Author: Chrisy

What Can I Do?

The last few days I have been feeling overwhelmed by the needs of the people around me and trying to figure out how I can help them. I have one friend who is in a specialty clinic for some health problems that have been plaguing her for months. I have another friend whose family just seems to continually be bombarded with major health issues and a new one has arisen. A third friend is struggling with some significant heart and mind issues. And then in staff meeting yesterday we had a long list of needs that we prayed over on behalf of our congregation. Sometimes it can get heavy when faced with so many issues,  and then to top it all off, sometimes you don’t even know how to help or to pray.

As I thought about all this today, I was reminded of this scripture, and I love the way The Message phrases it:

Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good. — Romans 8:26-28 (The Message)

Good news! If we don’t know how else to help, prayer always helps! And, we don’t have to know what to pray – the Spirit knows!

Not that this gets me “off the hook” for doing something else tangible for any of these people, but when there is nothing else I can do, I can always pray.

So that is what I intend to keep doing.

How about you? Does prayer play an important part in caring for those around you? How does that look for you?

Piles of Leaves

I love Garfield. Don’t know why, but I always have. Daily, I get the Garfield cartoon sent to my e-mail and yesterday’s made me laugh. Out loud. Because I swear, instead of Jon in the picture, it could have been Mike.

It’s a perfect example of just when you start to realize how thankful you are for the next thing in your life, something happens and then you feel overwhelmed by the same thing.

So, on this Monday morning of a week that will likely bring many challenges to your life, your schedule, your heart, and your mind, try to focus for a while on what you are thankful for, and why. That way, when you begin to feel overwhelmed, you can remind yourself why you are thankful!

Food and Fitness Friday: We’re Making Progress

For those of you who know my husband, you should make sure you are sitting down to read this.

He agreed to Meatless Mondays.

Yes, I am talking about the meat and potatoes, wild game killing (and eating) man who is my husband, the man I love, who loves meat. With every meal. For every meal. Side dishes optional. And that includes veggies. He always says that vegetables aren’t food, they are what food eats. And that is most likely never going to change. Ever. And that is okay.

But cooking two kinds of meals every night isn’t really possible. And now that I am actually home a couple of nights a week and am cooking, I thought maybe Meatless Mondays would be a way to introduce my family to a wider variety of foods. And Mr. Meat was agreeable to let me do it.

So, how did that happen? Well, I have been cooking occasionally for the whole family. When I find a recipe I think they would like, I make it for all of us. When I find one I am confident I am the only one who will like it, I don’t try to feed it to them. And they are finding that they like the food. Maybe it isn’t what they are used to, but they are giving it a try.

Then there are meals like last night’s. I made a yummy biscuit-topped, pot-pie-like dish that I split in two and added chicken to their half. And they liked it. A lot. It’s all about picking my battles, and meals, based on what I know about them and their taste buds, and making things work for both the meat-eaters and me the veggie-eater. It’s about making sure that I keep a track-record of making foods they like, rather than trying to make them eat something that I know they wouldn’t like. They are learning to trust my vegan food choices for them, the same way they have trusted all my other food choices for them over the years. I take that seriously. I want them to enjoy eating food that is good for them, not just the stuff that isn’t. 🙂

It is important for me to say, I am NOT attempting to turn my family into fellow vegans. But I am attempting to get them to eat healthier and try new things. And I think we are making progress. And that’s a good thing.

Too Busy!

I read this in my devotional book this week:

When the Master invited the Governor to practice meditation and the Governor said he was too busy, this is the reply he got: “You put me in mind of a man walking blindfolded into the jungle–and being too busy to take the blindfold off.”

When the Governor pleaded lack of time, the Master said, “It is a mistake to think that meditation cannot be practiced for lack of time. The real reason is agitation of the mind.” –From Taking Flight by Anthony deMello

And then the next night, I read this:

How often people today cry out in exasperation or despair, “I just don’t have enough time!” There is so much to do: earn a living, fulfill a vocation, nurture relationships, care for dependents, exercise, clean the house. Moreover, we hope to maintain sanity while doing all this, and to keep growing as faithful and loving people at the same time. We are finite, and the demands seem too great, the time too short.

Puritan Sabbath keepers agreed that “good Sabbaths make good Christians.” They meant that regular, disciplined attention to the spiritual life was the foundation of faithfulness. Another dimension of the saying opens up if we imagine a worshiping community helping one another step off the treadmill of work-and-spend and into the circle of glad gratitude for the gifts of God. Taken this way, good Sabbaths make good Christians by regularly reminding us of God’s creative, liberating, and redeeming presence, not only in words but also through a practice we do together in response to that presence. –From “Keeping Sabbath by Dorothy C. Bass in Practicing Our Faith

How many times in the last week have you said, “I’m just too busy to get to that,” or “I don’t have time to do this?” Can you even count the number? And how often do you say, “I just don’t have time to pray,” or “I can’t figure out how to work devotional time into my schedule?”

We live in a culture of busy-ness. Life seems to be out of our control because there is something going on all the time and we can’t (don’t want to) miss anything. And what suffers when life gets crazy busy? Our quiet time. Our centering time. Our sabbath time. We just keep filling the schedule until there is no time left to refresh and renew ourselves with the help of Christ.

There was a time when I said  I just couldn’t find any time that worked to spend time reading my Bible and praying. Then one night, I climbed in bed and picked up the novel I was reading and it hit me. I was choosing to lay in my bed and read a novel. I had time to do that. Or rather, I was making time to do that. Why wasn’t I making time to spend with the Lord? So I started. I put my Bible on top of my book and before I could read my book, I made myself read my Bible. And then I added a devotional book. And then I added writing in a journal. And now, I can’t imagine going to sleep without that time. I do it faithfully every day. Even when it is late.

You hear people say all the time about how important this time is, and I agree, but until I read Monday’s devotional, I never quite had the right words for why it is important. Now I do.

When the Master invited the Governor to practice meditation and the Governor said he was too busy, this is the reply he got: “You put me in mind of a man walking blindfolded into the jungle–and being too busy to take the blindfold off.”

Every day, we are walking into a jungle, crazy schedules, family dynamics, work issues, and so much more, and when we are too busy to stop and re-center our lives around Christ and who we are in Him, we are walking into it blindfolded. We can’t see our purpose. We can’t see how God is at work. We can’t see how what we are a part of fits into a bigger picture than just getting through the day. And we are purposely not taking that blindfold off because it would take too much time.

I don’t want to spend my time in the jungle blindfolded. How about you?

Taking it Back!

This summer and fall have been CRAZY. And yes, I mean that in an all-caps kind of way. We haven’t had much down time at all, which really means we haven’t had much family time at all. Yes, I got to spend every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday evening and Saturday all day with Anne because of cheer leading, but that isn’t what I would call quality mother/daughter time, unless you are counting all 30+ of the “daughters” I was hanging out with. 🙂

Friday night and Saturday were the first in months with no commitments whatsoever. And it was lovely. And boring. And just what I needed.

Friday night we ordered pizza and started a card game of Hand and Foot with the kids. Saturday we finished it. We had a ball. I can’t remember the last time we sat down to play a game together.

For a long time we had a weekly family game night, but in the chaos of life we lost it. And until we sat down to play Friday night, I am not sure any of us realized just how much we had missed it.

So Saturday we all agreed and declared the return of our weekly Family Game Night every Monday. It’s back on.

And my favorite part? I got a text from Anne as I was on my way home Sunday evening from a staff outing. It said, “When u get home can we play 1 hand of hand and foot?”

Needless to say, we did, just to get a jump-start on this evening’s game.

We won’t talk about how Friday and Saturday’s game ended. But last night, Anne and I set ourselves up nicely as we look forward to finishing the game tonight. 🙂

If you don’t have specific time set aside to have fun with your family on a regular basis. Do it. Set it up. You won’t be sorry.

If you do a regular family fun night, what is it?

Food and Fitness Friday: Gear

I have been running for long enough now that I have found out there are certain things that I need to run. Here are some of my “necessities.”

  1. Good running shoes. When I first started running, I had a pair of Nike Shox that I ran in and I had terrible knee trouble. After awhile, someone mentioned I might need better shoes, so  I did some research and found Asics Kayano Gel. When I started running in them, my knees quit hurting. I always know when I am ready for a new pair when my ankles start getting a little  tight on runs. This week I was noticing my ankles a bit more, so I decided to start looking for new shoes. Now, the first time I bought shoes, I bought the current year’s “model.” Every subsequent time, I have looked for the best price, which can usually be found on last year’s model. For example, right now, the model is Asics Kayano Gel 18. So I look for 17. Or as in the case today, I found a pair of 16 (which is what I am currently running in) for $59.99. Considering the 18’s are $149.99, that is quite the bargain. (I may have jumped up and down a little.) If you are new to running and haven’t found the right shoe for you, you can visit the shoe finder at runnersworld.com, or better yet, go to a store, like Fleet Feet, and get fitted for your foot and running type. Then look online for last year’s model and the best price.
  2. Good sports bra. (Men – you can skip this one.) One thing I have found about running long distances is I need good support and a bra that doesn’t move, because moving causes chafing and that is unpleasant. Here again, go somewhere (I went to Fleet Feet) and be fitted. Your sports bra may very well be a different size than the bras you wear every day. (Mine is smaller around with a bigger cup size to give me what I need.) I use the Moving Comfort Juno. It is racer back, so it hides well under my racer back tank tops, and it is very comfortable. (Like shoes, bras do get worn out. When you start noticing little issues, it is time for a new one.)
  3. Body Glide. I don’t know what I would do with out Body Glide. It’s purpose is to prevent chafing, which happens when you run long distances. I have both a Body Glide stick, which I use on key places of my body where I know I have a tendency to chafe, and Body Glide liquefied powder, which I use on my feet and between my toes to keep blisters from forming. It has saved me a world of hurt. And I know that because I trained for my first half marathon without even knowing it existed.
  4. Good socks. I learned early on that regular socks just don’t work for me to run long distances in. I get blisters. They get wet and stay that way. It’s just not pretty. And then I found Balega Hidden Comfort socks. They are amazing. So soft. So comfortable. If I run through a puddle, my feet are dry in seconds, due to their moisture wicking ability. (Like shoes, socks do wear out, so I replace my socks about twice a year.)
  5. SpiBelt. Spi stands for small personal item. This belt has a little pocket that expands based on what you put in it. I carry my inhaler and phone with me at all times. And the beauty of this little belt is that it doesn’t bounce around while I am running. Which is a big deal. For races, I have toggles that hold my race number (which makes it easier to dress in layers and always have my race bib showing), and there is room in it to put energy chews, kleenex, or whatever small thing I might want to carry with me.
  6. Headlight. I know. It is cheesy and I am sure I look funny, but I do most of my running very early in the morning when it is dark outside. My headlight (literally, a light on a stretchy band that I wear around my head) has probably saved my life more than I care to admit. When you are running (or walking) in the dark, you have to make yourself seen. The reflective patches on our shoes isn’t enough. So the headlight it is. I have a blinky red light I have worn on the back of my Spibelt, too, but the bouncing of running makes the battery come away from the contacts and it quits working. As soon as I figure out how to keep it from doing that, I’ll be wearing it again.

There are more things that I like (quality moisture-wicking clothes, something to cover my ears when it is cold, my Garmin watch to track time and distance, etc.), but these are the six things that I won’t do a run without. They are the most important pieces of gear that I have, and I think that they make a huge difference in my motivation to run. Who wants to run when your knees hurt, you’re getting blisters, you have to carry your phone, and your are constantly dodging cars that can’t see you, and then you have chafed areas after your run that make you miserable for the next few days. Not me. It is important to find the things that work for you so you have fewer and fewer reasons to avoid doing what you know you need to do.

What are the pieces of gear for your exercise of choice that you can’t do without?

 

The Right Armor

Sunday I started teaching a new series in Kids Church. It is called Faith Case: Armor of God. It is a great set of lessons about what it means to operate with the help of the Holy Spirit and what it looks like to put on the full armor of God. The DVD-based series follows a girl named Regina into a new school where she will need to use her armor to fend off the attacks of The Spoiler.

One of the things that the kids will learn over the 10-week period is Ephesians 6:10-18:

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

Now, I don’t know about you, but memorization is hard for me. And if I am asking kids to memorize these nine verses, I need to memorize them, too. Give me a script for a play that has back and forth lines or lyrics to a song and I can memorize them, but for some reason (because I don’t have to? because I am not motivated to?) memorizing scripture is much harder for me. I know it is important. After all, one of the right pieces of armor is “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Jesus Himself even modeled that for us as he fought off temptation by quoting scripture to Satan (Matthew 4).

I want to know more scripture. I want to be more like Christ. And to be more like Christ, I need to have more of His Word deep in my heart. So I’m going to work on it, beginning with these nine verses and then going from there.

And I am challenging you to do the same. Are you up for it?

Monday Music: Celebrity Sightings and Lazy Days

I don’t have time to write a real blog today, I am too busy lying around, hanging with my kids, and catching up on The Voice, and Dancing with the Stars: All Stars.

Speaking of The Voice, last season, one of the competitors on Christina’s team was Anthony Evans and guess what? I met him last night at a concert/night of worship with Kari Jobe, All Sons and Daughters and him!

See? There’s photographic proof. 🙂

And he was as fabulous in person as he was on TV. He shared his new song with us so I thought I would share it with you. Enjoy!

Food and Fitness Friday: Sharing What We’ve Learned

When you decide to take on something new, whether it is running your first marathon or adjusting to a whole food, plant-based diet, it is important to have people who have done it and can share their experiences with you along the way. For me, that has come in a couple of forms. I have one friend who made the switch in her eating habits about the same time as I did, and we have been sharing recipes, food, and stories with one another.  This friend is also one of my running partners and shared her experiences and a book with me as I trained for my first marathon, and we are training together for the Goofy.

Another friend of ours has been really studying up, attending conferences, and learning as much as he can about plant-based eating. And instead of keeping that all to himself, he is sharing it with people who are curious about this lifestyle change. One of the ways he is doing this is by hosting a viewing of the documentary, Forks Over Knives, next week. Here is the announcement that was in our church bulletin this past Sunday:

Forks Over Knives: Join us for a viewing of this ground breaking documentary, Thursday, October 11, 6:30 p.m., in the FMY Room. This film has won acclaim for its investigation into the widespread
positive effects that diet can have on health. The evening will also include discussion, delicious healthy snacks and resources for those who want to know more. Please email George Barber
or Sue Groves if you plan to attend.

If you are in the Greenville area, this would be a great time for you to come, learn how a plant-based diet can help various health issues, weight issues, and more. Or, if you have friends and family members who have chosen to eat a plant-based diet and you are curious why, this would be a great opportunity for that as well. Coming to view the film doesn’t say you want to commit to doing this, it is simply a way to find out more.

I will be there and will be bringing one of my favorite dishes, Quinoa, Corn and Black Bean Salad, as will others who have found this dietary change to be a good fit for them. Come. Learn. Ask questions. See what others have learned. And if nothing else, come try some delicious plant-based food.

A Little Goes a Long Way

Proverbs 16:24
Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.

Two people blessed me yesterday simply with the power of their gracious words. In the midst of my crazy busy life, at home and at work, when sometimes I get overwhelmed with the gravity of the negative, these two women spoke words that were truly sweet to my soul and healing to my bones (and heart, and spirit).

Never forget the power of your words to bring healing to others. Never forget that a simple thank you (be specific), goes a long way to bringing joy to another person’s life. Never forget that your words have the power to help and heal or to hurt and tear down. It is you that makes the choice to speak words of hope, health, joy, grace and gratitude.

It doesn’t have to be much: a phone call, text or Facebook message, e-mail, or face-to-face as you pass in the hall will all do the trick.

Who will you bless with your gracious words today?