Tag: gifts

Challenge: Receive the Gifts!

06/17/2014Spiritual Walk, Summer Challenge, 8 Comments

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On mother’s Day, our grandson, Jake, was quietly bothered that there were no gifts for his grandpas. When we got up to leave, Jake ran to his room, grabbed a couple of his best diggers, hurried back down and gave them to his grandpas.

It cost Jake a lot to give away two diggers. Jake loves his excavators, backhoes, and bulldozers. He treats them as if they are his children; he disciplines them when they act up, tucks them in at night, kisses and hugs them, and dig deeper here

Love Is…

02/11/2014Spiritual Walk, , , , , , , , 11 Comments

ValentineTomorrow is Valentine’s Day, and I love it. I always have. I’ve enjoyed it ever since I made my first poster-board Valentine card holder in grade school. I loved being courted by Brian and showered with Valentines in college. And, as a mom, I loved helping Dan and Bob write their names on preschool super-hero Valentines.

Is it a fake holiday? Am I a romantic? Probably “yes” to both. But, I’ve purchased cards and gifts, and I’ll enjoy distributing them. And, I’ll save the ones I receive.

However, the best Valentine I can give to the people I love is to look inward and have a “spiritual EKG”. I need to take a moment and determine if my day to day demonstration of love aligns with God’s definition of love.

In 1 Corinthians 13, God tells us what love should look like:

Love is…

Patient: Love bears with other’s shortcomings, weaknesses, and failures. Love waits for the right moment, it stays calm and perseveres.

Kind: Love is friendly, careful, and meets other’s needs without having to be asked. Love bends over backward to be nice, it is courteous.

Love is not…

Self-seeking: selfishly pursuing what is gratifying to me, or putting my personal desires, focus and needs above others.

Easily angered: becoming intensely displeasured or exasperated without much difficulty; it doesn’t have a short fuse and lean toward a lit match.

Proud: haughty or arrogant, with an exaggerated self-esteem or feeling of superiority.

Love does not…

Envy: discontent with what I have, resenting what another has, wanting what I don’t have.

Boast: focus on my achievements or possessions, lift myself up even at the expense of putting someone else down.

Dishonor others: bring shame or disgrace upon others through disrespect, slander, or maligning their reputation.

Delight in evil: enjoy my own wickedness or find great pleasure when others fall victim to wickedness.

Keep a record of wrongs: maintain a list of unjust treatment, collected and preserved, so as not to be forgotten, refuse to forgive, and continue to recall mistakes, errors, hurts, inequalities and injustices.

Love always…

Rejoices with the truth: Love fills the heart with joy, and is ready to celebrate facts, reality, sincerity, fidelity, integrity and honesty. Love celebrates what is right.

Protects: Love guards or keeps from harm. Love never deliberately hurts another but shields them from hurt.

Trusts: Love believes, has faith and confidence in others. Love gives the benefit of the doubt.

Hopes: Love is not wishful thinking, but confidence. Loves look forward with confidence to the fulfillment of God’s Word.

Perseveres: Love persists, it never gives up, ever.

Love never fails: no way, not at all, not ever, on no occasion will love prove deficient or inadequate. Love will always succeed.

God tells us in 1 John 4:16 that He is love. Because God is love, He can define love, and He can command that we love one another in the way that He defines it. Sometimes I love well. Other times, I don’t. God always does.

Is your heart prepared for Valentine’s Day? Are you? Are those you love? Will you be showering those you love with true Godly love this Valentine’s Day?

I Thank My God For You!

12/20/2013Holidays, , , 14 Comments

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. –James 1:17

As Christmas draws near, I want to pause and thank God for the gift of friends and family. So, please indulge me as I thank God for you!

Almighty God, thank you for the Winnetka, Illinois Bible Study Fellowship leaders and class, for using them to encourage me and for all the times they carried me before the throne of Grace in prayer that I might receive grace and mercy in my times of need!

Father, thank you for Becky, for her willingness to walk with me almost as many miles as I drove last spring when dad was sick, for her listening ear, her strong shoulder, her prayers, her encouragement and her sympathetic hugs.

And, thank you for Donna, who picked up the phone, on her birthday, on vacation with family and friends at the beach, to listen and pray with me as I cried and wrote dad’s obituary.

Father, thank you for Carolyn, who is helping me transition from BSF to this blog; I thank you for her patience with me, her dependability and creativity.

Gracious God, I thank you for every one of my friends, both near and far, would you please bless each one abundantly in 2014! They are such sweet gifts to me; you are so generous.

Sovereign Lord, thank you for my sweet children: Dan, Nikki, Bob and Jen! You are so gracious to allow me the privilege of being their mom/mother-in-love. Thank you for supplying them with forgiveness, patience, grace, mercy, love and compassion toward me. They encourage me, challenge me, support me, and pray for me. I am most blessed!

Father, thank you for my siblings, Betty, Donna, and JR. I am so blessed to have a brother and sisters who love deeply and care for one another as these do. Lord, your abundance overwhelms me.

God, thank you for Mom, and for the pleasure of being her daughter. Thank you for her willingness to pick up the phone every time I call, and for indulging me in conversation whether it is about the weather, missing dad, or what to plan for Christmas dinner. Almighty God, you are so loving to knit us together as you have.

And, Father, thank you for Genelle and Ernie Furrow, you were so kind to give me such gracious parents-in-law; please continue to sustain them this year as they trust in you.

Glorious God, I thank you for my husband, Brian, and for the ways that you use him to show your love to me. Thank you for enabling him to meet the challenge of having me for a wife!

Father, thank you for Jacob and Matthew, and for the way they keep me on my toes, exhaust me, open my eyes to the wonders of life from a preschooler’s perspective and shower me with love. Your blessings are uncountable.

For my extended family (both spiritual and physical), I thank You. Each person holds a special place in my heart, and I pray that every one of them will allow You into their heart, that we might enjoy You together, forever. Amen!

Merry Christmas to each and every one of you! Thank you for spending a few minutes with me on Tuesday and Friday mornings and I’ll see you in the New Year!

♥ Marcia

The Desire of Our Hearts at Christmas

12/10/2013Holidays, Spiritual Growth, , , , , 3 Comments

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We took our grandsons Christmas shopping on Saturday to buy presents for their mommy and daddy. When we got home, they wrapped the presents all by themselves. They picked out the paper and the ribbon. They cut, folded, taped, and tied.

Will there be a prettier, more perfectly selected gift under their tree? Nope!

When we asked what they wanted to get their parents, Jake said “My daddy loves building with me, so I’m going to get him a set of Legos.” And, Matty said, “I’m going to get Mommy a ‘Sully’, because she loves him!”

Clearly, they know the desires of their mommy’s and daddy’s hearts!

We all want to give the perfect gifts, so we ask ourselves: what are the desires of our loved one’s hearts? What will make them happy? What will meet their needs? We look for clues and even ask for specific lists so that we don’t fail in our mission.

God wants to give his people the perfect gift also! He wants to give us the desires of our hearts, and he promises that when we take delight in him, he will.

Psalm 37:4 “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

So what does it mean to ‘delight in the Lord’?

Let’s back up for a moment. When we asked the boys what they wanted to give their parents for Christmas, we delighted in their answer. It made us smile.

As they worked so hard wrapping their packages without creased edges or perfect bows it was adorable. We delighted in watching them. It made us smile.

Delight is a choice. Delighting in someone is choosing to enjoy them, and accepting who they are and what they do without criticism. It makes us smile.

Can you delight in the Lord? Can you enjoy him? Can you accept who He is and what He does without criticism? Can you have joy even in difficult circumstances? The answer is “Yes, you can.” But do you choose to?

If you and I delight in the Lord, he says he will give us the desires of our heart. So, should we prepare our Christmas lists!? Or is there a greater desire of our hearts that we should be heeding?

Isaiah 26:8-9 “Your name and renown are the desire of our hearts. My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for you.”

There is no gift under our tree this year that will more fully meet the desire of our hearts than God himself. If we choose to delight in Him, then he will give the desire of our hearts; he will bring glory to His name, He will be with us in the night and in the morning. There is no greater gift than God himself! Is He the desire of your heart this Christmas?

(Not to worry, mommy and daddy, we steered them away from the toy aisle!)

Happy Birthday!

12/06/2013Happy Birthday, Sharing the Gospel, , , , 4 Comments

Daniel, it amazes me that you have grown into such a fine, Godly man. Not because I didn’t think you would, but because it just doesn’t seem like there’s been enough time.

How could you be all grown up? You were a baby just a few days ago. It seems like only yesterday you were getting your first haircut from Grandpa Lawrence’s barber, smiling on the bed, or splashing in the tub.

And, how can you be flying off to China on business, or driving yourself to St. Louis, when only recently you were modeling a toddler-size Cardinal’s T-shirt and cap? When did you learn to till and plant your own garden when we just watched you pull the petals off of Grandma Furrow’s flowers? And when did you get old enough to buy your own clothes?

Didn’t you just come home from a GCHS golf meet? Or drive in from NIU just in time to compete with Bobby and Dad in the Christmas cookie contest? And, when did you possibly get old enough to graduate from college?

How is it that you’ve lived long enough to fall head over heels in love with our beautiful Nicole, get married and have a family? How can your own sons be preschoolers?

I know all of this happened, because I lived it. But Dan, where did the time go?

Oh my son, if I could wish for you one thing on your birthday, it would be that time would slow down for you. For you to have all the time you want to enjoy every moment of your life; so that you can savor and pull every sweet drop out of every single minute – but it won’t. Life flies by so very quickly and we wonder: Where did it go?

Job 9:25 My days are swifter than a runner; they fly away…”

James 4:14 “You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.”

I’m not able to give you this wish, but God has given you a much more beautiful and glorious gift: the gift of eternal life!

On January 24, 1988, when you accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, at that moment, you received the promise and the assurance that you will not die.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Dan, the greatest privilege and responsibility a parent has is to introduce their children to Jesus. I’m so glad you’ve become friends with Him, because it is now your privilege and responsibility to introduce Him to Jake and Matty, and you are doing a wonderful job!

Time will fly, there’s no stopping it, but one day, when you look back and wonder where has it gone, don’t forget to look forward. This life is temporary, but the life to come will be never-ending! I’m so glad we will all be there together, forever.

Happy Birthday, Daniel,

I love you!

Mom