Laced With Grace

ISAIAH 43:18-19 “The Lord says, ‘Do not cling to events of the past or dwell on what happened long ago. Watch for the new thing I am going to do. It is happening already – you can see it now!’

As a young teen, I remember visiting my friend and finding her sitting on the floor of her bedroom. The closet was empty. Tracy’s bedroom had the look of a war zone. Boxes, papers, photographs, old CD’s were strewn all over the floor. The shrapnel of her memory was almost overwhelming to her.

As she reached across the mess, she came upon a photograph of her old boyfriend, suddenly something very unexpected tugged at Tracy’s heart. She began to recall the good times she and Dan had and then all of a sudden those good memories faded and she began to tell me all about the mistakes that both her and Dan had made.

An emptiness, a sadness seemed to settle into my good friends heart. Searching for something to say to my friend, I noticed in the middle of the floor a little blue box. When I asked her what the blue box was, her countenance began to change as she recalled all of the notes of encouragement that laid within that blue box.

It was the promises of God that kept my friend going after her heartbreaking breakup with Dan. Inside the blue box was the reminder of the friendship that she had developed with God during the darkest time of her life.

What I saw next, was totally unbelievable! Suddenly her floor was no longer filled with memories of pain and hurt but now it was just a bunch of trash and a very special blue box.

We are very much like my friend Tracy. We try to cling to our past, and the bad memories that haunt us. Some times the best thing to do is just throw it all away and with God’s help, just move forward!

“The past is valuable as a guidepost, but dangerous if used as a hitching post.”

TODAY JUST MAY BE THE DAY FOR YOU TO GET A SPECIAL BLUE BOX!

Please visit me daily over at http://womentakingastand.blogspot.com/

Why is it the moment our family begins to get ready for church my pathetic attitude rears its ugly head for all to see?

My daughter had a little friend spend the night last night. With spatula in hand, my robe on and wet hair hanging around my face like the mythological creature Medusa, she quietly comes up to me and announces she doesn’t want to go to church with us as planned.

Now, I am not one to force church attendance on anyone…but I was irritated. As adorable as this little girl is, I had only minutes left to get everyone fed, run this child home and head back to make myself presentable and get to church.

Like Cruella Deville I sped through our little town to take this child home. After ringing her doorbell until my index finger was numb, we discovered her parents weren’t home.

Can you feel my growing irritation?

Racing back home in our Suburban, thoughts danced in my head. My hair is going to look awful drying on its own. I bet the breakfast dishes are now stuck by syrup to my kitchen table. Why did I eat pancakes for breakfast today anyway? I feel like I have a brick in my stomach. Why didn’t Paul offer to take this child home?

Like the godly woman I am (interject sarcasm here), I fumed on the way to church. I thought for sure my fake smile screamed “Hypocrite!” as I walked into church minutes later.

Leaning over to one of my girlfriends, I smiled from ear to ear and spoke through clenched teeth, “I am not in a good mood today.”

…and then it happened.

Worship began.

Have you ever tried to stay in a bad mood while praising God? It’s impossible to do. My anger and irritation melted away.

Replacing my foul, ugly flesh was a heart that needed forgiveness for snapping at my husband and for all of the ways I was imagining I could torture my children for creating such a mess this morning.

When we praise Him, we take our eyes off ourselves and place them where they should have been all along…on Jesus.

So, when you feel yourself heading down the ugly road of selfish, prideful, self-absorbed you, crank up the worship music.

I double dog dare you.

Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; meditate on and talk of all His wondrous works and devoutly praise them! 1 Chronicles 16: 9

Ever feel like you aren’t qualified to do anything great for God? I do. Especially on days when I compare myself to others. Comparing leads to a list of “I’m not’s.”

I’m not a college graduate.

I’m not a full-time working professional. Who’s going to respect me?

I’m not financially well off,  so my lofty goals and dreams are limited.

I’m not a young chick anymore. Fine lines don’t lie.

I’m not a good cook.

I’m not as talented as so and so.

I’m not as organized as . . .

And so on.

The bottom line is I’m ordinary.  I’m married with two kids. I’m a stay at home mom who writes and speaks on the side. I struggle to exercise regularly and I eat too much sugar. Simple things like watching birds and taking pictures of ladybugs are the excitement of my day.

I’m ordinary.

But there’s a good thing about being ordinary.

God uses the ordinary.

Want proof?

Have you read Acts lately? If not, read chapter 4 and see what happens to Peter and John when they are filled with the Holy Spirit.

In this chapter, Peter and John taught a group of listeners about Jesus. When questioned by the religious leaders, John and Peter were thrown in jail overnight. The next day, when questioned again Peter spoke boldly about salvation through Jesus. He didn’t seem to care what they did to him. He stood firm.

Here’s the verse that speaks life to me.

“When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus,” Acts 4:13 (NIV).

Why were leaders astonished? Because Unschooled Ordinary Peter and Unschooled Ordinary John’s teaching changed lives. Their preaching that day brought the number of men who believed in Jesus to about five thousand. See verse 4.

The necessary ingredient for these two ordinary men to make a difference? Being filled with the Holy Spirit and responding accordingly. For Peter and John, it was preaching the gospel. Not a watered down version to make others happy. They paid the price. For you and me, it may be something different. Something as simple as offering a helping hand to a neighbor.

Here’s what I’m learning–again:  When I allow the Holy Spirit to fill my “I’m not” heart, God can do extraordinary things through me, His ordinary.

Heavenly Father, thank you  for reminding me You use unschooled, ordinary people to change the world.  Fill me with Your Spirit today. I need You. Nothing less will do. I’m not living with the “I’m not” mentality one more day. Instead I’m living with You, the great  “I am.” Grant me the courage to live out my ordinary days with more and more of Your Spirit shining through. I want people to take note and come to know You, Jesus.  Amen.

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Tiffany

Tea with Tiffany