Psalm 139
1 O Lord, You have searched me and You know me
{most literal translation: You have searched me and you know.}
2 You know when I sit and when I rise; You perceive my thoughts from afar. (about those thoughts from afar Lord....)
3 You discern my going out and my lying down; You are familiar with all my ways. (help me change those all too familiar ways that are not pleasing to You)
4 Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord. (put a guard on my mouth Lord--even my tone of voice)
5 You hem me in--behind and before; You have laid your hand upon me. (so comforting)
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. (I would mess it up)
13 For You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully (unique) made; Your works are wonderful,
I know that full well {ESV version says 'My soul knows it very well'--I love that}
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I am currently writing out Psalm 139. I cannot believe that I will probably finish writing out the Psalms within the next month. I started this journey last May and it has been a wonderful experience. I am kind of sad to see it that it is coming to an end, but am looking forward to whatever else God has in store for me to do. I have been thinking of possibly writing out/memorizing Philippians. I have been a little lacking in the joy department lately.
I am facilitating an evening women's Bible study at church. It just started this past Thursday and it is a new experience for me. There are about 18 ladies who are going to join me for the next 6 weeks as we study Jonah--Navigating a Life Interrupted by Priscilla Shirer. On our first evening (which was just 2 evenings ago), we didn't break up into small groups (we will next week), so I had the ladies introduce themselves and say a little about themselves or any thoughts on the video we had just watched. I think it helped to bring about a spirit of being sisters in Christ.
Lisa and Katie are already in the last quarter of the school year. I cannot believe how fast this year has gone. I told Mike the other day that we are in a "sweet spot" with the girls. They are old enough to stay home by themselves for short periods of time and we don't have to worry about them driving off or any of their friends driving on over.
We are giving them a little bit more responsibility and teaching them how to do stuff for themselves--stuff they will need to know how to do when they go to college. Mike is better at that than me. I know they need to learn by doing this stuff, sometimes it is easier to just do it myself-- it is something I am learning along the way--giving up control.
What difference does it make how the dishes are loaded in the dishwasher or how the towels are folded or any number of ways I am set in my ways?
Will they remember a nagging mom or will they remember an encouraging one?
Will they remember a mom who kept a spotless house or embraced a warm home?
Will they remember a mom who loved their daddy?
Will they remember a mom who loved Jesus?
Mike continues to adjust to "retirement" without any problems. He also has A's in his two classes he is taking (advanced A&P and Law & Ethics). Next will be advanced pharmacotherapeutics.
First he will have to learn how to spell it. :-)
Showing posts with label Walk with Christ. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Walk with Christ. Show all posts
Saturday, April 6, 2013
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Delighting in God
Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Delight yourself.
In our society that means to do what makes you feel good, indulge yourself, do not deny yourself, get what you want.
But what does it mean to God?
Delight yourself- (Hebrew word Pa'ar)-beautify, adorn, embellish, give honor, boast
Boast in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.
Does that mean if I say "God you are awesome and I desire a new car" that He will give it to me?
Hardly.
What if delighting myself in the Lord means changing what I desire to be aligned with what He desires for me? What if delighting myself in the Lord means wanting what He wants for me, even when it may not be something I really want at the time. What if I trust that He knows what is best for me and honored Him with that?
In the past I really wanted to be a flight nurse. That was my goal since nursing school and I worked hard to get the experience and the credentials needed to do that. My prayer was always "God if this is not your will, please take the desire away." My desire grew and grew. I had everything I needed to fulfill my goal. I had studied for the test, had doctor references and they were hiring.
Then came our darkest hour. I was at a crossroad and knew it. Marriage/Family or Career/Flight Nurse. The decision was not hard to make. In an instant I knew it was my marriage and family. A few months later I saw one of the flight nurses I used to work with in the ED and she said that they had hired 9 nurses and had been looking for me. I went home and cried. Partly because of the dream that was gone, but mainly because I knew I had made the right decision. I would not have changed my decision if I had the choice again.
I wish we never had to go through what we did, but honestly, it may have been the only thing that made me get what God's definition of "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart" means.
Because my hearts desire is exactly what God has graciously and mercifully given us--a marriage built on the foundation of Jesus Christ.
We honor You, Jesus.
Delight yourself.
In our society that means to do what makes you feel good, indulge yourself, do not deny yourself, get what you want.
But what does it mean to God?
Delight yourself- (Hebrew word Pa'ar)-beautify, adorn, embellish, give honor, boast
Boast in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.
Does that mean if I say "God you are awesome and I desire a new car" that He will give it to me?
Hardly.
What if delighting myself in the Lord means changing what I desire to be aligned with what He desires for me? What if delighting myself in the Lord means wanting what He wants for me, even when it may not be something I really want at the time. What if I trust that He knows what is best for me and honored Him with that?
In the past I really wanted to be a flight nurse. That was my goal since nursing school and I worked hard to get the experience and the credentials needed to do that. My prayer was always "God if this is not your will, please take the desire away." My desire grew and grew. I had everything I needed to fulfill my goal. I had studied for the test, had doctor references and they were hiring.
Then came our darkest hour. I was at a crossroad and knew it. Marriage/Family or Career/Flight Nurse. The decision was not hard to make. In an instant I knew it was my marriage and family. A few months later I saw one of the flight nurses I used to work with in the ED and she said that they had hired 9 nurses and had been looking for me. I went home and cried. Partly because of the dream that was gone, but mainly because I knew I had made the right decision. I would not have changed my decision if I had the choice again.
I wish we never had to go through what we did, but honestly, it may have been the only thing that made me get what God's definition of "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart" means.
Because my hearts desire is exactly what God has graciously and mercifully given us--a marriage built on the foundation of Jesus Christ.
We honor You, Jesus.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Bringing Shalom to Others
I was doing my RVL Bible study and learned something that is awesome.
This study is about walking with God in the desert. The deserts in our lives which we have been through, are going through or will go through. The session I am on is When Your Heart Cries Out.
I am learning about how God gives us and promises us shalom ( the restoration of harmony and peace God desires) in our deserts. One way He provides this is through people.
Here is an excerpt:
"Job was a righteous man who trusted God, and because of that experienced a flood of terribly painful disasters. During those trials, Job did not renounce his faith in the Lord as Satan had desired, but he certainly longed for relief, understanding, comfort, and encouragement. For a long time, God seemed to offer Job nothing--no deliverance, no explanation--so his God-fearing friends came to comfort him." pg 186.
What kind of comfort did his friends bring? Job 6:14-17 gives insight. They were "as undependable as intermittent steams..."
What do I think Job hoped his friends would be to him, and what might I have hoped for if I were in Job's situation? That they would bring some encouragement, a little comfort.
What do I think God would have desired for Job? I believe that God would want Job's friends to be the shalom in his desert. Encourage, refreshing, comforting.
This is what my light bulb moment was: God knows the rest of the story!! He knows what is going on in the heavens. Job didn't know there was war going on for his soul. He remained faithful to God.
When I look back on desert experiences that we have been through, I did receive God's peace and comfort through friends/people God had put in our lives. I will continue to pray for us to be like streams of water in the desert for others.
This study is about walking with God in the desert. The deserts in our lives which we have been through, are going through or will go through. The session I am on is When Your Heart Cries Out.
I am learning about how God gives us and promises us shalom ( the restoration of harmony and peace God desires) in our deserts. One way He provides this is through people.
Here is an excerpt:
"Job was a righteous man who trusted God, and because of that experienced a flood of terribly painful disasters. During those trials, Job did not renounce his faith in the Lord as Satan had desired, but he certainly longed for relief, understanding, comfort, and encouragement. For a long time, God seemed to offer Job nothing--no deliverance, no explanation--so his God-fearing friends came to comfort him." pg 186.
What kind of comfort did his friends bring? Job 6:14-17 gives insight. They were "as undependable as intermittent steams..."
What do I think Job hoped his friends would be to him, and what might I have hoped for if I were in Job's situation? That they would bring some encouragement, a little comfort.
What do I think God would have desired for Job? I believe that God would want Job's friends to be the shalom in his desert. Encourage, refreshing, comforting.
This is what my light bulb moment was: God knows the rest of the story!! He knows what is going on in the heavens. Job didn't know there was war going on for his soul. He remained faithful to God.
When I look back on desert experiences that we have been through, I did receive God's peace and comfort through friends/people God had put in our lives. I will continue to pray for us to be like streams of water in the desert for others.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
College and Insurance
We took a little family vacation to Rusk, Tx to a KOA campground. It was nice to have a change of scenery. We got to see the pine trees of East Texas. We also got to see how this drought is indeed affecting so many people. Please Lord, open up the skies and send rain to this parched land.
On the way up to our lodge we went through College Station, so we drove around Texas A&M to show the girls. A few months ago Katie came up to me and said, "Mom, I want to go to ATM for college." I said, "You mean A & M?". She said "yes, but it says ATM." Too funny. So as we were driving up there, I was thinking how in just a few short years, one or both of our girls could be driving these same roads to go to school. Then I was looking at how dangerous these roads could be, how far it is from home (I know there are further schools---), how they will be living on there own and be making decisions that can affect them for the rest of their lives, how we have them for such a short time. But then I thought of the excitement of going to college, to further education, to see what doors God opens up for them. I will pray, pray, pray for these little ones, for their future spouses, for them to desire God above all.
We returned and in mail was a lovely bill from the hospital for $820. It is what I am responsible from when I went to the ER for strep throat back in June. Wow. Must be an error. I called our insurance company and it is not an error. The hospital charged the insurance company $3800 for IV fluids, IV medication and the use of the ER. $2000 of it for being triaged. I was pretty upset. I used to work in the ER...I know what a nurse makes, I know what a doctor makes. I understand the cost of running a hospital, but please...I called the billing department and they offered me 15% off immediately. This is why our healthcare in the US is going downhill so fast. It shouldn't cost this much to be in the ER for ONE HOUR...no labs, no x-ray. I was dehydrated and needed IV fluid, it was Sunday, my doctor's office was closed. Also, I had been to an urgent care clinic earlier that week and the antibiotic they prescribed did not work.
My issue with the insurance and hospital is that I am not good at confrontation or negotiating. I get defensive and my tone of voice can be less than pleasant when dealing with these people. I had to be reminded this morning before I called that I serve the Lord. I prayed when I was doing my Bible Study for God to open my eyes for something because I was dreading having to deal with this stuff. He did. It was 2 Kings 3: 14 when Elisha said "As surely as the Lord Almighty lives, whom I serve...." That spoke to me. Since I serve the Lord, my tone of voice better be of one who serves the Lord. It ended up being a nice lady in the billing department who is going to send me an itemized bill of the ER visit, then we will negotiate a little bit, possibly confront a little and then we will pay what is due.
On the way up to our lodge we went through College Station, so we drove around Texas A&M to show the girls. A few months ago Katie came up to me and said, "Mom, I want to go to ATM for college." I said, "You mean A & M?". She said "yes, but it says ATM." Too funny. So as we were driving up there, I was thinking how in just a few short years, one or both of our girls could be driving these same roads to go to school. Then I was looking at how dangerous these roads could be, how far it is from home (I know there are further schools---), how they will be living on there own and be making decisions that can affect them for the rest of their lives, how we have them for such a short time. But then I thought of the excitement of going to college, to further education, to see what doors God opens up for them. I will pray, pray, pray for these little ones, for their future spouses, for them to desire God above all.
We returned and in mail was a lovely bill from the hospital for $820. It is what I am responsible from when I went to the ER for strep throat back in June. Wow. Must be an error. I called our insurance company and it is not an error. The hospital charged the insurance company $3800 for IV fluids, IV medication and the use of the ER. $2000 of it for being triaged. I was pretty upset. I used to work in the ER...I know what a nurse makes, I know what a doctor makes. I understand the cost of running a hospital, but please...I called the billing department and they offered me 15% off immediately. This is why our healthcare in the US is going downhill so fast. It shouldn't cost this much to be in the ER for ONE HOUR...no labs, no x-ray. I was dehydrated and needed IV fluid, it was Sunday, my doctor's office was closed. Also, I had been to an urgent care clinic earlier that week and the antibiotic they prescribed did not work.
My issue with the insurance and hospital is that I am not good at confrontation or negotiating. I get defensive and my tone of voice can be less than pleasant when dealing with these people. I had to be reminded this morning before I called that I serve the Lord. I prayed when I was doing my Bible Study for God to open my eyes for something because I was dreading having to deal with this stuff. He did. It was 2 Kings 3: 14 when Elisha said "As surely as the Lord Almighty lives, whom I serve...." That spoke to me. Since I serve the Lord, my tone of voice better be of one who serves the Lord. It ended up being a nice lady in the billing department who is going to send me an itemized bill of the ER visit, then we will negotiate a little bit, possibly confront a little and then we will pay what is due.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Song for Christmas: A Baby Changes Everything
Today at church Rachel, Heartsong and the praise team sang this Faith Hill song. It was beautiful. So we came home and I found the video they showed at church. This has a fellow singing it. But the meaning is all the same. Jesus came as a baby and changed everything.
Thank you Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6)
Thank you Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6)
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