No Power? No Problem!

 

Last night, the power went out around 9:37 p.m. I was already asleep. But, I woke up since my CPAP wasn’t working. I wasn’t too concerned about it until I read the email that said that the estimated time of power being back on is 11:00 p.m. tomorrow night. Then, I came to my senses. 

I grew up tent camping. I was a Girl Scout for a gazillion years. I lived in a remote area of Africa. I can live 48+ hours without electricity. No problem. The electricity went out all the time in Ghana. The only difference is that in Ghana, it was a lot warmer than 22°F. 

I didn’t sleep well. I tossed and turned a lot during the night. I got up around 3:00 a.m. and read for a while. I went back to bed until it got light outside. It was 47°F in my apartment. Brrr! I wanted to stay under the blankets but I didn’t. I found batteries for my radio and tuned in to the local radio station, WHEO. A good part of the county was affected by the outage. I had a Coke Zero instead of coffee while I waited to find out what was happening with work. Everything was closed today because of no power.  So, I got dressed and went to my desk and basked in the sunshine. It was glorious! Then, I drove to Meadows of Dan for lunch and to mosey around. I even bought a cold coffee for tomorrow, just in case. 

As I sit in my apartment, I am grateful that I have protection from the elements. I have plenty of warm clothes and blankets. I have food and drink that can be consumed cold. I can go into my car to warm up if absolutely necessary. I have books to read and cards to make. (And, there’s always housework to do.) I don’t NEED anything. God has been good to me. He has blessed me in amazing ways. So, during this power challenge, I choose to praise Him and to make the best of it. 

No power? No problem!

Choices

 

 Hebrews 11 contains a list of faithful heroes. They weren’t perfect. They didn’t have perfect lives. Their situation in life wasn’t perfect, either. Yet, they chose to fix their eyes on the Lord. They were focused on the better thing, what God had in store for them. Did they make mistakes? Most definitely. But, they didn’t let their mistakes define them. They repented and tried again, even more determined to fix their  eyes on the Lord and to follow Him. 

Some of them never saw the situation/focus of their prayers come to fruition, but they never gave up. They kept praying, believing, trusting. They had no guarantees except that whatever the Lord said He would do, He would do. He was their guarantee. And that was good enough for them.

Is it good enough for me? Is it good enough for you? Do I truly believe that God will do what He said He would do? I like to think so. Every day, choices are in front of me. I need to make a decision each time. Will it be a decision of trust in the One who loves me unconditionally and has my best interests in mind? Or will it be a decision that I make just because I want to, no matter what the consequences are? I pray that I will choose to trust Him. 

A Blessing and...not so Much

This past Sunday was a day of celebration at Kalsagri Methodist Church. There were 37 baptisms and 30 confirmations, plus communion! It has been a blessing to be part of the preparations for this day. I was given the opportunity to teach half of the classes to these people who have decided to follow Jesus and to join the church. During the class time, I was able to get to know some of the people and to learn more names than I already knew. I was blessed to hear their testimonies. These are people who cannot read, who cannot write. One person is lame, another blind. Many do not even know their birth date. Yet, they love the Lord. They have seen what changes God has made in their lives. It is humbling to be a part of their faith journey.

Yet, there is a down side, too. But, not with those who have been baptized and confirmed. It is with the business side of it. The man-made rules and expectations. One man did not come to church because he could not afford to pay for the two certificates, a cost of just over $1. (Unknown to him, they were already paid.)  I try my best not to be a part of them. There are times, though, when I cannot escape them. That is the part I don't like.

Being part of this blessing...amazing. To have this opportunity...priceless. I choose to focus on the great things the Lord has done and to celebrate with those who have seen the power of God is truly stronger than the power of darkness.

Celebrating the Little Things

Ever since my knee replacement surgery, I have been in a kind of a “funk.” Everyone says I am doing FINE. Things are going great. Healing is happening. But, I don’t see it that way. My knee is still tight because of the swelling. There are places on my knee that I have no feeling. It is hard to get comfortable at night, so I am not sleeping well. Sometimes, I have to think about how I am walking. I definitely have to remind myself how to go up and down steps. Getting in and out of cars can be a challenge, especially if the car is a small one. And I wonder…will this ever end? You see, I tend to look at what I can't do instead of what I can do.

So, this week, I FINALLY decided to celebrate the little things. What kind of things? Well, I can drive now. I was able to drive to do my errands. (Something to celebrate!) Two weeks ago, at church, I was able to go down the steps, the proper way, holding onto one handrail! A first! (Something to celebrate!)  I haven’t been able to wear jeans because my knee was too swollen.  They were too tight at the knee. A week ago, I could wear a pair of jeans for a whole day! (Something to celebrate!) Sunday, I wore “normal” shoes to church, not the sneakers that I have been wearing because I could make them loose to accommodate a swollen foot. (Something to celebrate!) The degree of bend of the knee is very important. The goal is to bend the knee at 110 degrees or more. It is a painful part of recovery! Well, this week, I was sitting in a recliner, and I was able to pull BOTH knees up and bend then like a capital “A.” I don’t know the degree of the bend, but, that was the first time I was able do that. (Something to celebrate.) Today, I went down the cellar stairs using only one handrail. Another first. (Something to celebrate!)

So, even though I seem to look at the negative side of things connected with my knee replacement, I am learning to appreciate and be grateful for the small victories. It will be several months before all is healed properly. So, I need to remind myself that God is faithful. He brought me this far and will continue to work in my life, teaching me to trust Him.

Choices



 



Lately, I have been VERY aware of the choices I have to make. Not the big choices, like what do I make for dinner or do I FINALLY work on that report that is almost due or even the bigger choices of should I marry, but the smaller, every day choices. (Don't worry, I am NOT considering marriage since their is no man in the picture!) The choices I am talking about are:

~ Do I get get angry because the telephone service often switches over to the Burkina Faso service so I can't use it OR do I choose to be grateful that I have telephone service at all?

~ Do I get upset because my luggage did not make it on my flight to Tamale OR do I choose to be thankful that I have luggage and have been blessed by so many people on my trip?

~ Do I get nervous that I still hear bats at night OR do I choose to relax and be comforted with the thought that they don't sound like there are many in my roof?

~ Do I get an impatient because the Internet is slow and not a 3G connection OR do I choose to be grateful and be satisfied with the connection I have here where I live?

~ Do I get cranky because the tro tro (a very crowded van held together with duct tape) is not very clean, OR do I choose to be grateful that the tro tro is working and will get me safely to Wa?

~ Do I get troubled that my Visa card didn't work in Lawra for 6 months OR do I choose to be thankful because I have money in my account that I can withdraw? 

~ Do I get upset because the electricity went off at a most inopportune time OR do I choose to be grateful that I have electricity?

~ Do I place myself in a cocoon so I have very little interaction with co-workers and friends, OR do I choose to embrace life in a new country and her people?

~ Do I get offended because people cannot speak their national language, English, OR do I embrace the beauty of the sounds of their language and try to learn it?

~ Do I get discouraged because not many people come to Lawra for the sole purpose of visiting me OR do I choose to be refreshed by the people who write letters and emails to me and even send me packages!

~ Do I get distressed because the bus broke down and I arrived home four hours later than planned OR do I choose to be grateful that the bus was able to be fixed and I arrived home safely on the day that I first entered the bus? Do I choose to be grateful that it was not raining during the four hours it took to get the bus fixed?
~ Do I get nervous and panic when so many people come to the Kalsagri church OR do I choose to pray and thank God that so many people want to worship Him? Do I ask Him for His words to say?

I love this quote from Charles Swindoll, “We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our Attitudes.” 

We all have choices. What will yours be today?

 

 

A Broken Front Tooth and Thankfulness

Early this afternoon, my front tooth felt a little weird...something wasn't right. So, I called my dentist and made an appointment for Wednesday afternoon. No problem. Then, I sat down to watch numb3rs. As I was watching, I was eating pretzel Combos with cheddar cheese. Mmmmm...until I felt a filling in my mouth instead of a pretzel. Now what? I called my dentist again, pleaded with the receptionist, called another doctor and rescheduled that appointment and finally made an appointment with my dentist at 1:30 Monday afternoon, and put the broken filling back in place. That leaves me with a loose filling in my front tooth that can come out again at any time. Agh! My Sunday School class is having breakfast for me on Sunday! I am with a compromised tooth for four days! Ugh!

 

Yet, I am thankful to God. I am thankful that I was able to replace the filling. I am thankful that I can see my dentist on Monday afternoon. I am thankful that I was able to call my friend, Tula, and whine for awhile. I am thankful that I don't have to travel 18 hours to a dentist. I am thankful that I was able to reschedule my other doctor appointment. Things didn't work out the way I wanted them to, they rarely do. But, I have a choice. Do I let the circumstances drag me down, or do I say, "Thank You, Jesus for this opportunity to trust You." and go on with my life. I choose to say, "Thank You!" in the midst of circumstances that I don't necessarily like. How about you?