What if It’s not only for You?

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Have you read the account of Job lately? You can’t help but notice who instigated the argument that brought all of Job’s troubles on him: Satan. Satan had challenged God’s statement that Job was a blameless and upright man who feared God and shunned evil. God said in essence, “Very well, do what you will to him” to show that even through trials and undeserved suffering, Job’s heart (the part God cares most about in all of us) would still trust in Him.

It’s not a coincidence that God preserved this historical account to share with us – future readers who would need to be strengthened and edified through such an example as Job. Read the entire account to hear how God rewarded Job’s faithfulness.

Let’s look at what James says about Trials in our life. I love how he starts his letter, “Greetings” – then Boom! He wastes no time letting his readers, including us, know what is on his mind.

“Consider it pure joy my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds” Pure joy? Pure JOY?? Really James? Yes! But why? Read on – “because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.” Well, what do I need that for? He tells us that too – “Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” You may well ask, “What does that do for me? How does perseverance build maturity and what does that look like in real life?”

That’s a great question – to see it in action, let’s take a look at Paul. Here is a man who has suffered trials. He’s been falsely accused and beaten – almost to death. He’s been shipwrecked, left for dead, the target of plots to kill him, bound in chains, among some other difficulties that would have done many of us in long before.

We read his words in Philippians 1:12-14 where he sits bound to a guard, and actively shares his faith with this person who may have felt more like the prisoner than Paul did!

Listen to his words, “Now I want you to know brothers that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.”

Remember what James said about considering it Pure Joy when we face trials of many kinds? Paul displayed this maturity in his life repeatedly, recognizing that our faith will deepen when we see God at work in the hard situations we face. He was able to view the hard place he was in through the lens of maturity and trust, and have steadfast certainty that God was using it in ways no one could deny.

Others were being encouraged to share the truth of the gospel with people as they saw Paul’s mature view of what he faced and endured. He recognized that this life is short – it isn’t worth hanging tightly on to – let’s get on to more important things – like reaching the lost for Christ. His willingness to “learn to be content whatever the circumstances” (4:11) recognizing that he “can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.” (4:13) was the secret.

A lost and dying world is watching to see if what we say matches up to what we live out. 

So that ‘thing’ you’re facing; that heartache or uncertainty; that loss or grief you are bearing – how you respond to it reveals your trust level in the God who allowed it. And not only can it deepen your own faith as you see God intimately involved in carrying you through the trial… but it could also deepen the faith of people around you who you didn’t even know are watching you.

So I will end with the question I started with…What if it’s not only for you?

I love the verses Paul wrote in Philippians 4:4-7, “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by payer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”  Wow! Rejoice my friend! The Lord is Near!

Are there things you’re facing that are hard? God doesn’t want you walking it alone. He gave us the body of Christ to fellowship with, encourage and help walk this road. There are purposes in His plans…and He loves you.

Let’s talk…you know, between friends.

 

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Why Would I Cry??

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(This is a continuation of the story after “Whose in Charge Around Here?” – the “Angels Among Us” post was a short interruption to the tale of how we came to live in Chicago.)

While still in California, we had received an invitation from a parent whose daughter was also entering 8th grade for Lydia to come to a pool party that was being held just a week after our arrival in Illinois. 

I insisted she would go, delighted for the opportunity for her to meet some girls before the first day of school.  She wasn’t quite as delighted as me, being nervous about the whole thing.  I called anyway, saying Lydia would “love to come!”  Then the mom told me that I was welcome to stay too, to get to know some of the other moms. I gulped and said “Wonderful!” well remembering the lesson on hypocrisy God had taught me three years earlier (you did read that post, right?)   

The day of the swim party came quickly.  On the drive over, our conversation centered around the main concern on Lydia’s heart. She implored me, “Mom, no matter what, please do not cry!”

Indignant, I responded, “Lydia, why would I cry?!” She just shook her head, muttering, “Because I know you. And if you cry, I will be so embarrassed.”

I was exasperated. “Honey, I can’t for a minute imagine why you would think I would cry. This is a pool party for heaven’s sake.” 

With that, we arrived. Getting out of our rental car, she shot me one last warning look, while I put on a smile and moved toward the group of women and girls standing in the front lawn.

Introductions were made all around, the girls welcoming Lydia, then all of them running into the house to change into their swimming suits.  I moved inside with the other moms for a cool drink. A mere five minutes into the conversation, one of the ladies kindly turned to me and asked how our move from California was going.

Now, that was a bit unfair; if she had asked my opinion on the sky rocketing price of milk, or the likelihood of a Spanish invasion, I would have been fully able to articulate my thoughts without any outward sign of the turmoil within. But this? This was too much!

Uncontrollably, I burst into tears, pent up emotions from the past few weeks of upheaval, exhaustion, strange beds and the grief over leaving our lovely home and the friends we had come to love came spewing out.

I cried for the unexpected awfulness of the hotel we were staying in, for bearing the weight of our five precious children’s concerns, worries, and transitions.  I cried helplessly for the impossibility of changing our minds, for the treadmill we were on that was carrying us to more unknown places.  For the spoken and unspoken fears of starting over in a new place again, for late trucks and lost sleep and the massive upheaval that our lives had become – it all came pouring out in one massive torrent and I wept.

Needless to say, the poor woman was aghast at what her innocent question had brought on!

After the worst of it had subsided, through the remaining sniffles I shared how hard things were, but that we were really trying to trust God through it all and knew that it would all be ok eventually. 

These precious Godly women were so quick to respond with sympathy and tissues, gathering around me and praying for me, which allowed me a few minutes to regain my composure if not my pride.

All too fast, the girls descended, Lydia honing in on me standing there guiltily with puffy eyes and wadded up tissues.  I looked away with a sigh, unable to deny it.  Once again, I had failed my dear daughter’s one request, and I knew it.

Shoving back all my emotions wasn’t what God was asking me to do. He can handle my worries so I can give voice to my deepest thoughts and He is able to handle all my concerns – Psalm 62 tells us, “My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him.  He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.”

Have you ever found yourself trying to “do it in your own strength”? Let’s talk…you know – between friends.

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Who’s in Charge Around Here??

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While all the craziness of our home life was going on with our involvement with Safe Families and the busyness of life, things were happening at Mark’s workplace.  He really loved his job, but he had already climbed within the department as high as he could.  The business culture today is so wrapped around a different philosophy than my parents’ generation.  Now, if you stay in one role for more than a few years, it can be looked upon as stagnation rather than perfecting your craft.  So, Mark posted for other positions in the company that would keep us in California, but nothing seemed to work out. He was told that if he gained some further outside experience in management, he could come back in to some different challenges down the road.

When we discussed it with the kids, again, they weren’t exactly delighted with the idea of leaving California, and they had a point: they’d heard us say God would provide friends in California and we had asked that they trust Him; they had, and now they each had some good friends.

But we really saw this move as a temporary one; we were so sure we would be back within 2-3 years – we were already sold on the area, we had had a wonderful life there, so we wouldn’t struggle at all with coming back, would we?

When we had lived in Wisconsin, we’d been part of a wonderful church plant of a Harvest Bible Chapel in the Milwaukee area, the parent church being in Elgin, Illinois. Mark and I used to drive down on Saturday nights to what was affectionately referred to as “Big church” – the main campus.  Captivated by all that God was doing there we’d dreamed of the chance to be part of it. But we had never pictured ourselves moving to Illinois –why would we ever do that when all we’d known was in the Badger state?

All the same, here we were, considering that very thing.

Before leaving our home in California to go on a weeklong visit to Wisconsin, I had called the school, Harvest Christian Academy, letting them know we were going to be in the area the next week and would there be a way our kids could see the school even though it was summertime?  The superintendent was very friendly and helpful, “Absolutely!”

So we took a day and drove down to the area that we were considering moving to.  We wanted our kids to see where they would go to school – and church, since they were the same building. 

Little did we know that while we were looking at them, they were looking at us – we had no idea that the school was working hard to grow – it all looked and sounded wonderful to us and the idea that our children would get to be part of this marvelous school was exciting to us, as we already held their ministry in such high esteem.  Meanwhile, God was encouraging their hearts that here was a family with 5 kids, eager to join in what they were doing.

We flew back to California, more open to the idea of another move.

Again, we talked extensively with our children; we all agreed that ‘coming back’ would be our top priority – this was just going to be like an extended vacation for a couple years, then we’d be right back to the state we had come to love.

Really, we felt we didn’t have a choice so we put our wonderful home on the market, and started the enormous task of moving across the country again.

Back in the Midwest, we moved to a hotel in a northwest suburb of Chicago; this temporary stay ended up lasting about four months, but this time around, we had two dogs plus a cat and the seven of us crammed into two rooms. 

Thankfully, our lodgings were at the very end of the hallway, directly across from each other. Mark and the boys and I took one room with a dog, and the three girls took the other dog and the cat in with them.  

We still chuckle at the memory of the sign that greeted us on the refrigerator when we first entered: “Welcome! We hope you find this fully furnished kitchen stocked with all the necessary tools to make your stay with us an enjoyable one!” 

Opening the cupboards and drawers revealed the contents of two plates, a bowl and a mishmash of silverware, along with a small pot with a lid, a jar opener, a corkscrew and a sieve. The girls’ room wasn’t much better, although they had an ice cream scoop and a stack of cups. Clearly, we had some gaps to fill; between the two rooms, we cobbled together a reasonably equipped kitchen and, with one or two trips to the Dollar Store, we made it functional. 

It didn’t take long for the enormity of our decision to sink in: We had left the home and area we loved, to come back to the Midwest to live in a hotel again, no more ultra bright sunshine, no more sandy beaches… only this time it was August, we were back to freezing cold weather and gray skies – and there was no going back! There were unforeseen challenges that really tried our faith; things had we known, we may have chosen very differently. It wasn’t easy starting all over again, and we started to doubt the soundness of our decision. Everyone was floundering, lonely and struggling.

“Um…Mission Control? We have a problem!”

Nearly horrified with the evidence that obviously we had not been thinking clearly the past several months to cause us to make such a rash and unutterably wrong and irreversible decision, we turned desperately to God – What had we done?? Lord, please fix this!

Then, the soothe, calming voice broke through to my frantic mind: 

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29.

Has there been a time in your life when you found yourself far from where you ever intended to be? When things just didn’t look anything like your original plans? God wants to assure us that even then, He is in control. It may look different, it may be full of some trials or hard situations, but He wants to help us grow through those very difficulties, to make us more like his Son. Let’s talk…you know – between friends.

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Orphan Care

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While living in California, our family became involved in a ministry called Safe Families for Children. Much like foster care, but without compensation and with a more reasonable, lenient structure that operates through area churches to find host families willing to temporarily care for children in crisis, SFFC had its’ start in Chicago in 2002 and our church in California was just embarking on it.

After going through the background checks and training and approval process, our family got to host our very first placement – a sibling group of 4 sisters! It certainly was a challenge at first, going from 5 kids in the house to 9 overnight, but again, we truly saw God at work in amazing ways and were thrilled to be able to participate in such a fulfilling ministry.  It became a family ministry – we all needed to help welcome the kids into our home, be willing to give up some time, comfort, space and convenience – how better to show the love of Christ than to be hospitable to these kids in crisis? 

God has used Safe Families to stretch our faith even further, as well as a very visible way for our kids to learn that choices have consequences. Many people who use the ministry are just people who find themselves in a tough spot and needing some temporary help as they are completely without support as they face a crisis, loss of a job, loss of a spouse, temporary setbacks that no one could have predicted; others though, are there because of some poor choices they have made; needing to serve jail time, or go through drug counseling, and are without anyone to come alongside and help with their kids during a tough time. 

Better than lectures, better than threats, these real life examples of the fall-out that can happen when we make bad choices spoke volumes better than we could have to our kids. 

Better than lectures, better than judging, these real life people see Jesus at work in our lives when we reach out to help them in a practical way during their time of difficulty.

Yes, it was wearying, yes, it was chaotic at times; but did God teach us some valuable lessons through it? You better believe it.  Plus it started to build hearts of compassion in our children.

They began to realize that God might not ask us to do grandiose things, but we are all capable of doing the simple things of love and kindness that He asks of we who claim to follow Him. It is a ministry that is still close to our hearts today and that we have stayed involved in, still hosting here in Chicago (the tale of how that move transpired will be shared in an upcoming post).

Four years into it, with multiple placements, I wrote an Open Letter that I dedicated to each of the children we’ve had in our home. It is such a fruitful and fulfilling ministry, I want to share the glorious gift of involvement with everyone I can, in hopes that it might encourage others to take a step of faith in participating in this marvelous and practical way.

Dedicated to Each of the Precious Safe Family Children we have had the Privilege of Hosting:

Little did we know, oh little one, how mightily you would capture our hearts.  We thought, when we took you into our home, that we were helping you- but God, in His sovereign wisdom, knew that you were just what we needed as well.  Yes, those first few days were hard – we were trying to learn about you, your likes and dislikes, and you, cautiously were learning that we are here to help you, and over time, trust blossomed, and warmth and safety won.

I marvel that we get to watch you grow and discover the world around you, however briefly. Your delight at learning of a whole new world on the ground around our feet was priceless ~ you sat entranced watching the bugs crawl and the ants busily working on their projects, distracted by the wind bending the delicate stems of the nearby flowers, as birds sang their songs of joy into your listening ears.  Perhaps, have you never been exposed before to the marvelous melodies of nature?  Your peels of laughter as we whirled you through the air, around and around, made me wonder: have you ever laughed with such abandon before?

 Your smiles, slow at first, have been the loveliest thing to greet us each morning as you wake; and, as you began to trust that this place is full of love for you, you have softened.  A part of you has awakened under the gentle touch of caring hands that hold you when you fall, delighted smiles bestowed from your sweet gifts of colorful pictures scribbled with chubby crayons,  contentment as we read books, play games, sing songs and make our way through life, together, for a time. 

I don’t know if you will ever know that for this precious and fleeting bit of time, we shared our journey of life – will your young mind ever recall the laughter we have shared? The love that has grown in our hearts for you? Perhaps, some day, far from now, you might have a hazy memory of this time, a little fuzzy around the edges, but certain in the feeling that you were safe and cherished and loved.

I know that our family has been blessed by having you join our circle, even if it is only for a few weeks or months; you have reminded us of one of the best things God has put in the human soul: to have compassion on our fellow man, and the ripples of blessing that follow our acting on that compassion.

Soon, all too soon for us, you will be going back home, to a mom that loves you; not perfectly, but deeply. She has dreams for you, wants good things for you – she must, or she never would have sought the help of people like us who want to support her through a difficult time in her life, to come around and for a while, care for her most precious gift on Earth: her children. She is as precious to us as you are, for she is hurting and alone, in need of the unconditional love that only Jesus offers us; we pray for her healing, for her discovery of the thing she needs the most as she uses this time to build a home for you to come back to, a healthy place for your family to flourish and grow.But when you leave here, do not think that you have fully left us – the memory of you will live on; the stories of what you saw, where we took you, what you learned, how you made us laugh – those things will remain with us, carefully knit into the legacy of stories that will pass down for generations to come; and we will pray for you, just like one of our own. Because, for this little while, you are one of our own. And know, just as we pray now each night beside your little bed, we will continue to plead to God on your behalf after you have gone from here, to watch over you, to protect you and to bring you to Himself as only He can.

So, for today, let’s embrace the time before us and enjoy the simple pleasures that come our way. God holds the future and we can walk with sure steps forward as we take one day at a time trusting in His love and kindness; for now, you are here and life holds great promise; and that is all we need to know.

Matthew 25:40 “The King will reply, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” ~ Jesus

There are so many wonderful ways to be the hands and feet of Jesus; but there are always more people needed to participate in this great ministry… if you are drawn to learn more about Safe Families for Children, please visit www.safe-families.org .

Are there ministries you are involved in that are helping others along life’s journey? I’d love to hear about it!

Let’s talk…you know – between friends.

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Homeschooling!

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We stayed for three glorious years in sunny Northern California, enjoying many of the majestic sights – Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, Monterey Bay, Carmel; trips to the ocean, fresh road-side fruit stands, plentiful sunshine and completely new experiences from what we had known in our home state of Wisconsin – we grew to love our time there and God so faithfully showered his grace on us, helping us to find a great church and make some friends.

The first school we put our kids into turned out to have some beliefs that we couldn’t agree with. We heard about an excellent Christian High School and decided our older two girls, who were by this time both in high school, would attend there for our second year of living in California. Having no other options for the younger three, I was sort of thrust in a direction I had never considered before: homeschooling. A prospect I was terrified of!

I was not a teacher! I never even went to college! The thought of my precious children’s educations being placed into my quaking and (in my mind at the time) unqualified hands was simply ~ Well, the word disastrous comes to mind!

But we were out of choices – and time. So, with great trepidation, we set out to try our hand – praying daily that God would give us what we needed to make the year a success.

As I brought my fears to God, He handed back to me a verse found in Joshua 1, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous – do not be terrified, do not be discouraged for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you may go.”

It turned out to be a marvelous journey! I utilized the curriculum my sister recommended to me and the kids and I enjoyed the extra time together, foraging through the endless maze of learning – one interesting thing led to another and we fully embraced it all and learned together! We were able to really hone in on the few areas my children had each struggled with in the past, giving them stronger foundations on which to build.

I so appreciated the extra time I got to have with my children, better understanding their areas of weakness and strengths – if they understood something, we moved on; if they didn’t, we simply ‘parked’ there until they did. It was very fulfilling, and I am glad we have it in our memory bag of experiences.

As wonderful as I ended up thinking homeschooling was, the four of us sitting around our dining room table left very little chance for any of us to meet people and make friends; since we hadn’t gone back to the first school, our younger kids were still relatively friendless; so we agreed, they needed to go to school. God allowed Mark and I to find a marvelous school for them the following year.

I still look fondly back at that year; I realized that had I allowed my fear of the unknown to stop us from trying this, we would have missed out on SO much! I discovered in a very intimate and tangible way that I serve an AWESOME God – and if He is calling me, He will also equip me.

Was it always easy? Certainly not! But was it worth every stretch mark of growth I saw in my life as a result? You bet it was!

Sometimes the idea of trying something out of our comfort zone can cripple us…but God wants us to be willing to venture out into arenas in our lives that He is beckoning us to join Him, trusting that He is with us and can carry us through.

Are there areas you’ve opened up to God to stretch you so He can build your faith deeper? Are you fearfully holding back from walking through a door God has opened for you? Let’s talk…you know – between friends.

 

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Hearts of Welcome

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We spent the summer exploring the area, looking at homes, swimming in the hotel’s outdoor pool, playing tennis, going to the beach and enjoying the ease of life for a time; school would be starting soon, and we were due to move into our new house just a few days before that.

After school began, the kids would come home quite discouraged, homesick for their old friends, trying to make new ones; I would send them off each morning with a cheery “be friendly!” and give them what I thought were inspiring speeches about “the best way to make friends is to be kind to all!” They would nod wearily, not really buying it.

I truly believed that God would provide friends – He is the one who made us to need friends, therefore, I wholly trusted that He would provide them as well. However, I hadn’t fully appreciated the disconnect in the “how” or “when” parts of that equation.

On one particular day after school they observed me busily unpacking; Lydia asked, “So mom, where have you been today?”

“Nowhere honey, just here at home, trying to get settled.”

A steely look came in her eyes, as she candidly challenged me “well, you’re always telling us how we need to get out there and be friendly and meet people – but you haven’t even left the house for two weeks.” She was right and I was caught.

Convicted by the truth of her words, I called the church we had been attending the past month. “Hi, do you offer Women’s Bible studies?” It turned out, they did, and the very next day in fact. So, the next morning, still stinging from being found so hypocritical, I went.

That was an eye opening experience for me as I sat all by myself, amid a group of strangers, listening to the buzz of conversations going on around me, punctuated with laughter. I felt so alone. I didn’t know how to break in, let alone which circle to attempt to interrupt. I felt a newfound comprehension for all that I had asked my children to do and discovered: breaking into new circles was not easy. A few tears escaped my eyes, as I felt desperately homesick.

Soon, a woman stepped up front and called everyone to quiet, I just listened and watched. When it was time to split into our smaller classes according to what we signed up for, I joined the crowd moving to the next room. That teacher scanned the room and apparently saw some new faces, so we were going to go around and say our names and tell a bit about ourselves.

There’s just no denying it, I have a very tender heart. For years I have asked God if he would strengthen me so I don’t cry so easily, but so far, that hasn’t been my experience.

I gave myself a good stern talking to, determined to just state the facts and let the next woman go. Closer, closer my turn came. Steady Sarah, closer, Ok – You’re next – stay calm.

Gulp. Softly, “Hi, my name is Sarah Depledge, my husband and I and our 5 children moved here from Wisconsin a few months ago, and we don’t know anyone here yet”- with that, I dissolved into tears. I’m pretty sure hiccups were involved even. It was awful. Two kind women came over and gave me a quick hug; one became a dear friend within a couple weeks.

But it absolutely taught me to have a deeper empathy for what our kids were facing every day, out there, without anyone to lead or break the way in for them. They were going to have to trust on God to provide; and I was going to have to be in much more prayer for each of them. After that experience, I sure would be.

Hebrews 13:1-2 reminds us, “Keep on loving each other as brothers. Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.”

That experience taught me the importance of being kind and welcoming to others in a way that I might not have learned any other way than by going through it myself. It’s easy in the busyness of life to get caught up and forget that not everyone may be as ‘familiar’ in our churches and our pathways – can we take a moment to encourage and welcome people we don’t know? We never know how God might use that simple act of kindness to bless someone’s heart!

Have you been on the lonely end? How are ways you have tried to reach out to others and welcome them in? Let’s talk…you know – between friends.

 

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Just Get In!!

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Fresh off the plane we had a 3 hour wait for our rental car, watching the hustle and bustle of life passing around us at the busy San Francisco Airport, then we would be on our way to the hotel where the 7 of us (and a puppy that was added a couple weeks later; not really a bribe, more of a fulfilled promise) would stay till we found a home; our time in those living quarters ended up being a nearly 3 month span.

Before getting to the hotel though, Mark needed us to pick up his car he had bought while living in California on his own. It was at a dealership where it had been in for a tune up while he was back in Wisconsin helping us finish up details.  

Now, it must be understood, I do not know cars.  I never claimed to – they all look roughly the same to me with 4 tires, doors and windows on a box that moves along the road.

My husband, knowing this about me, but perhaps not understanding the full depth of my ignorance, drove us to a jam packed parking lot with just the brief instructions “see it over there? The silver car? The keys are inside – just get in and drive. We’ll see you at the hotel.”

I can’t quite claim that he physically pushed us out, but it sure felt that way as Lydia and I got out of the rental vehicle holding the rest of the family, and stood in the vast parking lot trying to find his car.  Finally we started making our way roughly toward the cluster of silver colored vehicles his sweeping hand had indicated.

Blankly, I turned to Lydia.

“Oh dear. What kind of car did dad say he bought again honey?” 

We both turned to look toward where Mark and the other kids had been, but they were already gone.

We had woken that morning in Wisconsin, left all we’d ever known behind, and now, here we were, stranded in a California parking lot filled with cars, but unsure which one to climb into.

Well, I may not have car smarts, but I did know that half the battle when you’re unsure is to at least appear confident.  I strode over to a likely looking car, and, opening the door, told Lydia to get in. 

Tilting her head, skepticism all over her face, she ventured “Um, mom? I don’t think this is dad’s car.”

But I was too busy muttering to myself about his unbelievable departure “I can’t believe he didn’t even wait for us – Honey, just get in – I cannot believe he just left like that – I don’t even know where I am! How will we ever find him? Somehow, we have to catch up! Honey – Please – Just get in!”

She obeyed, shaking her head and said a bit louder from the back seat “Mom, I don’t think this is dad’s car.”

It barely registered. I was too busy searching for the car keys. “Fiddlesticks! Dad said the keys would be right here, and they’re not! Can you believe this? This is unbelievable! Now what are we going to do?”  I rifled through the glove compartment – “Nope, not there either.” 

I sat quietly in the seat, pondering what to do next, and as my eyes focused on the leather wrapped steering wheel, I saw some letters that formed a word. And slowly, something dawned on me. “Hey, Dad didn’t get a Volvo, did he?”

Lydia, completely exasperated firmly rejoined, “No Mom – I told you – this is not his car!”

“Oh.”

Sheepishly, we got out, only to see a group of salesmen nearby carefully watching us. Lydia was hoping to come across as a potentially interested buyer of the vehicle we had just exited, a hope I shot to pieces with my chuckle and candid admission, “Ha! We got in the wrong car!”

They nodded in agreement, eyebrows raised, pointing to the silver Toyota Avalon parked nearby. Lydia, flaming with embarrassment was getting in as quickly as she could; I too got in, found the keys in the ignition, started it up and drove away.

About 3 seconds down the road, we both burst into laughter at the hilarity of this red-faced moment. In fact, it’s still providing laughs for us today, whenever we think about it.

Sometimes I’ve struggled with taking myself too seriously; I get embarrassed easily or don’t want people to know I mess up ~ But God keeps showing me that He wants me to be authentic – it’s ok to let others know that I have areas that I’m weak in, flaws and red faced moments (lots in fact).  Like Paul said in II Corinthians 12:9, “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” 

What an incredible freedom it is to stop trying to be what is impossible for anyone to achieve: Perfection doesn’t exist – except in Jesus Christ ~ and He wants to give me His power to use in my life to show that He is at work in me! Amazing! And freeing…

Are you using the freedom you have in Christ to let go of trying to be perfect? Christians ought to be the most joy filled beings on the planet! Let’s talk…you know- between friends.

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Waiting on God’s Timing…Always an Adventure!

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God presented more chances for us to rely on His timing, as we had to wait for our house to sell. This meant that the kids and I stayed behind in Wisconsin for 8 months, while Mark lived out in California, searching the area, learning the job and coming home to see us every other weekend.

There were still days during this stretch that were difficult and lonely, especially for Mark. He was the pioneer, exploring on his own, missing his family and all that was familiar; at least the rest of us were in a holding pattern in our own comfortable home and familiar routine. Not to say that we were just sitting around taking it easy; no, I was saddled with the enormous (read: impossible) task of keeping our home presentable for an entire 8 months.

Selling a house with five young children who don’t stop living just because there’s a sign in the front yard inviting strangers to enter at a moment’s notice was challenging, let me tell you! I learned in a hurry some pretty creative ways to hide clutter as realtors would call giving me a 5 minute notice and were walking up our sidewalk; and struggled through numerous times we spent hours cleaning the entire house only to have a scheduled showing cancel at the last minute. There were times I wondered if God was paying attention to all the hard things we were going through – this was supposed to be an adventure, wasn’t it? Well then, where was the fun??

More than one conversation was filled with doubt and “did we make the right choice?” kinds of questions. Again and again, we reminded each other that God never promised that ‘easy’ would be part of the equation of walking in trust and faith.

My faith deepened through that valley; God showed Himself faithful again and again, and I knew He hadn’t left us…we just needed to wait on His timing. Philippians 4:19: “My God will supply all your needs according to His riches in Christ Jesus” Well how deep is that supply?? Endless! I just needed to be patient and wait trustingly.

Finally, right at the end of that school year, our house sold – it was perfect timing really; the kids were able to finish school and a week later, the movers came. We were going to be able to spend the entire summer searching for a new house, hopefully getting settled before school started fresh for the kids again in the fall ~ Thank you Lord!

Mark flew home to help wrap up details, and, eagerly, we made our Good-byes to our loved ones with tears and trepidation and embraced the new adventure that lay before us.

Are there times you feel like God’s timing is all off? Sometimes it helps when we take a look back over our shoulder to see His faithfulness to us in the past…to build our faith stronger for the unknown future we are facing. Can you remember a time of God’s faithfulness in your life? Let’s talk…you know – between friends.

 

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California Here We Come!

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In 2008, our family moved from Wisconsin to northern California for my husband Mark to take a new job with a wonderful company. The opportunity came out of left field for us; Mark had applied and interviewed for a position that would have kept us in Wisconsin; it came down to him and an internal candidate.

The company felt they needed to go with the other guy for loyalty sake – something we fully appreciated. However, Mark had impressed them through the interview process and they said they would find him a job – if we were willing to move out to corporate – something definitely not on our radar screen! By God’s grace, they granted us sufficient time to mull this incredible opportunity over.

Every step of the way, I remember feeling like no matter what concern I would bring to God’s attention, he would answer with a resounding “Go.”

Our first big area of concern was what would it be like to raise a family in a coastal area with no yards? That prayer was answered in a phone call inviting Mark and I to take a trip out to the area for a few days to see if we “could picture raising our family there”. Remarkable! So we flew out – marveling at how God was orchestrating the details for us.

The company hired a tour guide to drive us around. On the morning of the 3rd day, both feeling quite discouraged because everything we had seen thus far wasn’t very ‘family friendly’, we prayed over our hotel breakfast “Lord, you know our hearts, we really were hoping to be able to take this job, but everything we have seen isn’t the kind of life we ever pictured for raising our kids. We only have these few hours left Lord, before we get on that plane this afternoon. If you want this for us, please show us something we can envision for our family.”

Our guide walked into the lobby, ready to go. Mark, who had been up most of the night researching local real estate, showed him his laptop and asked him “where would we find a house like this one?” It was a pretty house, within our price range, showing a bit of green grass around it.

He looked at it, shrugged his shoulders and said “hmm, East Bay – I’ve never heard of that – well, let’s put it in my GPS and find out.”

On our 40-minute drive out of the city, we went through a tunnel – and emerged on the other side to the sight of green, rolling hills! There were parks and whole neighborhoods with grassy yards and lots of children playing and riding bikes!

Our guide commented “Wow – I’ve lived in the Bay area for over 15 years and never knew any of this was here!” Mark and I got on the plane that afternoon elated over the possibilities!

We felt like God was directing our path in such specific ways, and, after that, we were out of excuses; so we accepted the golden opportunity with excitement, being sure to include our kids in all that God was doing to help us move forward.

Still, another issue was the pay – the job, though certainly more than he had been making, wouldn’t fully cover the additional costs of living in the more expensive state. I tentatively brought this to the Lord in prayer; a couple days later, the man who would be Mark’s new boss called him saying, “I need to let you know that you won’t be reporting to me – I gave my notice to follow a dream of opening my own small business. So you’ll report to Carol until she fills the position.” A few days later, that call was followed by one from Carol, “Mark, I’ve been looking over your resume, and you really have more skills and experience than the job you were considering so I’d like to offer you his old job instead. It comes with more pay, of course.”

Whoa Lord…crazy right??

By now we knew without question that we needed to do this – to fully put ourselves out there, trusting that God would take care of us. How could we instruct our precious kids that following and trusting God in all things is the right way to live if we weren’t willing to follow that truth ourselves?

No, we didn’t know anyone out there – but God did!

No, we weren’t sure where exactly we would go to church or school or any of those things – but God did!

We were excited to test His full sufficiency – and the only way to do that was to remove ourselves from all we had ever known for forty years of life, and JUMP!

It was SO scary, but I didn’t want our comfort zone to be the dividing barrier between really truly relying on God for everything and just believing in it as a nice theory. What more could God show us if only we went willingly, trusting Him? And so, we decided to go to lands unknown (well, by us at least)

Isaiah 41:10 tells us, “Fear not, for I am with you, do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Are there areas in your life that you don’t want to relinquish to God? What might be holding you back from letting go and letting God take control? Let’s talk…you know – between friends.

 

 

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