Thursday, May 21, 2009

DO I TRUST YOU, LORD?

  • My heart is breaking.
  • This is another one of those times in my life where the "rubber hits the road," as they say. Where I need to "put my money where my mouth is." Where I practice what I preach: trusting the Lord and His ways . . . even when I can't understand them or see the outcome or wonder why He's doing things the way He is, when the pain of what’s happening is threatening to overwhelm me, when I want to scream out “NO!” and take control of the situation and make it work the way I think it should go. And yet, with all my heart, I’m trying to pray, “Not my will be done, Lord, but Thine,” as Jesus did.
  • It's not easy for any of us, is it? This time we have to let go of our middle daughter, her husband and their soon-to-be-born baby, after enjoying their company and working in the same congregation with them for two wonderful years. She has accepted a call to teach and direct a preschool at another Lutheran school in another state.
  • I know it will be a wonderful opportunity for her to continue to use her gifts and expand her skills; and he will be able to find work there more easily than out here in the city. And the baby will be loved deeply by his grandparents there, of course. And I know we can fly back and forth to see them, as many grandparents do today.
  • But oh, how I had already planned the future I thought we were going to have. You've done that in your life too, haven't you?
  • I was ready to care for the baby on Mondays, my day off, and we'd go for long stroller walks and maybe I could get back in shape doing so. And we'd have all kinds of fun, reading books, playing in the yard, going to the ocean, riding in my blue volkswagen, flying kites, and watching him crawl, take his first steps, say his first words, then start Sunday school, and preschool, and get to participate in his activities, and have him come up on Sunday mornings for the children's message, and then come over to Mimi & Papa's on Sunday afternoons to give mom & dad a break, and have holidays together and celebrate birthdays up close and personal & do all the things that families get to do when they live in the same town!
  • And now, the plans I've made, many of which I'm not even aware of yet, are not going to happen. At least not the up close and personal part. So I'm praying for our "children" as they move away from us with all the challenges they will face so soon . . . and I'm praying for us as well as we try to adjust to what plenty of other people have already adjusted.
  • Lord, I'm not liking it at all right now . . . but I will trust You, and down the road, maybe we'll understand why this is all happening . . . and then again, maybe not.
  • Twila Paris' song, "Do I Trust You?" has always been an encouragement to me at moments like this in my life. May it be for you as well when you find yourself in similar situations.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION

  • Lately, as the weather has been so beautiful, I've been spending lots of time (when available) in my yard, trying to catch up from last summer not being able to do anything because of my knee replacement. What a mess that made for this year!
  • But also what a "fun" non-work activity (even though they call it "yard work", if you will, and GREAT therapy for most tensions.
  • This Sunday afternoon, though, rather than yard work, we went to the Washington Rhododendron Species Garden sponsored by Weyerhauser Inc. and beside the beautiful rhodies, we saw all kinds of native wildflowers and groundcovers and this beautiful BLUE poppy! We bought two tiny plants, hoping they'll bloom in the rest of our poppy patch . . .
  • As much as I enjoy plants and gardening, my real obsession is the same as St. Paul's, "I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead" (Philippians 3:10-11).
  • Enjoy Steven Curtis Chapman's song, "Magnificent Obsession." What has captivated all your attention?

Saturday, May 9, 2009

RESCUE ME

  • Snoqualmie Falls! What a beautiful site just 40 minutes NE of where we live.
  • A powerful force--incredible when it is at flood stage--very, very misty when the wind is blowing, and NOISY! And it spills 268 feet till it drops into a 65 foot deep pool below.
  • Can't imagine going over the edge! What a nightmare! And certain death. Not unlike our predicament as we are caught in our sin & dragged to certain a death if it weren't for Jesus Christ!
  • Because of His perfect life and sacrificial death, we are RESCUED! "The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom. To Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen" (2 Timothy 4:18).
  • Enjoy this song from the Newsboys, from their CD "Thrive."

Monday, May 4, 2009

HOW DEEP THE FATHER'S LOVE FOR US

  • I was born near the ocean and live near it now; can't imagine moving away from it. Its power always fascinates me; its size puts things into perspective for me whenever I walk along the shore.
  • Micah, the prophet, offers us such comfort & assurance of forgiveness in his 7th chapter, verses 18-19: "Who is a God like You, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of His inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; You will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea!"
  • Wow! No one can ever see our sin again, because it's buried in the depths of the ocean! Thank You, Jesus!!!
  • Enjoy this song by Philips, Craig & Dean, "How Deep the Father's Love For Us," from their CD, "Let Your Glory Fall."

Sunday, May 3, 2009

GOOD SHEPHERD SUNDAY

  • What a beautiful Good Shepherd Sunday! Lots of wonderful "lamb" music as one of our members said.
  • And how I need a shepherd's guiding, leading, feeding, restoration, correction, and loving care each day.
  • Because of it, "The Lord IS MY shepherd, I shall not want" (Psalm 23:1).
  • Enjoy Michael Card's "The King of Love My Shepherd Is" from his CD, Starkindler.