From Surviving to Thriving

We have sure had the opportunity to be tested, tried and sentenced over the last few months. How is it looking for you? Would you have been convicted of giving up, throwing in the towel, quitting, sulking, murmuring and complaining about it all? Or would you receive glowing testimonials from your family and friends about being tenacious, relentless, determined, staying optimistic and being grateful for the blessings in your life?

No one is judging – certainly not me! I’ve come to realize that I don’t want to have gone through these times with an attitude of regret and remorse because I couldn’t take the heat. No one should blame anyone who got a little cranky over the last few months. And, for good reasons. But, wait just minute, Mr. Postman! We have so many reasons to be thankful and be boasting about our God Who has kept us, protected us and provided for us. We’re still here! We have survived! Psalm 27:13-14 says “I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living! Wait on Him and take courage.”

I AM living in this land of God’s goodness and mercy following me (Psalm 23:6). I believe it and speak it. My daughter runs a non-profit outreach called EMwomen that exists to rescue and restore women who have suffered through some of life's most difficult challenges – many of whom were homeless, jobless and hopeless. But, what does God do right in the midst of this pandemic? Every single one of those women now have homes, great jobs and are “living in the land of the living”. Because they had an attitude of gratitude, God’s goodness was magnetically drawn to them. Maya Angelou said: “My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.”

I have seen men and women rise and shine, accelerate, and go to a whole new level in their faith, confidence and trust in God during these times. They say with all-out fervor: "Bring on the heat! I was made for this. God power-packed me to win. I will come out of this heat and not even smell like smoke!”

The three Hebrews, Shadrach, Meschach and Abednego, not only survived the fiery furnace, but they weren't even singed and their clothing wasn't scorched. They didn't even smell like smoke! And that will be our story, too! As we praise and trust God Who causes us to triumph, we will come out of our “furnace situations”, alive and well. So what can we do to turn it all around from just surviving to thriving? Praise God. Our praise will jack up our faith. It’s time to step into the thriving circle of praise. Let's have some flash backs about what God has already done. When our hearts focus on the right place, we will more than survive – we will thrive!

This is the surviving to thriving scripture proof: "Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us." Ephesians 3:20
That power working in us is the Holy Spirit and His fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." THAT is thriving!

Whatever it is -- Let’s Face it Together

Have you had that kind of friend who wouldn’t take “no” for an answer. You may have said, “No, I can do it myself” or “No, I’ll be okay” or “No, I’ll figure out a way to handle this myself.” But, they would not leave you or forsake you. They were relentless in their efforts to help you. Don’t we want that kind of friend -- even though we don’t want to put them out or take their time? Well, I have friends like that – especially since I’ve been here in Tulsa the last couple of weeks. They have been relentless in seeing after me, bringing me meals, taking me to the doctor, and checking in on me. I’m okay -- nothing serious on my part – but they are friends who don’t take “no” for an answer.

It is a reminder to me of the story in the Book of Ruth of Naomi and her two daughter-in-laws, Orpah and Ruth. All three women had recently suffered the loss of their husbands. In the depths of Naomi’s grief, she encouraged the girls to go back to their people, and to start a new life. It didn’t take much convincing for Orpah to leave. But Ruth saw right through Naomi’s pain. She refused to go, doubling down on her commitment to Naomi. Ruth was blessed with generosity, compassion and empathy. Even though she had no obligation to Naomi, her love for her mother-in-law and friend made her fiercely loyal.

“‘Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God." (Ruth 1:16)
I have read that story many times and my husband and I even said Ruth’s words to Naomi in our wedding vows. “Ruth” means compassion for the misery of another; empathetic, and “ruthless” means without ruth; not empathetic.

So, the question is: Do we have a Ruth in our life? Do we have someone who won’t let us have a pity party? In reality, we may want grievers with us but what we need is a Ruth -- someone who refuses to leave us when we’re down-and-out. We all experience moments of disappointment, great loss, grief, and despair. Our human nature wants to recoil, to withdraw, to turn so inward that we lose sight of the Light.

But, what we need are good friends who refuse to leave us. We need good friends who encourage us to just keep swimming, telling us that they will not abandon or forsake us. Remember Dory in the “Finding Nemo” movie? She kept saying to Nemo "just keep swimming", meaning "don't give up." We need good friends who love us like they love themselves. The Lord brings so much healing to our hearts through the Ruths in our lives.

Maybe today, you are a Naomi, and you need a Ruth. We pray that God brings a Ruth to you – but maybe your way of rebounding is to be a Ruth in someone’s life. You can either be ruthless (bad and not empathetic) or a Ruth (good and empathetic).

Friendship is supposed to be entering into a relationship not because of what we can get out of it but because of what it is. We are called to be examples of Christ’s love to the world. When we break free of the selfishness that poisons so many of our relationships and focus on giving our time, effort, and love to those around us, we portray a beautiful image of Christ’s own self-giving. No matter where we are in life or where we stand with our faith, we have the opportunity to bring others (and ourselves) closer to God by being a Ruth to someone today. Thank you to all the “Ruths” that have blessed me in my life so much!

The Cray Cray Love of Parents and God

I’m watching you, moms and dads. You’re the ones who continue to post photos and videos of your child or children receiving awards for their intellectual achievements and athletic abilities (even though some of you admitted that your child’s team never won a game – they still received an award). You are the ones standing on your tippy toes, on the floor at the front of the crowd, capturing it all on video or camera. You are leaning in and shushing anyone around you who is taking away from their moment on the stage. Your child crosses the stage to receive their diploma or award and your hands are waving wildly and you are screaming out their name with pride and joy.

You don’t give up and you don’t even consider yourself looking a little cray cray. Your eyes are locked on your child and there is nothing that will stand in your way. You are so crazy proud and crazy in love with this child – you just can’t help yourself.

And if you think you have an indescribable love for your kids -- it no way compares to how wild God is for us. He is on the front row and if He had a camera, He’d be taking pictures and videos of you, too. Here’s why I know that’s true. God is among us. He’s everywhere, but right here close to us. Don’t miss it. He wrote all about His love in His Holy Word and His wild display of affection for us is written there -- living and active. "He appeared to me saying: 'I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with loving kindness, I have drawn you. (Jeremiah 31:3) He’s eager to be near to us when we believe no one else wants to be. (Psalm 34:18) He draws near to us and sticks with us as we go through our day.

Jesus’ love looks crazy. What did people say of Jesus as he showed crazy love and said He was God? “He’s crazy, a maniac -- out of his head completely. Why bother listening to him?” (John 10:20) He was so crazy that He gave up His own life for you and me. Jesus’ crazy love is still after you and me. It doesn’t care about mess-ups and our past. His love is way beyond you moms and dads who are so crazy in love with your kiddos. He is waving at you, desiring you and moving with you throughout your day of joys and sorrows, comforts and discomforts, acceptance and rejection, wins and defeats.

Your kids may get a little embarrassed with your audacious display of affection and may even look away thinking “Maybe if I don’t look at them, no one will know I’m with them!” But, DON’T be embarrassed as God’s kids. Let’s embrace His crazy love and not look the other way. Let’s embrace His pursuit and His affection. Jesus is crazy about you. Just know that. Receive that. Sit in that. Dwell in that. Bathe in that – and receive His indescribable, unrelenting, reckless, crazy love.

Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God
Oh, it chases me down, fights 'til I'm found, leaves the ninety-nine.
I couldn't earn it, and I don't deserve it, still, You give Yourself away
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God.

What Are You Passionate About?

Day 34 of Photo Inspirations -- What are YOU passionate about?
This is Super Bowl Sunday and if you're not a Seahawks or Patriots fan, you may not be inclined to feel "passionate" about today's game.  You probably don't care one way or the other who wins.  But if you are one of those teams' fans, you may be as passionate about the Seahawks as my Seattle family is. 

Not only do they have season tickets for the Seahawks, but their cars and homes bear Seahawks flags, they are decked out in full Seahawks apparel, they paint their faces, cut their hair (i.e., my youngest grandson's new "12th man" style), they promote it on social media and other public forums, and they have "watch" parties where you'd think they were at the live game.  I've been to a few Seattle Seahawks games, and it's true -- the "12th Man" are the loudest fans I've ever heard. 

And, to take it a step further, my son and his buddies rented one of the "Ride the Ducks", loaded it with Seahawks flags and banners, and rode through the City and Lake Washington screaming and hollering about their Seahawks.  Honestly, in my lifetime, they are the most relentless, passionate sports fans I've ever seen. 

Quite frankly, just about everything our family does -- whether it's a favorite football team, a business we believe in, a heart for missions, celebrating a birthday and/or a special event, remembering the sweet things about our past, and mostly, our faith --our heart for God and His Word.

What are you passionate about?  What gets you out of bed every morning?  When motivational speakers and vocational counselors ask this question, they're not looking for answers like "The baby was crying" or "My alarm rang."  They want to help you identify your "passion" -- something you love to be doing with your life, the purpose that fires you with energy.  Bottom line -- a personal encounter with God can be the X-Factor in your life.  Having Him at the center, causes life-at-large to become your passion.  Having Him as your greatest passion, will cause just about everything else in your life -- your job, your family, your hobby, your favorite team or favorite outreach to become your "Wake-Up-With-Passion" each and everyday!

Goodness & Mercy Following & Favor Chasing

Really? God's goodness and mercy are following us? His FAVOR is chasing us? Isn't that just like our Heavenly Father -- pursuing us and chasing us with His desire to bless us and do good things for us? It's not just enough to be followed by His goodness and mercy. No, He is relentless in pursuing us -- every single day, and He wants to catch us. So, let's look for Him. We'll surely find Him as we notice those times when God's goodness and mercy catch....like just feeling that kiss from heaven when a prayer has been answered, or being hugged (REALLY hugged) by someone that God used to do the hugging for Him, or getting a sweet surprise phone call, or winning an unexpected prize, or maybe it was the extra patience we were given when dealing with a difficult situation. Let's slow down enough today.....so goodness and mercy and God's favor can catch us.....and not let us go!