What If...

Well, I can no longer say I never win anything. As of this week, I have now won two amazing prizes in my lifetime. One, a large leafy plant that threatens to one day become something huge enough for Rick Moranis to deal with, and two, a movie on DVD called simply What if...

 

It's a story about a man who is gently forced (is that an oxymoron?) to see what his life might have been like had he made a different choice at a major crossroads in his life. Kind of It's a Wonderful Life in reverse.

 

After watching it, the idea of “what if...” got me thinking.  What if I started thinking outside the box?

 

What if...learning a foreign language wasn't as hard as I thought? I've found that spending a mere 10 minutes a day 'gently forces' these new words into my subconscious until the new language starts to become intuitive.  This became apparent one day when I mispronounced "Chinco de Mayo" on the back of someone's t-shirt coming out of Costco.  It was then I knew my Italian letters and sounds had become second nature.

 

What if....everything I knew about healthy eating was wrong. Gary Taubes, a highly acclaimed scientific journalist, tackles this controversial topic in his exhaustive tome, Good Calories, Bad Calories, and, since reading said tome, I have made different decisions because he took the time to think outside the box.

 

What if....you could write a novel in thirty days? My daughter and her cousins are about to stretch their imaginations and find out.  I'm looking forward to reading them on December first!

What if... the extremely long, well-thought out and detailed email I wrote to my cousin regarding homeschooling that was subsequently lost when my computer went down unexpectedly, what if that was supposed to happen because Someone wanted me to say something different? 

 

What if...God really was bigger than my problems?

What if...He really does have a plan and purpose for my life?

What if...even though I don't understand why He's allowed certain trials and challenges in my life, He really does know best?

What if....because He unconditionally loves me, I can, after all, unconditionally trust Him...with everything.

Hurricane Season

 I know it's a real phenomenon, but what's up with hurricane season?  Six months out of every year there's a weather condition so bad that it destroys homes, businesses and even lives.  Every year!  And these people continue to live in these places?  It's kind of like saying, "Ok, everyone, just a reminder that Godzilla season is coming up, so be on the lookout for a large T-Rex-like creature roaming the countryside seeking to destroy everything in its path.  Oh, and be sure to stock up on food and supplies."

 I don't have to move to the Southeast to experience a hurricane.  I'm living in one right now.  From the car needing a new transmission, a dog requiring teeth removal, a son desperate for help with a long writing assignment for school, a daughter requesting advice on finding the perfect man, a husband traveling across the country for work, to starting a new company, filing tax forms, getting business licenses, serving at church at o'dark hundred, learning to paint in the hopes that one day it can be a potential source of income, all the while living with a chronic health condition that gives me less hours in the day to get things done than I'd like....whew.  Out of breath.  It's hard to breathe in a hurricane.

And I'm supposed to be the glue, the hub that my family revolves around; offering wisdom, comfort, and perspective.  How do I do that when everything is swirling around me so fast that it's hard to focus on any one thing?

Then I see it.  Blue sky, sunshine, light ahead.  The eye of the storm.  Fighting my way out of the swirling mass, I head to the center and look up.  And He's there waiting for me.  It's calm here, quiet, peaceful.  He offers me wisdom, gives me comfort, and puts everything in perspective. 

Finally, I get it.  He's the glue, the hub that everything revolves around.  And, while I can show others the way in, I'm not designed to be the center.  He is.  And as the hurricanes of life move through, I need to move with them, keeping a weather "eye" on Him.

iPhone Home

You've probably seen the ads.  A basic cell phone with really big numbers.  And NO extras.  This is what I told my husband that I wanted.  I don't want to text, surf the net, play games or take pictures.  I just want a BASIC phone that calls people.  Really, that's all I want. 

Then I saw the iphone for the first time.  It was elegant.  Intuitive.  Comfortable to hold and very easy to use.  In the twenty or so minutes I spent waiting for my husband to handle whatever business he had at the AT&T store, I was hooked. 

That was two years ago.  Now, as I prepare for my upgrade to the latest and greatest, I realize that I would be hard pressed to live without this amazing device.  I have been able to keep in better contact with friends I don't see very often by using Facebook.  I get periodic updates from my kids during their work/school day via text that they never would have called me about.  I have taken pictures I never would have captured since I'm forever leaving my camera at home.  And then, of course, there's Angry Birds....nuff said.

I realize that I make some pretty ridiculous demands of God too.  I give Him my list letting Him know exactly what I want..... and don't want.  Specifically.  I think He must be chuckling up there as He prepares to give me exactly what I need instead.  I may think I want simple or basic, but He, out of all of His vast storehouse of resources, wants to give me elegance.  I want to settle for easy; He wants to challenge me to try something new.  I want to focus on one thing; He wants to show me my potential.  

Staying in close connection with Him in that comfortable, intuitive relationship that I constantly seek is key to accepting all He has for me...whether blessing or challenge.  And that's a great reminder to "phone Home."

Thinner

The year I turned 15, my life was forever changed by a number.  A seemingly innocent question by a friend of mine about how much I weighed ripped off the rose-colored glasses of childhood.  Not only had it never occurred to me to weigh myself, it had also never crossed my mind to compare that number with everyone else.   And so began a thirty year battle with numbers - numbers on a scale, numbers on a measuring tape, numbers on a clothing tag.

Growing up as a dancer didn't help.  No bump or roll could be hidden in the leotards we wore to class.  Every Monday was a new diet to be tried and every Friday was the beginning of a weekend food bender.  Working out and studying diet books became my hobbies.  Everything revolved around getting thinner.

Amazingly, it's only been in the past few years that I've come to terms with who I am and how I'm made.  I'll never look like Angelina Jolie.  And, that's ok, because I'm finally discovering the power of true thinness.

In truth, I am just a clay jar sitting on the Potter's wheel.  But slowly, as He turns the wheel and works that clay, bit by bit, I become thinner.  The process is not easy, and is sometimes downright painful.  Over time, the clay softens in His skilled fingers. As I allow myself to be stretched and shaped, I become thinner and thinner until the once thick, heavy clay now appears almost transparent.  But the power isn't in my transparency; the power is only found inside the jar....filled with the pure gold of the Master Potter Himself. 

Pure gold that can now be seen because He has changed me. And made me thinner.

Moving Day

I have never been more excited to see a moving van.  Yesterday, our drug dealing neighbors in their red gang colors finally moved out, personally escorted by the men in blue.  For two years we have watched as crime increased in our beautiful neighborhood, helpless to do anything about it except report license numbers and suspected activity.  Apparently, enough was enough....it was time for them to go.

Which invites the question:  How do we know when it's time for us to move on?  We may have followed the Shepherd's leading to our current home, job, mission field, etc. and knew we were in His perfect will for our lives - at the time.  Of course, some things have obvious endings, such as homeschooling my kids.  When the last one graduated this past June, I knew that I would be moving on to something else.  But what about this home that we were led to through extraordinary circumstances?  What about that perfect work circumstance that doesn't seem so perfect anymore?  How do we know when it's time to go??

It's not that I don't think I can trust His leading; it's that I want to make sure it's His path and not my rabbit trail.  My daily prayer is for Him to close doors that He doesn't want me to go through, and open the one He does.  The only challenge with that is when I hear door after door slamming in my face.  I tend to forget that I asked for this. 

Then I have to remind myself that doors closing are an answer to prayer.  And a great reminder that when it is time to move...He'll send the van.

Masterpiece

We live in a turn of the century home that had been condemned and abandoned for eight years. Thankfully for us, it was completely restored about ten years ago.  Although previously the eyesore of the neighborhood, it is now the gem, an amazingly beautiful blending of the old with the new. 

 No detail was forgotten.  The ceiling in our living and dining rooms, for example, was redone by a 70 year old man, the local expert in the field.  It was, in fact, his very last job before retirement.  The workmanship is amazing.  The entire surface is textured with swirling half circles that perfectly line up in every direction, and at certain times of day, it shows off the sunlight beautifully.  It is so amazing, in fact, that I have to wonder if this was his very best work, his magnum opus of sorts.

Which makes sense.  You spend your entire life developing your talent until towards the end of that life you finally complete your masterpiece.  I sometimes wonder if that's what the Creator was thinking when He created woman.  Yes, mankind was His last creation, but, technically, woman was the final beautiful masterpiece, the icing on the cake. 

Unfortunately, the enemy of our souls would love to destroy that beauty.  He would encourage us to tear it down with our own negative thoughts as we pick apart every detail of the Artist's work.  (My legs are too fat, my hair is too thin, my ears are too big, need I go on??)  Or worse, we compare the masterpiece that we have been created to be with the Artist's other works, as if we could compare a Monet to a Van Gogh!  Both have their own beauty, in their own way, just the way the Master Artist wanted it and created it to be. 

 I heard about an actress recently who had her highly recognizable nose "fixed".  She was lamenting the fact that now she looked like every other actress out there; there wasn't much to distinguish her from the crowd. 

I think, like viewing a painting, we need to step back and see the big picture.  Things are always blurry up close.  Details are messy.  There may be things that we consider to be imperfections, but are there by design.  These things provide the character and the differences that make life interesting.

  I just need to remind myself that I am an original work, a masterpiece created by the Master Artist.  And, even as He textures the corners of my eyes with the swirling half circles of new crow's feet (which line up perfectly in every direction!) I know, as I smile the smile He's given me,  they will help me show off the Sonlight beautifully.

The New Normal

After months of diligent effort and considerable financial outlay, I have, at long last, achieved my goal and received my reward...the Starbucks Gold Card.  After the whirlwind of excitement upon achieving said accomplishment and finally being able to take advantage of all the exclusive benefits, you can imagine my complete and utter discouragement upon discovering that I have....... a dairy allergy.  And, let's face it, what is coffee without the cream, the cafe without the latte??  Yes, I realize Starbucks has tea and (gulp) soy milk, but those things just don't provide the same comfort as a tall ristretto sugar-free cinnamon dulce breve latte with whip.   (Side note: my theory is that Starbucks fills a need in all of us formula-fed babies that breast-fed babies just don't understand.)

So, now I face the challenge of what I like to call 'The New Normal'.  Things are constantly changing, and we have to change with them or pay the price, whatever that may be.  I have to discover and, maybe one day, learn to love cheese-less pizza and coconut milk ice cream.  My son, who has been homeschooled since first grade, has to learn how to thrive in an online college classroom.  My daughter, whose friends are beginning to branch off with their significant others, has to find a way to meet new people, while maintaining her current friendships.  My husband, who is starting a new company at age 50, is discovering how to balance his current job, the new business and his many relationships with friends and family.  Even our little old dog, Piggy, who recently broke off several teeth, including the last of her canines, will have to learn to chew in the back.

I guess my point is that life is always changing, and always will change, no matter how much we want to stay in our comfort zones.  Kids grow up and move, aging parents pass away, jobs change, illnesses may come, and life is never static.  The key to a happy life lies in dealing with the New Normal.  One trick I've discovered is to set a goal to make it through the next two weeks. Just survive for two weeks.  For many of life's minor changes and challenges, two weeks is enough time to set new boundaries around that comfort zone.  Obviously, major life crises may take months or even years in which to adapt. 

Sometimes, you may even be hit on multiple sides of your comfort zone at once.  It's at these times, especially, that I've found that getting into the zone with the God of all comfort, is the only place where I truly find peace when life gives me lemons.  Ultimately, He leads me to the New Normal. 

Lemonade, anyone?