Monday Morning Perspective

Kindness---not really something we experience often in our world today. I think Eddie was right, sometimes it's apathy and sometimes it's busyness. I think for most of us we just get so caught up in our own stuff that we just miss those opportunities and probably lots of times don't even realize there was an opportunity til we slow down and think "oh, shoulda, coulda". So many times it hits me later that I just whizzed by someone or some circumstance where I could have made a difference and I missed it. How aggravating that is. Eddie pointed out that it usually comes from being self-absorbed and we fail to even see the needs of others: GUILTY!! Praise God for His grace and mercy and a brand new day to try again.
I also never thought of kindness meaning a loving rebuke at times. That's a hard area for me (my kids would probably disagree with that). I mean who really wants to rebuke someone especially one you love whether family or friend. But I do know the older I get the more I treasure truth. Sure, sometimes that truth hurts our feelings but I do want friends who level with me. I'm way past the stage of my life that I just want everyone to nod and agree and then go off and bash me. I'd rather have it to my face. I am actually much better at taking it than giving it. I usually run from having to give the rebuke. Again, my kids would disagree. Oh well. My prayer this morning was for the Lord to continually remove me from my self-centered world and keep my eyes wide open for His ordained opportunities. Have a blessed Monday.

Monday Morning Perspective

Fruit that's always in season, patience. The message Sunday was on patience, anyone but me need that one. Cannot even begin to tell you how much I needed that one. I need not only to practice patience with others but I am so grateful that God and people in my life have exercised patience with me. Eddie did a great job pointing out from the little things in our daily life to the big crisis moments in our life we need to practice patience. Those little irritants such as traffic and checking out of a store along with the big things of life like Job faced can all be used by God to produce patience and enable our faith to grow. I have found lately that every time I begin to lose patience with someone, God gently reminds me how much I need the patience of others. How many times when I have been complaining to Him about the difficult people in my life who are irritating to me, that He has brought to my mind that I have been the difficult person to others more than once and done my share of irritating. Seems like every week throughout this study I have had to repent of my own actions or lack thereof. But that's the point isn't it. I don't like sitting through sermons that don't challenge me to jack it up a notch or show me some area I need to improve on or turn particular things over to the Lord. If I'm not interested in changing and growing I might as well stay home. I don't go to hear how good I am or how well I'm doing. I go to hear the Word and allow His Holy Spirit to work on me and through me. Praise Him that I am not the same person I used to be but He has so much work left to do with me. I'm so glad that He loves me just as I am but too much to let me stay this way. I need the challenge and am grateful for a pastor who does that every week.

Yesterday

O.K. so yesterday was Valentine's Day so I do have to give a shout out to my Valentine. Eddie has been my Valentine now 27 times. Wow, does that really sound as old to you as it does to me? We had 3 dating and now 24 married. OMGoodness. We don't really make that big a deal out of it. Eddie thinks it's just another way people try to make you spend money and feel guilty if you don't so needless to say we do not go overboard on that day. However, I think it is a sweet thought to set aside a day to be little extra aware of how we need to make our loved ones feel loved but saying that I definitely think that is something we need to do every day. Anyway, I do hope I get to celebrate many more Valentine's Days with Eddie. I was so young and terribly insecure when we got married that thinking we would have this many V Days together was more than I could even wrap my mind around at the time but God is so good and His mercy has been great over my life. How thankful I am for that.

Monday Morning Perspective

I hope you did not miss the service yesterday. Eddie is doing a bang up job preaching on the fruit of the spirit. It was on peace this week and boy am I glad I went to the 9 and 11:11. I needed that message twice. We had a rather dramatic morning at our house, aging parents and teenagers, need I say more. Anyway, Eddie played the sound bite from the pilot who landed the plane in the Hudson and his conversation with the tower. Just could not believe from the first time we heard that the calm in their voices. It sounded like they were ordering their coffee at Starbucks or something. I can tell you I have "lost it" many times when I was in the midst of something that in no way compared to what they were facing. He touched on the fact that our faith must go deep in order to weather the storms of this life. It really challenged me to realize that we can never go deep enough. We need to keep pushing ourselves to know the Lord better and keep growing and striving to be more and more like Christ. My desire is to know Him so much more intimately but sometimes it's scarey to think of the depths I may have to go to know Him that well. It's comforting to know, though, that He only has our best in mind. Thanks honey for the time you spend preparing and studying God's Word to present it to us each week.
Shout out to my Jessica. She won 2nd runner up in the Miss South Aiken pageant. You were beautiful darling and I am always proud of you, more proud of your inner beauty and attitude. It's the beauty of Christ that shines forth and makes you so attractive.
Busy, busy day today. Stephen has his first baseball scrimmage of the season at 5, John plays JV basketball game at 7, and Jessica is playing basketball championship game at 8. Are we a sports beserk family or what? It keeps them busy and me entertained. Gotta love that.
Have a God blessed day.

Still Learning

Ok, wow so much has been going on. Found out a few days before the student ski trip that I needed to go on that trip so I went into extreme overdrive, pulling out all my warm snuggly stuff, packing for 3 instead of 2, getting things prepared on the homefront for 3 males I was leaving behind (must say a huge worry for me wondering what my house would look like with only men in it, but they did pretty good. No complaints.). Have to say soooo glad I got to go and equally thankful for my husband who is very capable of handling things without me even though I like to think that he needs me probably more than he does. Huge thanks to student minister Jacob and his wife Jennifer for allowing me the opportunity to go hang with the kids.

About skiing...I am not very good. Eddie and I have gone with the youth skiing for a long time but it is still like teaching an old dog a new trick. Chrissie was the poor soul who decided to go ski with her mom and just let me say if nothing else I provide lots of laughs and entertainment on the slopes. Poor Chris, she is such a good skiier and I slowed her down tremendously. She was so patient but she did have to tell me, very nicely, that I was going to have to stop flailing my poles when I got nervous. I would just get to going much faster than I wanted to and I would panic and then everyone had to take cover. Just let me add this, I think someone needs to create some poles that you can actually use as brakes. I would pay any price.

I am actually a girl that loves the beach and 90 degrees + weather but we did experience the most beautiful scenery in the midst of very cold temps. It snowed all day Friday, had a chalet atop the mountain and it was breathtaking. What a creative and masterful God we serve! I could have stared out the window for 4 straight days and never gotten bored.

Two of my favorite times of the weekend apart from skiing of course:

1) Having some of the girls sit in my room and chat and laugh. Boy a few of them are just freaking hilarious. I laughed so hard I was crying. And then the ones across the hall laughing and talking (as only girls can with everyone talking at once, yet everyone knows what everyone is saying) with Jennifer. They are just a blast and I love them for their 0penness and acceptance.

2) The devotions at night. Jacob had the kids lead the devotions, prepare them completely on their own and it was awesome. I just continue to be thankful that he allows the students to do this and that they are willing. They are our church leaders of tomorrow.

All in all it was a great trip...no injuries (except one slight collision and no it didn't involve me or my poles), great bonding, beautiful weather (but frigid), and my house was in tact. We followed up the trip with the student Super Bowl parties that were fun and lots of good food. Did miss Sunday services so no comments on those but did hear good things, gotta listen on podcast so gotta go.

By the way when I can figure out how to put pictures on this thing I will post some ski pictures.