Time.....

Funny (not ha ha funny) that this was just laid on my heart again. I was thinking of the verses in Ecclesiastes about time...a time to weep....a time to laugh, etc. I had the feeling I had written about this before because it seems to be an ongoing theme in my life. I looked back in the "labels" under time....and I had used these verses Feb. 28, 2008. Hmmmm....almost a year to the day.

I have things I need to get done. I work better with deadlines and the dreaded schedule. My household, kids, marriage, etc. do too. However, I like to think I can wing it. I get out of the habit of writing a to-do list, keeping up my calendar, making necessary appointments, etc. AND I am still surprised when my life then starts to spin out of control.

So, I glance back over the verses.

Ecclesiastes 3 (NIV) A Time for Everything 1 There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:

The chapter goes on for 14 more phrases of a time to....and a time for. The verse above is the only one that mentions a season. As we seem temporarily stuck in winter and a faltering economy, I need to remind myself that seasons change. There will be a new time for everything and a new season. I read on:

9 What does the worker gain from his toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on men. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

I look forward to everything being made beautiful again. I am reminded that eternity is more important than the time to ....... (fill in the blank)

I will enjoy memories from yesterday, I will live for today, I will look forward to the promise tomorrow holds. With God's help and His agenda, I will manage time so it does not manage me.

Putting our HOPE in the right place....

I don't really like or enjoy politics, official or not. There are POLITICS like the government with the right and left, but there are also office politics and politically correct/incorrect, etc. Why do we trust that politics will get us anywhere we want to be? It seems to all amount to a bunch of gameplaying.

I was reminded of HOPE today and the politic thing because of the Hope poster for the Obama campaign. The artist of the poster was in the news for spreading his artwork illegally on public buildings and possibly taking the image for the poster from another photo...but I digress.

It seems lately that the world seems more hopeless than hopeful. People are losing their jobs. The government while under the illusion of no more politics as usual still has some of the same politicing going on. Let's make a deal is not only a TV show from the past! A "stimulus" package that is 100s of pages long with everything from job creation to STD information (until the right person yelled loud enough to get it taken out) is part of the news of hope for our right now and tomorrow. We put hope in our leaders to make the best decisions with the information they are given and to surround themselves with people that are informed and able to provide assistance with things they might not truly understand.

I propose that we as a nation are misplacing our hope. It is not found in our government or a politician.

I searched www.biblegateway.com for hopeless and hope. I was amazed to find that in the NIV version, there is 1 mention of hopeless (shown below) and 174 for hope.

Isaiah 57:10 (NIV) You were wearied by all your ways, but you would not say, 'It is hopeless.' You found renewal of your strength, and so you did not faint.

Even though this one verse mentions hopeless, it is in the context of even by being weary, you would NOT say it is hopeless.

Even Job (the most picked on man in the Bible) in the midst of ALL that happened to him, mentions hope.

Job 11:18 (NIV) You will be secure, because there is hope; you will look about you and take your rest in safety.

The following show the TRUE source of our hope for a better tomorrow.

Psalm 31:24 (NIV) Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.

Isaiah 40:31 (NIV) but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

May your strength and faith be renewed. May you soar! May you run and not grow weary. May you walk and not be faint. May the Lord in whom we trust continue to be our true source of HOPE!

It's NOT a train....AND the engineer is still in control!

I'm sure I've written before about the tunnel and the train. It was worse when I used to have a much more stressful job. Trying to be the ever optimist, I would proclaim, "There's a light at the end of the tunnel!" Then, the sometimes not so smaller voice of the pessimistic side (NO, I do not have multiple personalities even if it sounds like it!, smile) would continue after a slight pause...."yeah, it's a train!"

I'm reading a book entitled, Aaron's way, the journey of a strong-willed child, by Kendra Smiley with Aaron Smiley. Aside from loving their last name it has also been a really helpful book to read. It is a story of her son, Aaron, and the discoveries/roadblocks that she discovered and faced while raising their strong willed son. The interesting part is that Aaron is now grown up and not too far removed from those times of strong willed growing up years to give his insight as well. Aaahhh! A look into the mind of the kid. HELPFUL!

I have at least one strong willed child (and occasionally, still, a strong willed husband) who see life very black and white with very little to no shades of gray. I have discovered that they are out to control their destinies in a sometimes out of control world and the variable personalities they come in contact with. This insight alone is worth reading the book.

There are quotes throughout the book too and I REALLY enjoyed this one and wanted to share it and it ties into the tunnel/train:

"When the train goes through a tunnel and the world gets dark, do you jump out? Of course not, you sit still and trust the engineer to get you through" Corrie Ten Boom

The Bible talks about trust too.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV) 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowlege him, and he will make your paths straight.

1 Chronicles 5:20 (NIV) They were helped in fighting them, and God handed the Hagrites and all their allies over to them, because they cried out to him during the battle. He answered their prayers, because they trusted in him.

Raising our kids today (and sometimes still feeling like we're growing up ourselves) is a battle worth fighting! We don't go through the tunnel alone. There is a light at the end of the tunnel.... God's care and protection!

Hard Head = Hard Heart, Becoming Unfrozen

Hebrews 3:12-14 (NLT)
12 Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. 13 You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. 14 For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ.

I know I need church services as a way of filling up and quenching a dry spirit. However, I let my bad habits of staying up too late at night carry over on to Saturday PM and have overslept the last couple of Sundays. When I do get to church, within a few minutes, I'm in tears because I realize again that I have been attempting to run my life without God's help. I let "sentence prayers" be enough. I read the paper instead of the Bible. I don't take care of myself. I preach, but don't follow my own advice. And I'm surprised when I start to feel like I'm falling in a hole and get depressed.

I've also been reading a book about strong willed children...and I've realized I've got some changing to do! This makes me feel guilty for the way I've been handling things in our house and with our kids. When I start feeling down, I start letting things slide. This doesn't do the kids (or me) any good.

I was looking for a verse about feeling like having a frozen heart (and not just because it's been SO cold). Walking into church yesterday, even after the battles to get there, I could feel the ice start to melt. References in the Bible usually refer to it as having a "hardened" heart.

It is easy to feel overwhelmed when the world feels like it is crashing in on itself. When we see others even further away from God than we are, and struggling to do it on their own. I like the verse above. It shows that God knows we need DAILY reminders to turn to Him and let Him carry the load. We need to make sure that what we see in the world does not turn us away from knowing the truth....God loves us, provides for us, and cares about us....hard head, hard heart and all.

Even if it feels impossible to warm up (if you live in MI!), realize God doesn't want us frozen where we are. He wants to take us where He wants us to be!

Reflections......Movin' On.......

2 Corinthians 3:17-18 (NIV)
17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Wow, it's already January 8! Happy New Year! A fresh start!

I have much to do today, but I decided to stop for a few minutes and think. There are times/days I get so "busy" that I don't give myself time to sit (hopefully, quietly) and think. I just seem to flit from thing to thing usually not finishing anything. This is really frustrating for me. I KNOW what to do and even HOW to do it, but I don't DO it. A lot of this is procrastination and just not wanting to deal with everyday stuff.

I know from past experience that once I've done the stuff I need to do, I can't believe I waited so long to deal with it. I spent more time worrying about the outcome than spending the time it would take to do the project and not have to worry. Reflect in the dictionary is: to think quietly and calmly. Ha! part of the problem. When I think of the past, I don't think about it quietly or calmly. It comes roaring in with fingers pointing and shouting, "You COULD/SHOULD/WOULD have done better, if only _______"

Now, the following COULD sound like an excuse:

Ecclesiastes 5:20 (NIV) He seldom reflects on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart.

However, I am going to think of it as if I focus on what God has done and is doing in my life, I don't need to reflect for too long on what has already happened. I can enjoy today. So can you!

The new year is not the only time for fresh starts. Each day we are given the opportunity to get something done, right a wrong or just BE and that's enough.

So, my free advice for the day, "Just DO it (whatever "it" is)!"

One more thought: I finally watched Gone With the Wind quite awhile ago. At the time, I thought after ALL that happened in the movie that the end line of the movie was rather lame. "After all, tomorrow is another day."

However, I'm beginning to realize that is rather good advice. Scarlett (and we) could focus on all the mistakes we've made or the time we've wasted OR we can move on. I suggest we learn from the past and move on....before WE are Gone with the Wind (OK, That's a stretch!, smile).

To quote Timone from Lion King: Put your past behind you.

Just in case, you want to see for yourself: ending of Gone with the Wind (gotta love YouTube)