Observation

This week, I would like to pay tribute to a great Professor. Professor "Prof" Howard Hendricks was a man who loved the Lord, loved his family, and loved his job of teaching. He went to be with the Lord on February 20th. I am including a link sharing his story.

http://www.dts.edu/read/howard-hendricks-prof/

I was fortunate to have been a student of his at Dallas Theological Seminary. The Lord used "Prof" to instruct and guide his students gain a deeper knowledge of God's word, and he shared stories and testimonies I will never forget.

In Professor Hendricks's book, Living By The Book, he offers a 3-step process to study God's word. Observation, Interpretation, and Application. I recall observation being a long part of the semester, but we were able to be creative with our assignments. For example, I made an old newspaper article on one of my projects from Acts and I remember the Bible coming to life based on what God was teaching me.
It was fun! It was difficult! It was thought provoking!

In remembering "Prof" this week, and the legacy he leaves behind, it made me think of observation. This man had so many people watching him and learning from him. (observation) The observation I made, it wasn't about him as a man, it was about how God used him, and how "Prof" was obedient to that calling.

This made me question how I might be watched by others. Questions like: How do people see me? How do people learn from me? Do people know I love Christ? Am I leaving behind the legacy God wants? Am I obedient to His calling? These are questions between me and God, and maybe some family members and close friends who can be honest with me.

Regardless, they are tough questions I will continue to ask for the remainder of my time here on earth. My challenge this week, and maybe for you too, is to be mindful of how others are observing me and ask God to reveal it to me through observing His word.

Thank you "Prof" for leaving behind such a great legacy!

Until next week,

Time Out

Recently, my sweet little 14-month-old girl has started to hit. At times, she hits when a toy is taken away from her or when she doesn't want to go to sleep. Where did she learn this? My husband and I don't hit each other and I am blessed to stay at home with her, so she hasn't learned this at daycare. I was upset and began feeling I was doing something wrong.

That was UNTIL I began talking with other moms. Thank you to the moms who shared about the issues they encountered with their precious little ones, whether it had to do with hitting, biting, or both. The overall advice I received, put her in time out.

My husband and I weren't sure what that should look like for a 14-month old, so the next time she hit, we decided to put her in a "time out" chair in our living room for 1 minute.

Well, it took some adjustments. Little One figured out she could have a great time playing with the pillows on the chair, so we had to remove them. Without anything to play with, she sat there staring up at us with her big, beautiful brown eyes, and a slight smile that makes her look precious. I can tell she wonders why she is in the chair as she watches everything around her. The whole time, I am trying not to laugh.

Does she really understand completely what she has done wrong? Not completely. But, I believe she does know she has done something. She has learned to sign sorry, so after her minute is up, I ask her to say sorry. She signs it and smiles really big. I give her a hug, tell her I love her, and off she goes to play some more.

Disciplining my little one is not easy and it made me thankful that we get to choose to have time-out with God, free from discipline. Sure, sometimes God has to put us in time-out to get through to us, but we do get to come to him freely each day to hear Him tell us he loves us.

This kind of time-out is a retreat! It's a time where I can listen, learn, and seek God in our decisions each day. A time where I can journal, pour out my heart, and listen to worship music. With my busy schedule, having "time out" with God helps to prepare me for the day to come. There are days when this does not happen, are usually these days unravel (along with my attitude).

I want my heart, attitude, and words to reflect God's love, truth, and wisdom.

Proverbs 16:21 (NIV) says, "The wise in heart are called discerning, and gracious words promote instruction".

Proverbs 16:23 (NIV), "The hearts of the wise make their mouths prudent, and their lips promote instruction".

What has God taught me this week? If I want proper instruction in my life and if I want to teach my daughter the same, I need to seek God's wisdom in my heart during time-out with Him.

Until next week,

Deep Cleaning

Although I have found some enjoyment in learning how to make homemade cleaning products this year, it's hard to speak fruitful words about the daily cleaning of my home.

Part of the reason has to do with our two large dogs that somehow drag in the backyard and I find myself sweeping and dusting constantly, trying to keep out the dirt. I know that regardless of how lemon-fresh I get the house to smell, dirt will be there tomorrow and will need cleaning.

However, I have found when I am upset, I rush to clean, and I mean deep clean. I find it cathartic as I scrub an item I haven't in a long time. For example, all the blinds and baseboards in my house. I admire my work after scrubbing and releasing the pent up tension in my shoulders, and ask myself, "Why did I wait so long to make these shiny and white again?"

Having cleaned the blinds above my bathtub this week, God reminded me when I am upset at someone, my heart is far from clean. I can ignore it and let months or even years go by carrying that dirty junk in my heart. If I ignore the dirt too long, my heart ends up needing a tough scrubbing rather than a light dusting.

The Bible says in Proverbs 20:9 (NIV), "Who can say, 'I have kept my heart pure, I am clean and without sin'?"

I know I can't. And I know my lips won't speak pure words if my heart is not clean.

But, the Bible also promises in 1 John 1:7 (NIV), "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin."

Why wait? All I have to do to feel shiny and clean again is to let Jesus do the work as I ask God daily to make my heart pure, regardless of the circumstances. This cleaning through Jesus' work on the cross has a better fragrance to it than lemon-fresh; in fact, I believe the scent is heavenly.

Until next week,

A Fruitful Journey

Words can bring peace, wisdom, encouragement and life. They can also destroy, separate, and bring heartache.

6 years ago, the Lord showed me how many times He mentions tongue, word(s), lips, heart, and mouth in Proverbs. Though I was no stranger to Proverbs and had read these words before, this time I felt His instruction was directed toward me. I even remember saying, "Lord, I see how important the words that come out of my mouth reflect who you are in my life." I took a quick inventory of my words by asking myself if the words I spoke reflected who God is. My answer . . . some of the time. Did I set out to make a great change? No. Like a bill to be paid much later, I tucked it away and didn't give it much thought until I started to see the costs.

Why did I turn aside this gentle nudging by God? Because I was convicted. My husband and I were going through a difficult time in our marriage. The words coming out of my mouth were definitely not pleasing to the Lord and certainly didn't help build my marriage in any way. I let my words get the best of me. My pride and self-righteous behavior gave me a sense of feeling in control. Proverbs 18:6 (NIV) says, "A fool's lips bring him strife, and his mouth invites a beating." Are you familiar with the antacid commercial where the food starts slapping a person in the face symbolizing the indigestion the person is about to have? That's similar to the fight I imagine I have with my wayward lips. The top lip slaps my forehead and my bottom lip slaps my chin. Not a pretty sight. Though it's a humorous picture when you think about it, it's not so funny to the person who receives the beating from my lips and it is certainly not funny for the way it makes me feel afterward.

That time in my marriage saw me clinging to God more than ever. As a result, I recognized how gracious and merciful my God is and how my words were not. How could I not extend grace and mercy when God had so freely given it to me? It was hurting my relationship with God, hurting me, and hurting my marriage. It was time to ask for forgiveness and remind myself of God's truth. I wanted my lips to be fruitful and for my words to be sweet to soul and healing to the bones - Proverbs 16:24.

Proverbs 18:20 (NIV) "From the fruit of his mouth a man's stomach is filled; with the harvest from his lips he is satisfied." In studying this verse, "stomach" means our heart. Are the words coming out of my mouth (from the heart) satisfying to the Lord and to those around me?

I'd love for you to join me on this journey as we share how the Lord has taught and continues to teach us through His word about how our lips can remain fruitful. It is certain to bring us peace, wisdom, encouragement and life.

Until next week,