Petals from the Basket

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If It Matters, Plan It!

For years now, my Sunday rituals have included about thirty minutes of review and planning. First, I look over the list from last week’s calendar: What did I accomplish? What did I do well? Where did I waste time? Where should I have taken a break? What didn’t get done that I need to do in the week ahead? What mattered? What didn’t matter? What did God teach me through all of it?

Next, I look ahead to the coming week and fill in the blanks (and purposefully leave a few blanks) on my calendar: What has to be done—with no options to the contrary? What are my scheduled appointments (including God-and-I-Time, meetings, scheduled phone calls, etc.)? What are my upcoming deadlines (for my work assignments)? What special events do I need to plan for? About what will I be able to say, “That mattered,” when I look back next week at this time? What do I want to accomplish for God this week?

I encourage you to take a minimum of fifteen minutes today to ask and answer some of those same (or similar) questions. (It’s not as long as it sounds, and it will save you that much time and more as you head into a well-planned, flexible, prayed-over week!)

Pray about it. Plan it. Pray over it. Purposefully do it. Praise God through it! —bls

 

By Petals from the Basket | May 26, 2013 | God-and-I-Time, Ideas, Organization |

A Life Lesson at 1:15 a.m.

It might be old age. It might be some rare tropical disease (though I’ve not recently—or ever—been to the tropics). It might food issues. Whatever “it” is, it means my tummy doesn’t do well if I try to eat too much or too late in the day. There’s really no other way to say what happens than to bottom-line it: I toss my cookies.

If you’re still reading this—meaning: 1) you didn’t have to run toss your cookies when you read those words, or 2) you didn’t open up a new page to go search Google or WebMD because you are intrigued with finding out what might be wrong with me (trust me, that could take a lifetime), then here’s my quick point today:

I know that eating too much or eating too late brings that reaction. So, I take the necessary step to prevent it: I eat an early supper (and yes, it’s supper—not dinner—when it’s that early). The problem comes when the “full” feeling of the early supper wears off around 7:30 p.m. So, you guessed it: Instead of drinking a glass of water to quench the “empty” feeling, I indulge my desire for more food—even though I know what the consequences will be. Then, those consequences rear their ugly head around 1:15 a.m.; I regret my actions; and I raise my right hand and declare that I will never, ever do that again.

You undoubtedly already put two and two together, but isn’t this exactly what we do in our spiritual lives? We take the right step by going to church or having a daily personal time with God. But then a temptation comes. Instead of quenching that desire with the Living Water, we give in because—well—because our desire outweighs our knowledge of the possible consequences. Then, the consequences or trials come, and we cry out that we will never, ever do that again.

Even though it’s sometimes a little tricky to read (so I’m using the quotation from an easy-to-understand version), Paul said it best:

“I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate.” (Romans 7:15, NLT)

Because the lesson is clear, I leave you with this straightforward question a preacher friend once asked a group of us many years ago: What is so important to you that you’re willing to sin to get it?

 

By Petals from the Basket | May 24, 2013 | God-and-I-Time |

The Tuesday after the Wedding

My sister Karen was the first of my siblings to get married. (I’m the youngest of four children.) I remember someone telling my mom to cancel all her plans for the Tuesday after Karen’s Saturday wedding—because she would most likely be sick that day. Say what?

Apparently, the mother of the bride is often sick on the Tuesday after a weekend wedding. Possible reasons are: the exhaustion catches up with her; the extreme high of the excitement has nowhere to go but down; or it could be that she finally has time to get sick! She’s been so busy with wedding preparation, the wedding day, and returning rented and borrowed items in the midst of saying farewells to visiting family members that she hasn’t had time to stop. When she does, it hits, and she is totally wiped out—and gets sick.

So often after a big event, there is a time when all the buildup of the event comes to a screeching halt, and the reality of reality sets in. Yes, this can happen after a joyful wedding, but it can also happen following a major loss.

Sadly (and I have no scientific proof or statistics to back this up), I also think that Tuesday—or the equivalent number of days following a major event—is the day when most people stop praying for the friend or loved one going through that celebration or that time of saying final goodbyes. We go on with our lives—go back to work, fill out our to-do lists, and prepare for the next event—but we forget that their lives are now drastically different. In both cases, celebrating and mourning, something is now missing, and the emptiness becomes louder as the words of encouragement grow more faint.

So today, I encourage you to think of someone who has recently celebrated or of someone who has recently lost a loved one and determine to make Tuesdays a day when you think of and pray for friends or loved ones who have had major life changes recently.

Here are some simple ideas for reaching out:

1. Call your friend today and plan something for next Tuesday. It doesn’t have to cost a penny! Ask her to go on a 30-minute walk with you; invite her for coffee from 9:30–10:30 (at that time of day, you only need coffee and a muffin—or even just coffee); or invite her to join you to go pick out the flowers for your new flower bed.

2. Send a card in the mail on Saturday so that it is likely to arrive at your friend’s home on Tuesday. Just let her know you’re praying for her and share a favorite verse or a lesson that God has been teaching you lately.

3. Call her on Tuesday and tell her that you’re praying for her. You can literally call and say, “I’m not going to keep you long—I called for one thing only: I just wanted you to know I’m praying for you today. I’ll call you later in the week to see if we can get together for coffee soon, but for today, just know that I’m praying for you.” That’s it. But do it on a Tuesday.

4. I have a friend who lost her son on the 12th of the month. I have written in my calendar for the next six months (and I might extend it if it seems right to do so) to send a card on the 9th of each month so that when it arrives at her home on the 12th each month, she will simply be encouraged by knowing that I haven’t forgotten that her ache is very real—and that God’s everlasting arms are still holding her in the midst of it. It might not be on a Tuesday, and it will take effort on my part, but the point is to be intentional about demonstrating ongoing love and concern for those who celebrate and for those who grieve.

“Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.” Romans 12:15, KJV

Oh, and if you’ve read this far down, you deserve to know: my mom got sick on the Tuesday following Karen’s wedding.

___________________

Thanks for reading “The Tuesday after the Wedding.”
 
How do you show love and concern to others after a major life change?
or
How have you been shown love and concern after a major life change?
Feel free to share by leaving a comment.
 

 

By Petals from the Basket | May 23, 2013 | Events, Family, Friends, Ideas, Life Changes |

An Observation from the Cheap Seats

I’ve been spending extra time working (through my copy editing job), preparing my own book for publication later this summer, and reading through blogs and articles that I enjoy in an effort to help me “up my game.” Starting today, I’ll be posting daily again—sometimes just a very concise thought, sometimes an all-out devotional, sometimes a contributor post (from my mom and others), and sometimes just whatever seems fun/needful to share.

Today’s post is what I wrote as my personal Facebook status this morning. It truly is just an observation, but it is one I feel the Lord opened my eyes (and heart) to see, so I decided to share it here as well:

“Just an observation from the cheap seats: Not writing about or not talking about problems doesn’t always mean someone is pretending to have the perfect life or that they are acting like life is all roses and sunshine. I have found quite the opposite to be true: admitting the need to focus on Christ and choosing gratitude for everything He allows are often traits offered up by those who are acknowledging that need BECAUSE they are surrounded by the troubles and cares of this world and know that the need for an upward focus is greater than ever. Transparency means more than just letting people get a glimpse of our “real-life” problems; it also means getting out of the way and giving them a glimpse at the only real-life Answer.”

 

By Petals from the Basket | May 22, 2013 | Ideas, Life Changes |