Faithful Friday: Operation Me

Most of us envision what we would do with free time.  Days with no schedules, no rules, no lists, just free time.  In today's busy world, is that even a realistic concept?  But if you had the opportunity for freedom...what would you do?

Although I normally saved my vacation time for family activities, every now and then, I would take a Me day. Being a homebody, it normally involved staying at the house in my PJs to read, write and watch movies. And it was nice.  Once in awhile.

I'm on day 5 of unemployment as I write this.
People have asked how I'm doing, and, "How you liking retirement?"

Well, at 37, that's not really a phrase I'm prepared to answer yet.  But I'm dealing with it (or at least trying) in the only way I know how... with a joyful attitude and lots of prayer.

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved,a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.  

2 Timothy 2:15

Last week, while out running errands, a gentle nudging led me to stop and get a devotion book for this new season I'm facing.  I picked up a few, flipped some pages, touched the covers of others, but this one book kept finding me.  I'd turn the corner and see it on an end cap.  Sitting down to check my phone, I again found a display at eye level.

Ok, God, I hear ya.

The book I chose (or rather He chose) is Whispers of Hope by Beth Moore.  It's a daily devotion that includes room for me to write and is focused on prayer.  Speak to my heart, sister.  And it lasts for 10 weeks.

Now, I'm not saying I want to be unemployed that long, but the studies I've read are shocking.  It could take more, it could take less, but I figure 10 weeks will give me lots of growth in Him regardless.  No matter how long it takes, my prayer is to find something which brings Him glory.

The first page was a definite sign He has news for me along this journey.

"God wants us to surrender to His will, but we tend to want a blueprint of His plans 

so we can decide whether or not to surrender."

Surrender sure sounds a lot like my word for 2013...Submit.  Isn't it amazing when we can look back and see the hand of God at work in our lives?  While I don't know what he has planned for me next, I do know and believe his promise that it will be 
for my good.

In the meantime, I'm catching up on DVR that's reached capacity, cleaning out and organizing the house, and helping manage Thanksgiving deliveries to over 300 through my church.  Oh, and starting that book - at least in my head.  Good things.  Truly blessed...

Faithful Friday: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

My one word for 2013 was Submission.
I thought I chose it.  Looking back from a mere six months later, I know it chose me. 

Never would I have imagined God would hand me lesson after lesson to submit. 
And there's still another half of the year to go.  Mercy...

Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope. -Romans 5:3-4

This week has pretty much been a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad week, part from one bit of very good news. Of course the good news far outweighs the bad, yet I find myself shaking my head at life’s turn of events. Timing, as they say, is everything.  And the news fairy decided to pile it all on at once.
In the midst of the good and the bad, there's also been some ugly.

Over the course of the past seven days, I would learn yes or no on the “C-word” and yes or no on my career. Ironic how related they both are.  In addition, and in a freak accident that only I could be part of, I would also suffer from a potentially broken rib.

Yea, I don’t make this stuff up folks.

Much to my dismay, I received some bad news about my job. My position is ending.  It didn't come out of left field, but I must admit it was a bit of shock just the same.  And in respect for an organization I've known and loved for over 15 years -and dedicated most of my adult life to, that's about all I'll say on "The Bad" of my week.  As I've done all my life, I put my career in God's hands and trust that he'll place me exactly where I need to be, in his timing.

The Good.  Well, that was really, really good.  For over a year, I've fought a battle with my thyroid.  Truth be told, it's probably beat up on me for years before we discovered it.  A "nodule" appeared a month or so ago and resulted in a long waiting game of many tests.  Lumps are never fun news.  And with one in my throat, I went in for the results this week.  Praising God for three BIG words, "it's not cancer!"  My thyroid is still an angry little thing that we'll keep fighting, but what I'm facing is much more manageable and for that I'm ever-grateful.

Oh, yes, the Ugly.  I'm sure you're on the edge of your seat. 

In true OCD fashion, I dealt with the bad news as only I know how and went into cleaning mode at the office.  I'm a rip the band-aid off kinda gal and knew it had to be done eventually anyway.  So, in organizing and straightening up, I dropped some papers off my desk.  From my chair I bent over the arm to retrieve it, only to find I couldn't quite reach it.  Go-go gadget arms not responding, I pushed a little more and stretched to grab the paper when - POP - a sound my body has never made shocked me into a standing position.  Pain instantly followed and I stood there gasping, in disbelief of what just happened. 

Did I burst my spleen?  Is that even where a spleen would be?  Seriously, am I such a wimp that I can't even pick up a piece of paper without getting hurt?!  With my pride and my side stinging, I tried to continue through my afternoon.  I discovered that standing made it significantly worse so I huddled down and reverted to laptop work for the remainder of my day. 

By the time I got home that evening, I was in intense pain but still in complete denial.  A google search and webMD had diagnosed me with either a broken rib or a bunch of disorders I can't say or spell.  While at the doctor for the big news test results, I had her check and she promptly sent me for an x-ray.  (Confirmed results are still unknown.) 

In reflecting on the past week, submission kept whispering to me.  It led me to recall my "one word" and to go back and read my entry the beginning of this year.  How positive and upbeat I was, ready to hand it over to God.  How quickly I forgot...and failed.  On all three of these cases, I've had no control of the outcome.  Well, unless you count the lesson learned to not be lazy and stretch your body beyond it's physical limits to retrieve a piece of paper.  At any rate, they were and are reminders of the fact I've far from mastered this one word. 

I stressed.  I worried.  I was unkind to my family.  Much like an ostrich, I retreated and tried to pull the cover over my head.  I did pray but I wasn't very patient and I was certainly not very trusting.  I wanted to fix this and it frustrated me when I couldn't.  So, I'm dusting myself off and trying again.

It's Happy New Year x2.  Like Christmas in July, I'm celebrating an opportunity to start anew this summer and truly and freely Submit.  I may not always understand the answers but I'm trusting Him through it all.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. -Proverbs 3:5

 

 

 

 

Faithful Friday: Bossy Pants

Tim and I shared a sweet connection the other night.  Finished with our devotion, we were facing each other in the bed, with the soft glow of the lamp cast around us.  I asked him why he first fell in love with me and was surprised with his answer.

"Your personality," he said without a pause.

Really? I thought and exclaimed.  For whatever reason, this just shocked me. 

Maybe it is just because God's really been working on me.  Since selecting my One Word for 2013, he continually speaks to me on submitting.  To him.  To my husband.  And I know that I haven't always done this.  Especially with Tim.

It seems backwards but sometimes our family gets the worst of us.  I'm comfortable with Tim and I'm 100% me - all my faults laid out on the table.  I'm stubborn, opinionated, and bossy.  Yet, he loves me anyway.  Not just in spite of but maybe even because of my weaknesses?  Or perhaps love is blind.

Whatever the case, I know I'm blessed.  And I know without a shadow of a doubt that Tim is exactly who God meant for me - and I for him.  He paired us together in his perfect plan.  We balance each other, which is perhaps why our relationship has not just survived but thrived through the years.

After our Lifegroup tonight, I thought more on my sometimes bossy and persistent nature and when I've been the opposite.  Being married so long with Tim, I know where to push and where to let go and let God. 

Though we've always followed Him in our marriage, Tim and I weren't always in the same place in our walk with God.  At times, I longed for Tim to take the lead as the Christian role model in our home.  I saw the greatness that God had gifted in him long before he did - even now Tim doubts at times his potential and part.  I know God still has great plans for him though, but I've learned that I can't push this along on my timeline.  God will work on and use Tim in His timing.

But it's amazing to look back and see God's handiwork from our prayers. For years, I prayed that He would speak to Tim concerning Sunday school.  Tim just never found his place there.  Out of his comfort zone, he just didn't see the point.  Though I wanted him to be a part of it, forcing it wasn't the answer.  So I simply prayed. 

In God's timing, now in our new church home, I'm seeing a change in Tim.  He not only attends Sunday school now with me, he enjoys it and participates.  We are growing together, drawing closer to Him, and each day is even better and new.  And I'm praising God for answering this plea.

God has a beautiful plan for all of us, yet he calls us to pray for our spouse and lift them up.  Maybe some of these scriptures below will help you in praying for your husband. 

1. Romans 10:9-13 – Pray that he will confess with his mouth and believe in his heart that Jesus is Lord so that he will be saved. His salvation is God’s will for his life!

2. Ephesians 5:25 – Pray that he will love you as Christ loves the church and that he will sacrifice for you and your family just as Christ did.

3. Colossians 3:23 – Pray that in his work he will be devoted to working as unto the Lord and not to simply please man. Pray that by him doing so, he will be a light for Christ in his workplace.

4. Philemon 1:6 – Pray that he will have boldness in sharing his faith with others, bringing many to faith in Christ.

5. Acts 16:31 – Pray that his faith in Christ will pave the way for the salvation of his entire family. God is able to soften the hardest of hearts!

6. Romans 12:2 – Pray that he will reject the ways of this world and cling to Jesus Christ so that his mind will be renewed by truth and he will be able to know and understand God’s will for himself and your family.

7. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 – Pray that his love would be patient and kind, and that as he loves like Jesus loves, healthy relationships in all areas of his life would be the result.

8. Galatians 5:16 – Pray that he will daily walk in the Spirit and by the fruit of the Spirit so that he does not fall prey to sin and its temptations.

9. Ephesians 5:1-2 – Pray that he becomes increasingly more like Jesus Christ, imitating Him in all that he does so that his life will leave a lasting impact on others.

10. Philippians 2:3-5 – Pray that in all things, his attitude would reflect Christ’s and that he would live a life of humility, never seeking personal gain at the expense of others.

*Scripture Source: www.neuething.org