My Eyes and My Heart Will Always Be There

There is a beautiful passage of scripture in 2 Chronicles where Solomon and God are having a dialogue. Solomon has dedicated the Temple to the dwelling of the LORD. And The LORD promises Solomon that if His people "will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

He goes on to say that His eyes will be open and His ears attentive to their prayers offered in the Temple, that His name will always be there. AND "My eyes and my heart will always be there".

The New Testament teaches that when we accept salvation through Jesus Christ that we become a temple for the dwelling of God. So this Old Testament scripture speaks to me too. And I love the visualization I get when I read about His eyes and His heart. The eyes are the window of the soul, you know. It is hard to read or know another person without looking into their eyes or heart. I love thinking about God's eyes and heart always dwelling with me. I love to close my eyes and picture actually/physically looking into His eyes. And I feel His heart when I bask in His love. All the cares of the world aside, just bask. Remember how much He loves us. Remember love never fails. Love covers a multitude of sins. Love. Love. Love.

When we soak up His love, doesn't that cause us to love others more?

So the words for today? He sees and He cares! That will get us through anything!

Through the Watches of the Night

Psalm 119:148 "My eyes stay open through the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promises."

Now that sounds like a cure for insomnia. I've had trouble sleeping the past few weeks. I've never had that problem. I could go to sleep anytime, anyplace. Power naps were a staple for me. But lately, I've found myself wide awake in the night. That's rather unnerving. There's something about sleep that we all think we need lots of it :-)

Anyway, this morning the Lord brought this verse to me. It made me think of David and this longest chapter of the Bible. Maybe he wrote it during a bout of insomnia. Maybe he learned to cope with his sleeplessness by meditating on God's promises. Hmmm...interesting. Maybe those times of seeming darkness in the night can become rays of light in my life as I dwell on being in His presence, bask in His goodness, and ponder His promises.

Maybe it's not "wasted time" after all. Maybe, just maybe He will refresh my soul and spirit so much that my body will not notice a lack of sleep.

Thank You, Lord, for Your promises!

From the Inside Out

Last night I made a yummy taco cornbread casserole. I kind of made it up on my own. But there are similar recipes around, I know. I just season ground beef like I would for tacos, but add a can of tomato sauce to make the meat juicier than for tacos. Spray a 9 x 13 pan, layer the meat/sauce, then 8 ounces (or more if you like) of cheese (I used Mexican) and then on top of that put cornbread batter (I mixed up 2 Jiffy cornbread mixes with eggs and milk just like the instructions say). Bake at 350 degrees for approx. 30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean and edges are turning golden.

Then we dish this up on our plates, add salsa, sour cream, a side of tortilla chips, and whatever else you like (cilantro, chopped onions, etc.) It's yummy and I love the sweet cornbread taste with the spicy Mexican.

HOWEVER, due to the new way I am learning to cook (this involves being used to cooking for growing children and now they are grown and gone most of the time leaving fewer people to cook for) I made this same recipe in a smaller dish. That made the cornbread thicker and when I took it out of the oven and cut into it, I realized that the cornbread was not done in the middle. YUCK! It was still batter. I should have made it the same way, but put it in a larger pan which would have been thinner and baked in the same amount of time. I put it back in the oven and baked it awhile longer.

This a.m. when I sank my teeth into my pumpkin donut, the same thing happened! There was still a center of pumpkin dough in the middle that wasn't cooked all the way through. It was a grocery store donut, so I wasn't at fault, but it seemed odd to find the same problem. You see, it can look good and complete on the outside, but be far from it on the inside. I think that's the same way with us. We can look like we have it all together, but if you look real deep, you see parts of us that is not as "done". What's wrong with that, you say? Nothing. Nothing at all. But let's be honest with one another. None of us are done-finished. We all have our gooey spots. That's why we need a daily walk with our Lord. By taking a few minutes each day to grow in Him, we are heading towards "living a life worthy of the Lord and pleasing Him in every way; bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God" (Colossians 1:10).

Thank You, Lord, for not giving up on me! Thank You for working with me every day to show me more of Your wonderful awesomeness!

Hope and a Future

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

This scripture is so often shared with kids graduating from high school or college. But it's true for anyone at any age. God was talking to the Israelites that had been carried off into exile in Babylon. He was reminding them that He still had a plan for them. That after 70 years He would come to them and fulfill His precious promises.

We must remember that God's timetable is not ours. We may feel less youthful or more tied down than ever. But God always has a plan for us. He never puts us on the shelf or finishes with us.

Thank you, LORD, that I can look forward to my future with You!

Fun Experience

I had a really fun experience this past weekend! I thought you might like to share it. I had a story featured on a blog that I've been reading for a couple years. As I stated in my personal notes in the story, Sandy's blog The Reluctant Entertainer has inspired me to look beyond my limitations. I hope you enjoy reading it!

Joy and Gladness Will Be Found In Her

Isaiah 51:3 "...Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the sound of singing."

This verse really made me think. Now I know that this scripture is referring to the everlasting salvation for Zion, but many times I feel like it could be talking about me too. I have faced ruins and desolation of sorts, and in verse 1 of chapter 51 it says, "Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness and who seek the LORD..." - I certainly fit that description.

So back to 51:3. If I make this verse personal, it says that joy and gladness will be found in me, thanksgiving and the sound of singing. Is that what others see and hear? Or do I whine all the time? I believe in being "real", but honestly, what positive outcome can there be from whining? Is my joy and gladness buried underneath my stress, busyness, and self-centeredness?

Hmmm...more food for thought (notice how we always bring it back to food, haha).Maybe a thankful heart is the basis for the singing to burst forth. Starting today I want the people around me to be able to say (instead of whining) that joy, gladness, thanksgiving, and the sound of singing can be heard from Chris. Want to harmonize with me?

Every day I will praise You!

Psalm 145:1 "I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name for ever and ever. 2 Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever. 3 Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom. 4 One generation will commend your works to another; they will tell of your mighty acts."

Every day I feel more and more like I'm at a crossroads. Friday, my youngest child turned 18 years old. I overheard a friend tell my son, "now you don't have to do what they tell you to do or eat their food any more" (believe it or not it was a friend my age, not his). So, needless to say, I feel less and less "needed" these days. I know many of you can identify with me, and for those who don't know yet, there will come a day when you have a lot of feelings to deal with. Feelings you've never had to confront before. It will probably be a few years before my kids "need" me again. You know, they're 23, 20, and 18. They're in that stage where "they know it all". Now my daughter would be hurt to hear me say that. It's not so much that she "knows it all", but right now - she's got it all together. She's almost finished with college and knows what she wants to do next. We've grown into that "friendship" stage more than her needing me to mother her.

Oh hummmm....after dedicating 20 or so years of my life to mothering, I'm pretty much retiring. And mothering I did. Three in 5 years, and when my youngest started school, things turned around to where I started homeschooling all three of them. They have consumed my every thought and most of my energy.

But you know what? I've decided to dwell on what I have, not what I have not. I have 3 kids that are becoming independent and sufficient on their own. That's good! And while I don't do the same things at home, church, or work that I did just five years ago, I'm going to try to be faithful in what God has given me at this point in my life. I'm not done (not by a long shot), but my "realm of influence" has certainly changed. This morning before I got out of bed, I started listing the people and activities in my life. I'm going to write it down and put it in my Bible and work at being faithful with all those God has put in my life right now. But mostly, I'm not going to look a week, month, or year down the road. I'm going to strive for a day's worth of faithfulness. I'm going to "commend God's works to the next generation" whenever I get a chance. And I'm going to try my best to show people that God is faithful at every stage of life. Even at the crossroads!