Wait, it Might Rain?

It appears that we will continue waiting for progress on our house. The plumber is done, but now there is an issue with not being able to get concrete. This is something that has been going on since 2020 and I guess will continue. I pray for the day that the concrete is complete and we can breathe again. Now we have rain in the forecast for this week. So, we spent a half of a day putting plastic on most of the foundation area because we don’t want to have to start from scratch. We are praying for favor with the weather and the concrete suppliers.

Waiting can cause an extreme amount of stress because of the uncertainty of what can be done in the mean time and when things will start over again. It feels like our supply chain and labor market are broken. Even on a grocery store level I notice that stores have a hard time keeping consistent product on the shelves. Many times we will try to buy something, just to find out the store is out or doesn’t carry it anymore. Some call it the new normal and I guess after a couple of years that is probably true. I guess we were spoiled in this country with being able to get what we want basically when we wanted it. Those days appear to be gone.

I could go on about the reason, but truthfully I am unsure that all this has one reason but rather many. One thing I know is that God is consistent and never changing. He listens when we pray with a humble spirit. He leads and guides us when we watch and listen. He comforts us and cares for us and I guess that is all we really need. So even though things around the homestead are a bit on edge right now, God knows when and how it will all work out. So for now we just have to trust his guiding hand.

I know that our world is ever changing. With the wars and conflicts going on the Middle East and other places there is only one place to look for guidance and peace. God is still in control in the small things like building a house and the large things like global conflicts. Please join me in praying for peace in the world and in our lives. I hope you enjoy your week and trust God to make it better.

Time Flies

It sure seems like time flies when I realize I have been married to my loving husband for 44 years. We celebrated our anniversary Friday and both of us are not sure where the years have gone. Looking back I remember all the struggles with finances we had over the years. By the blessing of God we have always made it and rarely ever had extra. After the children all moved out we started being able to save a little at a time. Now we are finally able to build our house. This has been a dream for many years for us and are excited to see it come to pass.

We have noticed that over the years it has become much easier to laugh together. We have learned how each other thinks and can sometimes tell exactly what the other one is about to say. I find myself asking Bob to help me figure things our when it makes no sense in my head and he does the same with me. We have learned so much about each other that it has become difficult to surprise each other.

When one of us messes things up the other can usually remember a time when they did the same thing. We learn and grow with each other and take time to listen and try to understand. Sometimes we disagree and that is okay, because it doesn’t change our relationship it just means that we have a point that is not mutual. Somehow we always manage to work through difficult times. I believe it is God who has knit us together and helped us to understand change and compromise when it comes to wants a desires. We both want the other to have the best and that is how it should be.

I have met several people over the years who have said that people don’t stay married as long as we have because that is just not what people do these days. But I tell them that I know many people who have stayed together for a long time and for me it is just that way. There are reasons for divorce, but we have never had a serious enough reason to go that route. We have committed to each other for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health until death do us part. I pray that we have many more years together before we part at death.

Marriage is a contract between two people which has give and take. It includes being selfless and caring for the other person. It includes focusing on the good in your mate and loving them through the bad. Time and love can knit people together if you let it. Getting married and expecting it to be perfect and easy is a wrong perspective. It is never perfect and never easy, but if you put the effort into it you can have a lifetime with your spouse. You can grow together and love each other through thick and thin.

I pray that God will bless you today and you will be encouraged. Enjoy your week and I will be back with more.

Rain, Freezing Rain, Sleet, Snow or Fog

The weather has been a little challenging lately. We had some rain, freezing rain, sleet and snow over the course of the last two weeks. I had my first experience at working from home. I really loved the fact that I did not have to get out in the slick stuff, but I don’t think I want to make a career out of doing my job from home. There are too many distractions in my little house. Luckily I was pretty busy with work things for most of the time I worked from home. It made the time go by faster, but looking out the window at the birds and deer outside made me want to go outside and I could not do that. This past week I was able to go back to the office, it seems to be easier to focus at the office than at home.

On Thursday this week we had very heavy fog that lasted until around 10 am. Driving to work in the dark was a real challenge. I have never driven through that thick of fog before. I took it really slow making my way to the highway, but right toward the end of the road before the highway the fog was so thick it scared me to figure out how to get on the highway. Car headlights were very dim and could only be seen when they were fairly close. When I made it onto the highway the cars in front of me disappeared, their tail lights vanished into the fog. It was rough for a while and then the sun started rising in the distance and it looked like the moon usually does, just a white disc in the sky. With it’s light I could see a little more of the traffic. I was very happy to make it to work.

Friday morning there was no fog and I was ever so grateful for the visibility. It made me realize how much I took clear days for granted. The drive was normal and all the cars were easy to see. We had some fun looking at snow flurries through the morning and early afternoon. Sometimes our lives can get messy with a fogged up mind and weather-like obstacles in our paths making it dangerous to walk the walk. These weeks have shown me to appreciate the moments when life is clear and the storms have lifted and I can see what is ahead. It usually takes stepping back out of the fog and out of the storm to be able to have a clear mind and get refreshed.

I find the Word of God can renew my mind and soul and help me realize what is important and what is fog. Life always goes on, the real challenge is how we deal with it as it goes. Do we know when to stay at home because of the danger outside and when to step out into the storm and continue to move? Do we know how to navigate the foggy times and bring clarity? In my life there is only one way to do all this and that is with God’s help and direction. He will lead if we will follow. He will direct if we will move. He always loves and cares for us.

Just like a baby trusting their mother to take care of them, we should trust God’s direction. I hope that when you feel yourself in the fog or in the storm that you are able to stop and listen to His direction and find your way to where you need to be. Enjoy your week and I will be back with more.

Chiggers and Clean up

Kitty using the grappler to move a fallen tree.

In celebration of our 40^th wedding anniversary Bob and I decided to spend some time on our 9-acre property. We took our tractor with a grappler on it with us to see what we could get cleaned up. Now using the grappler was fun for both of us, but unfortunately one of the jobs I wanted to do was to clean up an area that was located in the woods where bugs and such live.

There had been an old 40ft trailer in that area and several months ago we had it dragged out. That of course left trash that was in and around the trailer. This bothered me enough to want to clean it up. Having never used a grappler before I had planned to try to pick up the concrete blocks with the grappler, but quickly found out that picking up small objects is a challenge because they will fall through the gripper things.

Our neighbor Mary had wanted to see this area so I invited her over to see it. She hopped on her tractor with a brush hog and followed me. Of course, on the way she decided to brush hog the route to make it easier and then proceeded to brush hog into the area as much as she could before she ran into the trash. Then her and her husband Ted came along and all three of us picked up stuff by hand and put it into the big bucket on their tractor and moved it to scrap piles for recycling later.

I appreciated the help, unfortunately both Mary and I ended up with chiggers. I personally have around 300 chigger bites on my body. I am not in love with chiggers. I am not sure why God created chiggers and I wish that I had not accidentally ended up in a place where chiggers rule. The itching is not too bad when I am moving around and keep my mind off of it. Between oatmeal baths and benadryl gel I am doing OK.

The chiggers aren’t fun, but I really love our property and am willing to put up with some itching that I know will eventually go away in order to get it cleaned up. Getting outside and being able to feel like I am making a difference in cleaning up our environment makes me feel good. I know that God has given us this planet to take care of and Bob and I have found a place that needs some help. We are excited about making it our own and making it look good and eventually work as our home.

Sometimes I think that God looks at us and sees a huge mess, but He understands that we are a work in progress and He never gives up on us. I believe that we should have that same perspective when we deal with our planet and the messes we have made. We may see a mess with our eyes but we have to see a vision in our mind of the end product that will make it worth our time and effort.

God doesn’t give up and we should not either. I pray that you are encouraged to continue on this week no matter the obstacles placed in your way.

Psalm 85:10-13

¹⁰ Love and faithfulness meet together;
    righteousness and peace kiss each other.
¹¹ Faithfulness springs forth from the earth,
    and righteousness looks down from heaven.
¹² The Lord will indeed give what is good,
    and our land will yield its harvest.
¹³ Righteousness goes before him
    and prepares the way for his steps.

Enjoy your week and I will be back next week with more.

Peace in the Briar Patch

Yesterday Bob and I explored some more places on our land that we had not seen close up before. While walking in the field looking for something with Bob I saw a large piece of metal I had never noticed before. I called Bob over and he told me what it was. That lead me to try to enter the woods close to there, because I had never been there before. As we looked we both saw a spot that was a small hilltop with some briars that looked like a trail of some sort. I had to step over and on top of the briars to reach a spot that had a wonderful view with just enough space between briars for me to sit down.

Despite the moisture in the ground I decided it was time to sit down and take in the view. And what a view it was.

There was a small gully to my right that had a cedar tree in the center of it. And even though it is winter and the trees a barren I saw beauty here. The peacefulness of the area swept away all my cares and let me clear my mind for a while. I could hear the wind come from one direction, circle around and leave the other way.

Life is like that. We can live every day surrounded by a briar patch of problems that seem insurmountable but if we look beyond our patch of problems we can see the beauty that is surrounding us. Sometimes we focus so much on our briar patch and the pricks and sticks that we get when we move wrong that we can’t see the beauty and peace that is ours if we just look up.

If you have ever tried to walk through the woods where there are briars you will understand that you must focus completely on where you are going and if you are walking with someone else you must be careful to make a way for them or if they are leading to make sure they don’t allow what they are pushing out of their way to hit you. It is a tricky walk that will take all of your concentration.

We tend to get caught up in focusing on our briar patch of problems instead of making sure we make a place in the briar patch to look up toward God to get some peace and strength to move forward in our walk.

Of course having someone to help you when you are in a briar patch is great. Yesterday when I was thinking about getting up and walking out of the briar patch I got help from my night in shining armor–Bob. You see I had sat a little too close to some briars to get out safely so he went and got a tool to cut some down so I could get out without injury.

Psalm 46:1 (NIV)

God is our refuge and strength,
    an ever-present help in trouble.

I pray that we all seek the help of God and our trusted friends while we walk through the briar patches of our lives. Enjoy your week and I will be back next week with more.

 

Heart Check Up

February is American Heart month and with that we are all encouraged to take steps to change lifestyles in order to keep our hearts healthy and extend our lives on this earth. I believe that this is a very good thing for everyone to be aware and take steps to maintain and build our bodies into healthy mechanisms full of life. What about our inner hearts? The bible tells us:

Luke 6:45 (NIV)

A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.

I have noticed over the years that when I am under the most pressure in my life what is deeply buried in my heart will come up into my thoughts and try to make its way out of my mouth. Sometimes what is buried is not so pleasant to hear in my head much less to hear come out of my mouth. That is when I must re-evaluate my heart condition. I believe that God allows us to go through very stressful situations so that He can see what will come out of our hearts and so that we can witness where we still need work toward perfection.

Our lives are an endless struggle toward perfection in our hearts, attitudes and minds. Making sure that love is our motive is essential to keeping our hearts pure before God.

Romans 12:9-11 (NIV)

Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.  Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.  Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.

 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

This scripture is a great one to use as a heart check tool. It brings to mind all that we should be and if we are not living up to all of this it is time to get into the word of God and prayer to find out what is keeping us back from the purity of heart that we need to bring glory to God.

Next time you are in a stressful situation give yourself a quick heart check to see if you have some extra work to do to change your heart condition. I pray all of us will come out with nothing but love in our stress but if we do not then I pray we seek God to help us get better. Enjoy your week and I will be back next week with more.

 

Marriage

Many years ago, on September 8^th a nervous young lady was about to marry a young man. They had committed their lives to each other at the very beginning of the year. Neither knew what the future held in store for them, but both were excited about the possibilities. She had been in college, but could not wrap her head around finishing that path because she was expecting a baby and knew this new family would take all her attention.

Funny how she had never dreamed about a big wedding day or having a family, unlike most girls she knew. She had never dated much and was quite frankly afraid of most men. But this young man she was about to marry was different. He put her at ease and made her feel special. He loved her and it would take her many years to better understand this.

The wedding day was the most special day she had experienced to this point in her life. She felt it was all for her and she was not afraid to celebrate herself and her decision to marry this man. It was amazing to see people come to her wedding and reception to celebrate this wonderful day. Weddings are but a vapor in the wind, the real test of a relationship is the years after the wedding.

She vowed to herself that she would avoid things she had seen in other marriages—and that meant that she would have to be willing to compromise her desires in order to build a strong relationship. She was not perfect at this and there were many rough spots, but through it all they both chose higher ground and decided that they wanted to be together more than they wanted their own way. This is the story of my marriage.

I have had some people asked how we have stayed together so long. Here are some of my ideas.

• We love each other enough to give up some things in order to keep our relationship.
• We also have learned over the years how to give each other time when needed.
• There is also a need for good presentation skills. Demanding something gets you an argument but presenting an idea with the opportunity for your spouse to say no or take time to warm up to the idea makes all the difference in the world.
• Being able to accept that no one is perfect and being willing to help each other grow goes a long way toward a happier life.

Yesterday Bob and I celebrated 39 years of marriage. As we went about our day we thought of our wedding day and wondered where all the years have gone. We wondered how time went by so fast. We celebrated each other.

It was a rainy day so we decided not to go out. Our desire was to just be together, to dream and share life. I reflected on the years with Bob and what I realized is that he has been strong when I was weak and I have been strong when he was weak. He has always taken care of me, in good times and in bad. I truly believe that God brought us together and has kept us together all these years.

Every day brings new opportunities to learn and grow. Would you join me in learning and growing with your spouse, family and friends? Enjoy your week and I will be back next week with more.

 

God’s Perspective

I have been reading the book of Job. Now I know that some people do not like the book of Job because it can seem a bit depressing. But I see it as inspiring. I look at all that Job went through and how he kept his integrity and faith in God. He partially understood who God is and had a humble outlook on life in general.

I especially get encouraged and humbled when I read the chapters with God’s response and questions to Job. Beginning with chapter 38 I see a tremendous amount of questions to Job that explain what God has done and who He is. Then in Chapter 42 we see Job’s reply.

¹Then Job replied to the Lord:

² “I know that you can do all things;
    no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
³ You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?’
    Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me to know.

⁴ “You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak;
    I will question you,
    and you shall answer me.’
⁵ My ears had heard of you
    but now my eyes have seen you.
⁶ Therefore I despise myself
  and repent in dust and ashes.”

In verse 3 Job says “Surely I spoke of things I do no understand, things too wonderful for me to know.” It is such an honest humble statement. Job had been talking from a human perspective, but God is trying to get him to see His perspective. This humbled Job.

I always feel humbled when I read this portion and wonder how many things in my life  I try to explain but miserably fail because I use my perspective and do not understand the majesty of God. Someday when God takes me home to heaven I will understand completely but until then I must continue on with what I can understand and continue in His word to keep reminding myself that I do not know everything.

I hope that you will join me this week in getting a better understanding of God’s perspective of this life. Maybe even try reading some of Job. Enjoy your week and I will be back next week with more.

God made the Rich and the Poor

As I read my bible this morning I read this scripture:

Proverbs 22:2 (NIV)

Rich and poor have this in common: The Lord is the Maker of them all.

As I thought about this I realized that I always focused on the “poor” portion of this message because poor people tend to be looked down on. But what about looking at our world through the eyes of God. If he made the rich and poor, why do I tend to ignore the spiritual needs of the rich? Don’t they at least deserve our prayers for their salvation?

I know that some who are well off don’t think they need God because they have all they want in this world. But they do not know about eternity.  A lot of the rich are in positions of power in society. Don’t they deserve our prayers for their salvation?

As I read and listen to the “news” all I see is petty fighting for positions politically with slanderous statements. These people need our prayers. Now maybe I can’t pray for each individual that I see on the news everyday, but I can pray for some. I believe that God will guide each of us who choose to make ourselves open to pray for people whom we can see have dropped into petty bickering and fighting instead of fulfilling their positions in society with honesty and integrity.

So my challenge for the week is to begin to pray for those in society who are caught up in these battles but need to step back and realize that the people they are fighting were also created by God and can be respectfully disagreed with without petty fighting. Will you join me?

Enjoy your week and I will be back next week with more.

Show Me How

As I began reading the book of Luke, I saw two very different reactions to angelic messages. First you have Zechariah who was a priest in the holiest of places.

Luke 1:8-10 (NIV)

⁸ Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, ⁹ he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. ¹⁰ And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.

¹¹ Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. ¹² When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. ¹³ But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. ¹⁴ He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, ¹⁵ for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. ¹⁶ He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. ¹⁷ And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

¹⁸ Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”

My observations of Zechariah’s reaction to this news is that he did not believe in what he was doing. He was “gripped with fear” that tells me he was doing his job but not expecting that God would show up or answer his prayer. He was in a place where God should have been expected but instead of understanding his visitation he expressed his doubt in the messenger and made excuses for how it could not happen.

Six months or so after this there was a girl who was at home minding her own business when she received a message from an angel. She was not in a place where you would expect God to show up and she had a very different reaction.

Luke 1:26-38 (NIV)

²⁶ In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, ²⁷ to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

²⁹ Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. ³⁰ But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. ³¹ You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

³⁴ “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

³⁵ The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called^[b] the Son of God. ³⁶ Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. ³⁷ For no word from God will ever fail.”

³⁸ “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

Mary’s reaction was being a bit troubled about what the angel said to her but she believed it. She basically asked the angel to show her how this would happen, never doubting the word of the angel. She had a heart of faith and believed that even though she was not in a “Holy” place God could speak to her and she would listen. Her reaction was humble and believing. I really love the story of Mary and her innocent faith that accepted immediately what the angel told her, even though it frightened her. If you read on you will see that God made a way for all that needed to happen to keep Jesus safe until His time had come. I take comfort in this story and pray that my reaction to God’s prompting will always be one of faith and “show me how”.

The real question is, how will we react to His messenger in our lives? I would like to react like Mary did, “Show me how this will happen”, rather than like Zechariah by asking  “How can you prove this will happen?” By the way if you read further on about Zechariah you will see he was mute until John’s birth, he was given those months to understand that his sign was silence until the fulfillment of his promise. Sometimes God has to teach us a lesson the hard way, but in the end, we understand what He was saying and believe.

I see humility in Mary’s reaction and I believe that is the key. So will you join me this week in strengthening our faith by keeping a humble heart before God. Enjoy you week and I will be back next week with more.