Happy Birthday, Mom!

Today's post is written by Kelly Wayland.  

A few weeks ago I started to get an ingrown toenail and since I'm prone to getting them and they usually fix themselves,
I didn't mention it to my parents or think anything of it. Not until I woke up one morning in tears from the pain or it
being extremely infected. I let my mom know and she called the doctor, who wouldn't be able to see me until later that
afternoon. I had to be at work at noon so we decided to go to the ER in hopes that it would be a quick trip and have me
at work on time.

Surprisingly, they called me back within about 10 minutes and the doctor came in shortly after. He looked at my toe and
told me he would have to remove about a third of the nail in order to get the ingrown part out. He told me he would give
me "a couple" numbing shots in my toe so I wouldn't be able to feel any of the procedure happening. He then left the room
to get his supplies.

Just the mention of having to get shots in my toe made me SO nervous. I was telling my mom how I was scared of needles
and how nervous I was. She told me to imagine being at the beach with my friends or think of something else that made me
happy. So, with this in mind, the doctor came back in the room and told me to lay down and relax.

Well, it was near impossible to "relax" as he began poking the needles into my toe. The first shot didn't bother me too
much, but it seemed like he kept jabbing more and more needles in my toe. I began to squirm and the pain got worse and
worse. The whole time my mom was standing right there with me telling me to "take deep breaths". I heard her words and
tried my hardest to do what she was saying but it was so hard to take deep breaths between the sobs and trying to not kick
the doctor in the face.

Finally, the shots were over and my mom was still right there by my side and now she had a tissue for me to wipe the tears
from my eyes. Where the doctor said it would be "a couple" shots, my mom said she thought she counted him do at least four.

Through all of that and through my healing time in the days after, my mom was there for me whenever I needed her. Whether
it was to help me bandage my toe up, to give me a ride somewhere (I was prescribed Vicodin, so was unable to drive), or
just to hang out, she was ALWAYS there and ready to help me with whatever it was I needed.

I'm so lucky to have such a great mom that is ready and willing to take care of me whenever I need her.

Thank you so much for everything, Mommy! You're the best! Happy birthday! 

Ladies Game Night

Friday, July 20th, we'll be having a game night for the ladies of GLCC.  It starts at 7pm and goes until 9pm.  Light snacks, good tunes, fun board games are on the lineup for the evening.  Call your BFF and get on over to the church for a few hours of air conditioned fun.  We promise, NO TWISTER:)

Trust Me

I spend a lot of time awake in the middle of the night. Do you?  Everyone in the house is sleeping and my husband is gently breathing next to me, but I lie there awake.  Try as I might I can't get back to sleep and often I'm there for hours before drifting off.  Sometimes I get up and clean or read or pray.  It's an interesting but solitary existence, alone in a full house.

I suppose I'm a worrier.  I never thought of myself like that.  I always thought I was a happy go lucky kind of gal, roll with the punches, God will provide, etc.  Que Sera Sera, what will be will be.  I've found out differently and I roll worries around in my head like marbles in a box.  Some nights are better than others.

Recently our pastor preached about living in the now and not in the past where regrets linger, or in the future where we have no control.  It's such a simple concept yet such a difficult thing to do.  It requires trusting God for this moment, the only one that matters right NOW, and not kicking ourselves over things we can't undo or wringing our hands over things that may never happen.  So simple but so hard to change a mind that's like Times Square and the city that never sleeps.

I don't know what's going to happen with my children.  I don't know if they'll do well in school, get good jobs, marry nice ladies, have smart kids, follow Jesus faithfully....  I don't know if my husband will succumb to the Alzheimer's Disease that has ravaged his family. The thought terrifies me but I can't stop it if it's coming no more than I can stop the sun from rising.  But, I can trust that if it does happen, and he starts the long descent into oblivion, God Almighty will be there to walk with me through it.

So many questions but such a BIG God!  Thank you Father for loving us and walking with us through the dark nights and for promising to never leave us or forsake us.  We trust in YOU and praise YOU and give you our cares because you are willing to take them.

Psalm 9:10

 Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.

Psalm 56:3

When I am afraid, I will trust in you.

Isaiah 12:2

Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The LORD, the LORD, is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation."

Visiting Dad

Today's post is by Christian Fowler

The feel of the grass beneath your feet and wind in your hair as the birds are chirping, rather than the feel of a soft couch and the air conditioning on your skin, while kids are laughing and playing, and grownups are chatting and playing cards; makes for a different kind of “visit.”

 Spending time with my dad has changed a tad over the past year. I still love him and desire his advice, hugs, love, joy, example, and of course to hear his voice, but it’s not quite the same. It will never be what it used to be. When you have to start watching home videos simply to hear his voice, curl up in his bed with his favorite pillow and blanket just to feel like he’s near, when you have to dig through old photos just to see his smile... a real smile, one that when you see it you know that smile was before the pain started; before the family was broken. Running to a grave and desperately hugging a tombstone rather than his body, as though the tears you shed will bring him back isn’t my favorite kind of visit but nobody knows why things happen the way they do.

 People keep telling me that with time it’ll get easier, but no; time hasn’t made anything easier. Time will not bring my father back and make it so that I’m no longer talking to the wind and day dreaming about what his response could and would have been. Time will not wipe my tears, or tell me everything will be okay while wrapping its arms around me. Time can’t fix anything, but Jesus can.

 As my relationship with Christ has grown, even over these past few months, it has been easier to go to his grave and simply smile in remembrance of him rather than feel anger at having to say goodbye so soon. Christ will see you through, even when “time” can’t. Let Christ be your grassy surface and lay your loved ones in Jesus’ arms. Everyone knows they would rather be resting in the arms of Christ than in pain on some old comfy couch.

The Envelope

I want you to think about someone.  Think about the person who gets on your nerves the most.  The person who criticizes you, belittles you, maybe puts you down now and again....that's who I want you to think about.  You walk away when you see them coming or if you HAVE to spend time with them, you grit your teeth and bear it and count the hours until the gathering is over.  Have you thought of your person?  I have, or at least I've thought of the person who used to make me feel that way.  My mother-in-law.

One day she sent us an envelope, a rather large envelope stuffed with papers.  John looked them over and set them aside but didn't comment on what they were.  I moved them here and there and finally opened the envelope and read the stack of papers inside.  I read and read and slowly the scales fell from my eyes and I was changed.

Imagine that person who irritates you.  Imagine they had the opportunity to sit down with a counselor and for years, they poured out their heart to that person.  Imagine that they went home and wrote down everything they shared with the counselor.  Now, imagine them sending it to you....the person who grits her teeth when she sees them coming....the person whose heart is bitter and hard toward them out of a sense of self protection.

Pandora had a box and in my case, Irene had a manila envelope.  All of her pain and suffering, loss and despair came spilling out on those pages.  I read of a struggling marriage and of miscarriages.  Divorce and despair were followed by a slow descent into a mental illness.  Her children were lost to her for a while as she struggled to climb back from the abyss and she wondered if she would ever live with them again as their mother.

I couldn't put those pages down and as I finished the last one, I realized that the woman who had caused me so much pain over the years was suffering as well.  I saw her with new eyes and at last I was able to understand why she had held so tightly to her son....so tightly because she had already lost him once and didn't want to lose him again.  I cried as I put the evidence of her brokenness back into the envelope and prayed to the Lord right there that I could love her the way she needed and the way I should have loved her all along.

I'm thinking about YOUR person, the one you have trouble loving.  I'm thinking about the envelope arriving at YOUR house and YOUR chance to read about their pain and brokenness.  Do you think it will make a difference at all?  The only thing I know is that I was called to change and love her, even when it was tough.  I was called to look into someone's heart and see them as God sees them.  I'm thankful I had the envelope and the chance to love better.

I Peter 4:8 

Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.

Great Books for Book Lovers....revisited

If you're like me, you have tons of books in your "to be read" stack, yet you are always on the lookout for new ones. It's a sickness but such a fun one! This list is from the ladies of our church (and friends) FOR the ladies of our church (and friends). We'll update it regularly and feel free to comment in the comments section to add one of your faves. We can always buy a new bookshelf, right?

The Help by Kathryn Stockett....recommended by Mia Waller
Heaven is Real by Todd Burpo.....Karen Emkes
Mitford Series by Jan Karon....Cindy Wayland
Yada Yada Prayer Group by Neta Jackson....Cindy Wayland
Yada Yada House of Hope by Neta Jackson.... Cindy Wayland
Shadow Women by Angela Hunt.....Lisa Wright (friend of Paula Keller)
A Tree Grows In Brooklyn by Betty Smith...Paula Keller
Crazy Love by Francis Chan....Susan Hickerson
Same Kind of Different as Me by Ron Hall....Susan Hickerson
A Lineage of Grace by Francine Rivers....Esther Booth
Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers....Jennifer Blaschke
Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese....Jenni Booth (friend of Paula Keller)
Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah....Sally Hagenhoff
When Crickets Cry by Charles Martin....Sally Hagenhoff
Promise Me by Richard Paul Evans....Sally Hagenhoff
Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier....Sally Hagenhoff
The Walk by Richard Paul Evans....Sally Hagenhoff



More to come as our friends share....stay tuned!

Trusting God!

Written by Adriana Prada Guerrero

The theme for VBS this year was TRUST GOD! and that is exactly what I had to do all last week! Back in March or April (I forget) I remember Pastor Steve and Pam asked me if I was going to be serving in VBS and I said yes but was unsure where. So they asked me if I would be willing to teach one of the Bible Stations and I went "eek!". I prayed about it and really felt like God wanted me to do it (even though I was honestly petrified with the idea of teaching over 200 kids plus their adult crew leaders). By doing VBS in this capacity I had to confront several painful experiences (both from my old church along with my old job) regarding my ability to do this. I consider myself a somewhat unique child of God...I'm loud, spunky, "filter-less", not your typical Proverbs 31 woman so I felt incredibly inadequate to do this. I was afraid of being rejected, I was nervous about getting the Bible stories wrong; the week before VBS I was a hot mess. However, God once again used VBS to meet me where I was. 


Day one of VBS was "No matter who you are....TRUST GOD!". As many times as I told the Lord "Father I'm so unworthy to be teaching your word" He responded to me "but you are worthy because you have Me".


 Day two was "No matter how you feel....TRUST GOD!". As I cried to the Lord about feeling absolutely terrified He once again gently reminded me that I can trust Him because He will be working through me.


 Day three was "no matter what people do....TRUST GOD!". As the enemy brought back the horrible things people have said to me and have done to me which usually keep me down I knew that if He was leading me to teach the Bible then He was going to give me what I needed to do it!


 Day four was "no matter what happens....TRUST GOD!". On this day we were sharing the Gospel and I was so worried about getting it wrong. What if I didn't lead any children to Christ? And then I remember that I am not in charge of the results! God is and all I had to do is present the message and rest in Him that the Holy Spirit would be working in those children's hearts. 


Day five was "no matter where you go....TRUST GOD!". This was our last day of VBS and I was very emotional because I felt so humbled to have been used by God in this way and know that 450+ seeds had been planted in the hearts of Children. 


 Sometimes as adults I think we try to complicate the Bible when His truths are so simple...we just need to Trust Him! Trust Him with our lives, with our dreams, with our children, with our husband, with everything we are and everything we have and that is what VBS taught me this week!