He's in the Army now!

Where has the time gone? He was so young, the sweetest boy you could imagine. Then he grew up. Right in front of my eyes, he became a young man. I'm not sure I realized it was happening so quickly, going from boy to obnoxious teenager to young adult. Did I look away for a brief second? Was that when it happened? All I know is that the last 18 years have flown and he's ready to spread his wings and fly. Two weeks ago, he walked across the stage and became a high school graduate. What happened to grades 1-11? Next month on July 16, he will leave for basic training, having chosen to trade college colors for Army green. I am proud, prouder than I ever thought possible of his decision to serve and protect the freedom we cherish.

A part of me is happy.  After almost 40 years with a child in my house, it's time for a little empty nest. I know I'm going to miss him, the sweet goofy kid who knows exactly how to push my buttons, but I know in my heart he's ready to forge ahead and make a life of his own.

Hopefully he has learned the order of things: God, family, friends.  May those lessons guide him as he enters this next chapter of his life.  So when you think of him, say a little prayer, a prayer for wisdom, protection and guidance............

Life is like a cup of coffee......

A few days ago, a friend walked in my office with the words, "Let me give you my 30 second view of life." He proceeded to hold out his cup of coffee and tell me this story. The words are his and hopefully I can do them justice.



In the beginning there is life as we know it. This is the cup of coffee, that fragrant brew some of us love to savor. At this point you are born and become the spoon of cream dropped into the cup of coffee. As you age, you begin to seep into the coffee leaving it different than before you arrived. As the entire cup becomes colored by the cream, your life comes to an end as well.



As I pondered his words, I suddenly found meaning in the story. Will the coffee of life be changed by my exisitence? Will people know by looking at the cup that I made a difference? My prayer is that long after I cease to be part of this life that someone will remember............the change I brought.

What am I going to do with these people?

Exodus 17:1-4 Contemporary English Version

1The Israelites left the desert and moved from one place to another each time the LORD ordered them to. Once they camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for them to drink. 2The people started complaining to Moses, " Give us some water!" Moses replied, " Why are you complaining to me and trying to put the LORD to the test?" 3But the people were thirsty and kept on complaining, " Moses, did you bring us out of Egypt just to let us and our families and our animals die of thirst?" 4Then Moses prayed to the LORD, " What am I going to do with these people? They are about to stone me to death!"

Poor Moses! As I read more of Exodus, I feel sorry for him. Here, he has taken on Pharaoh and brought the Israelites out of bondage and all they do is complain. Really? Would you rather be oppressed by the Egyptians, than to be out of Egypt and moving toward the Promised Land? It seems that might be the case. If I were Moses, I might even be ready to send them back to captivity.

Is this how we are with God? Are we content with our lot in life or do we complain? Is the grass greener in our neighbor's yard? Do we want to grab hold of the worldly things we released when we became His? In our humanness, I see the tendency to do just that. Does the Lord look down on us and say, " What am I going to do with these people?" I think perhaps He does, and it makes Him sad to know that at times He is not enough, when He should be. Sometimes, I can hear His voice whispering in my ear, "What does it take? Am I not all you need?"

What if He truly was enough, all the time, in everything? In this year of being better, I plan to work on relying on Him for all my needs (not just the things I think I can't do). While I will never get it all right, I can be less of a complainer. I'm sure God will appreciate it!

The Year of Being Better........

Okay everyone, don't get grammatical on me since this post is from the heart. Do you ever get the feeling that you could have done better? As a wife, as a mother, as an employee, or even as a Christian? 2010 closed with all those feelings swimming around in my head. I'm not a bad person, but I realized there was so much I could have done better. That said, 2011 is going to be the year of being better.


My prayer is that I will first be a better Christian, pray more, study His Word more, love Him more. I also want to be a better wife, to be kinder, more loving, generous, respectful....all those things that sometimes I am not. I plan to work on this mothering thing, too. To see my children through the eyes of Jesus.....to be respectful, kind and loving, even when I don't feel that way at all. I'm a pretty good employee, but there are things I can improve on and I'm working to be all I can be.


That said, I look back to the first line of the previous paragraph. If I become a better Christian all the other things should follow, right? At least that's my way of thinking. I read a post on a friend's facebook page, a quote from Rick Warren that says, "Every room of your heart not filled with Jesus will be filled with worry". I think it can be said that if those rooms are devoid of Jesus, Satan will have the opportunity to fill it with more than worry! So praying, studying His Word and loving Him more will help fill those rooms with the good things God has to offer. He alone can provide all, even more than we can ever need. So with His divine help, I plan on 2011 being better, better and better!

Christ gives me the strength to face anything. Philipians 4:13 (CEV)