That Gift

Read Proverbs 22:17-21
"Do not neglect the gift that is in you..."1Tim.4:14 NKJ
I saw some stickers at a grcery store with that scripture on it. They greatly encouraged me. I love to see a witness for the Lord out in the open market.
I thought hard about that word. "Don't neglect your gift." You know what it is. It may not be operating now, but if God has whispered it in your ear, it will. How many times during the years have I seen God's promise about my writing. I would think, yeah, yeah, sure. I wanted it, but I couldn't see down the road. There was a curve up ahead and the longed-for thing so distant.
Sometimes you have to lay you gift on the alter. I had children to raise, I had work to do. Still God would whisper, there's that gift. Keep at it.
Now I see a little bit of what He had in store. Even now, so much is hidden. But His voice keeps repeating, hear there, and everywhere, "don't neglect your gift." You know what it is.
Father, how we thank you for your encouragement. We lift up these secret gifts to you as our offering. Use them mightily in your Kingdom. Amen
(So glad for this place to share. Blessings on all. Nancy)

Living and Writing

There are several reasons why I haven't blogged for a few days. The first one is that I have been so enchanted with this whole process, that it takes up a lot of my time and thought and I haven't done too much else. They say you need to do a lot of livin' to be a writer. I needed to go out and live a little bit. My creativity was going dry.
The other reason I am pausing now and then is that this old computer is on its last legs. I hope it lasts until I can get a new one. I am planning that even now. If by chance these messages get even thinner, you'll know that it is reason number 2, not number 1. I'm black in the flow again.
This was a party weekend. June seems to be almost as hectic as Christmas. I went to a high school graduation party for one of my husband's relatives. I love to see all of the family. How wonderful for God to give us so many extra people to love.
On Saturday, I helped my daughter make lasagna and muffin-top cookies. I don't like to cook, but helping her is always fun. Her goods turned out very well and we got a lot of excellent fellowship into the mix. On Sun, there was a graduation/going away party for a young friend. It was fun, but I will miss her. Later in the day, my husband and I went to a first year birthday party for the little boy I watched some time ago. He had grown so much. The part that touched my heart was when I held him and talked to him, his smile lighted up and he was just so happy. That he remembered my voice was so important, because I had sung all those songs and talked his head off at meal times. He and I could still relate.
Now that I am back, I am so excited about all the new projects and people to meet through this blog. Thanks for all your comments. Hope to be back very soon. Nancy

Defensemen

I showed you how I want you to be a defense player. As you block and take obstacles out of the way of my quarterbacks of workers, you will be an equally important part of the kingdom. What good is a person who carries the ball (Gospel) if the enemy tries to pull him down or succeeds?
You block those attacks. It takes courage. You get wounded. You don't always get credit for pulling down the ball carrier of evil. You may get no notice for a block or tackle, but you are very useful to Me.
Once in awhile, you get the ball and run with it. Sometimes you may even get a touchdown. But that is the exception. Though you get knocks and little glory, I love you. So don't be sad or worry about your place. You are a mighty defenseman as you help my ball carriers have an easier run down the field. A lot is riding on your being in your place and doing your job. You just have to block one play at a time. You can do that. I'm counting on you.
(Intercessors, givers, hospitality people, exhorters - this could be you.)

Something New

One day I was trying to get a string through the hole in the band of my husband's pants. I tried every which way. As I was about to give up, (the end had no plastic piece to help push it through,) I saw a new opening I hadn't seen before. I thought at first it was just thick material like a seam (an obstruction.) Then I saw that it was another hole. I only had about 1/2 " to go to the finish. After pulling the string through the new hole and putting a pin on it for a pusher, I was able to finish. I actually had five minutes left on the time I had given myself to do the job.
God is saying (in many different ways it seems,) there's a new opening sooner than you think and I'll get you there. Keep working. You'll succeed.

Surprise!

There was a time when I had an election sign out front in my yard. On looking out my window one day, I didn't see it. I immediately thought it was stolen. I was totally upset that anyone would do that. Then as I went on my walk that day, I saw that it was lying on the ground. My husband must have laid it there when he mowed the lawn. Just because I couldn't see it, I thought it wasn't there. But praise God, the sign was still there!
There was another time when I had a tiny piece of bone wedged in my teeth. I can't stand that feeling. I couldn't get it out with any amount of force. The next day it was just gone. God can remove the strongest obstacles.
People and things are better than you think. Aren't you glad that God is in control?

Meditation

I was just thinking how sometimes I get away from the Lord a bit by being busy. It may be only a scheduling problem, not deliberate. But it can take my mind away from Him. One night, I just talked to God and had fellowship. I only went one-half step back to Him and He came barreling back to me, as if I had been lost for a long time. I was awed and overwhelmed by His love.
How He came to me was in confirmation. I had been enjoying the Bible, and He had been causing the Old and New Testaments to fit together for a specific day, using the same words and themes.
Then He used a prayer partner to confirm a truth about success that I had been asking about. Finally, He double confirmed the message in Unger's Bible Handbook where I was checking on something from Matthew.
I wish I could tell my lost and searching friends how He does this and how it touches me. Would they understand? So I am writing it down. Maybe "the God who is there" will reveal Himself to others in this way. That is my hope. That is my prayer.

Introduction to Children's Literature

I would like to tell you about my children's literature course at Bowling Green State University in Ohio. I had the most fabulous teacher. I'll call her Mrs. R. because I don't rememver her exact name. How any student could slouch in there I don't know. For me, from day one she had me. She told the class that children should have only the very best literature. I learned about early children's books like Johnny Crow's Garden and we were introduced to the Newberry and Caldecott awards. The Caldecott for that year was Drummer Hoff. She also read a poem called A Reading Mother by Strickland W. Gillilan which ended, "Richer than I you can never be- I had a Mother who read to me." That notion hit my heart. It stayed locked there for many years until one day, I had children of my own and could read to them. I always felt like I was giving them treasures, the riches of the poem, whenever they snuggled on my lap and we opened a book.
Mrs.R. was responsible for many of my choices: Where the Wild Things Are, The Snowy Day, Madeline's Rescue, The Little Island, and The Little House, all Caldecotts. When she talked, she had such a passion to get the good stuff out to the next generation. I wanted to carry on her torch.
It was in this class that I first heard about The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. I pictured the witch with a black gown and a black pointy hat, the wardrobe as a bunch of clothes, and then the lion. I didn't see how they could all go together, so I wasn't interested, even though she was very enthusiastic. It wasn't until many years later that I found the Narnia books by picking up a copy of The Last Battle. I had heard that it was about Revelation in the Bible. Then I was hooked on all of the books.
One more thing Mrs. R. did for me was introduce me to The Wind In The Willows. I could either read that "classic" or Alice in Wonderland. Since I had already read the latter, I chose the former. I soon fell in love with all the little woodland creatures in Kenneth Grahame's wonderful book. The illustrations from various artists from that book are some of my very favorite.
From that class on, because of Mrs. R's enthusiasm and love of good children's literature, I have been a follower of picture books, chapter books, and children's novels. Thank you Mrs. R. for your legacy, which I intend to pass on.
(Hope this finds you well and happy. Nancy)