Snowing in April

I really was mad today about the snow.  Every time I looked outside I was almost appalled at the amount of white falling from the sky, sticking to the trees, covering the ground.  Then my friend, Lea,  posted this on Facebook:

 "I think God is expanding our appreciation for spring, the way He grows our appreciation for the forgiveness by leaving us in this sinful flesh. I'm tired of snow and I'm tired of my sin and through that, I can't wait for warmer weather and heaven."

And now tonight as I am once again staring out my window in shock because I think I should see buds on the branches instead of winter white, I am thinking again about that statement.  And truly, the question that came to my mind was ---- am I as appalled at my sin as I am at snow in April?  I mean, honest, this snow isn't going to last.  Next week it's supposed to be hit 70 degrees.  How quick my heart is to complain and whine (gee...sounds a little "fleshy" to me).

Maybe perhaps I should just appreciate the beauty of the snow, even though it's not the timing I'd like.  Maybe I shall be reminded that God's ways are not my ways, his timing not my timing.  And so when I don't know what my future holds - lean into his faithful arms that are ready to hold me.  Instead of letting my heart be crabby and bitter, I will wait with eager expectation for what he has in store for me - his good, pleasing and perfect will.

In His Garden

I love this video - please enjoy it yourself.  And feel free to comment and tell me what you think!! :)

"The Lord will guide you continually,
      giving you water when you are dry
      and restoring your strength.
   You will be like a well-watered garden,
      like an ever-flowing spring."
Isaiah 58:11 (NLT)

"For I am like a tree whose roots reach the water,
      whose branches are refreshed with the dew."
Job 29:19 (NLT)

Training

For the past month or more I have been training for a half marathon.  First, before you get any crazy notions, let me set the record straight - I am NOT a runner.  I am not a lover of running.  So why sign up for a half marathon?  Great question! (I have wondered that myself many times during this training! ha!).  I think for me personally, I have always wondered if I could make it.  I also thought I could say - on "this" birthday year I ran a half marathon.  So for me, it's a goal I've set.  Which brings me to point number two - I'm normally not a goal setter by default. It's not my first instinct to wake up in the morning and make a list of all the things I'd like to accomplish that day (that would be my husband - good thing we've got some balance in this family!).

As I have been training, I've noticed some interesting connections in my brain. 

While I am not one to set goals or have awesome follow through skills, I know that if I don't stick with this training plan I will not be ready for race day.  Every time during a run that I feel like I want to quit, I remember that this is only temporary and that I will feel so much better (like I accomplished something) when I am done (which is true).  If I were to stop running, I would feel defeated and discouraged and it would totally mess with my head (I've found running to be very psychological).  But after each run and adding on an additional mile, I am amazed at what my body can accomplish, I feel stronger.  I still get very nervous before each run, but I have to take that first step and then keep my feet moving.

This is so closely connected to our spiritual race.

While we are here on earth, the Bible talks about us running the race, our goal being eternity with Christ.  But I can easily wake up each morning and get distracted and lose focus of my main goal.  Instead of living for the eternal, I get caught up in the things of this world that can entangle me and slow me down, leaving me feeling discouraged and disheartened.  I need to keep with the training plan - stay connected to God's word, which holds the ultimate guide to how to navigate through the race.  This time on earth is temporary and therefore, when I am in a trial I can move my feet one at a time and know that one day I will feel better and stronger, having gone through the struggle. And I do need some encouragement along the way, I need some people to say keep going!

  "...let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith"    Hebrews 12:1-2

 "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable"  1 Corinthians 9:24-25

Dependent

Tonight I lost my phone. At first I was just a little annoyed because I wanted to call Josh and tell him where I was. Then I got home and got more frustrated because I realized there were lots of things I needed to communicate via my phone and without it, there would be a cosmic black void, a silence, a.... AHHH... I'm sooo lost without my phone. Without it I will not be able to contact a vast amount of people. And the texting, oh how I love the easy quick way to shoot out a text! Oh the tragedy of it all! So I sit here waiting to see if the building manager from campus calls me back to see if they found my phone. If they don't --- well friends... that ain't good.

In the mean time, I am forced to ponder two things:

1. I am dependent on my phone. I need it daily. It's my line of communication. Without it, I am lost. However, am I daily depending on my Savior? Without Him, I truly am a wondering fool. When I don't have that daily touch point with God, if only it would seem as if something were not right, something were missing, just like I knew that my phone was missing.


2. Just as I need my phone to be in direct communication with family and friends, I need to be in direction communication with God. He doesn't care whether it's the long conversations (like when you're on your phone for too long and your ear starts to burn!) or if it's like the short text you shoot out. As long as it's communication, it's relationship building.

So I'm thankful for this reminder of needing to be dependent on God, but I do hope that I find my phone!

Gauges

Today I heard a story on the radio. The guy was talking about how he kinda thought there might be something wrong with his car, but he was running late, so he kept driving anyway. Pretty soon, his car kept slowing down, even though his foot stayed on the pedal. Then, smoke started billowing from the hood. He got out and ran the opposite direction from his car. Fortunately, a mechanic was driving by and said "Pop your hood!" Someone else driving by happened to have a fire extinguisher in their vehicle, and eventually the fire was put out. The really funny part of the story was this guy's car that was "going down in a blaze of glory," as he put it, was his Chevy Blazer! Ha!
The point was made though --- how often do we run around pushing ourselves to the point of going down in flames? Running late, pushing up against deadlines, not taking time to pause and enjoy the things that refresh and bring life....we begin to slow down, shut down, even though we are trying with all our might to keep our "foot on the pedal."

So a couple things here:

1. Slow down and check your gauges. We all have internal gauges or cues that tell us how we are doing. If we are taking time to listen we can save ourselves a lot of internal damage. Journaling is one of my favorite ways to slow down and process. I also think it's helpful for me to read my Bible and pray - it refocuses my mind and "refuels" me.


2. Who are you hanging around? We all need people in our lives to help us. Just like the man needed the mechanic and the dude with the fire extinguisher, we need friends who will tell us when we should pull over, when we might need "a repair," or to be there for us when we "crash and burn." These people need to be people who love you and are willing to speak truth in a loving and gracious manner to you.

So while you are journeying (is that a word?) through life - make sure you are checking your gauges and surrounding yourself with a community of supportive people. These two things will help you. They won't prevent all roadside emergencies, but they will indeed help!

Under Construction

Starting Monday, the bridge right by our house is going to be closed. Construction will begin to take out the lights, and insert the roundabout (they sure love these here in Wisconsin). I'm still quite leery how the roundabout is going to better this particular intersection as it's one of the more heavily trafficked with people coming on and off the highway, the frontage road with Target, Starbucks, Applebee's, Red Robin, etc.... I mean I envision roundabout backup/collisions! But I am not a city planner or expert, so I will endure the construction and mess and wait and see what comes of it.

All of this made me think of how God works in my life. Sometimes it seems like God is undergoing some "construction" in my life. And when it begins and I become quite leery of how it's really going to benefit me. I envision all the problems or pains this "construction" is bringing to my life and how it will never end (as it seems like most construction projects never do).

But as I said above, I am not the expert --- God is. And God knows me better than I know myself. So if God is the expert and has my best interest in mind, then I can trust that whatever "construction" he wants to do in me is for my good and therefore I can endure it.

Navigation Voices

Having a GPS system is pretty revolutionary. It really does help you along your journey. You can of course always do MapQuest. But the point being - we really all need a little help navigating when on a journey.

What I've enjoyed about our GPS is picking the voice which will be talking us through our journey. I feel like this was an important decision. I didn't want an annoying voice. It obviously couldn't be a foreign language - that just wouldn't be helpful at all. So I picked this gal who must be British or something because when we are in a big city like Minneapolis she will say -- "exit right onto the motorway." Motorway? Who calls it that? I kinda like it! I wish I could remember her name - let's call her Beatrice.

Many times I've thought ---- isn't Beatrice so patient with me. Whenever I make a wrong turn, or several wrong turns. She just simply keeps telling me -- "when possible, please turn around." Often though, I wonder, if I were Beatrice would I be so patient? I hear myself saying to Josh (yes, confession time friends) --- "What are you doing?" What if my GPS system were to say things like --- "What are you thinking?! I told you to make a right turn in 200 yards? What possibly did you not understand?" I'm assuming that the GPS sales would go down drastically if that was what they programmed their devices to say.

All this transferred over to make me think of the other journeys I'm on.

1. Relationally. Am I patient in my relationships? We all make mistakes. Even if we did hear someone ask us a simple request, we may still miss our turn. Sometimes we just need a gentle - "please turn around when possible." So will I be gentle? I would definitely appreciate others being gentle and patient with me.


2. Emotionally. How am I speaking to myself in my brain? May sound weird to you - but it makes perfect sense to me. Is your "GPS Navigation System" in your brain kind to yourself or are you constantly berating yourself? Just as in our relationship with others, we also need to be gentle and patient in our relationship with our self in order to be emotionally healthy.


3. Spiritually. What do you think of when you think of God? Someone saying "What are you doing?" or do you think of a gentle, patient voice that wants to guide you on your journey.