When The Pastor's Wife Needs Correction

Last week, my friend Carmen called me for some counsel on how to handle a situation between she and her pastor’s wife. Her pastor’s wife gives leadership to a ministry in which Carmen’s 11 year-old son is a member. In preparation for the ministry event, her pastor’s wife made a comment to Carmen’s son that was offensive to Carmen and hurtful to her son. Though Carmen had observed her pastor's wife to be curt and somewhat standoffish with other people, she concluded the comment was probably more thoughtless and careless than malicious. But, Carmen also knew she needed to address the issue--most mothers would have agreed. The issue for Carmen was: “How do I correct my pastor’s wife? She is supposed to be the leader. She is supposed to set the example of good communication.”

After listening to Carmen’s story, I, too, agree that she needed to address the issue—but, not as a mama-bear protecting her cub. Instead, she had to make sure she was in a space in which her motive really was to bring the best out of her pastor’s wife. Further, I asked Carmen: “Why do you think your pastor’s wife is supposed to be a model of good communication? Where did she learn that? Who taught her?” After all, pastors and their wives are like everyone else: maybe we grew up in homes that exhibited godly and healthy communication, but maybe we didn’t. Maybe we have been intentional on working on our own issues, or maybe we haven’t. Maybe we have perfected some of our shortcomings, but in other areas we are still works in progress. Like all those in the body of Christ, pastors and their wives have to learn what it means to die and surrender to self so that our lives, our actions, and our words exhibit fruits of the spirit—love, joy, peace, kindness, gentleness and the like. How else will we learn if no one is willing to give us a biblical reproof?

This episode with Carmen and her pastor’s wife did get me to thinking if I was approachable to a member of my church if they felt I had wronged them? I hope so. But, the reality is, there is no way around this being a sticky situation.

So, I ask you pastor’s wives: Do you think before you speak? Do you weigh your words? Are you open to correction?

And, I ask you, parishioners the same questions. In addition, do you unrealistically believe your pastor’s wife is a paragon of all things good? Are you willing to operate from a motive that brings that best out of other believers in the body, including your pastor’s wife?

We can only grow and mature if we are friends with correction.
“Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid.” Proverbs 12:1.

Shauntae Brown White is an associate professor at North Carolina Central University in the Department of English and Mass Communication. She is married to the Rev. Dr. Harry L. White, Jr. who pastors Watts Chapel Baptist Church in Raleigh, NC.

The Love Principle

It's been a busy month. It started with me preparing to speak to a women's group in my town, and I was feeling the pressure. The coordinator called a few days after she extended the invitation and gave me a spill of what they were trying to work towards. The women of the congregation were divided. The ministries were suffering, and membership would soon feel the ripple. My heart bleed for them. Church people, Lord help us, I thought.

As much as I tried to prepare and write something to guide the session, the Lord wouldn't bend. My words dried up as soon as I sat down at the computer. He said to me one night in the shower that this wouldn't be a standing lecturing session. These women needed something more intimate.

The coordinator was concerned about bridging a gap between the members. I was concerned about bridging the gap between the women and God.

They selected the scripture passage from Titus 3. While, preparing I learned two lessons.

God desires relationship. We find more than our individual roles with this Titus 3 passage. We glimpse God's heart for our relationship with one another. He created us to invest in one another. Every generation is meant to guide in love and good example. We are responsible for one another more than we may have ever been willing to admit.

God demands reconciliation. We must never forget our unworthiness. There is nothing in us that deserves our inheritance in Christ, except that His love reconciled us to Himself. That should make it easy to love our sisters~ inspite of. Christ left no room for exceptions. Period. Love.

Sometimes starting over is the best solution. We have to give each other new mercies. I believe that is what God is calling for in His people. He does it, so can we. That day, we cried, we confessed, we commited to doing what we were created for.

"A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another (John 13:34)."

How do you hold up with loving others? Are you tempted to throw your hands up with difficult church members?

Tamika Eason is a passionate wife, writer, and awestruck mother to three daughters. She is amazed by God's great grace- that He chooses to love a woman so full of unworthiness. She and her husband serve in ministry in Austin, Texas.

You can find her writing inspirational fiction that showcases the power of supernatural love, and in October 2011 blogging at The Potter's Wheel

http://www.tamikaeason.com/

Answering the submission question

Nothing like a little political furor to bring a Biblical topic to the forefront. All of a sudden, the Christian S-word (submission) is in the news. What that means for us as women in ministry, or wives of ministers, is that we'd better be ready to answer questions on the touchy subject of marital submission.

5 Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time. 6 Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one. Col 4:5-6  NKJV

Are Christian women expected to be blindly obedient to whatever our husbands tell us to do, like those fictional women (robots) from Stepford?

Does submission make us less valuable, or of less importance to God, than the men we're married to?

Is God a chauvinist? Does God hate women?

Hardly. A brief glance at the ministry of Jesus reveals God's heart and thoughts toward women. Jesus never rejected, or oppressed, the women who came to Him. He repeatedly defied the religious standards toward woman in His actions, demonstrating Paul's later writings to the Galatian church that "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus." Gal 3:28-29 NKJV

It's not God the Father who oppresses women. It's a demonic spirit of religiosity. Whether that religiosity takes the form of Islam, Hindu, Catholicism, or evangelical Christianity, wherever you find oppression and suppression of the daughters of God you'll find that evil spirit. Jesus NEVER oppressed women.

On the other end of the spectrum, modern media has taken to "dumbing down" husbands and men in general. However you feel about the power of confession, it seems to me that calling my husband an idiot (with whom I am, according to Scripture, ONE FLESH) is contradictory to anything I might desire...

FYI: This is NOT submission...





In the New Testament, ALL Christians are commanded to submit to the Lord, to one another, and to those who are in authority. (Rom 13:1,5; 1 Cor 16:16; Eph 5:21; Heb 13:17; Jam 4:7; 1 Pet 2:13, 18)
Wives are specifically directed to submit to their husbands in Paul's epistles to the churches at Ephesus and Colossae.

The Greek word for submission is the word hupotasso, which literally means "to come under assignment" or "under commission." We submit to the governing authorities, to our husbands, and to each other, as an assignment or commission, from God. It's not blind obedience to a human being.

In my opinion, the best explanation of hupotasso is to come under, or alongside, the mission of another. Helpers. Partners. God has given our husbands an assignment, and in respect to that assignment, we are called along as helpers. (You may very well have your OWN assignment, but if you're married, you are also called to aid your husband in fulfilling his divine commission.) What's your hubby's assignment? First, to raise up a godly household, to bring up children in the knowledge of the Lord. Second, whatever calling is placed on your husband, whether pastor or evangelist or missionary or ???

Does that mean (as so many fear) that we become "yes-women" to our husbands? No. It means, as partners and helpers, we prayerfully consider the course our husband/team leader is taking, and act accordingly. As team members, we understand the vision we hope to attain, and we take into consideration every action in light of that vision. And, as dedicated team members, when the direction or plan or focus seems "off," we are willing to raise our hands and ask a question.

One minister put it this way: "submission is a respectful response." We are commanded to give a respectful response to our husbands. Submission is not a blanket agreement with everything he says or does, but a respectful response. A husband who is committed to the Lord and committed to his wife as a gift from God, will readily hear her questions and receive her insight, taking those things with him to the Lord in seeking direction. A foolish man (like Abigail's husband, Nabal) will ignore his wife's advice and run his own way. Another kind of foolish man listens to his wife INSTEAD of listening to the Lord (Adam, Abraham).

Submission isn't a curse or a punishment. It's a tremendous responsibility to pray and hear from heaven, and to be willing to bring what we "hear" with our spiritual ears to our husbands,with whom we are partnered for the fulfillment of a divine calling.

Is the private in the Army less valuable than the general? No... his or her life is just as important, even though they had different assignments.

Is a woman submitted to her husband somehow "less" than a single woman? Nope, it just means she has an additional assignment on her plate beyond the one God has given her individually. 

Niki Turner is feeling her way through a new season of living. She turned 40 last year, became a grandma in April 2011, and at the end of June, she and her husband turned over the pastorate of the church they planted 13 years ago and are "recovering from the effects of heat" while God prepares them for their next assignment.

When God Turns Lives Around

And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings
and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord . . . Acts 9:1

Saul sought to destroy the young church at Jerusalem. He hated this new religion that came to existence because of a man who “showed up” the Pharisees. So he obtained letters from the high priest to take to Damascus where he intended to round up those nasty Christ-followers and bring them to Jerusalem for punishment.

But he never completed his mission. The Lord, Jesus Christ, halted him in his tracks. It was a frightening experience of blinding light from Heaven, a voice only he could hear, and a conviction that drove hate far from his heart.

Then this murderer of Christians, this man who watched the good Stephen stoned, was converted. Saul entered the city of Damascus a blind man. But God had prepared the way for him. God spoke to Ananias in a vision.

Can you imagine the fear Ananias must have experienced? “Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem: and here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name.” (Acts 9:13)

Ananias trusted the Lord, and obeyed. Now, because of the conversion of an angry, hate-filled man, and because of another who trusted the words of the Lord, we have the Gospel preached to the Gentiles and the teachings of God.

Yes, it is possible, God could have raised another, but God chose Saul (later known as Paul). “But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake.” (Acts 9:15)

I have heard stories, and I have met people whose lives were full of wickedness before they turned their hearts over to the Lord. People you wouldn’t want to meet on the street. Individuals most people would consider a bane on society, not worthy to receive a second chance. Yet, God gave it to them.

I am so grateful to my God who is willing to stop a murderer or a hardened criminal on his mission and to turn him from his ways, enabling him to follow Christ.

This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation,

that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners;

of whom I am chief.

I Timothy 1:15

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lynn Squire loves the Lord, loves her husband, and loves her three children. When she's not serving her church or serving her family, she writes. Her book, Joab's Fire, is now available on Amazon.com. You can read more of her work at http://www.presentingbiblicaltruths.com/.

Power Poles With a Purpose

My first reaction was frustration. All this beautiful scenery to photograph, but every opportunity was spoiled by a crisscross of electrical wires. Mile after mile of telephone poles and power lines.

“I wish I could make them all disappear,” I muttered to my hubby as we drove north toward our wilderness cabin last month. Then I laughed. They would disappear soon enough. Our cabin is some 20km beyond reach of a telephone pole. There we have to depend on our generator if we have a temporary need for electricity.

Normally we’re pretty self-sufficient. We use kerosene lamps, candles and flashlights for light, and wood or propane for cooking. We carry water by bucket from the creek and climb the hill to the biffy when required. The conveniences we take for granted at home aren’t considered necessities on vacation. Only in perceived emergencies do we yank the generator into action – when the babe’s feeding pump needs recharging, or my laptop dies while I’m writing to a deadline. The men occasionally use it to power a skill saw for a building project when the chainsaw is too big and the handsaw too small.

This periodic dependence reminds me of my relationship to God. It’s so easy to take his presence for granted, knowing He’s there if I have a particular need, but ignoring Him when I don’t. It’s not a deliberate snub, just an unawareness of the role He wants to play in the ordinary aspects of my days.

Immersed in a church-dominated lifestyle it can feel like I’m walking the right path, even if I’m not conscious of God’s presence. But I’ve learned it’s possible to drift beyond the vital connection I need, leaving Him just out of arm’s reach while I rely on my own abilities. That’s usually the time my internal battery subtly begins to lose its charge… when enthusiasm declines and I start feeling overwhelmed by responsibilities and schedule-itis.

God is always there when I call upon Him, but I sometimes wonder if he resents being yanked into action only when I have an emergency. How much better it would be if I maintained a steady moment-to-moment connection with Him, allowing His power to constantly flow into and through me!

Next time I’m tempted to resent all those unsightly overhead wires I’ll remember they have an important purpose, conveying electricity across the country to those in need of it. They’ll also serve as a personal reminder of Him who is the provider of all power and source of my strength.

Have you ever resented something that ended up being good for you?

~

“God is my strength and power: and he makes my way perfect.”
(2 Samuel 22:33, KJV)

~ ~ ~

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Carol J. Garvin is the wife of a retired Presbyterian pastor, mother of four and grandmother to several more. Her life has been a wonderful mixture of school teaching, church and family activities, owning a professional dog show business, and freelance writing. She and her husband live in a rural suburb of Vancouver, Canada.

Blog: http://careann.wordpress.com/
Facebook: http://on.fb.me/mBj1F7
Twitter: @caroljgarvin

New Beginnings

For those of us with children, or educators ourselves, we are back in the full swing of school. Some of us have been in school for nearly a month now. Since the First grade, I have absolutely loved the first day of school! I now get to relive the first day of school with my girls—my youngest started kindergarten this year, and boy was that exciting! But, as a college professor, I get to experience a “first “day twice a year. Of course the first day of school is really my second favorite day after commencement, and the first day of the spring semester is not as exciting as the first day of the fall semester. Nonetheless, I love the first day because of the new beginnings it represents.

My kindergartner, four weeks later, is still excited about what she is learning every day. She is most excited about reading. This week, as we were reading a story together, she stopped at every sentence with a question mark to gleefully declare, “It’s a question mark! It’s asking a question!” This is a new beginning for her. I am excited when most of my students are determined to get an “A” at the beginning of the semester. Among other courses, I teach the introductory course to the mass communication major and an upper-level course. This means I have the privilege of teaching most majors in my department twice. And, unfortunately, sometimes I have them twice because they have to repeat a class. Recently, I graded the first assignment in my upper-level course. About 80% of the students I have had before in other classes, so I am aware of some of their academic strengths and weakness. I held my breath when I got to Bobby’s paper (of course that is not his really name); Bobby’s work has been less than stellar in the past. Finally, I got to the end, and I could let out my sigh. Bobby followed the directions. Bobby completed the assignment. Bobby earned all his points. Bobby and I are experiencing a new beginning! I am secretly rooting for Bobby because I never take pleasure in seeing a student repeat a class.

The first day of school reminds my relationship with the Lord. He offers me new beginnings all the time. Despite the fact that I have fallen short, or I have said something I shouldn’t have said, or thought many of thoughts I should not have, He offers me new beginnings. One of my favorite lines in the hymn “Great is Thy Faithfulness” is “Morning by morning new mercies I see…” I am glad I don’t have to rely on the mercies of yesterday, last week or last, year. Instead, I can count on brand new mercies-- new beginnings. Is there an area or relationship in your life that can stand a new beginning? Now is the time to make that happen. And guess what? It is awesome we don’t have to wait until the first day of school.








Shauntae Brown White is an associate professor at North Carolina Central University in the Department of English and Mass Communication. She is married to the Rev. Dr. Harry L. White, Jr. who pastors Watts Chapel Baptish Church in Raliegh, NC.

Squirrel! Made You Look

Yes, like all who enjoyed Up, I tend to over use the squirrel! distraction far too much. But bear with me as I use it just one more time.

Have you ever thought about what is an idol?

According to Webster's 1828 Dictionary: An idol is anything which usurps the place of God in the hearts of his rational creatures.

Hmm. Interesting. What usurps the place of God in my heart? The kind of a distraction like a squirrel is to a dog who should be minding his master.

A Hebrew word translated as "idol" is miphletseth and it means horrid thing, or horrible thing. This word was used for the object that the mother of Asa made in a grove.

Did you know that the worshipers of idols are said to be under Satan's control?

To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. (Acts 26:18)

What idols of today keep people in darkness?

My husband watched Megamind with our kids. I was gone for the evening, but later asked him what he thought of the movie. He turned green around the gills and said that he wouldn't let the kids watch it again. Why? Because of the music, "Highway to Hell" and "Back in Black."

Perhaps for some people these songs would have no ill-effect but, for my husband, it left a very bad taste in his mouth. These songs, to him, represented a style of music and lyrics that calls people away from God into a very dark world and holds them there.

Since I did not listen to this type of music in my youth, I probably wouldn't have recognized what the songs represented. Likely, it wouldn't have drawn me to "the dark side." But for some people such music provides another venue for Satan to control them.

What does draw me? Busyness. I like to be busy, and my endless dreaming up of new things to do sometimes pulls me away from trusting God to lead me. I'm like the dog who sees the squirrel and chases after it.

There are probably many other things that I am tempted to allow usurp God in my life. I recognize how easy it is for me to be deceived into believing I am worshiping God, or at least not dishonoring Him, when some minute distraction pulls me away from following Him--things that are my Squirrel!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lynn Squire loves the Lord, loves her husband, and loves her three children. When she's not serving her church or serving her family, she writes. Her book, Joab's Fire, is now available on Amazon.com. You can read more of her work at http://www.presentingbiblicaltruths.com/.

Finger Foods: Not for Wimps

The idea of serving finger foods began innocently enough. At a monthly meeting of the Missionary Mamas, Mrs. Practical suggested we bring tea sandwiches, veggie plates and fruit skewers to our next church supper rather than the standard noodles, fried chicken and cherry cobblers.

“It will save us preparation time, we won’t have to wash silverware, and finger foods tend to be healthier,” she said.  Sounded reasonable to our mama ears. We decided to give it a trial run. Little did we imagine we were guillotining the mainstay of our fellowship suppers: recipes handed down from one mama to another, delighting the souls and taste buds of all who partake.

I realize that Nora’s homemade noodles contain enough fat to give the Loch Ness a coronary, but they glide down your throat ten times smoother than a celery stick with fat-free peanut butter. LuAnn’s’ bacon and ranch cheese ball may make my gallbladder throw a hissy fit, but it entertains my tongue far better than wheatsome squares with cucumber slices cut thinner than my patience. And skewered melon balls just don’t zing for me like Tonya’s double chocolate fudge cake.

We ladies used to catch up on the best methods for removing grape juice stains from upholstery and updates on new babies while we washed casserole dishes and cake pans. Now we just flip the plastic containers from fruit and veggie trays into the trash and wave goodbye. So you see how this whole finger food obsession is ruining our deep Christian fellowship.

Yes, I know Jesus served rolls and fish to the crowds. But that was a picnic, and centuries before anyone invented green bean casserole, shepherd’s pie, or apple fritters. I’m positive He won’t settle for finger foods at His marriage supper.  

“Nutty with a dash of meat” best describes Jeanette Levellie’s speaking, writing and life. She has published hundreds of humor/inspirational columns, articles, greeting cards, and poems. A spunky pastor’s wife, Jeanette is the mother of two, grandmother of three, and waitress to four cats. Find her mirthful musings at www.jeanettelevellie.com

Built to Specs: Marriage Monday

by Niki Turner

My husband works in construction (he released his pastorate in July). For the past few years he has been blessed, in light of the economy, to work on a trio of expensive second homes. "Hunting cabins," they call them. Minor mansions, in my opinion.

These "ginormous" houses are beautiful examples of fine workmanship, built to the owner's individual specifications, right down to the heights of the baseboards. "Built to specs," it's called, in the business. Not just meeting or exceeding local building codes, but fulfilling the specific demands, needs, and requirements of the property owner.

For example, one of the homeowners has lots of kids and grandkids. Beyond the eight or so bedroom suites, he requested a sandbox room for the basement. Not a sandbox in the yard. Not one of those sand tables. An entire room, filled with sand, for his grandkids to play in. That's a cool grandpa!
None of the guys on the crew had ever built a sandbox room before, but they came up with something and built it to suit.

What, you ask, does this have to do with marriage?

God has put in you everything you need to be the ideal "helper comparable" for your spouse. Not only are you built to God's code (see Psalm 139), you are built to specification, whether your husband realizes it or not (remember, God knows your hubby better than anyone).

Six different Hebrew words are used in Genesis to describe the process of creation. Regarding the creation of man, God formed (yatsar) the man from the dust of the ground and "breathed into his nostrils the breath of life;" (Gen 2:7 NJKV).

When it came time to create woman, a different word is used, however. In Gen 2:21-22, we're told God took one of Adam's ribs and made (banah) the woman.

What's the difference? As one writer explains, "the formation of Eve is not a new work, but the fashioning of a body for Eve as she was being taken out of Adam's side. The Hebrew uses banah ('to construct') instead of yatsar in describing the formation of Eve's physical form. Eve is a work of art requiring care and attention, Adam was merely molded from the clay of the earth.)" Events in the Life of Adam
God looked at Adam, realized Adam needed a "helper comparable" and built Eve to specs. Perfectly designed, perfectly formed for her man.

I believe God has done the same with each of us, working in us as the Master Craftsman to meet the specific, individual needs of our individual men. Feeling incompetent in your role as wife? Don't fret, you are built to specifications! God has put within you (and He can always pop in to make adjustments as needed, like any good contractor) whatever your spouse needs, so that the two of you are fulfilled and complete, a picture of Christ and the church.

Niki Turner is feeling her way through a new season of living. She turned 40 last year, became a grandma in April 2011, and at the end of June, she and her husband turned over the pastorate of the church they planted 13 years ago and are "recovering from the effects of heat" while God prepares them for their next assignment.

 



 

When We Can’t See Clearly

This photo was taken last week while vacationing at our lakeside cabin. It looked a lot like fall as we clambered out of our sleeping bags that morning. At breakfast we resigned ourselves to a cooler day of non-beach activities. Yet within the hour the mist dissipated and revealed previously hidden blue skies and warm sunshine.

I stood at the window and wished misunderstandings could dissolve as easily. Not long ago one of our church members had spoken to me about a hurtful comment from another member. It likely hadn’t been intentionally unkind, but it caused the person to consider leaving the church. Why is the pastor’s wife the one people confide in? My husband’s the one trained for this. I hate being in the middle of conflicts. My stomach tilts, my palms go damp and diplomatic words elude me. “Oh, please give me your words, Lord!”

God is always faithful. Though I don’t recall them later, words did come, wrapped in compassion born of love, and I left the rest to Him. I don’t understand why there is unpleasantness and discord in His church; only He knows the hearts of His people and His plans for them.

The morning fog reminded me of The Message’s version of 1 Corinthians 13:12 – “We don't yet see things clearly. We're squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won't be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We'll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!”

A little mist on a lazy holiday morning isn’t a big deal. But in relationships, fog-shrouded vision can cause distorted communication and misunderstandings. Lack of correct focus can blur the edges of common sense. With singleness of purpose we must try to walk in the light of God’s love and strive to develop and apply the fruits of the spirit* in all our relationships.

~ ~ ~

“Peace to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity.” [Ephesians 6:23-24]


* “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.” [Galatians 5:22-23a]

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Carol J. Garvin is the wife of a retired Presbyterian pastor, mother of four and grandmother to several more. Her life has been a wonderful mixture of school teaching, church and family activities, owning a professional dog show business, and freelance writing. She and her husband live in a rural suburb of Vancouver, Canada.

Blog: http://careann.wordpress.com/
Facebook: http://on.fb.me/mBj1F7
Twitter: @caroljgarvin

On a WHIM: Expiration Date

Expiration Date 

By Kathy Carlton Willis

"Is it okay to use cheese that has mold on it? Can't I just cut off the mold and use the good part?"

This was a recent question on the Rachel Ray television show. It got my attention because I'm guilty of letting food park in my refrigerated "garage" too long. I hate to let things go to waste, but I won't use food that might make me sick. So how do you know?

Rachel Ray answered the cheese question by saying the moldy cheese will never taste as good again, even if the mold is removed, UNLESS it was a moldy cheese to begin with, such as gorgonzola. She went on to mention another offensive item in the refrigerator, anything past its expiration date. I've heard it time and time again that the expiration date is there for a reason—I get that. but what if the date is a "sell by" date instead? Then how do you know if the item is still okay? Usually it is the milk that has a sell by date, and there is an easy way to tell if it has gone bad—if you are willing to recruit your nose for the job!

One tip I learned early in my marriage was how to know if eggs are still fresh (and these can be used past the expiration date). Put the suspicious egg in a bowl of salted cold water. If it floats, throw it out. If it sinks, it is fresh. If it swims somewhere in the middle of the water-neither floating or sinking-it is safe to use for baking or for deviled eggs, but not fresh enough for an eggs and bacon breakfast.

All this talk about expiration dates got me to thinking about our time to leave this earth. Some believe when it is your time to go, it will happen no matter what you do to alter the date and time. I know a few cases documented in the Bible of people who actually were able to bargain with God for a later expiration date.

One thing we should focus on more than the expiration date is the "use by" date. Yep—I fooled you. That is the same as the expiration date. You know what that tells me? All creation is meant to be USEFUL to the very end. Usefulness to God might look a lot different from the "usefulness" we struggle to achieve. While doing good works is...well...good—what God really finds useful is when we are in fellowship with Him. He created us to walk and talk with Him. And really—can't we continue that to the very end?

In the great egg test of life, I hope God finds that I sink rather than float. And if you knew my swimming ability, you would realize just how possible that might be!

Feeling expired? Trade it in for feeling INSPIRED.

Kathy Carlton Willis shines, whether she's shining the light on God's writers and speakers, or reflecting God's light during her speaking engagements and written works. www.kathycarltonwillis.com