May | 2015 | itsawonderfilledlife

Archive for May, 2015

Supermom

Posted in WONDER, tagged #mothersday, #skitguys, #supermom on May 8, 2015| Leave a Comment »

As Mothers Day is just around the corner it is time to celebrate the women who gave us life, either those who physically birthed us, or those who nurtured our lives in a meaningful way.

As a daughter of a mother, I am horrible at adequately expressing love to my own mother. I live on the west coast, and she on the east. I work ‘school’ hours, so I cannot ever spend this day with her. And, to be honest, the real reason I fail on this day is because I am a procrastinator.

Just a couple of days ago I sent myself a note:

It’s this weekend, Carole!

As in, you are entering into the 11th hour Carole!

As in, call the florist in the village where your mom lives … NOW Carole!)

That is how ridiculous I am at expressing my affection, thankfulness and love to my mom.

This Mothers Day, my own mom will be recuperating from surgery, and I just wish I could be there with her, to assist her in her returning to her daily routine.

I hope she feels my love, sent telepathically across the country. She really is a supermom!

I wanted to share a cute video, that will have you laughing, and maybe even pulling out the tissues.

Happy Mother’s Day!

http://youtu.be/zkprjeipGD4

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Nobody Told Me There’d Be Days Like These

Posted in WONDER, tagged #baddays, #dayslikethese, #john16:33, #oneofthosedays, #strangedays on May 6, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Ever have one of those days?

You know what I’m talking about, because we have all had them! One of those days when it just would have been better to stay in bed … for your protection … for the protection of your sanity!

I had one of those days recently.

Upon waking, the day ahead seemed bright … Friday is often like that.

Even when I left for work, the sun was shining, the birds were singing, and I had a smile on my face. I was feeling so good, I decided to stop for a tea on my way to work.

But, the drive thru line was longer than I realized …

I somehow forgot to count when I went to pay for my tea (and the ability was not coming back fast enough) …

I spilled the piping hot beverage down my front, as the cover was not on tightly …

My water bottle cover was also not on tightly, and my lunch got rinsed thoroughly …

Upon arriving at school, the early morning meeting was not what or where I had remembered …

And, and, and …

Things did not improve … until I climbed into bed, later that day, eager to fall asleep and say good bye to this day.

We all have days like that. Days when it seems that there are forces all around playing havoc with our peace, our productivity and our sanity.

In John 16:33 we are reminded that troubles are to be expected:

“… in this world you will have trouble.“

Now that could be message enough to send us back to bed, each and every morning, but the message does not end there!

“But take heart!
I have overcome the world.”

Even in our Murphy’s Law kind of days, we need to hold to the promise that Christ himself has overcome it all … and all for you and me.

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Ignoring Demons

Posted in WONDER, tagged #ignoringdemons, #johnnash, #thornintheflesh, #torture, Struggles on May 4, 2015| 4 Comments »

Got a temptation?

A constant frustration?

A pain?

A flaw?

Got a thorn?

“Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
2 Corinthians 12:7-10

Paul understood struggles with regards to his flesh, his humanness.

A number of weeks back I re-watched the movie A Beautiful Mind, and was captivated by how true the following lines are in dealing with real life struggles:

“I still see things that are not here. I just choose not to acknowledge them. Like a diet of the mind, I just choose not to indulge certain appetites; like my appetite for patterns; perhaps my appetite to imagine and to dream.”

“I’ve gotten used to ignoring them and I think, as a result, they’ve kind of given up on me. I think that’s what it’s like with all our dreams and our nightmares, Martin, we’ve got to keep feeding them for them to stay alive.”

Both quotes from the movie are lines by the Russell Crowe real-life mathematician, John Nash, who struggled with the effects of life with Paranoid Schizophrenia.

Mr. Nash knows what it is to live with real life struggles.

Though I do not know if the lines, credited to John Nash, speak his own words, I do believe that they speak to us all, in the areas of our life that are our tempters, torturers or trials.

We all live with a thorn (or two, or …). We all know what it is to struggle, to agonize.

What Mr. Nash reminds us is that “we’ve got to keep feeding them for them to stay alive.”

What Paul reminds us is that “when I am weak, then I am strong.”

Help us, today, to remember to not feed the thorn in our lives, and help us to rely on God’s strength to thrive despite the torment.

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Renovated, Restored, Redeemed

Posted in WONDER, tagged #furniturerefinishig, #renovated, #renovatedrestoredredeemed, redeemed, restored, Sacrifice on May 1, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Finally the tasks of collecting unwanted furniture, followed by inspection, cleaning, painting, sanding and waxing are completed. I now have a beautiful, freshly painted table and four reupholstered chairs. I am smiling.

I collected the chairs last fall, and the table a few months ago. Though they did not come together as a set, the design of the legs of table and chairs is the same … they belong together.

The finish on the chairs was marred by years of use. The table and the upholstery fabric on the chairs not at all complementary to today’s styles. I paid a small price for the four chairs and table, because they were undesirable, unattractive and unwanted.

I love the process of refinishing old, unwanted furniture. New paint, a top waxing and new fabric can make what was previously unwanted, desirable and renewed.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I love it, but it is not an easy process. I spent hours painting this furniture (I really need to get my paint sprayer working), then sanding, then the waxing process of wax on, wax off, plus the time measuring, cutting and attaching the upholstery fabric. It took two weeks for my carpel tunnel syndrome in my hands to stop waking me at night from the pain.

But, when I stand back and take a look at the great improvement this redemption of old, unwanted furniture has been, all the work has been worth it.

This process always makes me wonder,

does God look at us this way?
does He look at us and think,
the sacrifice has been worth the result?

Of course, those of us who know of the great love of our God, know that His answer would be “yes” (“for no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God” 2 Corinthians 1:20). Sometimes, though, we need to be reminded of this truth, of His love.

May you, today, know of the redemption available through the great sacrifice of Christ, for you.

“… Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine.“
Isaiah 43:1b

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