An Unlikely Friendship

This post was originally published on November 17, 2011. While on family

vacation I am reposting some of my favorite previous posts. 

On the way to preschool today, Caedmon and I were discussing the first Thanksgiving. I explained to him how the Pilgrims had moved to North America and how things weren't going well for them. They didn't have enough food, people were getting sick, many had died, and winter was coming. If the Native Americans hadn't helped them out, it's possible that all or  most of the Pilgrims could have died that winter.

But, I told Caedmon, the most interesting part is that the Native Americans and Pilgrims weren't really friends. In fact, they were kinda like enemies. They were both really scared of each other, scared that the other might kill them. It was an extremely kind gesture for the Native Americans to offer help to the Pilgrims. Courageously kind.

Caedmon and I talked about how there are some people that we just naturally get along with, like his best-buddy Kaden that he met the first day of preschool this year. As soon as they met, they became inseparable.

But there are other people who we don't naturally get along with. Those are the people it takes courage to be kind to. I prayed for him as we drove that God would help him to have the courage to be kind to someone today, just like the Native Americans were kind to the Pilgrims.

I wonder who is in your life that is difficult for you to love. Thanksgiving is typically a time we think about getting together with people who we love and enjoy. And there's absolutely NOTHING wrong with that. But maybe God wants you to forge an unlikely friendship this week. Maybe there is someone to whom you need to be courageously kind. What is one gesture of kindness (big or small) that you could do for that person this week?

A Masterpiece

This post was originally published on November 12, 2011. While on family

vacation I am reposting some of my favorite previous posts. 

Every night as I put the boys to bed I sing them this song. They both lay there in their bunk beds, sometimes singing along, sometimes being rowdy and not paying attention, sometimes half asleep.

Last night was particularly special as Caedmon was out with Andy so I put Sammy to sleep by himself. Instead of singing to him as he laid in bed, I held him in my arms...his head on my shoulder and arms and legs holding on like a monkey. I love to feel Sammy's love. And to feel him receive my love. It wasn't long ago (only a few months really) that he would squirm to get out of my arms if I ever tried to hold him this way. But now he melts in my arms and loves to be held. As I sang these words over him last night, I prayed that God would allow the meaning to penetrate deep into his soul and that he would know that he truly is a beautiful, priceless masterpiece.

Before you had a name

Or opened up your eyes

Or anyone could recognize your face,

You were being formed so delicate inside.

Secluded in God's safe and hidden place.

With your little tiny hands, and little tiny feet,

And little eyes that shimmer like a pearl.

He breathed in you His song,

and to make it all complete

He brought the masterpiece into the world.

You are a masterpiece.

A new creation He has formed

And you're as soft and fresh as a snowy winter morn.

And I'm so glad that God has given you to me.

Little lamb from God, you are a masterpiece. 

Quiet Time. What's that?

This post was originally published on September 26, 2011. While on family 

vacation I am reposting some of my favorite previous posts. 

Yesterday was an amazing day at South Bay Church! 832 people, 87 first time guests (who turned in connection cards), 12 first time professions of faith. It was such a great day! We kicked off our 40 Days of Purpose Campaign with a new message series called, "What On Earth Am I Here For?" Over the next 40 days, we are challenging every person in our church to read Rick Warren's Purpose Driven Life book and participate in a discussion group throughout the week. I know that God is going to use this season to do an incredible work in individual lives and our church as a whole.

I realize that asking people to find time to spend alone with God every single day for 40 days straight is tough. But the dividends far outweigh the sacrifice, so we just have to be creative and fight to get that time each day. Speaking of having to fight for time alone with God, I thought I'd share with you an excerpt from my journal last Tuesday. See if you can relate! :-)

I feel like I'm out of breath ever morning when I finally have a chance to sit down to read my Bible. Mornings are so busy when you have little ones. It's just now 9 AM and here's how my morning unfolded:

5:30     Alarm - snooze

5:40     Up,  put on work out clothes, notice lights just turned on in the living room but Andy & I are still in the bedroom. Put Sammy back in bed.

5:50     Begin "Insanity" workout

6:10     Sammy comes out again. Put him in pack-in-play with books

6:35     Finish workout. Put away clean laundry. Make bed. Andy showers.

6:45     Shower, get ready. Andy starts breakfast with boys.

7:30     Andy starts his quiet time. I make my breakfast. Distribute vitamins. Change diaper. Clear table.

8:00     Get boys dressed. Comb hair. Brush teeth.

8:15     Play Hungry, Hungry Hippo- 4 rounds

8:25     Get Caedmon's socks on. Finish doing his hair.

8:30     Sit in dark closet with the boys, lightsabers, blankets, and Darth Vader masks

8:35     Caedmon off to preschool with Dad

8:40     Empty dishwasher. Reload with breakfast dishes. Make cup of tea.

8:55     Set Sammy up for room time. Put away puzzle he pulled out in the playroom. Shake my head at the rest of the mess. Clean up a juice spill on the carpet.

9:00     Sit down with tea & Bible trying to still my heart enough to hear from God. The timer is set, though, because Sammy's room time won't last long. So I've gotta hear from God FAST!

How's that for "Be still and know that I am God"?!?! (insert panting & gasping for breath here)

My hat is off to all the moms out there whose mornings look exactly like mine, but then would need to write "Out the door for work". It is not easy, I know!

Prioritizing that time alone with God each day is tricky, but it is what keeps us grounded amidst all the craziness and frantic pace we often live our lives. I am so excited for all of you who are taking this 40 day journey with us...it is going to change our lives!

Preaching to Myself

This post was originally published on August 25, 2011. While on family vacation

I am reposting some of my favorite previous posts. 

May I just be really honest for a moment?

I'm having quite a time with Sammy right now. I think it's regression. Could just be that he's 2 years old. Could be a personality thing. I really don't know for sure, but I think it's adoption related. All I know is that he's not sleeping well, which translates into me not sleeping well.

Last night, for example, he came in our room at 11:15 PM, 11:30 PM, 2 AM, and 5:55 AM, and then he was up for good. His naps are typically short, some days 30 minutes, some an hour, occasionally he'll do a "catch-up" nap for a couple of hours. This regimen has been going on for a year now...sometimes better, sometime worse. He slept really well through the night for a few months, but now we're back.

This is new to me because Caedmon was/is a great sleeper. At least 11 hours straight at night, nice long naps each afternoon. Our mornings used to be such sweet times of cuddles and stories on the couch as he'd walk around that corner with his messy hair and join me under the blanket where I had been reading my Bible.

But now, the last thing in the world I feel like doing when Sammy comes bounding out of his room before 6 AM is give him a hug. I feel so frustrated because I can't force him to sleep and I don't know how to break the habit of him getting up multiple times a night.

This morning I put Sammy in the pack-n-play in my room when he came in at 6AM. I didn't want to put him back in his bed for fear he'd wake up Caedmon, but I wanted him to rest more. So I just laid there in my bed beside the pack-n-play and spent time praying about the situation, how I was feeling, and how God wanted me to respond. God brought to mind 1 Corinthians 13.

So I preached a sermon to myself from 1 Corinthians 13. Here it is:

Love is patient.

I will love Sammy by being patient with him. Patience is not even required until a situation is challenging. So I will embrace this opportunity as a way to show him how patient love can be.

Love is kind.

My words and responses to Sammy will be kind, even when I don't feel kind in my heart. I can make a choice to give him a hug. I can speak tenderly, instead of harshly. I choose to give grace.

Love does not envy. 

I will not compare Sammy to anyone else. Sammy is special, unique, and one-of-a-kind. Comparison only brings despair and jealousy. I will be thankful for the gift that Sammy is instead of focusing on things I wish I could change. 

Love is not rude.

I will be courteous and respectful of him, realizing that he is a person with real feelings and he notices how I am treating him. I will use my manners when serving him throughout the day, just like I would if another adult was in the room observing me.

Love is not self-seeking.

I will considered Sammy's needs as more important than my own (Philippians 2:3). Even when his needs seem trivial or unwarranted to me, I will choose to lay down "my rights" to serve him.

Love is not easily angered.

I will practice being slow to speak when I feel anger rise up in me. I will seek to understand how Sammy might be feeling in a given situation instead of only seeing it from my point of view.

Love keeps no record of wrongs.

I will forgive. I will choose to let go of the grudge. I will not let a bad night ruin a perfectly good day. I will let my mercies be new every morning.

Love always hopes.

I will remind myself that it will not always be this way. There is hope. There is light at the end of the tunnel. And when he is grown and these days are just a hazy memory, I will miss the smell of his sleepy skin as I carry him back to his room multiple times a night. 

Love always perseveres.

Sammy needs to be assured over and over again every day that we will never leave him. We're in this together and we are 100% committed to him. He needs to feel this, not only from what I say to him (that part's not too difficult), but through my attitudes and responses. I will love Sammy with a NEVER STOPPING, NEVER GIVING UP, UNBREAKING, ALWAYS AND FOREVER LOVE...the way Jesus loves me.

I can't love Sammy this way in my own strength, but I have the Holy Spirit of God in me and I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. The same power that conquered the grave lives in me!

I don't know who in your life you need to apply this to...a spouse, a child, a parent, a friend, a co-worker? I do know that it is God's will for us that we would "Love one another deeply."

Sometimes you have to preach to yourself to remind yourself of the TRUTH that you so deeply believe.

A Tangible Faith

This post was originally published on July 11, 2011. While of family vacation

I am reposting some of my favorite previous posts. 

Yesterday I had a conversation with my friend, Joyce, who is a cancer survivor. A 3 time cancer survivor, actually. The cancer just kept coming back. Her doctor told her recently that she is his only patient to ever survive that. She has been cancer free for 6 glorious years now.

I asked Joyce what faith looked like for her during those dark moments. How did she approach her sickness not knowing whether she would live or die?

The reality is that, when you have a life or death illness, you honestly don't know if it is God's will to heal you in this life or to take you home to give you complete healing in Heaven. We pray for healing. We may claim verses of Scripture that talk about healing. We believe in the God of the Universe who is more than capable of healing. But unless God sends you some type of cosmic email, you really don't know if physical healing is His plan.

So what does faith look like in that moment? Is it my best attempt to believe really really hard that what I want to happen will come true? Is it keeping an optimistic attitude? Is it claiming victory and healing?

I have had my back against the wall in a few situations where I desperately wanted a certain outcome but didn't know the Lord's will. The most recent (and probably painful) of those times has been surrounding the issue of infertility. I don't know whether or not it is God's will to ever give us another biological child. I don't know if I should "keep believing" Him for that, or to close that chapter in my heart.

I don't know what you're faith shaking situation is. We all have them in life. Some promise or desire we'd like to hold on to, but not really knowing what God's will is for us.

Here's what I do:

• I remind myself that God is completely in control and has the power to do whatever He desires. His hands are not tied. 

• I remind myself that His ways and His thoughts are higher, and wiser, and better than my own.

• I pour out my heart to Him, telling Him all about my pain and deepest desires of my heart.

• And then I end each prayer with, "Not my will, but Yours be done."

It is in those moments that my heart remembers my deepest desire is for God's will to be done. No matter how strong my longing for a given outcome may be, I know that if God's not in it then I don't want it.

My faith is in God, not in some promise, desire, or isolated verse of Scripture.

Our God is in Heaven,

He does whatever pleases Him.

Psalm 115:3