Makeup!! WHOO HOOO!!

As if I didn't already realized how fast they are growing up, I was asked by my seven-going-on-seventeen year old daughter when could she have her own make up.

I had OK'd lip gloss, which she would wear from time to to time, and reminded her of this. "No, Mom. Blush. Lipstick... you know..."

Blush, yes. I do know. Lipstick. Ewwww. What a pain! For SOOO many reasons, not the least of them being "finding one in the drier!" I mean, c'mon. I've got so many other things to do besides reapply lipstick, and hope I don't leave tell-tale traces of color here and there.

I'm not a "girly-girl". My daughter is.

She'd begged to go to Wal*mart. I told her we'd look through my make up and find her something. And so, the day that started so horribly, ended sweetly.

She opened my drawer and started looking through it. "The first thing to know about make up," I told her, " is that it doesn't matter as much what you put ON your face as it does to TAKE CARE OF your face." I went on to explain that make up wouldn't cover up the lack of care, and that eating well, drinking plenty of water and getting adequate rest were the things that would really help her shine beautifully from the inside out. She nodded intently.

I dug through til I found a blush that I'd not used because it ended up being a shade too light for me. I showed her the how's and where's, demonstrating once, then allowing her to do the same. Searching further I found a sample lipstick color that was just about right for her. She put that on and grinned from ear to ear.

I reminded her that with increased privileges come increased responsibilities. She MUST wash her face before bed to remove the make up. She agreed willingly. (Score!)

I reminded her that it was NOT to wear to school or to church, for the time being. She went skipping to add her new treasures to her lip gloss collection.

I sat contemplating the words that had come out of my mouth. "It doesn't matter as much what you put ON your face as it does to TAKE CARE OF your face." The same is true with my life. It is what is INSIDE my life that matters. My care - or lack there of- is what will shine through, no matter what I place on the exterior.

The things and the stuff that surround me don't matter as much as how I live my life. There is no "stuff" that will cover the effects of a life poorly lived.

The Winds of Change...

I'm beginning to see some changes.... in my life and in the lives of those I love. Perspectives, attitudes, actions. All beginning to change course.

Some feel like the direct answer to prayer, and others feel like the sometimes-gentle-sometimes-not-so-gentle proddings as God encourages us to move forward. Let go of the past hurts and habits and move into a new future. Winter is over - Spring has come! Let it go!

The windows are still open, and the spring breeze is still welcome and stirring in my home. As I sit here, the rain begins gently tapping on the roof. I think back to when I invited the Winds of change into my heart - how soon it comes! I expect there will be tears that will accompany the internal stirring.... some grief, some joy.

But, like the spring rains, it will prepare the soil for new growth. Life will come forth abundantly, as the harshness of the winter dissipates.

It is an exciting time. I will watch for signs of life in my family, friends and self, just as I search the trees for swelling buds. It is coming... it is coming!

"I came that they may have life and have it abundantly." John 10:10

Blessed Beyond My Wildest Imaginings....

I am blessed beyond my wildest imaginings.... truly. It's become my tag-line.... my personal slogan. It's the signature line under my name on my emails. It frequents my Facebook status. It is written on my heart. It is totally, totally amazing.

It was a few weeks back, when I was signing "Your grace is enough...." that the reality moved deeply into my heart. Fortunately, it was during rehearsal. As I signed "Your grace true enough. Your grace true satisfy", my heart skipped a beat - or two. When it started up again, my face was already wet from the tears that had sprung forth. My hands kept on signing, but in my ears, there was no music, only the knowing that "Your grace truly IS enough.... yet, I have been blessed with so much more..."

The first day of February.... I had eluded to some beautiful weather... hadn't anticipated it arriving on the FIRST day of February. Sure enough, it did. I arrived home from church to find that it was as warm outside as it was inside my house. My friends here are all saying "SO... that's not saying much!" (translation - my house is cold.) But 60 degrees inside AND outside, I say we open some windows and let in some fresh air! So I did.

I had the opportunity to peek at the maples and find the very beginnings of some buds. I assessed the work I have to do in the gardens. Major cleanup - and a few inspired additions - to the vegetable garden, adding some mulch to the flower beds. I made note of the continued transplantations as my yard continues to become my yard. I envisioned the addition of some more stones and the completion of a patio area, and the garden edging that will follow.

Hope. Dreams. Literally, new life. Abundant life.

I know it will be work... hard work. I don't mind hard work. I love watching it come to life and evolve. I love the process. I love the connection with God in the midst of the process, and the time to rest with Him when it is complete.

Funny the parallels in my own life. It will be work... hard work. Mostly, I don't mind the work - though honestly, often the physical labor is easier than the emotional / spiritual labor. I love the process, and I love the connection with God in the midst of it... and resting in His presence as each piece is complete.

I am blessed...Beyond my wildest imaginings....

Being of Service

I believe it was Priscilla Shirer who pointed this out to me again recently. This thing called "service": what it is, what it should be, and what it has often become. Her presentation then became an interesting discussion in our bible study group.

The dictionary defines service as "work done by one person or group that benefits another". Basic. Simple. True. What Priscilla talked about - and we later expounded upon - was the why's and how's of service.

I have been 'serving' others for years. I would do for others - but my motives were all wrong. I'd do for them, hoping they'd do similarly for me - and become angry and resentful when they didn't. I was a definite ' box checker '. Much of what I did was because I felt I "had to" or I "should" (*big sigh*). It was obligatory, for sure.

As I began my growth process, I was told that service should be a gift - a TRUE gift - that is given without the expectation of it being returned. I was given 'service assignments': set up chairs before a meeting, help set up the coffee, clean up afterwards. Honestly, it started out as work - hard work. I was an isolater, remember - and very shy. I soon learned that I enjoyed the interaction with others on a mutual task. Getting "out of my self" was good for me, and I enjoyed their reactions - smiles, thank yous, obvious relief with an overwhelming task. (MUCH later, I realized I had already been given much more than I was doing!!)

Not long after that, the movie "Pay it Forward" came out. I thought, "my God, this boy is a genius!". If you haven't seen it, it's a good one. The premise is that Trevor - an 11 year old boy - is given a social studies class assignment: "Think of a way to change our world and put it into action". His plan: "Pay it Forward". If he helps 3 people today do something they couldn't do on their own, and they each help 3 people the next day, and so on and so forth, the results would be astonishing. In two weeks, he projects that 4,782,969 people's lives would be changed for the better.

Coupled with the book "Random Acts of Kindness", that I had also recently discovered, I was sent into an all out service frenzy. My favorite was paying the toll of the car behind me. That year, I travelled half the length of the state of Massachusetts, on the Mass Pike. I started at the very first toll booth. The toll taker gave me a quizzical look when I asked to pay for the car behind me as well. When I insisted, he said "whatevah", and I was on my way. For the duration of the trip, I'm not sure what was more exciting - going to visit Amherst and my friends, or knowing that I'd soon have another opportunity to "pay it forward".

This is when I truly began to appreciate service. To see it with a different heart. Yes, there will be things that I will do, not so much because I want to, but because they need to be done. And, then there will be service that I love beyond measure. Either way, I want to serve with a grateful heart - as an extension and expression of all that has been given to me, thus far.

I want my doing to be truly "service" - something I do because of the love, and grace that I have been blessed with. I want it to be a natural outpouring of these, and not an obligatory 'box to check'.

May my life overflow with Your love. May I pass it on to others through service.