These are thoughts generated from either interactions with people, readings, seminars, college visits, and sometimes just musings. However, whatever the source I've felt they were important enough to share.
Waiting... Being a homeschool leader Keeping the Sabbath Mere Men Money... Power Meeting
What We Set Out To Build Spending Time Wisely? Responsible Leadership
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Waiting, constantly waiting…. Return to Top of Page
I am constantly waiting and annoyed. I am annoyed with the salesman who calls on my telephone and then takes 20 seconds to speak. I am annoyed by my husband who tries to talk to me and work on his computer at the same time, leaving me waiting for his responses as if my time didn’t have any value.
I am annoyed at my children who do the same thing….and I am annoyed with the cashier who moves too slowly in checking my groceries because she is chatting with the sacker…
But then, I stop. My cheeks flush in humiliation.
As I suddenly realize I leave you waiting, waiting, constantly waiting Lord.
If I show up for time with you every day, then I might lose my focus for a few minutes to check to see what email came in to make my computer ding. Or maybe to look at my calendar to see what the day holds.
Please forgive me Lord. I shudder to think I keep You, THE King of the universe, waiting on me.
It isn’t about me. My time is not the most precious commodity.
You alone can be trusted with an endless supply of time. We can’t, not yet, not this side of heaven.
But in heaven, we will be trustworthy to know how to value that which is immeasurable.
Gold holds its value because it is rare, in limited supply.
And yet, you gave us water and air to breath in abundance. You knew we wouldn’t value them, but we need them. We don’t need gold and yet we value gold at more than air or water?
In heaven, we will have the right perspective to value things properly. Properly means valuing things as You value them, not as the world does.
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Being a homeschool leader Return to Top of Page
None of us is equipped to be a homeschool leader. But all of us should follow the call of the Lord if He is pushing us to do something in a leadership position. He who calls will enable.
Recently a long time friend of mine decided to start a homeschool co-op like N-Tech. She said how much it helped her to know I thought she could do it. I do think she can do it, but not because of her talents, which are many. I think she can do it because the Lord will provide.
Not one of us is a perfect person, far less are we perfectly equipped to be a leader of people, even if those people were perfect, but they aren’t. We are the least equipped of all to be a leader of other imperfect people.
But when He puts a call on our heart to do something for others in our homeschooling community—or in any community, God is calling us into His training program, literally His boot camp. The longer I live the more I can see it never was about my helping others, but always about God designing a personal boot camp for my soul.
As I told her, N-Tech is perhaps the single thing in my life which has grown me up more than anything else. Yet I still have lots of room to grow.
If He is calling you to do something, do it.
But be ready. Not only won’t it be easy, but it will be painful as He refines you, as He knocks down your passionate beliefs, the things that you think you know about how life should be. He knocks down our idols, the deepest ingrained wrong opinions that we are willing to fight a brother over.
And I am so thankful that He has knocked down my wrong opinions and beliefs.
Apparently I had some deep ruts that He needed a heavy plow to knock down in my soul. He used 100 families over eight years to flatten out the road in my spirit. There were many times I didn’t think I could stand the pressure, but today, I am so thankful He called me into leadership. Thankful, not for having the point man position of our 100 families, but for the change He has used it to make in my life.
There are more ruts to be taken care of, but for now, I can enjoy the improvements He has made. He isn’t finished yet, but now we are closer to having a workable surface for Him to build on. What I currently have is a flat, usable section of road for the Lord to lay His foundation on. I expect He will clear more roads in my soul in the future but for now I am content to revel in the result of 8 years of hard labor, one section of cleared road.
At 47, I am thankful for many more years to see what the Lord will build on my cleared land. I only wish I had jumped in sooner….but He reminds me…His timing is always perfect. He can only call when we are ready to begin the journey of change.
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Keeping the Sabbath Return to Top of Page
Deuteronomy 5:12-15 says
We keep the Sabbath to remind us that God brought us out of Egyptian slavery with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm—verse 15
That speaks to me today. 99% or 99.9% of our country works on the Sabbath to catch up what they missed doing the other six days. Isn’t that like slavery? Working seven days a week and never finishing all of the work?
God has saved us from slavery with His mighty hand and outstretched arm. Does the outstretched arm imply more work than had He only used His mighty hand? I believe God can do anything with a word, so I have to believe that outstretched arm is telling us His care, His concern was great when He did save us.
We work seven days a week because we feel we are making a difference?
Or maybe because we fear we aren’t?
Or maybe because our time is short?
I get it, finally.
The work is there from God. He doesn’t need our efforts to do it, but He allows us to partake in His work. But we serve Him, not the work. How easy that is to forget. He has numbered our days. He isn’t an unrealistic manager or job foreman who doesn’t have realistic expectations of what we can accomplish.
He is a loving foreman, overseeing our work to make sure we are assigned the very job best suited for us. Sometime that job is least suited for our current personality and spiritual condition in order to reveal to us a new weakness, to get us to call out to Him.
Other times, we are assigned to the job that is perfectly matched with our soul, our gifts, our values, our goals.
In either case, He doesn’t give us more work than we can accomplish in 8 or 10 hours a day. He knows we need down time, we need money, we need food, we need entertainment and exercise, we need worship, we need time with Him.
I have always been a workaholic, but I guess until today I never noticed how that is so out of balance with my picture of God. My picture of God is that He has it all under control and that He loves me immensely—more than anyone has ever loved me before. So why would I work non-stop doing work He hasn’t asked me to do?
As Solomon said, there is a time for everything. Maybe that should be reworded to say there is time for everything.
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Mere Men Return to Top of Page
I haven’t ever said it, but I have thought it….why don’t you grow up? You are acting so childish? I have thought it about my children, who are, duh, children, growing up! In my case, when I demand them to be more than they are, I was setting the bar too high for them.
Today I was challenged by a new thought relative to setting the bar too high…
As believers Paul has admonished us similarly in I Corinthians 3:3 where he asks the Corinthians, “Are you not walking like mere men?”
Well, that question seems to parallel my question to my children, why are you acting so childish? I have to stop and wonder what Paul was thinking when he wrote that phrase—walking like mere men. I don’t know about you but I am a mere man, or in this case a mere woman. I don’t have the super human strength of a super hero, or the mental capacity of some computer. I am a mere man, but dust.
If we can take the Bible at it’s every word, then we must believe Paul when he challenges the Corinthians, and thus us as believers, to not walk as mere men. What constitutes walking as better than mere men? His contrast in I Corinthians 3 paints a clear picture of what is expected.
Men of flesh
Babes in Christ
Milk to drink
Still fleshly
Jealousy and strife among you
One says I am of Paul, another says I am of Apollos
Compared to:
Spiritual men
Able to eat solid food
Implied not fleshly
No jealousy and strife among you
All of Christ
He didn’t elaborate a lot in this letter, but he has previously listed lists which can humble even Saint Teresa in other portions of his writings to the early Church.
I don’t know about you but this opens my eyes to my capabilities; whereas before I have excused a lot of my own behavior as just the way I am, human nature. Apparently, God has other plans for us. He sees us as super strong Christ-followers who can tap into His wisdom at any moment.
So why don’t I? In fact, why do all of the people I know walk as mere men?
I could easily say it is because we aren’t studying His word; we didn’t know. But I confess that I have read that scripture at least 100 times over the last 30 years of my walk with the Lord and it never occurred to me that I was capable of behaving anything different than a mere man.
I knew I should let the grace of our Lord Jesus shine through my life.
I knew to give Him the reins in my decision making and in use of my time, resources and talents. But this is more. I am capable of behaving different than mere man.
I have recently said about one of my female family members, “She was dealt a different deck of cards to play with in this game of life. She didn’t get the same deck you and I got.” Did God short change “her?” I said it to somehow excuse her life of poor choices that tragically resulted in her early death. But what does that say about my worldview. Am I limiting God? If He put it in His word, I either believe it is true or I don’t.
If I don’t believe this admonishment, then what else is at stake? Well, a whole bunch—undefiled marriage beds, fathers don’t provoke your children, or how about “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father except by Me.”
This is painful. It is occurring to me that I sort of like living as a mere man. I sort of like having one foot in this world and one in the next. But both feet in this world while my heart and actions and soul are in the next?
I have always dismissed the Gnostics of the early Church as shallow thinkers, irrational, not worthy of my consideration. Yet in fact, my rose colored glasses are off, I now see that I often live like a Gnostic, where my knowledge doesn’t affect my actions.
Unfortunately I am not alone in this problem. I am joined by an army from our Christian society. My friend’s mother-in-law often refers to her 32 year old grandson as having such a good heart. Well, that is a Gnostic statement. He may have a good heart but only God can see his heart; friends and family alike see his actions, and they are anything but good—even by the world’s low standards.
Today is the day. Today all past goals and visions have been shunned as filthy rags ( Isaiah …) in order to embrace the new goal of walking out my Christian journey on this earth as more than mere man. I confess I don’t completely know what that looks like, but for today, God has given me some direction as the first things that need to be cleaned out of my soul—my mind, my life and my passions.
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Money is not the root of all things….. Return to Top of Page
I am confounded at times by my own obsession with money. I have prayed for specific amounts of money, which never came. Regardless of my lack of miracle money, the Lord provided what I intended to buy without providing the money.
Our God created money as a method for us to keep track and to indicate fairness, a method of efficiency. Money is not evil….
But He is not limited or confined by His own creation. He is more than capable of providing our needs without ever giving us a dime.
Open up your minds to comprehend all He wants to do for you.
I was just reading Acts 3:1-10 about the lame beggar who Peter and John healed. He was begging for money; they had something far more valuable to him—healing. That healing then allowed him to earn money without having God give him a dime. His request was answered but in a manner which was incomprehensible to him.
It is the same with THEO’s chairs and tables and location and so many other tangible things. He has not blessed me with the riches of Bill Gates, but nonetheless, our God has blessed me. He works in a stealth manner to provide all that we need and more.
And in the end, I like it so much better this way—despite my frequent pleas to ask God to reward me or Phil financially with a fatter paycheck or pennies from heaven.
I recently read that it is a difficult marriage of God and man. We, without any resource, marry God, who has all of the resources. Despite our finiteness, He is a loving husband to us. Providing for us, but not smothering us with His provision, sneaking behind to make us think we have provided for our own needs. Giving us a picture of the joy He feels in providing for us, He allows us to work, to earn money, in order to provide the needs of our own children.
He is so gracious to us. He lets us participate in the provision, in creation, despite the fact that He always remembers our frame is of dust. How can He do this? His creativity is limitless. Our minds cannot comprehend; they aren’t big enough. They are too confined by walls, some physically put there; others we build throughout our lifetimes.
It isn’t about the stuff. It is about what we become when He uses us to provide for many. He is allowing us to share in His position, in His powerful position as the owner of the resources.
Now that is an awesome and loving God. Praise His Holy Name today and all days going forward….for eternity…..
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My Power Meeting of the day… Return to Top of Page
What if I make my meeting with the Lord my power meeting of the day? How do I prepare for the big meeting with a client or with an important person? I do my homework; I make sure I am fresh and rested, presenting my best side.
But instead, with You Father, I stumble out of bed, meeting with You when I can’t present my best side, when my eyes are barely open. When I can’t concentrate well or focus.
And I wonder why my quiet time isn’t rich? Why I don’t hear from You very often?
If I make You the priority power meeting of every day Lord, I suspect all the other meetings will fall into place just fine, without incident.
Going forward, I vow to:
Make my time with You my daily power meeting
Which means giving you my best time of the day
Presenting my best focus on You, not answering the phone or email in the midst of our time together.
I will wait on You, not leaving you waiting on me.
Then, I will leave my other duties to You. And rest in You. Let You carry my yolk.
I love You Lord. Please keep me keeping You in the cross hairs of my life, my mind, my attention, my time.
Funny, it isn’t all about me, but it
isn’t all about any other living person.
It is all about You, always has been….we just missed it….
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What We Set Out To Build Return to Top of Page
A Christian homeschool….isn’t that what we all set out to build when we launch our home schools? Unfortunately, in many homes, this idea gives new meaning to the phrase “hindsight is 20/20.” As much as I longed to found a Christian homeschool for my two boys 12 years ago, in many ways, looking back, it seems I merely established a school for two. A school directed by my husband and me making the best decisions we knew to make. I don’t want you to take me wrong. We have frequently prayed over decisions; we are both serious about our walk with the Lord.
I just think secular roots ran far deeper into our worldview than we could possibly have known back then. Gradually and continually since 1994, God has opened our minds to see countless secular opinions that were deeply rooted in our minds and habits. Visualize them as innumerable, yet life sustaining arteries, filling in every crevice of our body. Yet these beliefs weren’t giving life blood to my organs but input to my decisions, the very decisions which were shaping my children, the two cherished treasures that I longed to protect the most.
Although I am not going to be perfect this side of heaven, I now get it. I can’t co-pilot with the Lord. He must drive 100% of our school for it to be a Christian school. I must be hands off; no more making the calculated decisions, weighing between curriculums, balancing extra curricular activities. Granted, He has given me a mind to use, but we all know the difference between deciding what we think is best, forcing what we want rather than leaving the choice to Him.
My advice as a veteran home school mom? Be true to yourself when you set off on the home schooling journey. Go as spiritually deep as you can, as quickly as you can. Work hard, study more than you ask your children to study. Strive to grow and stretch yourself mentally but also with discipline in all habits of your life. Oswald Chambers says to make a habit of not having habits.
Obviously we need routine for our children to thrive, but so often we worship our methods and fail to see the matchless opportunities God lays before us. I don’t know how better to say it; you can trust the Lord with your days and weeks. Put every “card” on the table for God to reveal the truth regarding your worldview and your belief system. Let Him show you what area needs growth next in your life.
Your children will flourish as they catch the excess of growth you experience in your own life each day. He is trustworthy, unchangeable. Give it all to Him, especially your minutes, your kids, your pride, your own ability to think through the right decisions.
Then watch to see what He will do…Those rude comments from strangers or family members won’t matter any longer….and it won’t be so stressful to pick out new curriculums or to keep up with the house, baby and math…
Daily devotions were designed for one of two purposes. One is to study the greatness of God in order to deflate our egos so we can have proper perspective on our contributions to the world. The second is to study the greatness of God in order to inflate our egos so that we can have the proper perspective on the value we bring to this world as the Lord’s children. Spend time at least once a day focusing on Him by reading His word.
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Spending time wisely? Return to Top of Page
Many of us work our money hard, especially as a homeschool family. We don’t have any choice but to make the most of every penny by borrowing curriculum when possible, finding it used at other times. We use produce co-ops and coupons to make the most of our food budget.
But do we focus on spending our time as wisely? Are we as good of stewards of each minute or hour as we could be?
Many of us are masters at multi-tasking so I can already hear your protest as I write. Multi-tasking is not the same as being a good steward. We can cram more things into our schedule but that doesn’t mean that we are doing the right things—only more.
Many nights, I have awaken in the night, literally in a sweat of panic, wondering what good things I was focusing on to the detriment of the best. In particular, what small, yet critical issue was I leaving unsaid in my parenting. “Lord, where am I scrubbing the deck while the ship is sinking?” My constant prayer has been, “Lord please reveal where I have gone wrong, where I have stepped off the path. What I have said too much and what I need to say for the first time.”
As always He is faithful to reveal and to speak truth into my life when I ask. I am not sure about the theological ramifications of my next belief, but at times, I believe the Lord will speak into our lives regardless of our desire to hear from Him. Other days, He will remain silent until we ask. As I said, I don’t understand the theological implications of that thought, but it has been my experience.
In parenting, God has frequently remained silent until I have asked for His input. The same goes with my own spiritual walk with the Lord. He hasn’t jumped in with a to-do list to organize my day or my years. However, when an event occurs, one of those events which has stripped away my self confidence to reveal a crack in my worldview or my beliefs or my self esteem, He has responded swiftly and clearly to my cry for insight and help.
Because of His ability to repair my soul in minutes, He and I have made a lot of headway in my life because I have submitted countless times over the years to His revealing and healing touch. I have often thanked Him for being my counselor. Unlike an earthly counselor, He is a free counselor and fixes in minutes what would take a human counselor years to identify and solve.
I used to meet an older person, wow, someone maybe 50, and think they are so wise. I wish I had been born as wise as they were. Now that I am approaching 50, I understand. They weren’t born any wiser than you or I, but they have spent decades working on their spiritual walk. What we work on is what we will accomplish. If we work at eating, we will accomplish weight gain. If we work on exercise, we will accomplish strong muscles. If we work at watching tv, we will win a contest about movie star or tv trivia.
Unlike other things, God has given some extra leverage to the effort we spend on our spiritual life. Think of a small drop of water hitting the same rough boulder over a few decades. That small drop of water will accomplish much in smoothing out a spot on that boulder.
Same with the effort we give to our spiritual walk. Most of the time, God isn’t asking for an hour a day, maybe only a few minutes. A drop of effort on our spiritual journey can produce results like you aren’t able to envision. He will use that small drop of effort to smooth out wide areas of space in our souls, actually expanding them to include thoughts goals, and values we never dreamed.
Then, when we turn 50 or 60 or whatever age, our efforts will have produced wisdom which is then available to serve us in our old age.
What are you spending your time on? Are you merely packing more into each day? Or are you putting first things first? Time is more finite than money. We can always earn more money; we can’t add one minute to our life. Spend those minutes wisely.
Let me close with Matthew 7:24-29
Everyone hears the words
But only a few act on them
Those who act on them are building a house on the rock.
Storms come to all—to those with houses built on rocks
---to those with houses built on sand
But only those who heard and acted building their house on the rock will survive the storms
Those with houses built on sand will fall, according to verse 27 they won’t only fall but great will be their fall.
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August 14, 2009 - Coming in August is the "Responsible Leadership" workshop. This is based on the writings and teachings of Peter Drucker. This is something you will want to strongly consider regardless of the interests of your student. Everyone needs to learn to lead, even if it is just their family. This is worth your consideration. Return to Top of Page
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