On My Mind This Week....

Do you ever feel like you have days...maybe weeks....where your head is so full and jumbled that it gives you a headache?


I woke up with a dull thudding in my brain this morning and rather than blaming getting up to baby during the night, I thought I'd take the time to think about all that's been in my head this week.


Here's a sample.....

• planning lessons....for next week during and after a 3AM feed and wishing I could just shut off the brain so I could sleep
• feeling really hot
• do people think that me being a Christian is all about what I DON'T do?
• why is j so whingey? why is he waking through the night so often? why do I have not a clue as to the answer to those questions?
• how do I politely refuse an offer of more work?
• should I even be working at all?
• why am I so selfish? judgemental? impatient? lazy?
• trying to fit another thing into a day that is already full
• wondering what to cook for mum's group or dinner...only to find half the ingredients for what I wanted to make are no longer in the pantry
• working out the best times to make phone calls...a) for when I'll actually be able to talk to the person on the other end of the phone b) for when it fits into the eating, sleeping, playing schedule that's running this end and c) for when I feel like I am alert and awake enough to make it a worthwhile conversation
• considering ebay purchases
• planning a holiday
• the grocery shopping dilemma
• AND so it goes.......

I guess as a woman....a wife....a mother.....that list of things our mind dwells on is always 
l-o-n-g....VERY long. And yes....it can certainly seem overwhelming at times.


But I have also been reminded of God's promise to me....Isaiah 26:3 - You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.


Now the question is.....will I allow room in that full and swirling mind for my focus to be on trusting Him?

From Genesis 5

How timely that I read about Noah and the flood just days before the Qld flood disasters last week. In the midst of the mess, I had firmly in my head the picture of the rainbow and God's covenant with us....He will never again send a flood that will wipe out all living things. So even in the midst of sadness and loss, there was still hope. Hope in a good God who always keeps His promises.

And another thought from Genesis 5 is about the life of Noah himself and the example he is to us. We are told that Noah was a 'righteous and blameless man who walked with God.' He 'did everything just as God commanded him.' How hard that must have been for Noah. In many ways.

The work he was called to do was physically demanding. Long days...heavy work....splinters. You can imagine the sweat, the aching muscles and weariness at the end of the day. Yet he kept on going....there was a job to do.

It was emotionally demanding work. Noah was facing the unknown. Having never even seen rain, he was being asked by God to prepare for a 40 day and night downpour. He was facing a future that seemed clouded and unclear. And he was leading his family into the unknown. Yet he kept on going....all the while trusting in God and living in obedience to the call God was making.

It was socially demanding. Noah was questioned and ridiculed by his friends and strangers. He faced isolation and ignorance. He was not popular and his work, his values and his life were not admired or accepted. He was misunderstood and he was alone, apart from his immediate family and of course....God. Yet he kept on going.....realising that 'God + me = a majority.'

Trust and obedience. They are to be the obvious hallmarks of anyone who calls themselves a 'Jesus follower'. And while for you, they may not look anything like they did for Noah (I assume none of you has an ark taking shape in the backyard!) the command of God is nevertheless on our lives. Today He is calling us to be His earthly ambassadors. He wants us to love others...unconditionally. He desires for us to care for the poor. He needs us to help our husbands....cherish our wives......teach our children. His commands challenge us to be wise stewards of our finances and our time. He wants us to make wise choices about what we eat....watch...read....say. And He has specific jobs and ministries for us to be involved in.

Sometimes, He ups the ante with His call on our life. He may be asking us to care for an elderly parent.....walk through the trial of sickness or injury.....raise a child with a disability.....clean-up after a flood.....live with the grief of loss......endure the ill treatment of a work colleague.....keep on loving an unlovely spouse.....

No matter the circumstances or situation, God desires our trust and our obedience....but He never suggested that either would be easy. Some of what He asks of you may be physically demanding. Some may be socially or emotionally demanding. But like Noah, we can keep on keeping on. Because the reward will be great. Like Noah, I want it said of me....s/he 'found favour in God's eyes.' Don't you?

Psalms Fun

I just finished reading Psalms this morning. It's taken me a few months with 2-3 Psalms read every Wednesday and today...I finished the last of all 150. I'm a bit sad about that really cause David and friends sure know how to write.

But is was great timing as I received an email slide show from my aunt...something I have seen before, but nevertheless, a great reminder of how amazing God and His word are.

The shortest chapter of the Bible is Psalm 117.
The longest chapter is Psalm 119.
And the centre chapter is Psalm 118.
There are 594 chapters before Ps 118 and 594 chapters after Ps 118.
Add 594 and 594 and you get 1188.
The central verse in the whole Bible is Ps 118:8.
What does the central verse have to tell us about God and life????
Check it out for yourself: Psalm 118:8
Clever!

Threes

What do they say about threes?
That God always speaks in them?? Nope...I think the only reason we hear things 3 times from God is because we are either hard of hearing or slow learners. How wonderful that He's a God who speaks loudly...when He needs to....and is extremely patient.


Well life had been going along so well. I thought I had the routines and functions of a Mum down pat. That was until mid-week last week when disaster hit. Sparing you the gory details, I will simply say, breastfeeding is not as nice as it used to be.
Meanwhile, the emotions started going haywire thanks to the pain and subsequent sleeplessness and I found myself upset, questioning and doubting and poor old J found himself with a whinging, sooky wife.

Then God spoke.....3 times in 3 days. And as per usual, He was creative in how He spoke....it was of course, in 3 different ways. And yet the 3 different messages, all interlink. How like Him to take the random, lose ends of thoughts and ideas and tie them up nicely so they make sense.

1. As I was driving in the car I had the Christian radio station on (Go Rhema!) and an oldie but a goodie came on. The lyrics are: "I love You, all of my hope is in You....Jesus Christ take my life, take all of me..." WHAM! I heard God. He was saying, "Get your focus right my girl. Look at me, love me, trust me and you'll know hope. And hope is what you need right now....the hope for healing and a better day tomorrow. Give your life, including your pain and doubt to Jesus. Give Him your emotions, your attitudes, your thoughts and let Him give His to you. Instead of doubt, know belief. Instead of despair, hope. Instead of unrest, peace." I sang along with that song with great gusto, making it my prayer...albeit a very loud and off key prayer!

2. My friend L has had her own struggles in recent times and she has been such a great encouragement to me. Through them, she has grown closer to God and in sharing some of that experience, she has been a challenge and a blessing. So one of the ways God has spoken to her was through Joyce Meyer's book 'Power Thoughts.' (L shared something of that book in last Friday's blog) I now have that book in my possession and as I read chapter one on my attitude...God spoke. The 5 rules Joyce presents about our thinking and more specifically our attitude, reminded me that in the midst of what's going wrong, I need to: maintain the right attitude when the going gets rough; realise the rough times won't last forever; stay in touch with God and try to keep things in perspective. (You can read Chapter 1 for yourself at Joyce's website.) All things I needed to hear and take the time to process and apply to how I was feeling and responding right then....and in the days since.

3. Sunday's sermon came from the story of the Israelites crossing into the Promised Land. The theme?....'Trust God.' Considering all that the Israelites had seen and experienced in the past 40 plus years, you'd have thought trusting God would be easy. Afterall, they'd been led by fire and cloud, rescued out of slavery, provided with food in most unusual ways, saved from charging Egyptians and the rest. But I guess I'm a lot like them really. I have seen and experienced God doing great things and also working in small, quiet ways. Firsthand, I know Him to be good and faithful. So I need to TRUST Him in all my days, but especially the ones that are difficult.

So 3 words....HOPE, ATTITUDE, TRUST. May they be a reminder to you and me both that God IS alive...He IS good (all the time)...He IS faithful.....He DOES love us.....He IS working things for our good. Hey! That's 5 things! Yep, that's God...He exceeds all our expectations. I'm so glad!