Pre-Christmas Ponderings

I love being retired! On Dec. 2, a beautiful clear, crisp sunny Thursday, instead of fighting third graders already crazed by the Christmas season (been there, loved it, done that), I had the privilege of going to a retreat to prepare for the advent season, to take time to look at the Christmas story and to ponder its meaning for today after being retold for over 2000 years.

My main take away was a new look at Mary's response to being chosen as the Messiah's mother. Luke tells us in Luke 2:19 that after Jesus's birth Mary "pondered these things in her heart". That's what we got to do today, ponder the Christmas story in our hearts. That's what I love about Bible study and retreats. Where else do you get to stop the endless onslaught of life and take time to make sense of it, to check if your priorities are in order, to assess your reactions to the life that has been laid before you? (Actually in a life coaching session, but that's another subject:)

Our ponderings will invariably take us to our blessings and our griefs, trying to make sense of the age-old question of why God allows suffering at all and how to respond to it. Today I once again got a glimpse of the answer from the Christmas story. Mary was but one of the many examples in the Bible of one who trusted the Lord in hard times. After all, what could've have been harder than to find out you were pregnant before marriage at a time when that could get you stoned or at the least, sent away in disgrace? But Mary's response in Luke 1:38 was simply, "Be it unto me as you have said."

Shouldn't that be our response to whatever comes our way, be it pain or blessing? For do we deserve any blessing at all? And haven't we been given promises that do make sense of whatever suffering we may be encountering? "All things work together for good." (Romans 8:28) and "Blessed be the God of all comfort who comforts us in our sorrows SO THAT we can comfort others." (2 Cor. 1:3) And another promise from the Christmas story, "Nothing is impossible with God." (Luke 1:37)

I pray as I continue to grow older I continue to get better at saying, like Mary, "Be it unto me as you have said," whether this New Year brings pain or blessing. If it brings blessing I hope my first response will be thankfulness and not forgetting where it comes from with an attitude of entitlement that is so easy to fall into. And if it be pain, that I trust that somehow it will be used to the good, even as I look back on past suffering and see how I have grown because of it, or that it can help me understand and comfort another, or simply that I learn better to depend on God because I know He can see me through anything, yes, anything.

I pray this Christmas finds you finding the miracles in the Christmas story, the story that is a miracle in itself because it keeps giving and giving no matter how many times you hear it.

My gift to you is this poem inspired by the Christmas story and the song, Mary Did You Know?

A Christmas Pondering

Mary pondered the things since the angel came
Reflecting down deep in her heart
What all had come to pass -
How could she even start
To understand what had come to her
She the mother of God's son!
How did He come to choose her?
Why was she the chosen one?

This Christmas may we be like Mary,
And ponder our lives deep in our heart,
Though we know on this earth
We will never know more than in part
Why we are chosen for our unique path,
Why we are blessed or not.
Why we have sorrow or joy
Why life is so fraught
With so many questions and hardships
With so many times we want to ask God
Why is this life so confusing
Where is the peace on earth's sod?

But Mary shows us the answer
In her response, "Be it as you have said."
So on this Christmas let us count our blessings
And not allow feelings of dread.
For though we may have pockets of sorrow,
We have the greatest gift of all,
The Christ Child came to save us
There is nothing that can cause us to fall.

So let us gather with loved ones, be merry,
Let us stop and ponder anew
That because of the Christmas story
In perspective earth's sorrows are few.

Running the Race

Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things. Col. 3:1,2



I've started running just since I've been retired, determined to stay (or get!) fit now that I have the time. It's not always fun. I can handle it on early mornings in the summer, but I'm beginning to dread the cold, gray days of winter when there just isn't any enjoyable time.

Maybe I shouldn't even call it running. My husband once said I should call it "wogging" - somewhere between a walk and a jog. I started out by "wogging" past one house and walking past the next until now I can run all the way up to the field by our house, then down the walking trail. It's progress anyway!

This fall I've been studying a book "Becoming a Spiritually Fit Christian". It amazes me how I've finally been studying long enough that I'm not always learning new things, but old things in a new way. And how, just like staying fit physically, we can't let up with our spiritual disciplines, because we need to keep the sword of the Word talked about in Eph. 6 sharp and on the ready.

As I've been volunteering as a life coach at Love, Inc. (a place where people who those coming out of incarceration, the jobless, the homeless, etc. can go for help), the human condition has struck me anew...all caused because the devil prowls around like a roating lion (I Peter 5). I would never have felt called to minister to these people without my life coaching training, but I'm finding they are no different from me. We all need God just as much every day. In fact, sometimes I'm finding that those who have found the Lord in jail or through circumstances much darker than I've ever experienced see His light even brighter against their backgrounds! I can't tell you how often their excitement in their newfound faith ministers to me!

The message that they need to hear and I need to keep hearing OVER AND OVER has been condensed for me into my latest memory verse - a great simplifier to me - (Col.3:1-2) "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." I needed to hear ONCE AGAIN the story of Peter trying to walk on the water (Matt. 14:25) and sinking when he took his eyes off of Jesus. These words from our study hit me over the head like I'd never heard the story before: "The only way Peter was able to walk on stormy seas toward His Master was by looking to Jesus for strength to obey His command. After all, there are tons of earthly things getting our attention just in the course of living, so the necessity of working out with the Word is so clear to me now. No wonder I have spent so much of my life stuggling without peace when I lived so many days unarmed.

I'm amazed at the statistics that are overwhelmingly in favor of not landing back in jail for those who have become Christians through jail ministries. We all have our strongholds and we all can land right back in them if we are not "keeping our eyes on things above!" Again, I sometimes see these people as seeing their fight against alcohol and drugs and falling back in with the wrong crowd as clear obstacles in their path, whereas mine may be more subtle, but no less deadly! I have the freedom from many cares of the world - I know where my next meal is coming from and that my house payment will be made, but I still enter my day at times with the confusion of all the earthly choices on my path and fall away from living to His potential for me.

I know I'm not saying anything new here. I'm not trying to be Beth Moore. I'm just rambling on about the latest things the Lord has put on my heart - it looks like that's what I'm called to do in my retirment from fighting the fight of improving education.

Now I'm just running the race the best way I know how - and feel called to share what I've learned with anyone out there who is also seeking God's will for their life. For if there's one thing I know - that is the pathway to peace. And I'm having the privilege of knowing this isn't just true for me - I'm seeing that over and over in those who begin to seek Him hard, simply setting their mind on things above.

I continue to share my poetry and my life coaching with anyone that falls in my path. Thanks for taking time to share my journey and feel free to share it with anyone you know that may be seeking peace.

Running the Race

We struggle,we work.
We worry, we fret.
The devil apparent
on planet earth - and yet...

We fight in our own strength.
We meet the day on the run,
our minds on our to-do list.
There is much to be done.

We know that the devil
prowls like a lion who roars (I Pet. 5).
Yet we face the day unarmed,
thinking most of our chores.

We begin the day undressed,
with no armor, no sword. (Eph.6)
We take time for our coffee,
yet we race by our Lord...
who longs to remind us,
"Seek me first" (Mt. 6:39),
"Set your mind on things above" (Col. 3:1,2)
Then we wonder why we struggle
and our hearts aren't filled with love.

So let us stop for just a moment
and prepare for our day,
clothe ourselves in righteousness,
stop and seek His way.

Then our way becomes lighter,
no matter what we may face.
We see things from His perspcetive
and we can persevere in our race.

Let us run with perseverance the race
marked out for us (Heb. 12: 1)

Imprisoned by Anxiety

Do you ever feel like anxiety has you behind bars? Where thoughts just keep coming at you so that there's no way to get away from them?

Recently I've begun volunteering my life coaching services at Love, Inc. - an organization that helps people who need help getting back on their feet, many of whom have been incarcerated. This is a whole new territory for me, not having rubbed elbows with people who have faced this kind of challenge. Needless to say, I was a bit anxious as to whether I could relate to them or more importantly, them to me, a person who has been blessed with a life that has never come close to having those kind of challenges.

But that's where I was wrong. All God's chil'un have troubles. We all get imprisoned by sin of some sort. And we all need the same message. That we just can't do life well without God's help. The statistics are overwhelmingly in favor of those who have become Christians through jail ministry becoming successful citizens and not repeat offenders. How exciting! I recently talked to a nurse who worse with breast cancer screenings tell me that she definitely sees professing Christians deal with a bad diagnosis with strength compared to those who are not. All God's chil'un may have troubles but God never leaves His children.  

What could be more anxiety producing than getting out of jail with no job and a record or facing a diagnosis of cancer? And yet we all walk through life with anxiety-producing situations coming at us from all sides even if they aren't as dramatic. We're told in John 16:33 that In this world you WILL have trouble.   

Two verses have come to me that seem to put these clients and I onto the same page quickly.  I Peter 5:12 reminds us of this fact that is pertinent to all of us:  Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.   And I Peter 4:12 tells us:  Do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.

But what some may not know, and what we all often forget, is the second part of last verse:  But rejoice, that you participate in the sufferings of Christ so that you may be overjoyed when His glory is revealed.   That is the only real difference between those who handle the adversity that comes to us all.  And that's what we can all continue to learn more about with each valley that comes into our life.  AND  THAT'S what we can all share with others - how He does help us get through.  We don't have to be some kind of verbose evangelist to share that point.   

And so, the next time I'm feeling anxious, I just need to remember the last part of John 16:33, that He has overcome the world.  And that He has brought me through valley after valley in this life.  We're told to "remember all the ways which the Lord your God has led you in the wilderness"  in Deut. 4:9. And I can share that which I know with others that might not know that simple but hard to grasp fact.

REMEMBERING - that's the antitode to anxiety.  Remembering His promises, remembering what He has done for you in the past, remembering His word that gives many more verses of comfort than those listed here. 

And so I share here a poem from the Blessing Book by Linda Dillow:

A Prayer of Remembrance for the Wilderness

Even though Your ways
   are not my ways,
Even though Your timing
   is not my timing,
Even though I see no end to this pain,
   I trust You.

And, I remember...
Your ways in the past,
Your timing in the past.
So even though I can't see
   today or in the future,
Remembering turns
   my pain into
Praise.
Praise because of who You are,
Praise because of what You
   have done in the past.
Praise because of what You
   will do now. 























  

Summer Reflections on Eat, Pray, Love

The privilege of being a life coach allows me not only to ponder my own life but to have the honor of walking alongside other searchers. Not that I've got my own life all figured out by any stretch. I'm thinking that won't happen this side of heaven. But the older I get and the more experience I have on these ponderous journeys, there are definitely certain truths I see played out again and again in my life and in those around me.

I've definitely found all the truth I need to know is in the Bible - and since it has been around so long and is so revered by a large segment of the population on this earth - I often wonder why people who aren't believers don't at least look there for the possibility of answers. Regardless, the longer I live, the more confidently I join the scores of believers who see the Bible as having all the answers to the questions of life.

One of the truths that has recently gained a new focus for me is spelled out in 2 Corinthians 2:3: "Blessed be the God of all comfort...who comforts us in our sorrows...so that we can comfort others." This verse makes it clear to me that God's will is to use the places we have been comforted to comfort others. And from there I would draw my own conclusion that doing God's will is the path to joy...so that in comforting others, joy will most certainly follow!

It seems to me that secular or even new-age spirituality finds its followers because there is some inherent good to these concepts - and that often its concepts look very much like the truth in the Bible. The problem is it's only a portion of the truth (which is dangerous because subscribing to these ideologies will never supply the whole truth and following after these partial truths may keep those followers from from finding the absolute truth!} Stay with me if that sounded confusing. Here's an example: Believing that absolute truth is in the Bible and that comforting others is the reason God comforts us, look how the secular movie Eat, Pray, Love plays out the same scenario of how joy is found in helping others.

In the beginning of the movie, Liz leaves her husband to find herself. (I'm hoping the book tells more of the reasoning behind leaving what looked like a wonderful life with a wonderful man.) From my point of view, it's another example of the search all of humanity has had since Eccleciastes - the search for the meaning of life, the feeling that more is "out there", the God-shaped hole many Christian authors refer to. Her best friend gives her advice that she's not going to find peace running off to Italy any more than she found it being totally immersed in remodeling her kitchen. (Oh really?) Still, after another relationship where she finds love but not fulfillment, she runs off to Italy indulging in the "Eat" part of the movie, seeking solace in food and new scenery. (Notice this hints of another Biblical truth sometimes explored in the secular world - that carnality might be pleasurable but doesn't fill the void within us. Also, notice the world, including this movie doesn't answer what will ultimately fill that gnawing need.)_

Her search for wholeness next takes her to India. While trying to learn to meditate, Liz meets a man whose own realization that he squandered the most important points of his life, helps her along her search. She brings these insights, including knowing she has to forgive herself for past failures to her last stop, Bali, where we see her finally find some joy in serving others. She emails her daughter and friends for donations for a poor healer she has built a relationship with. She raises enough donations for this woman to build her own house... a clear example of the joy felt in fulfilling God's will of comforting others - even if Liz didn't recognize it as God's will!

The end of the movie would lead us to believe Liz has faced her fears as she finds love yet again to add to this joy. However, I would love to fast forward into the sequel because those of us that have found truth in the Bible know this movie evidences a woman finding only partial truth. Yes, helping others and loving others, and forgiving yourself are truths that play out positively in secular life - but those of us that know the rest of the truth, "Apart from God we can do nothing", know that if Liz does not learn to rely on God, her truths, however hard they may have been learned, may not last. And, that God doesn't promise happily-ever-after endings on earth, only in heaven.

More musings on Eat, Pray, Love...

The latest crave of the world is Eat, Pray, Love -
a movie and book about which there's much talk of.
It's all about a woman in search of herself.
Personally, I can't see this book's life
surviving long off the shelf.)
It's the same old story of mankind's search for
something more.
We watch her learn some things, though I suspect
they don't reach to her core.
She does learn the world's fare does not satisfy.
Helping others is one thing she finds that makes
her heart fly.
She learns to forgive herself and love once again.
But I wonder if it will last and what will happen when...
she once again finds that even that won't fill her soul.
And that all she's learned will not make her whole.
For the Bible is the book that is the beginning and the end.
I'd love to tell her, "Go there, my friend!"
For that's where you'll find sustaining food to eat,
the Bread of Life is who you'll meet.
And you'll learn it matters to whom you pray.
It's there we're taught there is only one way.
Yes, that's where you'll find lasting love -
the heavenly kind that earth knows little of.
So, go ahead, read what the world has to say,
but then run it by the Book that is here to stay.
If you don't know the Bible - give it a try.
There's a reason multitudes cling to it til the day they die.
For in it they find the true way to eat, pray and love,
that will carry them past this life to the one above.-Sherrill Schlimpert, August 2010

Summer Reflections of Eat, Pray, Love

The privilege of being a life coach allows me not only to ponder my own life but to have the honor of walking alongside other searchers. Not that I've got my own life all figured out by any stretch. I'm thinking that won't happen this side of heaven. But the older I get and the more experience I have on these ponderous journeys, there are definitely certain truths I see played out again and again.
One of the these that has gained a new focus is the truth played out in 2 Corinthians 2:3. (After all, I've definitely found all the truth I need to know is in the Bible - and since so many followers have - I often wonder why people who aren't believers don't at least look there for the possibility of answers - but I digress.) Back to the Bible which tells us that, "Blessed be the God of all comfort...who comforts us in our sorrows...so that we can comfort others." Since it would make sense joy would come from following God's will - this verse makes it clear, that God's will is to use the places we have been comforted to comfort others
It seems to me that secular or even new-age spirituality finds it's followers because there is some inherent good to their truths - and that often truth is truth -even if it is only a portion of the truth (which is dangerous because following it will never give them the whole truth and keep them from finding it!) Stay with me if that sounded confusing. Here's an example: Believing that absolute truth is in the Bible and that comforting others is the reason God comforts us, look how the movie Eat, Pray, Love plays out that same scenario.

In the beginning of the movie, Liz leaves her husband to find herself. (I'm hoping the book tells more reason to leave what looked like a wonderful life with a wonderful man.) Although her best friend gives her advice that she's not going to find peace running off to Italy any more than she found it being totally immersed in remodeling her kitchen, she after another relationship where she finds love but not fulfillment, she runs off to Italy indulging in the Food part of the movie. (Another Biblical truth partially found occasionally in the secular world that carnality might be pleasurable but doesn't fill the void within us. Notice the world, including this movie doesn't answer what will!)

But in India, while trying to learn to meditate, she meets a man whose own realization that he squandered the most important points of his life, helps her along her search. She brings those learnings including knowing she has to forgive herself for past failures to her last stop, Bali, where we see her find some joy in serving others. She asks for donations for a poor healer and her daughter and her friends from around the world donate enough for this woman to build her own house.

The end of the movie would lead us to believe she has faced her fears as she finds love yet again to add to this joy. However, I would love to write the sequel because those of us that have found truth in the Bible know, this movie evidences a woman finding only partial truth. Yes, helping others and loving others, forgiving yourself are truths that play out positively in secular life - but those of us that know the rest of the truth, "Apart from God we can do nothing", know that if Liz does not learn to rely on God, her truths may not last. And that God doesn't promise happily-ever-after endings on earth, only in heaven.

draft 6:50:00 PM by Sherrill Schlimpert Delete

MOUNTAIN TOP EXPERIENCES

Talk about mountaintop experiences. Being in the beautiful mountains of Sapphire Valley, NC AND being with my kids, son-in-law and brand new grandbaby!! Now it doesn't get any better than that!

I look back though at many other such times of blessing in my life and I wonder if I really knew to savor them as I know now. I didn't know at one time that I really wasn't entitled to such experiences, and I sure didn't know that I didn't even come close to deserving them. Often I was busy looking to see if I could orchestrate life so that all I felt was blessing - as if it was up to me! No wonder I spent so much time in the midst of many blessings struggling to find that peace and contentment was somewhat elusive.

And I absolutely didn't get that all you need is love!!!!!! I could sing it with the Beatles back then, but I didn't get it. I didn't get it that God desires for us to love Him more than we loved our blessings. I didn't get it that we aren't promised any blessings, and that when we get them we should be full of thankfulness to the tip of our toes. And I sure didn't get that sometimes I was being shown love when I was learning that the love of God is all I can really depend on - not health, or success or even people that usually showed love to me.

I had one mountaintop experience that was a major step in learning this mindset of contentment and peace that really does pass understanding (it still surprises me that it is so much a part of my life now!) It was during a life plan that I did in 2007. I was able to really look at who I was - my strengths, weaknesses, what I'd learned from my past, what I really wanted from my future, what my deepest values really were. And I was able to sort through my priorites to set goals so that I now make better choices as to where to spend my time. And most of all, I have learned to ask God for all, well, almost all of my next steps - I still forge ahead on my own without thinking!

And now one of my greatest joys is to share this mountaintop experience with others. If you feel out of sync, if your priorities and time aren't balanced, if your blessings aren't clear, and your problems keep you from seeing them, or if you know someone who is stuck in one of those areas, think about a lifeplan, or a series of coaching sessions. Or share a bonding experience you'll never forget by getting a group of your friends together for a group coaching retreat.

Life's a climb - no doubt. There are definitely valleys even in the midst of many blessings. And sometimes those valleys can keep you from seeing the beauty of any landscape of your life. Whether or not a lifecoaching experience is something you see in your path or in the path of a friend, I wish you mountaintop experiences of your own! But if its been awhile since you've had one, let me know!

I leave you with a adaption of a Psalm that tells of the testimony we can have when we rely on the Lord. It was true in Old Testament times and it can happen in your life and mine today:



Psalm 34 Applied: A Poem of Testimony and Evangelism
by Sherrill Schlimpert

I will always praise Him. Let you who are afflicted see
That we can exalt Him together. May you see how to rejoice with me.

Let my life be a testimony. I sought the Lord and He has answered me.
He delivers us from our fears. Can’t you His radiance see?

When the poor call out to Him, out of his troubles he’s saved.
Taste, see that the Lord is good. He sends the deliverance we crave.

Those who fear him lack nothing. Those who seek refuge attest
That others may grow weak and hungry. But those in the Lord will be blest.

Listen to me as children. The fear of the Lord I will teach.
Guard your tongue, turn from evil. And the peace you pursue you will reach.

For God watches over the righteous and is attentive when they cry out.
He will be close when you’re broken. The crushed in spirit will have no cause to doubt.

For even the righteous have troubles. It’s the evil who will eventually fall.
But if you cry out as His servant, redemption will answer your call.