Obedience is not easy!

For the last year I have been really praying that God would use me and the gifts that He has given me.  With this prayer comes responsibilities that at times are not fun or easy.  Sometimes they can be quite painful...at least in the mind (or my crazy mind).

I thought my job at the Children's Hospital was it.  God did use me there but either I got in my own head or maybe it was a stepping stone to prepare me for something more.  It did stretch me.  I had been a stay-at-home mom for so long and was on MY schedule which was nice but the job made me step outside my comfort zone just a bit.

Recently I have been really asking God what He wants from me.  I really want to serve and grow into the godly woman He wants me to be.  Several things have come to mind, some of which I would not have thought of because they are things I didn't really care to do.  We will see.  I am trusting and that is what I have to do.

Well, on Sunday the 13th towards the end of our church service the pastor announced that they needed more people to go to Haiti.  I have always wanted to do a missions trip but the timing was not right and the call was not there.  This time I told my husband I wish I could go BUT there were so many reasons why I could not.

So I spend a lot of that week battling with God.  The list was long on why I could not or should not go and I told that list to God over & over but my heart kept coming back to going.

As we were heading to church on Sunday I thought to myself if they still needed people I would "check in to it".  Well they did and so I looked at my husband who was on the same page as I was and we went to talk to the pastor.  Yes, they needed more people and had prayed that God would bring the team together that day since the trip is coming up very quickly.  I had to give them a definite answer that day.  YIKES!!

After evening church I went to the team leader and told him YES I want to go.  Once I made that commitment a sense of peace came over me.  I knew I was being obedient to God.

"And this is love:  that we walk in obedience to his commands.  As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love."  2 John 6

I still have the peace knowing I am doing what I am called to do but I have been battling intense fear.  Not so much fear of going to Haiti but flying...yes I have a fear of flying.  Not crashing, although I am sure if the plane were going down I would have fear then.  This is just a fear of being trapped in the tube.  I know crazy...  Every time I even think about flying I get anxious.  I thought maybe I could drive to Florida then just take one plane instead of the 3 there and 3 back.

To be honest I have no idea why God is calling me to do this.  I do have a servant heart and have always wanted to do missions.  I have asked God--why now??  I have soooo many reasons not to go--why now?? 

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the Lord.  "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."  Isaiah 55:8-9

I don't know if I will know completely why now but it doesn't really matter.  If God has called me to go to Haiti then He will equip me with everything I need to do His work while I am there.  He will also give me everything I need to got on those airplanes (maybe some really nice meds to calm me).

I am being stretched much harder than I felt ready for.  I am stepping WAY outside my comfort zone.  Even through all the stress, fear and never ending thoughts of things I need to do and get before I go I still feel at complete peace that I am doing what God has called me to do and that is GO. 

I think of Gideon (and many others in the Bible that said they were not equip but God always gave them what they needed, when they obeyed Him) and how God used him.  Gideon was not the strongest or the bravest and was considered the least of his tribe but he was willing to be used.  So like Gideon I am not the strongest or the bravest but I am willing and I think that is all God wants me to be, simply willing.

In just over 4 weeks I leave with my team from church to go to Haiti.  My heart is already there and I have never been.  Funny how that works.  I leave you with one request--please PRAY!!  Pray for our team, pray for God to work through us, pray for the people of Haiti to be open to hearing the Gospel, pray for me and ALL my fears (esp. flying).  Thank you!

Valentine's Day!

I don't put much thought into Valentine's Day and I sure don't know how it all started but I do have a wonderful husband that does what he can to spoil me. 

The nice thing is he will do something for his (our) daughter on Valentine's Day.  When the kids were little he would make a big deal for her and I would do a little something for our boys.



For me seeing my man do something special for our daughter made me love him even more. 

I have been married over 2 decades and I am very blessed to have a man that loves me and likes to do special things for me whenever he can.  I like it when I get a card for no other reason than he was thinking of me and wanted to get me a card.  When he picks up a special treat from the store because he is thinking of me.  When I am having a bad day and he takes time to listen and hug me.

In saying all that I will say that on Saturday I was feeling a bit left out regarding Valentine's Day.  You see my husband has been very, very busy at work.  So much so I hardly seen him at all last week.  He didn't have time to really think about me and I was OK with that until Sat. evening.  For some reason it just hit me.  I had been missing him but seeing all the Valentine commercials (I was watching way to much TV) made me miss him even more.  By the time he got home late Sat. night I was in tears.  He was tired but still listened to me as I cried my way through my "rough" week.

It didn't end there.  He listened as I cried through part of Sunday.  It was nice to have him next to me in church but sad knowing that after church he was heading back to work.

With a week of little sleep and putting in 3 weeks of work into one he still vacuumed the hall for me and went to the store with me even though he could barely stand from being so tired.  I was so thankful and told him so.

I did get him a card and he got me some chocolates (I picked them out).  I do miss my Valentine on this day and everyday he is not with me.  I am spoiled and I am a big baby...I like having my man around.

I do hope your Valentine's Day is a good one and what you hope for.  For me I just hope my husband doesn't have to work late again tonight but if he does my heart & prayers will be with him.

Doing something special and letting the one you love know it is not reserved for one day a year.  So remember to let the ones you love know that you love them all throughout the year.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!

Your Cell Phone vs. the Bible

Correction...

AGAIN...I need to make a correction.  The verse I am working on is Romans 15:13, not vs. 14. 

Memorizing

I am great at remembering a lot of things but I tend to not do as well with memorizing scripture.  I have a lot in my head but I don't always get them "right" or the right "address" but I usually know where I can find them.

So I wanted to work on memorizing this year and I am not setting a time on any one verse.  I figure if I tell myself one a week then I set myself up for failure so I am just doing one until I have it and moving on to the next.

Last week I was trying to figure out what to memorize and while reading in one of my books a verse just jumped right out at me and I thought...AHA that is the one to start with this year.  Since then I have had another that has popped up in a few devotions and I am going to work on that one next...but one at a time for my aging brain.

I wanted to share the first one with you.  I made it into a card and have it posted all over my house and so far I am doing pretty good.  I have the first part down and now working on the second half.

I think this is a great verse to start the New Year out with.  I hope you find time to dig into God's word and find the treasures that await you.

Welcome 2011...

OK so I am a few days late but what's new.  Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and a great start to the New Year.  I know I have. 

With the new year comes changes.  A lot of people make new years resolutions...I don't.  I just have pretty much the same goals year after year---survive!!  OK, I have more than that but they are pretty much the same.  Does that mean I will never get it right?  Do I need to rethink how I think?  Do I need to change my goals?  Or do I just think to much?  (my guess is the last one)

I did a LOT of changing in 2010.  I started a job after being a stay-at-home mom for a long time.  That was a BIG change for me and a tough one.  I have no regrets taking that job since it taught me so much about myself and helped me to see a few things more clearly.

Today I turned in my 2 week notice to resign from my current job.  It was not easy but it was something I needed to do.  I was very thankful to my manager for taking a chance with me and she was very understanding.  I told her I believe it was a God thing that I got the job and that I had learned so much.  She agreed which was nice to hear. 

Twelve hour days were just not a good fit for me and that is hard.  It makes me feel old and I am not.  When I told my manager that she said they lose a lot of people due to 12 hour days.  I have to say if you work 12 hour days then you know what I mean...they feel more like 20 hour days.

So what is next you may ask (or maybe you don't really want to know but you have read this far and figure you might as well keep going).  I am starting a new job next week.  Two days a week.  No weekends or holidays.  No 12 hour days.  Same 2 days every week so it will make it easier to plan.  I am very excited and a little nervous but more excited.  Plus it is closer to home.  I still have one more day to work at my other job and that is next week also.  It will be a busy week.

So that is how 2011 has started for me and if feels good.
(except for the cold I have) 

I hope your 2011 is off to a GREAT start!!

'Tis the Season

Have you been busy?  I know I have.  Sometimes it is easy to forget the TRUE meaning of Christmas.  With all the shopping and grumpy people due to bad traffic and long lines.  It is easy to forget WHY we celebrate this time of year.

I will confess that this year has been a rough one on me.  I have missed a lot of church from either working or being sick.  This makes it more difficult.  I have had a hard time getting into the Christmas spirit.  Due to work schedules (with almost all of my kids and myself working on Christmas Eve) it has made me re-think how to "do" Christmas. 

It is interesting how things change through the years.  This is the first year we do NOT have a tree.  That could change, we have gotten a tree just days before Christmas before but with all the crazy schedules and the fact that we will be "doing" Christmas at my folks on Christmas Day it just doesn't seem worth the money and time to put one up.  I have not put up any decorations or anything.  In some ways it feels weird and in others it feels OK.  Things change as we change and our families change. 

It is nice to have the good memories & also fun to make new ones. 

I am just so very thankful & blessed to have such a wonderful family. 

So as the "day" fast approaches I stop and think that it is not about a day it is about the birth of Christ and the reason He came to earth as a baby and grew to a man.  A man that took on ALL our sins on the cross then rose again so that we may have eternal life with Him.  Now that is a GIFT!!  No returns, no exchanges...it is ours to keep once we except it.  

HE TRULY IS THE BEST GIFT EVER!!

So I want to wish you ALL a Very Merry CHRISTmas!!