Are You Connected?

Ah Technology. Last week my family headed to the Outer Banks of North Carolina to enjoy some R&R. Before we left, I wrote my 3 blogs for the week and set them to auto-publish at the correct time. I was feeling techno-fabulous. I was still getting responses ("comments"). I could stay connected to my bloggie friends and they'd never even have to know I was gone.

Oh Technology! The internet at the beach house was S-L-O-W. I'd send out my log in and password, but it didn't seem to get there. While I could visit my bloggie friends' blogs, I couldn't comment! I was NOT connected. And interestingly, without leaving comments on others' sites, my own site's visits dropped by 1/3! I felt seriously out-of-touch. And after a while, I just gave up trying.

Sometimes my prayer life can mirror my techno-life. I'm shooting up prayers, getting responses and feel oh-so connected with God. I am feeling faith-fabulous. I am on the high speed prayer connection with my knee mail.

Other times, however, it seems I'm on dial up faith connection. I am sending out prayers, but they just don't seem to get there. My responses drop. I feel seriously out-of-touch. I'm like the verizon phone guy, calling out to God "Can you hear me now?" And sometimes, I hate to admit, I just give up trying.

I need to follow the Jesus' example of prayer: "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed." (Mark 1:35). Having small kids, its hard to find a solitary place. Even the bathroom isn't! But, if I would get up very early in the morning, perhaps I could find that solitary place.

My prayer life is a lot like my technology life. To keep connected to God, I need to make sure I keep reading his comments (the Bible), and I need to keep sending Knee Mail.

How about you? Are you connected?

Psalm 66:20 - - Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!

Luke 5:16 - - But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.

Romans 12:12 - - Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

4th of July

Today is 4th of July, and in the United States it is our Independence Day. This is the day we celebrate the signing of the declaration of independence, declaring our independence from England.

Are you independent? My youngest daughter tries to be. "I can do it myself!" she often exclaims. And she will scream and struggle to do the thing she wants to do, determined not to ask for help, becoming more frustrated. Ah the sweet taste of independence, no?

I can be a lot like my daughter. (If you've read my blog header, you know). How often do I say to God "I can do it myself!" Perhaps not in those words, but in my actions I struggle to go it alone. And figuratively I scream and struggle, determined not to ask for help, I become more frustrated.

As a parent, I wait for my daughter to ask for help, so I can rush to her assistance; as our parent, God waits for us. Matthew 7:7 tell us this, "Ask, and it will be given." God wants us to come to him in prayer to ask for his help.

Many of you, like me, feel like asking for help is a sign of weakness. Yet in 2 Corinthians 12:9 we learn "'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I {Paul} will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me."

Yes, today is Independence Day. But I'm celebrating my dependence...on God.

Proverbs 30:7 -- Give me enough food to live on, neither too much nor too little. If I'm too full, I might get independent, saying, 'God? Who needs him?' If I'm poor, I might steal and dishonor the name of my God." (The Message)

Galatians 3:9 -- So those now who live by faith are blessed along with Abraham, who lived by faith—this is no new doctrine! And that means that anyone who tries to live by his own effort, independent of God, is doomed to failure. Scripture backs this up: "Utterly cursed is every person who fails to carry out every detail written in the Book of the law."

Psalm 62:7 -- My salvation and my honor depend on God ; he is my mighty rock, my refuge. (NIV)

Well Shut My Mouth!

Have you ever said something so stupid that you wish that you could either quickly suck it back in, or that the floor would swallow you up? I think we're all guilty of that! The most commonly discussed faux pas is "When are you due?" to a woman who informs you she is not pregnant. While I've never said that before, I did have my daughter ask, in that very loud shrill child voice, "DOES THAT MAN HAVE A BABY IN HIS TUMMY?" at the grocery store. I tell you I flew down the aisle with my cart, wobbly wheel and all.

Kids have a way of embarrassing us, when were not busy embarrassing ourselves. I was snuggling my 4 yr old recently and she patted my tummy and said "you're getting a fat tummy." THANKS A LOT.

The worst thing I've ever said? When I was working about 14 years ago, I walked past a girl who had several vases of fresh flowers, and a new plant on her desk. Assuming it was her birthday (and you know what happens when you assume, right?), I gushed "Look at all these beautiful flowers. You must be the LUCKIEST girl in the world!!!" And she said, "My mom died." (and yes, I felt like dying).

So fess up, what's the most embarrassing thing you've ever said? And if you are too chicken to answer, then how about the most embarrassing thing your kid said in front of or about you.

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.

Proverbs 18:6,7 -- A fool's lips bring him strife, and his mouth invites a beating. A fool's mouth is his undoing, and his lips are a snare to his soul.

Proverbs 21:23 -- He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity.