Twists and Turns of Life

Life can take twists and turns that you don’t imagine would ever happen to you. It is hard to think that things will be so difficult. The Lord gives us the desires of our heart, after all, as in Psalm 37:4, Psalm 20:4, and Jeremiah 29:11, so when your dreams turn out miserably, what can you do? Is God rejecting your desires and dreams, pointing you in a new direction, or…?

You simply put one foot in front of the other, trusting in the Lord to provide and guide. And He does – in ways you can’t even perceive unless you’ve learned to be completely dependent on Him, and that is a process that begins anew each day.

After a particularly difficult run of circumstances, job loss then extended unemployment for my husband who was the sole bread winner for our family in the early 2000’s followed by foreclosure, some compared us to Job, suffering what seemed to the outside world like one attack after another. What they didn’t see were the dark moments of doubt and fear, the times of impatience and bewilderment when we cried out “Why us, Lord?” We were blessed to have the Holy Spirit guide us back to confidence in the Lord via His Word. Those moments of questioning turned into simple faith and trust as we realized that the Lord had not forsaken us, but had, in fact, taken precious care of us.

Others told us what an example of patient faith we were. I always pointed out to them the times of doubt and insecurity that they didn’t see because it happened in the middle of the night when others were resting but sleep eluded. Nevertheless, with the dawn comes renewed hope because the Lord had so graciously blessed us with His loving care. So often, when we didn’t have even an idea of how to get through a tough spot, the Lord worked through others to bless us in unimaginable ways. When others wanted to point to us as an example of patient hope and faith, I instead gave the credit to the Lord for it is He who has pulled us through. Were it left up to our own miserable selves, we would not be where we are now. He lifts us up, sustains us, bolsters our faith and gives us hope and courage.

There were so many lessons we learned that I pray we will always remember. I pray we will always have compassion for others as they encounter their steep and rocky paths. I pray that we will be moved to help in material and spiritual ways as the Holy Spirit prompts us to be the hands and feet of God. And I pray that we will always remember that it is to the Lord’s complete credit that we made it through. I often think of that poem “Footprints.” The Lord carried us and sustained us. Like the Good Shepherd that He is, He put us on His shoulders for that time and walked us through to a smoother part of life’s journey for a while.

Things didn’t exactly turn out as expected, however. Our family was torn asunder by divorce, and that was another unexpected turn to life with repercussions we still deal with, and more opportunities to trust in the Lord. I have learned that life isn’t always as you imagine it will be, and that’s ok.

One part of life segues into another, and there is happiness and joy that can be found along the way. It really is a matter of attitude, which I’ll talk about in next week’s post.

Thank you, Lord, for Your shepherding of my family.

Amen.

Are busy people more productive?

Reviewing some previous articles brought back (mostly) lovely memories.

I suppose like a lot of writers, I bleed over my work which is probably unnecessary. I search for the perfect words to convey my meaning, and still sometimes it doesn’t come out like I wanted it to. I really must learn to relax about it a little more. I’ve also rediscovered, as I’ve known for some time, that I often get more done when I am busy than when I am not. I guess I manage my time better during those times.

I wrote about this in an article called “Analysis Paralysis.”

Anyone taking a cursory glance at my day-timer this past month would have seen a wild riot of colors and activities and probably would have surmised that by now, at month’s end, I am running near empty. And that assumption would be correct.

At times like these, when things slow again, I do my usual reassessment of how to manage my time. I hope you won’t mind me sharing with you some of my thoughts on that.

Luke 10:41-42 is a vivid reminder that as we fill our days, and day-timers with activities, there is only “one thing needed.” Focusing on the Lord by daily drinking in His Word, praying, and seeking His forgiveness are the first items I should be penciling in. These are things that keep me on track with the other responsibilities I have and give me the fuel to carry through my days with His grace. Matthew 14:23 emphasizes setting aside regular time to be with God as Jesus did. That sounds like great advice!

Our every need has been supplied by our Loving Father as Philippians 4:19 points out. There can be a lot of energy spent on seeing to the needs of our families. What joy it is to have someone to exhort you to remember that God has already done that. (Matthew 10:27-31, Jeremiah 29:11, Psalm 31:15.) I love my various vocations. My prayer each morning is that I am a loving example of a redeemed sinner who, with the help of the Holy Spirit, relies upon God for her every need.

The Lord fills me up with His peace (Colossians 1:19-23, 2 Thessalonians 3:16), His love (John 3:16-17, Romans 5:8, 1 John 2:2) His mercy (1 Chronicles 16:34, Psalm 118:1) and His forgiveness (Ephesians 1:7-10, Colossians 1:13-14) so that I can tackle whatever He has placed before me. Does that mean my calendar will have more white space next month? Not necessarily. But it does mean that as I go about doing those things, He is always with me (Matthew 28:20).

The Journey Begins

Segue.  You may ask why such a weird name for my blog. First, I love the way it sounds as you speak that word.  I love that it is spelled so succinctly. And, as I’ve learned in my life, we are never stagnant in one stage or experience. Life goes on and we segue into the next adventure, the next part of learning and living that we need to do. 

So, as I segue from making a dream into a reality, I will share that journey here. Much can be learned and shared from our experiences so that it is easier for the ones who come after us.

For several years I've been occasionally dreaming about gathering some of my leadership articles and making the collection of them into a book that would be a tool for homeschool support group leaders as many have nudged me to do.

Today I met with a man who taught me how to bring together the writing of the book with the practical business side of self-publishing.  My brain is a bit overloaded.  After a while I didn't even know what to inquire about because I had so many new thoughts and processes to keep my brain’s pistons firing and I felt like I needed to make certain that energy was captured in thought for later expansion and usefulness.

I've got some reading to do, some research to do, some editing to do and some more writing to do. But it is do-able, and do-able in a timeline that seems short, but really is acceptable and can be accomplished.

I’ll check in here from time to time to let you know how all of it is going, how well it works with a mom who is already working three jobs and still homeschooling her 13-year old daughter, and involved in political groups, and my church.  I’m a new Grammy, too, with two daughters who both have been married in the last two years. Life is busy, and full, and rich with blessings.

But I feel as if I've been pressed into duty with an assignment to complete now that all this information is available for me to deliberate on and to ACT on.  Those who know me know how I feel about deadlines. Join me in prayer if you wish, as I discipline myself to set those goals (deadlines) and not allow other things to take my goals away or push them out.  Steadfastness.  Segueing into new habits and resisting old bad ones.