Trimming Trees and Attitudes

I was watching Joel trim trees today as he climbed up a ladder and used his tree trimmer to cut through small branches.  When he could not reach a few higher ones he went upstairs, took the screen off the window and went to work. 

This project was unearthed after last night when we listened to branches rub across the roof as high winds moved everything around that was not tied down.  Today turned out to be a good day to trim away the culprits before they did any damage to the roof or to our sleep pattern.  We kind like the 8 hours of sleep we manage most nights. 

It was mostly an easy fix, but it took effort, especially balancing out the window to get to the higher branches. At least Joel agrees to stay off our steep roof and leave those limbs to the professionals.  We also had someone come aerate our yard recently before Joel put seed down for next year.   It is all part of the fall work.  Soon we will wash windows one last time, mow one last time, and grill one last time before......Before.  Before winter comes knocking on our door.  Winter is not very welcome here by the two of us, but we will tolerate it.  Meanwhile we enjoy the beauty of fall.

Just like the trees, sometimes there are things we need to trim away in our lives.  Maybe it is a mindset.  Maybe it is an attitude.  A grudge.   Unforgiveness. God revealed to me last night that I need an attitude change.  That what is going on for us right now is not about me or us, but for others.  It is not always easy to trim away or remove what Holy reveals to us.   Trimming and cutting away takes some effort, but it is worthwhile o let go and let God. There is "work" to be done to prepare us for a better life, to help us be the best we can be according to God's plan for us and for others.  Today was a good day to trim trees and attitudes. 

You Do Us Proud!

Today I give honor to all who have served or are serving our country.  Joel and I lift them up in prayer.  We have much to be grateful for. 

Joel received his draft notice in the mail the summer of 1968, right before we were married.  He knew he could have deferred the draft with more education, but after two years of Jr. college and 2 years of Bible college, he decided it was his turn to go.  He was drafted into the army, but was able to enlist in the Air Force instead. He grew up carrying a gun and was an excellent marksman, but hunting for food did not cross over to killing the enemy....he did not want that job and thankfully was able to avoid it.  While in the Air Force as an airman, he applied and qualified for a special education program and was sent to the University of Utah where he received a degree in meteorology.  He was commissioned as an officer and served as a forecaster for 4 years.  He was stationed first in Duluth MN and then the Philippine Islands.  While in the P.I. he forecast weather for the pilots, many who were flying to Viet Nam.  That is as close to the war as he got and for that I am so grateful. After spending 8 years in the Air Force, he took an early out and we headed back to MN where he attended the seminary. 

Like most of you, Joel and I are patriotic.  We stand at attention when the National Anthem is sung, or the flag goes by in a parade.  We fly the flag.  I remember with fondness, everything stopping on the base when the flag was being taken down or put up.  Soldiers would get out of the cars wherever they were, and stand at attention, saluting as they heard the anthems that are so familiar. Even in the movie theater when the flag came on the screen the whole audience would come alive, stand at attention and salute the flag.  So impressive.  We were in the Philippines when Saigon fell and were a part of the Saigon Baby Lift and more.  We saw the war's destruction in the eyes of the children.  And  many of our men and women in uniform have experienced more than we can ever imagine.

Our country has been protected by those who serve in the military (and I will add our police officers too).  We live in freedom!  We have so much to be thankful for this Memorial Day.  We honor those who serve or have served and those who have died.  We also appreciate what sacrifices have been made and hopefully we do not take it all for granted. 

God bless all of you who have served or are serving our country.  You do us proud!

Tropical Weather, Mangos, and Memories

As the tropical weather continues here in Iowa, the floodgates have opened on our memories from our time in the Philippines or the  "P.I." as we used to call the islands south of Taiwan.  We experienced so many adventures packed into the 22 months we lived there. 

I think the recent weather and flashbacks influenced our shopping at the grocery store.  We came home with a watermelon, grapes and mangoes.  They have all been refreshing, but the mangoes were delicious!  We did not find a pineapple but I remember trying to grow them in our yard while living there. 

Thinking about food, I remember the black market while living in Angeles City.  Often items from the Base Exchange would end up there.  We avoided going there, except for one time when we were having ham for a holiday meal.  In my family ham was never served without a cherry sauce made with cherries, nutmeg, and cinnamon.  A substitute for me became pie cherries to which I added the spices.  There was none to be found on the base, so Joel took a risk and went to the black market coming home with one cherished can of pie cherries at 10 times the price! Being 18 hours by plane and an ocean away from our loved ones was not easy, but having a traditional inner holiday dinner seemed to bring them closer that day.

Speaking of dinners, I remember one meal we ate and then hurried off to church, not taking the time to sweep the floor before we left.  We came home to a dining room crawling with hundreds of ants.  You could not keep the bugs out of the house no matter what you did.....you just tried to manage them in some way.  Usually that meant doing your weekly cleaning every day (hence the help) and also keeping a supply of several cans of Raid around, which now makes me shudder to think about!  One time we were checking on the kids in their beds and Joel asked me if I had put a new knob on the closet door.  When this new "knob" started to move I went and got the Raid and sprayed it.  It was a huge roach which then fell on the floor.  I covered it with a paper cup and it moved the cup across the floor as it attempted to escape.  Those flying roaches were so big and ugly that for a very long time after returning to the states I would jump whenever a fly or any other insect with wings would pass by.  Like the weather, I do not miss the bugs.  They never seemed to bother those from the P.I.  ~~I expect they were just used to them being around.   I am sure we provided entertainment with our over the top reactions to the roaches, rice beetles, and other insects. Okay, enough talk on that subject!

As I said before, it was an unwritten policy for us in the military to hire local Filipinos to help out.  It was difficult for us to adjust to having a live-in maid, but we were blessed with a feisty young woman named Ampharo who taught us a great deal about living on an island in the Pacific and also how to manage having a maid, house boy, sew girl and a hired guard.  She also Amphy was a blessing and we got to know her family and eventually her husband and baby very well.  We kept in touch for many years after we returned and then as we moved and they moved we lost contact.

I am not sure any of you readers are finding this interesting, but it has been fun for me to reminisce and reflect on those years.  Even so,  I am ready for the heat and humidity to leave and fresh air and cooler temperatures to return.  At least we are not dealing with flying roaches!

How Then Shall We Live?

There is a time to be born and a time to die....

Ecc. 3:2

I have been reading a book by Wayne Mueller entitled, "How Then Shall I Live?" and today's chapter asked the question,

 "Knowing we will die, how shall we live?" 

 Pastor Wayne Mueller works with many people who are at the end of their life from cancer, kidney failure, AIDS, etc. and he found that they changed how they viewed life once they knew they were dying. Suddenly everything they did in their remaining days becomes precious.  Relationships became very important and such things as money and material goods did not.

The thing is, we are all going to die. We just don't know when or how.  So living each day from the perspective of knowing that we will die makes every sunrise amazing.  Like many of you who have faced illness, when I got cancer in early 2010 I was frightened.  I already felt like I was fighting for my life with Lyme Disease, and then along came the big "C".  Life became more precious.  Oh, it has taken me awhile to not live in fear of it returning and there are still times I become anxious about that possibility.  It took awhile for me to not be looking behind me, or running into the future trying to grab hold of all life has to hold.  I am learning to accept where I am on my journey with Lyme Disease and as a cancer survivor.  Slowly I am learning that today is all I have and it is precious from the moment the sun rises until it sets in the evening.  Mindful living.  Focused on God and those I love and care about.  It is a process during which I am finding this book and its questions very helpful.

Maybe we need to ask ourselves some important questions?  How do we want to live the rest of our lives?  Do we want to be kinder?  Do we want to be more loving?  Do we desire to serve Jesus in a special way?  Do we hunger to worry less and laugh more?  So many questions for us to answer as we contemplate the fact that death will come to all of us. 

So, I ask the question one more time....

Knowing we will die, how shall we live?

A Pace of Grace

I have been re-reading the book, "A Pace of Grace" by Linda Kavelin Popov, who is also an  international speaker on The Virtues Project.  Amongst other things in this book, she shares how a medical crisis brought her to a place of living an easy, grace-filled life.  She challenges us to become  loving stewards of our own energy, to find joy in the simple pleasures of life.

I often ponder when the idea of over extending ourselves became so "normal".  When did we start wearing a badge of honor for being "sooooo busy"?  When did the lazy hazy days of summer disappear? 

When I was active in the world outside my door, I took great pride in over extending myself.  The more I had to do, the better I felt about myself. I had a list for every single day, and would drop into bed exhausted as night came calling.  I even went to college full time at night while raising 5 children, keeping the house up, sitting on community boards, and staying active as a pastor's wife.   I took the mantra, "We are what we do" very seriously.  Unfortunately, it led me down a path to poor health and a stressful life.  And certainly, it did not all bring me joy ~ and what about my family?  I am sure at times God just shook His head as I crammed a month's worth of activity into a week. 

Today's families are busier than ever.  Life rushes by with school or work, music lessons, year round sports with school and outside of school, sleep overs, play dates, meetings to attend and social events to look forward to.  Seriously, when I observe my children and their families I wonder when there ever is any down time. 

And yet, God asks us to "Be still and know that I am God."  Be still and take a breath,,, care for yourself...leave time to ponder a flower or snuggle with loved ones.  It still is possible.  It may have to be scheduled like everything else in the daily routines of those who are on the move, but it is possible.  It is necessary.  It is renewing.

Maybe it is my age, maybe it is my illnesses, or maybe it is just looking back and seeing how little time I took to be still~ probably it is all three!  I know that I am grateful for the time I have now.  And I am hopeful that in this season of my life I can live with a pace of grace~ I certainly have plenty of opportunities!   I hope we all take the time to live life with a pace of grace.

Food For Thought

                                     
I was reading a book today and one of the chapter titles was, "Our Thoughts Create Our World".....
Another favorite quote of mine involving this topic is...."Food for thought"....and we all have heard someone say, "We are what we think" ~   So, what ARE our thoughts focusing on?

I think Maxine may have something here.  Don't believe everything you think!  We can't always control our thoughts, but we can control how we respond to them, or whether we accept them as real or not.  Do we believe everything that pops into our head?  Do we dwell on the negative words that fills our heads at times?  Oh, it is so easy to see the glass as half empty.  It is so easy to believe the worst about a situation, someone, or ourselves.  It is so easy to turn a thought into a hurricane in our head!

The Bible tells us in Philippians 4:8, "And now brothers and sisters, one final thing.  Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable.  Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise."    

Certainly, God knew that it would not be easy to tame our thoughts, and He has provided the encouragement and instruction we need to help us.  Next time negative or worrisome thoughts start a hurricane in your brain, take a deep breath, turn your focus on His living Word, and just breathe in everything that is pure and lovely.  And remember ~ don't believe everything you think!          

Our Words

"May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, oh Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer"

Psalm 19:14

This morning, during devotions and while listening to Joyce Meyer, the same subject kept coming up over and over.  How we use our mouth.  What we say  Who we praise  Whether our words bless or curse.  Even the thoughts that we tell ourselves are so very important. 

I find myself in a Lyme/CFS crash.  This means I am in more bone, muscle, joint, and nerve pain, weak as a kitten, struggling with brain fog, and spending most of my time horizontal under my Woolie (wool comforter) on the sofa or in bed.  It can be discouraging, but I also know that my own thoughts and words will tip the scales one way or the other in how I cope with this crash.  Do I tell myself this will never end...or do I remind myself that this too shall pass.....  Do I lay grumbling and feeling sorry for myself, or do I pick up an inspiring book to read or catch up on my rest and my correspondence, encouraging others while bonding with my sofa...  What exactly does God hear in the words that come from my mouth?  Are they pleasing to Him?

I have heard one definition of meditation as being what we continually think about or focus on.  Are the meditations of my heart acceptable to God?  Do I meditate on what is pure and lovely, on what is positive and uplifting?   Can I focus on hope and joy while under my Woolie?  Well, of course the answer to those questions is up to me.  It's about tipping the scales in my favor with good thoughts!

Today, you may find yourself worried about something...maybe feeling discouraged by the way your life is unfolding, or challenged by trials or suffering.  Remember that you are not alone.  Be kind to yourself by tipping the scales in your favor.  And remember, too, that the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts are heard by God and direct our ways.

Dear God, may our words and meditations be acceptable to you oh Lord, in every way. Amen.

Wednesday Wonders of Nature

"Jesus said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let Him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me as the scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him"

John 7: 37b, 38

Living water

the Holy Spirit....

Empowering our bodies

blessing our souls

Gifts

freely given

freely accepted

Eternal life

The Holy Spirit

Thank you

Jesus

The Happiest People In The World

Today I watched the Oprah show where she went to Denmark to interview several woman and their families because research shows that Denmark has the happiest people in the world. I know that Scandinavian countries are known to take care of everyone in their native lands and that family is the number one priority....but I found this fact about Denmark disturbing for one reason only ~ The majority of the country does not believe in God or a "Higher Power". This is stunning and it gives me pause. Does it give you pause, too?

An Amazing Day!

No matter how you voted, or if you did, I believe that today is an amazing day for our country, for our world, for our family. Today is the inauguration of our first President of African American descent. A President who blends the races not only in his ancestry but his beliefs. I believe that our country has taken an enormous step forward and I am not so sure I expected to see this happen in my lifetime. For me it means we are one step closer to having equality for all people.
If you have looked closely at my family in this photo, you will see that we are a rainbow of God's people. Five of our seven children, their spouses and significant other, and a happy mass of grandbabies gathered for this photo at Thanksgiving. Our family represents several countries, a variety of races, and 3 political parties! There are no others that Joel and I love more. Our family, and especially our children, have at times experienced first hand the racism that can exist when people cannot look past the color of one's skin. Today we are rejoicing in seeing our country move forward in the journey for peace here and in the world. It all begins with acceptance, love, and hope.