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Rules for Self Discovery

1. What we want most;

2. What we think about most;

3. How we use our money;

4. What we do with our leisure time;

5. The company we enjoy;

6. Who and what we admire;

7. What we laugh at.

~A.W. Tozer

My personal quiet time as been filled with rich details about Solomon's kingdom lately. I'm knee deep into 2 Chronicles, and I'm not studying it to teach it but just to be edified by it. There is certainly a difference. My "spiritual lenses" focus much more personally when I'm looking into the Scripture to hear God's Word only for myself.

While the insights I'm gathering may indeed one day make a message from which others can benefit, right now, the Holy Spirit is just digging deeply into me - exploring me, reminding me, convicting me, challenging me and rearranging me.

It's a good thing.

Several days ago, I ran across these two lines and my insides leaped:
2 Chronicles 9:20 - ". . .silver was not considered valuable in the days of Solomon."
2 Chronicles 9:27 - ". . . And the king made silver as common as stones in Jerusalem."

I was intrigued - the king chose to offer that which was not considered valuable. Seems that the king's value system was a bit different than the people's.
I've jotted some thoughts down in this month's Jewelry Box article. Take a peek and then pop back over here to tell me what the Spirit speaks to your heart.
I'm anxious to hear about it.

Bless you today.
Priscilla

I keep telling Priscilla that her boys are going to grow up fast.  But I know that's hard to believe - because I've been right where she's at in motherhood. When the days stretch on and on......and you just can't wait until they GET OUT OF WHATEVER STAGE THEY'RE IN! (I said that a lot.) But suddenly, you look at them and can't believe how tall they are. How did THAT happen?

Take my son, Gray. He was about the age of Priscilla's oldest son now when we first met. Second grade, which really seems like it was.......well, not exactly yesterday, but at least just a couple years ago!

I now have to stand on tiptoe to kiss his cheek! Which he loves.

Here is a photo of Jackson and J.C. a few years ago.....and they have already changed SO MUCH! (Jude had not made his appearance yet.)

Watch out, Priscilla! Jackson's gonna be driving before you know it!

This is me with my friend, Bridgette yesterday.

This is me with Bridgette today.

Today, she purposefully sat down in front of a mirror while someone stood behind her with a razor and shaved her head. She didn't cry, whine, complain or drop her head in disgust. She watched the whole thing with a smile on her face and even stopped for giggles and photos to document the process - especially when the stylist gave her a mohawk like her son has always wanted.

When it was all over, Bridgette felt good. She felt good because the minute that chemo started to cause her hair to come out she decided that she, not the medicine, would choose when she lost all of it.

She. . . . . is brave.

When she felt the lump.
When she got the diagnosis.
When she went in for her first surgery.
When she found out the surgery didn't get it all.
When she found out that chemo would have to be endured
And. . . . as she trusts God to use give her a testimony that brings glory to his name.

SHE IS BRAVE!

I'm grateful for Bridgette's bravery. In fact, she wears a leather bracelet everyday that says so. It's a reminder to her that she doesn't have to give in - not by a long shot - not with all of God's power at her disposal like it is.
So, I'm grateful for Bridgette. She reminds me to face life with a smile and a bit of bravery. If she can do it. . . so can we.

Whose bravery has inspired yours?
Priscilla

The Going Beyond offices are moving! We've spent weeks renovating a barn into our "headquarters" and yesterday we started moving in. 

The moving truck arrived, with things from our old office.

Here comes the furniture.

Linnae is just a little excited about all this....

Conferencing in Jerry's office area.

"Let's put Linnae's desk right here."

Yay! Everything is looking so great.....

There is plenty more to do before we are completely settled, but we've made a great start.  Thank You, Lord, for such an incredible place to work! You are GOOD.

I'm just sitting down to write to you after a very long day. In fact, I've just plopped in this chair after being on my knees in the kitchen with my sister for the last little while. We've been cleaning up spilled milk - and not just a little bit of milk either - a whole gallon of it.

You see, my sister's boys came over to play with mine today. That's right, she's got three just like mine. They are almost identical in ages; just off by a few months in either direction on the calendar. So, this afternoon for approximately 5 hours, two 7-year-olds, two 5-year-olds and two 2-year olds were running all over the place. And, as expected, they had a great time together.

When my son asked if he could pour himself a glass of milk, I didn't think twice before telling him "yes". Pouring his own milk has been an important "rights of passage" thing for him lately so I gladly obliged. Honestly, I was too busy fixing dinner plates for the big boys and keeping the little ones from throwing any more legos in the toilet not to.

So when I heard a smashing (or was it "swooshing") sound by the kitchen door, I turned around abruptly to see a gallon jug cracked open on the floor and loads of white milk seeping into every nook and cranny on that side of the kitchen. My sister and I were too shocked to move. We just stood there with our mouths hanging open as we watched the puddle grow. Finally, we were jarred back to our senses and started cleaning up the incredible mess.

I was still on my hands and knees 20 minutes later (we had to move the refrigerator, wash kitchen mats, etc) when my son tapped me on the shoulder and said, "Mom, I'd still like some milk."

What in the world? He, more than anyone else, should know that WE DON'T HAVE ANY!!!

Poor little one, someone should have warned him that you shouldn't ask your mother to pour you some milk when she is currently cleaning all the milk she could possibly give you off of the kitchen floor that you spilled all the milk onto.

But no one gave him that memo, so he looked at me in a demanding little five-year-old "I'm waiting on my milk" kind of way. Good thing he got distracted by his cousin calling him to come play. No telling what would have happened otherwise! 

Well my friend, I'm not sure what the moral of this story is. In fact, I don't think there is any spiritual significance at all. I guess it just might make me feel better to know that someone else knows about my messy evening and has maybe even had a few of their own. . . 

Your turn.
Priscilla

Miss Philippines might have made her first major mistake in life, with her answer to the question, "what is one big mistake you've made, and what did you do to make it right?" So far, she's been fortunate enough to live a regret-free life, but somehow I think this might qualify as one moment she'll regret, sadly.

See, everyone wants to live a life without regrets, but very few actually do it. When my husband and I were younger, "living without regrets" was a phrase we seemed to use much more often than we do now. I wonder why that is.

When our kids were born, we didn't want to regret how we raised them so I stayed home and devoted myself to motherhood the best I knew how. I certainly don't regret that. I don't regret being silly with them or letting them play in mud puddles or letting them dress up the cat. I also don't regret spanking them or trying to teach them manners. Lord knows they needed both.

During Tom's last year of college, we had a business opportunity and a choice to make: postpone his final semester of college to start a business, or finish the degree on time and lose the opportunity. We didn't want to regret not taking a chance, so we took the business opportunity. Now that 20 years have passed, the business is long gone and he still has one semester left of college. Part of me feels a little regretful that we didn't let the opportunity wait while he finished that degree.

It's hard to know WHAT you'll regret years from now. Back then, we certainly couldn't see the pain and misery that business would bring us. But we also couldn't see how God used it to break us, humble us, and ultimately strengthen us. We just did the best we could with what we had, and sometimes that brings some regret along with it.

I think I've come to realize that a person who truly lives without any regrets is not the kind of person I want to be. Having no regrets means that you think you did everything right. That every decision you ever made was perfect and that if you had it to do over again, you'd do it exactly the same way.

And who of us can really say that?

Having regret is not always a bad thing. When we hurt someone, we should regret it. We should regret immoral decisions. We should regret self-destructive behavior. Regret should make us take stock of ourselves and our actions. It should lead us to repentance and then to resolve. Without regret, there is no reason to change.

I'm really glad we've set out to live a life without regrets. It has helped forge the way we parent, the way we work and the things we believe. It helps chart our course through the tricky waters we often navigate. But just as important as purposefully living regret-free lives is, admitting that there will always be some regrets along the way may be just as important.

Acknowledging our regrets makes us vulnerable and imperfect. It makes us admit that we are not always the master of our own destiny, the controller of our universe. Regret helps us admit mistakes. It gives us empathy for others, and a common bond in another's struggles. It keeps us humble, and that's kind of how I think we are supposed to be. We don't have it all figured out.

Maybe that's why we talk about it less these days. We're still just trying to do it.

How would you answer Miss Phillipines' question? "What is one big mistake you've made in life, and what did you do to make it right?" How has regret helped you make different decisions?

Autobiography in 5 Simple Chapters
By Portia Nelson

Priscilla's post on Friday made me think of one of my favorite verses in scripture, Ecclesiastes 9:11.

 

I admit it - I'm overwhelmed and outmatched. When I consider the varied dimensions of the life that God has called me to, I often feel like . . . .well. . taking a nap. I know you've got to feel the same way. Whatever your season of life and whatever details it entails, I bet you've found yourself feeling like you're swimming in waters that are way over your head.

That's why I was captivated by 2 Chronicles 2:6: Solomon considered the task set before him and said,
 

But who is able to build a house for Him, for the heavens and the highest heavens cannot contain Him? So who am I, that I should build a house for Him. . .

Seems like I'm not the only one feeling overwhelmed and outmatched.

Solomon had an entire nation to rule and a temple to construct - the likes of which had never been seen before. There was no blueprint to follow and no previous architects or contractors to consult. He was leading a massive project for which there was no precedent, and he was well aware of his inability to build something that would actually complete its mission - housing God.

And yet - Solomon began to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David. . .  - 2 Chronicles 3:1

That's right. . . he did it anyway. He consecrated himself and his work to the Lord, and dove headlong into the divine mission to which He'd been assigned - believing that God would take up the slack. That's a WORD for me today and I hope it is for you, too.

Overwhelmed? Outmatched?
Just do it anyway.

Priscilla
Anxious to hear what you've been overwhelmed about so that we can be praying for you.