Wrinkles

Last night we watched a sitcom where an actor from the past came back, after being diagnosed with an illness, to act again. In this sitcom his, real life, beautiful wife made an appearance on the show. We had always thought of her as a lovely woman who was aging quite nicely.  As we watched her though, we thought there was something different about her. Then we finally realized what the difference was. She had had a face lift, well at least she had had her eyes done. It made her look different, fake. It took away from her natural beauty.

  I ask Rodney why so many from the acting world think they have to continue to look like they have not aged at all? He said it is the one way they can continued to be hired to act on TV. It might not be something they want to do but it is something they feel they have to do.

Are we as the watching audience so shallow that we will not watch older actors or is it that the powers that be in the hiring of actors are the miss guided ones? This desire to stay young has carried over into the real world and so many women and even men think that they need stay young looking to be attractive.  I have to admit that I am not a fan of my rounder face which makes me have a full chin and I am not fond of my aging neck. I have to work on myself not to worry about these things and to remember that the world should not think less of me because I have some aging skin. 

All of us have beauty inside and out. We all have so much to contribute to this world and this does not change just because we begin to get wrinkles, lines, a couple extra pounds, and a few gray hairs . God certainly does not see us as less, as we age. He is probably glad that we are maturing and wiser. Maybe we will be more apt to make better choices.

I was reading in Amos 6 and ran across this verse...

Woe to those addicted to feeling good—life without pain!
    those obsessed with looking good—life without wrinkles!

Life does get to us. We feel the pressure to be better and to compete with each other in everything, including looks.
This kind of pressure takes our minds and hearts off the things that are really important, like loving our neighbors. We become obsessed with ourselves and life becomes "all about me" instead of loving and following our Lord.

 Luke 10:27

Common English Bible (CEB)

27 He responded, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself.”

As we just read, our focus should not be on ourselves so much as on our God and on loving those around us. If this happens you can bet no one will think anything of you except that your are wonderful. If the rest of the world could follow this verse, too, no one would feel the need for a face lift or an eye job because all of us would feel like the beautiful and special people that God has created us to be!


Blessings Beautiful People!

Sitting on the Porch!!

Today was a beautiful day. Not too hot and not too cold. You can really tell that we are moving into autumn. The leaves are starting to turn and there is a crispness in the air.  



I absolutely love this time of year. Sweaters are my favorite items of clothing and being able to sit out on the porch and enjoy the perfect temperature is almost heaven.
  
So today I took advantage of this perfectness and sat on the side porch to wait for Riley's bus to bring him home from school. It has been a very busy week for our family and being able to just sit, even for a little while, was such a treat.

As I sat there everybody that drove by waved and smiled. I think that they were loving the weather as much as me.

I see the changing seasons as a gift from God. Now there are some who would rather have warmth all year, but for me, the cycles of the seasons are wonderful. This beautiful season brings us walks in the leaves, festivals, apples, pumpkins, turkey and of course the harvest, which is a huge gift from God. 

I love how the scriptures remind us of this......
 

Deuteronomy 11:14

New International Version (NIV)

14 then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and olive oil.

Acts 14:17

New International Version (NIV)

17 Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.”

We have a friend who always repeats this wonderful saying...."God is good, all the time, All the time, God is good"!

I think that this beautiful fall weather sure brings this statement home.

Hope you get to get out and enjoy all the wonder this season can bring.

Blessings!

Cherish Each Moment

Today I spent the afternoon with a very sad family. A wonderful man lost his fight with life early this morning after running into trouble with a semi, while riding his motorcycle. It is hard to understand why these things happen. One minute you have someone and the next minute you don't. Sometimes life is so mean, especially concerning death. I keep asking why life is so hard.  My wonderfully wise pastor husband can't answer me on this. No one can. This world does not spare any of us from hurt and pain. So all I could do, today, was listen and hug.

Job 4:19

So how much less these bodies composed of mud,
    fragile as moths?
These bodies of ours are here today and gone tomorrow

This uncertainty of life gives us all the more reason to make sure that the ones we love know how special they are to us. As a matter of fact we are to love all of our neighbors, as God does.

The scriptures tell us over and over to love one another...

Romans 12:10

Common English Bible (CEB)

10 Love each other like the members of your family. Be the best at showing honor to each other.

John 13:34

Common English Bible (CEB)

34 “I give you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, so you also must love each other.

Ephesians 4:2

Common English Bible (CEB)

2 Conduct yourselves with all humility, gentleness, and patience. Accept each other with love,

1 John 4:11

The Message (MSG)

11-12 My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other. No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us—perfect love!

As we go through this busy life. It can be tough to get chances to love and show love. There is so much on our plates and we are pushing everyday. Love is something we have to choose to do on a daily basis. Asking God to help us with this does make it easier.

As I sat with this sweet wife today, the one thing she could find comfort in was that she was positive that her lost husband had known that he was deeply loved, and she knew the same was true of his love for her. Imagine how much sadder she would be if they hadn't made sure of this each and every day of their lives together. 

I am not trying to be a fatalist but no one can know what a day will bring. Accidents happen, bodies fail, situations change and this world is getting weirder everyday. 

Don't let another day go by without holding tight to the ones you love. Tell them you love them. Show them you love them. Go out to your neighbors and show Christ's love to them too.  

You don't want to wish you had!


Blessings!

Spills Gone!

Today we had the carpet in the church and the parsonage cleaned.  There were a couple of spots in both locations that I was positive would not come out. But to my surprise they did. The gentleman who was the carpet cleaner didn't even seemed surprised. He knew he would be able to make the evidence of the mistakes, that caused the spots, go away, like they never even happened.

Makes me think of Christ and what He can do for us. If you ask, He can take away our mistakes too. He will make it so we are clean and sin free. He can do it in a heart beat.

1 John 1:9

Common English Bible (CEB)

9 But if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from everything we’ve done wrong.

Our house, with the carpets clean, feels so fresh. It is such a nice feeling. It actually seems like even the air is cleaner. 

Imagine how good it feels when your soul is clean. Imagine how much better you will feel, how much fresher you will feel. 

Unlike carpet, that will get dirty again and need to be cleaned again, our lives, our souls stay clean. God does not see you as a sinner ever again. 
  

Psalm 103:12

Common English Bible (CEB)

12 As far as east is from west—
    that’s how far God has removed our sin from us.

Like the verse says our sins can't rule us again because, just like a sunrise doesn't cross with a sunset, neither will our human, sinful side, be in control of our actions and thoughts again. 

It feels so peaceful to have this promise. It's like taking a deep breath of the freshest air. Peaceful like a walk by a trickling spring. Peaceful like when you are listening to the waves as you drift off to sleep in a room beside the ocean.

I hope with all my heart that you have received this peace. If not, all you need to do is believe and ask our Savior for this peace and it will be yours.


Blessings!!!

It's All About Me!

In our last ladies Bible Study we talked about how this world seems to be centered on "everything is about us". The commercials on TV, plus the talk shows that speak about how we all have the power to change our own environments to make sure that we are totally pampered, totally happy, totally have all the things we want. According to some talk show hosts and even some popular pastors , all we have to do is think about the positive and that will give us the power to have anything.

But times are tough. The economy is stretched to the point of breaking. Health care, food, gas and everything it takes to survive are so costly that some of us can not even take care of ourselves, much less our families, without help.  

So when we see all the things we need and even the things that we just want, but cannot obtain, even though the world tells us we can and should, it makes us feel helpless and inadequate. There is so much sadness and depression. Desperation is rampant to the point of humans doing things that they might not have even thought of in our past.

We feel so useless and alone.  

Dear friends we do have help with the helplessness. We do have someone to turn to...
  

Hebrews 3:6

6  But Christ is faithful as a Son over His own house, whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and rejoicing of the hope, firm unto the end.

Did you catch that? We have hope because we are Christ's. He is faithful to His own.  He loves us and wants nothing more than to give us peace and confidence.

This world cannot give us that! There are some who seem to have accomplished everything but they do not have the peace that only God can give, without their following Him. 

This world is unrelenting and times seem to be getting harder and harder for all. We can't just think "it" and have it. But we can have a partner who will support us all the way!!

Lean on Him, and as you follow Christ, He can lead you through the tough times and help you find the answers you need. 

Don't forget  We are His house!!

My name is "The Pastor's Wife"

I recently read this article about being a pastor's wife that really got me to thinking. It was called "7 Things Pastor's Wives Wish They Had Been Told"

 http://thomrainer.com/2013/04/06/seven-things-pastors-wives-wish-they-had-been-told-before-they-became-pastors-wives/ 

There were a couple of things that really hit home for me.

The first thing was "I wish I someone would have prepared me on how to deal with criticism of my husband."

My husband and I used to be in the retail business. We owned a leisure products store. In our store we had over 50 employees. In the office I kept track of the buying of products for the store and the commissions of our salesmen. Needless to say these guys were always in my office wondering about their sales. These men needed mothering sometimes, which I did. This led to the problem that, if I was mom, then Rodney was their Dad, and at times they were mad at Dad and would want to whine to Mom about him.

As Rodney's wife I would not put up with this. I would say to them, " I understand that there are times when he may seem hard, but he has a store to run that makes a profit so that you can have a paycheck. Sometimes the pressure of that responsibility may make him a little cranky but you are a big boy and you can handle it" Then I would say " As much as I like you, I love him, and I will  defend him every time"!


They didn't always like this answer but they understood my loyalty to Rodney and they respected that.  Imagine my surprise the first time a person from a congregation came to me to complain about something my pastor husband was doing. In this Christian environment, I had mistakenly thought that this behavior was not going to exist.

Coming back into the ministry was exactly what God wanted for Rodney and our family.There was no doubt about this decision. I have always had such a peace about this. But I have decided that I was a little naive about my role. I thought that my days as a mom that people came to, to tattle to, were behind me.

The second thing that had me thinking was "I wish someone would have told me that there are some really mean people in the church" 

Again, when we were in the business world, we had some really irate customers that would say things that would make you cringe. I would deal with them and calm them down. Sometimes it took all of my resolve not to just scream at them because of their unreasonable demands.

I have, recently had to call on that same resolve. I understand that we as humans are going to have issues with one another, that is a given. WE ARE HUMAN! But hurtful words against the pastor are not the answer.


Ecclesiastes 10:20
The Message (MSG)


20 Don’t bad-mouth your leaders, not even under your breath,
And don’t abuse your betters, even in the privacy of your home.
Loose talk has a way of getting picked up and spread around.
Little birds drop the crumbs of your gossip far and wide.

Like it says in Ecclesiastes, hurtful, mean words have a way of spreading, like a disease. A small problem can get blown out of proportion and pretty soon, what was really nothing becomes something and then the something turns into a huge misunderstanding. 

I am as human on this as the rest of the world and have to go to the Lord quite often to ask for help in quieting my thoughts and my mouth. And there are times I just need to go to someone and work things out. When I deal in a straight forward fashion with a problem, I do not have have anything that I need to backtrack for or feel bad for.

Matthew speaks of this issue.......

Matthew 18:15

English Standard Version (ESV)

If Your Brother Sins Against You

15 “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.

Many things, that we thought were problems, can turn out not to be as bad as we thought, or they can be resolved in a manner that would make Christ proud. Going to your pastor when there are things that bother you, and not to someone else, is honestly the most ethical way to resolve your problem.

There are so many that love and respect their pastors and the job that God has called them to do. I do understand that pastors are not perfect. I know that my husband is not either. But I love him with all the love God has given to me for him and will always be there to defend him as if he was never wrong.

I would not trade anything against being the pastor's wife and being in the ministry with him. There is no place I would rather be. But naive or not, I do keep longing for the day when I can just minister beside him and not have to continually feel like I need to defend and protect him, against words that could break his heart.

Here's to pastor's, their families and their ministries everywhere!

Blessings!

Hurting !

The world is such a hard place. There are troubles everywhere, here in America and around the world. There's even talk that we may be headed to another war. Satan is having a hay day!!! He loves it when we are in turmoil.  It keeps our minds off the good things that do happen around and for us. It keeps us looking at the negative, not the positive. It keeps us off balance and desperate.

I know a few folks that have really good reasons to be focusing on the negative, at this time in their lives. It is rather overwhelming how many I have been with lately. There isn't much I have been able to help with except to listen, cry and pray with them. 

These sweet people are looking towards the day when all of what they have been dealing with is over. They really want to be able to just move on with their lives.

But even though they have so much to be sad about they also know that God has their back and they understand that He is not the source of all their troubles.

They remind me of Job. He had so many things go wrong in his life, from health, to family and friends that failed him.

He did not understand all of the why's but he loved and worshiped God no matter what....


Job 1:22

22 In spite of everything, Job did not sin or accuse God of doing wrong.

Sometimes we can shorten or lengthen our troubles by our attitudes and actions. If through it all we strive to be positive and hopeful, we can become positive and hopeful. The longer we stay down in the dumps and negative the harder it is to get out of that mood. Sometimes we just sit around blaming God and wondering "why me"?. Nothing good will come of this. But if we remember to call on God, for help, relief can and will come.


Psalm 34 says.....

17 When God's people pray for help,
he listens and rescues them
from their troubles.


Yes, life can be a challenge sometimes. Really, more than sometimes. This world can bring down troubles on us, right and left. But we have an outlet. We have more support than we can even imagine. Our creator loves us with so much grace and compassion. He wants to take away all that haunts us. Let Him...

Call on Him!! 

Let him rescue you!!! 

Let Him love you!!! 

Blessings!

Friends!

Today I went into a bigger town, from the one we live in, with a friend who has a lot in common with me when it comes to crafting. We had the best time walking through the craft store, just, mostly, looking at all the stuff. We kept saying "We could do that,"  over and over again. And the truth of the matter is we probably could. Our pocketbooks kept us from deciding to try all of the things we liked though. Our husbands are glad that we realized this. Kept us out of trouble. 

It is fun when people with the same interests hang together in companionship and marriage as well. The common bond brings them closer and gives them things to talk about. It also helps them understand what makes the other one tick. God has given us friends for many reasons. 

The scriptures have a lot to say about the reasons. Here are a few of those verses.....


-Proverbs 27:5 says...

5 A truly good friend
will openly correct you.

True friends, help us see when there are things that need to be changed in our lives. And they do so without condemning. God has given us these friendships to help us in this area. Hopefully we are not too stubborn or offended when they are loving on us in these matters. We on the other side of this need to be aware of things our friends need from us. And as we show God's love to them, we need to be wise as we counsel. The only one who truly has all the answers is our creator and He will give us the words that should come out of our mouths, if we seek Him first.

As a spouse we need to be wiser, still. Hopefully your spouse is a great friend, or even your best friend. Sometimes it is hard to take constructive advice from them, but God has given them to us for a reason and one of these reasons is that they are with us to help us be better and complete. 

-Proverbs 27:9 says....

9 The sweet smell of incense
can make you feel good,
but true friendship
is better still.

Rodney and I enjoy the smell of incense. The sweet aroma makes the house cozy and inviting. That's how it is with a true friend. Being together is so comfortable. You can tell them anything knowing that your secrets and dreams are never going to be divulged and no matter what, they are going to love you anyway.

I feel that this is the way God intended for marriages to be. 

My husband and I are friends like this. Being in love and friends is safe and cozy. Makes for great communication and a sweet understanding of each other. It is better than incense! I hope that you and your spouse have this coziness as well.   

-Proverbs 27:17 says....

17 Just as iron sharpens iron,
friends sharpen the minds
of each other.

When we hang with others who have our best interests at heart they are great to bounce ideas off of. They can help us work through the ins and outs of these ideas and improve or even make better them. I know that, today, as we discussed some projects we are working on, the two of us came out of the store with ideas from each other that will be a big help to us as we proceed on these things.

As married couples there are many things that we work on together. If we, as friends, will carefully listen to each other, without feeling picked on or ambushed, it will be amazing how life would improve in our homes and relationships. I am speaking to myself, especially here, because sometimes I do over react in this area. Our men's brains work a little differently than ours do. So they can show us a different angle to look at things. This doesn't mean they think we are stupid. I just means they see it a little differently. They in turn can use our insights as well. We certainly look at things from a softer side of life and there are times they need to see what we see.

Lastly, but most importantly....

-Luke 10:27

The Message (MSG)

27 He said, “That you love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and muscle and intelligence—and that you love your neighbor as well as you do yourself.”

God is the maker of our relationships. If we love Him first and for most, our friendships will fall into place. We will love our spouses and other friends the way God intended. Wholeheartedly, in safety and most of all more than we love ourselves. 

Here's to lasting friendships!

Blessings!

Thirsty?

We just had a wonderful rain shower! What a much needed relief!  

It has been hot and dry for over two weeks. All the flowers, yards and crops have been looking pretty thirsty! 

It happens every summer. There are long streaks of heat and long streaks of no rain. We know it is going to happen, yet when it does we long for the coolness and the rain. We tend to get a little cranky and sad as we look at the dryness all around us.

That is how it is in life. We have periods when everything is going well. The well springs are flowing and life is good. Then wham, dryness hits. The springs dry up and we feel drained, like we have nothing to give and then we feel like no one is giving to us. Everything we try to do is hard and frustrating and than a deep sadness sets in.

In 1 Samuel 1, Hannah felt like she was in a dry land.   She had not had a child and was saddened and frustrated by this. In her barrenness she cried out to God for a child. 

1 Samuel 1:10-11

Common English Bible (CEB)

10 Hannah was very upset and couldn’t stop crying as she prayed to the Lord. 11 Then she made this promise: “Lord of heavenly forces, just look at your servant’s pain and remember me! Don’t forget your servant! Give her a boy! Then I’ll give him to the Lord for his entire life. No razor will ever touch his head.”

David had tough times too. He was thirsty and longing for God help save him from his enemies....

Psalm 42:2

Common English Bible (CEB)

2 My whole being thirsts for God, for the living God.
    When will I come and see God’s face?

Psalm 63:1

The Message (MSG)

God—you’re my God!
    I can’t get enough of you!
I’ve worked up such hunger and thirst for God,
    traveling across dry and weary deserts.

Hannah and David knew, as we should know, that our God is the one to turn to in our times of dryness. He promises to be there for us and to walk with us through everything we are going through.

He answered Hannah's prayer....

1 Samuel 1:20

The Message (MSG)

20 Before the year was out, Hannah had conceived and given birth to a son. She named him Samuel, explaining, “I asked God for him.”

And look how He changed David's sadness into rejoicing....

2 Samuel 22:2-4The Message (MSG)

2- God is bedrock under my feet,
the castle in which I live,
my rescuing knight.
My God—the high crag
where I run for dear life,
hiding behind the boulders,
safe in the granite hideout;
My mountaintop refuge,
he saves me from ruthless men.


4 I sing to God the Praise-Lofty,
and find myself safe and saved.


Just like our late afternoon showers have brought about a freshness and much needed moisture to our area, God will take care of us in our dry times. He always keeps his promises. Read what the Psalmist writes about this......

Psalm 146:3The Message (MSG)
3- Don’t put your life in the hands of experts
who know nothing of life, of salvation life.
Mere humans don’t have what it takes;
when they die, their projects die with them.
Instead, get help from the God of Jacob,
put your hope in God and know real blessing!
God made sky and soil,
sea and all the fish in it.
He always does what he says—
he defends the wronged,
he feeds the hungry.
God frees prisoners—
he gives sight to the blind,
he lifts up the fallen.
God loves good people, protects strangers,
takes the side of orphans and widows,
but makes short work of the wicked.

I hope you are all going through great times, of sweet gentle showers, of blessings in you life right now! But if you are in a dry arid time, please remember that you do not have to go through this alone. Reach out to our Creator and Savior. He will bring you peace. He will bring you to an oasis of coolness and shade.  He wants to help you with any issue you are dealing with and will help see you through. He loves you with all His being and wants nothing more than to see you happy. 

Doesn't that make you smile just thinking about it!

Blessings Sweet Friends!!