Author Archives: blessedbrownwren

About blessedbrownwren

Hey there! My name is Kelly and this is my place to share insights that The Lord gives me as I spend time with Him.
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Following Directions

My GPS and I have an interesting relationship.  It tells me what roads I need to take and I follow . . . sometimes.

If I miss my turn, it reminds me to “make a legal u-turn” and get back on track.  Sometimes it revises its directions and has me make a right turn to get back to the road I’m supposed to be on (the road I thought I was on – but wasn’t).

I have to rely on my GPS to get me to my destination, because I have a terrible sense of direction.  I have no idea if I’m traveling south or east.  I don’t know what my destination should look like because I’ve never been there before.

My GPS has the big picture and always knows where my car is.  It gives me directions shortly before I need them. . . “turn left on St. Paul’s Blvd. in 500 feet”.

Sometimes I argue with my GPS, accusing it of sending me the wrong way.  It does not respond to my arguments but continues to give me the directions I need but don’t understand.

My GPS reminds me, in some ways, of the Holy Spirit.  Sort of like the “Gentle Prodding Spirit”.  The Holy Spirit guides my heart and gives me directions and I follow. . . sometimes.

If I miss a turn, I’m directed to make a u-turn which may include making an apology, forgiving someone, or obeying a command.

He instructs me to make a right turn to get back on track – which may mean I need to serve or give, or just be available.

I have to rely on the Holy Spirit to guide me because, on my own, I have a hard time knowing what direction to go in. In most cases I can’t even imagine the future because I haven’t been there before.

Sometimes I argue with Him as if it was His direction that led me the wrong way, when in reality, it was me who got off course.

The Spirit continues to give me directions and when I stop talking over that “still small voice”, I realize that His way is best and I really am on the right road.

When I listen to the Holy Spirit and follow His direction I realize that He has detoured me around a traffic jam or a construction zone that could have been dangerous or frustrating and full of delays or potholes.

Occasionally, my GPS has a problem getting satellite connections.  It’s not the GPS’s fault  it’s where my car is located.  My car is in a place where reception is blocked by other things.

Sometimes I block the Holy Spirit in my own life by letting obstacles interfere.  A busy schedule, relationships, or just laziness are constant blocking threats to my ability to hear Him.

In this new year of 2017, I wait in expectation to hear how The Lord will speak to me through the Spirit.  I can’t wait to see what direction He will send me in.  I know it will be an adventure I never imagined.

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January 9, 2017 · 3:10 pm
April 14, 2016 · 8:41 pm

How are you anchored?

2015-10-20 06.30.47

We live in charming, rustic home on the edge of The Great Dismal Swamp.  We love it here and have learned to adapt to living closer to nature.

A few weeks ago, we had a pretty bad storm with high winds and a good chance for a tornado.  Our little homestead was spared from damage except one casualty. . .

An adorable windmill that Hubs had gotten me for my birthday was damaged.  I had always wanted one and was so excited when I awoke on the day of my birthday to find her standing tall and proud next to the blueberry bushes.

Before this storm hit, Hubs and I had discussed whether the windmill would be OK in the predicted high winds.  I agreed with Hubs that the substantial anchors he had placed at the base would be enough to keep her upright.

As the sun came up the next morning, I anxiously looked out into the backyard.  My heart sank as I saw the windmill lying on her side, her blades embedded in the dirt, bent and distorted.  I blamed Hubs for the damage.  His anchors hadn’t done the job.

Well, the anchors, we discovered, had simply lifted out of the soil.  All of the rain we’d received over the course of several months had softened the soil so the anchors really didn’t have a chance to work.  The soil that had seemed so hard during last summer’s dry weather was nothing but dirt soup after the rains came.

Hubs was able to get the windmill upright again and her blades are mostly straightened – at least enough to spin in the wind.  The scars, however, will always be there to remind us of the windstorm.

Now, as I look out into the backyard, I see her spinning proudly in the wind, blades only slightly wobbling in the breeze and I’m reminded of a few things that are true in my life.

Number one – Make sure you know where you are grounded.

My hope is in the Lord.  Hope in anything or anyone else is fickle and unstable. Psalm 40:2 says “He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand”.

Number two – Never blame your husband for all of the damage in a storm.

Sometimes storms happen and I am happy to weather the storm together and help to clean up the mess with him. Colossians 3:14 says “And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all in perfect unity”.

Number three– Don’t get too attached to lawn ornaments.

Colossians 3:2 says “Set your hearts on things above, not on earthly things.”

 

 

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January 1, 2012 · 9:33 pm

Random Acts of Encouragement

While riding our bikes on a beautiful New Year’s Day afternoon, Hubs and I talked about some of our goals for the year.  We don’t usually wait until New Year’s day to set goals – after all, a goal is a goal and can be implemented at any time during the year.   Anyway, here’s how it happened:

We had just stopped at a park to drink our water and rest for a few minutes when we noticed a young dad fishing with his son and daughter.  The daughter had gotten her line caught in tree and the dad was patiently cutting the line and fixing her rod.  Hubs said he would be back in a minute and walked over to the dad.  After chatting with him for a few minutes he returned to where I was sitting and had a smile on his face.

  Now, I know my husband.  He never goes out of his way to talk to people.  He is basically shy and saves his words – unlike me who talks to everyone and says anything that pops into my head!   I asked him what he said to the dad and he told me “just guy talk”.   Of course, I didn’t settle for that explanation and pressed for more info.  Hubs explained that he had just participated in a random act of encouragement.  He encouraged the dad to keep making memories with his children.  Hmmm. . . a random act of encouragement.  I like that!  Hubs explained that one of his goals for the year was to be more encouraging and to be aware of opportunities to be encouraging.

That got me to thinking.  This past year has been a year of learning to slow down for me.  Two surgeries (one of them a kidney transplant) and some nerve damage to my leg really slowed me down.  At first I thought I would go crazy having to depend on others to take me places and wait on me.  I like to go.  I like to do.  I like to be in the middle of everything.  Having to rest was a hard adjustment for me.

But, here’s what I learned from resting – resting gives you breathing room.  It gives you time to ponder and wonder and look around.  When you move at full speed you miss the landscape.  Even on our bike ride on this particular day, the serious bikers (with fancy bikes and clothes) were speeding by but Hubs and I (with our thrift store bikes and sweat shirts) were taking in the scenery.

When you take the time to notice what is around you, you will most likely notice people.   Some that you know and some that you don’t.  During the Christmas season as I was shopping and running errands, I decided to make it my job to look people in the eye, smile a big smile, and wish them a Merry Christmas.  There were only a few people who didn’t respond back with a smile.  I was especially aware of greeting sales clerks and maintenance people, who I’m sure were having a tough time.  I guess it was my way of showing a random act of encouragement without even thinking about it.   Now, why haven’t I been doing this all of my life?  Simply because I was in too much of  a hurry.  God gave me the gift of noticing people by slowing me down.  Thanks God.

Bike riding after a kidney transplant

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July 1, 2011 · 2:31 am

Is Multi-tasking Always A Good Thing?

I’ve been spending a lot of time in doctor’s waiting rooms.  And you know what’s in waiting rooms?  Magazines. 

I’ve read a lot of articles on a variety of topics.  Gardening, dieting, exercising, decorating, fishing, cooking, remodeling, traveling etc.  Lots of opinions.  Lots of ideas.

One article I read, though, stopped me in my tracks.  It was in a women’s magazine (a pretty liberal one at that) and it was titled “Prayer is the opposite of multi-tasking”.  Whoa!  What?

Prayer is the opposite of multi-tasking.

I’ve been priding myself with the fact that I can multi-task with the best of them.  I can do two or even three things at a time.  But I had to ask myself, “When I multi-task am I giving my best to each activity?  Or am I merely sticking my big toe in the water instead of becoming fully submerged?”

God deserves my full attention.  I don’t need to “fit” Him into my day.  He should be the focus of my day. 

 

Thanks for reading,

 

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April 20, 2011 · 2:37 pm

God’s Timing Is Perfect

It’s been quite a while since I posted here at Blessed Brown Wren.

It’s not because life has been slow.

It’s not because God hasn’t been working.

It’s because God’s been working faster than my heart or head could process.

On Monday, April 11th, 2011 I received a second chance at life.  I was given a kidney during a living donor transplant.  Talk about life altering!  My friend, Cathy, gave a part of her own body to me so that I could live a more normal life.  A life not attached to machines.  Without this gift, I would have been doomed to years of dialysis treatments, 3 times a week, until a deceased donor organ could be found.  The search for a matching deceased donor usually takes 5-6 years.

The whole process took a few months, from my initial testing at The Medical College of Virginia last October, several people testing in January/February, and then the announcement that Cathy was the donor and we needed to schedule a surgery.  Fast.

God’s timing is always perfect – never too early, lest we rush things.  Never too late, lest we fall through the cracks.  Just as my body began to feel the true side-affects of the disease the plan was revealed and everything was set into motion.

48 hours after the surgery, Cathy was released from the hospital, just in time to watch her son be commissioned into the military.   6 days after surgery, I was released.

Today, Cathy’s mom drove her out to my house for a visit.  We sat on the front porch and talked about our experience and how blessed we both are with good health now.  Just for fun, we compared scars.  Her scar is under her right rib cage.  Mine is in my front lower abdomen.   We found it amazing that the organ doesn’t even have to go in the same part of the body that it came out of!

Both of our lives are forever changed.  Both for the better.  We now consider ourselves sisters.  United by surgery and our Heavenly Father.

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February 16, 2011 · 11:15 am

God Doesn’t Do A Patch Job

I have a lot of conversations with God while I’m driving.  I guess it’s because I live in a rather rural area and it takes me awhile to drive anywhere.  I’m usually by myself and the radio doesn’t work until I get closer into town.  The silence is when God has a chance to speak to me.  It’s funny (well, not funny – interesting) that I have to be strapped into a vehicle to sit long enough for Him to get a word in edgewise.  It’s something I’m working on.

On this particular day, the message was quite clear. . . “Do you think I can heal you?”.  I answered out loud, “Well, of course you can.  You made me and you sustain all living things.  Yes, I believe you can heal me.”

“Well then, act like it!”  I sat in silence.  I had been trying to keep a positive outlook on this whole kidney disease thing.  I had been praying that God’s will would be done in my life.  Wasn’t that enough?  Why did I deserve to healed from this disease?  I’m human and humans get diseases.  I wasn’t mad at God for allowing me to get the disease.  Most probably, I would not die from this disease.  The kidney disease would just cause my life to change in a major way.  I had accepted that.  Wasn’t that enough?  Apparently not.

I had never asked God to heal me.  Not even once.  Does that seem strange?  I never asked “why me?”.  I never questioned.  I only accepted.   But now He was telling me to act like I believed that He could heal me.  How exactly does one do that?

My first step was research.  I love research.  I looked up Jehovah Rafa in my Bible commentary.  Jehovah means “God is my healer”.  I was delighted by the definition. 

The concept is interesting.  It is the idea of a torn quilt.  Instead of patching the old quilt with a new piece of fabric.  The healer makes over the quilt so that it is like new.  In other words, God doesn’t do patch jobs!  I promptly bowed my head and asked God to heal me.  I claimed His healing power so He would know that I was serious.  And then I waited.  A few weeks later my blood results showed further decrease in my kidney function.  “God, are you healing me?”  I struggled with the conflict.  If God tells us to ask for anything in His name and He will answer our prayers, then why do I still see kidney failure in my future?  

 Certainly, a kidney transplant would be “like new” because it would be a new, functioning kidney in my body.  But is that how God is going to heal me?  I believe He will.  I don’t think there will be a miraculous disappearance of the kidney disease, although I believe He is capable of pulling that off.   It will probably be by the miraculous appearance of a new kidney to replace my two pathetic kidneys.   A new kidney donated by someone who choses to be used by God to give the gift of life. 

What has been interesting to observe during the past few months since that conversation in the car is this:  God is way more interested in my spiritual health than my physical health.  True, He cares about both, but only my spiritual health has eternal consequences.  I believe the “new”  Brown Wren is about to hatch.  She’s not at all like the old version.  She’s heard from God and learned that He doesn’t do patch jobs.  She’s not afraid anymore.  She’s pretty bold in her conversation.  She’s giddy about her Lord.  She doesn’t care about stepping on people’s toes when it comes to their relationship with the Lord.  Who is this strange bird?  I think she’s a Blessed Brown Wren.  And she’s not a patch job.

 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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January 25, 2011 · 8:58 pm

What’s The Rush?

 

Want to start at the beginning?  Read:  part1  part 2  part 3

From my journal:  December 2008

Every year I promise myself that I won’t let Christmas sneak up on me.  I’ll plan way ahead.  I’ll have my cards sent, my presents wrapped, and my goodies baked by the first week of December.  That goal seems a bit short-sighted.  I’ve never achieved it.

This year is different.  My energy is increasing a bit.  The new meds and supplements I’ve been subscribed seem to be working.  I seem to be feeling pretty good but there is a nagging thought in the back of my brain. . . “How long can I function like this?  I have less than one-fourth of my kidney function left.  How much time do I have before I’m dragging myself around?  I’ve got a lot to do and not much time left to do it.”

The holiday season is frantic enough without any extra sense of urgency going on.  I find myself doing errands and silently seething to myself, “People – get out of my way!  I have things to do and not a lot of time to do them!”  Of course, on the outside I was all smiles and “Merry Christmas” to everyone.  Talk about being two-faced.

One morning, while on my way to work, it was just God and me in the silent car.  Because I live in a more rural area, I don’t always get radio reception clearly until I’m closer into town.  I poured out my frustration to Him.  He heard me.  He reminded me that there is really no reason to rush because he made me to be an eternal being.  In fact, we’re all eternal beings.  If we choose to follow Him, we have eternal blessing.  If we choose to go our own way, without Him, we’ll have eternal agony.  But one way or another, we will live eternally.   So, in light of that, I’ve got plenty of time.  And when you look at it with that perspective, there’s no urgency.  He’s already planned out my days.  Fretting over it will not bring one ounce of joy to my life.  In fact, fretting over it wastes my time and I’ve got much better things to do.

Ecclesiastes 3:11-14

He has made everything beautiful in its time.  He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live.

That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil – this is the gift of God. 

I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it.  God does it so that men will revere Him.

 

To be continued. . .

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