A shift

As she spoke there was a shift in attention of the room.

He had shifty eyes.

I once worked graveyard shift.

My daughter finally got first shift!

After the message there was a shift in my thinking.

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My church has gone through some very difficult times. Gossip and rumors spread rapidly, and people started disappearing from first service – the one I attended. I didn’t catch on right away, since I’m not part of the leadership (a decision made and held on purpose). Regular attendance dwindled. Public statements were made. Apologies were given. Then, suddenly (to me, anyway), we were down to one combined service.

I was at a loss. Whatever was happening was not within my view. There was a shift in the atmosphere of the church. I heard snippets of gossip. Women complained about things in the lady’s lounge. Out of the blue I received a few texts from people I knew well. They didn’t say much, just said they weren’t coming back. Leadership members were resigning. More people were disappearing.

And they weren’t going on vacation.

A committee to oversee the running of the church was meeting. I only knew a few of them.

Finally, I started asking questions. I got some answers, but they didn’t align with what was happening.

Less and less people came to Sunday service. Many of my friends that I caught up with on Sundays were now watching livestream.

And then The Committee was disbanded and replaced with a board of elders.

Please understand. I am not complaining about any of these people or how things were done. I was just confused, out-of-balance, frustrated.

These events were all laid aside as my personal life was thrown into chaos, my mother died, we made arrangements for a memorial, we cleared a house, my husband retired, my daughter wanted to move back home for a time of reflection and rebuilding.

And then, back at church, a new minister from a different city came to help us understand ourselves as a ministry and to move us forward and to help us find a new leader. I didn’t agree with any of the things he said.

And I didn’t want to go to church anymore. I missed a few services, but it didn’t feel right.

Even though all these things were happening to my church, it was still MY church.

So I prayed. I attended and I prayed. And God impressed on me to stick it out, to worship Him, to listen to the messages, and He would tell me what to do. He also gave me new things to think about, a new focus, a new hope.

All this was in His holy will. God knows best. Always.

There was a shift in my thinking, a shift in my heart. I go each Sunday and look forward to seeing whoever comes.

And we wait together to see what God has planned for us as we pick up the pieces and ask God to put them back together.

I can afford that now ...

 

I can afford that now.

God has showered blessings at my feet and I am humbled.

Worries that I had 10 years ago are gone.

But now new worries have replaced them.

To have and to have not are the same. Each requires trust in God to guide the use of blessings, whether many or few.

But then, it’s all the same to God. When money ran out, God was there blessing with a truck load of things I would have never thought of:

Someone bringing a meal to our house

Someone giving us gently used clothing

Shoes not wearing out

Coats we forgot we had

Appliances lasting years longer than the manufacturer intended

Used vehicles appearing as if out of no where

A gentle slowing down of need, imperceptible in the present but obvious in the past

And, the best blessing of all, the distinction between want and need revealed

 

God, thank You for Your supernatural blessings every single day of our lives. Show us how to slow down and see them. Remind us to praise You in the seeing.

 

You can’t afford not to read more writerly thoughts at FMF

Phasing Out ...

 

It’s just a phase he’s going through.

Phase it in. Give the public a chance to get used to it.

We are in the final phase of the project.

This is my favorite phase.

 

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My daughters are going through familiar phases in their lives … and asking me for advice. This has caused me to pause as I relive in my mind the situations I have been in. For a few situations, I can give advice that worked for me, but most of the time, looking back, it probably wasn’t the best idea and maybe I shouldn’t use what I did to survive as advice to my daughter. In other situations, I know for a fact what I did was a bad idea and I tell them that. Some advice I could give is literally not possible anymore – very strange, the world we live in now.

And then there are the things they are going through that I have never had to go through, so I pray. And I tell them I am praying. And I’m honest with them and say, “I have no idea what you should do.”

But this is a good thing. A very good thing. Because the next thing I tell them is probably the best advice I could give about anything – Go to God. Read the Bible. Ask for his wisdom. Spend lots of time praying, in fact, be praying all the time, like a constant conversation in your head to God. Then, don’t forget to pause and wait for God to speak. And be patient.

So, as I go through this phase of my life, with adult children dealing with adult situations, I thank God for the things He allowed in my life that threw me into His arms.

“But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” – James 1:5

 

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It’s probably good timing to let you know about my book of devotions and thoughts I wrote after a particularly difficult phase of my life. Amazon will let you read some of it for free, so there’s no risk or hard sell here. I’m a terrible salesperson! LOL

Before Coffee God, by Rachel H T Mendell

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