One of the devotionals I subscribe to is called “Encouragement for Today”—it’s delivered to my email inbox every morning. This morning’s really got me thinking. The verse to introduce the devotional was Hebrews 11:1...”Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” I have known the passage since I was a child and it’s a verse I have loved for a long time. But, with the devotional today, it sank a little deeper into my heart.

When I was eighteen, I was sent to Bible college-not by my choice, but I have to admit God taught me a lot there. This college was ultra conservative, heavy on the rules, and I had a hard time with that. So, when I saw the name David Livingstone in this devotional, I almost skipped reading this one because I first heard about him when I was at this college. But, I read on and I’m glad I did; I know God wanted me to hear this one. It’s about getting out of your comfort zone…something I’ve really been through a lot of in the last year and a half, but it feels like just the beginning. Scary, but exciting, and worth it. I don’t think God wants us staying too long and settling into a comfort zone. So, here’s what it said basically…

David Livingstone was a missionary in Africa and a group of friends sent him a letter while he was there saying that they wanted to send him some men to help with the work. They then asked if David had found a good road yet into his area. David replied saying, “If you have men who will only come if they know there is a good road, I don’t want them. I want men who will come if there is no road at all.”

“I wonder if God thinks this about us sometimes. I wonder if He ever calls us to obedience without showing us the path we will travel, or the end result, just to see what we will do. Kind of like a test. Will we obey without a road map?”

Getting out of our comfort zone to obey God isn’t easy and it is tiring. And I’m not whining…it’s just a fact, isn’t it. God doesn’t call us to serve with the level we are comfortable. I think He calls us to serve at a level beyond our own security so we can really depend on Him. It gets ourselves out of the way so He can be who He is…great and mighty in all His ways.

In order to grow, our faith must be stretch, and that is uncomfortable. But when we act on the call to obey, it shines light on the truth about our faith. Either we decide to trust that God will show up, or we sink back into our easy chair, believing that God’s power is not as strong as my need for comfort and my own security.

We can’t learn “to trust God by reading a book or listening to a great sermon.” Nor do we learn “to trust God by hearing how my friend trusts God.” No, we learn “to trust God by stepping out into an adventure of obedience” and discovering for ourselves that He is completely trustworthy.

“Obeying when God hasn’t revealed the steps along the way or the final destination is challenging. But when we choose to walk by faith and not by sight”, God is glorified because we KNOW we couldn’t have done it on our own!

Every time I have chosen to get involved at The Crossroads, it has resulted in some growing pains. In the beginning, it was helping out in the office. Then it was letting go of my kids and trusting they would survive being in Sunday School with kids they didn’t know. Helping out with planning women’s activities, taking pictures at church, and then helping lead high school Bible studies have all been stretching experiences for me...way out of my comfort zone. Making a decision to take a stand for what was right at the risk of losing a friendship I held dear was a really crucial time for me in trusting and letting God work in my life. But for most of those stretching times (I’m not sure I enjoy planning women’s activities :) ), I knew deep down that I was just being the person God created me to be. And God has hugely blessed in so many ways. My faith has become strong, and so many friendships have resulted in the last couple years.

I also can’t help but think of so many of people in the Bible that chose to trust God in spite of what they saw or didn’t see. Noah built the ark, trusting God that it would rain, and his life and his family’s were saved. I’m thinking David must have had a voice inside of him that told him he was crazy to face Goliath, but he instead chose to listen and act on the voice that reminded him of how God had delivered him from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear and He would surely deliver him from the hand of the Philistine. Daniel trusted God to shut the lions' mouths while he spent the night in their den. Shadrach, Meshack, and Abednego had to be a little scared to walk into the HOT furnace, but chose to because they knew they worshipped a living God. I could go on, but the pattern I see is that each one trusted God in the face of an “impossible” circumstance, and their faith grew deeply…because God is trustworthy.

I also think of Jesus, who stretched out his arms out of love and died a painful death for us, surrendering to the will of His Father. Talk about not taking the easy road. He chose His Father’s plan because He knew it was eternally trustworthy.

That's the kind of God we follow...one who is completely trustworthy. He will always have our best interest at heart, even when the path of obedience seems a little scary. We can take a step of faith, because it not only pleases God, but it delights Him. And He loves to bless our courageous steps.

Summer's definitely here. Leather seats suck in the summer time here. I think I'm going to line each seat in the van with big beach towels so we can quit walking around everywhere with sweaty, drenched backs. Mmmm...nice visual on the backs, huh?

The girls and I have taken it easy this afternoon. Well, they have. I have been doing laundry, cleaning the kitchen, mopping tile, and cooking dinner. But, it's been pleasant. I made the girls get off the computers and TV, and now they are sitting on the living room floor here playing Scattergories. Heidi had to think of something that begins with the letter "T" that is in the air. Her answer was "Tatum" who is flying on an airplane. Alyssa just thought of a president with the letter "A" and came up with Anthony Hamilton. I don't think that's quite right! I could be wrong. After all, she is my honor roll student. But, she got voted DOWN on that one. Haha. Becky had to think of a product name beginning with the letter A and her answer was "Acne Control". Now they are on the letter "B".

Little incidents from today...
Libby, aged 11 months and still very puppy like, ugh, stole a spatula off the counter that I had set down...and took off out the doggy door. Good thing she's so cute!
A little earlier, Heidi was carrying a mug and a glass to the cupboard to put them away. She slipped and fell, both cups crashed and broke on the floor and she received threee little cuts on her hand. Nothing serious. Just enough to bring me running at the sound. That's what got me sweeping and mopping today.
Kat and I went to New York & Co. to shop...heehee. I hope Jim is in a good mood when he sees the amounts I spent. I say amounts because I found a couple things at that store and followed it up with a trip to JC Penney to get items to match. It was a SUCCESSFUL shopping trip. I usually find next to nothing when I need it. And I didn't spend huge amounts...just enough that it will probably be felt...sigh!


Do people hide rhinestones? Did I spell that right? Becky just answered that as an answer for something people hide.

Okay. I have more to say, but not so much time. Maybe later, m'bloggers.
G'day.

Oh, but one more thing...wasn't Cindy's party FUN last night?? It was great celebrating with her.

It's so nice and quiet here... :)

All I can hear right now are a couple birds chirping and my computer fan. Niiice. Oh---and a dog under my bed.

I need to get the oil changed in my car today. It's one of my favorite errands. And I own a 5 carat, sparkly diamond. And my 3 maids are coming today to clean my house AND the carpets. And my kids are perfect. Yup. ;)

I do really need to get the oil changed, though. This will be try number two running that favorite errand. See, I already had that accomplished feeling yesterday, at Walmart's Lube & Oil, only to be paged after about thirty minutes..."Lucy Liu, will you please see the technician in the Lube & Oil dept? Lucy Liu?". Not kidding. I felt like a celebrity in the house. I walked back to see the technician, where a crowd of people stood to greet me...haha.... I thought the technician was going to tell me the oil change was finished, but instead he told me one of the bolts was stripped at the top of something or other (i'm not a mechanic) and I would need to take it back to the last place I had the oil changed. UGH!!! So, today I will try again. This time to the dealership, where they can charge me twice as much, but at least the car will be clean! I don't wanna go....

Oh, and I went to look for a birthday card at Target yesterday. First, though, I dropped my kids off at Chick Filet, because looking at cards with three kids around is IMPOSSIBLE. When I got to the card section at Target, there was a husband and wife looking at cards also. At first they were both just a few feet away from me, and then the husband walked to the next aisle which also had cards. I was just about to pick up one up to read, and this card comes poking through the rack from the other aisle, and I hear, "Marge, read this one." (I don't remember if that was the wife's name, but she looked like a Marge). It was obvious he thought it was his wife standing there. So, I started laughing quietly, and then he starts shaking the card impatiently, trying to get his wife to take it from his hand. LOL. I looked down the aisle at the wife and said "I think this card's for you." Then the husband heard me, too, and we all cracked up. Ahhh...funny. :) (I wish that had happened at Walmart earlier. It would have made the trip there worth it!).

Well, I guess I should get up. My coffee cup is drained. Unlike the oil in my van.

Welcome to the first day of summer vacation, David & Chloe!!

Have a cool day, to all that lay eyes on this blog. God is good! And I will look for something good while I'm waiting for the oil to be changed. :)

I am finding it extremely comforting to remember God's faithfulness both in my life and in others. When I begin to recall all that God has done, I feel a sense of freedom. Whatever circumstance I am in now, He sees and He will work it for good. The circumstance doesn't have to be a trap that chains me down and sucks out all my joy and energy. The enemy would have it be that way, but God is the opposite. He gives freedom and joy when we surrender our troubles and uncertainties to His all-powerful care, trusting that He is more than able...infinitely more than we are. I like Deut. 32:3 & 4 where it says, "I will proclaim the name of the Lord. Oh, praise the greatness of our God! He is the Rock, His works are perfect, and all His ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is He."

Melissa...

how 'bout a blog? lol

Ronald MacDonald House

Nap time yet? I got up at 5:30 this morning to drop Jim off at the bus stop (the truck is in the shop...the fuel guage is stuck on full! Or maybe it is like the widow's oil jar that never went empty...hey, one can hope!!) and head on down to the Ronald MacDonald House. What a great organization. Our church is in charge of decorating and painting one of the rooms. It was fun walking around this morning checking out the progress of the different rooms and talking to the people in charge of each one. One group consisted of two parents and a good friend of a twenty year old girl who died of brain cancer a year ago. She had been dealing with cancer since the age of nine and it finally took over last year. So, they were in the room decorating in memory of her. It was really good talking to them..very touching. There is always a really neat spirit surrounding a situation like that. We all gathered at 11:30 for a good bbq lunch put on by Walmart. (See, Walmart isn't so bad! I know a couple people who have boycotted that store...to each his own ;) That store is too close to my house to boycot! Way too convenient! Okay, I'm writing this post as if I have A.D.D. Hmmm...Back to the point...). I sat in the sun and ate and worked on my farmer's tan and talked to other volunteers. It was so enjoyable--the whole experience. Tomorrow we are going to go back to finish up the room. I'll post a couple pictures...most likely! I will at least write about it.

I would really like to get a group of kids together in September or October and collect donations for the house. I got the phone # of a husband and wife who volunteer regularly there, and she said she would give me the latest at that time for the needs in the house. It would be great to take a load of kids down there and have them get involved with this. Don't you think? I'd like to do this in memory of our Carly as a way to celebrate her life. And I think it is so good for kids to see life outside of their own home life.

It's been a good day :)

What do you do with a girl like Heidi???
She bounces off the walls, alrighty!
She is sitting next to me, wiggling,
reading the words, not giggling.
Oh wait...she is..
and drinking sprite fizz.
Now I have her still;
she waits for the words to fill.
What a silly blog
just like her silly dog
who is carrying around dirty socks.
Heidi really thinks that rocks.
I think it's the grossest,
the dog enjoys it the mostest.
Lets close our silly rhyme...
Now give the girl a dime.

Bye bye...
be a fly
on our wall,
watch it all.
Here online
it's so fine.
It's the end...
see you again.

There you are!
You didn't go far.
There are still lines to be said
so pull up a bed.
If that's too much to fare
pull up a chair.
Sit right down.
Man, Heidi's a clown!
Let's wind this down,
close up town.
Go to bed
like I said.
Or am saying,
No playing.

This is it...
No more wit.

Good night.
Don't let the bed bugs fight.

One last word...
supercalifragilisticexpialadoshurd.

Written by Heidi & Mom
now that's the bomb!

One of my favorite songs...