Category: 2012 Posts

Posted on in 2012 Posts

God Uses Imperfect People…Do You Qualify?

Have you ever had a situation where you thought you’d die of embarrassment?  It seems like I often get more than my share of these for some reason!  I occasionally help provide meals to people when I know there is a need.  When I do, I usually just double what I prepare and Jim and I eat it that night too.  I was never so horrified after delivering a meal to my pastor and his family of all people!  I made each of our families a casserole.  I put baking instructions on theirs so they would have a hot meal whenever they chose to heat it up.  Then I put it back in the refrigerator for delivery the next day. I decided to go ahead and stick ours in the oven for us for dinner that night.  Jim and I each took a square out of the casserole and I refrigerated the rest.  The next day, I pulled a salad together along with some bread, stuck it in the box with their casserole and delivered it to them perfectly packaged with care.  I didn’t give it another thought.

That night I decided since we hardly made a dent in last night’s casserole, I would just reheat us another piece for dinner again.  When I removed the foil on top of the casserole, I paused.  There was an uncooked casserole just ready to be stuck into the oven for dinner.  Could it be?!!!  Unfortunately for me, yes.  It was.  I had delivered the casserole that Jim and I cooked the night before and eaten from to my pastor and his wife that afternoon!  Talk about being embarrassed!  I immediately called them and explained how sorry I was for what I had done.  She had several kids and laughed.  She said she noticed the pieces missing but figured one of her kids had gotten to it before her.  It still makes my cheeks turn red today thinking about it!

What is it about food anyways that brings comfort to those who are suffering or grieving?  I know when others have fed us in the past after the loss of a loved one or surgery, it has been a really special thing.  I’ve come to the conclusion though that it’s really not about the food at all.  Yeah, it is nice when you’re exhausted from life’s circumstances to not have to cook or think about what you will eat.  However, I suspect that the most important part of taking food to someone is the expression of your love and concern as they travel through life’s hardships.  It’s a non-offensive way to reach out and show someone you care.  In my mind, it is not only serving those around you but also an act of evangelism.  It is so easy to say, “I’ll pray for you.”  But the simple act of dropping off some brownies or a pot of soup says, “I really do care.”

Even though everything I’ve cooked and given away has not always been perfect, I will continue to do so when a need arises.  Why?  It is a simple way for me to minister to others even through all of my imperfections.  Is there someone you know going through a hard time?  It might even be a fun time like a family with a new baby who just needs a little help.  Ask God to show you how you can touch someone’s life with a simple act of kindness.  Perhaps you’re not one to stand on a street corner and proclaim the saving grace of Jesus Christ.  However, I ask, “Can you bake a pie?”  Pray about it this week.  I know this is only one way in life we can minister to others through our actions instead of being all talk.  What gifts have you been given that you can share to show others Christ?

Perhaps you’ve tried before and like me had an embarrassing circumstance that prevents you from trying again?  I say, “Never give up!”  I just have to assume that I must have needed some humbling or my pastor’s family needed a good laugh when I delivered them a half eaten casserole!  Nonetheless, I’m just trying to be a blessing despite the circumstances!  God doesn’t ask us to be perfect.  He just wants us to do our best, give our all and let Him take care of the details.  How is He asking you to serve today?

Check out this video in closing.

Isaiah 6:8  … I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:

“Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?”

Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”

Posted on in 2012 Posts

What Are You Doing to Protect Your Home?

If you mention the word snake, it evokes definite reactions with each individual.  Some freak out and others get excited.  I am definitely on the freak out side of things and when I almost stepped on one this past week in my OWN HOUSE I thought I would die!  We noticed a few weeks ago that we more than likely had a mouse as something had eaten Jim’s almonds he stored in a baggie in his computer bag.  However, after setting a bunch of mouse traps everywhere and not catching anything, I was convinced it was an even larger animal.  I went to Lowe’s and bought a trap for bigger animals and was sure I was going to catch me a varmint.  I laid some almonds in the middle of that one and waited, but again, we caught nothing.

We couldn’t imagine what it might be so we began walking the perimeter of our home looking for eaves that had been pulled down in case of a raccoon or other possible entry points for a smaller animal such as a mouse.  Other than the small hole in the empty almond bag, there was no other sign or clue as to what it was.  On the outside of the house, there was a spot where the electricity comes into the home that had a possible gap where a smaller animal might be able to get through.  So, Jim sprayed some expanding foam stuff into the hole to ensure nothing else got in.  However, what we didn’t think about what might already be inside.  Now that we had made our home totally animal proof from the outside, we had also trapped anything that was already inside!

About a week later, we finally caught our mouse since he had nowhere else to go for food but our traps.  However, I never expected a snake too!  Apparently, according to our exterminator, the mouse came through the hole in the wall and the snake followed him in.  Then we plugged the hole, killed the mouse, and the snake came out because he got hungry.  Luckily a friend who lives nearby came to help me get the snake out of the house saving the day or I’d still be standing on the chair screaming for help!  I guess the joys of sitting in my office writing and watching the wildlife in the woods in our backyard comes with a price!  When you live this close, having even just a small spot on this big house where something can get through is all these animals needed to wreak major havoc in my life!

I think about that scenario and am reminded of how diligent we need to be in our Christian lives as well to ensure the enemy stays outside and does not come in.  Leaving just a small entry point for sin to enter in is all Satan needs to cause a lot of trouble in our lives.  What do you do when you see the enemy trying to get in?  Do you run and plug up the holes…perhaps by spending more time in prayer and Bible study?  Or do you stand on a chair screaming for someone else to come take care of it for you?  Do you have a good friend that you can call “911” to and have them help you find your way out of your mess?  That friend would be one who isn’t afraid to point out the areas in your life that might be open to the enemy.  Do you have traps set to alert you that the enemy is near?  These might be disciplines in your daily routines to help you measure whether you’re prepared for battle or not by the amount of time spent preparing.  Does the enemy take you seriously? It only takes one little sin to enter in and before you know it, a lot of others follow if you’re not alert at all times.

I hope you’ll take the time today to examine your spiritual house.  Are there areas you need to work on to ensure a more secure environment?  Ask the Holy Spirit to show you the leaks in your foundation so that you can get them sealed up today!  Don’t find yourself holding an empty almond bag!  Rather, let your storehouses be full and your life be safe from the things that seek to cause trouble in your walk with God.  The enemy doesn’t stand a chance when your life is sealed up by the Blood of Jesus Christ!

1Peter 5:8-11 (NKJV) Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.  Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.  But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Psalm 121:7 The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul.

Posted on in 2012 Posts

May Your Skies Be Blue and Your Dark Clouds Be Few!

Wow! I rarely whine but, wow! Have you ever had a week like I had last week? I haven’t felt so beat up in many years as I did coming out of last week. Talking with my friends, I realized that I was not the only one. One friend said she felt like she had a dark cloud following her. Others had times of immense struggle and persecution too.  As I was driving down the highway early in the morning on Friday, the sunrise ahead of me seemed to speak to me. In the far distance, the sun was trying to rise to brighten the sky but just above it, there was a dark wall of clouds that appeared to be pressing down on it from all sides. All you could see was the sun’s little light peering out from under all the darkness. That particular sunrise was a picture of exactly how I was feeling inside that day.

I feel as a Christian, it is my duty in life to let my light shine. I can’t cower because someone doesn’t agree with me or thinks I am false.  Although, it would make life a lot easier!  I have been writing for God for nearly two years now and saying things that some may or may not agree with me. However, clouds of disagreement will not keep me from doing what I have been called to do. God knows I’m not perfect but He loves me and chooses to use me anyways. He knows I will faithfully serve Him in everything He asks me to do. Clouds of judgment will not discourage me because I know He knows my inmost being and that’s good enough for me!

Tomorrow I will be sharing my struggles, pain and triumphs through life with a group of women as I share my testimony of how I came to know Christ as my personal Savior. When I’m not being transparent in my writing or speaking though, I tend to always try to stay upbeat and positive in my Facebook posts and Twitter tweets. Perhaps they paint a picture of a more perfect me than what you get in my speaking and writing—or even real life for that matter!  I just choose not to spew negativity on everyone reading my posts every day, so I keep it happy. In one conversation this week a friend said, “Lori, Christians have struggles too. Life can’t be perfect all the time; it’s not a good witness to be cheerful everyday!  People need to see we have down days too.” I agree to some extent that we need to be real, so that is why I share candidly through my writings and in my speaking. However, I do feel it is more edifying to God when I share what He is doing in my life versus whining everyday about what He is not. It’s when we start to rise and shine so to speak, only to look up, see the wall of clouds above that are pressing in and give up without trying that we are ineffective for the kingdom.

We are currently doing a study in our small group by John Piper called Desiring God. I like John’s statement, “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him.” If we as Christians continue walking around with dark clouds over our heads crying woe is me, how are we glorifying God? But you say, “Lori, you don’t understand. I’ve had a rough life. I have had people hurt me; I’ve made bad choices that are irreversible, everyone’s out to get me.”  I say, “How is God glorified in that? If we have a world of miserable Christians walking this earth, day after day after day, who would want to join us?” I wouldn’t!  I would also say, “Haven’t we all suffered?  What makes your suffering any worse than mine?  However, I will tell you that what you may not see is on the other side of all of those dark clouds is a blue sky! Knowing that, do you really want to stay where you’re at and never get beyond the darkness?”  What do you need to do to push past the uglies and darkness that have been prevailing in your life up to now?

I have learned that when my focus is on the blue skies above all of this mess of ugly clouds we call trials and persecution, I don’t seem to even notice their threat after a while. They no longer are a hindrance or hold power to squelch my daily walk of being satisfied in the Lord and joyful in heart. I do admit that sometimes the clouds can get dark and scary when there are many crowding together instead of just one here and there. I even become weary and downright exhausted at times from their intensity as I did last week. But I have learned the hard way to trust there is not a cloud in the sky or wall of clouds for that matter that God can’t move. I don’t need to worry and fret.

So please, if you’re going to insist on carrying your dark clouds around over your head year after year, please don’t ask me to join you in that. I promise to pray for you, help you through the tough times, and do whatever it takes to get you out of that mess. But don’t ask me to agree with you or insist I choose to hang out under your clouds too. I have learned that not only is He most glorified when I am satisfied in Him; but, I am also most satisfied when I am glorifying Him! I can’t see that it is glorifying to have a black cloud accompanying me everywhere I go. Will there be cloudy days ahead? Sure! Will I struggle through them? Of course! But for today I don’t apologize for this smile on my face or the freedom that I feel in Christ. I praise Him that He has set me free from the bondage of worry, strife and all of the other clouds that have tried to get in my way. It’s all because I choose not to focus on the clouds, but rather on the One Who created them. Won’t you make that choice with me today too?

Proverbs 3: 5-6  (NKJV)

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.