Taking Action

I just finished my study on Numbers last night. Yes, definitely an achievement worth blogging about. It wasn't the easiest book of the Bible for me to read. Though I did learn throughout. But I sit here this morning and wonder, was I really open to studying this book?

I feel like I was looking for something particular, some specific lesson to learn, some "ah ha" moment, that it is quite and most likely possible that I missed out on what God was truly trying to teach me. I had my blinders on only listening to what I wanted to hear and honestly just getting lost in all the lineage and lists of clans and tribes.

How often I use that excuse...waiting for something to speak to me. How lazy that is. I'm waiting to be acted upon rather than doing the action. I believe I read this book with that mentality. And that saddens me. I realize that this happens quite frequently in regards to faith. We complain about a service, we only want to hear the "good" stuff, the "good" stories, that keep our interest. We only want what we want the way we want it and when we want it...to put it bluntly.

We wait to be acted upon instead of doing the actions...

and we miss out....

We miss out on the truth. We miss out on His word. We miss out on the true intimacy God wants us to have with Him, because we aren't really open.

I think its time to turn it around and finally focus on the One it is all about...God. It is time to take action...to read, to listen, to follow with an open mind and heart.

Maybe I should try reading Numbers again.

Life As I Know It...At the Moment That Is!

I've reached another time where my eyes are open to the moments in life that are present and ever changing. My boss and I were talking one day about how there are moments he wishes would just stand still or atleast slow down. I have to agree that there have been some pretty wonderful times in my life that I probably wished could have lasted just a little longer. But where God has brought me now, is far better than those past moments. They were blessings, and I know there is more to come. But I actually like the idea of change...of growing and being molded by Christ. To see what he can do with and in my life never ceases to amaze me. So I welcome the change though these times can be a bit scarey...but what opportunities await!

I spent the weekend embracing this change...

I was grateful to be able to attend Kalyn's open house. She is such a caring young lady, who is honest and genuine. She just reaches out to many, and I am very excited about how God will continue to use her and the relationship she is building with Him. She is graduating and taking the next step forward. But in all honesty, she has been taking these steps way before graduation, always growing, learning, and sharing and I know she will be blessed with many new experiences and opportunities in the change she is facing in life.

I was so very thankful for the assistance my mom provided this weekend as she spent Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday pretty much organizing and running a garage sale for me. I know I can always count on my parents for support. But as I talked to mom this weekend, I knew that the relationship we have continues to change. It is still the very supportive mother/daughter relationship we have, but has grown into friendship. She is my friend. She is someone I can be honest with, share things with, and I just know that she is there for me and vice versa. I am just so thankful for my parents and the relationship and friendship that exists as it continues to change.

I had such a great time getting together with Jess, Alicia, and Jessica to scrap for several hours on Sunday. I love how encouraging we are to each other, complimenting on pictures, cards, and just the way the pages turn out. My friendship with these women always lifts me up. Everytime we get together, our relationship changes and grows stronger. We are at the stage where we can be ourselves and just appreciate what each one brings to the relationship. I won't even mention the great food at the cookout that followed. Just a great time with friends and meeting new ones!

I went out on the lake with family and friends several times this weekend. The water was a bit cold, but the time spent playing with Grace in the water was priceless to me. She just continues to change as she learns more each day. I sat around a bonfire, talking and laughing with everyone, knowing that this is not where I will be next year.

Things will change. Relationships will change, and though friendships will definitely continue, things will be different when I return. So I appreciate this time with them. And I am excited about what the future holds, though I am uncertain of what that really is.

Embracing change...

When The Boss Is Away...

Yeah, we would have had fun with the balloons even if he was here!

May your weekend be filled with such fun moments!

On The Bright Side...

There are some amazing things going on in my life and in the lives of friends and family, and I just wanted to Praise God for all of it and give a little blogger congrats and recap on things going on....

Jess: Fabulous new work schedule, giving her an extra day with the kiddos every week!

Dina: Summer vacation is around the corner, which includes a mission trip and her birthday!

Ang: Healthy growing family and preparing to use her talents as a teacher as she returns to the classroom in the fall!

Alicia: Moving to a wonderful new home, and I know I am looking forward to their house warming party :)!

Sarah: Loving her marriage!

Jessica: Catching up with friends, joining blogger, and of course spending time with some great friends this weekend!

Jackie: Beautiful new home that is coming along, and children that always make her laugh!

Joy: Proud mother and wife, and something interesting is always happening to her!

Melanie: Beautiful daughter, and warm weather to work in the garden...which she is wonderful at!

Sarah P: Alway spending time with friends and family!

Me: Just enjoying the beautiful weather, mom is here, and moving forward step by step!

God is Good! How have you been blessed today?

Tested

So yesterday, I could have just crawled in bed and stayed there for the day. In fact, that is probably what I should have done. But life would continue and I would still face the same challenges today. No worries friends, I will persevere with the strength and love of Christ, but I am pretty positive I couldn't have handled any more challenges yesterday.

I know we all have days like those once in a while. It is so easy to give in and just say "no, I can't take it anymore". It is so easy to limit our "own" strength and what we can handle alone. But we aren't alone. So I turn to God who is here with me, asking me to trust Him.

I don't have any scripture to share at the moment, just the peace that God is with me through it all. I feel like I am being tested, but I will not waiver in my walk with Christ.

P.S. My mom is coming tomorrow for the weekend, and she will be such a great help. I know she will help hold me up.

Outside!

The perfect word to capture how my weekend was spent..."outside".

I was able to travel the world in about 2 hours thanks to the Taste of Noble County festival on Saturday. After working for about 4 hours at the festival, I came back with my sister and neice so that we all could enjoy the festival together. We enjoyed some delicious cultural food. We watched some different ethnic dancers perform. And we traveled around the world through the passport program available to teach kids about different countries. Despite the bit of a breeze that was blowing, we all had a great time outside, enjoying the beautiful weather, and each others company.

Then Sunday, friends from all around the area joined me to help me do some landscaping. Okay, so they pretty much taught me how to work in a garden, as I really didn't know where to begin. Thanks to Melanie, we got a new flower bed planted. Thanks to Jamie, we cleared out layers of weeds and trimmed up some shrubs. Thanks to Alicia we layed quite a few bags of mulch. Thanks to Jess we planted flowers and hostas. I can't thank these ladies enough for taking the time to help me Sunday. Their assistance, support, and friendship is such a blessing to me!

It is amazing how refreshing this weekend truly was. God is good as He created an enjoyable and productive weekend. He continues to provide that extra help when things start to get overwhelming. I am now re-energized to continue pushing forward!

GREATER

Numbers 22:18
But Balaam answered them, "Even if Balak gave me his palace filled with silver and gold, I could not do anything great or small to go beyond the command of the LORD my God.

Greater....May God be greater in my life.

What things in my life do I put before God? What desires of mine come before Him?

Greater....May God be greater in my life.

What distracts me from developing a deeper intimate relationship with God, my Savior?

Greater....May God be greater in my life.

What holds me back from complete faith in God at all times?

Greater....May God be greater in my life.

To able to say, NOTHING comes before God for He is Greater in my life and all is His...all of me...

That's where I want to be!

In His Care...

You might think this is another person writing about mother's day, considering it is the day after mother's day. And it does kind of tie in. I unfortunately was not able to spend the day with my mother, but I had a great conversation with her and just thought of her all day!

I did however read several blogs this morning of mothers who enjoyed their mother's day celebrations and children who enjoyed spending time and caring for their mothers as mothers have long cared for them.

I actually spent yesterday working on my basement. And everyone knows how much fun cleaning basements can be. But it has to be done. So I continue to work on it. I was exhausted after working for hours and just was tired of cleaning and painting and cleaning and organizing and all that great stuff houses need. I was done. I couldn't go anymore! So I called it quits for the night. I grabbed my planner to see how much time I actually have this week that can be put towards working on the house some more and once again wondered...how will all this get done?

I wonder if that is what mothers think when their days begin. They do so much and though it never seems like there is enough time, God provides. I laid there thinking about my mom and all she does. I thought about all I still need to do, and I remembered that God has brought me this far. I closed my eyes and received rest. I found rest in Him.

How many times do we doubt? What are you worried about? Do you trust God?

I pray that you find the rest and peace in Him. For you are in His care!

The Gift That Isn't Always Easy

Part of selling a house means cleaning it up. So last night I was working in the garden...trying to cut down the insanely over grown mulberry bushes. I believe that is what they are. If not, then they probably are named something like the most annoying plant that grows as big as trees and takes over wherever it wants to. That seems to fit the description well :)! The weather was a little iffy and I found myself working through a few rain showers, but they were light so I kept on pushing through. Slowly, but surely, the garden was cleared out...as best as I could get it. It wasn't easy work by any means...but it needed to be done. It led to some great conversation with neighbors and just a wonderful quiet time to think and listen.

Afterwards, I collapsed on my couch completely exhausted but with a sense of accomplishment. I realized that by taking it one step at a time, I cleared out the brush. And underneath the weeds were three tulips, almost smothered by the overgrown bushes, but they now have the space to grow. Later that night I was studying Numbers, and came across the following scripture.

Numbers 18:5-7
"You are to be responsible for the care of the sanctuary and the altar, so that wrath will not fall on the Israelites again. I myself have selected your fellow Levites from among the Israelites as a gift to you, dedicated to the LORD to do the work at the Tent of Meeting. But only you and your sons may serve as priests in connection with everything at the altar and inside the curtain. I am giving you the service of the priesthood as a gift. Anyone else who comes near the sanctuary must be put to death."

A gift. It is a gift to be called by God. It is a gift to serve Him. It isn't always easy though. How many times have we hesitated? How many times have we been too fearful? How many times have we said, "I just can't do it." I read of how my sis (check out her blog - link to the right) is spending time with each of her children individually. God has blessed her with the gift of being a mother. He has called her to raise her kids in His love. And sometimes it isn't easy to find special time. Sometimes it would be easier just to say, "I will do it later." But she doesn't. After a busy day of work, and late nights cleaning the house or working outside, she still makes time to love her children...to show them how special they are to her and to teach them the Word of God.

Just like the garden which needed to be weeded to help sell the house in order to enter the mission field, or just like making time to show God's love by spending special time with the children in our lives, we are each called to serve. Are you afraid of a little hard work? Are you ready to accept your gift of service? What is God calling you to do?

It isn't alway easy, but what a gift it is!

Moments

In the moments that surround me, I see God.

This weekend was busy for me. I spent Saturday cooking, and Sunday cleaning/painting, etc. It is easy to get so focused on things that you miss those little moments. It is those moments that are worth writing about, and so I share these moments with you to allow you to see how God blesses me in each and every moment.

*Purple flowers growing in the yard. Yeah, they are weeds, but they sure are nice to look at!

*Tyler's hardy giggle as Grace is playing with him on the floor

*Sharing a meal with friends

*Alicia can't stop laughing over Jess' response to a pictionary drawing

*Watching Greyson sleep

*Strawberries! Strawberries! Strawberries!

*Listening to boys bond over sports discussions

*Watching Grace swing while singing a made up song that really only makes sense to her

*Jess turns around at church and smiles at me, sharing with me her excitement

*Love is all around

*And the list continues...

Stop. Listen. And take a look around. What moments surround you?

God is there...all praise be given to Him!
(Psalms 103)