Hiding under the bed

When I was little and would get scared, I would hide under the bed... For years I did this and no matter what my parents told me, I would still hide under the bed. At 7 years old, I remember during a lighting storm there I was, hiding under the bed when my 9 year old brother walked into my room and stood there looking at me hiding under the bed. The next words out of his mouth changed my "bed hiding" life forever. "Why are you hiding under the bed? That's where all the monsters are" I flew out from under the bed like a shot and NEVER hid there again.

This memory came back to me while re-listening to one of Ben Brinkman's messages on podcast and I realized that as adults we have become great at hiding under the bed right next to our monsters, squeezing our eyes shut and pretending they are not there. We are so stubborn and blind that we convince ourselves that everything will be ok if we just keep our eyes closed; and the "monster" is greedily prepping us like a tasty morsel he can't wait to devour. While the whole time the Comforter is on Top of the bed, waiting for us; to comfort us, to encourage us, to help ease our fears and face our monsters.

2 Timothy 1: 7 says:

^7" For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind".

He is our source, our protector, our director, our comforter. We don't have to walk this life out alone, but too many times we CHOSE to... thinking that we can make it on our own, our Type A independent personalities taking over until we've pushed ourselves to the edge and can't do it anymore without His comfort and peace. This is the one lesson I wish I could learn and never let go of, but too often I find myself flailing under my own perseverance and determination, which is why being able to go back and listen and remind myself is so vital for me. So if you haven't heard the Urban message (The comforter - Fear 09/20/09) - Check it out (via Podcast), it's life changing and will get you out from under your bed!!!

God Bless

Chi

Walking it Out

Recently while talking to a dear friend regarding a situation she is walking through, she totally and completely humbled and inspired me. The situation itself (though tough and yet unresolved) isn't what was important here, but rather her attitude in the midst of it.

She could have spent hours whining to me about how unfair life is, how difficult the situation was. But instead, she asked me to pray, then proceeded to tell me how she was encouraged by Psalms 69 and how it spoke to her in both the spiritual and physical of what she was going through. She then shared how it just reaffirmed in her spirit how no matter what we face in life, we do not face it alone, that no matter the outcome, He is right there beside us.

How humbled I was at her attitude and it made me thing about how often do we all get in the middle of our circumstance and forget we are not alone? Or worse BLAME God for what is simply life. I remember this song from when I was in junior high, and it went something like this:

"He never said, you'd always see sunshine,
He never said there'd be no rain,
He only promised a heart full of singing,
At the very thing that once brought pain.

Givc them all
Give them all
Give them all to Jesus
Shattered dreams wounded hearts
And broken toys...

Give them all
Give them all
Give them all to Jesus
And he will turn your sorrows
Into Joy

We need to remember that He was wounded for our transgression, bruised for our iniquities, and yet we whine at every turn. How in our arrogance do we expect our lives to be picture perfect when His was not? Of the 12 apostles, 11 died a martyrs death, in countries all over the world they meet in secret to worship and study, and here we are whining when something doesn't go just the way we expect. Trust me I am far from guilty, (Feel free to read Out of your box if you have any doubts on the capacity of my whining capabilities) but I am willing to change, to learn and to grow.

Psalm 139:8-12 promises: “ If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light about me be night,” even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you.”

So no matter what we are walking though we are not alone! My dear friend has inspired me and I am holding onto this promise.

God Bless!

Chi

Pay Attention!!!

Being a photographer, one of the first things you learn is to PAY ATTENTION, to your surroundings, what's behind the subject, how the subject looks, the light around it... These items are very important because the slightest missed detail can make the difference between a good photograph and an extraordinary one. Is it for this reason that you will find most photographers Do not close one eye (That is a myth people!) but rather keep them both open... this way no detail is missed.

One thing you have to realize is that you take about three to four hundred pictures to get about 20-30 decent pictures, and from that you walk away with around 6-12 produced pictures. I just did a photo session with an amazing friend, and really applied the pay attention rule, making note of the scenery behind her and every other detail involved. And wow... did the pictures turn out fantastic.

This got me to thinking, what if I applied this same principle to my everyday life? To be honest, I have to say I am amazed that in spite of learning this lesson, how often I do not apply it in my life. I get so busy with the insignificant details that I forget to pay attention to what really matters; and believe it or not, it's not whether or not my house looked perfect when you come to visit, but rather how much time I invested in my children and my husband. It's whether or not I spent my time counting how often my husband told me he loved me, when I could have spent the day planning on ways to show him how much I love him. Did I spend my day counting up what a friend has done for me, or spend the day loving that friend and seeing if there is anything they need.

Hebrews 2:1 (This seems to be my verse for the month) says: "For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, so that we don't drift away from it"

While I know that this applies to our relationship with God, I wonder, what if we apply this to every aspect of our lives. How we treat our family, our friends, strangers and even ourselves. What if for just one moment we forget about all the silly little details that society has pushed on us, set aside our personal perceptions and just love people and see how much of a difference we can make in their lives.

So stop, look around you and PAY ATTENTION. Life is waiting for you... go live it.

God Bless,

Chi

Out of Your Box

I was reading today in Mark and chapter 9: 2-8 says: " ² After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. ³ His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. ⁴ And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus.

⁵ Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” ⁶ (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.)

⁷ Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”

⁸ Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus."

Now this is a wonderful story of the transfiguration, but today it meant so much more than that to me. So picture this, the guys are just hanging out being guys, talking about fishing, girls, Sports, the weather; you know guys things... when all of the sudden out of no where, BAM! Jesus transfigures right in front of them! And His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them *(Rambling Side Note: As a wife and Mom, I would love to know their dazzling white secret for laundry...lol) and the old school prophets show up and it's a righteous party.

So this amazing moment happens, the disciples are both frightened and awestruck, it may be scary but it's such a God moment so Peter, good ol Pete says: "Let's put up tents and just stay here" and then just as fast... BAM! The prophets and the moment are gone.

Wait! What? What happened? This is my theory: God knew in that moment, that Peter was already limiting Him. It was a "this is going to be the best that God can do" moment, so by removing it, Peter didn't have the opportunity to settle into complacency... and look at how far God brought him.

The second thing that stood out to me was this: "when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus" Because you see, sometimes God has to bring us to moments where it is just us & Jesus, no distractions, nothing but Him. Those are the moments where the real life changes take place.

So how often do we do that in our own lives, something fairly amazing happens and we just want to stay there like this is the best its ever going to be. Or we get so busy "doing" ministry that we forget the "why" we are doing it. We forget that his word says he will take us from glory to glory, (2 Corinthians 3: 16-18) not just a single glory. Can you live your life on a single breath? Then how can you expect to live your life on a single God moment? Is it a lack of faith that keeps us from living life to the fullest or perhaps insecurity that we don't deserve it. Either way, we are the ones limiting God, not vice-versa. So get out of your box and challenge yourself.

I am not telling you its easy, believe me, I just walked though a season of being a whiny brat, feeling sorry for myself, living on past "Glories" and limiting God and what He has for my future. For about half a year (I was on medical bed rest) I wasted time that I can never get back. I could have been writing, editing pictures, reading and making plans for when I was better but no, what did I do? Pulled the covers over my head and said boo hoo... poor me.

So if the only purpose that season of my life has is to be an example of what NOT TO DO, please learn it well, press in and keep reaching for your next God moment.

God Bless you!!

Chi

The Dream that wouldn't die

I was reading this morning in Acts and 2:39 really stood out to me... it reads:

"For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself."

This got me to thinking, and I am realizing that the promise isn't just for salvation but for the future the Lord has for us here on earth. That it is also for the sake of the Dreams He has planted inside of each and every one of us. But sometimes we expect those dreams to happen without any effort or work and to happen instantly. It doesn't however always work that way.

So let me tell you about this hero of mine. I know this guy who has had a dream for a long as I can remember, just one real passion, one dream that had fused itself into his very being, and in spite of all the "Nay" Sayers, he knew that one day it was going to come true. For 32 years he believed, prepared and waited with the promise of the Dream tucked safely in his heart. Then in 2010 The Katecheo Bible Training Center was opened and the Dream finally began to unfold into reality. I don't know this because I read it some where or because someone told me about it, but because I watched it walked out day after day in my Dad's life. He is truly an inspiration of faithfulness and endurance. I am proud of him and to have that example in my life.

Another hero I have is this precious sweet unassuming woman I know who made a mistake in her past that cost her dearly... and for undisclosed reasons this caused her to to lose contact with her children for 30+ years. She has told me that during that time, she carried her children in her heart, believing that someday those relationships would be restored. Little did she know that God works in wondrous and mysterious ways. She had since moved to a different state with a new life, but still held that hope in her heart, not knowing that one day, God would call her son and his family to that very city to help build a church and that she would find him once again; because when God called her son, His plan was so much bigger than building a church; He was also building and restoring a family... Not just any family, my family.

How many times do we so quickly give up because our dreams don't happen the moment we want them? There is an expression that says: "God grant me patience but I want it right now" and this really has become our motto in life. We live in a society of instant gratification and we expect results immediately; and when that doesn't happen, we throw ourselves to the floor and throw our little tantrums.

How do I know this? Because I have done this more times than I care to admit. I get frustrated and give up way to easy, but the problem with that is the Dream is still there so even if you try to throw it away, it's never really gone. So I am not praying for patience any more because I already have it, I just need to learn to practice it. Not just once in a while but daily and I encourage you to do the same. After all: Practice makes perfect!

God Bless

Chi