Good Afternoon,

We are busily cleaning up in anticipation of my parents stopping in for a few days. It is always a highlight to have visitors come to see us but when Nena and Papa arrive, my kiddlets plan pretty much their entire visit with all the favorite things they like to do. Joyful  anticipation does not express the energy running around on my three years old little legs!

As I was devising my cleaning plan of attack, I realized I was putting my beloved coffee into the wrong opening in the coffee maker. Ah, to my dismay, I had loaded it up only to find it was not going to be useful in providing me with the needed jolt to get me going on my day. I realized my mind was running on auto pilot.  I was doing something out of rote memory, not correctly mind you, but my brain took over and I was not conscious about what I was doing Anybody been there, done that?

It got me to thinking how my communications with the Lord, my time of pray can sometimes get sabotaged by my auto pilot. As I was reading about prayer in a fantastic book by Phillip Yancey, it struck me how annoyed I get when I’m trying to converse with someone and yet their attention is anywhere but on me. Thankfully the Lord is not surprised by our lack of attention, and in fact knew we would be challenged by the noise of the world and our own minds when it comes to praying. He speaks about it many times in his book. 

As I cleaned out the coffee grinds and offered up a quick, “I’m sorry Lord”, I watched the grinds get washed away and run down the drain. It visually helped me remember that every time we ask for forgiveness when we mess up, it is gone, washed out of the Lords memory.

So friends, I challenge you to be aware when you are speaking with the King of Kings, He does deserve our attention, and yet when your mind wanders don’t let self doubt, guilt or frustration lure you into thinking your God does not want to hear from you.  Who knew coffee could provide so much!

Matthew 6:7 (The Message)

Journey On

Good Morning,

Donut Day! Yahoo! Sweet treats..here we come!

My youngest has been walking around with sunglasses on since yesterday. I’m talking other then going to bed he is wearing his flashy silver and red sunglasses. This morning he took them off for a quick moment, as he was putting them back on he commented how he liked it dark. It was too bright with them off. Got me to thinking how often life is “too bright” for me. I would rather live in the shade of my sunglasses them see the blaring light of reality. Can you relate? It is a slippery slope to live in the grey, in the shaded out. I recognize that when I am perceiving life through my glasses I am seeing through a lens of a false sense of self control, self reliance and pride.  Darkness was conquered the day Jesus rose from the grave. His life was sacrificed so I would no longer need to live in darkness, and yet I choose to retreat back to the dark when life becomes overwhelming. 

I am thankful for the reminder my little dude and his shiny sunglasses gave me. I love this verse, it is speaking about creation however it also makes me think that in the Lords wisdom he provided us with light 24/7. The sun, the moon and the stars are magnificent reminders that we are never meant to walk in darkness. He has provided us light and we need to choose to walk in the light, no matter how bright and how our eyes fight to remain closed.

 God made two big lights, the larger 
      to take charge of Day, 
   The smaller to be in charge of Night; 
      and he made the stars. 
   God placed them in the heavenly sky 
      to light up Earth 
   And oversee Day and Night, 
      to separate light and dark. 
   God saw that it was good. 
   It was evening, it was morning— 
   Day Four. Genesis 1:16 The Message

Journey On Friends!

Hey There,

Its been a week of computer hiatus. Mainly because I’ve really been challenged by a study on David that my small group is working through. I’ve been mulling over his biography as a young man chosen to be King, the runt of the family and yet he didn’t sit on the throne until 22 years passed. At first I began to panic, 22 years is a long time to forgo a level of personal fulfillment. Can anyone relate? Do you know what I’m talking about. That “something” that allows you to experience, learn, grow and be challenged outside of the frustrations of car pool lanes, sick kidlets and the mundane activities of life. And yet as I am reading, David was a shepherd, he was a delivery boy, a musician, errand runner, killer of all things bear and lion. Jobs he had before he took his place on the throne. Hmm, errand runner I can relate to, delivery mama, right here…killer of bears and lions, not my thing, but spiders look out! I’m connecting with David. I know those mundane activities, it is my life right now.

 Circumstances did not change right away from him, but all his experiences eventually lead him to the throne. So my question for you is, can you see clearly the Lords hand in your daily activities?  Do you feel you are being prepared for something, outside of your norm today?

As I look back on these two and a half years, I see the Lords hand in stretching and strengthening my marriage. I know without a shadow of a doubt God’s faithfulness because I can say I know Him in a deeper and personal level like no other time in my life. I can see how Gods provision in our families life is His hand and not luck, or fate but a perfectly planned and executed set of events that offered me numerous opportunities to trust Him.

I am encouraged through David’s life that in the little, in the attitude of servant-hood, the days are not wasted or forgotten but are stepping stones that will one day be a part of my biography.

Luke 22:24-30 ( The Message)

 ^24-26Within minutes they were bickering over who of them would end up the greatest. But Jesus intervened: “Kings like to throw their weight around and people in authority like to give themselves fancy titles. It’s not going to be that way with you. Let the senior among you become like the junior; let the leader act the part of the servant. ^27-30“Who would you rather be: the one who eats the dinner or the one who serves the dinner? You’d rather eat and be served, right? But I’ve taken my place among you as the one who serves. And you’ve stuck with me through thick and thin. 

Journey On

Good Morning,

Well the past week sure has proven to be way out of the ordinary. Life is full of surprises! I know you all can relate.

After flying home for a last minute trip due to immigration issues that needed to be sorted out, this mama got hit full on with the flu. Not the trip I was hoping for, but happily I got home after a very long, delayed day of traveling. Today we are loading up the van to travel south to celebrate Easter with family.

As I’m trying to quickly get my head in the game I was reminded this morning that our celebration of an empty tomb took those who loved and knew Jesus by surprise. What a historical weekend to have watched as the Saviour was crucified, wept in anguish and then surprised by his resurrection. 

So friends I challenge you to remain “surprised” this weekend. Years of church going can numb us to the miracle of the Easter story. Be amazed, be surprised, allow yourself to feel the emotions that those who walked with him on earth felt. 

John 20 (The Message)

Journey On

Hey There,

So yesterday I had one of the “ugly” melt downs I’ve written about. It totally took me by surprise. The day had been fine, nothing too stressful and then at the end of the day I got a phone call. Yup, the dreaded phone call. Now the news was not “devastating” but this mama’s sensibility completely left me and to put it mildly ….things got ugly! 

 As I think about it today, I allowed fear to over take me. So the question I have for you today is can fear and faith co-exist? If I truly believe that God loves me, will not leave me, can I live life fearfully ? Am I really a woman of faith?

As I sorted thought the aftermath that my emotions left me in, I was challenged by this all too familiar verse!

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.” 1 John 4:18

So this is what was rambling through my brain today. I believe Jesus loves me, died for me..and yet I am ALLOWING fear to control me. My reactions, the ugly display of an adult sized temper tantrum yesterdayay was my “Tatumness” gushing out through my pores and not allowing perfect love, perfect peace to hold me steady in the hours that were to unfold. Have you been there, done that?

Well today, I can say without a doubt, perfect love does cast out fear.  My emotions are screaming fear, and yet my mind, my experiences with my Heavenly Father remind me that fear is not from God and that I can move forward “feeling” fearful. I walk in the acknowledgement that in my humanness I do fear, however my choice to not allow fear to control me is only possible because of Christ’s perfect love. Just as I try to protect my kidlets from having to deal with fear, it happens. Then as their mommy I try to console, love them through the fear, and help them move through it. This is is exactly how Gods perfect love helped me today.

Friends I hope you know the God who loves you this way? If you don’t, it would be my absolute pleasure to introduce Him to you!

Journey On