Better!

What a year 2021 was, eh?  For me personally, it was worse than 2020!  Allow me a few lines of whining...

-I ended 2020 with Covid, still can't smell and can barely taste.

-The company I've been with for 6 years had their state contract unexpectedly cut short, which effectively ended employment for all of us who taught under that contract.  After a little over a month of being off work and waiting for rehire, I was finally back, teaching in the same place but under a new employer.

-I was diagnosed with a chronic condition and had to start taking immune suppressants to slow the damage being done.

-Family and friends have experienced levels of suffering and loss through circumstances and sickness.

Okay, enough, you get the general picture!  And for each of those whines, I could add a praise with it about how something has come from it or a lesson has been learned from it.  But as I thought over the year and have talked about a new year coming, I've noticed myself saying something frequently:

2022 has got to be better!

Then it dawned on me...it CAN be better!  I can't control world events, illness, and life losses, but guess what....I can control my attitude and actions!!!  And so, my word for 2022 is BETTER!

We can all be better!  Better employees, spouses, students, parents, friends, children, customers, Jesus followers, neighbors...let's be better! Worry less about the news and about making your point on social media and be better at listening, understanding, and improving the world!

Our attitudes can be better!  We can choose positive over negative, growth over grousing, and friendliness over snarkiness...let's do better!

If you don't have any spiritual disciplines in your life, I'd highly recommend that you get into bible reading and studying, praying, and finding a good group of Christians to grow with. Along with having a supportive husband and family, one special blessing from this year which has helped me get through a lot of 2021 junk is an online bible study group we joined, affectionately known as 'Caleb's Crew.' God can really bless and strengthen you and Holy Spirit becomes more apparent when you have a group of fellow believers living life with you.

Some good verses for meditation, consideration, ponder-ification:

Romans 14:19:  So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.

Galatians 6:9:  And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

Philippians 3:12-15:  Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18:  Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

We're still here! :)

Wow, what a rollercoaster ride the past 12 months have been, eh? We humans think we can control so much, and if we've learned anything, I hope it's that we don't have much say in the grand scheme of things!

I pray you've come through okay. We've had blows coming at us from all sides...loss of loved ones, loss of health, loss of income, loss of community, loss of trust in things we're told...but through it all, hopefully we can hold on to 2 Corinthians 4:8-9: "We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed." God is still in control!

I also pray that in the midst of what may feel like despair or frustration, mourning or anger, we can be loving and kind. We can look for common ground. We can look for connection with others. I echo Paul's sentiment in Ephesians 4:1-3: "I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."

I've had a doozy of a rollercoaster ride along with everyone else. Please indulge me a minute of whining--

Last spring, my fellow teachers and I were declared to be essential employees, where I teach (in a maximum security facility)...we began wearing masks and cleaning, cleaning cleaning. We (still) check in daily by answering wellness questions and getting a temperature check before being allowed into the facilities. We had students being quarantined, infection rates rose, and eventually my entire facility was on restricted movement. For weeks I delivered assignments to students and picked up what work I could, all while including inspirational quotes and cheering them on. I'm thankful to report that we've had higher passing rates than we did last school year, thank you LORD! 😊

I had my right shoulder replaced in late May and was off work for 5 weeks. Even in the midst of covid, I was sooooo ready to get back to work, crazily enough! It feels good to be able to use my arm normally again and write on the board with arm fully extended. 😃

The day before Halloween I started feeling ill and tested positive for covid the day after Halloween. The following day I lost my sense of smell and taste and haven't regained them (yet!)...I miss them!!! 😕

The contract for my company expires at the end of June, and they're not rebidding the contract. I'm mourning what will be the breakup of an amazing group of coworkers! I have a heart for teaching inmates, so I'm prayerfully waiting to see who gets the new contract and if I can viably work for them. I keep reminding myself that I didn't go looking for this job, it found me, and I believe God wanted me there...so, if He wants me to stay, I will! And if He has something else for me, I need to go in that direction. Easier said than done, and imagining having a 'last day' at the facility makes me feel sad. 😢

Okay, that might have been more than a minute, but I'm done now! God has brought me through a lot and will continue to do so! I need to focus on the positives and be the light that I'm called to be. So sometimes I might be a little dim, but I'm going to keep shining.

"In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." ~Matthew 5:16

Wow....

Have you ever bought a new journal or something along those lines (diet diary, prayer notebooks, I've done them all!) with every intention of regularly recording something in them?  This blog was the digital version of THAT!

I do this all the time.  I'll come across a spiral notebook or journal with things started up 2, 3, even more years back.  It's a little bit maddening, this lack of stick-to-it-iveness, but it's also a little bit fun to read the reminders of where I was in life at that time.  See what my focus, goals, struggles were...and analyze where I've improved and where I still struggle.

I have digitally come back to my old diary.  Fun!  Now where was I.....

New Self

Wow....think of all of the 'self' involved phrases and sayings in our society.  Just a quick brainstorm brings some to mind:

~selfie
~selfish
~selfless
~self indulgent
~self-sacrifice
~self-centered

What a difference a minor syllable or two can make in the definition of a word!  For 2017, may we all be less self-focused and more others-focused.  Here's a great verse to get us started:

"and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness."  Ephesians 4:24

Happy New Year!

The Faith of an R-Key

When I started traveling with the carnival years and years ago, I learned so many surprising things about human nature, traveling, moving, and the art of persuasion.  One of the really hard-to-believe things was how the rides and games were held together. Many, if not most, of the connecting pieces were held together with a small metal device known as an R-Key:

When the rides and games were being torn down and packed up to move to the next town, the R-Keys were removed and thrown into metal coffee cans for storage. After arriving in a new town, set-up began, so the coffee cans were unpacked and the R-Keys reconnected the pieces.

Such a small thing doing such a big job.

It reminds me of the parable of the mustard seed.  In Luke 17:5-7 it says "The apostles said to the Lord, 'Increase our faith!'  And the Lord said, 'If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you."

I love that we're not asked to have bushels and bushels of faith...just a tiny seed.  God asks that we give the small that we're able to give, and he makes it count in the huge ways that only He's able to do!

No Longer

My "Tales" are all about things I went through, felt, and did...but I'm no longer there.  I talk about lessons learned, often the hard way.  I encourage everyone to be open and honest about things they've gone through, too.  Why?  To show others who might be in similar circumstances that we're no longer there. To give guidance and instruction.  To give hope.

With this in mind, I'm declaring November to be "No Longer" November.  My sons like to celebrate "No Shave November," but I like mine better, haha!  As we enter November, I invite you to share your "No Longers" with others; start thinking and praying along those lines.  Let's celebrate our 'no longers!'

...It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.  And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. ~Galatians 2:20

The Greatest of Grandparents

I’m fortunate, though I didn’t always realize it.  I was blessed with two sets of godly, dedicated grandparents, who loved me even while I was aimlessly drifting.  So, a belated shout-out to W.F. (Bill) & Nadine Lown and Roy & Florence Moyer!  They were all faithful to God throughout their lives, even to the end, despite all of them dying in painful ways, of cancer, disease, or heart issues.   

Earlier this week, right before shutting down the computer for the night, I googled my granddad, Bill Lown.  He had crossed my mind for some reason, and I was curious what information or pictures were out there.  It was neat to read through a lot of the history he was involved in with the restoration movement, missions, the North American Christian Convention, and as the president of Manhattan Christian College.  I even found some audio files of some of his old sermons, and it was so good to hear his voice again!  

I always viewed Granddad as a very important, dignified person…but he was also very accessible and loving.  When I was a young grade-schooler, I would frequently send him fake ‘checks’ I filled out using order forms and receipt books, as a ‘donation’ to Manhattan Christian College.  I sent quite a few of these over a two- or three-year period, and it might have been annoying after awhile, but every time I sent a ‘check,’ he would send a ‘receipt’ and a thank you letter, with loving words of appreciation for my good intentions.  He was also one of my biggest cheerleaders, encouraging me to be a writer after I won an essay contest and had a poem published in fifth grade.  I’m belatedly trying to honor his belief in me!

Fast forward to me traveling in a rag-tag carnival with the guy I married after a whirlwind ‘romance.’  Imagine my grandmother and granddad…this lovely, dignified, respected couple…visiting me on the midway!  We were set up near Joplin, Missouri, where my granddad was teaching at Ozark Christian College in his semi-retirement, and it was near my birthday, so they came and visited.  They graciously met all of the carnies, and looked around at games and rides on the midway.  I’m sure they were dying inside at the state of their granddaughter’s situation, but they didn’t betray any negative feelings.  They were loving and supportive, as always.

We don’t often appreciate what we have, until it’s gone.  But we can honor those who have gone before us by continuing to walk in the way of faith as they did, treating others with love and respect, as they did.  I only hope my grandchildren can look back someday on precious memories of love and godliness they experience with me.

“Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord.” ~Psalms 22:30

One thought on “The Greatest of Grandparents”

Larry Kuhl 

 

I have fond and wonderful memories of W.F. Lown – nothing but respect for this man of great integrity and honor. He always had something encouraging to say – even if it was a passing on the stairs at MCC.