When Life is Beyond Our Control

First I'd like to say welcome to my new friends who are visiting my blog after reading my devotion about the illusion of control. Being a somewhat-recovering-control freak, (Okay - I'm really still a control freak) I often get stressed out when things are out of control. Lately that seems to be the majority of the time. Because of my nature, when things are out of control my initial response is to worry/panic, go to Starbucks, then try to handle things myself. Not the most godly approach - and hence not the most effective.

Maybe I should step back and consider the reality of what I can and can't control. There are some things I have some authority over, although at times it feels otherwise. Here are a few of those things:

• What I put in my mouth (hmmm ... but I thought I needed a third piece of pizza!)
• And what comes out of it.
• I really can control my thoughts, though I often feel like a victim to fear and worry.
• What I let fear keep me from doing
• How much I pray
• How much I read the Bible

Here's what I can't seem to control:

• My 13-month-old Husky from wanting to run like she's pulling a sled on every walk. (Can someone please call the dog whisperer for me? This will be the one case he CAN'T crack.)
• My intense dislike of exercise (Let's just say I was designed to wobble and not fall over)
• My frustration at kids bickering (I know if I wasn't so annoyed, I'd think of some smart way to deal with this)
• My need for a Mocha Frappuccino with malt (and my delusion that the calcium in it outweighs its unhealthy components)

Here's what I definitely can't control:

• Other people's choices
• Other people's words
• Every situation
• God ("Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him." Psalm 115:3 NIV)

Learning to live with the first three things I can't control, means relying on the fourth thing I can't control. It truly is magnificent that we can't control God. It means He can't be swayed from the truth; He never changes; He's the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. Which also means He loves me, is for me and is willing to work on my behalf.

Every frustration I deal with - whether it is with myself or others - is an opportunity to look to God for help. Every time I choose to solve things on my own is a missed opportunity to see God work a miracle ... in my heart or in the situation.

The control freak in me needs to stop trying so hard to control what I can't, and focus on what I can. After all, God's track record of solving problems is much better than mine! I pretty sure that's something I'll need to remember over and over - based on my past history of forgetting it over and over. Hmmm ... maybe a Mocha Frappuccino would help. (ooooo ... there goes that control/delusion thing again.)

In His Love,

Glynnis

I'm Not Sure I Have Time For This

It's been one of those weeks - and it's only Wednesday. You probably know the kind. The kind of week when it seems it's one thing after another. The kind of week when every grocery store line I picked was the longest, when my computer and printer decided to declare who was the boss (and it wasn't me), and when the dog somehow found and destroyed a collection of dirty underwear. She truly is a non-discriminatory underwear eater - she enjoys them all.

My mind reverberated with the words, "I don't have time for this!" But that wasn't all, it actually started last week when a son (who shall remain nameless) started scratching his head.

No biggie. I scratch my head sometimes. He then went on a jazz band overnight trip and came home scratching more diligently. The weekend was busy as we were readying my husband to leave for Africa on Tuesday, but I did manage to find some dandruff shampoo to give him. It didn't work. By Saturday night he was physically miserable. He was itching all over, and even had a rash on his upper body.

Of course my mind thought "lice" last week, but I disregarded it. After all, how could MY son get lice. (Ooooo, pride is a bad thing) By Sunday I was searching the Internet for symptoms. Armed with photos and descriptions, I was like a drill sergeant inspecting the troops. I didn't see any of the wee beasties, but I did find some suspicious white things. A Monday morning stop by the school nurse confirmed my suspicions, and my son and I went back home to attack the hitchhikers on his head.

Let's just say I hope you never have to deal with this issue. It is very time consuming. Not only did we have to go buy the treatment, then administer the treatment, but we had to wash EVERYTHING he might have touched. His stuffed animals have never been so clean.

I did not have time for bugs!

Then today I caught myself and my selfish attitude when I almost didn't make an important phone call. I thought about making the call but then I automatically thought the same thing I've thought all week: "I don't have time for this." The phone call was to a family member who had lost someone we all loved dearly. I almost rationalized not calling because my mom, sister and I sent a plant, and I had a card.

Thankfully God convicted me before the thought had time to cool in my mind, and I picked up the phone. Unfortunately it seems I often struggle with my time. I find it difficult to balance running a home and a business, mothering five children, supporting my husband's work and calling,working for a ministry, volunteering at church and writing. There are days when I don't do any of it very well and get very stressed out about my lack of accomplishment.

But then God reminds of a very important truth - just like He did this morning. I may not have time for everything, but I need to make time for somethings. My pastor once said, "Only two things on this earth last eternally: God's Word and people."

I guess I need to re-evaluate a successful day, and put a check on my thoughts. If an interruption involves people, then perhaps it's not all bad. Maybe God is opening the door for me to love someone who is having a week just like mine - or worse. I sure have time for that.

In His Love,

Glynnis

This devotion is dedicated to my aunt Peggy Benson who went home to be with the Lord last week. Peggy was dearly loved by all of us. She was a model wife, mother, grandmother and aunt. She had a kind and gentle spirit, and yet had an inner core of strength that brought peace and comfort to those around her. She was my father's older sister, and together with their brother John they were raised by a widowed mother in Utica, New York in the Welsh part of town. Aunt Peggy will be sorely missed.

She Speaks Q & A

A few days ago my friend and ministry partner, Lysa TerKeurst, posted an invitation to submit questions about She Speaks on her blog. She got so many questions that she asked a few of us on the Proverbs 31 team to help answer them. Since I'm the director of the writer's track, I volunteered to answer some about writing.

I'll post the questions (condensed when possible) and my answers below:

Did you copywrite every piece before you submitted it for review? Under copywrite law, as soon as you write something it is automatically copywritten. You don't have to submit it anywhere for "approval."

How do you know if an idea for a story/book has already been done by another author? There is nothing new under the sun. So your idea has probably been done before in some form. However, your story and your take on a topic is entirely new. That said, it is the author's responsibility to know something about the "competition" for your book.

One idea I have for a book would involve getting peoples personal stories. It would be like chicken soup for the soul but a different idea. How is copyright involved or the process of that? In a compilation book, the publisher will request permission or purchase the copyright, from each individual author. The process can vary slightly, but normally there is a nominal fee paid to the author, or they are paid in copies of the book.

What do publishers look for in devotionals? Length, voice, theology? How do you find out if your "topic" has been covered already? The Christian Writer's Market Guide is a great resource for writers. This book is organized alphabetically by publishers, but also cross-referenced by the type of book they cover. There are many listed under devotional book. Here begins your research project. Just start with one publisher and visit their website to see what they've done. Create a form to fill in the information you learn and go from there.

I'd like to make a written product (cards) about marriage trials but need to know if this product is already out there (they are not in my area's Christian book stores). How do I go about starting a product such as this? Once again, I would suggest you invest in a Christian Writer's Market Guide. There is a section on greeting cards and specialty markets. Once you know which publishers are printing greeting cards, I would do some research on their website. If they don't have samples, find out who is selling them and go on their website or visit their stores.

If you have a story to tell but don't think of yourself as a writer how do you go about getting someone else to write it? The first idea that comes to mind is to find a friend who writes and partner with her. This would be a co-written book. Publishers do hire people to "ghost write" people's stories. For this to happen, I would assume the story would need to be very unique, or the "author" would need to be famous or have a reason why they couldn't write the story.

Is the writer's track focused on fiction or non-fiction? The writer's track at She Speaks does lean towards non-fiction. However, good writing techniques can and should be applied to both fiction and non-fiction.

How do you stay focused on the topic when you have so much to say? In magazine writing, you pick one topic and go deep. If you have more to say, then you can write more than one magazine article.

What is the best advice you would pass along to me for my meeting with an editor regarding my manuscript? Practice presenting your ideas in a succinct way. Actually give your pitch to someone else. Also, this year we are offering a workshop on Friday afternoon before the conference on how to do this very thing called: How to plan a powerful effective 15-minute publisher meeting by Jeannie Burlowski. Read more about it.

If I were to be enabled to attend and meet with a publisher,what should a good proposal package include? You should come prepared with a formal book proposal. We recommend purchasing "For the Write Reason" to learn how to write this important document.

I have a basic idea for the book of my heart and some of it is worked out on paper. What would I need to have developed in order to pitch the book? See answer above.

I write for an online Christian magazine (HeartBeatTheMagazine.com) and know that many of those articles are partial chapters to my book. BUT, I just can't seem to figure out how to pull it all together into a book. I have felt that maybe a conference like this would help me, but the thought of publishers, proposals, etc. is SO overwhelming to me right now. I just want to write my book and then submit it and see if anybody will publish it. But from what I've heard, that is not the right way to go about it. If God tells you to write your book, then you should do just that. We have known women who self-publish a book, sell it successfully themselves, then find a publisher for it. However, all books should be well-organized, there should be a logical flow of thought and information. At this point, I would recommend identifying how many chapters you would need, give each one a title and write a description of each. This will help you see if it makes sense, if it's missing something or has too many ideas and is scattered.

I have been told numerous time "I need to write a book". I am gathering and preparing. How do I begin the writing process in earnest? See answer above.

My heart's desire and a personal goal is to write with my daughter about how the Lord has held us through her seriuos illness and through my divorce and becoming a single mom of four all over the course of one year's time. The two events (divorce/disease) overlapped and I am wondering if it would be possible to write of the events together. Each are demanding topics, but the fact that they occured together made each story more complex. I commend you for wanted to bring honor and glory to the Lord for His faithfulness to you and your family through this very difficult time. One way to go about this would be to identify an overall theme of the book that would have "takeaway" value for the reader. For example, I have a small self-published book a pastor wrote entitled "Standing in the Whirlwind." He write about how to stand firm when challenges come from every direction. Then he weaves spiritual principles he has learned from a variety of difficult experiences. Pray and ask God to identify a general theme for the book and go from there.

I can't say enough great things about the Proverbs 31 Ministries She Speaks conference. It is an amazing conference on many levels. I'll write more about this later in the week, but if you want to read more, click on the button on the left side of my blog.

In His Love,

Glynnis

The New Expandable Files

I can still remember when there was one style of expandable (Accordion) folder and it was one color (brown) and they were used primarily by those in the accounting field to organize receipts.

Today, I love the new look of expandable file holders and I can think of exciting ways to use them to organize my home or office - plus have the added bonus of some style!

An expandable file folder typically has 6 to 12 pockets with a fold-over flap - or some type of closure. The pockets are big enough to hold a standard sheet of paper in them, and some can even hold file folders.

How can we use them? How about these ideas:

1) Use them to organize your projects or to-do list for the week. Label the pockets Monday through Friday, with one for the weekend and one for the next week. Then you can store your paperwork or notes accordingly.

2) Use them to keep track of important papers for each member of the family.

3) Use them for a big project. Let's say you are organizing a retreat or event at school. They would even be great for writer's trying to capture information for a book.

4)Store your vacation plans for the year. Label each pocket a different trip and as you make reservations or collect information off the Internet, tuck it away in its rightful place.

5) Organize your photos. You can organize them by month or special event. Carry them with you to family gatherings for everyone to enjoy.

6) Use them to store decorating ideas for each room of your house. This can be a way to pare down your magazine collection too!



The great thing about these pretty expandable files is they can be placed on your desk or counter and look fantastic. Or you can tuck them in a bookshelf.



One of the joys of owning an online business is I get to see new products before they hit the shelves. Also, I get to help women purchase beautiful items they can't find in their local stores. I know I've never seen anything like this in my neighborhood.


If you'd like to see our assortment of expandable files, please visit my website, Rose Lane Cottage.



Happy Organizing!



In His Love,


Glynnis

Just Do One Thing At A Time

A number of years ago a friend confided in me that her home was a mess. She never had friends over because she was embarrassed at how her home looked. This was an educated, creative, delightful woman who was a great wife and mom. She was also a military wife and was living in base housing with very limited storage. Organizing just wasn’t her thing.

I talked her into letting me come help for a day. Another friend joined in the clean up project and we headed over to my friend’s home. One step into her kitchen told me my friend hadn’t underestimated the job. I knew we were only going to make a small dent in one day, but it would at least be a dent.

Instead of trying to tackle everything, I suggested we focus on just working through what we could recycle. So we found a big cardboard box and started looking at papers piece by piece, and tossing recyclables into the box. What we couldn’t recycle went in a pile for another day. This work went pretty quickly, and by the time I left, she had reclaimed her kitchen table and other work surfaces.

She still had work to do, but what a great feeling we all had at the end of that day. My friend felt empowered to keep going. Her husband was pleased. And the family had a place to eat dinner together that night.

If you feel overwhelmed, one way to start is to pick one thing to clean up – like recycling. If you only have 10 minutes a day to attack your dis-organization, then I suggest you pick one item on this list and work at it 10 minutes a day. When you’ve gotten through with that project, then pick another task. Here are some ideas for ways to get started:

Recycle newspapers
Put all financial statements in one place (big plastic box, shopping bag) to organize later
Recycle junk mail (see What to Shred)
Recycle papers that you don’t need any more
Gather magazines and put in magazine holders
Gather magazines and donate to your local school, nursing home, etc.
Gather catalogs and recycle, store or donate
Put receipts in a plastic receipt holder – organized by month
Gather kid’s school papers for sorting later
Throw away broken toys
Gather birthday, anniversary, holiday cards and store in a shoebox
Gather personal letters and put in a pocket folder
Throw away expired coupons
Put good coupons in a coupon organizer

Before you even attempt to begin to organize your home, perhaps you might make your own list of problem areas unique to your situation. Then you can tackle your home item by item. This way all you have to do is one thing at a time.

In His Love,

Glynnis

Happy Valentine's Day

I walked out of my bedroom this morning to discover my 10-year-old daughter Ruth opening and closing drawers. She moved from the rolling plastic 5-drawer organizer where she and her sister keep their coloring supplies, to the 4-drawer wicker organizer, to the drawers in the baker's rack.

When asked about the treasure at the end of her hunt, she told me it her notebook. Since the girl has about 150 "notebooks," I was clueless about which one she wanted. Thankfully, within seconds she had found it and brought it over to me to check her spelling on her list of "rules."

Here's what she wrote:

nice
cind (kind)
lisin (listen)
thinck (think)
do not chet (cheat)
kip your had to your self (keep your hands to yourself)
falow dirakshon (follow directions)
downt wine (don't whine)
ask nicely
clin up (clean up)
lisin to other people wen they tack (listen to other people when they talk)

A side note might be helpful. My daughter spent the first 8 years of her life in war-torn Liberia Africa, where she had never been to school, nor even held a pencil. She is working very hard to learn, and spell right. But her mis-spellings were insignificant compared to the amazingly precious heart this "list of rules" revealed.

I had no idea Ruth has been keeping track of all the "rules" she has been taught on how to be respectful to others and show love. She told me she reads her rules to remind herself of what she is supposed to do.

I think Ruth has a great idea. This Valentine's Day, maybe I need to write a list of rules to read to myself about how to show love and respect to others more - especially those closest to me.

My list of rules might look something like this:

Speak in a gentle voice at all times.
Wait to find out what really happened before reacting.
Pray when I am getting angry.
Take a time out before I say something I'll regret.
Stop working on the computer when someone is talking to me.
Really listen.
Play more.
Laugh more.
Have fun.
Pray more.

Oh, that's just the start of how I can show more love to those closest to me. I am so thankful a little child reminded me that there nothing more important that showing love. Thank you my sweet Ruth.

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another." John 13:34

Happy Valentine's Day!

Love,
Glynnis

Accept Grace

I was blessed right down to my toes yesterday at the wonderful comments that were made as a result of my Proverbs 31 devotion on bring order and beauty to our workplace. Thank you for taking the time to write a note of encouragement to me, and to the other readers of this blog.

I'm still working my way through them because life got interuppted again yesterday with a phone call from my niece at 9 a.m. My neice and her husband own an MMA training center, (and we are co-owners) called The Lab. It seems that everyone had gone to an out-of-town fight and she needed to cover the front desk all day. Her call was to see if one of my teenage boys could kid-sit her twin 7-year-olds after school. She then mentioned that one of her sons was actually with her due to a low fever. I immediately pictured my sweet great-nephew laying on a blanket the floor and offered to drive over right then and pick him up to spend the day with me. The offer was accepted, and off I went.

As I read through many of the blog posts between working and caring for my nephew, I realized a very common theme: overwhelmed and don't know where to start.

I actually will be addressing some ways to take baby steps and get started, but I wanted to share my thoughts on why even the most organized person can get overwhelmed. Here's my deep and insightful thought: life changes.

That's it. Life is always changing. People change, circumstances change, finances change, jobs change, weather changes, health changes and on and on. My day on Tuesday changed because of a phone call and the needs of people I love.

Speaking of changing, I used to get so frustrated with myself about child disciplining techniques (this ties in with my point so hang with me). I would start some type of reward system to change their behavior and it would work for a few months, and then stop being effective. Was it my fault? Was I inconsistent? Was it a bad plan to begin with? I finally realized it was because my kids had changed in two months, they'd grown and matured. What worked two months ago, doesn't work now.

That's the same with organization techniques. You might have been able to keep up with your paper overload a few years ago, but things have changed. You might not have the same energy or sleep levels. Maybe you have kids in school. Or you are working more.

Here's my love-note to you today: Accept God's grace and have grace on yourself.

We all get into situations where we can't keep up, where we are overwhelmed, where we are distracted. Those times can last days, weeks, months or even years. Accept God's grace and give yourself grace. Life changes.

So, we are in this together. We'll take baby steps together. We'll accept that life has changed and we'll discover new techniques to adapt. And most importantly, we'll give each other love and grace.

In His Love,

Glynnis

Getting through that stack of papers!

First let me welcome any new readers who read my devotion this morning though Proverbs 31.

It always amazes me to read the stories in the Old Testament about the creation of the Temple. The Bible includes such glorious details about its construction and beauty. One thing that isn't mentioned is the daily upkeep of such a holy place. But I'm pretty confident the priests kept their scrolls filled with the Holy Scripture in beautiful order!

Those passages in Scripture affirm my desire to have a beautiful and ordered home. I don't have a designer home, so my goal is to make the best of what God has given me. As I face a daily battle of bringing order to the happy chaos of a family of seven, I find I have a reaccuring problem: piles of stuff!

All kinds of stuff. And the stuff changes all the time. On my kitchen counter it's school stuff, church stuff, coupons, bills, mail, letters, photos people have given me, and so on. Then there's the pile of stuff on my desk that accumulates.

One day I decided the piles were going away. So here's my tip when your pile (or my new one) is so high you've forgotten what's on the bottom:

1) Clear your kitchen counter or dining room table. Even a stretch of floor will work.

2) Go through your stack item by item, and lay each item side by side on the counter, table or floor.

3) Address each item individually, and force yourself to make a decision about where it belongs.

4) If you need to make a purchase to create a final storage place for the item in question, (e.g. photo storage box, more file folders) then start a shopping list. (Read my post about "Organizing Short Term Information" for some ideas)

I find that a huge pile overwhelms me, but I can deal with one item at a time. Happy pile busting!

In His Love,

Glynnis

Invitation to be in a book

I am working on a book that will be published in 2009 by Harvest House. (Yippee and Praise God!) It’s titled “When Your Child Hurts” and I’ll be addressing common, everyday hurts that children face every day. The book will help parents help their children now, and equip them to deal with life’s challenges in the future. Another goal for the book is that parents will be helped as well – since I have discovered that I have the potential to turn into an over-protective, primeval cave-mama when my cubs are hurt, plus I get all mixed up with my own painful memories of being hurt as a child – not the best for them or me.

My plan is to include the stories of parents who have experienced God’s wisdom, and have made good decisions that have helped their child(ren). I’m looking for very practical tools to give parents. So what has worked for you? Either as a parent or as a child whose parents did something right?

Would you be willing to share the story with me? (I can change names if that helps). I have included a list below of the topics I’ll be addressing. I’m even open to adding another chapter or two if I’ve missed something.

If you would like to share your experiences, and help other moms and children, please send me a note, and let me know a bit about your story. If the story involves your child, please speak with him or her and make sure they are okay with the story being published. I’m sure you would do that anyway. As someone who often writes about her children, I’ve learned the importance of getting their approval before sharing with the world.

Here are the different topics the book will cover:

1) Dealing with Disappointment
2) Repelling Unkind Words/gossip
3) Overcoming Fear
4) Managing Stress
5) Beating Loneliness
6) Dealing with Bullies
7) Redefining Failure
8) Addressing Physical Appearance
9) Bringing Hope out of Grief
10) Differentiating righteous anger from sinful anger
11) Investing in strengths not weaknesses – when natural ability isn’t enough
12) Overcoming Insecurity
13) Prevailing over physical handicaps
14) Taking control of learning and emotional disabilities
15) Mending the broken hearts from broken homes

In His Love,
Glynnis

What Dream is in Your Heart?

A few years ago I sat in a small group of women, watching a DVD teaching of The Dream Giver, taught by the author Bruce Wilkinson.

I was like many women I have met over the years. In the busyness of being a wife, mother and employee, I had buried my dream. Oh ... it would try and surface every once in awhile, and then life would stamp it down.

The stamping came in thoughts like this:

There's no time for that ...
There's no money for that ...
You aren't good enough ...
Other are better than you ...
If you don't try, you can't fail ...
Even if you do try, you won't make it over the hurdles ...

And on, and on.

I sat on that couch that day and listened while Bruce spoke about how we hide our dreams in our hearts. Many times we protect them there for so many years, that it's almost painful to share them with anyone. As I heard those words, my heart started to pound. I couldn't contain the tears as they coursed down my cheeks. Yes, I had a dream that was painful to consider because it seemed so out of reach.

How could someone like me ever get a book published???

But God wouldn't let that dream die. In fact, He had been strategically placing me in situations to make that dream a reality. All that was left was for me to believe that if the dream was from God, He would make it happen - I just needed to keep putting one foot in front of the other and NOT give up.

Almost five years later my first book, and four co-authored Bible studies were published. I'm now working on my second book, which I'll tell you about tomorrow.

But today, I want to speak to those of you who have a dream to write ... a dream that is so tender and precious that you may never have even shared it with anyone before. And if that's you, I want to personally invite you to attend She Speaks - the Proverbs 31 Writers and Speakers Conference.

It's an amazing place to pursue your dream, be equipped in all practical matters of writing and even have the opportunity to present your ideas to people who are in a position to help you get published. You can even take workshops on speaking

I'm the director of the writer's track and I can tell you that this year will be better than ever. We have great workshops, more publishers than last year and amazing opportunities to meet with others who share your dream.

It's held in Concord, North Carolina (just outside of Charlotte) on June 20-22. I believe it will be a great investment in your dreams, as well as an investment in advancing the kingdom of God.

I realize this idea might be very scary to some of you. And here's a promise. I promise that you when you come to She Speaks, we (the members of the Proverbs 31 team) will care for your dream tenderly and carefully. We will love you like a sister in Christ. We will pray for you. And we will hold your hand if you get scared. We are really good at that because we need to hold each other's hands a lot.

And I'll start right now by inviting you to send me any questions you have. I can be reached at editor@proverbs31.org.

In His Love,
Glynnis

Why a Sunrise

After I wrote my post yesterday, I kept thinking about why I didn't want to add "Watch the Sunset" on my list of 3-Minute "I Love You's" They are just as stunning and speak just as loudly of God's majesty. I love sunsets!

But after a pretty lousy week, there was something about a sunrise that specifically showed me God's love.

As I stood on the QT sidewalk and watched the light slowly take over the darkness, it was as if God was pulling away the dark sadness of my week, and filling it with His light.

I could almost see a spiritual battle happening before my eyes as my God painted across the darkness with the crimson blood of Jesus, with the shining glory of His presence rising from behind. Take that! You can not have her! I almost heard Him say.

Yes ... I needed to see a sunrise to be reminded that the darkness does not win!

I pointed out the sunrise to my three boys, but they didn't quite see what I saw. Then afterwards, Josh said, "Mom, you know why there's color in the sunrise? It's the pollutants." Living in the desert, we learn that early - it's one way we try and appreciate the amazing amount of dust in the air.

But I think there was a spiritual revelation in that comment. Because of the "polutants" in our hearts, we are all in desperate need of the saving grace of Jesus. I need to remember every day that I NEED a Savior! My heart is pretty polluted and only the blood of Jesus brings any healing and hope.

"Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: 'Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them!'" (Revelation 12:10-12)

CAN I GET A TESTIMONY!

In His Love,
Glynnis

3-Minute "I Love You's"

It was a very difficult week. Without naming names, everyone in my immediate family had either diappointed me or hurt me somehow during the week. By Saturday night I was very weepy. Although there had been forgiveness and restoration, I was still sad.

I love my family beyond words, but honestly, sometimes life in close quarters with others is very hard. I never take for granted what I have, but I wonder why it's so difficult at times.

So Saturday night as I lay in bed, even prayers came hard. Lord, I asked. Can you please give me a reminder that You love me? Just a small one. Just a sign that You are there? That was what I could manage, and then God blessed me with sleep.

This morning, I woke up before the 5:45 a.m. setting on my alarm clock. The reason for getting up so early? I sing on the worship team for the 8:30 service and we practice at 7:30 a.m. My oldest two sons (age 16 and 14) lead worship for the 5th and 6th graders at 8:30 and so they practice at 7:30 too. Plus my youngest son runs sounds for his brothers.

So Sunday mornings are early, and our habit (if we get out the door on time) is to stop at QT for something to eat or drink. Yes, I know that's not the healthiest thing for my kids in the morning, but I try and make up for it during the week.


I believe God woke me up early on purpose to make sure we got out the door on time. Because as I pulled into QT, I caught a glimpse of the most amazing sunrise in the rear view mirror. It was stunningly beautiful. Streaks of crimson blazed across the sky. I pulled into the parking space, got out and turned around ... sighed and smiled. Thank you, God.

The vibrancy of colors was gone in minutes, but the gift God gave me ... the reminder of His love ... stayed with me all morning.

So I got to thinking, what could I do when I need to remember God loves me. Here are some things I can do in 3 minutes:

1) Get up early and watch the sunrise.

2) Cut some roses from my garden (yes they bloom in Jan. in AZ) and breathe deeply.

3) Buy some roses or other flowers and breathe deeply.

4) Listen to my favorite song. here's a link to one of mine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6zdihmwy1M

5) Remember how God protects and defends me. Another link to a great skit and song: http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=ee73e63418003b47d7d5

6) Read God's love letter to me. Read Romans 8. Here's a link to that chapter on Biblegateway.com: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%208&version=31

I'm much better today. Friday was bad, but God was already planning Sunday. Sound familiar? Halleluia!!!

In His Love,

Glynnis