I was thinking today about the song, "I'll Be Home for Christmas." When I moved away from home to attend college and later to relocate to Atlanta this song became one of my favorites. I connected it with going home to that familiar place that I called home. It was a combination of the people and the place. For some reason, I always expected home to be a constant. I don't know why because when you grow-up as a PK (Preacher's Kid), you know changes and moves are inevitable. When my parents moved to south Florida in 2002, home changed for me. That same year my sister and brother-in-law relocated to Atlanta and, bonus for me, they were expecting my first niece. Kids change things and this one definitely changed Christmas for us. My sister would now become the Christmas hostess. I lost a little love for the song during this time because I thought, "I have no home to go home to for Christmas."
We had begun new traditions with the first niece 7 years ago. Then 4 years ago we began even more new traditions with the addition of another niece. My sister had taken on the tradition that my parents had of us inviting the entire family to spend Christmas with us. This wasn't just Christmas Day...it extended to days leading up to and following. That's a lot of family in 1 house!!!!
As I was beginning to settle into the idea of our new traditions, things changed again. My brother-in-law accepted a job in frigid Indiana the beginning of this year, so this meant our Christmas traditions would change again. Now, I will be travelling to Indiana for Christmas.
Even though there have been so many changes, I've rekindled my love for "I'll Be Home for Christmas." Home for me is family. We may be celebrating in a different place this year, but it's the faces of those that I'll be celebrating with that are home for me. I couldn't imagine not spending Christmas with my family. I've been passing down my Christmas traditions to my nieces. The best of all is getting up at 6 to open presents. I try to be kind to adults by getting up earlier to have the coffee made and ready to go...hoping they won't hate me for passing down this tradition, but this is what being home for Christmas means to me.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Refine Me
Proverbs 27:21 "The crucible is for silver and the furnace for gold, and each is tested by the praise accorded him."
Proverbs 17:3 "The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tests hearts."
Refining is the purification process of a substance or form. During the refining process of metals, like gold or silver, heat is used to release the dross (impurities). The purifier will skim these impurities off the top of the pot. The refining process is complete when the refiner looks into the pot and sees his reflection. The final product is identical to the original form.
Trials are the refining process God uses to remove impurities in our lives and make us more like Him. James 1:2-4 says, "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of you faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." I don't know about you, but I've never been in the midst of a trial and thought, "This is GREAT!!!!!" We usually don't view these trials as joyful experiences when we are going through them, but we have to remember that God promises to work all things for good (Romans 8:28). Malachi 3:3 says, "He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord offerings in righteousness." In the refining process of gold and silver, the fire has to reach a certain temperature to release the impurities. However, if the temperature is one degree higher it can damage the metal, so the purifier sits with the fire. God doesn't leave us in the middle of a trial because His ultimate goal with trials isn't to destroy us, but to strengthen us and deepen our faith in Him.
The more pure the gold or silver, the more it is worth. We are worthy & valuable to God, and He uses this refining process to show us how much values us. I've experienced trials in my own life and I haven't enjoyed them when going through them, but I have experienced the benefits that can come from them. THAT gives me hope to endure my current trial! It explains why David prayed in Psalm 26:2, "Examine me, O Lord, and try me; test my mind and heart."
I have adopted the song, Refine Me, by Jennifer Knapp as my prayer to God. The lyrics are:
Proverbs 17:3 "The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tests hearts."
Refining is the purification process of a substance or form. During the refining process of metals, like gold or silver, heat is used to release the dross (impurities). The purifier will skim these impurities off the top of the pot. The refining process is complete when the refiner looks into the pot and sees his reflection. The final product is identical to the original form.
Trials are the refining process God uses to remove impurities in our lives and make us more like Him. James 1:2-4 says, "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of you faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." I don't know about you, but I've never been in the midst of a trial and thought, "This is GREAT!!!!!" We usually don't view these trials as joyful experiences when we are going through them, but we have to remember that God promises to work all things for good (Romans 8:28). Malachi 3:3 says, "He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord offerings in righteousness." In the refining process of gold and silver, the fire has to reach a certain temperature to release the impurities. However, if the temperature is one degree higher it can damage the metal, so the purifier sits with the fire. God doesn't leave us in the middle of a trial because His ultimate goal with trials isn't to destroy us, but to strengthen us and deepen our faith in Him.
The more pure the gold or silver, the more it is worth. We are worthy & valuable to God, and He uses this refining process to show us how much values us. I've experienced trials in my own life and I haven't enjoyed them when going through them, but I have experienced the benefits that can come from them. THAT gives me hope to endure my current trial! It explains why David prayed in Psalm 26:2, "Examine me, O Lord, and try me; test my mind and heart."
I have adopted the song, Refine Me, by Jennifer Knapp as my prayer to God. The lyrics are:
I come into this place
Burning to receive your peace
I come with my own chains
From wars I've fought for my own selfish gain
You're my God and my Father
I've accepted Your Son
But my soul feels so empty now
What have I become?
Lord, come with Your fire
Burn my desires; refine me
Lord, my will has deceived me
Please come and free me
Refine me
My heart can't see
When I only look at me
My soul can't hear
When I only think of my own fears
They are gone in a moment
You're forever the same
Why did I look away from You
How can I speak Your name
Lord, come with Your fire
Burn my desires; refine me
Lord, my will has deceived me
Please come and free me
Come rescue this child
For I long to be reconciled to You
It's all I can do
To give my heart and soul to You
And pray, and pray, oh I will pray
Lord, come with Your fire
Burn my desires; refine me
Lord, my will has deceived me
Please come and free me
Come rescue this child
For I long to be reconciled to You
Refine Me, Refine Me
Refine Me
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Shining Like the Moon
I'm a mix between a city & country girl. I love the city lights. However, I love to be away from all the lights and have the only light be from the light of the moon. Lots of people talk about watching the sun rise over the ocean. While I enjoy the beauty of the sunrise, I'm a little opposite of most people. I like to watch the moon dance on the ocean.
There's a line from the song, "Shine," by Salvador that says, "I want to shine like the moon a reflection of You." As I sat and pondered this line, I realized what a beautiful symbol the moon is of what our lives, as Christians, should look like. The moon is merely reflecting the light from the sun. Just like we should be reflecting The Son!
Proverbs 27:19 "As in water face reflects face, so the heart of man reflects man."
There's a line from the song, "Shine," by Salvador that says, "I want to shine like the moon a reflection of You." As I sat and pondered this line, I realized what a beautiful symbol the moon is of what our lives, as Christians, should look like. The moon is merely reflecting the light from the sun. Just like we should be reflecting The Son!
Proverbs 27:19 "As in water face reflects face, so the heart of man reflects man."
Break Is Over
Sorry it's been so long since I've posted. I had several months where I was moving and allowing God to do some work in my own heart and life. I'm back now; and hopefully, I will be posting a lot more frequently.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Did You Just Need a Doughnut Reaallll Bad?!?!
It's taken me some time to be able to write about this incident, but here goes...
They say most accidents happen less than a mile from home. Well, this was true for me. I had left home stopped at QT to get gas before making my long trek from my home (north of Atlanta) to my office (south of Atlanta). After leaving QT I made my way back out onto the road. I was first in line at the traffic light. I saw the police cruiser pull up to the U-turn lane on the opposite side of the road. The thought popped in my head, "He is going to flip his lights on just as the light turns green, so he can go without waiting on the line of traffic behind me." Now, I thought this, but I didn't think it would really happen! Well, the light turned green and sure enough he flipped on his lights to make his u-turn. So, what's a girl to do? She has to yield to the flashing blue lights!!!! Just as sure as I stopped to allow this police officer to make his u-turn, I was rear-ended by the car behind me!
The nice little police officer that just HAD to make that u-turn saw the accident happen, so he stopped to write up the police report. It took everything within me not to say to him, "So, you really weren't turning your lights on to go on a call?! What?! You just couldn't wait another second longer to get to the Dunkin D0nuts?!" I refrained and was on my merry little way in no time...just with a dent in the back bumper!
So, here's my life lesson: When a police cruiser pulls up to a traffic light be prepared for the lights to go on. You may think he's got a call to answer, but it's really just the call of the doughnut! I'm just sayin...
They say most accidents happen less than a mile from home. Well, this was true for me. I had left home stopped at QT to get gas before making my long trek from my home (north of Atlanta) to my office (south of Atlanta). After leaving QT I made my way back out onto the road. I was first in line at the traffic light. I saw the police cruiser pull up to the U-turn lane on the opposite side of the road. The thought popped in my head, "He is going to flip his lights on just as the light turns green, so he can go without waiting on the line of traffic behind me." Now, I thought this, but I didn't think it would really happen! Well, the light turned green and sure enough he flipped on his lights to make his u-turn. So, what's a girl to do? She has to yield to the flashing blue lights!!!! Just as sure as I stopped to allow this police officer to make his u-turn, I was rear-ended by the car behind me!
The nice little police officer that just HAD to make that u-turn saw the accident happen, so he stopped to write up the police report. It took everything within me not to say to him, "So, you really weren't turning your lights on to go on a call?! What?! You just couldn't wait another second longer to get to the Dunkin D0nuts?!" I refrained and was on my merry little way in no time...just with a dent in the back bumper!
So, here's my life lesson: When a police cruiser pulls up to a traffic light be prepared for the lights to go on. You may think he's got a call to answer, but it's really just the call of the doughnut! I'm just sayin...
Saturday, June 6, 2009
I Am Clay
Isaiah 64:8 "But now, O Lord, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You our Potter; and all we are the work of Your hand."
Several months ago, I went to a pottery shop for an introductory class. As I began to mold my clay, I was reminded that we are clay that is constantly being molded and shaped by our Father's hands.
I will be honest, my first piece didn't look so good. One would think that it wouldn't be THAT hard to make a bowl-like structure when you have something to form it around...YEAH, RIGHT! When I looked at my first piece of work, I saw every imperfection and flaw. I really wanted to just throw it away and say, "Forget it!" The instructor told me not to look at it that way because when it was glazed and fired, it could come out looking really great.
What a great reminder of how God looks at us! Sure, we all have flaws and imperfections, but God doesn't toss us because of them. I put a lot of pressure on myself to not allow my flaws or imperfections show. I view them as weaknesses and I don't want anyone to view me as weak. However, I'm quickly learning that in my weaknesses He is made strong. What I see as horrible imperfections, He sees as areas of my life that, if I choose to live in truth and grace, He can use to bring ultimate glory to Himself! When we allow Him to continue to work on those flaws and imperfections, our lives become a beautiful testimony of His mercy and grace. God doesn't toss us because of our imperfections because He sees the final result and IT is a beautiful piece of work.
Several months ago, I went to a pottery shop for an introductory class. As I began to mold my clay, I was reminded that we are clay that is constantly being molded and shaped by our Father's hands.
I will be honest, my first piece didn't look so good. One would think that it wouldn't be THAT hard to make a bowl-like structure when you have something to form it around...YEAH, RIGHT! When I looked at my first piece of work, I saw every imperfection and flaw. I really wanted to just throw it away and say, "Forget it!" The instructor told me not to look at it that way because when it was glazed and fired, it could come out looking really great.
What a great reminder of how God looks at us! Sure, we all have flaws and imperfections, but God doesn't toss us because of them. I put a lot of pressure on myself to not allow my flaws or imperfections show. I view them as weaknesses and I don't want anyone to view me as weak. However, I'm quickly learning that in my weaknesses He is made strong. What I see as horrible imperfections, He sees as areas of my life that, if I choose to live in truth and grace, He can use to bring ultimate glory to Himself! When we allow Him to continue to work on those flaws and imperfections, our lives become a beautiful testimony of His mercy and grace. God doesn't toss us because of our imperfections because He sees the final result and IT is a beautiful piece of work.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Guard your heart, girl!
"Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." Proverbs 4:23
Our hearts house who we are...our desires. As John Eldredge says in his book, Desire, "Everything that makes life worth living flows from the heart. Intimacy, romance, love. Adventure and meaning and purpose. Courage and sacrifice and joy." No wonder we're told to guard our hearts!
I can't count the number of times that I've been told as a Christian single to "guard my heart" in regards to relationships with the opposite sex. I fully agree that girls do need to guard their hearts in those relationships, but I also think it extends beyond those relationships and beyond applying only to girls!
I think we overlook guarding our hearts with friends because we think we need to share everything with every friend. I had to learn the hard way that every friend can't be trusted with my entire heart. I'm sure that I'm not the only person that has experienced the hurt and pain that comes from a friend when you realize you've trusted them with a part of you/your heart that they couldn't handle. I will admit that it's hard to determine who to share what with without being fake! I finally learned that there are degrees of truth. This has allowed me to be the real me with all my friends, but each friendship has its own level of truth. I have friends who are, what I call, my heart friends. These are the friends that I can bare my soul to and know they can be trusted with that information. Those heart friends were determined over time because character had to be revealed.
It's hard to know to what extent to guard your heart in relationships, but I've found that it's good to land somewhere in the middle of the two extremes of too open and too guarded. I've been both extremes. We all know that when we're too open, pain is inevitable! Being too guarded can be painful, too. It causes us to close ourselves off to what could be really great relationships. I don't think God wants us to live life this way. We were built for relationship with Him and others. Some of my greatest learning lessons have come out of situations where I let the guard down. Those lessons haven't always been painless; but, as someone once told me, "Stretching and growing is always painful." I don't want to be so guarded that I miss out on something that could be really great!
Our hearts house who we are...our desires. As John Eldredge says in his book, Desire, "Everything that makes life worth living flows from the heart. Intimacy, romance, love. Adventure and meaning and purpose. Courage and sacrifice and joy." No wonder we're told to guard our hearts!
I can't count the number of times that I've been told as a Christian single to "guard my heart" in regards to relationships with the opposite sex. I fully agree that girls do need to guard their hearts in those relationships, but I also think it extends beyond those relationships and beyond applying only to girls!
I think we overlook guarding our hearts with friends because we think we need to share everything with every friend. I had to learn the hard way that every friend can't be trusted with my entire heart. I'm sure that I'm not the only person that has experienced the hurt and pain that comes from a friend when you realize you've trusted them with a part of you/your heart that they couldn't handle. I will admit that it's hard to determine who to share what with without being fake! I finally learned that there are degrees of truth. This has allowed me to be the real me with all my friends, but each friendship has its own level of truth. I have friends who are, what I call, my heart friends. These are the friends that I can bare my soul to and know they can be trusted with that information. Those heart friends were determined over time because character had to be revealed.
It's hard to know to what extent to guard your heart in relationships, but I've found that it's good to land somewhere in the middle of the two extremes of too open and too guarded. I've been both extremes. We all know that when we're too open, pain is inevitable! Being too guarded can be painful, too. It causes us to close ourselves off to what could be really great relationships. I don't think God wants us to live life this way. We were built for relationship with Him and others. Some of my greatest learning lessons have come out of situations where I let the guard down. Those lessons haven't always been painless; but, as someone once told me, "Stretching and growing is always painful." I don't want to be so guarded that I miss out on something that could be really great!
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