Angels in Action

Hello precious princess warriors! It's been far too long. Once again, my life has taken on a life of its own, and I've been beyond busy. Not good -- at all. It's time to slow down, reevaluate my schedule, confirming that what I'm doing is in line what God wants me doing. Although, this time of year, every year, tends to take off at a very rapid pace due to my son's extensive baseball schedule. His games add three evenings of "baseball watching" to my already over-stuffed schedule. But I can't tear myself away from his games. Win or lose, they're always worth watching. And, yes, I like baseball.

Be assured, my Armor of God series will start soon. I promise. Tonight, however, I wanted to tell you about what I believe just might have been an angelic encounter. Really.

First, consider this fascinating scripture -- Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing, some people have entertained angels without knowing it. Heb. 13:2

I've always been awed by the possibility of an angel in my midst. Knowing that God cares enough about us to send supernatural helpers from heaven is more than a little exciting, and definitely thought provoking.

Anyway ... here's just a little background explaining why this encounter was so perfectly timed.

My daughter has been in the middle of a very uncomfortable situation with a friendship turned sour. The mother of the other girl has exhibited some frightening and erratic behavior, now focused on yet another mother who chose to stand for truth rather than being manipulated by an evil, cruel agenda. Of course, the ones suffering the most from the situation are the girls. They want to be friends and work things out, but, unfortunately, this one particular mom is not open to that possibility. Needless to say, it has been difficult for everyone involved. My daughter's dear friend, who is celebrating her birthday today, was extremely upset by some very hurtful comments this other mom made to her mother. She was tearful, confused, and unhappy. I don't blame her. The situation has been hard for me to deal with in a godly manner. Believe me, I'm praying -- a lot. More details aren't important, what's important is that God cares about our children. He cares about us.

I took my daughter and the birthday girl to a movie this evening. They were thrilled to go; yet a thin layer of grief, for changing friendships, seemed to cover the joy, diminishing its glow. As we took our seats, I noticed that my daughter's friend was carrying a large, rolled up, movie poster. It was one of those super fancy ones. You know, the actual movie poster, with glittered lettering to boot. Photographs covered both the front and back side making it an obvious collector's item.

This little girl was beaming. She said, "Some guy came up to me when we were walking in and said happy birthday, and then handed the poster to me." My daughter confirmed this brief encounter. We hurried to thank the kind man. He had vanished -- completely.

We hadn't told anyone at the theater about her birthday. No one but my family and hers knew where we would be (they didn't do it; I checked). No one else there had a poster. The whole thing was just plain strange.

Suddenly, a light (finally) came on and I blurted out what I believe still to be true. "Girls, do you know that God just sent an angel to bless you. You've had a really hard day. You're mom is standing against unkind behavior and feeling attacked. God cares. He knows you're suffering. He knows it's your birthday and that you would love this poster. So, I think He sent an angel to deliver it to you." The moistness in my eyes must have been contagious because they looked teary, too. I quickly called her mom and shared the experience. She, too, cried, believing the gift to be a very tangible gesture of His love for her hurting girl. Wow! Wow! Praise God!

For a just-turned eleven year old this was the perfect gift. God's love touches each one of us in a very unique way that is perfect for our needs. He knows. He cares. He loves.

So, have you ever suspected angelic intervention? If so, please, share your story. I'd love to hear it and share it with my readers. And remember, that there are angels among us. We should be careful to treat each person with dignity and love. God bless you.

Mothers or Magnets? Happy Mother's Day

A teacher gave her class of second graders a lesson on the magnet and what it does. The next day, in a written test, she included this question: “My full name has six letters. The first one is M, and I pick up things. What am I?” When the papers were all in, the teacher was astounded to find that almost fifty-percent had written in, mother.

(So much for magnets!)


Did that give you a Mother's Day chuckle, or at least a smile? I hope so! We are kind of like magnets, aren't we? -- Picking up all sorts of stuff. Some things I'd rather not name let alone touch.

Part of our Princess Warrior identity will, most likely, at some time, involve motherhood. Even if you don't actually have children of your own, there will be plently of opportunities to serve as a mother figure.

Today, I felt like I was in a war zone right in my own kitchen. My daughter, bless her little heart, popped some popcorn. Not only did she burn it (pew), but also had an "incident" with hot, buttery, kernals exploding out of the bag and all over the kitchen floor. She picked it up (sort of) but I had to come in and finish the job. Warrior Mom to the rescue! As if that's not enough ...


Here's just a sampling of Princess Warrior Mom, Carol's, average day of picking up things:


My son's baseball uniform crumpled on the bathroom floor. (He's sooooooooooooooooo exhausted, "Please, mom, just this one time?" Ehem ... I should have never given in to that "one time" the first time.


Joe the Guinea Pig's timothy hay has somehow found it's way to the floor and for some reason the vaccume isn't working, yep, you get the picture. Down I go.

Oh my goodness! There goes a soda pop (a nice shade of brown) all over the mauve carpet -- again!

I won't bore you with my long, long list of "pick up" stories, but I suspect you have a fairly good picture of this cycle by now. If you have children, you, too, without a doubt, have lived some version of pick-up-cycle.

Do you ever wonder if our kids see us as the giant clean up genies? Good question, huh? Maybe we should take a poll.

Anyway, all this picking up led me to ponder my relationship as God's daughter.

I make a ton of "messes" in my own life. Thankfully, God is forever faithful to clean up and pick up after me, however, there are times when I must face specific consequences, especially, for those messes that I keep making over and over and over and over.

He loves me enough to let me experience His chastisement. The Bible says He disciplines those He loves. He takes time to show us the right way. He gives us example after example, highlighting better ways to live, ways that if followed, will keep us from making the same mistakes (messes) again and again.

Aren't you glad that our King rules with a loving and forgiving hand, teaching and training us in the way we should go? I know. Sometimes the discipline and consequence part doesn't feel so great. Believe me; I know. But, like we tell our kids ... it's for our (their) own good.

So, in light of all this, let's consider how we can better model His Ways for our children this Mother's Day.

I don't know about you, but I don't want to be known by my children for simply picking up things. I want them to learn why it is important for them to take responsiblity and pick up after themselves. And I don't just mean in the physical sense. As Princess Warriors for Christ, when we make mistakes, which we will, often, let us be quick to admit to ourselves and our King that we are aware of our mess. Then, let us seek His mercy. Finally, let us accept God's training and example so perfectly described in His Word.

After all, we're not magnets ... we're mothers.

JUST FOR FUN:

TOP TEN LIST OF WHAT MOMS REALLY WANT FOR MOTHER'S DAY 10. To be able to eat a whole candy bar (alone) and drink a Coke without any "floaters." 9. To have a 14-year-old answer a question without rolling her eyes in that "Why is this person my mother?" way. 8. Five pounds of chocolate that won’t add twenty. 7. A shower without a child peeking through the curtain with a "Hi ya, Mom!" just as I put razor to my ankle. 6. A full-time cleaning person who looks like Brad Pitt. 5. For a teenager to announce, "Hey, Mom! I got a full scholarship and a job all in the same day!" 4. A grocery store that doesn’t have candy, gum, and cheap toys displayed at the checkout line. 3. To have a family meal without a discussion about bodily secretions. 2. To be able to step on a plane with toddlers and not have some pencil-neck-yuppie-geek moan, "Oh, no! Why me?" 1. Four words: Fisher Price Play Prison