Showing posts with label church. Show all posts
Showing posts with label church. Show all posts

Monday, August 16, 2010

Yellow Tray Toe

Yesterday was Sunday, and I suppose that it ought to have been very tranquil.  However, I found myself unfortunately far from being tranquil right as we were about to leave for church. 

We were running late, as usual, but only by a tiny bit.  It takes us maybe two minutes to drive to church, so I had high hopes that we wouldn't miss very much.  Everyone was dressed and ready to go, but we developed one significant problem: we could not find Malachi's shoes. 

We looked high and low, inside and outside, in the house and in the van, and there was not one pair of shoes to be found.  We found shoes that were too small for him, and we found one shoe out of a pair that weren't too small.  But of the three pairs he has right now that fit him well; his sandals, his sneakers and his "blue suede shoes"; they were nowhere to be found.  I found myself growing angrier as the minutes ticked by us.  It was clear we would not be finding his shoes in time.  He would have to go barefoot. 

Aaron was making one last round upstairs when my anger got the better of me and I kicked a plastic yellow kid tray that was on the floor.  I kicked it hard.  I kicked it wearing flip flops.  Flip flops are not made for kicking plastic trays across the room, and therefore, this foolish action resulted in tearing part of my toenail.  It didn't come off, but it was definitely bleeding.  I just have to add here, that if anyone thinks that having a nail break isn't that bad, I submit to you that in some places they torture people by ripping off their fingernails, and there are times when breaking a nail isn't too much different.  This, of course, just made me more upset. 

I was angry that were late, I was mad at myself for being stupid and ripping my toenail, and I was not too happy with Malachi for losing his shoes.  I really wanted to go to Zoe's, which is our church's off site campus/coffee shop, but by the time we gave up the search for the shoes, it was a good fifteen minutes after church had started, and I was very depressed.  Fortunately, the main church starts fifteen minutes later and is even closer to our house than Zoe's.  I ought to have been happy about that, but at the time, of course, I wasn't.  Aaron suggested going there, and I grudgingly agreed.

Once we got there and got all the children put in their respective classes, I felt myself settling down some.  Drinking three cups of water and admitting my tray-kicking folly to Aaron also helped my anger to subside, and I had to laugh at myself. 

I find it very ironic that as a mother I am always trying to get my boys to control their temper, and then I go and kick a tray because I can't find shoes.  I guess I'm not as grown-up as I might have thought.  I probably should have given myself a time-out.

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Only You

Where is my passion?
Where did it go?
The depths of my heart have closed.
And only the shallows exposed.
The passion is there I know
Somewhere in the deep it flows.
I can't seem to let it out
I begin to doubt that I can
I can't
Only You can free me
In all the ways I need freedom
I don't want to be locked away
I want to be free
I want to let go
Let go of control
And fear
Fear of unknown
Fear of being known
I want to be known by You
I am Your love, Your servant, Your Bride
I belong to You
Only You


This morning, I was inspired to write this poem because of the song "Worlds Apart" by Jars of Clay, which we sang today in church.  Here are some of the lyrics that particularly stand out to me:


I look beyond the empty cross
forgetting what my life has cost


and wipe away the crimson stains

and dull the nails that still remain

More and more I need you now,

I owe you more each passing hour
the battle between grace and pride
I gave up not so long ago
So steal my heart and take the pain
and wash the feet and cleanse my pride
take the selfish, take the weak,
and all the things I cannot hide
take the beauty, take my tears
the sin-soaked heart and make it yours
take my world all apart
take it now, take it now
and serve the ones that I despise
speak the words I can't deny
watch the world I used to love
fall to dust and thrown away
I look beyond the empty cross
forgetting what my life has cost
so wipe away the crimson stains
and dull the nails that still remain
so steal my heart and take the pain
take the selfish, take the weak
and all the things I cannot hide
take the beauty, take my tears
take my world apart, take my world apart
I pray, I pray, I pray
take my world apart





To love You - take my world apart
To need You - I am on my knees
To love You - take my world apart
To need You - broken on my knees

It's a song I have heard many times before, but it meant something new to me today.  It's amazing how God can take anything and make it new to use for His purposes.  Even me:)

Monday, April 5, 2010

Lightbulb Sun

After church yesterday, I was thinking about truth.  These days people seem to think that truth is relative, that it can be whatever you want it to be.  I personally find the idea silly.  Truth is truth.  If you look it up in the dictionary you will find these definitions of truth: "the true or actual state of a matter", "conformity with fact or reality", and "a verified or indisputable fact, proposition, principle, or the like".  Do any of those definitions make it sound like truth could be whatever you want?  That I could have my truth and you could have yours and we could both be right?  I don't think so.  You can say that grass is blue all you want, but that won't make it true.  You can even believe it's blue.  And maybe when you look at grass, it really does look blue to you.  But guess what?  That still doesn't mean that grass is blue.  It might mean you're colorblind though.  And you can tell me the sun is actually a giant lightbulb, you can believe it with all your heart.  But the sun is not a lightbulb.