On the Tablet of My Heart

It's been a while since I've written. Not because I haven't wanted to. Not even because I haven't had any inspiration. Simply because I haven't had time. As a full-time mom, wife, teacher, college student, and youth leader its hard to find the time for anything more. My schedule is crammed tighter than most people's jeans after three Thanksgiving dinners. And I know I'm not the only one feeling that way. My middle school students often tell me they didn't get their assignments finished because they...(you guessed it)...didn't have time! My mom, who has been retired for just over a year now, shared with me the other day about something she'd been wanting to do, but hasn't been able to find the time.  It seems no matter what age or life situation, we are all feeling pressed for time. Recently my phone started giving me fits. It all began when I was trying to record my thirteen-year-old son's first wrestling match.  Apparently three minu...

My dad doesn't ask me for much; he's more of a giver.  So when he asked me to sign my son Joshua up for 4-H so he could take him to skeet shooting lessons, I put aside my fears of already being involved in too many activities myself and signed him up.  After all, dad was really the one committing the most time, right? As it turns out, 4-H offers numerous opportunities for kids to learn engaging, hands-on activities with real-world application.  I had to select classes ahead of time that Joshua might be interested in for the entire year. There was so much to choose from that I had to limit myself! One of the first ones that caught my eye was dog training. About a year ago, Joshua's dog that he'd had for as long as he could remember was killed by another dog. We'd gotten him a new one, but, although he liked her, there just wasn't the same connection.  I knew right away this class would be good for them.  Little did I know it was also going to be good for m...

Its June.  We're half way through the year.  No doubt, its an odd time of year to choose my "Word of the Year."  I can remember back in January seeing friends and family post on Facebook the words they had chosen.  I was totally on-board!  I mean, a word instead of a resolution?  What English teacher wouldn't give that a try?  Funny thing was, though, no matter how much I thought about it, I just couldn't seem to find a word that really fit.  Of course, by February, I had stopped searching.  School was in session. Grading, lesson planning, my own college classes, and responsibilities of being a mom left little time for reflection or introspection. This morning, though, without even looking, I found it.  Renewal!  My word of the year.  I was reading in the book of Titus and found this Scripture: But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared,  he saved us,  not because of works done by us...

Has God given you a promise? A word of prophecy, perhaps? Or a scripture that transcended the page to become written upon your heart?  Maybe it was spoken in silence, an intimate dialogue between His Spirit and yours. If you're anything like me, you've clung to that promise. Oh, how you've clung! You've waited. You've hoped. You've pondered.  Eventually, you've second-guessed.  Why?  Because time passed. God's promise didn't come when you thought it would.  It didn't come how you thought it would. So, like the Israelites wandering in the wilderness, you started to wonder, "Did I miss it?" Let me assure you today, the promise still awaits!  Once God speaks, he will fulfill, "...for God's gifts and his call are irrevocable" (Romans 11:29, NIV).  Some of you are even now at the edge of your promised land; it is for you that I am writing today. You see, as uncomfortable as the "wilderness" is, some of us...

"We've got to get rid of her. She's changing things." A dear friend of mine recently overheard a couple of women in the church talking about her new leadership role in worship service. I'm sure you can imagine how this hurt. What is it about change that causes us to turn on one another?  Why do we resist it so violently? To answer this, I want to examine a passage found in the book of John.         Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue         Bethesda, having five porches.  In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt,         withered, waiting for the moving of the water.  For an angel went down at a certain season into          the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in          was made whole of whatsoever disease he had ...

"For no word from God will ever fail." Luke 1:37 We don't always interpret the promise of God correctly, but we can rest assured that His promise will come to pass and that it will be even better than what we expected! In Luke 24, Jesus walked to Emmaus with two disciples who at first did not even recognize him.  This was after his crucifixion had taken place and the two men were discussing their disappointment when Jesus joined them on their journey.  One of the men made the comment along the way, "We had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel."  Notice the phrase had hoped . Not we still hope, or we will continue hoping .  As an English teacher,  I can tell you that phrase means past tense; in the past, they hoped. With great disillusionment, all of their hopes died with the crucifixion of the man they had hoped in. These men knew the promise of God, had placed their hope in God's promise, but because of pre-conceived notions about how God wou...

Chances are, if you are reading this based on the title alone, you're in desperate need of some encouragement right now.  However you came to this position, I can almost hear you whispering,  "Its not how life was supposed to be ." Like me, you've probably sat through sermons on Ephesians 5:21-33 about the husband being the spiritual head of the home, while secretly wondering how many sets of eyes were wandering your way as you sat alone in the pew. You've probably offered a silent prayer that went something like this, "God, I know that's how you meant for families to be, but what about me?  I didn't choose this , God." You've questioned whether you were enough, had what it would take. Likely, you've fought hard against the sin of jealousy, trying courageously to be happy for the sister whose husband prays beside her at the alter, while battling the voices that make you feel less than worthy. You've assured yourself, ...