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Making choices

February 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment
windshield wipers Making choices

What choices are you making today?

Just like using your windshield wipers ones when it’s raining will not keep the rain off for the rest of your drive, we all need to make choices throughout our day.

I was just talking to my kids about how once they make a decision for Christ, they must renew that hope on a day by day, minute by minute basis.

We must choose joy. We must choose gratitude. We must choose to love God and love each other.

These things do not come naturally to us. But they do to God.

When we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us and fill us with His spirit.

So just like we keep our windshield wipers on doing our entire drive when it’s raining, we must be consciously aware to make little choices throughout our day to drive near to God and love others the way He loves us.

We love because He first loved us ~ 1 John 4:19

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Revolution

December 29, 2011 By

revolution red flags RevolutionWe are in the midst of a revolution.

To say that 2011 was interesting for our family would be an understatement: we started a new business, struggled with our health, traveled to new places, stretched our finances, and refined our marriage.

While I wouldn’t change any of it (well, maybe a few things), it does make me more reflective for the year ahead.

I know there are things we need to do differently so that we don’t simply survive each day, but instead thrive.

I just read this quote, and not only did it make me stop and think, but it truly sums up how we want to live from this point forward:

“Live with thanksgiving, forgiveness and joy, and enjoy all your moments as if they were your last. Someday, soon enough, they will be.” ~Debi Pearl

My father just turned 85 on New Year’s Eve, and I desperately wanted our family to travel to Chicago to spend it with him. While circumstances prevented us from doing so, I realized that we can’t let age determine the urgency with which we should take advantage of life! After all, we never know what tomorrow holds, so why are we wasting today?

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. ~ Matthew 6:34

So this year we are living without regret. We are embracing each day for what it is and recognizing that while we attempt to get organized and implement more routines, our schedule is not our own. We want to be available to those who need us, intentional in our relationships with God and each other, and purposeful in taking charge of our health, our work and our joy (it is a choice!).

So I want to say thank you in advance for all of you who have walked with me in this journey and for those of you who will continue along the way. I don’t know exactly what lies in store, but I do know that I am grateful for today and the promise of tomorrow.

Who’s ready to join me in a revolution?

 

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The Power of One

October 5, 2011 By

one man The Power of OneI was reading My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers this morning and was instantly reminded of the Power of One:

It took just one person to separate us from God through sin, yet it also took just one person to redeem us as well! Though Eve ate the forbidden fruit, forever changing the course of history, likewise Jesus erased our sin by His singular (& life-changing) act of dying on the cross.

I recently heard of a  9 year old girl who felt so compelled by the fact that children were growing up around the world without water that instead of asking for birthday presents as she was turning 9, she asked for people to contribute to building wells in Africa. She raised several hundred dollars just at her birthday party alone! Tragically, she was killed in a car crash just a few weeks later….but her legacy lives on. The story of her generosity made its way to the internet and people around the world rallied to carry on her heart for the cause. Today, over a million dollars has been raised – all because of one child’s heart.

If you’re feeling like today is just another day, take heart. You have the power to change the world! Maybe not immediately, but God has given you gifts that, if you live faithfully to those gifts day by day, you can change a life: in your family, in your community, at work, or maybe even online. You may never know the impact you have on another life, but that shouldn’t stop you from living your life in an impactful way!

Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned
~ Romans 5:12

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Sit Still

September 27, 2011 By

sit still Sit Still
I admit it. I don’t sit still very often.

*Pause for gasps of shock*

In fact, one of the only times I sit still is in church.

It’s so hard for me because I think of everything else I need to be or could be doing once I sit down away from my computer.

But don’t get me wrong; I still pay attention. As a writer, I write to process. So while I may be refining a to-do list, I’m also taking sermon notes.

A couple weeks ago, as I pulled out my planner/notebook, my husband leaned over to me and said, “try to put everything away today”. So dutifully I did. But not only did I have trouble listening to our pastor, but my mind started to wander even more…and yes, I got bitter at my husband for even suggesting such a thing!

I actually found myself listening to the sermon less than if I had allowed my normal brain outflow on to paper.

Think of it this way – in order for me to make more room in my brain to receive new info, I need to pour out some things onto paper. Some of the sweetest times I’ve had with God have been after I’ve gone to a quiet spot (I prefer my closet) with a legal pad and just “emptied my brain” onto the paper. I’ve filled up sheets & sheets in one sitting! I just write whatever comes to mind: items to-do, things I want to make for dinner, people whose face pop in my head, random words, bills I have to pay…you get the idea.

Once I’ve poured everything I’ve been carrying around in my head out on to the paper, I feel like I’m finally able to let God speak to me in the silence (literal & figurative). You see, it does me no good to sit in a quiet place if there’s a lot of noise in my own head.

Everyone experiences God differently: some will go for a walk, some wake up early and pray, some experience God on their commute singing praise songs in the car. God happens to meet me where I am, and more often than not, that comes when I have old-fashioned pen and paper in hand.

Be still and know I am God ~ Psalm 46:10

What does ‘being still’ look like in your life? Where does God meet you most often?

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Time for Change

September 13, 2011 By

time change waterfall Time for Change
Is it time for change? Sometimes it’s hard to understand why children act they way they do.  You teach them a principle and repeat it consistently, yet they still tend to ignore what you believe to be in their best interest.  This defiant behavior, which is not always intended to be such, can frustrate a person to no end!

Maybe you haven’t had this experience with children, but you can relate when it comes to a spouse, relative, or a friend.  You expect someone who cares for you to honor a request you make repeatedly, right?  When our demands, I mean requests, are glossed over, we begin to write the person off as not caring.  Instead of turning the other cheek, we reflect the same behavior back, hoping to teach a lesson and earn an apology.

Although this cat & mouse game can get old, it operates day in and day out.  That is until one day when we get a disconcerting phone call revealing one of the following: a death, a serious accident or maybe a faraway move.  Suddenly you would give anything to see that same child who consistently dropped their sippy cup, the spouse who refused to take out the trash, or the friend who never gave you more than ten minutes notice before showing up on your doorstep.

Why do we have to wait for tragedy to strike before we can take proper perspective and realize this life isn’t about us after all?

We believe that if others treated us better, we would in turn be better individuals.  It’s like in high school when I used to believe that if I only had a boyfriend, my life would all of a sudden make sense and I would be a happier person.  In reality, if I had been a happier, more secure person initially, then I would have had a better chance of having a boyfriend!

The key lies in where one derives that security…

Matthew chapter 5 warns us against pointing out the spec in our neighbor’s eye before we deal with the log in our own.  This type of outward focus is simply an indicator of self-centeredness.  Jesus says that in order to follow Him, we must first die to ourselves.  This doesn’t mean living a pitiful, martyr’s life, but instead following His two greatest commandments: to love God and love others.  When your life mission centers around these two principles, you begin seeing people in a new light, as God sees them:
You become less focused on what they think about you and more concerned with how you can help them see themselves through God’s eyes.
You worry less about what they can do for you and more about what you can do for them.

The amazing thing is that through this transformation of heart, you actually become someone people want to serve.  People find themselves wanting to know how to get the same light you have.  They want to hang around you more because of the higher hope you have.

Believe me, I have not perfected any of this (except for maybe the critical attitude!).  It is a simple truth of life God continues to reveal and work on in me.  If we’ve learned nothing else as we reflect on the tragedy of 9/11, let us not take anyone or any day in our life for granted.

Tomorrow is not guaranteed; today is all we have.

Let those you love know how you feel; take steps to reach out to those you haven’t loved on, but know you should.  “Whatever you do for the least of these, you do unto me…”.  We may not be able to change the world today, but we can start the process by changing ourselves. 

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Are you living?

August 30, 2011 By

Are you living?

On a trip to Florida last fall, the kids and I went to church with some of our favorite friends. We couldn’t bear to part ways, so we continued on to a bakery afterwards to grab a quick breakfast treat. It was such a beautiful and uncommonly cool day in FL that we decided to extend our fun together and visit a local pumpkin patch. Upon learning of the news, our friends’ oldest daughter exclaimed, “This is the best day of my life!”
IMG 7596 300x225 Are you living?When you have small children, you’re constantly amazed at how delighted they can become over the smallest things. As soon as I heard her comment, I thought to myself, “We should strive to make every day the best day of our life!”

And why not?! If we’re constantly learning and sharing, then it’s not unreasonable to look at each and every day as a gift that can improve upon the day before.

I once heard that there are really only 2 important questions in life:
1. Are you living?
2. Will you live forever?

While the answer to the second can seem fairly straightforward for us as Christians, I would venture to say that the first question may feel a bit vague. I would also go out on a limb to say that many of us are simply existing instead of truly living. We think, “If I can just make it through _____ , I’ll be ok (you fill in the blank…today, this week, this month…I think you get my point.)

The problem is that we’re not guaranteed anything past today!

If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. ~ Romans 148

As a blogger and writer by profession and passion, I often find myself working on my computer late into the night (with two small children, it’s really the only time I can coherently collect my thoughts!) However, fatigue inevitably sets in – even though I usually haven’t accomplished all I had originally set out to do. So, more often than not, I’ll leave my computer on with multiple windows open, fully expecting to return to it the next day. The problem is that my tomorrow doesn’t always allow me to pick up where I’d left off. To me, this is the exact opposite of living well.

As The Music Man so eloquently states:
“If you fill your life up with a lot of tomorrows, you’ll find yourself with a lot of empty yesterdays”

Where are you today? Do you find yourself sitting amidst a lot of unfinished business or living well? If you know where you will live forever, then there should be a noticeable impact on your life today.

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What Can You Be Proud of Today?

March 3, 2011 By
helping hands What Can You Be Proud of Today?

Photo courtesy of www.sxc.hu

If you were to die tomorrow, would you be proud of what you did today?

A morbid thought, you say? Perhaps. Yet I feel it’s very appropriate to ponder.

I always winced when I heard friends talking in college about how they were going on to get their business degree, then work in investment banking for a few years, then go back and get their law degree, then go to DC to a big firm and then to NYC. And THEN, by the age of 35, they would have achieved where they hoped to be in their careers.

My only thought was, “What happens if you don’t make it to 35?”

I’m not saying it’s not important to work hard or have a plan, but if you don’t enjoy the journey, you may never arrive at your destination.

I know, I know…easier said than done, especially from a girl who spent her whole life seeking approval for what she did. However, once I came to know Christ, I clung on to Matthew 6:34:
“Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

So simple, yet so profound. We are not guaranteed tomorrow. All we can do is live our lives in a way today that will prepare us for tomorrow, but should ultimately make us proud of who we are today.

This morning I read another verse that confirmed this:
“Don’t brag about tomorrow, since you don’t know what the day will bring.” (Proverbs 27:1)

Are you living for tomorrow, or are you living in today?

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Flawless

May 9, 2010 By

flawless devotion FlawlessIf you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Some may want to be taller or thinner. Some may wish they lived somewhere else.  Some of you might change your job.  Whether it is a physical, spiritual, or character flaw, it is probably safe to say that each of us would like to work on some area of our lives.

Although we were created in God’s image (“So God created man in his own image” -Gen 1:27), we all have fallen short of the Glory of God.  Thankfully, there is someone who is flawless that we can model our lives after.

“As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him” – 2 Samuel 22:31

God does not expect perfection from us.  We are covered by his grace and mercy.  However, he does want the best for us, and that only comes from living according to His word – His flawless word.

In the Bible, God has laid out the direction in which we should walk.  His Word is perfect; nothing in the Bible contradicts itself.  By admitting our imperfections and dependence upon God, we are actually glorifying God.

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me” – 2 Cor 12:9-10

Let us thank God not only for His word, but also for sending His son to earth so that we have a savior that can identify with every area of our lives.  Trust in Him and rely upon His grace.  Remember that acknowledging our own flaws is recognizing God’s flawlessness.

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It only takes a spark…

March 31, 2010 By
photo 1875 20081109 300x199 It only takes a spark...

Image courtesy of Darren Robertson

Back in my sorority days we used to sing a song that I believe was a version of a church campfire song; it went something like this: “It only takes a spark to get a fire going, and soon all those around will warm up in its glowing…”

I was reminded of this tune when thinking about how and when we share the gospel with those around us.  Sometimes I become frustrated after sharing what God has done in my life with someone; I’ll feel as if we’ve made a deep personal connection, but I don’t always feel like I’ve truly done my job in leading them to Christ.

All we can do is plant a seed.  It only takes one light in the darkness to start a flame.  Do not be afraid to share your story with those around you because you might be afraid of the end result.  If we light the match, God will fan the flame.

When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else.
– 1 Cor 15:37

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.” – Matt13:31-32

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Live for the Lord

February 12, 2009 By

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.

- Psalm 1:1-2

 

This first Psalm is a clear example of the difference between those who are living their lives for the Lord and those who are not.  Are you conforming to the world?  Who are you turning to for advice, support, and comfort?  Who do you surround yourself with?  Who do you depend upon for friendship and love?  Turn to God.  If you are truly one of God’s children, then you cannot walk with one foot in this world.  We are but strangers here.  Look around you.  What are you associated with?  Look to the Bible as your roadmap.  If we are on God’s team, then let’s make sure we’re studying his playbook! 

 

Our essential prayer should be, “Lord, if I’m not living for you, I live for nothing.” 

Filed Under: Christian Living, Faith in Action