Monthly Archives: April 2010

Heart closet

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This past Saturday a group of ladies at our church gathered to clean out and organize the “Flower Closet.” Our women’s ministry team had been offered storage space in the closet if we would get in there and whip it into shape.

We rolled up our sleeves and proceeded to sift through about four decades worth of Christmas decorations, artificial arrangements, warped candles, and a bunch of stuff that nobody knew what to do with but couldn’t bring themselves to throw away. A few things we thought someone might want went to a second hand shop and a lot went to the dumpster. The rest was cleaned, sorted, organized into plastic containers, and labeled for easy access.

Wow! I couldn’t get over what a difference it made. Before we started one person could barely get in the space at a time. But now it’s open enough to use as a small classroom if we needed to. I was so excited about the transformation, I wanted to conduct tours of our closet on Sunday morning. Read more

Remembering Friends

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This morning my Bible reading was 1 Samuel 20 about the friendship of David and Jonathan. As I read about their commitment to each other God reminded me of friendships past and present.

God has blessed me with many deep wonderful friendships in my life. Name after name popped into my mind and I began to write in my prayer journal. The first name I wrote was “Cindy.” My first best friend, we knew each other from the time we were babies. We went to school together all the way through college and were in each other’s weddings.

I wrote names from high school, college, and each of the places Wayne and I have lived. In every season of my life and in every place God has moved us, He has blessed me with at least one – and usually more than one – precious friendship. God used each of these women to support, encourage, and challenge me in life, in family, and in my faith. We’ve played together, prayed together, and cried together. Read more

Exercise, I-Phones, and Jesus

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What do an elliptical machine, an I-Phone App, and my relationship with Jesus have in common? They all require commitment, discipline, and determination. But more on that in a minute.

Tuesday I cancelled my gym membership. Not because I’ve given up exercising but because on Monday my husband bought an elliptical trainer. Since we already had a treadmill, a small home gym, and some free weights, we now have everything we need at home to stay in good physical shape.

Several people told me they wouldn’t have the discipline to exercise at home. They feel they need the discipline of going to a gym to stick to it. Then that’s what they need to do – whatever keeps them motivated. Since I’ve exercised practically my entire life and I’ve stayed committed to it before without the resource of a gym, I know I’ll continue.

Back in the fall I also discovered an awesome little tool that has helped keep my diet on track. Several of my friends introduced me to the “Lose-it!” I-Phone application. It keeps up with calories, exercise, and weight. This kind of accountability usually works well for me – until of course I have a rebellious day or weekend and eat my way through a half-gallon of Blue Bell’s cookies and cream. Read more

Promises, Promises

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I used to make promises to my kids when they were young. Things like: “Tomorrow we will go to the park, I promise!” or “Susie can come over to play next week. Yes, I promise.”

What was I thinking? So often, things did not turn out like I’d planned. And I ended up breaking my promise. Eventually I learned to be very careful about making promises. Because sometimes, no matter how hard I tried or how badly I wanted to keep a promise, there were circumstances beyond my control. And one of my kids was particularly sensitive about broken promises.

We humans are not very good at keeping promises. But, our God is the ultimate promise keeper. God doesn’t break promises. There are never circumstances beyond His control, never situations He didn’t foresee. Read more

Easy to forget

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I have a cedar chest that belonged to my mom’s mom. It’s full of “treasures” that I don’t really need but are too dear to part with. Every great once-in-a-while I open it and shift through all the things buried inside. I usually end up walking through days past while I sit in the middle of my bedroom floor.

Have you ever looked through a trunk or box full of old keepsakes and been flooded with sweet memories long forgotten? Events and people you haven’t thought about in a long time? It’s funny how are minds can work. Significant events and dearly loved people get pushed to the dark recesses. But then we see a physical item connected to that memory. A light shines in that dusty place – and we remember.  Read more