CAN GOD TRUST YOU?

I asked a friend an important question. She suffers from severe Rheumatoid Arthritis in much of her body. She is also a strong Christian and one of the wisest and gentlest people I know. I asked her how she could still rejoice and trust God in the middle of all her physical pain and troubles.

She looked at me, with joy in her eyes and said, that it was her honor to do something for God. She said that she was glad that he trusted her to suffer and still be faithful. Whew.

I admire her, but I am far behind her in areas of faith and trust. I tend to whine when hard times come by me.

I listened to Ravi Zacharias on youtube last night. He leads or works with a number of different organizations, one of which is Let My People Think. He has much to say on the subject of faith and is a brilliant man. He spoke in a way that was akin to what my friend said. He said that God allows some of his greatest servants to suffer much for him. I must confess that I am not volunteering, but I'm thinking that I could gain a better attitude or perspective from their wisdom.

I have a few extremely difficult people in my life right now. I was rolling the challenge around in my head, thinking that problems can make it hard to trust God. Then the thought came to me; does God trust me to do what I should? Maybe he is handing me difficult people to love, respect, teach and learn from, because he can trust that I will represent him in the way I should. Maybe God trusts me with some of his fragile and broken people who at this moment in their lives, need some compassion.

Can God trust me?

GEMS AND GERMS OF TRUTH

I read another book this week. It was titled, David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits and the Art of Battling Giants. It was written by Malcolm Gladwell, the same author who wrote the popular, Blink, Tipping Point, Outliers and What the Dog Saw. Gladwell is a unique thinker and this latest book challenges our classic thoughts about success and adversity. His book resonated with me.

Sometimes I think finding truth must be a little like tuning my guitar. Since I am no musician, I use the little battery operated tuner. I then tighten or loosen the offending string, trying to come closer and closer to the “E” or whatever note I am searching for. Finally.... success! I find the note that resonates in the right way and I and my little tuner at last find a note that rings true.

True… we know that notes can sound true. I think books, people, ideas, philosophies can also resonate with us because they have a certain bit of truth in them and we humans are drawn to truth because we are designed to long for it and want desperately to find it. 

Lord of the Rings: teaches me, among other things, about clinging to courage when things look hopeless and that I won't necessarily know the whole story or its meaning in my life all at once. I have read it again and again.

I have learned truths from books at the bottom of the heap of sophistication like Little House on the Prairie, by Laura Ingalls Wilder and from the top such as in: Escape from Reason by Francis Shaeffer. I have even found little nuggets of truth in Harry Potter and detective books by Laurie King.

In fact, I think the main “secret” to success for authors must be the existence of a strong bent for truth in the writer's soul. Their ideas, if colored by truth, flow out into the written work and that note of truth resonates again and again in readers minds and hearts.

That may be too long of a digression, so back to Gladwell. I believe that what he said also rings true. He tells us that adversity often gives us exactly what we need to succeed. Think of that! David had youth, mobility, experience with slings and inexperience with armor. All of those things helped to give him success and it made him avoid the standard practice of the day and skip the armor that would have totally immobilized him and neutralized all of his other strengths.

Gladwell also says that while a very high proportion of people in prisons have learning problems, so do many CEO's of highly successful companies. Some people let adversity overcome them and others use the very coping mechanisms they are forced to learn, to overcome adversity and find success. He tells story after story of individual weaknesses being used as strengths.

So now I am looking for and listening for these notes of truth in my own situation. 

I am facing a few things that feel powerfully like adversity right now. I am in a new area and I am an introvert. My husband is more of an introvert than I am. That is hard to overcome when you want to connect in a new community. My house, my art studio room, my “stuff” is mostly far away. We are retired now at half our accustomed income. My sisters, my in-laws, my friends are mostly out of reach. 

I am listening hard for truth. Somewhere in my life are problems that God can help me use as strengths.

I am looking (and praying) for ways my weaknesses can become my strengths.

Any other thoughts, praises, or prayers on that truth?

Romans 8:28 We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose.

FORGIVENESS: THE GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING....

I just read a book by Leslie Leyland Fields and Dr. Jill Hubbard. It is Titled Forgiving Our Fathers and Mothers:Finding Freedom from Hurt and Hate.

We keep reading about how good it is for our health to let go of bitterness and anger. It seems to be  common knowledge that those angry emotions are a path to high blood pressure, heart disease, and ulcers. 

Even so, this is kind of an embarrassing book to claim to have read and needed, I mean, I don't want everyone to know I still have “issues” hanging around from my parents!? I'm over 50! I have to say though, it was a very powerful book and I learned a lot. Since my goal is to find a healthy normal, I must admit that finding full forgiveness is so very crucial in my search to find normal.

I think that finding normalcy & health in my body, mind, and soul will take a lot of... forgiving.

Some of the highlights from the book: We should see, not just ourselves as mortally wounded, but our parents also. The author had us envision ourselves and our families as wounded travelers, stripped and beaten, lying beside the road as in the Bible story of the good Samaritan. It is true that many of us are emotionally broken and wounded by our past experiences.

Fields gave us another perspective on the past when she quoted Dr. Dan Allender, saying “that every hurt and disaster is also a chance for redemption” (p. 12). Fields also asked her readers if we “will break the generational cycle of selfishness” (p.152). I had not really thought of unforgiveness in the same camp as ...selfishness, but in some ways, it can be that.

My dad was an alcoholic and my mom was a bitter angry woman who favored her one son and did damage to me daily with her vitriolic tongue. As a child, I built walls to protect myself, but now, for health's sake, the walls need to come down and true forgiveness must become mortar needed to rebuild. But what is true forgiveness? Is it forgetting? Is it turning away from bitterness? According to Fields, it is far, far more than that.

The most moving and shocking story from Field's book reported on a note discovered in the pocket of a child in the Ravensbruk death camp. Here I am, trying to forgive a few parental injustices and some lack of love and then I read this magnificent note found in that scene of unimaginable horror:

O Lord... Do not remember all the suffering they have inflicted on us: Instead remember the fruits we have borne because of this suffering—our fellowship, our loyalty to one another, our humility, our courage, our generosity, our greatness of heart that has grown from this trouble. When our persecutors come to be judged by You, let all these fruits that we have borne be their forgiveness, Amen (p. 170)

Can we possibly pray and think this way toward those proven to be our enemies?

Can we plead for the blessings of God on those who hurt us?

Can we see and appreciate the strengths and growth God has given us carved out of injustice and sorrow?

We have faced huge hurts. If we allow it, God can turn those to our good. Is it possible that we can then ask God that blessings and credit for the good He gave us be poured out on those who intended for us only evil?

Those thoughts take my breath away.

May it be so with me, Lord Jesus. Amen.

SOME DAYS I UNDERSTAND CRAZY

In this time and in our culture, we hear the phrase “going postal.” This originated from an event where a postal worker gunned down his manager and others in 1983. There were also other crazy killings that occurred in post offices in the US.

These were horrific events. While I do believe there is no excuse for someone losing control and in a rage hurting another human being, more and more people in our anonymous society struggle with helpless feelings of fury when they suffer from circumstances where life feels unjust and out of control. Today, I felt just a tinge of this frustration.

My brother passed away about 4 years ago. He was a sweet man, and he died tragically because of chronic alcoholism. It happens that I occasionally get mail in his name, and this causes me a stab of pain. Since this is unpleasant, I have tried to stop the letters from coming.

One company seems unable to stop sending him advertisements at my address. Ironically, it is Glo*** Life—a life insurance company. I tried refusing these letters by writing “deceased” on the envelope and returning them to the post office. And... the company did not stop sending mail to my house.

Recently, I took the inner application for life insurance and wrote bluntly in large letters with a black Sharpie, “Keith is dead; take us off your list.” The result? Apparently their system is automated, so it does not read anything people actually write on those applications. I just received their most recent packet for my deceased brother so he can complete the second longer application for life insurance. In large orange letters, the paper does say, “Pending Eligibility,” so I guess they are safe from him making claim?

Life can make you feel crazy, right?

How do you deal with crazy frustration over our insane system? One answer is crazy rage. That always ends up bad. I thought about calling the company above and telling them… well, things I should not have said to an innocent secretary. A safer answer is to de-stress by eating, even though when I did that, it hurt only me. In days past, I would keep a stash of chocolate chips in the cupboard. When I was really stressed, that was my haven. Chocolate is a safe answer and can stop someone from attempting violence, right? And when it is chocolate and ice-cream too, well, no problems can really compete, correct?

But now when stress hits, I do try to stop and use my preplanned safe responses instead of food binging.

Some of my safer de-stressors:

1. I call a friend with whom I have a pre-made agreement and we get and give encouragement to each other.

2. I work on an ongoing project I enjoy doing (woodworking, sewing, drawing, singing, painting the walls, gardening, etc.) and get it out and work on it.

3. I go to the store and buy something I want (planned purchase) that will distract (but is not too expensive) new book, gifts for future event..?

4. I pray for people I love and myself for self-discipline.

5. I exercise, or I just find something to do where I move my body like go for a walk.

Don't forget, no craziness or rage, even if it involves chocolate:)

THE PERFECT IS THE ENEMY OF THE GOOD

This thought has been rolling around in my head all week, this idea of the perfect. Is it that continually trying to be perfect is an enemy of the good in life. 

(This idea is thought to come from a poem byVoltaire.)

It is now mid January and since Thanksgiving I gained enough weight so that some of my pants that fit in November are now not comfortable.

What will I do next? It feels like I am facing a testing and a battle to find normal, yet again. In the past I would either: buy larger clothes, or, try an extreme diet. However, I made some commitments when I decided to find normal for myself.

I made promises to myself that I would:

#1. Not do crazy diets, just short-term, healthy ones.

#2. Make it a life goal to discover how to eat daily in a way that helps me to maintain a normal weight without continual ups and downs.

#3. Accept myself as I am (no trash-talking to self).

#4. Not spend much mental or emotional energy on food obsessing. (This means not focusing too much time or thought on feasting or dieting, but instead I will focus on living).

Thoughts for the battle: We are all made differently and we each have our own type and style of beauty. I went to an exercise session at a local pool and I was changing in a locker room surrounded by naked middle-aged and older women. I have been married to a man for many years and was not ogling at women's bodies, but I couldn't help thinking as I was changing clothes, that women are.... pretty. Their various womanly curves are beautiful. We were beautiful. The women around me were curvy and dimpled, yet strong and lovely.

Now, if I can see the beauty when I look at a group of tall, thin, short, round, flat, fat women, WHY can't I see beauty in myself?

I think it is harder now than ever to see ourselves as lovely women because our eyes and minds are full of unending media exposure. In magazines and on the TV, we see many super-models every day. Society's visual change began many years ago; C.S. Lewis commented in Screwtape Letters that “we now teach men to like women whose bodies are scarcely distinguishable from those of boys. Since this is a kind of beauty even more transitory than most, we thus aggravate the female’s chronic horror of growing old...It is all a fake, of course; the figures in the popular art are falsely drawn; the real women in bathing suits or tights are actually pinched in and propped up to make them appear firmer and more slender and more boyish than nature allows a full-grown woman to be.”

And now add photoshop! 

We all want to be attractive. Today, the media defines beautiful as super skinny and we see so many images, we accept this false normal. In addition, we find that fleeting look impossible to achieve. This can cause us to give up on trying to be healthy and beautiful in our own selves and with our own inherited shape. We should rebel! We are not un-beautiful, we were just born in the WRONG CENTURY to be in style!

So, in support of accepting that women come in all kinds of beautiful shapes and sizes, I will, Accept myself as beautiful right now. I will stop spending another minute being sorry for who I am NOT. That mindset is the enemy of joy and a waste of valuable emotional energy that should be used for living and loving.

You and I are lovely and beloved.

Isaiah 40:11 He tends his flock like a shepherd. He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.

Isaiah 43:1b Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know Him.

A REAL GROWN UP

I was very angry the other day and I found myself tempted to throw something down the stairs. So I said silently to myself, “A MATURE Christian woman does not throw temper-fits!”

Doesn't she? I had to laugh.

It is hard to be a real grown-up. In two months we plan to move out of our house where we have lived for 30+years and we will be renting for a year or two. We want to move to another state where our son, daughter-in-law and grandson live. We will check out that area to see if it could be a permanent place  and home for us.

Now I am faced with all kinds of curious challenges that I haven't had to deal with in a long, long time. I will have to think about my credit score and if I can be considered “rent-worthy.” Really? I will be required to ask friends to be references for me and they will be asked to describe my housekeeping and bill-paying habits. I am soft and comfortable right where I am and I don't want to be uprooted and…. face so much change. I have lived in this house for 30 years and I am a grown-up!!

I even thought about putting an ad on the craigslist in our new home-town saying, “Two REAL grown-ups are looking for a place to rent. We know how to mow the lawn and wash the windows. Our dog is well cared for and doesn't potty in the house because we take her outside often. We do the dishes and pay all our bills and we never, ever throw temper-fits and toss things down the stairs. I'm hoping someone answers my ad who knows how to laugh.

But then I had to think, how does a REAL grown-up eat? And I have to ask myself, “Do I truly want to know the answer to that question?”

I think grown-ups have self-control, most of the time. They probably don't stash a half gallon of ice cream under other things in the freezer, so only they know it's in there. They eat well most of the time, so they can eat a piece of cake at a wedding or enjoy Christmas pie without sweating the extra calories. A REAL Grown-up works hard to find ways to eat food they that is also healthy. They exercise regularly and don't whine about it either.

Today, I'm reminding myself that my goal is to be a really, truly, and fully grown-up. I must make lots of choices every day. Because I am mature, I can choose to call upon some maturity and inner strength to make good choices in regard to food. The days that I am weak, I ask God to send the extra strength I'm lacking. I will not be good or grown-up every day or every single choice forever, but I can do this  most days, most of the time. I will even fail at times and say it is Ok to fail some days. Then I will get up and go on.

But for today, I will be strong and really, truly, totally grown-up.

I DON'T KNOW THE RULES

You wouldn't think so, but some things in life scare me. Even if in other areas of life, I am brave. After all, I taught junior high, so.... I am tough as nails, right?

But now I am contemplating a move halfway across the country and I am afraid. The work to be done is scary. We have been in our home for over 30 years. I have stuff. I will have to be brutal and tough as I toss, save, give, and store things.

My biggest fear is losing my friends. I am a bit of an introvert, so I have a few really good friends. Some people have an army of them, but not me. That means I do make friends carefully, but not easily. Here at home, I don't have to put myself out and risk rejection, but from now on I will. Customs and social rules in different parts of the country are very different too. I live in the Pacific Northwest, so those are the rules I know about.

My daughter grew up here, but has become and East Coastie. I figured out that one way you can tell where someone is from is by their response to the baristas in Starbucks. My daughter and her husband were here visiting and they bought coffee on the way home from an errand. My son-in-law was upset by the treatment he received. “Why do they have to keep talking to me? I don't want to tell them how my day was!” They are now East Coasties, no question. In the East, you mind your own business and don't waste someone's time unnecessarily.

I, however live in the Pacific Northwest. We smile, share a few words. Nod. Make eye contact. We all know the rules in our hometowns.

I visited my new home-town and I had errands in three different stores. Women I did not know smiled broadly and made direct eye-contact—for no reason. I was actually disturbed, thinking to myself, “Why is she smiling at me? She doesn't know me!!?!” And then I realized, new place, new people. I don't know the rules and I should stop scowling at strangers. I'm hoping I can link with some of those smiling women and make friends. But doing that is still stressful.

And what does stress do? Stress makes me eat. I like to cook and I do enjoy my own cooking. Far too much, I think. I have been eating a lot. I am trying to minimize the damage of my moving stress.

Lately, I have been in the process of figuring out how to trade not-very-healthy comfort meals for less damaging comfort meals. Before, when I was stressed, I would make home-made cinnamon rolls or chicken pot-pie with thick biscuit crust. Carbs, crunch, meat, warm... happy foods.

One comfort food trade that works for me is a type of salad. I take rice and add cooked taco meat over it. I add salsa, some sour cream, then chopped up spinach/onion/tomato mix. Then I sprinkle a few crushed taco chips and add some ranch. It makes a comfort-salad, if there is such a thing.

We each have to find ways to comfort ourselves when we are stressed and afraid. What helps is to find out what comforts each of us personally and find food ways to comfort ourselves without doing too much damage from overeating. Trying to follow some not-eating regime while ignoring stress simply doesn't work. Plan. Think. Follow through.

Don't be afraid......