It's Me Again, Margaret...

     I'm baaaaack!

     Just when you think you've pretty much mastered the game, God shows you there's another level...
     In this last week, God has reminded me of a few things.

     First off, I spent some time contemplating the Parable of the Talents that Jesus told. (Which can be found in Luke Chapter 19: 11- 27.) The story is about a master who gives some of his servants a select amount of money and tells them to use it for business until he returns. Two of the servants deal wisely and increase the money that was given them. Another servant hides his coin because he was afraid to do anything with it. Of course the master was happy with the first two men because they had done as told and had even increased what they had been given. The last man though, he didn't do anything at all! He hadn't followed his orders. He had never even tried...
     I love the fact that Jesus would use parables. Each time you read them, no matter how many times you read over them, they always give you something new to "chew on." This week when I started to think it over, I thought about how God gives each of us a part of this world. We are given things throughout this life - homes, land, jobs, even people - and we are supposed to take them and increase them - make them better! We should never leave something we were given the same! (Or worse for wear...) We should always work so that when we return or leave whatever it is, we have left it better than it was before.

     Saturday, me and the hubs decided that that we were going to do a massive amount of yard work - and general work around the house. We knew we'd been neglecting our little house for a while, and it needed some TLC. The last owners left a lot of holes in the back yard weren't so kind to the inside either. (But we've been working on the inside for a while - it's the backyard that was bad...)  We worked our little tushies off! At the end of the day Saturday, we looked at our sunburned, sweaty, stinky selves and all that we had accomplished... and Prince Charming said: "It looks like we worked our butts off for nothing."
     I have to say that I agree. It does look like we did a lot of nothing. It helps to keep in mind that looks can be deceiving. At least we can tell ourselves that we've gotten most of the ground work done. (I can also proudly say that I can still shovel with the best of them.)
      That night, we ordered take out. We were going to eat on the couch while we watched some Netflix. (Honestly, Netflix was a wonderful idea.) Unfortunately, Netflix didn't work. The Internet didn't work. The phone didn't work. Seeing that it was Saturday night, we knew that we wouldn't be able to do anything about it until Monday. So, we watched the News, Wheel of Fortune, and Jeopardy. (All of our technical issues weren't resolved until today - that's why I've been missing in action.)

     Second: Prince Charming and I both have realized how easy it is to get so caught up in life that you can forget to live. You can forget the plans God has for you. You forget about helping others. You forget about doing His work - the work you were really made for. You can "hide your coin" without ever meaning to do so. Especially when you have bills... It's as if the "American Dream" (Whatever THAT is... so far, I think it's just buying junk you think you need and then never getting to use it anyway because you have to work your hiney off just so you can pay for it all... that's all I've ever witnessed, anyway.) is almost forced on you and it slowly kills off the real dreams you started with.

    Third: If I measure my success as a wife by how clean and decorated my house is, how well I keep up the laundry, or how delicious my meals taste... then I have only succeeded in failing as a wife. While I am to leave this home that I was blessed with in better condition than when it was given to me, my primary  job as a wife is to support and help my husband. I am to be an encourager. I am to be a friend. I am to be the safe, soft place. The one person who stands beside when the rest of the world turns away or against. And all of that takes precedent over this house. While I want this house to be clean and beautiful, real friends don't care if your house is a mess or if it isn't stylish - and there will always be McDonald's.
     I read a sign the other day that said: Life is all about the 3 C's: Choices, Chances, and Changes. You have to make a Choice to take a Chance in order to ever see Change. This weekend me and Prince Charming decided that we weren't taking enough chances and that is going to change. We don't want a run-of-the-mill life. We want the life God planned for us. I believe that He has something special planned for us. So we're being pro-active about it all. We're getting down on our knees and taking back the dream.