Enough is Enough

Ever said those words? We've prayed for changes to the point of exhaustion, but it seems our prayers are only hitting the ceiling. We feel hopeless and disappointed. The sheer monotony of it all is tiring! Maybe your "enough" is one more day of isolation or home-schooling or face-mask wearing. I noticed that the quarantine is far more stringent in Austin than has been in Frisco where I live. Any stores opened, required face masks. I had never worn a mask until I saw this "must wear a mask" sign. I wore the "eye" mask in my car that I keep on hand in case I need to pull off the road for a little R&R! And what about the quarantine frontliners? I saw the marks on their faces. They might be saying "enough is enough"!

Then there's the enemy of our souls who taunts us with "You’re not good enough, young enough, smart enough”. You’re NOT enough”. I get that. Praying, giving and caring for others just doesn't seem enough. Doing the right thing doesn’t seem to be enough. We take it as long as we can then we declare: "ENOUGH already!"

Truthfully, those thoughts are likely right on. We aren’t enough and we don’t have to feel guilty for the frustration. Even Jesus admitted in the Garden that He would rather have the cup pass from Him. He understands us and, mercifully, we don’t have to be enough because He IS enough! His love for us is inexhaustible. No matter how much of God’s generous love we experience, there is always more available for the asking. St. Paul, instead of declaring "enough", gave us the key to survival: "He (God) said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me." 2 Corinthians 12:8-10

I was a co-narrator for a Jewish Seder Passover Meal at my church. A beautiful prayer recited during the meal, included the refrain “Dayenu” which translates to “It would have been ENOUGH for us.” Here is an excerpt from that prayer:

“God, if You had only created us, it would have been enough for us. If You had only freed us from slavery in Egypt, it would have been enough for us. If You had only given us your wise Law, it would have been enough for us. If You had only fed us with manna, it would have been enough for us. If You had only brought us into the Promise Land, it would have been enough."

The prayer lists many more of God's blessings that were poured out on His people. It concludes: “How much more do we have to be thankful for the manifold and unbounded blessings of our All-Present God!” That is a prayer for us today! No matter how much we realize the goodness and mercy of our God, there is always more. I'm sure we have been blessed in ways that we haven’t even noticed. There is never a reason to doubt that God wants to give us more, and in fact, is likely orchestrating the presentation of that MORE right now!

Maybe we should come up with our own "Dayenu" list. We should think of the ways our Heavenly Father has provided for us, blessed us, and revealed His love to us.

“Lord, if you had only forgiven my sins and removed my guilt, it would have been enough. But You have done so much more. All praise to You, my God of MORE THAN ENOUGH!”

Do You Feel Like Quitting -- Already?

It’s just day four of 2019 and maybe you’re already feeling like quitting before you ever really get started on your New Year's resolutions. Actually, I’m eating one more bite of salted chocolate peppermint bark (yum), inwardly saying – “Just a few more days and I’ll turn over a new health leaf! But for now, too many other things to do and get done to focus on healthy eating!” I really do plan to get back to my quiet times with the Lord in the mornings, but “This morning I need to shorten it up because I have a meeting to get to AND I want to help get my daughter’s kitchen in her new home set up!” I plan on being more active physically, but “I’ll get after it once I have this obligation and this responsibility finished!”

And, so goes the aspirations and really good intentions. Each January I’m hit with the recognition of how utterly human I am. I become an idealist, I set a goal (or ten), and then I slack off. become disappointed, and then I give up. Take my journalling, for example. I’m on point for several days and then I go for days before I come back and stretch my brain to remember those days and what God and I did together. So far, I'm on point -- but it is only Day #4!

It’s true that January can act as a clean slate. A fresh new start. A new beginning. Old things are passed away and behold, all things are brand spanking new! That’s what we love about it, isn’t it? We’re all longing to be made new. But Jesus is teaching me that, with Him, each day — each moment — is a clean slate. We don’t have to force ourselves into a rigid routine, but instead, start to recognize His gentle and loving rhythms of grace.

Honestly, this first-of-the-year push to turn over new leaves – just reminds me that I need to get to my yard and rake up all those leaves that are huddled on my front porch and bushes. I am certain that this year I will have intentional intimate times of fellowship with my Lord and He will reveal sweet nuggets of gold from His Word to me. I am also certain there will be days when there is so much on my mind that I won’t give Him my best attention and I’ll miss some of those nuggets. I also know I won’t suddenly become an avid-never-missing-a-day of work-outs in the gym. I will not get all stressed out about when I’ll get this or that done, but I will take each day and complete all I can in it. I will stop to pick up a call from a friend who needs prayer. Right. This. Minute. She doesn’t need: “I’ll be praying for you!” She needs: "Let's pray right now and seek God for His wisdom."

Tomorrow I’ll wake up and my goal will be to spend quality time with my Lord. I might even get so caught up in my time with Him, I’ll forget about my “To Do” list that can be done later or even tomorrow. Oh. Wait. Tomorrow is Sunday and hip hip hooray – I’ll not miss that opportunity to be with Him at church. I’ll meet Him there when I see my friends. I’ll meet Him there in the songs we sing. I’ll meet Him there in partaking of His body and blood that gives me nourishment and strength. Maybe Monday – I will go back to the gym and, eventually, I’ll become more absolute in the importance of my health and strength and energy. Eventually, I will be so full of God’s Word in me, that I won’t be able to contain it all and I MUST do more than my blogging to get it all out of me.

Tomorrow I’ll wake up and my goal will be to spend quality time with my Lord. I might even get so caught up in my time with Him, I’ll forget about my “To Do” list that can be done later or even tomorrow. Oh. Wait. Tomorrow is Sunday and hip hip hooray – I’ll not miss that opportunity to be with Him at church. I’ll meet Him there when I see my friends. I’ll meet Him there in the songs we sing. I’ll meet Him there in partaking of His body and blood that gives me nourishment and strength. Maybe Monday – I will go back to the gym and, eventually, I’ll become more absolute in the importance of my health and strength and energy. Eventually, I will be so full of God’s Word in me, that I won’t be able to contain it all and I MUST do more than my blogging to get it all out of me.

Eventually, maybe tomorrow, I’ll be that gal who is so on purpose that all those goals and aspirations I put out there for this year will be as rhythmic and routine in my life, as brushing my teeth. But, in the meantime, I’ll thank God for His grace in sticking with my consistency AND inconsistency. Here’s to His grace that bears with me. Here’s to today – Day Four -and here’s to tomorrow – Day Four of a year that promises to be blessed and highly favored because of God’s amazing grace!

Life = Risk

"If you've never failed.....you've never lived!" I'll never forget "the big one" that my husband and I "bet the farm" on. It was our BIG RISK -- we were going to become wealthy because of our investment in the drilling of an oil well. My husband and our young son, Ryan, stayed at the oil well -- all day and all night, watching and praying, for us to "strike it rich"! But that time -- it was not to be -- it was a DRY well. Disappointed? Yes! Was it a huge risk? Yes! Did it stop us? No! We never quit on taking risks, and I sincerely believe that is one of the reasons why our family has met with so much success. Plenty of failures along the way -- but it never stopped us from trying again.

Have you failed at something you so wanted to win at? Did others scorn you for taking a risk.....and, indeed, it was a loser? Have you wished you could step out in faith and become adventurous, but you kept hearing voices that said, "Give up!" "Throw in the towel!" "It's too risky!" "You could lose everything!" "Play it safe!" Well, we are in good company! Please watch this short, 1 minute video about some GREATS who became GREAT because they didn't listen to THOSE voices. I think you'll have a renewed sense of "I will not quit! I'm not giving up! I am unstoppable and I will win!