9-28-15 Stop me if you've heard this...

Dear Friends,

I probably already told you this story in person, but I want it documented in print. I mean, if you can't see it on the internet, what's the point, right? Actually, I plan on printing off my blogs at the end of this year and making myself a sort of journal of it all and this will make sure I remember my story.

I had been feeling sort of like I was inside a bubble, hanging out with the same people all the time. I've been reading Jen Hatmaker and she has a real vision for having friends from all walks of life, so I wanted to branch out into something new. Bowling was what came to mind.

Let me preface...I love to bowl. Loy does not share my passion. (I figure it has to do with him being left-handed, but am not sure.) Loving to bowl does not, evidently, ensure that you are talented at that game, mind you. So, a bowling league it is!

I went online to find a league and found out that the bowling alley about a mile away from my house has leagues that were open. I filled out the form and clicked on "Submit."

A week went by. Then two. I thought, "Well, I guess God doesn't really want me to join a bowling league right now." (Not a deep theology on my part, I'm afraid.) I didn't pursue the matter.

Then, on a Tuesday, while I was shopping, I got a call. "So, you're interested in a bowling league on Wednesdays?" Well, it turned out he had not one, not two, but three different leagues I could join. "There's the Wednesday morning league, the Senior League in the afternoon, or another league late afternoon."

I said, "Gee, I hope I'm not ready for the senior league!"

He responded, "Well, you just have to be 50." Drat. I was eligible.

However, after ascertaining that scores were, in fact, handicapped and this was a low-competition league, I chose the Wednesday morning league, which started the next day.

I walked in on Wednesday morning, envisioning me bowling with lots of young mothers with small children, imparting my wisdom and wit. This was not the senior league, after all. I walked in and what I saw was...grey hair. Lots of it. The other women in the league are (no joke) Francine, Virginia, Helen, Lois, Barbara, Doris, and...well, you get the picture! One woman I was up against the first week was on oxygen (she told me she is in three different leagues!) Another, whom I have not bowled against yet, uses a walker. But I think she can leave it behind to roll the ball...not sure. Several have specially drilled balls to fit their little arthritic fingers. You go, Girls!!

But these women can bowl!! And they are the friendliest bunch of women I have ever met in my life! They were all coming over to my team's lane to welcome us and each week they are just a joy to be around. We should all learn about welcoming new people from them!

Turns out the bowling alley had three women all new to this league that same week so, instead of putting us on all different teams they made us our own team. We are "The New Kids." And we are young, young, young. One late 40's, me mid-50's, and one early 60's.

The first week one of my fellow "Kids" said, "A year ago I weighed 150 pounds more than I do now." She looks great! Well, I couldn't let that stand alone, so I said, "Well, a year ago I was undergoing chemotherapy." Then the third Kid said, "Well, a year ago I had a liver transplant." OK, she wins!!!

I was telling some friends at book club about my bowling prowess (actually, I'm happy if I break 100) and one friend decided to join and be a Kid also. So we are a full team, all four of us. And the 4th has some health issues, so she fits right in! :)

I even went out (after two weeks) and bought a used purple ball, purple bag, and shoes (not purple). Loy says we need bowling shirts! Actually, various braces that I've seen the other league members wearing would be first--wrist, knee, special things to go OVER your bowling shoes.

So now each Wednesday I go over to Hollywood Lanes and throw a 10-pound sphere down a long, straight alley in the general area of some pesky pins that never seem to want to fall down. But I am having a great time with my new friends!! And, actually, hanging out there is kind of like finding the fountain of youth. I feel so young!

(There are still four teams who don't have a full team--if you're interested in joining us. Obviously, no skill necessary.)

Happy Fall!

Kitt.

8-28-15 Be Still

Stillness Before the Lord

Another cancer story…when I was in the midst of chemotherapy and I was so exhausted and feeling ick and weak, I couldn’t even walk from the bedroom to the kitchen without stopping to rest. One time Kammy had to come babysit me for a morning because Loy wasn’t sure that I could get a sandwich for lunch by myself. I became discouraged because my prayers were so repetitive. “God, no. Help me.” Over and over again. One friend gave me a real gift when she told me during this time, “You just work on getting better…leave the praying to us.” She wasn’t telling me not to pray, just that I was not alone and didn’t need to worry that my prayers weren’t good enough or deep enough or often enough.

Then things finally got finished. I started to walk at the mall. The first time we went once around the mall and had to stop twice to rest. It was a time to push myself. After awhile I could go around once with no resting, then twice…when the weather got warm, I was up to 4-5 times around the mall at a time! (Just FYI—walking around the inside of the mall, taking all the little hallways, is .7 miles.) This was a time of strengthening, my physical self and my spiritual self.

But that time passed…

Now, I have told you about my feet. They are numb. This puts me at a risk for falling (I’ve fallen four times since the first of the year—three sprained ankles, one skinned knee, one skinned shoulder, one sore hip). I have been doing physical therapy, not to heal my feet, but to improve my balance so that if I stumble, I have a better chance of NOT falling. At Madonna there are people all around me doing great stuff--recovering from strokes and from amputations and head injuries. Doing really hard, physically challenging therapy. Mine? Stand still, feet together. Focus. Now close your eyes. Feet staggered. 

To anyone looking, this looks like we’re doing nothing at all. But, it is important to regain that balance by being still. And it doesn’t come easily!

 
Psalm 46:10a ESV 
Be still, and know that I am God.
 
 
1.     Exodus 14:13 ESV
And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again.
 
2.     Exodus 14:14 ESV
The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”
 
3.     Exodus 33:21
Be still by the side of the Lord.
 
4.     Numbers 9:8 ESV 
And Moses said to them, “Wait, that I may hear what the Lord will command concerning you.”
 
6.     Ruth 3:18 KJV
Then said she, Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day.
 
7.     1 Kings 19:12
After the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of a gentle blowing.
 
8.     1 Samuel 12:7 ESV
Now therefore stand still that I may plead with you before the Lord concerning all the righteous deeds of the Lord that he performed for you and for your fathers.
 
9.     1 Samuel 12:16
Be still so you won't miss the great things God is doing.
 
10.  2 Chronicles 20:17 ESV
You will not need to fight in this battle. Stand firm, hold your position, and see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem.’ Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them, and the Lord will be with you.”
 
11.  Job 37:14 ESV
“Hear this, O Job; stop and consider the wondrous works of God.
 
12.  Psalms 4:4
Tremble, and do not sin; Meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.
 
13.  Psalm 37:7
Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not yourself because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked devices to pass.
 
14.  Psalm 46:10 ESV 
Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!
 
15.  Psalm 62:1-12 ESV
For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken. How long will all of you attack a man to batter him, like a leaning wall, a tottering fence? They only plan to thrust him down from his high position. They take pleasure in falsehood. They bless with their mouths, but inwardly they curse. Selah For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. ...
 
16.  Psalm 131:1-3 ESV 
Lord, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me. But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forevermore.
 
17.  Isaiah 40:31 ESV 
But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
 
18.  Isaiah 7:4
"Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither be fainthearted”
 
19.  Isaiah 30:15
”In quietness and in confidence shall be your strength”
 
20.  Lamentations 3:26
It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.
 
21.  Hab. 2:20;
”The LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him”
 
22.  Zeph. 1:7
”Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord GOD”
 
23.  Zechariah 2:13a
Be still before the Lord.

This is such a foreign concept to me--being still. I am a "do-er." But, obviously it is important for my relationship with God to grow that I am quiet and listen instead of just talking. 

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary

1. (n.) The quality or state of being still; quietness; silence; calmness; inactivity.2. (n.) Habitual silence or quiet; taciturnity.

 Here is a post that I found helpful to my understanding. I hope you think so too.

“Every time a trial comes to me or my family, I think of the words from the Bible in Psalms 46:10, “Be still and know that I am God,” and I am often comforted. Sometimes, though, I wonder just what it means to be still and what exactly I need to do to make that happen.
 When we face difficulties in our life that would make it seem as if we are on a ship being tossed upon a stormy sea, how exactly can we be still and a strength to our family while a storm rages around us? As I looked up the definition of still in the online Merriam Webster Dictionary, not only was I enlightened when I learned the definition for still, but learned very valuable lessons from its synonyms as well.


Here are ten words and their definitions that can teach us how to be still in the times of a storm and recognize the power of God.

1.     Still: free from noise or turbulence; untroubled. 
When we are free from outside noise or turbulence, we are able to hear the still small voice of God's Spirit as he comes to comfort and guide us through our trials. Some of the noise we experience that could be blocking our ability to feel God’s presence is our own worry. When we learn to change our thoughts from negative to positive, we are more able to feel God’s love because we are in harmony with him. The noise and turbulence is replaced by a sweet melody of peace.
 
2.     Calm: a period or condition of freedom from storms; a state of tranquility. To be calm does not mean that the storm is no longer all around you, it means that the storm is no longer within you. The storms may still rage, but you are free from the effects of them. They no longer trouble you because you know in whom you have trusted. You are in a place where you no longer fear.
 
3.     Hushed: to put at rest; mollify-to soothe in temper or disposition. 
Often times, when trials come, we tend to get angry with God and cry out in complaint. When we do this, we lessen our ability to feel the Spirit, because we leave no room in our hearts for the Spirit to dwell. God cannot dwell in a heart that is full of anger. It is when we learn to put at rest our complaints and cast our burdens on the Lord, to hush our cries and wait upon him, that we will find solace. He will bind our broken hearts.
 
4.     Peaceful: untroubled by conflict; devoid of violence or force. 
Sometimes when difficulties arise, we allow the anger and frustrations from those trials to push us into violence, or we try to force our will upon the Lord. Neither one of these choices will bring us peace. When conflicts come and we are untroubled by them because of our faith in God, only then can we know peace.
 
5.     Placid: serenely free of interruption or disturbance. 
We can learn to be still as we pray, read scripture, go for a walk, meditate or give ourselves time to ponder free from interruption or disturbance. This not only allows us to communicate with our Heavenly Father, it allows our Heavenly Father to communicate with us.
 
6.     Restful: marked by, affording, or suggesting rest and repose; being at rest. 
Often times, the busyness of life makes it impossible for us to truly hear what God is trying to tell us. It is when we slow down and allow ourselves the opportunity to rest that our mind and heart can focus on those things that are of the greatest importance. God wants to talk to us, but we have to be ready and available to listen.
 
7.     Serene: shining bright and steady. 
While reading with my children during home-school, I learned that the sun does not rise and the sun does not set. It is an illusion. Instead, the Sun stays still, steady and bright, and as the Earth turns to face the sun, that is when the morning comes. The darkness of night comes when the Earth turns away. It is the same with us. In our trials, when we turn to face the Son, who is steady and bright, just like the Earth, we are filled with light. If instead we choose to turn away from him, the darkness of night will surely come. Choose to face the light.
 
8.     Quiet: gentle, easy going, i.e. quiet nature. 
When we are gentle and easygoing, we are more able to hear God’s commands. He gently persuades us to love him and serve others. We are more able to ease our own troubles, and we will carry God’s spirit within us, which will aid us in easing the burdens of others.
 
9.     Stilly: in a calm manner. 
When we approach life, and our trials, in a calm manner, we are more able to see the bigger picture and outline a plan of recovery. Not only does it allow us to have a clear mind, but it allows us to help calm the fears of those around us.
 
10.  Tranquil: free from agitation of mind or spirit. 
When our mind and spirit are still, our whole body is at peace. We are able to see things with a clear mind, feel things with a pure heart and hear the voice of our Heavenly Father with ears that are open and in tune with his spirit. We will know God because we will be one with him.

 
“Be still and know that I am God,” is not just a saying, it is a state of being. It is the ability to know God well enough to trust in his abilities to rescue you. As we learn to be still and trust in God, we come to know and understand that we are God’s children. We are never alone, never unaided and never forgotten. He will come to us. All it takes is for us to be still.”

Tiffany Fletcher

Tiffany Fletcher, author of "Mother Had a Secret: Learning to Love my Mother and her Multiple Personalities" http://motherhadasecret.blogspot.com/

Website: http://motherhadasecret.blogspot.com

Instead of running around like crazy-women, let's try to slow it down and just spend some time being quiet with God.