Just shoot

I'm upstairs in our playroom listening to the bounce, bounce, bounce of the basketball just outside. It is my son. It is a good sound, the continuous dribbling with an occasional pause as he shoots. He practices out there a lot of evenings between homework and waiting for Dad to arrive home from work. Dribble, dribble, shoot. Dribble, dribble, dribble, shoot. Never moving the ball down the court; it is just a driveway with a hoop. But dribbling just the same. I suppose he is waiting to get his nerve up or just waiting for the perfect timing or perhaps that sweet sense that occurs just as the ball "needs to be shot". Whoosh! There it goes again!

How much time we spend waiting for the perfect shot. Dancing around the edges rather than stepping confidently into our place of purpose. Half-hearted attempts to know Him more. A Hokey-Pokey type of existence summed up with "you put your right foot in, you take your right foot out". Never fully committing to that which we have been called to. Our purpose.

So as for me, well it's time to stop dribbling around the court. It's time to turn my eyes toward the goal and take the shot. Releasing control of the ball. Putting aside the desire for my own perfect game. Surrendering all fear of failure. Giving my all over to this God that has proved Himself over and over. It is time to trust Him fully. Time to seek HIM earnestly. Time to live wholeheartedly for HIM and in HIM. Time to let HIM bring me into my own land of milk and honey. My purpose place. The purpose He created me for, that which will bring HIM glory.

Praise HIM!
Numbers 14:24 "But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it."

1 Kings 8:22-24 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven and said:"O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below—you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way. You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it—as it is today."

Joshua 14:7-9 "I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh Barnea to explore the land. And I brought him back a report according to my convictions, but my brothers who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt with fear. I, however, followed the LORD my God wholeheartedly. So on that day Moses swore to me, 'The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the LORD my God wholeheartedly.' "

Hebrews 11:6 "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. "

Time Well Spent

As many of you know, I spent this past week touring Washington, DC with my son and his 8th grade school group. I boarded a bus loaded with 13 and 14 year olds and rode for nine hours in a somewhat cramped seat. But the long drive with limited leg room was well worth it. It was a spectacular visit!(Although a bit frigid for this child of the sunny south.)

I felt like we took a quick tour through the history of America. Our visit began at the FDR memorial. Next, we visited the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum and viewed the many changes in flight that have taken place throughout history. We toured the United States Capitol and spoke with our Congressman who was busy making policy and law. We marched up the steps of the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials. We even treked along the same ground that George Washington once plod, Mt. Vernon. The docents there shared that in just one year, George Washington had over 612 visitors to spend at least one night on this plantation. Can you imagine the conversations that must have taken place as this young country began! But you know the most amazing aspect of this trip...it was that everytime I looked over I beheld this slender, bright eyed, red-headed young man alongside of me!

I loved being so near to him as he learned, as he explored, and as he interacted with his many friends and teachers. I was especially delighted when he occasionally ran up and swung his gangly 14 year old arm around my shoulder and and quietly told me "I'm glad you came, Mom!" Just a few simple acts allowed me to hear those precious words. Setting aside time from work. Packing a bag. Pulling out my snow boots. Three little things to prepare me for the great pleasure of walking alongside my boy. To know him better. That friends, is joy! Time well spent!

I love the fact that we have a Father who invites us to walk alongside Him. And all it takes are just a few simple acts. Setting aside a time. Finding a quiet place. Pulling out our Bible and partaking in the conversation He begins in His word. Three little things to allow us to know better this Creator of the Universe. This Savior of the world. To know Him more. My friends, that is joy! That is time well spent!

Deuteronomy 4:7 " What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our God is near us whenever we pray to him?"
Matthew 4:18-20 "As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." At once they left their nets and followed him."

Lord, thank you for inviting us to walk alongside you! For inviting us to know You more. Your word is a "lamp unto my feet" and I praise you for that light. I thank you that I live here in America where I am free to read your Word. Let me never forget that freedom. Lord, continue to give me and others the desire to spend time with YOU. For Lord, every minute with You is time well spent! I praise YOU!

Praise HIM!

Love Letter (re-post)

This is a repost from last fall. I'm off to Washington, DC with my youngest on a one week field trip. To my Chuckles, see you on Thursday!
Dear sweet precious one,
I remember the day you were born. You and I both labored for you to make your way into the world. Each of us struggling with one final push and then there you were. That moment everything changed. I was captivated by you. Oh, how I cherish that first moment when the doctor handed you to me. I held you close and watched you breathe. I felt your little heart beating so quickly under your tiny chest. I looked at your tiny fingers and toes, counted them one by one. I breathed deeply the sweet scent of your freshly born baby skin. I touched your nose and lips and precious downy hair. I peered deeply into your eyes and wondered what you must be thinking. I remember whispering "Hello little one. I am your mommy and I love you. Your daddy and I love you." Yes, precious one, everything changed.

It has been a while since we were first introduced. I no longer have to count your fingers and toes. But sweet child of mine, I still like to step into your room at night and watch you breathe peacefully as you sleep, or smell your sweet skin, or touch your hair. O child you are more precious to me than you were even the day we first met. I have watched you walk and stumble, pray and fall, wound and be wounded. I am still watching, waiting, hoping and loving. I love you dear child. A love that at times completely overwhelms me.

I am at once struck by both amazement and peace to know that I have a Heavenly Father who chooses to love me like that. A FATHER who has watched me walk and stumble and pray and fall. One who has watched me wound and be wounded. A Father who still watches and waits, who hopes and loves. Who calls me His child. Who loves me. A love that at times completely overwhelms me.

Father, thank you for choosing to love me. Sometimes it is easy, so easy to love my own beautiful children and yet so difficult to understand how you could love me. But I thank you that you do and I humbly accept your love Lord. I thank you for the moment that YOU changed everything.

Romans 8:38-39For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Praise Him!

You are what you eat!

In my house, we love Italian food. I mean we really love it. We have a theory that the greater the amount of garlic in a recipe, the greater the satisfaction to the palate! The only thing better than the enticing fragrance as the dish cooks is the savoring of each delicious bite. But tomorrow always comes. The garlic that delighted the previous evening greets everyone you meet with its noxious odor for the next couple of days. You try scrubbing. You try soaking. You try brushing. But try as we may, we can't get rid of the smell. Each breath delivers a whiff to those who dare to stand close. In short, we stink!

Did you know that when we fill ourselves up with Christ and His power, we can smell up a room for HIM. Not the noxious odor that comes along with last night's spaghetti. But the sweet, sweet aroma of a saving GOD who reaches to all the senses of the lost! The "fragrance of the knowledge of him" that "through us" Christ "spreads everywhere". Why that makes me hungry! For HIM! A hunger that is satisfied only with this God who fills up our lives, and penetrates all our senses. I want to be the child that with just one sniff, others will know whose I am. I want each exhaling breath to deliver a whiff, a whiff of an incomparable God! Who, when we are in HIM, makes us a new creation. Not a fixed up reproduction of our old selves, but a totally new creation! (2 Corinthians 5:17"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!")

So breathe deep. What do you smell? May each breath deliver a whiff of Christ who is in you. Anything else just stinks.

2 Corinthians 2:15 "For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing."

Praise HIM!

A Little Help

We all need a little help sometimes. On Sunday evening, after a good bowl of home-made vegetable soup, we all sat down to watch old home movies. It was so much fun. A memory walk down over twenty-two years of our family life. We purchased our camera shortly after the birth of our first child. And like every Dad with a new gadget, my husband filmed everything Ashley, our first, did.

He documented on film her laughing, her crying, her crawling, her walking, and her eating out of the dog bowl....Yikes! (You could hear me scolding him in the background on that one!) We filmed Chad our youngest when he was able to participate in his first Easter egg hunt. We would ask, "do you see an egg?" and he would respond the same way everytime in his 2 year old delighted and oh so squeally voice "Yes, I doooo!" Adorable, at least to us.

But one of my very favorite memories that we relived Sunday night was when Ashley, who was about 3 and 1/2 years old, tried to teach her one year old sister how to play golf. Our own budding Tiger Woods first tried explaining directions on how to hit the golf ball. Next, she tried showing Molly by example. " See, you put your hand here and here. Then you swing at the ball. Look Molly!" She finally grabbed Molly's hands and put them on the club "Like this Molly". Attempts by the young student to remove her hands from the vice grip were thwarted handily by Ashley. Determined , Ash continued on. At last, the teacher was able to keep the bare tips of her young pupils fingers on the club and actually swung for her. Encourager that she was, she then said "that was great Molly!"

We all need a little help sometimes. There are times when we need some explanation. Other times we need to be shown by example. But sometimes, sometimes when we just can't do something by ourself, we need a fellow sojourner to grab us by the hand and swing for us!

Lord, I am thankful that when we need help, You are there. I praise you for your Word which instructs us, giving us directions and DIRECTION. I am overwhelmed by how over and over You show us by example how to live. How to love. So that all men will know that we are your disciples. And in those times when we keep trying to do life on our own, attempting failed swing after failed swing, you gently grab us by the hand and swing for us! I Praise You LORD!

John 13:34, 35: "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."


Praise HIM!

Diligent Pursuit

Have you ever been on a long road trip when suddenly you looked up and noticed that there were no longer any other cars with your states' license plate on them? Where do all those cars that started out side by side with you on the highway go? When did they all exit? When did you become the lone car from your state en route towards your set destination?

I was thinking about that as I spoke with a student recently about his career plans. This young man, a senior in high school, with great theatrical talent, told me how others constantly remind him of how few people really "make it" in the theater. I agreed that those he had talked to were correct. Indeed, many of my students do dream of performing on stage or film and yet, historically only a few are living that dream. But I wanted him to focus on those who do "make it". What was different about them? Some would say it is luck. But most successful people, of any field, will tell you that what kept them on the road toward their destination was hard work. Diligence.

At just over the two week mark into 2008, I am finding that I need to be reminded of just how this "diligence" thing works. For I am quite sure that diligence doesn't mean "try hard for the first few days of the year and then coast". Nope. Diligence is defined as "constant and earnest effort to accomplish what is undertaken", "steady effort", "attentive care". Constant, earnest, steady, attentive. Not quick. Not temporary. Not rash. It is a life change that He seeks, not a momentary blink. It is a renewing and not a short term fix. It is a steady endurance of all that may come our way in order to reach our final destination. It is this constancy, earnestness, steadiness, and attentiveness that He is characterized by. So when Christ calls me to be diligent, He is calling me to follow on His road. For He himself, our Savior, traveled down a path that had a lot of exits available, none of which He took. Hebrews 12:2,3 finishes with "who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. "
Lord, let me remember your own endurance of the cross when I grow weary on my sometimes long road.
Ezra 7:23 says:
"Whatever the God of heaven has prescribed, let it be done with diligence for the temple of the God of heaven..."

Lord, I pray that whatever you prescribe along this long road, I will do it with diligence. For my body is Your temple, the temple of the God of heaven.
1 Timothy 4:15 reads:
"Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress."
Lord, I desire to give all my desires, dreams, and goals wholly to You, being diligent in my pursuits so that all will know I am Yours.

Oh Father, forgive me for so often taking the exit ramp instead of persevering down this road. Help me to stay on the path you have set before me. I await the day I arrive at my final destination, looking up into Your Devine presence. For the fullness of Your Glory awaits me! That is worth the long road!

Praise HIM!

Weather!

It's sleeting! Whoopee! Well, nothing is sticking, but boy you can hear it as it pelts down upon the street and sidewalk. And in the south, we are forever hopeful for an awakening to the big white stuff. Right this minute it sounds like there is a high-speed watermelon seed spitting contest going on right outside my window. You may not be familiar with that contest if you haven't spent a warm, sunny summer in little town, South Carolina. But take my word, it is one that is performed with pride at any number of our June, July, or August celebrations. It could happen at the Peach Festival, the Okra Strut, or even at the Annual Chitlin Strut (don't ask). I love this place. And right now, I'm loving the small slimmer of hope that the weather man has put out there for SNOW!


What a great God we have! That He, the creator of the universe, would take the time to give a bunch of middle aged grown ups and their kids, reason to run around outside in their jammies celebrating the momentary change in seasons! Ah, though it may last only an hour or two, it has filled our hearts with joy!

Acts 14:17
Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy."

Praise HIM!

Question

Have you ever felt so deeply for someone who later rejected you? If you have, you probably know the constricted feeling in your throat, that awful tightness, that comes as you try to hold back tears when he or she calls after a long bout of silence. So, here is my question. Do you think that God Himself, who longs for a relationship with us all, gets that same choked up feeling when He is rejected by one that He created?

the transformation

Oh how much I would love to hug whoever came up with THE FOOD NETWORK concept! I think my husband and children would share that sentiment with me. Over the past 25 years of marriage I have cooked. Good, home cooked meals. But with very little variety in the dinner menu. Food Network changed all that! Do you watch any of the shows? My daughter Ashley and I were watching Rachael Ray in her 30 Minute Meals show last evening. We both commented on how much we admire how she conducts her show, which is really a lesson. She starts out by grabbing our attention and then grabs all the ingredients. Even the gathering of her ingredients from the fridge and shelf looks like fun, piling things all into her "garbage bowl" to carry it over to the counter. She then sets out with such intensity in heating the pan, dropping in some "EVOO", and dicing up the onions, garlic, or other vegetable. She grasps her knife with great zeal and begins to cut up a chicken breast, all the while telling us alternative ingredients we can use. It is this intensity and zeal that is so contagious. And always true to her shows name, a delicious meal is all plated and ready to eat in "just 30 minutes".
I think it is her attentiveness to her audience and their busy life that makes this show so successful. For although the purpose of the show may be to demonstrate how to change simple staples into a wonderful meal, the real beauty is that she has changed simple viewers into cooks. All this because she tells us we can and then shows us how. Replacing thoughts like "there is nothing to cook" with "there is something here I can put together". Substituting feelings of inadequacy at the stove top with knowledge of how to whip up a great dish in no time. That is empowerment! You just gotta love a gal like that.

What Rachael has managed to do for lowly kitchen slaves like me, our God has been doing since time began for all men. Transforming the lives of lowly sinners into people who live and serve and become ever more like HIM.
Philippians 3:21"who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body."
Who replaces thoughts of "I'll never be good enough" with the truth that HE alone is good enough!
Romans 8:1-3"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering"
Who substitutes the wages of my filth and sin with the willing sacrifice of His precious atoning blood. Blood spilled for me. For us.
1 Peter 1: 18-19:"For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect."
You just gotta love a God like that!
Praise HIM!

The Modem

Modem:–noun1.an electronic device that makes possible the transmission of data to or from a computer via telephone or other communication lines.
–verb 2.to send or receive information, data
To all you much more technologically savvy friends, you already knew this definition. I had heard the word tossed around several times never giving it much thought since my husband is my very own "go-to man" when it comes to anything techie. Typing I can do. Surfing I can do. But reconfiguring or rebooting or re-anything is way out of my area of expertise. And so, I didn't really understand a modem's use or it's importance. Until it stopped working. So now you know why I have been off-line the last several days. My husband has been out of town and I was home with a broken computer.

I cannot even count the number of times I attempted to connect to the internet. Last evening, after much long-distance coaxing from my husband, I even tried to unplug lines and re-start the computer. Then I finally gave up on the methods I had tried and I called for help. Did you know that the Time-Warner cable technical support team was just waiting for me to call? Emily, the precious tech, pronounced the diagnosis right over the phone! She thought the modem didn't work. She was right. The cable worked. The computer worked. But the little electronic device that transmits incoming and outgoing data had seen it's final day. Therefore, even with power, the internet was inaccessible. I only wish I had not waited for days to call.

I've experienced this before. Oh, not with the cable. But with my own faith walk. Maybe you have had these times yourself. Times when you desperately try over and over to reconnect. Furiously attempting to create a breakthrough. Knowing full well that there was a problem. But not wanting to give in to defeat. All the while slipping deeper and deeper into "the mud and mire". Allowing our heart to harden slowly, becoming less sensitive to His prompting. What I have learned, mostly the hard way, is that I should just give up. Call for help. Those of you who know our Savior know what I always re-discover. God Himself, the God of the universe, has been waiting for me to call. Waiting to lift me out and "set my feet" back on a rock, giving me a "firm place to stand". Waiting to transmit His forgiveness and mercy through my own little modem, a heart now ready to receive.

Oh gracious Father, forgive me when I am slow to call out to you. When I continually try to do it on my own. And yet, when I do cry out to You, You respond. Thank you for answering my call. Always.

Psalm 40:1-2, 17
"I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry. 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."
17 "Yet I am poor and needy; may the Lord think of me. You are my help and my deliverer; O my God, do not delay."

Praise HIM!