Treasurers to Scavengers

The usual “treasure hunt” that Nana (me) always provided for the grands for their birthday each year until they aged out of it, was differen for Brennan's 16th this year. I explained to the 18 participants about how my grands always had a treasure hunt with a rhyming clue that led to the next location and another clue – with a big birthday treasure gift at the end. This year Brennan’s treasure hunt was a scavenger hunt. With 18 participants and 18 items to find, it was a sight to behold. This scavenger hunt required that they had to use their sense of teamwork, creative thinking and skill that led to some hilarious photo opportunities. We customized our hunt for the beach and oh what antics ensued – from burying one of their team mates in the sand to asking a stranger to sing happy birthday to Brennan or to make up a team cheer.

Using technology (their phone cameras to record the singing and team cheer as well taking photos) and with using their minds – the three teams of six were back with photos of their 18 items in less than 20 minutes. Two teams tied because while one team came in first, they found a boogie board instead of the surf board on the list, while the team who came in second actually found a surf board. We called it a tie, but they weren’t satisfied with a tie so they played a corn hole toss game for the championship. Of course, my competitive two grandsons, Brennan’s and Payton’s team, won. Oh, what fun!

I admit it.....I love the notion of hunting and finding hidden treasures. That must have been my impetus for treasure hunts for my grandkids for every birthday since they understood what it was about.

The fact is.....we're ALL on “hunts” as we journey through life. God made us for the journey. AND, best of all, He gives us so many clues in His Word to find the hidden treasures and the stuff we need for success in life. Every place He says "IF you....." is a CLUE to success. And when we follow the CLUE to the nth degree, then we are assured of finding the treasure that causes us to be completely successful in life. I loved the creativity of those kids when they were searching for their items. Of course, it was easier for one team to bury a five-year-old little girl in sand in much faster time than the big guy buried on the other team. Of course, it was easier to take photos of items than to have to actually bring those items back to us. And, of course, God has short cuts and a faster way of blessing us when we pursue His wisdom and creativity instead of “doing it my way”!

Example: "IF YOU pay attention to these laws and are careful to follow them, then the LORD your God will keep His covenant of love with you....." Deuteronomy 7:12
"IF YOU make the Most High your dwelling – even the LORD, who is my refuge – then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your dwelling." Psalm 91:9-10

Have you been searching for the key to your success, the open door that leads to prosperity, the matchmaker that brings you your significant other, the magic potion that gives you restored health, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow? Then I urge you, today, to begin searching for the treasures in God's Word. The Bible is God’s treasure chest where He has so many valuables just waiting for you!

And here's the real clincher -- God considers us His treasure. Oh, how He loves you and me! "IF YOU obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession." Exodus 19:5

What I Learned From an Escape Room

Last week a group of us from my community headed out for a fun-filled day that started with going to the “Countdown 2 Escape” here in Frisco. It is an Escape Room adventure where you go into one room and through a series of opening up boxes, drawers, and closets to find riddles, puzzles and clues to get through another door where even more challenges await us. It was my second time for this kind of adventure. My family took me on one for my birthday last year in Austin. It takes a ton of mental ability (Lord, have mercy!), lots of patience, thinking outside the box, teamwork and communication. There were about 25 of us who went and were divided into three different experiences. You have an hour to escape.

That experience made me think about this life we live and figuring out God’s ways and desires for us in this room called earth to eventually escape to our home sweet home in heaven. It takes a lot of patience, sticking to the rules, communication, teamwork and if we do our part, we’ll eat the good of the land here even before we go there. Isaiah 1:19 says “If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good of the land.” I see my co-adventurers out there in social media land. I love watching your life adventures and most of all seeing you communicate your faith and even your times of difficulty and then see you weather the season and come “out of the room” with victories.

In that Escape Room, you can’t escape with duct tape over your mouth. You have to communicate to your group when you’ve found something. If you run into a stalemate, there is a Game Master watching you from another room, and if you ask, he or she will help you via a monitor. Doesn’t that sound like us? Especially when we’ve done all we can do on our own and we turn to God for help. He gives us an idea or a creative plan to get us out. We get to share our “how-to’s” with each other.

In our Escape Room, teamwork was huge in our success. All of us shared the same goal – to escape within the allotted sixty minutes. Thank God for all the various ways that teamwork plays such a significant role in our “life’s great escape” – our church, Bible Study, loving and faithful friends, family members, support groups and so many others who assist us in being devoted followers of Christ and help us escape on time. We need each other.

Every single thing in the Escape Room had a use – be it to distract us from the real thing or the key we found in a drawer that opens another thing. Every one of our life experiences has a meaningful use to it. I know that now as I look back on my life and realize that everything was making me stronger and wiser and more on purpose.

Consistency was key in our Escape Room. Some folks found a chair and gave up, but others of us refused to give up. We were persistent and determined. Our Game Master was always there to help get us out of tough spots. So does our Heavenly Game Master Who promises to never leave us or forsake us. He ensures that we complete our mission.

“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” Philippians 1:6

The Escape Game

Among the epic adventures, my family and I enjoyed during my birthday weekend, The Escape Game topped the charts! Many people like playing games that challenge the mind and video games that avatars try to escape a situation, but this took it to a whole new level. WE were the characters and WE had to tackle solving scientific puzzles, decoding clues, performing math problems and solving scientific puzzles. Multiple locked boxes and clues were scattered throughout the room and we had to decipher those clues to hidden keys and combination passwords.

The themed rooms of 4th & 5th Grade Classes, Playground and Locker Room were chosen for us. We were locked in, and we had one hour to escape by solving all the challenges. With 13 of us in that room trying to figure out the combinations and situations so we could escape, it was a blast! I knew how passionate my family was about competitive games, but here we were one team trying to escape together. We were shouting out answers to questions and then getting so pumped when someone solved a task and a lock would open a door to the playground with all sorts of props used to solve the next challenge. Once that room was completed, the last room (the locker room) opened.

At the end of 60 minutes, we still needed about 5 more minutes to solve the last challenge. We didn't escape, but fortunately, the Master Gamer, watching us from another room the whole time, saved us from the peril of forever being held captive in school.

We learned many lessons:
~ Teamwork is the key to making the dream work.
~ Brainstorm before tackling the situation individually.
~ Letting the "experts" handle "their field of expertise" (i.e., the math guy, Payton Wallace, tackled the math problems for us! And the firefighter guy, Braden Wuerch, knew to “break the glass” and whoa-la – magic happened!
~ Communication is KEY to solving group challenges.
~ It is so gratifying and satisfying as a team when another WIN takes place, especially for the one that solved the puzzle.
~ After the fact, we realized we should have had ONE leader that led the charge. Yes, my family is packed full of leaders who don't succumb easily to being followers.
~ Ask for help when needed (there were monitors that were on the walls that if we all raised our hands and said “HELP”, we’d be given a clue that gave us an “AHA” moment.) We realized we didn’t escape because we didn’t ask for help enough.
~ We were all engaged in wanting to WIN together.
~ We were sure we counted the footballs correctly for the number we needed on a puzzle, but we didn’t look high or low enough. We spent way too much time on that decoding because we overlooked the obvious!

The lessons learned from The Escape Game can be applied to our lives on a daily basis. Every day we encounter challenges, problems, and situations that come our way. It is up to us and many times, our team, to decode messages, find clues that help us open up our minds to new ideas to complete a project or figure out a problem that is facing us. God is our Master Gamer keeping watch over how we handle situations. Instead of relying totally on the "goods" we have, He is waiting for us to say "HELP ME" and just like in The Escape Game, when we did, we would be given a clue that opened our eyes to what we needed. He has given us the Team Playbook (The Bible) for the clues and answers to all our problems, challenges and situations we encounter on a daily basis. If we grab each other’s hand while playing this game of life and help each other to succeed, then all locks, doors, and boxes will open wide to us for our GREAT ESCAPE. It will come when it is our time to escape into our real forever playground to live with Him eternally in a place where there will be no desire to ever escape.

TEAM-Work: Together Everyone Accomplishes More

I’m back in Austin with my two youngest grandsons who make for sweet times of board games, helping with homework, helping feed the animals and all the other shenanigans that works Nana’s brain AND body! LOL!

I was helping Bryson with his science homework which included the study of birds, and specifically, pelicans. Instead of working alone, I found out that pelicans work in teams which gives them a better chance at a good meal. As we read some of the characteristics of the pelicans, Bryson exclaimed: “Those pelicans are so annoying. They would not leave.” I knew what he was talking about. He remembered back to when he was just four years old and an invasion of pelicans overtook their boat, which was loaded with the fresh fish they had caught. See the photo here. Notice that Bryson wasn’t letting them boss him around, but those pelicans were there to support each other as a team. I like that. TEAM-work. Together Everyone Accomplishes More.....EXCEPT in the case of a very strong willed boy!!

This photo is one of my all-time favorites. You can tell this pelican was by no means the "boss" of Bryson and he showed it! LOL!

Maybe you've heard your kids or grandkids say "You're not the boss of me!" to a sibling or someone else. But have we ever made that statement to ourselves? Actually, we can, and we should.

”How often do we yield to temptations -- big and small? Instead of eating a few chips, we eat the whole bag. Instead of just a piece of chocolate cake, we go in for a second slice. Instead of walking away from listening to an obscene joke, we laugh with them all. Instead of changing the channel or walking out of a movie when the content is questionable and almost every other word is profane, we just sit there and take it in. Instead of eating nutritiously and getting exercise, we talk ourselves out of it. We then justify it all by saying "I just can't help myself!" But, in reality...we can. It's about Who the Greater One is that lives in us. The Holy Spirit knows what is best for us instead of letting our flesh be in control of us.

I daily desire to choose being on God's side -- endeavoring to be the conqueror over the tactics of the enemy. In fact, I think the most exciting journey in life is simply saying, "God, I want to change. I want to please You. I want to be more like you." I want YOU to be the boss of me.

The good news is this....it's not a process we have to conquer on our own. Our TEAM -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are with us to help us accomplish so much more than we could ever do on our own. God's Spirit in us is our Helper, our Guide, our Comforter and Partner in accomplishing whatever it is we may face. Very soon, we'll start to realize that we have some real authority because of our TEAM. When that happens, every time our flesh tempts us, all we have to do is speak Bryson's words to our flesh "You're not the boss of me!"

We Can Learn From Those Annoying Ants

There is nothing that beats spending time in the great outdoors and having a rustic cabin to go to -- with cozy beds, a bathroom, running water, a kitchen to cook in and a screened in back porch to sit and watch the beautiful running waters of the river. Some would disagree with my words "nothing that beats having a rustic cabin to go to" because their definition of vacation is a 5-Star hotel. But, since we were a family that spent many spring and summer vacations in tents or a Winnebago, our little home away from home seemed perfect EXCEPT for one thing.....THE ANTS!!! They weren't just coming one-by-one. They were coming in platoons!! Their hiding place was somewhere around, behind or under the stove because no sooner did we wipe out the ones we saw, right behind them was another troop. I knew what they were doing -- they were in search of food to store for their families, so when they found a little dropping of food, they came in droves.

As annoying as they were and we sure don't want them in our kitchens, we can learn from those determined and tenacious little insects. Proverbs 30:25 says, “Ants are of little strength, yet they store up their food in the summer.”

1. Ants are driven by purpose -- obviously the ants we saw in our cabin had a sole job description of finding food for the colony. That purpose is what they gave their time and energy into. All for one! One for all!

2. Ants work as a team -- they came in teams -- working together to achieve something great. Teamwork makes the dream work!

3. Ants have a time to rest and a time to work -- ants have to work with the natural seasons. So in summer they gather their food and in winter they hibernate. They think Winter all Summer.

4. Ants think big -- ants seem like one of the smallest and most insignificant insect on the planet, but the colonies they build and the contribution to their society, is MAJOR!

6. Ants carry workloads they can handle -- although they're small, ants can handle up to one hundred times their weight. We will never know our limits unless we push ourselves to them.

7. Ants serve one another -- living for just ourselves is a lonely existence. Serving people goes that one step further and asks ‘what can I do for you?' The little things matter. No one can do everything, but everyone can do something!

8. Ants never quit. Alexia and I were mesmerized as we watched a colony of ants carrying pieces of leaves down trees, across walking paths to their homes. Their strength and will amazed us. They didn't let any obstacle stand in their way. They didn’t stand there with their hands on their hips and look at each other in disbelief. They didn’t shrug their shoulders and give up on their goal. We watched them confront their obstacles and walk around it, over it, through it or under it until they achieved their desired goal.

What an amazing God we have -- He was so intentional with His creation -- I love how He uses props to teach us valuable lessons. Quite possibly, He created ants..,..yes, for food for some of His creatures, but for you and I as well -- to pay attention to their ways of living! Maybe it's time for us to "take a lesson from the ants" as King Solomon said in Proverbs 6:6 "Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and become wise!"

Clean Up! Clean Up! Everybody Do Your Share!

If you watched Barney (I did a lot with my grandchildren), you probably learned that little song! Though we weren't singing it, we might as well have, because yesterday was all about checking off Mama's clean-up "to do" list.

You know. Those little odds and ends that, after you move in, get left to the last, and in my case, I needed "muscle" to help check those things off the list. That's when I called in my markers. I promised my grandkids a good donation to their Guatemala trip if I could get some help, so the whole family, including Denise, came over and pitched in. Larry and Payton did some heavy lifting and also set up my surround sound system. Staci and Denise were my "go to" girls -- going up the ladder to the attic to move up boxes and tubs, like two women on a mission! Alexia saw a gold mine in the many give away or sell items I had. I told her she could have the money if she wanted to sell it all, so she started organizing, taking pictures and posting on the Next Door app. Team work sure made the dream work. Now, my car fits in the garage and I can listen to beautiful praise music throughout my home and patio.

I was amazed at the different skill sets we all had. Payton, now with strong arms and legs moved heavy items for me. Denise, who is a machine, stood on the attic ladder and hoisted those heavy tubs and boxes up to Staci. And Staci who got her daddy's packing, organizing and storing abilities, did an amazing job making my attic look like an easily accessible and organized storage unit. Larry, with his engineering and technology abilities, set up a brilliant sound sytem for me. Now, I feel like I've finally moved in and settled! Thanks be to God AND my Wallace Team.

Families really are like a team. I witnessed yesterday how each individual family member brought skill, personality, and their own role to the team, just as a sports player has a specific position on the team. I know their goal was to get "Mama's To Do" list done, and they did with time remaining to get their own "to do" lists done. We need each other -- not just in work, but we need each other for encouragement, celebrations, and for supporting each other through the ups and downs of life.

A couple of days ago I was making some decisions on my own, so as not to "bother" the fam. I needed to get my car repaired (and the other driver's car repaired, that I ran into -- that story is for another day), when both sets of my kids gave me sound advice that will save me a substantial sum of money. I was told "Mom, you need to let go of your pride and go about it this way." I needed that advice. I needed them. I needed their wisdom. I needed their TLC that would point me in the right direction.

If we do it right, as family teams, we'll bring the best of ourselves to the table and our discussions and the advice we give and take, just may be the way the Father intended us to live. After all, "family" is how it started in the beginning, family is what cooperated together for the birth of our Savior, and family is who God wants us to be for each other -- whether we're related, or not.

When we place our faith in Christ, God becomes our Father, we become his children, other believers become our brothers and sisters, and the church becomes our spiritual family: “Jesus pointed to his disciples and said, ‘These are my mother and brothers. Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!’” (Matthew 12:49-50).

Maybe, the picture I gave you of my family helping me out when I needed their help the most, is the picture we all should have -- not just of our own families of origin, but God's family -- encouraging, lifting up, and helping them get their "to do" lists done!

The Ant Mentality

Day 144 of Photo Inspirations -- The Ant Mentality
Yesterday was such a spectacular day.  We appreciated it so much more because it was a day without torrential rain.  On our morning walk, we were set up for noticing nature -- the cactus growing on a neighbor's rock, the new flowers planted by another neighbor, the beautiful flowers planted so meticulously around our clubhouse......and crossing the road where we walked, was a line of ants.  I sang out "The ants go marching one by one...hoorah, hoorah!"  And my friend told me about an ants' video that she had seen --  working as a team carrying a piece of food.  Before long, some of those ants moved to the back as another group of ants took over and gave relief!  Teamwork!

What an amazing God we have -- He was so intentional with His creation -- I love how He uses props to teach us valuable lessons.  Quite possibly, He created ants..,..yes, for food for some of His creatures, but for you and I -- to pay attention to their ways of living in community and teams:

1.   Ants are driven by purpose -- obviously the ants my friend talked about had a sole job description of finding food for the colony.  That purpose is what they gave their time and energy into.  All for one!  One for all!

2. Ants work as a team --   they work together to achieve something great.  Teamwork makes the dream work!

3. Ants have a time to rest and a time to work -- ants have to work with the natural seasons. So in summer they gather their food and in winter they hibernate. Hi ho. Hi ho. It's off to work we go!

4. Ants think big -- ants can seem like one of the smallest and insignificant insects on the planet, but the colonies they build and the contribution to their society, is MAJOR!   "Little is MUCH, when God is in it!"

6. Ants carry workloads they can handle -- although they're small, ants can handle up to one hundred times their weight.  We will never know our limits unless we push ourselves to them.

7. Ants serve one another -- living for just ourselves is a lonely existence. Serving people goes that one step further and asks ‘what can I do for you?' The little things matter.  No one can do everything, but everyone can do something!

Birds of a Feather Flock Together -- Teamwork Leads to Victory

Day 17 of Photo Inspirations -- Birds of a Feather Flock Together!
This is the pond behind my house -- part of which is frozen -- the other part is being enjoyed by this bonded flock of Canadian geese.  Quite amusing to see them diving their heads under the water for a breakfast fish treat and flapping their wings.  They're quite stately and beautiful to look at......but, oh me, in our neighborhood, they are not a welcomed sight.  They have no respect for our yards, sidewalks and streets -- leaving their geese poo everywhere -- so much so, if you're not watching, you'll step right into it.

I understand there sure are a lot of them everywhere — in parks, on golf courses, maybe even YOUR backyard, too. Nevertheless, we still enjoy the sight of geese overhead, signaling the coming or going of our coldest months. .

I didn't post this today to discuss how to eliminate the geese problems, but I am posting to look at lessons we could learn from the geese, and apply to our own lives and teams.  In the sky, geese are an impressive visual of coordination and communication.

Lesson #1 -- Cooperation -- As geese flap their wings, they create an uplift for the bird following. By flying in a V formation, the whole flock adds 71% greater flying range than if any bird were to fly alone.   Flying together creates an uplift, a surge that carries the whole farther than its individual parts could go by themselves. Comparing them to a group or team cooperating, it can achieve great things. We are truly a flock. We might not be the lead goose, but each of us has a role, even if it seems minimal. The team's forward movement, its success, is dependent on the efforts of us all.  I saw this so clearly in our team events last weekend.

Lesson #2  -- Unity -- Whenever a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to fly alone, and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird immediately in front. Going it alone - being independent of the flock - leads to falling behind. What happens when a goose falls out of formation and cannot or will not reform? If the flock can fly 71% farther as a group, then the lone goose is left behind.  Anyone who has played team sports knows that each player must subordinate his desires to those of the team. His goal may be to have the highest scoring average, but that may not help the team to win the championship.

Lesson #3  -- Leadership -- When the lead goose gets tired, it rotates back into formation and another goose flies at the point position. True leadership is reproducing himself so that others can bear the load and even be able to assume responsibilities if the leader is absent for a period of time.   Others get to step up and show their leadership abilities.

Lesson #4 -- Encouragement -- The geese in formation honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep up their speed.   To be the lead bird, is to be a target, and that can be stressful and wearying. The leader doesn't always know what is going on among the team, how the members feel, or what questions or misconceptions they may have. Too many times all the leader hears is the grumbling of the vocal few. Through our kind words of encouragement, we can give strength to those up ahead of us. A sincere thank you or supportive gesture, will make it all worthwhile.

Sometimes, being a team member, means we are watching from the bench. We still participate, however, by giving encouragement, by rooting for our teammates who are on the field.  I love Seattle Seahawks "twelfth man".  I sincerely believe it's one of the reasons they are such a winning team.  The fans are the "twelfth man" and they cheer from the sidelines, wear their team colors, put flags on their cars and in their yards (in my son's family's case) and they are "all in" supporters.

Lesson #5  When a goose gets sick or is shot down, two geese drop out of formation and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with it until it is able to fly again or dies. They then launch out on their own, with another formation or catch up with the flock. These are just other ways of saying we must help each other -- especially those  who have dropped out of formation.   We should never abandon a sick or wounded team member.  As long as there is hope, we should be there to help.

Imagine if our "family" team, "business" team, "sports" team or any other team behaved like a flock of geese, flying in perfect formation, cooperating as a team, unified behind the leadership, constantly encouraging those around us, and helping our team members in faith and support.  We'd reach our flock's destination in complete victory.

Now, please excuse me -- as I shoo away this "team" of geese in my backyard.  Time for them to find another place of victory!!!