Sowing into it.

Last night we put the last round of carrots in this year's garden.  This section of garden you're looking at has about 1200 carrots planted.  So yes, you'll be seeing carrots at this year's potlucks - don't complain, it will give you a break from all the green bean dishes I usually bring. 

The boys and I like to work barefoot, feeling that soft, freshly tilled soil under our feet.  They've helped us in the garden for years.  When they were younger, we'd put them in charge of simple tasks like making the holes with a stick or just pushing dirt over the seeds.  Now that they're older, they actually help us work together by pairing up with Mom or Dad and having a race to see who can plant their row the fastest (John & I are the current team to beat). 

Each year, we plant the seeds.  We make sure the ground is tilled and fertilized.  We put up the electric fence to protect those delicate plants from deer and rabbits.  We pull the weeds that threaten to choke out the good plants that we want to grow.  We prune the suckers off that are diverting the nutrients from making good strong plants.  And we pray for a good harvest. 

You see, plants aren't the only thing in this picture that we're growing. 

Every day, I'm planting seeds in my boy's hearts.  And as the electric fence keeps out the garden's predators, it's mine and Ronnie's job to protect them from predators - not only people, but things they shouldn't be listening or watching.  It's our job to recognize those weeds of anger or to prune off those suckers like selfishness so that their hearts can remain a fertile ground for the Holy Spirit to work in their lives. 

But mostly, we pray.   And just like we've prayed for these seeds to become plants that produce vegetables that we can use, we pray that these boys will become Godly men that will be used by the Lord for His purpose.

Gardening isn't necessarily a lot of skill.  It's diligence.  It's patience.  It's hard work.  It's staying the course and doing your part, knowing that the seeds are doing theirs.

Parenting is diligence.  It's truckloads of patience.  It's definitely hard work.  It's staying the course and doing your part, knowing that God is doing His.

 

 

       Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.

                                                                                                                       Galations 6:9               

 

                                                                                          

When you just don't understand.

John & I were working a puzzle a while ago. 

And not just any puzzle.  A yard sale puzzle - you know, the kind with no box so you're not really that sure where everything goes.  Trust me, it's a great challenge for a nickel. 

As were separating pieces - insides from outsides from corners - I'm looking at these little puzzle pieces and we're talking about what the puzzle might be. 

It's at that point that it hits me.

There's no way I can look at one tiny piece of a puzzle and know what the puzzle will look like in the end.  I don't have a box to see the final picture. 


There have been so many times in my life when things have come out of the blue and caused such hurt and loss.  And so many times my response is "God, why are you letting this happen?"

You see, when I wasn't living for Christ and I made bad decisions, it was kinda easier to accept.  Bad choice, bad consequence.  That just makes sense, right?

And not that I'm a champ at making great choices now, but I try.  I try to live a life that's authentic and pleasing to God and that's also filled with bucket's full of grace.  So when hardships come against me, I'm frequently left with "Why?".

 

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways, my ways, declares the Lord.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways,

and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

 

 

Just like my yard sale puzzle, I can't look at one little piece of my life and always see where it fits into God's overall plan.  I can't see how it's going to turn out or recognize the blessings to others that may come of the results of what I'm going through. 

 

So I keep my head up.  I keep breathing.  And I trust that the one who made me, who loves me despite all that is me at times - I trust that He is in control. 

 

And He's working the puzzle so that my randomly shaped piece fits in to make the completed picture that He has for my life.

 



How to avoid apologizing.

I've noticed lately that I'm averaging about one apology a week.  Minimum.

You see, I tend to be a little blunt. 

I also tend to think that I'm right - a lot. 

Turns out, I'm not as right as I think I am on a regular basis.

Imagine that.

Proverbs 12:18 says "There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing."

You see, when I just pop off with whatever runs through my head, I'm jabbing my friends and family with a sword.  I'm hurting them with my thoughtless words.  I'm being inconsiderate.  And I'm definitely not showing God's love to them. 

When I overhear my boys fighting, I always ask them to check their words.

Is what you're saying nice?  Is it necessary?  Does it glorify God?

You see, not everything that we have to say is going to be nice.  Sometimes, there are hard situations to face and those words will be necessary.

Sometimes, in the heat of the moment, I do feel that what I have to say is necessary.  I need to tell someone exactly what I think of them and the situation or I will explode!  Which means there's probably nothing nice in what I'm about to say.

But the standard that I have to measure my speech comes from number three.  Does it glorify God in my saying it?  You see, this is where I really need a pause button.  To stop and think before I speak. I need to ask myself if by what I'm saying, am I bringing others closer to Christ or driving them away?  When they see me do they say "I wish I had what she has (Jesus)" or do they say "If that's what Jesus does in her life, she can keep Him, I don't need that".

Psalm 19:14 is my prayer for my words:

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

How Rich is Your Family?

If you have seen the movie Courageous, then you likely remember a scene that evoked a lot of inspiration. Javier, a humble construction worker, was struggling to make ends meet for his family. As he began to grow in the Lord, he and his friends developed a new spiritual resolve to better lead their wives and children. To commemorate a coming resolution ceremony, Javier bought a new suit, but then began second-guessing the expense. Still delighted with his purchase, his wife Carmen convinces him to put the suit on so she can see him wearing it. As Javier looks in the mirror, he mumbles, “I feel like a rich man.” Carmen wisely redeems the opportunity by speaking into her husband’s life and reminding him of what true riches are all about.

“You are a rich man! You have a strong faith, children that love you, and a wife that adores you.”

Her words demonstrate the importance of seeing life from God’s perspective and also of the great influence a wife can have in her husband’s life. We’ve spent the last few years challenging men to step up to spiritual leadership in their homes. We wanted to take a moment and challenge wives in their priceless place of influence as well. If women knew how much their words can build up or tear down the men in their lives, they may be shocked at the power God has entrusted to them.

The Bible says, “No foul language is to come from your mouth, but only what is good for building up someone in need, so that it gives grace to those who hear.” – Eph. 4:29

Have you applied this verse to your marriage? Men are always “someone in need.” As you know, we need a lot of help. So we ask you, “Do you wisely affirm and strategically praise your husband or do you cut into him with your words and tones? Do your children sense rottenness or a fragrance of grace coming from your lips when you speak to the man who is the ‘Christ representative’ in your relationship” (Ephesians 5:22-24)? When men are treated with disrespect, they tend to either get angry and go on the attack, or they withdraw and start avoiding the source of their ridicule. Both are poisonous to a marriage.

However, men naturally try to please and spend more time with those who respect and praise them the most. When you speak to your husband “as unto the Lord” and support his leadership as best as you can, you draw his heart to your heart and help strengthen his resolve to take better care of you and your children. When you edify the man who is primarily responsible for your home, your entire family benefits.

Your husband may not deserve any of your praise. All men are sinful messes. We do not have it together. No man is worthy of the respect that God commands wives to give their men. But Christ is. And that’s why Christ should always be a wife’s focus and the never-changing inspiration behind her words, not the flawed male that forages around her house.

When a wife prays for her husband, encourages him, and walks alongside him, the Lord is pleased. And in many ways, she is a living portrait of the Holy Spirit in her husband’s life—who is also described as a Helper from God to him.

We pray not only for the men involved but also for the women who need their husbands to step up and lovingly lead in the home. Each of you is priceless and irreplaceable. We want your entire family to experience the rewards of bold men who fearlessly embrace the responsibilities God has given them, both now and for future generations.

We are so grateful that God is still using Courageous and The Resolution for Men to change families. We praise God that couples on the brink of divorce are finding reconciliation and restoration. Lukewarm men are turning into warriors for God. Young boys are stepping up into courageous responsibility. Many times, these stories result in direct answer to the prayers of a supportive wife or mom behind the scenes. May God bless you as you point your husbands and sons to Jesus with the beauty of your life and put fresh wind in their sails to go forward to be the men God is calling them to be.

The Kendricks, in partnership with LifeWay, have just released The Resolution for Men Bible study, an eight-week group curriculum that challenges men to love their wives with a Christ-like love and unpacks the twelve promises in The Resolution for Men book.

This post is from lifeway.com.  You can find the original post here.

All About Church Face.

Oh, church face.

You know what I mean? 

That face you put on when you go to church.

That smiling, nice to see you face that goes so well with your favorite earrings and those great shoes.

The face that gives no hint to the fact that your family has made you crazy trying to get ready for church - including your son that can't find anything other than green flip flops to wear with their church clothes.

The face that we wear sitting comfortably in our pews - when maybe what we really need to do is lay it all down to Jesus at the alter.  (Not that we would go to the alter.  Someone might think we have problems.  And we can't have that, can we?)

 The face that makes you seem like you have it all together instead of being the hot mess who needs buckets full of grace from Jesus. 

I was reading Matthew 23 where Jesus is really letting the Pharisees and teachers of the law have it.  Brood of vipers, hypocrites, whitewashed tombs that look nice from the outside but are full of bones and unclean inside.  None of these are things that I want said of me.  Not by anyone, but especially not by Jesus! 

And while I do try my best to live for Christ, how many times have I avoided someone because I feel that they drain me or avoided making eye contact at church so I don't get drawn into their drama. 

Instead, I put on my church face and stroll through the halls saying good morning to the other lovely church faces smiling back at me. 

Makes me feel a little "white washed tomb-y".  

No, it makes me feel that way a lot.

Look at verse 23.  Am I following the "letter of the law" - keeping the big ten (commandments), praying, tithing, attending church - but forgetting to show others justice, mercy and faithfulness?  Is my "church face" or my fear of being real, of letting it be known that despite my best intentions and desires that I fail Jesus daily - is it keeping me from showing others who Jesus really is and how crazy in love with them He is? 

The thing is, it's OK to not have it all together.  I have a very strong suspicion that no one else in church has it all together either.  I'm actually pretty sure that no one really has it all together. 

Maybe, just maybe, instead of focusing on trying to make it seem like we have things under control, maybe we can drop our church face and hit our knees instead.  Praying for God to help us to show His love through us, using us to reach our family, friends, co-workers, neighbors - even enemies. 

You see girls, we don't have to be perfect. 

Which is good because there's no hope of that happening.

We just have to be willing.

And that I can do.

W.W.J.D.

I remember in my teen years, there was a popular saying, "What would Jesus do?" All of my Christian friends wore bracelets, t-shirts, etc., as reminders on how to react like Jesus on any decision or situation in their daily lives. Like with every other trend, they come and go, and soon are forgotten. 

Recently, I have started reading the book, "In His Steps," by Charles M. Sheldon. In the first few chapters it talks about a particular pastor that was forever changed by a homeless man who spontaneously spoke at his church. Without giving too much of the story away, the pastor decided to ask the congregation if anyone would like to take a pledge with him for one entire year not to do anything without asking the question, "What would Jesus do?" There was a small group of people who stayed and took the pledge. Over time, the group had come to the general consent that the "application of the Christ spirit and practice to the everyday life required a knowledge of Him and an insight into His motives that most of them did not yet possess." Basically, the people found it difficult to put Jesus into all of their decisions and tasks throughout the day. In the past, they felt they were making sound, Christ-like choices, until they made the pledge and after that, it seemed that most of their judgment calls did not satisfy the question, "What would Jesus do?


This had me thinking how many times in my day do I ask, "What would Jesus do?" Do you ask that question in your life? What would Jesus do with an annoying neighbor? What would Jesus do with a cranky husband? What would Jesus do with an over-filled schedule? What would Jesus do with a difficult co-worker? What would Jesus do with a sick loved one? What would Jesus do with the empty spaces in our day? What would Jesus do in your ministry? The questions could go on and on…. but the truth of the matter is how well do we know Christ to properly answer the question, "What would Jesus do?"

I hope this encourages and pushes all of you to search those moments in your day where you can go to God and have him make the decisions for YOU. Let us bring back the trend W.W.J.D. in a whole new way!

Blessings,

Jennifer Campbell