In the waiting room

But they who wait upon the Lord will get new strength. They will rise up with wings like eagles. They will run and not get tired. They will walk and not become weak. Isaiah 40:31 (NLV)


I'm doing Grandma duty this week - hanging out with my daughter and her family until the new baby decides to make an appearance. Someone (AKA Grandma) needs to be here to stay with the 7 others when the time comes for mommy and daddy go to the hospital for the delivery.

But waiting for the new baby is a lot like watching a pot of water on the stove - you know it's going to boil eventually, but it just won't boil as long as you watch it. LOL!

It means that I don't have time for my usual morning routine of writing. It's hard to blog with little ones crawling on me at 7 AM. And of course, even though I'm so close to finishing my third novel, everything is on the back burner as long as there are little ones around.

But don't be fooled - I'm not complaining. The "wait" isn't bad at all since I love spending time with my grandkids. Today we're making paper conversation hearts and playing with Play Doh while the older ones are doing their home-school class work. Tomorrow? who know's - I'm sure we'll find some equally fun things to do.

No so when I'm waiting on the Lord for answers to prayer or guidance or healing, etc. I get impatient, frustrated and depressed,, the longer I have to wait. The difference is that it's fun to spend time with the grandkids, but not so fun to wait on the Lord for things to happen. Perhaps it's because when I ask the Lord for something, I'm in pain or needing an answer ASAP. Not so fun!

Yet it's during those times of waiting on him that my trust muscles are strengthened. I grow emotionally and spiritually. As I lean on him, I learn what it is to rely on his strength rather than my own. And I do survive - even thrive - when I thought I couldn't go another step or wait one more moment. In his time, the answer I seek is birthed in my life and I am better for the waiting time.

Lord, help me to embrace the waiting time as I learn to lean totally on you. Amen.

Knowing Christmas

"Let my whole being bless the LORD! Let everything inside me bless his holy name! Let my whole being bless the LORD and never forget all his good deeds:” Psalm 103:1-2 CEB

Did you ever watch a baby receive their first gift? They're not quite sure what to do with it, but they like the bright paper. They'll feel the present, maybe even try to chew it. After someone shows them how, they start tearing the paper off because they like the sound of the paper ripping. Then they play with the box for a few minutes until someone helps them open it to see what's inside. After a few minutes of excitement over the contents of the box, they put down the toy and go back to playing with the box with an equal amount of excitement. They enjoy it with their whole being!
 

So what would it look like if we celebrated Jesus - God's gift to us - with our whole being, with all five senses like a child?

Hearing - The Shepherds heard the angels' message of a Savior that was born and they were afraid at first, then filled with awe as they listened. The words filled their hearts so full of hope and praise, they simply had to worship right where they were on the hillside.

Pretend you are hearing the angels' message for the first time. What emotions would you feel?

Seeing - They saw the angels and fell on their faces. But then I imagine they looked up in wonder as the message continued. Then they decided to act on the message of the angels and go see the baby who was born in a manger. Leaving their sheep on the hillside in God's care, they went to Bethlehem to see what had come to pass. When they saw Jesus, they wept and worshipped again.

I don't know about you, but all I have to do is look at the face of a new grand baby and my heart swells with love for that child. It's not so difficult to imagine how the shepherds felt.

Tasting - Each season has it's flavors. Christmas brings to mind peppermint, chocolate, cookies, ham dinners - with all the flavors enhanced by the love of family and friends as they gather together. When rejoicing with our loved ones, it's not hard to remember to bless the Lord - to taste him and know he is good.

Touching - Nothing thrills my heart as much as the words in Mark Lowry's song, "Mary Did You Know," where he reminds her that "when your kiss your little baby, you have kissed the face of God." As a mom and now a Grandmom, I've known the thrill of holding a wonderful, touchable, huggable, kissable infant. But to imagine what Mary must have experienced as she held God in human form? Incomprehensible! Yet the thought of him becoming touchable thrills my heart.

Smelling - The scent of pine boughs, hay in the manger, the crispness and cleanness in the air after a newly fallen snow, Christmas cookies... So many seasonal smells conjure up images of the Christmas season.

Lord, help us to celebrate you with the excitement of a little child, with every fiber of our being as we see, hear, taste, touch and smell Christmas - the time of your coming in human form to redeem us! Amen.

Facing loneliness and rejection - Monday Moments with God

“And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.” Luke 1:46-47, 49 KJV

My Dear Child,

No matter what yo are going through today, please consider this: Many of my children have experienced loneliness and rejection.

Though my human mother, Mary, is held in a place of esteem by you, things were not easy for her. She was frightened when the angel, Gabriel, came and gave her the news that she had been chosen to be my mother. Yet she responded by accepting it as the will of my Father - a great honor for a humble maiden such as she was.
But saying yes to God plunged her into a dark time of loneliness and hurt. No one believed her when she told them about the angel's message. Her family, friends and even her fiance, Joseph, believed she had been promiscuous.

In his hurt over her supposed unfaithfulness, he made up his mind to break up with her. Still he was compassionate and decided to do it privately rather than putting her to shame with a public trial. At the very least she would be shunned for her shameful behavior, forced to live alone and be considered unmarriageable. Or she could face the worst possible punishment if the elders chose to make her a public example - death by stoning.

Feeling the sting of being ostracized by her family and the pain of rejection from Joseph, she went to stay with her cousin, Elizabeth, who was also with child. But Elizabeth's reaction to the young woman's pregnancy surprised Mary, because her cousin affirmed the truth of it!

Elizabeth gave her the support she needed during the crucial early months of her pregnancy. And by the time she returned home, Joseph's heart had been changed toward her because of a direct message from my Father in a dream.

I will never leave you totally alone to face life's difficulties on your own. I will bring others along side you to help, comfort, guide and encourage you. I will be there too, living inside you as our relationship grows each day.

Take time to magnify me because I am working in your life for your benefit and spiritual growth. I love you and I have a plan for you - far greater than anything you can imagine.

Love,
Jesus

Matthew 1, Luke 1-2

Spiritual "baby tickers"

"They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, along with everyone in your household.” Acts 16:31 NLT

A few weeks ago, I found out my daughter was pregnant with her eighth child. Through the wonders of technology, she had an ultrasound and found out it was another baby girl. Woohoo!

Once Allissa announced the news to family and friends, she put a "baby ticker" on her blog that shows what's going on with the baby's development each day from the beginning to the end of the pregnancy. I love visiting the blog to see just how much my newest granddaughter has grown. For example, based on Allissa's due date, today the little one is 21 weeks and 5 days old - with about 128 days to go until she makes her debut.

The ticker also tells me how much she has grown over the past few months and how she's developing. Today it said the baby weighs about a pound. Her eyelids, eyebrows and lips are in place and growing.

Wow! The closest thing we had to that when my children were developing in utero was a photo spread in Life Magazine. LOL!

As I look at the "baby ticker," I think about those Mothers who tell me they've been praying for years for one or more of their children to be "born again" into the Kingdom of God. It would be great if there was some kind of a spiritual "baby ticker" that we could look at each day to see the spiritual readiness of those we pray for. Because there isn't, we have no way of knowing how close they are to God's kingdom.

But we do have God's promises that he answers prayer. God's watching their "baby ticker" even though we might not be able to see it. He sees just how spiritually ready they are, how they are developing and what they need to be birthed into his kingdom. And he works each day through his Holy Spirit to ensure the safe delivery of those we witness to and pray for into his kingdom - even if we don't see the results yet.

Be encouraged - keep praying - don't give up!