It's Not Whether You Win or Lose....

Tell that to Marcos Ambrose, who dominated today's race in Montreal only to jump the curb on the final lap - his only mistake in the four hour race. As a result he lost a race he had coveted for two years. It was unbelievable!

It does matter how we finish, doesn't it? Marcos' loss today reminded me of what Paul said in terms of our finishing the faith "race":

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing." 2 Timothy 4:7,8

One "curb hop" in our final lap will not knock us out of contention for the reward, but how we fight the faith on our daily journey, and how we finish it? It matters.

Is it Obvious?

With both study groups now in full swing, my blog-posting time has dwindled, which is a bummer, as I truly enjoy the posting process, but I also enjoy teaching, so something will have to take a backseat for a little while. I suppose it's obvious as to what that will be :)


While preparing for tomorrow's lesson in James 3, I was once again reminded of the seriousness involved in teaching God's Word.

"Don't be in any rush to become a teacher, my friends. Teaching is highly responsible work. Teachers are held to the strictest standards." The Message

As a teacher, this verse stops me in my tracks. Am I handling the Word accurately? Am I living it consistently (not perfectly!)? Am I taking it in, as well as giving it out, in order to be a living stream of truth and not a stagnant pool of yesterday's experiences?

Tough, but necessary questions. Looking back, though, what I found to be most interesting was that I never questioned as to whether or not I should even be a teacher.

It had nothing to do with pride. The moment the Lord wants to use me elsewhere is the day I'll move on, but it does have everything to do with His calling on my life. I eat, sleep, and dream about teaching. I love it! And at this moment, I can't imagine doing anything else, even with sobering scripture that defines the foundation of this calling.

I sense a sweet confirmation from my Father that even though I fail miserably in many ways, He continues to invite, encourage, and lead me (as with all His children) down the right path, tough questions and all.

Friends and New Faces

Psalm 23

Our Women in the Word study group met for the first time last night. The setting seems to be a great fit. The cafe was beautiful and Anna, one of the wonderful volunteers at the B Encouraged house, was a gracious hostess.

It is always a blessing to see familiar faces. There's history, memories, sistership, and laughter all intertwined in the smiles we exchange. Last night, I was reminded of the beauty found in new faces as well. While we may not share a history or have memories to exchange, there is an immediate sistership... and laughter is usually not far behind.

I'm looking forward to my own personal journey through the psalms as I prepare each week, as well as my time together with the sister sheep.

We All Want to Belong

Soon after Zach purchased his "new" VW GTI, he and Sarah pulled up to a traffic light only to find a guy in the next car over making a similar hand signal to this in their direction:


Zach either knew, or quickly figured out, it was a hand signal shared between "fellow GTI" enthusiasts so he returned the favor. He and Sarah thought it was pretty hilarious!

Cliques in car clubs can be fun, but there's nothing funny about cliques in the church setting or among God's people, period.

Brian and I noticed (while in the church-search mode last year) how many people are in their own little world, totally oblivious to those around them, much less new faces. I have to wonder if they realize how detrimental that kind of attitude is to the reputation of both the Church and Christ Himself. Probably not.

Don't get me wrong -- I understand the importance and the blessing involved in fellowship, but who says all our "fellowshipping" has to take place on Sunday mornings?

• What would happen if we came to church with one mission in mind -- to accurately represent the Person of Jesus Christ by seeking out the lonely, the new souls He has delivered to our doorstep, or to the person who visibly sticks out like a sore thumb instead of immediately running to the familiar faces?
  
• What would happen if we focused more on what God has done for us and how we can extend that grace to others rather than focusing on what the church can do for us?
• What would happen if we showed up a few minutes earlier or stayed a few minutes later in order to welcome others in the name of Christ? Trading our discomfort for their comfort?

What would happen?

I'm convinced that many more lost and lonely souls would get an accurate glimpse of who Jesus is, a taste of how He loves, and a reception of grace that leaves no doubt they belong.

Because they do.

My Idea of Twittering

• Took a trip to Sparkle City, aka Spartanburg, this morning to visit my great-aunt, Helen.

• While there, I stopped by Mr. Plemmon's greenhouse to pick up a couple of plants. He is a retired prison clergyman and had grown quite feeble since my last visit. His body may be weaker, but his faith continues to gain strength. Tucked in his front shirt pocket I noticed a small piece of paper with handwritten scriptures on salvation written all over it. No doubt he is prepared to share the living truth at any given notice. Love it!

• Pulled up to a traffic light in town with the song "Savior, Please" by Josh Wilson, playing in the background. The song itself was powerful enough, but it was the scenery beyond the traffic light that would set the stage for a surreal, but wonderful moment. Immense white clouds pressed against the blue sky seemed to be dancing in rhythm to the song. All I could do was smile and thank God for the surreal snapshot in time. Check out the lyrics -- you may understand why:

Savior, please take my hand
I work so hard, I live so fast
This life begins, and then it ends
And I do the best that I can, but I don't know how long I'll last

I try to be so tough
But I'm just not strong enough
I can't do this alone, God I need You to hold on to me
I try to be good enough
But I'm nothing without Your love
Savior, please keep saving me

Savior, please help me stand
I fall so hard, I fade so fast
Will You begin right where I end
And be the God of all I am because You're all I have

Hallelujah
Everything You are to me
Is everything I'll ever need
And I am learning to believe
That I don't have to prove a thing
'Cause You're the one who's saving me

• Although I had a full schedule planned for the afternoon, it turned out to be more restful in nature. I don't know why restful often equals stressful for me, but let's say I worked through those feelings pretty quickly today. I enjoyed it!

• A nice evening with the hubster. No cooking, a late-in-the-day cup of coffee, fun word games on the computer, and 70's music in the background.

It's the little things in life. :)

Searching for Motivation?

Motivation to declutter, that is.

If so, your search is over! You need only watch one episode of Hoarders on A & E TV.

It debuted this week and ironically (not), my desire to declutter has increased tremendously ever since. Brian is hoping they will show reruns several times a week (and that I'll watch them). :)

One Week From Tonight...

That's when our new journey through a selection of psalms gets underway for the "Women in the Word" study on Tuesday nights. I can't wait!

In my last posting, I mentioned the need for going back to the basics. Let it begin with prayer.

In recent weeks, I've sensed the Lord inviting me to a different place in my prayer life. Although I'm unsure of how that will flesh out right now, I know it will be a place requiring more time... more sacrifice... much more of Him... and much less of me.

I accept the invitation.

Some specific areas I'm praying for the Tuesday night group include:

• fresh insight into the heart of the psalmist, and more importantly, into the heart of the Composer Himself.
  
• for our hearts to be prepared - tilled up, ready to receive God's Word and His specific purposes for each of us.
• that His Word and purposes will take hold of our hearts and minds and grow deeply, resulting in action which will bring abundant fruit for the Kingdom and abundant living for today.
• creativity - remaining sensitive to the Holy Spirit's leading as I prepare the lessons each week. I'm so glad He IS the true Teacher!

I would appreciate your prayers as well. :)

Women will be attending from different churches, backgrounds, and spiritual journeys -- but all with one purpose: to learn the Word of God for themselves in order to know (by experience) their heavenly Father.

An answer to prayer.

Thank You, Lord.

Going Back to the Basics

This morning's "Stamping Fundamentals" class at Eleanor's was just that. The basics.

Even though I've stamped off and on for years, I've always felt I could benefit from this type of class as there were tricks and techniques I had missed along the way on this self-taught journey of mine. I was right! Not only were known techniques "refreshed", but I also learned basic things I should have known for years.

The same holds true for my faith journey. I've recently sensed the Lord inviting me to step back and reacquaint myself with a few fundamentals-of-the-faith that, while currently being practiced in my life, are in desperate need of refreshing.

If only the reacquaintment process was as easy as showing up for a Saturday morning class and paying the instructor $10.00. There's nothing easy about it, but I refuse to settle for fumes of a past faith. Forget the notion of being "rekindled" - I want to be set ablaze by the power of the Holy Spirit!

So, it's back to the basics for me.

Look Who's Playing in Town...

The hubster's band, Last Road Bluegrass!

They'll be playing in Fountain Inn this Saturday night at 6:30 p.m. in the downtown area. No charge. Don't forget to bring your chairs!

Prayer... it's Foundational

Our Tuesday night study on selected psalms is just around the corner! I think we'll have a great turnout based on the feedback so far -- but there's always room for more if you're reading this and interested in attending. It sounds like we'll also have several new faces joining us this time, so if you've never attended before, please feel welcomed... because you are!

One friend emailed a few minutes ago to say that due to her work schedule she wouldn't be able to attend this study BUT she would be a "prayer partner on Tuesday nights for all you guys digging in the Word". That's priceless! Could there be any greater contribution to a study than lifting the group up in prayer, even though she cannot physically be present? Just knowing someone will be praying during that time lights my fire!

I thank God for the women He has allowed to cross my path over the years. Although I'm an "only", I feel surrounded by "sisters" who love me and who especially love their God and His Word.

I couldn't go to bed tonight without first thanking Him for this wonderful blessing!

A Weekend to Treasure

Friday's "treasures":

• A great lunch with my Mom at Elegant Gourmet. :) The food was yummy but the company was the best! Thanks, Mom.
• Beating (O.K., barely) the hubster at our newly-found online word game.

Saturday's "treasures":

• My yard sale find of the day. "Cottagy" floral fine bone china from England... five bucks!

• Attended Lauren's, (Sarah's sister), wedding. The ceremony was beautiful, as was Tammy (Sarah's mom), and the attendants. It was also a great opportunity to mingle with friends from CrossRoads and Temple Baptist.

Sunday's "treasures":

• Another great day in Sunday group! Yea God!
• Attended Andrew and Heather's shower. Talk about a flashback in time. As their engagement video played, I realized how long (and how privileged) Brian and I had known the Cron's. When I met Teresa, there was only Andrew and Stephie-poo. It's been pure joy seeing our "children in the Lord" grow up and now Andrew is getting ready to head to Duke and begin a new life. He is getting married the weekend after Zach, so Teresa and I have a few busy months ahead, but at least we're in it together. :) I wouldn't want it any other way!
• I had a flat tire (which meant Zach had to go pick up dinner! ha!)
• My race was postponed due to rain this afternoon... to Monday noon. Ah, life is good.

Family... friends... fun... and a flat tire. They're all treasures.

How to Know....

How do you know when it's a slow-blog-posting-kind-of-day for me? You find pictures of my most recent Cuttlebug excursions instead. :)

Weekend Wanderings

Wanderings: To proceed in an irregular course.

Saturday - yard sales with the hubster, studying, road trip with Angie Prout to Marius and his wife, Jeanette's, baby shower. We weren't sure where we were going, but we had fun getting there -- with no left turns even. :) It's a good thing no one could see us meandering through the Starbucks parking lot on Pelham. ha!

Sunday - one of the best days in class ever. Someone we've been praying would visit (for months!) did just that and we think he'll be back. Another friend in our class, Sandra, decided to join FBC so we attended the "Getting to Know" dinner together last night. It was a true victory for her. Yea, God!

All in all, a great weekend. Busy, lots of going back and forth, but blessing-filled nonetheless.

I'm especially enjoying today as Brandon and Megan are home for a brief visit. It's GREAT having them home, even if it's just for one day/night. :) Feels like old times. I'm happy to wander there any time.