Well... I finally did it!

For the first time ever I e-filed my taxes. I've been a paper-and-pencil girl all these years. I think I like having all the documents right in front of me. I get a bit lost sometimes flipping between computer screens. And maybe there's something reassuring in putting a stamp on the forms and mailing them. But, I bit the bullet and rather enjoyed the process. It took me less than two hours, and I have a decent refund coming.

The product - H&R Block's TaxCut Free File. Thanks H&R Block! (Throwing a little business Matt's way, too!)

God's Will

I think one purpose of fasting is to seek God's will on certain issues. So, along with that, He seems to be teaching me some things about His will. For example, at church Sunday night, we studied Jesus' prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mt 26). You get such a sense of Jesus' humanity in that passage as he prays there might be some other way for God's will be to accomplished. But, nevertheless, he prays "no my will, but thine." This evening I was reading in Exodus 5 where the LORD calls Moses to be his representative to Pharaoh. Moses gives every excuse he can thinking of, and when he runs out of excuses he finally says, "please send someone else to do it." Ha! I read that and think, "what a coward!" But... then I realize most of us fall into that same category. God promises to provide all our needs, but somehow when He's calling us to do something we list off every excuse we can think of...

"I'm too busy"
"That doesn't fit into my life"
"I'm too young/too old"
"My friends would think I'm crazy"
"I don't have the qualifications"
"I've/we've never done that before"
"That's impossible"
... and a million more

Finally we plead, "God, PLEASE send someone else to do it." But God doesn't let up. He knows what He's doing. He knows who to send. He knows our backgrounds, our skills, our limitations... He knows it all. And... He still asks of us.

I pray I will be a person who doesn't squirm to find a way out but who courageously steps up, accepts my mission and says, "Here I am, send me."

I love this quote by Dr. George W. Truett, "The know the will of God is the greatest knowledge; to do the will of God is the greatest achievement. The will of God is not always easy, but it is always right."

Amen.

V-day Flowers...

Somebody must love me!! :)

Friend?

I just ran across this poem, and I'm happy to note that I'm not even sure to whom it may have referred...

Friends?

From the first moment you extended your hand to me,
I've wondered what kind of friend you will be.

Maybe just an acquaintance,
someone who might happen to recognize me on the street.

Maybe the casual friend who meets me irregularly for dinner
and occasionally drops me an email to say "hi."

What about that friend who is so close, so deeply involved in my life
that I can't imagine a life apart, until six months later that time comes.
You could be that person.

Or you could be, just possibly, an eternal friend,
one who loves me endlessly,
who despite the time and distance is an intricate part of me.

Only in retrospect will I know who you are.
As for now, I see the possibilities in your eyes.
And I know that you are important, no matter what your role in my life.
For this time, I'm glad to know you.

A Call to Die

Our church is committing the next 21 days or so (leading up to Easter) to fast and pray. We're doing a variety of fasts (food, media, etc.). I've elected a sort of "social" fast. I'm going to take some time I would generally spend with friends and take the time to spend in dedicated prayer and Bible study. I'm excited to see what God will teach me and what he may reveal to us corporately and individually.

I've already journaled about a variety of topics and things that God has laid on my heart. And I already have a couple of "to do" items from God... a phone call, a thank you and a challenge to be a better neighbor. (That one may be more difficult for me and will require me to get out of my comfort zone.)

What I've read today that struck me...

From Matthew 15 - "What goes into a man's mouth does not make him 'unclean' but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him 'unclean.'" (vs 11) "Don't you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man 'unclean.' For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander." (vs. 17-19) (Reminds me of one of my new favorite verses, Matthew 12:34b - "Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.")

Then my prayer in Psalm 19:14, "May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer."