2 Buckets; 2 Boys

Tonight, Raul took care of Andy and DJ so I could knock out some Christmas shopping. Here is the photo he showed me of their evening together...

Some of you may recognize these buckets as the ones we use at my church to collect the tithe & offerings. I find it quite interesting that these semi-sacred vessels for our gifts back to God ended up on the heads of two boys who's father happens to be one of the pastors at this church. Sorry, but I don't have any profound leadership advice to tie to this. But at the very least....laugh, it's good medicine. : )

Where Do Babies Come From?

As a kiddo, I had a vivid imagination. My environment and circumstances fostered this: growing up on a farm; growing up with only brothers; growing up as the frequent new kid on the block.
These sorts of things left me to...well...to me and my imagination!

I'm grateful for this, its allowed me to journey back into my world. Hey, wanna take a trip with me?

It was like 1979, I was with my mom, we were driving near an intersection in Bowling Green, Ohio, when I noticed pink, plastic, blow-up Easter bunnies in a storefront window. And so...in my own little imaginary world, I mustered up the conclusion that that's where babies come from. Like the plastic bunnies, babies are plastic & on display in a store window too. When mommies & daddies want a baby, they buy one from the store. Then, one of the store-people "adds" the life, turning plastic-blow-up-baby into a real-life one.

That's either quite an imagination or quite a hallucination!

But it makes me laugh. What a matter-of-fact, innocent conclusion I had come to as a kid!

Either way, let me encourage you. If you had a vivid imagination as a kid, and have a vivid memory as an adult, don't take that for granted. Truly, give God thanks. And seriously, start writing those memories down.

Moonbeamed to Mexico

Today, Pastor Arturo & his family were extremely hospitable and generous to have a few of my buds & myself to his home for a REAL Mexican lunch. But for me? The REAL went way beyond the food. It was a real atmosphere of real people; it was a real enlightenment of another culture & it was REALLY good chow! No lie, man, the entire experience felt like I had been moonbeamed right down to Mexico City into a beautiful hacienda itself. Thank you, Arturo and family. We were blessed by this experience, thanks for making it happen. Visit Steph's blog to hear her take of it too!

There is a world beyond the daily one we live in--and we should always be looking for ways to get to know it!

Bathroom Literature??

Many homes keep Reader's Digest in the bathrooms. This is a shame! This magazine is such a sophisticated compilation of current events, brain-teasers, and inspiring stories; the bathroom seems like such an insulting location! Anyway, one of my fav's in RD is "Word Power." Leaders have power, so do words, so leader-power & word-power go hand-in-hand. This month, RD pulled 14 (of the 100) new words officially added to the Webster dictionary.
Tell me how you scored and I'll tell ya how I scored! Good luck!

1. abaya (n.) - A: loose-fitting robe. B: rice dish. C: temporary inactivity.


2. viewshed (n.) - A: political observation. B: visible environment. C: border watchtower.


3. bobo (n.) - A: online posting error. B: bourgeois bohemian. C: devoted friend.


4. yellowcake (n.) - A: rich severance package. B: deadly fungus. C: uranium ore.


5. andropause (n.) - A: drop in air pressure. B: decrease in testosterone. C: time during computer restart.

Cracks in the Elevator

Ever since Andy took his first step, he has stepped over the elevator "cracks."
We've never told him to do this, he just does. I was thinking about this...

Andy has always been so much bigger than those elevator cracks, yet he always steps over them. How could he look at these thin, little slats & actually think he'd fall through?

What triggers this fear in his little mind? I rest easy 'cause I know Andy will outgrow this,

but indulge me a little...what if he didn't?

What if Andy avoided elevator cracks the rest of this life based on the premise, "Hey, its just something I've always been afraid to do? "

Can you imagine?

Andy is a kid---he'll have little, unfounded fears that he'll soon outgrow.

But as adults--do we have little, unfounded fears we've yet to outgrow?

LOST (& FOUND!) (& FOUND AGAIN!)

Joel Osteen stretched me in his first book, the way he prays for the seemingly insignificant things. Since reading that, I've never felt silly about doing the same. I know 2 people who have lost something. Perhaps insignificant to us, but certainly significant to them.
My man, Raul, lost his iPhone today. It has really bummed him out, and I feel bad for him.

And my friend, Oana lost her bible. She's had this her entire Christian life. It had memories, photographs, and her love notes to God. I feel bad for her too.

Let's pray that if these items are in the hands of another, that he or she would have Good Samaritan hands and return them to their faithful, rightful owners.

LATER ON THIS DAY: Our home phone rang. It was a young guy named Alex. He found Raul's iPhone at the movie theater and went thru Raul's contacts til he found a # for our home. When Raul went to the theater to get his iPhone, he met Alex & offered him a cash reward...twice. Alex refused both times. Alex actually knew Raul because his family members attend our church & Alex had heard them mention his name before. Alex is only 17; Alex doesn't go to church. But Alex is who God elected to answer our prayers for this. And now, we pray God answers ours by using this to show Himself to Alex.

THE NEXT DAY: I received a call from Jen Jaquith. She had read my blog and was aware of this missing bible. Well, get this!!! Today, she was in Room 126 at the church & she saw a bible. When she opened it, she discovered it was Oana's!!!

I had NO idea this post would end the way it did. I'd like to close it with 2 things.

1. To God: "Thank you!"

2. To You: "PRAY about EVERYTHING--Christ died for your life & He cares about the littlest details of it!"

ABC-THANKS

Alrighty, I know you're feelin' it, shout if you're with me!
If we can PRAISE God with ABCs, we can THANK God with ABCs, amen?!
C'mon, man, let's go for it.
And BIG props to anyone who comes up with thanks for the letters Q, X, and Z!!

I'll get this party started....

God, we thank you for:

A - I'm thankful for AMERICA

UPDATE: We'll Call Her Hope.

A few posts ago, I told you about a girl I didn't know and the hell she is going through. I'd like to continue with her story, we'll call her "Hope."
Since meeting her last week, God has not let me forget her.
But she is so unapproachable, & I'm so unqualified, so I'm really depending on Him. After a few days of waiting on God, He guided my next step for Hope. I felt Him say, "Do something a mom would do, but has never done, because Hope has no mom." So I got her a gift with no agenda. A gift for the occasion of Just-Because. I found a pretty box and put a new pair of delicate crystal earrings in them. I also felt God nudge me to not accompany this gift with words. So I put a gold bow on it, but no card. I dropped it off to her place of employment, but asked her employer to give it to her.
And that was that.
Yesterday, I saw her. She came up to me with her head looking down and said, "Thank you."
And that was that.
But as I was leaving, I noticed the earrings in her ears....and that's a start.
Please pray for Hope.
She hasn't met me....she's getting to know Jesus through me.
And that's just the beginning.

God Makes Us Cheddar...

As I was listening to this weekend's message, I thought of something:
God makes us cheddar; we become swiss.

I was made in the solid image of God: destined to be whole; wired to be filled.

When God came into my life, all the substance I would ever need was put in.

When He filled my heart, He filled every part of my life.

There was never meant to be any holes...

But along the way, holes got added to what was meant to be solid.

Sometimes, I get discouraged that my life has made me hole-y.

Thankfully, I am loved by a God who fights for me to be whole.

When we ask God to fill the spaces, God gloriously descends an extra dose of His substance into our existance.

Isn't it sweet that in the instant of a prayer, He will fill the holes life's left behind...

Blue Man Heather?

he he he...I had a facial done for my jacked up face and when the aesthetician walked out, I whipped out my cell-phone, took this picture of myself, checked emails & listened to my phone messages.
With treatments like facials or massages where I guess you're suppose to shut-up, relax and receive, I prefer to shake my left foot, converse and receive. For me (and maybe you) to truly surrender to relaxation is actually too UNrelaxing. If masseuses and aestheticians required that I lie still, close my eyes & close my mouth, it wouldn't be fair. 'Cause as they'd work to relax me, I'd work myself into a wrecking ball of tension & nerves.
At least I always give masseuses & aestheticians a courtesy-warning---that I'll need to talk and/or move to truly have a relaxing session. But what makes me laugh is: if I'm allowed to relax in a way that's most meaningful to me, then what have I done to the person providing the service? I wonder if providing a service to relax me means the one who provided it now needs something to relax them???

Will U Do This With Me?

God is so good, isn't He? In my quiet time, I journal praise to Him. One way I do this is by thinking of words of praise for every letter in the alphabet.
I thought it'd be cool if we did this together? Whatta say?
Great! Ok, I'll get us started...
GOD, YOU ARE:
A - almighty
B - beautiful
C - our Creator
D -

OK, now just click on "comments," add the next letter and add your word for God that goes with it....let's see if we can make it all the way to Z!

Life, ER, & What They Don't Have in Common

Yesterday, I drove by the ER and decided to stop in 'cause I had nothing else to do. OK, not really. I went to get some treatment for my lungs. Many-a-time have I spent in the ER, every time I get an ID bracelet. No medical staff will do or administer anything without checking you against your ID bracelet. Though it offers a secure feeling, one can still feel a bit insecure. 'Cause even if I adamantly & confidantly proclaim: "HEY, I'M HEATHER! I SWEAR! I KNOW WHO I AM! DON'T YOU BELIEVE ME?"
They don't. They can't. They must check the ID bracelet.
But that's just life in the ER; that is not life with God.
God always knows you.
You will never have an insecure feeling in your heart that you are unknown in His mind.
I will never say to Him, "Hey, I'm Heather, I swear! Don't you believe me?"
You will never need an ID bracelet with God. Long before He made the world,
He made an ID bracelet of you in His heart. He extremely knows where you are,
and more importantly...who!

Two Other's Hell

Today, for reasons I'll only know in Heaven, God chose me to be in proximity to 2 people I don't know.
One of them was an orphaned immigrant. Too young to have to act so old.
Her pain drilled down so deep, its the only expression she showed on her face.
As she talked to me, I could hear her, but I could not reach her.

The other one appeared to know better, but is moving herself (and her 3 kids) in with her boyfriend anyway. "Why get married? I've already been screwed twice..."
As she cussed about wantin' to pray & "get back to mass," I could tell her pain was drilled down deep too. I sensed that any "spiritual advice," would've only came across as judgement, so I refrained.
But I'm frustrated.
Jesus heard cries, but He healed as He did.
I heard cries, but I just stood there.
You know, if one of them would've fallen down, I would've physically picked them up. But what do you do with a spiritually fallen one? How do you reach down and lift that up?
Will you please pray for me? I know I will cross paths with them again.
I know I can't save them, but something in me wants to help them.

Nimrod

I'm reading Genesis. Today, when I saw the word "nimrod" in chapter 10, I was intrigued.
I knew nimrod as an old slang word for fool, but Genesis 10, Wikipedia and the dictionary confirmed something I didn't know: Nimrod was the grandson of Noah, a mighty fighter; a king of a great city; and did all of this before the Lord. AND, stay with me....Nimrod gets the trophy for being the FIRST in the bible to be written about such things! Man, all those years our parents busted out w/ the "nimrod" rip, and 20 years later, I discover it isn't a rip at all, it's a compliment. Seriously, here's what I discovered:
Sure, Nimrod's story BEGINS the legacy of mighty-leadership before the Lord; but we have the potential to be the FINAL legacy of it!
How are you being a Nimrod?

In other worlds, in other words

Today, here are 3 pictures that made worldwide news. A picture is worth a 1000 words.
A picture is also worth a 1000 prayers--we don't need to know these people
to know they need them today.

Even When We're Big...

The ironic thing is when DJ was really small, he wanted to fit into smaller spaces!

He'd climb into cabinets, crock-pots, dog-cages, even a roasting pan.

As we grow up, life gets bigger with schedules, responsibility, burdens & opportunity.

But no matter how big life gets, we'll never get bigger than God.

We are ALWAYS small enough to be in the space of Him.

Look, we didn't put DJ in these small & secure spaces, he just wanted to be in them.

Perhaps that's a childlike-instinct we never outgrow?

Maybe that's just the way God planned it.

Botox Joy

This morning, in our staff meeting, my boss shared that's he's studying the book of Philippians. Here's some scoop on Philippians:

• It's in the New Testament, sandwiched by Ephesians and Colossians.
• It's only 4 chapters.
• It's about a joyful leader...
• ...writing from prison.
  

Leadership is interesting, because at the same time a leader can soar, a leader can feel imprisoned. Paul mastered this paradox; God let him write about it; we can learn from it.
You know botox promises that an injection of it can eliminate frown lines. How 'bout an injection of Philippians to eliminate frowns? Cheaper and painless (and yes, this analogy is cheesy).

LUNGS

Since 1981, I've had shady lungs: repeated pneumonia in my lower lungs; once in the mid-lung; and DNA-testing shows my bronchi are malFUNKtioning : )
I debated over this post cause the last few have been about me. But after praying about it for 2 days, this is the only idea God's given me.
Blog-Reader-Friend, If you have an ongoing affliction, you have an ongoing job.
Yes, that sounds brash, but when we sign up to be a Christ-follower, we sign up to be a Christ-leader. And affliction is a vehicle for that leadership.
When I think about 26 years of lung dealings, I think about hospital stays where pastors laid hands on me; where my parents would seek treatment with faith; where nurses & doctors enter my hospital room & see bibles, hear Christian tunes, & encounter prayerful and encouraging visitors. I think about God being in the midst of it all & using it to touch lives far from Him.
And so...I'll close with this charge...pray for our affliction, but as we do, leverage its incurability.