If you know me, you know that I love Oprah. I know that in Christian circles that can be controversial but God has used her, a number of times, to speak to my heart. She tells a story about surrender that I think of often and has been on my mind a lot lately. (more…)
This is Joy talking to herself, not preaching to any one of you.
Do you believe what God says about all things working together for good? Do you believe you can cast your cares on Him? (more…)
Sometimes I wonder if it’s worth it and then… (more…)
It’s always there in the background: a gray, looming spirit of depression. Though I am usually successful in keeping it quiet it roars every now and again. It threatened to consume me the other day and I was really feeling it. I called my dear friend Wanda down from the kitchen above my office in the school. She seems to be able to call down all the (more…)
Elijah is One! Can you believe it’s been a year? It truly does seem like yesterday we were in hospital, and yet so much has happened in that last twelve months. We have so much to be thankful…look at our beautiful boy! (more…)
I was so wiped out after my week I wasn’t in the right mood to host a mentor retreat. What I was really looking forward to was the time when the girls would leave and I could just sit and visit with our Canadian visitors. I entered into prayer to prepare my heart for such an important day. (more…)
I’m attaching my Christmas letter because it turns out the 150 Christmas cards I spent hours writing are in the bottom of the ocean with the Agape Flights Plane that delivers our mail each week. It took me a while to figure out what happened (more…)
It started nearly three years ago when I pulled up the shirt of one of my sixth grade students. It was filled with the details of a belt buckle and deep bruises. I cried and prayed with her (more…)
The other day I was talking with a friend and she asked me how I was. “Great, so good but crazy, crazy busy.” I responded. “As soon as I get through this week it will be better.” She laughed and told me that
Restoration is messy. Have you prayed for restoration?
Monday, a national strike was declared. No school on Tuesday! “What will I do with a free week day, the kids out of school and child care to help me with the baby?” I decided to paint Helina’s room. I ran out and got the paint and was so excited until I returned home to 35 feet of 6 inch border. “Hmmm…to paint, strip or conceal.” I got online and read up on stripping wallpaper. Hot water and vinegar for 30 min then pull off—“easy”, so I went for the stripping. About three hours into the project I still had about 33 feet left and I was less enthusiastic about the project, in fact a bit discouraged.
I hate this about myself. I want to learn to enjoy the journey, so I decided to pray. I focused on “my girls” and their restoration. God began to speak to me through the wallpaper. Not literally but figuratively. You see, I was only able to take off about one inch of paper at the time and never reach all the way to the clean wall in a single pull. I had to soak first. Several times, sometimes, scoring the paper ever so carefully, so as to not damage the wall, then pulling the top layer that held the picture- inch by inch. Then I had to soak again, and inch by inch scrap the bottom layer of paper filled with glue that held it sticky to the wall. I scrubbed and scraped each section many, many times to get all the remaining gunk off before I was ready for paint.
These girls of mine have a lifetime of gunk on them, passed on from generations and tightly attached with the strongest glue. We are not looking for the quick fix of consolation, but interested in total restoration. I’m now cautious of the manuals and their description of the amount of effort and time involved in such a process, so I’ll cling to what I learned from the walls today. It will get messy because there are lots of layers to shed. We will need to spend plenty of time soaking and will be careful not to wound the good stuff hidden behind the mess. It’s OK that only tiny pieces fall off at a time because it’s a journey. It will take divine energy, power, patience and prayer….most importantly…soak, soak, soak.
Please join us in prayer for the restoration of these girls.
Joy
