It seems like for the last few years, our family has undergone some kind of change in its in-home dynamics. Whether its my oldest going to college or my others transitioning from homeschool into high school, there has been... change. And now, for the first time in 20 years, I'm at home alone.

In preparation for this switch and the "jobless" feeling, I found myself praying the familiar prayer that we all have most likely prayed at some point in our lives:

God what is your will for me? Or, another one like it:

God, what are your plans for me?

I don't think these prayers are wrong to pray at all. God Himself even says, I know the plans I have for you... (Jeremiah 29:11). But for some reason, this fall, I had a "catch" in my spirit when I prayed in this way. And the Lord just quietly told me to rephrase the question like this:

Lord, what do you have for others through me?

Hmmm, is there any difference in these prayers? For my heart, yes. God wanted me to put the word "others" before the word "me", in my prayer and in my life. Jesus was others focused; He listened to His Father and walked in obedience...towards people. Then so must I. As Christ followers, that's what we are: vessels of His love to others.

So if He asks me to call somebody, then... call. If He asks me to write and print something, then... write and print. If He asks me to walk and pray, then.... walk and pray. (And this too), if He asks me to respect my husband, then... respect.

To illustrate, the other day, I prayed: Lord, what do you have for others through me... today?

He answered. I knew, without any doubt that the He was asking me to take some lunch to a friend of mine who just had surgery; I was already stretched for time but, I obeyed. While there, we got to talking and she mentioned that there was an exchange student from Italy who needed a host home because the first host situation was just not working out. (I had actually met this sweet young Italian girl 2 weeks prior, and had an instant motherly-love for her; God was already scheming). So, from this conversation at lunch...and a day of praying...and talking it over with my husband and our three kids still at home...we now have Giulia "Jewels" Lizzi living with us for her junior year. And she is more than a delight! Honestly, I never in a million years would have planned this myself; I'm not that adventurous. But how wonderful are His ways. To think, I would have missed it had it not been for that divinely appointed conversation at lunch.

Are you in a transition time right now? Are you waiting for Him to reveal His plans for you? While you wait, pray, Lord, what do you have for others through me... today? Then walk the way Jesus did, with love towards people.

And as you make small steps forward in obedience, have faith that He will unfold His big plans for you...plans for welfare and not calamity to give you a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11).

I recently had some recurring thoughts that made me look for a post I wrote many years ago...

Every now and then, I think about the now...and then.

The other morning the thought about the present-day and the unseen-future came to mind when I stepped outside with puppy-Juliet for her morning "duty." Most of our outings together at this wee-morning hour still possess the remnant of night-time, with the black sky and the twinkle, twinkle of the "little" stars. However, for about three mornings in a row, our scenery was different; instead of a clear nightly
sky, Juliet and I were greeted with a dense white fog. When standing on my front porch, I couldn't see our driveway, our black fence, the surrounding trees, the cows in the field... nothing.

I think sometimes our present day, the now, is a lot like living in this kind of fog. There are so many unknowns, whether its about our health, our finances, our direction, or our relationships. The seemingly impassable uncertainties can create a worrisome unsettling in our hearts... so many questions, so many emotions.

But as I was walking with little pup down our driveway in the midst of this penetrable thickness, I heard a whispering in my soul, "Chris, this is what it means to walk by faith not be sight" (II Cor. 5:7). The Lord's sweet reminder to my questioning heart, was that I am walking with the One who holds all the answers. And I am called to put my faith in Him, not in myself or my surroundings. Remember, He is called the Father of Lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow (James 1:17).

And let us also remember this truth on our walk: in the midst of all this faith-fog "now" there is the promise of crystal-clear "then"! You may never understand the goings-on of this life, but if all you do is hold onto the hope of heaven while walking through the befuddlements of earth, then God has been glorified in and through you. Someday He will set all things right, and we will then understand.

As I walked back up the driveway, God set my mind on another Word of His:

For we know in part, and we prophecy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away... For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I shall know fully just as I have also been fully known. (I Cor. 13:9-10,12)

In light of this truth, let us each walk by faith today, remembering that God Himself is in-step with you. I pray your heart will hear Him whispering words of hope, for your "now"... and your "then."

Every year for about the last 15 years, my sister Peggy ("Pooh") and I have taken a fall weekend trip together. We now have eight kids between us, ranging from ages 2o down to 9, which means we have both traveled the marathon of diaper-changing, nose-wiping, potty-training, attitude-checking, sibling-correcting, laundry-folding, home-schooling miles.

Last Sunday, however, Peggy and I participated in a marathon of another kind. On our fall weekend get-away in Maine, we set out to conquer our 2nd 26.2 mile walk/jog together. I will briefly share the "highs" and the "lows" with you, beginning with the "lows".

Lows: we woke up at 4:30; we started the race in the pelting rain; we continued to jog in this cold rain for hours upon hours; my soggy fingers were so cold I felt like I had ten thumbs which means I couldn't get to my sport's jelly beans in my zipper pouch (biggest low); we almost got hit by a bus; port-a-johns were our only option (not); we were directed off-course around mile 17 which means I think we did a 26.3 mile marathon; and finally, we mis-communicated with our shuttle driver with the pick-up location so we stood with frigid aching muscles in the drizzling rain waiting for what seemed like forever. Was it worth it? YES...

HIGHS: walking/jogging with my sister, observing the wet beauty of Maine, finally getting my zipper pouch open, eating my jellybeans, and PRAYING for many of YOU! One of the biggest reasons that Peggy and I are doing marathons has to do with our Walking with Hope Ministry. The connection is that while we are doing each marathon, we take our list of the women who have come to our Hope gatherings, which is now over 100 names long, and we pray and pray and pray. So mile after mile in Maine, we called out your names and asked the Lord to bless you, keep you, help you, guide you, comfort you, and make Himself real to you. This committed time was my highest of highs! It bonded me with my sister and took my mind off myself, and all my lows.

I wonder, are you in a "marathon", or should I say another marathon, of your own right now? Maybe you are in the diaper-changing years, or an attitude-checking season with your children. Or maybe you're on the other end of life of parental-caring or marriage-repairing. From this literal marathon experience I just had in Maine, might I make a couple of suggestions?

One, find a friend to walk through this long haul with you. Life is too hard to walk alone. Encourage one another and build each other up (I Thessalonians 5:11). I would not have made this endurance trek without my sister by my side.

And two, pray. Praying helps divert our attention outside our own struggles; quite frankly, it even helps us to endure our troubles. In the midst of your mess, cry out for another; it will bless both of you! Remember, the power of prayer travels through time and space. What Peggy and I prayed on the trail in Maine, I know God heard and I know God answers. The Lord has heard my supplication, the Lord receives my prayer (Psalm 6:9).

So, another marathon down, and Lord willing, many more to go--bonding with my sis, and praying for you.

One of the biggest "mix-ups" that we humans can make in our personal walk with the Lord is to think that we are the originator of love. I know I spent years upon years in my relationship with God, putting one focused step in front of the other saying to myself, "I love God, I love God, I love God."

How revolutionizing it was for my heart to finally receive what my head had been told in His word even as a child. Listen to this verse found in I John 4:10:

This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

It's as if God is saying, "Don't get it backwards; I loved you... first."

For example, which comes first, grass growing from the earth, or rain falling from the heavens? Or better yet, which is the love-initiator in this relationship, a devoted mother reaching for her newborn baby or the small infant gasping for air? These answers seem obvious, simple. Likewise, God is desperate for each one of us to simply understand His deep affection...

Because... when we finally do "get" this fundamental concept, we then can't stop speaking, singing, writing, dancing, living out this uncontainable love. It pours from our innermost being, and it is better than life itself! Our once focused steps are now freeing steps, accompanied with, "HE LOVES ME, HE LOVES ME, HE LOVES ME!", which then changes to the second verse, "HE LOVES YOU, HE LOVES YOU, HE LOVES YOU!" Yes, when we are His to the core, we are overcome with the driving desire to chase the world down with the initiating love of Jesus Christ.

So my friend, I encourage you to rest in this life-altering truth...He first loved us. (I John 4:19). And then, run to the world.

Dear Friends,

I would like to introduce a new resource found on my blog site called A Passage and a Prayer. This collection consists of Scriptures, and then prayers that I have written over the last several years concerning the heart of my children. If time permits, take a moment to check it out. I hope it will be of use to you as you pray for any of your loved ones: spouse, children, grandchildren, or friends. Take joyful confidence that our Lord loves to hear and answer the voice of his people!

LINK: A Passage and A Prayer

Summertime brings new growth. For example, there is a crepe myrtle planted by our screened-in porch that I have watched spring up over the last couple of months. Morning by morning, when I go out to sit quietly on the porch, the tree before me seems to be one inch taller than the day before. (It "leafs" me amazed).

By observing this tree, these verses come to mind:

But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. And he will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers. Psalm 1:2-3

Likewise, in our front pasture, a cow just delivered a sweet baby calf that is getting sturdier by the day as he consumes his mother's milk. (I'm sure he thinks the milk is "udderly" delicious). Soon, he will be chomping grass right beside her side.

There is a Scripture that speaks of this as well:

...like newborn babes, long for the pure milk of the word, that by it you may grow... I Peter 2:2

These scriptures remind me that I, too, have the wonderful opportunity to grow... spiritually, day by day. I see in the above verses that the "common denominator" of spiritual growth is God's word. So I must ask myself, am I delighting in the law of the Lord day and night, or am I longing for the pure milk of the word? If this is the case, then I can expect something wonderful to happen. Just like a young tree responds to water by stretching its branches heavenward, and a baby calf responds to milk by growing more sure-footed, a willing heart responds to God's word by becoming more and more like Christ each day. As we grow, we will reflect His image, which is full of love and compassion, patience and steadfastness, faithfulness and joy.

My prayer for you and for me is to crave His word, take in and meditate on His word, and then obediently respond to His word. Then you and I (and the world around us) will see growth, beautiful and sturdy growth, that rivals the crepe myrtle in my back yard and the baby calf in the front.