The Whys Will Make You Crazy!

Sometimes I think in many ways I am my own worst enemy. I have a tendency to think and dwell on things too much. I wish sometimes my mind had an off switch.

I guess by nature I am somewhat anxious. I come by it honestly. I envy people who can just let things roll off their shoulders and trust that everything will work out.

One of the things that has been plaguing my mind is the idea of injustice. What I mean in particular is watching people live the way they want to live without regard for God, and yet they seem to have the things in life they want.

I was reading in Jeremiah 12 last night where he questions God's justice. "Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the faithless live at ease?" My heart and mind cannot reckon this. I completely identify with Jeremiah. It saddens me to watch people prosper who do not live the way God wants us to. I don't mean to sound like I am looking down on people who are not as good as me, because I have my own hangups in my walk with God.

I guess what struck me in looking at Jeremiah is God's response to the whys. He doesn't offer an answer specifically to those questions. Maybe he didn't think he needed to answer whys. I've learned that he rarely, if ever, does. That is his perogative, after all he is God.

I have lots of why questions, and I can make myself CRAZY thinking about them but never find an answer. What I am reminded of are the promises God makes to me about living faithfully.

"Misfortune pursues the sinner, but prosperity is the reward of the righteous." Prov 13:21

"A man of perverse heart does not prosper; he whose tongue is deceitful falls into trouble." Prov. 17:20

"He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy." Prov 28:13

"A greedy man stirs up dissension, but he who trusts in the Lord will prosper." Prov. 29:25

"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful." Heb 10:23

"You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised." Heb 10:36

"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." Heb 11:9

God is faithful to his promises, so I have to trust that he has and will bring about those things in my own life. I guess my problem is the waiting!

"I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." Psalm 27:13-14

I Love My Dad!

Today is my dad's 70th birthday. It is hard for me to believe. I remember one time when I was younger telling him he had a lot of hair for an old man. That has become our running joke. Every birthday, I call him and he reminds me he still has a lot of hair left.

So in the spirit of celebrating my dad, here are some of my favorite things about him:

1. Everytime I call him, he is always cheerful and excited to hear from me. I usually get a "HELLO, Sarah Jones!" or a "Is this the party to whom I am speaking?" or a "It's me again, Margaret!"
2. My dad will go well out of his way to do anything for anyone. He does so cheerfully and selflessly.
3. Dad always made sure Jason and I were at church and surrounded us with godly people who helped lay the foundation for our faith.
4. When I was little, mom worked the 7 to 3 shift at the hospital a lot. Dad would get us up, feed us, and would even fix my hair every morning. He was good at it too! I remember one morning when I was little I wanted to wear my jeans backwards and without any objections dad let me. (It wasn't very comfortable!)
5. In high school we lived across the street from the school. Dad would schedule his lunch around mine and met me at home everyday to make sure I had a good lunch.
6. I can remember every free moment he had he spent with me and Jason. He took us hunting, sight-seeing, visiting people who lived way out in the country, bouncing down country roads. He didn't let the TV babysit us, he got us out and showed us how to have fun without being lazy or spending a lot of money. We sang a lot on these trips. Our favorite song to sing was 1814 by Johnny Horton. Radio-schmadio, who needs it?!
7. Dad has the biggest hands. He can fit both of mine in one of his, and they are always warm. I love holding his hand. No matter how old I get, I will never outgrow that!
8. He worked many many years at a job that was virtually thankless and many times downright miserable to provide for our family and raise us in a small town. He could have moved us to a larger town, worked a job that was more fulfilling and paid more.
9. I always feel safe in my dad's presence. I can remember once when I was about 5 or younger, our drunk/drug addicted neighbor was shooting his gun off in the street at his wife and baby in the middle of the night. (So much for the safety of a small town, huh?) My mom woke me up and I can remember dad standing by the window with a gun. I don't remember being scared because I always knew dad would keep us safe.
10. Dad always taught me the importance of taking care of myself. I am sure this is where I get my independence from. I can remember him telling me very often that I needed to be able to provide for myself and not rely on anyone to take care of me.

I could go on and on about my precious dad. I am so thankful God chose him for my daddy. It makes me sad for people who don't have the kind of relationship with their fathers that I have with mine. I truly wish everyone could experience that kind of love. I am just reminded that if my earthly father loves me this much, how much more does my heavenly father love me!

So on his 70th birthday, I will praise and thank my heavenly father for the gift of my dad. I hope he's around many more birthdays! You are my hero, Dad!

Tagged....AGAIN!

Rules:

1. Post rules on your blog.
2. Answer the six "4" items.
3. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving them a comment.

4 Things I Did Yesterday: Went to church, made soup, hung curtains, hosted a Christmas party

4 Things I Look Forward to: Christmas break, playing Guitar Hero: World Tour with Brad and Paige, sleeping in, and my first Christmas in my house with my family

4 Things On My Wish List: Gift cards from Home Depot, restful break, for God to bless our ladies bible study with answers to our prayers, oh yeah.....and World Peace. ;)

4 Restaurnts I like: Patrizio's, La Madeleine, Mongolian BBQ (in Dublin), California Pizza Kitchen

4 Favorite TV Shows: Lost, 24, Pushing Daisies, and its a tie between Ghost Hunters and The First 48.

4 People I Tag (You're it): Paige, Sherry, Elaine, Leslee

A Very Bad Dog!

I got home yesterday from Thanksgiving with my friends, Greg, Angie, and Selandra. I started a load of laundry and noticed I had very little water pressure. My first course of action when something goes wrong is to call my dad. He said I needed to call the water company and find out if there were any broken water mains near my house. LP&L sent a serviceman over and he told me I had a water line broken and I would need to call a plumber. I knew this wasn't going to be cheap!

The LP&L man turned off my water supply because I was loosing 25-30 gallons per minute. Having just spent the day on the road I was in need of a shower. Thankfully, Sherry came to my rescue and let me come over to her house and take a very nice, long, hot shower!

This morning I called the plumber. The owner called me and asked me if there was anyway I could put the dogs up so they could work in the back. I found someone to cover my class and drove home to find the plumbers waiting on me. The one who looked like he was in charge told me he thinks he got it all figured out. He said my water faucet in the backyard was on. He said he thought my dogs might have turned it on. Immediately, I knew it wasn't the dogs, but one dog in particular......Bentley!

Thankful for my prayers being answered for a cheap fix, I am now contemplating what to do with this dog who can apparently turn on the faucet. Not only can he turn on the water faucet, but it seems that he is a master escape artist. He has managed to get dig/tear out of the yard three times, two of which, my very good dog has followed him. One of those times I got a call that they were found in Wolfforth.

I adopted him thinking I was being a good pet lover and rescuing a doggie that needs love. What I wound up with is a dog who happens to be a holy terror!

So if you know anyone who lives on the farm and has kids that could wear this dog out, or even if you know some gypsies who need a sideshow, please let me know! He is sweet and good with kids, just very determined. He likes chewing up things and jumping on the trampoline.

Any takers?????