My Heart to Yours

About the previous quote: I am still sorting out why it touched me the way it did. I think it is because my soul so often longs to be still and quiet in the presence of my Lord. You know, solitude is a discipline and a very hard discipline to practice. The times that I have had the opportunity or made solitude a priority my life has been transformed in some way shape or form. God always shows up and wispers in my ear. That is why I long for more solitude!

My husband and my dad spent 8 hours on Saturday putting this together. As you can imagine, my kids have wanted to be outside 24/7 for the last couple of days. Too bad it is sooooo hot!

I just finished reading, “Sisterchicks do the Hula”, by Robin Jones Gunn. It was a really fun, and uplifting fiction story. I love their definition of SisterChicks: a friend who shares the deepest wonders of your heart, loves you like a sister, and provides you a reality check when you are being a brat. I am so thankful for my “Sisterchicks” and I am thinking a sisterchick adventure is exactly what I need! They have a really cute website. You should check it out!

Well, only 87 days left! AAAGGGHHH!!!!!!! I haven’t really set a goal yet. I am thinking my goal for the first year should be to simply finish the race. Although, I really know that I can finish it I just hope I don’t finish in last place. Anyone have any suggestions as to what kind of goal a first timer should set?

I have also decided to run in the Race for the Cure. Luckily, it is only a 5k but it will be a fun time anyway and besides this year breast cancer has a whole knew meaning to me. I am thinking I will dedicate my run to my grandmother.

Oh and one last thing! If you read a few posts back about the contest I am in, well, I finally won one yesterday. The contest is between me and a very dear friend of mine. We decided we would see who could lose 20 pounds first. The first one to lose 5 pounds would get a Mardel gift certificate, which by the way SHE won. The first one to lose 10 pounds got a gift certificate for a much needed pedicure, which I won yesterday!! 12 pounds to be exact!! I told her she needed to kick it up and give me some more competition. It pays to be in a competition with someone when you are very competitive yourself. So, onward we go!!!!

Well, that is about all of the tidbits of information I have today. Have a great day!

I got this in an e-mail and thought it was hilarious!

My children got a new swing set this weekend. Mostly it was a birthday present for my son but they are both enjoying it. Why are swings so incredibly delightful? I spent many hours on swings as a child and probably still would if they hadn’t started making the seats smaller. Unfortunately, my little girl is still a little too small to swing herself with her legs which means I have to stand behind and push. Believe me, you could push her for hours, she loves to swing. Remember the day of enlightenment when you suddenly realized you did not have to wait to be pushed to swing, that you could propel yourself through the air by pumping your legs- ahh what freedom!

My old swing set was the hollow metal kind that would jump if you went too high. Some of the kids were not bothered by this but it really scared me and I always thought the whole thing would tumble over on me. Nevertheless, it was a summons for me to explore the slide. Now swing sets are riveted to the foundations of the earth and immovable except by a herd of elephants. Our “Playscape”- as swing sets are called now days- came in several boxes ready for assembly by any old PhD. in engineering. My children love it.

My son loves the monkey bars, the fort, the cargo net… but I think his first love is still the swings. Swings give one the feeling of weightlessness- for a few minutes you press the law of gravity. For a few minutes you can fly.

Dreams do much the same thing. As we dream we press past the confines of what is and what has been. As our minds dare to see the unseen, our imagination fuels our faith and we begin to trust God for something more. Some people are afraid to dream. Dreaming is dangerous because life is often unanchored. But God is not like the hollow swing sets of old. He is immovable. Connected to Him, it is safe to dream.

So dream away! Dare to do the undone, to see the unseen. Anchored safely to God, fly in your faith and know that the Father God smiles over the dreams of His children.

What are you dreaming about?

I was sitting in the living room as she walked by in her full-length white satin dress delicately trimmed in lace and studded with tiny “jewels,” crinoline that swished as she moved across the room, a rhinestone tiara upon her head, and pearl studded slippers on her feet. Golden ringlets framed her rosy cheeks and puckered lips glistened with a hint of gloss. She knew she was beautiful and glanced around to see my admiring smile. She was two and a half-years-old. She is my daughter, Olivia Rose.

I’m not sure when the dream to be beautiful enters a little girl’s mind, but I do know when the dream ends – when the preacher says, “May she rest in peace.”

I remember as a little girl sneaking into my mother’s closet and slipping my child-size feet into her size nine high heels. I’d stand on my tiptoes on a chair, pull a hat off the top shelf, and plop it on my head like an oversized lampshade. Her satin evening jacket with sleeves that hung eight inches below my finger tips gave a nice elegant touch to my outfit. A lady going to a party would never be caught without “putting on her face,” so I crept into the bathroom, opened the forbidden drawer, and created a clownish work of art on the palette of my face. Red rouge circles on my cheeks, heaps of blue eye shadow on my munchkin lids, and smeared orange lipstick far exceeding the proper border were finished off with a dusting of facial powder with an oversized brush.

From the time a little girl stretches on her tiptoes to get a peek in the mirror, she desires to be beautiful – perhaps like her mommy. As the girl moves into the teen years, she experiments with makeup, delves into fashion, and attempts various hairstyles. .

I believe the dream to be beautiful is not cultural, but at the very core of womanhood. John Eldredge, in his book Wild at Heart, describes three longings that lie at the heart of every man: a battle to fight, a beauty to rescue, an adventure to live. He also ventures to say that women have three longings of the heart as well: to be fought for, to share in an adventure, and to have her beauty unveiled. “Not to conjure,” Eldredge explains, “but to unveil. Most women feel the pressure to be beautiful from very young, but that is not what I speak of. There is also a deep desire to simply and truly be the beauty and be delighted in. Most little girls will remember playing dress up, or wedding day, or ‘twirling skirts,’ those flowing dresses that were perfect for spinning around in. She’ll put her pretty dress on, come into the living room and twirl. What she longs for is to capture her daddy’s delight.”

We should never be ashamed of our dream to be beautiful. It is a travesty of the feminist movement that has tried to strip women of their femininity and make them more male. It is as if those in the movement were saying that being a woman wasn’t good enough and tried to make us into men. So they tried to make women tough, independent and rugged individuals who didn’t need anyone or anything. But those who were banking on the tenants of feminism were left spiritually and emotionally bankrupt.

A woman was and is one of God’s most magnificent creations. As a matter of fact, she was His grand finale. After He fashioned Eve, creation was complete and He took a rest! God has placed in our hearts a love for beauty and a desire to be beautiful – as He defines it.

In the New Testament, Paul writes, “For we are God’s workmanship” (Ephesians 2:10). The Greek word for workmanship means a work of art. Listen to these words as David describes the Creator at work.
For you created my inmost being;
You knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
When I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
Your eyes saw my unformed body. (Psalm 139:13-16)

Like an artist who sees the finished work in his mind’s eye, God saw your unformed substance and then began to fashion you from head to toe. He made no mistakes but planned each detail of your being. You do not need to compare yourself to other works of art, but thank the Artist for how He chose to create the masterpiece called…YOU.

It Always Makes Me Feel Better!

This past Sunday, the preacher at our church gave a lesson entitled “Preaching Nemo”. He showed clips from the movie Finding Nemo and drew many analogies from the movie to the gospel and the Kingdom of God. During Sunday’s lesson I was reminded of the importance of fathers especially in the lives of little girls. From the very first time I saw Finding Nemo, I was so drawn to the fact that Marlin traveled across the ocean to find his son, Nemo. Wow, that is love and devotion. Our earthy fathers have an awesome privilege to model the love and devotion that our heavenly father has for us.

Every little girl has a dream or two; to be a bride, to be a mommy, to be beautiful, or to have a daddy who loves me. Just this week I have sat down with three different clients and seen eyes fill with tears when talking about the absence of a father. All three women shared the same loss of not having a daddy who loves them. These tears reveal a longing in their own hearts. Butterfly Kisses a song by Bob Carlisle that climbed the charts in 2000, received both international recognition in both the Christian and secular music industries. The song was about the tender love between a father and his daughter, starting from her birth to her wedding day.

Our modern society has downplayed the importance of fathers over the past several years. Television shows such as “Leave it to Beaver”, “Father knows Best”, and “Make Room For Daddy”, portrayed dads as a well spring of wisdom, compassion and guidance. Then that all began to change with “All in the Family” where Archie Bunker is a bigoted oppressor. Then came Tim Taylor of “Home Improvement” with the reoccurring theme of Tim messing something up and Jill, his wife, straightening it out. I could go on and on with the Simpsons, RoseAnne, esven the Berenstein Bears. In the ‘90’s Murphy Brown announced to the world that children really don’t even need a father at all. Well, suffice it to say that today’s TV fathers are now more likely portrayed as the obstacles instead of over comers of the obstacles.

Because of the societal trends, at lest forty percent of American children will go to sleep at night in homes where their fathers don’t live. The feminist movement has tried to teach women that they don’t need men, fathers or husbands. An article in Time magazine suggested that remaining unmarried can be “ incredibly empowering to women” even when the choice involves raising children with out the presence of a father. “Who needs men?” they say. Well, I will tell you who- The Children!! All the feminist rhetoric has no erased the deep seated need that women have tucked in the deep pockets of their hearts- to be fathered by the father of their dreams. Little girls and grown women alike want a daddy to protect them and cheer them on through the struggles of life.

In the Old Testament, God has many names. He is the Creator, the God Most High, the All Sufficient One, The Lord, Jehovah, Advocate, Lamb of God, King of Kings, and many more. His covenant name with the people of Isreal was I AM. In the New Testament, Jesus introduced a new name for God- Father. It is the name the Jesus referred to more than any other and the name that he invites us to use to address the Creator of the Universe. Just stop and think about that for a moment. The God of the universe who created the heavens and the earth, who always has been and always will be, who is all-knowing, all powerful, and present everywhere at once- that same God invites you to call him- Daddy!

And that Daddy- well he loves you so much! He would travel across the ocean to find you and bring you home. He would give up “HIS” son for you. Yes you!! Will you let him father you?

Remember this old Cyndi Lauper song, “Time after Time”? I heard it somewhere recently and as I was thinking about the words I thought of God singing those words to me. I had to find the lyrics and when I did I thought they were a beautiful depiction of God’s Love for us and his constant pursuit of our hearts. Who knew that this would come from Cyndi Lauper. (shhhhh… I used to be a huge Cyndi Lauper fan BTW)

Lying in my bed I hear the clock tick,
And think of you
Caught up in circles confusion
Is nothing new
Flashback warm nights
Almost left behind
Suitcases of memories,
Time after

Sometimes you picture me
I’m walking too far ahead
You’re calling to me, I can’t hear
What you’ve said
Then you say go slow
I fall behind
The second hand unwinds

If you’re lost you can look and you will find me
Time after time
If you fall I will catch you I’ll be waiting
Time after time

If you’re lost you can look and you will find me
Time after time
If you fall I will catch you I’ll be waiting
Time after time

After my picture fades and darkness has
Turned to gray
Watching through windows you’re wondering
If I’m OK
Secrets stolen from deep inside
The drum beats out of time

If you’re lost you can look and you will find me
Time after time
If you fall I will catch you I’ll be waiting
Time after time

You said go slow
I fall behind
The second hand unwinds

If you’re lost you can look and you will find me
Time after time
If you fall I will catch you I’ll be waiting
Time after time

If you’re lost you can look and you will find me
Time after time
If you fall I will catch you I’ll be waiting
Time after time

Time after time
Time after time
Time after time

Googled today? If so, yours was one of 150 million searches on the world’s biggest search engine. Did you find what you were looking for? Google will always give you something. Sometimes the results are, “like, totally wacked.” Sometimes they’re “way tight.” (I Googled “modern slang.”)

Do you ever approach God as if He were a giant search engine? You tell Him what you want and expect instant results. And even if the closest match is only 79 percent appropriate to what you asked, that’s okay. What if God doesn’t give you what you’re looking for? There are lots of other “search engines” out there: parents, friends, the mall. Or you can feed your fantasies through your favorite TV characters.

But God isn’t the big search engine in the sky. Google was never one of those Old Testament Hebrew names for God. And He won’t give you something second-best just because you asked. Here are some things to remember about God if your view of prayer is a little skewed:

• God knows your deepest desires—and motives—before you ask. “O Lord, You have searched me and You know me. . . . You perceive my thoughts from afar. . . . Before a word is on my tongue You know it completely” (Psalm 139:1-4).

• Even though God already knows your thoughts, don’t skip prayer. “How much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him!” (Matthew 7:11).

• Didn’t get what you asked for? Maybe it’s not good for you. “Every good and perfect gift is from above” (James 1:17).

• Your ultimate search should always be for God Himself. “Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always” (Psalm 105:4).

God is not Google. He won’t give you something substandard just to satisfy your immediate desires. He wants to give you what’s best, and He knows best what you need. Keep asking, and seeking, and knocking.