Why the Wilderness?

           

           As a Christian, I often tend to think that everything should be easy.  I somehow believe that God should pave my life’s path in gold and remove any little thing that could possible stand in my way or cause me to stumble.  However, that isn’t how life works.  There are times when things seem to go well and there are times when nothing is working.  Some people seem to struggle more than others.  I also know people who never appear to struggle and it seems like everything they touch turns to gold.  However, we all have challenges in this life.  The older I get, the more I realize that no one has the perfect life.  The more I have gotten to know the people with a “Midas touch”, the more I have seen the real side of them.  Anyone can appear from a distance to have it all figured out.  It’s when you get a little closer that you can see the real struggles underneath.

So many people believe that Christians should have everything figured out.  I’ve even heard people say, on many occasions, that they don’t want to go to church because it’s just full of a bunch of hypocrites.  Well, I have some news for those people; yes, it is full of hypocrites.  I’m one of them.  None of us have it figured out.  We all struggle in some area of our lives.  Just like a hospital is not necessary if no one is ever sick, there would be no need for the church if we were all perfect.  There would also be no need for Jesus if we already had this faith thing figured out.  However, we all still have not arrived.  “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23. Last time I checked, all means every single person. 

Some of my biggest moments of spiritual growth have occurred during times of frustration.  It’s during moments of feeling like I am wandering in the wilderness like the Israelites, that I finally get to where I can depend fully on God.  Why is that?  Why does it take a “wilderness” time in our lives to get us to turn to God, or turn back to God? 

There are so many examples of God meeting with people in the wilderness throughout scripture.  The most famous is probably in the book of Exodus when Moses led the Israelites through the wilderness.  However, God met with so many others when he was able to get them alone in a “wilderness”.  For example, David wrote so many of his most heartfelt Psalms when he was in the wilderness tending to his sheep or even when he was running for his life from King Saul.  Before leading the Israelites out of Egypt, God met with Moses in the wilderness in the form of a burning bush as he was tending his father-in-law’s sheep.  Abraham had an encounter with God in the wilderness when he took Isaac up to sacrifice.  Joseph had a long wilderness phase when he was sold into slavery by his own family, falsely accused of rape, and thrown in prison.  Even Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness being constantly bombarded by temptations and attacks of Satan.  No one is immune to wilderness times.

Sometimes, getting alone with God is exactly what we need.  We need to get away from distractions to focus on what it is God has for us. You have a choice in the wilderness.  You can run to God or you can get mad at God, blame Him for your frustrations, and run from God.  However, you will never truly experience God’s blessings and promotions in your lives if you turn tail and run when you are in the wilderness.  Every one of the examples I gave of men in the Bible who experience times of frustration also experienced tremendous blessings on the other side of their wilderness.  The character that was built during those wilderness times, served them for the rest of their lives.  I, for one don’t want to miss out on that.  I have had a few “wilderness” phases of my own life and I have decided to run to, rather than from God during those times. 

One of the most comforting verses for me during trying times is James 1:2-4.  “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”  We can take joy during our trials knowing that even as we go through hard times they are preparing us for what God has in store for us.  I don’t want to miss out on the blessings on the other side of the trials.  I want to develop that maturity the verse speaks of.  I want to understand more about God today than I did yesterday.  I want to react better to a frustrating person now than I did a year ago.  I want people that I may have hurt to see a sincere heart for God rather than simply a hypocritical person.  I definitely want to be further along in my relationship with God five years from now than I am today.  I sincerely hope that if you are walking in the wilderness right now, you will grab your Bible (or your Bible app on your phone) and press in to the Word.  Turn off your television, radio, or whatever else you are allowing to distract you and simply pray that God would encourage you through your frustrations.  Press in and look up, rather than give in and give up.  

Let go of the Brush

I have to make a confession, growing up I loved watching Bob Ross paint.  For those of you who don’t know who he is, he is the guy with the huge afro who loves to paint “happy little trees”.  I am about the furthest from an artsy person you will ever meet, but there was something about him taking a blank canvas and turning it into a gorgeous mountain scene in just 30 minutes that would just draw me and my sister (if she would admit it) in.  Watching his show was interesting because just looking at his canvas as he painted, you would have no idea what he was painting.  It wasn’t until he got just about finished that you would be able to tell what his masterpiece was going to look like.  Even when he messed up a little he would simply say something like, “let’s just turn that into a little fluffy cloud”.  Even though the audience didn’t necessarily know what he was painting, he always knew what it was going to look like.

Just like Bob’s paintings, our lives are God’s masterpiece.  He knows exactly what he has intended the end to look like from the very beginning. He designed us exactly the way he wanted us to be. “You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb.  Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!  Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.  You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.  You saw me before I was born.  Every day of my life was recorded in your book.  Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.” Psalm 139:13-16 NLT.

God did create us with a purpose, but we must yield to His will to truly fulfill that purpose.  “But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? “Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?’ Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?” Romans 9:20-21 NIV.  Just like a painting should never grab hold of the brush, thinking it can do a better job than a talented painter, we need to stop second guessing God every time we think God should be using blue when he is using grey.  Even a beautiful masterpiece looks a little ugly before the real beauty comes out.  God will take the ugliest paint spots and turn them into something beautiful, if we simply allow him to.  However, if we decide to turn away and do things our way, those ugly spots may dry as ugly and then we will wonder why we are not enjoying our lives.

Fortunately, no matter how badly we might mess up God’s masterpiece, if we turn back and allow him to take control, God will take those ugly spots and make them something beautiful to use for his purpose.  “He will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair.” Isaiah 61:3 NLT.  So let go of the brush, let God create a masterpiece in you.  Don’t get frustrated if you can’t see the beauty just yet.  Keep trusting, praying, seeking, and yielding to God.  No matter your situation, do what you can exactly where you are, let God do the rest.

Where's Your "Elf on a Shelf"?

                I absolutely love Christmas time.  I love all of the traditions and anticipation in the air.  I love watching my girls get excited about everything from putting up our Christmas tree and decorating, to making Christmas treats, to being a part of our church’s Christmas program.  To me, Christmas is so much more fun as a mom because I love seeing my girls light up about everything.  I am not one of those Christians who thinks everything secular at Christmas time is bad.  Rather, I am trying to teach my kids why we give gifts, why there is a star at the top of the tree, and the real reason behind the season.  Our society has taken a Christian holy-day and turned it commercial, but there are so many wonderful things to teach our kids even in the commercial parts of Christmas.  I do find it intriguing how many non-Christians celebrate, and I welcome it.  Even if they don’t know the actual reason why we use a tree to decorate, or what the meaning behind candy canes and wreaths are (which ironically all have Christian roots) I pray that their hearts would be open during this time to feel God’s love for him and understand that they have been given the greatest gift, Jesus, whether they believe in Him or not at this point.

                One of the newest traditions of Christmas has become the elf on a shelf phenomenon, boy how I wish I had come up with that.  We have an elf that my 4-year-old creatively named Elfie when she was 2.  It is kind of a silly idea but it is so sweet how excited she gets when she finds that elf each day.  I started thinking about how blessed children are with their childlike faith.  I don’t know a little girl who doesn’t just live in an imaginary world.  My girls are always playing mommy or teacher or pretending to be a princess.  My favorite thing to watch is how pure their faith in God is.  When my oldest wakes up from a bad dream, the first thing she asks me to do is say a prayer for her.  When I put my 2-year-old to bed right now I can’t just pray for her, she wants me to pray for her stuffed cow, baby doll, pacifier, and any other random thing she has decided to sleep with that particular night.

                I think that’s why Jesus had a special place for children in his heart.  He healed many children and, unlike most men in that day, never sent children away when they came to him.  Instead he drew them to himself.  I love The Message translation of Matthew 18:2-7.  The “mature” men of God, the disciples, were inquiring of Jesus who ranked highest in the Kingdom of God.  In my opinion they were fishing to find out which of them was Jesus’ favorite. I love how he responded to them.  “For an answer Jesus called over a child, whom he stood in the middle of the room, and said, ‘I’m telling you, once and for all, that unless you return to square one and start over like children, you’re not even going to get a look at the kingdom, let alone get in. Whoever becomes simple and elemental again, like this child, will rank high in God’s kingdom. What’s more, when you receive the childlike on my account, it’s the same as receiving me. But if you give them a hard time, bullying or taking advantage of their simple trust, you’ll soon wish you hadn’t. You’d be better off dropped in the middle of the lake with a millstone around your neck. Doom to the world for giving these God-believing children a hard time! Hard times are inevitable, but you don’t have to make it worse—and it’s doomsday to you if you do.’”  

                I truly believe that as adults sometime we do ourselves a disservice.  Rather than simply knowing and trusting that God has our best interests at heart, we over analyze every single time we are in a trial and lose our faith.  We think there is some magic formula to pleasing God and getting our prayers answered.  However, he simply wants us to humble ourselves and have simple trust like a child.

                The older I get and the longer that I am a Christian, I am so amazed at how much I realize I don’t know.  Over the last several months I have come across so many things in scripture that I never even knew were there.  I have been a Christian as long as I can remember, and it humbles me every single time I find something new in a book I thought I knew everything about already.  I’ve decided that rather than going through life trying to understand every little thing, I want to be more like my little girls looking for that elf.  I want to wake up each day with anticipation, excited to see where God is going to show up today.  I want to go back to the simple and elemental things and have a simple trust like a child.

How Hungry Are You?

         

          After becoming a full-time stay-at-home mom starting in August, I have been learning how to re-arrange how I do things.  One of the biggest things I have changed my approach to is grocery shopping.  It is next to impossible to efficiently shop when you have 3 kids in tow, especially since the closest grocery store is about 25 miles away.  It’s also tough to wait until daddy gets home, or the weekend because there are a lot of things around the house and outside that he needs to get done, having to watch the girls slows that process down.  So, I decided to become a once a month grocery shopper.  I started menu planning and doing one huge shopping trip per month rather than 3 or 4 smaller ones.  It has been great!  Not only does it save trips, it also saves money because I have to be strategic and plan ahead, plus I can more easily comparison shop.  It has gotten even easier with Walmart doing online ordering for groceries. You simply order them online and they bring them to your car and load them!  It has made a former Walmart despiser into a Walmart lover once again (this is not an advertisement, it is just a tip that has helped save my sanity.  If you want to try it though click here for $10 off your first order).  

Because I shop only once (unless I make a quick milk or egg run), I sometimes have to get creative at the end of the month.  If my kids snack more than expected or if I forgot something on my list at the beginning of the month, the cabinets tend to get bare.  It is amazing the snacks or meals you can come up with if you are forced to use what’s in the pantry, freezer, and fridge.  If you get hungry enough you will figure something out to cook.  Desperation plus Pinterest and Google recipe searches can inspire you to try something new.  You may even be willing to dig out the old-fashioned ingredients…you know, those things you put together like flour, sugar, and cream of tartar (whatever that is), when that ready-made meal is not there.

The same is true in our spiritual lives.  When we get “hungry” enough for a change of our circumstances we will be forced to be more creative.  When we are just not getting fed by others in a way we so desperately need, it’s time to pull out your own old-fashioned ingredients (AKA reading the Bible for yourself) and get a real meal.  It is during times of actual desperation and seeking that we may finally find exactly what we are looking for.  I know, just like many Christians, I have had seasons where I have allowed myself to get distracted or too busy and put Bible study on the back-burner and forgot to turn on the heat.  It happens to everyone.  However, there have also been seasons where I have become discouraged and frustrated feeling like God couldn’t be further away, and finally got so desperate for a change that I really pushed into God’s word.  It never fails, when I finally put God back in the #1 spot in my life where he rightfully belongs; I am able to hear from him again, I feel a lot more content and thankful, and I have a lot more peace in my days.  So, my question to you is: how hungry are you?  Are you going to wait until the cabinets of your soul are completely bare, or are you going to push in and get fulfilled?  

“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13

Finish Your Recipe

Growing up, I absolutely hated sloppy joes.  First of all, who in their right mind wants to eat something that brings to mind a big, sweaty man who might change oil at a gas station (at least that's the image that came to my mind)?  I had tried them a few times and just really didn't like them.  However, I married someone who does like them so I had to find a recipe that I liked.  It took a while, years in fact, but I finally found one (and of course it happens to be this one by The Pioneer Woman, I just love her recipes).  I will now openly admit, I LOVE sloppy joes!  I often make them a couple of times a month now.  Nothing beats some of these sloppy joes on a toasted bun with some melty, shredded cheese.  However, it takes the right combination of ingredients to make a sloppy joe that I will eat.  

I started thinking last night while I was cooking about the magic of a good recipe (I know sometimes the strangest things come to my mind, give me a break I spend my days with humans age 4 and under).  You can take several ingredients that by themselves are not particularly something good to eat and turn them into something delicious.  For the sloppy joes for instance, I hate mustard but the recipe would not taste right without it (I use regular mustard instead of the ground kind by the way).  I would never dream of sitting down and eating a plate of raw meat or a spoonful of chili powder.  However, when you put them together in the right amounts, and put them to the right amount of heat for just the right amount of time, something magical happens.  The same is true of one of my favorite sweets; hot, fresh chocolate chip cookies.  Flour is not appetizing on its own, and who would eat a couple of teaspoons of baking soda?  But, when mixed with all the right ingredients and put in a super-hot oven for just the right amount of time, they are heavenly.

I feel like we experience some of the same process in our lives.  God is crafting a "delicious" life for each one of us, but just like a good recipe, we must get all the ingredients mixed together completely and it needs time in the oven or on the stove to taste right.  If you gave up on a recipe because you tasted it before all the ingredients were added, or decided not to put it in the oven because it was just too hot, you would never enjoy the fulfillment of a delicious, fresh baked cookie.  Day by day and experience by experience, God is making us into what he has created us to be.  However, if we chose to quit because we are going through something hard or give up because our situation seems hopeless, we will never fully walk in what God created us to be.  Just like any recipe, some ingredients in life can stand alone as be good by themselves. For instance, getting a promotion at work or maybe celebrating a new baby are wonderful things.  However, some ingredients of life are just plain gross on their own (for me the mustard in the sloppy joes), but when combined with the rest of our life experiences can be crafted into a wonderful part of our testimony.  We must take the good with the bad and keep the end result in mind when things get tough.  

I truly believe that there are far too many people in this world that live unfulfilled, disappointed, and miserable lives because for whatever reason they didn't allow God to finish the recipe.  Maybe they hit a tough situation and got bitter and just never got over it.  Or perhaps they gave up because it seemed like the vinegar that they were dealing with would never make anything taste good.  Whatever the situation, we are called to persevere and allow God to use those things in our life to bless others.  Some of the most influential preachers I know have had to deal with some horrible life situations, whether their fault or not.  Some have been victims of childhood rape or maybe have come out of a drug addiction.  Many of the bad situations that we deal with in life are simple because we live in a sin-filled world.  However, God can take any of those situations and turn it around for His good, if we let him.  You never know 10 years from now, which of your "ingredients" will come in handy.  Don’t stop God before he’s done with you.  Some of the most delicious things in life take hours and hours to cook, don’t stop because it seems like God is taking too long.  He is the perfect chef and will pull you out of the oven at the right moment.

“Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.  For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.  So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” James 1:2-4 NLT

Bible Basics

Ever since I became a parent nearly 5 years ago now, I often think about how I will instill Christian values into my girls.  As a school teacher, I saw first hand what kinds of things at earlier and earlier ages kids are exposed to.  I saw kids as young as 7th and 8th grade get involved in drugs, end up pregnant, or just become followers of whatever way the wind of the current culture was blowing.  If I think too hard about it, it terrifies me that I will eventually have 3 teenage girls.  I pray all the time that they will make wise decisions, they will not fall into the lies of this world, and even that their future spouses are being raised in a godly home and will be wise.  We live in a crazy world now and I want my girls to be a light in the darkness.

My oldest has reached an age of asking "why?" about everything.  She is learning at an exponential rate right now and I have been looking for ways to teach her about God.  I am pretty excited to share something with you that I ran across and was able to get a preview copy of to look over and review.  It is a book called "Bible Basics A Baby Believer Counting Primer" by Danielle Hitchens and illustrated by Jessica Blanchard. I have looked it over and love it!  It is a counting book that uses many of the foundational truths of our faith as the items that are being counted from 1 to 10. For example, some of the things that are counted include the 3 parts of the Trinity, the 6 days of creation, and the 9 fruits of the spirit.  If you have followed my blog for long, you know I don't typically do this kind of post.  However, I feel like this is a great tool for my little ones and I really encourage you to look into it as well.
This book is a great asset for both young children and older children.  Some of the concepts will be above the understanding of a young toddler, but will serve as a good foundation for conversations about things like the Holy Spirit, creation, and fruits of the spirit.  I am giving away a copy of  this book starting now and ending 12/31/16! If you would like to enter for a chance to win, there are two ways to enter.  You can either comment on this blog post, or share a link for this post on Facebook.  If you want to enter twice, do both! Good luck! In the meantime if you are interested in purchasing this book click here. GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED.  Congratulations Tatiana Amundson for winning a copy of this book!!!

What Are You Thinking?

Our minds are incredibly powerful things.  It's amazing how a simple thought has the power to bring us joy, cause us stress, make us angry, or make us cry.  If you think on something long enough, it will even begin to mold your belief system.  If you think you are unworthy or a loser or that you deserve bad things, you will begin to walk that out.  If you are constantly negative and complain about everything, you will not only drive others away because no one wants to be around a complainer, but you will also be miserable because you cannot find anything to be grateful for.  However, if you think not about what you don't have, but instead choose to think about all of your blessings, you will be able to live an abundant life regardless of your circumstances.

I love The Message translation of the Bible.  I don't always read that version, but it is such a good translation when you just want to get a good word in a more conversational, modern day way.  I was using The Message as a reference last night when I was reading, and I just loved 1 Peter 4:1-2. "Since Jesus went through everything you’re going through and more, learn to think like him. Think of your sufferings as a weaning from that old sinful habit of always expecting to get your own way. Then you’ll be able to live out your days free to pursue what God wants instead of being tyrannized by what you want." I love that.  We must learn to think like Him.  We need to cast out those thoughts that don't line up with scripture.  We aren't going through anything tougher that going to the cross.  We have got to get away from expecting to always get our way.  I still struggle with that.  I want comfort and ease.

I grew up on a cattle ranch, so the first thing I think about when I see that term "weaning" is when we would wean calves from their mothers every fall.  I remember that for several days after separating those calves from their moms they would bawl and carry on.  However, it was time for them to move from milk to solid food.  After they finished their fits for a couple of days and got a taste of good grain and hay, they never wanted to go back.  They would actually nearly knock us over when we would feed them each day trying to get that good grain.  

We go through the same thing as Christians.  We whine and carry on wanting our way.  If we always get our way though, we may miss out on what God has for us.  Sure, we can keep taking in the "milk" forever and get by, but if we really want to experience God we need to "wean" ourselves from the milk only diet.  It may not be fun or easy right away, but it will be worth it.  I want to move on from milk and get a good steak dinner.  I want to stop being held back by wanting my way.  I want to desire more "to pursue what God wants instead of being tyrannized by what I want."

That is an incredibly hard thing to do, but so incredibly worth it.  I know that the times I have finally given up my desires and simply submitted to what God's will was, it wasn't easy but there has never been a time it wasn't worth it.  We had to do this a few years ago in the form of house shopping.  We kept hitting dead ends and finally realized we were trying to force something that was outside of God's will.  We had expected to just get our way, because after all we were Christians and everything should just work out, right?  We realized that we needed to set that aside until God wanted us to have it.  It was so hard setting that dream aside, however, when we finally did, we were blessed (after a time of patience, praying, and trusting) with an open door that was far better than what we were trying to force.  It wasn't easy but it was definitely worth it.  I pray today that both you and I will have the discernment and the strength to allow God to "wean" us and help us to pursue His will rather than our own.

The Divine Vending Machine

      Sometimes our biggest blessings can come out of our times of waiting.  That is a very hard concept for me to grasp sometimes.  We live in such an instant gratification world.  Hungry? Don’t worry about waiting for something to cook, grab any of millions of prepackaged snacks.  Lost? In 5 seconds on your cellphone you can pull up directions to where you are going.  Wanting a brand new car?  Why wait to save up money to pay cash when you can finance everything from cars to Christmas presents, as long as you can afford the monthly payment, that’s all we tend to care about.

      It seems like the more advances we make in technology, the harder it gets to wait for things.  Not only do we not want to wait, we feel like we need to be entertained every step of the way if we do have to wait.  Our longevity wanes when things aren’t fun or engaging.  As a school teacher I saw this every single day from my students.  If the subject is hard (and for a lot of students especially when I taught math this was every subject) and they are not being entertained throughout the whole lesson, they disengage.  Even churches lose membership if they don’t have the coolest rock band style worship and most dynamic speaker.

      It is so hard, even as an adult, to not want things to be easy and even fun.  That’s our comfort zone as humans.  If we can just go on auto-pilot and not have to think too hard, we feel like life is good.  However, sometimes when we feel comfortable we start feeling like we are the ones in control.  We can get prideful feeling like maybe we are better than others who are going through hard times.  We can also fall into a trap of depending on ourselves rather than God.  I know I often find my relationship with God gets a little lax during those comfortable times.  Maybe I don’t study the Bible as much or pray as often if things are going well.

      Sometimes we treat God as if he were a vending machine.  We approach him with our prayers when we need or want something, but if we don’t need anything we often allow ourselves to get busy with other things and not focus on him.  Just like a vending machine, we put in our payment (the "I need ..." prayer), then expect to immediately receive what we prayed for. I find myself even doing that.  When I am in a really difficult season, it is easy to “pray without ceasing”.  However, during the comfortable, easy seasons of life, prayers often become hollow and out of obligation.

      The Bible refers to God as our heavenly father.  As a parent myself it would break my heart if my children only spent time with me when they wanted something from me.  I want to be a part of every facet of their lives.  I love hearing about all the exciting and fun things going on in their lives, as well as the struggles they are going through.  I believe God is the same way with us.  He wants to hear about our joyous times, and our depressing times.  It warms his heart to see us smile and to hear us say thank you.  He also feels our pain when things aren’t going right. 

      As a parent, when your child is learning to walk you have to allow them to fall to develop their muscles to get back up again. God, as our heavenly parent, sometimes allows us to “fall” by going through times of trials to help us develop our muscles of trust and endurance in him. He sees us struggle and get frustrated, but he resists the urge at times to immediately lift us out of our struggles because he knows how important the lessons we will learn in those struggles are to our growth as Christians.  As hard as it is to admit in the midst of a discouraging or hard time, in my experiences, once I have gotten through the trial I can see what a blessing it was.  We have to remember during difficult times that we see only what is directly in front and behind us.  God is all-knowing, he not only sees in front and behind; he sees all of eternity.  

Do I Really Have to Wait?

When you are in a transitional phase of your life, it is incredibly easy to think that maybe you took a wrong turn and are on the wrong path. Sometimes you may feel determined that you heard from God and have done everything you can do to stay within His will, and yet you still haven't had your breakthrough or haven't seen your dreams or goals come to fruition. It's during those periods of life that it can be easy to just give up and settle for less than what you know God has for you. Many people do just that.  Many people settle in and live in the grind that they hate because stepping out in faith is not only scary, it is often hard. Even after you step out in faith, or simply do what you feel led to do, there can be a waiting period before you finally step into your calling. However, we must learn to not despise the wait. We must not quit in the middle of the wait. If we do, we will likely never see the fulfillment of our dreams.

When I started thinking about waiting, two of my favorite Old Testament characters came to mind: Joseph and David.  Joseph received a dream at the age of 17, however, that dream didn't come to fruition until he was 30 (see Genesis 37-41). He went through a 13 year wait that took him to a pit, sold into slavery, and even landed him in prison. I am sure he went through some incredible mental struggles from time to time, thinking about that dream and how it would probably never come true. It must have been incredibly discouraging. My little struggles are nothing compared to being a slave or getting thrown into prison. David was anointed to become king around the age of 15, however, he didn't come into power until he was around 30 (see 1 and 2 Samuel for his story). He had approximately a 15 year wait from the time he was pulled out of a pasture until he sat on the throne. He went through some tremendously scary years of running for his very life. Some of his struggle and anguish are recorded in many of the Psalms that he wrote. However, even in his struggles he stayed true to his faith and kept his focus on God.

I love stories like those. I love to see how others have had to wait for their dreams to come to pass, it encourages me. There are so many lessons to be learned in those times of waiting. Those periods of waiting are what season us to be able to flourish when we do step into our destiny. The struggles we go through keep us humble. They ensure that we don't trust in ourselves. If Joseph would have given up and just become negative and depressed when he was sold into slavery, he would have never been put in charge of his master's household. That would have probably kept him from being in a position that landed him in prison. That sounds great, except for the fact that the prison was the very vehicle that brought him to the throne. Joseph kept his eyes on God and chose to serve wherever he was placed. Thirteen years later, that faithful service brought his dreams to fruition when he became second in command of an entire kingdom. There are examples over and over of similar times of waiting in the Bible. I often find myself struggling during times of waiting. Just like everyone else, I want to get all the blessings without having to exert much faith or trust. We all live in a microwave world where we hardly have the patience to wait from one window to the next at a drive-thru restaurant. However, God is not in the business of instant gratification; he will use the moments between a revelation and its fulfillment to develop in us the skills that we need to operate in our calling. Our job is to make the most of those moments and keep our faith grounded in the one who placed those dreams within us.

Cast Your Cares

I am a natural worrier.  Many people may not know that about me because I am selective about who I talk to about my worries.  The majority of my worries revolve around my future, typically around things like my kids, finances, jobs, and my life's calling, just to name a few.  If I don't keep my mind in check, it is incredibly easy to go to a place of worry, frustration, or even depression.  If I allow myself to go to a negative place of worry, typically I find more things to worry about.  It can be a vicious cycle if I allow it.  I have had to learn, and continue to have to learn, to redirect my thoughts when they start to go to that place of worry.
I was reading a verse today that I have often gone to when I am worried, many of you may know it as it is something that is thrown around in an almost cliche way in Christian circles.  It is 1 Peter 5:7, which is the verse about "Casting your cares".  I love the Amplified Version's translation of this verse.  "casting all your cares [all your anxieties, all your worries, and all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares about you [with deepest affection, and watches over you very carefully]."  I love that version because it refers to your anxieties, worries, and concerns.  Who doesn't have some of those?  I certainly do.  It seems like as soon as one of my concerns or worries has been taken care of, another one always pops up.  However, we are supposed to cast those cares.
I did a little digging on that word "cast".  Just like you may think, its root is a fishing term.  It comes from the Hebrew word ṭûl.  It means to pitch or reel.  If you think about fishing, when you cast your line you never drop it right in front of you.  The whole goal of casting your line is to get it as far out as possible.  I think it's interesting that this is the term used in this verse.  We are not only to drop our worries and anxieties, but we are to "cast" them on Him (this is referring to Christ).
The second part of this verse is also incredibly comforting.  It says He cares about us.  If you reread the Amplified Version it says with deepest affection and watches over you very carefully.  He knows what we are going through, he loves us with a deep affection.  You would never allow someone that you have a deep affection for (think your kids or spouse), without knowing that it will be for their benefit.  For example, when my girls were learning to walk, and the youngest is working on that right now, I allow them to fall from time to time.  They get so frustrated sometimes and may even cry and throw a fit, however, I know that every time they try and even when they fail they are building the muscles necessary to be able to walk.  If they don't build those muscles, they will never be able to step out on their own and walk.  It is the same way with us.  Every single time we want to grow into the next stage of our journey with Him, we may fall and throw a fit or two.  But he has a deep affection for us and knows exactly when to let us fall and when to come pick us up.
I struggle with the casting part.  I may set those cares down for a few minutes, but if it isn't fixed in the few moments that I have the patience to wait, I reel it back in and continue to carry that burden on my own.  I recently heard someone said "take care" as I was leaving.  I have decided that I am going to quit "taking care" and I am going to start "casting my cares".  Every time I start reeling that care back in, I'm going to focus on casting that care back out as far as possible
rather than picking back up that worry, knowing that God will take care of me.
"Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall." Psalm 55:22 NLT.
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Foundations

When you are building a new home, the absolute most important thing you must do is build a good, solid foundation.  You can't even start building walls until that foundation is laid and has passed numerous, sometimes frustrating inspections, where the inspector nit-picks every little thing until it gains his approval.  It can often be a costly and time consuming process.  Even after completing construction on a new home, you may have to come back and do foundation work as time goes by and the ground shifts.  In the part of the world I live in we have pretty sandy soil, ground shifting is pretty common and shows up in the form of cracks on the walls.  If your foundation requires repairs it can be both a costly and invasive process.  Repairing a foundation requires digging, lifting, and inserting concrete or steel for support.  However, although it can be costly, it is sometimes necessary to ensure the integrity of a building.  Without a strong foundation a building cannot stand.
The same can apply to our spiritual foundations.  There are at least 75 references to foundations in the Bible.  As a Christian, there is only one option for our spiritual foundations: Jesus. "For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ." 1 Corinthians 3:11 NLT.  Before we can build anything we must have a solid faith in Jesus and in what he has done for us on the cross.  If we have a solid foundation, even when a storm comes (and unfortunately they do) we will be able to stand.
Just like our homes, we may need a little foundation repair in our spiritual lives from time to time.  When we go through a trying time in our lives we may see some shifting and changing.  There may be times when we need to dig down and focus back on that foundation of Jesus.  If we start trusting too much in ourselves and we let our focus get off of Him, that could cause some cracks in our walls that will eventually need to be addressed.  Just like with a house, when our foundation is being fixed it can be a frustrating, timely, and sometimes painful process.  We want to be comfortable and just ignore the cracks on the walls sometimes.  It's easier to just slap a new layer of paint over them and pretend they aren't there.  In our spiritual lives this could come in the form of putting on an overly religious facade or maybe passing judgement on others to make ourselves feel better.  Been there for sure.  I have probably fallen on both ends of that spectrum from time to time.  However, the cracks will always eventually show through.  You must dig in and deal with those foundation issues if you ever want to have the strong structure God intends for us.
Not all foundation work is because of a problem, however.  If we wanted to add on to our house (which would be nice now that my 3rd kiddo is here), we would have to start from the bottom up.  You cant just start slapping up walls without first having a foundation to attach them to.  In our spiritual lives we should always strive to grow.  If  God is trying to move us to a new level in our faith, he may need to do a little foundation work first.  If he is going to build another room we have to have a foundation that will pass inspection.  God will never start putting up a new wall if our foundation isn't ready.  He will do whatever work is necessary and take as much time as He needs to to prepare that foundation.  We must not lose heart during those foundation-building times (easier said than done, I know).  “So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.” 1 Peter 1:6-7 NLT.

Don't Create An Ishmael While You Wait On Your Isaac

I am an extremely impatient person, as many of you may be.  I remember a particular Christmas as a kid when I actually tiptoed out of my room with a flashlight before dawn just to see what Santa had brought, then went back to bed and pretended to be surprised in the morning when I could finally get up (sorry mom).  I hate having to wait on things, especially if it is something I really want.
Over the years, I have really had to learn how to be patient.  One of the many areas I have had to learn the lesson of patience, has been in my finances.  When I first got married I knew nothing other than simply throwing things on a credit card or loan.  In my first few months of marriage in the process of building a home, my husband and I acquired one of the things many married couples do: debt.  We wound up with the Home Depot Card, Furniture Row Card, and a few other cards and debts.  Of course, we could have saved a little money by buying used, but hey we were married now so we deserved to buy new; regardless of whether we could afford the "things" or not.  Thank goodness, about 9 months after we were married, we wound up going through Financial Peace University (a class that teaches about finances from a Biblical perspective by Dave Ramsey) through our small group at church.  This course opened our eyes to see how important getting and staying out of debt was, and really revolutionized our thought process when it came to money.  We have had to make some tough decisions in order to not go back into the debt we use to live under.  It has not always been easy, but has always been worth it.
If you know the story of Abraham in the Bible, you know that there was a little bit of dysfunction in his life.  God had promised him a son, but time was ticking away and still he had no son.  His wife decided that since she couldn't have a son that they could "rig it" and he could have a son through her servant Hagar (what wife in her right mind would do that???).  It worked, Hagar became pregnant and had a son she named Ishmael.  However, that was not he son God had promised.  Abraham and Sarah had jumped the gun and ended up with less than God's best for them. One of my favorite things about this story is the fact that even though Abraham and Sarah had royally messed up (and we still feel the affects of this mess up all these years later, just look at the middle east), God continued to hold up his end of the promise.  The real blessing was Isaac who would be born from Sarah 14 years later. "The Lord kept his word and did for Sarah exactly what he had promised. She became pregnant, and she gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age. This happened at just the time God had said it would." Genesis 21:1-2 NLT.
So many of us create our own Ishmael in the process of waiting on our Isaac.  It is so hard to wait, especially if things look impossible.  Things looked impossible for Abraham.  After all, he was 86 when Ishmael came along and 100 when Isaac finally arrived.  Talk about a long wait!  I honestly don't blame them for trying their own way to make things happen.  However, had they simply waited and trusted in God, they could have avoided a lot of heartache.
So what is your Ishmael?  Have you entered into a bad relationship simply because you didn't want to wait on who God has for you?  Or have you gotten yourself into insane amounts of debt because you didn't want to wait and save up?  Or maybe you tried to force God's hand on another thing you feel you have been promised and have made a mess of it.  Whatever your Ishmael, remember that God is true to his promises.  He has an Isaac in store if we can simply wait on His timing.

Do you approve?

We all want approval.  Whether we are seeking the attention and compliments from our parents when we draw a beautiful picture as a 4 year old (my oldest daughter right now),  hoping for a good grade on a presentation we worked so hard on as a teenager in high school, or are looking to finally get the recognition we deserve at work in the form of a bonus or promotion, everyone wants to feel like they are approved.  We want desperately to fit in with the crowd, but just be slightly better so that we can always get a few compliments.  The last thing in the world we want to be looked at is weird or strange.  We don't want to upset anyone, and we definitely don't want to let people down.  The "we" I'm referring to are those of us who have a tendency to be people pleasers.

As a Christian, people pleasing can be a dangerous thing.  It can lead to us compromising our core beliefs simply because we don't want to "rock the boat".  I remember as a teenager watching so many of my Christian friends fall into that fitting in trap, leading many of them to compromise so many of the things that they believed in.  I hate to break it to anyone, but God is not interested in us fitting in with the crowd.  He has not called us to be followers of anyone but Him.  Now, that doesn't mean we should become a bunch of weirdos and act like a cult, however, it does mean that we should not allow the trends of the day to mold how we act or what we believe.

"Obviously, I'm not trying to win the approval of people, but of God.  If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ's servant." Galatians 1:10 NLT

It's one thing to want to fit in when you are 15 years old and awkward, however, we eventually need to grow up.  We have to figure out what we really believe, and realize that sometimes our beliefs may not be popular.  Now, that is not to say we need to sit on our high horses and look down on everyone else in the world in judgement. Jesus was never condemning, but he was also not permissive.  He never veered from what was right, but wasn't afraid to shed light in the darkness.  I know that when it comes to being like Jesus in this aspect, I often struggle.  I remember being somewhat of a holy roller in high school.  I stuck to my convictions, but was definitely on the high horse judgmental end of the spectrum.  I have also found myself on the other end of permissiveness and not wanting to speak up for fear of not fitting in from time to time as well.  

So how do we remedy the two vastly different ends of the spectrum?  I believe that we need to focus on what the Apostle Paul said in Galatians 1:10 (see above) and remember that we are Christ's servant.  That's it!  We need to focus on serving in whatever capacity we are called in, and forgetting about the opinions of others.  We need to quit sitting on that high horse, and instead spend a little more time on our knees praying for the people we used to look down on.  At the same time, we need to stand up a little more, even when we know that we could lose a few friends or not fit in because of it.  Our focus needs to be on being approved by the creator of the entire universe, not some imperfect person that we think is cool.  I pray that even though I may let my parents, friends, and even my husband down from time to time, that I will always keep my focus on pleasing the one who's opinion matters more than all the rest.  I pray that regardless of  my situation and who I am with, I will remember that I am Christ's servant and that I will serve Him well.  And finally, I pray that the church today could learn to serve Christ first no matter what is going on in the society around us.

Is Your Well Running?

So many people in this country, myself included, don't give much thought to where their water comes from.  We are able to walk to the faucet, turn it on, and water comes out.  Most people give little to no thought into what is causing that water to come through the pipes.  However, even if you are on city water, it is likely coming from a well.
Where I live we have a unique situation when it comes to water.  Our house is on town water, we are actually the last house to the south of town on the line.  We have 4 water hydrants in various places on our property.  Two of these hydrants are connected to town water and two are actually connected to the well that runs a pivot sprinkler on a field next to our house.  Because these two hydrants are connected to "farm water" they only work when the well is running. The only time the well is running is when the farmer is running the sprinkler.  When the well is turned off you can't even get a drop of water out of them.  In order to operate properly, the power source has to be on.
It is the same way in our spiritual lives.  In order to function as we are designed, we must be plugged into the power source.  Being plugged in is so much more than showing up to church on a Sunday and throwing a $20 in the offering plate from time to time.  Being plugged in is a day by day and sometimes minute by minute immersion in the Word of God and in his presence.  That cannot be accomplished when the only relationship you have with him is one similar to two strangers that happen to be on the same elevator.  If you only pray when you need something or when you are desperate, you are missing out.
I have never ceased to be amazed at the power of the Word of God.  It's absolutely amazing how you can read a verse or story in the Bible and all of the sudden something new jumps off the page that you never noticed before.  However, in order to really understand the words on the pages of your Bible, you really need to plug into the Holy Spirit.

"But the unbeliever does not welcome what comes from God’s Spirit, because it is foolishness to him; he is not able to understand it since it is evaluated spiritually.  The spiritual person, however, can evaluate everything, yet he himself cannot be evaluated by anyone." 1 Corinthians 2:14-15 HCSB.

The Bible is such a unique book in the fact that the Holy Spirit gives us understanding.  An unbeliever can read a story or a verse and it is just dead words on a page.  However, if you have put your trust in the author of the book he will give you the understanding ("All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16-17 NIV).
It is such a shame that so many Christians and even whole denominations have either chosen not to acknowledge the Holy Spirit, or simply have made the Holy Spirit into something spooky or even radical.  The Holy Spirit is our power source.  He is the helper and the comforter.  Jesus himself said in his last days on Earth after the resurrection that he had to leave so that he could send the Holy Spirit.  "He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:7-8 NIV.
We must desire to be plugged into that power every single day.  I know that when I unplug or allow myself to get "too busy" or simply distracted the power is not there.  There have been seasons where I have been unplugged and find myself bored when I read the Bible.  There is no life when you are not spending time with the one who gives life.  You also cannot give life to others when there is no life within you.  I want to encourage you, unplug from the busyness of life for a little while and plug into the very source of that life.  Spend time in the presence of a well that is always running and never runs dry.

The Good Father

Since becoming a parent 4 1/2 years ago, I have probably learned more about God as our Father than I ever knew before having children.  Before having kids, I thought I knew everything about them.  When I saw kids acting up, I would often think the same thing that many people without children think; "why don't you get your child under control".  Oh boy, did I have a lot to learn in the realm of parenting (and I still do).  Having kids is tough, and having a strong willed child (or two) adds even another layer of difficulty to the process.  It's hard to get kids to do what you want them to do.  It isn't quite as easy to make sure your kids are well behaved as my childless self seemed to believe.
Do you ever think that God feels that way with us sometimes?  Now before you throw the "God loves us unconditionally" at me, go with me for a second.  Do you ever think sometimes God is watching us struggle to do something that he knows isn't the best thing for us and has shut the door on a couple of times just shaking his head?  Now don't get me wrong, I don't think God gets mad at us when we mess up, but from time to time he may just want us to listen to him the first time.  That's a phrase I find myself saying to my 4 year old all the time.  "If you would have just listened to me the first time I told you to get off the chair, you wouldn't have fallen and hit your head."  I think that sometimes when we do something that we know isn't God's will, he may think the same thing.  "If you would have just listened to me the first time and been patient while you were waiting for a new house instead of doing things your way, you wouldn't be in the massive amount of debt you are now."  Or maybe "If you would have just listened to me and been content in your circumstances and not gone negative, you would have gotten that promotion.  Instead your boss gave it to someone else that didn't complain and gossip all the time."
Now I don't believe for a second that God wants anything but the best for us, but sometimes I think he lets us deal with the results of our actions in order to help us learn and grow for the next time. "Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.  For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.  So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing." James 1:2-4 NLT.  This is my absolute go to verse every time I am going through a trial (actually the whole book of James really).  We need to embrace those learning experiences and actually learn from them.
Like I said at the beginning, having kids will teach you more about God as our Father than anything else I have experienced.  As a parent, when your child is learning to walk you have to allow them to fall to develop their muscles to get back up again. God, as our heavenly parent, sometimes allows us to “fall” by going through times of trials to help us develop our muscles of trust and endurance in him.
I know when I watched my kids learn how to walk, it was often hard not to just go pick them up and carry them, but I knew how badly they wanted, and needed, to be able to do it on their own.  I truly believe that God does the same for us.  He sees us struggle and get frustrated, but he resists the urge at times to immediately lift us out of our struggles because he knows how important the lessons we will learn in those struggles are to our growth as Christians.  As hard as it is to admit in the midst of a discouraging or hard time, in my experiences, once I have gotten through the trial I can see what a blessing it was.  We have to remember during difficult times that we see what is directly in front and behind us.  God is all-knowing, he not only sees in front and behind; he sees all of eternity.
I remember vividly a time when I was walking with my then 2-year-old daughter near a very steep cliff.  I knew how far of a drop it was and how dangerous it would be for her to get near it.  However, my 2-year-old was walking with her head down seeing only 1 step at a time.  When she was as close to the drop-off as I felt comfortable, I made her stop.  Of course, she didn’t understand and threw a royal fit hoping to get her way and be able to keep going.  No matter how upset she got, I refused to let her go ahead.  What kind of mom would I be had I just let my daughter walk off a cliff because that’s what she wanted?  I think we do the exact same thing to God sometimes.  He sees danger or a wrong decision ahead and he puts an immediate stop to it.  Often we just don’t understand so, just like a 2-year-old, we throw a fit.  Maybe we get mad at God, or get depressed, or get angry.  I know there are so many times I have done exactly that.  But we must remember at those times we see such a small piece of the big picture of what God has in store for us if we would simply put ALL of our trust in him.  (I know, way easier said than done)

“Trust in the Lord with ALL your heart; do NOT depend on your own understanding.  Seek HIS will in ALL you do, and HE will show you which path to take.” Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT (emphasis mine).

I experienced another similar incident of seeing a glimpse of God as a parent this weekend.  I was taking my girls for a walk and their independence started to kick in.  Now you need to understand in case you don't have the honor of living in the Western panhandle of Texas that the month of October can be a little rough.  It tends to get extremely dry and super windy about this time of the year.  That being said, it can get a little sandy on the dirt roads.  That makes it tough to push a stroller with a 2 year old and 9 month old.  You have to move around on the road to stay out of the sand.  Now my 4 year old loves to push the stroller, but she doesn't really understand the concept of looking up to see where you are going.  She pushes with her head down.

When you push a stroller with your head down, you only see a step ahead of yourself and the place the stroller has already been.  It gives you no idea of what is ahead.  When she pushed like this she kept running the stroller off the road.  Everything in me wanted to grab the stroller from her and just push it myself, but it donned on me that that doesn't teach her anything.  This is about the moment I really felt the Lord telling me that this is what I do in life ALOT.  I look only at my immediate circumstances and don't see what is ahead in anticipation of the 2 degree changes I need to make to keep the stroller on the road.  I decided to use this as a learning opportunity for myself and my 4 year old.  I made her stop and explained to her the proper way to push the stroller.  I told her that she had to look up and see whats in front of her to stay out of the sand.  I explained how to keep the stroller on the hard part of the road and out of the sandy parts.  Finally, I told her that if she looked down she would not be going straight anymore anymore and would end up in the sand.  She tried again.

As long as she kept her head up, focusing on the goal, she did excellent.  However, when her head went back down, to the sand she went.

I couldn't help but think about Peter stepping out of that boat.  As long as he kept his eyes on Jesus, he was able to stay on top of the water.  However, the minute he looked away, down he went.  God wants us to walk on the water.  He wants us to do great things and reach the goals he has placed in us.  However, if we only focus on our circumstances right this second or if we look away from God because "I thought it should have happened by now", then we will end up in the sand.  I will tell you from experience that pushing that stroller through the sand is not fun.  It requires an extreme amount of effort and makes the walk not much fun.  I would rather keep my head up and focus on the goal to get to that destination a whole lot quicker, and enjoy the journey along the way.  I am just so thankful to have a Father in Heaven who knows the perfect times to let us struggle a little with that stroller, as well as when it's time for him to grab the handle and push for a little while.

Legacy

Sometimes we get so involved in our lives and the stresses of what we are currently dealing with that we fail to realize how finite our lives on this earth really are.  Over the last month, the reality of how short life is has been burning on my mind.  A little over a month ago pretty early on a Sunday morning, my husband received a phone call that neither he or I ever expected and definitely did not want.  A dear friend and former coworker of ours had passed away tragically.  The news was crushing, particularly to my husband who had coached and worked closely with him for many years and had continued to stay in touch with even after moving on to a different school district.  This man was an incredible figure in the community.  Although he was only 30, his influence far outstretched his years.  Seeing the outpouring of love from the community was nothing short of humbling.  In the days that followed the people who he had touched demonstrated their great love for him in many ways, the community will forever be changed.  His funeral was very touching and it was incredible to see how many people he had influenced with his unwavering faith in God.
In the month since that time, I have done a lot of thinking.  Although he probably did not realize the scope of his influence, he left an incredible legacy.  I know as a 31 year old, I often take for granted that I will have many more years on this earth.  However, none of us knows the number of our days.  His tragic death has reminded me how tender life is and how vitally important it is to live life to the fullest every single day.

"Look here, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit.” How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. What you ought to say is, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.” Otherwise you are boasting about your own plans, and all such boasting is evil." James 4:13-16 NLT

Wow.  This verse makes it plain that we don't know what the future will hold for us.  We can plan ahead and have goals and dreams, but ultimately God is in control.  We must not brag about ourselves or what we are doing or going to do because God is the one who gives us those abilities and blessings.  "We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps." Proverbs 16:9 NLT.  We must take life a day at a time and focus on the one who's opinion really matters; God himself. I know in my own life, when I trust God rather than myself, I am always blessed.
My biggest prayer right now is that I will allow God to direct my steps.  I want to be strong in my faith.  I want to leave a Godly legacy.  I am deeply saddened by the loss of a friend.  But I am so blessed knowing that he left a legacy so strong that hundreds of people saw the hands and feet of Jesus through him.  I want my legacy to be one where people see the work of God in every single facet of my life.  That is our highest calling for our time here on earth.  "The LORD knows the days of the blameless, and their heritage will remain forever" Psalm 37:18 ESV.  I pray that I don't waste the days I have been given.  Whether I am instilling Godly principles into my children during this season, or demonstrating my faith in action through the way I live every day, my goal (and yours) should be to leave a lasting legacy.

Tomorrow

The last 2 years of my life have been a whirlwind of change.  If you would have told me 2 years ago about my life today, I probably wouldn't have believed you.  Two years ago, I was starting a new school year as an 8th grade math teacher, my husband was starting a new school year for the first time not coaching football and instead teaching industrial arts (which he loved), and we had just recently had our 2nd child who was about 6 weeks old.  If you would have asked me then, we were settling into what we would probably be doing for several years.  Boy was I wrong!  3 months after the start of that school year we started the process of buying a house in the country, something that we had always wanted but until then couldn't find or afford in our area.  That seemingly simple task turned into a 6 month process of ups and downs and at times thinking we would probably never close on the house.  We nearly walked away on a few occasions.  However, 7 closing documents and lots of frustrating phone calls later, we finally closed on our new home.
Life was great.  I loved my job and my coworkers, however the pressures of state testing wore on a mom with small children.  At the end of that school year I was just looking around at different job opportunities (and if you are a teacher of a highly tested subject, don't lie you look too).  I stumbled upon an Agricultural Science teacher job at a small school district much closer to where we lived.  I jumped on the opportunity and was hired for the job.  I am an Ag girl and was so excited to get to teach what I loved, and be able to teach a subject that kids weren't forced to learn.  My husband and I were pretty excited.  He would be starting his 2nd year in his job as industrial arts and I would get to teach Ag, both subjects we were passionate about.  However, sometimes life takes unexpected turns.  Two weeks after being hired for my new position, we were surprised (and incredibly blessed) to find out that we were going to be having a 3rd child.  Its funny how we like to plan our lives out, but sometimes God just says "no, I have something else in mind".  It was a huge shock and I was now tasked with the job of calling my new boss to let him know that I would been needing a bit of time off in the middle of the school year.  He was very understanding, and in January of this year we were blessed with our 3rd beautiful little girl.  Now I went back to work planning on staying in that position for the long haul.  However, just like before, God had other plans.  In the spring semester, Ag teachers do a lot of travelling.  In the month of April, I was gone more weekends than I was home, it was a lot of fun, but it was tough for my husband and the girls.  We also got to experience the high cost of having 3 kids in daycare. We planned on just enduring another year, however, our changes weren't over yet.  My husband wound up getting a job for the next school year at the school in our town as Principal.  What a blessing.  However, this job change brought a change in thought for us.  My travel with the FFA would be pretty difficult with his schedule as Principal at a different school.  We also struggled to find someone who could watch all 3 girls.  After about a month of trying to make it work this summer, we finally came to the decision that I would stay at home with the girls.  Now I need to say, I have never even thought about being a stay at home mom.  I like working and have always had a job, but we decided that this would be the best thing for our sanity, and for our girls.  In the span of just over 2 years we have had 2 children, moved, had 2 job changes, and now I am not working outside the home.  Talk about a whirlwind!
God is good.  As I was out walking/jogging this morning after sending off my preschooler and principal, I was doing a lot of thinking and praying.  This is the first time since I was 16 that I do not have a job.  It is a weird thing for me, and I sometimes find myself being fearful.  As I was out this morning I heard an awesome song called "Tomorrow" by Unspoken.  It brought me such comfort to know that no matter what, God is the one in control.  The chorus says:

Don't know what tomorrow holds

I'm learning how to let it go

Jesus, You are in control

Of my tomorrow, tomorrow

Come and take the fear away

'Til there's nothing left but faith

I know You will help me face

My tomorrow, tomorrow

What a perfect summary of what I have been experiencing over the last 2 years.  I so often want to be in control and know what is going to happen tomorrow, but God is the one in control, not me.  So, as I enter this next phase of life, I am going to learn to let it go and trust Him.  God has taken me so far, I can't wait to see where I will be 2 years from now.  If you get a chance, check out this awesome song from Unspoken and let me know what you have gone through that has taught you to trust Him for tomorrow. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHIFsAYbq-A

Looking for the Silver Linings

Life is not easy.  That might be the understatement of the year.  However, if the only things you focus on are the negatives, you may feel like you will never get out of the pit you feel like you are in.  For example, as a school teacher, it was super easy for me to fall into the negativity of others.  Some of our negative conversations would go something like this;  "How am I supposed to find time in my day to do that?", "How did that teacher get all the smart kids and I got the ones who can't pass a test?", or even "I can't believe the Principal expects us to do that, has he ever taught (insert subject here)?".  It is easy for me to get pulled into negativity.  I also honestly believe that for reasons I don't yet understand, females struggle way more in this department than men do (although I haven't ever been a man so I can't confirm that).
I would say for at least the past 7 or 8 years (apparently I am a slow learner), God has been dealing with me in the department of negativity.  I know there have been many times I found myself in one of the conversations I mentioned, only to later walk back to my classroom or drive home feeling incredibly convicted for allowing myself to get so negative.  So how in the world can we get out of that realm of negativity?  As with all things, I believe that the answer to that lies in the Bible.
"Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable.  Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise." Philippians 4:8 NLT.
For people who have been around church their whole life, that verse may be a familiar one that has perhaps become a cliche that they just say but don't mean.  However, if you really consider the verse, it is pretty revealing about how to get out of negativity.  When you "fix your eyes" on something you choose to look at and focus on that thing.  It is a choice to look or not look.  This verse says to "fix your thoughts" on all those things.  That tells me that we must choose to think true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, and admirable thoughts.  We have a choice.  Is it honorable to talk bad about your boss?  Is it admirable to tell your co-workers what a bad teacher so-and-so is?  We have to make a choice to change our way of thinking.  When our internal thoughts, or external conversations, turn to those negative places, we must choose to think instead of things that are "excellent and worthy of praise".
I have found during the various ups and downs of my own life, that when I start allowing my thoughts to go to places of negativity, that I find myself feeling more discouraged or even depressed.  I also have found that when I am around people who always find the negative in every circumstance, that I am easily pulled that direction.  I think that as we mature as Christians, it is vitally important to learn from our mistakes and work to not make the same mistakes over and over.  I know that one thing I have tried to do, is avoid situations where I might get pulled into negativity.  As a teacher, I had to pretty much completely stop going to the teachers' lounge during lunch because that was a hot spot for negativity.  I also learned what teachers to spend my time with, and the ones not to.  It's the same in my personal life.  If I spend too much time with negative people, I become negative.  I try to focus my time and energy with people who are encouraging and optimistic.
Joyce Meyer has an amazing book that so many people have read called Battlefield of the Mind.  If you haven't read it, I highly recommend that you pick up or borrow a copy.  In it she talks about how the enemy uses our minds to keep us from God's best.  I really think that is the key.  If Satan can keep our minds focused on negativity and being frustrated, then we will never fully enjoy our lives.  If he can identify something negative in every circumstance we are in, we will always be miserable and looking for the next best thing.  However, if we can choose to allow God to renew our way of thinking, he can show us what he has for us.  "Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.  Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect." Romans 12:2 NLT.
We must choose to find the silver lining to every cloud that rolls our way.  That is incredibly easy for me to do when I am looking in the rear view mirror, however, no matter how many victories God takes me though, I have such a hard time seeing positives in the midst of a struggle.  I find that remembering that we are looking at every situation in our lives from ground level, and God sees things from 10,000 feet, tends to ease my worries some.  "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him." 1 Corinthians 2:9 NLT.  He sees the beginning and the end, as well as everything in between.
One of the darkest moments of my life so far was almost exactly 7 years ago.  It was the moment I found out that I was getting laid off of a job I loved.  I had so much of my identity tied up in what I did for a living that I was completely devastated.  However, without going into all the details at this time, I can now tell you that it was actually a blessing.  Because of being laid off I learned incredible lessons about trusting God and perseverance through trials.  I also switched professions completely and started teaching during that time, something I would have likely never done otherwise.  I have been incredibly blessed by the people I have met and worked with over the past 6 years in education.  Because of that trial, I now see things through a bit of a different lens.  I am learning how to seek God's blessings even in the midst of trying times.  I hope that if you are in a time of trial and testing, that you too will choose to find the silver lining and remember that God is working behind the scenes, no matter how dark your circumstances.
  

Working Unto the Lord in ALL Circumstances

Several months ago, I had a conversation with a young man who was a student of mine that has really stuck with me.  The teacher who had taught in the position I was now in, although a really nice person, did not have much structure in the classroom.  The students were always moaning and groaning about having to actually learn things in Ag class because they were use to messing around in the shop or just sitting around talking or playing cards.  This particular student was a great kid, but he surprised me a little with his question.  He asked me something to the extent of "Why are you working so hard, why don't you just do what the other ag teachers have done and just let us mess around out in the shop?"  I responded to him that I was not hired to mess around, that even though the class was not a core subject that I still had state requirements of what I was suppose to teach and that I can't take a paycheck knowing that I wasn't doing my job.  He didn't understand, he thought it would be great to get paid to sit around.  I explained to him that in his little side business that he has, if he had an employee that he hired to do a certain job and that employee showed up everyday and just played on their cell phone and did nothing, how would he feel as a boss?  Would that person keep their job for long?  Since that time, I have really thought about what it really means to "work unto the Lord".
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” Colossians 3:23-24 NIV. 

      When I started life in the “real world” outside of the safety of being in school or living with my parents, I was incredibly naive.  I honestly thought that when people went to work that they worked hard at whatever they did no matter who their boss was or what their pay scale was.  I actually believed that adults didn’t get caught up in drama or laziness while at work.  Boy was I wrong.  I quickly found out in the real world, many people want to do the bare minimum to get by.  Now, let me start off by saying that I am far from perfect.  There are times when I fall into ruts on the job.  However, I have discovered that no matter what job you have or who your boss is that there will always be struggles.  I decided early on that whoever I worked for or whatever I did for a living that I was going to try to do it as if God himself was my boss.  It shouldn’t matter if you are CEO making high dollar business deals, or if you are scrubbing toilets for the CEO; you should work as if God was your boss.  That can be incredibly hard to do, especially if your job isn’t glamorous or not your “dream” job. 

      There have been jobs in my past that I have loved, as well as those that I simply “survived”.  Those survival jobs are always the hardest to stay focused and dedicated to “working unto the Lord.”  It can be incredibly easy to justify slacking off or not doing your job.  If your boss is unkind or if the job seems unimportant we sometimes tell ourselves that no one will notice anyways.  It is also incredibly easy to not work to your full potential if you have a job where you don’t have constant supervision.  I have had several jobs where it was up to me to get the job done and my boss was either at a different location or simply left me alone.  Don’t be fooled though, eventually your work ethic will show through.  In some jobs it may be in the form of not reaching sales goals, or maybe having customers complain, or as a teacher, students not knowing what they are supposed to know to pass a test.

      The fruits of your labor will always come through.  It may take weeks, months, or even years but eventually your work ethic comes to light.  Having a poor work ethic can cause you to lose commissions, lose out on a promotion, or even lose your job.  It is vitally important during those times of “surviving” a job that you don’t particularly enjoy with a boss you don’t really like, that you press in and work to your full potential.  It is during those times that the Lord is able to see our true character and know if we are ready for the next level he has for us.

One of the most famous story in the Bible about working unto the Lord is the Parable of the Talents.  “For it is just like a man about to go on a journey, who called his own slaves and entrusted his possessions to them.  To one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to another, one, each according to his own ability; and he went on his journey.”  Matthew 25:14-15 NASB.  If you notice, it says in “each according to his own ability”.  God knows where we are in our progression toward maturity.  He does not push us beyond our ability.  Notice also that is does not say that the one with five talents was any better than the one with two, or one.  He simply gave in accordance to the ability of the person.  I think we need to realize this in our own lives.  We may want the next better thing, but maybe we aren’t taking care of the “thing” we have now.  God gives in accordance to how we steward what we have. 

      In the story, the man with five invested what he had and doubled it, the same thing happened with the man who received the two.  However, the man that received one, hid his away and didn’t make a single thing for his master.  His excuse was that he knew that his master was a hard man and he was afraid.  Isn’t that what we do sometimes?  We hold onto or money or our things or even a job because we are afraid.  The slave who received the one talent feared what his master would do if he lost the talent.  I am guilty of the very same thing.  I fear change, I fear missing God’s will, I fear disappointing others, and I fear the unknown.  However, if we want to hear the same words as the two slaves that made good investments for their master “Well done good and faithful servant” we must push through the fear and apprehension no matter who we are working for or what we are called to do.  Regardless of whether we have a wonderful, Godly boss or one who we absolutely dread seeing, we are ultimately working not for man, but for God.

      Over the years I have taught hundreds of teenagers.  Every year I would try to throw some life lessons in with my regular lessons as often as I could.  I would almost always teach kids about integrity.  To give a really simple definition, I would talk to the kids about how integrity is doing the right thing even if no one is watching.  That is so easy to say, not as easy to do.  In reality, if our boss is away or if no one is around because we work remotely or maybe we work from home or are even a stay at home mom, it is incredibly easy to let productivity slide.  I know that I sometimes struggle with that.  However, it’s important to make sure we get the job done no matter who is watching. 

      As a school teacher, I sometimes saw my boss, but many times I would go days or even weeks without seeing them except for in passing walking down the hallways.  It was up to me to make sure what I was required by the state to teach, was being taught.  It would have been easy sometimes to just let the kids do what they wanted and call it a free day, the kids sure would have love it.  However, that is not what I was hired to do and not what I was paid to do.  It’s important to keep that perspective.  Regardless of how we feel or whether we like what we do, that’s what we are hired for.  If you happen to stay at home this can be a huge struggle.  The tasks of a stay at home mom are far from glamorous.  However, there are still jobs that need to be done.  Even though there isn’t a true “boss” in that situation, we are still called to work as if God was our boss.  That means even if folding laundry or washing dishes are things you hate, you can still do the tasks with a grateful heart.

      “Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval.  Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15 NLT.