Commitment

Posted on by Wendy
The rainbow is a symbol of God's commitment to mankind.
The rainbow is a symbol of God’s commitment to mankind.

Americans struggle with commitment. About half of our marriages end in divorce. We also have trouble committing to a healthy diet or lifestyle because around two-thirds of our population are overweight or obese. We aren’t very committed to our churches either. We church hop when something about our church doesn’t suit us anymore. We look for something better.

Whether it’s church hopping, job hopping or spouse hopping, the grass is always greener on the other side. We are always able to find greener pastures, for a time. But, after a little time goes by, we usually find that every person, every workplace, every place of worship has its drawbacks. The perfection we thought we had at last found, was a mirage of sorts. So what do we do? We usually look elsewhere.

We have become a type of nomadic culture, seeking perfection in an imperfect world. We want the perfect house, car, job, church, kids and spouse. We want the perfect body, but we’d really rather just take a pill instead of sweat and count calories. We want the Norman Rockwell painting and the Currier and Ives Christmas card. We want perfection and we will break every commitment we make along the way on our great quest.

Unfortunately, what we seek, we will not find on this side of Heaven. Life is not perfect and people, are certainly not perfect. We have perfect moments from time to time and that’s what brilliant artists like Rockwell are able to capture, but a life of perfection is a myth.

So, what are we to do? Are we to live miserable, unfulfilled lives? Absolutely not! However, I think a good start is to take a look at our current commitments. Do they line up with who we are and who we want to be? Are we over committed? It’s hard to have any sort of exercise plan if we have meetings lined up every night of the week. It’s hard to become a part of a church if we travel every weekend or are involved in some sort of sport every Sunday. It’s hard to devote time to our marriages if we line up commitments that keep us away from our spouses.

Next, we need to take a look at our faith walk. If we are committed to God first, these other commitments will fall into place or fall away, whichever needs to happen. We need to learn to say no to things that don’t line up with Biblical principles.

I think a faith mentor can be super helpful too. Pick out someone you know who seems to be walking the walk you would like to walk, someone who is living in close relationship with God. Ask them for help and advice. I’ll bet they will gladly help you.

Finally, we need to let go of the perfection fairytale. It simply doesn’t exist. We need to make a list of five commitments we are serious about and go to God in prayer and ask for help. If we turn back to Him, He will help us. Commitment is hard work, but the results are so worth it. Little by little we can become the nation of committed people that we once were. Who’s with me?

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Christmas Traditions

Posted on by Wendy
My sweet neighbor brought this Advent calender to my children several years ago.
My sweet neighbor brought this Advent Calendar to my children several years ago.

The Christmas season always makes me think of my granddaddy. That man loved Christmas. He loved the decorations and the music and he loved to carve a turkey. We always had a houseful of people visit on Christmas Day when he was alive.

My sister and I had the forty-five record of All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth, and he would play it for us tirelessly while the two of us danced around in circles. He was the sheriff of our Georgia county for twenty years, so when my mom was growing up, they always exchanged gifts on Christmas Eve because he never knew when he would get a call to go into work. Unfortunately, the holidays are always a busy time for officers of the law.

When my mother married and had kids, she continued that tradition with us. Granddaddy was always there for us to open gifts. He delighted in it. Now that I have kids of my own, I have added my own tradition. We attend church service on Christmas Eve and then we come home and eat some chili and then my kids and my sisters kids open their gifts.

Granddaddy has been gone for thirty years now and a tradition he started out of necessity, still lives on. The woman who lives across the street from us brings my kids an Advent Calender every year since we moved in. We have been here for nine years now and at the beginning of the Christmas season, she shows up at our door with two Advent Calendars. She has started a beautiful tradition that my children will always remember and it helps to keep the Christ in Christmas.

I will be sure to pass this on when my kids have kids or maybe when we get new neighbors with young kids. Great traditions have a way of living on.

One of the fabulous things about Christmas is that we can always start new traditions, ones that are meaningful. The best ones leave permanent footprints on our hearts. I still get teary thinking of Granddaddy and his talk of Santy Clause. I’ve learned to appreciate those tears. They are simply physical proof of the love he left me after he went home to be with Jesus.

I wonder what he would say about us continuing to do Christmas the way he started it. I wonder if my kids will continue that tradition when they have kids. I hope so. I hope they will continue to attend a Christmas Eve service too. There’s nothing like the reading of the Christmas Story and singing Silent Night by candlelight with over a hundred other voices, that makes me feel overflowing with peace and joy.

What Christmas traditions do you treasure? What traditions would you like to start? It’s never too late to start something new. You never know, it might be profound enough for your great-grandchildren to continue thirty plus years from now. Let’s make this Christmas one to remember! Feel free to share.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Do Not Be Afraid!

Posted on by Wendy
This is one of the many angels you are likely to see this time of year.
This is one of the many angels you are likely to see this time of year.

When we decorate for Christmas, we are likely to use an angel or two somewhere in our homes. Many of us top our trees with them. Artists and retailers have made angels to be beautiful and delicate. We think of them as comforting guardians who watch over us.

The Nativity Story gives us a different picture of angels. When Gabriel appears to Mary, he tells her, “Do not be afraid.” When an angel of the Lord visits the shepherds, the scripture says they were terrified. “But the angel reassured them, “Don’t be afraid, he said. I bring you news of great joy that will be for all the people.” Luke 2:10 It goes on to say that the angel was joined by a vast host of others, the armies of heaven.

Armies aren’t typically made of sweet, gentle beings. They are usually filled with warriors, ready to do battle. In the Elisha story in 2 Kings, Elisha’s servant kept asking him where their army was because they were alone. Elisha told him they had more on their side than the Arameans did. The servant was scratching his head, for he saw no one. Elisha prayed that God would open the young man’s eyes. God did and the young man could see the hillside was filled with horses and chariots of fire. 2 Kings 6:11-16 Elisha knew they were there. He didn’t need to see them.

Of course, there are also stories of angels who comfort. God sent an angel to make Elijah wake up and eat, twice. An angel appeared from heaven and strengthened Jesus in the garden before the crucifixion. Luke 22:43

Angels are mentioned at least 108 times in the Old Testament and 165 in the New Testament. We rarely get a physical description of them, but they are usually doing something to assist God’s people who are doing God’s work, like breaking people out of jail who were locked up for spreading the Good News.

I think they look like whatever God wants them to look like at the time, or maybe what we need them to look like so we can understand God’s message for us. You wouldn’t want that delicate tree topper to defend you in a fierce battle. But, you also might not be comforted by a ten foot warrior on a fiery chariot. Humanity has always had a need to try to tame God.

We desperately want to put Him in a box and wrap it up with a neat little bow. The Bible tells us the nature of God is just not like that. He has a plan, but His plan is quite unpredictable and often messy and scary. Sometimes, He may send angels to help us along in whatever ways He sees fit. We just need to be open to that and try not to figure out the specifics.

Isn’t that what faith is all about? If we do the best we can to follow His plan, we should be covered. The Bible says, “Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it.” Hebrews 13:2

So, the takeaway on angels? Do not be afraid! God has your back.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Oh Come, Oh Come, Emmanuel

Posted on by Wendy
Our Christmas tree is decorated.
Our Christmas tree is decorated.

Like many people, we put our Christmas tree up the weekend after Thanksgiving. That just seems to be the “right time” to decorate for Christmas. I just love meeting people on the road with a Christmas tree strapped onto their roof. I got behind several on the road over the past few days.Those trees always make me smile.

Now, I will be the first one to grumble when retailers decide to put their Christmas decorations up before I have finished eating my kids leftover Halloween candy, but the first time I enter a store after Thanksgiving and Christmas music is playing, well, that just warms my heart. I think that’s the time when I’m ready.

Yesterday, we celebrated the first Sunday in Advent at church and we sang the old hymn, Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel.  What is Advent anyway? Advent is the time that we are supposed to prepare our hearts and minds for the birth of Jesus. It’s a joyous time for us to remember what Christmas is really about.

The four weeks in Advent are for us to contemplate the enormity of God’s love for us. Emmanuel means, “God is with us.”  That’s a perfect short definition for Jesus. I am trying to intentionally, watch for God this Advent season and I would love it if you would like to join me.

My family went to Wal-Mart and Target the day after Black Friday and we were pleasantly surprised at all of the Christmas cheer we found. Both places were very busy, but everyone was so nice. There were a lot of “excuse me’s” and apologies for aisles being blocked. Almost everyone was smiling. Maybe all of the craziness happened the day before or maybe if you look for the good, you can find it. My daughter commented on the good cheer as well.

Yes, I’m going to buy gifts for my family to put under my tree, but I’m keeping my eyes open for ways to serve as well. It can be something as small as donating a gift for Toys for Tots or packing a shoe box for Operation Christmas Child. There are so many ways that we can share the love of Christ during this beautiful season. We can invite someone to church or to a Christmas service.

The point is not to get too terribly caught up in all of the commercialism and to remember the beautiful gift that all of mankind was given some 2000 plus years ago. Let’s don’t just remember it on the Sundays in Advent. Let’s remember it everyday over the next twenty-four days. Remind your kids what we are really celebrating. Remind yourself.  Santa and Frosty are fun, but Jesus is awesome and Jesus is forever.

I’m going to try to start each day during Advent with a prayer of thanks for that baby born in Bethlehem and then I’m going to watch for God’s hand in the world around me. He’s always here, but this time of year, He just seems closer. “Oh Come, Oh Come, Emmanuel.” I hope you will join me. Feel free to share any of your Advent God Sightings.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

It’s Black Friday

Posted on by Wendy
Jesus is the reason for the season!
Jesus is the reason for the season!

The Thanksgiving meal has been eaten and the dishes have been washed and put away. I watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and I saw Santa at the very end. It’s now official; the Christmas Season has begun.

Many people decide to start this season rushing around to all of the Black Friday sales. The economy has been tough for quite some time now, so I can totally understand the need to get a good deal. Christmas these days has become quite expensive. If you have kids, the older they get, the more expensive their lists become.

If you don’t have kids, there’s still brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews and/or parents to buy for. Then everything has to be wrapped. Besides all of the stress that the shopping can cause, there’s a general busyness that accompanies the season. There are parties to attend . There are Christmas cards to write and mail. It can all get exhausting.

While there’s nothing wrong with the hustle and bustle of the season, I’m going to try to remember this year, that we are really celebrating the birth of our savior.  We are remembering that we have a God that loves us so much that He left His home and became one of us.

We are remembering a teenage girl who was a virgin, who said yes to the Angel Gabriel and yes to God, when she was told she was with child. She must have been scared out of her wits.

We are remembering a man who believed in God and in miracles when he agreed to stand by that pregnant teenager who was betrothed to him, even though the baby she carried was not his.

We are remembering a humble birth, where the son of God was placed in a simple feed trough because man could not make room for Him.

We are remembering a group of shepherds, the modern-day homeless of their time, who God thought were important enough to send the good news of the birth of His son. He not only sent them a heavenly messenger;  He treated them to a sky filled with angels and a taste of the brilliance of heaven. They may not have been good enough for society, but they were good enough for God.

This is the season that we remember that we are a special treasure to our Maker and we celebrate the birth of His son, Jesus. So, with all of the running around that I’ll be doing, I’m going to try to keep in my heart that Jesus really is the reason for the season and all of the other Christmas stuff, really doesn’t matter so much.

Won’t you join me?

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving

Posted on by Wendy
This candle is a beautiful reminder of our loved one who can't be with us today.
This candle is a beautiful reminder of our loved ones who can’t be with us today.

Well, Thanksgiving Day has finally arrived. The dressing and pies have been made and the turkey has been cooked. I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for taking a few minutes out of your day each day, to read my posts. I have had so much encouragement from my readers. So, thanks from the bottom of my heart for sharing this journey with me.

While this day is a very happy day for many people, for others, it’s a really sad time. If you are one of those people, lean into Jesus today and ask for some strength and peace. He will give it to you. Be sure to keep your eyes and ears open for people who reach out to you. He may have sent them.

If this day is a happy day for you, I would like to encourage you to grab a piece of paper and jot down the ten things you are most thankful for. I’ll bet you will have a hard time stopping at ten.

Each year right before it’s time to eat our feast, my hubby quietly lights a candle in memory of his mom. He never says anything, but it’s a beautiful reminder that those we love never leave us. They will always be with us as long as we remember them. Feel free to join our tradition.

Please join me in a prayer for those men and women who can’t be home today because they are serving our country and keeping us free. Please join me in saying a prayer for those who are struggling today and extend a hand to help if you can. Please join me in a prayer of thanks for our many blessings because as a nation, we are truly blessed. “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. ” Psalm 107:1 I hope you all have a fantastic Thanksgiving!

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

It’s Never Too Late to Reinvent Yourself

Posted on by Wendy
Where would you like to go?
Where would you like to go?

I have been hearing the term, reinvention a lot lately. Maybe it’s because the economy has been so bad for so long, that many people have had to reinvent their careers and themselves. The depth of  beauty and prosperity that can rise from ashes, never fails to amaze me.

I remember when Mount St. Helens erupted and the pictures that were plastered everywhere of the devastation. Pictures of the area now, are beautiful and pristine. You would never know what it looked like thirty years ago. Scientists say that wildfires are actually good for the forest. They clear out undergrowth and make them healthier in the long run.I’m sure the little woodland animals would disagree with that statement. They don’t know what scientists know.

Change is often hard, but forced change due to circumstances completely out of our control is particularly difficult and downright frightening. However, I have read many success stories of people who have lost their jobs and finally followed some long dormant dream because they had nowhere else to turn. These people are thrilled that they took that scary leap of faith, even if it was forced upon them.

We are never too old to follow a dream or reinvent ourselves. Moses was 80 years old when he became the leader of the Israelites and confronted Pharaoh. He tended sheep until that point. That wouldn’t seem to have been an occupation to help him build leadership skills. God thought otherwise.

Then there’s Paul, the king of reinvention. Not only did he persecute the new Christians; he had them killed. He was convinced this new church was wrong. He made it his mission in life to try to stamp out Christianity. You would think this would be the last person on earth to decide to preach the Good News far and wide. You would think this would be the last person on earth to start new churches and to write the majority of the New Testament. God thought otherwise. Paul’s perspective changed and he spent the rest of his days telling anyone who would listen to him about Jesus, even from prison.

The Bible is full of these examples of reinvention. It may be a new term for us, but it’s long been a concept of God’s. If you woke up this morning, then today holds new possibilities for you. As long as we are living and breathing, God is not done with us.

So the question is, where would you like to go? What would you like to do? Is there an idea or dream in the back of your mind or deep inside your heart that you have always held onto, but never nurtured? If it’s been there for a long time, maybe there’s a reason.

If it’s something that you can do to serve God, hand it over to Him and see what happens. I think God loves those kinds of dreams the best, the ones we thought could never happen, because those dreams are the ones only He can make happen and pursuing them takes faith.

Just be prepared, because when you say to Him, “Please use me;” you are likely in for a wild ride. God always takes the scenic route.

What have you been holding back? Feel free to share.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Southfork God

Posted on by Wendy
God is constant, just like the sun. It's always there even when we can't see it.
God is constant, just like the sun. He’s always there even when we can’t see Him.

I was a big fan of the television show Dallas, back in the eighties. There were beautiful, rich  people and a ton of drama. When J.R. got, shot, the entire nation was abuzz. I even remember seeing bumper stickers that read, “Who shot J.R.?”

That was a lot of attention for one television show. I’m not sure why we were so captivated by the Ewing family, but as I look back on it, I remember that there was a good son, Bobby and a bad son J.R., who lived at their family ranch called Southfork with their parents Miss Ellie and Jock. Their wives and kids lived there as well, adding to the drama.

The Ewings all sat down to breakfast together every morning and discussed the coming day. Jock was not some far away father who got an occasional visit or phone call from his children. His kids didn’t only visit him on the holidays. They didn’t wait until their lives were in a bind to talk to him. They didn’t wait until they were sick or in trouble to ask him for advice or help.

They started every single day with him at the breakfast table. Now, those Ewings are certainly not a family that I think anyone would want to emulate, but the practice of starting their day with their father made me think about starting the day with my Heavenly Father.

I think that so often, we save the last for God. At the end of the day when we are exhausted, we say our prayers or we wait until we are in crises to seek God’s help. I think we may have it wrong.

In the Cain and Abel story in Genesis, Chapter Four, Cain was a farmer and Abel kept flocks. They both brought sacrifices to God. He accepted Abel’s, but not Cain’s. The fact that God picked a favorite always troubled me until I understand why.

Abel brought, “the best of his firstborn lambs from his flock.” Cain brought, “some of his crops as a gift.” Do you see the difference? Abel brought the best of what he had. Cain brought some of what he had. It wasn’t about the quantity of what they brought or the gift itself. God didn’t prefer the lamb over the crops. He wanted the best.

Cain didn’t like God’s requirement, so in a jealous rage, he killed his brother.

What in the world do Cain and Abel and Jock Ewing have to do with us today? Well, I think, like Bobby and J.R., we should begin our day with our father, with our Heavenly Father. We should start our day giving thanks, asking for guidance and handing over burdens we can’t possibly handle alone.

Like Abel, we should give Him our best, not what we have left over after a busy, stressful day of living. If we try this practice, we may find that our lives are more enriched than we could possibly imagine. I think I’ll try it. Care to join me? Feel free to share.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Traveling Light

Posted on by Wendy
Wherever you are going, travel with a light heart.
Wherever you are going, travel with a light heart.

Today is the first day of Thanksgiving Break for my kids. They are out of school for an entire week this year. This long break has given many families the chance to travel for the holiday. In fact, the day before Thanksgiving is supposed to be the busiest traveling day of the year.

I have never been one to pack lightly. I always over pack, thinking of all kinds of contingencies, from weather changes to every possible medical need my family may have. I mean, I pack Advil and Pepto-Bismol and Dramamine and Benadryl. I pack four or five pairs of shoes and many changes of undergarments.

Why do I pack all of this stuff? Well, first of all, I’ll blame my sweet mama. She is a notorious over packer, much to the dismay of my dad. He always claimed that we looked like the Clampett’s traveling up and down the road when I was growing up.

However, if I look deeper, it has to do with my need to be ready for anything. It’s a type of control. Do I really need all of that stuff for just a few days away from home?

When Jesus sent his disciples out, he told them to carry no money bag, knapsack or sandals with them. In other words, he told them to travel light. I wonder what the deeper meaning of that command may have been.

What kinds of things do we carry around in our hearts on this life journey? Just like the airlines charge for extra baggage these days, there’s a price we pay for carrying around negative baggage in our hearts.

The beginning of the holiday season is a perfect time to do a heart check because if we are carrying around that extra baggage, it can often be forced to come out at family get togethers when tensions can sometimes run high. So, now is a good time for us to seriously ask ourselves, if we are angry with anyone, (especially a family member), or are we carrying around a long time hurt or resentment towards anyone? Do we have unmet needs for approval from family or loved ones?

After some soul-searching, we need to prayerfully and intentionally give this baggage to God and ask for healing and peace. If we need to forgive, we can ask God for help. But, keep in mind, once we hand these things over, we have to leave them there and not try to pick them back up. It’s a no take backs deal.

Then, we can move forward into this season of thanksgiving with a heart that has room for love and joy and the other gifts of the Holy Spirit. We will have a heart that is no longer burdened with unnecessary baggage and then we make sure to keep it that way. “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything that you do flows from it.” Proverbs 4:23

I’m going to try to travel with a light heart this season. Then, maybe I’ll work on the physical luggage. 🙂  Anyone care to join me? Feel free to comment.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

We Are Like Sailboats.

Posted on by Wendy
This little sailboat has to rely on wind and current to get where it's going.
This little sailboat has to rely on wind and current to get where it’s going.

I have always like boats and being on the water. There’s nothing quite like having the wind blow through your hair when you are riding on a boat. Now, when I say I like boats, I mean boats with motors and steering wheels. I like to know that my captain is in complete control of where we are going. Being at the mercy of the wind doesn’t sound like much fun to me.

Sailboats aren’t like that. There is no motor. They have to rely on wind and current to get them where they are going. I find that kind of frightening. I mean, who knows where I might end up? Sure, a good captain knows how to steer the vessel, but even the best ones have to depend on the wind.

But, there are people who just love sailboats. They find sailing to be the ultimate adventure. I suppose if I were to be completely honest with myself, we are a lot more like sailboats than motor boats. Our lives are often at the mercy of forces that are beyond our control whether we like it or not.

We can do a lot of the steering, but sometimes the currents just pull us in a direction that we don’t really want to go. Sometimes it gets stormy and the skies get dark. Sometimes, there is no wind at all and we just have to drift. How do we handle that? Do we fight it and attempt to sail against the current or try to insist on our own will and sail when there’s no current?

This is where I think it’s important to remember that we worship the One who created the seas and He has the power over the currents and winds in our lives. “He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed.” Psalm 107:29

Yes, the seas of life will get rough from time to time and at other times, we feel like we have been stuck in the same spot for so long, that the winds will never pick up again. But, this is where we have to have some faith.

If there’s a storm blowing around us, we have a lifeline in Jesus. He will help us stay afloat during the storms and grow our faith and make us stronger than we ever were before. We just need to ask for strength and He will provide.

If we are drifting in a sea of endless monotony, we should again take heart, knowing that God has a plan and different timing than our own. He’s taking a season for us to rest and reflect and grow. But, don’t get too comfortable; if you are really praying for some action, it’s coming, so get ready to hang on. Life with Jesus is never boring!

I’m still not sure that I love sailboats, but I can certainly relate to them. How about you? Feel free to share.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂