Gifted

The frustrating part of gift-giving is finding that one tangible item to convey all of the intangible gifts already given by the recipient.

Faith is

Faith is being guided through a dark tunnel trusting solely in The One Leading the way.

Don’t Stop Chasing Rainbows

freedigitalphotos.net

While I was running errands, my daughter asked me a random question.

“Mama, can I see a rainbow heart?”

“No,” I said not because I was in a sore mood, but because I didn’t know what a rainbow heart was.

“Please mommy, can you show me a rainbow heart on the computer?” whimsically mixing technology with fantasy.

“We’ll see.”(if she’s forgotten about it by the time we’ve made it home.)

She didn’t.

After an image search, she was amazed and I dumbawestruck at the various rainbow hearts on the screen.

When I was her age, I futilely looked for the end of rainbows before abandoning my search for the elusive pot of gold.

However, my young daughter was freely seeking a heart full of the multi-colored banners.

While her search ended when she found a rainbow, my search would just begin as I overlooked countless others for something that didn’t exist.

Based on Our Father’s Covenant(Genesis 9:13-17), how could she know that she was literally searching for a heart filled with love – and find it?

freedigitalphotos.net

I – Scream!

Interesting how I may have discovered the inspiration for the “Ice Cream, You Scream” marketing slogan.  No, it wasn’t through a documentary on dairy cows, but rather a recurring episode of “Toddlers and Tantrums.”  The latest episode of T & T was extremely enlightening as it revealed the producers and actresses heated moments of artistic expression through multiple takes and edits to condense it to the playful, 30-second spot we’ve grown to love.

My tot, the T & T star, knows that simply screaming for ice cream in Take 1 simply won’t cut it.  So in Take 2, she multi-tasks into a shrieking, begging, pouting, tearful rage.  Even with the amped up water works, I said no.

“You have to eat.”

“I don’t wanna eeeeat, I want iscreeeem!”

“I said no, you have to eat.”

“I’m not hungry!”

Too late, her meal was already on the table.

She sat down with a defiant thud, pursed lips and crossed arms.

But eventually she began to eat.

A cup of water placed before her however, quickly reignited her temper.

“I want juice!”

“Well, you’re getting water!”

“I don’t want water, I want juice!”

I wasn’t in the bargaining mood today.

“I already answered you, now finish eating!”

Eventually she did.

“Mommy look, I ate all my food!” She said with a full stomach and a lighter mood. I expected another request for ice-cream, but instead she went to bed.

Her clean plate assured me of what I already knew. My daughter’s snack request was inadequate when what she needed was a meal. She didn’t get what she wanted, but what she needed. In the end, what she needed was what she wanted all along.

Happy Ending

 I want to read, she wants to play is an incessant conflict between my daughter and I, not at the park or playground but over my laptop.  The laptop may as well be coin-operated because the minute I log on my time is fleeting.  I can usually buy more time by finding things for my daughter to do:  clean your room, take your bath, brush your teeth.

My daughter can buy more time by whining, demanding, and begging away my concentration, which is why I abruptly walked away from an essay I was reading before my patience and simultaneous computer time ran out.

She then wasted no time claiming her position in front of the monitor.

However, instead of moving the cursor up to her favorite game site, she scrolled down.

For a tot not yet in Kindergarten, I wondered how long the thousands of foreign words would hold her interest as she continued to scroll.

I watched as she purposefully stared at the screen as if she was looking for something substantial to take away from the article – other than my time.

She was still scrolling.

She stopped intermittently during her literary stroll of the essay to enjoy the view of a handful of clip art.

She then reached the end of her stroll and found whatever it was she was looking for- not at the end of the essay but at the very bottom of the webpage.

A smiley face.

Although the purpose of her search wasn’t clear to me, and I’m sure it wasn’t clear to her either, she kept going. Though at times she paused to enjoy the view, she found what she was looking for – a happy ending.

Get Outta Here!

Can you imagine reading the newspaper and coming across an opinion article written just about you?  That’s how i felt on July 22, I was surfing the WordPress Reader and realized I was reading a post about me!  My blog specifically and how inspiring it was to fellow blogger:

http://learningmypathtowardsgod.wordpress.com

Could you also imagine a few days later receiving thanks from another fellow blogger that has inspired you for inspiring him?  Not in my wildest dreams until July 26 when  Juan Castillo nominated my blog for the Very Inspiring Blog Award (above).

This is the first award I’ve received where I have to give an acceptance speech by telling 7 facts about myself.  (I didn’t have to rent a formal gown for this one:) Also, reward others who will be sharing the stage with me below.

My blog has been making all kinds of headlines this week.  My week wasn’t so shabby either:)

http://yasniger.wordpress.com/

http://nackynice.wordpress.com/

http://findingyourblessings.wordpress.com/

http://kevinsine.wordpress.com/

http://endlessmargrita.wordpress.com/

http://lifeseedsone.wordpress.com/

http://caasirawr.wordpress.com/

http://thecrunchychristian.wordpress.com/

http://elliebloo.com/

http://cdyeagerwrites.wordpress.com/

http://trainleanthinkclean.wordpress.com

http://pianogirl.wordpress.com/2012/07/

http://transformedbythejourney.com/

http://onelifetimeblog.com/

http://moondaytimes.wordpress.com/

I adapted my responses from Juan’s to illustrate how different we are and yet the same.  My answers are next to his in parenthesis

1. I can move my adam’s apple from side to side (I like Gala apples)
2. I LOVE to sing.  In fact, one of my dreams was and kind of still is to become a contemporary Christian artist (I love to think I can sing)
3. My favorite season is Spring…hands down with no comparison (my fave too)
4. I dont like Ice cream (I’m lactose-intolerant)
5. Im a guy who like the movie “the notebook” (never watched it)
6. Im a total tree hugger….totally. (I like hugs period)
7. I much rather go to a park than watch a movie. (I would much rather play board games)

Dry Your Eyes

“Crying isn’t going to make me do it any faster!”

Is what my daughter hears between sobs when her request elevates to demands in a few hot seconds.

Considering that this is a regular occurrence, I marvel that she is still not aware that I fully intend to fulfill her original request before she hypes into diva-mode.

Now, I have to stop to teach her a 4-part lesson in patience.

1. Wipe your face
2. Take a deep breath
3. Ask politely.
4. Say thank-you.

Immediately, I instruct my daughter to stop crying because I want her full attention.

If necessary, I ask her to take a deep breath to organize her thoughts. I then instruct her to phrase her request into a question. And before she runs off with her request fulfilled and no memory of this event ever occurring, I remind her to say thank you.

I learned how childish I was acting  as I was sobbing about another day and no job offer.  I have been praying for nearly 2 years for a better job, and I cranked into diva mode today.

Then I realized, crying isn’t going to make my Father Answer my prayers any faster. So I wiped my face, took a deep breath, continue to ask Him nicely remembering His Sovereignty, and when He does respond, I will thank Him -again.

Her Two Cents

It was that time in church again- the part of the service where we are expected to give after hopefully getting something out of the sermon.

“Give what you have purposed in your heart to give,” reminded the deacon in his weekly recital of 2 Corinthians 9:7.

Today, after another weekly ritual of paying bills, I made a purpose to give $2.

As the collection plate came around, I purposefully put my $2 into it.

However, God Had another purpose.  After the sermon, He Continued To Teach me a lesson about giving.

Immediately after I put in my two bucks, my pre-schooler decided to add her two cents, by dipping her hand into my still open purse. She pulled out the first bill she saw out of her sudden “handbag,” and put it into the collection plate as well.

She looked at me happy that she was able to participate in the service, and proud that she remembered to share.

I looked at the collection plate resisting the urge to swipe it back.

That is because the first bill she saw was a $20 bill – ten times more than my original purpose.

My pre-schooler didn’t yet know the difference between monetary denominations, but regardless of my religious denomination, I was still expected to give.

I am aware of the controversy on the church’s position and teachings on giving and its accusations of “fleecing the sheep.”

Despite the arguments for and against, you can’t argue with God’s Word.

`And to everyone who is asking of thee, be giving; and from him who is taking away thy goods, be not asking again’ Luke 6:30.

So glad I didn’t dip my hand back into the collection plate.

We worship a God Who Tells us to give to even our enemies to fulfill God’s True Purpose.

`Give, and it shall be given to you; good measure, pressed, and shaken, and running over, they shall give into your bosom; for with that measure with which ye measure, it shall be measured to you again.’ Luke 6:38

I left church with my purse a little lighter, but my heart a lot fuller, because I was happy and proud too.

For giving.

As a parent, there are a lot of things I teach my daughter about life.  As a child, there are a lot of things she teaches me about love.

I have to own up to some of my wrongs against her:

• false accusation (I was just sure she made another mess)
• losing my temper and/or patience (don’t worry, I always find it)
• inflicting pain (I honestly didn’t see her when I turned around)

When I consider what I owe my daughter for my wrongs, all I can do is apologize.

Her response?  “That’s OK mommy, I just love you.” (I could go on and on about how wonderful of a mom she says I am, but I guess it’s unnecessary to mention it here:)

Lesson learned? My daughter has forgiven my debts as God Has Forgiven mine.

Thankfully, God Loves us both too.

First thing’s First

“But seek ye first the reign of God and His righteousness, and all these shall be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33).

For the longest, I wondered and pondered about this verse because there are no helpful, step-by-step preferably illustrated accompanying instructions.  I asked God in prayer to provide insight on how to first seek His Kingdom and His Righteousness.

Over time, I became frustrated and discouraged because God Still Had Not Given me a roadmap, GPS tracker app, or even the slightest clue to begin searching for His Kingdom and Righteousness.

Then, one day it hit me.  If I wanted to first seek God’s Kingdom and Righteousness, just do what He Says.

After lamenting that God Had Not Clearly Explained how to first seek His Kingdom and Righteousness, I realized His Instructions were included before and after this verse – several hundred pages worth.  Why didn’t I see that sooner?

Just do what He Says.

Some of His Instructions are indirectly explained in parables, while some are more direct: “Do not (insert sin)”, for example.

Based on the description of His Kingdom in Revelations 21, I thought seeking God’s Kingdom required some grandiose act, but in reality, seeking God’s Kingdom is not the result of just one act.

It’s the first thing you do before youact, even in the smallest of gestures.

For instance, the Bible says you shouldn’t swear or take oaths, but your word should suffice (Matthew 5:34-37, James 5:12).  Or simply, just do what you said you were going to do – even when you don’t feel like it.

I found myself honoring commitments to people I said I would do the following week – something I said months ago.

Swearing and oath-taking all resulted from sin: people simply did not keep their word.

Regardless of whether you are still caught up in whether or not to take the Bible literally, as a Christian, take it seriously.

Truly seeking God’s Kingdom and His Righteousness first prevents us from doing things we know are wrong  “just this once” based on James 4:17 “to him, then, knowing to do good, and not doing, sin it is to him.”

Recently, in the midst of my worrying, I realized I was not seeking God’s Kingdom first.  `Because of this I say to you, be not anxious for your life, what ye may eat, and what ye may drink, nor for your body, what ye may put on. Is not the life more than the nourishment, and the body than the clothing? (Matthew 6:25)

I was reminded by James 1:6-7, that if I doubted God, how could I expect anything from Him?

I was assured by Matthew 6:33 that my necessities would be added as long as I seek God’s Kingdom and His Righteousness first.