Give away, Put away or just plain Throw away!

It started about 2 years ago when Dave wanted me to go with him to a Dave Ramsey class. I didn't want to go AT ALL. But after persuading me that it would be good (and since he was working on our finances) I thought I really should go to be on the same page with him. Since then we've been working on re-ordering our world in many different areas, from finances, to health even to how we run our house. Since then all of our kids have moved out...2 permanently and one is in transition between Bible school and ministry and home (sometimes). We've hosted 3 different wonderful girls from Korea...one is in college this year...and even though we should be empty nesters our daily life is very full of more than just our schedule. We've raised our kids and now we should have time for ourselves, right?

So here I am today, making dinner, while Dave is driving the Charger JV football team to their game. I have two girls here who I need to make sure get dinner and then get their homework done. My days are full of loving my husband, caring for my Korean kiddos, keeping my house running, investing time and energy in my students and my relationships with people in my church.

I am helping my friends from my church go to Togo to help the people there build a hospital. We are going to do a yardsale. I never have success at yardsales, but I know people who do so I thought that this would be something a team could tackle. :)

I've been going through my closets and now I'm getting into my garage to find treasures to donate. In the process I've been putting "lost" treasures away and throwing old/broken treasures away.

I've been thinking about this in terms of a lot of my life lately as I've been re-evaluating my priorities:

GIVE away: What time do I want to invest in others? What clothes do I have to donate to a charity? What money do I want to invest in others? What food do I have that I can share? Maybe I should just invite that lonely friend over for a meal more often?

PUT away: What clutter do I have in my life that just needs to put away? Is it the laundry? Is it the notes that I need to send to encourage a friend?

THROW away: Is it all the emails that just get piled up in my mail box...can I just delete them and not feel guilty? Is it the projects that were started and not finished? Is it .... well just fill in the blank...

It's time for me to get back to studying for the evening. I want to be able to go to bed at a decent time tonight so that I can start my day right tomorrow! I want to be wise in all that I do. I want to invest my life. I want to leave a legacy.

Technology and Family

Last night Bethany and Elsie skyped us! It was so much fun to see Bethany with Elsie! It was almost as good as being there...except no hugs...It was as good as it gets right now though. While we were on with Bethany, Dave was setting up a time to meet with David and I was answering an email about Kirsten's birthday. She had just sent the email so I was glad to send the reply back so fast.

I love my kids. I missed my kids a lot yesterday. I am so thankful for the world that I live in now where I can see and hear and get instant messages from them.

Paul, in his letter to the church in Rome, says that he longs to see them...but he just can't right now so he prays and then still plans to go there.

I feel like I'm a lot like Paul in the desire to see those I love, but the difference is that I did get to see and quickly communicate with my loved ones, no matter the difference in miles away.

I want to be like Paul though in faithfully praying for my family. Paul says, "For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, taht without ceasing I mention you always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God's will I may now at last succeed in coming to you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you-that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine." (Romans 1:9-12)

I failed the Granny Test! UGH!

I failed! I failed miserably! I'm even failing as I write this blog....

You see I went to church last night for a special Seder presentation. That's not the failure....

And I just got back from Michigan.....here it is....wait.....

I got bombarded by all the wonderful grannys at my church....they wanted pictures! ugh! I wasn't prepared. Even this morning I guess I should be downloading more current pictures of that sweet baby on my iphone so I can share it with the world today at church....but here I am reflecting instead. I am such the failure! :)

NO I'M NOT!

The way that God created me I have learned that I don't multitask very well. I have a hard time documenting AND investing. A lot of my friends do this very well. I'm jealous. I can't. I've tried. I do one well and am a failure at the other. I've tried.

I don't have many pictures of my kids while they are growing up and most of the pictures that I do have are in a box...kind of organized (just ask Kirsten, she tried looking for them last summer). I have some up around my house in picture frames, but none are in those albums I had bought. You see, I decided a long time ago that I'd rather play with my kids than record everything. I loved playing with my kids. We'd go on "hikes" (well around the neighborhood), and jump in puddles and I'd take them to the pool (I'd stay in the shade most of the time not to burn) and we'd go to the beach and watch cartoons together and color and do homework (well, I'd grade and they'd do homework) at the dining room table and we'd cook (or I'd cook and they hung out) and I'd go to their games (a lot of games, I considered myself their number one fan. When I wasn't able to go I'd pray the whole time) and....you get the picture (well, there's no picture, but you do know what I mean, don't you?).

So when I went to MI this past week I packed my camera, even took it out...but I don't think that I have one new picture on it. I did take a few on my iphone. But I was busy! I was holding Elsie and changing Elsie and feeding Elsie (that's my new sweet grand daughter!). And I was hanging out with David and Amber and learning all about their wedding plans and walking around Frankenmuth with them. And I was cooking with Kirsten and feeding her food that she misses and buying her the best fudge in the world. And I was talking with Bethany and hugging Bethany (well, I was hugging them all) and washing their dishes and doing their laundry and checking out Joel's new pictures. And Dave was hurting his back ( :) )as he tried to keep up with Joel and the rest of the guys when I was with Bethany and the baby.

I'm sure that my life will not be documented too much by pictures. In fact, I'm pretty confident of that fact. So later generations will not know that I'm there very much...but I hope that my kids and my grandkids will know. I think they will. I hope they will.

*disclaimer: for my wonderful friends who do document...you do it very well and I am jealous! I love you and want to be more like you! :)

"Oh Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things!" Psalm 98:1a

ER: a place where time stands still

"As people of Providence we reveal God's love for all, especially the poor and vulnerable, through our compassionate service."

I've only been to the emergency room for my family a few times, twice with Dave. The emergency room is not my favorite place to be. Since coming to Idaho, with Dave being a full time pastor now for over 5 years, I've been to the ER with him to visit our church family and it is a little easier in that I know more of what to expect. It is different when it is your own family though. One night last week I spent several hours with my husband in the Emergency Room in Seaside, Oregon. We were at Providence Hospital where the above quote is their mission statement. Dave and I were really impressed with the compassionate service that everyone in the ER had for him. The people at Providence treated Dave with respect and compassion. They found out what was wrong, gave him a plan of treatment and sent us on our way. Dave is still recovering. He should be well soon. The main things that I learned in our time in ER was the waiting, the trust and doing what you say. The waiting: It seemed like time stood still. I am sure Dave thought it did since he was in so much pain. I knew that they were full and we had to wait. Obviously everyone ahead of Dave must have been worse off than he was that is why we needed to wait. No need to get impatient. We simply needed to wait. I know in my own life I get impatient with God sometimes. I think that He just doesn't do what I think He should in the timing of my liking. This time in the ER reminded me again that I need to wait. I need to wait with patience. I need to remember that I don't know the whole story and I simply need to wait. "Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not grow faint." (Isaiah 40:31) The trust: In the ER I had to trust the timing of the doctors and nurses. After all, they had just looked at Dave and saw him in his pain. I had to keep trusting that they wouldn't forget him there and that everyone else was just in worse condition or they would surely see Dave sooner. Again, in my personal walk with the Lord, I sometimes grow impatient because I forget to trust. This is foolish of me really. The creator of the universe is trustworthy! I don't have to understand everything, nor do I think that I ever really will. That's ok though. God has shown himself faithful in His recorded words in the Bible, in the lives of His followers throughout the ages and in my personal life as well. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are my ways your ways, declares the LORD." (Isaiah 55:8) Do what you say: The ER department of Providence Hospital in Seaside, OR did what their mission statement said. They had compassionate care. Do I do what I say? Is what I say noteworthy or honorable before God? What is my personal mission statement that I want to live out each day? The apostle James says that "faith, by itself, if not accompanied by actions, is dead." (James 2:17) This was probably the biggest challenge and something I thought about while waiting in ER and into this week. What do I say and what do I do? Do my actions reflect what I say? What is it that I'm saying anyway?