Today, I Choose Joy

This morning I woke up to a song on the radio taken from Psalm 118:24.  I don't know which song it was, in fact all I remember is that it was one I hadn't heard before, and grumbling and cranky, I rolled back over and tried to go to sleep.  When I finally did get up, I turned Pandora on and here comes another song about Psalm 118:24.  Even through my groggy sleepy state, I got the hint from God, and despite having had a really rough week, I silently committed to choose joy today.

Within in 5 minutes I had an issue from a person in my life that just makes me want to scream (we all have one or two of these people... some more present in our lives than others), and I chose joy. It wasn't the smoothest morning in our house, but I chose joy.  The weather was nasty, after a week of summer, we had rain, snow and dreary skies, but I chose joy.  Of course, I was silently asking God to give me the joy, as I certainly wasn't capable of being joyful on my own, and He was faithful to provide it.

At last, it was the most dreaded time of the morning in our house... time to pack lunches, and I chose joy (which is why there was a noticeable difference with my kids and their attitudes). I dutifully began packing their lunches, and as I reached into the fridge for a yogurt, I realized something wasn't right.  The yogurt was room temperature.  The fridge had gone out!  I started to panic.

What do I do?  How long ago was it?  Is everything spoiled? I don't have time for this, I'm supposed to volunteer in my daughter's class and I have a long awaited lunch date with a friend... whatever am I going to do? 

In that moment, as I was running down my list of worries and excuses, there was a quiet whisper in the back of my mind, "psst... remember... choose joy".  I almost rolled my eyes.  "Are you serious? Choose joy?" I nearly protested... after all I had just stocked up on groceries.   Last night we just bought a brand new gallon of milk.  Seriously?!?! Choosing joy was the last thing on my to-do list in that moment.  And yet, I couldn't avoid it.  The moment I surrendered to joy, everything became clear.  I was able to rearrange my schedule so after dropping the kids of at school I could come home and cook up all the meat in the freezer that was still partially frozen.  I started to see what a blessing the timing of this really was:

• It was my day off... had this happened two days ago, it would have caused a nightmare, but today things weren't so bad.
• It's a holiday weekend so I have plenty of time to organize my new shopping list
• My kids won't be home tonight so there's no hurry to get it figured out before school pick-up
• The big garbage can is empty (the idea of rotten food sitting around my house or the alternative of making a run to the dump over something like this were both terrible ideas - so this realization was huge)
• We have a fridge in the garage so no need to run out and buy a new one
• Financially we have the means to replace what we lost - even if it meant we cut something else out in the budget* 
• We're moving in 6 weeks - I was already planning to try to put everything in our freezer to use in the next few weeks (which means that now we don't have to eat the nasty trout from last year's fishing derby, nor do I feel guilty for throwing it away)

So... I set to work - throwing everything in the fridge (well except for the apples) out, and most of the "sides" in the freezer.  Fortunately very little of the meat had thawed. Well, except for the 2 pounds of bacon we had, but it was still cold so tomorrow morning, my husband may have the best breakfast he's ever had... bacon, bacon and more bacon.  All in all - things weren't looking so bad.  But I'm convinced it wasn't the circumstances that weren't so bad, it was the joy I'd "chosen" (okay, in this case, maybe I was coerced into choosing) that improve the way I approached it.

Only then did a random thought occur to me.  I have been planning to pay off a big medical bill this week...and just like "that" it hit me, maybe they'd negotiate down the bill... so I prayed and then called.  And sure enough, they did.  The amount they reduced my bill by more than covered the cost of replacing the food we lost.

God could have "swooped down from Heaven" and taken care of all this.  If He can give Moses the power to part a stinkin' sea... He surely has the power to have wiped away that medical bill, or keep our fridge from going out.  but instead, He chose to a) meet our needs and b) make it evident that He was meeting our needs.  I know I'm guilty of expecting Him to just miraculously make difficult situations disappear, but today, I am reminded that if He were to do that, we'd miss out on the opportunity to see just how much He cares about the most minute details of our lives.  We wouldn't be able to fully understand his glory or the meaning of Ephesians 3:20.

So as our family is in the midst of a major season of trusting Him and walking by faith - today, I have had the honor of witnessing just what my loving God has been promising me all along "I've got this, I've got it all covered, just trust me" and despite my circumstances, I commit to choosing joy.

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*Footnote - there was a day, when I as a single mom, I had lost everything in my fridge.  The power had gone out and with an already meagerly stocked pantry,  I was left with nothing to feed my children, much less the means to replace it.  God provided for us but it was definitely not easy.  It took me a couple of months to recover financially from it.  Why am I bringing this up?  Because it's easy for us to look at our life circumstances and think it's all crap.  But it's important to see the blessings that we so often overlook.  Having my fridge go out is terribly inconvenient and not what I want to spend money on, but I know it could have been much worse... I've lived it.  And I am grateful that I have, that I can now look at a crummy situation and not take it for granted but instead rejoice in even the smallest of blessings.

God cares about football lovers too!

Back in October, we had the privilege of getting to meet Dave Dravecky and hearing his incredible story of a hope found after losing his big league dreams. We knew we couldn't resist getting an autographed baseball as a Christmas gift for our 9 year old son, Dylan who loves baseball - and who's favorite team is the SF Giants. Our oldest son, Jonah (10) was upset that he didn't get a baseball. I felt terrible - but what could I do? The opportunity had passed and we couldn't just give Jonah his brother's gift. Besides, Jonah's a football fan more than baseball so I just put it out of my mind.

A few weeks ago, my husband and I decided to pop into Scheel's for a little window shopping (it was only fair that after spending 2 hours at Toys R Us trying to find inline skates for all 4 of our kids - that John would have the chance to go to "guyland"). We'd wandered the entire store and as we rounded the corner to leave, we practically walked into a

table where Bubba Paris, former SF 49er's lineman (and Super Bowl champion) sat signing autographs. I noticed a sign said he was an ordained minister and the wheels began turning. In all of my meeknesss [insert sarcasm here], I approached Bubba asking him to tell me about his faith. This poor man who probably receives every football question in the book was taken aback. After he recovered from the surprise of my question (which he admitted nobody else had ever asked him before - at least not in this situation), we were able to confirm that we did indeed have the same faith.

This guy is huge - he made the folding chair he sat in look as if it we're a child's toy. All of a sudden he jumps up - towering over us (my husband is 6'1 and was dwarfed by Bubba). He came around the table, embracing us - and overjoyed to be talking about God with other believers. It was such a cool experience. After a long and surreal conversation we ended up leaving with a football autographed for Jonah.

As we drove home, both John and I were giddy with excitement as the reality of what had happened hit us. We realized that God used us to encourage Bubba - he was overjoyed to talk about God with complete strangers - at the same time that God used Bubba to encourage us. God loves our sons more than we do - and He wanted to give them each a wonderful gift of encouragement. When talking to Bubba, he had asked us why God sent us to talk to him. In the moment, I didn't really take time to think about this question, but when it came down to it I realized that God really did orchestrate all of the details so that both of our boys could have a tangible reminder that no matter what you do in life, you can do it to God's glory. They both have sports memorabilia from successful sports stars that remind them, they are not alone in their faith, that whether they're "ordinary" men or super stars when they grow up, God will use their lives in ways they can't even imagine right now. And we all have a reminder that God cares about the details - and when we're tempted to believe God is the guy described in the song "Wind Beneath My Wings" as watching over us from a distance - we can look at that baseball and football and be reminded that the truth is God is an active and caring part of the most minute details of our lives. So much so that, He took time to honor Dylan in his love for baseball. But he also took time to honor Jonah in his passion for football - after all, God cares about football lovers too!

Christmas Morning: we made the boys open their gifts at the same time on Christmas morning. We recounted the tale of how those gifts came to be - that God had set it up so they could receive them. Both of the boys totally "got it" and were nearly moved to tears. So were John and I!

The Right Task vs. The Right People

This morning, on his blog, Tony Morgan discussed the difference between two types of leaders:

This post stands out out to me because I have had the privilege of learning from and working for both types of leaders. And I have grown from working for both types of leaders.

Working for a “Right Task” leader I grew: · Insecure: I knew if I did not measure up – my job [and therefore my self-image] was at risk · Afraid of Failure · Overwhelmed: The harder I worked, the more capacity I appeared to have – and the more work I was expected to accomplish · Dependent: I stopped thinking for myself. Once while working for a right – task leader, I came back from lunch to be met with a lecture informing me that I had put my paper clips in the wrong spot and that I was not to move them around again b/c if I did, this person would not be able to find them. I was expected to make sure every detail of my work life was a mirror image of this leader. · Boring: I stopped problem solving. I resorted to the method I was allowed to use, and stopped trying to think outside the box. And unfortunately so did everyone else who worked for this leader. This led to poor health, low morale, insecurity and frustration for everyone. · Exhausted: No matter how hard I worked – it simply wasn’t enough.

Working for a “Right People” leader I grew: · In knowledge: I was excited and willing to learn new things · In creativity: I learned to think outside the box, to view “problems” from different angles & enjoyed looking for solutions. · In faith: As I learned new things and tried attacking issues from new angles – I learned to rely on God more, for ideas, creativity and follow-through. · In confidence: I began to see my strengths, my gifts, and my talents at work the way God intended them to be – and was able to grow confident in what He created me to do. · As a team member: I could see my role on the team – that I was valued – that I was a part of the team – but that I was not the entire team by myself. · In satisfaction: I loved my job. That satisfaction by-far outweighed any financial compensation and drove me to work harder and smarter. · Energized: Being valued, and having a chance to use my gifts and talents gave me energy and drive. I was excited to do my work, and to do it well.

I am very privileged to work for nothing but "Right People" leaders now. Whether it's my direct supervisor, or a pastor - my "chain of command" at LifePoint Church is completely comprised of "Right People" leaders who take the time to examine God's gifting in each person - and encourage and love team members as they grow into God's potential for them. And that is just one of the many reasons I absolutely love my job!