A Precise God.

"I am filled with joy, when I call to remember the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice...."

2 Timothy 1:4-5

 

Thinking a lot about my grandparents this morning. 

 

(my maternal grandmother at Hannah's wedding, telling her how to love her husband when he's un-loveable. Her advice...ignore a lot!)

 

 

Over the summer I read a book entitled "Moms Raising Sons to Be Men" by Rhonda Stoppe.  This book made a profound impact on how I view motherhood overall, but one of the things that keeps coming back to me from the book is the author's note on how the prayers of our ancestors before us have kept us in God's favor and protection. 

 

While the bible teaches that - I never really thought about it much until I took the time to write down all the things that I have seen God's hand on in my life that could have turned out so poorly had it not been for God's protection, which I truly believe came from the prayers of my grandparents, parents and aunt's and uncles - who thank God stood in the gap for me when I was quite literally "raising hell".  They hit their knees and interceded for me when I didn't have the sense to pray for myself.  And trust me, I gave them PLENTY to pray about.

 

They never stopped praying, and I know one of their prayers had to have been that God would send godly friends into my life.  Let me just say one thing here, I don't care how big and bad your friends think they are - giving lip service and acting too cool - the ones that you end up calling when you're in serious trouble are the ones that you know hit their knees for you, crying out to God on your behalf.

 

There are no atheists in foxholes. 

 

I only need to look at my Facebook page and see how those prayers started taking effect at a very early age - pretty much from the time I started elementary school, God started planting the right people around me, and kept them woven into my life throughout present day.   It was not a coincidence that my closest friends I played Barbies with, or cheered with,  had praying parents. It wasn't a coincidence that at a job where I stayed the longest and loved every minute of it, I was surrounded by people of faith.  It's not a coincidence that it's where I met my current husband.  It's not a coincidence that 16 years later, I start working with the homeless ...and that lay minister who oversees it? He's from that same company. 

 

To quote my pastor, God is an amazingly PRECISE God.  He places people where they are supposed to be, at the right moment.

 

I would even like to think that someone else's mother's prayers put ME in their child's life, to keep that hedge of protection and faith going.

 

Don't stop praying for your children, and yes, even pray for the grandchildren you don't have yet.  A mother's prayers are powerful weapons, and it took me a good 44 years to realize the impact of them on my own life.  Our children need us to stand in the gap for them, and there are children that have no praying parent - stand in the gap and pray for them as well.  Then stand back, and watch God perform a precise miracle.

 

 

Sailing...take me away....to where I'm going

I have been awake for hours already this morning.   Whatever sleep I did end up getting over the course of the night was not restful.  I kept falling asleep and falling back into this stupid dream revolving around a trip to the beach, in a hotel crammed with spring breakers, a bus that was really one big bathroom (think gym locker room and you'll get the idea) attached to this hotel and county prisoners cleaning it.  

This is what my brain does when it's got a lot to process.

And when i read what i just typed above I realize that i made it sound like we're going through turmoil over here.  

No,  we just have a lot going on here at casa Kibler and I have been wanting to get to a quiet place, organize thoughts, pray, write, and with 2 boys starting spring break, that wasn't happening.  So my brain took over during my sleep.  At least it was entertaining - i just wonder what the prisoners scrubbing the floor of the bus bathroom relates to in my real life.


Since I was awake, I thought I'd capitalize on the quiet - and when i grabbed my laptop i found it was on a blog i must have clicked through to and then got sidetracked yesterday, because i didn't read it until this morning.  But oh lordy.  It was appropriate.


It was relating sailing to your relationship with God.  


I don't sail but she explained it so simply that I got it.


She said, when the wind is in front of you (you're facing the situation) you have all of your sails trimmed, keeping from healing over - she said to think of it as being braced for what's ahead, facing it head on so to speak, that maneuver is called a "tack".  Not "attack" but a "tack"  But i thought how similar the words in meaning were here.  

Then, she described a 'jibe', where the wind is behind you - she likened it to turning your back on the situation, and you have to let loose of your sails in order to catch the wind from behind.  This letting go is called a 'broad reach'.  

Sometimes we have to let go in order to let God do his thing.  A broad reach is a broad stretch for me.  I'm not good at that. I like control. I don't like letting go.  That's definitely not in my comfort zone.  I'm trying though. 


How do you let go?

A thought for today

    Grace Lutheran Church between Wytheville and Rural Retreat, VA.  - courtesy of yours truly while driving (not me driving, promise)

You know, you could look at this picture a couple of different ways.  You could think, man that church is all the way across a couple of farms, and down in the valley - kind of far.  

Or, instead, you could forget about how far it seems away and take in all the beauty in between;  Like that great red barn, and the pretty golden color from what's left from this summer's corn harvest.  

I'm choosing the latter. 

    Same church, now off of the hwy, from the country road that leads to it.

We are going through some stuff in our house.  Nothing a lot of you haven't been touched by at some point, nothing dire.  Just stuff.  And that's how i'm going to approach it. It's just stuff.  It's not worth the worry - I've already turned it over.  Vance has turned it over. Not our battle.  It is truly a blessing to be equally yoked.

If you truly wanted to, you could go as far to say that worry itself is a sin. One of my girlfriends said that to me, and i personally hold that statement close.  Sure, that might be a little bit of stretch, but if God calls you to have faith, and yet you're worrying, are you really obeying God? 

   getting closer, and the sky seemed to lighten up - isn't that awesome.  now if i could only figure out how to make my camera do that.

I have, in the past, had a tendency to think that some of things i have prayed for are not worthy of His attention.  I have been corrected, and i'm not doing that anymore.  That's really a silly thought.  I'm following a devotion on Lysa's site about praying audaciously.  Being bold in your request and having the faith to believe.  

 "...For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future..."
  - Jeremiah 29:11

It will all work out, like it's supposed to.

   

An Army of None!

Sometimes to get to "peace" you have to stop waging the war or engaging in battle.  Remember not every fight is your fight.  This is where I am right now.  I needed reminding yesterday.  

For those of you certain that you are in battle;  in your job, your marriage, maybe a family issue, maybe with your teen - maybe, instead, it's time to read this.  

Pray the words in bold. As the scripture says, set yourselves. Stop fighting.  It's His battle to fight for you.


2nd Chronicles, Kwikscan Read.

Chapter 20, verse 15
And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's.


Chapter 20, verse 17
Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, Oh Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you.

                                   all pics from google images, these speak peace to me.

Here's to an army of none, they aren't needed. 

Am i twirling or spinning?

For you writers out there.... you know when you have a million different thoughts buzzing around in your head - or maybe it's the same thought coming at you from a hundred different directions ...  but you want to get it out...so you start writing it, and then you stop.  Because it's rambled, and it doesn't make sense on the screen even though you know what you want to say, and darn it, why can't my thoughts just JUMP into order already, i mean it's 7am, I've been sitting at this computer with my coffee for well over an hour.  GAH...my coffee's cold, I should have put this in the tumbler, not my favorite coffee cup...what IS that on the side of this cup?? Didn't i get this out of the dishwasher...why does it smell like pickles...ok WHO FORGOT TO TURN ON THE DISHWASHER AFTER DINNER LAST NIGHT.......   and so it goes.

Sidetracked. again.  I get this way when I'm conflicted and I really get this way when I'm about to write what it is I'm conflicted about.  

Last week, Emily from Jones Design Company, blogged this post, labeled Twirl. There is no way to possibly put in my words what Emily so eloquently put in hers.  Just go and read it. Please.  In my not so eloquent fashion I will tell you this - she reminds us that God wants us to take delight in what He has blessed us with and He in turn takes delight in seeing us so happy.

He wants us to twirl.  

I want to twirl.  But more and more, I'm finding that I'm not so much twirling, as i'm spinning like a top out of control.  Running here and there.  Managing a million different tasks for work. Packing lunches, scheduling pick up/drop off, you get it, right?  But still, I want to twirl. 

Have patience with me over the next little while, and pray for me as I pray about this post that wants to be written but my words are still all jumbled up.  It's important for me to get it out, and I will eventually,  but I also know that I need to study the bible more and spend some more time on my knees praying about it. 

In the meantime, I'm going to twirl.

The Walker Story - for Rose.

A friend from blogs past stopped by and visited and asked for this story, and to be quite honest, I had never even thought about posting it until the beach story a few days back.  So, here it is.

When my boys were 2 and 3 (Walker is the oldest) we lived on Hibiscus Avenue in Winter Park.  It's a quaint, brick street - the houses were a hodge podge of old and new, and it's lined with oaks and a few maples. Our house sat a few houses from the end of the street, and our backyard backed up to the cemetery.  We had a huge (i'm talking HUGE) front porch with a swing that the boys and I would gather on daily. I really really loved the house.  But this isn't about the house - sorry - forgot a bit about that darn swing!


Anyway, my ex's grandfather was in that cemetery - and you could see his grave from our backyard.  Now, for some of you, that may be creepy.  In the south (maybe in the north too - not sure?)  - some of us which have family plots on our homesteads, it's not creepy - it's comforting.  And we bought this house pretty much for the reason that we could walk out of our house and go tend that grave - my ex is very close to his family and his grandfather died a few months before our wedding.  So, to us, it was kind of kismet.

One day, they boys were in the playroom, and Marty was sitting in his desk in his office off of the playroom, and Walker turned to the corner of the office and said "Hi." - to the corner/wall.  We turned and only saw well, the corner and the wall.  He kept staring at the corner and then said "ok, bye." and toddled back into the playroom.  


Marty looked at me, and then asked Walker who he was talking to.  Walker pointed to the corner and said "that man".  Marty said there's no one there.  Walker looked at his daddy, and said "yea, that man. He's waiting on great grandma."


Great grandma was older and in failing health at the time, and later that week fell very ill and unfortunately did pass away within a very short time - i can't remember, maybe a few weeks, a month?


I carry that story with me because i know in my heart that Marty's grand-daddy, waiting on his wife. No doubt in my mind.  Kindred spirits, truly.

Getting over myself.

Hey chickies. :0)

Obviously, i have been a little absent from my blog - there's a lot going on in our household - a graduation, a graduation luncheon and the influx of multiple family members, a college orientation,  a move to said college, 2 birthdays, an end of spring football party, end of the year grade school parties, vacation, buying another house, oh, and of course, the wedding.  Which is getting lost in the importance of all of our children's plans. And, that is more than fine by me.  At this point, our pastor in our living room, in shorts doing the job is looking pretty good.

But one thing i have been faithful on, if it's not writing, is talking to and spending time with God.  My schedule is slipping daily, but at some point, i am stopping and thanking God for the absolute purest joy He has given me amid this chaos of our lives right now.

I wrote a post awhile ago on my old blog about how i wished for "instant gratification" or "immediacy" from God.  Forget this patience crap.  I.WANT.WHAT.I.WANT.NOW.  Do you know the feeling?  I have found that God always answers you, but in His time, His way, and His answers - whether or not we agree or like them.

I was reading Lysa's blog today about "breaking bad", if you haven't stopped by there - i encourage you to do so, because she is an amazing sister of faith that we can all relate to.  Her post was about losing your cool over things that you should just let it go and find the joy in the situation instead.  I was there this week.

The ex and I had a misunderstanding about my youngest son's birthday festivities. I immediately went to the vault of stored up anger, hurt, resentment, and blame that I promised God I would leave behind.  There were words said, crying jags and lots of "well OF COURSE"'s going on. And at some point, i looked at the devotional sitting on my desk, and remembered my promise to God - the one I had just broken.  And...the waterworks started again.  I  took a breath, and just prayed to God, asking for forgiveness, asking him to fix this problem. I prayed for peace between my ex and I on this stupid, small argument that i let get out of hand.

Girls, within 15 minutes, my email chimed as a new message came in, from my ex - an apology.  A heartfelt, sincere apology, and an offer to resolve the conflict. To type that it was out of character is not fair to my ex, but i will say that apologies are not handed out easily between the two of us.  That was nothing short of being spirit led.

It was a good reminder of something I have read in the past from Kristin Armstrong's book "Happily Ever After".  She said she was once told to "triangulate" - take what you cannot resolve directly with someone to the Lord and allow Him to resolve it for you.

I will leave you with her bible verse on that subject.  Happy happy Wednesday girls!

If it is possible, as far as it depends on YOU, live at peace with everyone. - Romans 12:18

Leaving my comfort zone.

When I was growing up, my dad took a lot of risks that many people wouldn't take. At the time, I thought it was because my dad knew everything he was doing was going to work, no chance of failure.  ( BTW, i shared that with him one day last year, and he started laughing so hard I thought he had temporarily lost his marbles.)  I never thought it had anything to do with being brave, or having faith. I just thought he.knew.everything.

He was a stock car driver when my mom met him and during the entire time they dated, until one day, when my mom was 6mths pregnant with me, and he got goaded into an illegal road race with my mom in the car. That's when things came to a grinding halt for the aspiring Richard Petty.  Thankfully, my mother had some sense or I probably wouldn't be here.

Sorry, bunny trail.  I do this a lot lately.  Ok, where was I?  Oh, the comfort zone and my dad.

Well, i guess he had to put some of that risk taking into other things. He became an engineer because he got bored building houses for my grandfather.  That job moved us to Metarie LA - where he promptly quit because he hated Louisiana - without another job waiting. ( He found one within a week btw). He moved us back to FL, where he bought a trucking company.  A trucking company?? He knew nothing about how to manage a fleet of trucks, independent drivers, and logistics.  Then he started buying rental houses.  Don't even get me started with his parlay into the stock market.

Some of these things didn't work out. Some of them did.  Some money was lost. Some money was made. Life went on.

My dad and I were talking once last year, during the period of time when we were seeing bank after bank close their doors and you couldn't turn on a television without seeing something about foreclosures and job loss, and i asked him how did my grandparents make it through the depression without dying of stress related strokes or heart attacks?? (they're still alive, in their late 90's).  He said in all seriousness, faith, of course. They never doubted that God would provide.  (I personally don't think faith had anything to do with that race car driving of his, more like stupidity, but i know it did with his business dealings later in life).

This post isn't really about my dad and his faith.  It's about mine. I think it's time to leave my comfort zone and have a little faith of my own.  I might have an opportunity that I need to act on.  And while this would have scared the daylights out of me last year, for some reason, it is not having that same affect on me now.  I'll share more in the next post about this journey.  Right now, I need to pray on 2 Corinthians 5:7.

We live by faith, not by sight.

We Make Plans and God Has a Good Laugh.

 walker, 3 yrs, Shell Island, FL

This was not the intended post today.  I was going to craft something relative to home decor and spring but I was reading Lysa today and her post struck a chord with me, and compelled me down a different path this morning.

God had a plan for us before we were even created. He knew what talents he was going to give each and everyone of us, but the problem is, He also gave us the God-forsaken (pun intended) right of free will. Ahhh, that blasted free will can get you every time. And some times, when our free will choices are not his choices, he re-directs us, and sometimes that re-directing stings. 

Nate, 18mths, Shell Island, FL

Never in a million, gazillion years did I sit down and say to myself "Self, i think you should manage operations for XYZ."   No.  I think I said I was going to grow up and marry some prince charming and stay at home and raise my babies and live in a grand house and have a little garden....you get the picture.   And here I sit, in a job that i did NOT interview for, in a role I wouldn't have chosen in a million years.  But you know what? I get to stay home every day.

Even though this is not a job i chose, it is a job that has blessed me with a wonderful paycheck that enabled me to both provide solely for my babies and still stay at home when my marriage failed.  God knew what was coming down the road at me, and friends,  he made sure to protect me and provide for me in ways I never would have imagined.  He doesn't ask you to tell Him how to make it work, he asks that you just believe in Him.

linking to Darcy's Sweet Shot Tuesday...late :)

I alone know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans to prosper and not to harm you, plans to bring you a hope and a future - Jeremiah 29:11