Skies

I took the boys to the riverwalk one afternoon after a rough day. It is so peaceful to be near the water when your soul needs rest. I brought my camera because I love photography and enjoy finding the perfect picture. I decided to look up as I sat under the covered area we were sitting in and noticed how beautiful the workmanship was of the gazebo area. The sky was blue and the detail put into the design complimented it beautifully.

" The heavens tell of the glory of God. The skies display his marvelous craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. They speak without a sound or a word; their voice is silent in the skies; yet their message has gone out to all the earth, ad their words to all the world."

Psalm 19:1-4

The skies are actually a testimony to God's glory. I rarely take the time to just look up and wonder at the miracle that occured at their creation. Their testimony is silent, and all that have eyes have seen the skies and therefore have witnessed a miracle. It gives new appreciation to our world to realize that even nature gives testimony to God's creation. I am challenged to do the same, in that even my silence should be testimony to God's glory.

Stop Light

This stop light was a moment between my oldest son and I this week. We always hit this light when it is red and when I say always, I mean ALWAYS! It turns red and there is always only one car that crosses the cross street. Seems like so much trouble for just one car to cross, but the light remains there just the same for that special one car to pass. It is so hard to be patient after that car has crossed and we still remain looking at the red light.

One day Tyler said to me, "Mom, just go across. No one is looking." Embarssed to say, I have had that thought so many times but never acted on it. This was my moment. Sometimes, or should I say "lots of times", God brings these moments to teach not only our children, but ourselves. This is what came to my mind at that moment. The Bible verse came later, but the saying came first,

"Character is doing the right thing even when no one is looking"

Matthew 6: 17-19
"But when you fast, comb your hair and wash your face. Then no one will suspect you are fasting, except your Father, who knows what you do in secret. and your Father, who knows all secrets, will reward you."

Of course, we weren't fasting, but I really thought about how much we want others to know when we make the right decisions. Sometimes it needs to be just between us and God and those sometimes are precious because no one else knows. It is the private moments that make a relationship develop. The intimate sharing without self-gratification.

Fasting was a very important moment in the Bible, yet God wanted to make sure that it was a private moment and that people weren't walking around looking like they were starving and miserable so others could pity and say how righteous they must be. It seems more tempting to make a production of our right decisions that are private, than getting away with something in private. This challenges me daily, and I am thankful for Tyler posing the question and making me think. Children are wonderful at asking the important questions and God is wonderful at showing the answers.

Patience

This is what greets me every morning since November of last year. Our lovely for sale sign. We are building a new home which we are eagerly awaiting, yet we have to sell the home that we are in now. The number of people who have seen our home is equal to the number of days we have lived in our new home......Zero. I hate the number zero. It is equal to everything negative. At least the number one gives hope, but zero.

This is a huge area of patience for us. This is a huge area of faith for us. And each morning when I go out the door, I have to ask myself if I can trust God to sell our house. We have done everything we can, fliers, sign, a realtor, and Internet coverage.........yet. We worry, we fret, and then say we are trusting God to sell our home. We like to plan things ahead, get our ducks in a row, jump the gun, cut them off at the pass, and be prepared. We've crunched the numbers and did the math and things need to happen right now if they are going to work out at all. God's way is so different than ours, God's way is always the best, comes in the most unexpected ways, and ends in growth as a Christian.

"Oh, what a wonderful God we have. How great are his riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible is it for us to understand his decisions and his methods! For who can know what the Lord is thinking? Who knows enough to be his counselor? And who could ever give him so much that he would have to pay it back? For everything exists by his power and is intended for his glory. To him be glory evermore. Amen."
Romans 11:33-36

When you can truly grasp these verses, an when you can take them in and believe every word, life no longer is a worrisome road, but an exciting adventure. How wonderful to have a director that is never surprised and that knows no set-backs. To know Him who can see the beginning and the end at the same time is a privilege. We will never understand it and it will never make sense. We can never pay him forward. It is all God and only God that does good. He wants to His work whether it is something so trivial as a house for sale or as deep as a crisis, God knows the ending and only uses things for His glory which is pretty awesome!

Freedom

It wasn't the sound of cereal pouring into a bowl that got my attention last Saturday, it was the sound of cereal pouring and pouring and pouring. One word came to my mind....Dakota.
There was Dakota sitting so proudly with her saucer full of cereal she had poured herself. Using a plate was a classy touch! Her look to me was priceless. It was a "And you thought I needed you to get me Breakfast" look. She continued to eat her hard-earned cereal and I went for the camera.

It reminded me of myself. How many times I so proudly did something my own way and looked to God with a "And you thought I couldn't do this myself!" look. I am sure I looked just like Dakota with my plate instead of a bowl, spilling over with my cereal everywhere. Yet, God just like I did that morning gives a little smile and lets me bask in my efforts for the moment.

Having a two year old is very enlightening. This is the age when true freedom and independence is born. The true innocent realization that those two little legs that once could only crawl can run away from mom, and climb, and go places. I love watching Dakota when she thinks she is getting away with something. That pure delight of thinking she is going to outdo me this one time. Of course it doesn't always end in victory.

I love this scripture:

" But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image."

II Corinthians 3:16-18 NLT

The freedom that Dakota has discovered is the same for us as Christians. Just like a two-year old uses their freedom to develop and grow, so God gives us freedom to do the same. We have the freedom to come to him, and in turn grow more like Him. And even when we think we know best, He lets us pour our own cereal.

More Tornado Pictures

Tyler and I decided to take a little trip yesterday to see if we could get through to the tornado damaged area. Thankfully the roads are now passable and we were able to see my school and the other areas that were hit hard. It is amazing to know how a tornado travels and randomly picks the areas that it will hit.

My school did not have the damage I was expecting. I believe that they are still in session. The Dunkin Doughnuts that I spent many trips to during breaks in college is absolutely ruined. It was touching to see that one of the teachers had put an American flag out in the parking lot which is covered in debris. I am proud to be a Floridian! In these times of disaster, we have so much spirit and togetherness.

Times like these can be very reflective on your own life, even if you aren't directly touched by the devastation. One passage keeps coming back to me through this. In I Kings 19 God speaks to Elijah:

"Go out and stand before me on the mountain," the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper."
I Kings 19:11-12

Tornadoes, Earthquakes, Hurricanes and other natural disasters are usually phrased as "Acts of God", yet God speaks in a gentle whisper. The one who has all power does not find joy in speaking to us with such methods. He loves to whisper to us. He gets our attention after the devastation, heartbreak, or even fear with quietly calling to us. I love that!

One more photo

We took this picture today, Sunday. This is the closest we could get to the damage at this time. This photo is behind the Deland Middle School. You can see the damage to the trees and the chain link fence has papers covering it from the school behind it. It is pretty amazing to see in person.

February

February once again found Florida as vulnerable. We awoke on Friday morning to find our neighbors in DeLand had been devestated by the tornados. The worst of it is several miles from our house. Thankfully our direct area was spared, but my college that I attended is said to have considerable damage. The health department I have spend many hours in was completely destroyed. This picture is of the beloved power trucks heading towards the damaged areas. The traffic was horrible on Friday, as I attempted to head to school, but found that the area was unaccessable.