Praying Earnestly!

In my devotional yesterday I was reminded of the story of Elijah.

The verse was from James 5:17: "Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly." This verse refers to the story in 1 Kings 18:41-46. In this story, Elijah prays, after a 3 1/2 year prayer induced drought, that it would rain. He told his servant to go out and look for the rain. Several times he asked his servant to do this and each time the servant came back and said there was nothing. Until the seventh time, he came back and said there is a small cloud rising from the sea. What I love about this is the perseverance of Elijah. If it was me I would have given up on the first report and wondered why God was not listening to me. But not Elijah and he was a man just like us. He prayed and prayed and continued to pray!

What is it that is keeping us from continually praying? What are we afraid of? Are we afraid of God looking stupid? Or are we afraid of us looking stupid?

Really, it is OK to read it!

I have had a few people tell me they are uncomfortable reading my blog. So this is my official permission allowing all of you to read my blog. Some say they think it is like reading my diary. Trust me, if I didn't want anyone to read it I would not post it!!

And trust me on this one as well. This is just the tip of the iceberg of the issues I struggle through. This is nothing compared to my "real" journaling! You might never look me in the eye again if you saw the "other" journal.

So go ahead and read and comment along the way!

The Road Not Taken

I have been thinking about this poem lately and had to post it!

67. The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;	5
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that, the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,	10
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.	15
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.	20

My Boy!

So Shane was incredibly frustrated this morning and very impatient! Yelling at Riley to get up or they were going to be late, etc. I was trying to calm him down, trying to teach him patience, etc. And here is the way the rest of the conversation went:

Me: Shane, God says that patience is a gift that he gives us if we ask for it.

Shane: I don't want patience. It just wastes time!

Me: (incredulous look on my face) UM! Well then!

And how do you respond to that?

Great Quote and Reminder

My husband had a great quote on his blog that I have to share.

"When God sends you on a journey, he packs your bags too!"

This is such a great reminder for me. When we go on a trip, I plan in my head how to pack things and what to take sometimes a few days before we leave. I am one that likes to have everything figured out and ready so I don't forget to pack anything. I do NOT like to be unprepared. If something unexpected is going to happen then I want to be ready.

But somehow God does not work like that. He provides for us ALONG the way. He sends people into our lives to fill in the gaps. I do not think God wants us to be self-sufficient. He designed us to depend on Him. And when we depend on Him we depend on His people. And then we have room to see God work.

Your Prayers...

I was never aware of how difficult the position as "Pastor's Wife" really was, until I became one. This road has been incredibly difficult in so many ways.

But yesterday morning I was reminded of how blessed I am. I had my first session of a new bible study Thursday morning. I usually like to allow a lot of time for prayer during this first session. During this time, these beautiful ladies offered up a prayer of blessing for me and my family. You will never know how much it means to me to have people out there that pray for me and my family. I could not survive without the heartfelt prayers of God's people. I truly understand what it means to desire the prayers of the saints. So if anyone ever wonders what to do for their pastor and family, pray. And then pray some more!

Thank you to all who pray for us and please keep praying!

It is cold here!

OK, everyone who is spouting ideas about global warming, please quit now! You are making it colder with every word you speak.

I had to turn on my little heater just to warm up this morning. I think it was 41. It is April 15th! It is Florida! It should not be anywhere near 41 at anytime of day in Florida in April!

This is my theory. God is getting tired of this farce of global warming, so he is allowing it to be colder to show everyone who really is in charge!

So please all of you global warming believers, stop! Because I like it warm in spring in Florida!

About last night...

Robbie has been doing a series on marriage and family. So for the past two Wednesday nights we have been teaching communication skills and resolving conflicts. Last night was about resolving conflicts. Robbie and I got up in front of everyone to illustrate how we have resolved a real conflict in our marriage. We were the test dummies. Of course this is something that has caused pain in our marriage and I am an emotional woman, so of course, I cried. I didn't blubber with snot coming out of my noise, but I did tear up and had to use tissues. I feel like I have to do a disclaimer here. I cry! It is part of my nature to cry! To me it is like laughing. It is part of who I am!

What was so comforting to me was the people who came up to me afterward, men and women, who thanked me for being so open. They were moved to see my pain displayed for all to see.

So after my post ranting about the negative comments from people, I thought I should say thank you to all the people who were gracious and grateful in their comments last night. It is people like you that help us continue in ministry!

Last Post

Robbie said that my last post sounded pissed. And yeah, I do get a little p'ed off about comments like that. I have been told to just let it run off my back. I am just unsure how to do that. Especially when it comes to my family, I tend to be incredibly territorial and protective.

Helping orphans and children is something I have been called to do. So if someone feels like criticizing that, then talk to God!

There was an old lady who lived in a shoe....

Well, it happened again the other day! Every time this happens I want to yell and scream. Someone made a comment along these lines, "That's just what you need, another baby." Not a question of how are you doing? or a comment about it being difficult. No, they interjected there ideas about my life that I did not solicit nor want. I just want to know who gave someone the right to negatively comment about the state of affairs in my household.

Look people, I only have five children. If I am not mistaken, it was only a few generations ago that five was considered average. My grandmother had 6 children and some she raised by herself after the death of her husband, and she lived until the ripe old age of 92.

I, of all people,understand the difficulties of balancing five children. Sometimes its hard. Sometimes it is fun. But it is always full of joy. Most things worth doing are difficult.

And guess what person, I probably won't stop at five. I am thinking that 15-20 has a nice ring to it! :)

Birth Rate

I heard a little blurb on the news about the birth rate in the Vatican. It says that Muslims now outnumber Catholics in the Vatican, primarily because of their birthrate. The report went on to say,

"Formenti said that while the number of Catholics as a proportion of the world's population was fairly stable, the percentage of Muslims was growing because of higher birth rates."

This is alarming to me on so many levels. First off, if nothing changes we, as in Christians, will be outnumbered in a few short generations. And I do not want my future generations to be ruled over by Muslims.

We need to realize that children are a gift from God. I think western culture has been negligent in supporting this idea. We see children as another mouth to feed, instead of another disciple of Christ. Another being to be raised in a home showing devotion to God.

God says blessed is the man whose quiver is full. (Psalm 127:4-5) Do we really believe that? I think if we did we would see a lot more Christians having larger families.

Frustration

Frustration has an interesting definition. Here are just a few:

1. a deep chronic sense or state of insecurity and dissatisfaction arising from unresolved problems or unfulfilled needs
2. a feeling of annoyance at being hindered or criticized
3. a feeling of dissatisfaction, often accompanied by anxiety or depression, resulting from unfulfilled needs or unresolved problems.

So basically it comes down to this. I want something or I want to do something, but someone or something is standing in my way, so I become frustrated. Example, A parent wants to watch a TV show, but child keeps coming in and asking silly questions. So parent becomes frustrated. Parent then says, "Can't you see that I am watching this show?"

So now I have decided that frustration is basically a totally selfish emotion. The child only wants to connect with parent. But the parents unfulfilled need is to watch TV. Does this sound right? Whose needs are more important here?

Why do we allow frustration in our lives? It is a completely negative and self-centered emotion that, I think, does more harm than good. As Christians, aren't we called to consider others before ourselves? (See Phil 2.) What if we allowed a little grace to manifest instead of frustration?

Finding Purpose

I heard this quote again the other day and it was thought-provoking. It came from the movie "A Walk to Remember":

"Find out who you are and do it on purpose!"-Dolly Parton

What an interesting concept. Finding out who you are sounds simple, but can be incredibly difficult for some. Especially those of us who have been programmed since birth to please others. But what freedom there is in finding out the person God created you to be instead of what those around you want you to be. Because most of the time those around us don't even know who they were created to be.

And then doing it on PURPOSE!

Try it! Try asking God who HE created you to be!

No More Whining!

All of you who are mothers have uttered these words probably more times than you can count. I am not sure about anyone else, but whining completely drains me of all energy. It grates on my nerves and causes me to lose my patience quick! Especially when the whining is groundless and complaint ridden.

Unfortunately, my diatribe is not concerning the smaller of us, but is directed to the adults in this world. I have heard it said before that if you are complaining and not offering a solution, then you are just whining! Now don't get me wrong I understand some peoples need for constructive criticism (if that even exists!) but there are some that just want to point out all the flaws and complain that it's not right.

Here's a thought! Instead of complaining, how about we all jump in and do something about it. You know, see a need and meet a need! If you see something is not being done or you don't think it is being done right, do it yourself!

Just venting!

Borrowed words

Since I have been missing from the blogger world as of late, I thought I would post something. Unfortunately, my mind is so sleep deprived, I have nothing original to contribute.

I am reading this book that is incredibly intriguing. I can only read a few pages at a time because my mind starts going. The book is called "Seizing Your Divine Moment" by Erwin Raphael McManus. Here is a quote that I wanted to share:

"We have put so much emphasis on avoiding evil that we have become virtually blind to the endless opportunities for doing good. We have defined holiness through what we separate ourselves from rather than what we give ourselves to. I am convinced the great tragedy is not the sins that we commit,but the life we fail to live."

So my question to you all is, what have you given yourselves to?