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Category Archives: Family musings

Blessings in the Midst of Change

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Sarah, our second daughter, married Justin two weeks ago. Yes, there were a few tears. After all, my baby girl is all grown up. She has a husband and a home of her own. But joy and celebration filled the weekend, not sadness. (Just in case you’re interested, here’s a quick video!)

Sarah + Justin :: Coming Soon from CandleLight Films on Vimeo.

The Bride and her Parents

I heard several people ask my husband if it was hard to “give away” his daughter. His reply: “All her life I’ve been praying that God would provide a godly husband for Sarah and He has. We are thankful and excited about this new chapter in her life.” And I would add that we truly love Justin!

Sometimes the greatest of God’s blessings also brings change. A new son-in-law. A move to another city. A job change. An empty nest. I’m in the middle of all these things and more. I see God’s hand. I sense His activity. But leaving and changing and growing and stretching can still be painful.

God is faithful. He keeps His promises. He will finish the work He began in me. He will guide and strengthen and comfort and provide. My faith may be shaky at times, but the God in whom I place my faith is Rock-solid, unshakeable. In Him will I trust.

 

On the Move

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Lately, I’ve been reliving the past. Wait, to be more precise, I’ve been using a Scriptural principle to help me mentally and spiritually prepare for our upcoming move to Houston. Again and again in Scripture, God’s people review the past. They recount God’s faithful activity in their lives and the lives of their ancestors. We often see these “history lessons” when the people faced a change or a new challenge.

For instance, poised to enter the Promised Land, Moses reminded the Israelites of God’s care and provision during forty years of wandering in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 1 and 2). At the end of his life, Joshua pointed the people to their history, emphasizing God’s deliverance and protection so they would stay close to Him in their new surroundings (Joshua 24). In Acts chapter 7, Stephen, the first Christian martyr, used his last earthly moments to testify to God’s faithfulness in bringing about the New Covenant He promised. And we can’t forget the great Hall of Faith in Hebrews chapter 11. This long list of God’s people experienced His faithfulness in the most difficult of times.

So, I’ve been looking back too. God has moved our family six times since 1983. From south Louisiana to Wyoming to Midland to Alberta to Houston to Midland (again) and now back to Houston. Each move brought challenges.

  • Moving with toddlers
  • Moving teenagers
  • Adjusting to 30 below temperatures
  • Adjusting to 100+ temperatures
  • Temporary housing
  • Work visas, visitor visas, student visas
  • New doctors, dentists, grocery stores, and coffee shops
  • Leaving friends
  • Leaving our church family
  • The unknown and yet to be discovered

 

But God worked in and through all that and more. With each move He comforted, guided, and confirmed. He was our peace and source of strength. He provided a church home, good friends, and a favorite coffee shop. So, I have every reason to believe He will this time too. The same God who helped us through our first move to Casper with an 18 month-old toddler is the same God who will take us to Houston – this time “kidless,” but with my 84-year-old father-in-law in tow.

My faithful God not only loves and cares for me, He has also determined the “exact places where I (they) should live” (Acts 17:28). So I’ll keep reliving the past and looking forward.

How has God shown Himself faithful to you in the past? How can looking back to that help you with what you are facing today?

Don’t Hold Back the Tears

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This morning I was thinking about all the places I’ve shed tears. Some are not so strange, maybe even expected. Others are a bit on the unusual side. Here’s a partial list:

  • Church – weddings, funerals, and a regular church service
  • Hospital – birth, death, illness
  • Starbucks – various times, talking with friends over their grief, my grief, someone else’s grief
  • Plane – leaving one home for a new one
  • Meeting with my boss – I must have been super hormonal that day
  • School Counselor’s office – discussing one of my precious children
  • Bank – again discussing one of my precious children
  • Grocery store – thinking about one of my precious children
  • Shower – too many times and situations to name
  • Car – ditto the above
  • Treadmill and elliptical – reacting to the television news

All those tears represent some specific pain, grief, loss, hurt, worry, and even joy. And there have been a lot over my almost 50 years of living. I know it is the same with you.

God does not promise His children an easy, care-free life. In fact, Jesus knew this life would be painful for us at times. “In this world you will have trouble, but take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). But God does promise to walk with us through the trouble and give us the help and strength we need.

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.” Psalm 46:1-3, NIV

One more place I cry is in prayer. Hopefully, it is the place I shed the most tears. In fact, God invites us to bring Him our tears so He can comfort us.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.” Matt 11:28

Have you cried out to God lately? Bring your hurt and pain to Jesus so He can comfort and strengthen you. Acknowledge your need for Him and for His help.

When was the last time you cried? Where was it? When was the last time you cried out to God?

Is your faith prepared to withstand the storms of life? The 8-week Bible study “Unshakeable Faith” will show you how God can help you stand firm!

Summer Saga of Change and Challenge

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Right now my life resembles a completed puzzle that has been taken apart and is being put back together to form a picture I don’t recognize. Many of our big life pieces are about to change drastically. Here’s a glimpse so you’ll understand:

  • Our second daughter’s wedding is two weeks from Saturday.
  • Our son – our youngest – just graduated high school and will be going to college in another state.
  • My husband has accepted a job transfer. Later this summer we will be moving from the quiet, West Texas desert to the humid, bustling megacity that is Houston.
  • Due to the transfer, I resigned the church staff position where I have served for the last five years.
  • This will be our first move without any of our three children. However, my 84-year-old father-in-law will be going with us.
  • My next book manuscript is due August 31st.

It feels a bit overwhelming when I read that list. However, God has proven Himself faithful time and time again. Through six moves, parenting struggles, call to seminary, grief and loss, He has strengthened, encouraged, guided, and comforted.

Six months from now our life will look very different. Teenagers gone, but in-laws in. Day to day interaction with church staff traded for full-time writing and speaking from home. Ten minute drive to the office for Wayne swapped for a long city commute. Dry climate, manageable hair frizzed out in the south Texas humidity!

But in the midst of these temporal changes, my eternal God remains the same. “I am the Lord and I do not change” (Malachi 3:6a). We will lean on His constant presence as we welcome a new son-in-law, move, say goodbye, shift directions, and tackle new challenges.

What changes and challenges do you face today? How can God’s unchanging presence guide and strengthen you?

Note: Keep checking back to see how the “Summer Saga” is going! I would love to hear from you.

Sock Balls for the Glory of God

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My least favorite household chore is “unballing” balled-up, dirty, stinky gym socks before throwing them into the washing machine. “Sock balls” come in several varieties:

  1. Simple sock ball – These ankle-height socks are sweaty and perhaps tinged with dirt or mud around the top. Unpleasant to unball, but no surprises on opening.
  2. Confetti sock ball – These athletic socks have been worn to mow the grass, play baseball, or perform some other similarly dirty chore or leisure activity. Unballing this variety of sock ball unleashes a dusting of grass, dirt, mulch, or pea gravel all over the laundry room floor.
  3. Tube sock ball – These can be either “simple” or “confetti.” What makes these unique is that the length of the sock requires you to stick your hand in to the elbow to turn them right-side-out. Most unpleasant.

Both my husband and our son have been guilty of this heinous crime. My dear husband has lovingly worked to stop this thoughtless habit. He is much better, but he does occasionally place a “sock ball” into the laundry basket.

I mentioned this distasteful chore this morning while teaching a Bible study class on Colossians chapters 3 and 4. The response from the other women in the class left no room for doubt. Women in general dislike this disgusting chore. It was a perfect time to apply the Scripture.

 

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus. Col 3:17

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men. Col 3:23

One day, a couple of years ago, when I was doing laundry and complaining to myself about balled-up socks, God reminded me of these very passages. Although unballing sock balls is a dirty, thankless chore, doing it is a way to love and serve my family. Doing it without complaining gives glory to God.

I must admit that I still don’t always face sock balls with a smile. But each time I’m tempted to run them through the washer and dryer just like they are, God gently reminds me that I’m really unballing socks for Him.

What chore or task do you dislike or consider drudgery? How can completing it “as working for the Lord” help our attitude and actions?