore a broken relationship, restoration takes commitment and hard work. It also requires faith because the in between can be grueling. There are bruises and scars that take time and patience to allow them to heal.

God calls us to restoration in our hearts and souls with Him and with each other. But, sometimes the emotional and spiritual restoration can be more painful than the physical stuff. Scraping away years worth of baggage like anger, pain, guilt and bitterness that we have allowed to accumulate in our hearts, takes hard work and courage, but the results, the freedom, the joy and the life, that comes from restoration is worth every moment.

My recovery from a gum graft reminded me that it takes courage for restoration to be possible. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Appreciating the Waterfall Journey

Posted on by Wendy
It’s sometimes difficult to imagine what the end of our journey looks like when we are stuck in the middle.

My family recently went on a hike to a waterfall. It was beautiful and an easy walk and so it attracted many people. The viewing platform was full when we arrived so we went to the base of the falls. We had a a few minutes to take pictures and appreciate the beauty before we were joined by more people. We headed back to the platform to snap a few photos and again, in a few minutes, it was full.

We were a little disappointed. When we go to the woods, it’s to enjoy nature away from crowds not fight with people for a little space. To be fair, I’m sure the other people felt there, the same. It truly was a beautiful and I could see why folks were drawn to it. There’s a certain majesty found in both the sight and sound of water crashing into rocks below. Waterfalls are one of those places in Creation that tend to make us pause in awe at something so much bigger than ourselves.

But, as we stood on the platform for a few minutes, we noticed a couple at the top of the waterfall, a little off of the beaten path, so instead of heading back down, we decided to head up there. It was much quieter away from the crowds. It was an entirely new perspective at the top of the waterfall, yet still breathtaking.

I wondered what it was like a little further upstream. Was it still just as gorgeous and dramatic? I felt the nudge to check it out and so I walked a little further.

What I found was a little mountain stream. It was pretty and clear, but it wasn’t large or in any way special. There were parts where it was almost completely dammed up by a fallen tree or debris. If you were to look at this little stream at this point in its path, you would have no idea it was destined for greatness. If you stopped here and walked away, you would completely miss its awesome destiny.

The thought of the journey of that mountain stream stayed on my mind for days after we returned home. We all have the tendency to celebrate greatness. We like to focus on the finish line and we often compare the middle of our own journey to the finish lines of others, but no one’s awesome waterfall moment ever started there. Nope, that journey started long before. There were likely twist and turns and sometimes they may have even gotten almost completely stopped, but the waterfall moments are proof of what happens with faith and perseverance.

Sometimes the majesty that awaits is more than we can possibly imagine, but God can.

They remind us to to the same on our own journey at whatever point we may find ourselves. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

 

 

 

Trusting the Path

Posted on by Wendy
Sometimes the roughest paths lead us to incredible destinations.

My family recently took a trip to the North Georgia Mountains. We have always enjoyed hiking together, so this time, I put my daughter in charge of finding us some trails. We settled on a couple of waterfalls and a swinging bridge which happened to be the longest one east of the Mississippi.

The trails she chose were part of the National Forest system. We had never hiked National Forest Trails, but were up for new adventure.

The first trail had a sign on the road that pointed us to a gravel road. We turned and drove a fairly short distance, but questioned ourselves the entire way. Was this gravel road the right path? We seemed to be in the middle of nowhere. Soon, we saw other cars parked and just a short hike later, we were delighted to find a beautiful waterfall. We were glad we stayed on the path even though it was rough.

The next day, we headed to the swinging bridge. Again, we saw the sign and again, we found ourselves on a gravel path, but this one was rougher and longer. It was five miles and we marveled at how long it seemed to take to travel such a short distance. I watched as my phone reported that we had only traveled a mile. I couldn’t recall ever taking so long to travel just a single mile.

This time, when our phone announced that we had arrived, there was only one car parked. Were we in the right place? A carved out sign pointed to a path to the bridge. The hike was longer than our first one, but we were so glad we did it. The bridge was was worth it and we took tons of pictures as we laughed at how much it moved as we walked across the rushing river below.

Our last planned hike was to another waterfall. This one was much taller than the first. This time, when we saw the sign to the gravel road, we didn’t question the path even though it was much rougher and longer than the first two and at some places, much narrower. There was a steep drop down to a stream on the passenger side. A couple of times, when when passed a car going the opposite direction, they would stop to let us by. When we arrived, there was no central place to park. We just had to find a spot that wouldn’t block the path for other travelers.

Our hike was much longer than the two before. When we began to wonder if we should have brought some water along, we passed by a couple heading back down. The woman smiled and told us that we were close and it was totally worth it. We appreciated the encouragement. When we got to the waterfall, we were all amazed at its majesty. We sat and stayed a while so glad that we kept going even when the path was long and rough.

I thought about our trip long after we returned home. I was reminded that sometimes the distance we have to go isn’t nearly as long as it feels like when the path is rough and we are often much closer than we think to what we are seeking. I was also reminded that the roughest journeys sometimes lead us to incredible destinations far beyond our own imagination. When we are walking in faith and Jesus points us to a path, staying on the path will always be worth it even when we doubt.

Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Carrying a Spiritual Umbrella

Carrying a Spiritual Umbrella

Posted on by Wendy
Growing our faith in the quiet times prepares us for the rainy times.

I was driving to work one day last week, enjoying the sunny morning. The skies were spectacularly blue and I was feeling grateful. When I got close to my parking spot, I passed a man walking with a backpack and a large umbrella. The umbrella caught my eye because it was such a beautiful morning, but I knew why he was carrying it.

When I first started my job, I was walking to my car at the end of the day and a few raindrops began to fall. The sun was out and we weren’t expecting rain, but in just a couple of minutes, I was caught in a downpour that came out of nowhere. A girl ran past me and commented that it wasn’t supposed to rain, yet there we were. While I was sheltering under a tree, a sweet coworker was driving by and she offered me a ride for the rest of the way. I gladly accepted.

Determined not to get caught again, I bought a little umbrella to keep in my bag that I take with me everyday. A couple of weeks later, it began raining once again on my walk to the car, but I was prepared, or so I thought. I pulled out my new little umbrella and smiled. I would be dry on my walk to my car. But, this was a blowing rain.

My head stayed dry, but my pants were soaking wet. I clearly needed a larger umbrella.

So the gentleman carrying his large umbrella on that sunny morning wasn’t a surprise, he too, had likely been caught in a sudden downpour that left an impression, but he left an impression on me that day.

We tend to choose to live our lives unprotected. When the sky is blue and sunny, we go about our business blissfully. We give little to thought to rain or storms that may pop up at any time and we get drenched when they inevitably come.

Our spiritual lives are the same. When everything is quiet and still, we often forget to pray; we neglect to read our Bibles or spend quiet time with God. When the rains come, we are unprepared and we find ourselves desperately seeking shelter under just about any overhang we can find believing we may drown.

But, when we seek to walk with Jesus when our skies are still and sunny, our faith grows stronger and larger and we have it with us at all times. When the rains come, we know we won’t drown, we stay focused on Jesus and we are protected.

A man with a large umbrella on a sunny day reminded me that being prepared is always wise both physically and spiritually. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Hydrangea Lessons

Posted on by Wendy
Faith comes from not knowing the outcome, but resolving to plant anyway.

I had one single hydrangea bloom this year. It was beautiful and I was thrilled to have it, but I have five hydrangea bushes that were covered in blooms last year, so this year’s crop has been disappointing. I had cut blooms in vases all over my house last year and in a season where  there was so much ugliness and a worldwide pandemic had us all at home, those blooms felt like daily well wishes from God.

Forces completely out of my hands reminded me that there was still beauty in the world.

Fast forward a year and I have one single bloom. I fed and watered those hydrangeas just like I did last year. We had a late frost, but I carefully covered them up with sheets for protection. I did my best, yet they didn’t bloom.

If you ever want a lesson in humility, nature is where you will find it. Our culture teaches us if we work hard and do our best, we will always succeed and we tend to buy that lie. Ask any farmer if their hard work guarantees good results. I imagine they will be the first to tell you that a lot of what happens to their crops and even their livestock, is out of their hands. It’s no wonder that the farmers I know are some of the most faithful people I have ever met.

Maybe that’s because faith comes from not knowing what the final outcome will be, but resolving to plant anyway.

We don’t tend to like those odds. We tend to prefer a sure thing and we sometimes even avoid anything that we think is not a sure thing. We convince ourselves that we truly control our destiny and we are devastated when something happens, (and it always will), to remind us we do not. That job loss, or illness, or divorce, shakes us to our core. How could something bad possibly happen when we did everything right?

The truth is, we live in a broken world and bad things happen even when we do our very best. That’s how it is on this side of eternity. But, when we keep our focus on Jesus and walk humbly with God, we are able to weather the storms much more easily, remembering that God loves us and there is a plan even when we can’t see it.

We learn to take life one day at a time, one step at a time and we continue to plant, knowing that the next season just may produce a bumper crop. A lone hydrangea reminded me that even though the outcome is out of my hands, I am called to plant anyway. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

 

 

The Call to Be a Blessing

Posted on by Wendy
A lady working at a bakery reminded me we are never too busy to be kind.

Last Saturday was my son’s birthday. I got up that morning and had breakfast and a cup of coffee and ran out to the grocery store to get him a chocolate chip cookie cake. That’s what he always requests for his birthday and I wanted to be sure his cookie cake was waiting for him when he came downstairs.

When I arrived at the store, I couldn’t locate one. I approached the bakery counter and an older lady was working. I stood there for a few minutes waiting for her to acknowledge me. When she finally did and I told her that I would like for her to write “Happy Birthday,” on a cookie cake, she said, “ok,” and kept working.

I was a little confused as I just stood there.

She finally informed me that the three on display on the counter, were all they had. One was covered in butterflies and flowers. The second had so many icing rings that only a small spot remained in the middle (definitely not enough space for a birthday message.) The final one had green icing flowers and black rings of icing around the edge. I sighed and picked that last one up and handed it to her.

When I spelled out my son’s name for her, she replied, “How else would you spell it?”

Sincerely, surprised at her continued rudeness, I pasted on a smile and told her that I usually put his full name on his birthday cakes and that people often want to leave off one of the t’s. She had no further comment and went to work.

She was taking a while, so I just browsed the many baked goods while I waited, determined not to let her demeanor ruin my day. For all I knew, she was in the middle of a big order, or didn’t feel well, or had received some bad news.

At some point, she surprised me again, when she informed me that she was making a new one for me.

When she handed me the new cookie cake, with blue and white icing, she looked bewildered at the tears that swam in my eyes as I thanked her. I checked out as quickly as I could and all but ran to my car before the floodgates opened and tears streamed unchecked down my face.

The lady at the bakery had no way of knowing that this mama was struggling a little with her baby turning twenty and no longer being a teenager.

She couldn’t have known what a tough year my son had endured. He made the decision to transfer colleges right before Covid hit, so he spent a lot of last year at a new school where he knew no one, alone in his room. She had no way of knowing how I had prayed for him all year or how much hope I had for him in the coming year.

She couldn’t have possibly known that my husband’s dad had passed when he was nineteen or that my husband’s brother had also passed when his son was nineteen, or how that family history had weighed heavily on my heart this past year.

The lady at the bakery had no way of knowing how blessed I felt that Saturday morning or how her act of kindness made my heart run over with thanks. I thanked God all the way home with that cookie cake, for His mercy, for His blessing and for the love He has shown my family and I thanked Him for the woman at the bakery who had a change of heart and decided to be a blessing to me that day. I will truly never forget it and I pray I will be reminded to the same for someone I don’t know.

A busy worker at a bakery reminded me to always take time to bless others because we never know what a simple act of kindness can mean. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

The Gift of the Pause

Posted on by Wendy
A simple pause can make all of the difference.

I was walking through campus on the way to my office one day last week, when I saw a man cutting the grass. It was early and he was up on a hill, a safe distance from me, but there was still some grass and dust flying around. As I got closer, he stopped his mowing. I smiled and mouthed, “thank-you.” He nodded and continued his mowing when I passed safely by.

I have to admit that he caught me completely by surprise. I work on a big campus. There is always lots of lawn work going on and lots of pedestrians walking around. I’ve no doubt that it would be very easy to get in a zone once he gets on a noisy lawnmower and tune out the world. It would be simple to focus on the task at hand, and who could blame him with so much work to do?

But, this man on this day, chose differently. He made it his business to look outside himself and his plans and pause to think about someone else. I thought about his unexpected act of kindness for the rest of the day.

We have become an incredibly self-focused society. We are busy. We have places to be and tasks to complete and it’s so easy to miss the many people who cross our paths daily when we leave ourselves so little space to breathe. Yet, most of us have multiple opportunities to make a difference to someone every single day simply by pausing and acknowledging their presence.

From the person who is checking us out at the grocery store, to the person on a scooter trying to reach something on a high shelf, to the child trying to get our attention during a favorite television show, eye contact and being present can make all of the difference to someone who may be struggling.

Make no mistake, we all struggle sometimes, maybe now more than ever.

The simple kindness of a pause by a complete stranger, reminded me to do the same. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Finding Joy in the Journey

Posted on by Wendy
Sometimes the shortest path isn’t always the best one.

I work at a large university and like all universities, parking is an issue. There’s just not enough of it.  I recently changed jobs at the university.

My last position was downtown. I was so excited to learn that I scored a spot in a lot right across the street from my building. It was so close! But, I quickly learned that being that close wasn’t necessarily a gift. The place where I had to cross the street was the spot where three streets converged. When I went to cross the street each morning, I had a long wait for the light to change. When it did change, almost as soon as I got in the crosswalk, the warning light began to blink and I had to rush to make it across before traffic began to move again.

It was a stressful start to each morning, no matter how short the distance was from my car to my desk.

When I accepted my new position, all of the lots next to my building were full. The closest parking spot for me was in a deck a fairly long way away. According to my Fitbit, it was right at 1,000 steps. I wasn’t super excited about the distance, but what I found was a delightful way to begin each day. The walk was though mature trees of all kinds. There were blooming flowers and chirping birds replaced the sounds of cars. A chipmunk or two ran across my path.

I quickly learned that the fastest way isn’t always the best way. There is beauty in the journey. That longer walk each morning helps me begin each day less stressed. It creates some space to be thankful and breathe. It reminds me to listen. It reminds me to watch for God and to enjoy the twists and turns along the path to where I am headed. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Trusting the Process

Posted on by Wendy
We have to resist comparing our beginning to someone else’s finish line.Growth is a process.

My hubby and I are in the process of getting our house painted. It’s way past time and we have been putting it off. Who wants to spend money on paint? But, there are some window sills that have become bare over the years and they need protection, not to mention it’s just time for an update.

I contacted a painter and he came out and looked the place over. He told us that he really needed to pressure wash first to see what kind of shape everything was in under the grime. We agreed. The good news was the exterior was in really good shape and just a thorough cleaning made it look better, except for the front steps. When he pressure washed the front steps, layers of paint came off and they look terrible, yet it would have been a total waste of time and money just to paint over them as they were. The paint would have peeled right off.

I have worked from home the past week and I can see the rails and stairs from my window. As I was grimacing at how messy and unkept they look, I wondered what the people who see it from the street must think. Do they think we just don’t care about our home? Do they judge us by the current appearance not knowing that we have a work in progress? Do they think we are lazy?

As I was thinking those thoughts, I was reminded how quick we are to judge ourselves and others by how things look at the moment. It’s easy to look at ourselves in the messy beginning or even the middle and make a comparison to someone else’s finish line. From raising kids, to building marriages, to weight loss and even our faith walk. We are always tempted to look at someone else’s, “got it all together,” phase and think that we will never measure up. What we neglect to remember is that everyone started at ground zero at some point, everyone.

We also have to remember that when we let God work on us, He’s going to strip away the bad stuff first, just like that pressure washer did. He wants to wash away the things that will interfere with our walk with Him and that’s sometimes not pretty, yet it’s an important part of the process. In the end, we will end up brighter, stronger and better than ever, but we have to trust the process even the ugly beginnings.

My porch reminded me to be patient with the process. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂