Monday Morning Memo: You Just Can't Do It!

I have the privilege of being a year-round volunteer for Operation Christmas Child, which is a division of Samaritan’s Purse.  I love their mission statement, which is: “The mission of Operation Christmas Child is to demonstrate God’s love in a tangible way to children in need around the world. Through this project, Samaritan’s Purse partners with the local church worldwide to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and make disciples of the nations.”

  

Every year since 1993, Samaritan’s Purse has collected shoeboxes filled with toys, school supplies, and hygiene items for children around the world. Since this vital ministry began, more than 232 million children in more than 170 countries and territories have received an Operation Christmas Child shoebox.  The project delivers not only the joy of what, for many kids, is their first gift ever, but also gives them a tangible expression of God’s love.

 

This past week has been Collection Week for these shoeboxes.  Our Mid-North Indiana Area Team had seven drop-off locations, ready and willing to accept these boxes.  Since I oversee the Prayer Team for our area, our Team spent some time last week visiting all seven locations.  We wanted the opportunity to pray over the wonderful volunteers, asking the Lord to strengthen them and bless them.  We also wanted to pray over the boxes, asking the Lord to bless each recipient…that through this gift…they would come to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

 

If I may brag a little…I happen to have the most amazing Prayer Team ever!  Three women, Vicki, Susan and Kat, are absolutely wonderful.  Once each of them joined this team, they soon realized that Satan was not happy with their decision and the attacks began.  But through it all, they have remained steadfast and secure in Who they are serving and what His desire is for their lives.  One of our team members was too ill to be with us last week, but that didn’t stop her from praying for us and the drop-off locations while we were visiting.  These ladies are such an inspiration to me!

 

We set up a plan to visit four of the drop-off locations last Monday.  We managed to see three of them in the morning and then had time for lunch before the fourth location would be open.  So, we stopped at a restaurant in the town we were in, and had a wonderful time of fellowship while we ate.  I’m sure the three of us were not what I would call “quiet”…we never had a lag in our conversation, and laughter could be heard.  We also seemed to entertain a gentleman who was sitting by himself in the booth behind us.  He even said “Amen” when I finished praying for our food 

 

As we finished our meal, the waitress came to our table and gave us the surprising news that we didn’t owe anything for our meals; someone else had paid our bill.  We were shocked.  I then asked if by chance, the man who had sat behind us was our “bless-er”…she smiled and said yes, it was him.  Of course he had already left, so we couldn’t thank him in person, but the waitress assured us that he was a regular there and she would pass on to him our thankfulness and appreciation.

 

All I have been able to think of since that day, is the fact that we just can’t outgive God.  No matter what we do to serve Him…He blesses us more.  He does things like this to show us that He sees us…He knows us…He’s always with us.  And I believe He spoke to that man sitting in the booth…urging him to bless those crazy, laughing ladies sitting by him, by paying for their meal.  

 

All of this leads me to this question:  Who can you and I bless this week?  With Thanksgiving just a few days away, it is a wonderful time to reflect on how much we have been blessed, which in turn, should urge us to want to bless others.  I’m guessing if we ask the Lord to put someone in our path to bless…He will do just that.  We never know who might be dodging Satan’s arrows and need to be reminded that they are seen.  Or maybe there is someone who feels they are all alone and no one cares…and they need us to show them that we do care.  Or maybe there is someone who is seeking a different life…a life filled with the presence of the Lord…and they just need us to share our Jesus with them.  Regardless of the situation…I’m confident there will be opportunities to bless those with whom we come in contact…if we are willing to reach out.  

 

Believe me when I say…you just can’t outgive God.  So, when you make a point to bless someone…you will be blessed more than you can imagine.  Because we serve a God who specializes in blessings!

Monday Morning Memo: Being Mask-Free

I’m sure if you would have known you were going to see this frightening picture to start your week…you may not have gotten out of bed.  Yep, this is me with my red-light therapy mask on.  If you aren’t familiar with the benefits of red light therapy…they are finding that it:

 

✓ Stimulates collagen production


✓ Reduces appearance of fine lines & wrinkles


✓ Improves elasticity & firmness

 

I figure at my age, it can’t hurt to give it a try 

 

Of course, a person using one of these has to get over the fact that they look absolutely ridiculous during the “treatment”.  I mean…I look ridiculous enough without the mask…so who knows…maybe the mask is an improvement!

 

At least it is obvious that I have a mask on.  But, it does make me wonder how many times I wear a mask that isn’t quite so obvious.  Those times when I make sure I have the appearance that everything in my life is going just fine…but it really isn’t.  Those times when I convey that I have my act together, following the path that Christ wants me to follow, but if you looked under the “mask”…you would realize that I’m dragging my feet and not listening to His directions.  And those times when I do my best to make people think my marriage and family are perfect, only posting those perfectly staged photos of everyone smiling and getting along…even though we all know no family is flawless.

 

Of course, no one wants to know everything about my life and there are always things that probably would be better left unknown.  But problems arise when I…and maybe even you…make our life appear to be something that it isn’t.  We neglect to share our struggles because we fear others will think we are weak.  We neglect to share our inadequacies…because, heaven forbid, others would realize we are human.  And we never share about those times when we have sinned and greatly disappointed our Savior…because, well, again…we want others to think we are perfect.

 

Spoiler alert…we are all human and we all struggle and unfortunately, we all sin.  That doesn’t make it right…but neglecting to face these realities can sometimes turn others away…especially those who need to know our Savior.  If they don’t ever see our imperfections…they may think that they have to “fix” themselves first before they make the life-changing decision to follow Christ.  And that simply is not true.  Life with Jesus is a journey…where we have successes and yes, we have failures.  It’s a process where He walks with us every step of the way and accepts us right where we are…but has much higher hopes for us in the days to come.

 

It is only through Christ’s power and strength that we can face those things in our life which need changed.  Only He can shave off those rough edges which will hopefully make us look more and more like Him.  Remember, you and I were created in HIS image, so we really have no reason to wear a mask.  Letting others see that He still loves us, even with our faults and failures, is an opportunity to share with them a glimpse of our Savior’s love for them too.  

 

So, let’s work this week on being mask-free.  That is, of course, unless you’re like me and have fine lines and wrinkles that need to go away 

Monday Morning Memo: A Load Off My Shoulders

It was just a simple question by a friend of mine who I hadn’t talked to for a long time.  She asked, “So, are you and Dan going to Florida again this winter?”  She knew that we usually go for one to two weeks in January or February for a short escape from the cold winters which I happen to loathe.

 

I so wished I could have answered her positively…saying that we have the vacation all planned.  Instead, I gave her the Reader’s Digest version of my health for the past 17 months and as a result…shared with her that it’s next to impossible for us to travel at this point.  I still cannot lay down to sleep because I can’t get my breath…so sleeping anywhere but home just isn’t practical at this point. I then apologized for sharing probably way more than she asked for…because it was just a friendly, simple question to make conversation.  But being the gracious person that she is…she said she was glad I told her so she could be praying for me.  How humbling…

 

I have shared before that life just isn’t always what we’ve planned.  If you are like me, there are days when I can handle that fact and accept it…and days when I can’t.  I was thinking about this recently and wondered what makes the difference between those two different reactions…and I think it’s when I let fear take control, I tend to struggle to accept today’s realities.

 

Being a Christian doesn’t take the difficult days away and honestly, it doesn’t even promise that tomorrow will be better.  Let’s face it…if we were promised that life would be a bed of roses… Joseph wouldn’t have had horrible brothers who threw him in a well and then sold him as a slave. Stephen wouldn’t have been stoned to death.    John the Baptist’s head wouldn’t have ended up on a platter.  And I think my life is difficult!

 

What it does promise is the fact that we have a Savior who will hold us up through whatever is thrown at us.  He is our refuge.  He is our strength.  He is our all-knowing and all-powerful Father who assures us that we are His and as a result…we really have no reason to fear.

 

Deuteronomy 33:27 says, “The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.”  In the book that I wrote about last week, “How To Quiet A Hurricane – Strategies For Christian Endurance In The Midst Of Life’s Storms” by Justin Kendrick, he shared this wisdom concerning this verse:

“’Underneath are the everlasting arms’.  Underneath what?  Underneath your problems, fears, insecurities, and sins, God’s arms hold you up.  Underneath today, tomorrow, last week, and next year, God’s arms hold you up.  Underneath everything are the everlasting arms.   If you can grasp this single truth, it has the power to deliver you from every fear.  You don’t have to carry the world.  You don’t even have to carry yourself.  God is fully committing to holding you up.”  What a wonderful reminder that we don’t have to carry the world…or even ourselves.  HE will hold us up.

 

Wow…what a load off my shoulders!

Monday Morning Memo: A Stuck Ram

I have been reading the book, “How To Quiet A Hurricane – Strategies For Christian Endurance In The Midst Of Life’s Storms” by Justin Kendrick.  If you feel like your life is currently in the middle of a hurricane…I highly recommend this book.

 

The author pointed something out that I had never thought of before, concerning my favorite story in the Bible.  He was talking about Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son, Isaac, on the altar.  I have shared with you before that this story is my favorite because after God tells Abraham that he is to sacrifice his son, scripture tells us that “the next morning”, Abraham sets out with Isaac to fulfill God’s instructions.  No arguing.  No trying to “deal” with God.  No whining and complaining.  No…Abraham immediately obeyed His God.  That’s the kind of obedience I want to have in my life.  But if I’m honest…I’m a long way from having that level of complete surrender.

 

So that is probably why the Lord spoke to me last week when I read about another aspect of this story which I had never thought of.  The author of this book talked about the ram in the story.  Kendrick shared, “Just as Abraham raised the knife to take the life of his son, God intervened and told him to stop.  Abraham had passed the test.  At that very moment, he looked up and saw a ram caught in the nearby thicket.  He then sacrificed the ram in place of his son.”

 

I’ve read about this part of the story many times, but I had never thought about one intriguing detail which the author pointed out.  It is the fact that Abraham didn’t see the ram until he had lifted the knife to sacrifice his son.  A ram is a full-grown male sheep.  Smaller rams weigh about 120 pounds, while larger rams can weigh over 500 pounds.  This is not a small animal, and it would not have been quiet if it were stuck in a nearby bush.

 

The author wrote, “Have you ever seen an animal trapped in a thornbush, struggling to get out?  I recently saw a video of a horse stuck in mud.  It thrashed and neighed and flailed its body all over the place.  It makes no sense that Abraham wouldn’t have been aware of this animal while he was tying Isaac to the altar.  But he didn’t see or hear the ram because God’s provision isn’t fully seen until we are tested, and we surrender.”  OUCH.

 

There’s that word that makes me squirm sometimes…surrender.  I’ve shared with you before that I tend to be a control freak…so the thought of complete surrender to someone else’s directions – even if their God’s – can be difficult for me.  I tend to want to bargain with Him.  I want to only meet Him halfway so that I can still keep some control.  But as was pointed out in this book, “We trust God with half our hearts while we cling to our false notions of control.  We might experience glimpses of God’s provision, but we don’t see radical miracles because the ram only becomes visible once we’ve surrendered what we love most.”  Once again…OUCH.

 

Ever since I read this last week, I’ve been wondering what miracles I haven’t seen fulfilled, because God was waiting for me to surrender.  You see, I want to see the ram BEFORE I completely surrender.  I want to see my “way out” of a situation, BEFORE I give Him complete control.

 

But that’s not how God usually operates.  He wants us to trust Him enough to give everything to Him, without seeing the end result first.  Will it be easy?  I can only answer for myself and for me…it won’t be easy.  Will it be worth it?  Oh yes…I believe it will be worth it.  Because my goal is to have my story read:  “And the Lord told LuAnn to ________...and the next morning she obeyed.  No arguing.  No trying to “deal” with God.  No whining and complaining!

 

“God, your God, is testing you to find out if you totally love him with everything you have in you. You are to follow only God, your God, hold him in deep reverence, keep his commandments, listen obediently to what he says, serve him—hold on to him for dear life!”

Deuteronomy 13:3-4 The Message

Monday Morning Memo: SO Much Joy!

I’m sure you’ve heard that old adage that “opposites attract” when it comes to couples.  I’ve seen that as true with lots of relationships I’ve observed…but overall, this was not true with Dan and me.  I would not say we are opposites, since many aspects of our personality are quite similar.

 

We are both driven people, who can be perfectionists.  My grandma had a saying, “When a job has begun, never leave it til it’s done.  Whether it be great or small, do it well or not at all”.  Yep, we both tend to agree with this statement.  This can be a good trait to have…and sometimes it can be a curse…because we can drive other people nuts since we can expect others to have the same desires.

 

One area of our lives that was  a complete opposite when we met, was the areas we lived in growing up.  Dan was raised in the country, where his parents had a huge garden and grew most of their own food.  I, on the other hand, always lived in town, even spending my jr. high and high school days in a suburb of Los Angeles.  Trust me, that’s about as far from country living as you can get!

 

So, when we became engaged and needed to start looking for a home…there wasn’t a discussion on whether we would live in town or in the country.  Dan made it very clear that he couldn’t live with another home right next door.  It wasn’t going to happen.    I was fine with venturing out of town…but I had no clue what I was in for…but it wasn’t because Dan didn’t pre-warn me ahead of time.

 

Let me explain.  We bought our home several months before our wedding and Dan moved into the house.  One evening, I took my parents over to show them our purchase and we were walking around outside.  I saw a weed in one of the flower beds and so I bent over to very carefully pull it out…because heaven forbid I would get any dirt under my fingernails.  Yes, I wanted the weed out…but messing up my manicured nails wasn’t in the plan.

 

But Dan had other ideas.  He quietly came up behind me, grabbed both of my hands and plunged them deep in the dirt.  He then said, “LuAnn, you might as well get used to it from the beginning.”  I’m not sure who laughed harder at that point…Dan or my mom…because my mom never thought she would see my hands in dirt.  Let’s just say…Dan was fortunate that I was in love with him 

 

As the years went by, my mom continued to be amazed as she observed me gardening, using a pressure canner and learning to operate a garden tractor.  These were all things that I thought I could never master.  I also remember pulling into their driveway one day in our pickup truck and my mom met me at the door laughing.  I asked her what was so funny, and she said she just never thought she would see the day where I would be driving a truck.  I guess miracles really do happen.

 

Do you know what the biggest miracle was in all of this?  I learned to love having my hands in dirt!  Not only do I love gardening, I also discovered I enjoy canning and cooking and baking.  I was fortunate to have a wonderful mother-in-law, who I affectionately called “Betty Crocker”. She patiently taught me all the ins and outs of living and thriving in the kitchen and in the country.  

 

You are probably wondering where in the world I am going with all of this.  Well, I was thinking about all this the other day and the thought came to me, “What would have happened if I would have stuck to what I was familiar with and not attempted things that were so foreign to me?”  Besides probably having a lot more stress in our marriage…I would have missed out on a way of living that brings me SO much joy.  I honestly can’t imagine not having all these things in my life.

 

So, I want to ask you…is there something that God has put in your path which you are just sure you can’t do?  I want to urge you to give it a try.  Take a step forward in accomplishing something towards that goal.  I’m guessing if God has brought it to you…it just might be something that will eventually give you so much joy.  Our world is full of so many opportunities to help us grow and develop into the person He intends us to be…and I believe you have much more potential than you can even imagine.  Trust me…if I can have dirt under all my fingernails and enjoy it…there are things you can learn to do that today seems impossible!

Monday Morning Memo: Social Pressures

Honestly, I don’t remember if I laughed out loud, shook my head or rolled my eyes.  Knowing me…I probably did all three.

 

I was watching a YouTube video of a couple who are “influencers”.  You know what I’m talking about.  A couple who makes a living by sharing their day to day lives on social media.  I often wonder why in the world I waste any moments of my day watching stuff like this…and after what I heard on this particular video…I really thought I had lost my marbles perusing the internet.

 

The wife of this couple had a birthday coming up and so her husband said he wanted to do a “little” something special for her.  He said he had decided to plan a quick trip somewhere as a surprise…just the two of them…no kids allowed.  She had no idea where they were going until they got to the airport and he broke the news to her that their quick, “little” trip was to Europe.  Yes, their thought that Europe would be considered something small made me shake my head…but her response is what really made me do all three things I mentioned earlier.  She said something to the effect of, “Oh, I’ve wanted to go there for my entire life!”  Why did that make me respond in the way I did?  She was only turning 25 on her birthday.  

 

I’m sorry…but having to wait until the ripe old age of 25 to be able to go to Europe…just doesn’t seem that long to me.  Maybe she had a fascination with Europe as a very young child and so it seemed like an eternity.  I will try and give her the benefit of the doubt.

 

Watching this video made me so thankful that we did not have to deal with social media when we were raising our family.  Why?  Because I can’t imagine the pressure that is felt by young families to keep up with the “Jones’s” in our present society.  For most young families in their 20’s, going to Europe for a little getaway wouldn’t be at all possible.  Feeding their family and paying their bills is taking every penny they have and even an evening out for dinner without the kids can be impossible.

 

I can’t imagine the pressure and strain that social media puts on young families.  I’ve heard young wives share how they sure wish they could afford to go on trips.  They wish they could go on fun, extravagant excursions for Spring break, Fall break and Christmas break.  They see perfect, well-staged family pictures plastered on social media of those who are making those kinds of expeditions…and it can easily make them feel “less” or a failure as a parent. 

 

Please hear me on this…I’m not saying that couples and families shouldn’t go on vacations if it is in their budget…but my heart goes out to those who feel the pressure to try and keep up with those who do.  I want them to know that their children will be just fine if their break from school is spent in the same city they live in.  Their psyche won’t be traumatized…they will be just fine.  Having a secure, stable family life is much more important in their development than being able to travel the world.  

 

When we were raising our family, we owned a business that kept us from travelling during breaks from school and I remember at times feeling guilty.  The kids would talk about their friends going here and there and I would wonder what all my kids were missing out on.  To add to the equation…not only could our kids not be gone during those breaks…they had to work for our business on some of their days off!  But do you know what?  They came through those years just fine.  All three of our kids grew up to be responsible, wonderful human beings and I never hear them say how much better their life would be if they just would have been able to travel more as a child.  

 

If I can share some advice.  Love your spouse.  Love your children.  Create a safe haven in your home for everyone to thrive and grow in.  Don’t dwell on what you can’t do or have…instead, dwell on the blessings you have been given.  If you feel the pressure building on your shoulders…you may want to stay off social media.  Will you make mistakes as parents?  Yep, you will.  We made lots of mistakes and I wish I could go back and undo some of the things we did.  But as I said, God was so faithful in shielding our children from experiencing long lasting ill effects from our errors and what a joy it is to now watch them with their families. 

 

So, if your life today doesn’t look like the influencers on social media…please don’t dwell on that. You may be surprised to know their lives probably aren’t as perfect as they seem.  Remember, most of them don’t share all the bad days with their audience…they just publish the highlights.  If envy and jealousy is affecting your days after watching their reels…please turn them off.  Again, focus on the blessings God has given you and trust Him to give you what you need.  And then remember that your kids will be just fine if they have a staycation for their next break 

^“Write these commandments that I’ve given you today on your hearts. Get them inside of you and then get them inside your children. Talk about them wherever you are, sitting at home or walking in the street; talk about them from the time you get up in the morning to when you fall into bed at night.”

Deuteronomy 6:6-7

The Message 

Monday Morning Memo: Willing to Obey

I shared with you recently that I started milling my own wheat in January and it was one of the best decisions I have made.  I thoroughly enjoy the entire process.  There is something very therapeutic to me to start with wheat berries and in just a short time, I turn it into healthy flour.  I then use that flour to make our bread, rolls etc.

 

So, when I began praying a few weeks ago that the Lord would direct me to a new ministry which I can do during this time of health detours, the making of bread came to mind.  Every time I have prayed, I have felt Him saying that He is going to use this new found venture for His glory.  I still don’t have all the details yet of His plan…but I’m trusting Him to lead me every step of the way.  I’ve asked Him to just give me whatever feelings I need, to know how I am to proceed.

 

But of course, that means I have to be listening and then willing to obey   I woke up this past Wednesday morning, and I felt the Lord directing me to make four loaves of bread that day…one for each couple in our small group.  We were meeting that evening, so the timing would be perfect.  I wish I could tell you that I immediately said YES…but I didn’t and I’m not even sure why…other than I thought my plans were more important for that day.  So, I proposed a compromise, telling Him I would do it in two weeks, when our small group meets the next time.

 

I then sat down for my morning devotions and read the scripture for that day.  Nothing really jumped off the page at me, so I figured He was ok with me procrastinating on the bread-making.  Then, I picked up a book I’m reading on prayer, and it wasn’t long until I laughed out loud.  Can you guess what story was in my reading that day?  Yep, it talked about Elijah being in Zarephath and encountering a widow.  She was gathering sticks to prepare a final meal for herself and her son, demonstrating the desperate situation they were in.  The writer in the book pointed out that Elijah didn’t tell the widow to pray; he told her to bake a loaf of bread with her last batch of dough.  In other words…he asked her to take action…just like the Lord was telling me to take action too.  The time was now to obey.

 

I went to work making the loaves of bread that morning and for the first time since January…none of the loaves turned out.  I’ve had failures in my journey to learn how to make bread with fresh milled flour (trust me, it is different than using flour from the grocery store)…but I had never had four loaves all fail at the same time.  By then it was 12:45 pm, and because the particular recipe I had used took five different kinds of grain…I knew I didn’t have time to remake them before we had to leave for our group.

 

But yet, I still felt the Lord asking me how willing I was to follow His plan.  I took a few moments to regroup…and I soon realized if I used a different recipe that took less time to prepare, I could get all four loaves done before evening.  And that’s exactly what I did.

 

Fast forward 24 hours later, and we attended a fundraising banquet which had a silent auction as part of the evening.  I had not checked out any of the items before going, so we walked over to peruse the tables to see if there was anything of which we wanted to bid.  About halfway through, there was a beautiful basket with three kitchen towels, two loaves of sourdough bread, three bagels and the item which just thrilled me to pieces…the book I have pictured today.  To someone who loves to bake bread, a book entitled, “Big Book of Bread” filled with 464 pages of recipes, along with tips and tricks for making the best bread…was like a treasure.  I immediately put my bid in…thinking there was no way I would get it for that amount…but I had to try. 

 

Much to my surprise…I got the basket!  I was so happy.  To be honest, I couldn’t help but picture the Lord smiling down on me…blessing me with this unexpected “gift”.  And, I couldn’t help but wonder if maybe this happened because of my obedience 24 hours earlier in making the loaves of bread. 

 

It also made me wonder how many blessings I miss out on, because I’m not willing to obey.  I often think my plans are more important than His and so I ignore His leading or procrastinate and compromise and then never get around to doing what He asks.  Did He have blessings that He wanted to give me that I never saw…because I wasn’t willing to obey?  I may never know this side of heaven…

 

I still have no clue how the Lord wants to use my love for baking bread as a ministry…but I do know that He is willing to patiently lead me one step at a time.  I know I need to be willing to obey the smaller tasks that He asks of me…before He will fill me in with the bigger details.  Hopefully I will be listening…and then wholeheartedly willing to obey.

 

“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ 

and not do what I tell you?”

Luke 6:46