Through the eyes of a child.

I have to share this sweet story with all of you.

We have a tradition in our family that our two sons work for $5.00 per person to buy a gift. They each will buy a $5.00 gift for Pete, their sibling, and one for me. We do this in order to teach them that if they want to give a gift to someone, it will cost them something to get the money to do it.

I usually go with Joshua to help him figure out his money, and Pete goes with Joseph. After Joshua bought his brother his gift, he wanted to get his daddy's gift. I asked him what he would like to buy his daddy, and he said, "I need to find the Jesus stuff." I asked him what he meant by "Jesus stuff." He said that he knew that what his daddy would love the most is something about Jesus. So I told him to ask a worker where he could find the "Jesus stuff." He found a young lady working in the sporting goods section and asked her where he could find some "Jesus stuff" for his daddy's gift. She smiled a big smile and asked what he meant by "Jesus stuff." He quickly responded, "Like books about Jesus, statues, and stuff." She smiled sweetly at him and pointed him to the inspirational book section.

I couldn't help but have a heart smile because of the thought that when Joshua thought about what his daddy loved the most, his thoughts couldn't help but go to JESUS. What a wonderful testimony to the life of his earthly father, and what a beautiful picture of life through the eyes of a child. I couldn't help but think to myself that at the end of it all will people be thinking of me that the thing I loved the most was the "Jesus stuff!"

What about you?

Is Christ the reason for Christmas?

I couldn't help but think today about all the clichés and sayings during Christmas. I read all these pithy little slogans on keeping Jesus in Christmas and the reason for the season, and I wonder why we constantly have to remind ourselves of this if Christmas is for Christ in the first place.

I had just a sick feeling today when I thought about what Christmas really means. I couldn't help but think that if Christmas is REALLY about Jesus and celebrating His birth and who He was, then why in the world do we focus so much of our time, energy, and money on others around us that already know all of this. I wondered why did I buy all the gifts I did and gave them to the people that I love that already know all about Jesus and have opportunities to experience His blessings all year long.

I was convicted in my heart because I should have taken all of my time, energy, and money and gone out into our community and SHOWED Jesus to those who may not have a REAL picture of what Jesus is all about. I'm not saying that buying presents for our loved ones during Christmas is wrong, but what I am saying is that I was convicted about the amount of time that I spent on those around me compared to the time and effort and thought that I put in to those who may not really know Him.

I was out yesterday with a few friends. We went to a restaurant where we gave the young waitress a gift with some scripture on it, and she was taken aback by the gesture. She told us of her current struggles, and we prayed for her and told her that we would be praying for her. I couldn't help but leave that restaurant with a sense of joy because I couldn't help but think that if Jesus were here today, that's what Christmas would be about for Him. He would go to the least of these and give of Himself and all that He had.

I'm asking God to forgive me for missing so many things that I could have done this Christmas and asking Him to help me in the coming year to have my eyes wide open to opportunities that He opens for me. I pray for myself and all the followers of Jesus that we will wake up before time runs out and we miss the opportunities to be light in a dark world.

What's in a dream?

Have you ever had a dream where you woke up, and you’re emotionally disturbed by what you saw and moved by what you dreamt?

Well, last night I had one of those kinds of dreams. My dream was really long - so I won’t bore you with it -but it gave me a view of this world and what’s going on and what’s to come. When I woke up, I was emotionally disturbed and moved by the thought that this world is falling apart, and time is running out for us to be sharing the gospel with those we come in contact with. I wonder how long we really do have before this world passes away.

Regardless of your view on the end times, Pre-tribulation, Mid-tribulation, or Post-tribulation, I think that we can all agree that the signs of the times are more in place now than they have ever been. Even though I don’t really put much stock in the dreams I have, never knowing if it was bad pizza or not, I do have to say that God used that dream to shake me up a bit. I was reminded that time is running out on sharing the gospel with those I love and those whom God brings to my path. Being in Israel this year and seeing with my own eyes the Valley of Armageddon really was a sobering experience. I don’t want to ever forget that my time is limited here, and the opportunities I have are limited and short. I want to live my life with eternity in constant view, and God forgive me for the times that I don’t.

A Miracle Working God!

I was emailing our children’s director today about Joshua, and I couldn’t help but be amazed at what God has done in his life. To look at Joshua today, you wouldn’t be able to really tell that he had anything wrong or that he struggled in any way.

I don’t know if most of you know but Joshua was diagnosed with SIDDS when he was three and a half years old. SIDDS stands for Sensory Integration Dysfunction Disorder. It’s where the brain has problems knowing what to do when multiple senses would come at him at one time. For example, it took Joshua a long time before he could eat multiple textured foods because his brain would get confused with the multiple textures, and it wouldn’t be able to tell his tongue what to do in order to swallow. I had to pull my car over to the side of the road several times while driving in order to do a finger sweep on him to help him because he was choking. He wasn't able to drink water until he was 5 because he would choke due to the water not having any taste or texture. I can remember those potty training days and how I would have to train him in complete darkness because the sensation of having to go potty and the cold toilet on his little bottom and the bright lights of the bathroom where too much for him to handle at one time. He would sit there and say, “I’m occupied, I’m occupied!” Haha! We never really figured out what he meant by that! :) I can remember Pete carrying him in the back yard and having to put him down on the grass to walk without his shoes on and him screaming like he was on fire because the coldness of the grass and the texture of it completely overwhelmed him. I remember his obsession with licking new things. I never really figured out why he would do that, but when he would have a new thing he would lick it. :) Or, the extremely traumatic time we had to get his blood drawn when he was 5, and he kept screaming,” NO! NO! Don’t take my peanuts!!" I thought that the lab tech was going to fall over from laughing! She said that in all her years of drawing blood, she never heard that one! Haha! We did finally figure out, a few years later, what he meant by that. He told me that the little viles that they put your blood in looks like the shape of peanuts. :) Haha! Oh, and I almost forgot. When we did get him diagnosed at three and a half years old, we couldn't understand 90 percent of anything he said. He talked, what we called, Chinese. It was a mix of the sound of a deaf person and the Chinese language. My sweet Joseph memorized what some of the sounds meant and would “interpret” for us. God knew what he was doing when he gave Joshua such an AWESOME big brother. Joseph looks out for and adores his little brother.

Anyway, there are MANY other stories I can share with you, but I say all of these things to say that God works miracles. I remember crying when we found out about him having SIDS and asking myself how in the world will he have a “normal” life with this.

Well, God has been so faithful! Joshua will always have SIDDS, but God is good and has helped him to learn coping skills in order to deal with the multi-sensory problems. Do we serve a miracle working God? YES! My little Joshua is a BRIGHT picture of what an ALL-POWERFUL God can do with the life of one of His precious children! Thank you Jesus that you are and always will be in the business of working miracles and making your glory known among your people, and thank you for helping little Joshua to become all that you have planned for him to be!

I love you Joshua, and mommy is so proud of you for working so hard to be all that you can be!

What's in a name?

I was reading today about Isaiah's sons and how their names meant something in regards to his prophesy to the nation. As I thought about that, I had to laugh. Pete and I deliberately named our boys with the meaning of their names in mind.

Joseph is our first born, and his name is Joseph Aidan. Joseph means, “The Lord shall add,” and Aidan, we thought, meant, “warmth to the home." As I’ve been looking it up, I’ve come to find out that Aidan means, “a little fire." So his name means, “The Lord shall add a little fire!"

I had to laugh when I figured this out because in my mind his name was suppose to be a picture of a nice quiet little fellow, and our family would be one of those little Kodak moment pictures. Haha! God has great sense of humor!

Well, my little Joe is not quiet nor is he the little bit of warmth I thought I was getting! Haha! Instead, he IS my little FIRE! You know why this is so significant to me. It’s because as much as I would complain to God about him being too loud or too hard headed or too boisterous, the one thing that I realized was that he was what I needed in my life. Just as fire is put to gold or silver to refine it, so is fire applied to our lives to bring up the things in our lives that don’t look like Jesus.

God uses our children to turn the fire up and what comes to the surface of our lives is often in need of some refining from the Master Himself. I would often ask God why Joseph was not the quiet little fellow I imagined him to be, and God has told me, it’s because there were and still are some things in “Wendy” that needs a little Joseph to help her be more like Jesus.

So, I’m trying now, on the days when I find myself losing my temper and being short with him or not having patience or not being compassionate, to remember that God OFTEN uses our own children to bring up the stuff hiding under the surface so He can apply the fire and purify it! Thank you Jesus for my sweet Joseph and how you have used him in my life to help me be more like you and how you are working some awesome things in his life to make yourself known to him!

Would you say, Here am I Lord?

I'm reading a book about Isaiah, and I was struck by the hardships that this prophet faced because the people did not listen to him. When Isaiah saw the Lord his response was that he was a man of unclean lips. It struck me today when I really thought about what he meant when he said unclean lips. I thought in the past that Isaiah had recognized that what he spoke was unclean, but today when reading this, I realized that Isaiah meant something much deeper because he recognized that unclean lips are caused by an unclean heart. It's the thought that out of the mouth precedes the intent of the heart. When he saw the Lord in his glory and full of Holiness, he couldn't help but see himself for who he really was and that was an unclean man. Before God ever used Isaiah to minister to the people, he first had to show Isaiah his need for God in his own life. After this, Isaiah's response was, “Here am I Lord, send me". He didn't have to have a discussion with God about being called out like Moses and Jeremiah did. He volunteered to be a servant. God told Isaiah that his ministry would end in seeming failure but that a remnant would survive.

As I thought about this, I wondered to myself. I wonder if God put a want-ad in the paper that read, "Wanted: Servant for a hardhead bunch of people who will mock you and not listen to you. Also, to others around, you will seem like the biggest failure because what you set out to accomplish will not happen. They may accuse you of being a poor communicator and judgmental and will dislike you very much. If anyone is interested in the job, raise your hand and say, 'Here am I, Lord, send me!'"

Wow! Would you volunteer for that? In our success driven society where results are the only thing that matters, I would venture to say that very few would happily accept that position. This really made me think! I wondered to myself how many times had God told me to do something and I obeyed Him but the results were not what "I" expected, and I thought that I had failed Him. I wonder how many times we do what God says and even though it's not what we expected, it is what God intended.

I'm thankful that Isaiah did not cave into the pressure of being liked above being obedient. May we all strive to be faithful to our call from Christ whatever that call may be!

What does God require?

So many times I find myself being pulled in a million different directions. As a pastor's wife, wife, and mother, there are so many "good" things that I can give my time to. People have certain expectations and requirements that they feel like I should do. I find myself playing tug of war with my responsibilities as a wife, mother, and a pastors wife.

I never expected to be a pastors wife, and so I never thought that that would be in my list of things to figure out. :) Pete and I often have conversations on what things that he should do or not do and what things we have to shuffle around or not do so that he can do the things that pull at him.

Whew! I find myself many times asking the question, "What does God REALLY require of us?" What is it that at the end of the day will be important to the one who matters most, God!

It's so hard to know what are the "best" things to give yourself to when you have a family and many other responsibilities. God is teaching me that the most important thing is found right in scripture.

One day, when Pete was having a particularly hard day to handle, God led me to this verse in Micah 6:8. It says, "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."

This verse brings such peace to my heart because it reminds me that doing what God requires of us is not really as complicated as we make it. The thing that pleases Jesus is for us to be just, merciful, and humble before him.  Sometimes that means we have to choose not to do some of the things that others want us to do, and that's ok. If the ways we are serving are sapping all the life out of us and taking away from the time we need to focus on our relationship with Christ, then those things need to go.

This is a constant struggle for me because I LOVE to serve! It's in my spiritual DNA. When God saved me, he gave me a heart to serve, and I get GREAT joy in doing it. But, like with every positive thing in your life, there can be a negative if you don't watch it. For me, it's to be so busy working for God that I lose track of working with God. God is helping me to strike that balance and learn to get my approval from Him. I love Jesus so much, and there is not a day that goes by that when my mind thinks about it, I am not truly amazed that He chose to save me!

Thank you Jesus for loving me and saving me!