Won't you be my neighbor?

        My pastor gave a lesson this past Sunday on the good Samaritan.  He was teaching us about trying to strive for greatness, not just being great at something.  His said the path to greatness is difficult, costly, and can be uncomfortable.  I really enjoyed the lesson, but my mind wandered in a different direction.  The verse Luke 10:29 "Who is my neighbor?"  Is what caught me. 
       Neighbors are a big worry/concern for me because we are professional movers.  Who will our neighbors be?  Will they be friendly?  Are they dangerous?  Can we trust them?  Do they have children?  Are they the kind of neighbors I could call on in an emergency?  All of this floods my head when we start looking for a house.  I need to quit worrying so much, not one time has God let me down in the neighbor department.  What I learned last Sunday was that my "neighbors" are not only those that live near me, they are the ones traveling down the same path as me.  Hopefully they are headed the same direction, and God will whisper in their ear "She needs help"  when I am battered, bruised and too weary to get back up. 
      I'm trying to learn to be a good neighbor.  It's hard, like Pastor Jerry said.  I'm still learning how to be a "mommy friend", but I have had some great teachers.  Here's what I have learned:  Offer a little more than you think you can do.  I underestimate myself, out of fear of failure or disappointment.  When you have an inkling that your friend needs a little help, do it don't wait.  You may just be the support that she needs to keep from coming undone.  I know this from personal experience.  My friend Becky taught me more than she'll ever know.  The best lesson I got from her was to not wait for an invitation to come help, just go help.  She busted in my house after my miscarriage, after I expressly told her not to.  She came and cleaned my house when I couldn't, took care of my son because I was too broken to try, and she wouldn't let me be swallowed under a grief bigger than I could bare.  People that is Greatness in action, that is a "good neighbor".
     My other "mommy friends" teach me things daily.  My neighbor Amy teaches me that she is part of my village that helps raise my children.  Our kids play together every day, invade each others houses, and love each other like family.   She is one of the busiest people I know but she always has time for my children.  She volunteers to take my children when I need help.  She is invaluable to me.  She is a neighbor I know I can call any time day or night.
      I think I prayed all of my friends into my life.  Each of you seem like I checked you off of a shopping list.  God knows my weakness and frailty, and sent strong women to help me through each stage of my life.  God knows what  my children need and has sent people who are not only my friends but my children's friends too.   I need to let go of the fear of my children not having good memories of a family filled youth.  Their family lies all over the country.  Their cousins are the kids they play with, they have so many Aunts and Uncles that they see all the time,  they even have local grandparents to come watch their baseball games.  The needs of my heart were each filled by my God.   Each of you is my neighbor.  
      The question of "Who is my neighbor?"  is becoming easier to answer.  My neighbor is my friend.  My neighbor makes my day more livable.  My neighbor is the friend that has seen me with no make up, kids running wild, and I'm hanging on by a thread.  My neighbor is the parent of the sweet girl that is Tate's best friend, who I love like a sister.   God please keep filling my world with Good Neighbors.  Please let me continue to be on the same path as these women.  Please continue to whisper to them how much I need them.  God please make use of me and direct me to who needs me.  Let me be encouraged to offer more than I think I can do.   I don't know that I'm ready to try for greatness, I'm starting by trying to be a great neighbor.

Small Shoulders



I was woken up this morning at four a.m. by Brad's alarm. He rolled over, re-set it , and happily went back to sleep for another forty-five minutes. I lay curled up next to him for forty five minutes plotting his murder, and it involved the cord of said alarm clock. Once we got up and I made breakfast and packed his lunch I sat in my chair and had coffee. I began to write a blog about my hatred of clock re-setters and snooze button pushers, but my laptop had a brain fart and it was erased. That just made me more angry. So next I did my coupon homework and grumbled to myself for a few more minutes. Turner walked out at six on the dot and it was time to start the day.




My bad mood didn't have a chance to get rolling this morning. The kids and I cleaned like crazy people for an hour and half. After that we all got dressed and ready for school, I had to take pictures of my boy. He is participating in Winn's Well Project today. He is carrying a gallon of water with him every where he goes today to bring awareness about how may people in the world don't have access to clean drinking water. People pledge money, and it is being sent to dig a well for a village in Africa. Turner has been so excited to participate.



Tate and I brought lunch to school today for Turner. I really just wanted to check in on him and encourage him. That gallon of water is about one fifth of his body weight and a lot for a kindergartner to tote around all day. When I saw him lugging his gallon down the hall my heart grew two sizes. He's one of only three in his class to attempt the water packing challenge.



I have been proud of my son many times. When he took his first step, when he spoke my name the first time, when he learned to drive his four wheeler, when he got his first hit in a baseball game, or made his first goal on the soccer field, all were proud moments. But today I felt a different kind of pride. Today is not only a physical feat, today Turner chose to do something from his heart to help others he doesn't know and will never meet. Turner "gets it". The world is bigger than just the small part he lives in. I am in love with a man in the making. I heard a quote yesterday that said "It is easier to build a boy than it is to mend a man". So true.



I hope so much for my son. I hope these little tests and lessons help build my son. I hope they make a mark in his heart and make him become a compassionate man. On his small shoulders there is much responsibility. I rely on him to be more grown up than he should have to be. I worry constantly that our moving will damage him. That repeatedly leaving friends and laying that heartache on him will close up his heart and harden my sweet boy. On days like today when the rest of the world can see his heart, packed around like a gallon jug, I have hope that he will remain sweet and compassionate.  Today, though it started off rocky, is a good day. Today I am in awe of a little man who carries a gallon of water and my heart everywhere he goes.

Where You are

   I thought You were in a building.  In my mind You only walk through amber colored sunlight that's filtered through stained glass windows.  You smell like long worn suits and Easter corsages. I tried leaving You in that building.  I turned my back on You and walked in to my twenties, not caring that You were waiting for me, always waiting for me.
   You were still waiting when my son came.  You let his tiny hands hold my heart and open my eyes.  You gave me a son so I could understand the Son You sacrificed for me.  You sneak up on me in places I don't think You frequent.  You are in the swirl of cream in my coffee.  You are in a dark high school auditorium.  You pulse in the drum beat and drift over the loud music played on Sunday mornings.  The more I seek You the more You show me Your many unexpected forms. 
     You are in my friends faces.  You are the phone call that gets me through the worst days.  You provide me with a new family in each city You set me in.  You are in the palm of my husband's hand when he holds mine.  You are also in my chaos. You are in my mind when it won't shut down and let me sleep.  You are in the last bit of energy that helps me finish my day.  You are everywhere I am, I am only now beginning to see that.  All the time I thought You were waiting for me to come back to You, You were already with me.   Thank You for letting me be where You are.