Short Yarns

Want to exercise your creative wings and do a little writing? How about read others' short stories? Go to : http://shortyarns.wordpress.com/ and follow the blog today! Two writers and some crafty friends joining together to provide motivation, inspiration, accountability and some good ol' fashion fun.  Today's prompt is listed below!

Pick a bad habit you have, write about a character that has the same bad habit but only worse. Write about how that bad habit gets your character into some serious trouble.

Prissy the Procrastinator
Why do today what can be put off to tomorrow was the motto she lived by. Living in a house built by her great-grandparents over 100 years ago, Prissy the procrastinator was never one to let her motto get her down. Her yard stayed overgrown with weeds so tall you couldn't see the front door. Every six months or so the city would come and mow it and leave a bill on her door, adding to the collection of bills already piled up. Her mailbox was so full the post mistress had put a hold on Prissy's mail years ago. The utilities had not been on since her parents added them to her responsibilities. The roof on the house leaked every time it rained, dripping down walls and helping the mold growth. Prissy knew the roof needed to be replaced, the house cleaned, the mold killed, and probably a total renovation needed to happen. That would all wait for another day. Every morning Prissy woke up to a beautiful sunrise and thought about all the things she needed to do. Then she rolled over knowing those things will be there tomorrow.



Go to http://shortyarns.wordpress.com/ to share your responses or to see others' responses!

Reaching Out: What does it mean to you?

Our church often speaks of reaching out to others and sharing Christ's love. We have a variety of missions to other countries. We have opportunities to serve as groups to the Rescue Mission. We even have a team in the making to help greet newcomers and assist them in joining our church. But what does this mean to us personally? 


Jesus shared to gospel everywhere He walked. Everywhere. Where do we go that we can share the gospel? Is it really hard to share? I know I have heard arguments against sharing because of concerns such as offending the people, unsure of what to say, and just being plain scared. I have had all those feelings and I'm sure more. I have stood right in front of someone, felt the urge to share, and walked away instead. How lousy I felt for days. 


It is really hard to put your faith on the line. I read people's accounts from other countries where there lives are at stake if they admit they are Christians. I remember having a speaker come and tell us about how they have underground churches. In Roman times, Christians were thrown in as gladiators to fight others or animals such as lions. Yet here I stand, shaking in my shoes afraid of what? Being yelled at? Looked down upon? Making someone mad? 


Right now, we have rights in this country. We can be Christian and not lose our lives because of it. Jesus told us to go and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19) How can I do a better job of following His last command? How can you? We don't have to travel to other countries to share the Good News. There are people who we run across everyday who don't know about Jesus. 

The Potters' Hands

Ever felt crushed by the world around you? I know I have. There have been times I have felt completely annihilated to the point it hurt to breathe. I know we have all been there at one time or another, whether its through the loss of loved ones, loss of jobs and financial struggles, or just the battle of making it through the day without drama, depression, or sometimes even a substance crutch. In one way or another, we have felt crushed. 

Today, my heart was lead to read Jeremiah 18:4 

"But the jar he was making did not turn out as he had hoped, 

so he crushed it into a lump of clay again and started over." NLT

God is the potter. He is the only one who can allow the world around us to crush us. When He allows such things, it's to make us a better vessel. On March 2, 1998, after my grandmother's passing, I felt as though my heart was crushed entirely, my lungs unable to take full breaths, and my mind unable to even process a single thought. For a little over a year, I made bad decisions one after another. I threw away values and morals I had upheld for years as if they no longer mattered. Worse of all, I turned away from God in my time of pain, refusing to allow Him to help me and spurning those who would dare suggest I do otherwise. 


When I finally started to turn my life back around, I still continued to be apathetic towards God. I was not purposely turning my back against Him, I just was not running towards Him either. Still, He continued to be with me. I have always known that. I knew that the entire time I lived in my crushed state. When I finally started praying again, and asking for His hand to be in my life, my entire world changed. I no longer felt crushed. I no longer struggled with my shame over the mistakes I made after my grandmother's passing. I began to take shape into a new vessel. A better vessel. 


I am not by any means perfect. I know God is continually working on me to become an better vessel tomorrow than I am today. He will always be working on me. I know I will be crushed at times. I also know He knows what is best for me, and will always have His hands around me to help keep me malleable, stable, and protected. 

"But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? “Shall what is formed 

say to the one who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?’” Does not the 

potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for 

special purposes and some for common use?" 

Romans 9:20-21 NLT

Christmas Time

A simple trip to Shreveport Target for laundry detergent, how can that possibly go wrong? I notice how the air is lacking the scent of pine that hung over our small town when I was growing up. Parking is atrocious. Target is crowded with rude people in a hurry. I don't hear jingle bells ringing, all I hear are kids around me screaming. Finally, after checking out, trudging across a damp parking lot to the truck, and getting everything loaded, I head to Chick-Fil-A to grab dinner for the family. The drive through line is wrapped around the building. My son is screaming in the back seat because he's starving. Dinner for him is CFA nuggets broken up and handed back as I maneuver Youree Drive. Drivers all around are not paying attention - pulling out in front of me, slamming on their brakes because they finally spotted the entrance to the shopping center they were looking for, and just failing to pay attention overall. When did Christmas become so tedious? Better question, when did I allow Christmas to become so tedious? 


I remember when Christmas was fun. The excitement of shopping for the perfect present. The feeling of peace and joy all around. When did I allow myself to feel any other way about Christmas? And when did I stop making the reason for the season the center of my Christmas? It started slowly. A gathering here. Another present there. Pretty soon I'm concentrating on cooking, wrapping, gatherings, cards, pictures, and everything else except the one who started it all. 


My prayer for myself and everyone else is this: May we all put Jesus in the center of our Christmas and all of our days. May we know that without His birth, Christmas would not exist. And without His death, salvation and eternity would not be ours. 



   So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. 
   And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
   Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
   “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
   So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
   On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the child, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived.

Luke 2:4-21

Everything Changes

We hear the same phrase over and over again. Nothing ever stays the same. Yet when it happens to you, it's almost surreal. A crash of metal against metal. A house full of memories ablaze with fire. A sudden loss of a business in times of economic turmoil. Bankruptcy. Pregnancy. Marriage. Divorce. Graduation. So many events in a person's life, big and small. Just when you get used to the way life is, everything changes. Amazing, isn't it? How many times do we look back to the way things used to be, wishing for days gone by? 


Jesus told us, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God." Luke 9:62 In order to be used for God's glory, we have to look forward. It's amazing how hard that can be. I am always looking back to the days before I was _______, or when we had _________. There are days where I spend every moment reflecting on my past, when in fact I need to be in the present looking towards my future so that I may of use in God's kingdom. 


So tonight I look towards my future, full of hope and faith, knowing that God is always there. 


"Learn from yesterday, Live for today, Hope for tomorrow" Albert Einstein

Words Are Not Only Words

A sharp jab of pain hits you in the heart. The wound aches for days, sometimes it is a dull ache that you barely notice and sometimes it is a pain so sharp it takes your breath away. Words can have a painful effect on you. Remember, be slow to speak and quick to listen or you might end up being the one who inflicts the pain.

I pray I learn restraint when it comes to speaking and that I learn to speak the truth with kindness, love, and respect. I also pray that I do not take others words to heart. Instead, I lean on God's Word to know that I am loved and seek His words to affirm myself in His eyes.

Don't Be Stiff-Necked

"Circumcise their hearts and be stiff necked no longer" 

Deuteronomy 10:16

There are many places in the Bible that talk about not being stiff-necked. To be stiff-necked means to be stubborn, arrogant, or aloof. The Israelites witnessed many miracles yet they were always turning away from God and turning towards idols, criticism, sloth and negativity. They constantly whined about being freed from the Egyptians just to be led into the desert, discounting or forgetting the miracles God provided to save them. Even in the New Testament Stephen tells the Sanhedrin that they are stiff-necked because they didn't believe Jesus was the Messiah and didn't want to see changes in the law of Moses. 

“You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised. 

You are just like your ancestors: You always resist the Holy Spirit!" 

Acts 7:51 

There are still many stiff-necked Christians today. We declare we love God, accept Jesus in our hearts, and yet we don't allow Him into our lives. We keep our own agendas and sins. We whine when He wants us to do something that we don't want to do. We keep parts of our lives and secret sins from Him as though He can not see them. We compromise on many things allowing the world to dictate our lives so that we continue to find acceptance in the it. We keep our faith to ourselves so that we do not offend anyone or so that we do not put ourselves out there for the world to criticize. 

"Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, 

love for the Father is not in them." 

1 John 2:15

We need to be convicted to follow God, and not keep our lives separate from Him. He needs to be in the driver seat of our lives showing us the direction to go and controlling the speed we get there. When we are convicted to follow Him, we need to not allow other people's opinions to change our minds or hearts. All that shows is that the world is leading us, not God. 


My prayers for myself and my fellow siblings in Christ are that we are not stiff-necked towards God. That we cut off the parts of our hearts and ears stopping us from truly following God, and that we instead follow Him so completely the world sees it and wants to follow Him too. I pray we never worry about others' opinions to the point we compromise our faith. Jesus was sent here to save the world. We are Jesus's disciples. How are we obeying Him? 

"For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, 

but to save the world through him." 

John 3:17 

Are You Multi-Task Functional?

Making appointments on the phone. Changing diapers. Checking email. Washing dishes. Doing laundry. Getting dressed. All at the same time. Ladies, I know you hear me. You've been there, done that and are probably doing it again tomorrow. I find it amazing that every woman I talk to is always in the midst of a dozen other tasks while on the phone.

What would happen in our lives if we only did one thing at a time? Rob, my loving husband, has been telling me to just do one thing at a time all day today as I stress over a million things. I thought I'd give it a try. What happened? First let's go over what didn't happen. Laundry didn't. Dishes didn't. Truck windshield didn't. The list goes on. What did happen is that the truck received a new emissions vent solenoid, the windshield was priced and date set to have it done, groceries were bought, and half the plants I bought the other day were planted. Oh, and of course Alex was fed, played with and loved on.

Part of me is not happy that I didn't accomplish more. Most of me is feeling a lot less stressed than if I did manage to get everything done. Verdict: I am multi-task functional but sometimes it's just better to do things one at a time. So are you multi-task functional?

Wisdom in the Midst of Confusion

The phone rings. There's a voice on the line you haven't heard in years. Offers are made. Choices now have to follow. In the midst of all this, one question becomes prominent. How do I make the wisest decision? Prayer. Advice. Listening. Waiting. God will provide the answer. 


How many times do we have major decisions sneak up on us? How do we know we're making the right decision? That we are following God's plan for our lives? Or does the plan adjust depending on the choices we make? 

"A wise man will hear and increase learning, 
      And a man of understanding will attain wise counsel" Proverbs 1:5 NKJV

I have so much on my mind this evening, it is hard for me to put it all into words. Needless to say, I have an important choice to make. I pray for God's wisdom and for me to hear a clear answer through wise counsel. 

Relationships

It's amazing how relationships work. I get out of them what I put into them. Each relationship has a different depth and I have to be willing to put myself out in that depth too. That's what makes the relationships so amazing.

I have relationships that are in the Sunlight Zone. They are the ones that we are acquainted with one another, we sometimes comment to one another on Facebook or stop and chat at church, but there just is not constant communication. In the ocean, the Sunlight Zone is where the most visible light is. With light comes heat and so therefore it's also the level that has the widest range of temperatures. Relationships at this depth shine a lot on the outside, can be really warm one day and then not so warm the next.

Now I'll talk about my relationships in the Twilight Zone. See, in the ocean the Twilight Zone has very faint light from above, but this is where you can find twinkling light creatures. It's also the zone that has the most diversity in strange and bizarre fish. My relationships in this zone are the same way, with light coming from the people themselves and, let's even admit it, with the most bizarre people involved. This zone is where I find the people who I randomly do common things with such as scrap booking, reading, walking, having play dates with the kids, serving at church, playing or watching football, and even shopping. These relationships are diverse, fun, and the most common in my life. They're the people I call, text, or message just to hang out with at random times. They're the ones who I can go months without talking to them, contact for something fun, and have a totally wonderful time together.

Next we get to the Midnight Zone. In this zone, there is no faint light from above. The only visible light is from the creatures themselves. There is immense water pressure in this zone and lots of animals that are mainly red or black in coloring due to the lack of light. I only have a few relationships in this zone. This is where I find people willing to give me a kick and tell me to straighten up. This is where I share my deepest fears and most coveted dreams. This is where I share my sins, ask for accountability, and rejoice for salvation.

The Abyss has near freezing temperatures. There is no light and very few creatures. It's creatures are usually permanent residents in this depth. Such are my relationships in this zone. This is where I find those who have seen me through the toughest times of my life. My parents' marriage. My parents' divorce. My parent's new marriages. My grandmother's death. My depression. My son's unexpected admittance to NICU. These are the relationships that were in place and helped me through my darkest times. They are the relationships with people that even if I don't see them for years, I still pray for them and love them greatly.

Last we come to the Trenches. The Trenches have crushing water pressure and just above freezing temperatures. The only creatures that can survive here are invertebrates such as starfish. The Trenches are the most important natural boundaries in the Earth's solid surface. In my life, the only person who reaches this depth is Jesus. His love is so deep, that I can not even begin to fathom it. His love is deeper than any of the above depths mentioned. I can not love as deep as He can. Here in the Trenches, where life is scarce, there is still hope. His love is in all the above depths and deeper still. When life is crushing the breath from my soul, His love protects me and covers me. In my Sunlight relationships, He is there. In my Twilight relationships, He is there. In my Midnight relationships, He is there. In my Abyss relationships, He is there. His love is there in all those depths, and in greater depths than I can even imagine.