Buggy Thoughts

I've moved!

I've moved and you're invited to visit me at my new digs!

Grace & Humility!

This morning while in the shower I was thinking about the blessings and thanks we’ve all been posting on Twitter and Facebook. Not that I don’t reflect upon my blessings each and every day, but this being Thanksgiving I was reflecting upon my blessings. We all tend to focus on the positive event and people in our lives and then it struck me that I am also thankful for the not so positive events and people in my life. Then I sat down to read my devotions. As I read Daniel 9: 15-19 and James 4 it was right there in front of me. Yes, the positive events and people in my life are most definitely a bless, but so are the not so positive events and people. The tough times, rough roads, lousy days (or in some cases weeks), extra grace required people have all been there for a reason. They’ve brought me closer to my husband and children. They’ve shaped me and made me who I am today. But more importantly, they’ve brought me to my knees and totally dependent to the most gracious God that I serve. They’ve taught me humility and grace (and believe me I’m still learning). They’ve brought me closer to God and into a relationship that I probably not have had if everything had always been rosey.

So on this Thanksgiving I give thanks for all the blessings in my life, good and bad, positive and challenging and I thank God for giving me the whole enchilada!

"The Greatest Gift"

Thanks to Carlos Whitaker for posting this.  Thanking God for my greatest gift! 

The Greatest Gift from Carlos Whittaker on Vimeo.

 

Act Swiftly

 

This past week Jon and I had the privilege to attend the Right Now Conference.  This is the 2nd year that we’ve had a chance to go and I have to admit that it was just as inspiring as it was the first time.  My mind is reeling with thoughts, ideas, wanting to get moving, wanting to act swiftly.  I’m suffering from what JR Vassar described as “anguish of aspirations”.  The entire premise behind Right Now is that the church doesn’t have time to sit back and think about what needs to be done to stop injustice, to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, to help the poor.  But, we must act swiftly.  

Pete Briscoe talked about being a “trader”.  What are you going to trade in to help? He talked about leadership and making sure that in order to live with Christ in our lives we have to be totally convinced to trust fully in Christ.  “Don’t be an unconvinced travel agent talking about places you’ve never been.”  

When Tim Ross (one of my personal favorites) took the stage to talk about TMI (Too Much Information) I know we were wondering what he was going to say.  An on fire Pentecostal preacher he hits the ground running with his TMI- it’s all about transparency.  “As believers if we’re going to reach people we need to start with something in common”.  Be transparent, let others see who you really are, don’t put on airs or pretenses.  How can others relate to you if you are pretending that you are perfect without any flaws.  The woman at the well tried 6 men that wouldn’t allow her to be who she was- the 7th, Jesus, accepted her for who she was.  

Todd Phillips brought the young folks (and us oldies) insight on excelling within the boundaries God has placed in our lives.  “Excel where God has placed you. Simply refuse to let bitterness take root. When you’re ready to leave a job or situation, stay a little longer.  Don’t run away- stay and see what God wants you to get out of it.”  Of course, Jon and I really had to chuckle when he says that we must have that perseverance factor.  Jon had an internship supervisor that always said“Suffering is good for you”.   Oh, Harold, you don’t have any idea how right you are and how many times we’ve persevered and discovered the light at the end of the tunnel!

Thank you World Vision for being at Right Now!  1000 “promise packs”, backpacks filled with school supplies and some of the necessary things for life, were assembled for the children of Haiti.  The World Vision sponsorship table was overflowing with folks wanting to sponsor a child.  3 year old Francisco from Mexico joined our family of sponsored kids! 

I could go on and on and on about moving and heartfelt worship led by Patrick Ryan Clark, the speakers- Max Lucado,  David Nasser, & Erwin McManus, just to name a few.  But, if I wrote just the little snippets of was said I’d be here all day.  I couldn’t twitter fast enough (I don’t know how they do it), I couldn’t write fast enough and by Friday night my mind was reeling with ideas and thoughts and that “anguish of aspiration”.  Where do we start?

I have to tell you - God threw a party and conference last Wednesday through Friday at The Right Now Conference in Irving, TX and 2500+ people showed up!  Wow!

 

Random act of culture

This is just absolutely awesome!  I just can't imagine what it would've been like to have been there, but sure would've loved to have the chance.  What a great start to the holiday season!

 

Encouragement For Today « Treasure Hunt by Gail Hyatt

Praying for a real sense of God’s abiding presence in you today—filling you, and leading you each step of the way.

via gailbhyatt.wordpress.com

Thanks Gail for this posting!

Learning to be a Texan

I'm learning what it means to live in Texas.

Mornings and evenings are peaceful and breathtakingly beautiful

 

There are critters I've never seen before, including those that will visit you in the house whenever they want!

 

Everything is big including flowers....

  food...

  and freeways.

Although we can go to the beach anytime we want.

 We will still enjoy some fall colors as we've always done up north!

So as one of our friends has said..." We weren't born here, but we got here as fast as we could!"

 

 

Mom's and Daughters

If you’re a daughter or a mom I’m sure that you’’ll agree with me that the fair majority of mom’s and daughter’s have some kind of a “love/hate” relationship going.  It’s just a law of nature.  I’ll admit that I truly have that type of relationship with my mom.  There have been times and still are when she was and/or is my hero and everything that I want to be.  And times when she is not on the top of my list and there’s no way I want to be like her. 

But, no matter where we were in our relationship my mom is the one that has always been clued in on what is going on in my life.  When I was in high school my mom worked at my school.  Most kids would’ve been totally embarrassed to have their mom as a “hall monitor”.  But, it never bothered me and I actually enjoyed having her there during the day.  Yes, she knew some of my friends that I wish she didn’t know and at times I felt I was held to a higher level of expectation that the other students and not able to get away with some things but for some reason it really never occurred to me that I was supposed to be upset by her presence.  She’s the one that after I got married and I couldn’t remember how to cook something or wanted to ask her why something didn’t turn out (like my failed Christmas cookies)  I only had to pick up the phone.  There were times that although I could remember I’d just call her to make her feel as if she was still needed for advice.   She’s the one that when there was news about the kids or just general goings on in our lives that we would call and fill her and my dad in on what what happening.  And they’re the ones that when there was an imminent move in our future they were the first to know outside of our dis.  I’ve always found it difficult as a child and married adult not to tell her what was going on.

This past year, though, my mom was placed in a nursing home.  There are times she’s with the moment and then there are times she’s not with the moment, which are more often than not.  So, when our niece and her husband had their first baby and then we discovered that we are going to be grandparents for the first time it was strange and difficult to know that she really doesn’t have a clue that she has a new great-grandchild and another one on the way.  With our son and daughter-in-laws move to CT and our move to TX what is equally strange and weird is to realize that for the first time in my life my mom doesn’t have a clue where we are or what we are doing. 

It feels strange......

Some call it stress!

Have you ever taken one of those tests to determine how much stress you are may be experiencing due to all the life changes that you've undergone in the past year.  Well, I started to think about this the other day and I can't find any way that I can call the life changes that we've had stressors.  In fact, I can't see them as anything but waiting to see!  How can you consider these stressors?

News that our one son and daughter-in-law are headed to New Haven, CT to begin a new adventure as he enters Yale Divinity School.  

News that our other son and daughter-in-law are expecting and will bring the first new little Kosec into this world.  We're going to be grandparents!  

 News that Jon has received a new call to a church in TX and so we too begin a new adventure!

I guess if I were a negative person I could look at these as stressors and oh, woe is me.  But, I'm not a negative person and neither is Jon or any other member of our family.  We can only look at these as a time that God is showing us that he's not finished with us yet.  They most certainly are blessings  and I thank God for all that he has given us to look forward to in each and everyone of our new adventures.  It's sure is a time of "Wait and See" because God's not finished with us yet!

Just to finish this up... as I was listening to a CD this morning so many of the songs were touching my heart.  But, one in particular just really kind of said it all and so inspired this writing.

 

So if you ever find a time that you are dealing with so many life changes, I pray that instead of thinking of them as stressors that you can think of them as a time of "Wait and See' because God's not finished with you yet!

 

Memories

Having lived in the Madison, WI area we tend to travel over that way quite a bit to do some shopping.  I remember when we first lived there we came across a small town between Platteville, WI and Dubuque, IA called Dickeyville.  It's funny how something as obtuse as a town name can bring back memories of something or someone.  So, it didn't surprise me not too long ago on one of our excursions to Madison that as we passed the Dickeyville exit Jon remarked that when he sees the name of the town it makes him think of my Grandma Petery.  I definitely had to agree with him.  You see my Grandma had a little ditty, Two Little Dickey Birds,  that she would do to entertain any of us kids, including our own, when we were little.  Here's how it would go.  Imagine a little piece of kleenex stuck on the tip of each of her index fingers pointing upwards as the "dickey birds".  Hands closed in a fist with only the "dickey birds" in view she would recite....

Two little dickey birds sitting on a hill.

One named Jack, and one named Jill

Fly away Jack. Fly away Jill. 

Come back Jack. Come back Jill

As they flew away her hands would gracefully fly behind her shoulder and as they came back the little pieces of kleenex would be gone!  We were amazed!  Where did the dickey birds go!  Gramma was a magician because whenever any of us tried it somehow the kleenex was still stuck to our finger!  

I have to admit this is really a silly memory, but there are just somethings that trigger those memories. Especially when you had a Gramma that was as awesome and wonderful as my Gramma Petery was!  So here's to you Gram- Dickeyville, WI is in your honor!