Tuesday, October 28, 2008

"Hearing" From God

I recently spoke to a lovely group of Southern California MOPS leaders and within minutes of entering the room met, as Anne of Green Gables used to say, a "Kindred Spirit" (If you have not yet read that classic novel you need to run, not walk, to your local book store or library, pick up a copy and dive in. If you have a daughter over the age of about eight it would make a delightful bonding time should you choose to read it aloud together). After talking for literally, ninety seconds, Bonnie (my MOPS Kindred Spirit) and I decided that we would get in way too much trouble if we spent time much together (picture loud, raucous laughter at rather inappropriate times). At the end of the evening Bonnie shared a story about her children that I felt an urgency to retell. You will soon understand why...

Bonnie has two daughters ages six and four and a son who is a toddler. Recently Bonnie was talking to her oldest daughter whom she described as quite...well...dramatic. She and her daughter were praying together and as they were finishing, Bonnie suggested that they wait silently to see if God had anything to say to them. Within seconds Bonnie's daughter had tears streaming down her cheeks and was yelling "I CAN'T HEAR GOD!!!! I DON'T KNOW WHAT HE SOUNDS LIKE!!! I DON'T KNOW HOW TO HEAR GOD!!!" Bonnie comforted her daughter and they continued their conversation about the many different ways it might be possible to hear from God...for example sometimes we hear from God when we see His creation, like when we are outside and take notice of the stars in the sky, or that sometimes we just sense His presence in the quietness of our heart. As she spoke, her daughters tears dried up and her panic dissipated.

A few nights later as Bonnie was putting her middle child to bed she found herself in "The Stall Tactic" portion of the evening and repeating her usual line of "Listen, we've already sang our song, read our book and said our prayers. It is now your brothers turn to have some time with me." As if on cue to "help" her mother, Bonnie's eldest daughter came storming into the room, placed her hands on her hips and told her younger sister "IF YOU WOULD JUST BE QUIET FOR A MINUTE YOU MIGHT HEAR FROM GOD!!!" after which she turned on her heel and marched out of the room. Apparently Bonnie's little talk about different ways to "Hear from God" had resonated with her eldest!

As my new friend and I laughed about the funny things kids say we also nodded with empathy about their fears, after all, haven't we all wondered if it was possible to "hear from God"? Haven't we all wondered if God cared enough to even speak to us? One of the most life transforming lessons I've ever learned is that God does want to speak to each of us and that one of the main places He will do so is through His Holy Word--The Bible. When I learned this, my prayer life was transformed. I began to go to the Bible more regularly with a sense of expectation...and I was never disappointed. I'd like to encourage you to do the same. Try not to panic (like Bonnie's daughter)...how about we pray instead okay?

Father, thank you for providing me with your Holy voice through the written word of the Bible. Thank you for reminding me in John 10:27 that you have given me the ability to hear you ("My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me"). Please open my Spirit ears to hear you clearly in the days to come and help me teach my children to do the same. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Blessings to you my Sisters,
Tracy Klehn

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Thank You for the Mamas

I heard a song recently that touched my heart within the first few words. It is a song called "Yo' Mama" by Nicole C. Mullen (I have included a link at the bottom of this blog for your convenience so that you can listen to a sample and/or purchase the song) and in it, Nicole sings about what a blessing the mother of a friend has been in her life...

your mama so cool like a gentle breeze
blowin' on a summer day
your mama got a way of sayin things
that would chase all my pain away

I remember times she looked me in the eyes
and tell me I could win
'cuz when nobody else would take the time
to care about a broken hearted kid
your mama did


When I think about the words to this song I can't help but think of the "Yo' Mamas" in my life. Women who reached out to me and took the time to get to know me. Women who prayed for me and fed me and showed me with their lives that there is a God and He is loving, faithful and gracious. Women whose names I didn't even know but that blessed me with a smile of understanding when I was in line with a screaming toddler at the grocery store.

Who are the "Mama's" in your life? Who "mothered" you and believed in you when you didn't even believe in yourself? Who has been praying for you through the years? Who encouraged you? Who cared?

Let us not miss this opportunity to pray a prayer of thanksgiving and blessing over them. It doesn't have to be a long drawn out prayer with lots of "thees and thous." In fact, sometimes the most profound prayers simply involve two words..."Thank you." I know this only because that is all I can usually get out when I drive by the street where my grandparents used to live. The Lord used those two people to nurture me in ways that still boggle my mind. My grandma is for sure at the top of my "Yo' Mama" list!

The other thought that stirs in me when I hear this song is that I want to be a mother like that! I want to be an encourager to all of the kids in my life...whether I gave birth to them or not! I want to be available to the Lord to challenge, love and bless kids of all ages. Don't you?

Let's Pray:
Lord God, I thank you for your Word that says "you have given me an instructed tongue to know the word that sustains the weary." (Isaiah 50:4) I ask you to open my Spirit eyes right now and from now on, to see those that could use a "Word to sustain the weary." Help me to be a blessing to kids of all ages. Help me through the power of the Holy Spirit to know what to do for your children...whether it's a hug, a meal, a prayer or a "vote of confidence." Most of all Lord, I pray that you would help me to point them to you through my actions and my words. You are their Provider and you love them in ways I can only imagine. To God be all the Glory! In Jesus' name, Amen.

http://nicolecmullen.com/audio.html

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Dancing Through Life Together

We've all heard that men and women are inherently different..."Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus," "Men are Waffles and Women are Spaghetti..." Well, this weekend I got to see it play out right before my eyes in a surprisingly sweet (and humorous) way.

The four of us (myself, Russ and my two kids) attended a family wedding. My cousin Erik married his high school sweetheart Becky (like a hundred years later...way to hang in there guys!) in a beautiful ceremony in Palm Springs after which there was a touching and joy-filled celebration. After being introduced for the first time as "husband and wife," the couple made their way to the edge of the dance floor where they waited quietly for the music of their first dance to begin. As the first few bars of "Home to You" by John Micheal Montgomery played, Erik led his bride onto the floor and into a lovely waltz that had obviously been choreographed and practiced countless times. As they glided around in each others arms I happened to glance across the table at my eleven year old daughter Grace. Her chin was resting on her hands which were propped on the back of her chair, and her eyes, which were locked on the bride and groom dancing, were filled with tears...so much so that even in the darkened room I could see them fall from her eyes and into her lap. After the dance I caught her eye and motioned for her to come over to me. She climbed onto my lap and I whispered in her ear "Honey, are you okay? What's going on?" Confused, she looked at me and said "I don't know." I smiled then and I smile now even as I write this because, bless her heart, my daughter is a female and she is wired for romance just like the rest of us! She'll soon find out that Kleenex is a must-have for all future weddings and receptions!

A little later in the evening the D.J. called all the single guys out on the dance floor. You guessed it...it was time for my junior high son to receive an education that he had not expected to get (nor had Russ or I remembered to forecast to him--or at least recommend a timely trip to the men's room until hoops and bustles had been put back in order). Spencer soon found out about "garters" and by the look on his face he didn't mind the lesson...he was cracking up. As I sat and watched my "little boy" stand with about 20 other men I started getting all misty, that is until I noticed one subtle movement from my son...as he stood waiting for Erik to throw the garter, Spencer clenched his fists and cracked his knuckles...that was when I knew it was all over for the other "bachelors." The minute the garter was launched into the air Spencer leaped about 3 feet and grabbed hold of it. When he landed he did an arm pump that he must have learned from Tiger Woods...it was hilarious. You see Spencer, like most men, is wired for competition. It didn't matter to him what the prize was, if it was a competition he was going to be right in the middle of it giving it his all (although he did say that since the "prize" had the Ohio State logo on it that he was going to have to give it back).

So there you go...my daughter is wired for romance and my son is wired for competition. Can you relate? Or, perhaps more importantly, can we still relate to one another? Even though very different things "move" us can we still appreciate the opposite sex? Can we still enjoy hanging out together? I hope so.

Later in the evening, my son and daughter were dancing up a storm and laughing out loud. Spencer and Grace are so very different and yet they are still able to (most of the time) enjoy one another. I pray that Our Lord helps us all to do the same. Whether between brothers and sisters, husbands and wives, fathers and daughters, or mothers and sons, may we always be found appreciating (and sometimes giggling about) our many, innate differences and still dancing through life together.


Let's Pray...
Father God we thank you and praise you for you are the One that "knit us together in our mothers womb and we are all indeed fearfully and wonderfully made." (see Psalm 139) Please help us learn to love and appreciate the differences between one another, especially between men and women, and help us celebrate those differences in ways that are honoring and glorifying to you. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Thoughts Amidst Wadded up Kleenex

Today I am "under the weather" or perhaps I should say "down for the count"? Whatever you want to call it...I have Vick's Vapor Rub smeared under my chin, wadded up Kleenex strewn about my legs, my hair looks like something from the eighties (pictured teased, messy with half a can of Aqua-Net--the fuchsia can of course) and my left eye will only open about halfway due to the swelling of my sinuses. I know you want to come over right now and hang out with me right?

So...on a day like today I am sitting on my couch and watching the movie I watch whenever it is autumn and I am feeling less than "springy." I am watching You Got Mail for the umpteenth time. What movie do you watch when you get sick? Do you have a favorite "feel better" movie? My friend Melissa just told me that Sound of Music is her "feeling sick selection" and that when Julie Andrews starts running up that hill she always bursts into tears and knows "Everything is going to be okay."

ANYWAY...I am digressing, which I will blame on the sinus infection. While I was sitting amidst my wadded up Kleenex and watching my "feel better movie" I was struck by a tiny little scene that I don't know that I paid much attention to before. Meg Ryan's character has just discovered that the chain book store is moving in around the corner and could possibly pose a huge threat to the business of her quaint little "Shop Around the Corner." So she sits at her computer and types her contemplations...

Sometimes I wonder about my life.
I lead a small life, well, valuable but small.
And, sometimes I wonder...
Do I do it because I like it or because I haven't been brave?
So much of what I see reminds me of something I read in a book when...
Shouldn't it be the other way around?


What are your thoughts? Do you see your life as small? Valuable?
I don't have answers for you today...just the question...

I do feel grateful today. Do you mind if I take a moment to tell you why?
I feel grateful that I have a home to live in and a couch to curl up on when I am sick.
I feel grateful that I have a husband who is willing to pick the kids up from school today and cart them to football and cheer leading so I can get better.
I feel grateful that my husband has a job that provides us with health insurance so that I can get some medicine to speed up this recovery.
I feel grateful that I do not have to "perform" to be loved...that Christ loves me just as I am...Vick's Vapor Rub and all...and whether I am living large or small! I am valuable to Him and you are too.

Blessings dear ones...I'd hug you but wouldn't want to contaminate you with my germs!
Tracy Klehn

Monday, October 6, 2008

Friendship Often Takes a "Braveheart"!

Have you ever noticed that making friends and staying friends takes courage?

It takes courage...
To say that first "Hello"
To ask "Is this seat taken?"
To believe a gal actually wants to hang out with you and doesn't just feel obligated to include you because you were in earshot of an invitation to others
To go to Starbucks, to the mall, to the movies or to the retreat
To let your friends know that you are hurting
To be honest and say that you and your husband aren't doing very well
To let them know that today you're looking for the place where you can turn in your resignation for motherhood
To ask if your friend will go with you to the doctor's because you don't want to be by yourself when the test results come back
To say "That hurt my feelings" or "Why didn't you show up?"
To say "I am so sorry...will you please forgive me?"
To ask for prayer
To grab a friends hand and, through prayer, bring her to your very best friend...Jesus

Yes friendship takes a "Braveheart." Isn't it comforting to know that the "Truth" is that we have been given one?

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love and self-discipline."
2 Timothy 1:7 NLT

This weekend our church is hosting their annual women's retreat (whose theme is "Bravehearts-Fear Less Love More") and I encourage those of you that are in the Southern California area to check it out. Retreats offer not only an opportunity to make new friends and deepen exisiting relationships, it is a place to say "Okay Lord, I am 'retreating' from the daily busyness of life to make room for you...please meet me and speak to me." I am always astounded by the ways God rushes to meet us in specific ways when we take the smallest steps towards him...

In closing, I've included the link to a VERY FUNNY and creative (and short-maybe 2 minutes) video that I believe you will enjoy...a great reminder to be "BRAVE" in friendship and in life.

Blessings Dear Ones,
Tracy Klehn

Bravehearts - NorthPark Women's Retreat Video