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When the Saints Go Marching In

Posted in life, WONDER, tagged #allsaintsday, #inchrist, #rememberingthesaints, #whenthesaints on November 1, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Today is All Saints Day. A day when the saints of days gone by are remembered and honoured.

According to Wycliffs Bible Encyclopedia, a saint is “any believer who is “in Christ” and in whom Christ dwells, whether in Heaven or on Earth.”

“We are trav’ling in the footsteps
Of those who’ve gone before …”

When I think of the title of Saint, I think of a combination of individuals who have been canonized (deceased individuals added to the canon, or list by the Catholic Church) as well as others who simply (though life is never simple) lived their life in faith and commitment to Christ.

I think of newly canonized (September, 2016) Mother Teresa, who worked tirelessly with and for the poor in Calcutta, India.

I think of Mary, the Mother of God, who lived a life of faith, as perhaps no other before, or after her.

Saint Valentine, the man who gave money to poor families, so as to provide the necessary dowries needed for women to secure a good husband, and future life.

I also think of my grandmother, who loved God and shared his love with her neighbours and her family in every conceivable way.

I think of the gentle, Christian man who drove my school bus. He kept us kids safe, and did his job with the greatest humility.

I think of the couple who pastored for many, many years, faithfully loving people, and putting skin on the love of God.

We all have saints in our lives. They are the faithful who live their lives, pointing the world around them to the giver of life, of breath, purpose and redemption.

Life would not be the same without them in our lives … past, present and future.

“But we’ll all be reunited
On a new and sunlit shore
O when the saints go marching in
When the saints go marching in
O Lord I want to be in that number
When the saints go marching in”

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Dear Moms …

Posted in FAMILY, life, women, WONDER, tagged #dearmoms, #discouragedmoms, #itsfridaybutsundayiscoming, #tiredmoms on October 21, 2016| 1 Comment »

Dear Moms …

It’s been a rough week.

You are tired … tired from the inside out. Tired from the pressures at work, tired because of the lessons, the practises, the hours in the minivan. You are tired because of the mountain of laundry, tired because you have so much you want to do as a mom, but there is so little time.

You are discouraged … discouraged by the world you see your kids growing up in. Discouraged by the instabilities, the lack of morals, the inconsistent lives of those in our world who we call leaders (both those on the big stage, and those who parent the peers of our kids).

It is Friday, Moms,

and the weekend is still looking … tiring … discouraging.

It is Friday, Moms,

but,

Sunday IS coming.

That old sermon, popularized by LM Lockridge and Tony Campelo, is based on the Easter story. The story of the darkness of the Friday we call Good, followed by the Sunday when we celebrate Christ’s victory over death.

Moms, let me tell you a secret,

it’s not just an Easter story.

Christ did not overcome the one-way road to hell and death, for one day of celebration. He came, he died, he rose again so that everyday might be like Easter Sunday.

He redeemed death, through death, to life everlasting … every day.

Moms,

Do not be discouraged!

“Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged,
for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”
Joshua 1:9

“Don’t be afraid, for I am with you.
Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you.
I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.”
Isaiah 41:10

“Do not be afraid or discouraged,
for the LORD will personally go ahead of you.
He will be with you;
he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”
Deuteronomy 31:8

Moms,

He can give you the rest your need!

“Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him”
Psalm 37:7a

“”Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened,
and I will give you rest.”
Matthew 11:28

It us Friday, Moms,

but,

Sunday IS coming!

“Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart
and with the full assurance that faith brings,
having our hearts sprinkled
to cleanse us from a guilty conscience
and having our bodies washed with pure water.
Hebrews 10:22

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Worth a Millenial

Posted in GOD, life, WONDER, tagged #1timothy4:12, #feelingold, #learningfromtheyoung, #millenials, #worthamillennial on October 18, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Somewhere between the late 1970s and the year 2000 a distinct generation was born, and they have come to be known as Millenials.

The fact that the ‘experts’ cannot define specific dates, is one indicator that, perhaps like Autism, there is a spectrum of ‘symptoms’ and ‘indicators’ for this group of individuals (a generation is usually viewed as being a fifteen to twenty year time span).

Whatever the case, I am surrounded by them.

My three children, co-workers and those who I work alongside in our church youth program all belong to this demographic.

Millennial have been, largely, raised by helicopter parents, and are known to be more confident about the future, than the past. They are highly educated, and underemployed. They are amazing team players, who value versatility and flexibility in their places of work. They greatly desire wealth, but do not live for their jobs, and they are expected to make more job changes than any other generation. They are socially liberals. They desire to be the change in our world, but don’t expect them to go about it through traditional means, or institutions.

About a year or so ago I came to a realization about myself, I did not understand the minds or motivations of this generation, and my lack of understanding was making me feel old … really old!

Whenever I come to such a realization, God floods my life with whatever (whoever) is frustrating me, and he forces me to look and listen.

So, I obeyed his prompts, and started listening …

Listening to my Millennial kids.

Listening to my Millennial co-workers.

Listening to the Millennials who also work with youth at our church.

And here is what I have been learning:

listening is much harder than speaking! (and I think I have been speaking far too much … after all, we have ONE mouth and TWO ears … use them according to provision)
Millennials are hard workers … they are more willing to invest in a wide range of relationships, and more deeply (than Gen X’ers like me, who tend to categorize relationships).
Millennials still believe they can make a difference! I had started to realize that, whenever people would be introducing a way to help others, I would start my mental list of why it wouldn’t work. I need more of a do than a don’t approach to being change in my world.
Millennials have a more balanced view of work. They want to use their gifts and passions, but they don’t just want to use them in their workplaces. They see life goals as bigger than a job, they do not see their identity as closely tied to their professions. Hum … maybe growing up with stressed out parents is sending the pendulum swinging from the fast-paced world.
Millennials won’t just do things because that is the way it’s always been done. They want rational for what they do, what they believe. If oldies like myself can’t rationalize what we do, what we believe, in a meaningful way, we might lose the ears of this important generation, in a time in history when change is in the air.
Millennials know how to work together. They have grown up with the (despised and contrived) group projects instigated by my and previous generations, who had no idea what healthy, beneficial, meaningful group work should be. They have, fortunately, taken the general concept of team working, and made it into something that works … not because it’s multiple people, but because it is a group of individuals who come together with a common purpose, rather than the purpose be to work together.

I love the idealism of my kids.

I adore my co-workers who teach me from their fresh approach, rather than the way it has always been done.

This weekend, as youth leaders met, we took time to pray for each other leader, individually. It was terribly uncomfortable, humbling and honouring, to be prayed for sincerely, by my fellow, Millennial, leaders.

Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young,
but set an example for the believers
in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.”
1 Timothy 4:12

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Songs for my Son’s 17th

Posted in life, The Kids, WONDER, tagged #songsformysons17th, #thanksgivingbirthday on October 11, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Happy birthday baby boy!

Okay, I’m a day late, but roasting the Thanksgiving turkey kinda kept me away from writing … ironic, since seventeen years ago, it was your birth that kinds kept me away from roasting the Thanksgiving turkey!

I remember well the day you were born … my heart was aching, hands shaking, and I thought (think): Ohh I don’t wanna let you down. I’d die for you, that’s easy to say

With you I share a similar taste in music. Our drives to and from school often have the volume turned up (until we reach school, or our neighbourhood … cause we don’t want anyone to think that your old mom could be cool like that), and air drums being played. I often try to get you to sing along, and you get a lump in your throat cause I’m gonna sing the words wrong”!

Though much of our shared music is simply enjoying the beat, there is actually wisdom in a few of our favorites:

“Wish we could turn back time,to the good ol’ days.
When our mama sang us to sleep, but now we’re stressed out.”
I admit, I do sometimes wish we could turn back time. Seeing you and your sisters enter into adulthood, with all it’s stresses landing on your shoulders, makes me nostalgic for ‘simpler’ times. That said, the independence that you are all heading towards is exciting and I look forward to see where you will go in your lives. You can look back with joy, but don’t stay there … move forward.

its always darkest before the dawn
There will be days that will be dark … really dark. Remember that childhood book, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day? You will have days when you will be able to write the sequel. Don’t throw in the towel, it IS always darkest before the dawn. Give thanks … “thanksgiving preceded the blessing” (Voskamp). so keep your head up, my love.

we’re all strange and baby we don’t wanna change
Ever feel like a square peg in a round hole? Kinda like you just don’t ‘fit’? Honey, that is a common human experience. Keep looking for where you fit like you were made for it … that is the place you will thrive … not every day, but over a lifetime. So go forth and have no fear.

please don’t make any sudden moves
Think before you make choices … from that bag of chips, to the homework on your desk, to that girl that smiled at you, to the career choice, to the video game (into hour number three). Every choice toward one thing is a choice away from another. Choose wisely, good and bad consequences are attached to all choices.

Time is a valuable thing, watch it fly by as the pendulum swings. Watch it count down to the end of the day. The clock ticks life away. It’s so unreal.
It is said that the days are long, and the years short. If you close your eyes does it almost feel like nothing changed at all. Live fully each day, love fully every day. The only guarantee is right now. Live with the goal of few regrets. These days of dust which we’ve known, will blow away with this new sun.

I can’t wait to kick off my work shoes
Choose work you will love, and love the work you do but … your work is not your life! Don’t sell your soul for a pay check! Have a life full of family, friends and activities, outside of work, so that you can look forward to both the beginning and end of your workdays.

though the truth may vary this ship will carry our bodies safe to shore
but we all know, if there’s hope, then we’ll be okay
There are so many unknowns in life, especially when, like seventeen year old you, change is so close you can almost touch it. But, you have within your grasp someone who will direct your life, filling you with hope. Continue to allow God to direct you. He is your rock, your life’s foundation.

every minute and every hour, I miss you, I miss you, I miss you more
you can call me up from a pay phone
it may be hard for you to stop and believe but for you I’d leave it all
I am always your mom, and though I do like to remind you that I too have a life, I will miss you when you venture out into your own life. I’d stop whatever I am doing, for you … always here, just a phone call away.

you’re such a big mess, and I love you
honey I love you, that’s all she wrote

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Not Alone

Posted in life, WONDER, tagged #cslewis, #iamnotalone, #notalone, #whatyoutoo, Friendship, romans12:15 on September 22, 2016| 1 Comment »

I always get a bit nervous when I get a notification for a comment on a blog post.

Could someone have noticed the horrible grammar? the run-on sentences? a spell correct that resulted in a risqué statement? maybe I offended their political, religious or dietary views? or, maybe it will be a comment from someone who knows me, and they are calling me a hypocrite?

Most of the time, though, the comment goes like this:

“I so needed that today” or “that is exactly what I am dealing with right now”

These comments are always the most precious to me, for they remind me, over and over, that

I am not alone.

For I can only write from the place of experience, having been there. I can only be sincere, if I have sincerely had the same thoughts, fears and wishes that I write about.

To discover that we share a life of experiences, thoughts and feelings that is parallel to another oxygen-breathy, fleshly human being is to find kinship, commonality, friendship that is soul-deep.

May we continue to experience the birth of friendships from that which we share. So, don’t forget to share your joys and sorrows, strengths and weaknesses, with those around you … you might just find that you are not alone.

“Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.”
Romans 12:15

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I Can’t Get No Satisfaction

Posted in GOD, life, WONDER, tagged #icantgetnosatisfaction, #longingsofourheart, #philippians 4"6-7, #psalm107:9, #satisfaction, Anxiety, Loneliness on September 18, 2016| Leave a Comment »

I ate them all!

“I try and I try and I try and I try
I can’t get no, I can’t get no
Satisfaction”

It started as a normal Sunday, but by nightfall I had eaten far too much.

Thankfully it had been many weeks, even months, since I had last experienced a day when I went searching for satisfaction through my pantry.

I wasn’t hungry for food, I was simply experiencing dissatisfaction in one part of my existence, and thought that perhaps I could find it through the edibles in my kitchen.

By the time I crawled into bed (with antacids strategically placed on my bed table) I was feeling the crash after a sugar high, my tummy was uncomfortable and my satisfaction … still unsatisfied.

My head hit the pillow with guilt and self disappointment flooding my mind. As I drifted off into my food coma, I pondered why I accepted food as a replacement for what I was really desiring satisfaction from?

I expect we all seek out satisfaction in things or people as replacements for what we truly desire or need. Sometime we turn to exercise, or work, or shopping, or gaming, or reading, or drinking, or drug use, or, or, or …

The list of things we go to for satisfaction is great, individual, and all share the same commonality … they do not satiate our hunger, for we hunger for something greater.

What we often desire is peace, relationship, recreational time, to be heard, solutions to our struggles, health, love.

What we often do is seek replacements to satisfy the voids in our lives, and our hearts. In doing this, we feed our loneliness, our anxiety, our heartache rather than placing it in the hands of one who gives true and full satisfaction.

“For he satisfies the longing soul,
and the hungry soul he fills with good things.”
Psalm 107:9

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:6-7

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A Smoother Ride

Posted in FAMILY, GOD, life, WONDER, tagged #asmootherride, #dearyoungerme, #ifiknewthen, #mercyme, #whenwewereyoung, Choices, Mistakes on July 12, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Working away in my garage, humming to a song on the radio, I heard the words “Dear Younger Me, if I could tell you everything that I have learned so far …”

We all know what it is to ponder where our life would be if only we had known when we were young, what we know now.

That reflective introspective moment quickly pivoted my thoughts away from me, when I heard the line “a smoother ride” and was instantly in a truck, just the day before.

I had been accompanying my daughter to our mechanic, who was to look over the truck that she wished to purchase. The entire ride, wait for the mechanics diagnosis, and drive to return the truck back to it’s seller, I wanted to place my hands on her shoulders, force her to make eye contact with me, and tell her (sternly)

DON’T WASTE YOUR MONEY! Go purchase a nice, safe, compact car.

But, I couldn’t, I can’t.

You see, my parents, whose failings I could fill a lined piece of paper (and, as parents, we could all fill an entire notebook with our own failings), did one thing I have grown to respect beyond their failings … they let me chose.

Though not church-goers, they fully supported my personal faith with Christ, even attending and celebrating my baptism as a teen.

They welcomed me home with open arms when I quit university (something I now regret).

Then, two months later, despite still owing student loan money, I decided to take a trip to Mexico with a friend (I am pretty certain that they probably almost severed their tongues from biting them) yet they never said a negative word.

They also said not one discouraging word when, at nineteen, I declared that I was getting married. (not sure I could withhold from voicing my discouraging words, if I were in their shoes).

they let me chose …

Over and over, they let me make my own decisions. I have had no one to blame when I blew it, other than myself. I have been the self-scholar of my life’s choices, learning from each one.

It’s not that they never gave me advice, but that that is all they did … gave advice, then loved me with an unconditional love, whether I chose their advice, or choose my own way.

God is the original model of what it is to parent this way. He has given us his advice, knowing exactly what the consequences of our choices will be, then he lets us choose, while loving us, unconditionally.

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 8:38-39

Though I would love to be able to write a letter of what to do, and what not to, or to throw up a stop sign whenever my younger self is about to make a life-altering decision that I may not like the consequences of down the road …

I am who I am today because of all my choices,

good, bad, and even the yet to be determined.

And so, though I want more than anything a smoother ride for my daughter than I might have had, I also know that she needs to make the choice as to what her ride will be …

even if it is a truck.

“the choices that you’ll make
cause they’re the choices that made ma
and even though I love this crazy life
sometimes I wish it was a smoother ride,
dear younger me …

every mountain, every valley
through each heart ache you will see
every moment brings you closer
to who you were meant to be.”

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A Grandma’s Prayers

Posted in FAMILY, life, WONDER, tagged #agrandmasprayers, #clothesline, Dreams, gardening, Heritage, Prayer on June 7, 2016| 3 Comments »

The planning, preparations and practise began last summer.

My daughter was desiring to have a vegetable garden and a clothesline.

Both desires sounded great, and so we dabbled our toes into the practises of many generations before us.

A rope was tied between our deck post and a tree, and we both utilized the natural drying and whites-bleaching power of the sun.

We made our veggie purchases and planted them in containers and enjoyed harvesting potatoes, veggies and herbs into the fall.

This spring, we have kicked it up a notch.

Pulleys and clotheline were purchased and (this weekend) installed.

A frame was constructed, filled with soil, and vegetables planted.

These ideas, dreamed in my daughter’s imagination, have come to fruition (hopefully literally in regards to the garden), and I stood back, last night, smiled … and thought of one of my grandmothers.

My memories of her were of quilting, baking bread, hanging laundry on the clothesline and gathering food from from the gardens of her generous neighbours … like the gleaners in the Bible.

She was confident and content. She had her opinions, and was not shy in sharing them. She (in her mid 80s) still picked up ‘the old ladies’ on her street so that they could get to church on Sunday mornings. She made the effort to see her kids and grandchildren, never sitting at home, glumly waiting for them to come to her. She loved to sing in her little church choir … even though she sounded like Lucille Ball. She loved to watch Carol Burnett in hysterical laughter. She loved to have her back scratched. She prayed.

After her husband died at a too young age, I remember having sleep-overs with her, in her fresh-air-smelling bedding. Before the light was turned out, she reached for her Bible and her Daily Bread devotional. She would read the verses appointed for that day, followed by the application in the devotional. Then, we would pray, each of us silent. Me, silently waiting for her to give me a good night hug, signifying the end of our silence. She concentrating seriously as her lips moved silently.

Last night I felt her absence, felt the absence of her faithful prayers for my life, for the lives of those I love.

Yet, the fruit of her prayers continue to ripen, in the lives of those who snuggled by her side in her dried-on-the-clothesline sheets, and those who never knew such delights.

May the harvest of those prayers of dedication and trust continue this summer, and may I be as faithful in my silent prayers … that the best dreams come to fruition.

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Loving the Beast

Posted in FAMILY, life, Love, The Beast, WONDER, tagged #lovehurts, #loveissacrifice, #lovingthebeast, #moveintothehurting, #shiloh, #thebeast on May 26, 2016| 1 Comment »

10351802_10152855583535590_6673932177946581782_n Just over five years ago I introduced you to our beast.

My Loves – The Beast

She became a regular on this blog, as regular as the rest of our crazy family.

Over a year ago she started to tire more quickly, followed by tripping up the stairs, eventually reaching the point that required us to carry her outside to relieve herself.

In those months of deteriorating health, the beast taught our family some very important lessons on life.

Sacrifice

It began when the beast started slipping on our laminate floors. We needed to allow her onto our carpeted bedroom and living room, so that she would have spaces to share time with us. Hubby, generously, okayed that allowance (despite allergies to her fur). We carried her sixty pound frame outside, and cleaned feces from carpet as she lost the ability to control her bowls. Each sacrifice was accepted by all, not as a sacrifice, but an expression of commitment to her live, to the end.

Move in to the Hurting

As the beast’s ability to move reduced, she could no longer follow us throughout the house, so we moved towards her. As a family, we read, did homework, played video games and wrote sermons together in our living room. She no longer followed us, we came to her. We knew each day with her might be her last, and I think we all wanted to ensure that she was not alone.

Loving Hurts

As we awaited the end of her life, we hurt (even hubby, who used to use her as an example of sin in his sermons). There were memories and moments of our lives tied up in that eternally shedding beast. Our kids grew ten years older with her. She was one who made us feel frustration when she got out, unleashed, running through the neighbourhood with freedoms smile plastered on her face. She made us smile when she joyfully greeted us every time we entered the house. She gave us comfort, as she sat snuggly beside us, or entered our arms for a hug. She amused us with her ‘mean dog’ look … such an act for such a peaceful dog. She tugged at our heart strings when she would nearly dislocate our shoulder if she were to hear a child crying in the distance while out for a walk. Remembering how she added to our lives, made the sorrow of parting greater.

If you are not a dog or animal person, my words and emotions expressed might seem rather over the top. That’s okay, I have been there. But this experience of loving the beast has taught us much about loving people.

Love is sacrifice.

If we are going to truly love others, we are going to have to sacrifice.

Move in to the hurting.

When someone you love is hurting, go closer to them, not farther away.

Love hurts.

I think C. S. Lewis has said it best:

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Things That Cannot Be Duplicated

Posted in GOD, life, WONDER, tagged #acts17, #creatorgod, #thearts, #thingsthatcannotbeduplicated, Creation on June 10, 2015| 1 Comment »

I love the arts. I love music, I love drama, I love literature, I love films, I love dance. I love all of the cultural disciplines that are included in ‘the arts.’

The arts are a means of expression, a means of sharing, a means of communication. They can move us to laughter, or tears. They can help us understand what our life experiences do not provide exposure to. They can help us to live vicariously through other characters, or creatures, or simply the created.

I love to go to Bard on the Beach productions (Bard on the Beach) in the Vancouver area (even though, I admit, I normally do not enjoy Shakespeare). There is nothing like beautiful architecture to delight my imagination. I love to watch an individual dance across a dance floor, like I would never have the gracefulness to do. I so enjoy reading a book, or poem, or verse that makes me stop, and just enjoy the words on the page. It is a joy to watch amateur or professional actors play parts, as though they are those very characters. I can be moved to tears by a song played by a musician with a giftedness that comes from more than just endless hours of practice.

One thing I am becoming aware of, though, is that not everything can be duplicated by the arts. There are some things that, no matter how hard we creative humans might try, we cannot duplicate the ‘real thing.’

Within nature there are things that, in my humble opinion, painters, artists, musicians or even photographers cannot match reality. Things like an eagle in flight, a rainbow, the sound of rain falling at night, or the sounds of an eagle, or an owl, or chickadees, or a band of coyotes (I never want to meet up with them on a walk, but there is something so hauntingly beautiful about their yipping and yelping).

In human life there are communications and responses that plays and films fall short of duplicating perfectly. Things like a parent looking into the face of their newborn baby, or the look between a couple who are in love, or a first kiss, or (something horror movies cannot reproduce at all) a persons responses to a trauma.

We cannot live vicariously through the arts. We need to live, really live in order to really experience our own life experiences.

We also need to recognize, and credit the originator of all of the arts of man, and that it is only through His incomparable creation that we have a model, a muse, through which to create, perform and express our gifts through the arts.

“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ Acts 17:24-28

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