Monday Morning Memo: Learning To Be Content

I shared with you last week that our daughter in North Carolina was recently hospitalized and my husband Dan went to be with her.  I was unable to go so I figured if I couldn’t be there in person, I would at least do what I could to give them something, or someone in my case, to laugh at.  According to them, I succeeded.  I don’t profess to be the sharpest tack in the box, and what I did when Dan was gone proved that to be true.

He left for North Carolina on Saturday, so that meant that I had to go to church without him on Sunday.  I went to our worship service, then to our Sunday School class and then decided to run some errands in Fort Wayne, which is a city about 30 miles away from us.  While I was driving, I was trying to decide where I would eat lunch and suddenly I had a certain restaurant come to mind and I immediately knew that’s where I wanted to go.

I decided I would run a couple of my errands first and then stop to eat, figuring that would get me to the restaurant before noon so hopefully they wouldn’t be too busy.  My mouth watered as I thought about where I was going to eat.  I knew just what I was going to order and I could hardly wait to get my tasks done so I could enjoy my lunch.  I finally headed towards the restaurant and as I glanced towards their parking lot I had the thought, oh good they aren’t very busy.  But as I got closer to the establishment, my next thought was, they aren’t busy at all!  Then the light bulb went on in my head.  The reason they weren’t busy was because it was Chick-fil-A, and they aren’t open on Sundays.

My first mistake was thinking they would be open, my second mistake was telling Dan and Erica.  They sure got a good laugh over my blunder and it has been brought back up to me more than once since then.  Erica did have a profound statement about it though.  She said, “That’s just the way it is.  Chick-fil-A always sounds the best on Sundays.”

Isn’t that true?  So many times in our life, what sounds the best is what we can’t have.  Not just Chick-fil-A, but so often, what we are tempted to do in life, are the things that we can’t do, or aren’t supposed to be doing.  It is those forbidden things that often lure us in and make us want them all the more.

We see that as far back as Adam and Eve.  They had been told that they could eat from any tree in the garden, except for one.  So from which one did they choose to eat?  The only one that was off limits.  The temptation was just too great and even though they had been given so much, they still wanted what they couldn’t have.

Satan loves to just keep dangling things in front of us that will tempt us to make the wrong choices.  He thrives on always making the grass look greener in places where we shouldn’t go.  Instead of being satisfied with what we have been given, Satan wants to make sure that we always want more.

In addition, the world is constantly telling us that to be happy we need to own this or that, climb up the corporate ladder a little faster, or live in a larger, fancier home.  It’s hard to say no; hard to be content and happy, especially when we may see those around us seemingly so much happier because they have accumulated more than us.

Is it a sin to have a lot of possessions?  No.  Is it a sin to live in a beautiful home?  No.  Is it a sin to climb higher on the corporate ladder?  No.  None of these things are wrong, unless they are your all-consuming goal.  Paul wrote in Philippians 4:12-13,  “I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.”  The key is to be content, to find your day-to-day joy in Christ, not in those earthly things that the world may put in your path.  As long as He is your main desire, all other things will pale in comparison.

I finally got to eat at Chick-fil-A this past Saturday and do you know what I found out?  It tasted just as good on a Saturday, than it would have on that Sunday.  Sure, I had to wait a couple weeks to fulfill my hunger for their food but it was worth it.  And the same is usually true in our life desires.  What we think we need today, may be something that God feels we need to wait awhile to obtain or something that He feels we should not have at all.  The key is learning to be content with what we have today and not consumed with what we think we will need tomorrow.

Monday Morning Memo: God's Love

As a parent, there are certain calls or texts that I would rather not get from one of my children.  Mom, I’ve wrecked the car.  Mom, I’ve been arrested.  And the one that I received from our daughter Erica recently:  Been at the doctor for almost an hour and a half.  Running a bunch of tests.  Pray they can figure it out. 

It wasn’t a surprise to me that she was at the doctor’s office. We had spoken earlier in the day and she told me that her jaw was hurting and then several hours later had said that her lymph nodes were swelling.  We talked about it and she said that she would probably stop to see a doctor on her way home from work.

What was a surprise was the fact that they had been running so many tests on her and were baffled as to what it was. They finally deduced that she probably had some kind of infection (didn’t know what kind), and sent her home with antibiotics.  They told her that if she wasn’t any better in three days, or if she became worse, she should immediately come back in.

The next day, I received another text that a parent doesn’t want to receive.  My swelling and pain is worse so I came back to the doctor.  They are sending me to the ER. These are difficult words to read under any circumstance, but it makes them harder when Erica lives over 600 miles away. 

Fortunately one of Erica’s friends was able to meet her at the hospital and the rest of the day I anxiously waited for updates from them.  Test after test was done, she was poked and prodded over and over again, IV’s were hooked up and bags were hung.  Finally, we were given the news that they believed she had a serious infection in her neck.  It was the type of infection that they needed to get a handle on quickly, or there could be a very serious outcome.

All I wanted to do was get to her.  I wanted to jump in the car and head to North Carolina to be by her bedside, but my children quickly informed me that that wasn’t going to happen.  With several discs currently out of place in my back, they felt I wasn’t the one to go and wouldn’t be much of a help to her.  So after much discussion, the decision was made that my husband Dan would go.

One of the hardest things I have ever done was to watch Dan pull out of the driveway without me as he headed for North Carolina.  When I shared this with a dear friend, I received a text back that was one I needed to read: Take a deep breath and remember God loves her more than you do.

Amazing.  Unbelievable. Totally mind-boggling.   I just can’t comprehend anyone loving my children more than I do…but God does.  It is a fact that is hard to understand but so comforting, especially at a time when this mama’s heart was breaking.  No matter what happened, I knew that Erica was in God’s hands and because He loves her even more than I do, I could rest in the fact that His plan for her was perfect.   

We were so blessed that our prayers were answered and after four days, Erica was released from the hospital and has been regaining her strength ever since.  God showed me, over and over again during that time, that Dan was the one that was to be there for her and my place was to stay at home.  His plan wasn’t my plan, but it was the right plan.

Do you know that God loves YOU that much too?  He loves you more than anyone here on this earth can love you.  His love never runs out…never changes…never wavers…and you can’t do anything to stop His love for you.  You may be in a place right now in your life where you feel unlovable and I’m here today to tell you that you are wrong.  You ARE deeply loved by the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  He so desperately wants to hold you in His arms and let you know how much you mean to Him.  His plan for you, and for your family, is perfect because He loves all of you more than you can even imagine.

God loves you more in a moment, than anyone could in a lifetime.  Believe it today and then trust Him completely to guide you every step of the way.

For the Lord your God is living among you.
    He is a mighty savior.
He will take delight in you with gladness.
    With his love, he will calm all your fears.
    He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.

Zephaniah 3:17

Monday Morning Memo: The Master Gardener

As I have shared before, I absolutely love summer and having the opportunity to be outside and learn from God’s creation.  There just is so much that nature can teach us, if we just take the time to observe what is happening.

Last year, Dan decided that a bush that we had by our deck just had to go.  It was out of control and starting to die in the middle.  No trimming or pruning made it look good, so out it came.  We then had the dilemma of what we would plant to replace this bush.

We have a window well in that area of our landscaping, so we decided to plant 5 Rose of Sharon bushes in a semi-circle so they will eventually block the view of the opening to go under our home.  Because I tend to be a frugal person, I decided to order these 5 bushes on the Internet to save money and lets just say, we had to laugh when they arrived.  They were nothing but sticks.  Dead looking sticks.  We even hesitated to plant them because we were pretty sure that as the summer went on, we would continue to look from the deck and see a row of sticks.  They had no look of life at all and showed no signs of flourishing.  But we decided to treat them as if they were growing and we watered and fertilized them.

As last summer went on, we began to see a little bit of growth on the sticks.  It wasn’t overnight and they still weren’t at all beautiful, but at least we had hope!

This summer, this is what we are seeing.  Life.  Beautiful green leaves with gorgeous flowers prolifically growing on each of the five bushes.  They aren’t real tall and they aren’t big enough to form a hedge, but their beauty is something at which I find myself staring.  

There is just so much to learn from these creations of God.

I received so much feedback from my blog post last week when I shared about my week not being pretty.  Many of you thanked me for being “real”…for letting you know that you are not alone in sometimes feeling like God couldn’t love you because of what you had done in the past or in your present.  I think in those times, we feel a lot like these sticks that we planted.  We feel dried out…we feel somewhat dead…and doubt that we will ever see “life” in us again.

But just like these sticks, just because we don’t see anything beautiful in ourselves at this moment, it doesn’t mean that there isn’t life in us.  Even when we can’t see it, God is working.  God is shaping us.  God is giving us what we need so that the day will come when we will start to see “blooms” in our life once again. 

Our responsibility during this “dormant” time is to make sure that we are still watering our soul through prayer and fertilizing our mind with His Word.  We need to do our part so that God can do His part to change us into someone that reflects His image.  It is during this time that we need to trust…even though we aren’t seeing signs of growth…but trusting that God is in control and always knows what is best for us.

This past week was another one in my life where I felt like one of those sticks.  Things happened that once again weren’t pretty and I found myself asking God why these things were occurring at this particular time.  But over and over again during these past days I just kept hearing the Master Gardener say to me, “Trust me LuAnn.  Just trust and let me work out my plan for you.  Right now you don’t see beauty, but in time, blooms will appear once again.”

Even though my life doesn’t always make sense, God is still so faithful.  He never leaves my side and is always there to prune those things that need eliminated in my life and then instill in me His Words to fertilize my soul.  If my God can make beauty from ashes…He surely can make beauty from you and me!

To all who mourn in Israel,
    he will give a crown of beauty for ashes,
a joyous blessing instead of mourning,
    festive praise instead of despair.
In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks
    that the Lord has planted for his own glory.

Isaiah 61:3

Monday Morning Memo: When Life Isn't Pretty

I hope you will allow me to be real today. This last week has not been a “pretty” one for me because I struggled physically, mentally and spiritually.  By the time yesterday rolled around, I felt like I had failed as a wife, mother, friend and even a grandmother.  Yeah, it just wasn’t a good week.

After a week such as this, it’s real hard not to wish I could re-do some moments.  Moments that weren’t pleasant and maybe, just maybe, if I could do them over they would make better memories.  My kids gave me an Apple watch last Christmas, and periodically throughout the day I will feel it vibrate and the screen will say “Progress Update”.  Now it is telling me my progress as far as my activity and exercise, but I often wish it would give me an update on my actions and reactions.  Maybe that would help me stay on track in those moments when I tend to act or react in a way that I shouldn’t.

Unfortunately, times like this are just a part of life and I’m guessing I’m not the only one to have weeks such as this.   I think just about everyone has days, weeks and maybe even months where they feel they take one step forward and then two steps backwards.  It isn’t what we planned on nor do we intend to repeat it, but yet we find ourselves falling into similar traps over and over again.

It is so easy to dwell on the times when we mess up and before we know it, more of life has passed us by and Satan is applauding.  As long as he can keep our focus on us and on our wrongdoings, he doesn’t have to worry about us having any eternal impact on God’s kingdom.  He loves to make sure that our mistakes just keep getting thrown back in our face so that we will become discouraged and want to give up trying to be a devoted follower of God’s.  And before we know it, we start believing his lie that God must be mad at us and totally disappointed in us and surely doesn’t want us living for Him anymore.

Our Pastor shared something in our service yesterday that was such a comfort to my soul.  He said, “God is not mad at you.  He’s madly in love with you!”  Oh what a wonderful reminder.  Our God loves us, with all our faults and failures, and nothing we can do can ever diminish His love.  Nothing.  Nada.  Never.  He loves us when we are unlovable.  He loves us when we are putting too much focus on ourselves.  He loves us when we commit the same sin over and over again.  He loves us for the exact person that we are today…but loves us enough to want so much more for us tomorrow.

If you are going through a time right now that just isn’t “pretty”, don’t ever forget how much God loves you.  He’s not mad at you…He’s not disgusted with you…He’s not ready to turn His back on you.  He loves you right where you are, regardless of your past or your present, and wants a much brighter future for you.  So don’t ever let Satan tell you otherwise because He is nothing but a liar and trust me…he can’t even comprehend the kind of love that God has for you.  Because God chose you, before you were ever born, and called you by His marvelous grace.  And there is nothing that Satan has that can compare with that!   

BTW…you might also benefit by listening to my Pastor’s sermon from yesterday.  You can watch and listen to it by clicking on this link:  http://hopemissionarychurch.podbean.com.  I think you will be glad you did!