Be what you were made to be

I was watching a show on TV the other night.

This show is a music show that showcases 5 different bands. There are 5 different stages all in one room and each band takes its turn playing, one after the other.

As I watched I realized something.

Each one of those groups are completely different from each other.

And each has a different sound, look, feel.

The bands that really stand out as you watch the show are the ones that fully embody the style they are. Their look, their sound, their moves. When they fully embrace who they are as a band and go full force in that direction, they are believable, enjoyable, unique.

And it reminded me of what God says about how He made each of us.

We've each been made to be different. To do different things, to meet different needs.

And yet to work together as we fully walk in the roles we have been given.

That's when we stand out. That is when we accomplish what we have been created to do. That is when we are fully who we have been made to be.

So since we find ourselves fashioned into all these excellently formed and marvelously functioning parts in Christ's body, let's just go ahead and be what we were made to be, without enviously or pridefully comparing ourselves with each other, or trying to be something we aren't.
 Romans 12:6 - The Message

Lessons That Need Repeating

I just read this blog post over at Like a Warm Cup of Coffee, I just had to comment. As I read her post, I found myself thinking, "I could have written this." So, I commented and linked back to my blog.

As I was nosing around through past posts I had written I stopped on this one from August. 

Boy, I sure needed to read that again.

I needed to be reminded that God is working within me. He gives me the desire and the power to do what He has called me to do.

This is a lesson that maybe someday I will have down.

I loved the comment from The Queen Mommy in Sarah Mae's post....

“…don’t let the enemy – the defeated one – get away with his lies of insignificance and worthlessness. God made you a mama – YOUR children’s mama – for a perfectly divine purpose.”

Satan is "the defeated one" and he spews lies into our minds full of insignificance and worthlessness because he has been made insignificant and worthless by my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

He has been defeated and I do not have to listen to him or believe him.

But I do need to work at believing what Jesus tells me is true.

"Christ is not weak in His dealings with you; He is a mighty power among you. Although He died on the cross in weakness, He now lives by the mighty power of God. We, too, are weak, but we live in Him and have God's power."  -- 2 Corinthians 13:3b-4

Like a Life Giving Fountain

This morning a friend called me.

Just to say hi and to catch up on what's going on in my life.

As we talked, she made an observation about my life.

She affirmed me.

Just a few simple words.

But oh the difference they made.

Words are powerful things.

With them we can heal or we can harm.

We can build up or we can tear down.

I am thankful my friend used her words for good today.

I'm thankful she took the time to give me a call and to pour life into me today.

I have many little lives to pour into today.

May my words be life giving to them.

So encourage each other and build each other up,
just as you are already doing.
-- 1 Thessalonians 5:11 --

The words of the godly are a life-giving fountain.

-- Proverbs 10:11 --

Kind words are like honey  – sweet to the soul and
healthy for the body.

-- Proverbs 16:24 --

A wise woman builds her house; a foolish woman
tears hers down with her own hands.

-- Proverbs 14: 1 --

Some people make cutting remarks,
but the words of the wise bring healing.

-- Proverbs 12:18 --

Fresh Air and Sunshine

This afternoon I snuck outside to be in the fresh air and sunshine.

Ahhhh!

I am so thankful for the warm breeze and the blue sky today.

My friend Mary often talks about knowing what "fills your cup". Well, I think that I can definitely say that being outside in the fresh air and the sunshine "fills my cup".

I need time to sit and think, to soak up the sun and let the breeze blow away the clutter in my head.

I brought my Bible and my notebook outside with me. Those are a couple of things that also "fill my cup".

I read Proverbs 13 today and jotted down some of the verses that jumped out at me. Here are some that I wrote in my notebook:

Those who control their tongue will have a long life; a quick retort can ruin everything. -- vs. 3


Pride leads to arguments; those who take advice are wise. -- vs. 10


People who despise advice will find themselves in trouble; those who respect it will succeed. -- vs. 13


The advice of the wise is like a life giving fountain; those who accept it avoid the snares of death.  -- vs. 14


A person with good sense is respected; a treacherous person walks a rocky road. -- vs. 15


If you ignore criticism, you will end in poverty and disgrace; if you accept criticism, you will be honored. -- vs. 18


Whoever walks with the wise will become wise; whoever walks with fools will suffer harm. -- vs. 20

What jumps out at me from these verses is that we are not meant to do this life alone. It is very important who we surround ourselves with and to whom we listen to.

I am so thankful for the wise people God has brought into my life. I am blessed to have some wonderful advisers in my life.

So, now I'm wondering... now that I have posted this, will I be having to listen to a bunch of criticism soon? I better be careful how I handle it.

Thoughts on Waiting

"I wait quietly before God, 

for my salvation comes from Him.

He alone is my rock and my salvation, 

my fortress where I will never be shaken."

Psalm 62:1-2

Waiting often sounds good to me.

I, unlike a few of my very good friends, am not an activator, achiever, striver.

I like to find a cozy spot and hang there.

I like what is consistent, predictable, what is expected of me.

So, if I have to wait, and I'm in a comfortable spot, I am set. I can wait as long as I need to.

But waiting isn't always like that.

In some areas of my life I have been in a type of waiting that is not comfortable.

It has not been cozy, consistent or predictable.

I have often found myself wondering what is expected of me.

This kind of waiting is hard and a place that I do not want to hang in.

But...

This is where the Lord has said, "Shhh. Wait here. I know what I am doing. Just trust me."

Thankfully, He has given glimpses of hope, peeks at what may be to come, indications of departure preparations beginning.

There are times when I freak out and fuss and make broad declarations and start making my own plans to move. I may even take some steps out on my own.

But He knows the plans He has for me. He walks before me and beside me and behind me.

When I follow my own way, even though it looks so good and right at the beginning, it soon becomes becomes so clear that it is not His way.

So, back to the place of waiting I must go.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart; 

do not depend on your own understanding. 

Seek His will in all you do, 

and He will direct your paths."

Proverbs 3:5-6

"Teach me how to live, O Lord.
      Lead me along the right path,"

Psalm 27:11

Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy;
      no shadow of shame will darken their faces.

Psalm 34:5

Meeting Hannah

I met Hannah this morning in the quiet darkness of my sleeping home.

Yes, I have met her before... I think the first time she was a paper figure kneeling on a piece of felt in a Sunday School room that smelled of crayons and fruit punch.

I knew that she prayed to the Lord and asked for a son.

And He gave her Samuel.

And then, she gave him back.

That always scared me a bit when I was a little girl. I imagined being dropped off by my mom at this dark and cavernous place with an old priest and voices in the night.

It scares me now as a grown woman who has children. Could I give one back to the Lord? Could I give them all?

This morning I feel like I got to know her a little better. She became more flesh than paper to me today. More real.  

She was one wife of two.

She had no children. The other wife had at least two, if not more.

Her husband loved her, but he didn't understand her.

She had deep pain.

She was laughed at, and taunted.

Her husband thought that she should be happy that she had him. (How's that for an ego trip?)

When her sorrow got too much, too heavy to bear, she finally went alone before the Lord and cried out to Him for help.

She made a big promise.

She was looked down on while she was praying and even thought of as being drunk by the priest.

When she told the priest why she was there and what she was doing, he heard her and believed her.

The priest gave her hope.

And Hannah walked out in faith, believing that she was heard and that she would receive what she prayed for.

Her faith changed her outlook and her behavior.

And she gave birth to a son.

I was blessed to meet Hannah this morning. And the world was blessed because she took her pain to the Lord and because He granted her request.

He hears me!

I sat out in the coolness of the morning and laid my heart out before the Lord. I've been feeling unsettled, unsure of what I was to be focusing on, not sure what direction to take.

I told Him about that.

It wasn't pretty, or well said.

But I told Him.

It happens this way almost every time.

I guess I expect to get an immediate response. Like an owl flying up with a letter from God in its talons or something. But that never happens.

But He hears.

He always does.

And, almost every time I cry out to Him, He gives me an indication that He heard.

Within the day.

That happened today.

Two very clear indications to me that He heard me.

Direction came.

"I took my troubles to the Lord; I cried out to Him, and He answered my prayer." Psalm 120:1

But the most important reminder came while I was still outside sitting alone with Him.

I had been wondering what I should be focusing on.

The answer came immediately....

Not what, but Who.

Once again, He had to gently take my chin in His hand and direct my gaze back to Him.

Thank you, Lord.

I need to keep looking up, not around.

That's when my way remains clear.

"Turn your eyes upon Jesus.
Look full in His wonderful face, 
and the things of earth will grow strangely dim
in the light of His glory and grace."