life

Confession time…

I chose to do a little confessing today, so I wrote a post for the church blog. I figured if I was going to come clean, then I might as well do it in front of everyone. Enjoy!

So it started off on really good footing. I like the days that I go to church and the pastor is speaking to someone else. You know, you do not have that feeling that he is talking directly to you. Well I thought that this was my Sunday. He was speaking to “other” people today, not really to me. He was addressing some very relevant issues that were pointed straight at the church. The very issue of the “Do’s and Don’ts of Christianity. The rules that we get hung up on that keep us from really being able to do the “love one another” thing that we are supposed to be known for.
Continue reading “Confession time…” →

March 25, 2017 0

Steps to follow…

For a long time, I regretted that I did not talk to my great grandmother about her life. She was 99 years old when she passed away, and while alzheimers ate away at the last few years of her life, I still had plenty of opportunity to talk to her. The thought that this sweet lady would have firsthand accounts of history never even occurred to me.

Unknown I have thought about this regret at various times in my life, and it typically makes me pretty sad. Her birthday is St Patricks day, so thoughts of her came to mind again. This year though, I found that my perspective had changed. You see, what I finally realized was what she did teach me was worth much more than what she didn’t. It was pretty funny, because I have always known what an example of love she was to all who knew her. This year though, I realized why everyone loved her so much. Well, it was because she loved us! Warts and all! She loved us all so much, that we couldn’t help but love her back! Continue reading “Steps to follow…” →

March 21, 2017 2

Only passing through…

I saw a tweet the other day by Christine Caine; “Don’t get stuck somewhere you should only be passing through.”

It immediately struck a chord with me, because that is a fear of mine. Here I am trying to become a serious, or at least a somewhat serious writer, but will that truly ever happen for me? Will I ever be able to write something that makes people think, or something that speaks truth into their lives? That encourages them or even makes them laugh? I have no idea, but the path I am on means that I am at least going to try. There is a fear though, that I will get discouraged and stop putting myself out there. Why? Well, because I have done that before. I might get sidetracked, and yes I have been there too. It reminded me of a favorite bible character that I have.

You see, he took his family out of the place that they had been living. That place was Ur. The story says that they were traveling to Canaan but they stopped at Haran and settled there. No friends, this is not about Abraham, but of his father Terah.

Why did the tweet lead me to this man? Well I will tell you. I know I am taking a little license, but it seems to make sense to me. I imagine that God may have told Terah to go to Canaan. Maybe this whole story of God calling out a people was going to start, not with Abraham, but with his father? Maybe, for whatever reason, he stopped in Haran and never got to the place where God had called him.

Are my assumptions true? I have no idea, but I still look to Terah as an example of what I do not want to be. He was on his way to a destination, and got sidetracked. The why’s and how’s are unknown, but what we do know is that he never got there. That is not how I want to be, but I fear that is how I will be. I see the path, but I don’t really know where I will end up. It scares me, because it means trying to be successful at something that is very subjective. Truthfully, you all may find out how really very stupid I am. Or at least, that is the fear.

Well since I am not supposed to be “fearing” anything, per my pastor last week, I guess I will stick to the path. Truthfully, I really don’t want to miss out on what may be at the end of the journey. I really don’t want to be Terah. I want to make it to the place where God calls me. Like the quote that started all of this, I don’t want to get stuck somewhere I should only be passing through.

March 13, 2017 0

The good, the bad and the idol…..

deut5-8 So I have a question this morning. Do you have idols? It was something that I was
pondering with my hubby last night. Why? Well it had something to do with the city of New Orleans removing some statues and the discord that it is causing. There are people that think it is about time to get rid of them, and some who are obviously distressed with them being torn down.

And while I could care less to some degree, it just made me think. Is this a reason why God said do not make any idols? Continue reading “The good, the bad and the idol…..” →

March 10, 2017 0

A little indignity.

Not a very auspicious start when you miss writing on the first day of Lent. Not being Catholic, I do not have the traditional teachings of Lent to fall back on, so I have just try to listen and see how God moves my heart. So this year I heard someone say that the forty days is in commemoration of Jesus time in the desert. I don’t remember hearing that before, or if I did it did not hit me like it did this year. Why? Well it had to do with a conversation I was having with God earlier today.

unknown-2 I was praying, because I knew I would need help writing for a couple of hours today. I totally have ADHD and while writing is the way that I believe I am supposed to communicate, it is still really hard for me to do it. I get distracted so quickly and easily. Anyway, back to my conversation coming home. I had gone for a walk to the bank, and knew I wanted to write when I got home, but I wasn’t sure what I would write about. Then my mind started to wander back to my lovely surroundings, and the quick trip I took to the mountains with my hubby. Continue reading “A little indignity.” →

March 3, 2017 0

Ready for my close up….

I have a new office. Well, it is actually one of the same old bedrooms in our house, but we have given it a major overhaul. It has been cleaned and painted from top to bottom, adorned with a new desk, rug and drapes. The things that were in this room are coming back in one at a time. With each item, I am taking the time to see if I truly need it or not. This room had previously housed our computer, desk and other “office” stuff. It had also become a catch all for everything else. When that happened, it became a room that I did not like. There were things in the room that did not belong, and other things that needed to be addressed, but could be ignored because they were hidden in the chaos.

As I sit here enjoying the fruits of my hard work, I know the room is a metaphor for my life. Every so often, God sharpens my vision and gives me a clearer view into my heart. He lets me see the mess that has accumulated and not only does He give me the desire to clean it up, He gives me the ability to do it. How do I make this connection between this room make-over and my life? Well it has to do with two things. Provision and insecurity. These are two fears are the stumbling blocks in my life, but with each new day, God is giving me the will and the way to overcome them. Continue reading “Ready for my close up….” →

February 18, 2017 1

Out of balance…

images-3 Balance has been on my mind. Some of it has to do with the political news, some with my life, but I decided to write about it because of a news story about the Wallenda family.

You know who they are? The crazy people on the high wire, that for over 95 years have thrilled and scared the …well you know what….out of people. All at the same time! This week while they were practicing for a show in Florida, they attempted an eight person pyramid. I say attempted, because they didn’t complete the stunt, as one of the performers lost their balance and fell. Some were images-2 hurt, and thankfully all will recover. As soon as this horrific event happened, they immediately started looking for a cause. The most likely culprit was the rigging, and it was the first thing they checked, but they discovered it wasn’t the rigging. They determined that it was the most simple, yet most important thing in an aerial act. Balance.

One of the performers lost their balance. It may have been a little, or a lot? I have a feeling though, in that kind of stunt it doesn’t matter. On the high wire, it’s all about balance. As I read the account of the fall, I thought it was pretty good word picture. Life it seems is all about balance.

Whenever the king consulted them in any matter requiring wisdom and balanced judgment, he found them ten times more capable than any of the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom. Daniel 1:20 NLT Continue reading “Out of balance…” →

February 9, 2017 0

Once a foreigner…..

I have been sick for the past two weeks, and have found it hard to sit and write for extended periods of time. So for some reason, this previous blog post popped into my head, and I decided to share it today. I am hoping the coughing ends soon, but I think this blog post helps me remember who God wants me to be in these very noisy days.

During the week, I sat down with my husband and watched a PBS special on “Italian Americans”. Being one myself, I was interested to watch the story of the Italian immigrants who started to come to this county in the late 1800’s. Those who came to America faced prejudice, racism and a hard life in the midst of the industrial revolution. They came though, for a better life! While it was a hard road, they travelled it with their families, community and their faith. I totally enjoyed the program, but I was not really encouraged by it until Saturday. That was when I took some time to study for our Sunday lesson.

As I read through the story of the ten lepers that Jesus heals, I was struck by the one who came back to thank him. He was a Samaritan, a foreigner. In the Bible account, he is the only one who comes back and gives praise to God. It is interesting that the author of the story points out the difference of his nationality. I believe that may speak to the prejudice in Jesus’ own time. It is the same prejudice that affected my forefathers, and the same prejudice I see affecting people today. It was in that connection, that I heard the quiet whisper of encouragement.

What was so encouraging about seeing that prejudice has not gone away? Well it was Jesus example. Instead of bypassing those who were different, He chose to heal and forgive. He did not pay attention to the prejudice of the day whether it was based on race, nationality, sin, religion or class. Jesus looked past all these things to the actual person. It was exciting, even liberating. For me, it showed a freedom to ignore the classifications that society puts on people. The freedom to treat everyone as if they were just like me, because they are, even if they don’t seem like it. That is the freedom that Jesus gives us. To accept the foreigner as if he were family.

And yes….that is the manifest for my Great Grandfather when he came to this country in 1898.

January 30, 2017 3

Good News, Great Joy, All People!

So to make a long story short, I have a bit of a new purpose statement for this new year. It really kind of came to me a little before Christmas, and it seemed to make an impression for multiple reasons. I actually could not get away from it because it is a bible verse that is part of the traditional Christmas story. Wow…this short story seems to be getting longer by the minute!

But the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people”. Luke 2:10

I was looking for a verse to make some wall art, and this one popped onto my radar. I knew it would be awesome, so I would use “Glad Tidings, Great Joy” on a picture. It is actually one of my favorite verses out of the Christmas story, because of a church production that I was in many moons ago. One of the children said the line, like sixteen times, over the two weeks that the show ran. “I bring you glad tidings of great joy!” Every time he said that part, we laughed. The way he emphasized the words was so …joyful! To this day, the memory still makes me happy.

This time though, I was struck by a different note in the verse. It was the end that seemed to jump off the page and stick in my mind. I totally remember the “glad tidings and great joy” part, but I didn’t remember hearing the “all people”? At that point, I was thinking that something important was missing from my project. The “all people” was not something that I felt could be left off the photo.

Why? Well maybe it was a reaction to this whole year of anger, fear, with so much talking and not enough loving. In this past year of election noise, I wondered if that proclamation of “good news” was clearly heard? Did I see “great joy” when I looked in the mirror? Or in the church pews? And were “all people” able to hear and see those things? We may have thought so, but in watching and listening, I really wasn’t so sure?

Continue reading “Good News, Great Joy, All People!” →

January 11, 2017 1

Cheryl Mendoza

How He speaks to me…..Or… can't He just call my cell when He wants to talk?

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