A Gift From Lonzo

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Lonzo

My daughter recently had the opportunity to go on a mission trip with a group from our church.  Sending your child off to another country isn’t necessarily the easiest thing to do and for her birthday to be while she was gone just added to my concerns.  From the day my first child was born I have considered myself just the caretaker and that my children are first and foremost God’s.  God has just given my husband and I the honor and responsibility of caring for them.  Knowing that she was going to serve, give to others, and that she was with an amazing group of people actually made sending her off fairly easy.

Social media has it’s faults, but one of it’s good qualities was getting to see the pictures from the trip roll across my news feed daily.  Of course I did a lot of creeping on the pages of those who were on the trip to get any information I could as well.  The day of her birthday this sweet picture came across my Facebook news feed.   As I got more of the story I learned that this sweet young man had stopped and caught a fish as a gift for Michaela.  He wanted to give her something so he gave what he could and what he had.   You can see by the glimmer in both of their eyes that this gift brought so much joy to each of them as it did for the entire mission team.

Last Sunday evening our church had a service for the team to share about the trip.  The fish from Lonzo was mentioned as was the generosity of these children who have very little to give.  What is given to them they often turn around and give right back.  It was mentioned that Lonzo walked thirty minutes up a mountain to go to the Vacation Bible School being held by our group.  He had worn out tennis shoes and often wore the same clothes.   As I listened my heart was touched even more by this sweet boy’s generosity and how he put such a great smile on my daughter’s face.  We can’t bring Lonzo to our home, but the thought occurred that we can get another fish.  Michaela’s fish Jerry was unable to make the trip home.

At the first opportunity I went to the pet store and purchased a small fish bowl and fish as a surprise.  My one request was that we name the fish Lonzo.   The look on my daughter’s face said it all as she saw the fish and heard its name.  Our eyes connected for what seemed like minutes and her look said it all.  It was a heart warming momma moment that seems more and more rare the older she gets.

We have done well caring for our turtles and our dogs.  Fish on the other hand, we have a few things to learn so we will most likely have Lonzo 1-100, but it is the thought and the memory that is the true gift.  Lonzo’s actual gift was short term, but his thoughtfulness, generosity, sacrifice, and joy he gave is eternal.  The little boy who wanted to give so he gave what he had and all that he really had to give.

Eternal gifts and treasure in heaven…

Matthew 6:19-20 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Just Praying that my Pants Stay up

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As God continues to answer my prayers on a daily basis I had to blog about a very minor prayer request He answered today.  Of course it really could have been a huge distraction to His praise and worship!!!

In our second church service today as the choir finished it’s song I folded my music folder and started placing it on my choir chair to head down to sing with the praise team.   As I did my folder hit the top of my pants.  This pair of pants does not have a button above the zipper.  This pair of pants merely has two hooks that just slide to secure my britches.  Somehow my folder released the hooks from their secure placement and I felt a release at my waist line.  A feeling of paranoia set in as I became fearful that the zipper would now work its way down and my pants would fall while singing…ON STAGE…ON LIVESTREAM!!  Now that would not be glorifying to my Lord and Savior at all!!!   My prayer was “Dear Lord please keep my pants from falling down!”

My pants did  stay up Praise the Lord!!!  My youngest said the last song was so powerful today with the last chorus sung acapella. I told her I felt the same way in both services.  Such a beautiful sound of all those voices singing God’s praise!!  We raised the roof to God’s glory and… my pants stayed raised!!

Philippians 4:6 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”

How Should a Christian React?

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Now more than ever I have been praying and asking God what He needs me to say and do in the times we are living in.  My life’s perspective comes from growing up under the love and care of a Bible believing God fearing Preacher and his wife.  I chose to follow Jesus at the age of five.  Through my mid teens to mid twenties I definitely tested the boundaries and truth of God’s word only to come to the realization that I am so weak, God truly loves me, the Bible is 100% truth, and God wants the best for me. My career for the last twenty years has been that of a non-judgmental nurse.  During my career I have cared for convicts in shackles that have committed rape and murder.  There have been people under my care from every lifestyle, skin color, ethnicity, and religion.  There have been multiple infectious diseases and horrific smells I have been exposed to.  People have hit me, spit at me, cursed me, and harassed me.  I have cleaned every nook and cranny of the human body of complete strangers.  My co-workers that I work and have worked alongside as a team are from many lifestyles, beliefs, and back grounds.

With new man-made laws and people shutting out God and His Word more than ever I feel at such a loss as to what to say and do.

There are people I love with all sorts of life styles.  I don’t always agree with the choices of people I truly love.  It doesn’t mean I don’t love them, but I feel a strong conviction to never say sin is ok or to encourage it.  When I have a patient that is diabetic I discourage them from eating a diet high in sugar and carbohydrates.  When I have a patient who smokes I encourage them to quit for their well being.  When I have a patient dying from alcoholism I am not going to encourage them to go to a bar. You get the picture I hope.

Even the meanest patients I have cared for had a story.  There is always a reason behind behaviors and choices.   Only by praying for God to help me look at others with His love can I make it through the day.  There are ways to speak kindly and in a non judgmental manner, but I have to rely completely on God providing the right words and tone of voice.   As soon as I don’t look to God and His word for guidance I mess up, say things the wrong way, and react in ways that I really don’t want to.

There are two specific examples of the life of Jesus from scripture that keep coming to mind as I wonder how I should react in a world that clearly hates the faith every last ounce of me fully believes in and knows to be true.  Jesus stood up for His Father’s house that was being misused.  The sacred house of worship and prayer had been turned into a place for money making and thieving.  Matthew 21:12-13 “Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves.  ‘It is written,’ he said to them, ‘ my house will be called a house of prayer, but you are making it a den of robbers.’ ” (John 2:15 and Mark 11:15-17 are further references)  There will be times when God and His word are clearly being disgraced and I pray that God will give me the courage to stand up and stand firm.

When the time came for Jesus to be arrested, tried (unfairly), beaten and crucified he was silent.  The few words He spoke were very purposeful and not defensive. He knew the greater plan God had and silently allowed what was happening because He knew it was for the greater good of those who would chose Him.   Matthew 26:62-67 “Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, ‘Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?’ But Jesus remained silent.  The high priest said to him, ‘I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God. ‘  ‘Yes, it is as you say,’ Jesus replied.  ‘ But I say to all of you: In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.’  Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, ‘He has spoken blasphemy!  Why do we need any more witnesses?  Look, now you have heard the blasphemy.  What do you think?’  ‘He is worthy of death,’ they answered.  Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists.  Others slapped him.”

Isaiah 53:7 prophesied “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.”

There are times the Holy Spirit tells me to be silent.  The bible tells us that Christians will be persecuted and that the world will hate followers of Christ as much as it hates Jesus Christ.  My prayer is for God to show me the times to stand up and stand firm and for Him to show me when to be silent and allow His plan to unfold.

Some Prayers are Answered Imediately! God is Very Real and no one will EVER Convince me Otherwise!!!

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This last week has been incredibly busy.  I’ve thought about listing the hours I worked, activities, meetings, etc… I have had, but some details are unnecessary and a bit boring.  What I will explain is that I am very tired and pretty well feel like I am losing my mind with all that I need to remember.  Sunday morning I found out I needed to get my daughter’s passport to church to have copies made for an upcoming mission trip.  Sunday afternoon I hurriedly obtained it from the safe place it has been kept for the last six months and was quite sure I had placed it in my purse.  The plan was to have it copied while I was in with the rest of the choir preparing for our patriotic musical.  Well the person that was going to copy it and myself both forgot.  That evening after the musical we had the church youth group over to our house and the next morning I got up for work at 4:20 am as usual.  Upon arriving to work I found out I had arrived an hour earlier than I was actually scheduled.  The fact that I unknowingly sacrificed an hour longer sleep should demonstrate my state of mind and the fact that I am losing it completely.

The passport was now long forgotten until this evening when my daughters and I went shopping at Target.  My youngest had a gift card burning a hole in her pocket and the oldest needed a pouch to carry her passport for her upcoming trip.  With the thought of the passport retrieved from the depths of my memory I now started to look for it in my purse not having remembered seeing it over the last two days.  We got to the car and I emptied my purse.  Each daughter looked through my purse.   No passport found.  The entire car ride home I started retracing my steps in my mind trying to think if I laid it down somewhere stupid instead of putting it in my purse or if it had fallen out of my purse.  I had only been to church, work, and home until our Target trip.

As we continued home my chest had become tight and I was now nauseous thinking that all the anticipation, prayers,  preparation and cost of this life changing trip for my oldest daughter was all pending on locating the now lost passport.

As we neared our home I silently prayed very hard pleading with God to help me find this passport.  Come to find out my youngest daughter was in the back seat doing the same as she could tell her mom was growing close to losing it!  I had promised my oldest that she could start practicing driving the car down our private lane when we come and go.  She drove down our lane when we left and it was now with the very last ounce of patience that was left in me I kept my word to let her drive down our lane back to the house.

It was through keeping my promise God answered my prayer.  Her passport apparently had fallen out of my purse at some time while driving over the last few days and had slid between the passenger seat and door.  As I walked over to the passenger side of the car there it was.  I think I actually heard a heavenly choir sing as I bent down and scooped up that precious passport!

God hears our prayers.  He is faithful.  He cares about every detail of our lives.  He is very real and every bit of my sustainer, redeemer, best friend, Lord, Savior, and my Heavenly FATHER!!!    His presence is so evident to me everyday!!!

My Purpose is to Love and Serve Others

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Life gets so confusing.  Life feels like a continuous battle some days.  So often there are so many things being forced by others without seeming to even really have a choice.  With that being said God continues to remind me that I always have a choice.  That I can choose to love and to serve everyone in all circumstances.  No matter what seems unfair nothing is more unfair than what my Savior Jesus endured for my sin on that cross.  So I will press on and continue to focus on Jesus and loving and serving others.   This is why God gave me life.  My goal in life is for when my time ends on this earth is for others to say that if anyone truly believed in Jesus, followed him, and was a true Christian…Anita did and was…

1 Peter 3:15-18 “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord.  Always be prepared to give and answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.  But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.  It is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.  For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.”

Riots, the Duggars, Jenner, Dolezal, Mass Murders… Sigh

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Even with avoiding the news as much as I can the majority of what media has highly publicized still reaches me eyes.   My heart gets so sad for this hurting world we live in.  At times I feel anger stirring in me over lies and unfairness.  Anymore I consider news media “Sin on Parade” as I watch personal agendas flooding the airways across our country and the world.   Some sin is being applauded and some condemned.  The world has decided it is the judge of what is wrong or right which has led us into deeper confusion and turmoil.  This blog has been prayerfully on my mind for sometime as each week there is a new story defining our culture and the times we live in.

What I continue to see are people hurting and desperate.    I see people pushing their opinions with selfish gain as their motivation.  What I see are a lot of excuses being made for behaviors masked with fancy words and terms.   I see a world trying to find healing in medications legal and illegal to provide a band aid for much deeper wounds.  If a person claims to follow Jesus I see a world searching for any sin in their life to provide the excuse of “see they are no different”.  As I see our government turn their backs on God the leaders of our country have taken on the image of a three ring circus ran by immature two year olds.  These days it seems like no one is really interested in actually getting to the root of our problems.

Within my own life I have found that the only way to fix anything is to find the root, the source of the problem.  When I weed my garden if I just pull the leaves of a weed it just comes back bigger and stronger.  It must be pulled out by the root to stop the growth of a pesky weed.   It seems the more “educated and scientific” we are the more we just pull at the leaves of problems instead of stopping them at their source.

What is the true source of all of the worlds problems?   The answer can truly be summed up in one little three letter word.  It is a word that no one wants to hear or use these days.   Our pride and arrogance cringes at the sound of this word.  It is SIN.  We are all born with the nature to sin.  Our sin starts as a thought we then have the choice to feed that thought and allow it to develop into action or to stop the thought at its beginning.   These people who would gun down, bomb, or poison the innocent started with a thought.  They build up excuses and reasons in their mind to justify actions they want to take and then act.  They have become deceived.  You can see the empty darkness in the eyes of these killers as their mug shots flash onto media screens.

Have you ever listened to a person who is having an affair talk?  Just sit and listen to excuse after excuse.  Justification after justification.  It starts with a sinful thought and then action.  There is a reason for their choice.  It is sin.

Hang around with preschool children for a day and you will see that sin starts immediately in our lives.  We come into this world selfish and greedy.  There is evidence proving this point as one of the favorite and first words of a toddler is “mine”.

Our sinful nature is so powerful and pulls us to go the exact opposite direction God has planned and desires for us.  The message of God’s word is consistent in the fact that we are to love God and others, serve others, be kind, gentle, forgiving, and thankful.  The life of Jesus shows us the perfect example of a life lived out with these qualities.   Our human sin drives us to be selfish, self serving, blaming, judging, prideful, arrogant, and pleasure seeking.  In reality what kind of person do we want to be around?  What we all desire to have in our life is someone that has the very attributes of God, but we shut out God and His word that provides instruction of how to have a life of joy, peace, hope, and a life that is everlasting.  We shut out the source of peace and expect to have peace.   The difference between someone who is a true follower of Jesus Christ and someone who is not is only the fact that a believer realizes how sinful they are, has been forgiven by the only one who can forgive sins, Jesus, and chooses to follow Jesus.  Desiring to sin less and less in their life through the only power and strength that can help us with this weakness, Jesus.

To sum up the turmoil and confusion we see in the news media everyday is that “we are all sinners and have fallen short of the glory of God” Romans 3:23  We can not cure ourselves.  We can try to change physically.  We can try medications to mask our deep emotional wounds.  We can try to fill our void with material goods and addictions.  We are lost confused people separated from our creator by our sinful nature.  The good news is that Jesus is the answer to every single problem that is in the world today.  The problem is sin and the answer is Jesus.  “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”   Come to know Jesus today.  Experience real love and allow Jesus’ love to live through your life in a desperate and hurting world.  He is our hope and our future!!!

When it is not Necessarily the Best that is Chosen

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This has been a struggle for our family this week.  What appears to be the best?  Who appeared to be the best from our narrow perspective?  What is everyone else saying is the best?  We are continuously bombarded with choices in our lives.  What school to apply for and where to attend, what job to apply for and take, what activities to be involved in, what sports to play and who to play for, who to date, who to marry…  the decisions go on our entire lifetime.  We continue to make them for ourselves our whole life.   After becoming parents we are a part of our children’s decisions.  Depending on the age of the child we may have to sit back and pray about the decisions of our children.

I purposely left out typing the only opinion that truly matters up above.  What and who does God say is the best?  With jobs, activities, and sports we have found that there are always politics and personal agenda’s involved with the bosses and coaches that are making the final decisions.   This week a member of our family has faced the hurt of rejection.  As a parent this is always hard.  I have found that I can handle my own rejections in life much better than one of my children being rejected.  It is hard to see them work hard and the hard work not always pay off.  At least we don’t always see an immediate pay off or what we see on the surface is defeat.  As I spoke the words “When God closes a door he always opens SOMETHING, it may be just a window or it could be a wide open door” I had to ask myself do you really believe that?  This week has been a test on my own faith that God truly knows what is best.  He knows what people He wants my child and our family’s lives to cross paths with.  As a window opened wide and quickly this week we still waited for a peep hole in the old door to open.  As time passed I found myself growing uncomfortable and edgy waiting on this tiny peep hole of an opportunity to give our daughter an answer.   Finally the thought “No, my child is worth more than this and this other window recognizes her potential”  crossed my mind.

It is not always the bigger flashier names,  what looks the prettiest, or most appealing that God does great things through.  I am excited to see what my daughter’s new opportunity will bring and how God will work things together for her good and for His glory.   Her excitement and relief about the unanimous decision said it all.

Right before her disappointment we had watched the movie “Soul Surfer”  Bethany Hamilton’s story for about the 100th time.  Bethany Hamilton has been a hero to both of my girls since the movie came out and we love watching her life unfold on social media.   After watching this movie I reminded the girls to find their passion in life, work hard, and give God all the glory.  I went on to say to them “allow God to work through you and use what your passionate about as your platform to share the love of Jesus”.

There will always be rejection, unfairness, and disappointments in life.  God never rejects those who seek him, He is the only true fair judge with no politics, and he will never disappoint as He always keeps his promises.

Jeremiah 29:11 ” For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Attention to Details

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Sunday evening our town had a memorial and tree dedication service for those who had trees donated to the town parks in memory of a loved one.  There were many small details that I noticed God paid particular attention to.  Our church usually has an evening service at 6 pm the same time as this service.  We had a special schedule this Sunday that allowed our family this time free.  I was also on call for work and was not needed at the hospital during this time.  The service was held at the rose garden.  My picture above was snapped quickly with my cell phone, but I actually like the vintage blur given in the photo.  Some friends of the family donated a tree in honor of my husband’s father and he loved roses.  What a great detail.  My own father loved roses and caring for them so this was a nice time for his remembrance as well.   When we walked under the pergola a momma bird had built a next that had a least three baby birds.  We had a nice “birds eye” view under the pergola of these young ones.

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These baby birds reminded me of new life with Christ when we accept his gift of salvation.  They reminded me of eternal life in heaven and the hope of seeing our loved ones again.

Another detail was that my father-in-law’s tree was planted right next to a fellow church member’s who lost his wife this year.  This gentleman and my husband are buddies driving the church bus to pick up children and those unable to drive.

It was a great reflection of how God always pays attention to the fine details.  He knew of this little ceremony long before our church staff planned the calendar.  I am so grateful God pays attention to the details and that his timing is perfect.

Romans 8:28 ” For we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who are called according to his purpose.”

If I Would Just Remember to Look UP First

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Just a few minutes ago I was out piddling in our yard feeling a bit overwhelmed with a lot of things truthfully.   I sighed as I looked at this tree from the outside trying to see what branches should be trimmed to make mowing around it easier.  As I stepped underneath it I felt like I was in a whole new little world.  As the sun shown down through the green leaves I felt like I was in a beautiful protective green bubble of life.  It was a whole new perspective of this tree I had never known.  I took another picture looking out from the protective green branches.  That view somehow made our large yard less daunting.   As I stepped all the way out from under my green little hut I was looking eye to eye with this beauty.

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Had I not taken the time to step under the protective shield of this tree and look up I am quite sure I would have missed the eye contact made with this beautiful creature.   Yet another reminder from my Heavenly Father God to step into His protective loving arms, look up, and then look out with His perspective at what is before me.

Psalm 42:1 “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.”  Psalm 42:5 “Why are you downcast, O my soul?  Why so disturbed within me?  Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him my Savior and my God.”