Assurance

I have picked a terrible time to try to begin a healthy lifestyle!  My chocolate intake has slowed down dramatically and I am exercising.  Now the benefits are great because I feel so much better, however, when stress is high, I do not get to overindulge in chocolate.  Ugg!!!

As you recall since 2012 I have dealt with moving to a new ministry, leaving friends behind, lost my mom to a short illness, had a new grandson, had a son deploy for eight month and return, and cared for my dad who is ill.  This does not include settling into a new home, trying to learn a new church, and find my place in ministers’ wives ministry here in Arkansas.  Stress!!

A week ago my dad was in the hospital again for congestive heart failure.  This stay made the seventh time since April.  Each stay leaves him weaker.  On this particular stay his cardio doctor suggested that hospice care was needed now.  After discussing this option with the family, we all agreed.  All I could tell my brother was, “Here we go again.” 

Over the course of that same day, my father expressed that he wished to talk to my husband and to his former pastor.  Dad explained that he often doubted his salvation.  I, along with my sister-in-law, tried to share with him how he could find assurance but Dad, being the former military guy, wanted to speak to someone in “authority.”  I laughed because I said that any born again Christian could talk to him, however, I did as Dad wanted and called my husband and Bro. Tim. 

On October 17^th I witnessed my dad pray the sinner’s prayer with his former pastor.  I really believe my dad was saved before this but if it brings him comfort, I want him to have that assurance.  After the prayer my dad said, “I have a selfish desire.  I want to be reunited with Hazel (my mom) in heaven so we can worship the Lord together for eternity.” 

I do not know how many days my dad has before him.  The doctor does not believe he will be here at Christmas, and if he is, Dad will probably not know that it is Christmas.  However, one thing I know for sure, Dad will have his “selfish desire” fulfilled as soon as he draws his last breath.

 

Be Careful What You Say

Do you have Facebook, Twitter or any other form of social media?  I have a Facebook account but I refuse to do anything else.  I would much rather talk face to face with someone than share over through social media.  My husband does not and will not have anything other than email, because he wants to speak with people face to face.  He contends, as well as many other people, that are we slowing forgetting the art of face to face communication.  I am not saying it is bad to have all the social aspects of interacting but at times we vent or share things that can be hurtful.

A few days ago I was checking our church’s Facebook site to see if I was down for Children’s Church.  What I saw not only shocked me but upset me.  An individual (a church member and a former minister) used the site to call in to question a certain “church policy.”  He vented his disagreement publically so the entire church family could see.  Girlfriends, I was upset and disappointed.  Here was a friend and fellow servant of God who should know better than to spill his anger on Facebook.  My first reaction was to down a full bag of M & Ms and then “express” my anger at this person.  Thankfully, God did not allow to do that.

When my husband found out, he called the person.  My husband explained that he was disappointed and hurt that something so trivial was placed on Facebook openly.  It not only put a bad light on the church but on what God was doing in our church.  When my husband gave all the details of the certain issue to the person, they quickly told my husband they were sorry.  They did not have all the facts and he would immediately take down their comments from Facebook.  

My point is that no matter who you are-minister, staff wife, or member of the church-we need to be very careful of what we say on any social media.  I love my church and my church family.  I would never want to bring disgrace or harm God’s bride.

Have you ever had the social media craze hurt you, your husband or your church publically?

 

Opportunities For Tennessee Wives

Ladies, I want to take the opportunity to tell you about two events taking place at the Summit, which is the annual state gathering of the Tennessee Baptist Convention.  These events will be held in my home city of Chattanooga, TN, November 11-13 2013.

The first event is the Good Cup to be help on Monday, November 11^th, which will include a panel discussion and a time of worship.   This event begins at 1:00 and is FREE.

The second event is the annual Ministers Wives Luncheon to be held Tuesday, Nov 12th.   The theme of the luncheon is “Sufficient Grace” (the title sounds very exciting!).  This event begins at 11:30 and the cost is $15---registration deadline is Nov 5^th.   This will be my first time to attend the luncheon, so I am really looking forward to it.   It’s always a blessing to meet and fellowship with other ministers’ wives.

So if you are able to attend, see you at the Summit!

Watch Out For Gossip

Hello my sisters! This past weekend at a breakfast fellowship, I shared with some of the ladies at my church about some things we need to know about gossip. Yes, that ugly word that can cause a whole lot of heartache and strife in the church.

Now as pastors’ and ministers’ wives we should know better than anyone how gossip, and its twin cousin slander, can really hinder ministry activity in our churches. We have even seen our husbands get caught in the middle of it,not as a participator, but as a mediator who tries to bring comfort and healing to those affected by it. Unfortunately there are some wives of pastors and ministers who get caught right in the middle of it, they enjoy doing it and cannot get enough of it. What about you? Do you give very careful thought to what you talk about with others? Do your conversations sometime resemble gossiping and slandering? Our words could easily be twisted, unintentionally circulating in the “rumor mill” if spoken carelessly.

What does a “true gossip” look like? Based on what I have seen and read, a sister may be a gossip if:

1. She invites it and people are comfortable doing it in her presence.
2. She uses it to tear down a person’s character to get what she wants.
3. She uses it to win friends and impress others.
4. She uses it to feel superior to others.

Hopefully, none of these traits describes you, but maybe someone you know. Also, the word “gossip” or “slanderer” means accuser, and is used 34 times in the New Testament to describe Satan, our enemy who constantly makes accusations against us. Wow! I am sure none of us wants to be engaged in the work of the Devil by what we say to and about others.

Here are a few verses (not an exhaustive list) that are sure to help when we want to chose our words carefully:

Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips. Psalm 141:3

He who guards his mouth and his tongue, guards his soul from troubles. Proverbs 21:23

Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. Ephesians 4:29

Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person. Colossians 4:6


Let us all be diligent to stop and think before we speak. We can apologize for our misguided words, but we cannot take them back. Something to think about as we watch out for gossip.

Pumpkin Time

Happy Fall, Y'all!!!

Happy Fall, Y'all from the Brittons and our little "Charlie Brown"!!!

Uncertainty

Uncertainty.

Today, being day 16 of our Government Shutdown, many folks are feeling uncertainty.  Many individuals have been affected by this.  Some of our church members have been affected.....and some of our family.  Our son-in-law has been on furlough since October 1st and our son has been working but not receiving a paycheck.

Uncertainty.

Sunday night, Roger asked our congregation to name 5 bad things about our government.  Quickly, the list grew to 10.  Then he asked us to name 20 good things about our government.  It took much LONGER to come up with the good things, because our minds were so cloudy with the immediate political turmoil.  However, we DID come up with 20 good things.

We still live in a FREE country........

As Christians, we need to PRAY like we've never prayed before.  We need to do more praying than criticizing.  God is still in control.....if we will only allow him to be.

Today is Another Day

TODAY is another day!!!

TODAY, I am stronger.

TODAY, things are clearer.

TODAY, I realize that Satan is trying to discourage us and HE WILL NOT win the victory.  People are not the enemy....Satan is.

Thank you very much for the prayers............because,
TODAY, I feel much better.

TODAY, I am proud to be a pastor's wife.

TODAY, is another day............................but keep me in your prayers because, I am human and

TOMORROW is also another day. 

Confession

I have a confession......MANY times I do not feel like I am cut out to be a pastor's wife.  NOW....is one of those times.

I know. I know.  It is just Satan trying to discourage me.....but it is real.

It is easy to be a pastor's wife when everything is going smooth.  It is SOOO HARD to be a pastor's wife when Satan is working overtime in your church family.  I know all of the right answers.........Satan ALWAYS finds the weakest Christian or the weakest link to jump in to stop a ministry when God is Blessing a Congregation.  And, yes.....it is ALWAYS internal.  We have a guards up and are ready to fight Satan out in the world............but when one of our members turns on us, it catches us off guard.

I know all of this...........

BUT...it is still VERY discouraging when your husband or your family is being attacked.  I just want to say......BACK OFF. 

Being a pastor's wife you know....The buck ALWAYS stops here.  It might be the toilet running over...........or it might be feeling hurt...........or it might be misunderstandings.......or it might be major stuff, BUT, regardless...........the PASTOR ALWAYS gets pulled into it.

He is HUMAN.  He gets upset sometimes too.  He is sad sometimes.  He is happy sometimes.  Sometimes he is uplifted.  Sometimes he is discouraged.  Many times he is discouraged.  He gets hurt.  Most of the time he is lonely...........just talking to his wife is not always enough.  Many times....he shuts down and has no one to vent to.  In our case, he is a husband, a father, a granddaddy.........and has a secular job where he is under mega stress......he is a teacher, a pastor, etc. 

I have all of the same feels, so many times it is hard for me to uplift him when I am down in the valley with him.

It is not easy being a pastor's wife......

BUT, EVEN in the VALLEYS, GOD STILL BLESSES US!  It is not easy, but it is the path God chose for me.  He never promised it would be easy....he just promised he would be there with me.

Thank you God for the valleys......because they make the mountains that much sweeter!!!!!!

Grace, Joy, and Change

It is 6:24 a.m.  I have a dozing 3 week old in my lap after her first feeding of the day. Well, she isn't quite "dozing," as she is now stretching and squirming in her newborn way.

Thank you for all your prayers and support. Thank you too for your grace, as I have to ask you forgiveness. In all the joy and the newness and the transition, I had honestly fallen behind in my blog reading and had totally forgotten that this past week was my turn to write!

Yes, in the last three weeks I have not seen a lot of sleep, but God has been so good. Wally and I have basked in our God's goodness and have experienced the great joy of His Spirit. Eliza Joy's arrival is still being celebrated in the Vinson home.

My smallest baby at 7 lbs 12 oz was born without complication and in very good health. She is adored by her two big sisters who are eager to help in any way we will let them. Family has been visiting. Friends have showered us with gifts and meals. We are so very blessed!

Things are definitely different. I knew transition was coming. I braced myself for it as best I could. Being my third baby, I knew it was coming. However, the thing about change that is so scary is the "unknown" that goes with it.

As pastor's wives, we are all familiar with this. But I have found that even though we may deal with a ton of  change, this scary "unknown" never seems to change. God continues to use it though, to drive me closer to Him, to seek His face, to rest in His peace.

Please keep us in your prayers as we go through all the transition that comes with a new baby. Wally and I are officially outnumbered now!

Someone needs a diaper change! Thank you again for your prayers and for your forgiveness!

Not Cut Out To Be A Pastors Wife

As I drove away from the restaurant late Sunday night the tears were falling so hard I could not see my way out of the parking lot.  Thankful we had come in two cars, I was glad to drive in circles trying to find my way out of the maze of parking lots and side roads in the dark.  By now my tears had turned into loud sobs.  The kind of crying that I rarely do and have not done in quite a long time.....and I needed space.  Time to cry.  Time to let The Lord speak Truth to my heart.  Time alone.  This was too hard to try to explain to my husband.

I am not "cut out" to be a pastors wife!!!  Those words coming to my heart broke me.  It was true!  I felt like a fish out of water.  I felt like I was in an out-of-body experience.....like I was watching someone other than myself sitting at that table.  What am I doing here, I wondered?  This is so not me, I told myself. Again and again I heard the words pierce my heart.....I am not cut out to be a pastors wife!!  

After getting some composure and finally finding the road heading home, I knew, theologically, there was a conflict.  The Truth is my husband and I are one.  He is a pastor....called by God....therefore, I am a pastors wife and He "cut me out" before I was born to do this. I am His workmanship.  His vessel.

Being a pastors wife.....It is not easy for me.  It is not natural for me.  I am not good at it.  I do not love it.  I am thankful for those of you who do love it and for those of you that it all comes naturally.  You have much to be thankful for.

As for me....and maybe one or two of you (perhaps I am not the only one who struggles with this) this one thing I do know.  His grace is sufficient for me!  His Power is perfected in my weaknesses!  I am OK that this is hard because His Power gives me the strength to not simply survive but be used!  Not simply persevere but see Him do miracles in spite of me.

The tears have dried.....several days have passed by....I still know I am inadequate and this life is not easy but I also know I am "cut out" to do this and there are times I am good at it and love it and today I claim His Victory.  After all...."it's a gentle rain and I rather like it!"