Giving credit where credit is due.

There has been several urgent prayer opportunities recently.  There are always, always, always, prayer needs.  It just seemed intense this last week. 

One of those urgencies involved a precious newborn.  Fresh new life seemed compromised.  The prayer warriors found out and stepped onto the battlefield, standing in the gap petitioning God to heal and restore health to this new life. 

Test were done then waiting began.  Waiting for the results....what would the news be? Would there be a life threatening disease? Could there be a long-term illness?

Finally, negative test results announced that the diagnosis was not a reality. 

Immediately, God was praised.

"I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors: You have given me wisdom and power, you have made known to me what we asked of you..."(Daniel 2:23)


What a demonstration of God's visible glory !  A family prayed. The petition was answered...just as they asked. 

And God was credited. 

No explaining away.
No blaming doctors for getting wrong ideas.
No trying to figure out what it was, since it wasn't what the doctors had thought it might be.

Immediately, thanking and praising the God of their ancestors for making known to them exactly what they asked..

Hallelujah. 

 

Plowing ground...

My man cranked up his John Deere tractor yesterday.  He hitched up the disc and plowed up the garden spot.

 

(Yes, it is January. Not time to drop seeds yet....)

 

He is preparing the soil.  Whatever had grown up since the vegetables were harvested was still standing, dead from the cold temperatures of the winter.  He took advantage of that, plowing them under, pulverizing them into the soil to make it more fertile rather than allowing it to sprout up from the roots once warm weather comes. 

 

What was a potential problem has now become an asset.

 

Oh, there will still be unwanted growth in our garden. Weeds will always be a problem.  (..that 'cursed ground' and  'by the sweat of your brow' thing from the incident in The Garden.)

 

Soon, it will be time to plant. He will further prepare the soil and I will help him drop the seeds and cover them.

 

 

Jesus used examples of sowing in His teaching.  As I think about those things He said, I realize that I've dropped a lot of seeds in my life.

 

Unfortunately, many times I interfered with the process of those seeds sprouting to new life.  Sadly, I dug a few up to examine them. Some of them I watered too much, flooding them right out of the ground rather than gently sprinkling life-giving water on the soil they were in.

 

I wonder what seedling I am unattending now.  Is there a seed somewhere that has sprouted that needs nurturing?  Is there weeds that need to be picked out so that life is not hindered? Do I need to water?  Fertilize?

Spiritually speaking, it is always time to sow seeds.  It is always time to cultivate soil and prepare hearts for the Seed of God's Word.

What will I be today?  The sower? The one who prepares the soil?  The one who pulls a weed?

One thing I want to be careful about....it is not my place to dig up the seed and inspect it.  It is God's job and His alone to germinate a seed. 

I just need to be sure the seed I sow is good seed.  

 

 

Multiplied Sorrow...

I've wrestled many times with it.

"I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children.."(Genesis 3:16)

What does that mean? 

There is no question that childbirth is painful. Modern medicine helps, but it is still a difficult process at best. 

But I think this Word from God is more far reaching than just pushing an infant thru the birth canal.  That is painful, but sorrowful???

I think the sorrow comes when we see those children wrestle thru their own struggles.  And we are powerless to help. 

I think the sorrow comes when we witness them learning from their own mistakes, from their own choices of picking the fruit of knowledge of good AND evil, and experiencing the consequences of poor choices.

I think the sorrow increases as we grow older and see our world and culture change, growing further and further away from what we knew, often further from God and His will for us.

I still don't fathom the extent of this pronounced judgment of God for rebellion and sin.  But I know enough about the character and nature of my Father God to know that His grace, love, and mercy exists even in it.

There is pain in childbearing. 
There is suffering in raising them.
There is sorrow in training, teaching, and then releasing them into a world that is hostile.

But the blessings are there in abundance.  And He is there every step of the way.

Hallelujah. 

Why is work work?

I've said it myself.  "That's why it's called work."

 

When someone is complaining about how hard their job is, or that they don't like it...I've said it to them.

 

Work is work.  But it was not always so.

"LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it."

(Genesis 2:15) 

 

The whole of creation was complete, the place prepared, man was created, and placed in it with purpose.  "Man, take care of this place."

It was only after the disobedience that work became hard. 
 

Work is hard, and it is often unpleasant. But I believe that God gives pleasure to us in it when we have a right attitude. Even though God said,  "By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground"(Genesis 3:19), He rewards honest hard work.

Mankind was created and designed to work. It was to be a pleasant thing, the outcome of his efforts mandated by Creator God Himself. 

It is still so.  Life is a struggle. It can be literally a struggle for survival, and certainly a battle against an environment that fights in the opposite direction.  It is a battle against a world where evil is present, and always reluctant to return any ground it has gained.

So we work.  And we fight against the evil that is present, submitting ourselves in our work to the God Who created us and loves us so.... 

What would You have me do today Lord?  Will You wipe the sweat from my brow as I toil today, and will You bless the work of my hands as I give You thanks for the outcome....

Suitably social.....

 

While I don't consider us anti-social, neither do I consider us to be a really social family.  We have never partied much, or had lots of company.  We don't go out with other people a lot.  We do have friends, and we care deeply for them, helping them when help is needed etc. But the bottom line...it is just us.

 

Me, my spouse, and our children.

 

I know others who have a house full of people regularly. They enjoy the chatter and busyness. We can too occasionally.  We might even be found exercising our humor and entertaining the room at the next church potluck !  

 

But to whatever degree, we are all social.  God said it.  So it is.

 

"It is not good for man to be alone..." (Genesiss 2:18)

 

 

 

Every animal Adam named had a mate. They had purpose. "Be fruitful and multiply.."(Genesis 1:22)

(...it takes male and female to do that.)

 

Oh I suppose the woman was needed for procreation, God's creative design for life after all, is male and female. But God spoke and it became so once again, just as He spoke every other thing into reality. "It is not good for man to be alone, I will make a helper for him." (Genesis 2:18)

We may not be social butterflies, but we are not alone.  And it is good. 

In the beginning..

A beginning is defined as a point in time or space at which something started.  I started blogging over ten years ago. (...incredible to think it's been that long !! )

It is the eve of a beginning.  The beginning of the year 2013. 

The year ahead is not certain.  But it is certain that the days we have ahead of us are yet to be written.  Choices are yet to be made. One choice at a time, one moment at a time.

"In the beginning.....God created..." (Genesis 1:1)

We certainly are not gods, and we don't have the supernatural creative power of God, but we have power. We have the power of our own choices, power of our own will.

"In the beginning" of 2013, our future is "..formless and empty.."(Gen. 1:2)

The Spirit of God is still '..hovering". (Gen. 1:2)

God's Spirit was actively involved in the beginning. God's care and protection is still active.  He is the same now as in the beginning.  He was sovereign 'in the beginning' and He is sovereign now.



"When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the ground."(Psalm 104:30)

"....if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve.... as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." (Joshua 24:15)

It is a beginning. In 2013, may we all find ourselves hovered over by our Creator God, creating and bring new life into the deep dark places, bringing life and light.....

He is able. 
 

Happy New Year

Dedication....

A TOTAL CHANGE salon and boutique opened for business on April 3, 2012. On April 21, 2012, we celebrated with friends, family, and clients, with an Open House. After that time of celebration, I gave a short talk and led in a time of thanksgiving and dedication of the new salon. The business world would call it a mission statement probably...I call it a dedication to the One Who brought us to this time and place. This was the message of that dedication.

                                                         

Dedication…. Webster says it is to set apart and devote to a specific purpose.

Work…………. Webster says it is to be occupied in performing manual labor., to produce an effect by an action or an influence, to carry on business.

On the date books I give to my clients each year, one year I had this verse printed on the cover: “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.” Pro 31:30

There are a lot of Mother’s Day sermons on that Proverbs 31 woman. That 31st chapter in Proverbs has a lot to say about women. It is interesting that her appearance is never mentioned. She is described in many ways, but all strictly from her character.

She is an excellent wife and mother, her husband has confidence in her. She works with her hands, making things and growing things. She gets up early, manages her household, her lamp stays on all night. She takes measures to prepare for the unexpected, for things that might happen, and she shares all of this with others.


Personally, I don’t think the Proverbs 31 woman is ONE woman. I think it is a composite of what a woman can and should strive to be. I don’t know about you, but I can’t get up early AND stay up late like she did !


This is a workplace. It is where the 5 of us will spend a major part of our time…..inside these walls, and behind these chairs. Our job descriptions are all about making our clients look as good as they can look. Our work has to do with appearances.


But as a child of God, my goal is to go beyond appearances.


I want to look as good as I can look, and you do too. But as scripture says, “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting….” The Message puts it like this… “Charm can mislead and beauty soon fades. The woman to be admired and praised is the woman who lives in the Fear-of-GOD.

I want A TOTAL CHANGE to be known as a great salon with a talented staff. I want this salon to have a reputation for excellent services and friendly professional stylists.

But above all that, I want this to be a place where we strive to be women who fear the Lord.

We are NOT perfect. I am not perfect. But, I am being made perfect, the process continues…for all of us. When and how that happens has much to do with my choices. Am I honest with myself and with God? Do I trust that what He says IS always right? Am I willing to choose His way over my own? Do I learn from my failures, or must I be re-taught and re-taught, with do-overs and harder lessons?

Well…. here we are. In 34 days, a decision was made and a salon is established. It is beautiful. And I am in awe of His timing, how He has gone before me, how He has prepared the way and sent the workers. I have been an observer in this. It has just happened in front of me. And I am thankful.

I would have said you were crazy if you had told me I’d be opening a new business at 56 years old. But how exciting it has been, and what renewed strength He has given. Where once I wondered when I could quit, I now wonder how long can I work?

This staff had a close relationship before, but working together on this place, alongside our spouses, friends, and family who came and helped, we have even richer relationships. We have sweated together, laughed together, ate burgers with paint stained hands, some of us even shed some blood !

This salon has my name on the license, my name is on the lease. My name is on the sales tax certificate….

But this is not my salon. This is HIS salon. He has given it to me….to US.

He has provided in especially mighty ways for me in the past 7 years or so. And I know that He will continue to do so.
Let us never EVER forget how He has provided.
Let us never stop seeing His Fingerprints on our lives.
Let us never fail to give Him the honor He is due.


Let us not forget how He has restored broken relationships.
Let us not forget how He has provided a roof over our head.
Let us not forget how He has guided our decisions, and even let us make poor ones.
Let us not forget how His Hand is ALWAYS extended to restore, heal, and redeem.
Let us not forget that He loves us with a love that is beyond human love.
And let us not forget that His love for someone else does not diminish His love for me.


And let us never stop striving toward more and more Christ-like-ness in our own life.

In every service we provide in this place, in every conversation, with every friend and client who come here, let us strive to honor Him with how we do what we do. And when we fail or come short, let us be honest with ourselves and with Him, and let us take even our shortcomings to Him and ask Him to heal and restore, ask Him to grow us up and redeem even our mistakes by teaching us from them, so that we never repeat that thing again.

I pray with the writers of scripture:


“May the God of peace….equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. ” Hebrews 13:20-21

“ May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us— yes, establish the work of our hands.” (Psalm 90:17)

While this salon is not a temple, this body of flesh I reside in, IS. (1Cor. 3:16)

I won’t perform animal sacrifices in this place, I will offer sacrifices of praise. (Heb.13:15)

This salon is not like Solomon’s temple, built and dedicated to God for the rituals of temple worship, with its burning incense and animal sacrifices.

But today, I dedicate this place to Him.

Blogging, what is it?!?!!

Blogging.....new concept for a lot of people. 

The computer age has certainly brought a lot of changes. Each new era brings more new changes.  How we respond to those changes in our culture is important.

There is so much available to those of us in this new age...much of it very UN-desireable. But there are many very positive resources.  Our enemy intends to use any and every thing for evil.  Our Lord can and will use it for His good purposes.



My desire is to make a small contribution to the positive things that are available thru the internet. I have much to learn.  But what else is new~!

I've been using a blog as a sort of journal for some time now.  I have stacks of the old kind, paper and ink... (What do you do with those things?)

Whether articulating a thought into words on paper, on the hard drive of a computer, or into cyberspace via internet....it is articulating that thought and communicating it that brings clarity to even ourselves.  IF we are honest...

So, I blog.  Sometimes more regularly than others.  Sometimes, more honestly than others....

In this new year, I have had some total changes in my life circumstances.  Sometimes we need a total change.  (...hence the name for my new workplace.)

Perhaps my blogging needs a total change too.