Things That Make Me Smile!

This week has been a bit of an emotional rollercoaster and so rather than thinking about things that make me sad, I've chosen to think of things that made me smile this week and here are just a few of them.

• A cup of tea offered at just the right time
• A text asking if you want to go for dessert and chat with a friend you can be honest and yourself around.
• Vanilla Latte's!
• A friend who knows when you need a hug without asking.
• Knowing that God loves me no matter what and that he knows exactly what I'm going through.

I know that I just have to trust that God's timing is perfect and that he has a plan for me and can use me even though I may feel that I can't do many things I used to be able to do.

Here's to a better week.

Lemurs

Lemurs are quiet animals and have only two calls they all understand:

1. To warn of danger on the ground.

2. To warn of danger from the air.

This means that they have to listen carefully and take appropriate avoiding action if they are to escape a dangerous situation.

We too get warnings of danger - often from our conscience which tells us we should not put ourselves in that position or situation and also tells us when something is wrong. It is important to listen to what the Holy Spirit and your conscience say and to spend time talking with God who will communicate his will to us so that we can do what is required.

In my experience, I often find that this is expressed by a lingering niggle that makes me feel uncomfortable about doing something or a situation I'm in. I heard a message recently where the speaker used the phrase 'don't wriggle out of the niggle'. I think this hit the nail on the head as often we try to justify why we're thinking or feeling that way by asking ourselves who would know anyway. God would know!

Another thing about lemurs is that they have to trust each other. They have to trust that they are being given the correct instructions and we too need to trust that what God is telling us is for the best. We have to trust that the niggle is there for a reason and not give in to the temptation to say 'it's OK...no one's looking' because God is looking and he is looking at our responses to difficult situations.

Happy New Year!!!

I know it is February but this is the first post of this year so it seemed appropriate!!!

Apologies for not blogging sooner but I have been busy with Christmas and my op and also lacking inspiration.

My knee op 3 weeks ago went well. I was advised after the op that they had done something to my kneecap that might have solved the problem but that it would be a case of wait and see.

Well, 3 weeks on and I'm finding that my knee is not noticeably different to how it was before the op. I am still getting excruciating pain when I try to bend it and it is still extremely painful when I put my full weight through it when walking. Although this is disappointing, it is not the end of the line. I return to the hospital in March and will hopefully find out then what the next steps are.

That's about all for now but will post again soon once I've had some inspiration.

When you least expect it!!!!!

Something that I have been being reminded of recently is that God speaks to us through our everyday routine and activities.

I was first reminded of this about 3 weeks ago when my Word 4u 2day was looking at Moses and the burning bush (Exodus 3). It points out that Moses was just doing his job when he saw the bush that was on fire with God's presence. It goes on to say that

"in that moment, everything
depended on his willingness to interrupt his daily routine and make time for
God."

Moses turned aside and his life changed.

Then, a couple of weeks ago, I was reminded of this again as we were looking at Luke 1:1-45 in the Midweek Meeting at church. It was verse 45 that got me as it says

"blessed is she who has believed
that what the Lord has said to her will be
accomplished."

Mary was just going about her everyday life when the angel of the Lord came and spoke to her and told her that she was going to give birth to a son and whilst she was shocked, she was willing to believe and interrupt her daily routine. Mary turned aside and her life changed.

Yesterday, I was again reminded of this as we were looking at Luke 2:1-12 at the Midweek Meeting. In verses 8-12, an angel of the Lord appears to the shepherds to tell them of the birth of Jesus. Verse 8 says

"and there were shepherd living out in the fields near by,
keeping watch over their flocks at night."

The shepherds were just doing their job when God spoke to them. The shepherds turned aside and their lives changed.

These are just 3 examples of lives being changed by people being willing to put aside what they were doing to listen to God. How willing are we to put aside our routine to spend time listening to God? How often do we say to God, not now, I'm too busy?

This has got me thinking again that I need to be looking for what God is saying to me through my everyday and being willing to put aside my agenda.

I encourage you to look for God in your everyday too.

Operation

Just quick post to update you regarding the operation that was planned for this month. It has now been rescheduled to January 2010.

This is probably just as well as although I wondered what God was playing at by letting my op be postponed by a month, I now think I know why!

I spoke to the consultant's secretary last week as I was getting quite stressed as I didn't know what the op was (i.e. purely investigatory or work being done). She advised me that the consultant will be looking at my knee and seeing if the grafting is possible and if it is, then they will remove some cartilage from my good knee. This potentially means having both knees operated on at the same time!!!!

The cartilage that is removed from my good knee will then be grown in a lab for a few weeks before being implanted in to my bad knee. So the op in January will be the first of at least 2 ops and the start of a new recovery journey.

Yes, No, Maybe!!!!!

I've been thinking about writing this post for the last week but I was lacking inspiration for a title for it and this is what has been stopping me. I have decided to post anyway and see where it takes me.

Last Tuesday, I was reading about meaning what we say and only saying yes to people if we mean it. If you're anything like me, I find it easier to say yes to someone than no when they ask me to do something and often end up overcommitting myself and not being able to do everything I said yes to.

Something I am learning is that I need to be aware of my limitations as with my knee as it is at the moment, there are things I just can't do and there are lots of things that now take me more time and/or energy than they used to.

I have heard it said the 'no' is an answer in and of itself, therefore we do not need to justify why we are saying no to something. I have found this so freeing as I always felt that when I said no to something I had to justify myself with some really good reason for saying no...but now...I can just say no, sorry in the nicest way possible.

If we learn to say no more, then we can begin to let our yes mean yes as we will no longer be overcommitting ourselves to things just to please others.

Disappointments & Me Time

On Monday afternoon, I received a phonecall that left me feeling upset and disappointed. Thankfully, at the time, a good friend was here and she gave me a hug and we went out for coffee and shopping!

Then, on Monday evening, I read in my Word 4u 2day about the Roman soldier in Luke 7:9 where Jesus says:

"I've yet to come across this simple trust anywhere in Israel..." (NIV)

I was reminded that all I have to do is trust. But...that's easier said than done isn't it???

Yesterday afternoon, I decided that I would have some "me" time and sat myself down with my bible, journal, Word 4 u 2day, a good book, my phone on silent and a vanilla latte. During this time, I read Hosea 14 and verse 9 stood out to me.

"The LORDs ways are right. Good people live by following them, but those who turn against God die because of them." (NCV)

The part that stood out the most was "The LORDs ways are right." It reinforces what I read on Monday and the fact that in the face of disappointments, I need to continue to trust that God knows what he is doing.

I am learning that taking time out just to be me is invaluable for my relationship with God as it is during these times that I can hear him most clearly.