by Sharon O | Oct 2, 2010 | Uncategorized
Last Saturday I went to a ladies gathering.
It was called Selah.
Looking up the meaning on dictionary.com and it says: an expression occurring frequently in the Psalms, thought to be liturgical or musical direction, probably a direction by the leader to raise the voice or perhaps an indication of a pause, “to pause, raise, lift”
The first speaker of day said we are to live intentionally and move from an overwhelmed order to a transformed order deep inside ourselves. Like pushing a reset button to align yourself to God’s order. She said it is a revival of the heart.
She said ‘disorganization is more than piles, it is an internal ‘dis-order’ that manifests itself into ‘piles’ to work on. She said ‘disorder imprisons us/order frees us.
Becoming ordered is about releasing, the disconnect.
So in hearing all that I was thinking about myself. What disconnect am I not aware of that makes my ‘messy’ places so messy. Oh I gather myself at times and deep clean and purge and accomplish a ‘place of order’ only to have it reclaim itself months later.
SELAH… to raise my voice to God and pause.
Does that sound like a prayer?
The speaker said the preparation principle is this: “Sometimes before you advance you have to be still and let him work in you so you can begin to live by his purpose and priorities.”
Be Still and know that HE is God…that would be the pause part of the work.
She said, “‘Ladies it is not about blame or bad self talk it is about investing in yourself to have peace and calm in your home.”
So for my faithful readers I will show you what I am working on.
The first picture is my desk. It is messy. That is how I focus and think. I have piles of notes, papers, assorted books and other must haves in order for me to write. Now before you think wow she is really a messy person I want to show you the other side of the room that is not so messy. I am able to have order in my own strange way the next picture is across the room. This is where my 369 early readers are stored. Yes I did say that many. They are all cataloged in the computer by name and date issued. They are early readers in the Dick and Jane style from 1920’s to 1970’s with most of them in the category of the 1950-1960’s era. I love the pictures and stories. This part of the room is organized and nice.
The other part of the room is not so nice. My goal for the new year… (yes it is only October) is to get re organized again so that this won’t happen any more in my pretty den. I will need prayer.
Can you tell I dislike paper work? The bills get paid and I throw them on a pile. Looking forward to the day when I can toss them all into the fireplace and burn them. Only to have the new year start again.
I would welcome suggestions if anyone has any.
I do get overwhelmed with the ‘stuff’ it is not a part of my organization skill. Part of this blog is learning to become vulnerable and sharing what the Lord is doing in this quiet little world of mine. This is a side of my ‘messy disorganized world’. I hope you still like me… :o)
by Sharon O | Sep 29, 2010 | Uncategorized
When I think of belonging…
I think of a decision that had to have taken place in order to belong to someone or something.
Such as when one chooses to get married to the ‘one’ special person or one chooses to have a baby. It is a decision that says you belong to me and I care.
Dictionary.com says belonging means a secure relationship.
When we belong to something we are giving ourselves to that commitment whether it is a family or a group. I read in a study book one time: Belonging will cost us something. We can be a private person wanting to belong but never letting anyone in to see what’s really happening inside or we can be a public person sharing with others our real selves. Being public empowers us to move beyond just showing up (in the relationship or group) it frees us to participate in the act of sharing our hearts our hurts our pains or our dreams. It is a willingness to divulge the most personal issues bringing intimacy and transparency into the relationship or group. There is a cost for us to belong. It is a sacrifice and takes effort to make it important.
When one belongs they are always mindful of ways to be together and enjoy life together within a safe secure relationship.
In a marriage situation it is having the freedom to say, ‘today I feel sad … or scared… or bored’ and knowing it is safe to say that.
In a secure relationship there is no threat.
Understanding and trust takes place when the ‘transparency of our heart can heard.’
It builds the relationship into a secure one.
Do you have good friends whom you ‘belong’ to in relationship?
We connect when we allow ourselves to be vulnerable.
We connect when we allow ourselves to be real.
We connect when someone says to us, “how are you today?”
and we feel we can say how we are back to them honestly.
We connect when we choose to be in relationship with someone.
It should not be a light hearted decision.
When we have the desire to commit to the relationship or group we can connect on a deeper level and on a prayerful level. God does not want us to stay on the surface.
He is always digging deeper into our hearts condition and pressing in on us to become more intimate and open.
I have learned through this last year that feeling secure is important to one’s journey.
When my husband’s mother was in her dying process often times I would walk into the room and I would have tears in my eyes. In that room it was safe to feel what I felt in the moment which was so unlike the way it was for me growing up.
To cry was never something I could do or feel.
It was hidden under covers in the night so it would not be heard.
For the lesson was told “if you are going to cry I will give you something to cry about.”
So the logical choice would be to hide.
I do not hide anymore.
This last year has brought many different hurtful things in my life and if the tears could not come then sickness would.
For the body must let go in some way.
Choosing to belong is saying: I believe in you, I will walk with you, I will support you and you are safe. When a relationship hurts us we often go running to the one’s who didn’t hurt us for they are safety and security and validation for that particular time in our lives.
Isn’t it awesome that we always have a secure place with our Lord?
If we were to look really hard we would see Him reaching out waiting for us to run into his safe loving arms as a father would wait for his children.
We will always belong to him if we have chosen to follow him.
Lord help us to feel secure as we rest in the knowing we belong to you.
by Sharon O | Sep 28, 2010 | Uncategorized
Sharon and I were followers of the same blog when she came over to visit mine. She is such a blessing, with a beautiful heart full of love and encouragement.
Last week, I asked folks if they know their own story, the one that God had written for them. Sharon responded by sending me a part of her story.
It is my pleasure to share my friend Sharon with you today.
This is from Mary Kathryn Tyson’s blog posted yesterday.
———————————————————–
a simple prayer
Before I became a Christian, my view of God was full of skepticism and unbelief. He was like a Santa who gave things to people when they asked. He was very far away and not an all-knowing GOD.
Jesus was a man in a story book.
I was not raised in a Christian home, yet I do remember walking to a small church as a little girl to Sunday school. As I listened to the stories of the Bible on flannel graph boards, God and Jesus were unreachable to me. They were characters in a hard-backed book. I couldn’t touch them or feel them. They were songs sung to the music of an un-tuned piano. Jesus loves the little children… only I was not one of them.
The way God reached out to me is a wonderful and powerful reminder that He does indeed listen to the prayers, of those who do not know Him.
He listens to the heart cries and He is moved with compassion.
In my freshman year of high school, I began to search for the meaning of life. We had moved again to a new rental home and another new school, probably my 20th by now. It was at the bus stop while waiting for the bus where I would engage in conversation with a girl standing there with me. She was an honor student who lived with her parents in a normal stable family. I was very different. I would wear the Diana Ross highly-ratted hairstyle, fake eyelashes (yes, I did say that) and white eye shadow. It was the late 60′s and the look was between Diana Ross and Cher.
Every day this girl would ask me questions. Pursuing me. Forcing me to ‘think’ about God and church and life. Every day I argued with her. It was constant. My life experience had been much different than hers. My concept of ‘love’ was not something she could understand. We were two friends speaking different languages. She talked often and gave me lots of questions.
As our friendship grew, I began to listen to her. I decided to test her ‘GOD’.
My sister Mary had been gone for many months on the street, living life as a drug addict and runaway. I missed her greatly and wanted desperately to see her. We didn’t know if she dead or alive and it was a heart ache I couldn’t take care of on my own. I remembered this girl told me ‘GOD hears all prayers’. I didn’t believe it but what could I lose by trying?
One night as I was going to bed, not knowing how to pray or what to pray or how it all all works for Him to hear you, I prayed a simple prayer. A bold one. A searching from the heart prayer. I said, “God I would believe, I think I can believe you, if you can find my sister. The girl tells me you know everything, you see everything. So you should know how to find her. I want her home. If you are God. If you know everything then you can bring her home tonight. When I wake up in the morning I want her sleeping in her own bed. If you can do that, then I will believe”. I went to bed and fell into a deep sleep. Unusual for me at that stage of life.
You can imagine my surprise when I woke up the next morning, and saw her across the room sleeping in her own bed. The police had found her in the middle of the night and contacted our mother. She had been beaten badly but she was home, sleeping in her bed, in our room. It was an unbelievable moment and a miraculous reunion of sisters. A cry from a young person’s heart to a God who hears. We were always hopeful she was alive, but never knowing it was crushing to my heart. Mary didn’t stay at home very long. She left soon after the first night, but my prayer was answered.
Now I had to deal with ‘the girl at the bus stop’. I made the phone call telling her what happened. She told me about God, church and her youth group. The girl at the bus stop is now my sister-in-law. We married brothers.
I believe God knew the only way I would trust, was for Him to show me an answer to a simple prayer. From a simple heart. HE can do the unimaginable. I trust Him. The journey continues.
The years after God came into my life were not easy. But because of the strength HE gave I was able to trust Him through the process. He was hope when I felt hopeless. He was my peace when it wasn’t peaceful. He was love on a Cross saying to me, “I care deeply for you”. His ways are mysterious and wonderful and I am always in awe of His love. I have never regretted that first life-changing prayer.
I hope this finds you encouraged. Our God is a God who hears the simple prayers of faith. It doesn’t have to be fancy or elaborate. It just has to be from the heart.
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My name is Sharon. I am 55 years old and have been married almost 37 years now. God has blessed me with two wonderful children and now six delightful grandchildren. Life has been a journey of ups and downs but with God, all things are possible if we trust Him.
by Sharon O | Sep 27, 2010 | Uncategorized
Today I am guest posting at beauty for ashes site.
Mary Kathryn Tyson asked her readers to share their testimony story so I did.
She asked me if she could post it on her website blog.
http://marykathryntyson.wordpress.com/2010/09/27/a-simple-prayer/http://marykathryntyson.wordpress.com/2010/09/27/a-simple-prayer/
by Sharon O | Sep 25, 2010 | Uncategorized
Our Pastor asked us the other day,
“If Jesus looked at the church today what would he see?
People broken and fractured weighted down with heavy hearts and wounded souls.”
He said,”Do you realize Jesus death was birthed out of a concern for humanity?”
Broken people are fragmented and they are disjointed. They are not peaceful. They are not calm.
They are broken.
God sent his son so we ‘the broken’ can become whole.
We teach our little ones to sing, “Jesus Loves the little children all the children of the world.”
But do we bring it down to us… Jesus loved us.
Us means you and me. You and I.
Or do you remember the song, “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”
Do we believe it really?
It would break his heart to see a broken lifeless church after all he died for us.
He died a terrible death so we.. so we… you and I can become whole and healed and full of life.
He died so we could have hope.
He died so we could have a chance to be saved and believe in him.
Jesus knew the cost. He knew the routine he had seen other ‘Crucifixions’ but it would be HIS that would save the world.
Remember.
In the garden he had asked a chosen few to watch with him and wait.
What did they do… they fell asleep.
When he found them he said, “could you not watch with me a little while and pray?”
He knew the heaviness of his own heart.
I am often reminded of the tomb and remember so well the scene where Mary is crying and weeping. Her Lord is gone. The tomb was empty. She was empty. She was broken.
She was full of sorrow deep agonizing sorrow.
Remember what happened?
He said “Mary”~
Mary… the one whom he loved and who loved Him.
Mary… He knew her name. He was personal. He was powerful.
He was relational.
She knew his voice she knew it was him saying… Mary.
Something to ask yourself.
If Jesus were to say your name would you know without a doubt it was him?
Only when we are in tune to his voice and his love will we know it is him.
I pray we will be like Mary…
and know his voice so well we will hear him in the midst of our tears and cling to him and not want to let go when he says our name.
by Sharon O | Sep 22, 2010 | Uncategorized
What is the difference between believing the Lord and following the Lord?
It is a real question.
Many people who saw Jesus believed Him~
not that many actually followed.
They saw and experienced his miracles and they saw and experienced his power.
They could remind themselves every time they saw him how he turned the water into wine or how he fed the many with little or how he healed the dead and helped the cripple to walk. The blind could see and the closed hearts could hear.
The teachings he taught and the people he met all had a visible reminder of ‘Jesus’ and who he was.
Even after all that not everyone who saw him believed and not every one who believed in him followed.
So why do you think the ones who heard Jesus say “Come follow me” left everything to follow him?
It is a question for us all to think about.
They did not hesitate. They dropped everything they knew and left it all for a man who was walking by from a shore line saying to them…”come follow me.” Did they even know who he was or did it not matter? Was it just because he ‘believed’ in them and they really wanted that for their heart?
Today if Jesus said to you…
“Drop every plan and every agenda of your own and follow me. Leave your life behind and come… walk with me and you will find peace.”
Do you think it is believable?
The rough and tough fishermen were called out of the water because Jesus believed in the potential they had within them. Our Pastor said, “When we follow Jesus we can’t be like him on our own it is from HIS potential for us that creates our likeness of him.” Jesus taught the fishermen and followers so he could transfer himself to them. So they could do what he did.
Did they dare? Did they believe they could? He told them they could.
Are we teachable and open to follow after when the Lord says to us ‘come I want you to walk with me today.’
We can’t just believe we need to put our belief into action.
The question our pastor asked, “Are you willing to risk all that you have in order to be all that God wants you to be?”
It is a very real question.
Do we want to be all that he wants us to be?
by Sharon O | Sep 21, 2010 | Uncategorized
There are two questions to ask ourselves…
(as we continue the nurturing a tranquil soul topic)
Where are we now on our spiritual journey?
Where would we like to be on our spiritual journey in six months to a year?
Journey:
dictionary.com says it is a passage or progress from one stage to another.
So the questions are asking: where do we hope to be as we move forward
spiritually from the stage we are in today to a new stage tomorrow.
Hope is a huge word. We hope for many things. What do you hope for?
The last ten pounds off~ the last chapter written so you can send in your writing~ finishing the race you have trained for and not yet accomplished~ getting the job you know you are qualified for?
It takes action to move forward.
It is stepping out as we take baby steps towards our goal.
If someone is an athlete it means they have to exercise even when one doesn’t want to.
If one is a writer it is a forcing of oneself to find quiet reflective time even when it feels like there is no time left in the day.
It is pressing oneself harder and challenging oneself deeper to reach the goal that we have set before us.
Spiritual journeys are not any different.
It is forcing ourselves to read and study and meditate even when we don’t feel like it or we don’t understand or we are just too tired.
Are we blocked by our lack of bible knowledge or our lack of discipline or our own anxieties?
What will it take to get us back on the journey?
Spiritual growth is crucial to our development as Christians.
If we don’t grow we become stagnant and that produces other issues that are not healthy for us.
Are there barriers keeping us walled and closed off?
Are there forgiveness issues that needs to be addressed?
Do we have relationship issues that are broken and leaving us ‘open and empty?’
Taking action to move forward towards spiritual growth is the first thing we can do to become strong and firm in our faith. Each step we take is a step closer to our goal.
It is as essential as breathing or eating.
Are you further this year than you were last year or are you feeling stagnant?
Lots of questions to think about.
I pray that as we begin to nurture a tranquil soul we will find a sense of peace and order as we move into a new direction of deeper spiritual growth.
Let us journey together in encouragement and affirmations for each other.
We can do a good job no matter what small steps we take towards our goal.
For any movement is better than none especially if we don’t have to do it alone.
by Sharon O | Sep 18, 2010 | Uncategorized
A grandparent’s heart grows wider and deeper~
with every grandchild born.
It is an honor and a special privilege to be grandparents.
It is love at a different level.
Our son now has three son’s.
Samuel is six… Josiah is two and a half and Seth is one day old.
A baby was born.
To parents who love and nurture and care for each other so they can care for their children.
Changes will come to this house… making room for one more is a bit of a re-adjustment.
Rooms reorganized and closets de-cluttered. Change… is good.
Each child is different and needing different things.
When we were young parents we brought our children up with the prayers that they will be good citizens some day. That they would be responsible and true to themselves.
That they would love their Lord and serve in some way.
That they would make us proud.
Our daughter has three daughters and now our son has three sons.
We are very proud and pleased and so very blessed.
A baby to love is a beginning for us all.
His life is fresh and new and tender and sweet.
Lord God bless our little ones and protect them always.
Surround them with angels and form a hedge of protection around their every move.
Thank you God for entrusting these children to their parents who love them and to the grandparents who would do anything to make their lives safe and comfortable.
We are thankful to have Faith, Hannah, Alexis, Samuel, Josiah and now Seth join our hearts circle of love.
Lord God we give you thanks~ we are SO blessed.
What blesses you today?
by Sharon O | Sep 16, 2010 | Uncategorized
I thought of something the other day or maybe I heard it somewhere.
“Nurturing a tranquil soul.”
What a concept~ What an idea.
For the last year I have been off work and really have enjoyed being home.
The goal has been to slow down and enjoy the day~ slow down and enjoy the moments.
When I read ‘nurturing the tranquil soul’ it resonated with me so intensely.
We all should strive for a peaceful soul. Or a place of quiet inside.
It is hard work to slow down the pace of our fast moving world.
It is hard work to be still and be quiet.
Dictionary.com says:
Nurture: To support and encourage; to bring up; to promote development.
Tranquil: Free from commotion or tumult; free from or unaffected by disturbing emotions; serene: calm peaceful and quiet.
Does it feel like something you want?
Nurturing a tranquil soul.
That is not meaning you have to sit around in a yoga position humming.
It is nurturing a peace that passes all understanding deep inside inside your heart.
So that when something bad happens you grieve but you are not broken into pieces.
When something unexpected happens you are shocked but not knocked down.
John Eldredge says it is a sense of belonging… to oneself.
Just as we want to belong to a family we also want to belong to ourselves.
Have you ever met someone who is nice to get to know but as you get to know them it feels like they do not know themselves very well? It’s like they are not connected… not having an idea of what they are showing to others. They are sort of clueless.
I think nurture is a wonderful concept.
It is our ‘purpose’ to encourage others~ to promote others to do well and to be peaceful.
Be calm and quiet. The word tells us to be quick to hear and slow to speak. We find strength when we are quiet.
Helping others to nurture themselves helps them to move deeper into a sense of self and helping ourselves to do the same.
I ask you… how well do you nurture your heart or soul?
Is your hearts desire always way back there somewhere while you attend to other more important issues?
I ask you…
do you nurture yourself in the way you would nurture another?
If the answer is NO ask yourself why.
ARE you not as important as another? repeat the question:
are you not as important as another?
Remember to be tranquil is to be free… free from noise, commotion or disturbing emotions.
Are you free today? I pray that you can come to a place where nurturing a tranquil soul is normal for you.
by Sharon O | Sep 13, 2010 | Uncategorized
The Compassion team just returned from Guatemala and each person wrote blogs about their experience.
Today instead of me writing I am going to let them write.
Starting with /Ann Voscamp@AHolyExperience.com/
Be sure to have your sound on. Her site is beautiful and she is a powerfully gifted writer.
You might even need Kleenex nearby as you read the heart wrenching stories.
Then you can move on to Lisa-Jo (The Gypsy Mama) www.Thegypsymamma.com/
Next you can read:
http://amandajones.com/ Jones (Baby Bangs)Living Proof Ministries
After that you can read:
http://www.lindseynobles.com/
There are a few other bloggers who went with the team you can log into their sites I believe from the other sites.
Reading their last weeks accounts of everyday life in Guatemala will help you understand poverty and its face and put a name on your heart I hope to sponsor a child.
Sponsoring a child only costs $38.00 a month.
We pay more for coffee or frivolous lunches out or that fancy pair of must have shoes.
I encourage us all to think about missions. Not necessarily go to far away places. But if one cannot go then one can certainly sponsor a child who lives there. Finish your reading with the leader of the Guatemala group:
/www.ShaunGroves.com/
I encourage you to take the time to read these posts maybe even subscribe to them. Personally I subscribe to about 35 blogs. They encourage me to press forward and also it is like a devotional time on line along with my bible studies.
I would LOVE feeback if these links work and what you thought of them. I tried to click onto a few of them from my blog here and couldn’t get them to work please let me know if I did anything wrong with the addresses.
Today it was important to take a bit of a break and encourage us all to think beyond ourselves and to realize the world is not often the way we see it in our cozy neighborhoods and warm homes.
I pray that we can look beyond our own lives and SEE the lives of others.
