Challenge from Mom at Breakfast

Today was my time with Mom over her usual cheese omelet and white toast. She cuts up her omelet into little squares and then takes a crisp piece of potato to put on top and then pops it in her mouth. She follows it up with a bite of toast. Each bite is done in the same way. It is what happens between these bites that can be funny and sometimes like today challenging.

I have stated before on this blog that my mom has frontal lobe disorder. She is no longer in reality and her stories are just that, stories. They are not true and actually no longer even have a hint of truth in them as far as having really taken place. But today I am able to gather a very serious challenge from her story.

One of her favorite things to say is "A lady came out on her porch when I was out walking. She yelled at me and asked me if I was Denise Hardy's mother and after I said yes...she said that Denise is the most wonderful woman I have ever known." This is said to me multiple times during the course of the omelet each week but this week there was a twist. My mother added after that, "The lady told me that she was going to commit suicide but she heard you speak and she changed her mind. She knew she had something to live for." Whoa! Where did that come from?

Although my mother never spoke to a woman who said those things, it gave me pause to think. Every word that comes out of my mouth counts. I do not know what is going on in anyone's life. The teaching that I do I need to take very seriously. It is falling on hurting ears. So I thought of this verse, "...we who teach will be judged more strictly." James 3:1b This passage goes on to talk about the tongue. The bottom line is that spiritual maturity requires a tamed tongue. I have to remember that. God expects me to keep my tongue under control. I can't do it by myself. I need His help. He gives that to me in many ways. Today He used my mom to remind me of the seriousness of speaking words that benefit others and bring glory to God.

Thank you God for my mom who continues to teach me even if she doesn't really know it. You are using her in my life to mature me into who you want me to be.

Day /Runner

Today I purchased my 2012 planner. It is time to start filling in all the dates that have already been booked for 2012. I still use the pencil and paper kind. A little old fashioned but it works for me. I don't have to think about what buttons to push and what the abbreviations of certain things are. I can just write it and forget it until I need to read it again. Erasures are so very nice for changed plans and take only a minute to do.

It is an interesting name Day/Runner. You can certainly understand where it comes from. We write things down for every day and then we run to get those things accomplished. It sure seems funny to me with all of this daily running I never loose weight. It isn't useless running, well maybe sometimes it is. But mostly we make plans and run because we need to keep ourselves on track or else we would waste the day rather than run in it.

What does God say about Day/Runners? Hmm-mm an interesting question..."Be very careful, then, how you live--not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil." Ephesians 5:15-16 So if we are going to be running, it should be for the right thing. We need to be wise about what we put in our Day/Runner and it should be counting for the glory of God. As I begin to put in the things already on schedule for 2012, I want to take the time to evaluate God's glory in each of them. I want my running to count for the eternal kingdom to come.

Let me just say that I love the whole planning and writing out the plans for the coming year. Probably because I love office supplies. I also want to say that this year I got a very pretty Day/Runner. It's all about style. How girlie is that! So when you see me run by carrying my Day/Runner, please notice the design and color. When you do, I will make the most of the opportunity by giving you a very big smile. :)