Ecclesiastes Week 3 06/15/2010
Ok - I am a little behind in this, I admit - considering that tonight is our 4th meeting. What I took away from last weeks meeting - is that our tongue is a powerful tool. I know this and have heard this many times - the tongue can give life or it can kill. It is always good for me to be reminded of this, however, as I can see where my words sometimes hurt the spirit of my children. I need to work on this. We also talked about shaming our children - again - something that I know happens now and then in our home - not intentionally - but it does happen. I talked with the kids and prayed with them on the way to VBS one morning that we would worship God, not just with our singing and prayers, but with what we say and how we treat others with our words. I challenged each of them to say something uplifting to two people each day while at VBS. I took that same challenge myself. It is something that must be practiced. Yesterday I had the opportunity to help a VERY frazzled mom of three at a bookstore. She - to put it plainly - was a complete wreck. Her kids were fine - but she was quite upset and the entire store could hear it. Her children were getting the brunt of things. Something inside me said that I should go over and offer to read to her children for 15-20 min and give her the opportunity to find her lost sunglasses and shop a bit without worry. I didn't do it, to be honest, I was a little afraid of her myself - that she may be so offended that she may say something to me that I would not like. Selfish wasn't it. There she was, right infront of me - not once, not twice, but three times she came down my aisle, and I did not obey the Spirit in me urging me to help her. I woke up thinking about her, praying for her and regretting not going to her. Let us not miss opportunities that we are given, no matter how uncomfortable they may be. Add Comment Bible study - Ecclesiastes week 2 06/02/2010
Well, I had said in a previous post that I was not going to be able to attend this meeting. Plans changed. One of my boys got sick. So, while the rest of the family was at home, I was able to go to the meeting. Unfortunately, we had to cancel our other plans - but we can reschedule. Last night was really great. I was so pleased that we started to discuss making Jesus our pursuit in life and making that the center of all the things we do in life - makes our lives anything but meaningless. Infact, all that we do then is for the purpose of eternity. Last week I was holding my tongue, because I wanted to speak up about this - but that was not the purpose of last weeks discussion. My take-away from last night was to seriously think about what my pursuit or passion is, AND what is my motivation behind it. I truly believe my passion - what I pour all my energy into is my children. Which, in this season of my life - is where my energy needs to go. I do believe that I need to give more energy to my husband, and continue with the orphan and adoption work. At this time, though, that is my limit. Something that I feel very strongly about is that our children are not our own, just as our life is not our own. This may not be how I expected my life to be - but God gave me this life, the little time that I have - to do what? To live it for him and to do what he has called me to do. That is to take care of his children, the children he has placed in my and my husband's care. We are to teach them, mold them and grow them to go in the way of the Lord. I liken it to Psalm 127 when it says that "children are like arrows in the hand of a soldier". I like to think that when our time with them is done and they are grown, God can send them anywhere like shooting an arrow. That is it for now. (I have posted this in two places on my site. I just couldn't leave it out of the Bible and Church blog - just incase you don't read the adoption blog - you can read it here.) I was on my way to get groceries this morning - without the kids - a rare occurance - when I heard this song - Give me your eyes. I am sure that I have heard it before - but I hadn't listened to the words. You see I know that God gives everyone a passion - we each just need to figure out what that passion is. I am sure if you are reading this blog you have caught on to what my passion is. However, don't misunderstand me. Not everyone has the same passion - if we all had the same one then not all of God's work would be done. It takes all of us with many different passions, skills and talents. It does however, mean that we should not be limited to just our passion - we are after all brother and sisters and need to help and support each other and each other's passions. So this song made me ask myself the question - what am I missing - not seeing? I don't want to miss a single opportunity that God has for me - whether it has to do with orphans or something else. So my prayer is this - Lord, give me your eyes so that I can see all that you want me to see and your heart to love the way you love. Here is the chorus to the song that spoke to me today. Chorus: Give me your eyes for just one second Give me your eyes so I can see Everything that I keep missing Give me your love for humanity Give me your arms for the broken-hearted The ones that are far beyond my reach Give me your heart for the ones forgotten Give me your eyes so I can see Francis Chan - Middle Road clip 05/30/2010
We saw this clip in church today - I think it speaks for itself. A new Bible study started earlier this week for ladies. I admit, it has been a while since I have really, actively participated in a study. The typical trend for me is - "I am really excited to do this study, it will be good for me, this will help keep me accountable to spending time in the Bible daily." Next is, "Argh! I didn't do my homework, couldn't find the time, three kids sick this week, attachment issues to deal with," fill in any number of routine or unusual circumstances as an excuse. Then I go to the weekly meeting and feel guilty for not being on track with the others in the group. I generally give up at that point, I may continue to attend just for fellowship purposes. However, this study will be different - it already is. First, there is no real "homework", just reading as much as we can of the book of Ecclesiastes and show up to the weekly meeting. Our first meeting went over the first two chapters. It talked about all the things we as humans do to find satisfaction. When, in the end, all these things are meaningless. The common phrase was "If only", or "I'll be happy when". Let's fill in the blank - a bigger house ( I am guilty of this one), new clothes, or clothes that fit us the way we want, a more toned body, a husband, a boy friend, a different job, I think you get the idea - the list goes on and on. All of these things are fleeting and will pass, as this life is temporary - and to tell you the truth - unless you are a very famous person in history (Abe Lincoln, Ben Franklin, Amelia Earhart), you will be forgotten when enough time passes. The only things with meaning are those things that are done for eternity. I am not saying that what you do with your life doesn't matter - because indeed it does - doing things for the glory of God matters! Exercise and be healthy to take care of the body he has given you. Education in whatever he has called you to do is important, as it will better prepare you for his calling. Even though things may be meaningless, when looking at earthly things, your life is a gift, not to be squandered. Take the time to seek him daily and follow what he has called you to do - because that does matter, and in the end, that will be eternal. If you are anything like me you will notice that if you do not seek him one morning, in your busy life, your day will not go as well as it could have and the plan he has for you will not come as easily that day. Seek him - he is your portion. These are the things I came away with at our first meeting. Unfortunately I am unable to attend our next meeting, but will post for the following week. |
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