Week's end with thanks
- Our old kiddie pool busting open on the side. Sharing with Dutch about giving away his toys and how God always blesses a cheerful giver. Then immediately after Dutch giving a toy away the neighbors giving us a brand new kiddie pool as they are moving to another state. Whoa! Amazing provision and beautiful lesson for my boy. Thank you, Jesus, for Your beautiful presence even in the most mundane of places.
- Six of us snuggled into Mom and Dad’s motorhome. Kids sharing the table-turned-into-bed. Too many giggles and not enough sleep but isn’t that what camping is all about?
- The little night-walker who wiggled her way into our bed every night. Not that I minded…
- Sleeping with my little ball of sugar nestled in my arms. That girl takes my breath away. Watching her sleep. Kissing her mouth, inhaling her apple-breath.
- Sitting up late in the darkness playing Scrabble with my man. I must admit, the ipad has its value…
- Sound of pouring rain pattering loud on the metal roof. Thanking God that we weren’t in a tent…
- Gordy & Sandy showing us the pirate village. To my son, whose latest obsession is pirates (which he learned about on Veggie Tales of all places), this was a dream-come-true. All afternoon spent exploring pirate ships and even getting his picture taken with a plastic sword. He even managed to rescue mommy from the mouth of a Great White Shark. Close call!
- Napping with my kids.
- Afternoon down at the beach, kids lost in their make-believe world. Damming up the small trickling river, creating pond for splashing, playing. Heidi falling headlong into the water. Soaked. Daddy carrying her back to the RV for a warm rinse and dry clothes.
- Hobo dinner.
- Fresh blackberry cobbler.
- Arriving home with plenty of day left. Hum of lawnmower and washing machine, hanging clothes out to dry.
- Family trip to Spicer Brothers and a little ice cream treat…
- Waking up to the sound of pouring rain. Oops! Laundry’s still out. Collecting dripping laundry, sopping wet. Having to run the drain and spin cycle to even get it wrung out enough for the dryer. Gotta love Oregon summers…
- Riding with kids in an inflatable kayak … in the garage. No water necessary, all kids need is imagination.
- Finding fresh raspberries and basil on my doorstep.
- Husband who steam-cleans carpets while I write Bible studies. Dreams do come true. 🙂
- Doing a work-out video with both kids. Crunches with Heidi sitting on my stomach (that’s a challenge!). Dutch telling me I needed to do the one-legged lunges with my eyes closed (“Because you’re advanced, mommy!”). Both kids getting tired and just lying on the floor while I finished. They’re pretty wimpy and whiny, but hey, it was fun.
- Another day of rain … the gift is that we’re saving on our water bill?
- Looking forward to date night — free babysitter, free movie, and free popcorn… with the man of my dreams. DOES it get any better than that?
- Washing lettuce from the garden.
- A salad with a tiny bit of grit … reminds me that it’s fresh.
- Hobo dinner — a new hit with the kids. Dutch, “Can we have this for dinner every night.” Have I really found a meal he loves that doesn’t include bread?! Hooray!
- Realizing I’m going to run out of space on this list. Too many gifts to count this week…
- Date night OUT with my man. It really is nice to get out of the house sometimes…
- The blessing of Bob Paskins watching out kids and the hilarious fiasco that ensued when Heidi woke up with a stinky diaper and was not a little surprised to find Bob instead of Mommy. Bob earns a prize!
- Blessed day with a blessed friend getting very pampered for a belated birthday.
- An entire cleaning bucket filled with assorted bottles of Mrs. Meyer’s Basil-scented aromatherapy household cleaners. This domestic diva’s dream come true!
- Getting affected. Being bothered. Letting ourselves be touched.
- 3.7 million opportunities for our glorious God to miraculously move.
- Jeff’s day off.
- Sweet morning coffee date with a dearest friend.
- Arriving home to hear happy shrieks of children running through sprinkler.
- Watching through the window — daddy wrestling little monkeys in the grass.
- Dutch’s ability to turn anything into a pirate ship.
- Packing the car for day at Detroit Lake.
- Taking a nap.
- Resting in grace.
F is for Famine (southern Somalia food crisis)
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat…” ~ Jesus
Famine was officially declared by the UN in two regions of southern Somalian on Wednesday. Relief efforts are complicated by the fact that Islamic militants aligned with Al Qaeda control the famine zones (Read more). Just this morning I read,
“The fallow ground of the poor would yield much food, but it is swept away through injustice” (Proverbs 13:23).
At this point it is estimated that 3.7million people are in need of “emergency assistance.”
Just to put that in perspective: That’s the entire population of Oregon.
Can you even imagine? If the entire state of Oregon were on the brink of destruction? That’s how many people this affects.
I know it’s not simple, but here are three easy ways to do something. Not out of guilt, but for the glory of God. Remember Jesus’ words:
34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
1. Pray
The greatest source of joy in my life lately has been the profound realization that our God is great, our God is glorious, and our God can do anything He pleases. He is not limited by our limitations, He is not bound by our weakness. Our God can work miracles, the greatest of which is the salvation of a soul. The greatest need of those in Southern Somalia is to know Jesus Christ our Lord. They will truly have nothing to fear if they know the One who saves their soul from death. Our primary responsibility is then to pray for the gospel to go forth in power in every region of Somalia.
We can also pray against corruption, against sin, against Islamic militants who are used by the evil one to bring death and destruction. Prayer isn’t our last resort it’s our first response.
Will you pray with me?
2. Give.
World Vision (and many others I’m sure) do have an effective aid-presence in Somalia and have reported that they will continue to provide help as they are able.
By giving here, your gift will be multiplied five times over and provided to those in the most need of emergency relief. Surely a few times skipping Starbucks and we can help, just a bit, the 3.7 million in need of emergency aid.
Will you give with me?
3. Go without.
I recently read a great post by a friend of mine who is currently in Rwanda. She talked about walking through the heat and becoming SO thirsty, and yet knowing that at any moment she could reach inside her bag and grab her bottle of clean drinking water. And yet, she remembers that there are a billion people who do not have access to clean drinking water. It’s one thing to read the number, right?
It’s another thing to get thirsty.
Going without a meal doesn’t make you any more spiritual, but it does give you a teeny tiny droplet of understand of what it’s like to not have food. It’s helps us, just a tad, to humble ourselves and remember our dear brothers and sisters who live like that everyday. Just one meal, perhaps?
Will you go without with me?
—
I do wish you a blessed and abundant weekend. He’s lavished us with extravagant love, hasn’t He?
{Thank you for reading.}
The most common fear we face…
We’ve been looking at godly confidence in the life of David. We saw that even in “worst-case-scenario” thinking, God will still be with us and we can rest secure in that.
But what about a different kind of fear?
In my opinion, it is not the fear of death or disease or bankruptcy or homelessness that really threatens my confidence.
It’s fear of another kind: fear of man. Anybody with me?
Most of the time I fear ridiculous things. Not life-threatening things, not even real things. I fear things like disapproval, rejection, failing people. Nine times out of ten, when fear knocks on my door it is wrapped up in people plain and simple. And the most perfect summary of this predicament comes, naturally, smack dab in the middle of God’s word:
“The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe.” Proverbs 29:25
This is getting right at the heart of what we talked about in Psalm 27! Safety. Our world cries for assurance and God answers, “Trust Me.”
We are confident when we are safe and we are safe when we trust.
Another way of putting it — when we fear people, we are not safe, not secure. Not confident. That fear of man is actually a snare, so if anything we should fear the fear of man! Flee from it! Run! When you see it creeping up in your heart act quickly and do battle because it is the enemy.
A few signs the fear of man might be creeping into your heart:
- Do you have a strong desire to make things right with someone, even if you haven’t done anything wrong?
- Do you get anxious over unexplained silence in a friendship or relationship?
- Do you rehash conversations over and over in your mind, thinking of how you could have said something different?
- Do you have to ask yourself if what you’re feeling is even real? If you’re discerning or just suspicious?
- Do you find yourself saying yes to things even though you come to regret it later or feel bitter about doing it?
- Do you wonder what other people say about you when you’re not around?
I only had to look as far as my own heart to find this list. Though God has done a tremendous work in my heart in this area, and I praise Him and give Him glory for it, I always have to be on guard in this area, because that creeping weed of approval-addiction can sprout up at any time.
But what if, instead, it looked like this:
- If you wrong someone you go to them, confess, ask forgiveness and restoration and moved on. If you did not wrong someone, you move on.
- If you sense a bit of distance or silence from a friend you sent a quick note to check on their welfare then left it and rested in your heart.
- You left a conversation with peace in your heart knowing God directs our words as we surrender to Him. If something sinful was spoken, you immediate seek forgiveness and restoration, then move on.
- If you have a hunch about something you take it to GOD and ask for His direction and wisdom, then you moved forward in confidence, knowing He would guide your steps.
- If you were asked to do something, you said, “let me pray about it,” and you really did pray about it, asking God specifically if this was His best will, then moved forward in obedience based on His answer, without apology.
- You actually asked one or two godly, wise, people, what they thought of your character and habits, then acted on that wisdom, without taking another moment to obsess about what the masses might think. (And chances are they don’t think anything about us because they don’t think about us.)
Doesn’t that sound better? More fun? The difference is simply, who do we seek to please? As the Apostle Paul says,
“For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” Galatians 1:10
We have to pick, yes? Every single day, we must choose our master.
Choose Christ today. {Thanks for reading.}
(Applied to Life) Psalm 27 {Confidence}
Yesterday’s post taught us three things about confidence from Psalm 27. I wanted to take this a quick step further by reminding us (you and me!) how to apply these truths to our life. Remember, all our study of God’s Word is for naught unless we are doers of what we learn (James 1:22). So we saw that:
1. David talks to himself instead of listening to himself.
Remember Monday’s post: The importance of winning the battle in our mind. How’s your battle going? Oh man, girls, I’ll level with you — the war has been raging in mine. Here’s what this means for me, whenever my mind “wanders” to the area of anxiety or hurt or insecurity or discouragement, we must speak the truth to our hearts. Here’s a few of my favorites to get you started.
Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God. Psalm 43:5
When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul. Psalm 94:19
Your turn: What are your favorite scriptures to speak to your soul?
2. David remembers the frequent deliverance of the Lord.
Remember the stones of remembrance? We must do whatever is takes to remind ourselves of all the glorious things God has done. This past week I was feeling discouraged and I went back and re-read a blog-post that detailed the amazing way that God miraculously provided our house situation exactly two years ago. It encouraged my heart in two ways: 1) God DID miraculously provide this home for us, so if He wants us to stay here we can rest in His good pleasure. 2) If God does want to sell it, He’s MORE than capable of doing so, and He’s done it miraculously before! So either way it reminds me how big — and how tenderly and intimately loving — our glorious God is.
Your turn: What has God done for you? How can His past faithfulness increase your present trust?
3. David strategically prepares through “worst-case” thinking.
This really can be a helpful way to process through our fears in light of God’s power. IF everything fell through, what would happen? As I take every anxiety and, in light of who God is, carry it out to the “worst-case-scenario” I soon realize that at the end of the imagined disaster God is still good. I’ll spare you my “worst-case” scenarios but go ahead and think about something that frequently causes you anxiety. Write it down. And then what? And then what? And then what? Quit letting the “what ifs” lurk in darkness. Shine that big ol’ light on them and see that in the midst of that darkness God is still our great and glorious (and tenderly loving) God.
Your turn: What’s your “worst case scenario”? At the other end of the disaster, who would God be? An further … who would you be?
~
Thanks for processing with me. I pray that godly confidence can grow up in our lives and flourish, reflecting the strength and power of our great God. Bless you guys, and thanks for reading.