(Out of) Balance

Have you ever been on a seesaw? It’s been a while for me, but I remember how hard it was to get in balance with the rider on the opposite side. The heavier one ended up sitting on the ground while the lighter person was suspended in the air. Getting in balance required some delicate redistribution of weight. I have found that to be true in my life with the weight of my various commitments as well. That has never been more obvious than in the past few weeks when my pace essentially went from “rabbit” to “turtle” overnight!

Two Extremes

Rabbit

The weight of my “to do” list last fall nearly grounded me. It’s not that any of my commitments required too much of me, but rather, it was the sum of those commitments that pushed me to my limit and beyond. I didn’t know if I was coming or going some days. God was faithful to provide, as always, but I knew I needed more balance in my life—less Martha, more Mary! What kept me going was knowing that January, and a chance to catch my breath, was right around the corner.

Turtle

It’s January! I am enjoying the life of a snowbird once again. Fewer commitments equals less stress and more margin. That’s all good, but the drastic change of pace has been a real shocker. I’m not good at sitting still, but I’m getting some good practice this month!

December and January have been extreme, in opposite directions, and I could use some balance.

How Do We Find Balance?

Jesus perfectly demonstrated balance in His life here on earth. The demands placed on Him were FAR greater than anything I’ll ever experience, yet a 24-hour day was enough for Him. How did He do it? He looked to God, not to people, to determine His priorities. Sometimes that meant that He had to say “no” so He could say “yes” to what was most important.

“Very early the next morning before daylight, Jesus got up and went to a place where he could be alone and pray. Simon and the others started looking for him. And when they found him, they said, “Everyone is looking for you!” Jesus replied, “We must go to the nearby towns, so that I can tell the good news to those people. This is why I have come.””

Mark 1:35-38 CEV

When we’re “out of balance,” let’s learn from Jesus. He not only modeled it, but He also taught it:

“But more than anything else, put God’s work first and do what he wants. Then the other things will be yours as well.”

Matthew 6:33 CEV

I frequent Aldi and one of my favorite cereals they sell is called “Balance.” The cinnamon version is my preference. Balance, at Aldi, is comparable to “Life” cereal made by Quaker Oats. If you’re of a certain age, you may remember a commercial for Life featuring Mikey back in the 70s. Much to his brothers’ surprise, he liked it!

Balance—like Mikey, I like it!

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December 3, 2022December 3, 2022

Just Wrong

How are your holiday preparations coming along this advent season? Are you feeling stressed by any chance? With my daughter’s wedding coming up right around the corner, I have a little extra on my plate this year. If you know me, you know that I don’t do well with chaos. I need order!

Not Quite Right

In my attempt to get my gift shopping done as efficiently as possible, I placed a “ship-to-store” order with JCPenney last week to complete my shopping. When I picked it up, brought it home and opened it yesterday, it was WRONG. I had ordered two similar items, one for my son and the other for my father-in-law. The only differences were the size and color. The gift for my son was correct, but it seems my father-in-law is getting a BRA for Christmas! Someone at Penney’s sure did get it wrong. I’m sure he/she was in a hurry just like the rest of us this time of year.

Same

A dear friend of mine got me a devotional for advent and dropped it off here on Monday morning so I wouldn’t get behind with the readings. Well, guess what? I took me 5 days to get past the cover page and Week #2 begins tomorrow. This morning I was able to make up for lost time and read through the devotional and accompanying scripture passages. Guess what I learned? Just like the Penney’s employee, I also got it wrong! It happens every year. I get so caught up in my list of things to do that I run myself ragged trying to get it all done. It’s easy for me to lose focus on the reason for the season–Jesus, and instead be consumed with checking things off my list. I have a feeling I’m not the only one. Perhaps you need reminded of that today, just as I did.

Let’s get it right this time and stay focused on preparing our hearts for the Ultimate Gift, Jesus, this advent season.

“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

Matthew 1:23

I’m off to Penney’s…it seems Pappy isn’t going to be able to use that 36A bra that was in the bag!

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*In a separate matter, I haven’t had the opportunity to write as much as I’d like. I recently became aware that only a handful of “subscribers” to my blog were getting the email notification. I’m not sure when that issue cropped up. You may have missed some as a result. The link to “subscribe” wasn’t even working. I am using a new plug-in as of this post. I hope that resolves the problem. Earlier today I manually “subscribed” all those who were on my previous list. Because that list was incomplete, I took the liberty of adding some others. If you are not interested in receiving notification of my posts, please feel free to unsubscribe.

November 23, 2022November 23, 2022

Stuck

“How are you doing?” It’s not a question we care to answer honestly with just anyone, so the answer is often short and sweet. I do hope you have someone in your life with whom you can discuss the topic on a deeper level. After all, we were made for community. Are you feeling stuck in your circumstances by any chance? If so, keep reading. There’s a remedy for that!

Grief Journey

My dad passed away nearly 8 months ago. It’s been a REALLY busy 8 months, possibly on purpose, but not necessarily. Some days feel like a struggle to stay afloat. I didn’t really have time to work through my grief or even give much thought to it. So, in response to a nudge from the Holy Spirit, I signed up for something else to do! I signed up for GriefShare through my church. It wasn’t because I needed something else to do, but rather, it was because I needed to do something else—address my grief. It was my way of forcing myself to sit still long enough to face my grief and work through it. The bonus, I think, has been going on this journey with a group of women that I didn’t even know beforehand. We’ve come to enjoy spending our Monday evenings together.

The title of last week’s lesson was “Stuck” and I’m sure we’ve all been there at one time or another. Maybe you’re there right now. I don’t know the current circumstances of your life, but I have a feeling you are facing some challenges. After all, Jesus assured us that we WILL have trouble in this world (John 16:33). Trouble comes in all shapes and sizes—a troubling diagnosis, a pink slip, a broken relationship, financial strife, the death of a loved one, etc. Sometimes the trouble is so overwhelming that we become paralyzed by it, unable to move. We get stuck!

The Solution

If you find yourself stuck right now, I have the perfect antidote—gratitude. It’s a popular topic this week as we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving. Do you have an attitude of gratitude? We learned in GriefShare that gratitude is a healer. By placing our focus on the good, the difficulties we are experiencing lose their potency. Look around—search for beauty and blessings. They are there! Let’s not allow our feelings to boss us around. Instead, let’s stand firm in the truth.

The Reason—Jesus

“Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for those who belong to Christ Jesus.”

1 Thessalonians 5:18 NLT

As followers of Christ, we ALWAYS have reason to be thankful. Jesus saved us from our sins by dying on a cross. That’s how much He loves us. And three days later the tomb was empty—He defeated death! Through faith in Jesus, we have the promise of spending eternity with Him.

We can trust Him with our trouble and be thankful in the midst of it. No matter the difficulty, we can find comfort in knowing that God is with us and will bring goodness and love into the situation.

“Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life.”

Psalms 23:6a NIV

For that, I am thankful! Clothe yourself with an attitude of gratitude as you gather round the table to celebrate Thanksgiving. It’ll look good on you. So good that you may never want to take it off!

Wishing you and yours a blessed Thanksgiving!

The outcome of an attitude of gratitude.

August 9, 2022August 9, 2022

Custom-Made

The Dress

Once we got the bride outfitted for the big day, it was my turn to find just the right attire for the mother-of-the-bride. That was a tall task, but eventually there was agreement on the best option for me. Mind you, we did all this online. I went to place my order and asked for some help by clicking “What size am I?”. That took me to a chart of measurements for the various sizes of the dress. I took my measurements and found them to be ALL over that chart. I think it may have been best to toss the dice to figure out which size to order! As a result, I ended up ordering a “try on” dress to determine if I liked it enough to have it made specifically for me. There is no turning back with a custom-made dress. If you order one, it’s yours—like it or not!

The Comparison Trap

This dress experience could be a metaphor for my life. I never did fit into the box very well! Being the youngest of my parents’ three daughters, I naturally looked up to and followed the lead of my older sisters. I still do! We grew up on a dairy farm and they both won the title of Somerset County Dairy Princess when they were 16. I succumbed to self-induced pressure to enter the contest when I got to that magical age as well. As it turned out, I crashed and burned during the pageant, completely freezing during the onstage interview. I can laugh about it now, but it was humiliating at the time. What was I thinking? I don’t even like milk!

Living Outside the Box

Whether it was my sisters, my classmates, or other peers along life’s journey, I always seemed to be comparing myself to others and coming to the conclusion that I just don’t fit into the box. There were times I was thrilled by that, like when I was the only girl on my Little League and Junior Legion baseball teams. But, more often than not, I felt like I just didn’t measure up. To me, it seemed like I was always living outside the box where I thought the “normal” people resided. Well, guess who constructed that box? Me! I was my own worst enemy.

The Impact of Two Books

You may have picked up on my use of the past tense in the preceding paragraph and are wondering what changed? And when? It was a book that was written 20 years ago AND a book that was written some 2000 years ago that changed my whole perspective.

Twenty years ago, Rick Warren wrote The Purpose Driven Life, and I participated in a church-wide study of it shortly thereafter. There were 40 readings, one for each day of the study. It was Day #2 that changed everything for me. The title of that reading is “You Are Not an Accident.” Perhaps you need to hear that today just as I did back then. Your parents may or may not have planned you, but God certainly did.

“You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb.”

Psalms 139:13 NLT

We are custom-made by God. He made each one of us ON purpose, FOR a purpose. And guess what? God doesn’t make mistakes! That was a game-changer for me. My parents and yours possessed exactly the DNA God needed to create us.

“I am your Creator. You were in my care even before you were born.”

Isaiah 44:2a CEV

Let that sink in. We were custom-made BY God and FOR God before we even took our first breath. Our purpose for being here is to bring glory to God, but that will look different for each of us because we have been uniquely created by Him. Once that truth settled into my heart, I felt several pounds lighter. There was no longer a need to drag around my personal “measurement” box to see if I fit. I started living into who He created me to be, and that freedom refreshed my soul.

No Box Necessary

From the words of Christian artist, Francesca Battistelli, “I’m free to be me; And you’re free to be you.” God wouldn’t want it any other way.

The Perfect Fit

I entered my measurements and placed an order for that mother-of-the-bride dress that I tried on earlier. My custom-made dress should arrive in another month or so. No alterations necessary—I’m counting on it!