Back to reality........

I have been back to the US from Honduras for almost two weeks. It's amazing how even just a week in a third world country being exposed to extreme poverty can change someone's attitude. I am always so humbled by their faith. They have nothing. Literally nothing. Sometimes just a shack for a house (basically sticks and mud put together with a very flimsy tin roof - what they could find in the dump). All this, and yet they have faith. When you have nothing else to rely on, you have to have faith. Think about it. Say you were out of money, friends, resources and had nothing left. As a Christian you would have to cry out to God. He would be your only hope. I don't cry out to God unless I "need" Him. How much more could He do with my life if I relied on Him for everything? If I cried out to Him for the little things? We have so much. Most of us have jobs, a house, a car, put away money for retirement, etc. Should we abandon those things because we're Christians? No. We should be responsible with what the Lord has entrusted us with, but we should also listen to His voice and use those resources for things that He wants to accomplish. I have been privileged to serve in Honduras five times. This time was much harder. It was hotter, rolling black outs, and I was cooking. I also got sick. Something that had not occurred before. I thank God for these experiences. I can withstand a little bit of discomfort to do His will. I learn so much from Pastor Ray every time I go. I learn about patience, humility and walking with the Holy Spirit. He talked a lot about that this time. He has the ability to take a bunch of people that are strangers, gel them into a team working together and leave as friends. God has used Him for great things. He has always been willing to walk through the doors the Lord has opened for Him. I don't want to be like Pastor Ray, but as he tries to be, more like Christ. 

Road irritations.........

Since I have been driving back and forth to Columbia, I thought I'd compile my top pet peeves of those other drivers around me. Please feel free to comment on them and add ones of your own! If you actually do one or more of these I will pray for you. Seriously. 

1. If there is a cop car with blue lights on you do NOT have to slow to a stop and gawk at it. 

2. If you are going the EXACT same speed in the left lane as the car in the right lane either a. speed up and pass them or b. slow down and get behind them. 

3. Do not ride down the road with your blinker on. It makes you look inept and I don't know- Is he changing lanes, is he not changing lanes? 

4. If you are an 18 wheeler, don't pass. Ever. 

5. Don't ride 2 feet from my back bumper. Someday you may catch me in the right mood and I'll slam by brakes on. 

6. If there is NO ONE in the right lane and you are going slow ........PLEASE move to the right lane. Don't make me pass you on the right. Seriously. 

7. And lastly, if you cannot manage to a. talk on the phone, b. eat, c. mess with your radio without running me off the road. Don't. Just don't. 

‎8. If I am passing a car, and not going as fast as you would like to go, please don't flash your high beams at me. Rude.‎

9. Ok, this person is opposite of #3, you don't look cool when you use no turn signals at all. 

10. To the people who go 5mph slower than me when in front of me, then I pass you and now you're going 5mph faster than me... Really? I have my cruise set on the same speed, we're not in a race. There's no prize at the end of the road waiting for you. Just work.

HE SAID WHAT??

Ok, normally I don't comment on every TV evangelist I watch. On Sunday mornings there is a particular Pastor I like to watch to see what ridiculousness he is spewing each week. Some things I actually agree with and some I do not. Today was particularly disturbing because 1. the size of his congregation listening to this and 2. he is on television and has I think a responsibility to be accurate.

His rant was in regards to Jesus' turning water into wine. It seemed a bit I would say even painful for him to read the verses. I would guess because it looked like Jesus advocated the drinking of wine. Then that's when the rants started. First, using "what was wine back in Jesus' day"? The case made was disturbing at best. All he has at his disposal is to make an argument because as every other person knows and understands that this is a heart issue. You can't guilt people into doing the right thing. It doesn't work that way. Or at least for the majority of the population it doesn't work that way. When he got to the point of contradicting himself I think I threw up a little in the back of my throat.

Like seriously dude? 

Jesus drink "wine" that was really condensed jelly/jam that was reconstituted with water to create a "grape juice", not wine?? Good Lord! Then, as an attorney would do, he saved the best zingers for last. "Well, if you still aren't convinced, then you should come to the ER with me when a child is struck by a drunk driver or do a funeral for a teenager who was killed in an alcohol related death and THEN you'd change your tune". Really? Well, using that line of logic I guess we should stop owning guns because they kill people or eating food because you could become obese.

Legalism is a slippery slope. It starts with a good principal: self control, but goes to the point of making a "God tells us to do/not do this thing" when clearly it does not. Wow. I am astonished that this is allowed to happen in churches today. Why? BECAUSE WE ALLOW IT!!

My challenge to myself and anyone who reads this blog: Read scripture and actually determine what the writer meant. Not make up your mind and then make it fit. Amen!

Grateful

If you have a television you have seen the recent destruction that Mother Nature has shown. From the tornado in AL to more recently in Joplin, MO life as you know it now can change in a blink of an eye. In less than an hour the entire city of Joplin was changed forever. Think about your business, home, place of worship, school, hospital and just city in general........gone. Wow. I think of those that have been told they don't have much longer to live. I have a friend who works in Hospice and I cannot imagine what a conversation like that must be like for either the one telling or the one hearing. So why am I saying all this? Because sometimes I just get wrapped up in work, home, church and forget to look around a bit. God has not promised us tomorrow so how would I live my life differently if I knew I would be gone tomorrow? Would I pray and read my Bible more diligently? Would I hug my family and tell them I love them more? Would I look for ways to show the love of Christ to others? Sometimes I think we spend so much time worrying about tomorrow that we forget that today and this moment is all we are promised. May I never take for granted anyone in my life and may I always live my days as if they were my last! Thank you for this day Lord!

Well, it's been awhile!

So, it's been awhile since I've blogged about anything. I guess it's been so busy I haven't had time to do it, which if I'm doing my job I really shouldn't have time. Probably explains why I writing this at 11 on a Sat night. So, I've been going to youth group every Sunday. I truly love those kids. They are a great group of kids! We're still looking for a Pastor, although truth be told I think some folks in the church would be content not to have another full time Pastor (so to save money). Don't even get me started. Then there's work. It's going better than it has for years. I was promoted to a District Manager again and have assumed the responsibilities of the position. It is a lot of work, but I always loved training. This week was brutal because of the weather. Already in the 90's in the daytime. It just means a lot of sweating and getting in and out of the car. Morgan is starting ASU in the fall. I hope she decides what she wants to do, but she is still young and doesn't have to rush into a career or a marriage. Not really sure what's up with the "I have to get married as soon as is humanly possible" philosophy some kids have been displaying. But whatever. Not my child, not my problem. I think it makes for struggling and starting off at a disadvantage myself. Trust me, I am speaking from experience. So, what is this blog post really trying to do? Entertain, not really. More of an accounting of time. A relaying of experiences. So, a conclusion? Well, I guess you could say I am excited at what the future is bringing our way and glad the Lord has blessed us the way He has and I am grateful!

Bummer

So, it's been awhile since I've posted. I guess there's a few reasons for that. I haven't been "inspired" to post anything. This has been the toughest winter I have been through in a long time. Many people know I've been with Aflac for almost 10 yrs. Hard to believe it's been that long. I love doing what I do, but more importantly I love helping people. Here's my dilemma: I worked at an agency for a year and a half and didn't really try opening new groups, etc (the sort of things that need to be done in order to continue to grow your business) while I worked there. When I went back to working for myself full time, I had a hard time getting started again, then Christmas. I have been struggling for about 6 weeks with motivation, attitude and quite frankly just wanting to throw in the towel and give up (which is by the way, the kiss of death in sales). It's hard to have a good attitude when you feel overwhelmed by lack of income, bills and life in general. I honestly thought I was depressed (ok, I'm a little crazy, I know, but hey). It was a feeling I have never experienced in my life. I always had some level of hope or at least would "snap out of it" quickly, a lot earlier than 6 weeks. Then Mark said something very profound. He said, "you know Rhonda, you need to give it to the Lord and quit worrying about it, but you already know that". Smack. Right in the face. Something that had been missing from my daily routine. Something I talk about but have neglected to do for awhile. Crack open the old Bible and pray. Wow. How simple yet how powerful. I don't want to give the impression that tradition and following some daily checklist avoids all frustration and problems. Anyone who's been a Christian for longer than a minute knows that just isn't the case. I have been looking for answers in places I shouldn't be. I have been relying on myself and my contacts, my talents, my abilities. What I should have been doing in going to the Lord and asking Him for guidance and help with my attitude. It's amazing how your perspective changes when you realize it's not all up to you and not all on your shoulders. So, have I figured it all out? No. Not at all. What I am praying and asking for is guidance. I need it. Desperately.

Merry Christmas........ and happy travels

So, I haven't posted in a while, so I figured it was time. What a Christmas we had!! It wasn't the "usual" Christmas for us. We took off in the family sleigh (it's red, so there's some truth to it) the last day of school for Mark and Jonathan. It was crazy! We drove until we were too tired to drive anymore. We stopped in Roanoke, VA then the next day drove to Lenox, MA spending the Sunday before Christmas at Hope Church. It was very nice seeing some of Morgan's friends and all the folks we have known a long time! We also got to see Jen (we were the first!) just as she arrived in Lenox from Honduras!! It was great seeing her! We then set off for ME and that's when we hit a bit of a snag. I have been driving since I was 17. I am now 41. That's what, 24 years, right? Well, in all 24 years I have gotten a couple of speeding tickets, only had a couple of accidents (that were my fault, the rest were other people's). I hit the mother load this time. In my hurry to get to ME, I was waiting, and waiting, and waiting in line at the toll booth from I 90 to I 495. I saw two lanes on the far left. One was really fast and one was slowwwww. Since they both looked exactly the same I jumped out of line and the kids and Mark were screaming at me........NOOOOO!! It's the E-Z Pass Lane!!!!! OHHH NOOO!! Well, I tried to get back into the other lane, the cars behind me were honking loudly, so I went up to the toll booth and the toll taker in the next lane wouldn't take my toll. I was in the far left lane, so I tried to get over to the right and park, but would have caused an accident. I had to keep going. To say I was in a panic is an understatement. I RAN A TOLL BOOTH!! Oh my goodness. I expected to see a Mass State Patrol coming after me!! I called MA Highway Patrol. I think the guy was laughing at me, and he gave me the number for E-Z Pass. I called and left a message. I am still mortified. Of course, every toll booth we went through the kids and Mark harassed me NON STOP!! "Don't go to the E-Z Pass lane!!!" Well, I guess if you can't laugh at yourself what can you do? So, as it stands now, I still owe the State of Massachusetts $2.10. I hope it doesn't break them. I'm still waiting for my ticket! Well, after all that excitement, off to ME. We had a wonderful time with my mother in law and Mark's family. Morgan and I went to the Christmas Eve service at Blessed Hope in Waterville. We were supposed to go to the Sunday service but as it always goes with visiting folks you haven't seen in a long time, we only had so much time and so many people to see. Sunday morning was occupied. We saw my brother Cliff and his wife Sylvia and their children: Sabrina, Charlie and Samantha. Sabrina also has a little girl Drea. It was great to see them, but as these things always goes, I didn't have enough time to visit everyone I wanted to, but was grateful for the time we spent with family and friends. As far as the New Year celebration, there was only radio shows on our agenda. Mark, Jonathan and I drove from ME-GA on New Year's Eve and Day to get home in time for school to begin. Whew. I am tired just trying to recant all that. I miss being in New England, but I don't miss the weather! I miss the people. I love the hard working ethic that New Englanders are known for. I miss my friends and family. I have to say though, my new friends down here and being able to go out in short sleeves as soon as Feb is pretty fabulous too! : )