What Were You Like As A Little Girl?

Last night I shared some great conversation over a cup of coffee with some lovely ladies. Some of us met for the first time, some were casual acquaintances.  The first question that got us started was ...

“What Were You Like As A Little Girl?  

What Similarities Do You See In Who You Are Now?”  

As the evening hour progressed we explored what true beauty is and how it points to God. We learned that beauty isn’t in the feeling, it is in the action.  Boy…did we have some good laughs on that one. 

Obviously, we all primped and poofed our hair, and looked in the mirror before we left the house and said… “Girl, I look good tonight.” We each individually and candidly dove into which specific character quality we would like to cultivate, why and what step of action we need to take to bring more of it out.  Our choices were a) vulnerability; b) stillness; c) loyalty; d) risk taking; and e) resilience.  We enjoyed reading Psalms 139:1-17 and sharing what parts of this scripture makes us secure in Christ.  We concluded that Christ is truly our only security and everything beautiful is of God.  Appearance is important to us, and we spend a lot of time and money improving it.  But how much effort do we put into developing our inner beauty?  

  

After I got home, I was reminded of the story of a lovely lady named Rebekah.  She not only was a knock out, but what made her truly beautiful was that she was a woman with an attitude of service who went beyond the expected.  Staying focused on things that are eternal and demonstrating patience, kindness and joy are also beauty treatments that help us become truly lovely on the inside.  I just want to say thank you to all the beautiful women that I met with last night…what an honor! We ended the night with this verse as our prayer. 

Search Me, O God, and Know My Heart;

Test Me and Know My Thoughts.

 ~ Psalms 139:23

My Picasso

Tender moments and lasting memories are most often the result of sharing simple things.  

This summer I shared my hobby with my granddaughters for the first time. Up to now, my paint brushes and art stuff has been off limits and in the "do not touch" category, but this summer, well it was time to graduate to the real stuff.  They have shared the water color books and my not so good brushes, but this year their eyes lit up when I told the girls they could use real paint and my real brushes. I gave them a little pink, green, yellow and blue acrylic paint and had them start their own creation.  Not really sure what to do, one of them started by drawing her favorite flowers and almost immediately, with the skill of a professional artist,  she  began adding her leaves and just like that she created her first masterpiece. 

Much to my delight the end result has been worth more than any art lesson I could have shared with them that day.  

 Pablo Picasso, the famous artist once said ... "Every child is an Artist.  The problem is how to remain an Artist once he/she grows up." 

They reminded me that sometimes in the grind of life we lose our sense of childlike wonder and that we should trust God with a child's simplicity and receptivity.  There are many ways to measure success, but doing the things you can, and letting God handle the things you can't, makes beautiful art on the canvas of our lives. 

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

~ Matthew 11:28

Capture The Moment

Often the days go by and I realize how sad the loss when I took a moment for granted and forgot to appreciate the many blessings in my life. Not big things, you see, but the “joy of enjoying” the warmth of the sun, the fragrance of flowers, or the silky taste of a great olive oil.  Sometimes, I forget to enjoy the simple pleasures such as a beautiful sunset and the freshness of dawn or the kindness of friends and the love of my family who so unselfishly give.  I realize that God wants us to be filled with HIS joy.  So much joy that it overflows!  When we have a consistent relationship with Him, we will transcend the rolling waves of circumstances in our lives.  So, capture the moments all around you and lock them in your heart until it overflows with joy.

Always be full of joy in the Lord.  I say it again – rejoice!

~ Philippians 4:4

Hot Flashes, High Heels & Hormones

I was just cleaning out my garage the other day, and BINGO, a surge as they call it, came over me. I found a box full of high heel shoes from way back when.  Let me tell you, it was the mother load of some of my favorites.  I have had these treasures long enough for them to be back in style.  Some were exotic. Some were flashy.  Some were from Spain. Some were Italian with lots of bling-bling and studs.  My hormones levels must have skyrocketed, because I was so excited at discovering my national hidden treasure, I was dizzy and

 

I Knew If I Moved Too Fast, I Might Pass Out. 

I composed myself and like any menopausal woman would do I pulled them all out, reminisced about the outfit that went with each pair of shoes, and what the occasion was.  But here’s the best part, I was CONFIDENT I could still fit into these delicate little creations.  I looked down at my slightly swollen feet, and proceeded to squeeze into them.  Mind you, my little granddaughters are watching my frenzy trying to squeeze into these shoes.  The look on their eyes as I braced myself to stand in my 5” heels that wrapped all the way around my slightly swollen ankles was priceless. For a split second, I was metaphor sized back to a twenty-something year old in my high heels.   I amazed myself as I stood up with such precision and grace, and balance; my young audience was a gasp and shared my joy! 

Then I tried to take a step.  Yep, you got it! I was like a drunken sailor in my own garage… “whoa… whoa…” I yelped for help.  My little girls came to my rescue and as I collapsed, we laughed, and laughed and laughed.  Now they have quite a bit of designer shoes to their little collection of make believe, but that afternoon I had a heavenly HOT FLASH!  I was so reminded that everything is in God’s timing, in my youth I wore high heel shoes, now I smile when I see a young lady in her beautiful high heels.  The secret to peace with God is to discover, accept, and appreciate God’s perfect timing.

So I concluded that there is nothing better for people than to be

happy and to enjoy themselves as long as they can.

~ Ecclesiastes 3:12

Distress Signal

Recently I was floating on the lake and chatting with a friend. We looked like a couple of geese as we were soaking in the sun, and as girlfriends often do, we were reflecting on some deep wounds and how they have affected us in our lives when we were young and how our personal characters have been sculpted because of these emotional and difficult, and sometimes painful events in our lives. I was surprised as she described me as an angry person back when, though as any girlfriend would do, she was quick to tell me, how much I have changed. I have to say for a split second…

I Felt A Little Angry!

Of all the character descriptions, that would not have been the one I would like to be remembered as, however I appreciated her keeping it real. I know that some of my deep wounds have required a long period of healing, but as I thought about it she was right. I was sending out “distress signals" back then, but they were easily misunderstood. What I have learned is that, anger is a very necessary step in working through pain of deep emotional injury from another. Anger, (without vengeance) is God’s mechanism for protecting us when we have been hurt by another. My point is this, when I was in distress and had no escape from my pain, I took it directly to God and He listened. I just love the thought of God bending down and listening, don't you?

From the Lord comes my deliverance!

~ Psalms 3:8

BABY BOY!

My heart is filled with overwhelming joy and anticipation in the arrival of two new grandsons. I haven't met our little boys yet, but I love them so much.

BABY BOY!

I am flooded with memories of raising my own son, and the FUN we had growing up together. I didn't have an owners manual when he entered the world, wish I would have. You see, he was my first. By the time my daughter came along, I wasn't so uptight and had figured out a few things, thanks to the support of my mother-in-law and her amazing sisters who would laugh at me when I would call about a crisis I was having that day!

Now, I can't wait till I hold these little boys, one is due in September and the other in November. I pray for their safe arrival, and I pray that I can be instrumental in them having a relationship with their Creator. I pray that I can be an example and be of encouragement for them to live wisely in all they do.

Where Are You?

 

Yesterday, my little cat Sunny was locked out of the house accidentally. I found myself feeling a little sad at the thought that I may not find her. She has always been an indoor cat, and isn't familiar with the outside world. I just kept going to the front door and calling her name, and whispering little prayers that she would find her way home.

"Sunny, Where Are You?"

I kept searching in all her favorite hiding places inside our home in case she was ignoring me. Anyone who has had a cat knows what I am talking about, they can ignore you all day if they choose too. I found myself going to one of my favorite pictures of my daughter holding my dear Sunny. Well that night, I decided I would wait-up all night by the door if I had to, and wait patiently for her to return. It was about 20 degrees that evening, so I put on my warmest jacket, my Ugg boots, gloves, scarf, and cracked the door open, and sat there calling for her. As I sat there calling her, I was reminded how much our Heavenly Father loves us, calls us, and how patiently HE waits for us, it is never too late to come home. After what seemed like the longest night, little Sunny came walking in the door. She was cold and hungry, but ever so grateful to be home and see me, by the sound of her purring. Well we rejoiced and celebrated at the return of our furry friend, and called all family members that had worried with us. We held her tight, gave her kisses, checked her thoroughly to make sure she wasn't injured. I can only imagine the celebration we'll have when we see our Heavenly Father who waits patiently for us with HIS open arms? Can you?