As We Step Into This New Day {Sufficient Grace and Matchless Glory}

I may or may not be back later with another post.  It's going to be a long day.   Went to bed last night praying for our sweet friend Jo Ann and her family, and woke up this morning praying for them.

This thought by Scotty Smith seemed so appropriate for the very full day ahead. 

And these verses have been on my heart and in my mind all week.  As we are learning in VBS this week about God's absolute truth, I'm reminded that in the end, that truth is all that matters.  Not just knowing about that truth, but living in it. His words are trustworthy and true.  He is making all things new.  There will be no more tears, no more cancer, no more death, no more mourning or pain...Savior King Jesus has conquered it all.  And for those who have, through His grace and mercy, been called to follow His truth, that is a glorious hope! 

For those who aren't living in that truth through salvation in Jesus Christ, there is no hope.  But there can be.  You can find more information on that hope here or here.

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Update: I rarely update blog posts, but I just felt I had to come back and update this one.  I very hastily posted this this morning in between getting ready, taking Billy to work, getting the kids ready, and packing everything everyone needed to be at church all day for VBS and the funeral. 

In the process of putting something in my bag (a motion that should not at all have caused a problem), I did something to my upper left arm that caused excruciating pain...can't-talk-can-barely-breathe kind of pain.

As some of you know, I spent about 9 months dealing with severe shoulder and upper arm issues on my left side.  I had an injection and six weeks of physical therapy (and lots and lots and lots of prayer!) which worked wonders.  At the beginning of March, I literally could barely move my left arm at all; I had almost no range of motion, and very little strength.  I couldn't lift anything heavier than a loaf of bread with my left arm. I couldn't sleep at night even with pain meds.  It was horrific.

After the injection and PT this spring, I am back to almost full range of motion, I can carry a full pan of food across the room with my left hand, and pain is very rare.  Except this morning.  I was still struggling not to cry when we got to church.

I asked a few people to pray.  We had a full day ahead...VBS crafts all morning, and then a funeral meal to help with before attending the funeral this afternoon, plus an evening full of prep for tomorrow.

It hurt throughout the morning, sometimes worse than others, but never so much that I wasn't able to do what needed to be done.  I limited my mobility quite a bit...partially of necessity, and partially out of caution. As our last group of kids left the craft room, I breathed a quick prayer, "Thank you, Lord, for getting us through the morning...now I really need my arm at full capacity to get through the afternoon." 

From that point on, I was able to do everything I needed to do...lifting, pouring, carrying, stretching...with close to my usual mobility. 

I've been very aware for a long time that God uses pain in my life to remind me of my dependence on Him...of the perfection of His strength in my weakness.  He did it again today. 

I was reminded this evening of the Scotty Smith quote above, and I realized that after having shared it this morning, I really needed to share this update, "for His Matchless Glory".  So thankful for His Sufficient Grace,Compelling Love, and Sovereign Faithfulness always!

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Blogging at Ponderings of an Elect Exile ~ The How and the Why of It (Part 1)

"I don't know how you have time to blog!"  Every time I hear that, I think, "I need to do a post sometime on my blogging process."  It's been one of those posts I just haven't gotten around to, but it keeps rattling around in my brain. :)  When I started the June Blogathon and began brainstorming ideas for it, this was one of the topics on the list.

I've skipped over it more than once this month as I've gone down my list looking for inspiration. And then one day I was searching the web for ways to keep lettuce fresh and I found this post. She has some great pointers on keeping lettuce fresh, and some great ideas for salad, but what excited me most was reading the first few paragraphs, about her blogging process.  Finally, a blogger I can identify with!

I, too, have great intentions. I, too, start posts and then don't get back to them for months. I, too, just feel like writing about certain things on certain days.  (Case in point...I started this one over a week ago and I'm just now getting back to it!)

What I Should Do

I've been reading a lot lately about how to be a "successful" blogger. There are many things I know I "ought" to do:

* Find a "niche" and stick with it.
* Post on a schedule.
* Write shorter posts. :)
* Plan posts in advance.
* Have a Wordpress blog with my own domain name. 

Reality

I've pondered these things a great deal recently, and come to some conclusions about them:

* I'm not a "niche" blogger, period. My personality has always been one that has struggled with fitting into a mold, or limiting myself to one specific option. In some areas, one simply must bite the bullet and "pick one".  I've decided that my blog isn't one of those areas, however.

Ponderings of an Elect Exile will just always have a surprise around the corner. :)  It will probably always contain a rather random mix of recipes, family stories, music, book reviews, photography, homeschool stuff, child protection and other issues, and devotional/Bible study posts.  I've decided that that is "me", and that's okay. :)

I have recently begun a spin-off photo blog, however.  I finally decided that I needed a separate outlet for photos.  I'll still post photos here, but the bulk of them will be found at Documenting Glory.

* I will probably never be great at blogging on a schedule, although I'm working on it.  I really tend to be an "as the mood strikes" blogger, just as I'm an "as the mood strikes" scrapbooker.  As my craft night buddies know, I don't scrapbook chronologically...I scrap what I'm inspired to scrap at the time.  My blogging "process" is much the same.  Two things have helped a bit in this area: (1) my recent addition as a columnist for Homeschool Toolbox, and (2) the 2013 Blogathon. (More about Blogathon around the first of July. :))

*  Writing shorter posts...this one is probably hopeless! :)  I'm just not a girl of few words.  I'm a detail girl. I realized in 10th grade journalism that my dream of being a journalist was never going to happen.  "Just the facts, ma'am" is not my style. (In case you hadn't noticed! ;-))  There are shorter posts here and there, and I'm working on writing a bit more concisely (except during Blogathon, when there is no time to spend trying to figure out how to say the 800 words I just wrote in 500 or less :)),  but for the most part, longer posts are just me.

* Plan (and schedule) posts in advance...Working on this one!  However, I know that even if I get much better at this, there are going to be those days when one of those posts pops into my head...the ones that just won't let go until I sit down and type them...right that very minute.  (Examples: this one, this one, this one, and this one)

* Jury's still out on this one. :)

Case in point for long posts...this one is already way too long and this is only half of it!  So, again, this is going to be "part 1", and part 2 will explain a little of my actual process and then the "why" behind my blogging.

For those still waiting for part 2 of the "Court to ER to 17 Years and Counting" post, it's coming, I promise!! :)  This post was already mostly finished in draft, and my cotton-candy brain just wasn't up to anything else tonight.  Five more days of Blogathon!  Three more days of VBS!  (It's going really well, and I hope to post about it soon.) Tomorrow is going to be an especially long day, so I'm headed to bed.

Tentative (very tentative!) blogging plan for the rest of the week:

Wednesday: Post part 2 of "Court to ER to 17 Years and Counting" or part 2 of this post.
Thursday: Post whichever of the above I don't post on Wednesday. :)
Friday: VBS wrap-up post.
Saturday: Another installment of "God is Truth. Satan Lies."
Sunday: ??? (It's word cloud day for the Blogathon and I just did a word cloud, so I'm not sure if I'll do another, or come up with something different.)
Monday: Blogathon wrap-up post!!

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From Courtroom to ER to 17 Years and Counting...The Very Beginning

We met in court.  Our first date ended in the ER.

I've shared those tidbits about how Billy and I met, and I've been asked to share "the rest of the story."  I've finally decided tonight is the night. :)

Tonight is day 24 of the Blogathon.  I have blogged 23 days straight. I looked at the clock earlier thinking it must be about 8:30. It was 6:15.  In addition to being day 24 of the Blogathon, it is day 1 of VBS.  I am utterly exhausted.  My brain is mush.  But I have not blogged 23 days straight to wimp out 7 days before the end!

So...although I had several other ideas for posts for tonight, they all involved either a great deal of thought or a great deal of photo editing, neither of which my tired eyes, body, or brain can handle at the moment.  

Our story, however...that I can handle. At least the beginning of it. :)

I was a foster care caseworker for the state. (No, that is not what I ever wanted to be when I grew up, and no, that wasn't what I went to school to do.  So how did I get there?  That's a whole different story, which I may get around to sharing someday. :))

Billy was a child abuse investigator for SCAN. (Nope, not what he wanted to be when he grew up, either!) One of my best friends in the office came in one day and said, "There's a new guy working at SCAN.  He's single and cute and seems really nice."   I  wasn't particularly interested. I was the only young, single, unattached female in the office, and people were constantly trying to fix me up.

But a few days later, as I recall, my friend said, "Guess who's coming to court today?"

We walked into the juvenile courtroom and Billy's supervisor made introductions.  She was in collusion with my friend to get us together. We chatted for a bit in between court cases.  He delivered flowers to my office the next day. :)

Our colluding friends arranged a  group bowling excursion for that Friday night...our first official date.  Billy and I were both on call.  Between us we had something like four phones (bag phones...remember those?  Almost nobody in those days had personal cell phones yet; the bag phones for the on-call workers were a big deal.  No more frantically hunting for a pay phone to answer a page.  I think I knew where to find every pay phone in a decent neighborhood...and some not-so-decent-ones...between Little Rock and Fort Smith.) and three pagers.  Sure enough, right in the middle of bowling..."BEEP. BEEP. {pause}BEEP.BEEP.{pause}BEEP.BEEP.

And as much as I truly hate to do it, that is where I am going to leave you hanging tonight, my friends. My eyelids feel like sandpaper, and my back is screaming for bed.

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(You can now read Part 2 here.) 

Sunday Squirrels (and Assorted Other Critters)

This is going to be quick.  Day 23 of Blogathon and the night before VBS.  Need I say more? :)  Got a list a mile long of things I need to do before bed, and I need to get some sleep at some point! 

I carved out a few minutes earlier to sit in the back yard with Billy and enjoy the tiny bit of breeze blowing through the trees.  Our birds were singing and our squirrels were playing and I had some fun with the camera and the tablet taking pics and a bit of video. 

I haven't posted much from the back yard here since I started the photography blog, so I thought perhaps today would be a good day for a critter post.  First, a bit of video of one of our new squirrels. It was literally less than two feet from me in the second video.  In the first one, it wasn't quite sure if that food was safe or if I was going to get him for getting into it.  He ended up sitting there eating seed for probably a good ten minutes.  :)

Well, hello!

Through the tire swing

He was so close I was having to lean back in my chair because my zoom lens wouldn't focus. :)

Love that tail!

Starling taking a bath

Mama Cardinal

Standing her ground. Not much phases her. :)

If you enjoyed these and you haven't already visited my photo blog, please stop by Documenting Glory and check it out!

Exhaustipated!

One of my fellow Blogathon-ers did one of these a few days ago, and I decided to try one myself.  You plug your web site into this site and it makes a word cloud from it.  Pretty cool!  Tonight was the perfect night, as my brain is jello after a very full day. :)  This site has all sorts of options as far as fonts, colors, shapes, etc....it was rather therapeutic to play with without having to fully engage my brain.  One thing I noticed...apparently it cuts off words at an apostrophe...therefore I have entries for "don" and "didn"...which would make me laugh out loud if I weren't entirely too worn out. :) 

Just 8 more days of Blogathon!  I can't believe I have now blogged for 22 days straight!  My plan is to post on July 1 about observations and things I've learned through the Blogathon.  Then I hope to maintain a good level of consistency, but not keep it up daily.  Five days a week would be great. :)

The word "praying" is especially sticking out to me tonight.  We are praying especially for our sweet friend Mrs. Jo Ann and her family.  Her husband, Mr. Gary, passed away last night after a lengthy illness.  We all love Mr. Gary and Mrs. Jo Ann...they have been such a blessing to our family in many ways over the years.  The kids have reminded me every single prayer time for two years to pray for Mr. Gary.  As Mrs. Jo Ann said to me earlier today, "Their prayers for his healing have been answered...he is healed and healthy."  We know that, and we are rejoicing with his family in that, and yet we know that they are going to miss him greatly.  We are going to miss him, too.  I know they would appreciate your prayers for their family as they adjust and grieve.

It's not even 8:00, but I'm going to wrap up the last few things I have to get done tonight, and head to bed.  As Billy would say, I'm "exhaustipated"!

A Different Kind of VBS Prep

Every year about this time, I search back in the archives of my blog for this post.  The circumstances are different every year, but I always need to read it again.  I need the reminders as I'm frantically finishing last-minute VBS craft prep and pre-VBS life prep. :) 

Today I was remembering again how much Daddy loved working in VBS, and the lesson God taught me that last year when he couldn't.  I again pulled up this post from June 2009 and began to read.  I again was convicted, challenged, and encouraged.  I thought I would post again in case anyone else needs a little VBS encouragement right about now. 

VBS Memories

Several weeks ago, during a VBS training session, Lyndel asked us to share VBS memories, either from our own childhoods, or from our experiences as adults as teachers and workers.  I didn’t share, because I couldn’t….I literally had an explosion of VBS memories invade my mind, and had to really focus on just staying “composed”.

My VBS experiences as a child were incredible.  Our church didn’t use a canned “curriculum”…or if they did, it was completely unrecognizable as one by the time they finished with it. :)  My friend Susan’s mom was *the* most creative mom and amazing teacher anywhere…so we always had the *best* VBS classes. :)

The year I remember most vividly was the year we studied the tabernacle.  My dad worked for a corrugated box company at the time, and we had individual corrugated tabernacles, mounted on cardboard bases, for each child.  During the week, as we learned about each part of the tabernacle, we “decorated” our tabernacle…making various pieces out of small boxes, clay, or other materials and carefully positioning them in just the right spots.  We also had a huge “to scale” tabernacle model (also made of corrugated cardboard) in one of the hallways, which we could actually walk through.  I still remember being so awed…that VBS made such an impact on my view of the holiness and glory of God.   I cannot imagine the hours Jenny Oliver, Pam Miller, my parents, and several others put into making that week happen. 

A Privilege and a Blessing
 
My thoughts then jumped to VBS memories as an adult.  *Lots* of memories of things I learned (as a teacher :)) from the character curriculum we used to use.  And then the memory that always pushes its way in when I begin to get stressed about VBS…

When I was growing up, my mom almost always taught in VBS, but my dad, while he was often very involved in the preparation for VBS (i.e. the building of the tabernacle), was always working during the actual week.  When they moved to Fort Smith and joined Oak Cliff, however, he was retired, and one of the things he enjoyed the most was being able to work in VBS each summer, and he worked until he literally could no longer get out of his chair and go.

The year before he died, I was at Mother and Daddy’s house one day, and was at that point when my VBS “to do” list was completely overwhelming.  I was fussing and fuming about all I had to do for VBS, when my dad very quietly said, “I wish I could work in VBS this year.”    I felt like I had been hit between the eyes with a 2x4.   I realized that what I had been looking at as a drudgery…just another thing to eat up my already limited time and energy…was actually a privilege and blessing, and that there are many…those with health issues, like my dad, and working parents…who would love to be able to work in VBS but can’t.  It changed my attitude about VBS that year really quickly.

Worst Year Ever

I was then almost assaulted by another VBS memory…this one a few years later.  It was an odd memory, in that I actually remember almost nothing about that year’s VBS.  A few random things stick out in my mind, but for the most part, that year is a blur.  The week before VBS that year was literally the worst week of my entire life.   An extended family situation had blown up and the fallout had become intensely horrific and personal.  I remember telling a friend “There is no way I can do VBS this year.  How in the world can I go teach Bible School when I can barely function well enough to get out of bed in the morning and make sure everyone has food three times a day?”

But…at that late date, I really had no choice, and I knew that the best thing for the kids was to keep things as normal as possible.  That was the week I literally lived Romans 8:26-27.  I couldn’t pray…I couldn’t form coherent thoughts.  I knew that a couple of close friends were praying for me, but all I could manage was “I can’t do this God…I can’t do it.”  And while I remember very little from that week, I do know this…I got through it.  God carried me through every moment of that week.  My children had a wonderful week of Bible School, and I didn’t once have a meltdown in front of my class (one of my big worries). 

2009

As I sat in that meeting a few weeks ago, I thought of all the things that were worrying me about this year’s VBS…the fact that neither of the two people I usually depend on most are going to be there this year, the rather weak crafts curriculum and my own current creative slump, etc….and suddenly realized God was saying, “I carried you through VBS 2006, don’t you think I can get you through this year as well??”

I started this post days ago, was interrupted, and never got back to it.  Again…I think that was Divine Interruption.  Unfinished posts tend to nag at me, meaning that this post has been on my mind all week.  And again…I needed to be pondering these things.  Over the weekend a health issue I thought was resolved reappeared, knocking me off my feet physically and emotionally.  How in the world would I manage prep day on Saturday…much less a week of VBS??  Monday we were faced with the prospect of no AC in our classroom (and others).  ACK…with 110 heat index predicted??!!

God has shown me throughout this week, again, the truth of 2 Cor. 12:9-10:

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Despite much that has not been smooth “behind the scenes”, my experience in VBS this year has been one of the smoothest ever so far.  I am thankful (most of the time :)) for the opportunity to work in VBS.  I am very thankful for all those who have worked and are working so hard this week to make this an exciting, meaningful experience for my children.   I am extremely thankful for my husband (who volunteered to take over the cooking all week!) and for all the ways he picks  up the slack during weeks like this.  And I am most thankful that God *always* shows Himself faithful to provide *all* that we need for what He has called us to do.  

All That We Need!

I love that last sentence, and I love that God just "happened" to bring two of my favorite verses on that subject to my mind in the last two days:

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

2 Corinthians 9:8 

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us to His own glory and excellence...2 Peter 1:3

Is there something God has called you to do right now about which you need a change in perspective?  He will give all that you need if you are His, and if you trust and obey.  Do you have VBS memories from childhood?  Or as an adult?  I'd love to hear about them in the comments! 


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Nice, Revisited. {God is Truth. Satan Lies.}

"I don't want my kids to be nice."  So says Lori at Everyday Truth in her new series, No More Nice Kids.  Before you start thinking bad things of her...it's not what you think!  She's a Christian mom striving to raise Godly kids.  But God is teaching her that "nice" isn't all its cracked up to be.  Go read her posts.  They are really, really good.

As I've read her posts this week, her words have really resonated with me.  Although her posts on the subject are much more in-depth, I've posted some similar thoughts here previously. I thought I would pull some of those thoughts today as part of the {God is Truth. Satan Lies.} series.  "Be nice," is one of those lies Satan tells, and it's one that well-meaning parents often pass on to their children.

Here are some thoughts I've posted on this in the past, interspersed with some current thoughts: 

"The ethics of Jesus cannot be obeyed or even understood until the life of God has come to the heart of a man or woman in the miracle of the new birth. The righteousness of the law is fulfilled in those who walk in the Spirit. Christ lives again in His redeemed followers the life He lived in Judea, for righteousness can never be divorced from its source, which is Jesus Christ Himself!"

 ~ A. W. Tozer

The truth expressed in this quote is one that I have become more and more convicted about in recent years.  "Righteousness can never be divorced from its source, which is Jesus Christ Himself!"   It's been a bit of a backward lesson for me...one that originally started as a conviction about raising my children, and then morphed into the realization that the best way to raise my children that way is to live it myself.

That conviction was that my goal must not be to raise "nice" children, or "well-behaved" children, or "good" children...but that my goal must be to raise children who are seeking after Him with all their hearts...children who are totally sold out to following Him.   That has been reinforced so many times in the last few years.

 Being "nice" and "good" and "well-behaved"  can all be good things...for children and adults.  But if we...or our children...stop there, we have stopped in dangerous territory. 

"Being good" is not the same thing as being righteous.  And only when we are made righteous through the blood of Christ are we truly saved.  Only when we have His righteousness in us are we able to obey and follow Him as He commands.  Only through our relationship with Him, seeking Him with all our hearts daily, are we able to then live out a life that reflects Christ.  

Romans 3:10 tells us that "There is none righteous, no, not one."

We are told in Isaiah 64:6 that *our* righteousness is as filthy rags.  If we try to "live like Jesus" or "be good" on our own...the end result is filthy rags.  

Just this week I ran across this quote by C. S. Lewis (posted on Facebook by Randy Alcorn)...

C.S. Lewis: "'Niceness'—wholesome, integrated personality—is an excellent thing. …But we must not suppose that even if we succeeded in making everyone nice we should have saved their souls. A world of nice people, content in their own niceness, looking no further, turned away from God, would be just as desperately in need of salvation as a miserable world—and might even be more difficult to save."

In other words, we (and our children) can become so comfortable in our "niceness" that we completely miss the true goal.  "Niceness" is not the goal...for us as adults, for our children, for our neighbors.  The goal is transformation that can only come about by the Holy Spirit in us.  Then we will demonstrate His goodness...and all the things that come with it...through His righteousness in us...

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."

~Galatians 5:22-23

My primary goal is not for my children to excel academically...although I do want them to excel academically. My primary goal is not for my children to be well-behaved in public...although I certainly want them to be well-behaved in public! :) My primary goal is not even first-time obedience with a respectful attitude...although that is a crucial foundation stone and a vital goal.

My primary goal is for my children to love the Lord with all their hearts, souls, minds, and strength. Only if they truly love Him and have a personal walk with Him as not only Savior, but also Lord of their lives, will they truly be the successes that He...and I...want them to be. No matter what they look like on the outside, no matter how intelligent, polite, and "successful" they appear to be...if they haven't given their hearts to Him completely, it is all for naught. 

What are your goals for your children?  For yourself?   I'd love to hear about them in the comments.  

{God is Truth. Satan Lies.} is a new series on Ponderings of an Elect Exile.  You can read more about it here.   


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