Can you hear me singing "The circle of life....and it moves us all..."? I'm having on of those Lion King moments this morning! I had one of those yesterday too when I put my two sons on the middle school bus and high school bus...they are growing up so very quickly. But today I'm having one of those moments as I work on women's ministry "stuff"!
I had the joy this summer of getting to know three girls who just graduated from high school! Taylor D., Taylor E., and Caycee H. were sweet enough to include this old 40 something in their "girl talks" on our youth mission trip. I was hooked! Girls never really outgrow that need to belong, and that they included me endeared me so much to them that I've prayed for them every day since. They've changed my ministry dramatically and helped God renew my calling to women's ministry and girl's ministry! All three are in the process of moving away to college today. I'll miss them terribly and can now think of a million things I wish I'd said to them. Of course, I really only had the privilege of being close to them for about a month and a half, but I wanted to look them all the eyes and say things! I want them to know that they are beautiful, inside and out. I want them to know they are brilliant and talented...all different from each other and everyone else in the world because He planned it that way! I want them to know that college will be the best time of their lives, and the best opportunity to see Him work miracles in their lives! I should have looked them straight in the eyes and made them look at me while I said, "Don't stray from Jesus and church! Find a church that teaches scripture and go...every chance you get! Read and study scripture every single day, preferably before you do anything else! Find someone who is a believer and hold each other accountable for being in His Word! And be involved in mentoring younger girls to trust, love, and live for God every minute! Make your family, your church family, me, but most importantly Jesus proud of your desire to live for Him!" I should have done that, but then again I would have most certainly bawled like a baby and made a fool of both me and them so much so that they would have run so far from church and Jesus that they'd never come back. God is merciful to have kept me from this opportunity! Maybe they will read this and know how much I want and pray for them!
Ironically, today I'm madly working on some writing for our newest girl's Bible study that starts this Sunday! I'm also finishing up some things for a trip to Nashville to lead a women's seminar on prayer at Lifeway. It's the circle of life! Women and girls sail into and out of our lives on a constant basis, providing beautiful opportunities to say those things you should have said to a new "generation". I'm even balancing playing with my own 4 year old daughter as I work on these things, realizing that she is perhaps the most important ministry to a female I'll ever have. I'm newly committed to telling her and any other females I have a audience with these things, the things I should have said to Taylor, Taylor, and Caycee:
YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL, INSIDE AND OUT! YOU ARE BRILLIANT AND TALENTED IN DIFFERENT WAYS FROM ANYONE ELSE, AND HE DID THAT ON PURPOSE! HE WILL USE YOUR UNIQUENESS! DON'T STRAY FROM JESUS, EVEN IF YOU'RE HOLDING ON BY A THREAD. GET INTO HIS WORD EVERY MORNING BEFORE THE CRAZY DAY BEGINS AND LET HIM BE YOUR SANITY AND STRENGTH! GO TO CHURCH EVERY CHANCE YOU GET, AND DO LIFE WITH A FRIEND WHO WILL PRAY FOR YOU, STUDY WITH YOU, AND KEEP YOU ACCOUNTABLE FOR IT!
So there it is! That's why I'm singing that catchy and poignant Lion King song! It's true, and actually biblical I think.
"I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty." Revelation 1:8
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Sunday, August 12, 2012
A Typical Sunday Morning at the Pastor's House
I've said before that this blog is often just a place for me to process things, not necessarily a ministry tool. Today it's possibly both. I'm not sure how well you know your pastor and family, but I try to be as real as possible with those around us. We are not living a fairy tale, and we struggle with the same stuff everyone else struggles with. Today was a hilarious, well now it's hilarious, example.
If you attend church on Sunday morning I wonder if your family has it all together as you get to church? Do you arrive eager to hear from the Father? Does your sweet family sing hymns or worship songs as you drive leisurely to church, arriving early to lovingly chat with those who sit around you each week? If you do, then you should probably stop reading right now! Our church is next door to the Methodist church and they always have the bells ringing on Sunday mornings as I park and walk the children into church. It's the perfect backdrop for a Norman Rockwell painting except that our family isn't quite the Norman Rockwell family! The pastor's family at your church might be different, but our family is barely hanging on to the Holy Spirit as we screech into the parking lot! I'm just going to be honest here! Today was one of those days!
You see, last week was one of those days too so I was pretty excited that no yelling had occurred this morning by 9:15 when I was gently but firmly suggesting we all make our way to the car. (You do realize that the pastor himself was already at church, right? He hasn't driven to church with us in about 21 years. He gets up early, has his quiet time, reads through his sermon, arrives early to pray, and then genuinely enjoys greeting those who arrive early. And honestly, that's just fine with me because it's one less human I have to get out the door on Sunday.) So anyway, Justin even helped buckle his little sister into the car for me. I commented that we were only about 10 minutes later than I'd hoped, so we were doing pretty good for us! We prayed for dad, which we've done every Sunday morning for 14 1/2 years, as I drove. (I don't close my eyes during this prayer!) We were a little late though, so I snagged a close parking spot today rather than parking across the street to allow close spots for the senior adults and visitors. They were on their own today in my book! A few last words to the boys to remind them how to act, take their bibles, don't embarass us, etc., and then they were off. I got out of the minivan and proceeded to take Sarah out of her car seat...then I noticed where we went so wrong! SARAH HAD NO SHOES!! Seriously??? How did all three of us "big kids" miss the fact that she had no shoes on?! She's four years old...how did she miss it?? At this point I had a quick choice to make. For about 1.5 seconds I thought, "Well, we are from Arkansas so would anyone be surprised?" But then I remembered today was the first day Sarah was to attend "big church". I knew pretty quickly that I'd have to high tail it home and get the shoes! Thank you, Jesus, for your sweet mercy in not ordaining a speeding ticket for me this morning! That would have been funny, but not for awhile.
We got back in time for me to run, and I do mean RUN, Sarah to Sunday school and then fly to the sanctuary. I entered, oh so discreetly, just as the announcements were ending and everyone stood for that glorious greeting each other time! Oh how I love that time...for so many reasons! You see, greeting time is kind of like what the Bible says somewhere about love. Greeting time covers over a multitude of the pastor's wives sins! Gives me time to make it to my seat fairly unnoticed.
Remember this if you are ever tempted to say, "That pastor's family is so sickenly perfect! What would they know about REAL life?!" And if I screech into the parking lot in your sight, please don't take it personally! I'm just keeping it real...and giving Blake some serious sermon illustration material!
If you attend church on Sunday morning I wonder if your family has it all together as you get to church? Do you arrive eager to hear from the Father? Does your sweet family sing hymns or worship songs as you drive leisurely to church, arriving early to lovingly chat with those who sit around you each week? If you do, then you should probably stop reading right now! Our church is next door to the Methodist church and they always have the bells ringing on Sunday mornings as I park and walk the children into church. It's the perfect backdrop for a Norman Rockwell painting except that our family isn't quite the Norman Rockwell family! The pastor's family at your church might be different, but our family is barely hanging on to the Holy Spirit as we screech into the parking lot! I'm just going to be honest here! Today was one of those days!
You see, last week was one of those days too so I was pretty excited that no yelling had occurred this morning by 9:15 when I was gently but firmly suggesting we all make our way to the car. (You do realize that the pastor himself was already at church, right? He hasn't driven to church with us in about 21 years. He gets up early, has his quiet time, reads through his sermon, arrives early to pray, and then genuinely enjoys greeting those who arrive early. And honestly, that's just fine with me because it's one less human I have to get out the door on Sunday.) So anyway, Justin even helped buckle his little sister into the car for me. I commented that we were only about 10 minutes later than I'd hoped, so we were doing pretty good for us! We prayed for dad, which we've done every Sunday morning for 14 1/2 years, as I drove. (I don't close my eyes during this prayer!) We were a little late though, so I snagged a close parking spot today rather than parking across the street to allow close spots for the senior adults and visitors. They were on their own today in my book! A few last words to the boys to remind them how to act, take their bibles, don't embarass us, etc., and then they were off. I got out of the minivan and proceeded to take Sarah out of her car seat...then I noticed where we went so wrong! SARAH HAD NO SHOES!! Seriously??? How did all three of us "big kids" miss the fact that she had no shoes on?! She's four years old...how did she miss it?? At this point I had a quick choice to make. For about 1.5 seconds I thought, "Well, we are from Arkansas so would anyone be surprised?" But then I remembered today was the first day Sarah was to attend "big church". I knew pretty quickly that I'd have to high tail it home and get the shoes! Thank you, Jesus, for your sweet mercy in not ordaining a speeding ticket for me this morning! That would have been funny, but not for awhile.
We got back in time for me to run, and I do mean RUN, Sarah to Sunday school and then fly to the sanctuary. I entered, oh so discreetly, just as the announcements were ending and everyone stood for that glorious greeting each other time! Oh how I love that time...for so many reasons! You see, greeting time is kind of like what the Bible says somewhere about love. Greeting time covers over a multitude of the pastor's wives sins! Gives me time to make it to my seat fairly unnoticed.
Remember this if you are ever tempted to say, "That pastor's family is so sickenly perfect! What would they know about REAL life?!" And if I screech into the parking lot in your sight, please don't take it personally! I'm just keeping it real...and giving Blake some serious sermon illustration material!
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Twenty one years of grace
Tomorrow Blake and I will celebrate our 21st anniversary, and I'm wondering where the time went! I swear it was just yesterday that we were holding hands on campus and planning a lifetime of fairytale ministry together! Now we are older, still serving together, and ever aware that life is no fairytale...but God is bigger and more able than we ever gave Him credit for being back then!
Blake is God's biggest gift of grace to me. I'm whiny, rude, mean, grumpy, inconsistent, unorganized, unbalanced, and lousy at laundry on my best days. I hate to clean, I love to sleep late, and I have gained and lost and gained again 20 pounds since our wedding. I'm not well educated or theologically brilliant. In spite of all this, Blake has shown me and continues to show me God's love and unending grace every moment of our 21 years together. He literally has never lost it with me. Too good to be true for sure!
I love you, Dear, and I would follow you to the ends of the earth just to watch what God does through you! You are the best pastor, teacher, writer, father, son, and husband I've ever met! I never could deserve you! Thank you for loving me!
Blake is God's biggest gift of grace to me. I'm whiny, rude, mean, grumpy, inconsistent, unorganized, unbalanced, and lousy at laundry on my best days. I hate to clean, I love to sleep late, and I have gained and lost and gained again 20 pounds since our wedding. I'm not well educated or theologically brilliant. In spite of all this, Blake has shown me and continues to show me God's love and unending grace every moment of our 21 years together. He literally has never lost it with me. Too good to be true for sure!
I love you, Dear, and I would follow you to the ends of the earth just to watch what God does through you! You are the best pastor, teacher, writer, father, son, and husband I've ever met! I never could deserve you! Thank you for loving me!
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