The summer before my senior year of High School (1982) I lead the music for a VBS in a friend’s church. There I met a man, in passing, who said to me “Ruth, when I look at you I think, Ruth”. Somewhere deep in my heart I knew this was more than a simple ‘you look like a Ruth’. That night I reread Ruth to see if there was something more to this man’s words. Nothing really stuck out at me. So I put all of these things away in my heart trusting that if this was of God I would understand in time.
Time passed, I married Gary, we moved 8 times in 9 years and I thought to myself “this is what “Ruth” meant; I would need to be willing to follow Gary anywhere God led him at the sacrifice of being close enough to my family to see them even once in a year. Okay, Lord, so be it.” And I suppose that wasn’t entirely wrong but as I was thinking about the events of yesterday (4/22/09) another facet became clear.
I have an unusual relationship with my mother-in-law. I get left out of most mother-in-law conversations at work because everyone knows I have a wonderful mother-in-law. With no disrespect to my own mother who mothered me very well, I have the relationship with my mom-in-law that I always wished for with my own mother, but wasn’t to be. And as I took her for some medical tests yesterday and took care of her a bit after I looked at her through the eyes of a daughter more than a daughter-in-law. I always have, but most of the time her actual children are around to care for her this way – today I was privileged to be her child.
My mother has been gone for 5½ years now and I grieve for her; but now, more than ever before this beautiful woman is my mother and I will forever be her honored daughter. Where ever she goes I will go, her people are my people and (it has always been) her God is my God – may nothing but death separate us (Ruth 1:17). Just call me Ruth.
Ruth 1:16b: “Where you go I will go and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.”
Welcome!
- Kathy Unger Marshall
- Dallas, GA, United States
- As a wife, mother of three and a full-time employee Kathy is well acquainted with the struggles to maintain balance, a right attitude, contentment and health in the midst of chaos. All the hectic times in her life, including seven major moves and five minor ones have served to reinforce her dependence on the only anchor she has found to hold her steady through the years; Jesus. Kathy writes of her personal journeys through the pages of scriptures, deserts of dryness, showers of blessings, the darkness of depression and the bright days of joy. She speaks of all she has learned about herself and her God in these journeys with the hope that her experiences will serve to encourage other women, who are fighting these same battles to stand strong.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
Sacrifice
A few weeks ago God asked me to fast and pray over 3 specific things; two I understood but the third one I didn’t get. I prayed anyway trusting that God would explain in due time. The first thing was for wisdom and direction regarding a specific fork in the road. The second was for health and the third was regarding sacrifice. Sacrifice? How was I supposed to pray about sacrifice? What did He mean? All I knew to do was to thank and praise Him for His sacrifice for my sin and to teach me whatever it was He had in mind.
A few days later Pastor Paul took us through 1 Kings 17:8-16. When Elijah told the widow (vs 13) to not be afraid but make bread for him 1st and then there would be enough for her and her son until the famine was over I was asked the question “will you obey me with your last serving?” Now we both know this question isn’t about food (and it’s a good thing too because I don’t share my food well). I suppose for each of us this question could be about something different. I had to ask myself, “what am I holding back because I am afraid of running out?”. I had two answers; but I’ll get to those in a minute. As I meditated on this and continued to fast and pray summed it up for myself this way:
“Sacrifice your last little bit of __________
without fear;
knowing that God will care for your needs.”
The next week, at church, we reviewed 1 Kings 18 and pastor Tim pointed out that Elijah poured 12 large jars of water on his offering when it had not rained in that area for 3 years. Water would have been a pretty precious commodity at this point and it made me wonder if the purpose of the water wasn’t so much to take away any reasonable doubt that the fire came from God as it was a part of the sacrifice itself. God’s fire, according to verse 38, consumed the bull, the wood, the 12 stones, the dirt from under the stones, and “licked up” the water from the trench. Either way, I am challenged to sacrifice that thing I feel most in need of to God. My personal summary from that lesson was to:
“Sacrifice my most precious commodity and trust that
God will reveal Himself and
affirm His call on my life.”
Since we were going through 1 Kings in church I read through it in my private studies as well. As I read the account of Elisha’s call to be a prophet and follow Elijah there was another occurrence of a sacrifice.(1 Kings 19) The footnotes in my Bible describes this as a Thank Offering for his calling. That sounds perfectly reasonable but what caught my attention was that he uses the elements of his work for this sacrifice. He used his plowing equipment and the oxen he’d been working the fields with, fed his family and said goodbye. It is common in our society to try to prevent burning our bridges behind us in case we ever need to go back that way again but this was not Elisha’s stance. So, as I mulled this over I concluded that I must:
“Sacrifice those things that represent my past labors and
completely surrender to the new task at hand.”
Again, all these sacrifices will look different to each of us; but what do these things look like to me? To be honest I don’t know about that third one yet. At the moment I haven’t encountered the “new task” that will require a sacrifice of my current labors but I pray that I will eagerly obey when the time comes. For now I do know that I must not be afraid to use my limited energy for whatever task God asks of me, knowing that He will replenish it according to my needs. (For those of you that don’t know I have Fibromyalgia causing chronic pain to severely lower my energy reserves. It is like I’ve traded my economy car for an RV and instead of getting 30 mpg I get about 6.) I’ve been afraid to spend my energy on things because I wanted to be sure I had enough to do the other things I needed to do. My challenge now is to be unafraid and willingly minister to others trusting God will sustain me.
Then lastly I must sacrifice money. (The other thing I have little of.) While we have always tithed often I’ve delayed turning it in to pay a bill, instead of giving off the top. Then, in addition to that how can we rightly ask gifts of you (over and above your tithe) if we are not willing to do the same? So, we are praying about exactly who we will send support money to but you and I both know several people staring churches right now, so there are plenty to choose from. I know that what we give won’t provide a significant percentage of the need but it only takes 10 people to turn $25.00 into $250.00 and if Jesus can divide 5 loaves of bread into enough to feed over 5000 people (that’s 1000 people per loaf, by the way) He can surely make our little gift(s) stretch out and satisfy needs. But I have to give it before He can multiply it.
I pray that God’s message to my life these past few weeks will encourage you to trust God with whatever it is you may be afraid to let go of and look expectantly for Him to satisfy all your needs.
Luke 21:4 All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty gave all she had to live on.
1 Kings 17:13 Elijah said to her “don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, then make something for yourself and your son.
1 Kings 19:33 Then he said to them fill four large jars w/ water and pour it over the offering and on the wood…
A few days later Pastor Paul took us through 1 Kings 17:8-16. When Elijah told the widow (vs 13) to not be afraid but make bread for him 1st and then there would be enough for her and her son until the famine was over I was asked the question “will you obey me with your last serving?” Now we both know this question isn’t about food (and it’s a good thing too because I don’t share my food well). I suppose for each of us this question could be about something different. I had to ask myself, “what am I holding back because I am afraid of running out?”. I had two answers; but I’ll get to those in a minute. As I meditated on this and continued to fast and pray summed it up for myself this way:
“Sacrifice your last little bit of __________
without fear;
knowing that God will care for your needs.”
The next week, at church, we reviewed 1 Kings 18 and pastor Tim pointed out that Elijah poured 12 large jars of water on his offering when it had not rained in that area for 3 years. Water would have been a pretty precious commodity at this point and it made me wonder if the purpose of the water wasn’t so much to take away any reasonable doubt that the fire came from God as it was a part of the sacrifice itself. God’s fire, according to verse 38, consumed the bull, the wood, the 12 stones, the dirt from under the stones, and “licked up” the water from the trench. Either way, I am challenged to sacrifice that thing I feel most in need of to God. My personal summary from that lesson was to:
“Sacrifice my most precious commodity and trust that
God will reveal Himself and
affirm His call on my life.”
Since we were going through 1 Kings in church I read through it in my private studies as well. As I read the account of Elisha’s call to be a prophet and follow Elijah there was another occurrence of a sacrifice.(1 Kings 19) The footnotes in my Bible describes this as a Thank Offering for his calling. That sounds perfectly reasonable but what caught my attention was that he uses the elements of his work for this sacrifice. He used his plowing equipment and the oxen he’d been working the fields with, fed his family and said goodbye. It is common in our society to try to prevent burning our bridges behind us in case we ever need to go back that way again but this was not Elisha’s stance. So, as I mulled this over I concluded that I must:
“Sacrifice those things that represent my past labors and
completely surrender to the new task at hand.”
Again, all these sacrifices will look different to each of us; but what do these things look like to me? To be honest I don’t know about that third one yet. At the moment I haven’t encountered the “new task” that will require a sacrifice of my current labors but I pray that I will eagerly obey when the time comes. For now I do know that I must not be afraid to use my limited energy for whatever task God asks of me, knowing that He will replenish it according to my needs. (For those of you that don’t know I have Fibromyalgia causing chronic pain to severely lower my energy reserves. It is like I’ve traded my economy car for an RV and instead of getting 30 mpg I get about 6.) I’ve been afraid to spend my energy on things because I wanted to be sure I had enough to do the other things I needed to do. My challenge now is to be unafraid and willingly minister to others trusting God will sustain me.
Then lastly I must sacrifice money. (The other thing I have little of.) While we have always tithed often I’ve delayed turning it in to pay a bill, instead of giving off the top. Then, in addition to that how can we rightly ask gifts of you (over and above your tithe) if we are not willing to do the same? So, we are praying about exactly who we will send support money to but you and I both know several people staring churches right now, so there are plenty to choose from. I know that what we give won’t provide a significant percentage of the need but it only takes 10 people to turn $25.00 into $250.00 and if Jesus can divide 5 loaves of bread into enough to feed over 5000 people (that’s 1000 people per loaf, by the way) He can surely make our little gift(s) stretch out and satisfy needs. But I have to give it before He can multiply it.
I pray that God’s message to my life these past few weeks will encourage you to trust God with whatever it is you may be afraid to let go of and look expectantly for Him to satisfy all your needs.
Luke 21:4 All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty gave all she had to live on.
1 Kings 17:13 Elijah said to her “don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, then make something for yourself and your son.
1 Kings 19:33 Then he said to them fill four large jars w/ water and pour it over the offering and on the wood…
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Earth Day 2009
Dear America,
Where do I begin? There is so much to say, yet it has all been said before in one way or another. There are so many people out “there” speaking, shouting, broadcasting, blogging, reporting, blah, blah, blah…is anyone really listening or is everyone just talking? People just drone on and on about poor me, poor America. I would like to quote Bruce Willis’ character in Disney’s “The Kid”: “Somebody call a Waaaambulance!” It seems like the people that are doing all the talking don’t have a clue. My favorite morning show is doing segments all this week on creating a great dinner for 4 out of $15.00. If I spend $15.00 on an entire dinner to feed my family of 5 I had better have enough for TWO meals! I’m not crying, I could probably be more frugal. I’m not as thrifty as other people I know. My point is “they” don’t know. I don’t even know, most native born Americans don’t know unless they’ve spent some time in impoverished countries where multitudes of people live without even the most basic of needs. Yet, WE have the gall to complain about our economy, cry out to the government to help us, and whine because someone has a bigger piece of cake than we do.
America, WE have SO much. So much to be thankful for…thankful to Jehovah God! We have the rights we have because Christians sought to be free from religious persecution and set up a society where ALL of us are now able to worship as we choose, speak as we choose, dream, work, (or don’t work) as we choose. We have a society where life is valuable (or at least it has been), and the only people condemned in our country are those who devalue the life of another person. We have the wealth that we have (even our poor are rich compared to most other countries) because God chose to bless this nation. You enjoy the political freedom to deny God because people who worship God fought and died to give you that freedom. We enjoy the political freedom to pursue wealth, to make our lives better if we want to. Whether or not we enjoy the wealth we hoped for yet has a few determining factors but most of it is in our own hands. So far, our government still allows us to pursue the careers we choose, work where we want and when we want and for whom we want and the only ones that have any control over how much money we make or the benefits we receive is us and our employers (and we can change employers). Education or lack there of only goes so far…my father-in-law only had a 5th grade education yet still owned his own business, ran it successfully and was able to take care of his family’s needs. He worked long, hard hours, worked jobs he didn’t like, moved his family several times but as he learned and gained experience he was able to do more, be more and be successful. We all have challenges, but challenges only become road blocks when we don’t test our strength to move them or find another way to accomplish our goal.
When all these thoughts started swirling around my head this afternoon, before I decided to start writing them down or I’d never be able to concentrate on the other things I need to do tonight, I wasn’t really thinking about the economy at all. I was thinking about a conversation I had with a customer a few weeks after 9/11. I don’t remember what country he was from exactly but I believe it was in a small country east of India. But somehow we got on the subject of how many countries around the world haven’t known the peace that Americans have grown so accustomed to for generations. There are adults in these countries that have lived their whole lives in battle zones. If it’s not civil disputes, its national disputes. One nation feels cheated, another nation feels entitled, one nation believes they are better than any other, one religious sect feels the right to kill any one who doesn’t agree with them. For multiple generations children have been caught in crossfire. Bombs have gone off in plazas, schools, places of worship, city streets anywhere and everywhere. Yet America whines and cries as if nothing this evil has ever happened to anyone else, nothing this tragic has ever occurred before. I can only imagine how we must be perceived by these war-torn nations. We cry like spoiled children expecting to sail through life on this earth unscathed by the “petty little skirmishes” going on all around the world. As long as men and women have egos we will have war. World peace will only come when everyone surrenders their “right” to be right or different or rich or poor etcetera etcetera. (Scripture tell us that this will only happen when Messiah takes the throne in Jerusalem.) My point here is that we need to get a grip. Our pride, America, has gotten the best of us.
We are not the best and the brightest in the world, and we are not exempt from the terrors of war and tragedy. We cannot hide on our side of the globe put lines of tape around ourselves and tell our brothers and sisters to keep their dirty laundry on their side of the world and don’t bother us with their problems and refuse to acknowledge them as roommates anymore. At some point we have to stop living only for ourselves either as an individual, a family, a state or a nation and realize that it is better for society as a whole to purse what is in the best interest of others rather than just what I want. Most people don’t want to wage war, to train soldiers, to send young men and women into battle, but sometimes the strong have to protect the week. We can’t take a live and let live stance. Imagine if no one had fought against Hitler…I mean REALLY imagine it…where would that have ended? What would our world look like today? Would you even be here? Would you have the freedom you have? Would your life be better or worse? Sometimes I wish that battles for leadership didn’t take place on a battle field between men and women that have no vested interest in the real fight but that just the few men/women involved would have some type of competition that would determine who wins and who looses…that would be my dream. But that just isn’t the way it is, it isn’t the way it will ever be. I can’t sit and cry about it I can’t wage war to stop war, I can’t cry over the lost innocence of my father in WWII, or my nephew in Afghanistan or the thousands of other American soldiers as if their lives are more precious, more deserving than all the hundreds of thousands soldiers and victims of war world wide.
My challenge to you, Dear America, is that you turn your anger, frustration, pain, and loss into something good. Change what you CAN change even if it means you change yourself. Respect our soldiers, our politicians (even if you didn’t vote for them), our teachers, our religious leaders. Reach out to help the war orphans and widows around the world, work hard at what ever work you can find to do and take pride in your work, in your charity, in your compassion for others. Value the life of the people around you as well as the earth around you. Let this Earth Day be about more than just the house we live in (environment) and let it include the “family” we live here with.
Sincerely Yours,
Kathy Marshall
Where do I begin? There is so much to say, yet it has all been said before in one way or another. There are so many people out “there” speaking, shouting, broadcasting, blogging, reporting, blah, blah, blah…is anyone really listening or is everyone just talking? People just drone on and on about poor me, poor America. I would like to quote Bruce Willis’ character in Disney’s “The Kid”: “Somebody call a Waaaambulance!” It seems like the people that are doing all the talking don’t have a clue. My favorite morning show is doing segments all this week on creating a great dinner for 4 out of $15.00. If I spend $15.00 on an entire dinner to feed my family of 5 I had better have enough for TWO meals! I’m not crying, I could probably be more frugal. I’m not as thrifty as other people I know. My point is “they” don’t know. I don’t even know, most native born Americans don’t know unless they’ve spent some time in impoverished countries where multitudes of people live without even the most basic of needs. Yet, WE have the gall to complain about our economy, cry out to the government to help us, and whine because someone has a bigger piece of cake than we do.
America, WE have SO much. So much to be thankful for…thankful to Jehovah God! We have the rights we have because Christians sought to be free from religious persecution and set up a society where ALL of us are now able to worship as we choose, speak as we choose, dream, work, (or don’t work) as we choose. We have a society where life is valuable (or at least it has been), and the only people condemned in our country are those who devalue the life of another person. We have the wealth that we have (even our poor are rich compared to most other countries) because God chose to bless this nation. You enjoy the political freedom to deny God because people who worship God fought and died to give you that freedom. We enjoy the political freedom to pursue wealth, to make our lives better if we want to. Whether or not we enjoy the wealth we hoped for yet has a few determining factors but most of it is in our own hands. So far, our government still allows us to pursue the careers we choose, work where we want and when we want and for whom we want and the only ones that have any control over how much money we make or the benefits we receive is us and our employers (and we can change employers). Education or lack there of only goes so far…my father-in-law only had a 5th grade education yet still owned his own business, ran it successfully and was able to take care of his family’s needs. He worked long, hard hours, worked jobs he didn’t like, moved his family several times but as he learned and gained experience he was able to do more, be more and be successful. We all have challenges, but challenges only become road blocks when we don’t test our strength to move them or find another way to accomplish our goal.
When all these thoughts started swirling around my head this afternoon, before I decided to start writing them down or I’d never be able to concentrate on the other things I need to do tonight, I wasn’t really thinking about the economy at all. I was thinking about a conversation I had with a customer a few weeks after 9/11. I don’t remember what country he was from exactly but I believe it was in a small country east of India. But somehow we got on the subject of how many countries around the world haven’t known the peace that Americans have grown so accustomed to for generations. There are adults in these countries that have lived their whole lives in battle zones. If it’s not civil disputes, its national disputes. One nation feels cheated, another nation feels entitled, one nation believes they are better than any other, one religious sect feels the right to kill any one who doesn’t agree with them. For multiple generations children have been caught in crossfire. Bombs have gone off in plazas, schools, places of worship, city streets anywhere and everywhere. Yet America whines and cries as if nothing this evil has ever happened to anyone else, nothing this tragic has ever occurred before. I can only imagine how we must be perceived by these war-torn nations. We cry like spoiled children expecting to sail through life on this earth unscathed by the “petty little skirmishes” going on all around the world. As long as men and women have egos we will have war. World peace will only come when everyone surrenders their “right” to be right or different or rich or poor etcetera etcetera. (Scripture tell us that this will only happen when Messiah takes the throne in Jerusalem.) My point here is that we need to get a grip. Our pride, America, has gotten the best of us.
We are not the best and the brightest in the world, and we are not exempt from the terrors of war and tragedy. We cannot hide on our side of the globe put lines of tape around ourselves and tell our brothers and sisters to keep their dirty laundry on their side of the world and don’t bother us with their problems and refuse to acknowledge them as roommates anymore. At some point we have to stop living only for ourselves either as an individual, a family, a state or a nation and realize that it is better for society as a whole to purse what is in the best interest of others rather than just what I want. Most people don’t want to wage war, to train soldiers, to send young men and women into battle, but sometimes the strong have to protect the week. We can’t take a live and let live stance. Imagine if no one had fought against Hitler…I mean REALLY imagine it…where would that have ended? What would our world look like today? Would you even be here? Would you have the freedom you have? Would your life be better or worse? Sometimes I wish that battles for leadership didn’t take place on a battle field between men and women that have no vested interest in the real fight but that just the few men/women involved would have some type of competition that would determine who wins and who looses…that would be my dream. But that just isn’t the way it is, it isn’t the way it will ever be. I can’t sit and cry about it I can’t wage war to stop war, I can’t cry over the lost innocence of my father in WWII, or my nephew in Afghanistan or the thousands of other American soldiers as if their lives are more precious, more deserving than all the hundreds of thousands soldiers and victims of war world wide.
My challenge to you, Dear America, is that you turn your anger, frustration, pain, and loss into something good. Change what you CAN change even if it means you change yourself. Respect our soldiers, our politicians (even if you didn’t vote for them), our teachers, our religious leaders. Reach out to help the war orphans and widows around the world, work hard at what ever work you can find to do and take pride in your work, in your charity, in your compassion for others. Value the life of the people around you as well as the earth around you. Let this Earth Day be about more than just the house we live in (environment) and let it include the “family” we live here with.
Sincerely Yours,
Kathy Marshall
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