The little things

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Have you ever felt like a request you have is simply too little to bother God about?

Earlier this week, while I was in the hospital with my dad, he told me that he’d really like a big straw. Since he was having such a hard time talking, this request was a big deal to me, but, let’s be real, in the scheme of life who really cares about a big straw???

God does. GOD DOES.

After striking out two days in a row in the hospital cafeteria and with our floor nurses, I asked a woman in scrubs who was waiting for an elevator in the lobby. “Do you know where I could find a big straw for my dad?”

Her response blew my mind, “Sure, if you can get off on the fourth floor with me, I’ll get you one. My floor provides them for the patients.”

Five minutes later, I was the proud owner of not only a big flexible straw, but also a 1,000 ml marked plastic mug.

I returned to my dad’s room, calling out, “Happy Father’s Day, Dad,” with tears in my eyes.

God sees us. God hears us. And God cares about us. He is God over the little things like big straws.

How have you seen God provide for you in the little things? I’d love to hear your story of PRAISE!

Is there something today that you are seeking God for? I’d love to join you in prayer!

Leave a comment below.

TWIG

Of Big and Little Acts of Service

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As I shared in yesterday’s post, love compels service … which leads me to a new trail of thoughts.

I wonder, is my dad only interested in the big things that I can do for him? Are the doctors with a dozen years of education who correctly prescribe just the right medication more valuable than the nurse who correctly draws his blood?

Incredibly, just now, while I’m writing this and waiting to board a plane back home, with my dad still in his hospital bed, the flight attendant announced that our plane is having some mechanical issues.

I realize how critically important a good pilot is, but realistically is a good plane mechanic any less essential?

I know that answering my dad’s questions about faith and asking God to hear my cries for mercy truly are valuable acts of service, but do I believe that sitting in silence, holding his hand while he sleeps, is valuable in God’s eyes?

Surely reading Psalm 23 aloud and talking about the hope of Heaven with Jesus is of immense value, but how about cutting up my dad’s food into manageable bites?
Sometimes as a stay-at-home, homeschooling mama, it can feel like the daily chores, loading the dishwasher and washing the laundry and cooking the dinner is worthless … and yet I hope that I can do my work as unto the Lord, pointing my children’s eyes to the blessings of dishes and laundry and food … and of work.
Sometimes as a Christian speaker and writer, it can feel like reaching one hurting soul isn’t as important as speaking to the multitudes.
So today, let’s remind ourselves that God values our little acts of love and service, as well as our big ones. He sees us. He cares. And He is able to multiply our fish and loaves and mites and talents as we offer them up to Him.

TWIG

“As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.” (1 Peter 4:10-11)
“For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.” (Romans 12:3-8)
“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.” (Colossians 3:23-24)

Compelling Love

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I’m thankful that many of you were blessed by my post yesterday. I hope that my thoughts today will also be an encouragement.

In the last week while my dad’s been hospitalized, I’ve rubbed lotion on his hands, sat silently next to him just holding his hand, and helped him walk to the bathroom or find the right word to say when he’s struggling. We’ve played tic-tac-toe together and done simple physical therapy tasks like reaching up high and flexing his wrists. I’ve encouraged my dad to count to ten, and sign his name, and sing the ABC’s. I’ve helped him decide what to order for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and then arranged his plate with just half of a sandwich and a few strawberries and a handful of chips so he’s not overwhelmed by too much food.
And I wonder, do I think that he’ll love me more if I do them … or that he’ll love me less if I don’t? No. No. Of course I don’t.
Rather, my deep love for my earthly father *compels* me to serve him. I have a profound sense of gratitude toward my parents. My parents cared for me when I had nothing to give them. And now I’m honored to be able to serve them, in just a small measure of the way they served me. I *want* to take care of them.
Serving my dad is not a burden. It is a joy.
And this relationship makes me think of my relationship with my Heavenly Father. My Heavenly Father loved me while I was still a sinner. He came after me while I was running away from Him. Like the hymn says, He loved me e’re I knew Him.
The gratitude and love that I have for God is immeasurable. It’s like Paul wrote, the love of Christ compels me. (2 Corinthians 5:14) I *want* to serve God because I love Him so much.
If you do not feel that compelling love to serve God, let me encourage you to search your own heart. Those who have been forgiven much, love much. Take a minute and think about the depth of your own sin and how much you need a Savior. Then, consider the great price that Jesus paid to rescue you, shedding his own blood on the cross in your place – so you could have eternal life through Him.
If none of this makes sense to you, I’d love to chat. I’d love to serve Jesus side-by-side with an army of brothers and sisters. Let’s love God and love others because He loved us first.
TWIG
“For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:7-8)
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”(Ephesians 2:4-9)

The Love of a Father

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I’ve been staying with my dad in the hospital for almost a week now.

Yesterday, during a moment of clarity, my dad communicated to the doctors that he’s feeling sad because he was intelligent, well-spoken and able-bodied, but now he is struggling to even say a sentence or walk to the bathroom with a walker. Later yesterday afternoon, after a game of Tic-Tac-Toe, he started crying because he had been a champion bridge player.

And then it hit me.

I love my dad just as much today as when he wrote 100-page legal briefs and solved impossible math problems.

I love my dad just as much today as when he built a custom-made island in our kitchen and rigged up a light so we could know when the garage door was open.

I don’t care if he can put on his own socks.

I don’t care if he knows what year it is or what city he’s in.

He’s my dad and I love him.

And then another truth hit me.

That’s how God loves me.

God doesn’t love me because of what I have to offer Him. He doesn’t love me because I’m intelligent, well-spoken and able-bodied.

He just loves me because He loves me.

I’m His daughter and He’s my good, good Father. Thank You, Father, for making me Your daughter, and for making Emil George Trott, Jr. my earthly dad.

“[Jesus] came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1:11-13)

“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.” (1 John 3:1)

“[God] saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began” (2 Timothy 1:9)

“[God] saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5)

“In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (1 John 4:10)

Of things perishable and imperishable

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While studying 1 Peter, I’ve been impressed by how often Peter talks about what is temporary, momentary or perishable, in comparison to what is lasting, eternal or imperishable. As I’ve been sitting with my dad in the hospital for the last few days, I’ve been thinking again about how important it is to fix our eyes on what is eternal.

Gold perishes.

Our trials are temporary.

Our flesh is withering like grass.

But God, His Word, and our coming heavenly inheritance are lasting.

– TWIG

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
– 1 Peter 1:3-7

“Love one another earnestly from a pure heart, since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you.” – 1 Peter 1:22b-25

“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”
– 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

#teachwhatisgood
#perishable
#imperishable
#lightmomentaryaffliction
#allfleshislikegrass

Scripture Memory – Dry Erase Board style

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Here’s one way to memorize scripture using a small dry erase board. I gradually remove a few words at a time, repeating and repeating the verse. Sometimes I put in symbols for words to help me transition until I have it memorized. This is a great method for memorizing scripture together as a family!

Would you like to join me and others in memorizing 1 Peter 1:3-8 together?

Leave a comment below, or look for my Teach What is Good group on the Scripture Typer Bible Memory website or app.

 

What verses are you trying to memorize? How could this method help you?

TWIG

Of Anger and Temptation

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While waiting for Daniel’s game to start last night, I was reviewing several of my scripture memory verses. The Spirit was reminding me of the value of controlling my temper and to remember that He will always give me a way of escape when I’m tempted to sin.

Last night, as we were walking to the parking lot after a rough game, I was sharing with Bill and Daniel these exact verses, encouraging them … and I turned around to see the young umpire walking right behind us, listening. He shared with us that it was his first game working behind home plate. We had a great opportunity to visit with him and encourage him.

Friends, we never know who is listening … but we do know who always is. Ultimately, God is my judge and I want to live according to His rules and for His pleasure, knowing that He is always working for my good.

The beauty of womanhood

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Today was “International Women’s Day.” I disagree with many of the ultra-feminist goals of this day, but I certainly am thankful for my life as a woman and wish for other women around the world to enjoy such joy.

I would not be the woman I am today were it not for numerous graces for which I give thanks.

  • I am thankful for the wonderful education I received from childhood into adulthood.
  • I am thankful for the freedom I enjoy in America to receive such an education.
  • I am thankful for a quick mind, a gift from God, that allows me to remember and understand even a portion of all this information I have received.
  • I am thankful for a strong and able body, another gift from God, that has allowed me many pain-free years.
  • I am thankful for the gifts of sight, speech, and hearing, treasures that not everyone enjoys here on earth.
  • I am thankful for hard working parents who loved me and modeled life well for me.
  • I am thankful for a husband who works diligently to provide for us, so I can tend to the needs of our household.
  • I am thankful for the gift of motherhood. I wouldn’t be half the woman I am today without each of my children – those with me on earth and those who have preceded me to heaven.
  • I am thankful for all my sisters whether by marriage, by blood, or by faith, who have poured into me and encouraged me.

Proverbs 31 is a song of encouragement from a mother to her son on the value of a wife. Each of us should aspire to such diligent service to our husband, children and community, but ultimately to God, the giver of every good gift.

Many thanks to God, and to all the men and women, who have shaped me to be who I am today. May we have hearts full of thanksgiving, as we speak and serve with the grace God has given to us.

Proverbs 31:10-31 ESV

An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels.

The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain.

She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.

She seeks wool and flax,
and works with willing hands.

She is like the ships of the merchant; she brings her food from afar.

She rises while it is yet night
and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens.

She considers a field and buys it; with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.

She dresses herself with strength and makes her arms strong.

She perceives that her merchandise is profitable. Her lamp does not go out at night.

She puts her hands to the distaff, and her hands hold the spindle.

She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy.

She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet.

She makes bed coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple.

Her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the land.

She makes linen garments and sells them; she delivers sashes to the merchant.

Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come.

She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.

Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: “Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.”

Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.

Is your Life Self-centered, Child-centered, Husband-centered, or God-centered???

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This past week, I have been studying Matthew 23 along with the other ladies in my Community Bible Study group. In this passage, Jesus pronounces upon the religious leaders of His day (the scribes and Pharisees) a series of seven woes. Six times Jesus calls these self-righteous men, “hypocrites.” Rather than leading the Israelites to pursue God with pure hearts, these religious leaders had hearts full of greed and self-indulgence, performing law-keeping deeds in order to be seen by others. Ultimately, their lives were SELF-centered, despite any external appearance of GOD-centeredness.

This Tuesday, I was listening to my favorite podcast, “Family Life Today.” In this episode, Dennis Rainey was sharing some words of wisdom with the new “Family Life Today” hosts, Dave and Ann Wilson. Mr. Rainey was explaining how easily most moms can be drawn into a CHILD-centered life, where their “family solar system revolve[s] around the kids.” Such truth in just 7 words.

My mind immediately began drawing a picture of a solar system with my children taking the place of the sun, and my husband and me revolving around them like Earth and Mars.

Mr. Rainey and his wife, Barbara, then shared about the importance of keeping the marriage relationship strong, so that the marriage is prepared to outlast the children. If our world is revolving around our kids, what’s going to happen when they grow up and move out?!

I’m afraid that in an effort to not be child-centered, some marriages, then become husband-centered, where the whole family revolves around making dad happy. Rather than the wife pleasing her husband as an outflow of her allegiance to God, pleasing her husband becomes the very center and focus of her life. This, too, is a messed-up solar system.

In my mind I had a new vision of a solar system. This solar system had my husband and I spinning together, arm-in-arm, while God remained the ever-present enormous shining sun whose gravity held us both. In this solar system, both of our lives revolved around Him, not our kids, and not each other.

Like the first question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism asks, “What is the chief end of man?” I began asking myself, “Kim, what is the chief end of your life? What does your life revolve around? What is that gravitational force that holds your life in order? Who is in the center of your life’s solar system?”

Is my primary goal to “glorify God, and to enjoy him forever”?

Yes. Yes, it is.

TWIG

Why don’t we tell others about our good news?

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1. We don’t really believe it.

If you thought the good news may not be true, you wouldn’t tell others, right? You’d wait until you’d taken two, or maybe even three, pregnancy tests before you went telling all your friends that you’re pregnant or posting about it on Facebook. You may even wait until you’re 12 or 20 weeks along before you tell anybody, so you don’t have to explain if you don’t deliver a healthy baby within the year. We like to be really sure before we tell others our good news.

2. We don’t really think the news is all that great.

Who cares that your daughter got a scholarship – it’s only a local community college. So what that your kid made the varsity team – it’s just high school football. If you think your good news isn’t really all that amazing, you may not be compelled to tell some else, except maybe your husband, your mom and your very best friend.

3. Our friends and family won’t be happy or supportive.

Maybe you’re super excited about a new job your husband got on the other side of the world, but your family may not be so happy, right? If the hearer isn’t going to be overjoyed about our good news, then we may not want to tell them about it.

4. We may be ashamed to tell other people, either because it feels like bragging, or because they may disagree with you.

If your son scored a perfect score on the ACT, you may be embarrassed to tell anyone for fear they’ll call you boastful. Or if your 18-year-old is getting married straight out high school, you may be embarrassed to tell everybody, because you’re worried about people’s negative comments.

5. We may not feel like we have the right words to express our good news.

In a generation of Pinterest, YouTube, Amazon, Facebook and Google, we can feel inadequate in how we communicate our good news. Our baby announcement or gender reveal may not be as well done as our friend’s, so we just don’t do it at all!

Just like these stumbling blocks to sharing our every life good news, these same five things can stand in the way of you sharing the good news about our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ.

Try asking yourself these questions:

1. Do I really believe in the good news of Jesus, the Savior?

2. Do I recognize the incredible, unmerited blessing of this gift?

3. Am I letting someone else’s lack of excitement stand in the way of sharing?

4. Am I letting fear of someone else’s reaction prevent me from sharing this hope with my community and loved ones?

5. Am I prepared to share this good news any time, any where, with humility rather than waiting until I have all the right words prepared?