Grateful for the little things

Mother’s Day is over–back to reality. Well, the reality never left of course. There were endless suds in the dishwasher on it’s last leg of life, a nap interrupted, and of course, a last-minute trip to the grocery store. But there were hugs and kisses and love a baseball game in the backyard and those make up for all the other:). My gratitude list for the week:

3 gifts in Christ:

• God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21
•  Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. 2 Corinthians 5:17
• For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39

3 gifts about your home:

• beauty amidst the ever-present chaos
• little girl shielding dog from the rain
• green curtain of sugar-snap peas climbing up the trellis

3 gifts in your closet:

• rainboots for the wet days
• Tevas for the dry days
• sweater for those cool days that keep coming, despite the calender saying May

3 gifts found in the dark:

• sleep after a long, hard day
• quiet peace in a darkened auditorium, listening to 2 beautiful young ladies play “Be Thou My Vision”
• sliver of a moon in the sky while we cover all the veggies, the iris and my beloved peonies against a VERY late frost

A gift outside, inside, upside down:

• raindrops on slender leaves
• time to read to my kids before bed and hearing them laugh out loud
• kids somersaulting on the trampoline

3 gifts about my mother:

• my mother’s love of the Word
• her cheerful, servant’s heart
• her love of gardening

3 gifts held in hand:

• gluten-free scones made for me by my daughter for Mother’s Day
• homemade cards, freshly picked flowers, and rosemary-mint sugar scrub from my sweet children
• my plate of fresh strawberries and pineapple in my hand during the Best Mother’s Day service ever–all the mothers were dismissed and sent to the Fellowship Hall for a reception with a chocolate fountain (they know how to honor mamas around here!)

Grateful for May

It’s been an interesting, busy week here in neverpictureperfect world, as usual. It was post-marathon week, school’s almost out, I worked two shifts back to back, then Sunday the kids helped lead worship at two services and we had the girls’ piano recital. Despite the busy-ness and productivity of the week, I was having a hard time, feeling quite down, wondering if some circumstances in my life would ever change, or if this was just the way it was going to be, forever. I was spending a good bit of time with the disciples in the boat, looking at the wind and the waves, instead of at least getting out of the boat with Peter, walking toward the Lord. (Matthew 14) Cheery, wasn’t it?

I’ve been memorizing Romans along with Ann Voskamp. I’m a bit behind, I’m sure, but I just finished Romans 1:21-22. After working on it for a few days, it really began to sink in:

For although they knew God they neither glorified God

or gave thanks to him,

but their thinking became futile

and their foolish hearts were darkened. (Verse 21)

It was in those moments that I stopped looking at the circumstances and started looking for blessings from God, and then thanking Him for those blessings, however small–a perfect flower, a 2 minute conversation that encouraged me, a picture from Ethiopia–that I felt my heart and mind renewed. Life without glorifying God and thanking him leads to futile (chaos, confused, desolated) thinking and a darkened, foolish heart. Then Sunday, I was reminded again. The children worked very hard this year and learned, then recited for us all, Psalm 8. Verse 2 was so powerful to me:

Through the praise of children and infants
you have established a stronghold against your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger. (Psalm 8:2)

Praising God establishes a stronghold to silence the foe and the avenger. And what else would the voice of the foe and avenger be saying? Hmmm…since the avenger, the thief came to steal, kill and destroy, I’d say he wants to steal my peace and my faith and my joy.

So, again what may look like a silly exercise of mine on Mondays, listing little gifts I’ve found to be grateful for during the week, is not silly or futile, at least to me. It establishes a stronghold against the enemy who would like nothing more than to watch my heart darken and my thinking become desolated, and for me to stay safe in the boat, instead of stepping out into the winds and the waves, and keeping my eyes fixed on Jesus walk on water toward His outstretched hand. Let’s get out of the boat this week!

My list for the week:

3 gifts in dirt:

• musing on the compost pile–how the death and decomposition of the old life makes way for the new

• irises in bloom!

• dirt under my nails, a productive day in the garden weeding and a surprise–another bleeding heart I thought was dead, smothered by weeds and squashed by the dog was a live and well the whole time!

A gift given, made, sacrificed:

• finished irises for my mother for Mother’s Day (shhh…don’t tell!)

• my little guy making a snack to give out at Scouts
• time I’d rather use for other purposes, but blessed in the offering

3 gifts tasted:

• first tomato caprese salad of the year!
• smoothie made from our own backyard-grown spinach
• amazing avocado, yum….

3 gifts flat:

• seeing the nice, flat, clean floor of the garage after my children cleaned it up, mostly by themselves
• computer screen with words from friends that lift me up
• flat piano keys, being played constantly for Sunday’s recital

3 gifts found in difficult people:

• joy in serving, even those that aren’t particularly grateful
• a chance to practice my patience
• love in action

3 gifts before 9 a.m.:

• getting work after being called off too many times
• the privilege of working with fun nurses, care-partners, residents, and medical receptionists
• picture in my inbox before work–a nephew I can’t wait to hold in Ethiopia!

A gift in a smile, a sign, and a snack:

• getting a smile and a hug from Papa Don at church
• another sign of spring (can you see a theme this week?), despite the chill and rain for the last few days
• warm gingerbread muffins for the sweet Children’s School of Worship kids and teachers

Repost of The Path to Pentecost–what it means and ideas to celebrate

Image via Wikipedia

“I am going away.”

The disciples had just an emotional night–Jesus had washed their feet, told them one of their own would betray Him and Peter would deny Him. Now Jesus told them He was leaving them, and He said it was good He was going.  I’m sure they were thinking that it was not a good thing–I know I would have. They and their people had waited to see the Messiah for thousands of years and now he was leaving again! For once, they could actually hear what God was saying–by listening to Jesus who was right there in front of them instead of trying to figure out what the prophets were saying. How could it be better for Him to leave? I wonder if they dared even ask that question in their hearts. And in the days that followed–in the garden at His arrest, the trial, crucifixion and burial of their beloved Messiah, they must have been very confused indeed. But then, the resurrection and forty days of Jesus coming in and out of their lives happened. What must that have been like? Unspeakable joy. Jesus speaking plainly to them, preparing them again for His return to heaven. After the ascent, gathering in Jerusalem to wait, as He commanded. They obviously weren’t the only ones in Jerusalem, as the Jewish holiday of Pentecost , or Shavuot drew near. The Spirit descended like tongues of fire on these 12 ragamuffins, and the world has never been the same.

God commanded the Pentecost holiday to be 50 days after Passover to celebrate the harvest. Firstfruits was celebrated on the third day of Passover, the day Jesus rose from the dead. Pentecost, celebrates the latter first fruits, and celebrates the harvest of wheat, but also the giving of the law on Mt. Sinai. How amazing, and just like the Father, to have the Holy Spirit descend on the disciples on a day celebrating the harvest! And to ponder the day that He gave the 10 Commandments to Israel and 3000 died for their disobedience–on the day of Pentecost in Acts, the Holy Spirit was given, and 3000 were added to the Body of Christ! God is into the details.

Traditionally the holiday is celebrated by staying up and reading the Torah, and for some reason, eating dairy products,  perhaps to celebrate the sweetness of the law (that part is a bit confusing to me). Animal sacrifices were brought to the Temple and a loaf of bread made from this harvest wheat was baked and then waved. Children were encouraged to memorize scripture and the book of Ruth was traditionally read (it has a harvest setting). If you want to read your Bible and eat cheese blintzes and cheesecake or make a Shavuot loaf and wave it around while you worship, go for it.:) Here is an excellent post by a Messianic rabbi that explains Shavuot or Pentecost as well as Old Testament Scriptures that describe God’s instructions and interpreting some traditions people use to celebrate, not to mention why we should celebrate. Please read it! His explanations are much better than mine! And A Family Guide to the Biblical Holidays is very thorough in describing both traditional and modern Jewish celebrations and well as suggestions for New Testament believers as well.

For believers in Jesus, we can celebrate the giving of the Holy Spirit to guide, comfort, and live within us.  Jesus told his disciples that it was better for Him to go the Father so Holy Spirit would come and be with them (and us!). So we can thank the Father for sending us Holy Spirit and celebrating the harvest here on earth–remember, we are part of that harvest now we have accepted God in the person of Father, Son and Spirit. How can we celebrate this?

There are some interesting ideas I found on some Catholic websites and blogs. Catholic believers are encouraged to wear red on Pentecost Sunday as a symbol of the tongues of fire that descended on the disciples. The children could make a collage with red, orange and yellow tissue paper to symbolize the flames. This might be a good activity to keep their hands busy while reading the account in Acts of the giving of the Holy Spirit. Another activity would be to cut flames shapes out of construction paper and write one of the fruits of the Spirit(Galatians 5:22-23) on each flame, and use it to decorate the table. You could talk about each fruit as you are making them, or around the table as you eat.

Of course it wouldn’t be a celebration without some sort of food. There were suggestions for a red velvet cake, in keeping with the flame theme, but I think yellow cake would be fine too. Some flames are yellow, right? These cakes or cupcakes were to be iced white and have 12 candles to symbolize the 12 disciples. One idea I liked was to cut strawberries in half and stand them on end to symbolize the flames coming down on the disciples, and whole strawberries symbolizing both the gifts and the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Here is a link to the forum that shows several examples of cakes and a site called Catholic Icingthat has a coloring page of the disciples and the flames and other ideas as well. The tongue sandwiches look weird to me, but you can look and make your own decisions.

Our Pentecost cake from last year

Since the Jewish tradition involves reading scripture and a tradition of children memorizing scripture on Pentecost, perhaps you could choose the fruit of the Spirit verses and memorize them with your children, or choose another passage that talks about the Holy Spirit to memorize. Some suggestions: Galatians 5:22-23 (fruit of the Spirit), John 14:16-18, John 14:26, John 16:13-15,Isaiah 61:1-3, Joel 2:28, Acts 1:8, Romans 5:5, Romans 8:5-11, Romans 8:26-27, 1 John 4:13-16. Some of these are longer, so they may be more appropriate for older children, or start now, so they’ll have them memorized by Pentecost.

This year Pentecost Sunday is May 19. You have time to think and pray and decide how to celebrate this holiday that marks the harvest of both grain and souls, the giving of the both law and the Holy Spirit and birth of the church. Enjoy the celebration!

Grateful for the race

Every April for the last 14 years, thousands of athletes have run around the hills of Nashville. Our church is an unnofficial “stage” of the event, providing music by our worship leaders for the passing runners and walkers. My first time to watch was three years ago, when my husband ran the half. He ran it again last year, and this year, he ran his first full marathon! To stand on the steps of our church,watching a never-ending stream of runners, walkers, wheelchair athletes, is really inspiring. They just keep coming. For hours. What I find especially amazing is how many of them wave back at us, and even more amazing, the number of athletes who start smiling, raising their hand in worship and singing. Singing, after running about 8 or nine miles. Unbelievable, especially to this non-runner, but amazingly beautiful. The weather was truly awful this year–in the mid 50′s with  a steady rain and wind the entire race. It was unbelievable to watch these athletes run in the pouring rain. And pretty unbelievable to stand out in it to watch them:). My list for the week:

3 gifts close:

• snuggling close with my little one, reading at bedtime
• hands close to the earth, digging in, and smelling the new, spring-y smells of dirt and freshly cut grass
• sweet daughter on her birthday, creeping closer every day to adulthood

3 gifts reflecting

• almost full moon reflecting the light of the sun in the dark
• fresh rain puddles reflecting blue skies
• beauty of spring, reflecting the creativity of the Creator

3 gifts fragile

• fragile blooms on my beautiful Bleeding Heart, and my dear son who thoughtfully protected it from the dog with a simple bamboo barrier
• fragile hearts knit together by marriage
• fragile relationships strengthened through prayer

A gift cloth, steel, wood:

• cloth–a quilt given my a grandmother

• steel–a sprinkler under the trampoline and three wet, happy, jumping children
• wood–pews that hold the saints as we gather to worship

3 gifts moving:

• Crowds of spectators, undeterred by rain and Boston, waving hands and flags, singing, and cheering on the athletes

• worship team worshiping together and strengthening the passing  runners
  

  Worship team praying before the race begins

   

• 30,000 people walking, running or wheeling their way through the streets of Nashville. Well done, racers!
  

  First wheelchair athlete to pass us!

  

  Unknown athlete, raising his hands and singing along with us as he sloshes down the street

  

  My amazing husband, running his first full marathon!

   

   

3 gifts ugly-beautiful:

• inches of rain on race day–determination on the face of every runner
• mess of the school room–being almost done with school!
• not working for two weeks and watching the bank account shrink alarmingly–knowing God is our provider and resting in that knowlegde

3 gifts orange:

• last of the orange pansies
• orange coreopsis against the purple salvia
• abundant carrot harvest

2013 Square Foot Garden Update #2

Tuesday was one of my favorite gardening days of the year. I went to Scottsville, Kentucky and bought my plants from the Mennonite greenhouse. I love the variety of plants and herbs and the prices. So I browsed for around an hour, bought lots of plants and brought them home. I splurged on the big tomato plants–they were $2.50 a piece, instead of $1 for a four pack (if you bought in bulk) but the big ones already had blooms, and in some cases, tomatoes already growing. That will bring my tomato harvest earlier by close to a month. Here are my tomatoes: I got one cherry tomato plant, as well as a Cherokee Purple, Early Girl, Mountain Fresh, and Roma.

See the tomatoes?

My pole beans started coming up this week-tiny but healthy. I can’t wait to see if they catch up with the peas, which are growing very quickly!

Tiny little bean sprouts

 

I bought sweet potato slips, but don’t have them in the ground yet, because of the carrots and broccoli. These are carrots I planted last fall that grew leisurely all winter. Aren’t they pretty?

I have tiny little heads forming on the broccoli, so I have hope for a spring crop this year. Last year it got too hot and I didn’t get any broccoli at all. That was sad.

Here are the pictures of the beds:

Back row and along the right side: sugar snap peas; Next row, lettuce; next row rosemary and lettuce; front row, broccoli and onions.

 

Future sweet potato/pole bean and bush bean bed. Right now spinach, lettuce, carrots and parsley, with pole bean sprouts in the back at the trellis.

 

Tomatoes along the right hand side; broccoli, lettuce, carrots, onions,  and jalapenos

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gratitude for His Watching

They come every winter to strip the berries off the holly trees. An enormous flock of cedar waxwings fly in the icy cold weather and worry the mockingbirds until they are beside themselves, but even that aggressive pair is no match of hundreds and hundreds of these sweet little birds. I love them. They pick the berries, then share them with each other. They take their turn eating, then fly off to a nearby tree and allow the others in their flock to eat as well. This year, one day in February or March, I saw about 3, then they disappeared. I was very disappointed, because I love watching these birds. The trees are always empty of berries this time of year, and only yesterday I’d been thinking about all those berries wasted without the waxwings’ annual visit.

Imagine my surprise this past week, on a beautiful morning as the sun was rising. After an early morning trip to the Y and the grocery store, I got out of the car and I heard them. Waxwings have a sweet, almost cooing, sighing call. I thought I was dreaming, but I looked up into the tree and it was full of my beautiful little friends. The first thing to come into my mind was the old song “His Eye is on the Sparrow.” He knew I was less than enthusiastic about my 5 a.m. exercise and trip to the store. He knew I’d missed the waxwings in the winter. He somehow arranged this little flock to come to my yard, just when I was out in the cool of the morning. What a sweet gift I would have missed from the Lord! Did seeing the birds change my circumstances? Nope. But the reminder that He surely watches me (and loves me) was an encouragement I needed this morning, and probably every morning.

My list for the week:

A gift in a bag, a box, and a book:

• grandmother-daughter shopping trip for sweet girls’ upcoming birthday
• book finally come in the mail
• another long-awaited book from the library

3 hard eucharisteos:

• learning to praise Him for the non-steady income, yet faithful provision from the Father
• qualifying for a refi on the house due to our “unfortunate circumstances”
• watching Boston explode and Texas burn, and still believe God is sovereign

3 gifts woven together:

• the mystery of the weaving together of the body of Christ, and the sweet group I get to meet with on Wednesday nights
• dear friends woven into my life by the Lord
• blanket for chilly morning snuggles on the couch with my little one

3 gifts inherited:

• love of the Word from my mother–I remember getting up for school and her sitting and reading her Bible, getting ready to lead her small group of BSF ladies
• love of the land from my grandparents
• a godly heritage

3 gifts square:

• my wee little square garden beds, filled with promise of spring and summer meals
• square netting tied up for trellises–a fun time with my daughter working together
• square table and time to dissect with my daughter–gross, but fleeting time with my one that’s growing up too fast

3 gifts stacked, stashed, stilled:

• books in the library basket
• winter coats, hats, mittens and snow pants stashed in the attic for the season
• a frantic heart stilled by peace

3 gifts found in Christ:

• You cannot experience life–if life comes from the breath of God, which is spirit–you cannot experience the God-kind of life from anything other than that which flows from Spirit.

  Our addictions aren’t going to give us life because they don’t come from Spirit…the only way to nourish the spirit is through the Spirit.–Brian Wade, Sr. Pastor Belmont Church

• “The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” John 3:8
• “It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:1

And here’s a lovely rendition of “His Eye is on the Sparrow” I found on youtube. Enjoy!

April Spring Gratitude

3 gifts rising up:

• freshly baked bread, steaming on the counter
• beautiful sunrise
• tenacious sugar snap peas, determined to climb

A gift hiding, held, heard:

• Hiding the Word in my heart–loving Scripture Typer to learn Romans

• Son receiving Arrow of Light (and a real arrow to commemorate!),  becoming a Boy Scout

• miraculous story of a tangle of tandem bike, husband, leash and dog. Thanks to the Lord, nothing broken, just a couple of bruises and a skid mark on his shoulder–Thankful the tandem part of the bike did not have my son on it and my husband can still train for the marathon!

3 gifts budding or blooming:

• beautiful plant I transplanted (and forgot about!). I wonder what it is…
• weeping cherry tree against the blue spring sky
• early Coreopsis and Salvia

3 gifts worn:

• worn flannel sheets, that seems so cozy and now seem stifling, exchanged for cool cotton
• footie pajamas, worn in winter, packed away for cooler spring jammies
• winter coats and snow pants, finally washed and put away for the season

3 gifts birthday:

• son so happy to give his dad a special gift on his birthday
• surprise family cook out with friends
• birthday sign from the kids

3 gifts bright:

• fresh green leaves against dark clouds
• spring sun after the rain
• pictures of precious bright eyes in Ethiopia–can’t wait to see Miller in person!

3 gifts Sunday:

• S’mores around the fire pit–sticky giggles and all
• time building trellises with my kids
  

  Didn’t they do a great job?

• scrapes and bruises and a really lost tooth, but no serious injuries from my two wild-at-heart boys