Guest Post By Martha Orlando: Why Do You Write?

Image by jjpacres via FlickrIt has been interesting to hear from other writers how and why they write.  I asked Martha Orlando who writes Martha's Daily Devotion,  if she would like to  write a post on my blog about why and how she writes.  Here's her inspiring post:

For this I toil and struggle with all the energy that he powerfully inspires within me.
~Colossians 1:29 (NRSV)

Writing brings me such joy and satisfaction.

Writing for others, as I do with my devotions, takes that joy and satisfaction to immeasurable heights.

Do I write because I have a gift for it? Yes. To not acknowledge and act upon a talent the Lord has given me would be to deny Him and His desires for my life.

Is it easy for me? Yes, and no. Sometimes, the words literally fly off the keyboard. Other times, I pause. I ponder. I pace. I pray for inspiration.

It always comes . . . I've learned, on those days, to have patience with myself. To rest in God's timing.

Do I write every day? No. Because there are holidays, errands, events, and obligations which demand my time and attention.

So, in crafting my daily devotions, I stay a week to ten days ahead of the scheduled posting date. That way, I am prepared when expected, or unexpected, interruptions occur.

Do I always feel “up to it” when I sit down at the computer? Heavens, no! But, I remember His commission to me. I recall His promise.

To stay by my side. As I read the scripture. Choose a verse. Meditate upon it.

And, allow Him to show me the story He wants me to tell.

He hasn't failed me. Not once.

And, I know He never will . . .

He is within my soul. He is my inspiration.

When I toil, He shares my burden.

When I struggle, He takes me in His arms . . .

It has been said that writing is one of the most lonely of professions.

I don't buy it.

For, I am never alone.

My Jesus is with me always . . .

~

When do you feel the closest to the Lord?

Prayer: Thank you, Father, for the gifts and talents you have given to us. Help us to use them for Your honor and glory. Let us ever feel your comforting presence in our lives, guiding, showing, teaching. Be our inspiration! Amen.

Thank you Martha!  Here's my progress for Week Three:
Pages: 80
Words:  15, 330
Inspiration from Martha:  Priceless!

Where Does God Live?

Image via WikipediaMy friend, Ellen's grand-daughter Carleigh was telling her family about her day at preschool.  "We went to chapel and heard a man talk about God,"  she said, "But God wasn't there."  "Really?" her mom replied, "Where was God?"  Without hesitation, Carleigh answered, "God lives in a cave in Alabama."  You gotta wonder if Carleigh will grow up to be a comedian...

It does make one think though doesn't it?  Where do you experience God?  As I'm headed off to church this Sunday morning, I have to ask myself, "Will God be there?"  As I drive to work tomorrow, I could ask myself, "Will I experience God there?" As I meet with friends this afternoon to plan an upcoming women's workshop, I wonder,  "Will God be present during the discussion?"  There's a common phenomenon where we become aware of the details that we focus on in our daily lives.  Hence when you are considering buying a particular brand of car, you become focused on that brand and see it everywhere.  However, when you are unconcerned about cars you fail to notice anything about the cars all around you. We become so accustomed to the routine that we lose sight of the details. So it is with God.  When we fail to focus on the signs of God all around us, we become distant and unaware of His presence.  But when we look for and focus on His activity in our world, we are amazed at His hand in the daily details of our lives.  Did you notice the glorious sunrise this morning?  God was there.  Did you have a friend or coworker who lifted you up with encouragement?  God was there.  Did a stranger show you some kindness?  God was there.  So, where is God in your life?  Closeby?  Or living in a cave in Alabama?

What If You Began Your Day With Adventure Time Instead Of Quiet Time?

Here's an idea that I love:  What if  you began your day with adventure time with God instead of quiet time with God?  What would be the difference?  Here's five reasons to think about beginning your day this way...

1. Adventure focuses on action rather than waiting for things to happen.  Ask yourself, "What can I do today to move closer to my goals?  to God's plan for my life?  to create God's kingdom here on earth?
2. Adventure opens our minds and our hearts to new possibilities.  It opens our eyes to the miracles around us rather than the humdrum sameness that we take for granted.
3. Adventure engages the other people in our lives in our plans and activities.  It enriches and expands our relationships.
4. Adventure overcomes timidity and fear of change through our perception.  Think about moving from one community to another in terms of loss and saying good-bye.  Now think of moving in terms of meeting new friends and having new experiences... see what I mean?
5. Adventure provides challenge and keeps us interested and motivated.  It energizes us and keeps us growing and learning.

Now I know that we all need some time to be still and know God, but what if we also planned some adventure time to run and play with God? What if we started our day with adventure time instead of quiet time with God?  What would you do differently?  How would that affect your day?

Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming----Wow...What a Ride!   

- Robert Wickman -  

Upcoming Events

Cover via Amazon

January 22, 2011--Visioning Workshop at Kennesaw United Methodist Church

If you have ever said:

• Why am I here?

• What is my purpose?

• What are my God given gifts and talents?

• What is my mission?

Then you won’t want to miss this class! Based on the book, The Path by Laurie Beth Jones, Carol Bass and Lynne Watts have put together a workshop with you in mind. Join us for a day of creative activities and fellowship as we explore our God given gifts and determine our own individual path or mission. Come prepared to laugh, learn and be energized! Class size will be limited, to provide individual attention, so register early!

When:  January 22, 2011 10:00-4:00

Where: KUMC Room 217

Cost: $20.00 (includes lunch and a copy of the book, The Path)

Who: Lynne Watts lynnewatts@comcast.net

Carol Bass carolbass@bellsouth.net

Are You Missing Jesus?

Image via WikipediaI was talking to a friend recently about Christmas decorating and she told me that  when she put out her Christmas nativity scene somehow the Jesus in a manger was missing. She wasn't overly concerned about it since she figured one of her grandchild probably was 'helping' with the clean up last year and decided they wanted to borrow the Jesus figure.  She said she just put it out anyway and hoped it would turn up at some point.  However, the scene does look a little 'empty'. 

I thought it was a pretty good analogy for the Christmas season as a whole, you know what with the missing Jesus and all.  I was having a discussion with some other women about how hard it is to keep Jesus as the focus of the season, when it suddenly occurred to me that the real problem is not keeping Jesus at the center of Christmas...it's keeping Jesus at the center of our lives.  Why are we so concerned  that we might get distracted during the Christmas season when there are eleven other months of the year when we need to keep Jesus at the center of our lives as well?  Why do we so self-righteously wear pins that say "Jesus is the reason for the season" but spend the rest of the year unconcerned?  Maybe we need a pin that says, "Jesus is the reason for it all" to wear all year long.  Just a thought...

Related articles

• Where's the Line to See Jesus? (eagleviews.org)

Advertising God

When my daughter was about three years old, we had her and her new baby sister baptized at our church. Upon returning home, she announced to her grandmother, "Today I got advertised!"

Although we all laughed at her interpretation of the event, I had to think there was some truth to her statement. Baptism is a public announcement of an individual's relationship with God. It is one of the many ways that we acknowledge God's presence and blessings in our lives. We should probably take her advice and daily "advertise" our relationship with God.

I am challenged every day to think of ways I could advertise God's presence. What could I do to assist a co-worker? How can I compliment someone feeling down? How can I encourage another? Share my resources? Provide support and inspiration? In James 2:18, we are reminded that faith without works is lifeless. But faith that extends itself and "advertises" God's gifts of life and love through good works is priceless. How can you advertise God's work in your life today?

In the Garden

Last Sunday in church, we sang the hymn, In the Garden, written by C. Austin Miles 1868-1946. I have always loved this hymn, probably because working in my garden is one of my favorite activities. On the perfect gardening day, I would have no other commitments, the weather would be sunny and mild, the ground would be soft and I would spend hours planting, weeding and relocating my plants. Just like in the hymn, many of the moments when I have felt closest to God have been in my Garden. A well known poster says," Everything I need to know I learned in kindergarten". I often feel everything I need to know about life and God, I learned in my garden. Here are some of the things I've learned:

• In order to flourish, plants must be pruned and thinned periodically. When I initially began gardening, I never did this. Clipping back a plant that is growing satisfactorily seems counterproductive but is actually necessary to have the best results. Dead heading flowers is essential to producing new blooms. Otherwise, the nourishment goes to parts of the plant that are no longer developing. Aren't our lives like this as well? How often do our lives become cluttered, strangled even, with unnecessary activities and things. Sometimes eliminating those can provide the nourishment needed to fuel the other real priorities in our lives. It can mean the difference between simply growing and producing excellence.
• Sometimes a cutting that seems withered and lifeless when planted in the right enviroment, can flourish. A friend gave me a cutting for a wandering yew plant. By the time I got around to planting it, it looked hopelessly wilted and withered. As I planted it in my hanging basket, I really expected that I would be soon throwing it away. However, once it was nourished and watered, it flourished and today is a beautiful lush plant. What talents or abilities are languishing in our lives for lack of the right encouragement and attention? Most people use only about ten percent of their capacities. Energy focused on these underused areas can often produce amazing results.

• Beginning with the end in mind and working regularly toward accomplishing that is critical. Before even starting with the gardening details, it is important to have a plan of the finished product and a list of the steps to take to achieve that end. Similarly, failure to evaluate and set priorities in our lives will result in a life over run with unimportant and insignificant tasks if we aren't careful. We get the cleaning done but neglect our relationships. We put in too much time at work and neglect our spiritual lives. It is easy to lose perspective of the bigger picture as we respond to the many demands of our lives if we don't have an overall plan. Taking time out to establish and maintain that vision can make a big difference.

I recently read a narrative about the inspiration which resulted in Austin Miles writing the hymn In the Garden. He imagined Mary in great despair, weeping, coming to the tomb where she was surprised as she encountered the risen Lord. Remember how she first thought he was the gardener? Remember how when she recognized him she called out, "Rabboni"? What did Mary learn from her visit to the garden? What can we learn from time spent in reflection and prayer while tilling the earth? Austin Miles' hymn says it all: "I come to the garden alone, while the dew is still on the roses; and the voice I hear, falling on my ear, the Son of God discloses...."

Is God Calling You By a New Name?

From the back seat of the car, I heard our five year old friend, McKenzie, calling out repeatedly, "Helen! Helen!" We were on the way to the Fernbank museum to see the frog exhibit and I was riding in the front seat with my oldest daughter who was driving. Since no one in the car was named Helen, I paid her little attention and assumed it must be part of a conversation she was involved in with my younger daughter who was in the back seat with her. When she simply became louder and more insistent, I finally turned and asked her , "Who are you talking to?" Imagine my surprise when she said, "I'm calling you!" Helen? What? After some detective work, we discovered that she had heard other people calling me "Hey, Lynne" and concluded my name must be Helen.

I wonder if God ever calls us by a different name? I wonder if we are so stuck in our routine of comfortable worship and predictable service that we mistakenly assume a call for us is for someone else? Something like that happened to Samuel when he was a boy ministering under the priest Eli. God called Samuel during the night and he assumed it must be Eli calling him. Following up on that incorrect assumption, he learns to recognize God's call and God's plan for his life. I Samuel 3:1-8

Could God be calling you in a new way with a new name? Maybe he is calling you by the name of teacher or comforter when you have been accustomed to a different role. Maybe He is calling you leader or peacemaker. To hear that call though, you will need to step outside the familiar and listen with new ears. Otherwise, you just might miss that call altogether. "Helen, Helen, I'm calling YOU!"

When you pass through the waters...

Image by The Suss-Man (Mike) via Flickr Yesterday was a day of unprecedented rainfall and flooding in Atlanta, Georgia. Roads closed, cars stalled out, trees fell over roadways and houses flooded. Tragically, six people died, one a toddler swept away in the flood waters. Out to an early exercise class, I didn't heed the warnings of possible flooding and wound up stranded at a drugstore where easily 12 inches of water flooded in the front door and water rose up to the floorboard of my car before I moved it to higher ground. I called my brave and worried children who came and rescued me. Meanwhile, a friend planning to move to Florida in October, had at least 12 inches of muddy water overflow the creek bank and flood her entire basement where she had stored everything she owns. Water rose up to the door handles on her new van, trashing the inside and ruining the motor. She was informed by her homeowners insurance that she has no flood insurance to cover all her possessions. The car luckily is covered by her car insurance.

Where is God in the midst of the tragedy and destruction? Isaiah 43:1-4 tells us "...fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. and when you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze." Notice that God doesn't say, "Fear not, you will never have troubles in your life" Instead he says, "recognize that I am with you in those troubles." How is he with us? He is with us through friends and family that rescue us in times of trouble. He is with us as he refocuses our lives through adversity. He is with us as we learn to pull on reserves of faith and strength that we didn't even know we are capable of so that we can move forward in the future. Throughout history, God has reassured us that he is with us. Even the name given to Jesus of Immanuel means "God with us". In times of trouble, we are reminded that God loves us so much that he calls us by name and walks with us through the fire and water.