Friday, May 28, 2010
What If You Could Write a Letter To Yourself From The Future?
This video has been on my mind for quite a while. I know the family of this young man and have been aware of his battle with cancer for over a year. I decided I needed to post this video because this is the same battle we are all in as we seek to do Kingdom Work. I know Zac's message is inspriational, but I don't want to just be inspired and move on. I want to live out what I believe! As a Warrior Princess, as a woman who is fighting hard to know what to do with the place I am in life right now, I wonder what I would say to myself if I were ten years older and past these present circumstances. That is not possible, but I know Someone who already is on the other side of my circumstances, and He has everything under control. I don't want to waste anything. I want ALL of my life to count for the Kingdom!
So I have been asking myself, "What am I doing to make a difference? How am I working to accomplish God's purposes for my life?" Then I realized that the reason I haven't been on here for over a week is because I have been busy doing Kingdom Work.
I guess most people don't think of it as Kingdom Work, but as I thought of Zac's video and have been asking the Lord how I could be serving Him in the middle of my life's circumstances I have realized that I am doing what He has called me to do. I've been struggling over the lack of employment for my husband and trying to support and bless him and my children and keep life as positive and pleasant as I can. I've been working on school projects with my kids, keeping the house, making meals, paying bills, scheduling appointments and figuring out insurance stuff; just regular, mundane stuff, but it's the stuff that I've been called to do.
When I watched Zac's video again I asked myself, "Ten years from now, will I regret what I am doing today? Would it be better if I got a job, or put off spending time on one of my children's projects so that I could make a post on the blog, or whatever might seem more important? What do You want me to do, Lord?" Every time I ask, He points me back to the fact that supporting my husband, taking care of our home and our family, those things are His number one priority and ministry for me. And so, I've been doing the Kingdom Work of caring for my family and doing projects and sitting still with my Savior. I haven't posted anything for over a week, or gotten a job, or done anything else to impact the world, but He hasn't called me to do those things. This is the work He has called me to. This is good, hard work! This is a full life! I am sure I will have regrets when I look back, because I am a sinful human, but at least these things won't be the things I regret.
My challenge and purpose in sharing this video and my thoughts today is to ask you, "What do you think you would say to yourself 10 years from now when you look back on your current life circumstances? Do you know if you are doing the Kingdom Work that He has called you to do?" It's different for each one of us, so why don't you go to the One who knows the future and ask Him today.
Sole Deo Gloria,
WP Stacey
p.s. Zac went to be with the Lord earlier this month. Sole Deo Gloria!
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Judy's Glory Story - Stones of Remembrance
I am so pleased that a few people have sent me some glory stories. The one I am posting today is from my sweet friend, Judy. I have heard parts of this story at different times, but never the whole thing at once. As I read it I was amazed at the whirlwind of blessing that this family was experiencing in such a short time period! I love how Judy refers to remembering this story as a stone of remembrance. I love that she remembers how God moved in their life in a mighty way when she is struggling. That is absolutely one of the big reasons for telling our glory stories, to remind ourselves and to encourage each other, but mostly because He deserves the glory! Thank you for sharing this with us, Judy:)
Sole Deo Gloria,
WP Stacey
Judy’s glory story
God picked us up in Milwaukee and dropped us off in Tucson. Matt lost his job in February 2004. I was 6 months pregnant with Maddie and Alex was 2 and a half. Our COBRA payment for medical insurance was more than our mortgage payment. Because there were not many jobs available in Milwaukee, by March Matt was staying in Phoenix looking for a job and I was in WI with Alex trying to get the house sold. After coming up empty looking for jobs, he threw his resume out on an internet site for finding jobs. Someone called him the next day from Tucson to set up a phone interview. A couple days later he had an in person interview. He was offered the job in the third week of March.
He came home on Tuesday evening and we were on our way to Tucson on Friday, not knowing a sole in our new city. We flew down with what we could carry and stayed in temporary housing, Matt started working and I started looking for a doctor to deliver our soon-to-be-born Maddie. We sold our house in Wisconsin, bought a house in Tucson, moved in on the 8th of May and had a c-section on the 14th. With the exception of jaundice, the delivery and hospital stay went well and I came home four days later with our little Madison Renee.
During this time, we had friends that: prayed for us, encouraged us, paid Matt's plane fare to Arizona to look for jobs, offered to pay our mortgage, made emergency runs to our house to find the elusive birth certificate (that's a whole other glory story), were at our house when the company packed us up, were at the house when the company shipped us, and cleaned our house. Good friends and my mom came down on moving day to help get things unpacked. I was little help since I was due to deliver the next week. My mom stayed for three weeks and did about a hundred loads of laundry, trying to set up the house and wash all the baby clothes that had been stored from Alex. God brought friends to me when I felt so alone and overwhelmed with two small children not knowing anyone. We found a church that was preaching the Word without apology. We love Tucson, a place we never would have picked if Matt hadn't lost his job and God directed us here. Matt is working in his "dream job" making twice the salary he was making in Milwaukee. Did I mention we did not pay a dime for Maddie's delivery? Not one dime.
When I am doubting and a little unclear about life, this story is like when the folks of the Old Testament set up a monument of stones so they would not forget what God had done. God provided for us through our friends, family and people we were yet to meet. He was in complete control. He was then, is now and forever will be totally glorious!
WP Judy
Sole Deo Gloria,
WP Stacey
Judy’s glory story
God picked us up in Milwaukee and dropped us off in Tucson. Matt lost his job in February 2004. I was 6 months pregnant with Maddie and Alex was 2 and a half. Our COBRA payment for medical insurance was more than our mortgage payment. Because there were not many jobs available in Milwaukee, by March Matt was staying in Phoenix looking for a job and I was in WI with Alex trying to get the house sold. After coming up empty looking for jobs, he threw his resume out on an internet site for finding jobs. Someone called him the next day from Tucson to set up a phone interview. A couple days later he had an in person interview. He was offered the job in the third week of March.
He came home on Tuesday evening and we were on our way to Tucson on Friday, not knowing a sole in our new city. We flew down with what we could carry and stayed in temporary housing, Matt started working and I started looking for a doctor to deliver our soon-to-be-born Maddie. We sold our house in Wisconsin, bought a house in Tucson, moved in on the 8th of May and had a c-section on the 14th. With the exception of jaundice, the delivery and hospital stay went well and I came home four days later with our little Madison Renee.
During this time, we had friends that: prayed for us, encouraged us, paid Matt's plane fare to Arizona to look for jobs, offered to pay our mortgage, made emergency runs to our house to find the elusive birth certificate (that's a whole other glory story), were at our house when the company packed us up, were at the house when the company shipped us, and cleaned our house. Good friends and my mom came down on moving day to help get things unpacked. I was little help since I was due to deliver the next week. My mom stayed for three weeks and did about a hundred loads of laundry, trying to set up the house and wash all the baby clothes that had been stored from Alex. God brought friends to me when I felt so alone and overwhelmed with two small children not knowing anyone. We found a church that was preaching the Word without apology. We love Tucson, a place we never would have picked if Matt hadn't lost his job and God directed us here. Matt is working in his "dream job" making twice the salary he was making in Milwaukee. Did I mention we did not pay a dime for Maddie's delivery? Not one dime.
When I am doubting and a little unclear about life, this story is like when the folks of the Old Testament set up a monument of stones so they would not forget what God had done. God provided for us through our friends, family and people we were yet to meet. He was in complete control. He was then, is now and forever will be totally glorious!
WP Judy
Friday, May 14, 2010
Refreshing
Last week I posted that I was struggling. The truth is, I was overwhelmed with life and the constant battle to be strong, etc. The Lord let me have my melt down and I felt no condemnation in it. I was just tired and needed to rest, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. The spiritual resting thing seemed strange to me because aren’t we always “supposed to” be seeking hard after the Lord? Well, His grace is sufficient and He let me just rest in Him. I told Him I had nothing to give and He just poured into me through the prayers and words of friends, through songs of truth, through just resting.
Then He did some other things for me. My daughters have been taking an art class and I wasn’t going to do the next session because we don’t have the money, but He put it on friend’s heart to pay for the art class. My husband wanted to take us out for lunch on Mother’s Day, and a friend gave me a gift card to the very restaurant that we wanted to go to. On Saturday a friend gave me a very sweet “Thank you for being my friend” card and in it was a gift card for Target. On Mother’s Day we went to Macaroni Grill and had to wait an extra 40 minutes even though we had reservations, so the manager said he’d make it “worth our while” and when we got the bill he’d reduced our bill by a third!
That night we went to the Nathan Clark George concert and it was as if God was speaking right to me the whole time about how much He loves me. Afterward we talked with Nathan for a while and Kraig bought two CDs. When we were leaving Nathan followed us to the door and gave us the DVD that Franklin Springs made about their family traveling around the country in an RV. He just gave it to us and I started crying as I said thank you, because I had been wanting to see it ever since it came out last year because it is a secret desire of mine to travel around the country with our family in an RV. I never asked God for the DVD, it was such an “extra” type thing, but He knew my heart and He gave it to me through Nathan. I was so overwhelmed with blessings! Then as we were driving away, I opened the DVD and found the money that Kraig had paid him for the two CDs he had bought. Kraig and I both started crying again at what God was doing!
Remember my article about kisses from God? Well, do you ever just get overcome with your love for your children, not because of anything they’ve done, but just because you love them, and you just pick them up and smother them with kisses? That’s what it felt like God was doing to me. Trust me, I hadn’t done anything to deserve it. I was just making it through each day, but it was as if He was picking me up and covering my face in kisses and saying, “I love you. I love you. I love you!” Thank You, Father! I love You too.
None of our circumstances have changed, but I feel refreshed for the next leg of this journey. Honestly, just being able to rest without feeling any condemnation was so good that I should say, that would have been enough. But my Father also gave me friends who prayed with me and for me poured truth and life into me like nourishment to my soul, and that would have been enough. But then He used some to pour physical blessings on me, and that was the lavishing of God on my heart after He had already filled me again with truth and strength! Thank you, each one who prayed with me and for me last week, for those who sent me an email, called or spent time with me, for those who gave tuition, gift cards, and music. May God refresh you as He has used you to refresh me!
Sole Deo Gloria,
WP Stacey
Then He did some other things for me. My daughters have been taking an art class and I wasn’t going to do the next session because we don’t have the money, but He put it on friend’s heart to pay for the art class. My husband wanted to take us out for lunch on Mother’s Day, and a friend gave me a gift card to the very restaurant that we wanted to go to. On Saturday a friend gave me a very sweet “Thank you for being my friend” card and in it was a gift card for Target. On Mother’s Day we went to Macaroni Grill and had to wait an extra 40 minutes even though we had reservations, so the manager said he’d make it “worth our while” and when we got the bill he’d reduced our bill by a third!
That night we went to the Nathan Clark George concert and it was as if God was speaking right to me the whole time about how much He loves me. Afterward we talked with Nathan for a while and Kraig bought two CDs. When we were leaving Nathan followed us to the door and gave us the DVD that Franklin Springs made about their family traveling around the country in an RV. He just gave it to us and I started crying as I said thank you, because I had been wanting to see it ever since it came out last year because it is a secret desire of mine to travel around the country with our family in an RV. I never asked God for the DVD, it was such an “extra” type thing, but He knew my heart and He gave it to me through Nathan. I was so overwhelmed with blessings! Then as we were driving away, I opened the DVD and found the money that Kraig had paid him for the two CDs he had bought. Kraig and I both started crying again at what God was doing!
Remember my article about kisses from God? Well, do you ever just get overcome with your love for your children, not because of anything they’ve done, but just because you love them, and you just pick them up and smother them with kisses? That’s what it felt like God was doing to me. Trust me, I hadn’t done anything to deserve it. I was just making it through each day, but it was as if He was picking me up and covering my face in kisses and saying, “I love you. I love you. I love you!” Thank You, Father! I love You too.
Proverbs 11:25b
…those who refresh others will themselves
be refreshed.
None of our circumstances have changed, but I feel refreshed for the next leg of this journey. Honestly, just being able to rest without feeling any condemnation was so good that I should say, that would have been enough. But my Father also gave me friends who prayed with me and for me poured truth and life into me like nourishment to my soul, and that would have been enough. But then He used some to pour physical blessings on me, and that was the lavishing of God on my heart after He had already filled me again with truth and strength! Thank you, each one who prayed with me and for me last week, for those who sent me an email, called or spent time with me, for those who gave tuition, gift cards, and music. May God refresh you as He has used you to refresh me!
Sole Deo Gloria,
WP Stacey
Monday, May 10, 2010
I Don't Need This, Or Do I?
I am so blessed that my cousin, WP Sarah, is also my friend! We live on opposite sides of the country, but we talk at least once a week and share in each other's blessings and heartaches regularly. Actually, I don't have any sisters, but Sarah is like a sister to me. We can talk for an hour (if our children let us), or we can call with a 2 minute "you have got to laugh at this with me" moment. I pray for her almost every day, and I know that if I am troubled by something all I have to do is call her and she will be praying for me. I'm so very blessed to have Sarah, my cousin, my "sister", my friend! Here is something she emailed after our conversation today and she gave me permission to post it. May it change your perspective on your circumstances today and may you be richly blessed.
Sole Deo Gloria,
WP Stacey
I Don't Need This, Or Do I?
In my weekly phone call to my cousin today we had mostly woes to discuss. Not that either of us pursue complaining as a career, but it would have probably sounded that way to an outsider. We took turns listing our difficulties of the week. In reflection I was sad that I hadn't shared any of the blessings with her.
One of my whine moments was in explaining that after 6 months of nursing and feeding difficulties, and a nodule on my son’s tongue, his doctor was FINALLY sending us to an E.N.T. to see what his thoughts are on my baby’s issues. I commented that this was not what I needed. Just like I don't need the extra specialist I have to see right now, just like my cousin doesn't need for her daughter to be in pain, so on and so forth.
However, God reminded me of the truth. The truth is I have a son with special needs that will be 8 next month. The truth is the last 8 years of my life have been spent in joyful, agonizing, painful, blessed moments. I could say that I didn't need any of it… the struggles, the years without sleep (this is not an exaggeration as he has a severe sleep disorder, we spent years on 1-3 broken hours of sleep at night), the regression, the aggression, the list of ever changing ever growing diagnosis, the hours at doctors offices, the tears, the weeping, the "I never thought I would go through this" moments. But is that the TRUTH? No, quite frankly it isn’t. The truth is God knew exactly what I would go through, and He let me go through it. The truth is that I did need it. I needed the compassion, the patience, the depth of love, the refining. I needed all of it. Apparently, I still need more.
As I mulled over these thoughts this evening, I was reminded of Ruth in the Bible. Did she need to lose everything she had ever known and loved? Her husband, her family, her religion, and her country? To live with and serve her mother-in-law? The truth, yes. It was exactly what she needed to know and serve the Living God. Her blessings abounded and she was given a place in the lineage of Christ. WOW! I don't think she was thinking, "How incredibly blessed I am," when her husband died. Or, "What a neat adventure. I wonder what blessings lie ahead for me," as she was leaving her country to follow Naomi. Seriously, how many of us would leave our families, religion, culture, to go to a foreign land, let alone with our mother-in-law. Let me just say....ya right, let me jump right on that caravan.
Seriously, God knows exactly what I need!
Today, my special needs son wanted to sit by me at dinner, he wanted me to hug him five times. He wanted me to rub his back. He hugged me gently and told me he loved me. If you only knew how my heart weeps for moments like these. Yesterday as I sat in church on Mother's Day I thanked God for my children and shed silent tears for the separation I feel with my special little boy. Today, I was so blessed by his love. God heard me. God felt my need for those moments, for those hugs, for those statements of acceptance and need from my son. Today I felt the love of God in my little boy.
God knows my heart, and He knows what I need.
WP Sarah
Sole Deo Gloria,
WP Stacey
I Don't Need This, Or Do I?
In my weekly phone call to my cousin today we had mostly woes to discuss. Not that either of us pursue complaining as a career, but it would have probably sounded that way to an outsider. We took turns listing our difficulties of the week. In reflection I was sad that I hadn't shared any of the blessings with her.
One of my whine moments was in explaining that after 6 months of nursing and feeding difficulties, and a nodule on my son’s tongue, his doctor was FINALLY sending us to an E.N.T. to see what his thoughts are on my baby’s issues. I commented that this was not what I needed. Just like I don't need the extra specialist I have to see right now, just like my cousin doesn't need for her daughter to be in pain, so on and so forth.
However, God reminded me of the truth. The truth is I have a son with special needs that will be 8 next month. The truth is the last 8 years of my life have been spent in joyful, agonizing, painful, blessed moments. I could say that I didn't need any of it… the struggles, the years without sleep (this is not an exaggeration as he has a severe sleep disorder, we spent years on 1-3 broken hours of sleep at night), the regression, the aggression, the list of ever changing ever growing diagnosis, the hours at doctors offices, the tears, the weeping, the "I never thought I would go through this" moments. But is that the TRUTH? No, quite frankly it isn’t. The truth is God knew exactly what I would go through, and He let me go through it. The truth is that I did need it. I needed the compassion, the patience, the depth of love, the refining. I needed all of it. Apparently, I still need more.
As I mulled over these thoughts this evening, I was reminded of Ruth in the Bible. Did she need to lose everything she had ever known and loved? Her husband, her family, her religion, and her country? To live with and serve her mother-in-law? The truth, yes. It was exactly what she needed to know and serve the Living God. Her blessings abounded and she was given a place in the lineage of Christ. WOW! I don't think she was thinking, "How incredibly blessed I am," when her husband died. Or, "What a neat adventure. I wonder what blessings lie ahead for me," as she was leaving her country to follow Naomi. Seriously, how many of us would leave our families, religion, culture, to go to a foreign land, let alone with our mother-in-law. Let me just say....ya right, let me jump right on that caravan.
Seriously, God knows exactly what I need!
Today, my special needs son wanted to sit by me at dinner, he wanted me to hug him five times. He wanted me to rub his back. He hugged me gently and told me he loved me. If you only knew how my heart weeps for moments like these. Yesterday as I sat in church on Mother's Day I thanked God for my children and shed silent tears for the separation I feel with my special little boy. Today, I was so blessed by his love. God heard me. God felt my need for those moments, for those hugs, for those statements of acceptance and need from my son. Today I felt the love of God in my little boy.
God knows my heart, and He knows what I need.
WP Sarah
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Sometimes
It's been a rough week. This Warrior Princess had to rest and reflect in the midst of the pain of her circumstances this week and was not able to do much else. Today God has given me the ability to reflect just a little bit, but all I have to give today is a quote that Warrior Princess Vanessa shared with me this week in the midst of her own struggles.
"Sometimes God gives wisdom. Sometimes God gives a promise. Sometimes God simply says, 'I understand your heart.' And that's enough." Vanessa Finsinger
The only thing I can add is a word from His Word:
"Sometimes God gives wisdom. Sometimes God gives a promise. Sometimes God simply says, 'I understand your heart.' And that's enough." Vanessa Finsinger
The only thing I can add is a word from His Word:
Psalm 94:18-19
When I said, "My foot is slipping,"
Your love,
O LORD,
supported me.
When anxiety was great within me,
Your consolation
brought joy to my
soul.
Sole Deo Gloria,
WP Stacey
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