Monday Morning Memo: My God-Wink

If it’s happened once over the last 43 years of our marriage…it’s happened 100 times.  Every time I think it will be different, but it rarely is.  What is it?  Limp celery.  Now I know with the election tomorrow and people starving in many parts of our world, limp celery doesn’t take much precedence…but in the day-to-day world I live in, it drives me nuts.

 

Every time I buy celery, I think it will be different and I will make sure and use it all up before it goes limp, but I often don’t.  So, I then have to make up a bowl of ice water, cut the remaining celery into pieces, and let it soak so it can be saved.

 

But when faced with this heart-breaking dilemma a couple months ago …I did something wild and crazy which I had never done before.  I decided to cut the celery into small pieces and freeze it in small bags.  My brilliant reasoning was that someday I would be making soup and need celery and wa-la… tucked away in the freezer I would already have it ready to go.  Of course in the back of my mind, I figured that if I was honest, I would probably forget it was there and find it 5 years from now and not even recognize what it was 

 

Fast forward to a month later and Dan and I decided to make and can a batch of BBQ sauce.  I checked to make sure I had all the ingredients, and I had everything listed except…you guessed it…celery.  Now for many people that wouldn’t be a big deal, you would just run to the grocery store and buy celery…but we happen to live in the boonies and we are 12 miles from a store…so making an impromptu trip to town isn’t something we usually do. 

 

And then I had that “lightbulb” moment, and I told Dan about freezing celery a month before, but I couldn’t remember how much there was.  I went and checked and there were three cups and I only needed 1.5 cups so we were set and ready to go with our BBQ sauce plan.

 

Now, you would think that I would immediately put on my grocery list to get celery the next time I entered a grocery store, but I didn’t.  So, when I needed to make a big pot of chili a couple weeks later, I once again had all the ingredients except for celery.  I wanted to make a triple batch so when I did the math to figure out how much celery I needed…yep, once again you guessed it…I needed 1.5 cups.  That, of course, was the exact amount I still had tucked away in my freezer.

 

At this point, you are probably wondering why in the world I am sharing all of this with you.  I’m sure it has been riveting for you so far…but you may not have a clue where I am going with all of this.  Well, let me tell you.  Do I think it was just a coincidence that weeks before we wanted to make BBQ sauce, I did something that I had never done in 43 years of marriage (freezing the celery)?  No…I don’t think so.

 

Also, do I think it was a coincidence that I had frozen the exact amount I would need to make not just the BBQ sauce, but also the chili?  Nope, I don’t think so.  I happen to believe that all of this was a God-wink just for me.  I truly believe that this entire process was God-directed to show me that He sees me.  He loves me.  He cares about every aspect of my life…even if it just involves plain old celery!

 

I believe that there is someone today who has actually read to this point and needs to be reminded that God cares about them this much too.  If that person is you…I want you to know that He sees you.  He loves you.  He cares about every aspect of your life…even if it just involves plain old celery!  

 

So, whatever you are facing today…give it all to Him.  Let Him lead you and direct you, because His plan is far better than you can even imagine.  Who knows…maybe He will lead you to do something that you’ve never done in 43 years…just to let you know how crazy He is about YOU!

Monday Morning Memo: Me...Surrender?

Once again, I’ve had a word rambling around in my head.  It’s a word that isn’t always easy to fulfill or live out and I’m guessing that’s why it’s been on my mind.  The word? Surrender.  The dictionary has several definitions, but the one that jumped off the page at me was, “to give oneself up into the power of another : to yield.”

 

We are living in a time when very few really want to surrender.  We think that to surrender is a sign of weakness…of giving up…of letting someone else win.  “Why should I be the one to give in?  Why should I surrender my rights?  I’ve worked hard to get where I am…I’m not giving in to anyone.  There is no way I’m letting you tell me what to do!”  Sound familiar to anyone?  

 

This may come as a shock to some of you  …but I can be bull-headed…so I might have had one or more of those statements going through my mind at various times over the years.  To surrender might mean that I will have to give up some of my rights and that isn’t always easy to swallow.  It might mean that what I want to do…won’t be what I’m supposed to do…and that can easily rub me the wrong way.

 

Of course, there is really only one person I must totally surrender to…and that is my Jesus.  The reason is that if I am completely, unequivocally sold out to Him and He asks me to surrender my ways or my rights for someone or something else, I will do it willingly because I will want to serve Him in every way.

 

I think I sometimes struggle with this because I feel like I’m missing out on something if I have to give up my desires or plans.  But this dictionary definition of surrender has me wondering if it can be applied to my surrendering to Jesus.   If I apply it spiritually, could it be that if I allow Him to have complete control of my life, I’m not going to lose anything, I’m going to gain more!  It said, “to give oneself up into (emphasis mine) the power of another : to yield.”  Hmmmm…when I give everything over to my Lord, I’m not living under His power…I’m living into His power!  My power is exchanged for His power as I yield to Him, and I don’t know about you…but I’m guessing His power is a whole lot better than anything I can ever muster! 

 

Last week I read some verses in Romans 8 in The Message which said, “It stands to reason, doesn’t it, that if the alive-and-present God who raised Jesus from the dead moves into your life, he’ll do the same thing in you that he did in Jesus, bringing you alive to himself? When God lives and breathes in you (and he does, as surely as he did in Jesus), you are delivered from that dead life. With his Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ’s!”  Wow, that gives me goosebumps!  When we surrender to Christ, His power is in us and as I shared last week, the power that He used to part the Red Sea is the same power that we have available to us.  Oh, if we could only grasp that truth.

 

If you are struggling with surrendering completely to Christ today, let me ask you a few questions.  How’s that going for you?  Are you at peace?  Are you feeling led and empowered by Him…or are you feeling lost and weak?  We serve a Savior who is able to do far more with what you have than you can…so why not let Him take the wheel of your life completely today.  You just might discover that surrendering completely to Him isn’t so bad after all…and is the best decision you will ever make! 

Monday Morning Memo: A Red Sea Experience

Last week I shared with you that there are times when I become irritated and overwhelmed, but if I’m honest, I may feel that way because I have neglected to spend uninterrupted time with Christ.  You see, when I fail to keep my focus on Him…small things become huge, and I quickly forget the size of my God and just how powerful He really is.  I forget the truth from Chuck Swindoll when he wrote: “When God is involved, anything can happen.  The One who directed that stone in between Goliath’s eyes and split the Red Sea down the middle and leveled that wall around Jericho and brought His Son out of the tomb, takes a delight in mixing up the odds as He alters the obvious and bypasses the inevitable.”

 

WOW.  I continue to work on wrapping my head around these statements.  I know they are true; but to really comprehend them and believe them in my heart is sometimes another story.  If I really believe these words, then why are there still times I worry and fret over things in my life?  The God who parted the Red Sea is MY God.  The God who directed David to use a slingshot to kill a giant is MY God.  The God who caused a wall to crumble just by telling people to march around it, is MY God.  The God who allowed His Son to be crucified on a cross for my sins and then raised Him from the dead to give me eternal life with Him, is MY God!  But let my current situation get stressful and complicated, and I can immediately start worrying that MY God can’t handle things.  What a waste of time and energy!

 

I don’t know how you are feeling these days, but I found the past year of my life to be a “Red Sea” experience.  Tearing both of my Achilles tendons at the same time a year ago last August…began many months of pain and frustration.  There have been days of feeling like I am on the shore…looking over the deep sea…and wondering how in the world I would ever get to the other side.  Many times, I have had to remind myself that no matter what is thrown at me, MY God is bigger.  MY God isn't taken by surprise.  MY God isn't wringing His hands with worry…wondering how in the world I will get across.  He is right beside me and is able to make a way for me through the “sea” no matter what is in my path.  

 

Is there a “giant” in your path that has you scared and running the other way?  Are you coming up against a brick wall on your journey and you just can’t see a way around it?  Do you feel like everywhere you turn you are being “crucified” and treated unfairly?  Is God asking you to step way out of your comfort zone and you are shaking in your boots?  Or, are you on the edge of the shore and you have no idea how you will get to the other side?  Look UP!  Put your trust in the God who specializes in the impossible!  He’s not wringing His hands…He’s not wiping sweat off His brow, wondering how in the world you are going to make it through…and He’s surely not giving up on you.  

 

Just remember that whatever your obstacle is, OUR God is bigger and stronger and more powerful.  Isaiah 41:10 reminds us, “Don’t be afraid, for I am with you.  Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you.  I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.”  Amen!

Monday Morning Memo: Irritated and Overwhelmed

The family caught my attention as we sat eating in an area restaurant.  They were very nice looking and reminded me of the all-American family.  Mom and Dad, along with children who appeared to be teenagers. 

 

Of course, most restaurants are filled with families who fit this description and while I love to people-watch…I don’t often get fixated on one particular table.  I did on this day though.  It wasn’t because they were doing something unusual, because unfortunately they weren’t…they were doing what has become “normal”…but it still bothered me .

 

There they were, waiting on their food to come…each glued to their phone.  None of them spoke…none of them looked at anyone else…none of them interacted with anyone but the server.  When their food arrived, they did put their phones down to eat, but still no conversations were started.  It appeared that their sole purpose was to scarf down their meal as fast as they could so they could resume their scrolling.  I’ll be honest…I found it very sad.  There they were with a perfect opportunity to converse and connect with each other…to learn more about each other…but they found their mobile device to be more important.

 

But as I caught myself condemning this family in my mind later that day…I realized that while I was pointing a finger at them…I had four more fingers pointing back at me.  I recognized that this scenario isn’t much different than my behavior at times when I sit down with my Jesus to hopefully “consume” His Word.   How often do I let my mind wander while I’m supposed to be reading and listening?  How many times do I think it’s important to just do a quick check of Facebook or Instagram, but before I know it my scrolling has taken up my time?  I have a perfect opportunity to converse and connect with my Savior and to learn more about Him…but I find my mobile device or computer more important.  No wonder there are times I feel irritated and overwhelmed.  

 

OUCH.  I wonder how that makes my Heavenly Father feel, when many other things take precedence over my time with Him.  I wonder if He shakes His head…wanting to remind me that His blood was shed for me…but yet I can’t “sacrifice” some undivided time to spend with Him.   He longs to be with me. He yearns to teach me how to live so I will look more and more like Him.  But it is my decision as to whether or not I take advantage of His desire to spend time with me. He won’t force me to make the right decision…but I do know that He will always be waiting patiently for me.  Why?  Because He loves me that much.

 

He loves you that much too.   So, the question then becomes, “Will you and I accept His offer to spend some uninterrupted, undivided time with Him this week?”  I sure hope so…because if the King of Kings and Lord of Lords wants to meet with us…why in the world would we say no?   

Monday Morning Memo: The God of the Impossible

Last week I wrote about trusting God with those things we can’t see.  Trusting in the invisible.  Trusting Him…knowing He sees everything and is more than likely whispering to us, “Please my dear child, trust the invisible…because it is much more wonderful than anything you can even imagine or see with your own eyes.” 

 

This got me thinking about some statements we often hear.  “She doesn’t have a prayer in passing that class.”  “He doesn’t have a prayer in getting that promotion.”  “They don’t have a prayer in ever reconciling their marriage.”  “I don’t have a prayer in ever being any more than I am today.”  These are just examples of statements which can be made when you feel there isn’t any chance that a certain event will occur in those future happenings which appear invisible.  We’ve all had words to this effect come out of our mouth when something just seemed impossible.

 

Impossible.  The word is used when we think something is incapable of happening.  Just like when we say that we or someone else doesn’t have a prayer…we are totally giving up that there will be a good outcome when we use the word impossible.

 

I was thinking this weekend about these words, and it made me wonder who or what determines or influences when I give up.  Am I coming to this conclusion because I have hard facts, or do I rush to this assumption because I am taking into account my limitations…my shortcomings…myinadequacies or someone else’s limitations…shortcomings…or inadequacies?  Am I looking at the situation through God’s eyes and His strength and power…or my own?

 

If I look to the Bible to find my answers, it tells me what I need to know about “not having a prayer”.  Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.  Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done.  Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand.  His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”  Notice it doesn’t say to pray about only those things of which you know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, will work out.  It says to pray about everything!  So even if you doubt something will happen…pray about it anyway.  We ALWAYS have a prayer!

 

And the impossible?  Mark 10:27 tells us, “Jesus looked at them intently and said, ‘Humanly speaking, it is impossible.  But not with God.  Everything is possible with God’”.  So whatever situation we say “doesn’t have a prayer” …we are looking at it from our human perspective.  Everything is possible with God!

As the graphic says, we serve the God of the impossible and because of that, Satan doesn’t want us praying because he knows the power that our God has…the power to do the impossible.  Satan knows that God can take our limitations…shortcomings…and inadequacies and use them for His glory as the impossible is accomplished.  And in doing so…Satan’s impact will be lessened and someday my friend, he will be totally defeated!  Hallelujah!

Monday Morning Memo: Seeing The Invisible

“Accomplishing the impossible begins with seeing the invisible.”  I saw this quote by Steven Furtick and it has stuck in my mind.  I come across something like this and I immediately agree with what it says…but then living it out doesn’t come so easy.

 

Why is it so hard for me to see the invisible…especially when it comes to trusting God?  I trust many other things which I cannot see.  I trust that there is a sun in the sky even when it is completely covered by clouds.  I trust that there is going to be air to breathe as I go throughout my day, but I can’t actually see it.  Many times in my life, I have trusted that when I have been pushed into an MRI machine, the pulses of radio wave energy, which I cannot see, will take pictures of areas inside my body.

 

But trusting an invisible God, even though I have seen the effect of the power of His hand, is much more difficult.  When it comes to trusting Him, I want something tangible.  I want proof.  I want facts.  I want details.  And of course…I want results!

 

I have a feeling that I am not alone in this and I wonder how often God shakes His head at our ways.  Knowing how much He loves us and how much He wants the very best for us, I can’t help but believe that He is saying, “Please my dear child, trust the invisible…because it is much more wonderful than anything you can even imagine or see with your own eyes.” 

 

I think part of the problem, which we have talked about before, is that we bring God down to our size, instead of realizing how big and powerful He really is.  Nothing is impossible for Him.  Nothing makes Him wring His hands.  Nothing catches Him off guard or even makes Him break a sweat.  Absolutely nothing.

 

As some of you know, we owned a catering service for over 40 years and now our son owns it and my husband and I work for him part-time.  When Covid hit in 2020 and the state restrictions were imposed on the business, in an instant, the business went from having 10-14 events a week to zero.  The business phone rang almost constantly as group after group called to cancel.  

 

I remember when our son looked at me and said, “I never thought this would happen”.  Of course, we didn’t either…but I told him that even though we didn’t see it coming…our God did.  None of it caught Him by surprise.  He wasn’t wringing His hands, wondering what in the world we were going to do.  He was still on the throne and was still in control…even if we couldn’t see His hand at work.   At that point, our son had to make the decision to put his trust in the invisible…knowing that with God…all things are possible.  The result?  God was so faithful and accomplished the impossible to keep the business going, and even thriving, during those days.

 

What is it in your life today that seems impossible?  What do you want to see accomplished but you just can’t make yourself step out in faith because there isn’t anything tangible to hold onto?  Remember the size of your God.  What you cannot see…He sees clearly.  What you cannot do…He has already done.  What you cannot achieve on your own…He already has it accomplished and is just waiting for you to step into His plan.  I happen to believe that when we do this and when the fog finally clears, what we will behold will be worth the first step into the unknown.

 

“We don’t yet see things clearly. 

We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. 

But it won’t be long before the weather clears 

and the sun shines bright! 

We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, 

knowing him directly just as he knows us!”

1 Corinthians 13:12 (MSG)

Monday Morning Memo: Our Last Resort?

It is a statement I have heard said on many occasions…and if I’m honest…I’ve been known to say it more than once.  I think we often say it without really “hearing” what we are saying, and I can’t help but think if we really listened to the words…we wouldn’t say them again.

 

When circumstances don’t make sense…when a diagnosis knocks us off our feet…when the world seems to be unhinged and out of our control…we often hear/say these words, “Well, I guess all we can do is pray”.  Hmmmm…sounds kind of hopeless, doesn’t it?

 

Unfortunately, I think prayer is often our last resort…our last-ditch effort to make things right after we have tried everything else.  When all else has failed…I guess all we can do is pray. When things don’t go the way we think they should go…I guess all we can do is pray.  When there are more questions than answers…I guess all we can do is pray.

 

Sadly, I think we sometimes use this statement as a cop out.  When we don’t want to have to take action, but still want to sound spiritual, we quip, “Well, I guess all we can do is pray”.  Then we either don’t pray about the situation…or we do pray but never listen for an answer…because that might mean we have to do something we don’t want to do.

 

If we would really grasp to Whom we are praying…it would become our first choice instead of our last resort.  We can have a conversation with the One who created everything.  The One who is all-powerful.  The One who knows absolutely everything about us.  The One who knows our yesterday, today and our tomorrow.  The One who loves us more than we can imagine.  The One who will never leave us or give up on us.  The One whose plan for us is perfect, so we should desire to do whatever He asks…so that this plan will be fulfilled.  The One who is available seven days a week, 24 hours a day and we never get a busy signal or a lost connection.    What a great opportunity to take everything we have to this One who has given His all…so that we can have a personal and vibrant relationship with Him.  

 

We are all living in a world that seems unhinged, and I’m guessing that many of you may have additional stresses in your life which no one else even knows about.  Whatever you are facing today, know that this One…this One who even knows the number of hairs on your head…is waiting for you to pour out your heart to Him.  Don’t wait until He is your last resort…turn to your Jesus first and allow Him to speak into your soul.  

 

Oh, if the world could see us turning to Him first, maybe, just maybe, they might want to turn to Him also.  Our chaotic world needs to see the hope we have in Him; they need to see the power we have available to us which keeps us from yelling that the sky is falling.  They need to see that when things don’t go our way, we don’t fall apart, wringing our hands in despair…because our hope and faith are in this One of whom we can immediately turn to in prayer.  

 

I’ve been thinking…if we can make going to Him in prayer our immediate reaction, maybe our new response to our next life detour will be, “Oh what a great opportunity to go to my Jesus in prayer!”  That my friend…doesn’t sound hopeless at all!

“God's there, listening for all who pray, 

for all who pray and mean it.”

Psalm 145:18 (The Message)