Grandma, Goldilocks, and God

When I was a kid, Sunday nights meant a visit to my grandparents’ house.   Grandma and grandpa lived just a few minutes away from my childhood home, so their’s was a convenient stop for my family on our way home from church.   My sweet grandma kept my older brother, Kevin, and me in good supply of her homemade molasses cookies, and allowed us to watch television while the adults visited.  I recall watching many an episode of Alice, The Jeffersons, and Trapper John, M.D. on Sunday nights in the living room of my grandparents’ house.  Good times.  Grandma also kept a stash of toys and books for us in the closet just off the living room.  She had all sorts of goodies in that closet.  A Rubik’s cube, a View-Master, Yahtzee, and books with nursery rhymes and fairy tales.  I must have read “Goldilocks and the Three Bears” a thousand times at my grandparents’. 

Despite its many adaptations, most of you are probably familiar with the version of this popular fairy tale in which Goldilocks, a little girl aptly named for her golden locks of hair, stumbles upon a home belonging to a family of bears.  The bears – Papa Bear, Mama Bear, and Baby Bear (creative names, no?)- are out for a stroll while their porridge cools.   In the meantime, Goldilocks takes it upon herself to walk right on into their house like she owns the joint.  In her quest to get all comfy and cozy, she gets all up in their business by sampling each of their bowls of porridge, each of their chairs, and each of their beds.  Awkward.  It’s a wonder little Miss Manners didn’t opt to use each of their toothbrushes too!  Any who…in Goldie the home invader’s opinion, Papa Bear’s stuff is too hot, too big, or too hard.  Mama Bear’s is too cold, too small and too soft.  And, Baby Bear, poor thing, his stuff is always, “just right”.  So, she eats all his porridge, breaks his chair and takes a siesta in his bed.  When the bears return, they find Goldilocks asleep in Baby Bear’s bed.  Goldilocks then wakes up and runs out of the house all scared like.  Perhaps next time she won’t be so quick to um, I don’t know… go into a stranger’s house and make herself at home.  Sheesh.  Crazy girl.

Too hot.  Too cold.  Too hard.  Too soft.  Too big.  Too small.  All too often, I find myself thinking those thoughts in regard to God’s word.  Instead of just taking it for what it is, I set off in pursuit of the "just right”.  On the hunt for something more palatable.  Something I can easily digest, settle into, and feel all comfy, cozy about.   But, I gotta tell ya, I have yet to find a copy of the Bible in which the Lord says, “Hey Angela, why don’t you take the liberty of twisting and interpreting my words so they fit your needs and justify your actions”.  

I really didn’t realize how much I do this until recently….You see, about a month ago, I found myself in the middle of a discussion with regard to whether women should be allowed in leadership roles in the church.  Having served in a leadership role in the church in the past, and being in a quasi-leadership role currently, I was very interested in knowing what the Bible says about this particular topic.  Some in the discussion cited scripture references which they felt supported their feeling that women should not be in leadership.  Others felt the scripture was “out of date” so to speak, and “didn’t really apply” to current day.  And, then there were some that felt the case depended upon the woman in question, her spiritual gifts, and her calling from the Lord.  “It really depends on her heart”, they said.    For as many arguments supporting one point of view, I found just as many to support the other.   By the time I absorbed the petitions for each stance, my head was reeling with information…and, I still didn’t know the answer.   I knew where I stood, but I wanted to know the answer.  The just right answer.

I was confused, and to be totally honest, I’m still kind of confused.   It seemed to me everyone engaged in the conversation, including myself, was sampling scripture.  “This one is too hot.  This one is too cold.  This one too hard….”  All of us trying to find what felt or tasted just right and justified our stand on the topic.  The whole stinkin’ discussion took me for a loop.  It challenged me.  I felt I had failed in some way as a Christian….as a woman of God….That somewhere along the way of trying to do what  I felt God had, and has called me to do I failed. 

“Why is this so gray, Lord?  I’ve never questioned my calling before.”

“Have I been irreverent?  Have I disobeyed You?”

“Should I step down, based on the fact that I’m a woman, from the role I feel You called me to?” 

 “Please God, just help me do this right.  Show me the answer.  Cause, I just want to do it…right.”

Now I won’t tell you that I have the answer.  Cause quite frankly friends, I don’t.   Furthermore, there’s a whole lot more answers beyond this one that I don’t know or don’t have.  Sure I can quote scripture and twist it and turn to justify what I want to believe and think, but I don’t consider that to be right either.  While I’ve been wrestling with, and praying for God to tell me what’s right I’ve also started reading the book, Chasing God by Angie Smith.  Here’s what Smith has to say with regard to seeking all the answers…   

“I don’t have all the answers.  God does.  But, He gave us some of them.  Those are the ones we need to spend our lives studying.  The rest are for Him to reveal when He chooses, if at all.  But, He has given us what we need to rest, and we should not be nearly as unsettled in the mystery as we are settled in the promises…The gray only hovers in the secondary issues…

what matters is in black and white.” 

Oh the irony.  Thank you, Lord.

Settled in the black and white promises of God.  That, my dear friends is what really matters.  All that other stuff - the stuff that is gray and that which we argue and debate – we may never know the bottom line, or the absolute unmistakable, irrefutable answers to those questions.   When it’s important for us to know, God will reveal them.   For a girl who likes to know the “black and white” about every. stinkin’. thing., this is kind of tough to swallow.  But, I am learning…learning to settle in.  Learning to accept the fact that sometimes I’ll be comfortable in my walk with Christ, and sometimes I won’t.  Sometimes, I’ll be so far outside my comfort zone that I will want to run back to my just right bed, pull the covers over my head and say, “No thanks Lord.  This is too hard…too soft…too cold…too hot.”

But, truly...at the end of the day, I don’t want to be too hot or too cold…or too big or small…too hard or too soft….I don’t even want to be just right.  I just want to be… His.  That’s all.  

Just His. 

*I am not all versed and on the up and up on the proper ways to cite books and television shows and such.  I’ve looked online for the answers, (ahem…) but, it seems there are various ways to cite.  So, please forgive me if I have not done so properly.  That being said, I want to point out that the photo I used in this blog post is from an Etsy vendor, Laura Walls Taylor.  I don’t know her.  I just think the bowls are cute and they lend themselves nicely to my blog topic…so, thank you, Laura.  Your bowls are um, adorable… I should probably also tell you that I don’t know Angie Smith.  I met her once.  I was speechless.  But, I did hug her and try very hard not to act like a crazy stalker lady.  She’s amazing.  And, I absolutely love her books.  If you haven’t read any of them, please do.  I think you’ll love her too.

Stink. Stank. Stunk.

I had been upstairs in my room and was making my way to the main floor of my home. Half way down the stairs it hit me. Like a ton o' bricks, IT hit me. A smell so incredibly pungent I questioned the necessity of breathing. And, I'm not talking about something that was just a tiny bit pungent. I'm talking a whole bunch-a-lot-a, shake your head, hold your nose, eyes watering, run for your lives puh-hun-gent! 

When I reached the bottom step, the source of the stench appeared. Now before I proceed further, let me first say looks can be deceiving. Nearly five foot tall, with red hair, and a cute freckled nose - I assure the stink did not smell anywhere near as cute as it looked!

"Hi mom", it said. My feet were kind of sweaty,
so I took off my socks and shoes."

Lord. Have. Mercy. A gas mask, or better yet, the second coming of Christ would have done a momma some good in that moment. Um...wow. How on earth does so much foulness accumulate in one child's shoes? 

I am always amused by one company's television commercials in which viewers are led to believe the placement of, or spraying of this company's air freshener will mask any odor no matter how intense or significant. To prove their point, they place random, blindfolded folks in a room or vehicle full of trash and other foulness and ask these individuals to state what they smell. Of course, these "random" people consistently indicate how fresh and lovely the air around them smells. Miracle of miracles. What. Ev. They obviously have never smelled my child's shoes! Cause I can tell you there ain't no amount of air freshener that will cover that stink. Sure it might help for a very brief period of time, but stink is stink is stink. This momma knows. And, this momma also knows the only way to ultimately get rid of stink is to clean it up! 

And, so...my sweet little redheaded boy got a shower and his shoes took a plunge in the ol' washing machine. Thankfully, an hour or so later, breathing was no longer painful and all was clean and fresh.

Metaphorically speaking, our spiritual lives can get rather stinky from time to time....While we generally prefer being around that which smells great - when dealing with the messiness of life, sometimes we opt to put on a blindfold and spray some air freshener – in hopes we, and everyone else around us, won't notice the stench. But unfortunately, the longer the mess is ignored, masked, or avoided, the greater the stink becomes...until eventually no amount of scented plug in thing a bobs or amazing air freshener can cover up the odor any longer, and we just flat out stink, stank, stunk. To effectively remove the foulness, people, we gotta get ourselves cleaned up. 

My dad has some experience with covering up stink. Several years ago, my mom attended a week long job training out of town. All went well the first few days mom was gone, but about mid-week my phone rang. It was dad. Mom was due home in a couple of days and a horrible, awful, mysterious odor had taken up residency in their kitchen. Dad had tried everything to figure out the source of the foulness, but to no avail. So, desperate, he called and asked me to come over to sniff out the offender. It didn't take long to pinpoint the perpetrator - a lone piece of raw fish. As it turned out, dad went fishing earlier in the week and used the kitchen sink to clean the fish for cooking. After, prepping the fish, he piled his dishes and utensils in the sink - with the intention of washing them up before mom came home. With each meal thereafter, more and more dishes accumulated in the sink. Unfortunately, that one piece of fish failed to make it into the frying pan and had been sitting under those dishes for days. Sweet Lord. It was bad. It was REAL BAD. And, the only way to get rid of it was to clean it up! After a few hours of cleaning, washing, and disinfecting, the house was once again restored to a presentable state AND smell. 

“Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.”
– Psalm 139:23-24 (NIV)

I love what David writes in the verse above. David doesn't want to stink, so, in this passage we find him asking God to take look inside him - to search his heart and if there's anything in there that is offensive, or dare I say, stinky, then David asks it be replaced with the Lord's ways – ways that are pure and holy, good and pleasing. That doesn't sound pungent to me. It sounds more like...a breath of fresh air. 

Search me, God, and know my heart. 

I want to lead a life that leaves a pleasing fragrance. I want to resolve to put away the air fresheners and blind folds and all that I have piled on top of my stinky, messy life. Search me, God. Know my heart. Clean my offensive ways, and fill me with the sweet aroma of Christ. Friends, Jesus is the one, and the only, who can rescue us from the muck and mire and stench of sin and shame; and who can clean us up, and clothe us with dignity and grace. Furthermore, the Bible says when we choose to follow Him, He will use us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume (2 Corinthians 2:14 NLT). 

Perfume is mentioned again in scripture in John 12:3.  Here we find Mary's outpouring of worship as she anointed Jesus' feet with expensive perfume and wiped his feet with her hair. The passage says, 

"…the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume."

I think if that bottle of expensive perfume had a name, it would be called – worship. I want my life to smell like that. I want to have a heart so filled with Christ that my life gives off the beautiful, fragrance of worship. What does your life smell like? Are you giving off an odor that smells more like stinky shoes or fish in the sink, or are you filled with the fragrance of worship? 

“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.  See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” – Psalm 139:23-24 (NIV)

Lead me Lord. Lead me. 

Restoration in Progress

My apologies in taking so long to write a new post, friends!   I have had to put the blog on hold for a few weeks.  Sometimes life and the ol’ day job get in the way of being able to share with you....Thank you so much for continuing to read and for tolerating the gap between posts.  I will continue to blog as often as possible, and continually pray my words are God breathed and bless you wherever you are....

res•to•ra•tion - the act or process of returning something to its original condition by repairing it, cleaning it, etc.; the act of bringing back something that existed before; the act of returning something that was stolen or taken.

Restoration projects usually take place when the condition of something has deteriorated and needs some attention and/or repair.  That being said, when we think of restoration, generally we think of the term applying to an old home, a car, photographs, or piece of furniture.  Restoration, however, can also apply to other areas of our lives.  For instance, maybe you've experienced the restoration of a relationship; restoration of health; restoration of a job, position of leadership, or perhaps finances. Regardless of the type of restoration you may have encountered, you can probably empathize when I say restorations are a lot of work!  Generally, everybody loves the finished product, but the period in between start and finish – not so much!  Restorations can also be messy and untidy, and often requires the sacrifice of one’s comfort, territory, routine, and certainly time. 

In chapter two of the book of Joel, we find a story of restoration.  Joel is addressing the people of Judah who, for quite some time, had been experiencing abundance and blessing.  Food, livestock and crops were plentiful.  There was a copious amount of wine and oil.  Life in Judah was good. But, in their plenitude, the people of the nation had become conceited and self-serving.  They took the Lord and all His blessings for granted.   No longer concerned with the condition of their spiritual lives, they began worshiping idols.  So Joel, a prophet, steps in and warns the people to take notice. He commissions them to get their lives back on track with Christ, or sooner or later their sinful lifestyle would bring down the judgment of the Lord. They, however, ignored Joel’s warnings.  They were having the time of their lives and party pooper Joel was raining on their parade.  But eventually, just as Joel stated, a crisis occurred that stopped the nation of Judah right in its tracks. The Lord sent a terrible plague of locusts to swarm the land.  Fields, once overflowing with crops and livestock, were completely destroyed and left barren.  Everything was gone.  No longer were storehouses brimming with food, or were there cattle in the fields, wine on tap, and oil readily available. Gone.  All of it.  Every stinking last drop, crumb, and moo.  Gone.  The magnitude of the destruction and devastation was inconceivable.  

Now, the Lord could have easily shaken his head at Judah and said, “Look here you morons, didn't Joel tell you this was going to happen?  But, did you listen to him?  Noooo, of course you didn't. Well, I hope you enjoyed that wine and food while it lasted!  Because it is gone, gone, gone!  You got what you deserved!” But, God didn't do that.  Instead, He had compassion – compassion on the very people who had turned their backs on Him...compassion on the people who no longer claimed to need Him...compassion on people who didn't even worship Him!   And, in His unconditional compassion, He delivered the devastated nation a message and promise of hope.  A message and promise we can apply to our own lives….

“I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten....” – Joel 2:25 (ESV)

The past three years have brought some serious blows to the spiritual health of my local body of Christ.  My heart grieves and aches for the church I once knew.  A church once abundant and overflowing....But, the locusts have come.  I can’t explain, in just a few sentences or paragraphs, all that has happened.  But, I can tell you that God is still good.  Families have come and gone.  Tithes and offerings are sparse.  But, the same Lord who sat on His throne when we had abundance is the same Lord who sits on His throne today.  He is a Lord who is alive and well and who just happens to specialize in restoration of all that has been consumed and lost.  He is a Savior who can take all our ugly messes, devastation, and destruction and turn it into something beautiful and useful.   Sometimes friends, we must experience the death and end of what we once knew in order to experience all that is new, fully restored and resurrected.  

“Watch closely: I am preparing something new; it’s happening now, even as I speak,
and you’re about to see it. I am preparing a way through the desert; Waters will flow
where there had been none.” – Isaiah 42:19 (VOICE)

Whether you are currently experiencing, have ever experienced, or have yet to experience a restoration – I pray you will rest in Christ’s promise of restoration.  All that has been consumed and lost...all that the locusts have eaten, He WILL restore.  

res•to•ra•tion - the act or process of returning something to its original condition by repairing it, cleaning it, etc.; the act of bringing back something that existed before; the act of returning something that was stolen or taken.

 “Restore us, O Lord, and bring us back to you again! Give us back the joys we once had!” -  Lamentations 5:21 (NLT)

Perspective

4:40 a.m. - The radio from my alarm clock blared in my ear.  I swatted at the noisy, demon possessed box until I successfully whacked its snooze button.

Ugggh, stupid alarm. I don't want to get up. It’s still dark outside...and it's raining...

AND...it's Monday. Ugggh.

5:00 a.m. - The radio from my alarm clock blared in my ear.  A little more awake this time, and little more sane, I swatted at the noisy box until I successfully whacked its snooze button once more.  Then, I shut my eyes again and enjoyed the solitude and peacefulness of the morning. 

Ahhh, that's more like it. Serenity. I love these comfy covers and my warm bed. 

Just listen to the peaceful rain falling. I'll just stay in bed a little longer...

a wee, tiny bit longer...sigh....

5:01 a.m. - The alarm from my cell phone began to chime.  Grumbling to self ensues.   Personal sanity has left the building, and ugliness spews forth.

For the love of God and all that is holy! I'm trying to rest here! 

Stupid alarms. Stupid, stupid alarms. 

Stupid, stupid, stupid arsenal of alarms. Bah!

Begrudgingly, I got out of my comfortable, cozy, warm bed and started my day. As I opened the dishwasher to retrieve a coffee mug, thoughts began filling my weary, tired mind.

Good morning, Lord. I didn't want to get up today. 

It's Monday. It's still dark outside. And, it's raining. 

I'd just like to stay in my comfy, cozy bed. Sigh. 

My mind is already full and I really don't want to face the day. 

There's so much out there that overwhelms me. So much that grieves me. 

So much that I don’t understand. So much that seems impossible. 

And...so much that just seems hopeless.

Just then, a bright red coffee mug caught my eye and brought a smile to my face. And, not just any smile...but, a big, huge, cheesy, ear to ear grin kind of smile. As I clutched my incredibly cool, awesome Wonder Woman mug from the dishwasher, God began to speak, and He began to remind of the strength and the power and the wonder that comes from Him and Him alone…

"Monday's got nothing on us, Angela. It’s all about perspective. 

Do you trust Me? Do you know that through Me all things ARE possible? 

Do you know that I am THE HOPE? 

Do you know that each and everything that breaks your heart breaks Mine as well? 

It's all about perspective, Angela. 

Do you trust Me? Do you believe I am who I say I am? 

Then seek Me and you will find rest and peace. 

It's all about perspective."

Yes, Lord.  I know.
 I know.  

It’s all about perspective. 

"Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after a lie! You have multiplied, O Lord my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us; none can compare with you! I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told."
 - Psalm 40:4-5 (ESV)

A Lucky Charms Kind of Faith

My family recently took a trip to Springfield, Illinois. Springfield is a great town full of rich history, specifically in relation to Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War; and my boys love learning about history. Lincoln lived in Springfield for many years prior to heading to the White House. He is also buried in Springfield. When we arrived to Lincoln's tomb, we noticed a large bronze statue of his head. It was hard to miss, not only due to its size, but also due to the shiny finish on the nose. Some believe rubbing Lincoln's nose brings good luck, and let me tell you that nose glistened! 

Have you ever had a good luck charm or ritual? A lucky shirt, pair of socks, or pants perhaps? I suspect all of us could name at least one item or thing we've been told will bring good luck – a heads up penny; a four leaf clover; a rabbit's foot; lucky number 7, Abraham Lincoln's nose, etc. 

I spent a good deal of my fifth and sixth grade school years hunting four leaf clovers. There was a particular area on my school playground in which I'd found a couple of these "lucky" little gems, and I figured the more I continued to find the luckier I'd be! Now, I don't know what the rules are when it comes to four leaf clovers, but I fully expected all my dreams to magically come true and wishes to be granted. Apparently, the "luck" they deliver is much more subtle than that though...much, much, much more subtle. In fact, come to think of it, I have yet to see any of that "luck". 

To be honest, I don't know if I even have those four leaf clovers any more. I tucked them inside a book long ago, and eventually lost track of them. What was so important to me then, I could take or leave now. I think that's the way it goes with many of our lucky charms though. We place faith in them believing their sole purpose is to give us luck and grant our wishes. But, eventually we give up when we don't see the results we want, when we want, and we tuck away our charms until the next time we need a little extra help in the ol' luck department...hoping then we'll hit the jackpot and get everything we ever wanted.

Sometimes I have faith like that – a lucky charms kind of faith. I lay out my requests to the Lord and then expect Him to magically provide. But, God isn't in the business of playing Fairy Godfather. He is not some four leaf clover or lucky penny. And, His sole purpose is certainly not to give luck and grant wishes when I stomp my feet and make demands (not that I would ever do that...ahem). 

Keeping the faith is hard, friends. Especially if you've been praying for someone or something specific for longer than you'd like - which in my case, usually means longer than one day (cue foot stomping here). Sometimes I fight the urge to tuck my faith away like a four leaf clover in a book. It's easy to get burnt out...to give up...to throw in the towel. But, God is still listening. He is still faithful and He will provide....

"Don’t burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant. Don’t quit in hard times; pray all the harder." - Romans 12:11-12 (MSG)

Be cheerfully expectant and pray all the harder...good golly I need to remember this! Maybe you do too. Though the Lord may not give us what we want, when we want it - He always, ALWAYS has our best interests in mind, and He always, ALWAYS provides at the perfect time. I know this. I've seen Him do it time and time again. Sometimes I just need the reminder (and some patience!) to wait and to trust and to keep pressing on. What about you? Are you feeling discouraged with regard to something or someone you've been praying over? Let's fight that lucky charms kind of faith together – cheerfully expectant and praying all the harder.

*A few years ago, I was asked to write a song about waiting on the Lord.  I’d be honored if you took a listen to "They That Wait" today.  God is good.

Love, Cake & Blessedness

It's been said that a picture is worth a thousand words. I tend to agree. One need only flip through a family photo album and instantaneously find themselves filled with thousands of words, memories and stories to share. Russian author, Ivan Turgenev, wrote, "A picture shows me at a glance what it takes dozens of pages of a book to expound."

August is a big birthday month for our family. Both of my boys, Jack and Joseph, have August birthdays, and so do I. My friend, Susan, snapped this photo last weekend. The picture takes my breath away and gives joy to my heart all at the same time. One of my friends said the photo speaks, "love" (as in Joseph loves his momma) and "cake" (as in Jack loves his cake!). Others have commented with regard to the photo, "perfection", "framer", "magazine worthy", and "cute". But of the thousands of words this particular photo conjures up, the one that sums them all up for me is, "blessed"....

Do you see those two precious boys in the photo? I am blessed. Those are my babies...my two healthy, thriving, spunky, loves their momma and loves their cake babies. One of them had heart surgery at 14 months of age. The other, we were told, would need a heart transplant at birth. Praise God he did not.  You see them there? They are alive and well. Their hearts are healthy. They are healthy. I am blessed.

Do you notice the woman in the photo? I am that woman, and I am blessed. I just turned 39 years young. Seven years ago, I was fighting for life, filling out a living will and writing letters to my babies in the event I didn't make it through my battle with cancer. Now, I'm a cancer survivor celebrating life with those I love most. I am blessed.

Can you spy the pearl earrings in my ears? I am blessed. My husband gave me those earrings. I wore them 19 years ago on our wedding day. Each time I place them in my ears, I am reminded of his love for me and of our promise to one another till death do us part. Marriage is hard work, but we are willing to work at what God has joined together. I am loved and I am blessed.

Did you spot the cake on the table? I am blessed. The cake was made by someone who cares about me and my family. Someone who doesn’t have to, but chooses to selflessly give and invest in my life and my family. My heart is full and its brokenness is restored because of friends like that. I am blessed.

Did you catch sight of the smile on my face? I am blessed. The smile is that of a woman filled with hope and faith...a woman saved by grace and loved beyond measure by One who laid His life down for her own. Every good and perfect thing in my life is because of Him. 

"Every good gift bestowed, every perfect gift received, comes to us 

from above, courtesy of the Father of lights...." – James 1:17

Because of Him and Him alone, I am blessed. 

Most gracious Lord, thank You for the blessing of life and for every good and perfect gift You give. May every snapshot of my life, reflect Your love and Your blessings. I am blessed because of You.

Shut Your Pie Hole

It started out as an innocent text, but quickly turned into a panic induced moment brought on by autocorrect. It didn't matter if he meant to say the words or not...there they were (in all their glory no less), and once he hit that send button, there was no going back.   

My husband, Todd, was organizing food and other items in our church fellowship hall when aforementioned texting snafu took place.  Todd sent a text to our pastor's wife to make sure

she was comfortable with him relocating some items to one central area. 

    "Should I group the funeral dinner items?" 

Innocent enough, right?  Uh huh...that is of course, if that text was actually sent.  Unfortunately, it was not.  But, the sweet little gem below was:

"Shut your pie hole."

Oh. Snap!  (insert face palm here)  Turns out Todd's initial text was sabotaged by autocorrect!  And, before he even noticed, he hit send on that amazing little nugget above.  How on earth autocorrect comes up with some stuff is beyond me – another of life's great mysteries I suppose.   I too have sent crazy autocorrected texts, and I too have been on the receiving end of some pretty strange autocorrected texts (animal should never ever under any circumstances autocorrect to anal...um, wow! just saying.)

I digress, back to the whole "shut your pie hole" deal... I'm not saying I totally laugh snorted when Todd told me about his autocorrect fail, and I'm not saying I didn't....  But, I am saying - if you can't laugh at yourself, then rest assured, your wife will.... (love you, dear.)

Thankfully, Todd and I are blessed with a wonderful pastor and his wife who understand Todd and I are a couple of crazed weirdos really sweet people who would never text anything like that (generally speaking).  Todd was able to save face and immediately sent another text containing not only the correct information, but an apology and explanation.  Whew! Crisis averted.  

Wouldn't it be great if we could blame all our regretful words on autocorrect?  And, wouldn't it be awesome to have our mean spirited words forgiven, brushed off, and possibly even laughed over just as soon as they fly from of our mouths?  Indeed it would....

Recently, I found myself wishing I could erase some regretful words I said.  They so easily slid off my tongue, but the damage and pain they could have caused would certainly not have slid off so smoothly.  Out they flew with frustration and spite and anger attached.  I meant them in a hateful manner and they did their job well by coming across as such.  Some laughed at my words – which of course, only encouraged me to say more.  After all, the spark was already there inside of me, and it didn't take much at all for that spark to ignite into a flame.  Oh, how good it felt when I was saying the words.  And oh, how the fire raged...At the time, I didn't care if the pride I felt came at the expense of someone else...at least until I turned around that is. 

Open pie hole, insert foot.  There in front of me sat the family of the one I was so quick to slander.  It's a wonder the fire from my words hadn't singed the hair right off their heads.  I no longer wanted to be on the pedestal I'd put myself on.  Rather, I wanted to slink right on out of there cowering.  Suddenly it didn't feel so good anymore, and I was ashamed of myself and my words.   

"The tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark…With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water." – James 3:5 and 9-12

By the sheer grace and mercy of God, I don't believe this family heard my hatefulness.  I never meant to hurt them, nor the person I was speaking of so sharply.  In the heat of the fire though, I blazed on – never giving thought to the damage I could cause – and totally relishing in my moment of conceit.  Shame on me.  For out of my very own mouth I praise my Lord and Savior, yet I curse men.  Sigh...I could totally stand to shut my pie hole sometimes.  Maybe once I get my foot out of my mouth, I'll do just that! 

Thank you for coming here to read my blog, and for journeying alongside me.  I am not at all close to perfection (despite what my ego and words may try to suggest at times).   I'm just a sinner saved by grace...a girl who loves the Lord and who daily strives to work on her walk...a walk, on the road that is often slickery.   Praise God His mercies are new every morning...cause Lord knows this girl and her pie hole need some mercy!  I pray as I share the lessons I learn, they not only help me in my own spiritual growth, but they will encourage you too.  

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your mercy; for Your forgiveness; and for Your unconditional love.  Lord, I pray when I open my mouth, You fill it with words of life.   Likewise, I ask that You shut my mouth when anything other than God breathed words threaten to ignite an unholy flame.  May the things I say edify those around me and point the way to You, Lord.   Not to me, but only to You.  I praise You for Your saving grace and for taking my feet out of my mouth and planting them firmly back on the road.  There is none like You.  None like You.