STReeetch Armstrong

Do you remember the old action figure stretch Armstrong? His arms and legs could be stretched out to incredible lengths. I’m still not sure why, since as soon as you let go, he would return to normal size. As far as stretching goes though, it can be a good thing. We all know we should stretch before running or working out and after we go for a run or work out. It’s good stretching. So is the creations of the heavens as described in Isaiah 42: 5; “This is what God the LORD says– the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out, who spreads out the earth with all that springs from it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it:” (NIV). But…… There is the bad stretching too. Years ago when my youngest was still an infant I injured my MCL. The therapists said I stretched it, which in his opinion was more worse then a tear. He compared the ligaments of the knee to a rubber band. When they are stretched too far, it takes much longer for them to return to normal. It would have been better for them to have torn and have them repaired surgically.It took about two years to fully heal, although bike riding still bothers me.

     Right now, I am somewhere between a good stretch and a bad one that might need time to recover, to spring back to normal. It is good to be stretched a times- to do more than you thought you could- to be challenged by professors and new situations that are unfamiliar and strange. But as I mentioned in an earlier post, there is time to pause to Selah and think about that- I find myself needing to take my own advice. I am in a season of contemplating whether the stretching in my life is good or the not so good. -I’ll keep you posted- until then.. God Bless -Nancy

Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction

Here’s a question for you to consider… Have you ever walked into a room at the tail end of a joke? When everyone is laughing, but you? And you wondered what the joke was? Or maybe it’s worse than that.. You hear two people talking and you can make out bits and pieces of the conversation, but as you approach they suddenly begin whispering. Ever wonder if they were talking about you? We all have had those thoughts at times and unless we ask them to repeat the joke or ask what or whom they were talking about, our minds tend to fill in the blanks. We make up the rest of the story. The parts we didn’t hear. We become our own fiction writers.

I admit it.. I am a big Hallmark movie fan. Currently my husband and I have been binge watching Hallmark movies. We watched all the fall themed movies and now we are watching the Christmas Hallmark movies. Yikes! Why so early with the Christmas movies Hallmark? It isn’t even Thanksgiving yet. Well, anyway, we all know the basic story line. Guy and Gal are dating for several years. They are happy, maybe a little complacent, when the girl is asked to travel out of town for work. (Guy can also be substituted here). When she travels from her hometown and her guy, she suddenly falls for the handsome stranger in the course of 1.5 days. Handsome stranger falls in love and somehow in the 1.5 days of their acknowledgement of each other he buys a ring and thinks about asking her to marry him, or go out on a date or something. Meanwhile guy in hometown shows up just as handsome stranger is going to propose and declare his love for the gal. But… the guy from hometown suddenly decides HE will propose to our gal. The handsome stranger is waiting just far enough away to see the hometown guy drop a knee, BUT what he doesn’t see as he hurries away is our gal’s decline. And a misunderstanding follows, which allows for ALL those commercials during the last fifteen minutes of the movie- Hey Hallmark needs to pay for the movies somehow, besides selling cards! Anyway, once the misunderstanding is corrected our happy new couples lives happily ever after- lights fade- roll credits.

So is life like that? Well as I described before kind of. Recently, I overheard my husband in the other room. I thought he was talking to me- I mean we are the only two in the house. But in reality he was speaking out-loud about another matter. I created a fictional conversation in my mind, that included me. Needless to say I had misunderstood. After I had stewed for a day, we finally realized what he was saying hadn’t been for me, but for something else. But it had ruined a good day. The Bible says we are to guard our heart for “Everything you do flows from it” (Proverbs 4:23, NIV). Luke 6: 45 confirms the important connection between the heart and words when he writes, “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks ( ESV). Ouch, we have all been there, we say something we shouldn’t. And sometimes we are overheard. We also shouldn’t jump to conclusions. It causes confusion and even hurt feelings. Good communication is important in friendships and relationships. It can be the difference in moving forward or holding on to misunderstandings and grudges. The next time you over hear a conversation and are unsure if they were talking about- stick with non-fiction- ask them to clarify their conversations. Now back to the binge watching- God Bless Nancy

Reboot

Uuugh. Have you ever had one of those moments when your life came to a halt? Everything appeared to be moving in slow motion or completely frozen and lifeless. Yes, I am talking about my computer. What did you think I was talking about? Recently I was in a situation in which several of us were working together when we lost the internet. So, we could do the only high tech solution that works- resetting the router. This simple solution solves many issues. So does rebooting our computers and turning our mobile phones off and turning them back on resets these devices. We all live in the age of handheld devices and connection and communication through the internet. When the connections fail, we cannot communicate. Sometimes its our router, sometimes our internet provider and sometimes our devices. But, whatever the reason, it needs a reset. While our devices and routers are coming back online there is a wait, a pause if you will. We must sit there and wait until the technology catches up. What do we do with that time?  It depends on the person. Some will bang the keys or frantically touch the screen, hoping that through their repetition, the waiting will be shortened. Others might stare blankly at the screens, believing they can mind control light and life back into their screens.

A pause is good for us. It forces us to take a break and slow down. It forces us to think and reflect. Resting and pausing is a good thing. The Bible talks quite about rest as it does working. We are instructed to rest on the Sabbath, but we are also told to avoid laziness. The Psalms are full of pauses. There are many different interpretations for the term Selah. If you have one of the Bible versions that includes this word at the end of paragraphs in Psalm 66, I encourage you to take a look at this passage. The definition I have heard about Selah is that it was used as a pause in between singing that roughly means, “Pause and calmly think about that”.  I thought of that this week as I took a few days pause from writing this blog. If you’ve been following my blogs, you know that I generally write at the beginning of the week. I was using a paused time to reflect and consider and think about what to write. Such pauses are helpful. They allow us to stop and think about what we are doing and what we have already done. So next time your internet crashes- remember Selah- pause and think. It may be that God has given you a break to think. God Bless -Nancy

 

(Dis) Appointments

Have you ever been let down by someone? You expected the best of them and yet they disappointed you? I’m sure you have felt this way before, it’s part of being human. We are a bunch of imperfect people- even Christians- though some might attempt to convince you otherwise. We all let each other down at times and can be let down by others. But, I want to focus this week not on others disappointing us but on God. Have you honestly ever been disappointed in Him? Or missed appointed? Let me explain..

Last weekend I was reminded how God protects my loved ones through missed appointments. Now, please don’t be too technical here on the wording. Maybe you’ve heard the term God appointments in church before- those situations and timings that could only have come from God. But, what I’m thinking of are those missed things- those tragic circumstances that God has kept you from- those missed appointments. Have you had one of those? See, last weekend my youngest  was supposed to be working the closing shift at a fast food restaurant. A shift that puts him on the road back to his dorm late at night. However, he had gotten food poisoning the night before, so he was unable to work his shift. Sunday morning I read of a tragic auto accident that happened on the road he would have been traveling had he worked. The vehicle crossed the median and had landed in the oncoming traffic lane- the lane my youngest would have been on. I know if you ask him, he would tell you he did not particularly like throwing up, etc, but after I told him what had happened, he too realized it was a God missed appointment.

I could give you a list of other times that we have found ourselves in moments that were frustrating, but ultimately were for our protection. Children who just HAD to stop one more time at a rest stop, long red lights, wrong turns, children who refuse to get back into their car seats after a stop. Things that delay your trip, but save your life. The times when God’s hand of protection is clearly visible, when you understand what He did. In Joshua 1:5 there is an awesome promise that God gave Joshua “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (NIV) It’s a promise for Joshua to affirm that God would be with him as he led the Israelites into the promise land. But I believe it’s also a good promise for us all. God is with us. He doesn’t let us down.

Now, I don’t want to sound unrealistic here. God is with us, even when He is walking us through the most difficult of times. As a Christian, it doesn’t mean I will never have a difficult situation come my way or a tragedy, or a terminal illness. It does mean God is with us through it all. When we are in the middle of a difficult situation we can’t see into the future. All we see is our current conditions. My son couldn’t see anything good past feeling awful. He didn’t know what God was keeping him from. It all seems bad and wrong, not good and beneficial. That’s where many people find themselves. In a difficult situation and they feel let down by God. There are no easy answers to many of the difficulties we face in life. We can’t always see how God is there with us or what kind of good can come from it. But He is. We might not ever fully understand what He is doing, but He can be trusted. Don’t miss your opportunity to trust Him. -God Bless -Nancy

Now Hear This…..

Originally I thought about titling this week’s blog “Reaping What You Sow”  but decided against it since it is more about listening and choosing to listen. Recently I watched a video in which a young mother is interrogating grandma over her failure to follow the mom’s rule book -a thick book full of appropriate bed times and allowable snacks. The grandmother had been babysitting and had broken all the rules. Now she was being interrogated. In her responses the grandmother was sweet, kind and offered bribes such as homemade cookies to her young parents and even offered to buy a cute outfit for the grandchild.

My blog today is kind of aimed toward parents, but can be applied to everyone. So here goes. As a parent have you ever broken the rules? I have. I mean there are no “real” rule books for parents, but  those of you who claim the title know what I mean. So, in my rule book, parents aren’t supposed to be scared. I mean we can be scared for our kids and even obsessively worry over them. But generally we are supposed to be strong and of good courage when it comes to ourselves. So recently I was in a situation in which I found myself scared and indecisive. And yes, of course, I prayed and sought God’s direction and His peace, but honestly we all want to be sure we are making the right decision. So often I ask others for their thoughts. Usually my soundest advice comes from my husband. But this time it also came from my children. Well my young adults. They are adults who have this adulting thing down pat. After calling each one up individually, I couldn’t believe my ears. Each one repeated back to me something I had said to them. Their comments were all similar and basically said “You got this! Go do it!, Do it afraid, but do it!, You gotta start somewhere!” There it was! Everything I had been saying to them for the past three decades. They HAD been listening! Even through those uncertain teen years when I would usually hear, “I KNOW mom, you don’t have to tell me” or “I THOUGHT you said…” So there it is; the reaping and sowing part of today’s blog.  Galatians 6:7 reminds the reader that we reap what we sow. If we plant strawberries we will get strawberries in other words. What I had sown before in the form of advice and encouragement to my kids when they were younger was now yielding fruits of advice and encouragement in my life. Just when I needed it most.

I think much can be learned from listening to those younger than us. Sadly, I think too many adults with many years under their belt, fail to listen to those younger. Maybe we’re afraid they might be right and they would prove us wrong. Or maybe we don’t want to take our own advice when we hear it coming back to us. My challenge for both parents and children is this; be willing to listen. Sow good seeds and you will reap good fruit. And remember what your parents said, and share it with them when they need it most. We are all in this thing called life together. There are NO generation gaps when we are all using the same book, the BIBLE. -God Bless -Nancy

Let Go

Last time I shared with you the need to press on and how that looks sometimes. People won’t always believe in what you are trying to do. There will be obstacles to moving forward. We took at look at Philippians 3:12. This week I have been reminded that sometimes we need to let go of things in the past that hold us back. Paul wrote to the Philippians about all his religious standings and experiences that should have given him confidence and something to boast about, but he chose not to rest on these laurels for he felt he had not arrived at a place of maturity or perfection. In verse 13 he tells them “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead” (NIV).

I bring that up because its a great verse, but one not to be taken out of context. Paul was forgetting those things that gave him tremendous credibility among the Jew and Gentile believers. What I have been challenged to do this week is to leave behind and forget the ugly things of life. The mistakes I’ve made in the past, the unkind words or actions of others, you know THOSE things. If you are like me, you are much harder on yourself than on others. And if you’re like me it is easy to remember when someone has hurt you. It is easy to hold on to unforgiveness and to let others know how you’ve been wronged. The more you repeat it, the more difficult it is to forget it and move on. The same is true of ourselves. The more we think about our shortcomings and mistakes of the past, the more they will bother us and steal our confidence for the future. It is true we can’t change the past, but we can live for the future.Every day is a new day to get up and move forward. Paul compares it to straining or reaching, like a runner towards the finish line. For my football fans, think of it as stretching the ball across the end zone with all you’ve got, while being pummeled by twenty other players. You got this, just let go and move forward. – God Bless -Nancy

Handling The Press

What do you think of when you hear the word press? Probing news reporters asking pointed questions trying to trip up or incriminate a politician? Or maybe you picture the paparazzi trying to catch a scandalous photo of the Hollywood celeb. We’ve all seen the tabloid pictures staring at us at the grocery store check out lines. There is always a picture of a celebrity donning a hat and sunglasses out an about in public without hair and makeup done to perfection. They are usually trying to avoid having their photo taken.

But, the press I want to discuss today is the press necessary to keep moving forward. Not long ago I heard a message on the subject of Paul’s pressing on as found in the Book of Philippians. When Paul wrote this letter to the church he had established there ten years prior, he himself was in prison in Rome. He had gotten word that the church he had planted there was still meeting and growing. They had, however been facing opposition, but not from where you would have thought-the secular world. Instead it was from fellow believers who were attempting to make the new believers follow the customs of the Jewish synagogue. Paul’s letter to the church was to encourage them and use his own life as an example for them. Paul wrote “I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me” (Philippians 3:12b, NIV). He had explained his standing as a firm Jewish leader prior to his conversion and how now he considered it rubbish. He left that all behind and much like a runner in a race he was pushing himself toward the finish line.

Without an object to press against there would be no effort, no pressure required. For Christians today as in Paul’s day, there will always be a pressing on needed. We will all experience opposition in our faith walk. And unfortunately, that will sometimes come from others in the church. What kept Paul looking forward? Many scholars believe he had experienced a near-death or death experience in which he saw Heaven. We know form the Book of Acts, that the resurrected Jesus appeared to him. He had seen the future and was certain of it, so the momentary discomforts and sufferings were not as difficult. They still required pressing against, but he kept his focus on the goal, on the finish line.

We likewise can keep our eyes on the goal and keep pressing forward whenever we face pressure. There will always be naysayers, trying to discourage us or trying to get us to change our goals to become more like their’s, but we can handle the press, when we keep our focus on Jesus and what he has called us to do. But, just like diamonds that only form when lumps of carbon are put under pressure, we too can become diamonds for God as we press on.-God Bless-Nancy

 

Giving An Apt Answer In An App World

If you’re like me you some times forget people’s names. I mean not people you don’t know that well, but people you see frequently. Or maybe its a street name or the name of a restaurant. It’s right there on the tip of your tongue, but it just slips your mind for a minute. Then later, usually later in the day, at some random moment it comes to you. You might even say it out loud. And then give yourself a hard time for not remembering it sooner. What you needed was the right reply, the suitable answer, at the right time. What you need is an apt answer. What does apt mean? Suitable and at the proper time. It’s not a word that we hear often, but fits well with today’s blog.

Sometimes the challenge of moving forward in life is that we get stuck. We can even get down on ourselves for being stuck. I often find myself feeling stuck as I navigate from stay at home mom to college grad looking for a job. And from a home filled with kids to an empty nest. Everything is different. Everything is new. It’s not bad, just different. Yesterday was a day like that. Different, new and causing me some anxious thoughts until someone spoke an apt word( the right word at the right time). It was unexpected, but I knew as she spoke it, that it was for me and had been a God moment. What’s a God moment? It’s when you know God has planned something and shown His glory, His goodness, His mercy and even His love in our lives. Yesterday was that moment for me. The right words at the right time. An apt answer.Sometimes we just don’t know what the next step in the journey looks like. It is easy to get stuck, feel unsure of ourselves and looking for the right answer, It can feel like looking for that misplaced name. And then God uses someone to speak an apt word into our lives.

We all need a friend who will give us a word of encouragement, the right word at the right time. In our rushed and hurried world though that doesn’t always happen. We are too busy staring at our phones, tablets and computers, to see the needs around us. And if we are looking for help we search for an app to guide us to the right answer, instead another person. Let me challenge you today to look for that person in your life who needs a word of encouragement. Maybe its someone whom you don’t know well, but from the look on their face, they could use a smile, a compliment, or even a word of appreciation. You could make a huge difference in their day. Proverbs offers this great verse; “A man finds joy in giving an apt reply- and how good is a timely reply” (Pr. 15:23, NIV).  We all need a timely word and according to the verse we will find joy in giving it. God Bless- Nancy

Be Like Him

I’m a little bit late on writing this blog this week. I am one of those affected by an oncoming hurricane on the east coast. I have been thinking about the subject I would write about this week and I think I’ve found a topic; being transformed into the image of Christ and what that might look like in our daily lives. Two verses came to mind this week; the first is from the Book of Matthew; “When He saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because  they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a Shepherd” (Mt. 9:36, NIV). In this context Jesus had been visiting towns and teaching the good news and healing many and yet He was met with opposition from the religious Pharisees. The point I would like to point to is the compassion of Jesus. Few would argue with Jesus being compassionate. In fact, even those who aren’t Christians some times refer to Jesus as a compassionate person, a good role model to others and offering practical moral teaching. Those of us who are believers, know Him as more as we have felt His compassion upon us.

The second passage that comes to mind is from the Book of Nehemiah. “When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of Heaven” (Nehemiah 1:4, NIV) Why was Nehemiah weeping? Well he had asked  the news from Jerusalem, his home town. The report was bad. Everything had been destroyed when the people had been forced into exile into Babylon. Reports were coming in from those who had stayed in Israel and had not been a part of the mass exile.The wall surrounding the city was destroyed. It affected Nehemiah greatly. He took it personally although he was miles away, living in Babylon and serving as cup bearer for the king Artexerxes.

So, here we can see two examples of compassion for others that we can follow today. With many natural disasters and man made tragedies such as attacks and shootings, we have the opportunity to have compassion on others. Others need to know we care about them particularly when they have had disaster or tragedy strike them. What can we do? Nehemiah prayed and Nehemiah informed the King of the disaster of his home country.  The result? The king allowed Nehemiah to return home and provided the funds and supplies to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.  We can do the same. We can pray, we can tell others and we can offer to supply aid. What we don’t want to do as we grow and move forward in out walk of faith is to fail to develop compassion on others. To grow hardened to tragedies or scoff others’ concern or worries. Sometimes we do that. There are so many tragic stories in the news and easy access to stories and news both fake and real on social media, I think we have become too good at dismissing the misfortune of others. Jesus had compassion on others. Nehemiah wept and prayed and fasted. He had a good job in a royal household, he didn’t really need to concern himself with the problems miles away. Yet he did. He took it personal. He made it personal. So did Jesus. He left Heaven and took on human form with all its limitations. He loved us. He had compassion on us. As we have opportunity let us do the same towards others. -God Bless -Nancy

Lighthouses and Labor Day, So What’s the Connection?

Now that I’ve got your attention, let me explain the connection. Is there really any connection? Probably not. But both provided for me a great reflection of the church in America. First of all, please don’t bash me for my opinion of churches. It’s merely my observation and how God has been speaking to me about the subject.  Yesterday was the first Monday of September when Labor Day is celebrated as a national holiday in the United States. It recognizes the labors and hard work of the American Worker and provides a day off from their labors. Banks are closed, no postal deliveries are made, schools are closed. Most people are off work, so they take in those last minute summer pastimes, like going to the lake, camping, picnicking and beach going. My husband was off work as well, so we decided to visit one of the beaches nearby. Of course, so did everyone else in the four surrounding states! Needless to say, we kept driving along the beach road, looking for a parking spot. This beach in particular has strict rules for where you can and can’t park. Believe me we know now, after receiving the gift of a parking ticket the first year we visited. So, we drove and drove and kept on driving, much farther than we had anticipated, until the road suddenly ended at a convenient turn around spot with a gated road. No, this was not a gated community, which had sprung up and taken the best beach access, but it was the beginning of a road to access a light house. There was a parking spot free along the roadside, so we decided to stop and walk to the lighthouse.

We were familiar with this lighthouse having spotting it from another beach along the coast, but we were never sure of how to access it. Well, let me explain, there actually is no way to access the lighthouse without swimming to it. It basically sits in the middle of the water probably a half mile or so off the beach. But…. it didn’t always. At one time it sat on the land and could be accessed by car. So, what happened? Erosion. Over time the land eroded and storm after storm probably aided in that erosion. There are multiple efforts to save and preserve the lighthouse and money boxes for donations are found as you pass the gates, that now prevent car traffic. It is eery to walk on the road and come up to an empty parking lot. There were plenty of people there yesterday enjoying the beach, after walking their way in, but sadly no way to really get close to the lighthouse. My husband and I have visited other lighthouses up and down the coast of the United States and even one in Cozumel, Mexico. All were accessible, and if you are in great shape you can climb up to the top.

So, what does this have to do with church? Well, I was thinking about what to write today to share with you about rest, Labor Day, etc. and the verse that came to  mind is from the Book of Matthew,“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Mt. 11:28, NIV). These are Jesus’ own words as He was talking to the crowd gathered. Some of you might have heard this before. It sounds great, Jesus wants me to rest, take it easy, you know not got worried about stuff. Maybe it will motivate me when I’ve feeling stressed out or over- worked. Well, kinda, but not exactly. See what Jesus was talking about is resting from religious burdens.  The Pharisees were like church managers in those days, and they were hung up about everyone following the Laws of God perfectly, that they sought to come up with 600 more to add to the originals. Yes, 600 just to clarify what a person could do on their Sabbath Day, which was the day God had given them for rest. Today, Christians rest on Sunday. But, do they? Recently I attended a gathering of believers and as I sat there, I began to sense an uneasiness. As I looked around, everything seemed okay, perfect even. But, that’s when I realized that was the problem. I have seen it in other get- togethers  in Christian circles. We all look perfect. From the outside anyway. We all look the same. Wait a minute, aren’t we supposed to be reaching the lost, you know the ones who aren’t in Christian circles and attendees in church services. Jesus, met people where they were and their lives were changed. Not on the outside, but the inside. You see, we who are believers are supposed to be changed into the image of Christ, but I don’t believe that means outside. Urban renewal has been popular for several years. Often the word “gentrification” comes up when talking about the renewal of old neighborhoods. It’s great to see old buildings reclaimed and houses fixed, but sadly, many of the original neighbors, can’t afford to live in these new homes. It’s out of their price range. Sadly, I see the same thing happening in the Western church culture. We try to fit people in to the church mold, remodeling the outside, but not really promoting inward change. We have created a hidden set of Sabbath day rules in regards to what we wear, how we should talk, how we should worship. But God looks at our hearts, not our outside appearances. Let me be clear though, I am only talking about church customs, not the Bible. We are to adhere to God’s Word. What I mean to say is we are called to shine the light of Christ, like that lighthouse I visited. But, have we walled ourselves off too much? Are we throwing money into the church to save it? But yet it still remains inaccessible to those who need it the most. Those who are being thrown by the storms of life and are drowning in despair? The church needs to consider whether our hidden customs are keeping people out. Are dresses and suits more holy than ripped jeans? Are Sunday services more anointed than Saturday night services? Is the King James Bible the only real Bible? Are men the only ones God calls? I know all these issues have been addressed before, but I just wanted to share what is on my heart. Jesus labored on the cross for all. We can enter His rest when we put our trust in Him as Savior. We do not need to make keeping the religious laws an entrance exams for those who want to trust Him too. Especially when there are just about customs and culture.Jesus is our rest from trying to be good enough or look good enough in church circles. As someone has once said, Jesus died to give us a relationship, not a religion. God Bless- Nancy