Monday Morning Memo: I Love God

In just a few hours I will be boarding a plane and heading back to my home in Indiana. I have spent the last week in Salt Lake City, Utah at the Young Living Convention with thousands of others who love essential oils as much as I do.  We were told it was the largest convention ever held in Salt Lake City so I guess we were a part of history!

Days were filled with sessions that I had pre-selected on various topics and I sat under the teaching of many highly knowledgeable people.  They shared their expertise concerning the use of oils for children, for men and women, for cooking and just for overall health support.  It was exciting to here how these God-given oils are having such a huge impact on the health of so many individuals, just like they are on me.

What impressed me the most this week was what almost every presenter shared at some point in their teaching.  They made a point to acknowledge that they serve God in their life, first and foremost.  I heard comments such as, “I want you to know that God is the most important person in my life” and “Keeping my focus on God is much more important to me than making money or anything else.”

As I have been mulling this over in my mind, I have realized that I think so often we make sharing about our faith more difficult than we need to.  Those whom I heard share this week were so comfortable with their faith, that sharing was just natural for them.  They didn’t shake their fist at us or yell and scream…and didn’t have an altar call.  Their faith was just such a part of them that they couldn’t help but weave it in to their lecture.  It was obvious that they loved their God so much, that they just had to let us know Who was their focus.

How about you and me?  Is God such a part of us that we just can’t help but talk about Him?  Or are we much too worried about what others’ reactions will be or if they will think less of us if we tell them that we serve our Almighty God?

As we go throughout today and this coming week, let’s be intentional on using whatever opportunities God gives us to tell others about Him.  We don’t have to have a speech written out…we don’t have to have an elaborate game plan in place…let’s just share when God opens the door.  I think we may be surprised at how easy it just might be!

Monday Morning Memo: Imperfect People

I love Sundays.  I know many people spend their week counting the hours until Friday rolls around, but I’m that way with Sunday.  When one Sunday is over…I can’t wait until the next weekend when we get to be in the Lord’s house once again.  I am so blessed to attend a church where you can feel the Holy Spirit working each and every Sunday and it makes me wish there was more than one Sunday each week. 

I usually wake up on this day of rest anxious to get to church.  I rarely have trouble getting out of bed and hitting the shower because I know where I’m headed.  The same was true yesterday morning as I prepared to make the trek to our church, but when I opened up God’s Word to read my devotions before we left, I was hit with these heartwarming words from Ecclesiates 1 written in The Message version:

Smoke, nothing but smoke. [That’s what the Quester says.]

There’s nothing to anything—it’s all smoke.

What’s there to show for a lifetime of work,

a lifetime of working your fingers to the bone?

One generation goes its way, the next one arrives,

but nothing changes—

it’s business as usual for old planet earth.

The sun comes up and the sun goes down,

then does it again, and again—the same old round.

The wind blows south, the wind blows north.

Around and around and around it blows,

blowing this way, then that—the whirling, erratic wind.

All the rivers flow into the sea,

but the sea never fills up.

The rivers keep flowing to the same old place,

and then start all over and do it again.

Everything’s boring, utterly boring—

no one can find any meaning in it.

Boring to the eye,

boring to the ear.

What was will be again,

what happened will happen again.

There’s nothing new on this earth.

Year after year it’s the same old thing.

Does someone call out, “Hey, this is new”?

Don’t get excited—it’s the same old story.

Nobody remembers what happened yesterday.

And the things that will happen tomorrow?

Nobody’ll remember them either.

Don’t count on being remembered.

Well now…that was uplifting! And believe me when I say…the negative theme only got worse as I continued through this book.  To say it was depressing is an understatement.   They sure weren’t words to fill me with inspiration as I headed off to worship.

They were words though to remind me that not everyone got up that morning thrilled to be going to church.  Some, I’m sure, dreaded getting up because they knew they HAD to go to a service where they haven’t felt the Spirit working in years.  There is a good chance that others woke up and had no intentions of going to the Lord’s house because of pain that was inflicted on them from those who call themselves Christians.  More than likely, there were others who got out of bed and never gave church a thought because they have never darkened the door.

I believe many feel…such as Solomon shared in Ecclesiastes… that life is futile.  There is so much evil going on in this world that it is easy for many to feel like giving up.  Life just keeps knocking them down over and over and it’s so hard for them to see any silver lining in any cloud.  Day after day plays out just like the day before and it takes everything they have just to put one foot in front of another.

If you are feeling like this today…please allow me to give you some advice.  First of all, if you are attending a church that isn’t Bible based and prayer focused…I urge you to do whatever you can to share with those you worship with that church is more than a social club.  Life is too short and Christ’s return is on the horizon and we dare not just “play church”.

If you aren’t attending church because you have been hurt from those in the church…I am deeply sorry.  My heart breaks for those who have walked out the door vowing they would never return.  Unfortunately, those of us in the church are far from perfect and sometimes our actions or words are not said in love.  I implore you to give worshipping on Sunday another chance.   There are many churches out there, although filled with imperfect people that love you and want to walk on your journey with you.

If by chance you are reading this and you have never tried church on a Sunday, why not give it a try?  You may have heard some negatives…and hopefully a lot of positives …to becoming involved with others in your community to worship the One who created you.  Maybe it is time that you find out for yourself what actually transpires on Sunday morning in a local congregation.

Yes, life can seem at times like it is just smoke…nothing but smoke…as Solomon said.  But I’m here to share with you today that there is more to life than that!  It’s hard to put into words how much the time I spend in worship helps me throughout the week.  It gives me hope…keeps me focused…and inspires me to reach out and make a difference in the lives of those around me.

If I can help you in your search for a place to worship, please let me know.  I would love for you to wake up on Sunday mornings as excited as I am to walk through the doors of a local church.  Warning: you won’t find anyplace that is filled with perfect people…but I know there are many imperfect people who want to “do life” with you.  You don’t have to walk your journey alone.

Monday Morning Memo: Worth The Cost

I received some interesting comments from my readers concerning my post last week about my unibrow.  Some were amazed that I would admit such a thing on the internet for the world to read…where it is “forever archived and never completely deleted”…as one of my followers so eloquently penned J Well, I figure you either like me or you don’t…but regardless… I hope you know that you will always get the truth from me and complete honesty…unibrow and all!

So I might as well go a step further this week and share with you some startling information.  I don’t like to shop.  There…I’ve gotten that out in the open.  I’ve told that tidbit of information to people, especially other women, and they have looked at me like I had horns.  I know…I’m not a normal woman (I’m sure some of you who know me well will second that fact!).  It is torture for me to have to go on a quest for things to buy.  I can think of many other things that I would rather be doing than shopping…any kind of shopping but especially clothes shopping.

As a result…you won’t often see me in a variety of different outfits.  If I find something I like…I usually wear it until it isn’t wearable (much to the chagrin of my children…and sometimes even my husband).  Unfortunately though, clothes don’t last forever so the day eventually comes when new items are needed and I have to push myself to visit establishments that sell clothing.  This past week I had to do just that.

I realized when I returned home that it was time to clean out my closet and get rid of those items that were past their prime.  I’m smart enough to know that if those gems are left in my closet…I will resort back to wearing the old tried and true garments that have served me well.  My husband teases me that I still have clothes that I wore in Jr. High and I wish that were true…because it would mean I was still the same size as I was back then and regrettably I am not!

If I’m honest, I think I am this way because I don’t like change.  If my clothes are comfortable and still cover the parts of my body that need covered…I’m fine…even if they aren’t the latest fashion.  I’m the same way in my home.  Until this past year when we did some remodeling…I had had the same pictures and decorations on my walls for years.  I like things to stay the same and having to push myself out of my comfort zone to make changes…just doesn’t make me feel comfortable.

Unfortunately, we are living in a rapidly changing world and I don’t like that either.  I want things to be as they were years ago when God was still someone that most people believed in and revered.  As I shared a couple weeks ago, “The day is here my friends where it isn’t only the soldiers that serve our country who need to be brave, but we also, as Christians, need to be brave.  Our religious freedoms are being taken away, and we need to be willing to stand up for what we know to be the truths given to us by our Lord and Savior.  It will not be easy and it won’t be the popular thing to do, but it is what we have been called to do.”

To be willing to stand up for what I know to be truth…means I will have to make changes.  I will have to be willing to step out of my comfort zone to do whatever God calls me to do to reach as many people as I can for Him.  I can’t just sit around and enjoy being comfortable while I hope someone else is loving and caring and sharing God’s Word with the lost.

Our pastor shared this quote yesterday morning from Charles Spurgeon and it really spoke to me, “If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our dead bodies. And if they perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped about their knees, imploring them to stay. If Hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go unwarned and unprayed for.”

I don’t know about you, but this is something I want said of me.  I want to be willing to sacrifice, whatever the cost, to make sure those with whom I come in contact don’t spend their eternity in Hell.  If my loved one was heading towards something on this earth that I knew was going to deeply hurt them, I know I would do everything in my power to stop them from going in that direction.  I wouldn’t care how I looked…wouldn’t care what I would have to give up…wouldn’t care how much I would have to change my lifestyle to hopefully keep them safe.  It would be worth whatever the cost.

How much more urgent should our actions be when we know that many around us have not accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior?  They will not just experience pain on this earth…but they will spend eternity in Hell.  We have to do everything we can…imploring them to accept Him while they still can.   Time is short…the cost is high…and our comfort shouldn’t be our focus.  And I firmly believe it will be worth the cost.

Monday Morning Memo: Taming My Unibrow

Dan and I were blessed with a fun, relaxing weekend at our daughter’s in North Carolina.  She loves living in this beautiful state…but we sure miss having her close to us.  So it is always a treat to be able to spend time with her.

Erica enjoys hiking on Saturday mornings in the state park close to her home, so we were thrilled to be able to do that with her.  It was a warm day in the 90’s, but knowing that a little sweat never hurt anyone, we climbed in our truck and headed for the trail.  I love being outside and enjoying the beauty in nature and our views on Saturday didn’t disappoint.  God’s creation was all around us and I felt blessed to be able to experience it with two people I dearly love.

We made the wise decision that a shower was probably needed following the 4 ½ mile adventure and before we could continue our day.  So after we did what was necessary to make it possible to be around others, we took off for lunch at Moe’s to refuel us.  Good food and good conversation made a great day even better. 

We had already decided what would be on our agenda following lunch.  We knew we would do something that I do every time I visit Erica.  It is something that I have never done at home, but always make a point to get accomplished when I’m in North Carolina.  Erica directed us to an area business where I got my eyebrows threaded.

I realize that there may be some of you who have no idea what eyebrow threading is.  In threading, a thin thread is doubled, and then twisted. It is then rolled over areas of unwanted hair, plucking the hair at the follicle level. Unlike tweezing, where single hairs are pulled out one at a time, threading can remove short lines of hair.  There are lots of people who think this is a sadistic form of torture, but I enjoy it.  I have been “blessed” with very heavy eyebrows and it takes time and effort to keep them from being a unibrow.  The problem is that I don’t often take the time to keep them under control and so it makes me feel so good when I can get them cleaned up and shaped in just a few minutes.  The thing is that even though it seems like it at times, my eyebrows don’t get out of control overnight.  It happens gradually…one hair at a time.  If I would just make sure and take care of the unwanted strands as they appear, it wouldn’t be such a major chore to get them shaped up.  But unfortunately, I tend to ignore the signs until it’s a rather major task to get them shaped and contoured.

This makes me think of what happens when sin begins to creep into my life.  It usually doesn’t occur overnight or show itself in grand fashion.  It usually presents itself in small ways in the beginning and it’s easy to overlook it and think it isn’t a big deal. The problem with that is that those small “insignificant” sins begin to add up and before I know it, sin has taken over and it takes a much bigger effort on my part to get things cleaned up.  God is able and willing to forgive me no matter what I’ve done…but then I often have to deal with the consequences of those things that I have allowed to creep in that have gone against His plan for my life. 

Hopefully as I grow in Christ, I will be more intentional on squelching sin just as soon as it rears its ugly head, instead of allowing it to slowly infiltrate my life.  Just as it feels good to I have my unibrow tamed once again…it feels even better when my heart is clean and in tune with God’s will.  But I know I have to be willing to take the time each and every day to follow His leading and make the choices He would want me to make.  I know by doing that, my life will be much easier in the days and weeks to come because I won’t have to clean up the consequences of my neglect.