A God who Sees

I grew up in northern Utah. My hometown was small and behind the times. (Even today, it appears to be caught in a time warp of the 1950’s.) When I was growing up, the town was predominately populated by Latter Day Saints, more commonly known as Mormons. Mormons hold strong moral ethics. They stress exceptional family values in order to be able to be in a good relationship with God.

Oh, boy! That left me believing I would never be close to God. A fourth generation alcoholic, he had no clue how to be a faithful husband or a good father. He would disappear for days only to come home in a drunken stupor. Family dysfunction and spiritual darkness hovered in our home.

My mentally ill mother spoke in garbled phrases of schizophrenic fear. She loved me desperately and tried her best to care for me. However, life centered around the committee of voices she heard in her head. The confused and scared little girl in me believed that God didn’t see what happened in my home.

However, my impression of God’s eyesight was mistaken. He doesn’t need contacts, glasses, or eye surgery to see invisible little wallflowers in the dredges of life. God sees every little girl, in every circumstance, everywhere. He is El Roi, the God who sees.

She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: "You are the God who sees me," for she said, "I have now seen the One who sees me." (Genesis 16:13 NIV)

He saw me.

To be continued on Monday.

How Long is the Shepherd's Staff?

In just a few days, the sun will rise on another glorious Easter morning. The Son’s radiance will shine into our lives.

The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. (Hebrews 1:3 NIV)

Between now and Easter I want to explore how long our Shepherd’s arm is . . . what miraculous stories are there concerning our Savior and His love for us. I will share my own introduction to Jesus. How He saw a little girl who was on the road to being a guttersnipe. Nevertheless, He wooed me to being to a princess in the Lord’s kingdom.

“But they are your people, your inheritance that you brought out by your great power and your outstretched arm.”(Deuteronomy 9:29 NIV)

A Quiet Time

Every so often, I catch up on life. Right now, I am in one those places. It’s such an unusual stress-less place. All my correspondence is update. (OK, I am a little behind on my blogging). But emails and phone calls are all taken care of for the moment.

So, this weekend my husband and son went to the Las Vegas NASCAR race. I took my dogs and went away to begin on my next book. It’s hard to set my butt in a chair and write when I am home. There are so many distractions—phone calls and emails. And then, of course the whole domestic scene of laundry, cooking and cleaning.

This time won’t last long, but for a few quiet days, it just me, my dogs, computer and Jesus. My book’s working title is Dancing with Abba. So, I am hoping to learn some elegant dance step with my Beloved.

A Friend of the Heart

A few friends become friends of the heart. You know they would do anything for you and you would do anything for them.

You are able to share the dark places of your heart and they never love you any less for all the darkness.

They walk the journey of life with you. Friends of the heart travel with you in joy, sorrow, sickness, fear and faith. When they can't physically walk, they bend their knees in prayer and go before the Father.

Friends of the heart--a gift from God.

Pray-er Friend

One of my cellophane friends is also my prayer partner. We meet together most Mondays to pray for our kids--her three and my three. We are honest and open with each other about our children's strengths and weaknesses.

Over the past few years we have seen amazing answered prayer in our kid's lives. I want to encourage you to find a friend that you can pray with on a regular basis. I promise life will never be the same.

Here are a few of the answered prayers for our children:

• Gradual maturity
• Marriage
• Deeper walk with God
• A prodigal makes contact
• Financial more responsible
• College decisions
• Grandbabies!
• Better communication

For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."

Matthew 18:20 (NIV)

HALLELUJAH!

Cellophane Friends

Friends should be a vital part of our lives—real friends.


Girlfriends—how would I define that term?
Women that I know and like.
Friends that hold me accountability to a high standard.
People who are authentic.
Gals who can laugh at themselves. (And with me.)
Friends that invest in the relationship—it’s not a one-sided relationship.

Cellophane girlfriends wrap themselves around each other with giggles, tears, silence, hope, encouragement, compassion, empathy, and love. Cellophane friends bind their hearts together with clear authenticity and strong love.

For the Love of Friendship

February is the month of love. This month I am will write about love—the love of friendships. Scripture highly encourages us to commit to one another in friendship. Why? Because we were made for community.

In the beginning of the book of Genesis God created the various components of our worlds. After each creation He said, “It is good.” However, Genesis 2:18 reads, The Lord God said, “It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” Then, He created Eve for Adam wouldn’t be alone. Well, we know how that turned out. But, I digress . . .

It’s not good for anyone to be alone. Hence, we need friends. For myself, my family can’t meet my emotional needs as well as a girlfriend. Sometimes, I just need a friend to listen to might rants and raving—over a self-induced pity party.

I would love to hear about your friendship. As I blog, chime in on what you have discovered, in the arena of friendships.