When worry turns into wrong words

"Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth keep watch over the door of my lips.

Psalm 141:3

"Whoever guards his mouth and toungue keeps his soul from trouble."

Proverbs 21:23

"A soft answer turns away wrath but a harsh word stirs up anger. The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly, but the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness." Proverbs 15:12

The past week has been a bit stressful for our family. It was a different Thanksgiving this year as  our youngest grand daughter is currently in the hospital and other family members have been  ill.

We have faced the reality of what is, and will gather together  as soon as we are all healthy enough to do so.  Lots of prayer and communication with one another has been vital during this time. 

Sadly, I have been made aware that some of my "communication" is not as kind as it should or could be as I have allowed worry to creep in. Although I have felt the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, the splinter of doubt and the "what ifs" festered in my soul. Without warning, harsh words flew out of my mouth over something trivial. Thankfully the one to whom I spoke sharply to knows me well and is loving and forgiving, but still, I was shocked by my tone and my words.  They are not representative of who I desire to be.

Oh how well I understand Paul when he struggled with his own humanity and trying to live as Christ would have us live. (See Romans 7:10-24)

Perhaps that is the beauty in every trial we face.  God in His mercy and grace allows us to see that we need Him in every moment, in every detail of our lives. There is nothing we can do to make ourselves into His likeness other than living transparently so He can shine through us.

And so, I will offer this bit of my struggle with my own humanity in hopes of being transparent so that He can be seen. 

It is His grace that is sufficient. Nothing of myself.

And for that, I am deeply thankful.

May He grant each of us the wisdom and discernment needed each day to live in the grace He has so graciously given.

The Eyes/'I's" say it all

I have a picture of my parents that I keep where I can see it daily. Of all the pictures I have of them it is one of my favorites. Not only because it is it one of the last pictures of the two of the together, but it is the expression on their faces that makes it most dear. At the time it was taken Daddy's health was already beginning to fade and they knew they had limited time together and with the rest of us here on earth. Yet you wouldn’t see that in their faces. In the photograph they are both looking intently into the lens of the camera, so they appear to be looking you right in the eye. Oh, the message their eyes send. Even though you can detect the slightest discomfort (hers knowing her time with Daddy was drawing closer to the end and in his, the sorrow of leaving her and the rest of us) the greater reflection is of deep, deep love.

On the days when the weariness of the world threatens to steal y peace, one look at their picture and I am encouraged to continue to fight the good fight – just as they did. Neither of them was particularly “religious” in their faith, but the love for Christ and family was demonstrated daily in their lives. They lived what they believed. The “Golden Rule” “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” was carried out daily in their lives. As I ponder the deep love they showered upon e during my childhood and as an adult I am overcome with longing for their presence. I miss them. And yet, because to the courageous way they faced life and death, I am encouraged to do the same. You see, both knew the power of God’s gift in the life, death burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. They knew that His “I’s” carried the power of God, and they followed Him in confidence.

His “I’s” say: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

“I am the vine; you are the branches. He who abides in Me and I in him, bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” John 15:5

“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, shall live. And whoever believes in Me shall never die.” John 11:25,26

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” John 10:11

“I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” John 10:9

“I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.” John 6:35

My parents’ eyes reflected confidence and love in the I’s of the One Who loves us best. It is the message I desire that all will see. In His grace and mercy we rest in confidence.

The Path we leave behind us

“He leads me in paths of righteousness, for His name’s sake.” Psalm 23:3

My husband and I have reached the age where we need to look carefully at what to save and what to purge from our lives. Even though we downsized from a larger home to a smaller one several years ago, there is still a lot that could, and probably should be eliminated. Complicating the task, in the time frame from when we moved to the smaller living space, we have also acquired things from family members who have gone to their eternal resting place. Going through our own items is difficult enough. Having to sort through the emotional attachment to theirs as well as ours often makes the task seem insurmountable.

But procrastination only makes things more difficult.

Tackling the task isn’t easy. There are a lot of memories attached to so many things, but if we don’t make some effort to let go of what is behind, we become weighed down with too much stuff. Not only that, but we will create a heavier burden for the children and grandchildren to bear. Making the right choices on what to save for them and what to get rid of isn't much fun. Although I am making a genuine effort to remove that which is no longer beneficial, I know there are many items that I won’t get rid of yet. Some of the things, like my grandmother’s 20-piece glass punch bowl set, are simply too precious. Old photos of people who I have no idea who they are, are not.

Little by little, piece by piece, I choose to leave a less cluttered path for those who come behind me to walk on. There are certainly times when I simply want to give up, but I won’t. Instead I will press forward and ask myself these questions as I do so:

• Is it useful/helpful?

• What is its value? (Emotional or financial)

• Is it worth saving?

I can’t see into the future, but I can do my best each day to make today count. Choosing to be productive in some positive way has immense benefits. Not just in the day to day feeling of accomplishing something, but more importantly, to do my very best with the time the Lord has given me. The thing I desire most to leave my children and grandchildren, is a path that leads them into a deep and meaningful relationship to Jesus Christ.

I will do everything I can while I am living to make sure that path as uncluttered as possible.

Things to remember

Learning new things in my old age hasn’t been easy, but that doesn’t mean I am unable to do so.

I spent the better part of the day working on my computer so I could use the Word program to continue my writing. It meant figuring out how to remove old unused programs and move photos to a thumb drive. I was successful in doing that (yay me) but needed my oldest granddaughter’s help to reset the computer to our new wi-fi network.

Technology has never been my strong suit as it requires using a different side of my brain. However, here I am now finally able to use my computer again after months of it being nearly inoperable. It had been sluggish and new programs wouldn’t load because of lack of space. My brain feels that way a lot sometimes. Too much information assaults me daily and I must choose the things I am going to save to my memory and the things I am going to delete.

There is immense value in remembering. After all, we need to remember our passwords and pin numbers. We want people to remember our name and things we have done that are pleasing or helpful to them. If we have done a job for an employer, we want them to remember to pay us and possibly even reward us with a bonus for a job well done. We want to remember where we parked our car when we come out of the grocery store, where we put our glasses or shoes, or the items we bought from the grocery store. We love it when people remember our birthday or during the holidays.

We don’t want to be forgotten.

And yet how quickly we are willing to forget. Or maybe our brains are simply overloaded like my poor computer and need a reset.

The news media and much of the world around us sends a negative message every day. We are bombarded from nearly every angle with things that can quickly make us feel overwhelmed. It is no wonder that people simply want to shut down or try to change things. The best way to overcome the negative is by removing what isn’t helpful and inserting something positive in its place, a reset.

Scripture tells us to have peace of spirit we are to meditate on what is true, noble, just, pure, lovely, of good report, of any virtue and anything praiseworthy. (Philippians 4:8)

For me, this has proven to be beneficial 100% of the time.

May God richly bless you today and always and may all your memory be filled with good things.

Go Fly a Kite

"At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" And Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, an said,  "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me."

Matthew 18:1-5 

Recently I have had the opportunity and privilege of watching Mary Poppins and Saving Mr. Banks again, two very entertaining Disney movies. (If you haven't seen them, I highly recommend both of them.) The storylines are sweet and focus on the importance of a child's perspective and outlook to life. Mary Poppins had delightful music added to the story, which was explained more, and reprised in Saving Mr. Banks. Because of that, I have had several of the tunes playing in my head, but mostly the tune to "Let's go fly a kite." Again, if you haven't seen the movies, I highly recommend them.

As I was going through my day, humming this tune and the chorus, I thought of the statement, "Go fly a kite!" I have heard it used when someone was displeased with another and basically telling them to back off. But then I thought about it more, and thought what a lovely thing it is to fly a kite.  I haven't done so in years, but seeing the movies took me back to my childhood to the hill at City Park where many of us stood, kites in hand waiting for the right bit of wind that would lift it high into the air. Oh the exhilaration when the kite would rise into the air and begin tugging on the string in an effort to fly higher. The joy that it brought as it swayed and dipped with the air currents.

It makes me want to go find a decent kite and take up kite flying again.

We have dear friends who have a large sturdy kite that they will bring to the beach when our church family has their annual beach trip. It is fun to watch as they launch it into the air and the children gather around waiting for an opportunity to help fly it.

There is something pure, and child like in all of us when we watch.

Which brings me back to my point.

Although there was a time when telling someone to "Go fly a kite" may not have been meant graciously, it now takes on new meaning.  It becomes more of a statement to remember the importance of childlike faith. Don't allow the snares and cares of this world to weigh you down.

Just as we lift up our eyes and arms when flying a kite, we can lift up our eyes to God, Creator of all things, and our arms to Him as our Father who will pick us up and carry us as though on eagle's wings.

Dear friends may all our struggles be tied like a tail to the "kite" of prayer, and may we have confidence that God will lift it high and carry our burdens away from us.

When you see someone struggling beneath the load of care, encourage them to do the same. God is on His throne. He hasn't forgotten His promises and He is always, always faithful to complete that which He's begun.

May your troubles be few in the presence of our mighty King.

Blessings to you and yours always. 

#thevelveteengrandma