Why? How? When? Who Sinned?: It's Not ALL About Us

There are many times in our lives when we may find ourselves in an undesirable, uncomfortable, and trying situation /circumstance, and we cannot help but to wonder WHY we are "there" or even why we are STILL "there". We may try to mentally scan through out past (our words, thoughts, or other specific actions), trying to determine how or when we "screwed up" or sinned so badly to deserve "this" or to end up at "this point". We may even spend endless time beating ourselves up or focusing on the dramatics of OUR problems and OUR situations.

Unfortunately, as a result of our "nearsighted vision", we too often forget that our ways are not God's ways, and that our thoughts are also unequal to His. In our selfishness, we seem to lose sight of the fact that everything that occurs is NOT ALL ABOUT US. There are times in life when the Lord will actually allow things into our lives simply so that He MAY RECEIVE ALL THE GLORY "for working all things for good".

We are reminded of this in the 9th chapter of the Gospel of John when Jesus healed the man who was born blind. As Jesus and his disciples were walking and saw the blind man, his disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Just as we can get consumed with the why, how, and when of problem, Jesus's disciples were as well. But Jesus let them know that, "neither this man nor his parents sinned...but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life."

Most certainly, God has always had a strategic and awesome plan at hand. And sometimes, His plan may include that our lives and circumstances are used to affect and transform the lives of others around us (as well as transform our own characters), through His power and works of deliverance.

So, thank God that our Lord has a bigger picture perspective, as He sits on His throne looking down from the precipice of heaven on our earthy lives. We all just need to get on board and share HIS VISION.

Be patient...Be hopeful...& remember: IT's NOT ALL ABOUT US!!!

Our uncomfortable and "never-ending" situations may positively affect more lives than our own...since Our Lord works ALL THINGS FOR GOOD TO THOSE WHO LOVE HIM & ARE CALLED ACCORDING TO HIS PURPOSE!

[Further meditation: Isaiah 55:8-9, John 9:1-3, Romans 8:28]

Miraculous Autumn Leaves: Time Will Reveal

About a week ago, upon returning home from an appointment, I took notice of an aisle of trees overhanging and lining my journey down the steep, hill-like avenue. The trees were decorated in bold, beautiful, and breath-taking blends of autumn colors. It was a magnificent sight that was quite difficult for anyone to ignore or to even overlook. But my question in all that I viewed was...When did this all happen? When did you change?

It seemed like it had only been at least 5 days or so earlier when I'd left the house on an errand. And I know what was clear to me about that day: The leaves had been green and the trees had seemed camouflaged and unnoticeable amongst the scenery of the neighborhood. So when did this happen? And how is it that overnight, in an instant, and in a blink of my eyes, ordinary leaves transformed into an astounding, technicolored masterpiece?

As I gazed out the car window and enjoyed the surrounding beauty, I could not help but to think of God and how he is not just able to work such wonders and miracles in nature with these trees and its leaves, but is also able to in our lives. I thought about how his sovereignty can reach down into our lives, and IN AN INSTANT, or in a blink of our eyes, he can turn the tables and deliver us from our trials or pit-like situations. Just as quickly as he sat up, spoke to the wind, and the storm CEASED, he can also change our situations before our eyes and CEASE our storms, INSTANTANEOUSLY!

But it doesn't end there, folks...The beauty and the mystery of these changed leaves also caused me to go a bit deeper and make another mental correlation between the autumn leaves and our intercessory prayers. Have you ever fervently prayed for a spouse, parent, child, grandchild, sibling, or close friend to change a habit, way of life, or negative character trait? Well...have you even prayed, waited, prayed some more, and waited some more, finally starting to possibly question if there was ever going to be any hope or change in that individual? Maybe you've been praying daily for your grandchild to do better in school, your mother to stop judging you, your husband to be more affectionate, your son to stop smoking marijuana, your best friend to keep your secrets and to stop gossiping, your sister to be saved, or your ex-wife to let go of years of bitterness... the list could go on and on. In the natural, nothing appears to have changed about this person or their way of living. It can be disheartening and frustrating for you. What you are SEEING makes you weary and may even cause you to want to give up your prayer efforts.

But DON'T!!!

Because, you see, your prayers and the people that you are interceding for are just like the leaves on the trees. To our human eyes, we see green leaves... everyday green leaves, same ole', same ole'. But what we may not be aware of is that during the season before autumn, within each leaf a change is taking place, as something referred to as a "disk of cork cells", is growing up the petiole of the leaf. During the Fall, the continued growth of these cork cells blocks the food making process and vein system. Which as a result, also blocks the green pigmentation (from chlorophyll) from being able radiate its color, and in turn allows the beautiful colors that had been hidden in the leaf (all along) to FINALLY be revealed. In this same way, God is secretly and privately working on the inside of our loved ones, as a result of our prayers. As we cannot see the results of cork cells growing up within the leaf (until the proper season when the leaves will instantaneously turn colors), we also may not see the results of our fervent prayers, immediately.

However, we can be CONFIDENT of this, that he who began a good work in us will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. And we must also be encouraged not to give up on our prayers of intercession, for as Christians, we are called to walk by faith and not by what our human eyes see on a daily basis.

So my friends, I leave you with this...There is a time for everything and a season for everything here on Earth. Be blessed to know that this IS an Autumn season for your prayers and loved ones. Autumn means "maturity" in Latin and symbolizes the harvest season; and according to the dictionary's definition of "harvest", it is the result or consequence of an activity. So...One day soon, you may find that you will look up and view a magnificent sight before your very eyes-YOUR MATURED & CHANGED LOVE ONE- as the result and consequence of your activity of continued prayer and faithfulness. YOUR AUTUMN...YOUR HARVEST TIME!

BE STRONG! STAY ENCOURAGED! KEEP THE FAITH.

P.S.- Just as I completed writing these reflections, I could here my brother's CD player playing in the distance. When I concentrated to distinguish the sound from all the chaos around me, I realized that the song, Time Will Reveal (an 80's hit by the group DeBarge), was playing. How fitting & appropriate! Thus...the addition to my blog title. My God has humor!

My Will or the Right Thing?

So, today and tonight I had EVERY INTENTION to post an inspirational message that had been on my heart. It seemed that all day, it was never the right time to type and publish it because a baby was crying, or someone else was working on the computer, or it was dinner time, etc, etc, etc...
But I knew that I really wanted to get it posted before I went to bed and WOULD do so. Hell or high water!
Well, I had also promised to watch Tarzan with my kids. And so, the struggle began...to do what I had been waiting to do alllllllll day OR to do the right thing and spend quality time with my four chickies watching Disney's Tarzan.
I must say with resistance to MY WILL, I am going to die to myself & put the kiddies first! Here's to Tarzan and making the hard, yet "right" choices. Until tomorrow...

What Really Irks Me!!!! No Ride Home From Work

I get TOTALLY irked when from morning throughout the major part of the day, I dedicate all of my time and efforts to feeding, bathing, caring for, and teaching my children...ALL to have my 15-30 mins. on the computer to check my emails, fb account, or to blog, MAJORLY interrupted by my children's foolish arguments, loudness, and ridiculous antics. MY SACRED 30 mins....the only time that I actually get to socialize with real people/adults and express my feelings.

I LOVE homeschooling my children. I do! I love being the one to teach them and not having to spend my day in a public school classroom teaching someone's children. But the one thing that I do miss about working out of the home, or in a public school, is that I had that ride home from work to unwind before I had to meet & greet my children, and put on my "evening hat". For me, that ride home allowed me the time to revive my soul and prepare my mind & body for the tasks ahead of me. It gave me a chance to cool out and listen to some good music. Or it was a time that I listened to an old sermon or Christian talk radio to "get my daily bread" for the evening. It was time with JUST ME, before I had to change hats and meet the demands of being Mommy and Honey, pouring my soul and efforts into others.

With homeschooling there is no ride home. For me, the time that I get, or try to get, to escape to the computer is my make-believe ride home. Sometimes I even get a cup of coffee and sit down with my devotional or bible (mind you, in the midst of all four of my rambunctious, loud crew) and pretend that I stopped off a Starbucks to relax and chill for a while before I made it home from work to the family.

I still have not found a true way to "ride home" in my current situation without extreme disrespect and disregard (or lack of a true understanding) for my transitional ME-TIME. But in the meantime, I will have to take a "spiritual ride home" as I hide myself in God (Psalm 143:9). He'll renew my strength as I wait on him, and He'll even help me to eventually get the true desire of my heart which is just A LITTLE me-time (Isaiah 40:31 & Psalm 37:4)! PRAISE BE TO GOD!

P.S.- I started this blog after homeschool today when I tried to get a "ride home". It was continuously interrupted, so I had to save it to draft. As I am completing this now, it is almost 8 p.m, my daughters are gone for the night, and my two young boys have both fallen asleep at the same time. I am finally getting my "ride home" , and what a wonderful & peaceful ride it is. God is always faithful!

Seated in the Pit for the Blessing

Have you ever been in a situation or in a literal location that you are sick of being in, never wanted to go to, and really didn't get why God had not yet answered your prayer to deliver you the heck out, and on your way? Well, I have! And currently, I have been "stuck" in a real-life location (not just situation) that I have been so "OVER" and beyond ready to leave. I have prayed to God to deliver me and provide the opportunity for my departure, but the months have gone on and I have found myself getting to the point of "enough is enough"...still in this place. Some months ago, I must admit that I was spiritually able to realize why my "being stuck" in this location may have been necessary and most beneficial for other events that took place while I was "here". I even thought to myself, "Teri, enjoy the journey and learn during this time that you are 'stuck' as a hostage in this geographic jail cell". But today, I heard a word that finally made this continued misery of still being "here", seem worth the wait.

I was awakened at 5:48 a.m. this morning by an unexpected phone ring. Even though the call did not involve me and was not a life threatening emergency, it really woke me up and keep me from drifting peacefully back to sleep. Realizing that it was close to 6 a.m., I decided to catch a Christian program and hoped to view the following one at 6:30 a.m. It was the message at the end of the second program that did something for my soul.

In the program, the evangelist talked about a time when she and her family were getting ready to depart from a hotel in Hawaii, after being there for a conference. Initially, her intentions were to pack up their belongings and to check out of the hotel. However, at the last moment, she got a sudden craving for macadamian nut waffles and informed the children that they would eat in the hotel restaurant before departing. At the restaurant, a gentleman rudely cut in front of her family in the line as they waited to be seated by the hostess. Being somewhat perturbed, she decided to refrain from showing her feelings and remained quiet. As the hostess prepared to seat the gentleman, she asked him where he would like to sit and he directed her to seat him outdoors. Outdoors...this was exactly where the evangelist had her mind set on enjoying her breakfast, as well. When the hostess looked to her, inquired about her seating choice, and she requsted the outdoors, the evangelist was disappointingly told that the outdoor seating was booked. Quite disturbed and a bit upset inside (especially since she felt that the gentleman who had cut them, had taken her choice spot), she still managed to keep her cool and her mouth shut. The hostess led her and her family to the most remote area of the entire restaurant. She sat down and decided to let her children go and get their food while she kept watch over the table. She describe how unhappy she felt about her seating and even how closely her table was placed next to the other dining table beside her.

As she waited on her children, all of a sudden, the lady sitting at the table so close to hers mentions to her that God had instructed her to give the evangelist something. The stranger then proceeded to give her a beautiful ring made of diamonds and emeralds. She was astounded and grateful.

On her flight home, she gazed at her ring and then realized that if she had not been in the right place at the right time, she would not be admiring such a beautiful ring. She thought about her initial experience at the restaurant and how she had chosen to "keep her cool". She also thought of how she would not have been near the lady that had blessed her with the gift if she had in fact enjoyed breakfast outdoors.

From her experience, I realized that sometimes we may find ourselves in a location or in a predicament in life that we are not pleased to be in; just as the evangelist found herself in furthest, back corner of the restaurant, with no hopes of enjoying the Hawaiian views of palm trees, blue waters, and stately mountains. But it maybe in that place, that seems so unattractive, miserable, & undesirable to us, and totally NOT our "cup of tea", that God has predestined as our "HOOK UP" location for a great blessing...one that sparkles!

By 7 a.m., my morning was already made...sooooo...I got up? NO, I went back to bed and got some rest for my body & soul. LOL! When I awoke later, I was also reminded of Joseph's experience in the well and most definitely in jail. It was in jail that he made the "hook up" connections for his blessing in the Pharaoh's empire.

Sooooo, going forward I hope not to complain about my location anymore, while I wait for God to deliver me from it...because now, I'm just waiting for my great blessing to arrive! Praise be to the Lord, for he showed his wonderful love to me when I was in a besieged city (Psalm 31:21)

Homeschool Activity

Here's a fun math/graphing activity that you can use at homeschool or in public school. Make a bar graph of how many of the specific colors are found in any given bag of M & Ms. It's fun to do and your kids will enjoy eating the M & Ms when they are through. We did it today and had fun homeschooling, even thought it was Troi's b-day (and I refused to cancel school on account of it).

Troi Leigh Davis's 6th Birthday

Well, today is my second child/daughter's 6th birthday. My precious Troi Leigh Davis is definitely my fighting soldier child and came into this world giving me a fight at 9 lb. 1 oz. I remember that early morning TWO hour labor session. Before it even began and the doctor told me that the "fun" was about to begin, I squeezed my thighs together and told her to wait and that I had possibly changed my mind. I recall this little, skinny, frail woman...yet feisty, trying to pry my legs apart as I told her to WAITTTTTT!!!! I eventually gave in and started the most exhaustive child labor of my entire life! I was so ready to give up, for real. It even came a time when I had to receive extra oxygen to keep the momentum going, and to keep from passing the heck out! But, it was allllll worth it! Troi Leigh is a blessing! I know that we all cannot imagine a world without her and her precociousness, inquisitiveness, competitiveness, and her list goes on & on.
A few days or so before I was going to have Troi, I was very down and confused about how I would feel with a new child invading on my relationship with my one and only, first born princess. I was lying with my 4 yrs. old daughter on her bunk bed and asked her how we were going to handle having a new child, since she was my best buddy. Ever so sweetly and innocently she told me that it would be okay, because I could have two buddies-She would share me. I was so touched to my heart, but then went on to wonder and hope that this new chick would be at least as pretty as my first, because otherwise, I'd feel really bad about it. LOL!

Well, I did gain another buddy! And yes, there was room for one, because she was a DIFFERENT & UNIQUE kind of buddy...quite the opposite from my first Princess Tai. She is a blessing to me and her entire family. She makes an instant impression on all of those who encounter her.

Today I salute (He! He! He!)....Miss Troi Leigh Davis a.k.a. PB, Peebs, Pretty Brown, Bourgie, Troya! Be blessed My Soldier!

My Realization/ Revelation

So now that you briefly know who I am...let's get real. Today I got the revelation of my life!!!! I am trying to be a perfect person in all of my roles, and my inner standards of perfection are kicking my butt and stressing me out. It's not ALL of my hats that are overwhelming me...I AM overwhelming MYSELF!!! I am the one expecting myself to be perfect mom, perfect wife, perfect homeschool teacher, perfect Christian. And I am expecting ME to be the one to change myself and perfect myself. But today, I surprisingly got a revelation after two days of feeling down & stressed, and after reading a page in Joyce Meyer's The Battle Belongs to the Lord. I would have never thought it, but I finally got honest with myself and WOW!!! It is freeing to realize this, but also a little scary. I am glad that I have reached the source of my stress (ME), but now I have to begin the process of change. And this change is NOT my responsibility, it's God's. Thank God, but...

Now I have to figure out exactly how to give this issue to God and let HIM fix me. How exactly do I give him my perfection issues and "be still" while he works on me??? This will be a new one for me, but I so need the fixin'. LOL! Well, tonight, me and Abba Father will converse about it and I'm sure he will help me out with this. He's always faithful to me!

LIFE...to be continued...

Who the Heck Am I?

Hello World!
Who the heck I am? Well, I feel like I am often every woman, wearing many hats in this place called life. But seriously, My name is Teri...I am a 37 year old, African-American, Christian woman who wears the HATS of: mother, wife, homeschooler/ former public school teacher, "self-declared" inspirational/devotional writer, & SO MUCH MORE! I am blessed to have been married for 8 1/2 years to one of my high school crushes. And the two of us are even more blessed to be the parents of 5 beautiful children: son 16 (my stepson), daughter 10, daughter 6, son 2, and son 1 (in a week)...and my womb is still available for more as God's will be done. LOL!

So, why am I starting this blogging venture? Since I wear so many hats and have had the opportunity to enjoy many experiences that some people at my age have not, I felt that I may be able to be a blessing to someone out there in cyberspace. I am in no way perfect, and have hardly "arrived", however, I have HAD many experiences and gone through many trials in life that may inspire others. I can relate to many areas of life... been pregnant and had miscarriages, been without and been rich, been single and been married, been a working mother and have stayed home....I am sure you get my drift.

This blogging venture will also serve as a therapeutic way for me to work my way through life and the many demands that are placed on me for donning soooooo many beautiful hats. LOL! I look forward to this new world and hope to get to know you, and bless you at the same time.

Let the adventure begin!!!!