Does Your Public Face Match Your Private One?

When my children were growing up I didn't want my neighbors to know what was happening in our home. So when I walked out the door, I put on a happy face.  Inside I was complexed, unhappy, upset, or angry. I hid what was really happening in our home. We went to church because it was the thing to do. I wanted us to be a normal family (whatever that was), but I also was not walking right with the Lord.
I would tell my kids not to do something and I in turn would do exactly that wrong thing. What was I teaching my kids?  I was teaching them to lie, have a fabricated personality, and I taught them that wrong is right. My heart cries for the damage I did. BUT GOD!
I am thankful that I serve a great God! "But the fruit of the Spirit, GOD,  is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, and faithfulness." Galatians 5:22
He corrected me like a loving parent does. I in turn had  to reteach my children.

Does your public face say that everything is going good when it is bad? Would I want my life to be on the big screen for the county to watch? Probably not. It's not anyone's business what happens in my home life.
Most homes are dysfunctional and everything is falling apart in the house with our temper, bad language, bad attitude and the junk that isn't in public is in private.
I have walked my dog and prayed over my neighbor's home. Once in a while I will see the person who lives in these homes. I don't know them, we just say "hello" and move on. God knows what is and is not happening in their lives. It's not for me to know unless someone is being harmed by themselves or others.
However, God tells us how we should conduct our homes.
There are many people dying in our world today because of addictions, domestic violence, and crime.

If we are teaching our children right from wrong we are doing well. If our talking the talk is not matching our walk, there is room for improvement.

The Lord says how we should resolve to conduct our homes: "I will behave myself wisely and give heed to the blameless way--O when will You come to me? I will walk within my house in integrity and with a blameless heart."               Psalm 101:2.

If you are praying a man or woman, shouldn't' we be praying for our neighbors and loving them as God has commanded us?

We drive our cars down the road and we should keep our eyes on that road, but is it too much for us to pray for our neighbors we pass?
Some of us walk or run in our neighborhoods, is it too much to pray for the neighbor that we just passed by?
My friend, prayer works. If it wasn't for people praying for me while I was teaching my children how to live unjustly, I wouldn't be writing to you now. My children would have been on a different road than they are now. Life is good because someone prayed for us.  It's not an easy road and it will not be an easy road, but it is more peaceful, loving, and kind to us.
I resolve to be the same in my home as I am in public. Sure there are things I will not do in public as private, but I chose to conduct my home as the Lord teaches us to.

But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” Joshua 24:15b

~ Be encouraged, these things are earth are temporal.
If you don't know this man Jesus that gives us life everlasting and a peace that surpasses all understanding. Please contact me or someone to help you to be introduced to him.  
I encourage you that if you aren't willing to talk to someone than listen about him on 91.3 Hope FM. 
He's worth it all. 
 

Who Has A Hard Time With Change?

Do you have a difficult time with change? I didn't believe I did. Since I've gotten older though, I've realized I would rather run from change than embrace it.
Recently I had an epiphany and a spiritual growth spurt.  If you are someone that doesn't care for change this might help you too.
I'm the girl that enjoys a hot shower.  When the air is cold, the comfort of this hot shower makes me NOT want to step on the cold floor, can you relate? That hot shower is the comfort zone. The cold floor is the change to come.
My space at work, home, or other ministries are comfortable. I know what to expect, my schedule is on a tight ship and things run rather smoothly. They run smoothly until a change in the process occurs. Now I am forced to readjust my lifestyle, my space, my schedule. Eureka! NO!
I'm now feeling disgruntled, I don't want to change my routine, I like what I do and when I do it.  What do you mean I need to organize and delegate? I didn't do that before, so why now? How did I get elected to be in charge?
I am invisibly struggling in the straight jacket that is marked with bold letters "CHANGE."  But I don't want to. (Can you see the temper tantrum going on?)
Okay; I'll breath now and move on. I need a change in my life, it's a good time to stop and relax a while, give myself a break from my normal schedule. Yeah, that's the answer.Breath.
Here's the epiphany. I stop and actually listen to myself and the words that are coming out of my mouth. I recognize that I don't like change. I don't want things around me to change or even make a slight adjustment. I don't like the change so I am just not going to.  Oops, there I go again, back into the disgruntled department.  Can you relate? 
It was like my past flashed before my mind. I'm doing what I've always done. Nothing has changed, just because I said I was going to slow down and adjust; I didn't.  So what can I do.  Hmmm.
Okay, make the choice to change.  Taking a deep breath, I am going to try this again.  I'm ready to run and move onward to greener pastures now.  Here I go, I'm taking off, I'm diving into the change. It's not so bad now.  I am going to look at it from a different perspective; okay this is harder than I realize.I DO NOT LIKE THIS TEETER TOTTER: LET ME OFF!
So I decided to have a little talk with Jesus.  I told him I recognize how I am ready to run from this change instead of embracing it. If all I know how to do is run from change, how can I embrace it instead?
Do you know the serenity prayer?  Most of us know the beginning part.."God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference." I've got that part down.
But it's the second half that the Serenity prayer that the Lord brought to my mind that changed my life and I'm embracing the change now.
"Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time; accepting hardship as a pathway to peace; taking, as Jesus did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; trusting that You will make all things right if I surrender to Your will; so that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with You forever in the next. Amen"

WOW, I finally understood the second half of that prayer and I've been praying this for three years or more. It's that kind of change we don't want to accept but need to accept?
First we're only promised one day at a time. Jesus didn't give us tomorrow; it's only an idea. "Accepting hardships as a pathway to peace," I don't like hardships, long sufferings, but I will accept it because there is peace on the other side. "Taking as Jesus did this sinful world as it is not as I would have it," man I want what I want and I want it now. If you don't give it to me on a silver platter I'm out of here. I don't want to delegate or even be in charge, but I will for Jesus' purpose.  Isn't that  how we should change our mind set? Be more like Jesus? He took this world as it is, loves as we are, shouldn't we take things the way they are? "Change is going to happen Marjorie, embrace it and get over yourself."
Okay Lord, I'll surrender to this change I must go through, keep my eyes on you and the home that is set before me. This world is not where I belong, but just give me Jesus and I'll be alright. After all, he's the reason I do what I do, go where I go, and run my race for.
So why do you run your race? What do you do about the changes in your life? Do you do what I use to do, run? Or do you face them head on and just accept them for what they are; changes?
No one enjoys an interruption in their life not even in their schedule, but it happens. How you respond is up to you.  I'm embracing change and looking forward to enjoying it all the way through to the other side.

~Be encouraged, change can be good.

Disclaimer....I enjoy my work, home life, and ministries and I wouldn't change them for anything...BUT for Jesus.