The Gift of Strength

I have been given allot of beautiful gifts. Today, during my time with the Lord, I started thinking about everything I am thankful for. The list was long.....for I have been so Blessed!

Then a word appeared in the scripture I was reading that is truly a gift. We need it every day and yet I fail to mention it or acknowledge thankfulness for it.

Strength! I have been blessed with STRENGTH. A GIFT. A PRICELESS GIFT. I need it to get through each day.

Isaiah 40:28-31

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary,and his understanding one can fathom. He gives STRENGTH to the weary, and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired an weary, and the young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their STRENGTH. They will soar on wings like eagles;they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

Today, and this Thanksgiving season, I am thankful for STRENGTH!

Have a BLESSED Thanksgiving, dear friends.

John and I are not so different!

I am so excited about this...I am about to burst!

OK...call me strange....you will not be the first one!

I attended a study on John the Baptist a few weeks ago. It has been on my mind...I have been drawn BACK to his story repeatedly. It was bugging me...."Why, Lord, am I stuck on this?" I asked.

John the Baptist was the forerunner for Jesus Christ. Foretelling the coming of the Messiah.

OK....you knew that...so...what is the big deal?

While I was studying Isiah 40:3, the same words are used that John spoke in Mathew 3:3.

It Reads: A voice of one calling: "In the dessert prepare the way for the Lord: make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God."

On the opposite page, of my very marked up Bible, I had underlined the words in Isaiah 38:19 ..The living, the living -they praise you,as I am doing today; fathers (and mothers!) tell their children about your faithfulness.

So....why am I about to explode.....I AM a FORERUNNER, kind of like John (without eating the locust and dressed in animal skins, but I DO eat honey and have wild hair many days... add my new zebra sweater and I am close!)

I, as a mom, can be a "forerunner" and tell my children about Jesus. Day after day, I can remind them about the ONE, the Savior of mankind. In the midst of the dessert, the wilderness of this world. Repeating to them stories about God's faithfulness and preparing their hearts for the Day of the Lord!

God has given you and I such awesome roles to play in this life.

Ye-haw......I am so excited I am going to go have a spoon full of honey!!

www.sueheimer.com

Home is where they love you.

Home......they love me here. They really do. And they know me best!

Despite my irritating quirks and annoying habits (we all have them). They love me.

They don't always like me.....and that's o.k. because I do not always LIKE them either. But, I LOVE them. I am committed to them...I have their back and they have mine.....ALWAYS.

No matter what kind of day I have.....my home is a haven. A place of support and solace. Yes, it helps if there are candles burning, music playing and a pleasant aroma drifting from the kitchen stove. But, even on days when I walk in and trip over 3 pairs of shoes in front of the door and the smell of burnt "Jacks" pizza greeting me, I still see home as place of reassurance and a salve to my heart. And I want my family to feel this too.

Home......is where they LOVE you!

www.sueheimer.com

Kids and Time

My son walked in from school about a hour ago. Each day I make a conscious effort to have distractions off when he comes through the door. Having my self available and free of the phone or computer gives him my undivided attention should he want to talk.

He didn't.

He had the glazed over look in his eyes that said, "I have had a rough day!" and "No, I do not want to talk about it."

So I did not even ask.

Nor did I remind him of the after school chores that need to be done.

I just let him "veg". I gave him the gift of TIME. ALONE.

That is hard for a mom to do. At least this mom. I want to hear about the day. Fix things....and then...get stuff done.

But over the years from preschooler on up, I have gleaned from countless mistakes I have made....and let him just BE.

Beth Moore Conference

I am still processing the previous weekend. I attended a Beth Moore conference with my dear friend, Julie.

We laughed and cried. We sang,raised our hands in praise and studied God's word....it was priceless...Julie, myself and 8498 women praising Jesus together! (And a few brave men sprinkled in.)

One of the songs we sang was "How Great is Our God." The worship leader challenged us with this question....How Great do You need God to be?

Whatever you and I are facing this week.....God is GREATER!

Something to think about.

5 minutes until Goodbye test

I had a interesting conversation with a friend that has been bouncing around in my brain.

She, married just 3 weeks,has had a rough start to her marriage. In her mind, everything that could have gone wrong before, during and after the wedding HAS. It has been a real disappointment, almost devastating experience for her. Her husband, realizing his part in the tangled mess, has tried to apologize...make it better....

She cannot let it go....all her little princess wedding dreams were crushed and something or someone is to blame. She is hurt,distressed,depressed and deeply saddened by the death of her dream wedding.

As she was talking and telling me her story, my heart just ached for her. Yes, many decisions could have been handled differently and things would have turned out better. I felt her pain as she described her bitter disappointment.

After hearing her heart, I shared with her how my husband and I had a rocky and difficult beginning in our marriage.

And I told her, through my MANY mistakes in my own marriage, and relationships, I have learned to ask myself this question.....

I call it the 5 minute test...

"If you only had 5 minutes to tell that person goodbye....FOREVER, would this situation matter?" Is it REALLY worth it?

I told her this with a lump in my throat and tears ready to spill down my cheeks. I have wasted WAY to many moments with those I love, by not asking myself this.

5 Minutes Until Goodbye....something to think about today......


www.sueheimer.com

Don't miss out!

I almost missed it! Tonight's sunset. I was catching up on my dashboard of blogs and read Jill Savage's. She posted a picture of a sunset.

How long has it been since I watched a sunset? Way too long! Not just a quick glimpse but a lingering gaze....

It was beautiful! And I was blessed. God was painting a picture for me...a gift....free....and I almost missed it.

But tonight...I watched the gift....and smiled.