Shhhh….

Sometimes we NEED a Holy Hush to come over our tongues and let our DEEDS feed the eyes of others!

People CRAVE authentic. They DESIRE the real. They ACHE for hope!

They receive HOPE through our HOPE!

Our HOPE can’t be their HOPE; but, they can see His Hope through our Hope!

In high school, a pastor of influence in my life, said repeatedly, ” If you SEE a NEED then MEET that NEED!”

I loved it when he said that. It did something to my soul. It somehow made the hopeless, lonely that I saw around me swell with a hopeful answer! It was a call to ACTION!

It was a visible ACT of HOPE. It put feet to words and joined our HOPE with God’s HOPE!

It is a Holy concept that I’ve aspired to follow.

I’ve had quiet moments where God spoke LOUDLY through my life.

I’ve had humble moments where apologies freed others from bondage.

I’ve cheered on miraculous cures and was FOREVER changed when GOD answered.

I’ve watched in silence and given in time.

I’ve trampled through the fears of others despair and held hands with their HOPE.

In each NEED that I’ve sought to MEET, God showed us that His strength is made perfect in our weakness.

That a shameless attempt to extend HOPE where the darkness is closing in, is all He asks of us.

I often long for that Holy Hush, where my words are silenced by the out-pouring of my deeds!

After all, His Hope IS our only Hope!

Good Pain

 

“God is still God in our pain and God is still good in our pain!”

Read more about my discovery of this here…

Tough…

…Where does your soul turn when mothering gets TOUGH?

Being a mama, it’s a beautiful reward delivered in a package of fear. It wears tired like an old, comfortable sweater and exudes JOY beyond the linger of a first kiss…

We wrap them in protection as they enter our life and we push them into the world that tries to swallow them whole…

All they have is a Savior! The only hope they can cling to is His promise!

Nothing changes quite like time and nothing lasts quite like a Father’s love…

Do you tell them?

Do they know Him?

When all of this life fails them do they know to RUN to Him?

Whispers fall short but our walk speaks loud. The void of Christ in a moments glimpse is the tragedy when crisis hits; and the endless reminder of hope lost glances back at us.

Nothing is worth that loss. Tough rolls in with the tide and washes the pain along this shore but heaven’s time will come…

… and where our soul turns when mothering gets tough, will not shift with the sand.

Don’t Miss This…

It’s easy to get distracted these day’s. To get hopefully lost in the what’s to come.

Nothing leaps farther than the days turning into years and time suddenly stops long enough for us to catch our breath in between decades that have flown by.

If we’re not careful we will MISS the MISSION.

Our families will move on before we create the memories, instill the values and share the Savior.

Our neighbors will bury spouses and diseases will take-over aged bodies much too soon.

We will find ourselves aching over lost opportunities and somehow future generations will scurry to make up for our lost time.

Today is our chance. Today is our difference. Today is our mission.

Do what you’ve been putting off, pondering over, sighing about. Step out of your comfort zone so someone else can be comforted.

Be the voice in someone else’s silence. Create joy in another’s sadness. Extend hope into your neighbor’s disaster.

Be Jesus to those looking for Jesus!

Today…..

Don’t MISS the MISSION.

“Therefore, GO and make disciples of all the nations….” (Matthew 28:19, NLT)

Well That’s Not Fair!

LIFE isn’t fair!

Plain and simple!

The last few days God has highlighted the magnitude of fairness for me! Ezekiel had a CALL to HARD! From start to finish, he received divine prophecy followed by HARD obedience! God chose Ezekiel to exemplify His discipline to a rebellious nation! Front and center, Ezekiel was charged with a that’s not fair task.

I don’t know about you but being tied up and mute, constrained to laying on your left side for 390 days and your right side for 40 days, having to eat in an unclean manner and not being able to mourn the death of the one you love is a difficult state to be in! Only to be followed by a statement from God, “Ezekiel, NO ONE will listen to you! Do it anyway!” (paraphrase)

HARD!

All throughout Ezekiel’s journey I see a continuous action on his part, OBEDIENCE! He was OBEDIENT IN HIS HARD!

I am challenged by his obedience.

I am humbled by his call.

I’m NOT envious of his HARD!

How often do you feel  life is not fair or this is too hard?” More often than not, we fail to consider that God CALLS us to HARD. His design for us is not a perfect, seamless life BUT an abundant, grace-filled life. When we seek the “simple” in life we often MISS OUT on His “favor” from our obedience.

No walk of HARD is easy and often times the step into obedience can be painful. Can I encourage you that His grace IS sufficient for your HARD. The will of God won’t lead you where His grace can’t sustain you. The HARD He CALLS you to, He has EQUIPPED you for!

BUT, you CANNOT do it alone.

You NEED Him to do your HARD!

I pray we recognize HARD is in HIS plan. And, to follow His plan, we CAN’T do HARD alone!

Invite Him into your HARD! He wants to extend grace into your situation and carry you through it. Life, even the unfair-hard parts, He NEVER intended for you to do it alone.

” He will keep you strong to the end………” (1 Corinthians 1:8, NLT)