The Backup Plan

It has been one of "those" weeks. You know, one of those weeks that doesn't seem to go as planned. It started out with a spillover of last week, which was also one of "those" weeks. My father-in-law has been very sick and we have done several of the 74mile trips back and forth to be with him and with family, at the hospital. My poor husband had to fix a bunch of electrical lines on the second floor of our house. The girls all have had school projects to do. I've done at least 12 loads of laundry. I've cooked dinners and little wedding cake things for a friend. I smashed my finger and now have a bruise on a knuckle. And last night my oven started smoking. Don't anyone make any comments about my cooking. Ha ha. I wasn't cooking anything. However, it is not un-usual for my oven to smoke as I hate cleaning it but when the oven isn't on and nothing is inside, and it starts smoking well..there is something wrong. It took us all a few minutes to find out why it was smoking. It seems that the switch that turns on the oven light had started to melt down, but we didn't find the culprit until Fred spent hours getting the stove apart, finding the burnt out switch and putting it together again. I didn't know the oven could come apart in so many pieces. First the top came off and then the back. All of the burners had to come off. This seemed like a good time to clean them. So I scrubbed and cleaned. Oh yes, and we had to pull the oven from the wall. Now I won't go into a little sermonette of "Be sure your sins will find you out". Because I think we have all heard that one, but there are a lot of "food sins" that lurk under and behind a kitchen stove. I'll leave you to guess what I found. Hours later, the stove was cleaned and Fred was putting it all back together. He plugged it in and I said to him, "Oh look, the light still works.". He then told me the light couldn't work because it was the light switch that he took out. It was then that I realized I had misspoke. It was the clock that came on. I started pushing buttons to make sure it all worked right. The top light worked and the burners worked and then I pushed the only remaining button on the stove and when I did, something amazing happened. The oven light came on. I wish you all could have been with us in the kitchen when that happened. It seems there are two switches that control my oven light. I only lost one of them, behold my oven light still works. We were all laughing. I laughed so hard I was crying. I couldn't stand up straight. I wish you could have seen the look on Fred's face when that oven light flashed on. There were two switches for that light, almost like a backup plan. Years ago when I had cancer, I had to have a pretty invasive surgery. When I came out of the surgery, I found out that I was now missing quite a few "parts". I didn't know a body could function without all of those parts, but mine does quite well. I lost over 29 parts if you count each and every lymph node that was removed. Amazing! God created us with a back-up plan. Our bodies work even without all of our parts. God has a backup plan for you too. Perhaps the devil has stolen from you and you feel broken, beaten up bruised, and missing parts. Maybe your light has gone out, you have lost your family, your health, your finances, your good name and reputation. Don't be afraid and discouraged. God has a backup plan for you. He created everything you need to start over. Your light will still come on. Your family can be restored. Your body can be healed. Your finances can increase and you can have more than enough. Your reputation can be built back up again. All is not lost. Don't say it can't happen because it can and it will. I just love it when God starts fixing things that are broken and missing parts. When my oven light came back on I was beside myself with laughter. God has a backup plan for you and when you see what he can do for you, you will laugh too.

A Merry Heart

Sad things happen. They happen to everyone. Sad thoughts stir up memories, that should stay buried in the past. While stress, bad diets and inadequate rest accumulate to become bad attitudes and fearful hearts. These all keep us from being as effective as we should be. God has given us a key to fighting these thoughts and feelings. It is called the Joy of the Lord. A dear friend said to me the other day, that her situation seems hopeless however, she is trying to laugh about it because she will either laugh or cry and laughing is better than crying. Proverbs 17:22 tells us that a joyful heart is good medicine, and that a broken spirit dries up the bones. This means that if our heart is joyful that it will bring healing to our spirit. I don't know about you but sometimes I need my spirit healed. And you know what? I would rather laugh than cry. Yes there is a place to cry but I don't think anyone should be in that place for very long. Crying is often the expression of being overwhelmed and it comes with hopeless feelings and despair. When it is finished it leaves a broken heart. Laughter, on the other hand, brings a lightness to the heart and stirs faith in our spirit. It is an expression of faith that says, "I can laugh at this situation because it isn't as bleak as it seems. My situation can't get me down. I am in charge of my emotions." We are all in a difficult time right now. There are wars and rumors of wars. There is a worldwide financial crisis that has touched everyone both great and small. People are frightened, jobs are scarce and prices are going up. In the midst of all of this the devil, the enemy of our souls, is trying to steal our faith, break out hearts, and make us give up. I think we should all laugh in his face. After all what do we have to lose? It is better to laugh than to cry.

He Holds My Hand

It seems like our weather is changing all around us. As many of you know I love the snow. This year for the first time in fifteen years I was in NY for the month of March and I was expecting a pretty good snow fall. Instead, what I got was eighty degree days and my kids were outback having a water balloon fight, wearing their swimsuits. Can you believe it? I never would have imagined eighty degree days in Western New York in the middle of March. I have to say I felt cheated. Now we are having tornados, cold days and unbelievable weather. It's June and 54 degrees out. I might have to go dig out one of my winter sweaters. This reminds me of an old hymn we used to Sing. "I don't know about tomorrow, I just live from day to day. I don't borrow from its sunshine for its clouds may turn to grey.". It goes on to say that there are many things about tomorrow that I don't understand but I know who holds tomorrow and I know He is holding my hand. In the same way that the weather seems to have a mind of its own so do the days of our lives. I have often told Fred that I feel like I have lived many different lives, my childhood, our early marriage, our early ministry and now today. I have been to so many places and done so many things that sometimes it feels like my life has been a book I once read. Years ago I heard a motivational speaker instruct his listeners to write out a plan for their lives. I remember telling Fred that no matter what I wrote it would never be able to predict where God was taking us. I can honestly say, that even today as I look towards tomorrow, with all my plans and scheduled days, that I don't really know about tomorrow. BUT I know who holds tomorrow and He holds my hand. Jesus the great creator of tomorrow has never let go of my hand. Arm in arm we have walked through dangers, sorrows and mountains of adventures. Never once has he left me. Never once has he released my hand. You may be going through a difficult day today. Or perhaps it has been a terrible year. You may be afraid of what tomorrow brings wondering if, as some would say, for the other shoe to drop. Don't be afraid. Jesus has already been in our tomorrow. There is nothing in tomorrow that you and He can't face. I don't know about the weather in your life, I don't understand how or why the seasons of life change the way they do. But I know who holds tomorrow. I know He holds my hand. Look! He's holding yours too.

Duct Tape Shoes

The other day, Fred and I went for a walk and as we were walking Fred looked down at my shoes. I say shoes because I don't wear sneakers but these were sort of sneaker/shoes, good shoes for walking that is. Well, these shoes had a big rip across the top and Fred wanted to know why I didn't throw them out. I told him that they were my best most comfortable walking shoes and, yes I did have some others but, I was hoping to use these as long as I could. Besides, new shoes would just cause me blisters at first and I didn't want to break in new shoes. I decided that duct tape would be the best thing to close the rip. You can fix everything with duct tape, right? However, looks are important to me, yes vanity, and so I tried to put the duct tape on the inside of my sneaker/shoe. By the time I got home my foot and toes were all glued together with the tape but the rip remained open, perhaps a little wider than before. I still haven't thrown the shoes away, don't tell Fred, smile... We do the same in our spiritual life, we keep the past because it feels warm and comfortable. Walking around in our old shoes/old life, we worry our rips and tears will open up and expose our heart. While all the time we are stuck and unable to walk properly. Jesus came to give us new shoes, new ways to walk out our new life. We don't need to keep the old but step into the new. One day when I was about 16 years old, I was folding towels and putting them into the cupboard. We had just moved and so the bathroom shelves were different from what I was used to. My mom had told me to fold the towels a certain way to fit the new shelves but, my 16 year old brain said, fold them the fastest way you can and get the job done. Of course I folded them the old way and they didn't fit the cabinet. When my mom asked me why I didn't fold them the way she had told me to, I said I had forgotten. Then she said, "What's wrong, can't teach an old dog new tricks?". At 16 I wasn't old so I got her point. I could learn to fold the towels right. In our mind, we think we can't learn how to live our life differently. Old habits are hard to break and sometimes it's easier to just walk around in our old shoes/folding towels the same way that we always did. Walking in our old life we carry things like sorrow, anger, frustration and unforgiveness, because we have always walked in these things. We think that it is too hard to change. Past emotions feel comfortable because they are familiar and we are afraid of change. At the same time we are afraid of exposure. We think if someone saw what we were really like on the inside they would know we aren't who they think we are. So we invent ways to hide and protect ourselves, never walking in the freedom Salvation gives. Jesus came to give us a new life and our old shoes don't fit our new feet. We aren't old, we are new. Our old thoughts and emotions don't fit us any more. We can learn new ways of living, thinking and relating. It isn't too hard to change, after all Jesus paid for our change. Walking everyday in our new life, Jesus gives us the power to change who we were into who he created us to be. After all duct tape doesn't fix everything.

Just Ask

We went to a very nice restaurant for Mother's Day. It was one of those lovely old buildings where the ambiance was almost as good as the food. It just so happened that we were late making reservations and since our group was rather large, we ended up being the very last group to be served dinner. As we were leaving, the waiters and waitresses were cleaning up. Just as I rounded a corner, I saw a young man pick up a large basket of muffins and rolls. I could hardly believe my eyes. He was about to dump the whole basket in the garbage. Before I could stop myself, I said, "Hey! Don't do that. You can't just throw all of that away! Can I have it? ". I told them that I had a lot of people in my house. Which is true. Ten minutes later I was leaving with two big boxes of goodies. I began to think about all of those yummy pastries being dumped in the trash and how easy it would have been to just walk away. If I had not asked, that waiter would have just gone on cleaning and trashing food. However as soon as he heard me ask for them, he gladly gave me two big take-out boxes. I filled them so high the boxes didn't even close. The Bible says that we have not because we ask not. If I hadn't asked, I wouldn't have gotten even one muffin. We need to speak up and ask. In the next few days, spend some time asking God to meet your needs. Be specific. Can you just imagine all of the blessings you are walking by, never receiving, because you didn't think to ask? It is true that we shouldn't fill our prayers with an endless shopping list, however the opposite is also true. How foolish it is to go without, never asking God to help. A few months ago a very dear friend said to me, "If I ever find out that you have a need and you didn't tell me, I'm going to be very angry". I got the message. If I have a need that isn't being met, I'm going to call my friend. Wouldn't God feel the same way? Our loving Heavenly Father is longing to meet our needs. He is faithful even when we don't ask. How much more is he willing to provide when we do ask. I have no doubt that He will fulfill His promise, to meet our needs and do abundantly above all we could ask or think. Ephesians 3:20 "Now to him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us," KJV

No Condemnation

Romans 8:1 says, that there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. If this is so then we need to live like those who are not condemned. Those who go to jail after committing a crime are condemned. However Jesus has paid our debt and we don't have to go to a spiritual jail. There is no condemnation for us. Even as I write I hear the Spirit of the Lord say, "Just what part of NO don't you understand?" It's like we have made judgements upon ourselves. We condemn ourselves and feel unworthy, worthless, sad, and rejected. We put ourselves in a "time out" feeling like we need to punish ourself. We feel guilty and sad. Today! Jesus is saying, "There is NO condemnation!" I was thinking about the ways that Jesus carried our sin. He was in all ways tempted like we are. He was lonely as he prayed in the garden alone. He was sad when his friend Lazarus died. Depressed, yes he was depressed. He was so depressed that he cried great drops of blood just thinking about his future. He was all of those things and yet he did not sin. However when we feel those same emotions we feel condemned. Why is that? Feelings are not sin, it's what you do with those feelings that becomes sin. The Bible tells us to be angry and sin not. What was that? We can be angry? Wouldn't that be the same for any emotion? Be sad and sin not. Be frustrated and sin not. Be depressed and sin not. Remember there is NO condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. We all struggle with feelings and we condemn ourselves for those feelings. Jesus is asking us today, "What part of NO do you not understand? There is NO condemnation for you. I took all the condemnation. I took it all so you don't have to!". My friends, feelings come and feelings go. Have you ever watched a movie and in the time-frame of a 2 hour movie, you have felt stress, sorrow, happiness and contentment. All of these feelings came and went in a matter of minutes. Like I said they come and go. Feelings indicate to us what kind of battle we are fighting. If you are sad. Take some happy Bible verses and read, and re-read them until your feelings change. If you are stressed, read calming Bible verses, play some worship music, do something that can help change your stress into your strength. If you are depressed, get up and do something for someone else. Take control of your feelings and make them obedient to you. Sin comes when we allow feelings to have lordship over us and dictate our actions. Don't allow your feelings to control your life! What part of NO don't you understand? :)

Putting Out Fires

I'm going to tell you all something that I am sure will bring many comments in regards to my stupidity...what can I say....yesterday was not my best cooking day. It all started when Marie-Louise wanted me to fry some plantains for her. Well... I do hate deep frying, but I said I would do it for her. I was in a hurry, mistake #1...never fry in a hurry, so I poured the oil in a smaller-than-usual sauce pan and dumped in the plantains, mistake #2. The oil sloshed over the pot and flames licked up the side of my pan. This wouldn't be so bad if I had a gas stove but no, I have an electric stove and you are not supposed to have flames coming from the coil. So I reached into my cupboard to get my baking soda. I grabbed the first white powder I saw in my cupboard and dumped several cups of corn starch onto my fire....then I put a big lid over the fire and waited for it to stop....how was I supposed to know that corn starch burns. As soon as I picked up the lid I saw that the fire was burning along quite nicely, that is if you wanted to roast hot dogs. Since I don't like grilled hotdogs, I went in search for some baking soda and dumped almost a whole box on the fire. Replacing the lid, I decided that I would put the pan on another burner. I turned on the back burner forgetting the fact that I had lost several pieces of macaroni under that coil. I case any of you have a need to know, macaroni will also burst into flames when under a pot of oil. I still had some baking soda left and so I dumped the rest on that burner and covered it with my now blackened lid. I don't get very uptight nor do I freak out..I just went from fire to fire, while Hannah sat watching my comedy of errors. Clean up was interesting...so much for cooking those plantains in a hurry. I have pondered over this for the last several hours and I got to thinking about how we often spend our life putting out fires. Going from problem to problem we try to put out the flames only to have them burst out again and again. We pour out some prayer, douse the situation with some quick praise and worship and then to our surprise the fire just comes back. My cooking fire was not the fault of the plantains or even the oil. No it was my fault. I was in a hurry. I didn't use the right size pan. I hadn't cleaned out my drip pan under the electric coil. That's right, the fault was all mine. Nothing would have happened if I had slowed down long enough to do the job right. Our life is much the same. We get so busy that we don't spend time meditating on God's word. We don't take the time to clean out the old gunk lurking in our heart after the last spiritual attack we tackled. Weary and stressed we go from day to day wondering why the fire follows us. One time while on a mission trip, I was shopping with my daughter. The person arranging my schedule had just changed all the plans without telling me. To say the least, I was miffed. Marie-Louise and I had had a great day when all of a sudden I snapped at her for wanting to buy another shirt. "You don't need another shirt...you have spent enough money already!" My irritation and biting remarks caused a look of confusion on her face. After all it was her money and she had earned all of it just for this shopping trip. Why did I care? Then I realized, I was mad because of the change of schedule not because of Marie-Louise. I quickly apologized. Then I made a conscience decision to forgive the person changing my plans. I had to ask God to do a work in my heart. I had to take the time to do it right! It wasn't my daughters fault, it wasn't even the fault of the friend who had changed my schedule. My anger was my fault and I needed to do some quick house/heart cleaning. I don't know if you have noticed this or not, but in my life, these little fires pop up when I least expect them. Blaming others for our frustration we often wonder why we can't seem to shake feelings of irritation, anger even fatigue. I guess it just all boils down to this one thing, take the time to do it right. Take the time to really forgive. Take the time to make a real apology. Take the time to meditate on God's word. Take the time to pray and get the old gunk out. Take the time to do it right. You don't want to spend your life putting out fires. I know that I don't!