Wifestylin: A Wife's Secret to Happiness

What kind of wife are you?  Are you frayed or braided?  Are you doubtful or decided?  Do you duel with your husband, or dance with him?  Are you an MVP seeking all the attention for your self, or are you part of a Dream Team that edifies your husband and his goals and wishes, as well as your own?  

Over the last couple of weeks, I have been reading my way through A Wife's Secret to Happiness: Receiving, Honoring, & Celebrating God's Role for You in Your Marriage by Jen Weaver.  I have loved this book, y'all!  (Just had to throw in one y'all since Jen is from Texas.)   I found this book easy to read as it feels like Jen is just sitting across the table from me, coffee in hand, and sharing her stories and stories of those she knows.  Her perspective is genuine.  She shares her victories and her places where she has fallen short as a wife.  Yet this book is also difficult to read.  At the end of each chapter, I have a lot to process and think through about how I am handling all the blessings that God has given to me in my marriage.

Jen Weaver covers many difficult topics that we don't always like to talk about.  Discussing submission in a relevant way or sexuality in a godly way is not easy.  But she dives right in and makes it feel okay to discuss those topics.  Every page is seamlessly woven with Scripture.  I loved recognizing how she tied critical Scripture points together all in the same paragraph.  That speaks to me of a woman who knows God's Word very well and has earned the right to give a few pointers to other married women.

At the end of each chapter, she offers a brief quiz about how you relate to the concept she presented.  There is no judgment--just a simple tool for self-evaluation.  It gave me a lot to think about and some new goals in how I relate to my husband.  When I look at the "Wifestylin" quizzes, I realize there are some areas where I have gotten lazy or didn't even realize I was doing something that may turn my husband off.  But there are also some areas where I do feel like I have it right.

The whole premise of being a happy wife is communication with God and with your husband.  You are free to be who God created you to be, but you have to know Him.  Be familiar with Scripture--not just familiar with it but KNOW it at a heart level.  Know the role that God created for you as a wife so you can operate within that, not outside of it.  Talk to your husband about everything.  Let him lead and embrace the role that God created for him.  Be a part of his Dream Team, not his competition.

I love the way Jen Weaver said this.  "The blueprint for building a safe haven in our relationship relies on Christ as the cornerstone."  This just really stuck with me, and I thought it summed up everything pretty well.

I highly recommend reading this book and using it as a stepping stone for building your relationship with your husband.  Being married can be difficult sometimes, and it takes a continual renewal to make sure you are traveling down the same path as a team, and not veering apart.

"Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken."  Ecclesiastes 4:12

Peace in the Stillness

Peace.  It's my word for 2017.  For the last two years, I have asked God for a focus word for each year.  I also try to find a verse that corresponds to the word I have received.  In 2015, my word was "Now."  Ephesians 3:20-21 perfectly corresponds to that: "Now, to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than you can ask or even imagine...."  Now is the time to be obedient; now is the time to rely on God's power and not my own.  Last year I had "Renew."  Renew yourself each day and find the joy.  Reconnect with God, and enjoy your life.  "Create in my a clean heart, O God, and renew in me a right spirit" (Psalm 51:10).

This year it's "Peace."  That is. My word for 2017.  I know that it is the middle-end of February, but I am just now starting to put this together in my mind.  I had trouble finding a verse that really spoke to me.  One didn't immediately come to me that seemed to convey exactly what I was feeling.  I took off on a journey to search out a verse on peace.  There are no shortage of verses on peace.  So many that it is a bit overwhelming.  I started writing them all out hand, looking for the one that really spoke to me.  I love John 14:27 and John 16:33, and even a simple "Peace be with you."  But none of those seemed to be quite right for my personal focus verse for this year.

Meanwhile, Holy Spirit Keeps putting another verse in front of me.  I see it in books that I am reading.  I go to pick out a card for a friend and there it is.  Someone sends me a text and there it is again.  After many times of this happening in a short period of time, It finally dawns on me.  This.  This is the verse that best speaks peace over my life in 2017.  

"Be still and know that I am God."  (Psalms 46:10)

But it doesn't say the word peace, right?  I got hung up on this for a while.  My word and my verse in the last two years matched.  But focusing on that little detail makes me miss what God is really trying to tell me.  Be still, and know that I am God.

What are you worried about?  What is making you anxious?  Know that He is God.  He has it under control.  There is no problem that He can't handle.  He created the whole universe and everything in it. He parted the Red Seas.  He even conquered death on a cross.  Don't you think He can handle your bad day?

Haven't talked to God in a while?  Just be still, and feel His presence.  He is right there with you always, even to the very end of the age.

Are you feeling stressed, hurried, rushed, overwhelmed?  Just be still a moment.  God is there too.  He can help you.  Take a moment to be still and reconnect with Him.  Sometimes it can be simple as just saying,  "Jesus, I need you right now."     

Do ÿou feel like you are being attacked, either by other people or by other forces that want to pull you away from God?  The LORD will fight for you; you have only to be still.  If it worked for the Israelites at the Red Sea, then it could surely work for us too.

As I think through all these different situations, these are all areas where I feel my peace being threatened and attacked.  Some of them are my own creation, and some of them are natural reactions to what is happening around me.  But there is one way to combat all this negativity...

Be still, and know that I am God.  

Start Where You Are

Start where you are.

This phrase keeps reverberating through my heads the last couple of weeks.  Through a conversation with a good friend, she told me just to start where I am.  Don't worry about trying to catch up; just start where I am.  Boy, those were the exact right words at the exact right time.  This lets me out of some guilt and other feelings of negativity.  Just start where I am right now.

Where am I right now?  I haven't written anything in months.  Haven't even thought about it much.  Does that mean God hasn't been working in my life?  Of course not.  That means I have just been focused on some other areas of my life.  But start where I am.  I am going to take five minutes right now and write.  Five minutes to start where I am.  This has been in my head so much lately that I thought I needed to share.

When I am feeling overwhelmed by clutter at home or on my desk at school, start where I am.  Can I just put away five things that are out of place?  Can I just file these ten papers right here?  It is so easy for the piles to overtake me, for I have never been a naturally organized person.  When I walk into classrooms and I see teachers' desks that are completely and totally cleaned off, I feel a pang of jealousy.  How do they do that?  How do they just know where everything goes?  How do they find the time to keep it that way?  But I can't focus on that.  What I can focus on is where I am right now and put a thing or two away.

Where I am right now is experiencing an explosion in my crochet business.  I am so thankful for that.  God continues to not only keep my little side business going, but he is blessing it in big and new ways.  With the increase in projects has also come the explosion of the yarn room.  Finish one project and move on to the next-throw the extra yarn on the bed.  Some people have gifted me some yarn they have cleaned out.  I will deal with that later.  Piles, bags, and boxes of yarn everywhere.  It was getting overwhelming to even walk in that room.  So I told myself not to freak out.  Just start where I am.  Start where I am.  Just put a way a little right now.  A little another time.  With that philosophy now, I have been able to (almost) get that room straightened back out.

I have fifty thousand things to do .  Where do I start?  With just one thing.  Get it done, and then move on to the next.  What I am doing may not be the biggest on my list, but I am going to start where I am.  Focus on one at a time so I can start to clear the clutter of my mind too.

So where are you?  Are you stressed, worried, overwhelmed?  Start where you are right now.  This very moment.  Take a deep breath.  Ask Jesus to help for we know that we can do all things through Him who strengthens us.  And start where you are right now.

Plug In

A few weeks ago I went to Branson with my best friend from high school.  In this season of our lives, it is hard to find time to spend together, especially since we live two hours apart.  So we had it all figured out that we could get away just the two of us for one weekend.  About thirty minutes after I left my house, I discovered that I didn't have my phone charger.  I thought about returning home to get it, but that would have added a whole hour to an already long trip.  I decided I would just stop at Walmart and get another one.  Well, I ended up at two different walmarts that weekend, and no one had even heard of the kind of charger that I needed.

I turned my phone off for the remainder of the weekend in order to conserve the battery for the part of the trip on Sunday when I would be driving by myself down country roads without much of anything around.

It was a weird feeling.  Here I was three hours away, and I couldn't even check on my kids.  I wouldn't have thought as much about it if they were with Todd, but he was hunting all weekend.  Now I completely trust the two friends who had my children in their care, but still it was odd to not be able to check in.

 As a result, I felt disconnected and lost and a little anxious all weekend.  I could just never completely relax…  All because of my phone charger!  I bet I don't forget my phone charger again for a good long while!

With this fresh in my mind, I ran into an analogy recently that really hit home.  I have been studying Priscilla Shirer’s Armor of God for the last couple of weeks.  I am finding it to be a really powerful look at how the enemy is at work all around us.  Let me just read the paragraph that jumped out at me:

“But then Paul describes how we put ourselves in position to receive this strength: ‘Put on the full armor of God.’  By putting on the armor, we activate the strengthening process.  It’s like plugging in your phone charger.  You can count on your phone to hold a charge, but only if you’ve taken the initiative to plug it in.  We will never realize the fullness of God’s strength in our lives if we ignore the spiritual protection He offers.  It’s always available, but we must ‘plug in’ if we want to access it.”

Well.  I fully know now what it is like to not plug in my phone for two or three days, and the emotions I experience with that.  But how often do I forget to plug in my life charger?  How often do I neglect to ask for God's strength to protect me throughout the day?  How many times do I go a whole day or two or three without even talking to God?  Don't you think that could be why I sometimes walk around feeling disconnected, lost, or anxious, like I can never completely relax?  What if I plugged into God through prayer as faithfully as I plug in my phone each day?

I realize this is not a traditional Christmas message, but I think it fits.  It's the season for hustle and bustle, shopping, holiday parties, baking, wrapping presents, making merry, and creating or continuing special family traditions.  All of these are great, but I think we can sometimes get so busy or distracted doing all the things of the Christmas season, trying to make everything perfect for everyone that we forget to talk to the One who is perfect.

I think the enemy can use all of this against us too.  If he can keep us focused on our activities and To Do lists and feeling stressed and busy and overwhelmed, then we are not focused on Christ the Saviour.  Even though everything might be good, it can still take focus off celebrating the birth of God’s Son.

So I encourage you this season, to keep doing the good that you are doing, but not to let it overtake your relationship with Jesus.  Put on your full armor of God each day to protect yourself from attack, and make sure you “plug in” to the source of life each day.

Sky

Sky.

A purple streak of lightning flashes across the inky black sky.  Here comes the storm.  The dark clouds roll in.  The thunder shakes the house.

I love a good storm.  Well, as long as I am safely snuggled up in my house and all my people are accounted for.   At times, the storms make me anxious, but at times I find comfort in knowing that all that commotion out there is done at the hand of God.

Storms like that remind me of a favorite childhood memory.  Each year when we gathered at my grandparents' house for Thanksgiving, there were always a lot of people there.  My grandma went all out for Thanksgiving dinner and the day-after fish fry.  What an amazing cook she was, and what a great hostess.  The way I remember it, she invited everyone from three counties to spend the day with us.  I am sure it wasn't quite that many people, but the house was definitely full and a little crowded.  

When it got to be a little much for all the grandkids, we would sneak upstairs to the bedroom in the attic.  It always seemed like a special treat to be up there because it was the boys' bedroom.  My cousin Amy and I always had to sleep downstairs wherever we could find.  Anyway, I had memories of all of us being piled and heaped together onto one tiny feather bed.  We would watch out the window at the big storm rolling its way in.  I know we did this many times.  It seemed like there was always a big storm at just the right time.  And what a way to observe God's tremendous power than snuggled up all together with a bunch of cousins!

Thanks

Thanks.

I don't know who picked this prompt, but it is pretty amazing that it coincides with my birthday.  I have so much to give thanks for today.

Thanks to my parents who raised me to love others and to be respectful.  Thanks to my parents for drawing a line when I was difficult.

Thanks to my older brother who gave me the ability to be tough and resilient.

Thanks to my dad and uncles and their endless teasing that taught me to laugh at myself when it is needed.

Thanks to all my extended family who have always loved and accepted for me who I am.

Thanks to my husband for loving me each and every day.  For putting up with me when I am a grouch, for helping me when I am stressed or worried, for being my best good friend.

Thanks to all the Tellmans for always making me feel like I belong.

Thanks to my children who teach me to be a better person both as a role model and by their big hearts.  Thanks to my children for the way that they teach me about God.

Thanks to my many, many sweet friends who took time out of their day to wish me a happy birthday either in person, a phone call, a text or Facebook message, or a card.

Thanks to my dear friends who spoiled me today.  What a blessing you are in my life.

Thanks to my thoughtful daughter who keep a birthday secret for well over a month.  Impressive for someone who once said, "But I'm a good secret teller."

Thanks to my son with the big, big heart for people who sometimes don't get included.

Thanks to the teachers and students at school who made a point to say happy birthday every time they saw me.

Thanks to my two birthday buddies at school who make it fun to have a special day to share.

Thanks to the fifth graders who spontaneously burst into song when I walked into the room.

Thanks to the polite kids who said "Thank you" when I shared birthday treats with them.

Thanks to Mrs. Campbell and her students who wrote me the best letters today.  "Thaks for mking me reb bedr."  (I can translate that for you if you don't speak first grade writing.)

Thanks to my Bible study girls who keep me on my toes, who pray for me, and who help me grow in the Holy Spirit.

Thanks to Laura, Julie, and Debbie for always being there when I need you.

Thanks to all the people who read these blog posts and offer me encouraging words that help me keep writing.

Thank YOU to everyone for making today a fantastic and amazing day.

Thank you to The Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit for all over the above.  I am tremendously blessed!

Unknown

Unknown.

There are a lot of unknowns in our world today.  As we face down the month leading up to the presidential election, it seems like everyone has an opinion.  There is little middle ground to be found between those who want one candidate and those who want the other.  There are questions about ethics and morality on both sides, and questions about who can we really trust.

While I think those issues are certainly important, I think there are some other perspectives that also be considered.  My faith comes from trusting in the One True King, the Creator and Sovereign of the world.  

When I start to fret about the political leader and climate of our nation at its current state, I have to remind myself that no one can come to power without it being part of God's perfect plan.

When Jesus was facing Pilate, the ruler said, "Don't you realize that I have power either to free you or to crucify you?"  Jesus replied, "You would have no power over me if it were not given you from above" (John 19:10-11).  If that were true of Pilate back two thousand years ago, I have to think that it is still true today.

Even if the outcome of the presidential election does not turn out like I hope, it is still part of God's perfect plan.  His sovereignty placed the candidate there for a purpose, and that purpose is to further advance the kingdom of God--even when that doesn't look at all like we think it should.

So, of course, I have a candidate that I support in the election.  But if not...

God is still the one who is really in charge.

Post-It

Post-It.

I'm throwing it WAY back for a fun and sweet memory today.

I came home from work and one day and find this note on my mirror:  You are my best good friend.

The next day I found another note:  I love you.

And another note:  I can always talk to you.

This continued on for a whole week.  Each day I would find a new note in a new place with a new message.  Each one was sweet and made me feel really good about myself and this man with whom I was enamored.

At the end of the week, we had a date.  I was all dressed up.  I guess I dressed up enough to make him suspicious.  His first words when he got home were, "Why are you all dressed up?"  I just wanted to look nice for our night.

That night we went to Alexandro's for dinner.  Pretty fancy place, but that's when we were young and single without all the responsibilities that we have now.

When we sat down, Todd asked me if I noticed anything different about our table.  I replied that I noticed our table had a rose on it, and none of the rest of them did.  I asked him if he had done that, and he stated that he had.   I smiled, and said thanks.

A bit stunned and probably perplexed, he asked me if I noticed anything else.  After looking for what muse have seemed like a very long time to Todd, I noticed the ring all shiny and sparkly on the rose.  (Observation is not one of my superpowers!)  Once I finally caught on to what was going on, Todd got on a knee and proposed.  I don't remember all the wonderful words he said that night, but I do remember that he used each and every one of the sentences from the scattered Post-It notes throughout the week.  How perfectly perfect for him to plant those seeds all week and then tie it all into his proposal.

I love you, Todd Tellman!

Muddle

Muddle.

I don't have a lot of associations I can draw on for the word muddle.  The only thing I can think of is "muddle through."  Muddle through is not a super positive association.  For me, it means that you are going to do something, even though you don't feel comfortable with it or you really don't know what you are doing.

That is exactly how I have felt the last couple of weeks.  Each Thursday morning, I meet with some beautiful and wonderful friends for an early-morning Bible study.  We are doing a really thought-provoking study right now.  We are in the middle of Forgotten God by Francis Chan.  This book is really making me examine some of my thoughts and beliefs and even my desires.

But I feel so under qualified to lead this study, especially the last chapter we have been working on "Theology of the Holy Spirit."  I don't feel like I know much about the Holy Spirit, and I certainly haven't been trained in theology.  Now I do my homework, and I prepare a lesson each week.  But still...

When I am getting ready for each week's lesson, I feel like someone else should be leading it because I just don't know enough.  I just have to muddle through it.

I have shared those feelings with my group, and they know where I am in my walk.  Each week I pray over the lesson and the people in the study. I ask, with all my heart, that the Holy Spirit will be present to guide our discussion and to fill in where I fall short.  

And you know what?  He has delivered in a way that only He can.  It's not about me.  It's all about Him.  I think our discussion the last three weeks have been far better than when I feel more confident.

I guess I will just have to keep on muddling through...and let the Holy Spirit do the rest.

Collect

Collect.

What do you collect?  I used to collect all kinds of things as a kid.  I collected rocks and postcards and stamps and stickers and coins.  Not that I was a professional level collector by any means, but I definitely had stuff.  I even collected business cards.  What kid does that?  Why I thought I needed business cards from every place in the greater Kansas City area, I'm not sure.  But I had a pretty good stack of them at one point.

For a while I collected ceramic bunnies as an adult.  They are cute, and I had several with sentimental value.  Then my shelf where I keep them got full, and I decided I didn't need anymore.

So what do I collect now?  You could probably make a case for me collecting yarn.  I have a whole closet full of it.  I collect ideas for projects... on Pinterest and etsy and Ravelry and Facebook.  I collect ideas for people and what I want to make for them in an ongoing spreadsheet.  

But does this matter?  What I need to collect are things with eternal value.  Jesus said, " Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.  Where you treasure is, your heart will be also."

How do you store up the eternal?  What helps you focus on that and not on the worldly, materialistic things all around us?  One way that I focus on the eternal things is to surround myself with Scripture.  Maybe that's what I collect now.  I have Scripture in almost every room of my house as little reminders.  I have friends who send me encouraging verses to get me through the day and remind me where my focus should be.  I listen to Spirit FM so I can get the Word through song and through their two-minute devotional blurbs that they share.  

It really helps me to have those little reminders around me.  Not every day is great, and no days are perfect, but when I see God's Word in front of me, it changes my perspective just a tiny bit.

You

You.

This prompt was a bit of a stumper for me.  It took me a while to have an idea.  Here is what I came up with.

The world fills us full of lies about who we are and what we should believe.  I can't quote all the chapter and verses of these ideas, but here is a bit of truth for you.

You were created.  You were knit together in your mother's womb.

You are fearfully and wonderfully made.

God is always with you.  When you go to the heavens or down to the depths, He is with you.

You don't have to be afraid.  He is with you.

He loves you so much that He sent his one and only son to die for your sins so that when you believe in Him, you will not die but have everlasting life.

Your sins are forgiven.  He casts them as far as the east is from the west.

You are sanctified.

You are a royal priesthood.

You are chosen.

God has a plan for you, a plan to give you hope and a future.  

You are a child of the one true King.

God's Spirit lives in You.

You have a Counselor.

You are the salt of the earth.

You are a light on a hill.

You are redeemed.

You are blessed beyond measure.

He cares for you so you can cast all your anxieties on Him.

You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you.

You don't have to lean on your understanding.  Trust in God with all your heart.

He will fight for you.  You have only to remain still.

YOU.  ARE.  LOVED.

Silence

Silence.

That brief and fleeting moment in the morning when I am awake and no one else is.  My house gets pretty loud sometimes.  I have only two children, but sometimes they can make a cacophony that rivals a jumbo jet.  I love them to pieces, but it sometimes seems like all of life is done at forty decibels or more.

Especially my darling daughter who will nearly yell, "But this is my quiet voice!"  She once told some friends that she has three volumes: Loud, Louder, and Loudest.  Oh dear.  She summed it up pretty well;  that was a pretty good self-assessment.

So I really enjoy a few minutes here and there of silence.  That is why I get up at 5:00 every morning.  So I can have a few minutes to get my thoughts together.  I just need that little bit of silence every day to get myself going.  

This time in the morning is when I read my daily devotion, when I work on my Bible study that I am leading, and sometimes even when I write.  I cherish the silence, but it's not actually silent.  This is when I spend some quality and (sometimes quantity) time with my God.  I need the silence in the house to be able to hear His voice.  He guides me and directs me through His word, through a prayer, through a new thought, a nudge to reach out to someone.  This is when I might write an encouraging note or send someone a text of a verse that made me think of them.  

I really need this time every day, and I can always tell in the outcome of my day when I don't take the opportunity for it.  This space of time when the house is peacefully sleeping is really important to me.

Silence really is golden!

Another 31 Days?

Last year I joined hundreds of people across the blogging community in a 31 Day Challenge to write something every day.  I had plenty to say as I reflected on the lessons I was learning from Psalm 139.  I was super proud of myself for completing the challenge, but also for being able to convey the messages of identity and security that can only be found in the love of our Creator and Savior.

Tomorrow begins a new 31 Day Challenge.  I don't have a major burning topic this year.  I don't feel like I have any ideas that I could stretch out and write about in a fulfilling way like I did last year.  So I'm going to try something different this time around.

Periodically my writing comes from a prompt on Kate Motaung's website Five-Minute-Friday.  She has partnered with Christina Hubbard at Creative + Free.  They have published a month's worth of prompts  so I am going to try my hand at that.

I am going with a no-stress approach this year.  I don't have a button.  I haven't done anything fancy to my blog.  I am just going to write and see what comes out.  That's the beauty of the Five-Minute prompt.  I only have to find five minutes in my day.  Surely I can do that, right?

Join me tomorrow as I write about "Walk."

Brew

Brew.

Man, I miss coffee.  I never thought I would be a coffee drinker.  I used to not be able to stand the stuff.  And then I had children.  Maybe from lack of sleep or just being a little bit older or I'm not sure what, but a good cup of coffee became part of my morning routine.  When I say good cup of coffee, that includes a very liberal dose of flavored creamer.  Caramel macchiato, sweet Italian cream, preprint mocha, pumpkin spice.  I love the creamers more than the coffee, for sure.  

I just love the hot coffee with the cold creamer in the morning.  It gets everything kickstarted, warms me up, and soothes my throat.  Even if I don't have breakfast, I still had that cup of coffee.  And I especially love my coffee during my quiet time with the LORD.  Those two things go especially well together in my mind.

But over the course of the last year, I have had to back off coffee -- at least for now.  It may be something that triggers spikes in my blood pressure.  At first I cut back to only once cup a day.  Then I switched to decaf.  I was still seeing some numbers I didn't like in my blood pressure so I gave up the decaf too early this summer.  I don't know if I will be able to go back to drinking coffee at some point in the future or not.  I would like to try at it some point because I just really miss it.

I have tried to find some suitable replacements for the morning coffee.  Nothing quite feels the same.  I have tried hot chocolate, hot apple cider, tea, and even bone broth.  Some of those things I like better than others.  And I am getting used to hot tea without even any honey in it, but I really don't love it.  

I guess if I can't have a morning coffee, I can at least write about it and wish!

Wardrobe

Wardrobe.

Here I stand in the morning.  Looking at the items in my closet as if I were going to get some sort of inspiration from them.  What in the world am I going to wear today?  I wore that the other day.  That doesn't look comfortable today.  That shirt will be too warm, but a I might freeze in this one.  I feel like my closet is full of clothes, but yet I have nothing to wear.  Morning after morning, I play this game, and then it seems like I wear about the same seven or eight things all the time.

What if I spent more time looking at how God wants me to dress?   Proverbs 31: She is clothed in strength and dignity.  Now where is the outfit that shows me strength and dignity?  That is the one I should be putting on every day.  When I get dressed, people should see the strength and dignity of the Creator flowing through me.  I should be reflecting His glory instead of worrying about if this set of clothes makes me look too frumpy or worn out or whatever.

What if I spent every morning getting ready preparing to do battle for the day?  Putting on the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the belt of truth, and the shoes that spread the gospel of peace?  My enemy is not against flesh and blood but against other principalities.  How often do I permit myself to think about that?  Each day I should arm myself to be ready for any fight that might come my way, knowing that I am on God's side.  I know His team wins, and I want to be ready to fight for Him.

As I keep looking at my clothes, I see things that I haven't worn in a long time, but I keep hanging on to them.  Hanging on in case they might someday fit again, or might come into style again.  Why don't I just get rid of them?  Not just the clothes, but the other things that hang around (pride, envy, bitterness, etc.) that have outlived their usefulness, but I keep close by?  It is time to throw off every sin that entangles and run with perseverance.

Gotta go.  Time to get dressed!

Paint

Paint.

"Mom, wouldn't it be cool if God came down here to be an artist?"

That was a random comment my son made one day this summer.  Not sure where things like that come from for him, but it led to a great discussion for us.

"Don't you think God is an artist already?  Don't you see His beauty all around us?"

He paints the oranges, golds, and crimson reds into the autumn leaves.  With a stroke of brilliance, he lights trees on fire in glorious color.

He paints the wispy white puffs of smoke coming off the Smoky Mountains that we saw on vacation.

He paints flowers with gorgeous breaths of color.

He paints the intricate details on a butterfly's wings.

He paints the blues of the ocean and the sky.

He paints the sunrise with a promise of freshness and joy each day.  He does it again each night as a way to assure us that He has more in store for us the next day.

He paints the stars in the sky, more numerous than anyone could ever count...and He calls each one by name.

He paints you and me.  He knit each together perfectly in his mother's womb.  We are perfectly and wonderfully made.

With the cross, He paints a perfect picture of redemption and grace.  He paints our future, giving us hope.  

He paints an eagle swooping across the sky.  He reminds us that He can carry us when we are weak.  He will not grow weary or faint.  

He paints breathtaking rainbows, with the promise that He cares for us and He has not forgotten us.

All I have to do is open my eyes, and I see God's brush strokes all around us.

Walk

Walk.

Last week I got to take a long walk with my dear friend, Julie.  Our kids were at church practice, and we had an hour and a half to walk with each other.  We talked and walked and walked and talked for what seemed like a long time.  When we stopped to check our time, we still had almost an hour before pick up time.  Wow.  It was amazing.  I can't remember the last time -- if ever -- that we had that much time to talk to each other without being interrupted by a thousand "Mama, Mama, Mamas."

I learned some things that day.  Like she and her husband had made a trip to Minnesota to buy a camper.  And she learned that my brother-in-law and sister-in-law moved to Washington...in January.  We are the kind of friends who are always there for each other, but don't always get the day to day details.

When we talk to each other, we are most often presenting a prayer request.  She is my number one prayer buddy, and I know I can ask her to pray for anything, even if it seems small or silly.  And she will do it.  Not only that, she will follow up with me as well to make sure things are still going well.  And I do the same for her.

She can hold me accountable in a way that holds my feet to the fire but also gives me grace when I need it.

Julie is a one of a kind special friend.  I have just a few friends who fall into the category where we can spend long times apart doing life and then come together and never miss a beat.

I don't know if the weather and the daylight will cooperate for us to have any more of these walks.  Moments like that are few and far between with us both being working mothers, but I am definitely holding on to the memory of this one.   It was such a refreshing and relaxing time to be able to spend time uninterrupted with each other, laughing and burning some calories too.  I treasure the walk with this friend, and I treasure that we walk through our lives together. 

The Whisper of God

Listen for the whisper of God.

The other day started a little rough.  I woke with a rib-racking cough that hurts the throat, the lungs, and the ears of anyone who has to listen to it.  I dragged myself out of my bed, desperately wishing for a cup of coffee with lots of cream, or even a little tea with my honey.  (I don't mean, "tea with my sweetheart."  I meant tea with a whole lot of honey.)  Anyway, those are going against everything I am trying to accomplish as my husband and I tackle our first Whole30.  

I was having a bit of a pity party this morning, feeling overwhelmed and sad that a dumb cough would steal everything I was trying to do to reset my body's systems.   My resource also says that statistically more people quit on Day 10 or 11 than any other.  You guessed it: I woke up with this cough on Day 10.  I was determined not to let this deter me.  So I spent time praying about it and asking God to help me through the day.

I also asked my Bible study group to pray for my physical well-being.  I always have trouble asking for this type of prayer because I know there are so many others who are worse than I am.  But, I was feeling a little desperate so I did it anyway.

Throughout the day, I felt little nudges or whispers that God was taking care of me, and that He was by my side.

My cell service at school is practically nonexistent.  Unless I want to go outside and walk across the parking lot.  So I was surprised when I heard my text message ding.  When I saw the message, it was from a friend who needed prayer right then.  That just happened to be a few minutes before my plan time so I was able to pray for her right away.  That also helped me take the focus off myself for a bit.

As the day went on, I received two more texts.  They were both from my Bible study girls checking on me and praying for me.  I know it sounds silly, but the fact that I received any texts while still in the school building was a bit of divine intervention right there.  All three of them were important to me and timely--one when someone needed me and two that showed me people were praying for me throughout the day.

After school got out, we made a quick trip over to the convenience store so I could get the kids some pizza since we were staying for an evening meeting.  My timing was a little off for that trip since we went during the brief downpour that happened.  At the same time we were getting soaked as we scurried across the parking lot, the sun was so bright that I couldn't even see.  Then there it was.  A big, beautiful, brilliant rainbow.  Whenever I see a rainbow, it makes me all giddy inside.  It always makes me feel like that is God's personal gift for me and for me alone.  I know that is selfish as well as untrue, but that's how I feel when I see a rainbow.  It is as if God took the time to whisper through those brilliant colors, "Everything is going to be okay.  Trust me; I've got this."

By the end of the day, I was feeling much better.  Still coughing some, but not much and not the kind that eventually leads to multiple rounds of antibiotics as I fight off bronchitis.  Two days later, it is holding.  I woke up this morning feeling fantastic, better actually than I have felt in a long time.  I can't explain it any other way.  People prayed for me throughout the day, and my cough went away.

I started the day dismayed and miserable.  I ended the day feeling like I had received a personal gift from God and a healing.  God is there.  He is by my side all day long, and He sends me reminders when I need them most that He really does have it all under control.

One Mistake Left

Do you see it?  Do you see the mistake in my latest project?  It's a little bit like finding Waldo so don't worry if you can't find it.  If I didn't know what I was looking for, I wouldn't be able to find it either.

Every project I have ever done has a mistake in it.  (At least one!)  Each and every time I find a mistake, it reminds me of my Great-Grandma Ellis.  I remember her fondly.  I used to sit on her lap, and I always played with the loose skin on her hands.  I was fascinated by that.  I am sure it must have been annoying, but she never said a word about it.

I remember fishing in her pond out back.  The time when Jon caught a turtle on his line.  The time when Grandpa and Jon took the raft out to the middle and tipped it over.  All the times I wore my red polka-dotted hat while fishing.  Digging up worms in the yard before we could fish.

Grandma Ellis always had orange slices sitting out in her kitchen.  That kitchen that seemed a little small but just right at the same time.  It was a definite 70s color, although I can't remember the exact color.  It went well with the mint green exterior of the house.  There was also the shed.  All kinds of interesting things out in that shed.  Wheelbarrows, flower pots, and I don't know what else.  

Trees to climb.  Fried chicken to eat.     

Sitting in her lawn chair just enjoying all the kids' hustle and bustle around her.  Watching everything with her wise eyes behind the big glasses.

Remembering the time there was a downpour and we ended up staying the night because the creek was out.  Some interesting night clothes that evening!

Talking about education, and how she didn't really want me to be a teacher.  She came from a time when teachers had to resign when they got married, and she didn't really think that was the best fit for anyone.  (Sorry Grandma, it really is what I was made to do.)

And I don't know exactly which kind, but I know that she was part Native American.  If my memory serves me correctly, her mother had been half-blooded.  Whatever it was, I remember her saying this, "Whenever you make something, you always have to leave one mistake for the evil spirits to get out."  Now I don't believe that evil spirits really live inside my yarn and finished projects, but it always makes me smile when I find a mistake.  Smile and think of Grandma Ellis fondly.  She was one special lady!

And if you have ever received or bought anything from me, you don't have to worry about the evil spirits either.  I always leave plenty of places for them to find their way out!

My 3-D Summer

Back to school this last week means the end of summer.  That brings with it a lot of questions about how my summer was.  The short answer I have given is "good, busy, and too fast."  In a nutshell, my summer consisted of summer school, jury duty, kids' baseball games, swimming, hanging out, VBS, scrapbooking, lots of crocheting, and two big trips.

The more I have been asked about my summer, the more I have reflected on it.  In addition to the list above, it falls into three dimensions:  Destress, Descreen, and Decaffeinate.

1.  De-stress

This primarily was accomplished by sleeping more.  I didn't get up at 5:00 every day this summer.  I didn't set the alarm at all, except for a few days when I had to be somewhere at a certain time.  But those days were few, and I just let my body sleep as much as it needed.  I woke up between 7 and 7:30 most days, and it was glorious!  My body was fully rested, and I felt great.  The other thing I did to ward off stress was try to  find balance between what I needed to do and what I wanted to do.  Between working around in the house and spending time with the kids.  Between doing dishes and crocheting.   Between running errands and chauffeuring kids and just hanging out at home.  

2.  De-screen

My husband saw this idea somewhere, and we implemented it.  I call it "Screen Time Economy."  This involves the kids earning time on their tablets or in front of the TV by earning chores.  They don't seem to care about money too much, but they sure like their screens.    Little jobs get a little time, and big jobs get a bunch of time.  I don't really care if you veg out for a while if you have already done everything I wanted you to do.  I love the way it works.  My house didn't really get any cleaner; they don't want to do the big jobs no matter what the incentive.  But they were forced to find other ways to spend their time.  I heard a lot of creative play; sometimes they even played together!   We played a lot of board and card games together.  I also quickly realized that if I was putting limits on their screen time, I had to limit my own as well.  I can't very well sit around with my phone or iPad all day, if I am expecting my children to do other things.  I began to realize that electronic games had a stronghold on me so I have deleted all of those off my iPad in order to remove that temptation.

3.  De-caffeinate. 

I love a good cup of coffee with lots of cream.  (My husband suggests I should just have a cup of warm milk!)  Nothing goes better with Bible study than a hot cup of joe.  Plus, I really love having a hot drink in the morning to get me going.  But early in the summer, I gave it up.  One day I ran out of creamer, and I decided I wasn't going to buy anymore.  I wanted to see if it had any impact on the spikes in my blood pressure.  This is in an attempt to figure out what causes my blood pressure to spike.  I had already switched to decaf and limited myself to one cup a day.  I was still having trouble with my blood pressure though so I decided to go without the coffee for a while to see if it made a difference.  It does seem to help so I guess I am going to stick with it.  I am also trying to give up Diet Coke, my number one vice.  I am still working on this one, although I have cut way back.  But if you see me with a Diet Coke in my hand, just know that I am a work in progress.  

I feel good about my summer.  Not every moment was perfect, of course, but I will remember this one fondly.  And that is a good place to be as I am now back into full swing of school schedule.