Faithful Chick

10 Minute Tuesday: Mourning into Gladness

...I will turn their mourning into gladness; I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow. -Jeremiah 31:13

On Monday afternoon, I received a very sad, but expected phone call.  My grandfather went to be with the Lord after a long battle with Alzheimer's/dementia and several strokes.  Hospice was called in this past weekend, so we knew it would be sometime this week.  I've heard some people speak of Alzheimer's as the "long goodbye".  It most certainly is. 

Tonight, as I watched members of my family make funeral arrangements and discuss the events of the day, I saw something on their faces that I was not expecting - relief.  This "long goodbye" has taken its toll on the family.  It is so difficult to watch someone you love waste away.  Now, they can be glad.  Glad that he has exchanged his tired, sick body for a healthy one.  Glad that he is no longer struggling to swallow, struggling to breath.  The family can now receive the comfort and joy that only our Father can bring. 

Yes, there will be sorrow.  There will be grief.  There will be sadness.  But, we rejoice in knowing that he lives in Glory - restored and renewed.   

This week, the blog will be quiet.  Thanks for understanding.

10 Minute Tuesday - Romans 12:2

God's Word For You Today:

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. -Romans 12:2

My pastor spoke on this verse this past weekend.  When I opened my Bible to follow along, this verse was already underlined.  When I originally underlined this verse, I was focused on the "do not conform" message.  The whole concept of separating myself from the ways of the world was fresh at that time.  I had begun the process of deciding who I was, apart from what the world expected of me.

This time, I was focused on a completely different message.  My pastor's sermon was focused on changing your life.  In a good way.  A very good way. 

My eyes were transfixed on "transformed by the renewing of your mind". 

God doesn't just call us to avoid conformity, he calls us to continually change and grow.  Once we discover who we are in Christ, we can't expect the fruits of our life to reflect that discovery without any effort on our part.  Every day, we have a chance to morph into a better version of ourselves.  Not for our own glory, but for His.  We have to be teachable, a work-in-progress until the day He calls us home.

Change is a scary word.  It's an even scarier reality.  But, might change be easier to accept if we embrace it, rather than fear it?  Is it possible that change is a good thing?  Even a great thing?  Absolutely. 

I can choose to live a safe life, surrounded only by my family and friends, going through my daily routines.  Or, I can choose to be open to positive change in my life and watch God open the doors of opportunity.  I know He has great plans for me.  He has great plans for you.  But, those plans can never come without change.

Are you ready for it?

Now, please set your timer for 10 minutes and soak in His word.  Look here for the 10 Minute Tuesday guidelines.  Don't forget to link directly to your 10MT post below.  I look forward to reading your responses.

I don't like memes.

Really, I don't. 

I should probably clarify that I don't mind reading memes on other blogs.  But, I am not big on doing them myself.  I don't know why.  I'm sure a few weeks with a licensed psychotherapist would reveal the truth. 

Since I don't have time for that, I'm going to try my own brand of therapy.  I'll force myself to do a meme today. 

Actually, I don't have any good posting material and I saw this meme out on the web.  I thought it was neat, so here goes.

If you want to play along, just cut and paste the following list into your blog.  Make BOLD anything you have done.  You might want to un-bold everything when you cut and paste.  I mean, you really don't want everyone thinking you are as much of a heathen as I was, do you?

Here goes:

Smoked a cigarette.

Crashed a friend's car.

Stolen a car.

Been in love.

Been dumped.

Shoplifted.

Been fired.

Been in a fist fight.

Snuck out of your parent's house.

Had feelings for someone who didn't have them back.

Been arrested.

Gone on a blind date.

Lied to a friend.

Skipped school.

Seen someone die.

Had a crush on one of your internet friends.

Been to Canada.

Been to Mexico.

Been on a plane.

Eaten sushi.

Been jet-skiing.

Met someone in person from the internet.

Been moshing at a concert.

Taken pain killers.

Loved and missed someone.

Made a snow angel.

Had a tea party.

Flown a kite.

Built a sand castle.

Played dress up.

Gotten a tattoo.

Gotten a body piercing.

Jumped in a pile of leaves.

Gone sledding.

Cheated while playing a game.

Been lonely.

Fallen asleep at work or school.

Used a fake ID.

Watched a sunset.

Felt an earthquake.

Touched a snake.

Slept beneath the stars.

Been robbed.

Been misunderstood.

Petted a reindeer/goat.

Won a contest.

Run a red light/stop sign.

Been suspended from school.

Been in a car accident.

Eaten a whole pint of ice cream in one night.

Had dejavu.

Danced in the moonlight.

Liked the way you looked at least at one point in time.

Witnessed a crime.

Been obsessed with post-it notes.

Been lost.

Been on the opposite side of the country.

Swam in the ocean.

Cried yourself to sleep.

Played cops and robbers.

Recently colored with crayons.

Sung karaoke.

Paid for a meal with only coins.

Done something you told yourself you wouldn't.

Made prank phone calls.

Laughed until some kinda beverage came out of your nose.

Caught a snow flake on your tongue.

Written a letter to Santa Claus.

Been kissed under the mistletoe by your boy/girlfriend.

Watched the sun rise with someone you care about.

Blown bubbles.

Made a bonfire on the beach.

Laughed so hard you pee'd your pants.

Cheated on a test.

Been kissed by someone you didn't like.

Gone skinny dipping in a pool.

_______________________

That wasn't so bad. 

Have I said how thankful I am for God's grace?

They DO always have good snacks in the pantry

When I was passing through my mother-in-law's laundry room earlier this week, I stopped dead in my tracks.  I was frozen in place, staring at a t-shirt that was hanging to dry.

Before I share what caused this frozen state, I have to give a back story.  In January of this year, I was at my grandmother's (MeMe's) home for dinner.  When I washed my hands at her kitchen sink, I noticed a small bottle of lotion in the window sill.  My hands were a bit dry, so I reached for the lotion bottle.  When I saw the label on the bottle I giggled. 

My MeMe wanted to know what was so funny.  I really couldn't help but giggle because, you see, the little bottle of lotion was Hemp brand.  When I explained to my sweet, innocent, church-going, woman-of-the-Lord, grandmother what Hemp was, she gasped.  GASPED and held her chest.  Although it was funny that my MeMe had lotion with a picture of a marijuana leaf in her kitchen, I couldn't figure out why she was reacting so strongly.  Then, I almost wet my pants, when I heard her say...

"OH MERCY!  I have a gift set of that lotion to all of the ladies in my Sunday school class!  OH LANDS! OH MERCY!!"

She was lost in space for the remainder of that night.  Poor, sweet, MeMe.  She gave the pot lotion to the church ladies. 

Now, back to my mother-in-law's laundry room.  This is what had me frozen:

I wasn't very sure about the phrase, but I definitely knew what that plant was. 

I called out to my mother-in-law, another sweet, innocent, church-going, woman-of-the-Lord (sounding familiar?), and asked her why in the world she had this shirt in her house.  She then looked at me innocently and asked, "What do you mean?"

Here we go again.  What's up with the ladies in my life and the pot?!

It felt like dejavu.  I explained to her that the lovely green leaf was, in fact, Mary Jane.  And then she, you guessed it, GASPED. 

She thought it was a palm leaf.

I asked her where she had worn the shirt, to which she replied, with passion, "ALL AROUND TOWN!!!"

She held her head, trying to think if she had worn it around the pastor.  The horror!

I fell on the floor laughing.  I was not prepared for what happened next.

She had bought another one for her man.

Oh yes.  A 2XL marijuana shirt.  Feast your eyes...

So, let's recap. 

My sweet MeMe...the pot lotion.

My sweet mother-in-law..the pot shirts.

Both of them...MORTIFIED.

These are the times when I think I missed my calling as a stand-up comedian.  These stories are meant to be shared. 

(P.S.  What is 4:20, you ask?  Basically, it is slang for smoking marijuana.  I may have just busted some teenager whose mom reads this blog.  420 is code for all things marijuana-related.  Look into it.  I wasn't going to provide a link, but let's consider this a PSA for parents of teenagers.  You can go here to read up on it.)

Fudge Ripple Ice Cream and The Global Food Crisis

Sometimes, God's timing makes me laugh out loud.  In my life, He makes a lot of important points through contradictions. 

Right now, I am at my in-laws' home in a small town in south Georgia.  My boys are sitting at her kitchen counter eating fudge ripple ice cream.  I am reading an email about the Global Food Crisis.

See what I mean?

I think it is hard to wrap our minds around a Global Food Crisis when we have full stomachs and an overflowing pantry.  But, I have to try.

Let's try together.

WHAT IS THE GLOBAL FOOD CRISIS? (from Compassion)
The World Food Programme calls the global food crisis a phenomenon, a "silent tsunami," that is affecting families in every nation on every continent. Food prices for popular menu items like rice, wheat and beans have doubled in the last year. Though increases in food prices have hit all budgets, it's the poor who bear the brunt of price inflation. The higher prices are forcing people who survive on just $1 a day to spend upwards of 80 percent of their budgets just on food.  As a result, many people, including millions of children, are going hungry. The longer food prices rise, the more people will be plunged into hunger and poverty.

For more information about the Global Food Crisis, look here.

It sounds overwhelming.  I keep thinking...What can I do?

Compassion International has set aside June 25 as a day of fasting and prayer to honor the victims of the global food crisis and pray for them. To place a Compassion Day of Prayer and Fasting widget on your blog go to: http://www.springwidgets.com/widgets/view/42681 

Would you be willing to fast and pray on June 25th?  Would you be willing to spread the word?

You can also help by making a donation to the Global Food Crisis Fund.

Check this out:

• Your gift of $13 can feed a child for about one month.
• Your gift of $78 can feed a family of six for one month.
• Your gift of $520 can feed 40 children for about one month.
• Your gift of $3,250 can feed 250 children (an entire child development center) for one month!

I will never fully understand why my kids are eating fudge ripple ice cream while others are praying for even a teaspoon of rice to sustain them for a day.  But, I can choose to move beyond the need for understanding and do something about it.  Will you join me?

Remember...

For where two or three come together in my name, there I am with them. -Matthew 18:20

10 Minute Tuesday: Be Spontaneous

Today's 10 Minute Tuesday is late. 

Late because I took a very impromptu trip to my in-laws' home last night. 

When I called my father-in-law on Sunday to wish him a Happy Father's Day, I could tell that he was really missing the boys.  He does not get to see them much since he is a long-haul truck driver and is rarely home when we make a visit. 

I mulled over it on Sunday night.  There were so many reasons why a road trip would not make sense at this moment.  A lot to do, not enough time to do it in, blah, blah, blah. 

But, he missed the boys.  And we missed my in-laws. 

So, yesterday at around 4 pm, I packed our bags and we were on our way.  In the end, the excuses did not matter.  It was an act of love for someone we loved, and that was reason enough.

Today, my 10MT is a challenge. 

What spontaneous, unplanned gesture can you do for a loved one?  How can you make someone's day?  Share in the comments. 

Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. -1 Timothy 6:18-19

Clean Slate

No..the blog has not self-destructed.

I'm playing around with new blog design ideas. 

Hence, the white background.

It'll be here while I decide what comes next.

Thank you and good day.

Our First Letter

This week we received our first letter from Sintayehu, our Compassion child. 

I couldn't rip the envelope open fast enough.  It's on bright yellow paper.  The top half is written in her native language.  On the bottom half, they translated her text into English.  I found myself immediately drawn not to the text, but to the pictures on the side of the letterhead.  She colored in the pictures with a crayon.  On the back of the letter, she drew a multi-colored tent and two flowers.  These personal touches made me realize...

This

is

real. 

We aren't just sending in 32 dollars per month to some fund that is randomly distributed to aid the poor.  We are sending 32 dollars per month to help Sintayehu and her family. 

Drew (8) was looking on from the backseat.  He said, "Mom, I just know she got those crayons because we are sponsoring her."  I love how he made the connection between sponsorship and Sintayehu getting things she needs.  I had not even thought of that. 

Then, Drew said something that made me start weeping right there in the post office parking lot. 

"Mom, it is a miracle that we sponsored her.  A miracle."

You know what?  He's right.  Don't get me wrong - I'm not puffing up our sponsorship.  We are not saints.  We are not heroes.  But, to Sintayehu, the sponsorhip very well could be a miracle. 

In her letter, she tells us about her friend and her grandmother.  She loves to run and jump rope.  She tells us how she is "attending Sunday school well".  And, because of that, she is hearing the name of Jesus. 

My thoughts are with her often.  I'll carry her letter with me.  It does my heart good to know that, no matter her circumstances, she is a happy girl that loves to draw flowers. 

At least he's honest

After several hours of fun in the sun at the pool yesterday, the boys retired to their beds for some rest and The Suite Life of Zack and Cody on Disney Channel. 

I saw Buddy (4) and Jake (10) snuggled together in Buddy's bed.  I couldn't resist joining them for a few moments.  I asked them a few questions about the characters in the show and enjoyed the downtime.

What a peaceful moment.

Until...

Buddy: "Mommy, will you pwease go in your woom?"

Me:  "Why, Buddy?"

Buddy:  "Because you talk so vewy much."

Well.  There you have it.

Perhaps a list is in order

For the recent google searcher who found my blog with the search "how to make a grown woman cry".

1) Have her watch Steel Magnolias.  Especially the cemetery scene.  "I'm fine! I can jog all the way to Texas and back, but my daughter can't! She never could!"

2) Disable the drink machines at your local Sonic Drive-Thru.

3) Take away her frizz control hair products during a heat wave in the South. 

4) Repeat after me:  "Yes, honey.  Your butt DOES look big in those jeans."

5) Take away her car keys when it is free ice cream cone day at Ben & Jerry's.   

Let's add to the list, ladies.  How would someone make you cry?

And since number one totally made me take a trip down a tear-covered memory lane, enjoy this...