Looking back you will see that every step was planned. Leave all to me. Each stone in the mosaic fits into the perfect pattern, designed by the master artist.
It is all so wonderful!
But the colors are of heaven's hues, so that your eyes could not bear to gaze on the whole until you are beyond the veil.
So stone by stone you see, and trust the pattern to the designer. ~ God Calling, 365 minute meditations
I remember reading this devotional this time last year. What I love so much about this little devotional is the fact that each page has the date on it, and even when you re-read this little book... It takes on new meaning every time... With every new day. I read this last year, and it struck me hard. With that though, there was much fear of the unknown. We were preparing to put our house on the market after living in it for 10 years. We had no idea what plan God had for us. My heart was full of fear even though I knew that whatever plan He had, it was all part of the mosaic. It was just one more piece of color filled tile to be laid down amidst the others.
As I read this again the other day, tears came once more. This time, they weren't tears shed out of fear. They were tears of excitement for the next tile to be added. God has done HUGE things in my heart over the past year. I have witnessed and seen our family receive gift after gift with this move that took place almost eight months ago. I have come through a season of tremendous change... As one who self-proclaimed to DESPISE change! More than that, I have come to finally realize that there is mostly good in change.
We are preparing to make another move. It is a move that none of us had planned. In fact, OUR plan was to stay here until we were ready to buy a house again. Our plan is not God's plan though. We are pouring through the classifieds, Craigslist, and property management web-sites looking for what is next to be "home". We are praying together... Around the dining room table, in the living room and while driving around taking care of daily tasks. There is no sense of panic. No fear. The stones will continue to be perfectly placed. The colors will continue to melt into each other... Forming the piece of art that we will only see when we finally get to meet our maker. Every question will be answered during that moment when I see the art in front of me... Beautifully designed by the Master.
Such comfort I find, such greatness in knowing that. I was able to share with my 12 year old just yesterday something that I read about in One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp last spring. It is something that has stuck with me maybe more than any other one thing out of that book. I told him this...
"We don't know what gifts God has planned for our lives or hearts next. All we DO know is that we cannot receive the gifts if our hands are clenched tightly. They have to be open to receive the gifts... Wide open. It is then that we receive so greatly what He wants to give us. It is then that we grow closer to Him and stronger in our knowledge of what He is capable of."
As I said these words to Colby, I felt it with everything that I am! I wasn't just saying it to make him feel better or even to calm myself. I knew then that my ability to feel this way and share this with others is one of those gigantic pieces of tile that the Lord has so proudly added to the mosaic.
"It is ALL so wonderful!"
Monday, November 14, 2011
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Perspective
If you read here or over at my other blog "home" very often, you have probably noticed that I've been in a sort of a funk lately. This season of life caught me off guard. I'm not ready to be the mother of a high schooler. I'm not at all prepared to start the process of letting go of my first. The Lord has been speaking to me night and day though. He is speaking clearly and at times, it seems as if I can actually feel a physical tug on my heart from Him.
I feel as though I have been going through self induced therapy. Every day I gather my thoughts and do something different with them. I start with prayer, and then I write, walk or read. Seriously... This season of life is kicking my rear!
Most recently I have picked up a book called 'The Gift of an Ordinary Day' by Katrina Kenison. It has been a HUGE blessing. I have decided that I NEED to meet this lady! I need to sit down with her, have a big cup of coffee and just let it all out. As I have been reading this book, I have felt that she has lived the life that I am now living. She has done the mourning. Her circumstances through all of the changes were so much like mine. Even the move right before starting high school! That in itself has proved to be more significant than I wanted to let it be. I have been writing some of her ideas down as I've been reading. I thought I'd share one here today...
" Whether we choose change, or it chooses us, the only thing we can know for sure is that security of any kind is an illusion. The life we know is always in the process of becoming something else." ~ Katrina Kenison
So there's only one thing I don't agree with here. I do that a lot when I read. I'm not one of those people who will read a book from front to back and agree with everything the author has to say. That's what makes reading interesting and fun for me. It challenges my thoughts. I don't agree with her statement about security. Not every kind of security is an illusion. Thankfully, my security in the Lord and his care over my life is NOT an illusion. It's something I FEEL everyday.... Even the days that I find my eyes just won't stop watering. What I believe she was talking about here is the earthly securities. Securities in our homes, our jobs, our families. Those things are the things that are always in the process of becoming something else. For a person who finds change difficult, this is a hard thought. And then... I kept reading.
I read on the news ticker about all of these people in Turkey who are mourning ABSOLUTE losses! I read on another blog about a mother who is mourning the death of her 8 month old baby boy who was taken by cancer in a matter of weeks. I read in my son's weekly school on-line newsletter about a family who last talked to their son a month ago now. He is lying in a hospital bed still in a coma. All of a sudden, I have perspective. I feel completely selfish for even shedding one tear over this season of change that I'm in. My family is all here. They are all well. We are happy. We do not mourn death right now. I may find change difficult, but because of this perspective, I must drag myself out of this pitiful place!
Our lives are always becoming. Today looks different than yesterday and tomorrow will look different than today. There is beauty in that though, isn't there? I think of this...
Receiving a long hug from from my fourteen year old is different now than it was yesterday. When he was younger, he hugged me because it's what little boys do. Sure, he hugged me because he wanted to. I know that. However, it feels different now. When he hugs me today I feel a deeper sense of his love for me and his need for me in his life. There is admiration and respect in his hugs. There may be fewer of them throughout the days, but the quality out weighs the quantity by far. There is beauty in the change taking place.
Because of what I know now, the words that I choose with my other two boys are chosen more carefully. I take more time out of my schedule to just sit with them and do nothing else but listen. Our relationships are stronger and sweeter than ever! There is beauty in the change....
Perspective was the perfect prescription.
I feel as though I have been going through self induced therapy. Every day I gather my thoughts and do something different with them. I start with prayer, and then I write, walk or read. Seriously... This season of life is kicking my rear!
Most recently I have picked up a book called 'The Gift of an Ordinary Day' by Katrina Kenison. It has been a HUGE blessing. I have decided that I NEED to meet this lady! I need to sit down with her, have a big cup of coffee and just let it all out. As I have been reading this book, I have felt that she has lived the life that I am now living. She has done the mourning. Her circumstances through all of the changes were so much like mine. Even the move right before starting high school! That in itself has proved to be more significant than I wanted to let it be. I have been writing some of her ideas down as I've been reading. I thought I'd share one here today...
" Whether we choose change, or it chooses us, the only thing we can know for sure is that security of any kind is an illusion. The life we know is always in the process of becoming something else." ~ Katrina Kenison
So there's only one thing I don't agree with here. I do that a lot when I read. I'm not one of those people who will read a book from front to back and agree with everything the author has to say. That's what makes reading interesting and fun for me. It challenges my thoughts. I don't agree with her statement about security. Not every kind of security is an illusion. Thankfully, my security in the Lord and his care over my life is NOT an illusion. It's something I FEEL everyday.... Even the days that I find my eyes just won't stop watering. What I believe she was talking about here is the earthly securities. Securities in our homes, our jobs, our families. Those things are the things that are always in the process of becoming something else. For a person who finds change difficult, this is a hard thought. And then... I kept reading.
I read on the news ticker about all of these people in Turkey who are mourning ABSOLUTE losses! I read on another blog about a mother who is mourning the death of her 8 month old baby boy who was taken by cancer in a matter of weeks. I read in my son's weekly school on-line newsletter about a family who last talked to their son a month ago now. He is lying in a hospital bed still in a coma. All of a sudden, I have perspective. I feel completely selfish for even shedding one tear over this season of change that I'm in. My family is all here. They are all well. We are happy. We do not mourn death right now. I may find change difficult, but because of this perspective, I must drag myself out of this pitiful place!
Our lives are always becoming. Today looks different than yesterday and tomorrow will look different than today. There is beauty in that though, isn't there? I think of this...
Receiving a long hug from from my fourteen year old is different now than it was yesterday. When he was younger, he hugged me because it's what little boys do. Sure, he hugged me because he wanted to. I know that. However, it feels different now. When he hugs me today I feel a deeper sense of his love for me and his need for me in his life. There is admiration and respect in his hugs. There may be fewer of them throughout the days, but the quality out weighs the quantity by far. There is beauty in the change taking place.
Because of what I know now, the words that I choose with my other two boys are chosen more carefully. I take more time out of my schedule to just sit with them and do nothing else but listen. Our relationships are stronger and sweeter than ever! There is beauty in the change....
Perspective was the perfect prescription.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Have No Fear
I have been absent for awhile. The seasons are changing here, and with that I tend to always start to "hibernate". I'm still just as busy as ever.... Feeding boys, cleaning up after boys, driving boys, in addition to my teaching job(s). My soul feels the tug to hibernate though. Why this is, I'm not sure.
Since I have last written, the young man (referred to as L) slipped back into a coma. He was only out of his coma briefly before his lung collapsed with a bacterial infection. The doctors thought it best to induce the coma again to allow his body to continue to heal. This poor boy has a sick heart, brain damage caused by having zero heart beat for a full 30 minutes, and now a bacterial infection in his lung. Please continue to pray for him and his family. The heart ache they must feel right now... The strength they must NEED! I cannot fathom it all.
During this time of prayer for L, I have experienced deep feelings of fear. I look at my boys with different eyes. I look at my husband and even myself and my mind wanders to the unknowns. I would even go as far to say that the first week or so after this tragedy, I was paralyzed by fear. I wanted nothing more than to pick up all my "little chicks" and bring them home where they would be safe under my wing. I spent a lot of time praying for L, and even more time crying. After a few days of this, I started to feel less of satan's grip on me and more of the Father's love. It was there all along, but I wasn't allowing myself the safety of a wing so much bigger than mine. This same wing that protects my family day after day.
Fear is something not to be ashamed of or deny. It's when I deny it that it grows bigger than me. It's when I face it, proclaim it.... Look it straight it the eye that it becomes smaller and manageable. I am reading a book that describes God as the pole that a tight rope walker holds as they walk the rope. The pole is there to create balance. God is here to create balance.... If I allow Him to. If I fight the pole, wrestle it in my grip, I will lose this balance and fall hard. If I hold it confidently, sure of it's purpose... I will walk with ease and a hope knowing I will get to the other side.
Today I am praising Jesus that He creates balance for me. I am praising Him because fear is not claiming me. I know that God has L's life in His hands. My heart has known that since the beginning. There is a story unfolding. One that is unknown by me, but NOT unknown by Him. I also know that God has already written my story, my husband's story, and the stories of my children. With so many things to distract me from what is most important, I KNOW that the MOST important thing is that they love JESUS! They love Him, they serve Him, they desire to please Him. They want Him to be the pole that they hold on their tight rope lines.
Jesus... You are so good. So perfect. Thank you for bringing balance into my life and helping me with my struggles. You are never late. Thank you for holding my family under your wing. Your wing is the only one we can truly find shelter under. Thank you for the grace you give us, knowing there will even be more to come.
Since I have last written, the young man (referred to as L) slipped back into a coma. He was only out of his coma briefly before his lung collapsed with a bacterial infection. The doctors thought it best to induce the coma again to allow his body to continue to heal. This poor boy has a sick heart, brain damage caused by having zero heart beat for a full 30 minutes, and now a bacterial infection in his lung. Please continue to pray for him and his family. The heart ache they must feel right now... The strength they must NEED! I cannot fathom it all.
During this time of prayer for L, I have experienced deep feelings of fear. I look at my boys with different eyes. I look at my husband and even myself and my mind wanders to the unknowns. I would even go as far to say that the first week or so after this tragedy, I was paralyzed by fear. I wanted nothing more than to pick up all my "little chicks" and bring them home where they would be safe under my wing. I spent a lot of time praying for L, and even more time crying. After a few days of this, I started to feel less of satan's grip on me and more of the Father's love. It was there all along, but I wasn't allowing myself the safety of a wing so much bigger than mine. This same wing that protects my family day after day.
Fear is something not to be ashamed of or deny. It's when I deny it that it grows bigger than me. It's when I face it, proclaim it.... Look it straight it the eye that it becomes smaller and manageable. I am reading a book that describes God as the pole that a tight rope walker holds as they walk the rope. The pole is there to create balance. God is here to create balance.... If I allow Him to. If I fight the pole, wrestle it in my grip, I will lose this balance and fall hard. If I hold it confidently, sure of it's purpose... I will walk with ease and a hope knowing I will get to the other side.
Today I am praising Jesus that He creates balance for me. I am praising Him because fear is not claiming me. I know that God has L's life in His hands. My heart has known that since the beginning. There is a story unfolding. One that is unknown by me, but NOT unknown by Him. I also know that God has already written my story, my husband's story, and the stories of my children. With so many things to distract me from what is most important, I KNOW that the MOST important thing is that they love JESUS! They love Him, they serve Him, they desire to please Him. They want Him to be the pole that they hold on their tight rope lines.
Jesus... You are so good. So perfect. Thank you for bringing balance into my life and helping me with my struggles. You are never late. Thank you for holding my family under your wing. Your wing is the only one we can truly find shelter under. Thank you for the grace you give us, knowing there will even be more to come.
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Praise Be To HIM!!
The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. ~ John 1:14
My heart is overwhelmed with praise this morning! So full, that I find it hard to know where to begin...
For those of you who follow me over at my other "blog home", you read this week that a friend of Luke's suffered a major heart attack last Sunday. He was put into a medically induced coma. By mid-week, the parents reported to us that the Dr.'s had informed them that it would "take a miracle" for L to survive.
Wednesday it was national "See you at the pole" day. Students all over our nation gathered on their school campuses to pray. Some prayed for their nation. Some prayed for their schools. Del Oro High School (where my son and his friend attend) prayed for L and his family. I can't say what everyone else's specific prayers were, but I can say that my son, along with us and MANY others ( I called the world I think, including contacting K~Love radio) have been praying for a miracle! I know what my Father is capable of. After Wednesday, I started seeing this all in a new light. I started to see that there was a bigger picture. Obviously this young man was in much medical need. Obviously his parents were hurting beyond what I can even comprehend. My gut and my heart were telling me that L would be healed and that this was about bringing others into relationship with Christ... Maybe some who didn't share any relationship with Him... Maybe others who have relationship, but it is only surface deep.
It is no coincidence that on the day AFTER the school gathered to pray for him, this boy's parents called the school to report that they thought they had seen L try to open his eyes. It is no coincidence that two days after the school gathered to pray for L, he woke up from his coma. He completely came out of it! The doctors had said it would take a miracle, and that it what they witnessed. I'm sure today they are stumped by it all, but I am not. Those that have been praying are not. My son is not. His faith has been forever changed because he has witnessed first hand the biggest kind of miracle there is.
Last night before we went to bed, I prayed with my family. My prayers included this friend of Luke's and his family. I prayed for physical and emotional strength and healing. I prayed specifically that L would come out of his coma and that everything about that would point to Christ.... That He would receive ALL the glory for the miraculous thing He had done! My eyes are wet this morning and there is a lump in my throat as big as a golf ball because my Jesus did this. He wrote the pages of this week. He continues to write the pages of the days and weeks to come as the effects of this boy's life and tragic near death story trickle down. This is far from over.
Please continue to pray for L as he now has double pneumonia. I will be praying for healing there too. I will also be praying that people's hearts will be open to accepting what really happened here. That we will see it for what it really is and nothing else.... That the Lord will receive all the praise and honor. I will pray for this high school student body too. I believe that the Lord wants to turn their eyes towards Him in this. I believe he wants to capture hearts. I pray that their hearts will be tender and willing.
Thank you, Jesus. You are so good... So perfect. I can say that knowing that even if you would have chosen to take L's life, You still would have had a perfect plan. I ask that You continue to be with L as he experiences complete healing. I pray that Your face is seen in all of this.... That everything about this story points to YOU! Thank you for making your presence known in my heart this week and in the hearts of my family. I praise You because of who You are. You never change. You are the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.
I am in awe...
My heart is overwhelmed with praise this morning! So full, that I find it hard to know where to begin...
For those of you who follow me over at my other "blog home", you read this week that a friend of Luke's suffered a major heart attack last Sunday. He was put into a medically induced coma. By mid-week, the parents reported to us that the Dr.'s had informed them that it would "take a miracle" for L to survive.
Wednesday it was national "See you at the pole" day. Students all over our nation gathered on their school campuses to pray. Some prayed for their nation. Some prayed for their schools. Del Oro High School (where my son and his friend attend) prayed for L and his family. I can't say what everyone else's specific prayers were, but I can say that my son, along with us and MANY others ( I called the world I think, including contacting K~Love radio) have been praying for a miracle! I know what my Father is capable of. After Wednesday, I started seeing this all in a new light. I started to see that there was a bigger picture. Obviously this young man was in much medical need. Obviously his parents were hurting beyond what I can even comprehend. My gut and my heart were telling me that L would be healed and that this was about bringing others into relationship with Christ... Maybe some who didn't share any relationship with Him... Maybe others who have relationship, but it is only surface deep.
It is no coincidence that on the day AFTER the school gathered to pray for him, this boy's parents called the school to report that they thought they had seen L try to open his eyes. It is no coincidence that two days after the school gathered to pray for L, he woke up from his coma. He completely came out of it! The doctors had said it would take a miracle, and that it what they witnessed. I'm sure today they are stumped by it all, but I am not. Those that have been praying are not. My son is not. His faith has been forever changed because he has witnessed first hand the biggest kind of miracle there is.
Last night before we went to bed, I prayed with my family. My prayers included this friend of Luke's and his family. I prayed for physical and emotional strength and healing. I prayed specifically that L would come out of his coma and that everything about that would point to Christ.... That He would receive ALL the glory for the miraculous thing He had done! My eyes are wet this morning and there is a lump in my throat as big as a golf ball because my Jesus did this. He wrote the pages of this week. He continues to write the pages of the days and weeks to come as the effects of this boy's life and tragic near death story trickle down. This is far from over.
Please continue to pray for L as he now has double pneumonia. I will be praying for healing there too. I will also be praying that people's hearts will be open to accepting what really happened here. That we will see it for what it really is and nothing else.... That the Lord will receive all the praise and honor. I will pray for this high school student body too. I believe that the Lord wants to turn their eyes towards Him in this. I believe he wants to capture hearts. I pray that their hearts will be tender and willing.
Thank you, Jesus. You are so good... So perfect. I can say that knowing that even if you would have chosen to take L's life, You still would have had a perfect plan. I ask that You continue to be with L as he experiences complete healing. I pray that Your face is seen in all of this.... That everything about this story points to YOU! Thank you for making your presence known in my heart this week and in the hearts of my family. I praise You because of who You are. You never change. You are the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.
I am in awe...
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Mission Possible
During the past few days, my ability to find praise in every situation has been tested. I dove head first into a funk on Friday night and it is now Tuesday. I can officially say that last night I found my way back up to the surface and the Lord has me right where He wants me now.
A few weeks ago I put up a wall decal in my hallway. I walk by it several times a day. It says this...
'The best things in life aren't things'
As I've read this quote, I have thought of "things" like cars, furniture, expensive clothing, generally... stuff. The quote has come to take on a whole new meaning for me recently though. The best things in life aren't things... Including houses.
I am a homemaker. I love to take care of my home. I love to decorate and organize. I love to make my house our home and make others feel comfortable and cozy here. I view hospitality as a God given gift that He gave me!
In April, we packed up our home where we had lived for more than ten years. We packed up and moved down from the big hill, a little closer to J's work and a lot closer to school for the boys. The circumstances weren't the best, but the guidance that we felt from the Lord was INCREDIBLE. We were lead to this house that we now live in and it has felt right from the very beginning. There were days of frustration and sadness too, but all the while, we felt like our lives were in God's hands and He placed us exactly where we are supposed to be.
Fast forward six months.
On Friday we received a phone call from our land lord. She told us that she wants to list the house for sale in April. She wants to give us first opportunity to buy it, but it will go on the market in April if we decide not to purchase. WOW... Totally shocked with this one! When we originally signed the lease with her in April there were no signs that this would happen. In fact, she stressed that she would love to have us long term if we would stay. We were happy to oblige.
So... Here we are again. Clay in the Potter's hands. J and I have talked and talked about this one, and I know that the talking is far from over. There are many thoughts traveling through our heads. Thoughts of past mistakes, thoughts of the future. Thoughts that are from Him, and others that are so NOT from Him. Right before we went to sleep last night though, I said to my hubby in the dark stillness of night...
"What if we are supposed to adopt the attitudes and even partial lifestyle of missionaries in all of this? What if THAT is what this is all about?"
Our purpose here in this house has been extremely evident. The journey here was not a mistake. From the very beginning of all of this I have found huge amounts of comfort in that. So why should I find anything else except comfort in what God has planned for us next?
When I look at the negatives, such as moving our three boys again (thus creating a feeling of instability but then again, maybe they see it as adventure), having to "find" another home for us and our three furry children (we didn't find this one, God led us straight to it!), and having to make another house a home (wait... didn't I say that I LOVE to do that?) it's easy to see that there is positive inside every negative. What seems at first to be an impossible thought becomes possible in every way.
I may not be on an international mission field, but I do believe God has me and my family on a mission of our own. I'm thankful that He pulled me from the depths of where I plummeted the other day in self-pity. He showed me that this is all the same road He put us on awhile ago. Still things to be learned. Still love to be shared. Still that pliable piece of nothing that He is shaping into something grand.
I can praise Him because He holds me still.
A few weeks ago I put up a wall decal in my hallway. I walk by it several times a day. It says this...
'The best things in life aren't things'
As I've read this quote, I have thought of "things" like cars, furniture, expensive clothing, generally... stuff. The quote has come to take on a whole new meaning for me recently though. The best things in life aren't things... Including houses.
I am a homemaker. I love to take care of my home. I love to decorate and organize. I love to make my house our home and make others feel comfortable and cozy here. I view hospitality as a God given gift that He gave me!
In April, we packed up our home where we had lived for more than ten years. We packed up and moved down from the big hill, a little closer to J's work and a lot closer to school for the boys. The circumstances weren't the best, but the guidance that we felt from the Lord was INCREDIBLE. We were lead to this house that we now live in and it has felt right from the very beginning. There were days of frustration and sadness too, but all the while, we felt like our lives were in God's hands and He placed us exactly where we are supposed to be.
Fast forward six months.
On Friday we received a phone call from our land lord. She told us that she wants to list the house for sale in April. She wants to give us first opportunity to buy it, but it will go on the market in April if we decide not to purchase. WOW... Totally shocked with this one! When we originally signed the lease with her in April there were no signs that this would happen. In fact, she stressed that she would love to have us long term if we would stay. We were happy to oblige.
So... Here we are again. Clay in the Potter's hands. J and I have talked and talked about this one, and I know that the talking is far from over. There are many thoughts traveling through our heads. Thoughts of past mistakes, thoughts of the future. Thoughts that are from Him, and others that are so NOT from Him. Right before we went to sleep last night though, I said to my hubby in the dark stillness of night...
"What if we are supposed to adopt the attitudes and even partial lifestyle of missionaries in all of this? What if THAT is what this is all about?"
Our purpose here in this house has been extremely evident. The journey here was not a mistake. From the very beginning of all of this I have found huge amounts of comfort in that. So why should I find anything else except comfort in what God has planned for us next?
When I look at the negatives, such as moving our three boys again (thus creating a feeling of instability but then again, maybe they see it as adventure), having to "find" another home for us and our three furry children (we didn't find this one, God led us straight to it!), and having to make another house a home (wait... didn't I say that I LOVE to do that?) it's easy to see that there is positive inside every negative. What seems at first to be an impossible thought becomes possible in every way.
I may not be on an international mission field, but I do believe God has me and my family on a mission of our own. I'm thankful that He pulled me from the depths of where I plummeted the other day in self-pity. He showed me that this is all the same road He put us on awhile ago. Still things to be learned. Still love to be shared. Still that pliable piece of nothing that He is shaping into something grand.
I can praise Him because He holds me still.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Beautiful Things
I've been listening to this song on K~ Love for weeks now. Every time I hear it, I hear whispers of truth being spoken into me. It's easy to let ourselves feel everything BUT beautiful in this world we live in. We are confronted daily with what the world believes to be "beautiful". This weekend I went to the ocean with my hubby and boys. On our way, I received a text from a good friend of mine. I had just shared with her the night before about my struggles with feeling beautiful. She sent this...
"He brought me out into a spacious place; He rescued me because He delighted in me." 2 Samuel 22:20
My friend knew that there would be many "beach bodies" looming in front of me for the weekend. She knew my insecurities, and she provided this scripture as a reminder that the Lord DELIGHTS in me! He sees beauty in me, and that is what matters most!
The Lord is SO able to make beautiful things out of the nastiest, filthiest dust that lies in front of us daily. There is only one requirement...
Are our hearts open to listening to only His truths and NOT the truths of the world?
*** Don't forget to pause the music at the bottom of this page before starting the video. ***
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
A Cheerful heart
This morning proved to be a little overwhelming. The other two boys started school today, and although I have been very excited for them... It was harder than I thought it would be. I was once again flooded with memories and emotions involving all of the hours spent schooling them at home. They weren't all lovely. A lot of those moments were painful and even ugly. In my heart though, they are all beautiful because they were all moments of learning together and part of what defines "us".
After everyone had been dropped off for school this morning, my throat began to feel quite lumpy. To be honest, I suddenly had this overwhelming desire to go directly home and hide under my covers while having a good cry. Maybe that would make it all better, right? Then... I turned on my radio.... Tuned to K~Love of course. The morning gal shared some scripture and right away I heard the Lord speaking to ME!
~ Proverbs 17:22 ~
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
God knew I needed the proper kind of "medicine" this morning, and it didn't include tears or bed pillows. It involved HIM! He picked me up and filled this Mama heart with joy for my children. I immediately thought of everything that they will get to experience in this new season. I remembered that a bigger portion of the world will now to get to know them and see for themselves what incredible young men they are! My spirit is not crushed, it is lifted high with the one who loves us and sees to our needs. He is so full of mercy for His children... So incredibly faithful!
Praying that you are able to go about your day with a good dose of God's medicine... A cheerful heart. It can change everything in a matter of seconds.
After everyone had been dropped off for school this morning, my throat began to feel quite lumpy. To be honest, I suddenly had this overwhelming desire to go directly home and hide under my covers while having a good cry. Maybe that would make it all better, right? Then... I turned on my radio.... Tuned to K~Love of course. The morning gal shared some scripture and right away I heard the Lord speaking to ME!
~ Proverbs 17:22 ~
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
God knew I needed the proper kind of "medicine" this morning, and it didn't include tears or bed pillows. It involved HIM! He picked me up and filled this Mama heart with joy for my children. I immediately thought of everything that they will get to experience in this new season. I remembered that a bigger portion of the world will now to get to know them and see for themselves what incredible young men they are! My spirit is not crushed, it is lifted high with the one who loves us and sees to our needs. He is so full of mercy for His children... So incredibly faithful!
Praying that you are able to go about your day with a good dose of God's medicine... A cheerful heart. It can change everything in a matter of seconds.
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