the quick change artist

satan is called many things in the Word. i met a young but wise pentecostal preacher on an airplane flying back from atlanta last october who called him a quick change artist. i sat next to him and in the aisle across from us were his wife and baby.  they are canadian but are new in a pastorate in whitehall arkansas of all places! we were talking about many things spiritual - it was a delightful conversation as i chatted mostly with him about their particular denominational beliefs since my granny and papa were not only pentecostal but my granny a preacher! 

we talked about spiritual warfare.  he said satan will tempt you to do something, lure you into sin, make it look so enticing and attractive. then as soon as you've done it, he'll step into the proverbial phone booth, change his clothes, come out as if a different person you won't recognize and then BAM! he'll turn right around, point the finger in your face and say you're so bad, you awful sinner you, you're the worst of the worst! how could you do that! i thought you said you were a christian! 

i'd never quite thot of it that way. what an apt description of how he operates!! of his m.o.  that ole accuser of the brethren, the thief who comes to steal, kill and destroy, the adversary (the devil) who prowls like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour, the liar, the enemy, the one who masquerades as an angel of light, the evil one, the prince of this world, et al.

may the Lord bless this preacher and His family in their ministry here in arkansas, protect them from the quick change artist as they do His will among their flock and community of arkansans, and make us all wise to the wiles of the devil as we fight the spiritual warfare that goes on around us 24/7 (ephesians 6:12).  

isaiah 49:25 is very encouraging as we fight this warfare.  the Lord God tells us plain as day:  

I will contend with the one who contends with you.

surely that includes the contentious enemy, the quick change artist himself.

quiet times

do you believe in grace when it comes to your quiet times? i guess "quiet time" is a phrase from the 1970's but i'm pretty sure it's still bandied about in the 21st century. 

when i was cutting my teeth on the faith as a growing believer in college and beyond, i knew about grace, but i still lived by works. (((now grace without works is dead but that's a whole nuther ball of wax. i'm talking about being free from the law of sin and death that beats you over the head with the shoulds and oughts or else God doesn't love you kind of rules and regs and i'm not talking about never reading His word and never having a qt or studying His Word.)))  i thot "i must read my bible and pray every morning for so many minutes or else.....God will be mad at me, i'll be a bad christian. i won't be successful. i won't be as fruitful." you fill in the blank. i have struggled for years with this one and still do to some extent.

the Word says and i paraphrase "this book of the law shall not depart from you but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do all that is according to what is written in it for then your way will be made prosperous and then you will have success."  it says Jesus "rose up early to go to a quiet place to pray." and "pray without ceasing" and "the Lord inhabits praise."

but have you ever found a place that says from 6 to 7 am, thou shalt study the Word and then pray in the format of ACTS? and if you're married, thou must be praying with thy spouse for part of the time or thou is in sin? Jesus scolded the folks he was around for adding to the Word and for following the traditions of men. i think i've done this for years!

when i do have what you might call a "quiet time" i am always blessed and it is rich to sit still before God with His Word and to pour out my praises and petitions before Him. but i fear telling you how i do it, because i'm afraid you'll think THAT is how it oughtta be done and you'll go right back under the law and feel guilt and shame and the enemy will say to you: see, you don't do it right, you're 2nd class.  

but mostly if i'm honest, i'm afraid to tell you how frequently/infrequently i do it for fear you might judge me and think i'm the 2nd class citizen of the kingdom. and i'm sort of afraid for all the same reasons to know how you do it. now that's just too much fear, don't you think? 

so i'm thinking this:  if you and i are meditating throughout the day on His Word, singing praises and hymns when they come to mind and we're praying without ceasing and as often as possible on a regular basis having more formal sit downs with the Lord, then i'm thinking we're following the "whole counsel of God" (a seminary term my husband taught me, meaning keeping in mind all of His Word, not picking and choosing one verse/passage over another).  

i just don't want you or me to beat ourselves up for something that's made up by man in the form of what someone calls a "quiet time" any more ever again. i rest my case but i hope i can leave it there. 

disputable matters and boundaries

i've written before that my granny (my mama's mama) was a pentecostal preacher. she was so precious to us all and lived until she was 98 1/2 years old, praise the Lord! she says she was the first or one of the first in arkansas to be "filled with the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in tongues."  she was the happiest of believers when i was growing up - she was retired by then -  and she would tell of her days of preaching in arkansas but would always clarify  - she never thought the Word said it was okay for her to have her own church since she was a woman.

for some time granny would tell me that i was like a very clean glass, saved but not filled. like i was clean and put up on the shelf (she said it so many times, i can still see that shelf in her trailer where she lived) but i needed to be filled with the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in tongues. she was worried about the salvation of many of her children and my cousins and others but with me she was worried that i didn't get this filling.  i prayed for quite a long time to receive the gift of tongues. by this time i was in college and i'd studied and i believed that if the Lord wanted to give me the gift, He would but that it was one of the lesser gifts (see 1 corin 12-14).

finally, one day, without knowing anything about paul's discussion of disputable matters (things not worth arguing over between the brethren) (see romans 14) nor anything about boundaries in relationships (see "boundaires" by drs. cloud and townsend) i said granny, you know i love the Lord. you know that i'm a christian. i've prayed for the gift of tongues. the Lord has not given me that gift. please don't mention this to me anymore.

and she never did!

there are some matters that we differ on as believers - let me change that. there are a lot of things we differ on.  some things are not worth discussing. some things certainly aren't worth going over, time and again. some things aren't worth losing a relationship over, are they?  maybe all it takes it a gentle request: please don't ask me that again. or please don't bring that up again because it hurts.  it worked for me that time with granny. and i'm still grateful to my granny that she left it alone.

she also used to sing: why do you bob your hair girl? but that's another story for another blog!

ps: this woulda been my dad's 85th b-day!

a room with a view

from atop the 10th floor at my new office, room #6, i can see due west all the way to pinnacle mountain (i told you i was a spurled {spoiled}). it's an amazing view to say the least.  what a bonus in my new workplace!

but if i had to say what my ultimate view is, that would be a view towards heaven. if i didn't have that hope, then i'd falter many times.  as one of it's ultimate promises, my faith says that i'll spend eternity with God. there's a verse i can't quite put my fingers on (i've been looking this am) that says to encourage one another about heaven to come.

i remember trying to encourage a client with the hope of heaven several years back - that one day all her earthly sufferings would be over -  and instead of being bolstered with courage, she was afraid and appalled. oh, don't say that she said. this on earth, this is where i want to be encouraged. i don't want to think about the after life.  i know another person who is also fearful when thinking about heaven. maybe there are lots of folks like that.  

for some reason it doesn't frighten me, it's an encouragement to me. if i love my office view, what a view to come there'll be! on my "to read" list is the book lotsa folks have already read, alcorn's book on heaven. but i may never get around to reading it - i'd almost rather just know it's there and know God will take care of the rest. 

and rest it will be. that's what i'm looking forward to the most. rest from the suffering, the trials and tribulations, the financial woes, the heartaches, the crying, the constant what's- around-the-corner, what's the next sort of loss or stress. but it's so peaceful and restful when i look out my window from the 10th floor, the beauty of it all, out towards pinnacle and i've been up close and know its beauty as well. 

it reminds me of my view towards The View i can't see but He can and i can rest in that while i wait for that ultimate View.

FYI

someone asked me recently whether i could tell if they're reading my blog or not. like was there a list of addresses or something for those who've been on "catching some z's"......just wanted to letcha know i can't and there'z not!

there'z no record of who, what, when or where! my helper-in-all-things-computer (handsome husband) did put a counter on here that i have to go through gyrations to get to so i know how many people read my blog but it's completely anonymous and i have no idea WHO reads it (and rarely check the #s because of the gyrations).

just thot i'd letcha know.  usually if one person asks a questions, there's otherz who're wondering the same thing! 

btw, if you are reading, THANKS, it's fun for me to write and i enjoy knowing you're reading, even if only occasionally! :)

decorating our nests

we praise God for His creation outside our homes. we're enjoying this beautiful winter. we'll go wild about spring blooms (they're already on the scene!). the coolish summer nites. the great falls we have in arkansas. and all creatures great and small that also enjoy His outdoor creation.

why not praise him for the beautiful world we enjoy inside our homes too? (not saying this is an original idea.)

to treat myself, i bought the feb issue of "house beautiful."  aahhhh. i love to look at pictures in a decorating magazine, get new ideas and just ddddreeeeeamm.

handsome husband and i went to hot springs two saturdays ago to visit and shop in my cuzzins' store i've mentioned before - home again used furniture** (see contact info at end of blog if interested!!) -  and came home with several beloved things in our van which we've used as a truck since we bought it in 1996.

"you're always going to find new things - it's not like you decorate it and it's done. nothing's ever done." annie selke

"for me, decorating is never an exercise in spending money. it's more a quest to get the details right. details give a room soul." carelton varney

i like these two quotes from the magazine. 

settling into our new-to-us home (keeping in mind moth and rust destroy the contents with which we decorate, matthew 6:19) has been a delight as i've shopped for items to add to our new-to-us nest, arranged things in places they've never been before, marked lotsa boxes "garage sale," given some items away and even taken two loads to the city dump!!

**Home Again Used Furniture Etc., Inc
314 Albert Pike   . . .    501.622.6785
HOURS: Tu-Fr 9-5:30 . Sat 10-4
"Not Your Ordinary Used Furniture Store!"

ps:  happy b-day annie!

the first day

distant past...

the first day of kindergarten.

the first day of junior high.

the first day of high school.

the first day of college.

the first day of marriage.

recent past...

the first day in a new-to-us home.

the first day of our empty (or roomier) nest.

the first day on the first new job in 11 years.

that's today.

the f word

growing up i taught my children the "f" word:

FLEXIBLE

sorry to frighten you there. but it's such an important word in the english vocab. 

dictionary.com says this: 1. capable of being bent, usually without breaking; easily bent; 2. susceptible of modification or adaptation; 3. willing or disposed to yield.

it started when the kids were little. we went to visit family in hot springs one day and ended up staying 3 days without any change of clothes, no toothbrush, nothing for a trip overnite to speak of. did we learn the word flexible or what! that was just the beginning. it was a fun memory (to me at least, i think to them, also).

i was to start my job on tuesday this week. now i'm supposed to start friday. flexible.

i bought a skirt on sale. i set the buttons over. it still doesn't fit. what now? sew a dart? return it? flexible.

we wanted a house with a smaller yard. we got a house with 25 trees instead of the 12 we had (but how i DO love my trees) and a backyard the size of a football field! flexible.

we wanted a goodly sized family when we married.  i came from a family of five kids, my husband, four. we had two. flexible.

i want taco bell! i want mcdonald's! we eat at burger king. flexible.

the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control = flexible?? just a thot.  i don't know about you but i'm not very flexible, not much like gumby or pokey but i pray that more and more, as the Day draws near, He'll make me more fruitful and flexible.

the Weaver

back to the recent question my daughter asked me re: why she was so sick, why is a question that will come and go throughout her lifetime, mine and yours.  

there's a song i learned in the 70's from my friend annie that says it quite well. if you haven't heard it, it's worth knowing the words anyway. my handout is inaccessible right now, therefore this is from memory and may not be accurate. i also think there's a 3rd verse. here goes:

my life is like a weaving between my God and me,

i do not choose the colors, He worketh steadily.

sometimes He weaveth sorrow

and I in foolish pride,

forgets He sees the upper

and I the underside.

chorus:

until the loom is silent and the shuttles cease to fly

will God unvail the canvas and explain the reason why

the dark threads are as needful in the skillful Weaver's Hands

as the threads of gold and silver, in the pattern He has planned.

and when each thread is in it's place

and the final plan is known

and God has laid His loom to rest

and called His children home.

until then I won't be afraid

'cause the Lord is by my side

He's the Master of my footsteps

He's the Master of my life

chorus:

until the loom is silent and the shuttles cease to fly

will God unvail the canvas and explain the reason why

the dark threads are as needful in the skillful Weaver's Hands

as the threads of gold and silver

in the pattern He has planned.

yes the dark threads are as needful in the skillful Weaver's Hands,

as the threads of gold and silver

in the pattern He has planned. 

movie review!

my blogs tend to be so serious like me. here's one for fun!

"confessions of a shopaholic." sounds serious but it is a pg movie by disney's buena vista co. now showing at yur local theater. went to see it with my sis and niece in town from hotlanta.

i recommend it! very fun and light! got it all - comedy, drama, romance. huge montage of actors you'll recognize but the main girl (isla fisher) was new to me and did an excellent job.

takes place in NYC, can't beat that. fun, fun, fun.  clothes, clothes, clothes. color, color, color! and GREEN plays a major role in the story! see if you can find out how!

a 12 step meeting thrown in for me but very funny, not serious, i promise.

hurry while tickets last!

you cannot outgive God

throughout my adult life a principle that seems to be demonstrated over and over is this:

you cannot outgive God.

here are a few examples of this, not in any particular order:

***in 2008 i made a casserole for us and gave half to some friends who were in financial need. not long after, as a surprise some friends of ours brought food to us because of fatigue i was experiencing!  you can't outgive God.

***in the 1980's, we worked in a small pca church but didn't make enuf money to make ends meet so humble husband worked as a crossing guard at our son's elementary school. one nite we ordered pizza. as it turns out, we were given the wrong pizza due to a "coincidental" different spelling of the same last name so it was free.   you can't outgive God.

***last week, i was thinking i'd used up my very last precious week of my sabbatical off work caring for my sick daughter but b/o a computer glitch, my start date was delayed a week.  you can't outgive God.

***recently, i passed on some clothes to a friend in need that i wasn't wearing anymore, still in good shape. why should they hang in my closet not in use? shortly afterwards, someone passed on some clothes to me that someone couldn't wear any more which spruced up my stash!  you can't outgive God.

***this story doesn't exactly fit but i must include it here - because it's still fits the theme. last year, someone anonymously mailed us a fifty dollar bill. i was so encouraged about His provision for me, i held on tightly to that envelope and bill and stuck it in my prayer journal. i savored it. i pleasured in the Lord's love for me.  and months later i placed that same bill in an envelope and mailed it anonymously to someone else, keeping that hope in circulation, the hope being much more important than anything i could have spent the money on. (if this person is reading this blog, let's keep it between us, ok?)  you can't outgive God!

God's message to me:  

z, you can't outgive ME 

not that i'm trying, how could i? it's just a clear msg He's wanted me to know. this may not be the lesson He's teaching you. you may not need to know this. His design is to teach each of us differently what each us needs to know. He is intimately acquainted with all our ways and His thoughts towards us are too numerous to count (psalm 139).

the greatest (fun) mom song ever

i just got this from a friend. had to share it with you right now without delay.

you have to listen if you haven't heard it before.

it's here.

hilarious, encouraging and exactly right on re: raising kids! enjoy!

chatty cathy

did you have a chatty cathy doll (mattel, 1959) when you were little? i'm giving away my age here. i did. i LOVED her. you'd pull the string on her back. i don't remember what she'd say (there were 11 phrases accdg to wikipedia) and she was really "neat."

i'm just like her except you don't even have to pull my string, i just talk away. the family i grew up in thinks it's hilarious in a wierd sort of way that i get PAID to listen to people talk.  they just can't imagine i'd shut up a minute and listen to anyone as much as i talk.

there are so many scriptures about the significance of listening. God knows how difficult it is for us. being slow to speak, quick to listen. where words abound, transgressions are unavoidable and such. i have to really pray about my tongue and shush myself at times. sometimes i just talk too much and say too much and at the wrong times.

and if you think about it....how great a listener is God to us? does He butt in? does He interrupt? does He overassert? is His focus all about Him? WOW. He has a still small voice. no chatty cathy there. i'm humbled right now as i write...

(now, it's not that He doesn't like words, He gave us the 66 books of the bible.)

maybe it's the jewish side of me (not trying to stereotype, this is true of me) because i can also be very assertive and that can be an asset or liability. from "my steak isn't cooked the way i'd like it" to "could i have 20% off this please?"  yesterday i was very assertive but in an aggressive sort of way when it came to getting my favorite daughter in to see the doctor today please and last nite i wrote a letter of apology, making a quick amends for how i handled myself. 

oy vay! it's hard to be a chatty cathy!  but God made me and He who began a good work in me will complete it in the day of Christ Jesus. He'll take the good in me and use it and take away the bad in me - from the same type of trait. isn't that great? praise Him from whom all blessings flow and for His mercies that are new every day.

alanon

do you know what alanon is? it is a free support group for family members with loved ones who are alcoholics. i've been attending for over 3 years and it has been a great addition to my life spiritually, emotionally and relationally. once i got past the format of the meetings - "hi, my name is _____" - i really began to love it.

it's not a "religious" program, they like to say, it's a "spiritual" program. it's based on the same principles, the 12 steps, started by two alcoholic men who were christians, if my understanding is correct. these men wrote "the big book" which is the AA bible, if you will. 

but over time, readings and wordings have been changed to "the God of your understanding" and things such as that. however, i have not attended one meeting yet that hasn't closed with the Lord's prayer which i find very interesting.

the 12 steps have been christian-ized by a church in california (rick warren's church - - warren gave the invocation at obama's inauguration) and made into a recovery program you may have heard of called celebrate recovery (CR). i've also attended this and was in a bible study that took us thru the whole 12 steps which was excellent.

it's not necessary to have a family member who is an alcoholic to attend. there are some who come who don't. the principles we look at in meetings are boundaries, detachment from other's problems, self care, obsession with people, places and things, worshipping God not others and a whole lot more. 

there are catchy phrases (slogans) that are very helpful: 

 

how important is it? 

no is a complete sentence. 

the argument starts with my reply.

your business stops at the end of your nose. 

progress not perfection. 

you didn't cause it. you can't cure it. you can't control it.

one day at a time.

think.

SLIP (sobriety loses its priority)

SLIP (serenity loses its priority)

i guess if you were interested in finding out more, you could google it! :)

why?

why is God allowing me to be sick, mama? what's He doing?

this is some version of what my favorite daughter asked the other day.  she's been sick now for about a month. the first time she was sick with bronchitis, sinus infection & pleurisy. that took a coupla visits to the doc and a few tests. the nite the tests came back "lungs clear," she began to run a fever followed on the heals by other symptoms. even her doc was discouraged and surprised at that. today is day 9 of that fever et al.....many serious tests and a coupla ER visits later and the diagnosis please? you have a virus.

the answer to my daughter was something profound like:  God knows, we don't, we'll trust Him.

isn't that what it boils down to, really? i've been a believer since i was 10 years old - thanks be to God - and now i'm 52. haven't come up with much different in lo these many years.

job (i love this man of God) said this: "shall we accept good from God and not trouble?" (job 2:10) and also this:  "tho He slay me, yet will i hope in Him." (job 13:15). amen.

the wisdom of menopause

there's a great bestselling book on menopause entitled "the wisdom of menopause" by dr. christiane northrup (2006).

i was desperate with symptoms last summer and asked my handsome prince who bears all things to check it out of the library for me. i began perusing and taking notes thru the book. i'd heard of it for several years but stubborn me wouldn't take a look-see until i was desperate enuf that i needed HELP!

i found some things to be true for me. i thot i'd share a few things in bullet points (ok, asterisks) like bubbles did on her saturday, jan 31 blog re: the marriage conference. 

when i left work last august a client gave me a pretty green plaque that said:

when i stand before God at the end of my life i would hope that i would have not a single bit of talent left and could say, "i used everything You gave me." erma bombeck 

it was as if my client sensed there were some changes a foot and knew there was more to me than counseling. northrup's ideas made me think that too - that there are other parts of my brain that God's given me that don't have anything to do with counseling. 

when i began blogging in october, i thot: this is what dr. northrup was talking about. i've always wanted to write and so i am. there's other things that i want to do OR YOU MAY WANT TO DO but haven't done yet (the all important yet).

here's some of my fav ideas in the book:

*you're not getting alzheimers, you're rewiring your brain for a whole new way of thinking 

*part of our adaptation to the hormonal changes as our biology focus switches from procreation to personal growth

*it's like the logical side of the brain goes to sleep...to force us to become more intuitive...in tune with emotions and inner wisdom

*problems are signals regarding the need to renegotiate habitual relationship patterns

*begin to....establish an entirely new and exciting relationship with my creativity and vocation

*circuits are being re-wired, circuitry update

*it was a warning coming from deep within my spirit:  "grow...or die."

*voice beckons...explore aspects....dormant during years of caring for, focusing on the needs of others

*(don't laugh at this one) she's preparing to give birth to herself

*diseases of postmenopausal women: heart disease, depression, breast cancer

*bodily symptoms...often contain a message (msg) for us about our lives - if only we can learn to decipher it

*we attract precisely the illness or problem that best facilitates our access to our inner wisdom...your body's msg to you will be in the language that best breaks thru your particular barriers and speaks most specifically to the issues you need to change in your life.  the wisdom of this system is very precise (i love this one!)

*goal: heeding my inner voice, listening to what the illness is trying to teach me

*guilt about doing something we love is always a clue that points to blocked energy (i like this one too)

*correlation between pms and difficult peri-menopause with symptoms can't be ignored

*first half of life, caring for others, birthing others

*second half of life, caring for self, birthing me

*the last, best chance of body's inner wisdom shining light on aspects of a woman's life that needs work (menopause is)

*signals from our mind and body that we have reached a new developmental stage - an opportunity for healing and growth

*underlying susceptibility to distress in the first place....hormonal swings bring that to the surface

*urged biologically to work on yourself (i like this one)

*ASK: what is out of balance that needs to be changed? (she sounds like a shrink)

*no matter what else you do (exercise or take meds) it is your attitude, beliefs and daily thought patterns that have the most effect on your health (this is biblical, setting your mind, etc.)

*if you take hormones, she talks about importance of bio-identicals 

*breakdown to breakthrough

*midlife teaches us a liberating truth - aspects of our lives are simply not under our control (is this true or what????)

*some symptoms are the result of unprocessed and unresolved emotions (yuck, i don't like this one) (ex: upset about adult child, don't sleep well)

*before HRT and SSRI's (antidepressants), we saw women who negotiated the change by closing their door, taking to their beds, leaving the families with the rest of details. months later, many emerged from the chrysalis of depression rejuvenated. (hummm....)

*like all symptoms depression is one way your body's inner wisdom tells you something in life is out of balance

ps:  happy 24th b-day to favorite son, born 59 minutes (and a few years) after his granny's b-day

if it ain't broke, don't fix it

i've been off work for 6 months. i was privileged to take some time off for r and r. i didn't know it but i guess there was some burn out going on with work and i just had lots of other things needing seen to. all that's done now and it's been time to look for work the last several months.

i'd perused thru a book on menopause (see next blog post) and i thot "i'm supposed to do something different in my next job." as i read, i thot: maybe that's part of why i stopped counseling. i'm supposed to do x, y or z.

okay, track with me. next subject but trust me,  i'll relate it back.  i have one precious aunt on my dad's side of the fam in chicago. i asked her in an email recently: "tell me, you're 30 years older than me, tell me all you've learned in those years, what should i do the next 30 of my life differently or the same as you've done? i want to glean wisdom from you. write me a letter please." we've loved one another's written notes and cards thru the years so i was salivating with the request. she wrote back in an email and declined my request but said this:

"if it ain't broke, don't fix it."  

(in the cliche' book, see: leave/let well enuf alone:  do not try to improve matters lest you make them worse. this idea was stated in ancient greek times....)

that was her sage advice.  i wanted more, pages and pages of what she'd learned, but it must've boiled down to this for her.

so i pondered that and in the end, decided doing the same thing - counseling - was indeed what God had planned for me to do work-wise. i'm still holding on to those other ideas and we'll see what comes of those but for now since i've worked as a counselor, psychotherapist, what-have-u imma do that next tuesday.  it wasn't broke, i was just supposed to do some other things for 6 months i reckon.

ps: happy 76 trombones birthday today mama!

the sabbatical ends

She's Gone Oh I, 

I'd better learn how to face it

She's Gone Oh I, 

I'd pay the devil to replace her

She's Gone - what went wrong

Hall and Oates, "She's Gone" (1973)

i promise i'm kidding on the devil part but the wonderful, sabbatical (the "she" in the song) from work is over now after a total of six months!  now, it's

Heigh ho, heigh ho

It's off to work we go

Heigh ho, heigh ho, heigh ho

Disney, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (1937)

it's still part-time, like the last 17 years of work, and for that i am so grateful and still feel very sperled (we like to make up words in our family). see you at the bank when it's time for making that first deposit. i can't wait!  thank you Lord. You've been very, very good to me. (like beisbol)

up to 6's and 7's

denise used a cliche' when she was talking to us - you know i love cliche's! "at sixes and sevens...in disarray or confusion. the term comes from a game of dice in which throwing a six or seven has special significance." she quoted steven brown (also an RTS professor) who said everything that happens to a non-christian is going to happen to a christian so that the world can watch us!!

why?  because when we are at (or up to) sixes and sevens, others will be watching. "we are a visual aid for others to see a God who's really there, who's busy making a great name for Himself." then, she quoted psalm 67  **that He will be gracious to us and cause His face to shine upon us when we're at 6's and 7's and **that He will make His salvation known among all the nations.

when my children were little i somehow decided in my fantasy world that because my husband and i were believers (and did not come from believing families), and because we were praying for them, this would put a hedge of protection around them and my children (and therefore me to an extent) would be exempt from a certain amount of suffering. that has not been the case (to my limited, human way of thinking, tho i heard a speaker say years back: we have no idea how much He has protected us from by His grace and mercy). 

what she said truly ministered to me. i cannot see what others have seen in watching us go through the particular difficulties. but when she said it, i knew it to be true and i will trust the Lord that He knows and denise knows and steven brown knows and other believers know and His Word knows even tho i can't see it.

choosing our children

i enjoyed listening to the wise man's wife as well!

that would be denise, from the marriage conference. i loved this story she told. when her daughter was only four years old, denise was at a very low point, truly a giving-up point. her daughter thought SHE was the mother, instead of denise. after yet another conflict, she placed her daughter in her room and then went to talk with God (this is my interpretation of her story, you must realize, not an exact word for word).

the Lord told her to go back into her daughter's room to whom she had nothing else to say. she had no more ideas, no more tricks up her sleeve. but she obediently went anyway. when she got there, her sweet but stubborn child was lying on her bed under her covers, face peaking out.

out of denise's mouth came what she knew were not her comforting words and could only be the Lord's. "honey, if i lined up all the four year old little girls in our neighborhood and all the four year old little girls in your school, all the four year old little ones in our city and all the four year old little girls all around the whole wide world, i'd still pick YOU as my little girl."

her daughter rushed into her arms, burst into tears and that was the breakthrough that their long tension filled relationship needed. denise even went on to say they NEVER had another fight over who was the mama again.

denise said that her daughter was looking to know who was in charge and how much her mama loved her. did she love her enough to stand up to her, to be in control, to care for her and TO LOVE HER NO MATTER HOW NAUGHTY (my words, not hers) SHE WAS? isn't that just how it is with God? don't we want to know how much He loves us, which He does, no matter what?

i'm looking for the right time to tell my favorite son and my favorite daughter this very thing. i can't wait.

more from dr. richardson

i heard from bubbles that she wrote about the conference on her blog today.

see her blog for more about dr. richardson with multiple bullet points, lots quicker than i'll get to it! she's fast, that bubbles! :)

here she is at:

http://www.bubblesandmoney.blogspot.com/

wise, not sick

we went to a marriage conference this weekend at our church. the speaker, dr. guy richardson is the president of RTS, a seminary in jackson, ms where my husband got his mdiv (master of divinity).

the pres is also a licensed therapist with several lmnop degrees by his name and it was, as our pastor said on sunday morning, a "rich" time of learning.

his wife denise spoke as well and i hope to take my notes and make them succinct for my journal this week because there were so many one-liners to remember.  maybe i'll blog about some of those but one to begin with is this:

those who seek counsel aren't sick, they are WISE.

and then he supported his statement by all sorts of scriptures. he wasn't talking about how Jesus came to save the sick, not the well. that's a different line of thought, also true of course! in this case, he was encouraging us to take advantage of the different levels of counsel - from friends, to older women or men in Christ, all the way to the professional level when needed.

we're not sick, we're wise when we seek counsel. i love it!

movies!!

i LOVE movies. i realized why several years back. it just hit me one day when i was pondering those dear and near who said "z, you're a movie addict!" it rolled so easily off their tongues! the truth came from several sources.....i knew they were right. 

i love stories and i love details. what are movies? detailed stories in short order. i enjoy sitting and listen to my clients' stories too, my friends' stories - anyone's. i'm fascinated by the beginning, the end, and the middle. and for my clients i love to contribute to how things will turn out, teaching all the way.

here's a silly review i sent to my cuz on "frost/nixon" which i didn't want to see but this was one my mama wanted to see. imagine that, she LOVES them too. my cuz said " why not add movie critic to 

your blog?" i do everything my cuzzin sayzzzzzzzzz.

review:

with mama: great

snacks:  great

the movie: entertaining

kept my interest

great acting

subject a bit boring compared to my normal fare

conclusion:  see it!