Hearts in Service

I just wrote in our district newsletter last month an article about expecting the unexpected as a leader so you would think that I would be aware of this by now, wouldn't you? Hah! I'm learning just how little I am prepared for when the unexpected hits. I'll be going merrily along my way and bam! something happens that throws me into a tailspin. The tailspins don't last as long as they used to but it's still a bit disconcerting how much I'm affected by the unexpected. This week has been frustrating, stressful and silly all rolled into one pile of yuck! But I generally can find the humor in a situation so I'm doing okay. My knee pain just stinks. I can't sleep at night because every move I make drives a jolt through my leg. I'm going for my MRI this afternoon and I'm fairly certain I may have a torn meniscus because when I try to bend my knee, there is a point when it catches with a sharp pain and then it's the same when I go from ...

James 5:13-16 (NIV) ~ Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. T herefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. Often when we are going through a difficult time we worry about it, we talk about it, or we go to social media about it. How many times do we pray about it? And more importantly, how often do we pray with someone else over it?  The Body of Christ was meant to be a support system where we can worship together, fellowship together and pray together. That is why it's so important to stay connected to a local body of believers. Can you wors...

We had a wonderfully relaxing Memorial Day yesterday. I sewed, did a couple of loads of laundry, worked on a barbecue, and played board games. It really was a good day. I have so many projects looming around here and yet, the summers are so short and I'm also busy with ministry. However, I can't just ignore them all forever. I did get my planters filled with flowers this weekend and set up on my deck. I took all of my inventory down the road to a local nursery/winery that offered to let me put my items there for sale. So that's all set up. One of the things that has really been bothering me are the flower beds around my house. It really is starting to look like an abandoned house, and yet, I can't do anything because of my knee. Just walking across the yard to hang a load of clothes hurts it. So I finally humbled myself and took a couple of deep breaths because I don't like spending money on something I could do myself and hired a yo...

The sound of birds woke me at 4:30 this morning and after tossing and turning for about 45 minutes I got up, grabbed coffee and my bible and headed to the deck. There was a cool breeze blowing and the scent of flowers wafted through the air. It was not a bad start to this Memorial Day. As I sat on the deck, reading and praying, I came across these verses, 2 Corinthians 2:14-16 (TLB) ~  But thanks be to God! For through what Christ has done, he has triumphed over us so that now wherever we go he uses us to tell others about the Lord and to spread the Gospel like a sweet perfume. As far as God is concerned there is a sweet, wholesome fragrance in our lives. It is the fragrance of Christ within us, an aroma to both the saved and the unsaved all around us. To those who are not being saved, we seem a fearful smell of death and doom, while to those who know Christ we are a life-giving perfume. But who is adequate for such a task as this? I do feel very inade...

I haven't sewn in quite a few weeks so it felt good to sit down at my sewing machine the past couple of days. I made two aprons and a tea pot cozy. At my retreat at the end of April, I sold quite a few things and a lot of my inventory went, so I'm slowly building it back up so I have it for various craft fairs/farmer's markets. I started this business back in 2010 and since then I think I've made at least 100 aprons and about 500 tea bag totes, 100 teapot cozies, and at least 50 table runners plus the other items I've created. That little machine of mine has held up! Sewing is my creative outlet and I enjoy it. It clears my head and feeds my creative itch!

Bleeding Hearts It is such a privilege to be a part of some of people's most intimate moments. It's not easy, but I'm thankful that we can be there when people need us most. It's a burden that we gladly bear, but it does wear on us at times. My heart is heavy today for our friend. We spent the afternoon with her at her husband's side as he lay dying in the hospital. It was terrible to watch him moaning in pain and yet, refusing pain medication. He was incoherent and would cry out every few moments saying, "I can't take any more."  His wife finally leaned over him and told him it was okay to let go. We prayed for him and prayed that the Lord would come and take him home. Tears ran down my face as my heart broke for his wife.  We took her out to an early dinner just to get some food in her stomach as she hadn't eaten all day. It also gave her a change of scenery and time to clear her head. We dropped her off at her home so she could let h...

Dan a nd I were supposed to go to an all day seminar today, but ended up canceling. With our friend being in his last days, we felt we should stick close to home in case his wife needs us. And the 4 hour round trip car ride was not going to help my knee which is already hurting from Saturday's trip. On Wednesday we need to go out to Buffalo to help Emily get moved into her summer dorm. She will be staying there for the summer, working as a campus assistant. About 100 students applied for the job and only ten were selected, so we are very proud of her. I may, or may not go, depending on how my leg is on Wednesday.  So here is my plan for the week. I'm thankful that I have almost 3 weeks at home before I have to do any traveling. My knee needs a break and I need to get this house in shape! I have high expectations about what I'll get done around here, but we shall see. I often find that when I have all these grandiose plans life gets in the way and that's...

Yellow skin. Yellow eyes. Labored breathing. Bruised skin.  All the signs of a man who is soon to meet his Savior. Dan and I visited this afternoon as he lay in a hospital bed and I caught my breath as I walked in the room and saw how ill he has become in just a few days. We prayed with him and his wife. I read scripture to him. We hugged his wife as she wiped her tears away. He will be going home on hospice care in a day or two and has been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. His kidneys and liver are shutting down. His wife spoke with us briefly about funeral arrangements. A lump rose in my throat and tears rolled down my cheeks as his wife turned away so he wouldn't see her tears. One moment he was talking about seeing the Lord and the peace he had, and the next, he was weeping as he talked about his concern for his wife. We assured him that we would look out for her and that her church family would be there for her as well. They both know that he will be home with the Lord ...