Led by the Spirit Lifer

lif•er
n. Informal.
1. a person sentenced to or serving a term of life imprisonment.
2. a person committed to a professional lifetime career in the military.

Lifer…I’ve heard people use that expression as it relates to their careers and I’ve also heard it used at a church where I was once a member.   After reading the above definition, I’m not sure that I much care for that term, actually!!

Recently, my husband commented that he really thought we would be “lifers” at our last church…so did I.  Our family is faithful.  We tend to stick and stay…same doctors, same supermarket, same dog groomer, same hairstylist (for me), you get the picture!  We’re pretty stable and loyal once we find a place to “hang our hat.”  As far as church is concerned, we are super vigilant and purpose to be loyal, not only because it is right and for our own good, but because there are two sets of eyes watching our every move and recording every decision.  We’ve never been the sort to church hop…we don’t even do much church visiting and if we do, our first stop is always our home church.  That’s just how we do it.

Last week my daughter was traipsing down memory lane and asked me how long we attended our previous church and with my response I started wondering if we would ever be lifers at a ministry.  For a split second (and believe me it was just that fast) I wondered if something was wrong with uprooting the family after just a few years…(5 years and two weeks to be exact:).

This past weekend I gained a whole new perspective on that lifer business as we witnessed Pastor Mike welcome a batch of newbies to partner up with him and the church to make a difference in the world, to grow, to share their gifts in what he phrased as “this Jesus movement.”  I love how he phrased that and I especially loved how he prayed over them.  He said something in that prayer that caught my ear…he prayed that for however long they were partnered at this church (whether a few years or many) that they would grow in their knowledge and love for the Lord.  Pastor Mike apparently does not expect these partners to be “lifers;” however, he does pray that during the time at the church, that they grow up and go out strong in order to make a difference wherever they go.

This morning his prayer came to mind again and I sensed the Holy Spirit showing me that I am a lifer only in the sense that I am committed to my marriage for life.  I would imagine if one goes into any situation with a plan for life (other than marriage), they would be excluding the possibility of being led by the Holy Spirit, thereby being limited by their planning.

Tonight when my girl comes home, I will explain this lifer deal to her and her brother so that they would understand the importance of being led by the Spirit of God…not emotions or people, or habit, etc.  I will reiterate that the Holy Spirit’s leading is always followed by peace and order and I will let them know that we will be officially making our new church our home church this summer.

I’m praying that we would hear the voice of the Lord and be led by His Spirit; that our decisions would be in line with His will, plan and purpose; that our intentions would always mirror His heart for those whom He places in our path and that He be glorified always and in every way…in Jesus’ name!!

The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way.
Psalm 37:23

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Daisy, the Bait

Have you ever had something really random happen…something that you know the Lord is behind somehow, yet you’re not sure about the why of it all, so you just go with it?  Yesterday, my kids and I (and Daisy) were in the car waiting for dad.  The windows were rolled down, the radio blaring our favorite song as we were bobbing our heads to the beat.  Daisy was where she always hangs out…perched at the window waiting for whomever has exited the car to return.  In the process, she always draws attention…always makes friends.  Yesterday was no exception.  Her tail and wiggle alert me to an oncoming fan, whose oooh’s and aaah’s begin steps before she reaches Daisy.  She was a talkative sort, who in the span of 15 minutes spilled out her dog and cat history (complete with pictures), her daughter’s school and work history, her own work history (she was a hair dresser who specialized in curly hair…of course she did since we all have curly hair) and her family’s weekend plans.

During the course of the conversation, which now includes  my husband who has since returned to the car and is patiently waiting for the conversation to wrap up, our new friend fires off some curse words and notices that my husband snickers at her choice words (he always does that when he’s uncomfortable, especially since the kids were present).  (Funny how I never felt the need to check her for her language…her exuberance was quite entertaining.)  Here’s the bizarre part of the story…She excused herself in order to grab a pen from her car so that  she could give me her information and while she was away my daughter asked me if I had ever met this woman before since we appeared to be chatting as though we were friends.  I said no and my daughter replied, “You don’t even know her name.  It’s probably Laura…she looks like a Laura.”  To that, I replied, “No, her name is Barbara.”  Our new friend returned to the car, handed me her card and I was startled as I glanced at it, looked at my daughter and placed it under my thigh.  We were ready to say our goodbyes when my husband asked her her name and my family wanted to fall out when she said “Barbara.”  She noticed our reaction and grew serious when I told her I guessed her name.  She asked me how I “did” that and then she told me she was psychic.  (I sort of picked up on a little tug of war in the spirit but I wasn’t gonna go there.)  We spoke for a few more minutes and this time when she was about to curse, she caught herself.  We wrapped up the conversation with her saying she enjoyed meeting us and as she walked away, I said “God bless you,” and her response….”thank you for that.”

Now I have no idea what the point to all of that was…why she lingered as long as she did; why the Holy Spirit revealed her name; why I felt peaceful, somehow knowing that I would see her again, so not feeling pressured to share the Gospel with her…just loving on her and listening.

This morning I prayed for Barbara and then I sent her a text telling her just that.  I prayed for her protection, for her peace and for her salvation.  I asked the Lord to let me know the purpose of that meeting….if He wanted to 🙂 and promised to be open to His leading.  I’m just so stinkin’ curious about the randomness of it all!

Perhaps Daisy and I are evangelists in the making.  🙂