You Are Being Watched....

“You are being watched.” This is the opening line of a good guys vs. bad guys TV show Chad and I watch. Do you ever feel that way in your daily Christian life? If you don’t you probably should!

Our extended family took a vacation together last week. I was reminded of how we’re being watched through an encounter with a new person. In the course of our trip, I met Matias, an employee at the hotel where we were staying. We had a conversation for a few minutes, and at the end of it, he said “you’re the nicest person I’ve met all day. It’s been nice talking with you.” A bit later, I returned with Josh, my brother-in-law. Matias got a funny look on his face. “You two are related? Truly, you have a unique family. In all the people I’ve met today you two have stood out as the kindest.”  

In a funny way, it made me a little sad, as I don’t think that our interaction had been all that unique or memorable- just friendly. I remember walking away and praying for him, knowing that the difference he was seeing in us was the fruit of the spirit: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Those responses are every Christian’s calling.

These qualities were put to the test the next day. A mistake was made that affected us, and although it wasn’t our friend Matias’ fault, he would likely hear about our attitude in dealing with the situation. I was keenly aware of WHOSE character I was reflecting in that situation, and I know it impacted my actions. I was not just representing my earthly family, but more importantly, the family of God. Would I choose to respond selfishly or in a Christ-like manner?

To me, a vital part of living out Faith@Home is remembering that as Christ followers we are all being watched by the world around us. How we respond to situations in everyday life is so important.

As Paul writes in Ephesians 4:1-5:

"As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all."  

A modern writer, Jen Hatmaker, puts it this way in her book “For the Love, Fighting for Grace in a World of Impossible Standards”:

"A worthy life involves loving as loved folks do, sharing the ridiculous mercy God spoiled us with first. (It really is ridiculous.) It means restoring people, in ordinary conversations and regular encounters. A worthy life means showing up when showing up is the only thing to do. Goodness bears itself out in millions of ordinary ways across the globe, for the rich and the poor, the famous and unknown, in enormous measures and tiny, holy moments. It may involve a career and it may not. It may include traditional components and it may not.”

This week I urge you to live a life worth of the calling you have received. A life where the fruit of the Spirit is evident in your interactions with others. Remember, you are being watched!

Glittering Luminaries or Lighthouses?

Six years ago this month God started orchestrating circumstances in my life that led to a life change. A big one. I'd worked and studied hard for 10 years in my career, and even earned letters after my name (CFP) to help set me apart in the professional world. But my faith told me God had something else entirely in mind for my future. I prayed Proverbs 3:5-6 often for several months. Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, submit to him, and he will make your path straight. Make my path straight, Lord. I took a trusting step into the area of family ministry, which I'd never really even considered as a career path before. God is faithful. Since then, he's used my imperfection to work through me in ways I never anticipated. My hangers of business skirts now sit mostly untouched, and after a busy family dinner night at church, I realize my sweaters are decorated with spaghetti sauce. But really, I made the career change in faith and haven't looked back.

Friday night my husband Chad's start up company was nominated for an award in our community at Innovation Celebration. Innovation Celebration is not merely an award for accomplishment, but a benchmark of success for those outstanding individuals, organizations and corporations who are nominated and selected to receive this prestigious award. At some point in the evening, I believe the attendees were described as "glittering luminaries" in the local business and university community. Whether awards and success come or not, I'm always proud of Chad, his team, and their hard work. It was really nice to see them honored. Award recipients included a doctor who is working to cure cancer, teams of scientists whose technology developments we barely understood from the descriptions printed in the program, visionaries who are working 10 years ahead of their companies to drive improvement and technological advancement. Really cool stuff. The live band played in the beautiful performing arts center. Fancy hors d'oeuvres were served. The luminaries mingled.

My handsome date and me at Innovation Celebration

Then, the tickle of insecurity hit. A woman exactly my age was honored for her work with students at the University. I'm not a part of this world anymore. Where would I be if I hadn't left the business world? I work with a great team of hard working, God loving, faithful servants who are on staff at the church. None of us will probably ever stand up to accept an award in the business community for our professional accomplishments. 99.8% of the time I think we're ok with that. But there are those moments when it hits home that we're working toward a different goal entirely. One the world doesn't understand.

Sunday morning, I'd swapped my party dress for pants, as I knew I'd be sitting on the floor with the grade schoolers. At church, the hallways were hopping. Sickness struck several of our Sunday school teachers, but the kids seemed to be more than well (except for the little boy with the constantly running nose!) so our pinch hitting teachers had full classes. We had several new children visiting for the first time, two of which spoke very little English. I was responsible for teaching Children's Church, our program for K-3rd graders during the sermon portion of our morning worship time. Within 2 minutes, I'd sent out a helper for my back up reinforcement. Some of the key components for teaching the lesson were missing, which I didn't discover until there were 15 little faces watching me. It was just that kind of morning. I was not feeling like a glittering luminary.

Then, it happened. I glanced over at the chalkboard, and realized I could draw the lesson for the kids. They engaged with the simple story aid I brought. Apparently you can fascinate some children by giving them a poppy seed/substitute mustard seed! During a time they have for reflection, I pointed one little 2nd grade girl toward a beautifully illustrated book of devotional thoughts I thought she might enjoy. She's an inquisitive thing, who sometimes comes across to me as a skeptic. Her family is here from another country for a time. I am constantly amazed by these families that come to our university community to learn and how quickly their children learn to speak English. Many are new to Christianity altogether, so sharing the gospel is a joy. A few minutes later, she was at my side. "Did God create the world? I have a friend who says he didn't. That there is no God." Wow. A big, important question. So we took a few minutes in the midst of the busy classroom and talked about it, another child listening in as well. The hustle and bustle of the morning was totally worth those two minutes. I know God was in that time with the children.

After church, an African woman, a nurse, who's been attending our church for several years flagged me down. "I have a gift for you!" she announced. Me? We always make it a point to greet one another, but she and I have never sat down for an extended conversation. Beaming, she presented me with a beautiful native dress from her home country. I felt like I'd been given an award I didn't deserve. What an honor!

Beautiful African dress- a surprise gift!

Will our community ever consider me, or the people I serve alongside "glittering luminaries"? Probably not. In reflection, though, I think we want to be known as something different altogether: as lighthouses. Pastor Herb used this quote in a sermon a few years ago, and it has stuck with me:

Lighthouse quote from D.L. Moody

Matthew 5:16, "Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." Father. I don't need to shine for my own sake or for attention. Help me remember that. I know any light in me is because of you. Help me reflect your love for this world and point others to you through the work you've given me to do. Amen.

The Jesse Tree Advent Tradition

I have an awesome job. I work for our church helping encourage families to build faith at home all through the year. But I have to be honest, there are so many great ideas and resources that cross my desk, it's almost overwhelming, especially in a season like Advent! How do we simplify the choices, and make sure the most important thing stays the most important thing (loving God with all our hearts, souls, minds and strength?) By mid-November it seems that everything gets caught up in the whirlwind of craziness that has become Americanized "Christmas." Ironically, there even seems to be an abundance of information on "reclaiming" and simplifying Christmas! Last year, our small group, which is made up of those actively parenting, chose ONE thing to focus on with building faith at home through Avent: the tradition of a Jesse Tree. Here's our story!

Step one: Set a realistic time frame! Two years ago we came across the great idea of a Jesse Tree ornament exchange. I'm not going to launch into a huge explanation of the concept here, because others have done a great job of that. We drew inspiration in particular from this blog: http://beautyandbedlam.com/jesse-tree-advent/.  We found the idea in about November, a bit late to get started. So we printed off some sweet, simple tags from this site: http://kelleighratzlaff.com/life/12-days-blog-hop-jesse-tree-advent-with-the-jesus-storybook-bible/ They go along with the Jesus Storybook Bible, a favorite resource many of us already use at home, so it was a natural way to test out the concept. We knew it wasn't realistic to plan a last minute, stress filled exchange, so we simplified! Several of us liked the idea and tradition so much, that we decided to try and organize an exchange for the next year.

Step two: Start early! We started chatting and planning in September. Yes, for some of us (ME!), it's almost painful to start making Advent plans in September, but it paid off! For the most part, we followed the model for the exchange on the Beauty and Bedlam site. On one of our small group nights, in early October, we explained the concept of the Jesse Tree ornament exchange and had those interested sign up. Most families signed up, but not all. We decided to make 18 sets of ornaments each, rather than 25. Several families volunteered to make more than one type of ornament, so we didn't need to end up with 25 kits. We set the exchange night for mid-November. Since there are 25 days of ornaments to use through Advent, ornament kits needed to be in people's hands before December 1. The result? Well, we had so much fun with the project, I just had to share it here!

A few of our ornament artists!

Step three: Plan a fun exchange! The night of the exchange, we set up two long tables, to set ornaments on. We had people bring their ornaments already packaged in plastic baggies with the scripture cards, which one of our amazing friends prepared and distributed in advance. Each family brought them in some type of container so all those little bags wouldn't slide around everywhere, and laid them out in day order, 1-25.

Friends set out their ornaments

I brought in a few small Christmas trees from home, and set them up near the tables. To pass out the ornaments, we had each family, starting with Day 1, present their ornament to the group and read one of the scriptures associated with their day.

Our ornament tables, days 1-25

For example, the Day 1 family showed us the cool globe they made and read Genesis 1:1 to the group. We then passed around the bowl holding the corresponding ornaments around the circle, each family taking one for their kit, and putting it in a larger bag. Most larger bags were as fancy as a plastic shopping bag.  We also hung one ornament on the little trees up front, and watched the collection grow through the evening. It actually felt a bit like Christmas morning- reading scripture and passing around special gifts! Lots of "oohs" and "aahs" as we checked out each other's unique creations. Since our group has a little too much fun sometimes, we made it through most of the scripture readings, but were pressed a bit for time to get it all done in under an hour.  However, I think we all got a good taste of what the tradition is about. We chose to keep our exchange night adults only, but kids could also be a part of the process. We wanted the surprise of opening each ornament with the kids to happen at home.

We set up our ornament days to go along with the readings in this book:

The Advent Jesse Tree book cover

Although the kits are complete with the scripture cards included with the ornaments, if families want to delve deeper with a devotional reading for each day, this book is an excellent resource. It has daily reading options for adults, or families with children.

Since not every day was taken, one friend prepared simple paper ornaments for those days. If families want to take on the project of completing that day with something more artistic in the future, they can. Otherwise, the simple paper ornaments will work well. We may update our slingshot and lion and lamb this year. One of our daughters loves to make just about anything (including animals) on her Rainbow Loom. We'll see what we come up with. One thing we emphasized: ornaments are meant to be special, not perfect! In fact, we encouraged families to work on them together, so many were crafted with kids along with their parents. Here are our creations!

Day 1: The Light in Creation (a globe or picture of the earth)

Day 2: The First Sin (an apple and a snake wrapped around it)

Day 3: Inside the Ark (an ark with a rainbow)

Day 4: The Call to Abram (a camel and a tent)

Day 5: Isaac and the Lamb (a lamb)

Day 6: Jacob's Ladder (a ladder)

Day 7: Joseph's Coat of Many Colors (a colorful coat)

Day 8: Moses and the Ten Commandments (a tablet with ten numbers)

Day 9: Canaan, the Promised Land of Blessings (a cluster of grapes)

Day 10: Ruth and Boaz (a sheaf of wheat)

Day 11: King David (a slingshot)

Day 12: Josiah Finds the Law (a scroll or Bible)

Day 13: Prophecy of Shoot from the Stump of Jesse (a stump with fresh shoot or green leaf)

Day 14: Prophecy of the Lion and Lamb Resting Together (lion and lamb)

Day 15: Prophecy of the Prince of Peace (a dove and a crown)

Day 16: Prophecy of a Gentle Shepherd (a lamb and a shepherd's staff)

Day 17: Prophecy of the Suffering Servant (a cross)

Day 18: Prophecy of the New Covenant (a heart with writing on it)

Day 19: Prophecy of Bethlehem (a Bethlehem town silhouette with star)

Day 20: The Exile (a fiery furnace)

Day 21: The Return to the Land (a brick wall)

Day 22: The Star (a star)

Day 23: The Light of the World (a candle or light)

Day 24: Angels Proclaiming the Coming of Christ (an angel)

Day 25: The Birth of Jesus (a baby in a manger or nativity scene)

Step Four: Enjoy the celebration of Advent at home! Each family took their kit home and went through them each day in December leading up to Christmas.....well, at least they aspired to go through them each day. At our house we had a few "cluster" days to catch up on ones we missed! We hung our ornaments in a special section of our normal Christmas tree, but there are many ways to display them. As with the ornaments, you're only limited by your imagination!

This year we're already looking forward to Advent and continuing this new Jesse Tree tradition. For our family and those in our church, it's become a special way to wait and prepare for the celebration of Christ's birth at Christmas! I hope we've inspired you, as you think about your own traditions. 

Enough? Bright blue Reeboks and M&Ms

What's the first thing you remember WANTING- not needing- but WANTING something more than what you had?

For me, the year was 6th grade.  What I desperately wanted:

White Reebok "princess sneakers"

White Reebok "princess sneakers" (yes, they really were called that.) White leather, pale pink lining: perfection. "All" the girls had them and as the quiet girl on the fringes, I wanted them so I would fit in with the crowd just as much as I wanted them because they were cute.

What my kind-hearted and frugal mom bought me:

"Bright blue" Reebok sneakers

"Bright Blue" (yes, they really were called that) Reebok sneakers. They were on sale for a few dollars less than the princess style, so she snatched up the deal. Part of me was really grateful- they were super comfy and probably the most expensive shoes I'd owned up to that point. BUT there was no "fitting in" with those shoes. The other 6th grade girls started making fun of them from day 1. Were they "enough?" Yes- more than. Was I content? Not really.

This fall in Faithful Families we've been reading "The Gift of Enough: Raising Grateful Kids in a Culture of Excess" by Marianne Miller. http://www.christianbook.com/enough

The Gift of Enough by Marianne Miller book cover

We've been talking about the power we have as parents to instill in our children the strength to combat today's materialistic culture with hearts of gratitude. If you're older than your mid-twenties, remember the peer pressure of your youth? Take that, and now add to it the constant "always on" comparison pressure from digital access and social media that today's generation of kids and teens face. As those who care about the next generation, our wisdom and encouragement is needed now more than ever!

Although we know we live in a culture that idolizes excess, this is not a new issue. Paul writes in Philippians 4, "I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength." He knew it was human nature to be discontent. As Christians, we know that there is no true contentment in this world apart from a life in Christ. However, we live in a world that tells us there is not true contentment apart from our stuff.

We're enjoying this book because the author, who has experience as a mom, financial counselor with Crown Financial Ministries, and has worked with teenagers in middle schools for many years, shares nuggets of practical wisdom she's learned along the way. 

She suggests a simple exercise to help us and our children understand the concept of "enough." Imagine with me a continuum which goes from SCARCITY to ENOUGH to ABUNDANCE to TOO MUCH. She contends that if we fail to understand and teach enough, we can't expect an appreciation of abundance. 

Pile of M&M candy

If I told you that you could eat as many M&Ms as you wanted, which pile would you choose? There are four choices: 

Scarcity-Enough-Abundance-Too Much illustrated in M&Ms

Which did you choose? Would you feel grateful to receive that amount of candy? Why? Take a look at the pile labeled "too much." What might happen if you ate that all at once? I can tell you from personal experience, there is definately such a thing as "too much" grape pop. Let's just say that after about 3 cans straight at a family reunion as a kid, I haven't touched the stuff since. Too much is never good for the person who gets too much. Sadly, the news headlines today are dominated with the story of yet another materially wealthy celebrity who has self-destructed as the result of too much. 

So many of us really don't understand the concept of "enough," which means when we receive abundance we're not overly excited or grateful about it. Back to my shoes- my mom thought she was giving me abundance- name brand sneakers! I struggled to see it that way because they weren't exactly what I wanted.

Imagine I'm sitting next to you in church right now. If I leaned over and handed you a couple of M&Ms would you be happy about it? Sure! It would be an unexpected surprise! In this situation, where a sweet treat is unexpected, it would feel as good as getting a giant pile! Our expectations in situations impacts our happiness. This basic lesson can lead into a much broader conversation about observing the people around us and whether they're content with what they have or always wanting more. Where does our identity come from- our stuff, or our position as a child of God? 

One final suggestion. Try out the word "enough" at home this week. Maybe it means thinking through the meaning of enough in one simple area of your own life- enough T-shirts, enough time watching TV or gaming, enough eating out. If you have kids, use it in conversation. "One brownie is enough." "You have enough stuffed animals." Help set reasonable expectations.

If this is a challenge (and it probably will be!), remember Paul's words: "I can do all this through him who gives me strength."

What's an area of your life that could use some defining of enough? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

The Good News Is....

Have you heard these statements before?

"50% of all marriages end in divorce."

"The divorce rate within the church is no different than that of the general public."

"Marriage is HARD."

These so-called facts paint a pretty bleak picture of the state of marriage in our society. No wonder so many people are discouraged and giving up on the idea of healthy marriage relationships. The GOOD news is, those statistics are faulty.

Book cover for "The Good News About Marriage"

Last week several of us had the privilege of hearing Harvard graduate, analyst and author Shaunti Feldhahn speak at the D6 Conference on family ministry. She brought a message about restoring HOPE in relationships based on her social research. Her book titled The Good News About Marriage goes into detail about her findings. You can find it here: http://www.christianbook.com/

Over 12 years of research, Shaunti has discovered that one common denominator in whether a marriage survives or fails- or whether a couple even gets married to begin with- is whether the couple has a sense of hope or a sense of futility.

"If a struggling couple believes 'Yeah, this is tough, but we're going to make it,' they usually do. But once people start to think otherwise, they all too soon employ the logic of futility: if the ship is going to sink anyway, why bother working hard to bail it out? That poisonous doubt- which is really about the possibility of marriage working in general- gets into our minds years before we approach the altar."

A young couple, full of of hope!

We, and our society, need to be reminded that a lifelong, abundant, joyous marriage is possible!  From her experience, here are a few things Shaunti wants you to know:

• The most depressing statistics we hear floating around about divorce (such as that ominous 50% rate) are not even close to true.  According to the census bureau, 71% of people are still married to their first spouse. The 29% who are not even includes those who were married until a spouse died. No one exactly knows the divorce rate, but in all likelihood, it is much closer to 25%. And millennials- those most scared away from marriage to bein with- have an even lower rate of divorce than their parents at the same ages. 
• Church attendance matters! The fact that you're sitting in church today, in community with other with other believers, means you're doing something to help strengthen relationships. Those who regularly attend church DO have a lower divorce rate. In her book, Shaunti goes into detail on that often quoted but misunderstood Barna research study about the rate of divorce of those in church. She later partnered with the Barna group to re-run the numbers together. They found that regular church attendance lowers the divorce rate anywhere from 25-50%.
• Happy marriages are the RULE not the EXCEPTION! We've gotten into a bad habit of using phrases like "marriage is HARD!" Think about it- that's not exactly the best advertisement for future generations, is it? The fact is, although marriages certainly have issues to work on, most people, about 80%, truly enjoy being married. Let's change the message to "Marriage takes hard work, and it's worth every bit!" 
• Little things make a big difference. Although some marriages are broken up by "big ticket" issues, such as forms of abuse or serious depression, many more are affected by misunderstanding. Two spouses who love each other but may be working hard in the wrong areas, or hurting one other without intending to. Getting help and seeking to make seemingly minor changes can have a big impact. 
• Commitment is powerful. If couples stick together through the tough times, 80% report being happy together 5 years later. If you're going through a rough patch right now, that should be great news!

Jack and Alice B., my grandparents, smooching on their 50th anniversary.

No matter what you're relationship status is today, I hope that you will be encouraged. There is HOPE. A great marriage IS possible!

*The research and quotes from this article are summarized from Shaunti Feldhahn's talk at the D6 Conference on September 17, 2015 and from an article, "Restoring Hope for Marriages In the Next Generation-and the Current One!" in the D6 Conference booklet.

Love WELL

After listening to the news the past few weeks and feeling discouraged, I wrote in my journal “sometimes being a Christian feels like walking around with a broken heart." My heart hurts for others and for this world, which is in so much pain. I am reminded of how big the problems are and how small I am. Some days my prayers end with a sigh and pleading, “come, Lord Jesus”.

BUT, as believers we know that the pain here is not the end of the story, and we rejoice in that! God has already won the battle! He calls each and every one of us to play our part, to deny ourselves, take up our cross daily and follow Him as He works in the world around us. Some days I’m still left with the lingering practical question, though, “what can I do?” to help change this hurting world?

Several years ago I heard Fred Luter, the first African-American president of the Southern Baptist Convention, speak to this issue. Although I can’t quote him exactly, here was his point:

If you want to change the world, change the nation

If you want to change the nation, change the state

If you want to change the state, change the cities,

If you want to change the cities, change the schools,

If you want to change the schools, change the homes.

Starting at home, at work, within our spheres of influence seems like the logical place.

So pause and think with me a bit today:

Who has God put in your path that needs hope?

Where can you intentionally nurture healthy relationships, or offer encouragement someone who needs it today?

What causes has God put specifically on your heart?

Dr. Wes Stafford, former President and CEO of Compassion International, whose career has brought him into contact with countless children, says that he sees every interaction he has with a child as a divine appointment. Have you ever thought about that? Something as simple as smiling at that squirming toddler strapped in a grocery cart (or maybe at the frazzled mom) as a divine appointment? Playing laser tag with a teenager? In his book Too Small to Ignore, Dr. Stafford contends that the time has come for a major paradigm shift in how we think about children. They are too intensely loved by God to be left behind or left to chance. Children belong to all of us and we are compelled to intervene on their behalf. We must invest in children- all around the world. So I challenge you now to think about the children and teenagers God has put in your path. How can you invest in them today?

Dr. Stafford says “He’s learned that “poverty and abuse speak the same language- a message that says “you don’t matter. Give up! Both are completely opposite to the wonderful message of the gospel, which says” you DO matter. You are of immeasurable value. You are deeply loved by God himself.” People of all ages and races need to hear that good news and see if lived out through God’s people- us!

Dr. Kathy Koch, a popular speaker and author on working with children says “love well the children you love” Take a moment and think about that. “LOVE WELL THE CHILDREN YOU LOVE” I think that can be applied to people of any age. Are we loving those around us WELL? What does that look like for you?  

If we did truly love others well, what difference would it make- in homes? in schools? in cities? in states, in nations? in the world? Until the time Jesus returns, I pray that he will use me to change the world by loving him and loving others of every age around me well.

Update:

I wrote these words a few weeks ago, and shared them in our service on May 8th. Maybe not your typical encouraging Mother's Day devotion, but it was what God put on my heart. I needed to go back and re-read these words today. I saw another article this morning that tore me up inside, you can find it here, http://www.aholyexperience.com/2015/05/into-iraq about the situation in Iraq. Tears were streaming down my face as I read. As a mother of two girls.... it's hard to put words to the horror. And yet there is HOPE. I'm asking God today to use me to love others however I can. Let's wage LOVE. Let's LOVE WELL!

Truth Before Opinion (a.k.a. Faith Before Facebook)

A huge unexpected blessing in our family's relationships: my husband Chad works from home. The girls and I love having him around, and he's patient with us. Through the years we've learned some ins and outs: we don't shower in the bathroom directly above his office when he's on Skype calls and he does his best to walk away from the computer at dinner time. His presence enables us to chat for a few minutes off and on through the day and sometimes he and I are able to sit down for lunch together. We both love a good intellectual discussion; current events, faith, parenting, whatever is on our minds. At the end of an especially windy lunch talk, one of us will often jokingly announce that we've just solved all the world's problems. If only! Both of us highly value quality time together, so it's been neat to see how God has used this simple pattern in our daily life to grow our marriage.

That said, as I've gotten older I've become increasingly aware that I need some space in the mornings. With kids, this can be a challenge, as I'm not an especially early riser. In my perfect world, I'd have exercised, dressed, had a quiet time and breakfast made by the time anyone else is up. Rarely are those days reality. Typically by the time the hustle and bustle of getting everyone on the bus (with healthy lunches, somewhat coordinating clothes, signed homework returned and hopefully brushed teeth) I'm ready for a bit of solitude. I've found this is the best time of day for me to curl up on the couch with my Bible to read and pray. PEACE. I need this foundation. My desire for quality time with other people will come later, but first I have to prioritize my relationship with God.

This morning as soon as the front door closed behind our children, my sweet husband was ready for an intellectual discussion. I was not. He'd been on Facebook, and had read a few opinionated articles about the hot topic of the day. A bit amped up, he was ready to dive right in. As sweetly as I could, while stirring my coffee, I said "no debates yet." But he needed to get some of it off his chest. After hearing him out for a few minutes, but really not responding beyond some head nods and smiles, he'd said his peace and wandered back to his office. After 17 years of marriage, you do learn to read your spouse's non-verbal cues. I grabbed my lukewarm coffee and headed to my spot on the couch, Bible in hand. 

Recently I've been reading through the gospels. I started with John and and am now reading Matthew. Matthew has a special place in my heart because it's the first book I studied as a Bible quizzer in 7th grade. I love reading verses I memorized 20 some years ago and still knowing them word for word. This morning I was reading Matthew 9. It chronicles Jesus healing a paralyzed man, calling Matthew to follow Him, eating with Matthew and his tax collector/sinner friends at his house, answering questions from the Pharisees about fasting, healing a bleeding woman, restoring a girl life, healing the blind and mute. Teaching, healing, drawing people to him. The end of the chapter closes with a favorite verse, which became my main prayer "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into the harvest field." (Matthew 9:38) A great reminder. The harvest was plentiful then, it's plentiful now. Our world today is certainly still in great need of healing. A 60 second review of the day's Facebook posts will quickly confirm that fact.

Not wanting my husband to feel completely abandoned from our earlier lack of conversation, I made my way down to his office. After some prayer and contemplation, I knew what I needed to say. "I need truth before opinion." At the start of the day, I want to hear from God before I hear from the rest of the world. "Wow," he said, "that's good, Honey. I get it." He shows me grace, this husband of mine.

This is by no means a new idea: beginning the day with Bible reading and conversation with God. Yet in our fast paced, always-on world, in my own life this can easily fall by the wayside. I'm not alone. Did you know that 80% of 18-44 year-olds check their smart phones within 15 minutes of waking up in the morning (http://www.adweek.com/socialtimes/smartphones/480485 )? Yikes! I saw a friend post recently, yes, most likely on Facebook, that it was her goal to crack open her Bible in the morning before opening Facebook. It resonated with me, and after this morning's conversation with my hubby, it did with him too.  I definitely want to be grounded in the truth of God's word and be reminded of the ultimate purpose for my one short life before reading the debate du jour or seeing who's invited me to play Candy Crush Saga. Even those photos of smiling friends, prayer requests and positive updates can wait.

My new challenge? Putting faith before Facebook in my daily schedule. If this makes sense to you, I challenge you to try it with me! My phone in and of itself isn't evil, but I'm all too aware of how quickly I turn it on and get sucked into distraction, sometimes even frustration. As I've matured in my faith, I've realized God has created this desire in me for some morning solitude help me prioritize quality time with Him. I can do my part by minimizing distractions, especially the digital ones! Can you relate? What distractions might God be asking you to minimize so you can hear Him first?