Timing is everything

I wrote this about 2 weeks ago. I was not going to post it at all but maybe it will help someone .

1 Final Appointment

A final appointment to keep have I

The time and location unknown

If I could make the appointment, I would be old and grey

But it is not my appointment to make

God picks the time and place

Some people’s appointments come way to soon-

 for those of us left behind

But your timing is perfect, timeless and divine

If I could change the appointment time, I’m not sure that I would

For if you call me for my appointment, it’s for your greater good

I hope my family misses me, when my turn does come, it’s true

But I am sure I will see them in the kingdom and I will celebrate with you.

 No, I am not ill. We had a young man in our church die, I was at the hospital with his family. It was not written for him,but it was shared at his funeral. 

This is an original work.

Please Do not Reproduce without permission

Written March 14, 2014

decision decisions

I am in a class where I have to present 1 sermon a week. Last week there were too many people who needed to present so I ended up not giving mine. Now I had 2 options. Just work on the one I didn't use or write a new one.  no option for me. I wrote the 1st one for a completely different audience. So,I wrote a new one.  Now I have to decided which sermon to actually present in class. I like them both. But they are totally different. Hmm.

On Saturday this week I plan to pre-plan Sunday. It is nuts . But it will work out. Semper Gumby.

Thoughts

What does the future hold for me?

The future holds many changes. What I was planning to do as an adult is not what God wants me to do adult.

Listening to God is a very good idea. Telling him no, is just plain Dumb(yes I admit to being dumb in this case). I have experienced many stressful events in the last few weeks. I thrived. I am starting to figure out exactly what God wants me to do. (exhale)

Its going to be a long road. Eventually I will write another post and explain . Just not right now.

God is bigger than my fears, will brush away the tears
and will keep me through the years.

Stories

Do you remember having stories told to you as a kid?

If you went back and looked  them up,would they be exactly how you remembered?

The Wizard of Oz, what color were Dorthy's slippers according to the BOOK? the original? (silver)

How many animals of each kind on the ark for Noah? 

David and Goliath?

The Chronicles of Narnia?

Not the Movies, but the actual stories, as the Author wanted them to be told. 

What a difference it makes!

Some stories are so familiar we loose their importance. 

I  am working on a project and have been mulling over childrens' stories all week, I think as an adult I tend to not place enough importance on them. And in Bible stories if they have motions and songs I know the Sunday School version,but the actual story in the Bible, some of them, I am a bit shaky.

I am working on it.

You (I) pick up important details when you (I)  pay attention!

Midweek

So I am in a class..
I am writing a 3 sermons...
I get to pick the texts
I have 15 min to present each
1st sermon choice,
Zacchaeus.
Its due Sunday.
Rough draft is coming along.
Deep Breathing.
I am learning alot about what my dad does on a regular basis.
Finding the Key point is Super important.What is universal to your audience?
I do not use manuscript format because I go into lecture/study mode and it gets boring!
Outline
and Smile

Prayer Request

This is a hard week.

A young man went home to be with Jesus on Friday night.It was very unexpected . He was 24. He is survived by his parents and his 2 younger sisters. Please keep his family and friends in your thoughts and prayers.

I am having a bit of trouble writing anything positive this week. I know God has a plan but this week is challenging.

Doctors Apt Update

Well.... I do not have carpal tunnel . The test came back negative.
BUT the doc is pretty sure  I do have Cubital tunnel.
Basically its carpal tunnel just in my elbow. Its fairly easy to treat and I am very excited.

Biggest challenge - Baby my elbow and pay attention to how I sit.

One of the harder things is going to be limiting my time on the computer. He said set a timer for 1 hour and then take 30 min or more off doing something else.

Surgery may be an option if the simple stuff doesn't work .But my doctor seemed pretty chilled about it. :)

I will write a different post later this is just an update for my family.

Lent+Updates+Grace

Hi everyone, I got a bit side tracked these last two days.

On Tuesday this week I had my testing done for carpal tunnel . I didn't mind the 1st part of the test where they put electrodes on you. It was the second part where they poke you with a needle and then ask you to move your hand in certain directions that was not fun.The thumb side was supposed to be the most painful, it wasn't that bad at all.I did deep breathing, I was prepped for the ouch factor. Then he did the pinkie finger side, I almost jumped off the table.That sucker stung! The rest of that test was uneventful, a bit annoying but not bad at all.

Then I got up.... I went to pay and was feeling a little warm but not too bad. Met up with mom, got to the car and proceeded to get very light headed. I sat in the car with the windows open. I needed sugar and I knew it. There were a few cashews , but nothing that would metabolize fast as sugar except for .... Moms iced coffee.

Yes. I did give up coffee for Lent but, I think, in this case, grace is wonderful. Yes. I did drink the coffee , it leveled out my sugar and made it possible for me to drive. My intention was to go the entire season of Lent without coffee, however, I know my plans verses Gods plan... God wins.It made me think about intent verses what actually ends up happens.

And you know what?  The drink didn't taste that good. Yes, the sugar helped but.... I am starting to wonder if I drink coffee out of habit. Do I really need to be drinking coffee on a regular basis? I have some time to find out because except for the couple sips from moms cup I haven't slipped up.

Grace and Peace to All 

Lent? Well, not today's post

Tomorrow is the big day, I get to see the specialist :)

Maybe by the 14th I will actually know what is wrong with my wrist.I am a bit nervous, everyone I have talked to says this test is painful or very uncomfortable.

Mom got to see her doctor today, he took out the cushion and said she can cautiously start driving.No big trips for a while with her behind the wheel. So.... I am still doing more driving for a bit.

This week has the potential to be a bit nuts. Doctors , Specialist, and School stuff.
Semper Gumby.

Breath in , breath out. God's Got it.

Lent 5

God is good.

That is it for today.

Longer post tomorrow, I promise.

Lent 3

Time to myself, what a blessing

I had time to myself today,(this does not happen often, even when I am by myself my phone seems to ring off the hook) Mom had a meeting for a few hours so I got to sit and read.

I am a fast reader, and I enjoy many different types of books, today it was catching up on the "The Lunar Chronicles",by Marissa Meyer and starting a new to me series by Annelise Ryan , so far her books are great. No, I am not receiving compensation for posting about either of these books.
 I am always looking for new books to read and I am very impressed by the character development in both of their series.
Time to study is important, but sometimes you need to let you brain have a break.

I got to see part of my extended family today. It was nice to see them.

Mom and I went to the drive thru at the coffee place today and got..... A Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate. I did not give in to the temptation :)

How are you doing on your Lenten journey?
Celebrate the small stuff . 

lent 2+ update

How are you doing with Lent? Its a work in process for me.. Lent is good for working on priorities, I know the main thing is to get closer to God,however...

I ended up giving up coffee for Lent. Not Caffeine , just coffee as I drink it on a daily basis. I am discovering the different teas we keep in the house. I love earl grey but I also like lady gray.I am rediscovering stories in the Bible .Some are old favorites and some are new experiences. Believe it or not there is a cool story in the book of Numbers chapter 27, Go ahead and look it up.

I had never heard it before. Guess what? Neither had Dad or Mom. Its fun to find stories in the Bible that are not popular.

I have had a productive day. 

I had a date with the hubby , we went to lunch and had time to talk about vacation ideas. We came to the realization we needed to leave for a bit, just a 3 day weekend. There is debate where we are going to go,but at least we are coming up with some good ideas.We don't want to spend the days driving so it has to be somewhat close to Central Illinois.

Then:

I came home and worked on church stuff for a bit.Checked the FB, and email.

Afterwords:

Mom and I made a list for town of stuff we needed to pick up,including bottled water for the Coffee machine.  We stopped at the Hair Salon to see if mom could get in to see her stylist,she has to have her picture taken tomorrow and the surgery had done a number on her hair. Her stylist couldn't see her til 5 pm,but she did get her in, and her hair looks wonderful. Its wash and go.

While she was getting that done I went to the bookstore! I bought a tea latte. There were several good books that I considered getting but I am going to wait. I have stuff coming in the mail to explore sometime in the next week. 

Came home, Made dinner, updated this post, made priorities for tomorrow, and started looking for ideas for vacation.

Mom has a meeting in Springfield tomorrow and she still can't drive, the doctor has not cleared her yet. 

So , I am going to be driving up  and I have from early morning to mid afternoon to do whatever I want as long as I am back to pick up mom ,its weird, I will probably hang around the office and read or sketch for a bit. I have time to write, edit and plan ideas. 

I will post tomorrow but it will be short. 

Lent post 1

40 days = 1 month +10 days

A time to reflect, to examine yourself, to intentionally draw closer to God. Many different denominations participate in the Lenten season. I grew up on Army bases around the world, the imposition of ashes was part of my growing up. I have sat through many Ash Wednesday services;United Methodist, Anglican and Catholic to name a few. Each one has left an impression and for that I am thankful.

 This year I completed the United Methodist  Basic Lay Servant Course. I had the opportunity to assist in the Ash Wednesday Service, to be on the other side of the rail was eye opening. I often do the object lesson ,so being up in front was not a huge deal. But seeing the light bulb for some of the people in the congregation was thought provoking. It seemed to connect to some of them more deeply than normal church,they were not as distracted and in my opinion that is a good thing.

Ash Wednesday begins almost a time of mourning, it is similar, I think to when a family member goes into hospice, there is a heaviness that sets into the church, we know the end is coming, this is the time of waiting.

If you knew you had 40 days to improve your relationship to God before you had to face him in person , what would you do?
 Traditionally you give up something for Lent or take up something.

Easter morning is coming but for now.... How will you improve your relationship to God?