F is for Friends...

It was 2007, and we'd just moved to North Carolina for hubby's new job as fire chief. You know what new jobs require: demanding hours, lugging work home to catch up if there had been a prolonged vacancy, familiarizing yourself with the way things work within the new organization, learning names, yada yada yada. All of that meant I didn't see him much those first few months.

We'd moved across states, so it wasn't like I could hang out with anybody I knew, and as a writer, I spent most of my time perched in front of my laptop. I remember feeling so alone and praying, begging God, for friends in my new city. 

Did you catch that? I don't know why I tried to limit God.

He showed me. In a big way.

God answered my prayer, but He ignored the "in my new city." Thank You, God!

He introduced me to so many sweet friends that I now connect with over coffee or lunch, so many that I confess sometimes I have trouble squeezing time with them into my schedule. But He also expanded my prayer to include online friendships over states and even oceans. Not only that, but He moved my sister and her family to live within a two-hour drive from us. How awesome is He??

Friendships. I asked, and God provided.

What about you? Have you ever begged God for friends?

Would you share a situation in your life where God showed up in a mighty way? 

Doubt...or Trust?

"Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Mt 28:16-17 NIV

Jesus had warned his disciples all that would happen surrounding his crucifixion. They'd been hanging around with him for three years and had witnessed countless miracles, so many they weren't all recorded in the Bible (Jn 21:25). You'd think that they would have believed him, right?

Not. 

Everything happened exactly as Jesus predicted. One of his own disciples turned him over to the authorities in exchange for trinkets of silver. Jesus was beaten, whipped, and then nailed to a cross until his last breath. A heavy stone was rolled across the entry to where his broken body lay, and guards were posted outside the tomb. 

All events he'd told them about ahead of time, happened exactly as he'd said. To the last detail.

When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.

Seriously? The disciples doubted?

Men that had followed Jesus around for three years? Soaking in his words, watching him perform miracles, witnessing the compassion in his eyes as he looked upon his children? 

Doubt. 

What a nasty, five letter word that sometimes slithers in to my life. Whether it's in my marriage, my writing, my faith...

Why do I struggle with it so?

Because doubt is a lie of the enemy, an all out frontal attack by the devil to rob us of joy, of peace that passes understanding. The enemy tosses out those tiny nuggets of doubt, and if we let allow them to take root, they blossom into full-fledged fear.

The disciples doubted even after they'd had a chance to see Jesus, to touch the holes in his hands, to hear his voice. Peter doubted after he'd stepped out of the boat and he looked down at the waves crashing around his feet. Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” Mt 14:31 NIV

I can sometimes picture him, with an outstretched arm, glancing down at me with warm eyes, full of compassion, and in a loving voice, saying, "Oh, Dora, where's your faith? Why must you doubt?"

God promised that He'd always be with me. Why rob myself of joy and peace by doubting? I choose trust over doubt. 

Do you struggle with doubt? Which will you choose?
Doubt or trust?

Conferences...or routine?

August is all about conferences in our family. As a fire chief, hubby attends two conferences, and they're both in August. The first is a regional conference, always in Raleigh, and the second's an international one held in different cities across the US. This week we're in Raleigh; next week, Chicago.

I enjoy traveling, but I confess I tend to be more of a "routine" kinda gal.

I mean, really. Raleigh and Chicago offer some spectacular sights, but what can beat the view from our back deck?

And hotel coffee doesn't compare to the strong brew I make at home.

This week we were able to bring along our baby, but next week, we'll have to leave him at home. He's skiddish about getting in an elevator. I can't imagine how he'd be after being forced into the belly of a plane. 

I'll miss the big baby next week.

And my writing?

Usually, I write from my office every day. No music. No distractions. No noise. Just the way I like it. But that means conferences stretch my comfort zone, 
take me out of my normal writing environment. 
Which means my word count comes to a screeching halt.

So, every August I'm faced with a difficult decision.
Conferences...or routine?
Traveling with hubby or staying at home to write?

Hmmm...not a no-brainer for me. I choose him.

What about you? 

What brings you out of your comfort zone? 

Are you a routine kinda person or do you like to shake things up?

Spring Cleaning

Did a little spring cleaning on my blog this week. It was kinda reminding me of the linen closet upstairs. You know...the one where you open the doors gingerly, afraid towels or spare pillows will come tumbling out. So you open the door, tug out what you need, and slam it shut, hoping all the clutter stays put because it's too overwhelming, too time-consuming, to think about cleaning.

Not that my blog was messy or cluttered. I just felt the urge to spruce it up a bit, rearrange and redesign, but that takes time. And motivation. 

I confess I wasn't blessed with an artistic design gene, and truthfully, I've been slightly timid and a little fearful about changing my blog too much. What happens if I can't fix it or worse, if I lose everything?

Well, no more fear and trepidation. I backed up my template and set about finding ways to spruce it up, to give it a new feel. Shabby Blogs, Cutest Blog on the Block and My Favourite Things Blog offer some great tutorials and free stuff like backgrounds, headers and buttons. 

Now that I know there's help out there should I mess up, I think I'll change it up a bit more often. Look around. See what you think. Like the new look?

And, no, the linen closet still looks like that. One of these days...