I've Finally Arrived

Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. 2 Corinthians 12:11b-c

"I've finally arrived," joked the man in line ahead of us as he entered the building and we were still stuck outside.

"We're one step behind you." I joked back as my loving sister-in-law, creative nieces, and artistic daughter waited to turn in artwork at the fairgrounds.

His joke though got me thinking about how many times I have been glad to finally arrive.

The long awaited vacation destinations.

The day my book was published.

My wedding day.

The arrival of my children.

It seems I am always waiting for some kind of arrival. When this happens then everything will be alright. Whenever I get there then I can relax. Mission accomplished, now what?

My guess is we are all waiting for the day when we finally arrive. Now I'm not talking fame and fortune here; I'm talking about the day we arrive at the pearly gates. The day we meet Jesus face to face.

Will you feel you've done all you could have for Him? Will your life have been perfect?

The answer will probably be "No". I have a bad habit of looking back and thinking, "what if I had done this instead of that?" "Why didn't I say that?" My brain always thinks of ideas when it's to late.

I guess all I can do is aim for perfection, even though I'll miss the mark. Focus on what Jesus asks of me and try to show his love to all those I meet.

Then when I do finally arrive I won't look back with regrets; I'll only hear, "well done good and faithful servant."

Almost Drowned

Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. Hebrews 7:25 NIV

We were all swimming in at the campground's pool. My mom and I decided to go a little deeper rest assured the little ones were staying where it was shallow.

The lifeguard decided to move, strange life guards don't move unless somethings wrong. My mom and I watched her, strange we thought she's coming our way. That's when I saw him, my four-year-old had followed us out and was now treading water.

My son almost drowned because I was watching the lifeguard! Good thing she was paying attention.

There have been other times in my life when I've felt like I was drowning. At times I felt like we were drowning in our own debt. The amount we owed every month was greater than the amount we took in. We were saved from this drowning by our life Savior. He helped us find a way out of the debt hole; sure we still owe money on things, but we are able to pay and no longer own credit cards.

Recently, I'm drowning in discouragement. Things are not going exactly as I have planned. Attendance has dropped at church and at times I wonder, am I still doing what God asks of me?

Also not as many as I would have liked have been interested in buying my book. Sometimes not very many people even read this blog. Again I ask myself, am I doing what you desire Lord?

It's at these times I look at what I'm doing to keep myself filled-am I reading the Bible enough? Am I praying enough? Am I really doing all God asks of me?

I'll hold up my hands as I sink down and trust that the Lord will pull me out.

This Sunday I'm going to try and expand a ministry we are already doing. After praying about it, I know this is God's plan so I will see where He's going to take it.

Still waiting to follow God's lead on my writing, and in the mean time I will feel blessed even when one person reads what God has put on my heart to share.

Good thing my life Savior is paying attention.

God is Amazing

I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. John 16:33 NIV

This week was a challenging week for me. One where I continually had to turn to God for peace and assurance. He so graciously answered me, and I found my peace in Him. He after all has overcame the world.

Saturday night I participated in something amazing! Sure it cost me some time and money, but it was well worth it. Especially when I had the chance to look at the crowd of 21,500 people and see stars.

One of the bands encouraged us to light our cell phones, and when we did it was amazing inside the arena. The stars had entered the building.

Have you ever had the chance to sit outside on a clear night and look at the stars in the sky? I have, and it's even better when we are camping. As I sit in my chair I can look up and see hundreds of stars. Then I think how amazing God is, because He made each one of those stars.

On this night at Winter Jam, I felt the same. As I looked out over the crowd shining their lights for Jesus, the awesomeness of God once again filled me. He has indeed overcame the troubles of this world.

Life is Like a Circus

The spirit of the Lord will come upon you in power, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. 1 Samuel 10:6 NIV

The journey began, I was on the way to the circus. I'm quite certain I've been to the circus before, I remember going I just can't seem to recall when.

After we parked we sneaked a peak at the animals below, there were the camels, elephants, and tigers. Just a glimpse set my heart pounding.

We lined up with all the others who came and patiently waited for the doors to open. Once we entered we made our way to the floor where there was precircus activities happening. Clowns, costumes, weight lifters...they were there waiting to help us enjoy our experience.

Then finally the moment we waited for, "welcome to the greatest show on earth." The craziness began. Everyone made there way out and marched around the arena. The elephants paraded around, the clowns made us laugh, performers danced and wowed us.

Transformation then took place. While our attention was focused on a performance, the crew quickly and quietly changed another part of the arena. Over and over the scenes changed,  the performances changed and I was amazed.

As I sat there taking it all in, I realized our life can be a lot like the circus. Craziness begins, different scenes are changing quickly and quietly while we are paying attention to another area of our life. Sometimes we like the change other times we are unprepared and don't exactly know how to deal with it.

Looking back, I realize how much change has taken place. Somehow before my eyes each of my children have grown into adults, some of those we love have gone on to be with the Lord, children in my day care have had to retire, and I'm a published author.

When allowed God can come in and change us into something better, I'm so glad I've given Him the opportunity to change me.

God's Revealing Party

Do not be afraid, Mary,  you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. Luke 1:30b-31 NIV

Opening something pink or blue in front of friends and family has become a new reason to celebrate. I believe they are called revealing parties. Excited expectant parents share the good news of whether they are having a boy or a girl.

As I approach Christmas, I remember 23 years ago when we were expecting our first child. My doctor didn't routinely do ultrasounds. In fact, believe it or not, he didn't even have an ultrasound machine in his office. So all through my pregnancy it was anybodies guess as to what I was having, but deep down I knew he was a boy.

Hundreds of years earlier when women didn't even go to the doctor for monthly examinations, God held his own revealing party. God sent his messenger down to let a young lady know she was going to have a son. Not just any son, but the son of God.

People had been waiting hundreds of years for this promised child to be born. They knew He was coming they just didn't know when. God had it timed out into His perfect plan.

Mary did indeed give birth to a son. Sure it wasn't in the cleanest of places and she didn't have a doctor around, but somehow she and Joseph managed to bring our Savior into the world. She didn't have the luxury of resting in a hospital, she didn't even get much time to recover. Soon shepherds were visiting her and this precious baby.

In a couple days we will get to celebrate the birth of our Savior. Some of us will spend time with family, some with friends, and a few of us may even celebrate in the hospital. No matter who we're with, I hope that we take the time to remember the real reason for the day.

Merry Christmas!

Out of the Fog

He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. Psalm 40:2 NIV

Fog enveloped my house, the street was barely visible. In fact, my back yard even had fog in it which is a rarity. Our little dog was barely visible as she traipsed around the backyard. I was grateful I didn't have to be out on the roads driving early.

There are times when I've felt fogged in. I wonder why things aren't progressing they way I like. Or someone  in the family keeps getting sick and it seems like the illness just won't leave our house. Day care business drops to just barely enough money to pay the bills. Life is stuck.

Fog this time of year can even be harder to penetrate. There are things we'd like to be doing, but are unable to do. The traditions we once had have to be put aside. Someone we love won't be with us to celebrate.

How do we get out of this fog? "Remember allow extra time and use your low beams," the news-reporters remind us .

Sometimes the only way to get out of the fog is to allow the time to get through whatever is holding you back, and use the light of the one who can get us through all things. He can pull us out and give us a firm place to stand.

Does It Matter?

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. 1 Corinthians 10:30 NIV

Have you ever wondered if what you do matters? This past month has been rather challenging and I've questioned myself: Am I making a difference? Do people care about what I share? Are the children in my ministry getting it?

Over Thanksgiving, I was presented with a challenge. I was told that what I do is not my calling but an obligation. Funny, but I don't see it that way at all. God has given me a gift of working with children and I believe He has also given me a gift of writing. Sure the children can drive me up the wall, and I write run-on sentences, but in my heart I know this is what God has called me to do.

Another challenged I have faced is people wanting to take away, something that I believe is important. I've prayed about it, and I don't see God wanting to take this ministry away. We may shake things up a bit, but I believe there is joy of serving God in this ministry even when the turn out is low.

After all the challenges life brought about, my heavenly Father sent me a message. Isn't it funny how He can send you the message you need just when you need it. Funny thing is I had this box with my order in it for two months, I had even opened the box to get the book out so I could get the lessons for next month. It wasn't until I finally removed every thing from this box when I received the message I needed.

God knew I needed to hear that "what you do matters". The nights serving at church. The time taken to write this blog. Writing books. Texting or talking to friends. So whether I only make a difference in one person's life or hundreds it's important that whatever I do it's all done for the glory of God.