Can You Hear God's Voice?

     I am sitting in my hotel room in Montana at 4:30 a.m., in front of my computer screen trying to let God speak to me about what I am suppose to write about today. I have been sitting here staring at a blank screen for over an hour. I bet you are wondering why I am not asleep at 3:30 in the morning. I have to admit I am very tired. We have had several late nights and early mornings in a row and both Dwayne and I are extremely tired. However, though we are both tired; our bodies handle it differently. When Dwayne is very tired and he sleeps, he snores. The more tired he is; the more he snores and the louder he snores. He is really, really tired tonight! I try hard to ignore it but sleeping when he is really tired is one thing I have never been able to do. At home, I would just go to another room to sleep but in a hotel room there is nowhere to go. So, I decided to get up and write my devotion. Except, I have learned another thing. I can’t concentrate when I am really tired except at the snoring that is happening from the bed. After sitting here for a while I have realized that maybe if I put my earplugs in and listened to a book on my phone, I could drown him out and go to sleep. It worked on the plane! I got my phone out and my earphones. I put my earphones in and went to turn on my phone and wouldn’t you know; it is dead. So I have dug out my charging plug and I am now waiting for my phone to charge. As I continue to sit here thinking about all the great ideas I have for today’s devotion and yet each one can’t get past the initial thought. I have conceded to write about my husband’s snoring. I tried not to write about it, though it was my first thought, because remember, he edits my devotion and I didn’t think he would like my subject choice. But after an hour of sitting here, I decided that God must want me to write about his snoring. So he will just have to deal with God over today’s devotion illustration! lol
     In our daily lives we can get tired from the stresses we deal with everyday. We all respond differently to this stress. Many times, the more tired we become, the more we concentrate on the problems. Sometimes we run from the problems by concentrating on something else. If the stress is at home, we concentrate on work. If the stress it at work, we concentrate on home. However, there are those times we can’t seem to be able to get away from our problems or stresses and we become extremely tired. We know we need to spend time with God and let Him speak to us, but between the tiredness and the focus on the problems we just can’t hear Him. What do we do then? We ask Him to speak louder to us than the screams of life and when our power to hear Him is running on dead batteries, we plug into His power source, the Holy Spirit. We open the Bible and start reading until He speaks to us, or we pray without ceasing until we hear from Him, or we go to a spiritual leader in our life and seek wisdom and advice, or we take our circumstance and we see what God is trying to tell us through circumstance. Sometimes the circumstances are speaking to us loudly because God is trying to teach us something through them.
     One thing is for sure, ‘life happens’ and when it does, it can catch us off guard when we are extremely tired. How are you going to respond? Are you going to fight it and not find rest? Or are you going to find a way to hear God beyond the loudness of your problem? The rest we seek comes only from hearing His voice!

My sheep recognize my voice. I know them, and they know me.

John 10:27

It Worth the WorK

     Well, I am waking up this morning in Montana. I am sitting at a friend’s cabin looking out at the snow covered mountains. It is a great place to be. When we come back to Montana, we feel like we have come to our second home. It was great getting off the plane and having friends greet us with balloons and crazy hats. We have many deep relationships with people from walking through some spiritual growing experiences together. Also, they were our first church and we always consider them our babies in the ministry. If you were to ask me today, I would say that any hard times we experienced in our ministry here in Montana was worth it. However, I did not see it like that when we began South Hills Fellowship fifteen years ago. There were many days of tears and loneliness. My first day in Montana was sitting at a restaurant with my kids, crying because we had no place to live. We couldn’t find a place to rent and was suppose to stay at a person’s home until we could but they were out of town and we couldn’t find the person with the keys. I remember being homesick for a place that I fit in. Montana people are not like us southerners and sometimes they didn’t know what to think about us. I remember having 10 people at our first church service. I asked God the selfish question, “Why did you take us from teaching a Sunday School class of seventy-five, send us to seminary for 2 years, just to give us a church of 10 people?” I am very ashamed of that question today. I learned that 10 people here in Helena meant 10 lives were changed. I learned that each person God brought our way wasn’t playing church (they didn’t have any church background), they were truly lives being changed and God used us to love them. Each of them was worth any sacrifice I thought I was paying. Today we have the blessing of seeing a beautiful church standing on a hilltop, ministering to a community and knowing that God used us to start His vision. What an honor and what a blessing!
     God may not call you to start a church, or move you across the country, but you have been called by God to serve Him! Whatever your ‘service' is, it will be hard because if it wasn't, you wouldn’t depend on God. I will assure you that when you follow through with your assignment, you will be amazed at what God can and will do. There is nothing that will bring you more humbleness, honor, and blessing.
     What is God calling you to? Do you feel like quitting sometimes? Does it seem like you're not making a difference? Trust God to do the work and simply concentrate on being obedient to Him and His plan. You will see the fruit of your labor; even if it is not until the day you stand before Jesus receiving your rewards! Keep on keeping on!!!

We pray that you’ll live well for the Master, making him proud of you as you work hard in his orchard. As you learn more and more how God works, you will learn how to do your work.
Colossians 1:10 (The Message)

Conscious Words!

     This last week I have experienced and seen the damage of false words. We call it gossip, slander, or lying. No matter what we call it; it is sin and it can cause damage to people in all sort of ways. It can ruin reputations, destroy marriages, terminate jobs, ruin friendships, and damage the hearts and souls of people. I have seen this all happen in front of me during the last few days. I have to admit, I cannot tell you that I am totally innocent of gossip. We woman seem to be the most vicious with our tongues when we get all wrapped up in emotions. Our tongue leads us straight down the path of sin. Let’s look at the definition of these words: Gossip is idle talk or rumor, especially about the personal or private affairs of others. It is the sharing of unproven facts and views: To lie is to state something that one knows to be false or that one does not honestly believe to be true with the intention that a person will take it for the truth: Slander is spoken words of communication that makes a claim, expressly stated or implied to be factual, that may give an a negative image. In each case the repeated words are not true. It doesn’t matter if it was intentional or not. It is our responsibility to not repeat words that are not true. Now that doesn’t mean that we repeat everything that is true, but that is teaching for another day. Many times when we are involved in repeating things we have heard, we later find out that it was untrue. We can try to go back and correct it with those we spoke to but we will never be able to totally clean up the damage. The best illustration I have ever heard to describe the damage from the rumor mill is this: If you went outside in the wind and had a great fight with a friend using feathered pillows, soon the pillows would bust open. Feathers would begin to float away in the wind. They would float everywhere. Now you decided that you shouldn’t have had that pillow fight and you are going to go pick up all the feathers. You would never be able to retrieve every feather. They would have spread too far. Words are like those feathers. Once spoken, you can never totally clean up the damage!
     Scripture is very clear that lies and false hood comes from Satan. He is called the father of lies. Lies and falsehoods have nothing to do with the perfect, sinless Jesus Christ. Part of keeping a clean heart is not letting any lies or falsehoods in the door because they do nothing but make a complete mess of everything. We must start avoiding idle talk. We need to develop the discipline of being wise with our words. Take time to pay attention to each word and make sure they are not any form of untruth. Let’s practice conscious words today!

Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that's where life starts. Don't talk out of both sides of your mouth; avoid careless banter, white lies and gossip.

Proverbs 4: 23-24

Pictures of LIfe

     Life is full of many uncertainties but one thing is always certain; we will have to deal with the deaths of people we love. I have had my fair share of death lately. I have had three special people in my life die in the last three months. Today we had the memorial service for my uncle. Family funerals are always a little exhausting for Dwayne and me. He usually conducts the service and I usually put together a picture presentation of the person’s life. Working with the pictures of someone’s life is very revealing. First, pictures remind you of how someone was. We get so use to seeing a person for how they are today; we forget what they were like. I can see this with my own mother’s pictures. It amazes me that I have forgotten what my 30 year old mother looked like; I can sit and look at her picture for a long time trying to pull up the memories. Pictures also show us the journey of life. They show the seasons we experience and the changes that occur along the way. They can show priorities: the people, the hobbies, the places that were important to them. They stir emotions. They can make you laugh, question, and cry. They can comfort us, make us angry, and confuse us. Pictures are what we leave behind to the generations following us to let them experience a glimpse of who we were. When I see pictures of my grandparents who were poor and raising seven children, I have a new respect of the hard life they led.
     The pictures of my uncle were revealing to his extended family. I saw him the way he was before I was born and how he was in my memories. I saw the people that were important to him and the places that were his normal hang outs. I saw him do things like karaoke, that I would have never guessed he would ever do. They showed him wear things I never had dreamed he would wear, like shorts and a bathing suit. They showed us how important his friends were to him and he traveled to many places with those friends. Some pictures made us laugh. Some pictures made us wonder.
     When we know someone, we usually know them in one role of life. We know them as a friend, a brother, a sister, a coworker, an uncle or aunt, a child, or a spouse. We see people differently by what role we know them. It is when you get to see the view points from different perspectives that you really know someone.
     God sees us from all view points. There is no hidden life from God. He doesn’t see us in snapshots: He sees our life in video. However, the pictures we leave those who know us is only complete when all the parts of our life come together. For the whole picture to reflect Jesus, each part must reflect Jesus.
      What pictures of life are you creating? Do they reflect Jesus? Does every part; every role of your life show who you are in Christ? If someone who doesn’t know you now, could only know you by the pictures of your life and the testimonies of others, what would they learn about you? Is it the legacy you want to leave behind?

Words of Paul as he writes to the Corinthians: We’re writing plain, unembellished truth, hoping that you’ll now see the whole picture as well as you’ve seen some of the details. We want you to be as proud of us as we are of you when we stand together before our Master Jesus.

2 Corinthians 1:14

How Clean is Your Heart?

     What is your definition of a clean house? I have learned that my definition changes. There is the ‘last minute’ clean. If you are like me, this is your normal clean. Someone is coming over and the house is messy, so I run around picking up, dusting, vacuuming, and lighting candles: candles always makes things seem cleaner. I am usually doing the last little cleaning when the door bell rings! Then there is the ‘I can’t stand it anymore clean’. This is the clean that takes me a few good hours. It is when I pick up the clutter, clean the toilets and sink, shine up the mirrors, do the laundry, etc. When I am finish with this kind of clean, I always say, “This house hasn’t been this clean in a long time”. Then there is the ‘bare all’ kind of clean. I am thankful this only happens occasionally because it can be painful and time consuming. When we put our last home up for sale, I thought my house was clean. However, I needed to get it ready to show buyers. I had to look at things with a more critical eye. I had to clean dust boards and sweep into corners. I touched up the paint on the trim and I cleaned ceiling fans. Worse of all, I had to do the dreaded closet clean out! My closets were so cluttered, you had to be ready to play the game of ‘open and catch’. That is when you open the door with one hand and get in position with your other hand to catch something falling. My closets looked so small because they were packed full of stuff that should have been discarded long ago. Because things had not been removed and things had been thrown in, the closets were in total chaos. Closets are often the forgotten, hidden trash piles. The only way to clean them is to throw things away. When I am done with this kind of cleaning, I always say, “This house hasn’t been this clean since we moved in!”
     Cleaning house reminds me of how we maintain our hearts. When we invited Jesus to come and live in our hearts, we did some last minute cleaning. We made it look clean and presentable and hoped that He didn’t notice the areas that needed a little more cleaning. We feel pretty good that everything looks clean and we become comfortable. Then through time with Jesus, we realize that we have some “I can’t stand it anymore cleaning” to do. We spend time cleaning the deeper things. We feel better and enjoy this clean heart we have. The problem is Jesus does not want to live in a heart that is not totally clean. He wants the ‘bare all’ kind of clean. He wants to deal with the dirt in the corners, the chips on the walls, and the hidden and forgotten closets full of trash. He wants to help you rid the chaos of these closets by discarding things that should have been gone a long time ago!
     How clean is your heart? What does the walls of your heart look like? What have you swept under the rugs or thrown in the corner? What hidden and forgotten things do you have in your closet? Is it clean enough that you would let Jesus open your closet doors? What kind of clean are you expecting Christ to live in? Maybe it is time for some deep cleaning! Maybe it's time you let Jesus clean up some areas of your heart that you haven't let Him before.

He is going to clean house - make a clean sweep of your lives. He’ll place everything true in its proper place before God; everything false he’ll put out with the trash to be burned.”

Luke 3: 17

Got a Stone for Tiger?

     The big news today was the Tiger Wood’s confession. The coverage of the whole Tiger situation has been very confusing to me. I do understand that many people idolize Tiger because he is an amazing golfer. But why do we make athletes an automatic idol? I am all for respecting him for his abilities but at what point did Tiger sign a contract with the public to be a morally perfect man? Why do we demand sinless behavior from him when we do not demand it from all the other athletes who have reputations for living wild and crazy lives? I am not saying that Tiger’s behavior wasn’t shameful to his wife and family. However, why does America feel like he owes them an apology? It was America who put him on a pedestal and paraded him in front of their children as the All American Hero! Did they even look at him beyond his golfing trophies? The other thing that I do not get is that the average statistics show that approximately 50% of men and 25% of women have had affairs. How would they like to be put on a public trial? Again, I think Tiger has some big problems that he needs to fix. However, his sin has nothing to do with me. They are also no bigger than mine. God is willing to forgive his sins just like He forgives mine. The problem is that Tiger is not turning to God, he said in his interview, he is turning back to his roots and turning to Buddha. As Christians, maybe we should pray for him instead of spending our time condemning him.
     Jesus was set up as a judge in a public trial. The public humiliation of a woman caught in adultery. Sinners were picking up stones to throw at her, to kill her for her sin. It wouldn’t surprise me if the man she was just caught with was standing there with a stone in his hand. Jesus bent over and wrote in the sand (I have always thought he wrote a list of sins, but if the scholars do not know, I can only guess). Then He said that whoever does not have sin in their life can throw the first stone. One by one they dropped their stones and walked away. There was nobody left to condemn her. That is when she was left alone to face her Lord and Savior!
     What impact would it make on Tiger if he could hear one stone after another fall to the ground? If he could see one sinner after another turn away from condemning him; maybe then he could see his real Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!
     How many times do you pick up a stone to throw at someone? How many times do you forget that you too are a sinner? How many times have you not accepted the fact that Jesus does not condemn you? Those that understand grace and have received grace, throw down their stones. Close your eyes, hear the thug that each stone makes as it hits the ground. That is the sound of grace! Let others always hear grace from you! It may be the only way they will hear the love of Jesus!

The religion scholars and Pharisees led in a woman who had been caught in an act of adultery. They stood her in plain sight of everyone and said, “Teacher, this woman was caught red handed in the act of adultery. Moses, in the Law, gives orders to stone such persons. What do you say?” They were trying to trap him into saying something incriminating so they could bring charges against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with this finger in the dirt. They kept at him, badgering him. He straightened up and said, “The sinless one among you, go first: Throw the stone.” Bending down again, he wrote some more in the dirt. Hearing that, they walked away, one after another, beginning with the oldest. T he woman was left alone. Jesus stood up and spoke to her. “Woman where are they? Does no one condemn you?” “No one, Master.” “Neither do I,” said Jesus. “Go on your way. From now on, don’t sin.”

John 8: 3-11 (The Message)

Weed Out Bitterness!

     I am use to my car being parked in the garage. That means it isn’t covered with ice in the mornings and it doesn’t take long to warm up. However, yesterday my car had to be parked outside in single digit temperature. I could tell my car didn’t like that. It took a long time to warm up and when I drove it, it cried with extra squeaks every time we hit a bump. It was as if it was frozen! My windshield even cracked from the cold! It sounded like the entire glass was going to break.
     It reminded me how brittle things get when it is cold and frozen. I have a jelly filled eye mask that stays cool and feels great on my eyes when I have a headache, it was a Christmas present and I couldn’t wait to use it. When the time came that my eyes needed it, I couldn’t find it anywhere. I looked everywhere for it. Then Dwayne opened the freezer one night and out came my mask; it fell in the floor and broke! It broke right at the nose area! (My mother didn’t know and put it in the freezer) The mask would have never broken if it had not been frozen; it was flexible to be moldable around the eyes.
     These incidents made me think about how brittle and cold our hearts can become. Before bitterness takes residents in them, they are pliable but once hurt and disappointment turns into bitterness, the heart becomes brittle. Brittleness just makes it easier to break. We think it builds walls of protection but in reality it doesn’t protect, it hides the hurt. Bitterness brings nothing good to your soul. God tells us to not let our hearts possess bitterness. Bitterness does not reflect Jesus.
Is there any bitterness in your heart? Lay any bitterness at the foot of Jesus and let your heart become flexible and pliable in the hands of the potter. When clay is brittle, it can’t be molded! It’s time for a heart check.

See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.

Hebrews 12:15

An Ounce of Prevention

    I wonder how many times in my life I have heard the famous quote by Benjamin Franklin, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!” Though it is a true statement, I do not believe it is a statement we really live out. I have been in Nebraska this week encouraging the employees of one of our clients to take care of their health. After hearing numerous stories, there seems to be a common thread. We pay way more attention to a situation once a problem has occurred versus preventing the situation from happening. I have listened to several people who have recently been diagnosed with diabetes. They were all overweight, eating anything they want, never exercising, and not wanting to give up their lifestyles. Now that they have diabetes, they are willing to change their eating habits and start exercising. I am glad they are willing to make those lifestyle changes to be able to keep their diabetes in control. However, it would have been wonderful if they had made those changes before they developed that terrible disease.
     We have the same thinking in many things in our life other than with our health. I see it in marriages. So many people ignore their marriages and they do not deal with the issues and needs of their spouse until their hurts have grown to a critical state and their marriage is ending. Then they decide they love their spouse and are willing to do whatever it takes to restore their marriage. I see it in people’s finances. They do not take care of their spending and their budgets until they are in a position of repossession or bankruptcy and then they make the necessary changes in their life to deal with their issues. I see it in the raising of children. People do not discipline their children and teach them life principals until they are older and get into some major trouble and then they change their parenting style to help their children succeed. I see it in people's activities and schedules. They live such a crazy life governed by one activity after another. When they are at a breaking point and stress affects every aspect of their life, then they reevaluate their calendars and give some things up and learn to say ‘no’ to constant demands.
     I could go on listing other examples but the most important one has to do with living for God. So many people know that following God’s leading and principals is the best prevention to the many problems of life. However, they don’t want to give up things they think brings them pleasure and they don’t want to develop discipline to do the things they know they should. They try to walk as close to the fence as possible and still claim to be a follower of Jesus. When life crashes in on them and there is nowhere to turn, it is then they surrender to the obedience of God. They wait until they are in need and then beg God to fix it! Thank God for His grace because He is always there to lift us out of our self made pits!
     How many heartaches, trials, and scars could we avoid if we were willing to practice prevention? How many troubles do we bring on ourselves because we don’t want to change until we have to? Our lives would be so much easier if prevention was a part of our lives. What area are you gambling with? We would endure less complications if we would make the necessary changes before we have to deal with the repercussions. I think Mr. Franklin was wise to say that a little prevention is more valuable than cleaning up the aftermath!

A prudent person sees trouble coming and ducks;

a simpleton walks in blindly and is clobbered!

Proverbs 27:12

Today Determines Tomorrow!

     Today, I taught seven classes in Nebraska on why we should care about wellness and three steps to achieving wellness. The most unique class was at a remote location. It was a county road crew facility. I walked into an old, dirty metal building. It looked more like a car repair shop. After questioning a man in the shop, I was sent into an old, dirty office. When I walked in, I was face to face with four walls of dirty, burly men; all in Cartharts and facial hair of some sort. I wanted to say, “Oh, I am sorry, I have the wrong location!” However, I knew I was going to the talk to the road crew, so I didn’t know what I was expecting. To my surprise, they did not start booing me when I mentioned the word . . . wellness. They actually engaged and asked questions. We ended with the statement, “What you do today will determine your tomorrow!”
When I got back to my hotel room and turned on the Olympics, it wasn’t long until the same philosophy reared its head. Can you imagine an Olympian performing for the first time at the Olympics? When they perform they are demonstrating their years of practice. What they are today is because of what they did yesterday!
     Our Christian walk and faith are also determined by what we did yesterday. If you want to walk firmly on the path God has for you, then you must put your time in today in studying and learning. You will not wake up one day and be the mature Christian you want to be. You will be what you prepare to be today. My lovely daughter- in-law came up with a great quote we can apply: "It is time to stop being a couch potato Christian"! Have you considered what Christian you would be tomorrow because of what you did today? Is that what you want to be? Are you a couch potato Christian? Are you ready to get up and start training for future?

Stay alert; be in prayer, so you don’t enter the danger zone without even knowing it. Don’t be naïve. Part of you is eager, ready for anything in God; but another part is as lazy as an old dog sleeping by the fire.
Mark 14:38

Support of Friends

     Yesterday, I drove to Nebraska for work. I will be here for a few days. I did something stupid and I paid the price for it while I was driving. I didn’t start out the 12 hour journey well rested! We had an extremely busy weekend. Friday, I left work and went straight to a marriage retreat that we taught. It was a great time that lasted late on Friday night and started early on Saturday morning. When we got home from the retreat, I had one hour to get ready for a formal hospital benefit. Saturday night was a late night and Sunday was church, then a dinner theater that we go to in Tahlequah. We had a visit to make on the way home and we got home about 6:30 p.m. I had to chill for a while, pack for the week, and write Monday’s devotion. I stayed up after midnight and got up before 6:00 a.m. and started my trip before 7:00 a.m. Within two hours, I was dreading my lack of sleep. Right when I felt like I was going to have to pull over at a convenient store to sleep for a few minutes, I hit snow. That was enough to wake me up for a while. As soon as I got through the falling snow, I pulled over and set the alarm for a fifteen minute nap. Five minutes into the nap, I started fighting the need to go to the restroom and within a few more minutes, Brittne called me. She is in a village without internet and the only contact I get with her is a five minute phone call once a week. So, there was no, “call me back in ten minutes!” By the time I talked to her, pumped some gas, went to the restroom, and got something to drink, I was awake enough to be on the road again. I knew I was going to have three dead spots that would be boring enough to challenge my sleepiness. One was between Joplin and Kansas City, one between St. Joseph and Omaha, and between Lincoln and Lexington, which was my final stop. These times actually flew by thanks to many friends and family. We always say that time with friends fly by and I used that to my advantage. I talked to some old friends, and several friends I needed to check in with, I caught up with my son and daughter-in- law, spoke to Dwayne a few times and checked on my mom several times while she was at the hospital with her critical brother. Thanks to all of them, I didn’t have to deal with anymore sleepiness until I hit my hotel room. Once I crawled into my bed, I died. That is why I am up at 5:00 a.m. writing this devotion! Lol
      Have you ever experienced that same exhaustion when it comes to life? Do you have times you thought you can’t function anymore? When we get to that point God is always there to refresh our spirit. However, many times He uses others to give us love and support. There is a great story in the Old Testament that I love and it illustrates this point perfectly. When the Israelites fought the Amalekites , they only won when Moses’s hands were raised. However, his arms would tire and when he dropped them, they would start to lose. Thankfully, Aaron and Hur came along and held up his arms for him. For the entire day, they helped keep his arms raised until victory was theirs. When you are at the point of exhaustion, be willing to let others help you, strengthen you, and love and comfort you. They are messengers from God and never turn them away. I always hate finding out that a friend has been going through a really bad situation and they never told anyone or let anyone help them. We are to carry each others burdens but how can we do that if people refuse to share their burdens or accept help? Will you let others support you in your time of need? Even with the small needs?

Carry each others burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.
Galatians 6:2

Celebrate the Differences!

     It never fails, as soon as I commit to showing Jesus more to those around me, I have to endure one of those days that tests your patience at every turn. As I get older and my hormones get crazier, patience grows harder to possess. Since I do not get a pass from God on patience due to hormones, I have to work harder on letting the Spirit fill me so I can demonstrate patience in my life. The other day, I found myself asking the questions, “Is everyone being so irritating because my spirit is off or is my spirit off because everyone is being so irritating?” It was one of those challenging days. It wasn't due to some major issue, it was just a day where every driver I shared the road with had an attitude and one actually had the nerve to honk at me when I waited a few seconds to accelerate as soon as the light turned green. I was running against the clock and it was winning. On top of that, every person who waited on me was rude and unhelpful. Oh, how I wanted to have a fit and teach a few employees how to give good customer service!
     Looking back at my question, I have determined the problem was my spirit was not what it should have been. I was not focused on walking as a child of God. I was not humble but was focusing on myself and the customer service I deserved as a customer. I did not consider the day those employees or drivers were having. I did not wonder if they had a major life event happening. It was all about me! I did not give grace or unconditional love. Yet the other day when I left the hospital after visiting my friend with the daughter in ICU, I was pondering on her situation as a mother and pulled out to turn and did so quite slowly. Some car honked at me. I really thought about turning around, following them to their parking spot and explaining to them that many times people are hurting when they leave a hospital and it was very insensitive of them to honk in a hospital parking lot!
     Sometimes, it is not the minor encounters with people that test our patience; it can be with those closest to us. We can become frustrated and not show love to our coworkers, friends, or family. I believe the main reason we great frustrated with people is that we expect them to act like we would in situations. We do not appreciate their differences such as their history, their hurts, their personalities, their spiritual gifts, their gender, their family situations, their financial stresses, etc. It is very arrogant of us to think that everyone should be like us. That they should respond like us, handle situations like us, work like us, think like us, and act like us.
     In God’s wisdom, He did not choose to create everyone all the same. He gave different purposes, spiritual gifts, personalities, etc. I love the difference in my children and appreciate their uniqueness. So does our Heavenly Father. He created the differences, so maybe we should stop expecting everyone to be just like us and start celebrating the differences.

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life
 worthy of the calling you have received.
Be completely humble and gentle; be patient,
bearing with one another in love.
Ephesians 4:1-2

It's Gotta Be a Lifestyle!

      Today is my last day to talk about health. I know some of you are very happy to go on to another subject. However, always know that if any of you need some encouragement or help when you are ready to begin your journey, just let me know and I will be glad to help you!
     A few days ago I attended a luncheon for Oklahoma Healthy Business. It is a group that recognizes businesses in Oklahoma that are working toward achieving health and wellness for their employees. I joined a table of women. Only a few of them knew each other but it didn’t take long for the conversation to be centered on food. I have to admit the chocolate swirl cheesecake at each setting definitely was what steered the conversation. First, it was about the hypocrisy of rewarding healthy businesses with cheesecake and then to the calories that was in that cheesecake. I sat and listened to their conversation. It seemed they were all involved in Weight Watchers and started figuring out points for that lovely dessert and then started guessing what was for lunch. They jokingly said lasagna. Sure enough, they guessed right. It had some veggies and chicken in it so I am sure it was healthy ‽ I continued listening to the women talk. (I know some of you are shocked I can listen to them without talking!) I picked up on some phrases that showed me their commitment to their weight loss journey. It was apparent they all wanted to lose weight but the world ‘health’ was never spoken. Also, they were adamant that if food tasted good, they could not eat it. Everything they had to eat was inferior. I think this way of thinking is a means of sabotaging yourself. We mess up our taste buds with all the crap (I am sorry, I just don’t know a better word for it) we put in our bodies. When everything we have eaten for years is loaded with fat and man made chemicals, our view of good tasting gets marred. My translation of their phrase is, “Everything that God made for us to eat taste bad but everything man has made is great!” I do not believe God makes inferior food. If we have lost the taste for a sweet juicy piece of fruit but can get satisfaction from a calorie packed, fat laden candy bar, our mind and taste buds needs to be refreshed. When we stop eating the bad stuff, we start to taste the sweetness in a piece of fruit. I started enjoying my vegetables. I learned to enjoy the creaminess of yogurt. Now the bad stuff doesn’t taste so good! When this process happens, your new way of eating becomes a lifestyle and not a weight loss project that ends when the goal is hit. Also, to become a lifestyle, it has to be continued for the goal of ‘good health’. If you always feel you are giving up everything good and have to endure the inferior foods in life and if you think you are doing it for only a weight goal, you will not make it a lifestyle and you will continue to yoyo your weight.
     We see people yoyo their spiritual walk as well. They realize that their life is in chaos and they need God to fix it all. They start going to church and attending Bible studies. Then the stress of life starts to minimize. They begin to miss all the things they think are fun; you know, the things that brought the stress and chaos to begin with. Before too long, they are out of church and back to old ways. Soon the chaos and stress returns. Then the process starts over again. The problem is that God isn’t their lifestyle. He is someone to fix their problems. They see His ways as inferior to the world’s way. It is never about a long term relationship with Jesus, they only focus on the short term. When walking with Jesus is your lifestyle, you commit yourself to God’s path for your spiritual and emotional health, not just to get quick fixes. You realize that your desire for God has been marred because you have fed too long on the emptiness of the world. The more you consume Him, the more the world loses its appeal. Soon your desire for the food of God is all you care about. You continue to serve Him for your health and the amazing thing is; you have less things in life that needs fixing!

So here is what I want you to do. God helping you:Take your everyday, ordinary life-- your sleeping, eating, going- to -work, and walking around life-- and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what He wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

Romans 12: 1-2 (The Message)

Need Some Encouragement?

     I just got back from seeing a precious friend at the hospital. Her daughter is a special child and is very critical in ICU. Please pray for her; her name is Sammi. My friend is Terri and why she is so special to me is that she was my Weightwatchers teacher when I began this new journey almost three years ago. We bonded quickly because she is a pastor’s wife too, kindred hearts I guess. She taught me the principles of eating and exercise, but more importantly, she was my encourager. She saw me when I was mad at the scale and she saw me when I wanted to quit. Yes, she even saw me cry! I made the mistake of comparing myself to the others in my class. I tried to eat perfectly and I never cheated for the first six months. I exercised everyday! However, every week I would get on that scale and it would read a loss of 1.4 pounds. I should have been ecstatic over the consistent weight loss, but I wasn’t. Every week so many of my classmates would confess about cheating and how they totally blew it. They never exercised and yet they would lose 3 or 4 pounds. It didn't seem fair! The harder you work, the more you should loose. Regrettably, it does not always work like that. The older our bodies, the harder it is to burn off those stubborn fat cells. After all, they have been there a long time! Terri was always there to keep me going, to tell me she understood, and to encourage me. I really do not know if I could have endured those first six months without her. Now I have the privilege of passing on to others what she has done for me. I haven’t had her as a leader for 18 months but now I can continue my journey alone because it is now my lifestyle. She held my hand when I was just on a diet to lose weight until it became more; until it could be a part of me and my habit for life.
Do you have a person to be your encourager on your journey to health? We all need one. Occasionally, I still need a little push not return to old habits.
     We also need an encourager for our spiritual journey. At first it is hard. It is way different than our normal fleshly behavior. Sometimes we get mad at our results. Sometimes we want to quit and just go back to the easy way, even if it is the wrong way. Sometimes, we just need a good cry. But we always need someone to love us and encourage us. Someone to tell us that we are doing great and that baby steps are okay. Some people seem to grow faster than others, or understand quicker than others, or not struggle as much. Do not make the mistake of comparing yourself to others. Two children do not learn and grow the same, neither do God’s children. It is okay. All you have to do is make sure you take hold of God’s hand and that is sometimes done by taking hold of the hand of another. Someone who can encourage you until you grow to the point that it becomes your way of life; and even then, can give you a little push to never go back your old self.
     Are you trying to do it all alone? Do you have someone to encourage you? Pray for you? Love on you? Teach you? If not, look for them. God will send them and when He does, take them by the hand as if you were taking God’s hand of love: because you are!

Read the words of Paul:
With each of you we were like a father with his child, holding your hand, whispering encouragement, showing you step-by-step how to live well before God, who called us into his own kingdom, into this delightful life.
1 Thessalonians 2 : 11b-12

Live for Tomorrow; Today!

     In this ‘live in the present’ society we live in, our future can easily be sabotaged. We spend for today, love for today, react for today, and work for today. We think very little of the future and when we do, it is unrealistic because we are doing nothing to prepare for it. We do not realize that how we take care of our body today determines our health in the future. Many people see their health as a prolonging of life and that in itself is not enough to motivate them to do something about it today. In reality, God is the giver and taker of life but how we take care of our body does affect how we will live the last third of our lifespan. The fewer health risks we have as we enter our fifties, the better our chance of living our last years with good health. The more health risk we have entering our fifties, the more likely we are to live a very sick, diseased, and limited golden years. A few health risks are high blood pressure, tobacco use, alcohol abuse, high cholesterol, overweight/obesity, raised cholesterol, family health history, sedentary lifestyle, and high stress. We need to work today to control these factors. Many of us are hopeful that we will live out our retirement years serving the Lord and doing all the things we can’t do today. If we do not take care of our health today, we will be limited on what we can do for the Lord when we get the time. The years go by very quickly, use today to give you the best tomorrow you can have.
     We will one day stand before the Lord. That day is for certain. What you do today will determine how prepared you are for that time. Will you spend eternity with Jesus because of the choice of following Him today? Will He say the words to you that we all long to hear, “Well done my good and faithful servant”? Or will you stand regretful of the choices you made today? We never know when that time is coming. We could be standing before Him before the end of the day, or it could be when we take our last breath. Don’t waste a day of preparation; it will all be worth it!

Jesus said, “No procrastination. No backward looks. You can’t put God’s kingdom off til tomorrow. Seize the day.”

Luke 9:62

How's Your Core?

     Getting rid of the belly bulge is all about diet and cardio, rather than strength-training exercises that target the abdominals. However, Core exercises are important. Our core is the muscles in the pelvis, lower back, hips and abdomen. It is beneficial to have these core muscles strong. Strong core muscles make it easier to do everything; from swinging a golf club to getting a glass from the top shelf or bending down to tie your shoes. They give us a stronger foundation for and prevent injury from daily activities and sports. They give us better balance and stability. Weak core muscles leave us susceptible to poor posture, lower back pain and muscle injuries. The great thing about core exercises is you can do them at home. Try them on the floor while you're watching your favorite shows. You can even do core exercises with a fitness ball. The older we get, the more we relax our stomach muscles and soon they become lazy. Become conscious of your stomach and practice keeping your muscles tight throughout the day. Though it is important to get rid of our belly fat, we need to have strong muscles underneath to hold everything together.
     It is important to have a strong core to our spiritual health as well. A strong core can give us a strong foundation for everything we do. It keeps us in balance and gives us stability in this shaky world. When we exercise our core, we read God’s Word, we talk to Him through prayer, we worship him with our church family, and we carry each other’s burdens and experience Christian love through fellowship. These are the exercises that keep us strong and hold everything together in life. It is great prevention from hurt and injury. Keep you core strong, don’t get lazy!
     How is your core strength? Do you need to get on a core strengthening workout plan? Is it crunch time?

God is strong and he wants you strong! So take everything the Master has set out for your, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting you'll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You'll need them throughout your life. God's Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

Ephesians 6:10-18

It Takes Time

     Ever give yourself a birthday present? I did! For my 47th birthday, I gave myself an achievement I had wanted my whole life. I worked for three months to be able to run a mile: it was actually like a fast jog but in my book it was running! Please understand, it did not happen overnight. It was embarrassing the first time I went out for my new goal achieving run. I would run as far as I could, then I would walk, then run, then walk, until my one mile finish line. What was embarrassing was the fact I could only run about 10 yards before I was sucking air. Then I would walk about 50 yards to catch my breath. Each day I ran a few more steps in my running section, and walk a few less steps in my walking section. Then after seven weeks, I ran my first mile! Now, I can run a 5k distance. That process taught me a lot about endurance. It didn’t matter where I began. As long as I continued running a few steps more each day, I would eventually achieve my goal. Also, I learned that no matter how bad I wanted to be able to run the mile, unless I continued working each day and continued to do a little more each day, I would have never been able to give myself such a great gift.
     Many times we see a Christian person we admire. We are impressed with their faith and their walk with the Lord. However, they did not become strong in their faith overnight. It took learning to walk with the Lord everyday; through valleys, hills, and curves. They endured times of tears and times of joy. When you plant a seedling tree it isn't suppose to be staked down for long. The tree becomes strong by learning to bend with the wind. The more it bends the stronger it becomes. We are like that tree. The more wind we endure the stronger we become. You can not have the results you want if you are not willing to endure the process.

     What goals do you want to achieve spiritually? Are you willing to endure the process? If you are, you will achieve you goal! If you aren’t, you won’t!

So don’t lose a minute in building on what you’ve been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others. With these qualities active and growing in your lives, no grass will grow under your feet, no day will pass without its reward as you mature in your experience of our Master Jesus.

2 Peter 1:5-8