Ten Percent

Ten Percent
March 29, 2011

10 “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this way,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.”
Malachi 3:10 NIV

The following quotes are from www.quotegarden.com

God's promises are like the stars; the darker the night the brighter they shine. ~David Nicholas

Are you wrinkled with burden? Come to God for a faith lift. ~Author Unknown

In this blog, please understand I’m not asking for any advice. I wanted to write about this issue, since it’s been on my mind. This is a matter between God and me. And, I have to work it out and pray for guidance from God to achieve the trust I need to follow this commandment from Him. For several days, Charles Stanley has been talking about finances in relation to the Lord in his magazine In Touch. This has always been a matter in which I’ve never done well in my faith. One of my Christian friends told me that she thinks I have financial problems because I don’t tithe. When I think about it, as I’ve grown in my faith, I know she could be right. The fact that I only have to take 10% from my SSDI or paycheck will not leave me totally out of money. I think I waste more money than this on things I don’t need, like junk food, so why can’t I take out 10%. It’s all a matter of trusting God and being willing to do as He asks so that He will return blessings in exchange for trust and obedience. Ok, that’s great when I’m earning money, but right now I’m unemployed, so no money is coming in. And yes, I have the standard qualm about, well, how am I going to pay the bills? Needless to say, I’ve lived pretty much below the poverty line much of my life – yes, the old paycheck-to-paycheck lifestyle. So, tonight I sold something for $5.00. Well, 10% is only fifty cents. Wouldn’t now be a good time to start tithing? In the coming days I will spend more time in prayer about tithing, asking God to help me trust Him more. Maybe the Lord put this issue on my mind because He wants me to move beyond it.

Animal Teachers

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Lynn Johnston, cartoonist, of "For Better or Worse"

"We are all born with wonderful gifts. We use these gifts to express ourselves, to amuse, to strengthen, and to communicate. We begin as children to explore and develop our talents, often unaware that we are unique, that not everyone can do what we're doing!"
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This morning Quentin Clingerman, an online Christian friend, sent me the article below. For me it's not just news about a little-known species prevailing in the face of adversity, but a lesson about how I, as a human being, can do the same thing.

Large-billed Reed Warbler

(after you click on the link, click on the back button on your browser to return to LfrL)

In times of adversity, I've wanted just to throw in the towel and give up. Well, it doesn't work that way, at least in God's world. He doesn't allow me to quit, or at least He hasn't until now, nor will He ever allow me to give up, until He calls me home. Beneath me I have a Solid Rock in Jesus, supporting me when I feel weak or don't think I can go on any longer.

God teaches me lessons, although I never know where they will come from. For me, this fact just shows the amazing diversity of my Lord.

Michelle Rose

And Who Am I Really?

(Yes, this is what I feel like)

Image from Photobucket by Freekittin2000

Yesterday, my friend Don asked me to lead a poetry writing workshop and short meeting for the Poetry Festival we're having next year. Without hesitation I said yes. It's something I've done before, so I know what to do, and the group is made up of people I mostly know, except if some newcomers attend it.

Today I started thinking, "Oh, can I really do this? What if everyone doesn't like the poems I pick or how I lead? (or whatever...)" Then I realized that Don would not have asked me if he didn't have confidence in me and my ability. So, instead of remaining in the fear, I started choosing poems for inspiration. I realized that my fearful feeling and lack of self-confidence is an old one. So, I can kick that critic to the curb!

For most of my life, I've thought of myself as a follower and acted the part. But now, I'm slowly breaking out of that roll and starting in a new one. I can take the lead and feel confident that I will be successful, not just for the workshop but in other areas of my life. God didn't create junk when He made me. He created me as a unique and beautiful creation in His eyes, and that's how I see myself.

Another friend of mine, Jean, said this in a email, "You know, even though we've never met. You've came along ways, doing better, feeling much better about yourself. You're looking, feeling better about things in Life, etc. Being more positive about things too. You have really improve[d] yourself and doing things to better yourself." Thank you so much Jean. You can't imagine how nice that made me feel.

Ok, not everyday is sunshine and roses. I do have my moments when I'm "dark and twisty," but I don't allow myself to stay there. I work at being a positive, upbeat, and confident person. I've learned to be the kind of person who takes lemons and makes lemonade, since I know the ups and downs of life are part of the cycle of each moment through the years. I know who I am more today than I ever did and I like the person I've become.

Children and Challenges

I tutor a very challenging 6th grader. He gets bored very easily, so in the past couple sessions, I've been challenging him more. We work on the lessons that I'm supposed to teach him, but I do it slightly differently. Here is where my creativity comes in handy. I've always been able to be spontaneous and ad lib in my stories and examples to my students. With this student, it helps so much because I can see him becoming more interested and wanting to work through the lesson.

I am not a parent, nor do I have children of my own, but I've learned from my other students what can awaken their interest and what makes them bored. Sometimes it takes a bit of searching to see how to get through to a student. I've had my "failures" in the past, but these are only lessons to me, helping me with new students.

If anyone had asked me when I was younger what I wanted to be when I got older, I would never have said a tutor. I wanted to work with animals, but I found out I didn't want to do that as a job, only as a volunteer. I love what I do and the challenge each new student presents to me as a tutor. Finding my niche in life was so important to me, but no matter how much I searched, I couldn't find one. When I stopped looking, God put me where He wanted me. Now, how amazing is that? I'd say quite amazing!

Freedom

"The roots of true achievement lie in the will to become the best that you can become."  ~Harold Taylor~

As I was walking home from the farmers' market today, I thought about freedom. Freedom comes in many forms - personal, physical, mental, financial, emotional, and governmental (and probably more). I have learned quite a bit about freedom in my life with the experiences I've had and the lessons these experiences have taught me. I don't smoke, drink, or use drugs, so I have freedom from substance abuse. I don't drive a car, so I have financial freedom from the expense of owning one. I don't own a house, so I don't have the expense of upkeep and repair. I don't eat certain foods, so I've lowered my risk of certain diseases.

Yet aside from all of this, when I think about freedom, it goes much deeper than that. I think true freedom comes from within - from the way I look at life and how I process my environment. I don't have to own many of the material possessions that some people feel equate freedom - and to them they might and that's ok. Although I do have certain possessions in my life and they help, freedom comes from the beauty I see around me, a God in my life and His love, good memories of times like yesterday - a bunch of poets and teachers having dinner after a poetry reading, or being in a quiet apartment with my cat next to me. Freedom is an abstract concept although it can have concrete manifestations.

Most of all, freedom is looking back from where I've come to where I am now and not worrying about where I'll be going, since I know that's not in my hands, but in the hands of someone greater than I am.

The following is a poem I wrote about a picture I saw online for another project I'm writing poems for - the return of people to the internment camp at Manzanar. One photo struck me particularly. Maybe this is what started my thinking about freedom.

pierced heart

in darkness my heart
is pierced by that from
which i can't escape

an unwilling
prisoner of hate
not because of what

i am only because
my association with
events make me who i am

free me to love again
as i once did unwrap
this wire from my spirit
 

Fear and Laughter

Last night I had a mixed experience. After tutoring, I ate dinner and walked around Panorama Mall for a bit, then did some shopping at WalMart. As I walked outside to catch the bus all "hell" broke loose. Cop cars and choppers were everywhere, several black & whites parked at the intersection where I catch the bus. Needless to say it freaked me out a bit and I was scared, although with all the cops around, I'm not sure why I was. Yet, this morning I thought how silly of me to be scared (ok, I was tired and wanted to get home), but God had the situation in control - He would not have allowed me to be hurt - not with all the police presence. Anyway, I safely got on the bus, although I had to cross the street to run after it a bit, since it turned the corner to detour from its normal route. I still don't know and really don't care what was happening, I'm just very grateful that God got me out of there safely.

Now the laughter - today in Good Things, Everett Christian posted this quote,
"Nothing is harder than gracefully getting down from your high horse."
- From Reminisce Magazine -
I think I know why this made me laugh - it's so true and typical. How many times have I had to do this? Maybe my horse has a special stall where he waits for me to become willing to get off him, but I do know that at times when I've had an attitude reversal, my face has been quite sheepish. Everytime I read it I laugh again, and laughter is so good for the soul!

Courage

Saturday, August 01, 2009

Courage

“You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.”
~Reminisce Magazine~

What does courage have to do with becoming healthy and losing weight? Everything. It is stepping out of known ways to start new habits. It is taking on tasks I’ve never done before. I am looking at life through a new pair of glasses, knowing that what I see will be guiding me to my goal whether or not it appears to relate to it because every experience in life is interconnected.

Today my poetry group started discussing a poetry festival we plan to put on next year and I volunteered to do some things I’ve never done before. Is this a bit scary for me? Of course. Am I going to run away from it? Not on your life. I am losing sight of the shore I’ve been clinging to for most of my life. I’m gaining new experiences for myself. Maybe this won’t be easy, but I’ve never been one to back down from anything challenging.

Michelle Rose