Perseverance

BEWARE:  This is a long, serious post...

Lately I feel as if I was really being tested
by God...

I was REALLY having a hard time 

making it to the end of the school year...

I have the countdown on my calendar...

63 more school days...

I feel like 63 days of my life wasted...waiting...

Thursday I was sitting at my desk at school

before the bell rang practically in tears praying

to God that he would let me retire early,
 or let me quit...I just couldn't take it...

and then Friday morning in my
 read-through-the-bible-in-a-year readings...

God provided me with his answer... 

Let perseverance finish its work 
so that you may be mature and complete,
not lacking anything.  James1:4

As if that verse wasn't enough...
the ENTIRE 3 chapters that I read 
all talked on having perseverance...
and finishing what you started...
It was like a weight was lifted off my shoulders...
Now I know there is no question 
that I must finish the school year...

And another ironic tidbit...
God uses experiences to equip us 
for what he has in store...
Since I am a reading teacher...
I use a lot of novels to study...
All of my books that we do class studies on...
have to do with perseverance...never giving up
even when the situation is tough...

Funny how I try to engrain that into my students
but I'm to blind to see it in my situation...
God is good isn't he?!

The Reason For The Season

The past few days I have been running around like a chicken with my head cut off. Stressing about everything and everything coming up (have you ever felt this way?). Yesterday, I had a big order of cookies, wrapped cutely, complete with tags that I was trying to finish and my husband announced that he had bought tickets to see Chris Tomlin in concert last night. Chris Tomlin is one of my all time favorite christian artists BUT last night was not a good night. I WAS BUSY! I HAD THINGS TO GET DONE! Well much to my grumblings, we went. It was phe-nom-in-al!! Lou Giglio was on tour with him. I'd never heard of him before but OMG he totally put things in perspective or atleast it hit home with me...I know the whole christmas story but what I finally got last night was we have just wrapped Christmas into this pretty little holiday...beautifully wrapped gifts, cute manager scenes, decorated trees, lights & balls...but that's not it. Jesus did not come with pomp & circumstance & with an adorable invitation inviting us to a sip & see. He was not born in a beautifully decorated stable, nor were the shepherds (whom the angel told) well-to-do suburban shepherds. It was messy, dirty and probably pretty uncomfortable for Mary (giving birth in dirt?) and Joseph. Messy, like sometimes life is. I need to remember that God needs to get the glory...it's His season...not mine...