Joyful Transformation

Greetings on this final day of March. Is it just me or has this been a really long month. Maybe it is the anticipation of vacation in 2 WEEKS!! I can hardly wait!

If you were wondering the elephant is still in the middle of the room. I am getting better at ignoring him, isn’t it funny in life how we harden our hearts to things where they can’t hurt us? I don’t want to be insensitive, I don’t want to be hard and uncaring, but I don’t want to be hurt either. Problem is when we develop relationships with people we will be hurt, we will be disappointed; we will be frustrated and perhaps even angry. But if we do not have relationships with people we never enjoy laughter, heartfelt sharing and even crying together. There is nothing better in this life than sharing it with people, but when you do beware; you are opening the door to ELEPHANTS!!

So on this final day in March, I am going to accept the fact that people come and go from my life. Some will impact me greatly, some not so much. My focus is going to be on how I impact them. Do I leave them with a sense of how important God is in my life? Do they remember me as someone who is filled with the Spirit? Will they walk away from me and not know who I am and what I stand for? People are important! God made us, Christ died for us! The least we can do is truly care for one another….even if it means we occasionally get hurt!

Authentic: Today this is what I will strive to be. I will try to be myself even when I know it might not be who someone is expecting. I will not agree with others just to make them like me. I will stand up and be counted if given the chance. I will reflect the Spirit that lives within me in all that I do. Quite a challenge; will you join me?

I am reminded again this morning of Who is in charge! The moon was reflected beautifully in the lake as I left home at 5:10 a.m. I noticed the vapor trails in the sky reflecting the moon with a pale shade of white as I left home. As I got closer to the gym the vapor trails had started to turn pink. The beautiful moon still hung low in the western sky as the sun began its ascent to the east. WOW! Another beautiful morning, brought to you by your Creator; the one who loves you so much He would paint the sky for your pleasure. Thank you God!

Speaking of beautiful things that I praise God for, my grandson had his first Easter. He spent Saturday at my house and enjoyed getting dirty in the great outdoors. We played in the wagon, played with the dogs (and the dog food) and basically just had a good time. Sunday he made sure he was the center of attention at my mother’s house. Really we wouldn’t have it any other way. You can check him out here, with his mom & dad here.

In harmony with what I talked about yesterday I am embarking on an in-depth study of the Gospels. I have just completed the New Testament. My Old Testament study bogged down again (you can probably guess where). I am only posting this here to keep myself accountable. I find that when I make a commitment on paper (or cyber-space) I tend to keep it. This time I don’t want to do a read through, but really study what Jesus said and what He wants His followers to do. That is what I want to be!

1. Inventory your religious connections. Worship services attended, Bible classes, seminars, number of Christian friends, ministries, etc.

2. What if all of this was no longer accessible to you? Imagine all you have is you and your faith (OK, and your family).

3. Now, be church.


This has been on my mind since then, and this weekend it has taken over my thinking. (Sometimes we underestimate the power of our words when written). Can I be church? Can I even recognize that I am church; not a building; not a group of men; not my class or my friends; ME!! It is vital for my spiritual health right now to come to that realization. I need to put aside all the preconceived ideals, all of the traditions, all of the expectations of others and figure out what Jesus wants ME to do! What does He expect me to be? When I truly focus on this everything else will fall into its proper place.

I confess; I never really understood the concept of “Creamed Corn”. Sure we all have things in our lives and on our hearts that we are not going to share on our blogs so why even mention it? Today I get it! It is that big elephant sitting in the room that everyone is aware of but are pretending it is not there. It is a burden on your heart that is so palpable that you are sure others can see your pain. Yet for now it can’t be shared. It can only be talked around while the mundane is discussed. Anyway, if you can shout up a prayer for me God knows what I need.

So for some Creamed Corn: A few weeks ago I changed the “skin” on my blog, and a few of you asked me about it and I never responded. I just wanted a new look. It also gave me something to do when I was frustrated about the posting and commenting outages. I like to try and figure out the HTML codes by trial and error since I don’t really know anything about it. Unfortunately the “skin” I chose had some hard coding in it that I have not quite figured out how to go around. I find it challenging to change the color and size of my title, a different font and underline for my post headings and so forth. I like the ability to manipulate the look without having to really get in there and learn the language. Yes, I admit it I am lazy. I will often spend hours developing short cuts to keep me from doing boring and mundane task. Many people will tell me I could have been finished a lot faster if I had just did it instead of reinventing it, but tomorrow and the next day, and the next day, it will be easier for me!! So if you liked my new look, thank you. Maybe I will get creative again soon and change it again. (You can just about count on that!)

Have a blessed Good Friday and a wonderful Easter.

Praise God; He AROSE!!

Note to self—don’t complain about your dreams, at least it means you are sleeping!! I had one of those nights where I could not go back to sleep after I woke up at 12:30 a.m. I would drift off but kept repeating the same task in my sleep over and over and waking up at the same point. I know what it was, I cheated yesterday and ate a couple (maybe 5) miniature Reese’s Cups, man I hate the consequences!!

Yesterday friendship was the topic on my mind. Terri taught our class on that subject last night and we both blogged about it. I got to thinking of the many kinds of friends I have and have had in my life. All of them have meant a lot to me, most of them have taken a piece of my heart with them. Many of them I will never see again on this earth, some of them I see quite often. Friends truly are God’s way of showing us a piece of himself. Here is the list I came up with.

1. Siblings
2. Parents
3. Aunts and Uncles
4. Cousins
5. Grandparents
6. Neighborhood friends
7. School friends
8. Church friends
9. Cheerleading friends
10. Softball friends
11. Volley-Ball friends
12. BOY-FRIENDS
13. Work Friends
14. Spouse
15. Mom & Dad In-laws
16. Brother & Sister In-Laws
17. Nieces and Nephews
18. Children
19. Children’s friends
20. PTA friends
21. Other Parents at Kids activities
22. Bowling Friends
23. Tennis Friends
24. Spouse’s work friends
25. Gym friends
26. Hair Stylist friends
27. Customer friends
28. Work associate friends
29. Civic Group friends
30. Blogging friends

Everyone has a somewhat different list, and yet probably they are a lot the same. I told our group last night that I am drawn more and more to my church friends or at least friends who share a faith in God. While this helps me a better person, does it really fulfill the Great Commission Jesus has for my life? I prayed last night for God to lead me to people that I could share Him with. Perhaps that is why I could not sleep. I do want to stretch myself, but I am afraid I won’t have time to “limber-up”. Anyway as I look for new friends in my life I will thank God for the many friends that have touched my life and the special place they each have in my heart.

I had crazy dreams last night. Actually I think that the dreams came after I decided not to get up and go work out; maybe that was my punishment. Anyway without going into detail, because it was just a dream, I was somewhere with a good friend and some other people who were important to her when suddenly I found myself involved in doing something totally inappropriate. In my dream I am trying to hide this from her but I am in the WIDE OPEN!! There is no hiding what is going on. Now to preface this dream, before going to bed I was reading our lesson for tonight on friendship. Terri (the unfortunate friend from my dream) is going to teach the class. Part of the jest of the lesson is that we all have burdens, sins, problems that we sometimes need to let our friends carry for us. It seems that we are a lot more willing to bear others burdens than we are to unload ours (This is totally ME!). Anyway, I am not sure if the dream was a warning or a sign that perhaps I need to unload...I will keep you posted.

BTW are you more likely to be a “burden carrier” or a “burden sharer”?

Storms are moving in today. I would prefer to be at home watching and listening. There is nothing more beautiful than lightning playing in the sky and being reflected in the water. The power displayed in a storm reflects the majesty of our God.

I had a strange thought when driving in to the gym this morning. I thought “I am in the prime of my life”. Now, most people my age think that they have passed their prime. Most people seem to relate this thought to their 30’s some even their 20’s. But I got married young and started having children when I was 22. While my children are still a “huge” part of my life, my life no longer revolves around them. For the first time in my adult life, I can participate in competitive sports; I can work out everyday without feeling like I am neglecting someone. I can plan vacations and weekend getaways without having to make sure everyone has a place to stay, etc. I am fortunate to be in good health and I am working hard to stay that way.

Yet hard as I work, time is taking a toll. These bodies weren’t made to last forever. Wrinkles creep up, weight rearranges itself. Hair, well hair I can disguise. I played singles in tennis on Sunday, went to “spin” class yesterday morning and then was playing tennis again last night. My body starts yelling at me! “Hey woman! Do you think we are still 25?” Well, yes sometimes I do. I hate that it takes me longer to recover from some things and worse yet, there are some things I just can’t do anymore! I am not real sure if that is age or just forgetting to use “it” for so long.

The fact that I am getting older is even harder to accept in my spiritual life. Are you like me? Did you think by the time you reached 40 you would have it all together? There would not even be anything to tempt you to sin when you got “that OLD!!” (For you younger readers, don’t kid yourselves, nothing much changes between your ears). I made the comment to my prayer group that we were now the people that would be making changes in the church! We are the spiritual leaders! That is scary for me. I think what scares me the most is that the people who are older than me, that I thought had it together so well, probably felt the same way that I do.

Grace is a wonderful thing! God knew we would never outgrow sin. He knew that we would need His grace as much in our mid 40’s as we did in our mid 20’s. He hoped we would grow to appreciate it more, I have. Like I said I used to think I would eventually get it together. Now I know that I will never be complete, never be worthy, never come even close. But I rest assured in the fact that God doesn’t expect that of me. He loves me! He wants to take me home with Him! No matter how great a time I am having in this life, I know that a better life is waiting for me! What a glorious thought!

What kind of blogger are you? Do you know what you are going to write about before you start? Maybe you just sit down and start typing and see what comes out. I admit that I am both. Some days I have to just start typing and it is amazing but words always come. Other days I have something specific in mind when I begin. Well today I have a lot of trivial things on my mind so bear with me as I air them

1. Are you watching American Idol? Is it just me or does Bo sound like the lead singer for Third Day? Yes, I am from Alabama, a fan of Rock and therefore a Bo supporter!! Go BO!
2. I am going to agree with David U this morning. Is there any better food than eating at your Mother’s house? Wow, what a great meal!
3. Have you noticed how easy it is to love people who think like you think? I have told you before I have preacheritis. Randy amazes me sometimes by pulling thoughts right out of my head. He also is a big John Ortberg fan, so we have that in common. You rock Randy!!
4. Someone told me recently that they were tired of studying Acts and some other books of the Bible because we had done them so many times we knew the whole book. I may be crazy, but the more I study the more questions I have. The more I study the more I realize I don’t know. Do you find yourself questioning more or less as you get older?
5. Is the first day of spring always followed by a grey rainy day or is it just in Alabama?
6. I saw two movies this weekend, Ladder 49 on DVD and Robots at the theatre. That should be enough said about my eclectic taste in movies.
7. Have you ever had cramps in the arches of your feet? This is a very painful experience and I am blaming my spin instructor!!
8. I know many of you could care less but What is up with the #8 team??? We are going to have a hard time scratching up to the top 10 even though we have seven months of racing left. Do all the teams I pull for have to start out behind???
9. Even though I don’t comment that often when I read blogs, I lose interest in reading when I CAN’T comment. I wonder why that is? Control maybe?
10. Monday’s aren’t so bad! I actually find myself looking forward to them now. I wonder if I am losing my mind!

Have a great week!

It is a beautiful early morning here in north Alabama. The sun is peaking out and the birds have started their morning symphony. The last two days have been miserably cold and damp. I guess that truly helps you appreciate a beautiful morning. I can’t believe that Sunday is the official first day of spring. Is it just me or did the winter months fly by? Oh, I am so glad it’s here, I just can’t believe how fast it comes.

I am going on a little trip in 4 weeks and I am trying to lose weight before hand. As of yesterday I was down 13.2 lbs and had lost 3 inches in my waist!! Woo Hoo!! I wish that put me close to my goal but I still need to lose about 15 to 18 more pounds. I love the feeling of accomplishment and I admit the feeling of control that losing weight gives me. However this morning when I was leaving “Spin Class” I got the worst cramp in the arch of my left foot. I thought I was going to have to hit the ground. I know that thinking I am in control of anything is just a grand illusion. But I do have to make an effort.

The same is true when we try to grow in the Spirit. We can work hard and develop some of the fruit that we know we are supposed to have. Every once in a while though we will get a cramp or some kind of pain or hindrance that will make us question what we are doing and the results that it is bringing. Just like getting our physical bodies in shape, getting our spiritual lives in shape takes effort, daily effort. We are not always going to get it right and sometimes we are going to be worn out. We don’t have to do it all in a day or a week or all by ourselves. Those of you who work out have read that most of your gains are made not while working out but when resting. Hmmm, I think we should apply that to our Spiritual lives as well. Yes, we must make the effort, we must feed and exercise our Spirit, but the real growth, the real changes come about when we let go of control and allow God to change us while we rest. I like that! Now if only I can apply it.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Last night our lesson was on loneliness and how God created us to be people of community. Celia is such a sweet and gentle spirit and she read us the children's book “The Lonely Firefly” that she is currently reading to her Head Start group. Our class will get such a variety of teachers this quarter. Celia is sweet, funny and totally grounded. Terri is feisty totally organized type-A personality who is also incredibly funny. Then they have me, the fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants gal, who likes to ask the probing questions and play the devil’s advocate just to stir us some discussion. It should be an interesting study.

I tried to think of times in my life that I had felt lonely. I know that there are many. I shared with the class the leaving of a job where there were 50-60 employees to come here where there are 8 of us. When I first came here we were so busy that I didn’t have time to get to know the people that I worked with very well. I got lonely then.

I remember when I first started going to the church I now attend. I was 27 years old with a 5 year old and a 2 year old. I was by myself. I had always gone to my parents’ church which was also the church of my aunts, uncles and cousins. Now here I was trying to control these two children by myself in a church building full of strangers. There were some very special people who made that transition easier for me, but I was scared and lonely. Only my determination to not go backwards kept me coming. I need to remind myself of this when I see young mothers in services alone with their children.

There is also the ending of friendships and other relationships that create a void in our lives. When you talk to someone everyday sometimes 2 or 3 times a day and that person leaves your life (for whatever reason) loneliness is going to be a by-product.

I don’t think it is very productive for me to dwell on my seasons of loneliness unless I am doing it as a way to reach out to others who may be feeling the same way. The truth of it is that we all need other people. We may not need a new best friend or a confidant as much as we just need kind sincere words. If we truly want to be like Jesus we will look at how we can reach out to others. We will try to recognize those who are lonely or hurting and at least share a smile with them. I have got a lot of work to do on this one.

** I got an error message the first two times I tried to post this, then when it finally worked it posted 5 times!!! Fortunately I compose most of my post in Word then copy and paste (spell check works better). However, I have lost several funny comments to other blogs this week. Don't think I am not reading and commenting, Blogwart is just eating them**

I have the crazy ideal of putting together some of my blog post for my Mom as her Mother’s Day gift. She does not own a computer and therefore has not read anything I have written. Some of it I would not want her to read but she might be amused (and do I secretly hope impressed) by some of my writing. My brother told her I was writing some stuff and she did ask me about it. What do you think? Would that be a lame gift? Maybe I could write some poem or letter to her as well… I don’t know it was just a thought.

I know that everything in life is cyclical and we can never stay “up” or “down” all of the time but it frustrates me so badly when I feel myself falling into a “down” time. No, I am not depressed or even in one of my famous funks I just feel myself drifting from closeness with God. My prayers become perfunctory and my study just sits still for awhile. I can’t explain what causes me to drift into these modes. It seems like these episodes usually come on the heels of some success or particularly busy time. Perhaps it is the natural let down experienced after such times. I am sharing my class teaching duties this quarter with two other ladies. I welcome the relief but at the same time wonder if this makes me be a little lazy. I will be honest in telling you part of the reason I teach on Wednesday nights is where I will come. I can find a million reasons not to if I am not responsible for something. But I am always blessed and refilled when I do come. Am I normal? I just wonder; do any of you struggle with these issues? Maybe I am just weird!!

***I wrote the preceding paragraph before I left the office last night. I prayed to God about the distance I was feeling and asked Him to help me find my way. Last night I was looking at a couple of blogs that I don’t read very often and found God speaking to me there. I pasted the link in an e-mail where I could review this morning only to find that he had posted again. This morning his post was speaking directly to what I was feeling. And he made it not only sound normal but a regular part of our spiritual rhythm of life. I know that God can use anything He wants to as a way to speak to me, but I am continually amazed by the blessings that have come into my life by blogging. I would still like to know if you go through the ups and downs, but praise God, I think I understand mine now!****

Well I spent a whole weekend without even booting up my computer!! Being unable to comment last week just really got to me, so I just left it alone and you know what? It didn’t kill me.

I have spent a lot of time thinking about my last post and the concept of living life on purpose. I tried to incorporate it into everything I did this weekend. Even while playing tennis I kept telling myself “hit it on purpose”. I think it made a difference. I struggled some during church services yesterday. Sometimes there is a personality conflict with someone who is in a leadership role that will just ruin my attitude. It happened yesterday, but I struggled to get my thoughts under control, I am not real sure I won that battle, but I did try.

The funny thing is when I try real hard to focus on some things; I invariably let other things go. I could sense this weekend that my spouse was not happy with me. I am not sure why, but I know I get caught up in things and can live in my own little world. I am sure it is my fault. So there is a whole balancing act to go with this purpose thing. I can’t let one thing go just to do better in another area.

After a bit of a sabbatical I am reading with a vengeance again. I have been reading the books that I was using in my studies for teaching but neglecting my reading for pleasure. I started the book “The Broker” Friday and am almost finished (thanks Terri). Hey that may have something to do with my husbands displeasure with me…..

I am the queen of sleep. I can actually be asleep within 4.5 seconds of my head hitting the pillow and even if I wake up in the night I can go right back to sleep. So when I have a tossing and turning kind of night it is an event. Part of the unrest is due to the unease about the job. I wonder sometimes why I think I always have to do something. This cycle will come and go. If I didn’t make any money at all for the next three years I would still be way ahead of where I was in my previous job. And I know, it is not all about money (but really, would we work without it?), I love my job. I have never had a job that gives me the flexibility and autonomy that this one does. I think my “all or nothing” personality gets in the way and I feel like if I am not busy, busy, busy then I must be looking for something to do.

This can be a real interesting year. Maybe I can devote some time to other things that I have wanted to do; which brings me to the second reason I couldn’t get back to sleep. I am trying to figure out what that one burning desire is in my life that will make it complete. (thanks fireguy!) I know that it is going to be something related to writing. But I just don’t think I can do serious writing as a hobby. I think that for me it would take more time and possibly more energy than I can devote to it as a part time venture. I have ideas; I have moments of verbosity that overwhelm me. But I have never been able to channel it into an extended writing period. The second part of that equation is would it bring me closer to God or would it glorify Him? If not, then truly it is not a venture I should pursue. I read Clarissa’s blog yesterday where she spoke of doing the things she loves to do and how it has blessed her life. I want that, but I don’t really know what it is for me. Yes I know I said I love my job, but truly the work is not what I love, it is the freedom.

So these are the thoughts that are racing through my mind at 2:00 this morning. That combined with my faith questions of yesterday. I appreciate Betty and Jenni’s thoughts on my dilemma and I think Betty is right, we don’t control near as much as we like to think that we do, but for me if I don’t live life on purpose, if I don’t continually question and push myself, I will just coast, and I don’t want to coast! I want to truly enjoy what life I have to live on this earth. I want to make a difference in the kingdom, and I want to feel that I have reached my potential when my life starts to fade away. Not to bring glory to me, but to reveal the glorious creation that I am.

***For some reason I cannot post comments to anyone else's blog! As soon as this is fixed I'll hop over to fireguy with my answers. This is so frustrating, I am sure you all want to hear what I think about what you are posting...***

I am having one of those defining moments in my life. Do I have faith, do I REALLY have faith. If you follow current events including the money markets you are aware that rates are rising, including mortgage rates. Business is SLOW! Times will be a little tough over the next couple of years. God has always provided in more and better ways than I could ever anticipate, so what is the problem? I wrestled with this last night. On the one hand I do believe that God takes care of me and my family, but I also believe that He expects me to use the gifts He has given me, including my intellect and resources to provide for my family. (yes, guys my husband does provide, but we are and always have been a TEAM!) So can I let go and have faith that God will provide, or is this one of those times that I am to “wise as a serpent”? I often state that I don’t worry. The truth is I don’t worry about what I know I can’t change, but I sometimes obsess about things that I have the illusion of “control” over. If I can control things, by george, I plan to control them! So am I in conflict with my faith when I try to control my destiny? What do you think?

I guess I should not be surprised at the March wind. But boy is it blowing hard this morning. The winds are so strong it moved my Tahoe around on the road effortlessly. Tennis is supposed to start tomorrow, but so is the rain. Oh well, it may have to be postponed. I can live with that. As much as I love tennis, it is NO FUN in the wind or the rain.

I find myself accepting postponements or disappointments better as I get older. Maybe it has nothing to do with age but has more to do with maturity. I hope it is not a negative or “woe-is-me-nothing-good-ever-happens-to-me” attitude. But, I am pretty sure it is not that. Perhaps it is the understanding that each day only has so many hours, if I can’t change what is happening I might as well enjoy it. At the end of the day the only thing I can reflect on is the way I have spent ‘my’ time. So when the sun comes out today but the temperature stays in the 40’s, I will be content. When it goes back down below freezing tonight, I will enjoy my fire. If it rains out tennis tomorrow I will know that I can play on a better day. Life is good, life is short; I must learn to play with whatever ball is thrown at me.

I just realized that I have not updated you lately on Matthew. He is now 7 months old and completely mobile. He hasn’t got the crawling thing perfected; they have wood floors at his house so sometimes he just scoots, but he gets wherever he wants to go and in a hurry. He can pull up on anything, unless it turns over with him and is constant motion. He has two bottom teeth and is developing more personality every day. He does this little thing where he snorts as he laughs that is just precious. Yes of course I am biased, but the truth is the truth. To check him out at seven months click here.

You know I was thinking about the fact that I don’t talk about him and post as much about him as I did when he was first born. Do you think that means that I love him any less? Of course not! He knows that I love him. His face lights up when I come in a room and he reaches for me. My heart could burst sometimes it is so full when I am with him. Maybe, this is how we are about Jesus. Sometimes we don’t talk about Him and what He means to us all of the time, but He is such a part of our lives we just assume everyone knows how much we love Him. When we do talk about Him our faces should light up and our hearts fill up with unsurpassable joy at the thought of how much He loves us and what He has done for us. But there are people who don’t know about Him. They need to hear us talk about Him. They need us to introduce Him to them. Do we tell about Him with as much ease as we do our children, grandchildren or nieces and nephews? I admit, I am guilty. Sometimes I act like it would offend someone to hear about my Jesus. Shame on me! If He is as vital to my life as I say how can I help but speak of Him with great pride and great joy?! I pray that I can talk about His love for me and my love for Him with the same ease and sense of excitement with which I talk about my precious grandson.

Last night I sat in my recliner with my book and looked at the fire. I was thinking how much I enjoy just watching the flames lick up in the air and circle the logs feeding it. I was soaking in the warmth that the fire provided, grateful that it knocked off the chill of the late winter evening. I thought of other ways that fire was good. Nothing is better than a steak cooked over an open flame. It also makes the ordinary hamburger and hotdog extraordinary.

When fire or its derivative heat, are left unchecked they can cause damage and leave scars. Just this week my son received 2nd degree burns from a machine that was carelessly left on where he worked. He will have a scar. Many times I have lit the gas grill only to fear for my eyebrows and bangs. There have been times when they have not faired so well.

But fire has another level; out of control. When it is out of control it destroys everything in its path; trees, homes even lives. This is the fire that brings no comfort, only destruction.

James 3:6 The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

You know James compares our tongue to a fire, it is a great comparison. But I think we only compare it to the destructive out-of-control fire. We can also bring great comfort and great warmth with our words. There is nothing more relaxing and comforting than spending an evening talking with a good friend. There is nothing sweeter when we are feeling lonely than a phone call from someone that we love.

We can nourish and feed hungry souls with encouragement and love. Think of how a baby responds to the voice of his/her mother. Their whole face will light up at the sound of someone they know and love. The lonely old lady in the nursing home can hear the sound of her loved ones coming down the hall and have her day completely turned around.

There are times when our words are careless and we don’t destroy others, but we leave scars that take a while to heal. We must be careful that our sarcasm and veiled humor are not actually fiery darts to the people we come in contact with. Most of us have experienced the giving and receiving of such “darts”.

We must guard against letting our tongues setting our whole course of life on fire. We certainly do not want to harm others, but how tragic to destroy our own lives in hell because we can’t control what comes out of our mouths. You know people like that. I know people like that.

Fires like our tongues are weapons that must be controlled.

Several years ago we had a visiting minister who said these words at the end of every service. If you have ever heard Havey Starling I'm sure you have heard them.

"May Our Goal in Life Be... To Do All The Good We Can, For As Many As We Can, As Often As We Can, And May God Help Us To Do No Harm At All. "

That statement has stuck with me all of these years.

Last night one of our sisters came before our class stating that harm had been done to her. She has had a year of problems and situations that many of us had felt helpless to do anything about. We had prayed for her often and discussed ways that we could help her. Part of her upheaval has been changing jobs. She now works out of town and someone at her new job told her that stories were circulating about her and some of its origins were possibly ladies in our class. She read a statement to the class and explained some of the behaviors that perhaps had caused the rumors to begin with. I don’t know if we were guilty of talking to others about her. I do know that I have talked with other ladies of the class about how we could or should help her. She did make the excellent point that if we had questions or concerns we should have come to her. How hard is it to know when to do this? We are all such private people and we don’t want to hurt anyone, but when we do hear things about our brothers and sisters should we not immediately assume innocence and talk to them? After she finished, we all told her we were glad she came to us and that we had been worried about her. We then gathered around her with our hands on her and prayed for her and for us. When we get “real” with each other, we can find healing. Had she just harbored resentment and left nobody would have gained. Perhaps if she had trusted enough to be real with us when her problems began we would have known better how to help her. If we had been persistent in trying to find out how we could help, maybe she would have opened up sooner. See, it is a circle. We need each other to complete the circle.

I pray that I learned from this. I pray that God will open my eyes to people who need an encouraging word and a helping hand. I pray that God will help me to have self-control over my words and my thoughts.

Why my husband is offended when I want to get someone to clean the house. I wouldn’t care if he had someone mow the yard.

Why people don’t plant beds of dandelions. They are truly a unique and beautiful plant.

Why I feel more productive “goofing off” at work than “goofing off” at home.

Why you can’t eat barbeque wings without getting sauce on your sleeve.

Why if working out makes you stronger my knees keep getting weaker.

Why anyone would watch reality T.V.

Why my husband likes Orange County Choppers!!??

Why anyone was surprised that the ratings of the Oscars was low. I mean who cares???

Why I long for heaven, but absolutely hate getting older!

Why EVERYBODY goes to Wal-Mart on the 1st day of the month (and I keep forgetting and go too!)

Why you are always sleeping soooo good when the alarm clock goes off.

Why if I understand and accept God’s grace in my life, I can’t shake off the guilt of my past sins.

What winds will March bring to my life this year?

Winds of change? I hope it brings a change to the number I am registering on the scales. (I just accidentally typed the word ton instead of on; an omen….. or a description.)

Winds of blessings? Perhaps my daughter will get pregnant this month, granny X 2

Winds of Service? Will I find ways to serve others that I have not thought of yet? I hope so.

Winds of Praise? Can I put my God before everything else in my life and give Him glory for all He has done for me?

Winds of Tolerance? Can I be less critical of others; can I support decisions of others even when I don’t necessarily agree with them?

Winds of Study? Can I immerse myself into The Word and grow in Spirit?

Winds of Trust? Can I identify the leadings of the Spirit in my life and have the courage to follow?

Winds of Attention? Can I actually pay attention to the important people in my life, you know actually listen to everything they say and let that be important to me too!

Winds of Prayer? Really can I accomplish anything on my own? No I need the help from the Father above, but you know what? He wants me to ask!!