Where the pavement hits the road

This has been an extremely stressful week. I found out on Tuesday that the school where I am the secretary may not be open next year. For the teachers that would mean that they would be moving to other schools - most of them have been at our school for many years, so it feels like we're losing our family. For the students and their families it would mean that they too will be going to other schools farther from home. They would be losing their neighborhood school, but their neighborhood would stay together. For me it would probably mean that I will no longer be an elementary school secretary. I have enough seniority to stay in the school district, but I would move to a lower classification - a different job in a different place with lower pay. Not only would I lose my "family" at my school, but I lose the job that I have wanted and that I love, and I lose income. While I have been trying to come to terms with this news I have had to try to help parents and staff members understand what's happening. I have tried to stay positive, to hope for the best, to continue to do my best at my job.
I have been crying out to God to help me not to worry about the future. My worries will not change my circumstances, but only negatively affect my attitude (and possibly my health.) I have asked God to help me to rest in His assurances that He will never leave me. And I have asked Him to help me use this time to witness to the people around me - to tell others who are hurting about how He is taking care of me. I want to show love.
It is hard to be a Christian sometimes in this situation. So many people around me are saying negative things; they're critical and they spread rumors. They are mad. I want to be positive. I want to pray for the people with whom I disagree - not talk about them to others.
I am so thankful for God's Word. It is a balm to my soul, a standard when everything around me is shifting. I cling to God's promises.
I am also thankful fro Christian radio. Almost every song that comes on speaks directly to me and helps me to put my eyes where they should be - not on my circumstances but on the only One who knows the future.

Goldilocks

Too often when I think about blogging, I think that I need to have something really deep to write about. So I don't write anything. Today I just had to share this storybecause it was so much fun-

Sunday when we came home from the cabin I started noticing that someone had been at our house while we were gone. There were extra tire tracks and lots of footprints in the driveway. When I went inside I saw that the dining room chairs were grouped differently around the table. I felt like Mama Bear looking for Goldilocks. "Someone's been sitting in my chair." There were some crumbs and an M'nM on the floor. A bag of chips was missing.
So I looked around a little more. In the family room I noticed that the computer was on. The lap blankets were folded on a chair instead of hanging over the back of the couch. The game "Catch Phrase" and a deck of cards were out in the family room. The DVD player was on - with the movie, "In Good Company" in it. I wondered who had been home. Then I looked upstairs and I could tell that someone had slept in my bed and the guest bed. The beds were made - just not made the way I make them. "Someone's been sleeping in my bed."
Who had been in my house?
I finally called my youngest son, Jeff, and and asked. He confirmed that he had been home, along with two of his friends. They just wanted to get away from college and hang out. He said, "Oh, are you home already? I was going to call you later and let you know." He told me that
he slept in our bed; one of the friends slept in the guest bed and the other one slept on the couch. At least they did try to keep the house clean. My husband would have been more happy if they had shoveled the driveway. I didn't realize how well I knew my house, until I started looking for clues. I guess that means I don't rearrange things too often, and that I really do have a "place" for most everything.

Pray for your kids to get caught

If you don't receive the daily devotion from Proverbs 31 ministries you are really missing out on some great stuff. Today's devotion by Micca Monda Campbell was all about praying for your kids to get caught in their mistakes while they are little so that they can learn from them and avoid the big mistakes and consequences when they are grown. One example she gave was her son getting a speeding ticket rather than crashing his car into a tree.
I wish I had read this when my kids were growing up. It would have changed my prayers and my reactions. However, I do have a true life experience where my son got caught and God used it to change the direction of his life. He got caught driving after drinking while he was still in high school. His actions had consequences at school in the area of athletics - but the biggest effect getting caught had was that it forced him to look at why he had had that beer. He realized that he was trying to be popular with his peers rather than trying to please God. He turned his life back to the Lord and began growing spiritually. God honored that decision by helping him to grow, and by having the ticket for drinking disappear. He never had to go to court. But even if he had, God would have been there with him, and would have continued to teach him through it.
Even parents who don't believe in prayer should be thankful when their kids get caught. Isn't it better to have detention after school than to end up in jail? Isn't better to get caught cheating on a test than to lose a job for cheating?
So - pray for your kids to be caught! And when they do, don't get mad, but be thankful you have the opportunity to help them to grow.
(And keep reading Proverbs 31 devotions!)

Building Bridges to a Great Life in Christ

Yesterday we heard a wonderful sermon at New Joy Church about Building Bridges to a Great Life in Christ. You can read all the specifics at their website.
Pastor Rich used 2 Corinthians 4 and talked about three markers to have in our lives:
Mercy Motivation - we need to be motivated my God's mercy to us, and show mercy to others (2 Cor. 4:13-14)
Faithful Determination - We need to be determined to stay faithful (2 Cor. 4:1, 16 and 2 Timothy 4:7) Do not lose heart! Fight the good fight, finish the race, keep the faith.
Authentic Vision - We need to keep our eyes on God. (2 Corinthians 4:18)

January Thaw

This past weekend we experienced the January thaw. Not only was the weather warmer, but when we went for a walk our neighbors were outside too. After being frozen in our houses for a month or more, it was so good to feel the sunshine and to connect with friends again. We saw a couple of the neighbor boys playing in the puddles and the snow. I remember how much fun it was to stomp in the slush, to make rivers through the snow, to be able to play outside without having my face freeze off. I wish that the thaw was permanent, but I guess I don't want my life to go by too quickly. So I'll enjoy this mild January weather, and enjoy each day until it finally the right time for spring.

Highlights of 2007

My daughter-in-law posted the highlights of their family on her blog - and I thought it was a good idea. So here goes:

Craig started a new job in January.
We planted trees and started landscaping our back yard this summer.
We started going to New Joy Church in January.
I tried out for Swingin' Eds and made it! (December)
I finished Carrie's scrapbooks.
Carrie went to Guatemala for spring term, and LA for the summer.
Jeff and the Bethel hockey team won the MIAC championship in the spring.
Jeff was named captain for the 2007-08 year.
Jeff and Brenton both got jobs with Target.
I spent most of my summer vacation at the cabin.
I painted the donwstairs bathroom and our bedroom.
Craig and I went to my first truck/ tractor pull in Corcoran. (May)
We went to the Iron Rig Classic truck show in Kasson, MN.
We had all the kids and grandkids here for Christmas Day.
Andrew says "Nana" and "Papa."