P.U.S.H

Pray Until Something Happens.But-know when it does!
I heard this story a while ago, and it always makes me laugh;

While out to sea, a large boat became shipwrecked and there was only a single survivor. This man prayed and asked God to save his life. Soon thereafter, another boat came by and offered the man some help.

"No thanks," he said. "I'm waiting for God to save me."

The men on the boat shrugged their shoulders and continued. As the man became more deeply concerned, another boat came by. Again, the people aboard offered this man some help, and again he politely decline. "I'm waiting for God to save me," he said again.

After some time, the man began to lose his faith, and soon after that he died. Upon reaching Heaven, he had a chance to speak with God briefly.

"Why did you let me die? Why didn't you answer my prayers?"

"Dummy, I sent you two boats!" 

 So often, we are like the drowning man.  We are in a perilous situation, we pray for help, and it arrives, but now how we think it will, so we ignore it and let it pass.

I have been out to sea for a few years now, my ship is almost destroyed, and I am clinging on for dear life...
There are times when I wonder if God is punishing me or testing me. Maybe just trying to teach me a lesson.  I am not sure what that is just yet, but I am praying more and more for ....something.
Not too long ago, I had a really good job. Granted I hated my boss, and the job was beyond boring.  Yet, I did my best (although in hindsight I could have done more), and after four and half years of working for the company, I was let go.  I spent two months unemployed, living off of savings. Then I took a job, mostly because I needed a job, not because it was what I wanted.  After three months of things just not going they way I had expected, I left (there is more to that story, but not now).
The day I left my job, I went to a career fair and the next day was hired on to a law firm. I am supposed to start Monday. I would be lying if I said I am having a lot of second thoughts about it. It is not a job I necessarily want, although I am trying to figure out if it is this dang depression that is holding me back or if I really shouldn't even start.
Is it my ideal job? No. Is it a job? Yes. Is it going to pay me more than unemployment? Yes.  Will it be worth it? I don't know.

Last year in a bible study I was in, we talked about how work is a blessing.  I remember thinking then how thankful I was to have a job.  My ex husband has not worked in over three years. I don't know how he really feels about it, but I do know that if you allow yourself to get comfortable unemployed, you are more likely to stay that way.  Is that what is happening to me? Did I get comfortable? Yes it was nice to be with my kids all day over summer vacation. Even this past week with them on fall break has been fun.  But the reality is; I need a job. My boat is sinking, remember? And I cannot control everything, but I can control a few things, one being work.
I think of Proverbs 14:23 (this is the NIV translation, because it is easier to read) "All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty".  All hard work brings profit.  To me, money is not important. Sadly though it is a necessary evil, but we need it to survive.

So, what do you do when you aren't enjoying your job?  That is what I think is killing me, because it is not what I want to do.  In Ecclesiastes 3:22 it is said  "So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work, because that is their lot. For who can bring them to see what will happen after them" , and John 6:27 says "Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval". Shouldn't I wait to find a job that will bring me joy and serve God? But what do I do in the meantime? 1 Corinthians 4:12 tells us "We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it"...in lamer terms, it is still a blessing to work. 

When I think about the interview I had (and when I was at the career fair), clearly they saw something in me. The man who hired me told me at the interview that he wanted to hire me the day before, but I needed to do a formal interview. Obviously, I have what it takes. I just can't psych myself out about it.  I need to remember that God is on my side, and He brought me to this door...now I need to open it and step through it with confidence.it is a blessing to work.

  It may not be the door I wanted open right now, but I do not know what God has planned for me for later on, and this may just be a place of in between while I finish my degrees.  

Back to my sinking ship and God sending help.  I am in a position where I need to move probably by the end of this month (seriously, when it rains, it POURS).  I have been put in contact with a lady who is renting out a house in a town nearby.  It again, is not ideally close to where I am now (which is near my kids schools), but it is a house...not an apartment. Again, I think this is God sending me help, I just need to stop being scared and take the blessing. The landlord is working so much with me, it is not really that far from where I live now, and it is a good area.  My hesitation is my own, and I think, I should move first and then start working, but then I think "how am I going to pay for this?" and again, God is working, not me. I just need to take the blessing...
Take the blessing.
With a gracious and humble heart-take the blessing. 

For Jesus walked out to them in the storm-and that is another thing to remember. Jesus did not STOP the storm. He walked out to them in the storm. 

While out to sea, a large boat became shipwrecked and there was only a single survivor. This man prayed and asked God to save his life. Soon thereafter, another boat came by and offered the man some help.

"No thanks," he said. "I'm waiting for God to save me."

The men on the boat shrugged their shoulders and continued. As the man became more deeply concerned, another boat came by. Again, the people aboard offered this man some help, and again he politely decline. "I'm waiting for God to save me," he said again.

After some time, the man began to lose his faith, and soon after that he died. Upon reaching Heaven, he had a chance to speak with God briefly.

"Why did you let me die? Why didn't you answer my prayers?"

"Dummy, I sent you two boats!" - See more at: http://www.spiritual-short-stories.com/spiritual-short-story-101-Drowning+Man.html#sthash.FdK1iCR3.dpuf

While out to sea, a large boat became shipwrecked and there was only a single survivor. This man prayed and asked God to save his life. Soon thereafter, another boat came by and offered the man some help.

"No thanks," he said. "I'm waiting for God to save me."

The men on the boat shrugged their shoulders and continued. As the man became more deeply concerned, another boat came by. Again, the people aboard offered this man some help, and again he politely decline. "I'm waiting for God to save me," he said again.

After some time, the man began to lose his faith, and soon after that he died. Upon reaching Heaven, he had a chance to speak with God briefly.

"Why did you let me die? Why didn't you answer my prayers?"

"Dummy, I sent you two boats!" - See more at: http://www.spiritual-short-stories.com/spiritual-short-story-101-Drowning+Man.html#sthash.FdK1iCR3.dpuf

While out to sea, a large boat became shipwrecked and there was only a single survivor. This man prayed and asked God to save his life. Soon thereafter, another boat came by and offered the man some help.

"No thanks," he said. "I'm waiting for God to save me."

The men on the boat shrugged their shoulders and continued. As the man became more deeply concerned, another boat came by. Again, the people aboard offered this man some help, and again he politely decline. "I'm waiting for God to save me," he said again.

After some time, the man began to lose his faith, and soon after that he died. Upon reaching Heaven, he had a chance to speak with God briefly.

"Why did you let me die? Why didn't you answer my prayers?"

"Dummy, I sent you two boats!" - See more at: http://www.spiritual-short-stories.com/spiritual-short-story-101-Drowning+Man.html#sthash.FdK1iCR3.dpuf

While out to sea, a large boat became shipwrecked and there was only a single survivor. This man prayed and asked God to save his life. Soon thereafter, another boat came by and offered the man some help.

"No thanks," he said. "I'm waiting for God to save me."

The men on the boat shrugged their shoulders and continued. As the man became more deeply concerned, another boat came by. Again, the people aboard offered this man some help, and again he politely decline. "I'm waiting for God to save me," he said again.

After some time, the man began to lose his faith, and soon after that he died. Upon reaching Heaven, he had a chance to speak with God briefly.

"Why did you let me die? Why didn't you answer my prayers?"

"Dummy, I sent you two boats!" - See more at: http://www.spiritual-short-stories.com/spiritual-short-story-101-Drowning+Man.html#sthash.FdK1iCR3.dpuf

While out to sea, a large boat became shipwrecked and there was only a single survivor. This man prayed and asked God to save his life. Soon thereafter, another boat came by and offered the man some help.

"No thanks," he said. "I'm waiting for God to save me."

The men on the boat shrugged their shoulders and continued. As the man became more deeply concerned, another boat came by. Again, the people aboard offered this man some help, and again he politely decline. "I'm waiting for God to save me," he said again.

After some time, the man began to lose his faith, and soon after that he died. Upon reaching Heaven, he had a chance to speak with God briefly.

"Why did you let me die? Why didn't you answer my prayers?"

"Dummy, I sent you two boats!" - See more at: http://www.spiritual-short-stories.com/spiritual-short-story-101-Drowning+Man.html#sthash.FdK1iCR3.dpuf

1,2,3,4,5,6....

Sometimes this is how I feel...minus the shoe

"Lord...please watch over these children...so I don't kill them" That is the thought that was going through my head today at mass.  It was a full weekend for us, meaning we had all six kids.  Now, we sit in the same pew every week. We have tried every possible seating combination to keep the children as best behaved as possible.  The problem is, there are three girls and three boys.  The girls cannot sit next to anyone because it does not matter who they are with, they will talk, touch, breath, annoy, whatever the person they are next too.  The two oldest boys, T and R without fail will try to cut off the others circulation any time they need to hold hands. The "Our Father" is sung, and I can see them twisting and squeezing the other one, their faces trying to hide the pain and of course humor in the situation...and then they get a glare from Dad-and they still are trying to break the others hand, just not as obvious.
Today, I had little T playing with my skirt.  I was so afraid she would lift it up and show off way too much to the rest of the congregation. The two little girls were rather well behaved, only moving around when we had to move one of the older ones around. 
Somehow, we managed to move around spots about six times...before communion.  I am pretty sure four of those were before the Gospel.
I read an article not too long ago about children being part of the mass.  Our church doesn't have a cry room anyway, and personally with all of the kids out of diapers, we wouldn't need one anyway.  I hated it at other churches when I would have to take a baby into the cry room, for it to be filled with much older kids. Kids who were too old to play with the toys in the room, and the mothers just sitting there. I could understand, maybe, if they had a baby, but many did not.

And by normal I mean....

Moving on, I have tried everything to keep the kids under some control at mass.  I used to bring snacks, but now I feel like they are even too old for that. Toys-no, because they are too much of a distraction for everyone else, or the poor kid near us that doesn't have a toy...
Now, they have mass books, or will bring some sort of "church book" and a rosary.  This is working well with the older ones (the boys, surprisingly, who seem to want to pay attention-when they aren't silently playing mercy during the prayer), but the girls...well, we are still trying to figure that one out.

Yet, we survived. Just as we always do. No one is taken out of church to be reminded of their behavior, no one cried, and no lighting struck anyone down.

Just keep praying

And you know what?  I love it. I love every minute of it. I love sitting in church with my beloved, holding his hand. I love watching the kids pray and sing.  I find it funny watching others count how many kids we have when we go up for communion. I can see some of the older ladies count silently, mouthing "one, two, three,four, five, six..." and smile at me gently, communicating to me "Honey I have been there, I will pray for you".

90% of the time, they are perfect!

So, while I will reconfigure the seating chart for next week, I count my blessings, and thank God for all of them...all six of them....because without every single one of them, life just isn't complete.