Ouch!

April 13, 2014

Dear God,

Oh my goodness, is this really mid April? We had rain during the night and temperatures dropped drastically. The wind has picked up causing some creaking and whooshing noises that make my furry kids nervous. I lit the fireplace and am enjoying it's warmth and ambiance. I gave the Fabulous 5 treats and they have nestled down in their blankets! 

About a month ago, I took a hot dish out of the microwave. The pain of the heat seared through the bowl to my hands, I dropped the dish, and quickly ran to the sink to run some cold water over the burn. My palm and the backs of my fingers turned really red and blistered. I was jumping up and down like a kangaroo holding my hands in a cold towel. A few days later the blisters began to break and for days I was reminded how stupid I was to think that I could mess with fire and not get burned. For sure, I won't do that again. The natural consequences of being burned will forever remind me to never touch a hot dish again.

So why am I writing about this now? Well, I was listening to the radio and a pastor was talking about suffering the natural consequences of our actions. It jogged my memory about the incident and reminded me of how every time I use the microwave, I pull out the hot pad holders. The pain was so great that it will be etched in my mind forever. Even as I write this, I cringe...

For years I was an enabling sweet lady who hated to see anyone cry or suffer. I got enmeshed in relationships and couldn't set healthy boundaries without feeling really guilty. I must confess that so many times I took over Your job. Since I am not God, playing God NEVER turned out the way I hoped it would. My interference prolonged the process of learning, maturing, and growing. I love the poem of Broken Dreams and wish I knew who wrote it. It says a lot about my meddling...

As children bring their broken toys

With tears for us to mend.

I brought my broken dreams to God

Because He was my Friend.

But then instead of leaving Him

In peace to work alone,

I hung around and tried to help

With ways that were my own.

At last I snatched them back and cried,

"How could You be so slow?"

"My child," He said,

"What could I do? You never did let go."

There is a lot to be learned from the wisdom imparted in the Bible (Proverbs is a great place to start reading and gathering pearls of wisdom). We have the thou shalt nots; and, it's pretty emphatic about "if you do _____ then _____ will happen." If you have premarital sex then pregnancy can occur. If you commit adultery then you may lose your spouse and family. If you give your soul to the devil, you will not experience eternal life. Pretty simple, yes? Was the premarital sex worth the abortion? Was the adultery worth losing your family?

We are supposed to be like your son, Jesus. He's the perfect example of a guy who was able to set good boundaries allowing the people around him to have freedom to choose. Romans 1:24 says: "Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another." In other words, You say to us ... "Okay, if you won't listen to me then have it your way and see what happens." Jesus practiced compassion combined with tough love.

The Bible says in Psalm 1 that a person who meditates on Your Word will be blessed. The wisdom of the Bible will help guide us to avoid wrong friends and influences. I know that when I stay close to You, I feel the refreshment like a tree planted by a river.

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.

 ~Psalm 119:105

Father God, I pray that we will learn from our choices and when our ways don't work out that there will be enough pain that we experience the want to change. Believe me, change will occur for most of us when the pain of change is less than the pain of remaining the same. For us who hate to see others cry, help us to realize that to interrupt and enable means prolonging bad choices. Father, I praise you and thank you for the progress Josh has made after his surgery and pray for continued progress. I pray for Gwen, Lawaina, and all my classmates that we would be able to gather to celebrate the many years we spent together growing up in Glenwood, Minnesota. Grant us all that extra measure of compassion, wisdom, and the promise of IF we do life your way THEN we will experience the peace that passes all understanding. Jesus, King of my life, you raised us to a newness of living in You and it's in Your Name I pray.

Amen!

Miss Dottie

NOTE TO READERS: To experience the natural consequences of our choices is worth more than all the preaching in the world. We are not someone else's Holy Spirit. As adults, we are accountable to each other but not responsible for the choices of another.  Remember the definition of insanity: doing things the same way over and over and expecting different results. Today's Monday, the perfect time to wipe the slate clean and be so busy concentrating on our own lives that we don't have time to judge, gossip, or take on someone else's business! Do I hear an Amen?!