We’ve all got goals. Some are short term ones, like…”I’d like to get to the gym today”. Some are long term ones, like…”I’ve always wanted to see the Pacific Ocean”.

I had a goal, and it was to be published in a Chicken Soup for the Soul book. So way back last October, I submitted an article on their website for a book subtitled “Overcoming Obstacles”. And then I waited. And waited.

They don’t send out rejection letters. If I was not contacted by March, I could take the material back because they wouldn’t use it. But as luck would have it, my contact information had changed as of the new year. I wasn’t on Evangelize to Me anymore, and I wanted to use my maiden name for writing credits. Hmmm… I know! I’ll write and tell them, and maybe they’ll let me know what’s going on.

I found out that the subtitle had changed. It was now “Find Your Inner Strength”, and a call had gone out for more submissions. The new contact date was in August. Uh oh. I guess that means what they have stinks. Darn it! Oh well. There will be other times, it’s okay. Sniff, sniff.

Cut to my living room eight months later, and I’m absent-mindedly spinning through my email account, and I see an email from Chicken Soup. My essay is in the final round of cuts. They are going to send me the edited version of the essay for my okay.

WHAAAAAAA???? Final cut? I didn’t know I was in the first one, much less than the last one. What a crazy thing! I was so happy, I shoved my iPAD under my husbands nose. “LOOK!!” It was an answer to a prayer when I got the word that I’d be published.

I would love for you to share my joy. It’s always a cause for celebration when a goal is reached. I am offering two copies of the book for a Give Away. So what do you have to do to enter? Just make a comment!

I’d love it if you would sign up to get my posts by email, or ‘liked’ my Facebook page too. Let’s get connected!

I’ll keep this page up all week, and draw two names out of a hat (or whatever I can find around here!). I’ll announce the winners on Saturday, November first. Thank you for helping me celebrate!

Linking today with: Unforced Rhythms

I am not perfect, I’m going to make misstates.

Ooops. I mean, I am going to make mistakes. Not only that, I will probably squander time and talent making less than great choices.

Let’s face it, no one walks through life bathed in a flawless light of maturity and virtue. I can’t be afraid to make errors, they’re going to happen. But there has to be a way to get better at figuring out how to use my abilities the way God wants me to use them.

Fortunately, there is. It’s taking the time to sit back and pray for knowledge to choose the right thing. Then, it’s taking on the problem and making the best decision possible.

The process is sometimes called discernment. I think It’s a lot like panning for gold. You grab your sifting pan filled with ideas, confusion and lack of clarity, and start working to eliminate all the things that have no value. Moving quietly, with peace and patience, all the dirt and sludge is eventually washed away. That pearl of wisdom lies just under all the things that appear so dreary, worthless and distracting.

When I was a junior in high school, my mother asked me that age old question: “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Oh jeez. I had no idea. She wanted to help me pick a college that would give me the education I wanted. Trouble was, I didn’t know what I wanted. I knew I couldn’t do math to save my life, so that was out. I had no drawing ability, my art work looked like third grader did it.

I looked through books, I studied college majors. Nothing was really calling my name. So, as teenagers usually do, I called an expert. My expert was my seventeen year old best friend. She was going to be a nurse. Really? That sounded good. Sold!

So, four years of college and a degree later, I was a nurse. I had over twenty years of happiness and fulfillment in my profession. I thank God for leading me to something that I loved to do.

Through my mothers question, God was calling me to discover my role in the world he created. My discernment process included spending quiet time reviewing my own talents, and paging through books. Then he waited for me to be prepared to talk to my friend. He spoke clearly through a high school buddy, hoping that I would see my future in hers.

Our God speaks in so many different ways. Life experience, past successes and failures, input from family and friends, finances and free time resources…all speak to direct our thoughts in the quiet work of discernment.

This process of decision-making shouldn’t be rushed. There are going to be times of waiting. I know that the Lord waited for me to be good and confused before he led me to my friend. But it was all part of his perfect plan.

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A few weeks ago, my husband and I went on a road trip through South Dakota. I really wanted to see Mt. Rushmore. As I researched the area before we went, I identified a few other places I thought we should see.

As we entered the Badlands National Park, we drove along slowly, following the looping road on the map they gave us. Herds of bighorn sheep were feeding on the grasses next to the road. It was fun to see them so close-up, I got some great photos.

As we moved deeper into the park, it was evident why the area has such a dreary name.

I could just imagine the explorers seeing this place for the first time and saying, “Yep. This is some bad land alright.” Everywhere I looked, all I saw were craters and bare rock.

We kept on driving, accompanied by the moonscape spreading out beside us. I happened to look at one particularly vertical cliff and saw an amazing sight. In the middle of this barren and stony land, there was a bighorn sheep standing completely upright on the side of a sheer drop. I wish I got a photo of it, but by the time I realized what I saw, we were past it. Incredible! All around there was just…nothing. Yet there he stood, all casual-like, just checking out the scene.

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Devil’s Tower is in Wyoming, but it wasn’t a long drive. It took about 90 minutes to get there. As we neared the formation, we could see it looming up in the distance.

The land around it was flat for miles so it stuck out like a sore thumb. Sheer rock, almost completely vertical, it rose up to the heavens. Such an impressive sight.

We hiked the trail around the base of the tower. It was a twisty, winding and rocky path. My husband brought along binoculars, so he stopped to take a closer look at the drape-like folds in the rock. After a few minutes he dropped the lenses to his chest and said, “I can’t believe it.”

Can you see them? There were two men repelling slowly down the side of the rock face. It looked like it couldn’t be done, but these were two very determined climbers.

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These two experiences really made me think. In the middle of barren, vertical land, there was life. Even in what seemed to be the harshest environment, God’s creatures not only overcame, they thrived. Whether animal or human, it was clear that they all were created and prepared to face the harsh environment. In the middle of what looked like nothing.

I think God was showing me that he has fully prepared me too. Sometimes I’m in a bad land. Support is hard to find, and my hope is fading. But even in the face of rocky times he still whispers, “Do not be afraid.”

“I have created you to not only overcome, but to thrive.”

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Linking today with: Chronicles of Grace

“Where did I put those keys?”

I was standing at the kitchen table, rummaging through my purse. Of course I thought they were right there. And of course they weren’t. Great. Now I’m going to be late. A five minute dash visiting my last stops around the house and I finally locate the lost keys.

I’m out in the door in a flash.

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There I am. I’m the eight year old who has buried her eyes in her elbow while leaning against a tree. “98-99-100!” It’s twilight on a summer evening. My siblings and half the neighborhood are over to play Hide and Seek, and I’m ‘it’. Finally reaching 100, I step out into the yard that looks so empty. But I know there are at least eight bodies crammed somewhere into their hiding places.

Ten minutes later, I locate the last hideout. My brother emerges from the overgrown evergreen bushes, and I run away to hide. As I run I hear, “1-2-3…”

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Lost and Found. I was looking for keys; I was looking for the hiders. In both of these situations, I had to find something that was lost. It was up to me to do it by myself.

These stories remind me of my own personal journey of faith.

I knew something was missing, that I needed to find God. There was a restlessness in my soul that wouldn’t let me find peace until I found him. Just as I had to find my keys and my brother, I am the only one who can find and accept Christ for myself. No one can do that for me.

There are several parables in the bible about lost items…the lost coin, the lost sheep. They seem like small things. But now I understand the driving need to find what is lost. That one sheep or one coin was as important to their owners, as finding Christ was to me.

Another thing I learned from the parables, and my own experiences, is that once I have found what I’m looking for, the search is over. After all, when I found my keys, I didn’t put them down and start looking for them again. When I found my brother, it was ‘game over.’ I didn’t run away from the evergreens and look for him somewhere else.

When I found the Lord, I found my peace, joy and place in him. It’s ‘game over.’ But you know, even though I realize that, I still have to fight the urge to run off and find peace in other things. Old habits die hard.

But if my eight year old self can figure out that finding the last player means no more searching, then I guess I can too. I can stop looking for peace now. God is with me, so no more searching. After all, you don’t hunt for something you already have.

Lost and Found. Once I was lost. But now I have found the peace that I need. May God give me the grace to stay at home with him.

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Do you remember when:

You were a six month old with colic? You kept your parents up at night with your screams of pain, and your screams of abandonment when they put you back to bed?

You looked up in complete and helpless love at your Dad who fixed your toy?

You hit your sister so hard she cried, and you were sent to your room in a self-righteous huff?

Your mom clapped like you were an Olympic platform diver when you peed in the potty?

Yeah. Me neither.

Oh, they all happened, I’m sure of that. But I was too young, or too distracted to bury those little slices of life into my brain. The only reason I know about them? I was told. And not just once, but many times over.

Oral traditions that pass along memories are important parts of life. They tell us who we are. And it reinforces family identity. I belong, and there are stories to prove it. Those vignettes from long ago are my ID card, proving that I’m a member of the “Ryan Tribe.”

No matter how many stories are remembered, there are some that just get lost in the cracks of time. Because of that, some families start tracing their roots on ancestry websites. My uncle wrote a fairly detailed family history of my mom’s side of the family, all the way back to Ireland. My brother interviewed my Dad a few years ago, and recorded the sessions on CD. It’s all an attempt to remember who we are, and where we belong.

If we know our past, we know ourselves.

The same thing is true for our heavenly family. Our Father knew how much we needed to hear the stories about them too. Thousands of years ago, he inspired the Prophet Joel to urge everyone to remember the wonders God had done: “Tell your children about it in years to come, and let your children tell their children.” (Joel 1:3) And in Deuteronomy 11, Moses tells the people; “Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands…teach them to your children, talking about them as you sit at home.”

The bible contains the story of our spiritual family. It’s our extended-family album, with narrative of our famous, and not so famous ancestors. Were you there when Adam and Eve messed up? Were you there when Elijah was caught up in a whirlwind? Did you meet Jabez, and hear him speak his prayer? Of course not. But we know all about them, because we’ve been told. And we can revisit and refresh those memories again and again.

We should tell our children the stories of their lives. They need to be told, and repeated again and again. But we can’t  forget to include the stories of their spiritual family too. The bible provides them with another ID card. It proves that they, along with all of us, are blessed members of “God’s Tribe.”

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~

The earth has music for those who will listen. ~George Santayana

I felt my lungs inflate with the onrush of scenery – air, mountains, trees, people. I thought, “This is what it is to be happy.” ~Sylvia Plath

I like this place, and could willingly waste my time in it. ~Wm. Shakespeare

Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience. ~R.W. Emerson

If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere. ~V. Van Gogh

I go to nature to be soothed and healed. And to have my senses put in tune once more. ~J. Burroughs

~

A walk through the forest in autumn has it’s own language. And that language is silence. I hope you will find some time this fall season to enjoy the special rhythm, sway and color of the leaves. I also hope you can do it in silence. I guarantee no one can walk out of the forest feeling the same as when they walked in.

Overflowing peace, joy and union with all of nature awaits.

I pray that we will all experience the gift of enjoying God’s creation in this special season of change. May we all breath deeply, let those shoulders relax, and experience our place in the unity of all the Lord’s creation.

It is a beautiful world.

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This summer, my husband and I saw James Taylor in concert. His music career has continued for over forty years, which is rare in the music world. He has overcome many barriers to success. There have been struggles with drug abuse, mental illness and family tragedy. But none of the challenges stopped him from using his musical gifts.

At the concert, he introduced one of the songs with this story. He said he was holed up in a hotel trying to get a few more songs written to fulfill a contract he had for a new album. Things weren’t going very well. Day after day, he’d try to come up with a new lyric or line of music, but it just wasn’t coming.

Finally, in desperation, he decided to write about the fact that he couldn’t think of anything to say. Because he was feeling so frustrated, the words and music about that creative brick wall just poured out. A new song was born, and an album and contract was completed.

That story stuck with me long after the concert.

For one thing, it reminded me of some of my blog-friends. I’ve read posts from bloggers who felt blocked too. Not able to think of anything to write, they contemplate quitting; they wonder where their inspiration went. Even though it was painful, they wrote anyway, trying to work it through. Just like James Taylor, their frustration was turned into a new work, and opened the door to new opportunities.

But truly, his story is a lesson in perseverance. God gives everyone talent and drive to accomplish, and then sets us free to use those gifts. That doesn’t mean that it’s always easy. There will be bumps and bruises, brick walls and challenges. I have to ask myself: How will all those troubles affect me? Will I give up, or I will I use them to push me into new places?

My friend in college was driven to be a nurse. She attended college on a scholarship in the work/study program, and studied hard. In our senior year, she told me she liked nursing, but wasn’t sure it was the right thing for her. I was stunned. She worked so hard for that degree.

After graduation, she worked as a nurse, saving money to get a degree as a nurse practitioner. In spite of job demands, coupled with paying back student loans, she eventually got to school and earned that license. I was so proud of her.

Then came medical school! Another degree, more sacrifices…but nothing would stand in her way. If there is a statue somewhere to perseverance, this woman’s face should be on it. There were so many twists and turns on the way to her medical practice, but they never stopped her.

Blogging, song-writing, finding the right career, being a friend, well, most of life really, comes with challenges. They can be ultimate blockers, or become ultimate blessings. Every hurdle presents an opportunity to learn and grow…for those who are ready to overcome them.

I think the trick is to face the fear, and set sail.

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I really wondered if I was in so deep I’d never get out. How did I manage to be in this classroom with nine rambunctious boys?

That last fall, my son had come to me with the sad news that his Cub Scout den leaders were quitting at the end of the year. I felt so bad. He really enjoyed scouting. “Maybe someone will volunteer,” I told him.

Oh yeah, someone volunteered. Me.

No one else could do it. I’d never been involved in scouting, never a Brownie or Blue Bird. But I bravely bought my yellow cotton shirt with the red pack numbers on the sleeve, and my leader guide book.

Meetings were held in my sons school after classes. It made sense on paper. But there were eight nine year olds who had been cooped up behind a desk for six hours. Finally let loose, they flew into another classroom to sit for another hour and half. Yikes. Can’t lie, it was chaotic.

No one was happier to hear that two moms decided to step in as Den leaders the next year. Did they feel sorry for me? For the kids? Either way, I was relieved. I really tried to learn and help out for a year, but I found out I just wasn’t cut out to be a Scout Leader.

I’ve run down dead ends thinking they were rose paths before, and I will again. Jobs, projects and volunteer projects that sounded so great, sometimes end in a heap on the floor. When that happens, I wonder if I’ll ever find the right place to bloom.

I took this photo while walking through the park. There are a lot of trees that look just like this. Bare trunks, with stripped limbs reaching up so high that I know this once was a huge, healthy tree. Somehow, it got so stressed that it’s towering life wilted and froze in a perpetual winter scene.

Except…

New life is starting around the trunk. New limbs, new leaves throw their color against the white bark. I was so inspired by this scene. This is what my life looks like after I take a wrong turn.

That year as a Den Mother was challenging. I grew into new knowledge and had to be strong to lead nine year old boys masquerading as border collies in a sheep field. It was hard work, but after all that growth, it was time to move on. The towering tree would be abandoned.

Looking back at that dry tree, I might think that I wasted my time. But God plans his own lessons to learn in every circumstance. Was this time wasted? No way.

But after that experience, it was time for new life, for new opportunities. Those little green sprouts in the photo mirror my own fresh start. No reason to regret something that didn’t work out. There’s a whole wide world out there. God will use me again.

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Linking today with: Thought Provoking Thursday