Archive

Family

Settle for the Best

By
August 9, 2012
Family, Inspiration
Leave a Comment

This is a repost from three years ago.  Enjoy!

My mother has a green thumb like no other.  She has one of the most amazing flower gardens I have ever seen.  It’s overflowing with one healthy plant that looks just perfect next to the plant beside it.  She has meandering paths, ponds, bushes, bird baths…it’s like a walk through Heaven.  Since I moved out 15 years ago, I have been trying to tap into her amazing ability to mold and shape a garden.  Year after year I get closer, but there are always a multitude of things that aren’t “working”.

I think I have officially discovered her secret…she has no mercy on what is just “good”.  She has no problem ripping out a plant that is slightly unhealthy.  She has no problem ripping out a plant that doesn’t go with her particular style that year.  She has no problem saying no to something that is perfectly good in order to say yes to the best thing for her garden.  And if something didn’t work the year before, she doesn’t give it a second thought.  She just simply tries something new and doesn’t beat her head against the same brick wall.

I find myself being a sucker for a deal.  If there’s something on sale…that’s my plant.  If I get a free flower on Mother’s Day, it’s going in the ground.  Not because I love it or it fits into the overall look that I have, but because it’s there.  And what I keep ending up with is a conglomeration of some things that I love and some things that throw off the feeling that I was trying to get.  I spend the rest of the season looking at the odd ball plants with a twinge of bitterness and not focusing on the plants that I love.

And here’s the irony…my mom and I are both really frugal and don’t spend a lot.  She just is willing to wait longer for what is perfect, rather than what is convenient.

How many times do we look at what’s around us and settle?  It’s “there”, so that MUST be God’s way of giving it to us.  It MUST be “His will”.  Or maybe it’s just there.  Maybe it’s not God’s way of speaking through opportunity.  Maybe it’s just another moment for God to teach us how to make the “best” decisions rather than just making “good” ones.

It’s time to settle for the right additions to our garden of life.  If it’s not beneficial, it’s not the right thing for this season.  And in the end, I know what will happen…life will be a beautiful place filled with all of the things that you value the most and not a lot of junk that is just altering your focus.  Thanks, Mom.  You continue to teach me through your love and life.

Here’s Your Sign

By
July 17, 2012
Family, History, Inspiration, Ministry
2 Comments

Happy Birthday to me!  I’m celebrating today with a new look for my blog and my very own website – www.stacynewell.com!

Thirty-six years ago my birth was announced to the neighborhood with a 4′ x 8′ sign.  My dad is a sign painter and wasn’t letting the opportunity go to show off his new baby girl!  I was the first girl born in my line of geneology in over 100 years and he was excited about having a daughter. He scrambled to finish the sign when I unexpectedly arrived one month early.  (And that’s my mom in the picture, too.  Yes, she had just given birth a few days before this photo!)

its a girl

As I grew up, gave my life to Jesus, and tried to follow His will for my life, sometimes I fell into the trap of assuming that my Heavenly Father would also announce the rest of my life with giant, unmistakable signs:

  • Go to this university!
  • Marry this man!
  • Do this with your life!

And although there are some times in the Bible where it does seem that God speaks with that kind of clarity, most of the time, He simply doesn’t.  It actually came as a shock to me that He allows, and even forces, us to make our own decisions as to where and how we will live out our lives in many instances.  Many times when we just want God to tell us what to do, it seems like He says, “Well, what do YOU want to do?”  It’s obnoxiously frustrating, but such an amazing gift when you stop and think about it.

Rather than mandating our agenda at every step, He often says, “Use your passions, your giftings, and your talents to LOVE Me.”  That’s it.  The complex God of the universe gives us the opportunity to creatively express our love for Him in every type of vocation, in a multitude of worship styles, and without constantly worrying about whether or not we’re making a mistake.

I think far too many Christians are doing nothing for God because they just assume that a sign will show up on the front lawn if He ever has a plan for their life.  Guess what, He does have a plan for your life and here it is:  Love Him with your heart, your hands, your feet, your money, your sweat, your blood, your tears, your passions, your strengths, your weaknesses, your fears, and your inadequacies.  Don’t wait for Him to tell you when to give, what to do, and who to reach out to.  If you see someone lost, hurting, poor…that’s your sign.  That’s the only sign you may ever get.  If He does send you a giant sign, do that, too, but in the meantime, throw yourself at a cause greater than yourself.

Part of Mark and I’s story is that we never really felt a clear direction about starting a church.  We never got the sign that God was asking us to specifically go in that direction.  What we did know was that we had to do something to reach people with the love of God and our passion was within the walls of this thing called church.  We attacked launching North Creek like it was a life or death situation.  We just figured that God would stop us if He ever needed to.  So far, so good.

So, what are you waiting for?  Have you spent too much time questioning whether God would really want you to pursue your passion?  Are you gripped with fear that you’ll do the wrong thing at the wrong time?  Let it go.  God is big enough to stop you if He needs to, but in the meantime, you might just impact the world.

 

 

 

 

A Little History

By
December 28, 2008
Family, Inspiration
Leave a Comment

robin

I was born a twin…OK, I wasn’t, but it seemed like it.  Just nine days after I was born, my next door neighbor gave birth to a little girl.  Robin and I became friends just like our mothers were.  We spent everyday together growing up.  All of my childhood memories include her.  We laughed, fought, and forgave quickly, just like sisters, for the first eight years of our lives.

It was Robin who convinced me to play doctor and put super glue eyedrops in her eyes.  Oops.  It was Robin who hit me over the head with a toy that left a dent in my forehead.  It was Robin who made me “marry” Jake from down the street.  It was always Robin in every story…

But when we were eight her parents divorced and her dad kept the house.  Robin moved around the block with her mom.  It was devasting for all of us, but thankfully we were able to walk back and forth to continue our friendship.

However, 24 years ago on December 28, is a day that changed our friendship and our lives forever.  Robin’s mother, suffering from depression, committed suicide.  My memories of that day are horrific.  In the midst of the chaos going on around us, we were left pretty much unattended.  Nobody really worried about us because we were together.  I remember my house being packed with people and it being very cold as the door was opened and shut many times over.    The cold Montana air poured in with the people.  Next door there was commotion going on and ambulances being called.  I vividly remember going into my bathroom with Robin and watching out the window towards her old house.  I remember watching her mother’s body, under a white sheet, being wheeled out.

As an eight year old, all of this was etched into my brain in this very surreal way.  I am not sure what is reality and what is made up.  What I know is that my best friend lost the future that she had intended on having that day.  Nothing would ever be the same again.

The reason that I am taking the time to tell this story is because it shaped me in a way that nothing else has.  I may have went through a tragedy of immense proportions, but Robin’s experience was inconceivable.  And nearly a quarter of a century later, I can tell you that what I take from that day is a deep respect for the little girl who lost her mother.  Although she went through the worst thing imaginable, she is a survivor.  Today she is married, happy, healthy, and has four beautiful kids.  She recently left this comment on my blog…

You don’t realize how gratetful I am to have your encouraging words each week. As for many this time of year is a difficult time.  For us it is remembering love ones that have been lost, finances, health, and life in general. It is so important to let yourself take time to remember each and everyday that God has a HEART and He will guide us. Struggles are a stepping stone in our lives, but it also makes us strong spiritually and faithfully. It is not a time of year to questions ones faith, but to live for it.

Robin, every year on this day, I remember you, and am encouraged once again.  You made your own choices regardless of the foundation that you were given.  You had every opportunity to let that day destroy you, but you didn’t.  You are a shining example of what perseverance and determination can do in a person.  Thank you for not questioning your faith, but living for it.  I counsel people all of the time that are not sure they will make it through their situation.  Your story gives me the confidence to know that God will always help those who call out to Him.  I am thankful for our 32 year friendship and want you to know that I am very proud of the woman that you became.  You are an inspiration to me and I love you very much.

And I’m really sorry about the super glue.