Gratefulness Changes Things

If we were honest, we all would say there is something to be grateful for today.

Even if you world feels hopeless. Even if you feel that you are in the dark.

There is at least ONE thing to be thankful for today.

In my life, I have seen just how looking at my life from a place of gratefulness instead of negativity can change everything.

I’m not saying that life is easy because you know that would be a lie. But being grateful takes away some pain. While it may not take it all away, it still reduces it.

So, choose just one thing to be grateful for. See how you feel!

 (This is my rule-breaking dog, who insists on sleeping on the sofa with her head on a pillow instead of on her doggie bed...)

Jen Hatmaker's "7" - Having and Giving

I’m reading Jen Hatmaker’s book, “7.”

I confess I bought it over a year ago, and I think I might have been a little afraid to read it. It’s about taking a long, hard look at your life, “a call toward Christ-like simplicity and generosity that transcends a social experiment to become a radically better existence.”

From the moment I moved out on my own when I was 18, I have struggled. There has been not enough food, not enough clothing, not enough money… Not enough resources. But as I’m writing this, even though it seemed like “not enough,” God still brought me through. He still provided for me… even when I wasn’t following Him. Even when I turned my back on Him and everything I had been brought up to believe. Even when I did the things I said I would never do.

Even then.

So when I started reading this book last year, I remember thinking, “Oh, no… This is going to tell me I should live like I used to.”

But it doesn’t.

What this does do, however, is inspire me in the supposition that if I give to others, what I have (or don’t have) doesn’t seem that important. If I can share what I have been given with someone less fortunate than me, or maybe even MORE fortunate than me, I will be blessed.

I’m only to the end of Chapter Two.

How radical a thought that someone should go for a whole month only wearing 7 items of clothing! I love pajamas too much, and I would probably opt for wearing them instead of regular clothes. Of course, that would be a little ridiculous for Jen to have done, considering she is a woman’s ministry leader and speaker. She would definitely not wear pj’s out there in public.

It’s really odd reading her book because I kind of feel like I know her. She is one of those women who is REAL. Yes, I said it… REAL. She doesn’t seem to make herself into something that she’s not, and that was completely obvious while watching their renovation show on HGTV. I don’t live “that far” from Austin, and I thought about how cool it would be to drive down and go to their church some Sunday morning.

I think, if people would admit it, we are all looking for “real.” We put on these false pretenses, trying to be someone we aren’t to impress others. However, we, ourselves, are looking for truth, something real, even if we aren’t acting like who we are.

I'm glad that Jesus came for me. I'm grateful He came for you! He sees something in us that cannot be seen by other human beings.

He sees our hearts, and He loves us, rejoices with us, holds us in our sorrows and dark places. He has a plan for our lives that goes beyond anything we can imagine, or even hope for. Believing these promises is the only thing that got me through many dark times when I thought I was alone and forgotten.

"For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.” (Zephaniah 3:17)

There are many people in our world who are living in darkness and thinking they, too, are forgotten. What if we believed that we are the hands and feet of Jesus and acted like it? What if we were the "REAL" that God wants us to be?

I feel like I am sounding like a broken record, but I think we could change the world. 

One person at a time.

A Day with Mom

I spent yesterday in Oklahoma City with my mother. She drove 3 hours, and I drove 3 hours… one way. While that may seem like it was a long way to go to spend less than 5 hours together, it was worth it to me.

We had lunch at a really nice restaurant called Charleston’s. We had soup, salad, and desert. The key lime pie was the best I have ever eaten. YUM!

And then we made our way to the outlet mall. I had one goal in mind: to find some pants at my favorite clothing store. Jackpot! She must have been good luck for me because I always have trouble finding pants I like.

Then, we had to stop at Braum’s and get her a cooler to take my dad some food from Charleston’s. She forgot to take one with her but had 3 in her garage! That really made me laugh.

On the way to take her back to her car in Edmond, we took what we thought was the wrong exit, but when we circled around and came back at it, we found it was actually the right exit. Oh, well! Again, laughing…

I tried to get out of OKC before the traffic really got bad at 5:00, and I made it out with little stop-and-go. Mom missed her exit when she got back to Wichita and had to take the long way home.

Seems like the theme of the day… LOL!

My phone died on the way back to Texas, and I was sure Mom was worried that she couldn’t get a hold of me. I was pretty sure I let her know my phone was running out of power before we parted, but I hoped so. I called her right when I got home to let her know I was home.

A whole day of my vacation had passed by, and I spent many hours of it in the car. By the time I got home, my whole body hurt from driving, being in a crosswind and white-knuckling the steering wheel all the way home.

But I had a great time with my mom. It was definitely worth it, and I’m so glad it worked out.

Take the opportunity to spend time with the people you love. You won’t regret it.

Love God, Love People

I haven’t carved out the time to write on my blog for quite a while. Quite frankly, living at this pace has worn me out.

Fortunately, I am on vacation this week! And it has been glorious so far, but the days keep going by too fast. I have so many things I want to do, and this is one of them.

I’ve been thinking about the state the world is in and that there are no “easy” answers. There is a “short” answer, though, that I am attempting to adhere to for my own life.

Love God. Love People.

Isn’t that what Jesus called us to anyway?

“Jesus replied, ‘The most important commandment is this: Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. The second is equally important: Love your neighbor as yourself. No other commandment is greater than these.’” (Mark 12:29-31)

Love God. Love People. While that sounds like a very short answer, it is definitely NOT the easy one.

The year after we moved to Texas was very difficult. Moving here was the wrench called “this has to stop” of the financial chaos that started when we moved to AR three long years before. We truly believed, and still do, that God took us to AR. And it was the place where we were stripped bare… in more ways than one.

We moved to Texas to start over with what we knew.

It’s always a challenge building from the ground up to set up a firm foundation that will withstand the storms of life. And the first year we were here brought many storms. Many.

I look back at those, however, with different eyes than I had while going through them. There are some things that I still don’t understand. There is one situation that is still sensitive to my heart.

My husband is a teacher, and he loves it. It is what he was made for. As we all know, however, teachers don’t always get the best salaries, and they only get paid once a month. That is, especially, a hardship for a teacher with a large family…and only one income.

That summer, our family ran out of staples. Milk. Bread. Peanut Butter. We had no chance of getting any, either. There was absolutely no money. We didn’t even have gas money, which was okay since Jim doesn’t work over the summers. While trying not to ask anyone for anything, I sent a text to a couple of people we went to church with here. I told them our predicament and requested that they pray for us during this time, hoping for some answer. They said they would pray. Another lady I knew from a different situation, all Christ-professing people, asked if we were tithing, and if we weren’t, maybe that’s why we were going through this.

I’m not saying I’m any better than anyone else, but I’m saying that I have learned, through hardship and pain, that if we can help our neighbor, and it’s within our power do it, we should.

“If you can help your neighbor now, don’t say, ‘Come back tomorrow, and then I’ll help you.’” (Proverbs 3:28)

The mentality that God was punishing our family for some reason really made me angry. We tried to do what He asked us to do, uprooting our family from MO to AR; uprooting our family again to TX. And although we were grateful for the hope that moving to TX brought, the truth was our family was hungry.

And there was nothing we could do about it.

So, God did answer our prayer in an odd way, which He seemed to do frequently. Our kids did get some bread, milk, and peanut butter. And we were grateful for how He provided for our family.

I’ve seen and heard so many people who are hurting out there. We, who call ourselves Christ-followers, can speak a short, “Yes, I’ll pray for you,” and go on about our lives without remembering what it was like to be in need. Be assured that there will come a time where you will be in need again. Do you hope that someone will be your answer to prayer? Then, while we are able, we should be someone’s answer.

Everyone in this world has needs, and we are called to be salt and light, displaying the hope in what real love can do.

You might call me a Pollyanna, but I think we can change the world.

It has to start with us. With you. With me.