Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Hi Girls!

In case you didn't get a chance to check out yesterday's comment by Lee, she has a great site for keeping an online LifeList.

I'd love to hear from more of you about sites you'd like to see us linked to. I will be working on putting some of those up in the next few days.

Before I put up today's post, I do have a prayer request... tomorrow morning my son goes in for surgery. It's considered routine (adenoid removal); however, he's only five and is very scared at the thought of an IV and being put to sleep.

Thanks, Girlfriends!

-Becky


Stir it Up

Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude. Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and He will bless you for it. (1 Peter 3:8,9)

OK, I have something for you to try. Go to your kitchen and get two clear glasses. Fill them both with water, but to one add just a little bit of dirt or pepper... basically a little bit of something that won't dissolve. Now walk away and leave them for a while. When you come back, the glasses of water should look identical. If you look at them from eye level, you won't be able to tell which one has the dirt. Now go get two spoons, one for each glass. Insert the spoons and stir vigorously. Voila! One will remain clear and the other will become very dirty and gross. Suddenly they no longer look identical.

We all have "spoons" in our lives... they're the people who have the ability to "stir us up". It could be your kids, your spouse, your co-worker, your boss, the checker at the store, a customer service rep, a family member, a church member, a slow driver... well, you get the idea. And let's face it, we don't just encounter "spoons"; sometimes we encounter whisks or beaters or Cuisinarts. When those people do things to stir us up, what is it that comes out of us? Do we respond with blessings, or does the crud that's been hiding in our hearts become evident? When we are stirred up, what is truly in our hearts will show itself.

This is something I need to work on. It's easy to go along thinking that I'm pretty holy and that my character is upright. And then someone stirs me up and I see the things in my heart that I need to allow God to remove and refine. It's not always very pretty.

It's hard to respond to insults and injustices with blessing. But that is what God has called us to do...