The Struggle

Struggle. To be strenuously engaged in a problem or task.  To exert energy or pressure against a force or mass.  Are you strenuously up against something so daunting that you feel it is a massive struggle?  Do you wrestle with an issue over and over again until you want to just give up and throw down the fight?  I have been there.  And, I’ll bet you have too.

Many of us come up against issues finding the right career, the perfect job, or meaningful work.  Some are fighting finances constantly.  Just when you think you are starting to get ahead, another major expense crops up and eats up your savings. A large number of people battle with health issues – chronic pain, fatigue, heart concerns, COPD/asthma/lung issues, cancer surgeries followed by chemo and/or radiation, major diseases like Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s, Dementia, Alzheimer’s, etc.  Then, there are relationship struggles:  Poor or no communication with the ones we love.  Misunderstandings happen again and again.  Grudges are held for years and years.

It’s painful to be in the struggle.  It is gut wrenching at times.  Horrific situations plague our bodies, our finances, our relationships, our community, and our country.  How do we possibly get past the struggle?  How do we surrender the pain?  Well, there is a place we can go.  His name is Jesus.

So many times, we ask again and again: “Why, Lord, why?”  But, I believe there is a better question.  “How do You, Lord want me to view this situation?”  and “What do You want me to do next?”  So much of our growth as a person comes through struggle.  Adversity teaches us lessons we would never learn if we did not have to struggle.  Is it fun to go through troublesome times?  Absolutely not.  But, that is where our perseverance is honed.  Purified.  Strengthened.  Made complete.

The scriptures say in John 16:33: “I have told you these things, so that in Me (Jesus) you may have peace. In this world you will have tribulation (trouble, trials, distress and frustration);  but be of good cheer (take heart, take courage, be confident, certain, be undaunted), for I have overcome the world.” (AMP)

He has conquered every fear, every anxiety, every disease, every chain, every ounce of hopelessness, every despair, and every enemy has been conquered and is dissolved by His love, His faithfulness, His healing, and His forgiveness.  Every struggle laid in His arms is given a new light.  If only we will surrender.  Lay down the struggle.

Look up.  Help is on the way.

Check out this awesome song/video on Youtube called: “Turn Your Eyes” and sung by Natalie Grant.  It will knock your socks off!!!

 

Home

 

Home is a place where one resides. A house.  An apartment.  A studio. A place where a family lives in a dwelling.  A habitat. A customary environment.  A place of origin.  A homestead.  A place where your heart dwells.

Where is home for you?  Is it a place where you can always go and know you are welcomed?  It is a place where comfort resides?  Love?  Joy?  Some of us were lucky enough to have such a place of warm and wholeness. 

Others, however, did not or does not have that experience.  And, if not, is it a place that you are still searching for?  I hope so.  Read on……..there is a surprise waiting for you!

Home for me is in Ohio where I grew up and will always have very fond memories of living on Acton Rd. where I spent most of my childhood.  Playing “Kick the Can” games each summer night in our neighborhood and having a blast with friends will always live on in my memory.  Catching fireflies, running, laughing……….home!

Canton, Ohio has fond memories too………it is where our brother was born.  And, mom made us dress up in our Sunday clothes and sit on a certain chair in our living room to hold him when he got home from the hospital.   What an amazing memory that is for me!  The awe, the wonder and the joy of a new baby brother!!!  He was so loved and still is!!!  And, the memory of rolling down a grassy noll in the front of that house which when I was 3 years old I thought was a mountain!  When I was older and visited our family home, the hill was about 1 foot high!  Ha! My perspective was certainly different when I was 3 years old!

Then, we moved to Akron, Ohio where many memories reside in my heart!  My baby brother learning to “fly” by falling out of a neighbor’s tree saying: “Look, I can fly!” And, boom!  Down he fell to the ground where I thought he was dead!  Running across the street to get my mom declaring: “He’s dead, he’s dead!” was a very scary moment for a 6 year old!  Luckily, Scott had just knocked the wind out of himself and to this day, is still an excellent pilot!!!  And, Akron is where we got to go to NCR

Columbus, Ohio was where I went to Grade school, Jr High School, High School and College at Ohio State University. I remember walking to school in 3^rd grade and by the time I got home, my mom knew exactly what had happened to me along the way!  Interesting how other mothers informed my mom of my adventures!  Ha!  And, I remember riding the bus or my bicycle to and from classes, working at the Overbrook Pharmacy all during high school and college, and teaching swimming lessons at Olympic Pool, etc, etc.  Home.

Home is also here in KC where I raised my son.  I have lived in the house I raised him in for now 21 years.  It is a place of refuge and comfort.  It has been our anchor.  And, a place of joy!  I hope one day, my son will buy this house and raise his family here. 

Home.  It is definitely where the heart is.  No matter how old I get, my home will always be in these places and with the family God blessed me with.

And finally, there is a Heavenly home that is described in John 14:1-3 where Jesus says:

“Do not let your hearts be afraid.  You believe in Me, believe also in God.  In My Father’s house there are many dwelling places (homes).  If it were not so, I would have told you; for I am going away to prepare a place for you.  And when I go and make ready a place for you, I will come back again and will take you to Myself, that where I am you may be also.”

Doesn’t that sound amazing? The Lord has promised to take those who believe in Him and His forgiving grace to be with Him AFTER this life!  We will always have a home in Him.  But, in the meantime, He still dwells within believers through His Holy Spirit.  That is truly amazing……He makes His home in our hearts……if we believe….if we trust….if we ask for His forgiveness to cleanse from all our mistakes, all our flaws, and all of our past.  He comes to dwell in us.

Home. Have you made your home in His love?  It’s a place of refuge, of comfort, of welcome, of rest, of refreshment.  Every day.  This is the surprise each of us can have, if we choose.

Home.  What memories are triggered for you?  I hope you have many fond memories of family, of faith, of love and of JOY!  And, I hope you will choose to have your home in Christ and ask Him into your heart!!!

Home.  Always.  Forever.

Bridges...

 

Bridges are structures that span and provide passage over a waterway or other obstacle.  It can also be a transitional passage connecting two subjects.  And, third, a bridge can be a metaphorical bridge, for example a way of connecting two people who have differences of opinions or coming to terms with something in your life that has a huge gap for you to cross.

My family comes from a small town in Ohio called Russellville which has a covered bridge for my grandfather’s family called the George Miller Covered Bridge.  It gave us passage across a large creek to get to Grace and George’s farm.  Then, once you drive through the covered bridge you come to another impassible larger creek where a fascinating “rope” bridge spans the air above the creek to get to the house. We would go there as kids and have to cross this bridge for a visit when the creek was too high and washed out the road to get to the house!  And, a generation before me, my grandfather would carry his son, Jack on his back to get over to the house.  This “rope” bridge which was not only high in the air above the ground, but “swings” back and forth as you walk! Can you imagine an adult carrying an adult size person across such a bridge?  You see, Jack had spina bifida and could not walk from the time he was 9 months on.  My grandfather was a very strong and determined man.  He carried Jack every time.

Can you imagine how many bridges my grandparents must have crossed in Jack’s life of 24 years from 1925-1949?  Wheel chairs had not been invented yet, nor could they afford one back then. They bridged many gaps in their life for Jack, but I believe this rope bridge was the most fun!

I loved crossing that bridge once I finally got the courage to start walking across it.  And, when I see a picture of that rope bridge, I realize the Lord was preparing me to cross a different type of bridge after my divorce.  It was a bridge to healing, light, wholeness and love and acceptance.

So, what bridges have you had to cross in your life?  Have they been physical in nature or metaphorical?  Or both?  Picture in your mind where a bridge might be needed in your life now?  Is it a broken relationship?  Or, a bridge to a new job or career?  Or, a new idea that needs to be expressed in your life?   Or, new way of thinking about an old issue?  

Whatever the gap, build a bridge.  Find a way. Start today.  Mend the fence. Walk across to wholeness. Allow yourself to find the healing that is needed.  Offer a helping hand to someone who needs to walk across a bridge to a new life!  Encourage them.  And, go yourself.  GO!  Bridges were meant to be crossed.  They provide a way.  Start the trek.

 

Scattered...

Scattered……

Distributed loosely….disseminated….dispersed….sprinkled…..strewn…..sown….thrown.

When was the last time you scattered grass seed in your yard?  Some of us have a “spreader” to help us disperse the seed evenly, others use a small hand held device that does the same and yet others literally use their bare hands to scatter the seed.

How about your heart? Your life?  Does it feel “scattered?” Are there scattered pieces that you would like to gather?  Or perhaps, that you would like to sprinkle down to the next generation? 

Think about that for a moment.  What would you like to scatter to others?  Do you have interpersonal skills or analytical skills to share and teach those around you?  Do you have the gift of hospitality that you could scatter to others on a regular basis?

Could you sprinkle some happiness to those in your sphere of influence? What about joy? What could you share that would bring you pure joy or give another that type of joy?  A smile? A hug?  A card or letter?  A phone call to someone you have not talked to in a long time?  Pure joy doesn’t cost a lot of money.  It is an intrinsic emotion that is given in an instant like when my son was born.  That was pure joy.  He is pure joy!  And, his life has “scattered” joy into my life ever since he was born!

Will you disseminate love to your family and friends?  How can you disseminate love to all you meet? 

How about sowing seeds of faith to the next generation?  The Bible says in Matthew 17:20: “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, “Move from here to there, and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.”

IF you have faith.  Even a small amount of faith like the size of a mustard seed.  Have you ever seen a mustard seed?  I have a pin that was given to me years ago in BeFriender Training that has a mustard seed encased inside a plastic bubble.  It is SO small.  Faith that small can allow you to move a mountain?  Yes, absolutely it can.

I have witnessed many mountains being moved in my lifetime.  And, I believe it is because I have had faith that gives me courage, love and a sense of peace that passes all understanding as well as a deep abiding joy.  This seed of joy is like a buoyancy that never goes away.  It gathers all the scattered pieces of my life and heart and brings them to a mountain of God. He brings all these scattered seeds together and this relationship brings my life pure joy.

Is my life scattered?  You bet!  Yet, it is a life strewn across almost 65 years and one that I will never regret those scattered parts of my heart.  I would never throw away those scattered parts even when I am broken at times.  I have been lost at other times, yet I am held in the hands of a loving God who takes my scattered, broken life and mends every fracture in my heart and gathers evert seed into something good.

Scattered.  Gathered.  Whole.

Colossus

A co-worker of mine has a huge English Mastiff that he calls Colossus!  What a marvelous name for a dog!  Colossus is anything of enormous size or importance.  And, this dog IS enormous!!!  And, he is beautiful!!!

What in your life is enormous?  Do you have a colossal heart? Do you have a colossal garden? Colossal house? Colossal family?  (Ha! Ha!)

And, think about this: what is gigantic in your life?  Are you large and in charge at work?  Or, at home?  Has your business or career taken off in an enormous way? If so, could you mentor someone at work and share your success to aid another person?

Is your budget colossal?  Then, share it!

Or, are your debts colossal and you wish you could move that gigantic, monumental mountain?  My heart goes out to you as you wade through the enormity of that task to pay things off!

Whichever you have:  a lot or a little, there is always a way to share with someone in need.  And, your gesture could make a colossal impact on someone’s life who may feel less than, unworthy or insignificant.

If you have blessings in your life, would you consider sharing those blessings in a new way?  Would you be willing to make a giant effect on someone else’s life?  If so, how could you do that?  Here are a few ideas:

Encourage a friend whose parent is ailing.

Send a humorous card to someone who just had surgery and is worried about recovery. 

Donate to your favorite charity today all those clothes you will never get into again.

Shovel the driveway of that grouchy neighbor.

Call someone you need to make amends with and talk. 

Offer forgiveness and receive it.

Take an inventory.  What can you part with that could help someone else?

Sort out your garage and donate items to City Union Mission or Center for Grace.

Volunteer to work in a soup kitchen once a month.

Rescue a dog or a cat!

Fix a meal and take it to that single mom and her family.

Take your ninety year old friend to lunch and enjoy their company!

Colossal, huge, enormous, mammoth, mountainous………apply the concept in a new way to impact your home, your work, your neighborhood and/or your community! 

And, if you are the one who needs a colossal miracle in your life, ASK a friend to help, to pray, to be by your side as you consider all the options.  You are NOT alone! 

Then, go BE that miracle to someone else!!!

Whatever it is in your life that seems enormous and too difficult to move, just know that all things are possible with God!

Put your thinking cap on:  What can you do to make a colossal difference in someone else’s life today? 

Think:  Colossus!!  Colossal!!!

One act could be HUGE in someone’s life.

 

Every Single Seed

I Corinthians 3:6

“I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.”

A seed is a source or beginning. A seed is a fertilized plant ovule containing an embryo capable of developing into a new plant.  Seeds collectively grow into flowers, trees, bushes, plants, grain, fruit and vegetables.  A seedling is a young newly developing plant.

If seeds are planted in the ground, what happens?  Do they die?  Are they buried never to be seen again?  No!  As we know, seeds turn into growing, living plants, trees, bushes, etc. that cover the earth in a variety of ways! 

Seeds turn into grain that feeds us.

Seeds turn into beautiful trees that may produce fruit of many flavors. 

Seeds turn into plants with vegetables that sustain us.

Seeds turn into trees that shade us.

Seeds grow in a variety of environments and atmospheres.

Seeds grow in a petry dish.

Seeds grow in a green house.

Seeds grow in the dirt.

Seeds grow into medicine that can heal us.

Isn’t it amazing that God gave us seeds of so many varieties that we have a plethora of growing, living, breathtaking parts of creation all around us every day?  Think about that!  

When was the last time you thanked God for a seed that grew into a luscious tomato that you enjoyed this past summer?  Or when was the last time you paused to be grateful for that shade tree in your backyard? We have so many reasons to give thanks!!!

And, think about the seed dying first.  We dig a hole, lay the seed deep in the earth, water it, fertilize it,  and up comes a tulip, a rose bush, a dogwood tree or a garden!  The seed has to die first, then life comes forth!

A seedling is a young, newly developing plant.  What new “seeds” have been buried in the dirt in your life?  What new plant had to push its way through a whole lot of dirt and soil to show you new growth?  What new growth has come out of that seed planted in your life?  What new “blossoms” have bloomed on your journey called life?  

Think about the awesome process of a seed growing into a plant or tree. It does not just happen overnight!

Yet, did you realize that every single seed has been given to us?  Every single seed has been planted for a reason.  Every single seed will grow and become an amazing part of creation and/or our heart.  If we let it. 

Another analogy is that we have a “seed” or gift that we can be thankful for every day: The gift of life through God’s Son, Jesus!  He was brought to earth (planted in a way) to teach us a million different things like love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, but most of all forgiveness!  

Then, He died.  He was buried.  (Just like a seed.) And, the BEST part is that He rose from the dead and gives us NEW life every day!

What seeds are you cultivating???  Will you allow your heart to grow in the fruits of the Spirit?  Check out Galatians 5:22-23 and choose one “seed” you will grow or cultivate this year!  I choose JOY!  Imagine that!

Avoidance

 

Matthew 18:21

“Then, Peter came up to Him and said, Lord, how many times may my brother sin against me and I forgive him and let it go?  As many as seven times?”

 

Avoidance……not a subject many people talk about, but many of us do on a daily basis!

What do you avoid?  Evade? Dodge? Put off?  I am not talking about procrastination – putting something off until later.  I am talking about avoiding a major issue, controversy and/or topic that needs to be addressed.

Our country is facing many topics that need to be addressed!!!  This is not a political argument I am trying to start.  This is reality.  So how do we start?  How do we address things that are very, very uncomfortable and heartbreaking?

I believe the definition of Acceptance which I learned from Al-Anon is one key factor.  I learned that acceptance is simple acknowledgement.  Without blame, without shame, without guilt and without regret.  It does NOT mean condoning bad behavior such as physical or verbal abuse. 

Rather, acceptance is simply acknowledging that something we really wanted to happen did not.  Or vice versa!  For example:  Divorce.  On the day I got married in 1980, was I planning on getting divorced 20 years later?  Absolutely not!  I was committing to a lifetime of love, or so I thought.  I did NOT want to get divorced, yet it happened and I must accept that it is so.  It still hurts, it still stings, and it still breaks my heart.  But it is reality in my world and my son’s.  We have learned to simply acknowledge that our life is different than what we expected.

So what are you trying to escape from?  Which hard conversation are you avoiding with your spouse, sibling, family member, friend, boss, and/or co-worker about an issue that has been plaguing your relationship for a long time?  How long will you keep away from and/or shun that person, or they shun you?  How long will you keep away from someone who loves you dearly, but you adamantly disagree with?  How long are you willing to be unyielding towards others?  How long to you want to be “right?” (IF you are!)

I have heard of family members who do not talk for 9-10 years over an argument they had.  Some have gone 20-25 years over a divide in philosophy or ideals.  Is it really worth losing a family member or friend because you are not willing to yield and try to understand the opposite side? Why retreat for that long?

If possible, consider the definition of acceptance becoming part of who you are and how you respond.  Simple acknowledgement.  Without blame.  Without shame.  Without guilt.  Without regret.  Then, go and make amends with that person.  Forgiveness is amazing!