Category: Trusting God

My hubby and my daughter recently visited a local restaurant. We were thinking of having her birthday dinner celebration there. It looks so cool at night. It’s very tropical. There’s sand, palm trees and string lights. We thought it might be the ideal place for some fun birthday pictures.

But, when they visited the place in the daylight, it wasn’t nearly as glamorous. The boat fountain on the property was full of water and mosquitoes. It was hot and kind of shabby. The daylight completely changed their perception of the place.

The light changed everything.

As my hubby was relaying their experience to me, I was reminded of a time when I visited our local fair during the day time.

The fair used to come to town every fall. The air was crisp and there were lots of lights and music. It was always the highlight of the fall.

One year, a friend of mine and I, went on a Saturday afternoon. I had never been during the day. It wasn’t nearly as enticing or exciting. When we got on the haunted house ride, it was downright pitiful.

Under normal circumstances, at night, I would nervously get into one of those little cars and hear the scary music as the car would ride jerkily on the track. At each turn something would jump out. It would be something like a ghost or a skeleton, nothing seriously gory, but it would always startle me causing me to at least jump, if not to scream.

But, in the light of day, the sun shown through all of the cracks and lit up the entire inside of the ride. I could see all of the mechanical ghosts, well before my little car reached them. They weren’t the least bit scary.

The light changed everything.

I thought about our conversation in the following days. I thought about how the light of Christ can completely change our perception of the world around us.

I thought about how things that once appeared exciting and glamorous to us can become completely uninviting. I thought about how situations and places that once frightened us can lose all of their power to affect us in any significant way.

The Bible tells us that Jesus is the Light of the world. I have learned on my journey that the Light changes everything. Perhaps you needed reminding today.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

It’s been a very busy summer for me and my family. We have had lots of changes, all good, but changes just the same. One of them has been my son turning sixteen and getting his driver’s license.

Over the past year, we have probably had hundreds of conversations about driving and focusing on maintaining your lane. We have discussed not getting distracted by what’s going on around him. But, we have also discussed the importance of driving defensively.

As my hubby and I were driving to church on Sunday, we were talking about the importance of listening to God and doing what He calls us to do.

My son, and his driving lessons popped into my mind.

As Christians, we really don’t need to concern ourselves with what other people are doing. We aren’t called to drive all over the road or to jump into anyone else’s lane. We are called to be obedient to our specific calling. Sometimes, that’s an easy task.

Sometimes, we can cruise for miles with zero interference in light traffic. Sometimes, the weather is ideal and there are no hazards of any kind.

But, sometimes we encounter difficulties. We have to keep in mind that there are other drivers on the road and sometimes those drivers are aggressive or reckless. Sometimes there are wrecks. Sometimes it’s foggy or rainy. We have to remember to drive defensively.

Thankfully, we have a guidebook for that. God gives us His Word to teach us how to protect ourselves. He also gives us the direct 911 line of prayer, that always goes straight to Him. We are never on hold.

We can learn to anticipate those drivers who are going to try to cut us off and run us off the road that we have been called to. The longer and the closer we walk with Jesus, the better we get at avoiding them altogether.

We can also learn to slow down during bad weather. We don’t need to stop, although it can be tempting. Sometimes a slow crawl is fast enough.

Let’s face it. It’s easy to get distracted when there are so many people on the road. It’s also easy to just pull over and come to a complete stop when the weather is bad. However, we have to remember as long as we stay focused on Jesus, we will always get safely where we are going.

My teen driver reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

I am writing this at the end of a very long day, and for that matter, a very long week, and come to think of it, an incredibly long month. I am tired and I find myself wanting to climb into bed and just stay there for a day or two.

Have you ever found yourself in that place?

Of course, I’ve been here before. I think we all have at one time or another. But, these are the times when we have two choices. We can give in and give up or lean really hard into Jesus and the grace the He offers.

My pastor once said that, “People will say terrible things when they are in pain.” The words struck a nerve with me, so much so that I wrote them down.

I have found on my life journey that the world is full of people in all kinds of pain, whether physical or emotional, and I have found my pastor’s words to ring true. I find truth in them when talking to my teens about things people have said to them. I have found them to be true in my own life.

I have found that hurtful words spoken are very rarely even personally meant for the person who receives them. They are simply manifestations of some type of pain that the one who speaks them is bearing.

When I am rested, I remember. When I am focused on God and not my own need for control, I remember.

When I am weary, I sometimes forget. I also forget when I am focused on my own feelings.  That’s when I allow myself to get frustrated. That’s when I allow my feelings to get hurt. That’s when I forget that I truly have a choice.

I can choose to believe that I am where I am for a reason. I can choose to believe that God has a plan. I can choose to understand that people in pain have sharp edges and that hurtful words are not really about me.

I can also choose to believe that God is not in control and that I’m on my own. I can choose to strike back and lash out. I can choose anger and frustration over grace and understanding. There’s an enemy of my soul who would love for me to make those choices. Honestly, those choices sometimes feels like the right ones.

But, they are not. They never are.

Jesus calls us to something different, to a higher purpose. He calls us to love one another and to extend mercy and forgiveness because we have been given mercy and forgiveness.

When we stay focused on Him and remember that, our hearts stay whole and our souls stay well. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

PS My kids are on spring break next week, so I’m taking the week off to spend with them. I hope to see you back here in a week.

I recently saw a television commercial for “Dancing With The Stars.” I don’t think I’ve ever watched the show, but Mr. T is a contestant this season, so after it finished, I Googled his performance. I’ve loved Mr. T since the eighties. He’s truly a gentle giant and a strong Christian, who has used his celebrity to promote good in the world.

He’s also a cancer survivor. I read an article in People Magazine, where he talked about his battle with cancer. He said, “What gave him hope was faith in God.”

He also talked about scripture. He said, “In the book of Job, he was challenged but he kept on believing in God. That’s  the message I try to tell other people. Just because you believe in God, serve God, feed the hungry, and clothe the naked…that doesn’t mean that bad things are not going to happen to you.”

I think that’s a powerful message that many of us don’t like to think about. Christianity doesn’t make us immune from pain and hardship. We don’t serve God to earn His favor. We serve God because we love God. We love God because He loved us first.

We live in a broken world where bad things are going to happen, but we are not permanent residents here. We are travelers. Like Mr. T, we all have the ability to use our stories, the good and bad chapters, to encourage others who might be going through the same struggles.

Mr. T is 64 years old and is no ballerina, but he’s doing the show in honor of children who are fighting cancer. If he wins, he has vowed to shave off his famous mohawk to show solidarity with them. So far, the public has supported him with their votes.

If a 64- year- old body builder who has never been a dancer, is willing in his words, “to try,” to win a dancing show against opponents half his age, in honor of children with cancer, what are some things we might be called to do to share God’s love with others?

Mr. T reminds me that we are never too tough or too old to share our faith. He reminds me that we all have a story to share and that we all have the opportunity and the choice of whether to let our hardships defeat us, or to allow them to glorify God.

May we all choose wisely.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Here’s a Mr. T dance in case you missed it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yW_HnCR1UpI