YOUR LIFE COACHING WV

Is your yard is a muddy mess this week? Our is! I feel bad for our pets as they travel back and forth across that mess. I don't know about you, but I think I hate mud as much as I love rain.  Especially that red clay gunk, the sound of it trying to suck the boots off my feet is just yuck. Ewww....But will take more than a little mud or a lost boot to keep me from walking in the rain. I love feeling rain on my face, it is so refreshing. But walking through the back yard this morning reminded me of how a t one point in time, my daily life was a lot like trudging through muck .  And trudge through muck I did. I faced a lot of hardships, pure crap is what I refered to some of it at the time.  I knew what it was like to live pay-check-to-pay-check.  I knew what it was like to depend upon WIC and food stamps to feed my family; they freed up funds to help me keep a roof over our heads.  I knew what it was like to face bullying, harassment, and oppression......

Psalm 90:12 "So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom." I am a grandmother...which, aside from the obvious, basically means I am on the lookout for all things dropped, spilled, or splattered.  It doesn't really matter if I am at home, in a restaurant, or a hospital waiting room, if a little one can use it to make a mess, I tend to spot it. So this cereal thing really grabbed my attention. This morning, MeMaw  and I we were waiting for our mutual grandson to come out of surgery. As we waited, a mom with a toddler started talking to us. I smiled and anticipated what was about to happen as her little one ate dry cereal while entertaining everyone in the room.  As the mom started gathering her things, a piece of chocolate cereal rolled off her lap onto the floor.  We believe she saw it but didn't have enough hands to pick it up, not so for her little one.  With all the grace of a new toddler, he attempted to pick it up...

John 15:13 - "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friend." Don't you just love this old country song? Back in the day, it was "our song"...before ex- was placed in front of the word husband. For us, it just wasn't meant to be and that's okay. But earlier today I was looking at some Facebook pictures of what I consider "troubled kids" and instead of feeling fear or disgust, I felt sad. For some of them, love ended. Family left them high-and-dry; friends betrayed them; girlfriends cheated, boyfriends punched; and God isn't in their family pictures. These young men and women are flipping off the camera, beer in hand, cigarettes on the table, and more than likely, drugs in their veins - I am not judging or belittling them, I just know some of their habits...but this isn't about what is on the surface, what they are allowing us to see. It is about something deeper. That God-shaped hole they are ...

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for YOU declares the Lord..." I don't like to complain about the weather; that doesn't mean I enjoy it, but since only God controls it...who am I to complain about how He does His job? So like most of my Neighbors here in West Virginia, when I woke up to ice covered everything , I groaned..."Father, I am not complaining...but I will admit that I am ready for SpRiNg. AMEN!" + + + I have a habit of trying to find beauty in most situations, including a West Virginia ice storm. Something my husband loves about me I'm sure, haha....So as he was shoveling our driveway this morning, he saw something he knew would make me drop my writing project and grab my camera. I followed him outside so he could point out this beautiful red berry bush encapsulated in ice - and I just had to share it with y'all!  Not just because I think the buds look pretty but because it reminded me of  how God works. As...

There are so many scary things happening in the world right now. Some things we have no control over but others we do - you know, the things that we do "accidentally on purpose" but still have a consequence? As I was praying, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart that some of these things are just distractions. So I had to ask "Just a distraction? From what?" His answer:  "From seeking and serving God."  I'm old enough to know that anything keeping us from God comes from the devil so that answer got my attention.  I mean, even though the things I was praying about were hurtful to my family, dealing with life's distractions can take a lot time and energy. So, after some time, I came away with this thought: If distractions are keeping me from God, its no wonder I feel sick and tired, stressed and grumpy, weak and drained.  I am not getting filled back up; and that reminded me of this:   Once when a family member died, someone told me...