Lost, But Now I am Found

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Although Amy has lived for 13 of her 19 years of life in the Kansas City area, it now appears that, unless it had something to do with going shopping, she hasn’t paid much attention to where we were going in the car! She can’t really tell you how she got to a place; she just recognizes that she is there – unless you are in the mall. She knows where everything is in the mall, and can give you directions to any store in there!

Never was this so apparent as when she headed out for a job interview. Her father and I had warned her not to take the highway because this trip would be during rush hour. Well, she was determined to do what she normally does: just put the address to wherever she is going in her GPS and take off! And, sure enough, on this particular day, there was a bad accident that had the highway backed up. Because she had an appointment to get to, she decided to get off the highway and take the side streets to get there. When she did, somehow she got turned around and headed back in the opposite direction. Because her GPS continued to try to direct her back to the highway, Amy called me in a panic. So, as her father and I are looking on the computer trying to find where she is to give her directions to get her headed back the right way, she is saying, “I am never driving again, I am done! I can’t do this.” Amy was ready to give up before she even completed the task.

Amy was ready to give up before she even completed the task.

 

 

This got me thinking…. Isn’t that a lot like us and our walk with God? We can be following the directions He has given us, and for some reason get confused about the direction we are going and become lost! Even though it is sometimes only for a few minutes, we can get frustrated and afraid on this new path we are on and are ready to throw our hands up in the air and say, “Forget this! I can’t do it!” and go back to the safe place where we are comfortable. But God is wanting to take all of us to a new level with Him and that doesn’t mean we are going to be comfortable. In fact, most of the time, He stretches us to the most UN-comfortable place we think we can be in at the time, and although everything within us may be screaming, “Go Back! Go Back!” God is calling us to “Go Forward!” He says, “Come to me, all who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest.” Gods Word – Matthew 11:28

God wants us to come to Him with our problems our worries, our concerns, and trust Him to work it all out. Amy’s father and I finally directed her onto the right path and the whole process only took about 5 minutes. But how many times do we wander for hours, days, weeks, because we are unwilling to ask for help as soon as we realize we are lost. We become afraid because we don’t know where we are. We fail to call on the One with the aerial view of the situation. Her father and I could see a bigger picture on the computer map then Amy could while in the middle of her crisis.

If only we could all just learn to turn to God as soon as we realize we are off the path we should be taking! Like Jeff and I looking on the computer’s aerial view, God can see what is ahead and will guide and direct us to the place He wants us to be. As I told Amy, “Don’t focus on how you got turned around! It is easy to do and we all have done it! Just focus on the fact that you figured it out quickly and you now know where you are going.” So many times we can get too caught up in perfectionism in every step we take in life, instead of enjoying the process.  We forget God isn’t looking for someone perfect. He is looking for someone who will walk with Him through this life

 

We forget God isn’t looking for someone perfect. He is looking for someone who will walk with Him through this life

 

Today, I hope this challenges you to ask yourself, “Where am I in this process of life? Am I taking the next steps to go on to a higher level of trusting God?” If He is asking you to do something that you have never done before, let me encourage you to do take that step of faith. Dip your big toe in the sea that lies before you and watch God part it! If you will only take the first step, He will see you through!!

 

A Conversation At Our House – When the obvious isn’t obvious!

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The Scenario: Jeff comes to me with a blue shirt and brown shorts on

Jeff: Does blue and brown go together?
Me: Yes, Go look at our bedroom
Jeff: (looks at me like a deer in headlights)
Me: Our bedroom is decorated in blue and brown- brown & blue curtains, brown and blue comforter — everything is brown and blue….
Jeff: Hum…. Well, you have to be careful. You never know when stuff like that will sneak up on you.
Me: What is there to sneak up on you– it has been that color since we moved in a year ago! (as I shake my head)

I love that man!! But there is a reason God gave me to him- (and him to me) LOLOL!!

Don’t get me wrong, I am not complaining– I actually think this is one of the things that makes Jeffrey so cute!!

Conversation at our house – We have to die together

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Jeff has been sick for a week and because of that, most of his responsibilities for the week have landed on me. (Including teaching at Wednesday Night Bible Study, and Preaching on Sunday!)  So, as I am walking out the door for 3 meetings in row, here is our conversation:
Jeff: Thanks for taking care of everything for me this week baby.

Me: That’s OK! When I take a week off and go to Kansas City, YOU can take care of everything!

Jeff: What?? Oh NO!! (with a twinkle in his eye) I will make sure there is nothing planned, if you are gone. Everything will have to be canceled if you aren’t here.

Me: Oh, please!!!! You are more than capable of taking care of all this yourself. You are so much better at being without me than I am at being without you!

Jeff: I don’t know why you say that, you know it isn’t true! We are no good at all without each other; it takes both of us to make it!

Me: (as I lean over and kiss his forehead goodbye) You are right Mr. Miller. We have to die together, because we are helpless without each other.

 

 

Conversations at our house – Funny Moment

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Funny moment at the Miller House. Explanation- we have this thing at our house that my children understand that whatever I put there name on that is the piece of furniture etc. they will get when their father and I pass away. Apparently, they are in a bit of a hurry to find out what that will be because they have started taking it upon themselves to label what they want (no one ever said our family doesn’t plan ahead) example scenario #1 (while Lee was visiting just sitting around the dining room table)
LEE: Mom I want those salt and pepper shakers when you are gone. (referring to some his great grandma owned)
ME: OK put your name on them
CHAD: quietly gets up goes to his room and comes back with HIS address labels and begins to place his labels on the said salt and pepper shakers. (We all roll on the floor LOL!!)
Scenario #2 yesterday
AMY: When I move out can I have the dining room table.
ME: Probably
CHAD: Quietly slips over to the table pulls out his labels and puts 2 on the bottom side of it!! LOLOL!!!!!!
I THINK WE HAVE CREATED A MONSTER!!! LOLOL!!!

If Jeff and I mysteriously die, you have 3 suspects Lololol!!  you know cause we have so much wealth to give them #sonottrue Lololol!!

You call me Friend !

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Amy & Chad

Amy & Chad

We have all done it: admired and looked up to a leader or person from afar; created pedestals for them, and somehow now believe they are better than us. We think we would never be able to speak to them or be their friend; that they are beyond the reach of what we could be. They are too pretty, too smart, too gifted, too anointed, too rich, or too skinny. They are far more than we think we could ever hope to be. They are the people who appear to have their stuff together and make those of us, who feel we don’t, even more conscious that we could be doing better. Not in a condemning kind of way, but a way that inspires us to do more, be more, do our best.
Then it happens. You get the e-mail or the phone call, and they call you, “friend!” I remember when this happened to me. There was a particular ministry leader who I could not imagine would ever have anything to do with me, I just wasn’t that good. Then one day I got an e-mail from her that said, “Hey Friend!” Friend? She called me, Friend?? What??? No way!!! I can’t be her friend, I am not that good. I could never be good enough to be her friend! After having a small meltdown and a little panic attack, it hit me why I was freaking out.
It was because I looked up to her relationship with Christ; I admired her spiritual leadership; and, as long as I looked on from afar, I wasn’t on her level. But as soon as I became her friend I was no longer looking up to her, but I was her peer! I would suddenly (at least in my mind) need to be on the same level as her spiritually!  Or, worse yet, is it possible she saw something in me that I had not seen in myself that she felt she wanted to be a part of? Could it be possible I could be a blessing to her?? I don’t know about you, but I am always amazed that God would choose to use me, that He sees something worthy enough in me to allow me to be a blessing to someone else, because I know I am just not that good and it is only in Him that I can do anything.
You know, in the Bible it says that Jesus calls us “friend.” (See John 15:15). In fact we were created because God wanted someone who could choose to be His friend. Not because we had to, but because we chose too.  The Bible says the very rocks will cry out and praise Him, if He commands them!  But God gave us a choice, a choice to choose to choose Him, and I don’t know about you but I am amazed that Jesus chose me to be His friend! (See James 2:23).
The unique thing about my perspective of not being good enough for my “friends,” is the truth is that there is someone out there who feels that way about you and me. They feel privileged and a little better about themselves when we reach out to them with a smile, or a quick lunch, a listening ear, or when we call them “friend!” The truth is, we all have influence on someone; and the question is, are we using it for the Lord?
There is a song that goes something like this: “I am a friend of God, I am a friend of God, I am a friend of God, He calls me friend! Who am I that You are mindful of me, that You hear me when I call . . . ”
I love this song because it reminds me how much God loves me and cares for me. And that makes me want to share this love with someone else. I don’t think I will ever (and I hope I will never ever) get over the amazement that God loves me and will use me, if I will just allow Him to do so. The question is, “Who does God want you to bless today with your time and attention?”  Sometimes all we need is someone to call us friend!

In A Moment……

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A phone call comes and a voice on the other end says that your loved one has been in a terrible accident. At that moment, your life changes.

A husband gets home from work and when he sits down to the dinner table to eat, what is sitting in front of him but a note that says, “You are going to be a daddy!” At that moment, his life changes.

The woman with the issue of blood comes to Jesus and touches the hem of his garment, and at that moment she is healed.

Jesus said to the centurion, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed, at that moment.

Time and time again, we see in our own lives, as well as in scriptures, that it only takes a moment for everything to change.

I want to encourage you that, if you have been battling something in your life, physical, spiritual, or financial, it can all change in a moment!

So many times in our struggles of life, we focus on the battle, on the challenge, instead of focusing on the moment; the moment when everything can change.

It only takes a moment, a second, and a word from God, and your circumstances can all change. Focus on the Father above who can bring that change.  Focus on the creator of the universe, the giver of life, and the Lord above.

Some of our lives are great; we are blessed far above what we deserve.  Does that mean we should look to the Lord any less? No! In the good and the bad, our focus has to be on Him. It is important that we focus on God for the blessings He has given us, because in a moment it can all change. We can always look around and see someone less fortunate than ourselves. God expects us to love them with His Love. We must be thankful for what God has given us.

When we feel like our world is coming to an end, we have to remember … in a moment, everything can change! Let’s not get so wrapped up in what we have or don’t have, but let’s get wrapped up in, and focus on, the moment: the moment that Jesus shows up!! Because, if we are looking for Him, He will show up.  Are you looking for your moment???

What To Do When God Puts You Where You Don’t Want to Be

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Recently, God pulled up my deep roots from the place where we had been living for thirteen years, and moved us to a new place; one that is totally the opposite of our previous home. Not that there is anything wrong with our new location – it’s just that 10 months can’t compare to 13 years! There doesn’t seem to be anything terribly right about it at this time!  By that I mean, you can sometimes feel like a foreigner in the land where you know God has sent you.
You see, after living in a small town for 13 years, we knew just about everyone and just about everyone knew us. A level of comfort comes with that.  Especially for a preacher’s daughter who had gone to 9 different schools in 12 years! You know where to go to get your groceries; you know where your favorite stores for dress shopping are, and the place to get your favorite Chinese food. You have your close group of friends you know you can depend on. You become comfortable in your surroundings and that brings a level of familiarity this preacher’s daughter had never had before.   I know that God allowing us to stay in one location for such an extended period of time was nothing short of a miracle.
But, the funny thing is, those 13 years were probably the most trying of our lives. Spiritually, physically, relationship-wise in our family, and financially, it was a complete mess for us personally! We were like the children of Israel who were slaves in Egypt. And yet, like Moses, we knew without a doubt God had called us there! So why would God call us to a mess where He knew our feet would touch the fire? Where He knew our relationship would dangle over the edge, almost to the point of no return.  Why?

The children of Israel prayed to be delivered by the hand of God out of Pharaoh’s control. So in Exodus 9:1 it says, “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and speak to him…”. But the Bible also says in Exodus 9:12, that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart.  Now why in the world would God send Moses if He knew Moses was going to hit a brick wall when he got there? I don’t know about you, but that just seems like God is setting himself up for a lot more work. I mean, God could snap his fingers and Pharaoh would release the children of Israel, they would walk into the Promised Land, and – bottabing, botta boo – it’s over with! End of story!! Done!!

But, no! See, God wanted the children of Israel to trust Him. He wanted to give them an example they could look back on and know that God was with them. He wanted the children of Israel to be able to see every trial as a testimony of His faithfulness and love for them so that, when they came to the battle of Jericho, they would have the faith to withstand and follow what he had called them to do – which was . . . nothing. See, while they were slaves, they had had to work (fight) for everything they had ever been given, and to struggle (fight) with all their might just to survive. Many of them may not have even known what it was like not to have been a slave. But God knew what laid before them at the battle of Jericho and to get them where He wanted them to be they were going to have to completely trust in Him – and not fight! So he laid out a plan that would take them through various trials and temptations, just so he could prove himself to them, time and time again – beginning with the 10 plagues.

But they had barely gotten out of Egypt when they began to moan and cry, “Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” (Exodus 14:12)  They couldn’t see the something greater God had for them, because although they had been beaten and abused in Egypt, it had become a comfortable, familiar place to them.

I wonder how many times God looks at us and sees the same thing. He is trying to move us out of our comfort zone to take us to a higher level that will draw us closer to Him and yet we are content to be the slaves in Egypt.
God knew what was ahead of them at Jericho and was trying to prepare them for the Promised Land; for something they had never had before; for a way that a war had never been won before. They were simply to march, to stand, and to praise! Just walk around the walls of Jericho for seven days!

I don’t think it is by accident that all of the men of Israel were circumcised not long before they were to walk across the Jordan River to take Jericho. It wasn’t an accident that for forty years God covered them with a cloud by day and gave them a cloud of fire by night; and it wasn’t because he didn’t love them that He supplied manna to them every day!  God didn’t just sneeze and the Red Sea rolled back when they got to the edge of it, either. God wanted them to learn to trust Him and let Him do His work.

I don’t know about you, but I think the society we live in today is no different than the slaves in Egypt.  So many of us feel we have to fight to survive; to pay the utility bill, to put food on the table. We might even feel like we are fighting to survive to do God’s work. But I want to propose to you today that perhaps, like the children of Israel, God is saying to us, “Give up! Surrender your ideas, your ways, your thought’s, your plans, and just stand firm and march around the walls you are trying to tear down. Just march around these walls in silence, carrying me!” That is what the children of Israel did. They walked around the wall of Jericho carrying the Ark of the Covenant.

Maybe the new level God wants to take us to is just for us to walk around carrying Him, to let the love of Jesus inside us be all the weapons we need.  Sometimes we just have to let go – give up everything that is familiar to us, that makes us feel comfortable – and walk in a way that can feel totally different and uncomfortable, in order to get to the place where He wants us to be. I don’t know about you, but I want to always go to the new level God has for me, even if I find that it is taking me out of the comfort zone in which I have been living.

I am not gonna lie: I have looked back since our move and said ”What are we doing here?” Then I begin to list off all the highlights and accolades that happened where we came from as I try to convince myself, ”Would it not have been better to die in Egypt than in the desert?” But then there is that quiet voice in me that reminds me of the things that were not so sweet, those secret things which I never let the world see – of my heart breaking, the fear of feeling my world was falling apart, and my marriage almost crumbling. If I wanted to deceive myself, like the children of Israel did, I could convince myself that going back to the bright lights of the big city would make me happy. But the truth is, the only thing that will make any of us truly happy is walking in Gods perfect will for our lives. And for me, and I am sure for you, failure to do that is not an option.

So if I have to give up all the conveniences of being near a big city to walk in a new level of relationship with Christ, so be it. If I have to give up Macy’s and familiar surroundings to see God use me in a mightier way than He ever has before – bring it on!! Because I have found that, in this life, there is nothing, and I mean nothing, that can replace the peace of walking in God’s will and doing His work.

I firmly believe that the trials of my past were only allowed to come into my life for the same reason God hardened Pharaoh’s heart: to teach me to trust in Him.  I am thankful for the hard times in my life, because without them I would never know that I could make it through whatever comes my way. I have learned to trust in the creator of the universe and know that He is working all things for my good!

So I hope today, if you are feeling like a foreigner in the land God has sent you to, you will know that He is not punishing you but is simply taking you to a new level of intimacy with Him. He wants to bring you closer to Him in a way that will probably look very different than it has before. God never wants to leave us where we are! God never wanted the children of Israel to die in the wilderness; He only wanted them to trust Him.  Will you trust Him today?

Change – Oh! What a difference 9 months can make!

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1150610_10153099280955487_1585285912_o Oh what a difference 9 months can make!  As we come to the close of our only daughters first year of college, it has been exciting to see the joy on her face; to witness her eagerness to get back to the college after a weekend at home; to hear her tell about the fun times she is experiencing at the college, hanging out with her friends, and talk about her favorite teacher and how awesome he is! It makes a momma’s heart feel good to know her baby is happy and enjoying her life. In fact this last few days of school, all I have heard from her is ” I wish I could go to school all summer!”

But if we could hit the rewind button to just 9 months ago, we would see a scared young teenage girl on her parents couch, crying her eyes out because she wanted to stay at home. She stomped and snorted and even called her big brother, all to try to convince us that college was NOT the right place for her!  As hard as it was for us to see her miserable for that time, we as her parents knew it WAS the right place for her to be. Did we want to tell her to come on home and stay in her bedroom and never leave again? You bet we did! But we knew that was not the best thing for her. We knew that she couldn’t live the rest of her life shut up in her bedroom; that she couldn’t be at home with mom and dad forever. As much as we would love to keep her at the age she is now and have nothing ever change, we know that isn’t reality or what God wants.

Reality is – things change. Reality is – God expects us to grow up! Reality is – if we never change we never grow! Reality is – change is sometimes hard!

We know that a piece of coal becomes a diamond under pressure. A pearl is made by the irritation of rubbing up against a piece of sand.

What makes us think we can grow without some kind of pressure or irritation in our life? But we have to choose. We can choose to stay the course, and walk through the pressure that is placed before us, or we can choose to walk away from the pressure, go back to our bedroom, pull the covers over our heads and let the world go by us while we sit in the pit we have always been in. It is our choice!

This year as we have watched Amy grow and mature, it has been a joy to see her take on more responsibilities and excel in her studies. Has it all been easy? Absolutely NOT!! But is she now a stronger more mature person because of it? You bet she is!! Is she better for it? ABSOLUTELY!! Are we glad we forced her to stay and finish the course? Yes we are, even though we now see her taking the next steps that will eventually lead her out of our home for good. It brings us mixed emotions, but in our hearts we know that this is the best thing for her. So, we choose to give up our desire to see her be our baby for the rest of her life, and encourage her to grow and be all that God wants her to be.

If you are facing something that makes you feel like going back home and pulling the covers over your head, just remember: growth doesn’t happen inside your comfort zone. Some of God’s most expensive jewels are created under pressure.

God’s Word promises that if we will not get weary in well doing, we WILL reap a harvest! Before we know it, 9 short months later, we will be looking back and everything will be totally different! We will know that without us keeping on, with God, we would not have made it, and we will be able to say “Oh, what a difference 9 months makes!”  Praise Be To God!!

My Wild and Crazy Side

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303684_10151780519840487_356408458_n (1)It was the summer of 2013 and I did it! I went wild and crazy maybe it was the fact my daughter had just graduated from High School or my youngest son was about to turn 16 and would start driving on his own soon or maybe it was that my oldest son was about to get married and I was also going to be an instant grandma on the same day, but no I think it was just the fact that I wanted to look my best for the wedding and be as cool as possible since the wedding was outside on a hot summer June day in Oklahoma, But whatever the reason I did it! “Yes, I went and got a spray tan!! I know it was wild for me! (don’t judge) LOL!!

If you have been around me at all, you have probably noticed the numerous scars all over my arms that glow like beaming lights. I have a natural-olive completion, but after a severe case of chickenpox as a child. I was left with light colored scars all over my arms. I usually wear at least three-quarter length sleeves, if not long sleeves year round because if it.

But as I stepped out of the tent and looked into the mirror,  after I had been sprayed. My blemishes were all gone! My completion on my arms was perfect!! I almost cried, it was unreal the feeling of an unknown weight I had been carrying on my shoulders was suddenly lifted an overwhelming sense of joy filled me and I was flooded with unexpected emotions. I asked Amy to quickly hand me my glasses so I could assure that they were all gone. As I put my glasses on , just as quickly as they were gone, the blemishes returned. the view through my glasses revealed the truth that they had only been darken a little but it was clear they were still there, and just as quickly as the joy came and the weight was lifted it returned, perhaps even heavier than before. But never the less I will never forget the feeling of that weight being lifted off me, I had not realized how much it bother me until, suddenly I thought I would never have to cover up my scars again.

As my mom celebrated her first birthday in Heaven yesterday, I know she must be feeling that same freedom, from the weight of her sickness and disease as I felt those few seconds in the tanning booth. As she celebrated her birthday with my dad and her mom and many other friends who had went to heaven before her and then even some who have followed her in the short 7 months she has been gone. See, I don’t think it is by accident that I had that experience less than 30 days before my momma took her last breath here on this earth. I believe God wanted me to feel just a bit of the freedom and peace that she feels everyday since being in heaven.

So this one thing I am certain of, there is no way I would want her to come back and carry the weight of her sickness and disease, she no longer feels the shame of being handicapped she is truly, truly free!

Does it make me miss her any less, no but it brings me comfort to know she is ok. In fact she is more than ok, she is perfect! Does it mean I don’t cry, no but as I do, I focus not on my loss but on her gain. I rejoice in the fact I have the assurance that if I continue to follow Christ, I will see her again and I trust that not only I will see her again, but I will be bringing the generations yet to come in our family, to heaven with me. They will follow me there one day, because I too will tell them, like my parents taught me about the love and grace of Jesus and like my parents I will do my best to show them how to follow Christ by not just my words but my actions too. One day there will be a great family reunion in heaven, all because one couple chose one little girl who had nothing to give them and yet they gave her the greatest gift- Jesus

Happy Birthday Momma!

There Comes A Time

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Draw-A-Line-in-the-Sand image                                                                                                                         There is NOTHING to big for my God! There just comes a time and a place where we can look back at what God has done in our lives and say “I am more than conquer because of who I believe in!!” So when the next trouble comes (and it will come) we can remember what God has done for us and rest in the fact that He WILL do it again! That my friend is when satan can no longer control you with fear or worry. Because you have chosen to focus NOT on how big your problem is, BUT how big your God is!!