2013...the end of an era and the beginning of the next chapter

This is the year I put into practice all the wonderful knowledge my dear God has bestowed upon me. I've often thought (as Joyce Meyer puts it) that "we are equipped beyond our level of obedience". This has been true in my life.

As I look at the bookshelves full of wonderful materials, the google reader full of subscriptions to great blogs and the volumes of audios CDs I own....the question is does my life reflect these great concepts.  As I've entered a new relationship this past year I've become acutely aware of something my children taught me.  "Not everything is a lesson opportunity Mom" is something I heard them say regularly.

Through the amazing people and programs God has brought into my life I've come to know myself well.  I know the good, the bad and the ugly!  One of my gifts is teaching so each new lesson I learn I want to share with those I love. One of the best revelations for me in 2012 was that I can intercede through prayer for those people instead.  This is a vital part of caring for people.  I believe that when the 'student is ready, the teacher will appear' so rather than always sharing my new insights with people, not knowing if they are ready to hear, I'll equip myself and have the answers ready when they do ask.  Spreading seeds of hope via blogging and social media is a great way to expel these new thoughts as I own them.

I also know who's I am.  I was on a quest in 2012 to understand what a surrendered life looked like.  I found this to be one of the most difficult of all questions to answer.  How do we practically live out our faith in a world that is bent on self actualization?

Woe to those who go to great depths

    to hide their plans from the Lord,

who do their work in darkness and think,

    “Who sees us? Who will know?”

¹⁶ 

You turn things upside down,

    as if the potter were thought to be like the clay!

Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it,

    “You did not make me”?

Can the pot say to the potter,

    “You know nothing”? Isaiah 29:15-16

I have voluntarily put myself back on the Potter's wheel daily last year to try to understand how to incorporate God in every area of my life.  I know the messes I can make when I'm leading and truly want to become all that He intended me to be because His plan is so much better than anything I could come up with!

I started reading My Utmost for His Highest Devotional last year and enjoyed the challenges it presented.  Today's message sums it up best for me:

1. My Utmost for His Highest. “. . . my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed . . . .” We will all feel very much ashamed if we do not yield to Jesus the areas of our lives He has asked us to yield to Him. It’s as if Paul were saying, “My determined purpose is to be my utmost for His highest— my best for His glory.” To reach that level of determination is a matter of the will, not of debate or of reasoning. It is absolute and irrevocable surrender of the will at that point. An undue amount of thought and consideration for ourselves is what keeps us from making that decision, although we cover it up with the pretense that it is others we are considering. When we think seriously about what it will cost others if we obey the call of Jesus, we tell God He doesn’t know what our obedience will mean. Keep to the point— He does know. Shut out every other thought and keep yourself before God in this one thing only— my utmost for His highest. I am determined to be absolutely and entirely for Him and Him alone.
2. My Unstoppable Determination for His Holiness. “Whether it means life or death-it makes no difference!” (see Philippians 1:21). Paul was determined that nothing would stop him from doing exactly what God wanted. But before we choose to follow God’s will, a crisis must develop in our lives. This happens because we tend to be unresponsive to God’s gentler nudges. He brings us to the place where He asks us to be our utmost for Him and we begin to debate. He then providentially produces a crisis where we have to decide— for or against. That moment becomes a great crossroads in our lives. If a crisis has come to you on any front, surrender your will to Jesus absolutely and irrevocably.

The crisis is over, a 10 year journey of separation, divorce, going back to work full time from consulting part-time, multiple moves including major scaling down, launching a new business, raising 5 teenagers and encouraging them to pursue God's will for their lives, welcoming three new son-in-laws and a grand baby into the family!  I'm exhausted just writing that list :-)!

Most of all God has been faithfully providing for and guiding me and my family each step of the way.  I am so extremely excited about this new year as I walk out the knowledge God has given me and allow Him to develop the discipline I need to carry my responsibilities to fruition.  Prayerfully, I will intercede for those I love and ask for the wisdom necessary to lead where He places me.

Confidence - Believing in yourself

As a parent of five incredible kid-adults I am reminded regularly how tough it is being a teenager. In the past few weeks I've witnessed my oldest daughter share her testimony during her baptism, her and her husband purchase their first house, my son's soccer team loose in the final game and my other son's volleyball team win an important tournament. All those events caused me to watch and listen to the people around each arena.

Watching teenage boys participate in their favourite sports and interacting with other parents is a privilege. While neither are the stars of their teams they both contribute their best. They set the example of good sportsmanship and cheer on their teammates. The soccer team has struggled with a few players lack of self-control to the detriment of the entire teams' performance and yet a few boys kept encouraging them towards a better attitude. The volleyball team on the other hand, has such camaraderie that the entire bench stood together, arms around each others necks cheering on the starters!

My daughter and son-in-law have walked out their first two years of marriage very well and grown together. Spending a weekend with them, observing them leading Jr. High youth at their church (and yes I joined in and played dodge ball) it struck me how mature they are and what great examples they set. They purchased their first home, with confidence. She shared some of her expectations, struggles, and victory in front of her new church family and showed how real she is. I am very thankful for her authenticity and commitment to personal growth.

I am reflective of these events because we had a sermon today on parent/teenager relationships and on both sides of the equation it was about love, respect and responsibility. As we strive to raise children to become positive, contributing members of society, we must first look at the example we set and be real enough to admit that we have dreams, struggles, and victories too! We are put in families/communities to help each other learn about ourselves and become who we are meant to be.

Witnessing my eldest daughter's baptism reminded me that all the driving, cheering at sporting events, discussions and late nights were worth every bit of effort and the rewards are eternal!

Enjoy this video:

The Gift of Encouragement

I look back over my life and can name the various "Balcony People" that have influenced me in a profound way. We all need encouragement;

"As a boy he worked long hours in a factory in Naples. He longed to be a singer, and when he was only ten years old, he had his first voice lesson. "You can't sing. You haven't any voice at all. Your voice sounds like the wind in the shutters," his teacher said.

The boy's mother, however, disagreed. She believed that he had a talent to sing. Though very poor, putting her arms around him, she said, "My boy, I am going to make every sacrifice to pay for your voice lessons."

Her confidence in him and constant encouragement paid off. That boy became one of the world's greatest singers—Enrico Caruso!We all need encouragement!

We all—including, and especially our children—need someone to believe in us."
excerpt from Daily Encounter...the Gift of Encouragement