Tag: trust God

Posted on in 2011 Posts

No Matter How Impossible Things Might Seem…Never Give Up!

I had the privilege to do a devotion Friday night at a prayer group’s Christmas party. As I prepared the message for the night, I thought about the prayer warriors who would be attending.   They meet on a regular basis together to pray for one another and for the burdens each one carries.   I met some of the women about five years ago when I spoke for their group and I was excited to see how God had answered prayers in the time between first meeting them and now.  Although some of them were still praying for the same issues, same people, and seemingly not getting anywhere with their prayers.

It was exciting to me that the message I had prepared Friday night was one that said, “Never give up.”  After hearing the prayer requests of the women, I realized this message God had given me was timely and pertinent to this group.  Since some had been praying for many years with no answers, I pray that my message gave hope to those who felt like their prayers have been hitting a ceiling instead of rising to the ears of God.

I can certainly relate to those who wonder at times if God is even listening to their prayers.  About two years ago, Jim and I felt God telling us to get our home ready to sell because we were to move.  So we did just that.  We had some delay with the process with my mom’s illness slowing us down a bit, but eventually we got the house on the market.  As you know if you’ve been reading my blog, we thought we had it sold recently and then the deal fell through.  So here we sit again…waiting.  We really don’t understand the delay as we both felt led to get ready when we started the process.  Saturday night Jim and I were questioning why this process has taken so long?  If God wanted us to move, why haven’t we yet?  We’re living with a lot of our treasured possessions boxed up instead of being in our home where we can enjoy them because we have staged the house to sell.  It’s getting really old having to keep everything in perfect condition too so that at the drop of a hat, we can allow someone to show the home.  We’re growing weary in the process and we were questioning, “Why, when we do all the right things, and try to be obedient to God, do we have to go through these times when it feels like He is not hearing our prayers?”

Last week an article came out about my son’s mission in Afghanistan and it said this was perhaps the most dangerous mission that they have sent the Ohio Army National Guard to in all of the last 10 years of the war.  Seeing that, my heart sank.  I knew he’d been training for a long time for this mission and I knew it was dangerous.  However, seeing it in writing just kind of stung a little harder.  Rob’s wife told him that I was worried when I saw the article, which was true; but I’ve been worried since he left.  Not in a way that I am not focused on God and trusting that He’s watching over Rob.  Rather, I just have my mom beware set at high alert so that I am ready to pray him through at any time, day or night.

This week, I got an email from him I’d like to share a part of with you.  It reads like this:  Everything is fine over here, I’m fine, no major issues.  … but don’t worry about me…  Just keep me in your prayers and trust that everything will work out as it is meant to.  What good is it to go to church and pray and blog and everything else Christians do just to end up worrying and getting all worked up about things anyways?

If you can’t trust God’s will to prevail when I’m in combat, and you don’t have faith that His will is divine and perfect, then what’s the point?  I’m not trying to be preachy, but I just don’t want people worrying about me back there.  Celebrate and embrace the fact that I’m doing what I was MEANT to do. 

Then I went to church on Sunday and the pastor’s main message was “Never Give Up.”  Hummm.  I’m beginning to see a theme here.  He spoke about God’s promise to Elizabeth and Zacharias to give them a baby—John the Baptist.  However, if they were to have focused on their circumstances, they would’ve never believed it possible for God to fulfill that promise as He waited until much later in their lives to actually make it happen.  We don’t really know how old they were when John was born but  we know from scripture in Luke 1:18  that Zacharias said … “For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.”  I have to laugh when I read that.  I am not sure I would count it a blessing to have a baby so late in life!  She must have been one special lady!

It wasn’t until yesterday when I was sitting in church that I realized the message I gave on Friday night, was just as much for me as it was for all of the women in the group.  Sunday, as our pastor said the exact words Jim and I had been saying the night before, I knew.   He said, “When you are doing all of the right things, living a God honoring life and praying hard for something that just never seems to be happening…don’t give up.”

It’s true.  If we believe God is Sovereign, then we have to believe that whatever happens is His perfect plan when we are praying and trusting Him to get us through.  Who are we to question Him or disbelieve that He is hearing our prayers?  He is God and we are not.  In fact, He is the same God that I have trusted to watch over my son for the last 30 years here in America that I am trusting to watch over my son in Afghanistan today.

It gives me great peace to know that God’s plan is best for me and I need not worry about things.  I just need to pray and trust that He has it all under control.  So if you’ve been praying for something longer than you think you should, think again.   I hope that during this holiday season, you too, will find peace in knowing that since God is God, we don’t have to worry.  He’s got it all under control!  We just need to keep going and never give up!

From my son’s words may I leave you with this:  May the peace of God find its way into your mind during this Christmas season; as it has permeated your heart through years of answered prayers, hardships turned into blessings, and the promise that a throne awaits all who believe, regardless of how we get there.

Matthew 6:34  (NKJV) 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

1 Thessalonians 5:17  (NKJV) 17 pray without ceasing,

Posted on in 2011 Posts

Reflections of a 49 year, 363 Day Old Woman

I originally had Reflections of a 50 Year Old Woman as my title, but since I want to hang onto the 49 year old badge as long as I can, I decided to change it a bit!  It’s hard for me to believe that I can actually be that old!  It seems as though being the baby of the family I thought I would never get old.  I thought my siblings only did since they are all much older than me, but not me. However, this is affecting me, as now I feel as though I’m joining the old lady club or something!  Last week I even took a knitting class because I want to be the best old lady I can be and it just seemed fitting I should know how to knit!

Approaching such a huge milestone in my life, I have been spending some time looking back on my life and reviewing.  What am I happy with?  What could I have done better?  What is it I still need to do?  I am typically one of those people who live with little regrets, but even then I have some.  Most of the time, if I want to do something, I find a way to make it happen.  If I feel God telling me to do something, I try to be obedient.  If I have a problem with something or someone, I try to resolve it so that I can get on with my life and not be bogged down by the little things.

As I look back, my teens were fun but filled with things I can’t mention in this blog.  I was all about the social life and parties, etc.  Then in my 20’s I found myself married with two kids and just trying to raise my young family.  I remember when I turned 29, it was a traumatic time…I lost a lot of weight, spiked my hair, etc.  I would say that was my year for a crisis!  Luckily it was short lived and then I was fine!  In my 30’s I was building my business and all about being successful.  When I was 36, my husband left and I was divorced, so my 40’s literally brought me into a new beginning!  When I was 40, I married my husband, Jim, and moved to Cincinnati to join him and his two kids since mine were grown and moved out or off to college.  In 6 short months from the time we met, I had a new town, new husband, 2 more kids, new home, and a new job!  I remember driving towards downtown Cincinnati in the mornings towards my job and being in shock as to how I got there in this big city with all this traffic.  Sometimes I can be so spontaneous it even catches me off guard!

Now as I am entering into my 50’s, I’m feeling the need to reflect.  I’ve been scanning my bucket list in my mind wondering if there was anything I haven’t done yet that was on it!  One of my hearts desires for many years was to write a book.  This past year, God slowed me down a lot and in the process, I finished my first writing!  It is being looked over by some trusted advisors and I hope to soon have it out for everyone to enjoy!  As a matter of fact, I’ve already begun thinking about my next book and am trying to compile the outline for it so I can begin it soon.  I’ve spent all these years dreaming, but now it is finally becoming a reality.  Soon there will be another checkmark on my bucket list!

I had a dream last night that I was a passenger in a boat and someone else was guiding me through treacherous waters.  Every so many feet, a shark or other scary creature would come up and make an ugly face at me to try to scare me.  Typically I would be screaming, but in the dream, I was just as calm as could be as the driver of the boat took me through the sea of monsters. I watched as we weaved in and out of all kinds of obstacles, keeping afloat all the way. When I woke up this morning, I knew today was my day to blog and as I reflected on my dream, I knew exactly what it meant.

When I was 16, I went to the Bahamas with my parents and a friend for a week.  On that trip, we went deep-sea fishing.  How I love to fish out on the open ocean!  It’s so much fun!  That particular trip, I actually caught a shark—one of the most dangerous creatures of the sea.  It took me quite some time to reel in the 6 foot baby, mon-eating shark.  That’s not a typo.  I was in the Bahamas, and that’s what the guy called it—not a man-eating; rather, a mon-eating!  I was so excited to finally get the shark up to the boat only to find out our guide would not let me bring it in the boat.  I kept begging him to let me take it back, but he wouldn’t.  I wanted one of those pictures of me on the dock with this dangerous fish that was bigger than me hanging upside-down so I could show all of my friends!  He said it could attack one of us so he put it back into the waters after all that work of me fighting the beast and finally reeling it in.  That was my first experience with sharks.  As a young person, it was exciting to be face to face with such an exciting animal.  Even though I felt fear, I had more excitement than anything since the part of my brain that says, this animal might hurt you wasn’t fully developed at that point!  This somewhat reflected all of my life decisions being made at that point.

Then in my mid 20’s to 30’s, I became well aware of sharks and their dangers.  Not in a literal way though this time.  But as we were raising a family and building a business, I was swimming with sharks daily.  They were trying to devour me every step I took, but I just pushed though with persistence and tenacity to get to the other side without them hurting me.  I would spend long hours awake some nights worrying and strategizing about out how I was going to win against them in the days ahead.  When I entered my 40’s I was still fighting them, but I was beginning to depend less on my abilities and look more towards God’s guidance and protection.  I was learning that even though I might fight and fight, I get nowhere without God.  He had shown me in the past few years, how I can depend on Him for all things that came my way—the big sharks and baby sharks alike.

Now as I am entering my 50’s, I think I have it figured out.  No longer do I need to fight off the enemy or swim faster to escape harm.  I just simply find myself in the boat–God’s boat. He’s driving and I’m here for the ride. Yes, it is scary because there are sharks circling all around, even as I am writing this morning.   I have even shed a few tears as I write with the knowledge that my son’s troops leave for the Middle East tomorrow–this being one of my biggest sharks right now.  However, I know that God has all of my sharks under control.  I need not worry or be afraid as He is guiding me to the shores of safety along with my son too.

So when I reflect, am I happy with what I find?  Of course there are always things I wish I would’ve done differently.  I know in my heart I mostly tried to do what I thought was right and I just can’t dwell in the past.  I have found that if I stay in one place for long, that’s for sure going to be where the sharks start nibbling and even attacking me!  However, if I keep moving, with God as my guide, the sharks can bite and snarl all around me and I will not fear.  I’ve been 50 years learning how God works and now I can honestly say that even though the waves are crashing all around filled with mon-eating sharks, I am going to be OK.  I trust that God will be here no matter what the threat. No longer do I have the desire to bring the shark in the boat; nor do I worry about what the shark is going to do to me tomorrow.  I am just trusting that God will fight the battles for me if I simply trust.

Psalm 56:3 (NKJV)  Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You.

Posted on in 2011 Posts

Just Call Me Melvin!

In the real estate business, we see a lot of do-it-yourself projects that we snicker and say, “It looks like Melvin’s been here!”  Melvin  refers to the one who doesn’t pay a professional because they can do it themselves!  Sometimes they do a great job, but many times, not.  I remember when I was a single mom for about 4 years and had no money for much needed repairs at times.  I took on projects such as fixing a washer, a dryer, a toilet a couple of times, plumbing under the kitchen sink, and I even single-handedly killed a snake in my basement!  The key words in the last sentence were, took on.  You see, my projects didn’t always go as planned.

My favorite phrase as a single mom was, “I don’t need no stinkin man.”  So when I was in trouble, the first thing I did was try to take care of it myself.  We had a company in town that you went in and told them what was wrong with your dryer, for instance.  They had a dryer on display and would tell you what part you needed to change and demonstrated how you should do it.  I was so proud the day I saved a service call and totally got my dryer up and running all by myself.  So, when the washer went out, I was confident I could fix it too!  That one, however, didn’t go so well.  Luckily, my neighbor came down and pulled the part into place that I didn’t have the muscles to do.  I almost had it!

I was also very proud when our light in the bathroom quit working when you turned on the switch.  I thought to myself, “It must need a new switch,” so I went to Lowe’s and got a new one and promptly came home to replace it.  The one thing I hate, though, is a lot of detail.  When I started pulling the old switch off, I quickly realized there were way more wires than I expected, but went ahead and pulled them off the old and hooked them onto the new.  It worked!  I could get the lights to come on and was very happy.

I remember though, when I started dating my soon-to-be husband Jim, he came in and went to turn on the bathroom light.  He hollered out, “Is there something wrong with your bathroom light?  It’s not coming on!”  I hollered back from the kitchen, “Turn on the light in the hallway and then turn on the bathroom light and it will work!”  My system hadn’t been totally perfect but I was just so happy to have a light in the bathroom, it was OK for me that I had to turn on the hall light first!  Just a minor inconvenience, I thought!  At least we were no longer showering in the dark!

Reflecting on these scenarios, I felt that I was doing the right things.  I was collecting the facts and then taking action.  However, it seemed  that time and time again, even though I knew what to do, I was having a hard time making it happen.  Like the time when I pulled out the plumbing under my kitchen sink, only to find out I had no idea how to put new stuff in since the things I could purchase weren’t the right  sizes.  I had to call a local church to fix that one.  They had a ministry that had people in various lines of work that would help single women do fix-its for free.  Talk about humbling; the guy who came to fix it brought his wife.  She was one of the secretaries that worked in my ex-husband’s office.  I’m sure she went back and told everyone about me needing their help.  I so wanted to be self-sufficient and it panged me to know they now knew I wasn’t.  There’s that ugly word, pride.

Isn’t that how it is in our Christian walks at times?  We have the head knowledge—we know what the Bible says to do.  However, we often don’t seek the Holy Spirit’s help to help us implement our plan.  Often our pride gets in the way.  We get into situations in life and only when  we have things all torn up like my kitchen sink, we stop and ask for the Lord’s help to get us through.  It should be just the opposite.  We should always know the “instruction manual” or Bible, but without the Holy Spirit’s strength and guidance we will often end up in a mess!  We should always seek His help even when we think we know what to do.  Sometimes we can limp by like I did with my light switch, but eventually; being hooked-into the wrong power source can be disastrous!  I could’ve literally burnt my house down with my solution!

My garage was in my basement at that time too, and one day I went to the laundry room just about 10 feet from the garage door entrance, and there on the floor was a little snake slithering around!  It was a Saturday night and I was home alone. I screamed but it didn’t do any good.  The snake was still there.  I am petrified of snakes so I started calling all of my male friends trying to find someone who would come rescue me.  They were too busy or just as scared as I was and as I hung up the phone after my last try, I knew I had to do it myself.  “I don’t need no stinkin man,” I muttered as I devised my plan.  I got an empty box and filled it full of books and proceeded back to the laundry room.  Thank goodness it wasn’t a very active snake and had stayed in one place.  I set up a chair in the room and proceeded to climb onto the chair with box in hand.  I knew I was going to have one chance, so I carefully held the box directly over the snake and then dropped it on him.  Boom! I was afraid to remove the box because I wasn’t sure if I actually killed him or if I just stunned it.  After a while, I bravely removed the box and quickly swept the non-moving body up into a trash bag and ran it out to the trash as quickly as I could in case it woke  up!  I was victorious!

That day though was just another reminder.  I can’t put my faith and hope in man (or woman for that matter!)  All are human and will let me down, even in my greatest time of need.  However, I can trust God to be faithful and to hear my pleas for help in my time of need.  He might not give me answers as I would expect, but I can know He hears my call and responds accordingly to my best interest.  He doesn’t tell me He is busy or that my problem is too big for Him to handle. Rather, He is there, waiting for me to ask for His help.

So in summary, if we can know God’s Word and ask for His Holy Spirit to give us strength and guidance, we need not be afraid.  We can live victoriously with the assurance that when we depend on God fully for everything in our lives, He is faithful to be there in our time of need.   I may not need no stinkin man, but if I ever thought I didn’t need my loving God, I am in big trouble.  Thank you, Lord, for being there in my times of need.  Please remind me daily of my need to ask for your Holy Spirit’s guidance and strength in my life.  Help me to remember that even when I think I know it all, I still need you!  It is great to know, I can always count on you!  All I need to do is ask!

Proverbs 3:6 (NKJV) In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

Joshua 1:5 (NKJV) …as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.  I will not leave you nor forsake you.