Just like Him

by Marcia Lee Laycock

My eyes fluttered open to the sound of howling wind. More snow, I thought, and thought about slipping deeper under the covers. But I was awake so I headed to the kitchen to make my usual cup of coffee and start the day. I expected there would be another few inches of snow on our deck and that thought didn’t make me happy. Coffee in hand, I wandered to our back door. Yes, there was another thick layer of the white stuff, but there was something else that caught my eye. A smiley face, grinning at me. There, on the side of our barbeque’s cover was a perfect smiley, eyes and all. 

It made me laugh out loud. And then tears came to my eyes because that smiley barbeque was an answer to prayer. You see, I’d been feeling a little blue lately, a little discouraged, a little “under the weather,” as the saying goes. I’ve been chalking it up to the grey days we’ve been having lately, combined with the fact that I’ve had some health issues that haven’t been fun to deal with over the past while. I’ve also been discouraged by what’s not happening in my writing career. I tried to talk myself out of the ‘funk’ by reminding myself of all that I have to be thankful for. That helped, but the grey mood still lingered. So I asked the Lord to lighten my spirits a little. He knew just how to do it.

As I stood there grinning back at our barbeque, I thought of all the other times He has done something similar. The time he made a tiny flower glow with the promise of hope in my living room as I lay on our couch aching from chemo treatments; the day he showed me a perfect rosebud that had just bloomed in a Papua New Guinea garden when I was struggling to walk after being hit by a debilitating virus; the times he has surprised me with encouraging emails or phone calls from readers who were blessed by what I’d written. These were all ‘smiley’ moments – moments of delight sent by the hand of God. It’s just like Him to know exactly what we need at exactly the perfect time.

We shouldn’t be surprised. The scripture tells us He delights in delighting us. “For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with victory” (Psalm 149:4).

The Scripture also says “because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lam.3:22,23).

And “great are the works of the Lord; they are pondered by all who delight in them” (Psalm 111:2).

Are you a bit “under the weather” these days, a bit discouraged by what hasn’t been happening in your writing career? Ponder the works, the love, the faithfulness of our Lord. And don’t be afraid to ask him to lighten your spirit. It’s just like Him to find the perfect way to do it.

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Marcia Lee Laycock writes from central Alberta Canada where she is a pastor's wife and mother of three adult daughters. She was the winner of The Best New Canadian Christian Author Award for her novel, One Smooth Stone and also has two devotional books in print. Her work has been endorsed by Sigmund Brouwer, Janette Oke, Phil Callaway and Mark Buchanan. Marcia's second novel, A Tumbled Stone was recently short listed in the contemporary fiction category of The Word Awards.

Abundant Rain, an ebook devotional for writers of faith can be downloaded here. Visit Marcia's website.

 

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Writing in Obedience - M. Laycock

I wandered through one of my favourite bookstores recently, amazed at the number of books on the shelves. The fiction section alone was five rows deep. I love reading so you would think it would be thrilling to see all those books. But on that day I found my spirits dropping. How could I expect to compete with all of this? Why keep tapping out more words when there are already so many out there?

I headed for the exit. Something shiny on the check-out counter caught my eye. I stepped closer. It was a silver ring, a big one, with words engraved on it. I picked it up and read: "The World is Waiting to Hear Your Story." Oh. I bought the ring.

The next morning I read a blog by another writer. Mike Duran wrote - "if you’re really called to be a writer, the biggest risk is not saying something. It’s shutting up." Oh.

Then I read a post by Mary DeMuth in which she gives ten ways to know if you are called to write. I checked off each one without hesitation. Oh.

Then I got an email from a publisher asking for an article. "You've been kind of quiet lately," she said. "Yes," I agreed, softly. Oh.

I flipped through my list of excuses in my mind. "I've been ill." Right. "My energy level still isn't what it was." Right. "Promoting my new novel is a priority right now." Right. But none of them salved my conscience. The message was getting louder: Write. Oh.

And then I realized it was all my fault. Now that my second novel has been published, I'd prayed that God would show me what to do next. And He did. But it's a project I have misgivings about. The story has been flowing through my head incessantly for some time but it's not what I thought I would do next. Really, Lord? Is this what you want me to do?

Then I remembered something a friend said when she told me she was writing a novel. "I don't do fiction," she said. "I'm a poet. But God has made it clear this is what He wants. I guess sometimes writing is pure obedience." Oh. I read her manuscript recently and it's wonderful. I'm sure God has great things planned for it.

So I've begun this new project, and it is pure obedience. Only He knows what He intends. I guess all I have to do is write. Oh. 

"May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us ... yes, establish the work of our hands" (Psalm 90:17). 

Marcia was the winner of the Best New Canadian Christian Author Award for her debut novel, One Smooth Stone. Visit Marcia's website - www.vinemarc.com to learn about her new release, A Tumbled Stone and her ebook devotional for writers, Abundant Rain

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Chicken Little

Today's guest devotion is by Debby Mayne, from: Be Still…and Let Your Nail Polish Dry © 2008 Summerside Press

Chicken Little

Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Matthew 6:23

“The sky is falling.”

            

“If anything can go wrong, it will.”

            

“All good things must come to an end.”

            

How has so much negativity crept into our lives? You’d think that with all the commercials about “Having it your way” and “You deserve the very best,” we’d all be glowing with radiant joy.

            

My mother was a child of the Great Depression, so she constantly talked about having enough food to eat. Some of that rubbed off on me, and I still worry – even though I have a full refrigerator, enough clothes in my closet to not wear the same thing twice in a month, and possessions that can keep me occupied 24/7.

            

While grocery shopping, my mother was a woman on a mission – determined to provide for her family with the resolve that each meal might be our last if we didn’t stock up and prepare for some unknown disaster.

            

“Why are you buying so much soup?” I once asked my mom as she transferred two of each kind of Campbell’s soup from the store shelf to the basket.

            

“You never know when you’ll run out,” she replied as she turned the basket toward the household items to stock up on toilet paper.

            

With the innocence of a child, I tilted my head and studied the soup before turning back to her. “Can’t we just buy some more?”

            

She tossed a multi-roll pack of toilet paper into the cart , quirked one corner of her mouth, frowned, shook her head, and pushed the basket toward the Spam, making me feel like my question didn’t deserve an answer. I now understand that she didn’t have an answer, and one thing she wasn’t willing to say was that she didn’t know something about the future – which brings me to my point: Does anyone know what the future brings?

            

I certainly don’t. No matter how much I plan, anything can happen. The future is out of my control, which sometimes irks me because I seem to have turned into my mother. And yes, sometimes I feel like the sky is falling.

            

Now my firstborn has a child, and I see that the world is still intact. My daughter is doing some of the same things I did as a young mother – trying her best to create a perfect world to keep the sky from falling.

            

We need to stop worrying about the future and trust God with everything.

Today’s Prayer: You’ve provided my family with so many blessings, Lord. I know I don’t have a reason to worry – and I thank You. Each day brings new challenges, but You always provide for us. Please give me the ability to be calm and accept all of Your blessings with the right spirit. Amen.

Debby Mayne grew up in a military family that moved often throughout her childhood. She was born in Alaska and has lived in Mississippi, Tennessee, Oregon, Florida, Hawaii, and Japan. Debby has published approximately 400 short stories and print articles, hundreds of online articles, and a slew of devotions for busy women in addition to more than 25 books and novellas, including Love Finds You on Christmas Morning. Visit her Website at www.DebbyMayne.com

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A Fresh Slate

Today's guest devotion is by Diann Hunt, from: Delight Yourself in the Lord…Even on Bad Hair Days © 2011 Summerside Press

A Fresh Slate

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 

Lamentations 3:22-23

My husband is an elementary teacher. When September rolls around each year, he gets as excited as his students. We go shopping for clothes, school supplies, and he gets his room ready for the kids. The smell of sharpened pencils, fresh chalk, and cleaning supplies fill the room. New wall hangings, posters, clean blackboards and a tidy desk all mark the beginning of a school year.

            

Each year, he learns something from the year before—what tools strike interest in the hearts of the students, what presentations worked and which ones flopped. He considers new ways to motivate the daydreamers and challenge the restless.

Some days, he comes home and feels as though he didn’t accomplish a thing. Other days, he wonders how he could ever do any other job. He takes his newfound knowledge into the next year in hopes of doing a better job than before. Every class offers new challenges of its own and my husband faces each one head-on, with renewed encouragement and excitement for another year.

            

In short, he gets a fresh slate.

When my kids were little, I wanted to be just like Caroline Ingalls. You know, kindness lifting from my lips like a soft minuet, and wisdom rolling into every word. Unfortunately, it didn’t work like that for me.

            

There were days when the kids were rowdy and I had a headache—I don’t think Caroline ever had those. My patience was short and the tone of my voice carried around the block like a Marine Corps sergeant. Unfortunately, I resembled Mrs. Oleson more than I did Mrs. Ingalls.

I prayed for wisdom, gentleness and, yes, even patience. So many nights I wondered what kind of memories I had created for my children that day. I’d fall on my knees and pray, “Lord, help them to forget everything I did wrong and remember if I did anything right.” It must have worked. They speak fondly of their childhood.

            

Some days are hard. The challenges seem too great to bear. Sometimes we can’t seem to work beyond our past. We feel God is silent and we’re all alone. But then His Word reminds us that His compassions never fail. They are new every morning! Great is His faithfulness!

            

Forget about yesterday. This is the day that the Lord has made. You have the opportunity to start all over. Trust God with it. Go into a hurting world and make brand new memories—memories that matter. You have a fresh slate. Go with His blessings.

Today’s Prayer: Father, thank You for each new day where we can learn to trust You more. May we be counted among the obedient, the faithful. Help us to make the most of every opportunity and to remember your compassions are new every morning.

Diann Hunt admits to seeing the world from a slightly different angle than most, and she will do just about anything (within reason) for chocolate. Since 2001, Diann has 20+ books, including Love Letters in the Sand. Diann has won the American Christian Fiction Writer's prestigious Book of the Year award in her genre. Diann and her real-life hero-husband make their home in Indiana. Visit her Website at www.DiannHunt.com

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Thanksgiving and Contentment

"The voice of the special rebels and prophets, recommending discontent, should, as I have said, sound now and then suddenly, like a trumpet. But the voices of the saints and sages, recommending contentment, should sound unceasingly, like the sea." – G.K. Chesterton

Contentment - an elusive quality, and, for many, one that seems to fly in the face of our modern culture, in which we are ever urged to ambition and the accumulation of status symbols like new cars and bigger houses, bigger advances and better royalty percentages. Some would perhaps argue that contentment is a vice, not a virtue. Yet the scriptures advise that we seek it. The apostle Paul even goes as far as to say that “Godliness with contentment is great gain” (1 Tim. 6:6). He says he has “learned the secret of being content in any and every situation…” (Phil.4:12).

I suspect a good part of that secret is being thankful. I suspect being thankful is the key to a lot of things in our lives.

I once spoke at a women's retreat in a tiny town in Alaska. There were over 200 women there from all across the state and the Yukon. Friday night was testimony time. One woman in particular touched me as she shared how her entire family had died, one by one, of Tuberculosis. When she was taken to hospital she knew she was dying but asked God to heal her. She said God responded in these words, "Give thanks before you receive." So she did. She lay in her bed for hours, through the night, thanking him for her life. Then she got out of bed, something she hadn't been able to do for days. When the doctor came that morning she told him she was healed. They took x-rays. Then they took them again. Then they sent her home.

"Give thanks before you receive." We do it before meals; why not do it before everything? Before getting out of bed, give thanks; before driving to work, give thanks; before writing your next novel, give thanks; before signing that new book contract, give thanks.

I suspect such a routine would indeed result in great contentment and great gain, perhaps in more ways than we could imagine.

"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever." (Psalm 107:1)
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Marcia Lee Laycock writes from central Alberta Canada where she is a pastor's wife and mother of three adult daughters. She was the winner of The Best New Canadian Christian Author Award for her novel, One Smooth Stone and also has two devotional books in print. Her work has been endorsed by Sigmund Brouwer, Janette Oke, Phil Callaway and Mark Buchanan. The sequel to One Smooth Stone will be released in 2011. Abundant Rain, a collection of devotionals for writers has just been released here. Visit Marcia's website

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A Mini Between Semis

Many years ago, I travelled from Ontario, Canada to Dawson City Yukon - a distance of 5,255 kilometres or 3,265 miles - in an Austin Mini. It was a trip filled with adventure and there were many times when I felt the smallness of my little vehicle. One day in particular comes to mind.

I gripped the wheel of my Mini and concentrated on the flow of traffic around me. I knew the route I had to follow would take me through the heart of a large city. There was no by-pass to avoid the downtown traffic. I stayed in the middle lane to avoid vehicles turning left and right. As the city began to close around me, so did the traffic. I was already feeling a bit claustrophobic when a huge Semi pulled up to my right. We both stopped at a red light. Then another Semi pulled up on my left. The two trucks effectively blocked out the sun. I glanced in my rear-view mirror just as a third Semi pulled in behind me, stopping inches from my tiny bumper. Suddenly I realized my palms were sweaty. I concentrated on the stoplight and the instant it changed to green, my little car sped forward, out from under those looming shadows. I’m sure those truck drivers had a good laugh at my expense. I don’t know if they had intended to intimidate me, but they certainly succeeded in doing so.

I had a similar feeling just a couple of years ago when I attended a large book fair in one of the largest convention centres in the heart of Toronto, one of Canada's largest cities. I stood on the edge of that hall and stared at an overwhelming number of booths and displays. My ears buzzed with the hum of people - authors, publishers, editors, media people - all there for one reason - to promote or advertise or talk about books. The word "intimidated" does not come close to how I felt at that moment. I stood rooted to the spot. But then I saw a familiar face and told my legs to move. Within a few moments I was among friends and the panic attack I had felt coming on faded away. I was still a very small fish in an ocean but at least there were a few others just like me.

There are many times in a person's life when circumstances may overwhelm and fear threaten to paralyze. But God has promised to give us a way out - like a green light at an intersection, or a smiling face in an unfamiliar setting. That way is His only Son, Jesus Christ. Focusing on Him will lead us through any circumstance, any difficult place. Trusting in Him will give us the courage to walk the path He has chosen for us, even when it takes us into places where we don't feel we belong, like a huge book fair in a far away city, or a cancer clinic in our home town.

So "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning the shame and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:2).

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Marcia Lee Laycock writes from central Alberta Canada where she is a pastor's wife and mother of three adult daughters. She was the winner of The Best New Canadian Christian Author Award for her novel, One Smooth Stone and also has two devotional books in print. Her work has been endorsed by Sigmund Brouwer, Janette Oke, Phil Callaway and Mark Buchanan. The sequel to One Smooth Stone will be released in 2011. A collection of devotionals for writers has just been released here. Visit Marcia's website

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When God Puts You in the Sidecar

My husband is a motorcycle enthusiast. So far he hasn’t gone out and bought one, but whenever he likes one he sees on the road he’ll point it out and say, “Nice bike,” then look at me to gauge my reaction. We were sitting at a stoplight not long ago and a shiny motorcycle pulled up beside us. It had a sidecar attached.

“There you go,” Spence said.

I laughed, imagining what it would be like to ride in such a little appendage. “I think I’d rather be on the bike with you,” I said, “or better yet, on one of my own.” Sidecars are for kids, I thought. You don’t have any control in a sidecar; you just have to hang on and try to enjoy the ride.

But now it seems God has put me in a sidecar for a time. I’ve just been diagnosed with cancer and suddenly my life is not mine to control. Doctors are telling me what will happen, when and where I will go. I don’t really want to experience any of what they’re telling me I will go through. But I have no choice. All I can do is hang on and find ways to cope with the ride.

In the book of John, Jesus tells the apostle Peter about a time when the same thing would happen to him. “I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!” (John 21:18-19)

I don’t know exactly what lies ahead for me. I’m hopeful that this cancer can be eradicated and I’ll go on with my life, publish my next book and continue to enjoy all the blessings God has showered on me for so long. I’m praying my time in the sidecar will be short. But perhaps God has another plan. In the meantime, I take encouragement from those few words, “by which Peter would glorify God.” What happened to him was not in vain. It had a purpose. The events of our lives all have purpose and are meant to bring glory to God. We have agency in that, by his grace and mercy – we can choose to hunker down and cling to the sidecar in fear, or we can sit tall and trust the driver.

Perhaps God will give me the privilege of bringing Him glory through words of encouragement to others going through this same journey. Perhaps He’ll even allow me to continue to write about it. Or perhaps it will just be Him and me. That will be enough. Jesus is always enough.

And I’m spurred on too, by the next words Jesus spoke. “Follow me!” That’s a path Peter tried hard to take, one that changed him into a man of God, a leader of men. It’s a path that leads to “a spacious place,” (Ps. 18:19), where God’s presence is evident, to the joy that comes in understanding God’s undying love and the peace that makes us lean into the wind and relish every moment on this earth – even moments in the sidecar.

“but the Lord was my support. He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me” (Psalm 18:18-19).

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