Chapter 3 Perserverance Miracles

We are getting ready to head out to the football game "Go Riders!" and was catching up on my reading while I wait for the last of the laundry to wash. My favorite quotes:

"The second kind of miracle is the kind where God chooses not to supernaturally remove or resolve a problem. Instead, God gives his ongoing, miraculous strength to us to enable us to perserve through the problem"

" Our minds and bodies are a lot like those jars of clay. We're frail. We break. We crack and fall to pieces. Clay pots don't hold up real well under extramarital affairs, depressions, and bankruptcy. When we manage to keep our lives intact when they should be scattered across the floor in a million pieces, we - and others - realize that something supernatural is holding us together."

"God performs instantaneous miracles by himself. They're amazing. but let's face it, he is God - they should be amazing! Perseverance miracles, on the other hand, depend on God and human beings to happen. "

"One of the reasons I think God performs more perseverance miracles than instanteous miracles is because their impact is longer. They stretch. Perseverance miracles aren't flash-in-the-pan. When someone perseveres in the midst of unspeakable hardship, her presence and joy leaves no one untouched....Being a living miracle has a much more lasting effect."

I use to pray for the instant miracles but I've started praying that God also gives the people in my life that are going through hard times the perseverance type miracles too.

I am thankful for autumn colors, seeing cousins that I haven't seen in ages and ages, sunny days, washing machines and dryers, good friends and kleenex (hey when you have two kids with a cold and runny nose - kleenex is a wonderful thing!!).

Go Riders!

Proverbs 22:1
"Choose a good reputation over great riches, being held in high esteem is better than silver or gold."

One of my readings today and again, it fits perfectly with my day....
At work we have to write an Accountability Agreement - what we will be accountable for the next year. A good method of having a conversation with your manager about what you see yourself accomplishing or maintaining, how you've done over the last year, you have to write a personal statement, what you need from your manager, from your staff, etc. etc. Anyway I had my "conversation" with my manager today and I can tell you that no amount of gold or silver could make me feel as good as I felt when I left his office and how reenergized I feel about my work. Now I'm not saying any of this to brag (at least I hope not) but it's amazing how good you feel about what your doing, your value in an organization when your boss tell's you what my boss said to me today. The one comment that really struck me was when he said he could see how my personal values and how I view people, etc impacting how I do my job and how others view me at work. Makes me realize more that God is working in me, that maybe I am growing some of those "fruits" of the spirit.

Anyway, it's just an overall good feeling day.

Thank you Lord for my work, for the way you work in me, for your love and patience and kindness to me.

Proverbs 20:24
"The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way."

This verse is from my Bible reading today and it's interesting that it goes along with the book we are reading. Trusting God when we don't understand his plan, especially during the hard times. Trusting that he is working "upstream" in our lives to turn our circumstances into good.

Favorite quotes from the book - Chapter 2

"The problem is that God exists outside our five senses. Unless God chooses to reveal himself in some way, we don't see, taste, touch, smell, or hear him. But that doesn't mean there isn't a God. People who see God at work upstream are those who have learned to look at the world counterintuitively. They've learned to trust what the Bible calls "the eyes of the heart Eph 1:18 - a built in spiritual sonar in our souls that tells us there's more than we can see."

"I turst the eyes of my heart. I've learned to trust that part of me that measures beauty and love and passion and truth, al the things that can't be placed under a microscope."

"The more we exercise faith - trusting God with our souls and not our eyes, our hearts and not our hands - and open ourselves up to the possibility that we can't see and understand everything, the more we'll begin to recognize God working upstream in our lives."

Things have been quiet here. Hubby was out of town most of last week but then the girls left for the Winnipeg Youth Rally leaving us at home...alone...by ourselves...no kids. Hee hee I look at my past post where I was bemoaning Sarah being away for the week but this weekend I didn't miss the kids at all. It was nice being able to spend time with the hubby, sitting on the couch together, not driving the kids here and there, just relaxing. We went to a hockey game together, washed dishes together (shocker), rented movies and sat and watch them together. I think this is one of the first times that the hubby had a chance to watch any movie we have rented, completely. It was really nice to reconnect with him....wonder when we can ship the kids off again???

Today Sarah had her tongue "web" clipped so she wouldn't be "tongue tied" anymore. She was a trooper and handled the needle really well. Even I handled it well watching the procedure while I held her hand.

I'm thankful for a loving huband who after 17 years of marraige still puts up with me and loves me, meaningful conversations with my girls, a God I can trust when I don't understand why things are happening (not always the easiest thing to do), calm days, a good pot roast, and I job that I still enjoy going to every day.

Second Guessing God Chapter 1

Two of my favorite quotes from the bookthis week:

"Picture a large rock in the middle of a barren field. Sitting there by itself, it is ordinary, overlooked, and without much use. But in the hands of a master sculptor, it can become a masterpiece. Your life is a lot like that rock."

a masterpiece - I could become a masterpiece? He's got a lot of work to do with me but the thought that He can change me... wait - let me rephrase that - is changing me takes my breath away... of course a little obedience on my side might help the process..

"I believe God takes even our bad decisions and works to help us overcome their negative consequences."

Making good out of bad - now that's my God!!!

On the physical side of life - not much happening. Been raining for 4 days, Murray's been out of town all week, the kids haven't driven me crazy, and I've survived working full time this week. Wednesday night I opted to sit in on M/Bob's class and I really enjoyed it. Talked about the gospels and then compared the beginning of all 4, the differences. Very interesting.

So what am I thankful for this week? Friends to go out for coffee with, my childrens hugs and kisses, rain (without a flooded basement), husband that came home safe and sound, a night with no scheduled activities, laughter, good books and the love of God.

Trees....going, going, gone....

***Warning: If you are a tree lover do not read further*****

Well, I have wanted my 2 pines chopped down for several summers now. My hubby surprised me earlier this summer by chopping off about 20feet of the lower branches off the 2 pines. And today he finished off the job. 2 trees I wanted down, we ended up with 2 1/2 trees down. Unfortunately the other tree in the yard got damaged (i.e. the trees kept falling into it - but better than the neighbours fence or house!).

Here is Murray starting the job, 2 trees still up:



Here is the tree down with the tree I didn't want down. When it fell on the tree, I was thinking well I wanted to prune the tree anyway and now we will definetely be pruning! I was quite nervous watching this whole event. I kept imaging it falling into the neighbours yard and damaging their propery, or Murray somehow getting caught by the tree and hurting himself. He was able to get down from the ladder and to a safe place before the first one fell. The second one, he got to rope and was able to yank it in the right direction.



Stumps now:



It is amazing at how open our backyard feels now. I am thankful that I still have a husband in one piece, with no broken back/neck/arm/leg, or chopped off arm/leg. I am thankful that I have a brother in law that would come over and spend the day helping his brother chop these trees down. I am thankful for a wide open backyard that I have no excuse now, not to sit in and enjoy. I am thankful my dog gets along with my brother in law's dog, since they had to spend the day together. We would kick them into the house when the trees were coming down. They both sat at the side door crying to be let out.

Here are the two hard working men chilling after a good days work. Thank you Lord for them.