never too comfortable

A few years ago my husband was approached by a pastor from Anchorage, Alaska.  The man had visited our church here in Montana on a Sunday when my husband had preached the sermon. 

The man asked Matt this question:  Would you consider moving to Alaska, to take over my position of senior pastor when I retire? 

A question like that knocks your feet out from underneath you. 

Early in our marriage Matt and I verbalized to each other that we never want to get so comfortable where we are that we’re unwilling to obey God if he asks us to go somewhere or do something. 

We were comfortable at the time this question came to us.  Excellent church position.  New home.  Tons of amazing friends.  Living close to family.  Kids happy.  Why in the world would we even consider leaving all of that? 

But we laid our lives on the table.  Okay, Lord.  We’ll go if you want us to.  Just say the word. 

We prayed.  We Googled Anchorage.  We watched the Anchorage weather forecasts (65 degrees summer, spring, winter, and fall -ugh).  We prayed some more. 

After a few weeks of agonizing prayer and discussion, we did not feel God calling us to Alaska, so we declined the request.  But we were willing to go. 

We were ready to say yes to God and leave our Montana happiness behind. 

1 John 2:17 says, “…the one who does the will of God lives forever.” 

If God asks you to move or give or speak or do, are you willing to do it, even if it means leaving comfortable?

what makes a person beautiful?

I’m thinking a lot about body image today.   

It could be due to the hour spent at the mall yesterday.  Or maybe because of eating fries, a lot of fries (DQ fry sauce is the bomb!) and then going to try on clothes in front of a full length mirror.  A bad plan.  To say nothing of the fact that I skipped my workout routine again yesterday morning.   

Walking though the “mom” section looking for shirts for camouflage (to cover the stomach that stretched twice to bring two kids into the world) –that’s a little depressing at times. 

Then I talked to the guy who thinks he’s too skinny and in the same afternoon talked to the girl who thinks she’s too fat. 

I know what beautiful is, though.  I saw it last week at a party.  Two of my girlfriends sat close on a couch, one leaned in with her whole body, eyes focused, listening to the deep stuff.  That was beautiful.  An hour later I looked over and saw that same friend still leaned in listening, this time with someone new.  Giving every ounce of her soul, in the middle of a party, to care about people.   

She doesn’t know it, but I sat and watched her for quite a while.  That’s what loveliness does –makes you stop and take a second look.  Makes you want to soak in the view to feed your soul. 

That’s the kind of beautiful I want to be.  I wouldn’t mind so much passing up the young, still-have-a-flat-waist clothes, if I could just be the kind of gorgeous that loves people like I saw my friend loving. 

A woman poured expensive perfume over Jesus' head, and everyone gave her a hard time about it.  He said, “Leave her alone…She has done a beautiful thing to me.”  (Mark 14:6  NIV) 

Beautiful is how you look when you're pouring out love.

managing the to-do list

My friend and I were recently talking about how to manage housework, because that’s what girls talk about.  Mostly we bemoan the housework we don’t accomplish.  She suggested I subscribe to this printable list that only costs $8, and it gives a few detailed tasks to accomplish every day in order to get the job done. 

Sorry friend, but maybe you didn’t realize what a free spirit you were talking to.  My artistic temperament combined with a bit of my strong-willed child left me thinking let someone else make a list for me –are you kidding? 

Fold arms.  Plant feet.  I’ll make my own list! 

Then I was talking to my almost-adult daughter last night who wonders when the overwhelming list of things to do will slow down, and I sadly informed her that the overwhelming list is part of her life now.  (Wasn’t that encouraging?) 

I said, This is how you do it.  You wake up in the morning and make a list.  You get a few of the most important things done on the list, and then you go to bed.  Then you wake up and do the same thing again the next day. 

Oh, and some of the most important things you’ll get done won’t be on your list.   

James 4:13 gives us this guideline for list making.  “You should say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’” 

Often right in the middle of the day God grabs the ballpoint, bends over my list, scratches out a few things I thought were pretty important when I started out in the morning, and writes in something new. 

Usually the name of a person.  Almost always the name of a person.   

My gut reaction is to fold my arms, plant my feet, and say, Hey, what are you doing to my day!  But I’ve learned that God brings one thing to my list that I can’t ever seem to get on there by myself.  Joy. 

How will you respond if God brings a new task into this day that you weren’t planning on doing this morning?

when God does nothing

I’ve observed something recently.  The first time I saw it was when my daughter and her two friends sang the Star Spangled Banner at graduation.  In between some of the phrases they had a significant pause that was striking.  The quiet spaces created anticipation for the soul-stirring harmony to follow. 

I saw it again a few days later, as I watched an exceptional dancer perform on TV.  The judges commented that he wasn’t afraid to create pauses in his performance –still moments when his body stopped moving –moments when nothing happened. 

I used to teach piano lessons, and one of the most difficult lessons I had to teach my beginner students was to pay attention to the rests.  It’s easy to play the music, but it takes an artistic soul to know how valuable the quiet spots are –the lifting of the fingers and allowing quiet for a moment.  It requires self control.   

I always tell my students, the rests seem uncomfortably long, but they’re of equal importance to the notes you play. 

I wonder if the Creator of rhythm and song shows his masterful art most powerfully when he allows a pause before sweeping in with movement that makes us weep with the beauty of it. 

“I wait for the Lord, my soul waits…”  (Psalm 130:5  NIV) 

Wait for it.   

Wait for it. 

I think it’s called faith –what we do when the music and dancing pauses for a time. 

What if, instead of despairing when it seems God is, as Philip Yancey describes, “sitting on his hands”, we hold our breath in anticipation instead?

we forget this is the answer to our problems

A few weeks ago Matt was helping me put away the winter coats for the summer (although there was still snow on the mountains, so I’m not sure what we were thinking) when he said, Hey, look what I found!  And he pulled a $5 bill out of one of the coat pockets. 

Prayer is like that.  This valuable thing that has been with us all along, but we forget we have it. 

I was lying in bed just this morning feeling anxious about something.  Worrying the issue over and over in my mind.  And then I remembered, Oh yeah, I should pray about this.  So I turned all my worries over to the Lord –dumped them on him.  Trusting he’ll take care of them.  Like reaching my hand into a pocket and feeling paper money. 

What have you been trying to handle all by yourself that you need to remember to pray about?