Skip to main content

Talking Straight

While sitting at Sky Harbor waiting for my plane this morning, I thought about the presidential debate last night. It's going to sound crazy, but I kept thinking about McCain's bus, The Straight Talk Express. The focus of the campaign slogan is to cut all the fancy jibberish and get to the point. Then I got a bright idea. I need to apply this concept to my prayer life. I need to do more straight talk with God. I need to get to point and tell Him just how I feel about everything that concerns me. With still a half hour wait for the plane, I reached into my purse for my latest issue of David Wilkerson's newsletter. In a nutshell, Wilkerson gives some uplifting tips to his down-hearted readers who are feeling the pinch of this economic downward spiral. The first tip is to pray instead of panic. You'll feel a lot better when you talk to God about it. My thoughts exactly..straight talk. The second tip was love people unconditionally. Wilkerson reminded me how holding on to offenses blocks that big blessing God wants to pour out on me.

I like boarding Southwest Airlines. No assigned seats, you can sit anywhere you please. I felt led to select a seat next to a mid 30's business woman traveling solo just like me. We started yaking and the flight to San Diego felt like five minutes. Here's the kicker: Melissa mentioned she loves her new Bible Study group under the direction of Beth Moore. I could just picture Beth Moore as Melissa described her stressing the need for us to pray telling God "just how it is...what we're feeling, what our attitudes are...spill it out to Him!

Okay, okay, I get it; I'm convinced. No more fancy schmanchy rhetoric. He's not impressed. God wants straight talk. I get it. I'm riding that bus.

Jeremiah 29:12
Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

A Memorial Day Reflection

  Memorial Day is always noteworthy for me and my girls.  Next Thursday marks the third year of missing their father, my husband. So many thoughts  run through my mind.  The journey of loss takes on various emotions.  The strongest feeling, at first, was emptiness.  In a split second, I would forget he departed forever.  I imagined things I needed to talk to him about when he got back home.  My mind is realistic now.  He's not coming back.  There will be no more times of sitting on the porch swing together on the front deck staring at the moon and the stars.  He would tell me all he knew about the majestic night sky. I have so much I wish I could tell him, like the excitement of seeing our oldest grandchild make a decision to follow Jesus and get baptized on Mother's Day!  And our little Amy, 11 years old, I wish he could have seen her on stage receiving her induction to the National Honor Society. Our daughters have their own ...

Mama's Lipstick

I always wished I could do things with my mom like shop in the mall, share makeup secrets or go to the movies and watch romantic comedies.  My wish never materialized.     My mama behaved like a tomboy.   She loved baseball and pitched with a strong right arm.   She could care less about the latest fashion or the latest movies featured on the big screen.   She never polished her fingernails.    One day after elementary school, I walked into the house to find my mom all dolled up in front of the bathroom mirror, foundation crème, powder, eyebrow pencil and rouge all over the counter sink.  “Who are you?” I asked, thrilled to see my mama putting on the Ritz.  Makeup in place and blotted, she immediately took it off.  “I don’t like the way it feels,” she exclaimed. She retired in Arizona and protected her dry lips with a light rose lipstick, the color of natural lips, a step above ChapStick.  She wore it a few tim...

Book Review of Biblical Minimalism and Give Away

What does minimizing look like?  To the empty nester it may mean downsizing real estate.  To the co-dependent, it may mean pitching some toxic friendships they tend to collect.  I thought I had a handle on Biblical minimalism, but I wasn’t even close.  Biblical minimalism is much more than cleaning out a drawer and discarding unwanted things into a box to take to the thrift store. In her book, Biblical Minimalism, Cheryl E. Smith defines Biblical minimalism as “a complete, whole person release of anything unlike Jesus, a letting go of everything that hinders us from following Him wholeheartedly and single- mindedly , and a relinquishing of all that brings us under bondage to this earthly, very temporary life.” The author gives us a visual of a whole pie that is divided into eight slices.  Each slice describes our lives with areas to analyze to see if pruning or adjustment is needed.  I won’t name them all, but one example is the “emotional ...