Who Loves Ya Baby?

Some of you are too young to know where this saying comes from. An aging bald man named Telly Savalas used to say it on a TV show named Kojak, a crime drama back in the 70’s. I loved that show. Telly with his signature lollipop. Just brings a smile to my face. 

Have you ever had one of those days when you feel like nobody loves you? I think we all do occasionally.

Maybe it’s been a while since you talked to a couple of your good friends, or your husband and kids aren’t showing you the appreciation you feel like they should. You work outside the home and then come home to job #2 – your family and home.

Maybe you stay at home and take care of the kids, do the dishes, clean house, laundry, shopping, cooking, chauffeur everyone around making sure they all get to their appointments. Maybe, you are older and live alone and just don’t get out as much as you used to and feel lonely. 

Normally you are loved and you know you are, but you are just feeling blue for no reason. It really doesn’t matter, the feeling is there. So what do we do about it?

Well here are a couple of ideas:

• Curl up on the couch and watch sad movies
• Have a pint of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream
• Cook something yummy

Or do something positive:

• Do something for someone else
• Read a book
• Go for a walk or work out

Better yet, open the Bible. Let’s see what God has to say about feeling lonely and unloved.

Isaiah 41:10
Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’

John 3:16
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

1 John 4:10
10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

So how can we feel unloved if God loved us so much that He gave His son for our lives? Are you depressed, lonely or feeling unappreciated now?

It is so human of us to become focused on ourselves and how other people treat us that we forget that our job here on earth is to serve as Christ did.

Always remember, God loves you and appreciates you more than anyone else.

Hurry Up, Hurry Up, Hurry Up!

If you are a woman, you understand the phrase above. No explanation needed. Our life seems to be events – not everyday living. Sometimes I feel our lives are the perpetual hamster wheel.

We start planning for Christmas in July, and then we move right into Halloween, Thanksgiving, and then the big day. In January we start all over again for the next year. Planning, decorating and cooking, making sure that everything is picture perfect.

Do you sometimes want to yell STOP the world I want to get off? I know I do. I specifically remember this feeling as a young mother. I was a single mom and raising my two daughters, working a full time job, involved in church, the girls had dance or soccer or the activity they were involved in that season. Of course the everyday drudgery of cleaning house, laundry always was there waiting for me at 10 o’clock at night when I just wanted to sink into bed. What if you are an overachiever, well there is another level to your work because you have to do more than the rest of your peers to get the accolades of how wonderful everything is. Most of which are self-inflicted “have too”.

I used to do crazy stuff, make lasagna for the office, bake homemade bread (no not a bread machine), cookies, and muffins and on and on. Why? Well there isn’t anything wrong with any of these things, and I really enjoyed doing them for other people, that's just who I am. 

I feel like we have all gone into party mode. Party mode is fun for most of us. We like having parties, giving parties and going to parties. But real life is not a party. Learning to live everyday life, doing your chores and being proud of a job well done and satisfied is gone away. It saddens me. 

Young mothers today, I feel for you. You now have the internet with Facebook and Pinterest that you get to compare yourselves to each other. Oh she did this and that with her children; I should do more with mine. This mindset will wear you out and make you unhappy. Look to your children and families and everyday things to help make your life happy and substantial.

Now that I am getting older my body makes me stop when I am doing too much. I wake up with a list of things to do for the day but can only get through two thirds of it. Then the body says stop. Getting older has its privileges. One of them is saying I just can’t do that right now. 

But – sometimes even we older overachievers don’t know when to stop and say no. Easter is around the corner and my hamster wheel is waiting for me, I must go now. I need to decorate my fire place like a picture I saw on Pinterest and make the special cookies, rice crispy treats and flower decorations.

Romance - Isn't it Lovely

Who doesn’t like to read a good romance novel? Now I’m not talking about one of those X-rated books, I’m talking about a really great book where the man really worships the woman.

As some of you might know I am a writer. I’m at the beginning of my writing career and have had a few things published. I’m working on a book for young girls on dating and choices they will need to make, along with a humorous romance about a women in her 50’s dating and meeting men on line.

Writing is a creative process and a lot of hard work. As a writer I am always looking for situations that I can use in my book. Right now I am stuck as to what my character is going to do next, but I know it will come to light eventually. 

Isn’t it funny what we think is romantic. Each one of us has a different picture in our mind of what romance looks like. If you have ever read the book The Five Love Languages, it really helps clarify what is important to you.

Another book that is one of my favorite romance go to books is the Bible. I mean have you ever read some of the Song of Solomon? Wow, I would love my husband to express his love for me like this:

Song of Solomon 4
1 – Behold, you are fair, my love! You have dove’s eyes behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats, going down from Mount Gilead. 2 – Your teeth are like a flock of shorn sheep which have come up from the washing, every one of which bears twins, and none is barren among them. 3 – Your lips are like a strand of scarlet, and your mouth is lovely. Your temples behind your veil are like a piece of pomegranate. 4 – Your neck is like the tower of David, built for an armory, on which hang a thousand bucklers, all shields of mighty men. 5 – Your two breast are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle, which feed among the lilies.

Well, I guess you had to live back then to understand some of these comparisons but my translation would be like this in my fantasy:

1 – You are so beautiful, my love! Your eyes shine like a clear ocean. Your hair flows so beautiful around your shoulders and shimmers in the sunlight. 2 – You have the most beautiful white and straight teeth, so perfectly symmetrical. 3 – Your lips are so kissable. 4 – Your neck is long and perfectly formed. The jewels and gold I place around them fit perfectly. 5 – Your breasts (well you get what I mean)
Isn’t that crazy? One of the most romantic paragraphs I can find is in the Bible.

So what does all this have to do with being a godly woman and being a Christian? Everything. God made us this way. We enjoy romance with our husbands and there is nothing wrong with that. It is God approved if you will.

You may not have a husband who whispers sweet nothings in your ear, brings you flowers, or showers you with gifts, but if your husband goes to work every day, helps manage your home; helps with the children, dogs, cats, chickens, whatever, then you are loved.

 
Make sure you are showing him the love that you expect to get in return. Your house doesn’t have to be perfectly clean (good thing). The kids can be dirty, the laundry not completed and crumbs from snacks can be on the floor. 

When your knight in shinning armor comes in from work, make sure you greet him in a loving manner. Make sure he wants to come back to his home again tomorrow.

May God Bless

Some Deep Thinking

Let’s discuss some deep thinking today. OK, right there I am worn out, only on my second cup of coffee. (Smile please)

What do you spend your time thinking about? Do you ever just “be still” and listen for the thoughts that run through you mind? Our Lord tells us to be still.

Psalm 46:10
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God…”

If you are being still and listening for God, that is some deep thinking. Anytime you are thinking of God you are in deep thinking mode. We all have thoughts all day long about everything that is on our plate that needs to get done. Sometimes I think how in the world I will accomplish all of this today. Especially how will I accomplish it before my energy runs out for the day?

As I get older I do more thinking and less doing than I did years ago. So now I think I have all this wisdom to share. Now I understand what the older generation was talking about when I was younger. Funny how life comes around full circle, now I am the older woman in life teaching the younger woman.

Thinking, pondering, wondering, processing, these are all good words to represent our deep thoughts. I can get lost in my thoughts pretty easy, but sometimes I have to pull them back into focus and make sure my thoughts are in alignment with God’s.

When I sit and make big plans for my life goals, I think sometimes God is up there having a good laugh.

Isaiah 55:8-9
"For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.
God has such wonderful plans for my life, if I will allow Him to put them in place.

I’ll leave you today with a few quotes for you to ponder on today:

Do all the good you can, in all the ways you can,
to all the souls you can, in every place you can,
at all the times you can, with all the zeal you can,
as long as ever you can. ~ John Wesley

Too often we…. Enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought. ~ John F. Kennedy.

May God Bless

Are You Weary?

Galatians 6:9 

“Let us not become weary in doing good for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

I love projects, or maybe I should say I love to start projects. Completing a project is a wonderful feeling of accomplishment, especially if it turned out the way I thought it would turn out.

Sometimes life just happens and projects are laid aside.

What is really going on when this happens? Sometimes life does get in the way and we need to stop our project for a few days or maybe even a week or two. However, sometimes truth be told I just get plain board with the project and it no longer interests me. Other times I find it to harder than it looked on Pinterest.

There are many reasons to stop working on a project and let it go unfinished. Some are fine reasons and make sense and others; well we might want to look at them a little deeper.

Are you quitter? That sounds pretty harsh doesn’t it? I don’t like being called a quitter, it makes me feel weak. Yet sometimes I choose to quit doing something because it no longer fits my needs. Maybe it no longer serves the purpose it was intended for. If you are doing something for pleasure and it no longer pleases you then I think it’s OK to stop. 

The big mistake comes when you are no longer moving forward on any project. That is when you really have quit.

I always have to check before letting go of a project to see if it is my project or God’s project. If it’s a just for pleasure project, then I can feel free to let it go if I want to. If the project I am working on is for God’s purpose, then I better start digging in hard to find out where my problem lies. I don’t want to quit on God.

Becoming overwhelmed can make me want to quit. So I need to make sure that I pace myself correctly when working for God.

• Make sure my mind is clear and concise on the time that it will take to complete the project, and schedule my time wisely. 
• When I am tired rest, even Jesus rested. When I am unclear and confused, I need to pray to God for clarity. 
• When I can’t hear God, I need to be still and listen for Him.

Taking care of me while working for God is important or His work will not get done. 

So the next time you want to quit a project, stop and give it some thought. Pray about it and be open to how God will lead you. You might just need a well deserved break. 

May God Bless