Tag: Devotionals

A blogger’s loss & gain

teapotcup[cp_dropcaps]H[/cp_dropcaps]ardly a week goes by that I don’t think (or mutter aloud) that this or that blog or twitter account will have a crash.  In just a matter of time there will be an incident or an avalanche of incidents that will take a blogger to an intersection in her life where she’ll be broadsided some Thursday afternoon and she’ll sit on the floor, head in her hands, crying out to God for His mercy.  But for now, she doesn’t  ask for help because she doesn’t know she needs it.  Yet.

Such was the case for me… going to bed most every night regretting all the stuff that didn’t get done that day… only to wake the next morning, hurrying to get enough stuff done to be able to log on, retrieve the messages, hurriedly scan blogs of interest, personally regretting lacking the coolest format and relevant blog topics, hurriedly editing the latest photos for a new layout and then opening the blog “new post” page to start another blog entry.

With new eyes, I see the new styles and formats year after year.  Emails flood my  inbox regarding new programs, site design software, search engine optimization, methods for attracting and increasing traffic, comments, customers, digital image editing, suggestions for link sharing and more.  As I see these things for the few seconds they remain on the screen before they’re deleted, I think of all my years of temptation to be and do more — and now the young mothers who desperately long to have a successful marriage and pinterested motherhood, well educated home-schooled children, pinteresting organized homes and pinterest-perfect meals served on lovely tables in beautiful homes just like the pictures in the best blogs.  I see the ideas, tutorials, instructional and encouragement blogs and I sincerely think it’s amazing how they’ve exploded exponentially over the last few years.  The pictures almost have smell-o-vision and the images seem to be increasingly bigger, better, more than homemaking’s ever been.  All, seemingly effortlessly accomplished.  While blogging.

And for a while the mothers will be able to pull it off…. blogging and living.  Living and blogging. Checking the other blogs.  Sharing links and ideas.  Guest posting. Guest hosting.  I wish I could convey that a mama on the computer doesn’t realize — really does not realize — how much time is passing and what’s being missed and what’s NOT being done in the passage of time.  I wish I could explain that the number of times a mama says Justa sec… Justa sec… only increases.  I wish I could convey just what happens with each “Justa sec” that’s uttered.  [cp_quote style=”quote_left_dark”]What’s really happening is not what it seems like at the time to the mama.[/cp_quote]  What it seems like at the time to the mama is that she really will hop up and play, or hop up and read that book, that she really will push that swing, see that funny face, play that game.   But what’s really happening, more often than not, is that mindless commands are given, mindless affirmations are made, and in Justa sec, Justa sec… a child (or two or seven) is walking away.  A child (or two or five) is ignored or put off or forgotten.  Then time is too short for that story, that game, that swing, that funny face, that trip to the library.  The hours pass into days, the days pass into months and the months pass into years.  And all those Justa sec’s net nothing — nothing but a little more precious time online.  And then the weary mama sinks down defeated… because at the end of that “Justa sec” is dinner, a spilled cup of milk, laundry, the phone or the door or the diaper or the dentist – fifteen minutes late.  The tensions build, the frustrations increase and troubles start to flow like a river.

And then one day the crash happens.  It may be a literal computer hard-drive crash or a website crash. It may be a failed or broken or damaged relationship.  But a crash happens and the mama gets a wake-up call.  She probably won’t realize in the moment, but then, the dawning of reality crashes over her like a tsunami that precious moments were missed and forever lost.

And the impact of the reality hits her as she crumbles on the kitchen floor.  She gasps to breathe as she begins to catch a glimpse of what’s happened in the space of fifty thousand Justa sec’s.   She’s leveled as she begins to realize the utter waste that consumed her days… that time to push the swing is past. Forever. In the theatre of her mind she recounts all the things forever gone, the pictures she never coloured with the littles,  the funny things she didn’t even realize she missed… that the children stopped asking her to come and see, come and read, come and play… they knew that Justa sec never came.  Justa sec never comes.  Apologies would not make up for all that was lost.  Sorrow wouldn’t restore the days and months that turned into years.  Regret would not rewind the clock.

And in a puddle of tears and a heap of sorrow, she’s pretty sure she’ll never outlive these hard days — these very hard days of reckoning.  But she will.  God in His mercy will answer her cries.  And He will tenderly cover her sorrows.  He can restore what the locusts have eaten.  A blogger’s loss may be another’s gain.

This is my story, this is my song, praising my Saviour all the day long.

 

Write this memorial & rehearse it

womenbible[cp_dropcaps]S[/cp_dropcaps]o much on my mind lately that I’m overwhelmed if I indulge in thinking too long without something to specifically direct my thoughts.  Were it not for prayer, singing and morning Bible study, I don’t know where I’d be.  I know that’s an over used phrase — I don’t know where I’d be — but it’s over used bcz it’s true.  More true than we might realize, I’m sure.

If you’re a believer — redeemed by grace through faith in Jesus — think where you’d be without Christ.  Think of where you’d be without that precious hope.  Think of where you’d be if you hadn’t yielded your life to Him.  It’s a staggering thought to me when I consider who I am in Him, because of Him and my infinitesimal grasp of His mercies in my life and that of my family.  Small as my grasp may be, it’s sure.  It’s very sure. It’s very sure bcz it’s not my grasp that keeps me — It’s His grasp1, it’s His faith2, it’s His finished work3, it’s His gift of hope4.

So, why would I fret? Why would I worry? Why would I be overwhelmed? Why would I wonder for a moment about the days ahead of me? When I ask myself these questions, I’m prompted to recount His mercies… I’m prompted to recall the ways He has worked and the blessings and provisions are more than I can count–more than I can recall.  I’m sure of this: His blessing and provisions are, and surely have been, more than I know.

Bookp1Earlier as we were reading along in the book of Exodus, chapter 17.  I was struck again how the Lord commanded things to be remembered and methods for such remembrance — piles of stones, books, memorials, feasts and more — and His direction to Moses to write for a memorial in a book and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua (verse 14).  [cp_quote style=”quote_left_dark”]Never wasting a thread, never wasting opportunities, isn’t God merciful to provide exactly what’s needed?[/cp_quote]  Joshua was going to need that memorial — not only to bolster his faith, but bcz he was going to need strength and great courage — God was going to use him in ways he could not have imagined.

Bookp1So I take this; I receive instruction to keep accounts of God’s dealings with me and our family — and I tell them what the Lord has done for us.   The timing of this reading is perfect — as His work (and Word) always is.  I so need to pay attention to what God’s doing in these days as we’re calling on Him for so many specific things. I know I’m going to need all these things — I want to add to the great things He’s done what He’s doing now and I want to rehearse it my children.  They need to hear.  And to remember.  Not only bcz it’s part of their heritage, it’s also God’s work in their lives and what they’re going to need as they face the battles ahead, as they follow the Lord — maybe they’ll face some Joshua moments, maybe they’ll face some trials and testings of faith unlike any we’ve ever faced.  I don’t know… but I do know this: God is faithful, and as they walk with Him, He will be with them–He promises this for His children.

For my birthday, Wes bought me a new journal Bible — a Bible so unlike any I’ve ever had.   Because there are no cross references, footnotes, commentary or maps ~smile~ I feel like I’m reading the Word with new eyes or, maybe, like I’m riding a bike without training wheels for the first time.  All this and bcz I’ve had many Bibles that were exactly the same, I’m familiar with where verses and passages are on a given page.  This new one, while still KJV, is very different.  Fresh start… and it’s a blessing.  I’m not an artist by any stretch of imagination—but here I have my new Bible and new watercolour pencils and I’ve begun this journey.  It’s my plan to add something every day. Down the road, I pray I’ll be able to look back and trace the Hand of the Lord on this journey.  And someday my children will see some of what I saw and what the Lord was doing in, for, and through me — and more: for them.

1. John 10.28-29 “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.  My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.”
2. Galatians 2.16  “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.”
3. John 17.3-4   “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.”
4. 2Thessalonians 2.16  “Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace,”

The Sweetest Peace

melianewbornhand

The sweetest peace comes at the most unexpected times… do you know what I mean? Have you experienced the sweetest peace in the midst of tenderest joy?  Have you experienced the sweetest peace in the midst of anguishing sorrow?  Have you experienced the sweetest peace in the midst of heart wrenching loss?

The sweetest peace that washes over you now when you reflect on some past experience… the sweetest peace that carries you through the hardest places you’ve ever traveled… this is the peace that passes understanding.  I think this is the peace that Kara wrote about in her book: The Hardest Peace; I believe it is the peace she now sees Face to face, face to Face — His to hers, hers to His: the sweetest peace. The certain presence of the Lord and the reality of heaven.

My husband brought me her book, The Hardest Peace, when he came home from from a brief mission’s trip to Korea last fall. I didn’t know how much at the time I needed the reaffirmations of that book–how much I needed to seek and find peace in the midst of what Kara simply called, hard.

I kept wanting to fill in the rest of the sentences that read: take a look at the hard. Or, disappointed by the hard.  Meeting Jesus in the hard.  As I read, I kept wanting to fill in the sentences that seemed uncomfortably lopped off.  And then I began to understand.  From the title and subtitle of the book, “The Hardest Peace, finding grace in the midst of life’s hard” to the end of the book — and now to the end of her story, I finally understand.  I finally get it, the why behind the writing style — the why behind the poetic style.  Everyone’s “hardest peace” or “hard” or “life’s hard” is different. And, while she wrote openly about the different ‘hard places’ of her life from the disappointments to the ravages of cancer,  there is much room for each reader’s personal application – each person’s hard or hardest peace is represented in her candid and poetic writing.

It might not be a wayward child, or financial loss, or disease — it may be a disappointment completely different than those three examples.  But it’s still hard.  Some harder than others.  But the resulting peace or the inspired peace will be similar.  It will be that point where the Lord sees and meets you.  The place where His peace is sufficient and “life’s hard” will be filled with, covered over by, and carried by: grace. Clinging to the hand I cannot see, held by the grip that will not let me go.

I cannot count the times I’ve gone through a trial and, because of the grace of God in previous trials, I’ve recognized His unmistakable signature. More remarkable is when this recognition comes in the midst of the testing of faith. In such times I often think: I’m going to need this… I’m going to need everything I’m experiencing or learning in this trial.  All this understanding doesn’t necessarily make the trial easier – sometimes not at all – but it  causes real attention to be given to seeking the Lord, to pray, to wait and to study the trial.  In these times as  I specifically watch for God’s hand to move—I watch for His direction and I’m comforted by His presence.

In this sweetest peace, I’m more prone to praise Him and recount His wonderful works.  I’m more prone to trust as I wait.  I’m more prone to look for Jesus in the midst of the trial and connect the experience to promises in His Word.  In this sweetest peace I’m less likely to give into fear and more resolute to wait on Him.

Sometimes the standing still is hard.  I want to act.  I want to react.  But I find the sweetest peace sometimes comes in the waiting — that peace that passes understanding.  I long for that sweetest peace.  What I long for is that still small voice. After the strong wind, after the earthquake, after the fire: that still small voice of the Lord.  That still small voice that brings the sweetest peace.

Kara knows as she is known… and I’m so grateful to have had but a small glimpse of her remarkable journey in that hardest peace.

Creating Inspired Moments

thestarbucksapronI have a few Starbucks aprons I’ve picked up, second hand, along the way.  One of them has a printed tape inside the top of the apron.  I’m assuming it was positioned there so that it would be seen (and intentionally read) each time the barista positioned the neck strap and donned the apron.

As with many other aprons I have, I’ve worn this one many times.  Until recently, I never even noticed the black tape sewn inside the top band of that apron.  Thus, I’d never read the message intended for the baristas:

We create inspired moments
in each customer’s day.
ANTICIPATE   CONNECT   PERSONALIZE   OWN

I’ve written about aprons a few times — even have some for sale — that’s how important or meaningful aprons are to me.  And I think they ought to have a more prominent role in kitchens.  But that’s another blog-post for another day.

Creating inspired moments… 

 Do I do this?  I mean, do I intentionally work to create inspired moments?  Immediately I dismiss the notion —  I mean, how can *I* create an *inspired* moment?  Inspired moments are, after all, simply that: inspired.  But then I think on this some more.  And some more. I think on Proverbs 16.9: “A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.”  I make plans and the Lord makes/creates/directs inspired moments.

Inspired — from Webster’s 1828: Breathed in; infused; Informed or directed by the Holy Spirit.

So then,  inspired moments are those moments that are composed, directed, or Divinely influenced.  Immediately my thoughts are taken to Genesis 24.27 (Abraham’s servant): “…I being in the way, the Lord led me...”

And then I’m humbled:  Lord, I want to be in the way… I want to be in the way where You’ll lead me.  I want the moments I live to be: inspired moments — the actions I take to be: inspired actions — the decisions I make to be: inspired decisions.

And then I’m inspired:  Lord, will You do this for me, in me, with me?  Can mornings be filled with inspired moments? Can our dinner meals together be not just meals but inspired moments?  Can I learn to watch for opportunities for inspired moments? Can I learn to speak to my children in such a way that it will not be me, necessarily, but an inspired word?  Can I intentionally, daily, work to create an atmosphere of inspired moments in our home?  Instead of mundane dailies, can I work to see my tasks as inspired moments? Can I love my husband in ways that will capture his heart and affirm my desire for him in inspired moments?  Can I live as a woman whose daily walk is one of cultivating opportunities for inspired moments?

O, that I not forget tomorrow what the Lord has taught me today.  When I put on an apron – this, or any other – may I remember the awesome opportunity I have to walk in the way of inspired moments.  May I seek to anticipate, connect, personalize and own the opportunities set before me.  Ultimately, may the Lord be the inspiration of all my moments.

Seeing Beyond What You See

anniversarysunsetSo much of the time we just see what we see and go on.  We hear what we hear and move on.  How are you? Fine, thank you, how are you? Fine. That’s nice.

But that’s not really what’s going on.  Or, that’s not all that’s going on.  It never is.

A friend of ours had been battling the ravages of cancer for many months and was ushered into glory a few days ago.  I learned so much from him… the way he lived and the way he died was so instructive. He’s now seen the glorious morning beyond the sunset.

He had ties all over the world.  Those ties were connections, connections he made because he listened and he saw beyond what he saw.  He invested in people. O, not monetarily, although, I’ve no doubt that that happened, it was an investment of listening, an investment of teaching, an investment of personalized, specific prayer, an investment of remembering.  He saw beyond what he saw and he remembered.  He totally got it that his stories were not just his own but were about the people he was with — the people in his story — that their experience was as, or more, important as his own.  He totally got that.  And he remembered to give credit… decades later, he remembered.

As days pass, I realize over and over just how invaluable life is and that the influence of even one life is profound.  I thought that again today as I was talking with a woman who’d experienced a separation from her husband and the painful loss of what was and what could’ve/should’ve been.  As she recounted a few events, I could see behind the pain in her voice and the tears in her eyes, there was the unmistakable grace, mercy and joy of the Lord.  In the midst her pain she knew that joy.

I’m glad for these encounters — no, I don’t specifically mean death, loss, separation, grief — I mean, these encounters with reality — the reality of each life and what each life represents.  Because each life is not just about experiences, achievements and miles traveled — life’s about all the in-between’s.  Life’s about the people in our story.  Life’s about seeing beyond what we see.

And seeing beyond what we see is a life of faith — if we know Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith, it’s really about eternal life beyond the sunset.

If you do not have this assurance, if you do not know the Lord Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, please write to me, I’d love to share with you the Truth of the gospel and gift of salvation by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.  He is the only way, the only Truth, the only Life.

quotebeginNeither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4.12

Standing in the Son

April06geraniumsun

Though I use it most every day, it’s only every now and then that I take note of the verse imprinted on the cover of the notebook I’m currently using: “May the Lord bless you and keep you, and give you peace.”  from Numbers 6.24-26

I have dozens of such books since I began note-taking & journaling many years ago.  I’ve made a concerted effort to revisit the books from time to time — not only to see where I’ve been compared to where I am today, but to see what the Lord was showing me in Scripture, sermons, notes, plans, etc., etc., and take note now of how the Lord answered those questions, situations, needs, prayers — to see what became of what I thought was important enough to record… notes I wrote, articles I clipped, ideas I gathered and plans I made.

As I’ve been writing notes, gathering ideas and making plans lately, I see I’ve been hurried and unsettled; the future seems hard and the way seems dark sometimes.  And I have to wonder: where’s the Lord in all these thoughts?  Knowing that He is the God of all comfort, the God of all peace, the God who heals, supplies, redeems, I have to admit, He’s not at the center (or the author) of those doubtful thoughts—He’s not at the center (or the author) of dark thoughts.

So, then, I have to deduce that those thoughts are not of Him and, in faith, I need to replace them with Truth—what does God say? —where is God in all this?  Instantly I think of Philippians 4.19: “But my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

When I read through old journals and notebooks, the common thread that I see in all the books is the thread of faith in Jesus — His truth, presence, provision and protection.  It’s been Jesus. All day every day.  That’s what I wanted then.  That’s what I want now.  Actually, now more than ever.  I want to be seeing Him and I want Him to be seen in me.

When I see the Stong’s 2424 number for Jesus, I think: Yes, that’s what I want: the will, the blessing, the keeping, the presence, the joy, the leading, the peace and the love of Jesus, 24/24: all day-all day… every day-every day.

I want to be found standing in the Son.

Each Day is Like Heaven

April06treeringsmallOver the years, standing at the sink many times each day, I’ve seen the most remarkable sights… all the changes each season brings.   Through the years, I’ve become aware of what changes will come about in each of the different months.  I look for what each new season brings–eagerly anticipating the blooms that will soon appear all over the yard… the tiny new, elegant leaves of the giant old weeping willow tree, the daffodils that will soon dance around the base of that old tree.

Today was no different, the familiar sights were there… the earth pounding with the shoots and buds of springtime… the flitting hummingbirds taking sips from any one of the many feeders around the house.  I found myself wandering back in time when little ones played in the yard—little feet stretching out, reaching to the heavens with each pump of the swings, splashing in the pool, volleyballs flying back and forth over the net,  buckets and shovels in the sandbox, doll strollers, matchbox cars, tonka trucks and scooters, bicycles and basket balls in the driveway, roller skates down the lane, rubber boots jumping in puddles, snow angels on the lawn.   Days gone by.  So many days gone by so fast.  Sweeter days.  But they really weren’t sweeter than these.  Just like those days… these are the good old days.

As I unloaded and reloaded the dishwasher, I was singing as I often do… and I stopped, mid-verse, and thought:  do I really live this?  Is each day ♪ really like heaven to me?  does my heart really ♪ overflow?  does He really grow sweeter to me the longer ♪ I serve Him?   I was stopped in my melancholy-baby tracks.  I had to say: No.  No, each day is not like heaven—-at least not like the heaven I’ve imagined the Lord preparing for us.  No, I thought, my heart’s not overflowing with that sweetness today.  My heart was full of anxious thoughts, discouragement, disappointment and even frustration at different situations over which I have no control and cannot see good as an outcome to some of them.

I worked along… and there I was singing again; ♪ every need He is supplying, plenteous grace He bestows, every day my way gets ♪ brighter, the longer I serve ♪ Him, the sweeter He grows… ♪  Wait… here comes that chorus again.  I thought:  I’ve gotta get my mind straight, if I’m going to sing this, I’m going to mean it and if I’m going to mean it, then I’ve got to live it, and if I’m going to live it, then I’ve got to turn some things around–or, rather, turn some things over to the Lord that I absolutely cannot take care of, handle, understand… or carry.

housebasketAre you there with me? Are you needing to hand Him your basket?  If you are, I totally understand.  And, in order that you’ll be able to press on, I’d really implore you to join me in just handing over that stuff… there’s nothing we can do about it all anyway, so handing it all over is really quite freeing.   I came across a verse yesterday that says, “And it shall come to pass that before they call I will answer, and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.” — Isaiah 65.24  Truly the Lord is our Jehovah Shammah — He is the Lord who hears — the Lord who is there.

I’m humbled again by the God who is already there… the God who hears me.

This Beautiful Life

teapotcupdrawing As I mentioned in my previous post, one evening a month, I have the privilege of sharing a message with a “TitusTwo” group of women.  As I wrote out that message on Communication, I was mindful that there was going to be a presentation by another sister at the meeting.  My friend mentioned that her friend had written a book and would be sharing about it with the group. Thinking  there really might not be time for me to share a message, I still wanted to be prepared — but looking back now, I’m not sure it was necessary for me to share a message that night.  Sometimes best things get covered up by good things. I can say that now, especially since I’ve mulled it over many times in the last few days, that that book was the best thing and could’ve/should’ve been the only thing we concentrated on that night.

I’m so glad to be growing older as I see with the passage of time, there’s less urgency to have things go according to my plan and more necessity to be flexible to walk in the Lord’s steps.   As He leads, I want to follow.  I wish I could’ve just typed: As He leads, I follow.  But the reality is, I’m still prone to wander.

You notice, I entitled this blog entry: This Beautiful Life.  This is the title of the book.  The book is half empty.  Right now, the book is filled with power.  When it’s full, I believe I will be able to tell you the book is powerful.  

the current truth 

I thumbed through the pages… those words caught my eye.  When I glanced at the priority pages… I saw the spaces for different action points, and began to mentally fill them in.  I came to those three words and let them sink in: The current truth.  There’s a lot of power behind those words.  We all have things we think about ourselves — sometimes deceiving ourselves into thinking we’ve got less to work on than we do or less to improve than we really do.  Sometimes we’re duped into believing that we already are pretty much doing the things we’ve planned to do, or that we’re not straying too far from our daily responsibilities.  Then there’s the angle of what others think is true about us and what we think is true about ourselves.  I instantly think of the Lord talking with His disciples… them talking about other people and Him talking about the disciples themselves:  But who do you say that I am?  The current truth is a bold reality check.  Get the book and you’ll understand this application.

Well, you might be thinking that what I’ve just shared is the last thing you need: another book, person, voice, or whatever, to beat you up for what you’re not doing or for what you oughtta stop doing.  No, that’s not at all what this book is designed to do.  But daring to amplify on those three words: the current truth, just may be the unlocking of chains that bind you to a problem or a way of reacting or responding.

So, what is this book, anyway? Chloe wrote this book This Beautiful Life (which is a working book! It’s a semi-guided journal, a planner, a calendar, a mirror) to help you. 

quotebegin…help you clarify your own unique gifts and callings,
and move forward in them with joy…
[that the Lord] guide you in the vision He has for your life.
May this help you become a stronger and more confident woman,
secure in your relationship in Christ and your role in the world.
May you have joy as you go about your days with purpose,
living out your own beautiful life.quoteend

get it.

the power of communication

newglasses1Regardless the circumstance, the importance and power of good communication cannot be understated.  The impact of either good or bad, clear or muddled, distinct or vague communication is powerful.  Think of a time recently when something you said or did was misunderstood by another person; or consider the last time you misunderstood what was communicated to you.  How’d that go for you?  What were the consequences?

I’m sharing with you part of a talk I gave last night at our monthly TitusTwo meeting.  As I go along through the years, I’m so grateful for these opportunities to share (and learn!!!) as the Lord gives me different messages stemming from quiet times, things I’m going through, or from passages I’m reading in the Scriptures.

Colossians 4 is loaded with messages and benefits — especially regarding the many facets of communication.  It begins with the Apostle Paul communicating proper ways of treating others, matters concerning prayer, walking in wisdom, redeeming the time.  Each verse contains a message, or two, I think.  But what really caught my attention, in the section of verses I was reading, is verse 6: “Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer every man.”

Effective communication is the lifeblood of relationships.  And, conversely, poor communication is a destroyer of relationships.  I think some things we really must keep in mind regardless the circumstance or conversation are these five points:

  • What’s directly said
  • What’s inferred
  • What’s meant
  • What’s heard
  • How what’s heard is interpreted by the hearer

With those basic points as the framework, imagine the benefit and the blessing of speech that’s always grounded in grace or focused on grace or hemmed in grace?   And, to be sure, it’s not a matter of the old saying: “It’s not what you say but how you say it.”  Don’t get caught in that trap — a manipulative statement or question said sweetly or cleverly is still a manipulative statement or question.  And another old saying, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” is a lie.  Words can hurt.  Words can destroy.  That’s where that saying, “Loose lips sink ships,”  holds a lot of water.

When we concentrate on having our speech be always with grace, we demonstrate we have high regard for our hearer in mind.  What we’re saying, what we’re inferring and what we’re meaning is our side or our part of the communication — whatever grace there is in that depends on the importance we’ve placed on it.  The other side of the communication depends on the other person: what’s heard and how what is heard is being interpreted by the other person–the hearer.  This is why it’s such a useful practice or habit to seek feedback or to replay what you think you’ve just heard the other person say.  Going a step further, it’s also useful to clarify the meaning behind what’s said.  This is especially useful or important when discussing some serious matters or making serious decisions.

I shared last night with the ladies in the group how my husband had misunderstood a statement I’d made some weeks ago.  After talking about the situation again at another time, I realized that I could’ve been clearer or elaborated on what I’d been thinking but was trying to communicate a point with some brevity that first time.  I know, that’s hard for me. ~wink~ When my husband clarified what he thought I meant by what I said, I was able to tell him what I really meant.  Isn’t it interesting how many misunderstandings would either never come to be in the first place or could be instantly clarified by simply restating back what we think the other person said or what we think the other person meant.  We could save ourselves so much time and so much emotion if we’d just employ this simple process. It’s stilted at first, to be sure, when you begin to practice this communication clarification tool, but it’s a tool really worth learning to use and to personalize depending the situation.

Well, that verse in Colossians continues on with another critical aspect of our speech: that it be seasoned with salt that we may know how we ought to answer every man.

Think of delicious soup or any food, really,  it’s usually the addition of salt that makes it so tasty!  And, it’s what makes you want more!  That, and it makes you thirsty!  Now, think back on one of your recent conversations.  Were your words seasoned with salt? Did you know how you ought to answer?  Was your conversation satisfying? That’s some great food for thought, isn’t it?!

Salt’s an interesting thing when you think of all it does–not only is it savory, it’s a preservative.  So, regarding conversation or communication, you might think: is it pure? is it clean? is it true? is it sincere?   Think of some opposites — these might clarify for us a bit better if our communication is gracious and seasoned with salt or not: is it impure? is it unclean? is it empty (salt lost its savour, as in Mark 9.50)?  is it corrupt?   Ephesians 4.29 “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace to the hearers.”

This is sobering, isn’t it.  Bcz it’s pretty easy to fall into poor or derogatory communication, maligning, or ungracious speech.   All of these different thoughts have caused me to question or mentally review recent days’ conversations: Were they always with grace?  Was my speech seasoned with salt? Did my words point to my Saviour or to the Word?  Did I draw others to Christ or give them a taste of heavenly things?

Discipline… THM

teacuppamelaIt seems to me that nothing spotlights the will or the flesh quite like discipline.  I’ve found (yet again) that I surely relate well to the Biblical passage regarding the willing spirit and weak flesh.  Though that passage doesn’t necessarily relate to undisciplined eating, it does relate to the flesh and its incredible weakness under temptation.

  quoteWatch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation:
the spirit indeed is willing,  but the flesh is weak.”
Matthew 26.41

As I sojourn on the THM path (Trim Healthy Mama), each day I find new things over which I seem to have no strength or no ability.  And then a day or two passes and I see the Lord has made a way for me to accomplish specific goals or to embrace this discipline. And another Truth comes to mind – again, understood that the Lord may truly be pruning and/or addressing a different matter here.  But I find great comfort in knowing He is with me, is for me, helps me, guides me, protects me, provides for  me:  as I look to Him – as I yield to Him.  He is providing me with strength and resources to press on toward the goal of better health and other benefits.

quoteThere hath no temptation taken you but such as is
common to man:  but God is faithful, who will not
suffer you to be  tempted above that ye are able;
but will with the temptation also make a way to escape,
that ye may be able to bear it.”
1Corinthians 10.13

Each day as I read and reread this book and other THM related articles and blogs (Gwen’s), I find new things I either do or should implement.   Interestingly, I discover that other women are struggling with the very similar things from time to time.  It may seem trivial, but one such struggle is the struggle to space meals and snacks in three hour intervals.  Now, I recognize that for many people, this is a snap – maybe even a natural way of life!  But for others –me– this is not so.   I, like most mamas, am in the kitchen for one reason or another most all day long – every day.  And it’s like I’m a food magnet – unintentional as I’ve been about food and aimlessly snacking through the day… until now.  Thus, the hidden blessing or hidden truth of the THM lifestyle: Intentional eating.

Maybe you’ve heard someone recite a vow and the wording includes: “…is it your intention to fulfill___?” Well, that’s the sort of what I consider when I think of the word intention and the THM eating plan.   When beginning this plan, there’s got to be a determination to be intentional about it.  It’s not a plan to be taken lightly or unadvisedly – by this I mean, it’s not going to be of any value if undertaken haphazardly.  In fact, I’m fairly certain, new as I am to the journey, that there could be some real negative health repercussions should the plan not be understood and practiced or undertaken as outlined.  I can see how one might experience exactly the opposite of health should the plan not be followed correctly or should it be carried out without discipline or intention.

Like many things in life, the THM plan is soooo easy!  It is so easy.  So easy.   But that’s the peculiar dilemma to things, isn’t it?  How could something so easy be so hard?   I see that (for me) it’s sheer determination, sheer discipline — the discipline of doing what I know I ought to do – not doing what I want to do. For sometimes, my ought’s and my wants are my greatest enemies (sort of the Romans 7 conundrum).  Through the years many times you’ve heard me say, Truly, good things are the enemy of best things.   And while there may be many good things to eat in my kitchen, I’m determining to stop and think: is this the best thing for me right now?  Do I really want to go backwards?  Am I content to give up or pass by some good things in order that I might have (or look forward to) better things?

All this to say that  spacing meals and snacks, snacks and meals into three hour intervals is a discipline I’m willing to work to achieve… knowing I’m doing this for better things.