GROWING SEEDS: "Every Storm Runs Out Of Rain"

Every Storm Runs Out Of Rain.

I saw this quote above painted on a small piece of wood at a qaint little store last year.  The Coffee Chicks (we've recently changed our name to Girl Gang, btw) had invaded Branson, MO for a few days and were out shopping when I turned a corner in the store and there was this quote staring at me:

"Every Storm Runs Out Of Rain"

I remember standing there staring at it thinking, "Those are the words I've been waiting five years to see".  I'm not going to lie, friends; it's been a tough five years for this girl named Liz.  I have felt the over-spray from each wave that has attempted to drown me.  A literal flood....cancer.... death....anxiety....house sell....and now?

Today....I feel like Job Chapter 43.

Spoiler Alert:  There is no Chapter 43 in the Old Testament book of Job.  After 41 chapters of watching Satan test this man Job to his max.....taking his children, his wealth, his health....everything he ever loved (well, except that cranky wife of his), we find him happy and thankful as we turn the page to Chapter 42.  He is blessed because he endured the storm of Satan and now finds his life has been restored with double what he had before....because he never gave up on God.

So what does this have to do with Liz?  I'm certainly no Job, although I have referred to myself on occasion as "Job-ette" during my toughest storms these past five years, I feel like God has brought me to a place of peace.  A place of exhale.  Chapter 43.

And like Job, God has restored everything He allowed to be taken during my time of testing.  My toes are no longer dangling off the edge of a cliff as they once were.  I'm no longer begging Him for rescue from the storms in the corner of a closet and I'm now standing at the start of a new chapter.  God has been leading and preparing me to return home near family to the Dallas area after almost 20 years in Mt. Vernon.  I'm as shocked as you probably are.

But one never starts a new chapter without taking part of the old chapter with them....and I'll be taking what I learned, what I discovered and what I loved about Mt. Vernon with me into my next chapter.  I feel the urge to build an alter here, much like the Children of Israel did so many years ago to mark a place of remembrance and difference in their lives.  Mt. Vernon has been that place of great remembrance and difference to me. I found many of you here...and even more importantly, i found God here.

And I am living proof that every storm does indeed run out of rain.

GROWING SEEDS: "Choose Hope"

This week marks the beginning of Chapter 60 in the Life of Liz.

And there's just something about being another year older that causes you to reflect back on Chapters 59 or 44 or 27 in your life.  Don't get me wrong....I'm looking forward as much as I'm reflecting backwards, but when you look back on spent chapters in your life, you are able to see with clarity....20-20 vision in the Year 2020....the pouring out of Grace into your very soul.  You remember the sufferings.....but you also see the ripples from your endurance muscles increasing because of those Chapters of Suffering.

"Suffering Produces Endurance....."

Romans 5:3

And because your endurance muscles are more toned and strong now, your character starts changing.  You start caring more for others than you do for yourself.  Your heart starts breaking for the things that breaks God's heart.  Those fancy clothes or expensive vacations you once treated yourself to for years, well.....they become less important as your character changes.  Your focus changes to those who are suffering around you; suffering just as you once did, and you long to help them....instead of yourself.   You start to take on the character of God.....

"Endurance produces Character....."

Romans 5:4

And suddenly before you know it, you're already at Chapter 60 or 75 or 90, and you find this chapter is full of Hope.  Hope....because God's love has poured continuously into your heart through the Suffering....through the Endurance....and now through the gift of Hope of the Holy Spirit.  You see the common thread of God's finger in your life that has gotten you to this moment in your life.

"Character produces Hope....."

Romans 5:4

And this crazy wonderful wild Hope......well, it's the very Heart of Jesus.

"What Consumes My Mind Controls My Life.”

“I very much recognize I will steer where I stare.  So I must watch what I fixate on. 

I know that what consumes my mind controls my life.”

Lysa Terkeurst

This past week I was crazy blessed to have an overnight visit by my oldest granddaughter Bella and her best friend, Jayden.  Bella is a tall 17 year old who has a magic eye for photography.  She sees things in nature and in people through the lens of her camera that most would overlook.  .

We decided to go Photo-hopping on Monday afternoon after delivering Meals on Wheel in Winnsboro.  We had taken countless pictures of cows and deer and ducks, when I remembered a really cool dirt road that ended at an old cemetery.  It is one of my favorite places to go watch a winter sunset, as it sits high up on a hill.  The girls jumped out of the Jeep as soon as we arrived and started taking pictures of barbed wire, daisies growing wild and then each other.  Eventually, we all got back in and headed back down the dirt road the way we came.....

It wasn't long before I heard, "Oh NOOO" coming from Bella.  She said she couldn't find her cell phone....a cell phone she had paid for with her own money.  We made our way back to the last place we had seen it....on the fender of the Jeep at the top of the hill by the cemetery.  We drove real slow....looking on the road, in the ditch....praying we would find it unscathed.  

At this point in the story, it's important you know something about Bella.  She is incredibly smart and talented, doesn't like swimming in water that has fish, is almost 6' tall, sleeps with one eye open, and loves God more than ANYTHING in the world.  She and God...well, they're more than Father and daughter...they are BFF's. 

After driving the road twice, she finally said, "It's ok Lele, I think God needed me to see how much I was making my phone a god."

Ohhh.  Is there a more meaningful word than "Proud"?  If there is, I'd like to place it here.  As this cool daughter of God prayed asking Him to help her find her phone, He helped her find something even better; a truth within herself....a truth within ALL of ourselves.

We never found her phone.  We were never meant to.

"Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things."

Colossians 3:2

P.S.  As I sent this article to Bella for permission, here was her response: "Thank you, Lele, for writing this and spending so much time searching for my phone.  But as for now, I am so grateful and content with Dad's old iPhone 4, and I've already noticed a shift in my prayer life and how often I look to God throughout my day.  As sad as I am to lose some of my photos, this is EXACTLY what needed to happen to set my mind on "things above".  

What Is Your Purpose In Life?

 

What is your purpose in life?  Is it to just live happily until you die?  Maybe its to have a family, grandkids and be successful in business?  The older I get, the more I realize my purpose in life....isn't all about me.

I read a story many years ago about an executive recruiter (head hunter) who liked to "disarm" his prospective hires that found their way into his office.  He would offer them a drink, take off his coat, undo his tie, pop up his feet on the desk and talk baseball, family, etc. until he had them good and relaxed.  Just when he got them loosened up, he would lean over his desk, look them straight in the eye and say, "What's your purpose in life?'  He said it was amazing how they would fall apart at that one question.

He went on to tell about one prospect he was interviewing.  He had him all disarmed and right where he wanted him.  He leaned over his desk and asked, "What's your purpose in life, Bob?"  Without blinking an eye, Bob said, "To go to Heaven and take as many people with me as I can."  The recruiter was speechless.

So again I ask; What is YOUR purpose in life?

Is it to make as much money as you can?  Or maybe to get through life making as few mistakes as possible?  Or...is it to get to Heaven and take as many people with you as you can?  If its the latter, we have to ask what are you, and I, doing to make that happen?

It seems to me the very best way we could do that is to live a life filled with love for our neighbor; i.e., Everyone.  And yes, that includes loving those people carrying big screen TV sets they just stole as they ran out of Target this past week or beating a helpless woman in a wheelchair because she tried to block the door and keep them from stealing it.

It's been a tough week for our country.  And I have found myself so angry at these people as I watched them move through life with no moral compass....no conscience....no concern for their neighbor.  I want to be the opposite of them.  I want to hate their action...but love the person...even if they never love me back.  After all, isn't that what Jesus did for you and me? 

"A new command I give you, Liz;

Love one another (even the people with no conscience)

As I have loved YOU (yep, you...a sinner), so you MUST love one another.

By this, everyone (yes sir-ee, that would be Mr. & Mrs. No-Conscience-with-the-stolen-flat-screen-TV)

will know that YOU (insert your name here) are My disciples,

IF you love one another."

John 13:34-35  NIV

GROWING SEEDS: "Old Camel Knees"

When each of my siblings and I were born, Dad made a point to nickname us before we ever left the hospital.  My sister came out the nickname-winner when she, being the eldest, went home with the name Princess.  My brother, whose official name was James, went home with Eddie.  And I went home with....wait for it.....Softie.  ~ Sigh ~.  Evidently, I was this rolly-polly little fat baby and all Dad could think to nickname me was based on how soft those rolls of fat were when he held me.  I stayed embarrassed all through my teen years with this nickname and Dad still refers to me as Softie today.  But now....I wear it like a badge of pride!

I chuckled when I heard what the disciples nicknamed James, brother of Jesus.  Old Camel Knees.  Now there's a nickname you've got to be proud of!  Because he was a serious prayer warrior who had calloused knees from kneeling and praying so much, tradition suggests his best friends attached this term-of-endearment crazy cool name to him......and then let us in on it.

But what a reputation to have!  Knots on your knees because you prayed so much....if only we had such a reputation!  Throughout the short five chapters in the book of James, this no-nonsense disciple tells us over and over and over again to PRAY: 

"Listen to me.  You have not because you ASK not." (James 4:2-3)

"If you need wisdom, ASK our generous God and He will give it to you." (James 1:5)

"Come close to God and God will come close to you." (James 4:7)

"Are any of you suffering hardships?  You should PRAY." (James 5:13)

"The earnest PRAYER of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results." (James 5:16)

There is an animal in South Africa called the gnu that whenever it is preparing to attack, it first gets down on its knees.  Getting its strength from that position, it springs from the kneeling position and attacks.  What a smart beast; and what an example!  It causes me to look at "Old Softie" here and ask if I have that same kind of effective prayer stance.

Oh what peace we often forfeit,
Oh what needless pain we bear
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer.

GROWING SEEDS: "Dear Graduate"

Dear Graduate,

As you prepare to cross that long stage...6 feet apart....in front of your family and friends, eagerly closing one chapter and opening the next, there are a couple of things this old lady whose tassel was moved from the right to the left many years ago would like for you to know:

Be An Individual.  There is a reason you are alive.  This culture we live in makes it far too easy to look alike, act alike and believe alike.  Discover who YOU are.....and don't be afraid to be different.  That goofy graduation cap on your head is a ticket to life.  You can stand out and you can be the change you wish to see in the world.  Learn to fly solo......

Help Others.  We all have a calling in life.  And if there's one lesson I've learned over all others, it's that we are placed on this earth to help other people.  In the book The Original Human Dilemma (2004), supposedly in hell, they sit around a great pot, all hungry, because the spoons they hold are too long to bring the food to their mouths.  In heaven, people are sitting around the same pot with the same long spoons, but everyone is full. Why?  Because in heaven, everyone uses their long spoons to feed one another.

Place God as the Driver of Your Life.  Really hear this....NOTHING else matters if you don't have God as your Driver.  You are traveling down the Highway Of This World at a rapid speed.  GET OFF....NOW.  There are exit ramps along the way and they lead you to a narrow, difficult and rarely traveled path.  This path is unlike the highway that leads to certain death and an eternity in hell....the narrow path leads you HOME.  Yes....you will most likely arrive Home (Heaven) sore, scratched and tired from the bumps and hills along the way, but you will be ALIVE to see Home.

And be Happy.....just as God intended for you to be.

(I wrote my Dear Graduate letter back in 2017....when life and graduations looked much different.  Masks and social distancing would have been laughed at.  People fighting in the aisles of Walmart for toilet paper was unimaginable and the thought of not walking the stage for that piece of paper confirming your hard work was only in our nightmares.  But here we are...2020...and our 20/20 vision is only too clear on how our world has changed.  BUT, Graduate....tuck the words below into that parchment in your hand called a diploma and hang on...you’re in for a wonderful ride if you do!)
 
“The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” - Deuteronomy 31:8 (NIV)

GROWING SEEDS: "Much Afraid?"

 

 

A few years ago, I read a neat little book called "Hinds Feet On High Places".  Quirky title for a powerful little book, but it was one of the best books I've ever read.  It was an allegory...meaning, a story meant to reveal a hidden meaning. Each of the characters in the book had names that matched their personalities with the main character being a girl named "Much Afraid".  As I entered into the second chapter of this book, I realized why it sounded so familiar to me..... 

I was the main character. 

From that point on, every time I read the name "Much Afraid", I picked up my pen and marked through it...wrote the name "Liz" above it...and proceeded on.  I read as "Liz" traveled through the meadows...you know, those easy-restful-no stress times in our lives.  And I read as she climbed difficult mountains we all climb, fear of the dark places up ahead and felt the sting of arrows pointed straight at her by the enemy....all while traveling the steep path up the mountain to the high place called Home.  

I also discovered through the journey of Hinds Feet on High Places, that God's faithfulness isn't dependent on our outward circumstances. That Love and Pain go together...at least for awhile.  If you know Love, you must also know Pain.  And the most important thing of all....

“There are no obstacles which our Savior’s love cannot overcome.

The actual conditions and tests permitted by God,

by laying down of our own will and accepting His.

The lessons of accepting and triumphing over evil,

of becoming acquainted with grief, and pain,

and of finding them transformed

into something incomparably precious.”

― Hannah Hurnard, Hinds Feet on High Places

These are the discoveries in this book. There are no obstacles which God’s love cannot overcome, and to Him, mountains of difficulty are as easy as an asphalt road.....if we follow the path He chooses for us.

Are you Much Afraid during these crazy uncertain times?  Spoiler Alert: Her new name becomes Grace and Glory.

* A "Hind" is a mature female deer

GROWING SEEDS: Perseverance

P-E-R-S-E-V-E-R-A-N-C-E

A few years ago, Chuck and I were at our weekly appointment at the Wound Care Center in Mt. Pleasant eating hospital popcorn waiting on the doctor.  I was passing time looking through old photos on my phone when I came across a quote I had saved years before:

"By PERSEVERANCE, the snail reached the ark."
C.H. Spurgeon

I read it to Chuck as he was laying on the examining table......and, between chomps on popcorn, asked him what this meant to him.  This was his reply:

"No matter how he (snail) is feeling or how slow he's moving,

he was constantly moving towards the Ark.
Imagine how he must have felt as the antelope ran by and he was left in the dust.....
but he kept on keeping on.....
the way we all must do.....
No-Matter-What."
Chuck Etheridge

I leaned down and kissed this man.....who often times, felt like the snail.  The world racing all around him at break-neck speed, where he was often left behind, unable to move as fast as the rest of the world.

Chuck had found God in the hardships.....in the pain....in the floods of this life he lived because of his amazing Perseverance. 

Websters defines Perseverance as: 
"steadfastness in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success"

It's Perseverance that picks us up off the ground when we have been knocked down by the dark times on our journey through this world.  And yes, it's Perseverance that will even get us through an ugly virus.

Not only was it by perseverance that the snail made it to the ark in time, but he had a Cheerleader on the sidelines telling him,

"Don't be afraid; for I am with you. 

Don't be discouraged, for I am your God. 

I will STRENGTHEN you and HELP you. 

I will hold you up with my victorious right hand."

Isaiah 41:10

...and the snail made it.....just before they closed the door.

GROWING SEEDS: "Disappointment"

"The Disappointment that is exhausting and frustrating you? 

It holds the potential for so much good. 

But we'll only see it as good if we trust the heart of the Giver. 

Disappointment can be a gift from God that feels nothing like a gift at all. 

The Giver can seem almost cruel."

Lysa Terkeurst

CRUEL.  That was the exact word I used when speaking to God this time last year as the rains began to fall and the potential to flood was once again upon me. Yes.....I called God cruel...straight to His face.  The calls and texts had started by well-meaning friends.  "How's the water, Liz?  Where is the water level so far, Liz? God's got you in His hand, Liz".  My answer?  Yes...I truly know and believe this.  BUT...knowing this still doesn't stop the anxiety that comes with "What if...".  It's similar to knowing the boat you're on is sinking and you can't do a thing about it.  It's impossible to sit still and whistle with a smile on.  You start to question whether you actually do have the faith needed to endure....and then you remember, "Wait....didn't God tell me I just needed the faith of a mustard seed?"  Then you Google how big is a mustard seed.

The cruel disappointments of this life....we all know a thing or two about them, don't we? 

The friend finding her way through breast cancer or the wife whose husband just keeps repeating a behavior that is ruining their marriage.  Maybe it's the sudden death of a brother, a lost job, an empty bank account, gray hair roots or broken finger nails.  No one is exempt from disappointment. 

God never promised us smooth sailing; but He did promise us a SURE destination....and what God wants for us is not to AVOID the storm, but to ENDURE the storm. 

My unavoidable storm this time last year was necessary.  God knew that.....although I didn't.  And yes, it appeared cruel to this girl whose faith felt smaller than that mustard seed, but her God knew she needed to deal with some issues about storms that were buried so deep in the belly of her sinking ship, that it was necessary to face the dark storm clouds once again. 

Disappointment can be a gift from God that feels nothing like a gift at all. 

And even as I yelled the words, "Cruel and God" in the same sentence, I somehow knew He was gifting me with disappointment.  My mustard-seed faith was big enough to see me through.

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,

because you KNOW that the testing of your faith produces perseverance." 

James 1:2

GROWING SEEDS: "We Are Living History - And We Get to Live HIStory"

 

 

Do you hear it?  The keys of the keyboard clicking this week as history is being documented in our lifetime? 

Do you feel it?  The pain of no paycheck....the nest egg you saved up for your entire lifetime so you could one day retire, quickly becoming a shadow of your portfolio?  The pit in your stomach that feels like you ate an entire watermelon and you don't even have the Coronavirus? 

If you think for a second this is about a virus, think again.

This slice of history we've all been "chosen" to walk through was predicted more than two thousand years ago.  Didn't know that?  It's right there...smack dab in the Bible.  Check it out....

I'm not afraid of this virus nor should you.....but what I am afraid of is that many Christians were caught off-guard by it and didn't know they were told to expect pandemic viruses, billions of locusts swarming East Africa, a barrel of oil being worth less than $0 and that an earthquake in Utah could be so strong it could shake the Salt Lake City Temple's iconic spire, causing the golden trumpet to fall from the angel Moroni’s right hand.  And friends, that's just this week. 

If everything's not okay yet, everything's not over yet. 

I fear many don't know these things.....but desperately need to.

This virus is the least of your worries......if you don't know Christ.  Because when your faith is in the One who writes the story - you can always trust the end of the story.

Have we forgotten we know the end of HIStory? 

*Quote by Ann VosKamp