Another World

Yes, my husband sent for me! I am blogging this morning from Belgium. After breakfast which included a very delicious and flakey croissant my husband went to work. I went out on a terrace to have my quiet time with God. The air is brisk this morning as I sit looking at the steeple of a magnificent Cathedral right across from our hotel. The architecture is breath taking, so much more than these eyes are use to seeing and I worship my God there. My God is the Creator and yes this Cathedral was made by human hands and mind but it was my God who created those human hands and mind. Yet He desires to be my God and have a personal relationship with me, I can hardly comprehend that.

I marvel at the blessing that I am here, who would have ever thought? Certainly not me! I think about my life, growing up with an abusive, alcholic father which produced a disfunctional poor family. Then as I grew up making bad choices of my own left me with a life which at times felt pretty hopeless. I know you have had those crisises, sometimes of your own making, sometimes not, in your own life. Before finding a relationship with Christ, facing those times were difficult at best and I often found myself wondering "is this all my life is ever going to be?" It seems that way when we are in the darkness of a bad situation, we can't see out of the darkness but you have to learn from the bad situation to make better choices. Then from there, to make one step at a time until you are past the situation even though you may have to carry the consequence with you. We are sometimes too quick to give up thinking it's never going to be better but you never know whats right around the corner. I never thought a month ago I would be in this amazing place!

God has blessed me so, but you cannot expect to be blessed by God if you don't belong to Him. Part of belonging to Him is living for Him and in obedience to Him. How do you know how to do that? He wrote you a letter, well actually a book! It's His word, the Bible. It is His instructions to us so we can make wise choices for our lives and we can have lives full of hope for tomorrow. After all who knows where you will be or what you will be facing down the road!

He sent For Me!

I love the movie Coal Miner's Daughter. One of my favorite scenes is where young and very pregnant Loretta Lynn is sitting on a hill in front of her families home as her father returns from work in the coal mines with a letter from her husband, Doo. Her excitement explodes as she reads and hollars, " he's sending for me" or something to that effect. Doo has gotten a job and sent money for her to join him.

My husband travels abroad for work sometimes. He flies business class and eats in nice restaurants, seeing places and other cultures. I use to be jealous, I stayed home with the kids holding down the fort. Now the kids are grown. I imagine how awesome it would be if while he was away he sent for me! I'd be screaming with delight just like Loretta! Open up e-mail and see one from him that says " Pack your bags ". He'd already have arranged everything and paid for the ticket, that would make you feel loved wouldn't it? Of course I would have to do my part, pack my bags, go to the airport and pick up my ticket. One of these days!

Jesus had to go away but He didn't leave us without hope. Heaven is more first class than we can imagine and He has sent for us! He's already arranged everything and paid the price, doesn't that make you feel loved? He's just waiting for us to do our part.

Some of God's Best Work

                                                      Some of God's Best Work

                                                          Sea Shells,

                                                          snowflakes

                                                          and my two boys!  

                                                            

                                                           

Fall At Last

Like most other people I am loving the change of the season, the cooler air, the changing of the leaves, so many things. The older I get, the more summer becomes my least favorite season. I don't like hot and I don't like to sweat! I am more productive in cooler weather and just enjoy everything more.

 My husband and I were once visiting Washington DC early in August for just one day. There were so many things we wanted to see and so little time plus Satan himself must have been in charge of the thermostat. It was to me, unbearably hot, of course heat doesn't bother my husband. You know, it's part of that opposites attract thing I guess. He was so excited to see everything and after a couple hours of riding on top of the bus and walking all over the place, I'm done. Trying to be considerate I continue to follow. We find ourselves in front of the White House being pushed back with the rest of the tourist by police into the field across the street because Obama was flying in on a helicopter.

Exciting? To me I could care less, to my husband, YES! They kept pushing us back further and further, there were no benches to sit on and no shade, just the sun bearing down on us. My husband had his camera out with the telephoto lens oblivious to the heat or the crowd or anything else around him. He would have waited all day for that shot of the president, which we were too far away for anyway. There were people out on the White House lawn waiting to greet Mr. President, probally mad at having been forced out in the heat. When he landed President Obama got out on the opposite side of the Helicopter so we never did get to see him. I was fit to be tied! I hadn't thought it worth enduring the heat to begin with so I'm a little whiny by now. The day was far from over as my husband drug me all over that city while I prayed "Dear Lord, please let me get hit by a car so I can lay down!" Thank goodness God doesn't always give us what we ask for! I finally did get to lay down so sunburned I couldn't sleep. Do you get how I hate hot?

I have always been amazed at the creativeness of our God and it is renewed at the beginning of each season. That He cared enough and knew we would be bored with the same things all the time. Four different seasons, each with wonder, beauty and refreshment unique to it's own. Thank you Lord for fall !

What happened to Steve Jobs?

 I am listening to all the tributes on TV for Steve Jobs. By the worlds standards he had it all, fame, fortune and yes he made great contributions in technology. I didn't know him personally, maybe he was a good man in his personal life but one thing I do know. He met the living God face to face on the day he died. If he didn't know it before he knows it now, no matter what your accomplishments are here on earth, if you missed a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, you missed the most important thing. If he wasn't a child of the risen savior all his money didn't help him. All his fame didn't help him, all the technology he developed didn't help him. If he could come back and give one more message it wouldn't be about computers or phones. It would be about knowing Jesus as your Savior. 

May God Be Glorified

Back to the real world, home. It is the place I like to be. I cannot quiet my mind with all the thoughts and all the things I learned at NCompass this weekend. I love to write and I want to be faithful to God with it.

 I guess it is every writer's dream to be published and if that is Gods plan, what if it takes too long and I give up? Then God is not glorified. What if His plan is not even to be published but to help others along the way and I give up? God is not glorified. After all His plan is not the same for all of us but the goal should be, to glorify God.

So this weekend I spent an amazing long weekend with a bunch of writers at various stages of the game. Some published, some not, but there was one thing in common. The desire to glorify God. The one's further along in the race were not just running for themselves, their hands were reaching back to help those of us following behind. To jump the hurdles they had already jumped, to encourage and share. I can tell you for sure, God was glorified!

So as I begin this journey, not being sure of anything except it is a call from God, may I be found faithful and God be glorified!

It's all in how you look at it!

I have been at my first Writer's Retreat, NCompass since Thursday. I have always loved to write and dreamed of doing it professionally but always just thought it was a dream. In this place there are times I am overwhelmed and I must say that is most of the time! God is using these people to show me that the desires God puts in your heart, He always has a plan to bring it forth. After all He is God!

These writers have taken me by the hand and are teaching me how to eat an Elephant, you know, one bite at a time! To do like Nike, Just Do It .Not only the teachers but also other students but I know what is at the root of that. Christ!

My mind was in overload on the first day and there is a day and a half left so Satan is Johnny on the spot telling me "you can't do this, you're too old to learn all this, you just want to bring glory to yourself!" and I begin to feel defeated. The battle begins “Don’t mess with me Satan, my Father is King of Kings and that makes me a Princess. I don't want to be Queen, that's the old lady! So I can do ALL things through Christ.

When I leave tomorrow I have two ways to look at this. I can look at how much I don't know and think "I can't do this", Satan wins. I hate it when Satan wins even one! Or I can look at how much I have learned that I didn't know and keep on working away on this elephant! If I do that God wins! I love it when God wins.