Too soon, too soon...

Our local high school has endured more than it's fair share of heartache lately. It seems anytime there is mention of a teenage fatality in the area, they are from our community or our high school. Last night, we lost 3 more. One graduated with my oldest son, the other two graduated this year with my daughter. They were football and basketball players, liked by everyone. But because of a car accident, these young promising lives were cut down too soon.

What are we doing wrong? Why is it always our kids? Why ANY kids? What can we do to keep this from happening again? And how do we help our kids to go through their grieving processes?

When you are old (like I am!), you expect to experience loss in your life. But when you are a teenager, you think you and your friends are invincible! Nothing can happen to you! All you have to do is hit the reset button on the video game and you get more lives, right?

But that's not how it works. Real life is full of heartache, even for Christians. Some people believe once you accept Christ into your life, your problems are over.... not true! We still have problems. The difference is in how we deal with them and how we let them affect our lives.

Today in church, I was overjoyed to see so many young people being baptized. But my heart ached for one of them, who I know is very young in her faith and has many questions. She knew these boys that were killed. I'm sure she questioned how God could allow something as terrible as this to happen. I want her to realize that while God doesn't always prevent these things from happening, He does want us to turn to Him for comfort. He should be glorified through it all.

Father, please be with these children as they go through the coming days. I pray they can see you and lean on you for comfort. And please help us parents see what needs to be done to prevent this from happening again.  We are losing our children too often and to soon. We love you Lord. Amen.

Cleanse me Lord....

If I only knew then what I know now....

A thought occurred to me today, as it has every time I witness teenage drama.... Thank you Lord Jesus that I am no longer a teenager and no longer wrapped up in the day to day drama that is a constant for them. Don't get me wrong, adult women have their own form of drama. But when it happens now, I can take a step back and see it for what it really is. And I can remove myself because my whole self worth is not wrapped up in how others perceive me or what they think of me. Lord knows, I was completely controlled by that when I was in high school. I was very lucky that I was friends with many different types of people back then... preps, geeks, artists, musicians, jocks, nerds, rednecks, etc. But I always worried about what everyone thought of me... all the time. It consumed me. Do I fit in with them? Do they like me? Are my clothes right? What if I say something stupid and they laugh at me?

As I have aged, (and boy have I aged), I don't care so much. I like who I am now and I can make the decision that I'm not going to get bogged down in it. So I try to just step away and remove myself.

Now sometimes drama finds us, no matter what we do. But we don't have to feed it and allow it to grow stronger and let it take root deep in our friendships. And when those times happen to come, and we get so frustrated with other people, that it's all we can do to not dive headfirst into the vat of stress, drama, and heartache, I have to make myself stop and remember what's important.

I am to love those people as God loves them.... and me. And I am to show them that love.

You know when we say things like, "well, I mean this in all Christian love and kindness, but she is dumber than a rock. Bless her heart!".... we say it's in love... but is that Christ-like love? Are we treating others as God has treated us? And are we setting proper examples for our children, showing them how to treat others?

Anyway, kids... when drama abounds, know this. It doesn't go away. It will always be a part of life. But you make it what it is.... you decide how much life it will have. You can feed it and allow it to grow, consuming every inch of your life. Or you can step back, see it for what it really is and refuse to be a part of it.

Choose love over drama. You'll be much happier in the long run.

Oh, and many times, when we are older... when someone brings up the high school drama... we rarely remember the person that was so important to us at the time and usually responsible for causing it all.

This too shall pass.

He just waits....

So this whole grace thing.... I am so thankful that God loves us enough to give us this amazing gift. But the thing is, He sits quietly, waiting for us to come to Him to accept it. He doesn't smother us with it. He doesn't force feed us. He just waits.

And when we have those days... like I'm having today... when everything seems to be going wrong, He just waits. Waits for us to finally turn to Him and give Him control of all the craziness in our life. He can handle it, far better than we can.

When will I learn to trust Him with it? When will I learn?

Probably not anytime soon. Because I'm one of those fallible humans...

Thank you Lord for waiting for me... for not giving up on me... for hanging in there with me when I don't deserve it.

I turn it all over to you God...

GRACE...... "God's Riches At Christ's Expense"

What a gift that God has offered to us! It is such a precious gift... one we can't buy ourselves... one we can't earn ourselves. It doesn't matter if we're good enough, smart enough, rich enough. I am so thankful that God loves me enough to offer me grace, even when I don't deserve it. I never want to take this gift for granted. I want to always remember the price that was paid for me to live free in God's kingdom. Thank you Father, for loving me that much.

While this blog is here for me to have an avenue to express my thoughts, prayers, concerns, and whatever floats through my mind, I hope it can be a source of love, comfort, and inspiration for others. I want them to find the love of Christ through these writings. Father, please let your light shine through my words.