Why Not Today?

May 7, 2015

What keeps you from following your dreams?  What is it that if removed from your life would allow you to move forward and stop looking back, stop wishing for "someday" or "one day," and getting on with your life?

At nighttime, I can often be so tired that I can barely keep my eyes open.  So, I'll get ready for bed, say my prayers, try to find a comfortable position, and then BAM!  Here come all of those thoughts that I had pressed down for the day, rushing into my tiny little brain, all clamoring for attention, and invading my now fully-awakened mind.  It's maddening!

Today, I was drowsy and thought I'd go take a little nap.  Guess what?  Those intrusive, pesky, and needy thoughts once again permeated my space.  Ugh!  "Well, okay," I said to myself, "let's talk.  Let's address your needs that you think I must be privy to.  Why wait until later?  I've been putting you off for days.   Weeks even.  Fine, let's chat."

I laid there a little while, listening, and trying to get them to take turns instead of all talking at once!  Finally, I gave in.  I got up, began some research into the course I have been wanting to take.  I copied all of my blogs from Facebook because one just never knows when Mark Zuckerberg might just decide to close it down.  Hey, it could happen.  I started a new blog page because the one I had I just seem to not keep up with and rather than defeat myself at every turn, started afresh.  After all, if I am going to move forward then I must look ahead, right?

That was nearly three hours ago.  Thankfully, the hubby had a late work day so I didn't have to stop while in the midst of such action.  Seriously though, I have been putting off these things--as well as many others but you don't need to know all of my secrets just yet--and today the timing worked out to where I could begin.  Again.  

I'll leave you with this thought:  why not today?  Why not stop putting off to tomorrow things that you really want to do?  You know that it isn't even promised to you. Therefore, why not begin today, this day that our Lord has made, and rejoice, refuse listening to the ones who tell you you can't, and remove those negative thoughts and face your giants?  Yeah, it's a little scary to actually plan ahead but it sure beats going to sleep at night with that crick in the neck from all that looking behind.  

Let's pray!

Dear Lord,

Oh how my thoughts compete against one another, full of their ideas on this and that, and the buried dreams once in a while push forward, asking me if they are ever going to be realized.

Lord, I know that Your will for my life is to honor You, to tell others about You, and to serve.  What I don't know is in what capacity.  Teaching, writing, volunteering, or just gently wading into the waters to see if this will be the time for me to finally learn to swim, to trust You, and to stop being such a sissy girl who is afraid to get her tootsies wet?

Help me to keep on seeking You as I figure this out.  Help me to not be afraid of failure.  You know the many times I have fallen and/or not lived up to my potential.  Lord, I don't care to make mistakes as long as I keep learning from them.  So, here I am, a flower gently fading but hopefully with still some beauty left to bring joy to You.  May I?  In the name of Jesus I ask, pray, and hope.   Amen.

Feelings

May 8, 2015

Way back in the 1970s, a guy named Morris Albert brought out a song called "Feelings."  It was one of those one-hit-wonders that resonated with the peoples in 1975, including me.  Ask me today and I daresay I can still sing most of the lyrics without missing a beat.  No, it won't sound pretty but that's what you get for thinking I could sing.

Why did this song strike a chord with so many?  Could it be because we all have feelings, we all have hurts, and we all have unrequited love stories that haunt us?  Hmn.  ♫  Feelings, wo-o-o feelings, wo-o-o, feel you again in my arms. ♪

There have been many times when I have felt things that just weren't true.  I used to feel I didn't belong with certain groups while in grade, middle, and high school.  I never felt that I was pretty enough or athletic enough or smart enough to belong to the clubs and sports teams.  I often felt out of place, wondering where--if there was such a place--that I could fit in.  At home, I felt overlooked, underloved, and like I wasn't supposed to be in that family.  As I went on to college, I finally found my niche.  Surrounded by folks who were trying to figure it out also, I thrived.  I made so many friends and got to participate in classes and extracurricular things of my choosing.  Yet something was still missing as I quickly began to realize that I really didn't fit in with these folks after all.  I was just so love hungry that I fell for feelings rather than truths.  When the chips were down, so was I.  I found myself alone again, struggling with my beliefs, questioning those things I had been taught, and wondering if life wasn't all just a lie.

Fast-forward to the woman I am now.  Thirty plus years of soul-searching, running from my past, pretending to have it all together, and finally realizing that those voices in my head were all wrong.  Wrong.  They had been whispering half-truths all along.  They had been telling me to not try, to stay out of relationships because they only brought pain, to rely on on myself because the others would only let me down.  And in a way, they were right.  I didn't have a career.  I didn't have a best-friend or really even a close friend that I could tell everything to and have them still love me in spite of myself.  And I didn't get let down much by my casual friends because I had stopped investing my time and attention in them.  The results?  I had a fairly peaceful, boring, and lonely life.  Stuck in my self-imposed prison, I was safe.  I was secure.  I was...dying a slow death.

About ten years or so ago, Casting Crowns came out with a song entitled "The Voice of Truth."  What an impact it had!  "Out of all the voices calling out to me

I will choose to listen and believe the Voice of Truth!"  

As I close--partly because my computer is being such a hate goat--I want to leave you with the reminder that there's only One Voice you should be listening to.  And it takes effort, my friends, because He speaks it in a still, small voice.  Can you hear Him?  If not, maybe you should take a few moments and find a quiet place, one where you won't be interrupted nor tempted by anything that distracts you.  Forget your feelings for a few minutes and just be still.  Know that He is God and you are not.  Feel His love wash over you as you sit at Jesus' feet.  Purge out those lies that are keeping you bound and be free.  Yes, I know it's hard.  If it was easy, everyone would do it and what kind of world would that be?  Heavenly, you say?  I think you might be right!

Let's pray!

Dear God, as I tried to write this, You know the distractions I faced.  My feelings tried to get me to just quit when the computer was being so aggravating.  However, as I waited for it to get back into its groove, I read my James MacDonald email and was affirmed that I am on the right track here.  Thanks for that, Lord!  Thank You for sending me reminders that I am not alone, that there are others out there who battles issues much like my own, and mostly, Lord, that You are always near, always ready to talk to, and to hear from.  Help me to be still and listen to You throughout the day--throughout my life!

Lord, for those who may read this blog today I ask that You bless their hearts--their hearts, Lord, where the feelings invade.  Touch those sweet souls and assure them that You love them and that Your love is of far more value than anything the world tempts them with.  Make their heads strong so that they are easily able to validate fact over feeling, truth over fiction.  Show Yourself to them in a way they might not have ever seen before and convince them, Lord God, that Your Voice of Truth is what they need to be listening to.

In the name of Jesus I pray.  Amen.

Presents

 I just received some promotional items that I ordered from Staples to help me get the word out about Wandering Through The Bible.  I've been pondering for months as to whether or not to do this because I've been struggling with just letting others tell their friends, letting God reach whomever He pleases, and with helping Him out to do so.  Sigh.

It really has been a struggle because I don't want to sound vain or pompous but on the other hand, I do feel that this ministry He has given me is a blessing and that God has provided me with the talent to write.  Again, I don't want to sound vain, but it is a gift from Him and--just like my pretty blue eyes--I didn't ask for it.  Didn't seek it out.  He just thought I would do well with it.

There's this girl I know who can sing.  She can play a variety of instruments.  And she may even write songs as well.  I see her videos on Facebook and You Tube and am so happy that she is sharing her gift of music with the world.  I know she works hard at improving and making this gift be used for furthering the gospel of Christ.  She puts herself out there, at the mercy of those whom she will be in front of, risking it all by baring her heart, soul, and talent.  Will she be welcomed?  Will she be understood?  Will they like her and want to hear more?  The fears and the questions rage but, like a trooper, she pushes them down, faithfully serving, and trusting that her God will shine through her.

So, what about you?  What is your spiritual gift--and, are you using it?  Doesn't do any good to hide it under a bushel, you know.  Remember the Bible verse that talks about it being more blessed to give than to receive?  If you have a skill and are being selfish with it, shame on you!  Can you sing?  Then sing!  Can you encourage?  Then make someone's day!  Can you teach, lead, or use your administrative skills to help your church out?  By golly, get in there then!  Maybe you are more the type who is a servant and does better behind the scenes.  We need you too!  Those light fixtures aren't going to hang themselves.  That grass is going to need to be trimmed soon.  Those bathrooms need to sparkle.  Those vans and buses need someone to drive them and pick up those kiddos.

Whatever talent you have--and we all have at least one--use it for the glory of God.  Don't be ashamed of it and don't be selfish with it.  When faced with doubts about sharing, I want you to think who really benefits from you keeping it to yourself.  Mmn hmm.  Ol' slew foot.  Not much makes him happier than God's children doing nothing with the gifts He has provided to them.  That way, the good news is kept quiet and he can roam about, filling people's ears with music that is unfit.  He can fill their eyes with visions of porn rather than those photographs you have taken and painted that display the glory of God.  He can let old stuffy teachers keep boring your young ones instead of letting someone with some life in him/her to reach them.  And he can let you keep reading Facebook statuses and novels and blogs about DIY and celebrities instead of reading my blog.  ;)  Kidding.  Sort of.

Join with me in prayer as I ask God to show us our gifts and how to best use them for His honor and glory?  Thanks!

Dear Lord,

What a marvelous Giver You are!  You have blessed Your children with so many wonderful talents and skills.  Help us all Lord to let them shine for You.  May our voices ring with Your praises.  May our abilities as leaders be such that folks will marvel that we are in such harmony.  May our actions that we do behind closed doors bring forth more glory as we seek to further Your kingdom and to let others know that we serve one another as though serving You.

For those who are a bit shy and insecure, I ask that You give them boldness.  Not cockiness, Lord, but assurance that they are gifted and have a story to tell in whatever manner You have deigned for them.  Confident and prepared, may we all honor You with the gifts You provided to us is my prayer, asked in the name of Jesus Christ my Lord.  Amen.