Nine Months

What can happen in nine months??? New life begins and forms and develops and is born in nine months. In nine months, the smallest of life forms grows into an incredible human being. In nine months, a persons life can be completely transformed.

Nine months ago today, my husband lost his job. Our world was turned upside down. I felt like I couldn't breath or sleep or wake up or walk or deal with reality those first few days. I remember totally introverting into myself for a few days and feeling the need to put up a wall around my shattered view of my life and what it had become. I was scared.

Thankfully the first few days, God held us tight. We had no answers to so many questions, but He held us close and the peace was thick. The support we felt from so many friends and family was completely overwhelming.

God slowly and surely showed us the path to walk. We couldn't see more than a few feet ahead of us, but we could see those few feet clearly and we walked the path God had laid out before us. And He slowly helped us make our way through the fog. We never saw more than a few days ahead of where we were. No plan was revealed until we absolutely needed it to be so. Sometimes it was to the wire, but He was never late.

In the last nine months, the miracles and blessings have been numerous. A few of the highlights:

1) We got to spend the entire summer and school breaks with James and the kids and I have loved him having a schedule where he could come eat lunch with us at school and spend extra time with us that we normally wouldn't have had.
2) A weeklong beach vacation we weren't expecting.
3) Hundreds of dollars being given to us anonomously on several different occassions.
4) James receiving thousands of dollars worth of invaluable training for free.
5) Being surrounded by strong prayer warriors who have undergirded and strengthened us.
6) Stronger walk with the Lord than any of us (our children included)could have imagined. My children's faith rock my world on a daily basis.
7)Financial provisions that have been nothing short of miraculous.

I could go on and on.

In nine months much can change and nine months later I wouldn't change the hardship of walking where we have walked. You know, I wouldn't have changed all the pain, sickness and bedrest I endured for nine months to get my kids either. It is only as we have walked through the trials and tribulations that we have seen the unbelievable faithfulness of God.

I lack for nothing, I want nothing, I need nothing...I have all that I need in the fullness of God and His Love.

James got a job last week. He starts next week. It is more than we could hope for and so much more than he had before. That shouldn't be surprising though. It IS one of God's promises.

May Christ through your faith [actually] dwell (settle down, abide, make His permanent home) in your hearts! May you be rooted deep in love and founded securely on love,

That you may have the power and be strong to apprehend and grasp with all the saints [God's devoted people, the experience of that love] what is the breadth and length and height and depth [of it];

[That you may really come] to know [practically, [e]through experience for yourselves] the love of Christ, which far surpasses [f]mere knowledge [without experience]; that you may be filled [through all your being] [g]unto all the fullness of God [may have the richest measure of the divine Presence, and [h]become a body wholly filled and flooded with God Himself]!

Now to Him Who, by (in consequence of) the [action of His] power that is at work within us, is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think [infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams]--

To Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations forever and ever. Amen (so be it). Ephesians: 3: 18-21 (Amplified version)

Whose glasses are you wearing?

I was recently talking with my daughter about how she sees herself. Being eleven, beginning stages of puberty are hitting and girl drama never seems to be at an end. She was feeling kind of down and frustrated. She was dealing with the "enoughs". You know, "I'm not cute enough", "I'm not smart enough", "I'm not liked enough", etc. etc. etc. While talking with her I realized something. How many of us still deal with the "Enoughs" every day of our lives? The actual statements may change, but I bet most of us still deal with them. Those thoughts are definitely still there.

As we were talking an interesting thought struck me. I think many of us walk around wearing the glasses of someone else's perception. We pick up the glasses and look in the mirror and see ourselves as we perceive someone else sees us. We see the image of how we think our boss sees us, or how that co-worker that just doesn't like us sees us, or that mean girl who constantly puts us down sees us, or the bully on the playground sees us, or how we think a friend or family member who just doesn't get us sees us. These glasses give a distorted, perverted, almost 'fun-house' mirror image of ourselves. Where everything is out of proportion and nothing looks quite right. We walk around all day with these glasses on, thinking and stewing and fixating and telling ourselves, "This must be how I am".

The problem is, these glasses create lies. This is not how God sees us at all. These are not His glasses. He wants us to take off these glasses that create hurtful thoughts, lies, put-downs, untruths, and exaggerations. God didn't make these glasses and it isn't how He views us or created us at all! He wants each of us to every day see ourselves how HE sees us. He created us, He designed us, He knows us. We need to put on the glasses through which GOD sees us. Glasses where we see ourselves as fearfully and wonderfully made, perfect, bought with a price, and white as snow, glasses.

This scripture is one of my favorites and one I read to my children often. I want them to KNOW how their Father in Heaven sees them and let that seal their identity.

You have searched me, LORD,
and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue
you, LORD, know it completely.
You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.

Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,”
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.

For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
How precious to me are your thoughts,[a]God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand—
when I awake, I am still with you.

Psalm 139:1-18

So, whose glasses are you wearing? If you don't see yourself as the One who created you sees you, please take off those distorted glasses and put on the glasses made by your Heavenly Father. And once HIS glasses are on, take a good look at the awesome person He created!

ADD - Update

A few months ago I wrote a blog post about making the very difficult decision to put our son on ADD medicine. Throughout the last several months there have been a few days where we have questioned is this the right decision for our son, but in all honesty, those times have been very infrequent. We have seen our son go from a child who was extremely frustrated because he had such a difficult time understanding his school work, learning and controlling his behavior to a child whose self-esteem has sky-rocketed and who truly LOVES school.

Today he brought home his third report card this year. He has brought up his reading grade from a B- to an A. His other grades all came up and for the first time he made straight A's including a 100% average in math. Almost more amazing to me is his bringing up his conduct grade to an A+. When we put him on medicine we just hoped to not get such frequent reports of misbehavior. But to get NO reports of misbehavior is such a blessing.

I am so grateful that others are seeing in my son what I have always known was there but he just struggled so much to show the world. We are continuing to evaluate things and we don't know that we will always keep him on medicine, but for now we are staying the course. I can't wait to see what he does with his very bright future!

Are you prospering???

What does it mean to prosper??? Is it money in the bank? Is it nice houses, cars, designer clothes? Making sure you get to lunch with the girls, workout at the gym, that round of golf in? Is it living the American dream? For a long time that is how I would have defined prosperity. It is what I have always wanted. Who hasn't! But the more I study scripture, I wonder if that is how God defines prosperity.

The word prosper in Hebrew is the word Dashen which means: to make fat. Prosperity in Hebrew is the word Tobe which means: good, pleasant, agreeable. So prospering means to make fat (having so much to eat that one becomes fat in many cultures equates to wealth). Prosperity means something that is good, pleasant and agreeable. Similar, but not quite the same.

In looking at the story of Joseph in the Bible, we learn that Joseph was sold as a slave by his brothers. He eventually came to be a slave in the home of Potiphar. But even as a slave, the scriptures state that: The Lord was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. Genesis 39:2. Everything in Potiphar's house and work prospered because Joseph was there and lived according to the Word of God. As the story continues, Potiphar was deceived by his wife into believing that Joseph had tried to take advantage of her and Joseph was thrown into jail. But even in jail, scriptures state: The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph's care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did. Genesis 39:23. Joseph again through remaining faithful to the Lord God was blessed while in jail. After a couple of years, Joseph was elevated to second in command to Pharoah. From there Joseph did see great wealth and position and favor. This favor allowed Joseph to be reunited with his father and reconciled with his brothers. So in all things in Joseph's life, whether slave or ruler, God was with him and he prospered.

In examining the life of Joseph, I have come to realize that our current circumstances have nothing to do with whether or not we are prospering. Prosperity has to do with our relationship with the Lord. Joseph was a slave, in prison and a great ruler and in ALL those things he prospered because the Lord was with him, directing his steps and his days. In Proverbs 21:21 it states: He who pursues righteousness and love, finds life, prosperity and honor.

Prosperity is about having a right relationship with God. Prosperity is hearing from the Lord and walking with Him daily. It is God sustaining me even when the circumstances of my life seem pretty dark and full of despair. Prosperity is knowing that I am not walking it alone but God is with me directing my steps and my path. It is loving God with my heart and trusting in HIM alone! And it is knowing that in both tough times and good times that God is working it all out as He promised He would do!