It's Been a Long Time...

It's been quite a while since I updated my blog (thank you, de Ann, for nudging me along)...It's not that I haven't felt God's presence lately, not that He isn't actively at work in and around me, not that His guiding arm hasn't been felt...it's that I haven't taken the time to acknowledge Him. Oh, I recognize His activity and send off a quick "thank you" or feel a moment of gratitude. But I don't sit with Him and meditate on His goodness and wisdom.

As I recognized this pattern over the last few months, I remembered God's word in Proverbs 3:6..."in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight". As I think about that scripture, I believe God is calling me to think deeply about Him, not to reflect superficially and then move on with my life unchanged and unaffected by my encounter with Him. Clearly, God is calling us to a different, deeper walk in His presence. Then, all of the details of our life can take their rightful place...following God's direction for our lives, not leading and consuming our focus. I pray that I am ready to move this from words on my blog into action!

Rehabbing our kitchen...rehabbing our hearts

Our family is now into week three of a six week renovation project to combine our kitchen and dining room into one more functional room. The plan includes ripping out everything (and I mean everything) and rebuilding our new, larger room. Gone are the old cabinets, old appliances and old floor. Slowly, new floor and cabinets are replacing the older versions. New appliances arrived last week and await their turn to be positioned in the new kitchen area.

Even though it’s only been three weeks, as we walked across splintery wood planks, we groused about our “primitive” conditions…imagine, we had to walk downstairs for water and didn’t have a stove to cook on!

Watching the renovations unfold, it was amazing to watch how quickly the old, worn-out cabinets, flooring and appliances were removed. It only took one day for the rooms to be gutted and absolutely bare. Since day two of our project, the progress has been painfully slow. Many days have been spent fixing “behind the wall” problems. Things like replacing wood, plumbing, electrical wiring and vents have moved at a snail’s pace. Just last week, after a few weeks, the beautiful new flooring was installed. Finally, we see some progress for the big investment we are making.

As I think about our hearts, they seem much the same. When we struggle with sin, God’s grace can do a miraculous “clearing out” of the garbage in our lives in minutes or seconds. But, then starts the hard work. Some work isn’t even observable by others because it is “under the surface”. This type of work takes great effort and much time before we begin to feel the results of the rehabbing of our hearts. But with God’s grace, our hard work and the needed endurance, the results are beautiful!

Live the License Plate...GodsNo1

Yesterday, as I was driving home from work on "auto-pilot", I found myself behind a car with the license plate GODS NO1. I thought to myself how nice that was and how much I agreed with the sentiment on the plate...then I caught myself and thought "Do I really live like God is #1 in my life?" Humbly, I asked God for forgiveness, because I realized that I don't "live the license plate"...

So often, I say that God is first in my life, but I live something very different. My life is filled with many good things, but sometimes the best thing in my life is not at the top of my list. That license plate I saw yesterday is engrained in my mind...and I hope it stays there!

The Birds

As I read all of our stories from the past week, I am so encouraged by God's faithfulness in filling our minds and hearts with a new awareness! One of the continuing themes for me this week has been birds...beautiful, unique creatures that have been flying in and out of all my days. It started last Tuesday, the day after our first gathering...I was having a challenging day (that's the nicest thing I can call the day). But, as I looked out my kitchen window when I got home, I saw this beautiful, perfectly-made cardinal. Skipping through the grass, his red feathers were in stark contrast to the greeen grass. I smiled and thought of Christmas. Just a few hours later, as I walked out to my car, my eye went to the tree in our front yard and there was a powder blue bluebird. Again, perfectly made...Both times, these simple but fantastic creatures brought such joy to my heart and a smile to my face. I felt renewed by the splendor of God's creation.

Those two occasions during my crazy Tuesday would have been remarkable on their own, but the pattern has continued...each and evey day since, I have seen the most beautiful birds. Perhaps I'm seeing them more now because I am looking, but no matter what, encouragement is all around us...provided by God, if we just look!

Getting Started

For me, getting started on a project is often the biggest challenge. Ideas excite me, but "getting down to business" sometimes lags behind. But this new endeavor of exploring the world of sharing my thoughts and ideas in a creative way is different. God knows me so well that He is prodding and encouraging me in specific and tangible ways to keep me moving. He has used people and circumstances in ways that are definitely no coincidence to keep me moving on this journey. Beginning with friends like Sue who introduced me to a wonderful new group of women who share the same heart and passion for creativity...right through yesterday when another dear friend, Adele, felt moved to give me a new journal, "just because"... I was thinking only earlier that morning that I really needed to begin to journal in a new and different way!

God is so good and I am looking foward to all that will come from this new and exciting path!