Month: March 2019

S.T.R.E.S.S.

My heart was beating so fast! I felt like it was going to jump out of my chest! Years ago, I had to work two jobs. I was trying to get to my second job and the traffic was just not moving out of my way. I ended up getting there just a few minutes late. My co-workers were just glad I had made it safely. There are so many times life happenings can get us so stressed out! I remember, when my daughter was in grade school, she had fallen & broken her arm. Those few miles to get to the school were endless in my mind, as the stress built up inside me trying to reach my child who was badly hurt. I have recently been in the process of getting a ladies Bible class study published. It needs to be in my hands before a lady’s event coming up, where I am a vendor in a big arena, the first of next month. I have tried to return projects and answer my publisher in the quickest way possible. They know of my deadline and are working with me. But I feel stressed if I allow myself to think about it very long.

There are so many things in this life that can get us stressed out! Waiting for a loved one’s surgery to we be over, knowing that the next paycheck cannot pay all those past due bills pilling up, the piles of endless laundry & diaper changes loom in front of us or deadlines at work are quickly approaching. Some of the stress we feel can be caused by ourselves and sometimes by others. I feel the Bible is an amazing tool for us when we feel our heart beating really fast and we cannot seem to breathe. Let’s dissect the word stress and see how we can be reminded to take a step back and just breathe.

S. stands for SOLITUDE. In Matthew 14:22, Jesus was surrounded by multitudes of people. Can you imagine all the people trying to get to Jesus, just like when we go to a Royals game and the multitude of people who are all trying to leave at the same time? (Of course, the two examples have nothing to do with the other, except for the fact of so many people in the same place at the same time.) Jesus told his disciples to go on ahead of Him and He went up to a mountain by Himself to pray. Sometimes we just have to get away from all the busyness and all the people demanding our time, and refocus by praying and slowing down from our hectic pace of life. I, personally, like to sit out on my patio-look at God’s nature-pray and read from His word.

T. stands for TIME. Some days there just seems like there are not enough hours in the day. We get the kids off to school, work a long day and then return home to the routine of supper and helping kids with homework and getting them and you to bed in a timely manner. Then, we wake up the next morning to do it all over again. The key is to find time in the day to refocus on what is important in your life and be thankful for them. Maybe while driving into and home from, work you can pray to God, (with your eyes open of course!) Change your day to day routine attitude, to an attitude of gratitude! Jesus’ disciples thought He did not have time for the little children and wanted to send them away, in Mark 10:13-16. But Jesus saw the need for time with these little children and told the disciples that they needed to become as these little children, full of innocence and joy, to enter the kingdom of God.

R. is for RELAX and RELEASE. When I get home from an especially busy day of work, I have to sit on the couch, take a deep breath and release the day to God, hoping that I have done something for His glory that day. In 1 Peter 5:11, it tells us that we are to give God the glory. Sit and decompress from the business of your day-relax. Then, release to God the things that you do not feel you have accomplished that day. Make a list in your head, or in your journal, the things you feel that you have been able to do that day and give God the glory. End your day with positive thoughts not negative. It is a much better morning when we can wake up to positive thoughts!

E. is for ENERGIZE. I have to get enough rest and eat the right nutrients in order to feel my best. I have found that if I can take a walk every day, that I feel more energized. I take that time to pray for one member of my family or church family each day. When I lift them up in prayer during my exercise, I feel stronger both mentally and physically. We need to keep ourselves strong within and without in order to fulfill God’s purpose for our lives. We need to become stronger by the knowledge that God is in control and will give us what we need when we need it. Isaiah 40:31, is one of my favorite verses of the Bible. “But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” I must realize that the true energizer is the Lord!

S, stands for SING. I am not a singer! Sure, I sing to the songs on the radio or hum when I am doing things around the house. But to sing where other people are is not one of my talents. (I always feel sorry for the person in front of me at church services.) But there is a way to keep your heart singing. Think of a song and sing in your heart. It will make your heart lighter and happier! The book of Psalm is full of amazing songs to help us in our journey here on the earth. Turn to the Old Testament book and read. It is full of examples of songs the people of God sang. Some of the songs in this book of the Bible are songs when the people of God, especially David, were going through trials. But it is also full of songs that were joyful and full of praise for what God had done for them and us. There are so many amazing “church” songs that we have been brought up singing, that can help us through a stressful day.

S. stands for SAVOR. Time goes by so quickly!  My great granddaughter will soon be 1 year old! (How can I actually say that I am a great grandmother? Where has the time gone when my granddaughter was this age!) My new grandbaby is showing so much personality, already at 4 months! I was just there to be with my daughter and family in January. My grandbaby has already changed in just a few short months! Don’t keep looking into the unknown future or back at the wisp of time called the past! Savor today! When we eat a good meal, we savor every bite, we are in that moment of time enjoying that tasty morsel. James 4:14 says, “Whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.” Savor each morsel of this moment in time!

How do we combat STRESS? We find solitude-alone time with God. Second, we use our TIME wisely and for the glory of God. Thirdly, we RELAX & RELEASE. Take a deep cleansing breath and release the day to God. The fourth one, is to ENERGIZE. Find strength in God to keep on keeping on! Fifth, SING. To sing is an action word. Singing helps keep our heart happy and helps us remember what is truly important. And sixth, is to SAVOR today. Right now, is the one moment in time that will never be with you again. How are you savoring your time?

The next time you feel your heart beating so fast because of a stressful situation, remember how we can combat that feeling of stress. Make that word stress into something for the glory of God. When you come to the end of your rope because of stress, which is trying to strangle you, let go and fall into the loving arms of Jesus!

Till next time.                                                    Keela

Anyone who knows me, realizes that I am all about Hallmark channel movies love stories & mysteries. They usually all have the same type of ending but it is so much fun to see how the characters get to that point. There was a particular 2018, based on a true story, movie called “A Godwink Christmas,” that I watched and loved this last Christmas. The character was minding her own business traveling and all of a sudden, a whole set of events led to a different outcome than she was focused on. Some were good but there were also some very difficult things that happened to her.

The movie starts out with the definition of Godwink: “an event or personal experience often identified as coincidence, so astonishing that it is seen as a sign of divine intervention, especially when perceived as the answer to a prayer.”  Wow, have you ever had times in your life when things have not gone as you expected and thru a series of events, your life ended up being for the best for you and your future? I have had several, but will share one with you today.

When my husband and I lost our home to foreclosure, my husband felt like all we could afford was a trailer. There are several nice areas in our home town that house trailers. Now, I want to say here, I have nothing against living in a trailer or the people who live in trailers. But I did not feel this was the best option for us as most of them have steps and my husband was not able to maneuver steps. I just did not feel that was the right option for us.  But anyway, he started looking up trailers for sale in our price range. He knew I had always dreamed of living by a lake or some type of body of water and he found one by a little pond in a nice trailer park. We went and looked at it, even had my parents come up and look at it. The living room had a bay window where I could “see” our Christmas tree sitting. One of the bedrooms floor was a bit “soft” but I knew my dad could fix anything and he could figure out something. I started getting excited! My husband called to make an offer on it only to find out it had been sold that morning to someone else. I was discouraged but my husband kept looking and found another one, in the same area and if you looked out one of the bedroom windows just right you could still see the pond. We went and looked at it. It had a fireplace in the living room and I started trying to “picture” us living there. It sat on a corner lot and had a ramp to get into the door. We decided, when we got home, to call the person who had it up for sale and make an offer. We went out the door opposite of the road and were walking around the side of the yard next to the road. We were headed to our car and a car stopped and a lady rolled down her window. She asked us if we were going to put an offer on this trailer. We told her yes and what she did and said next is what I consider a Godwink moment from my life. She said she was from out of town and she and her friend were there to visit a relative that lived in this park. She said she was the original owner of this trailer that had been moved to this lot about twenty years before. She said the man who was selling this trailer was a swindler and don’t believe anything he said. She said they always had trouble with the roof leaking, no matter how many times they had fixed it. Since the trailer did not have any other trailers behind it and it also sat on a hill facing the north, that every winter the pipes froze and burst causing them to spend a lot of money to repair them every year! She rolled up her window and drove away. My husband and I just stood there in disbelief, not saying a word, watching her drive away from us. We left never speaking about what had just happened and he immediately started looking at duplexes to rent. The one we found was really nice and on a corner lot so our grandkids could come over and run around in the yard. And the best part was, it had no stairs or steps to get in or out of the duplex. That is where we lived until my husband’s death about three years later.

What are the odds of all that happening to lead to what ended up being the best for our future? Originally loosing our home to foreclosure was good, even though I felt so defeated and sad at the time. After my husband’s death, I did not have to make costly repairs and go through the tedious process of selling it. Our yard was big there and when I was young, I could mow and take care of a big yard, but getting older I would not have been able to care for it. The same with a trailer. My kids and I would have had to fix it up and wait for it to sell before I could move. Renting a duplex, I was released from the contract. My kids could see that I needed to leave that duplex where so many sad things had happened. They started looking for me a home to buy, weeding out the ones that they knew were not good for me or I would not like. They settled on about four homes that were in the right price range. Each one of them decided on the one that they thought I would choose. But they agreed to not tell each other which one until I had made my decision.  I went with them to see the ones they had chosen. As soon as I walked into my present home, I felt at home. I did not have to take care of a big yard or worry about snow removal. I felt protected by my husband somehow. I felt like he would have been so happy that I found such a nice, safe home. The funny thing is, this was the one each one of my kids had thought I would like!

In the Hallmark movie, the main characters aunt, told her several things I want to share with you and some thoughts that came to my mind when I think of Godwink moments. She said sometimes we just have to take a leap of faith when the difficult times come (like losing my home to foreclosure, disappointments with giving bid on trailer and finally my husband’s death) or the big decisions that we don’t know what to do (like finding just the right home for me to move to after his death.) When difficult times come or difficult decisions have to be made, we have to see things in a different light-a different mindset. We need to reach up to God in prayer from the very beginning when we have something major happening in our lives. God does not speak to us out loud like He did to old testament characters like Moses from a burning bush or when he received the ten commandments. (Exodus 3 & Exodus 20) But God “winks” at us in our everyday happenings. We read the Bible and have it so embedding within our hearts when troubling times-decisions have to be made, that we can push away all the negativity and weed through the confusion. God gets our attention when we don’t understand why things are happening to us or when things don’t happen the way we think they should. God leads us to the right path-the path He has for our lives-the path that is the best one. The path we need to take in order to fulfill His purposes for us!

 Look back at your life and think how things have happened just in the right order, at the right time-the right moment (even though at the time it did not feel like it), but it was actually for the ultimate good for your life.

Psalm 18:28-30 reads “For You will light my lamp; the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness. For by You I can run against a troop, by my God I can leap over a wall. As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him.”

When your life does not go as you think it should or have planned, consider that God is “winking” at you and He is in control for your ultimate good. And next Christmas, look up “A Godwink Christmas.” You will be glad you did!

Till next time!                                                  Keela

SNOW SNAKES

My husband was a letter carrier for 27 years before having to retire with disability because of his deteriorating health. During the time he was delivering mail, he wrote an article for the church newsletter called “Snow Snakes.” Because of this crazy winter we have had, the snow reminded me of this article. I will quote the first two paragraphs of his writing and then put my spin on his subject of snow snakes.

Larry wrote “Most of you reading this article have probably never heard of snow snakes let alone actually having seen them. I was in that same situation until about 35 years ago. Let me assure you they are real. I have seen and encountered several in the time since then. They, on rare occasions, can be deadly. Mostly when you come in contact with them it results in a painful experience. As the name implies, they reside in the snow. Not just any snow. There has to be an amount of snow for them to cone out. A light dusting will never result in finding them. Once you have two or more inches of snow, you have the perfect conditions for you to come in contact with snow snakes. They never come to the surface of the snow, but lay buried in the snow. They prefer to be in the deepest part of the snow. They can be anywhere but usually are found in areas where grass grows in the summer time.

I first heard about and came in contact with snow snakes the first winter I was a letter carrier. Having been hired in the month of November I did not have long to wait for the first major snowfall. The morning of that snowfall I was told by the old-timers to watch out for the snow snakes. I thought they were just pulling my leg. To my surprise they weren’t joking. I soon came face to face with my first snow snake. Luckily being young I avoided any harm from this first snake. I was not nearly as lucky in future occasions. As a result of these snow snakes I have had painful swelling in my ankles and knees. These are the most likely places to bear the attack of a snow snake.”

The fact that these snow snakes are so sneaky (say that three times in a row!) made me think about a verse in 1 Peter 5:8, “Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil walks around like a roaring lion seeking whom he might devour.”  Out in the wild, the lion waits to sneak up on its victim and attacks when they least expect it. The lion waits patiently until he finds a prey that is weak and vulnerable.

Years ago, when my daughter was about 8, I took her and her friend to the zoo. I always loved going and seeing all the animals and getting the reactions from my kids. Well, this particular day we had seen the elephants, the monkeys and were headed for the lion’s cage. When we got there the “mommy” lion was laying on a rock sunning and watching her three cubs running around playing with each other. My daughter said, “I wonder where the “daddy” lion is.” About that time, we heard some ferocious roaring coming from behind the rocks (I was sure glad those bars were there!) and here came the lion strutting his stuff. He paced back and forth and roared, looking at the people gathered in front of the cage. All of a sudden, he stopped and looked at us, turned his rear end to the bars, raised his tail and shot ….! Well, you can guess what he shot! For some reason, my body jerked into action and I pushed my daughter and friend one way and I jumped the other. Needless to say, some of the “liquid” splashed on my daughter. The look on my daughter’s face was priceless! Somewhere between being shocked and mortified. I was laughing so hard, tears were running down my face, as we made our way to the restroom to clean up. When we came out of the restroom, you can be sure we headed in the opposite way from the lion’s cage!

That is exactly how the devil attacks us. He is always watchful, ready to attack us when we least expect it: times when we are feeling low because a loved one has died or we are feeling painful and laying in bed with a sickness; times that we just don’t have enough money to pay the bills and buy food for our family; times that we have seen a movie that had scenes we should not have watched or words that we have become calloused to; times that it is easier to take a drink of alcohol or inject drugs into our system because life is too hard to face right now. The devil can sneak into our minds, even before we realize it. There are times at church or when I am praying, that all of a sudden, I realize I am thinking about something else instead! Even in times that we are focused on doing good or spending time with our God, we have to be on the alert. We have to be vigilant or alert, to the spiritual pitfalls of life and take appropriate steps to make certain we do not fall to his cunning tricks of deceit! Ephesians 6:10-13 reads “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”  This scripture goes on to say what parts of spiritual armor we should put on in order to be able to fight the forces of evil that war against us every day. The parts of armor listed are: belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, feet with gospel of peace, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and the only offensive part is the sword the word of God. We have to always be aware and we must keep the scriptures so embedded within our hearts that we can defend ourselves when evil does come to pull us away from what we know that God wants us to do or be.

So, you are wondering, what does all I just talked about, have to do with the snow snakes, that my husband had written about and what in the world are these snow snakes? A snow snake is a garden hose that has been left out in the winter and when covered up with snow, is just waiting for you to get tangled up in and fall. My husband fell quite a few times trudging through the snow to deliver mail and got tangled up in that hose and fell flat, without warning. That is so true in our lives. Life can hit us hard, make us fall, because the devil is always waiting for us to come along, stumble and fall. He is ready when we are at our weakest to take us down a dark path instead of always following the path that is full of light with God’s love.

Be always watchful! Lion’s are sneaky, they can raise their tail and “shoot” at you without warning. And, as in the case of the snow snakes, can make you stumble and fall! So next time you are at the zoo, don’t stand too close to the lion’s cage! And when you are out walking or playing out in the snow, watch out for those “snow snakes!”

Till next time!                                                     Keela