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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/18/2008 11:53:30 AM
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ShallbeRebuilt
Posts: 1816
Joined: 11/8/2007
Status: offline
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Thanks, Nadine:
I've been too busy to post personal stuff in here...but you can see me over in the chat thread and I just posted prayer requests in the prayer thread.
Hope you are doing well. It was good to talk to you on the phone the other night!
besiderself
_____________________________
Many wise words are spoken in jest, but they don’t compare with the number of stupid words spoken in earnest.
Shallbe's Batty Belfry
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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/19/2008 8:33:03 AM
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kj88il
Posts: 1531
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: utilityfielder
quote:
Do tell...what is this recipe with saltines and chocolate?
Line a 10 by 13 pan with saltines.
Melt 2 sticks of butter on the stove top and add 1 cup of sugar. Boil 3 minutes.
Pour over the saltines. Put a 350 over for 10 minutes.
Take out and add a package of unsweetened chocolate. Let melt and spread over the crackers.
Add a package of crushed nuts.
Freeze it overnight.
now THAT'S my kind of baking! now...if i only had a pan. (wanders out of the kitchen....i mean...what's the point? giggle)
_____________________________
Kimberly
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
Matt 11:29 "...for I am gentle & humble in heart, & you will find rest for your souls."
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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/19/2008 9:34:04 AM
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ShallbeRebuilt
Posts: 1816
Joined: 11/8/2007
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: utilityfielder
quote:
Do tell...what is this recipe with saltines and chocolate?
Line a 10 by 13 pan with saltines.
Melt 2 sticks of butter on the stove top and add 1 cup of sugar. Boil 3 minutes.
Pour over the saltines. Put a 350 over for 10 minutes.
Take out and add a package of unsweetened chocolate. Let melt and spread over the crackers.
Add a package of crushed nuts.
Freeze it overnight.
Gary, that sounds delicious. About the cajun chocolate chip cookies...is it just a regular choc. chip recipe, but add cayenne? I may have asked this before...
Now, my peeps:
I have been pondering and suffering over this question for a few days. I wonder what my friends here on CW think about this...
We all know that God leads us in many ways. One of the ways we hear of people being led by God is what we call "open doors". This means that as we pray and take each step toward a goal, God makes things possible for us. We claim to know what He wants us to do because one option becomes possible while another is made difficult or impossible.
But recently in my life I have encountered a bit of twist on this. Most of you have heard about my dd's job problem in Kentucky. God opened every door for her to move to Kentucky, have a very nice and yet cheap place to stay, and a job that fit her skill set perfectly. Really, all of this is soooo amazing.
Yet she gets there and through no fault of her own (ok, except perhaps she might be faulted for her integrity), she finds the job one she cannot stay at.
And this is not the first job that has ended that way for her. Last fall she had a nearly-full-time position as a nanny...and then through circumstances having nothing at all to do with her, the family had to hire someone who could be completely full time. (my dd teaches dance most afternoons. This makes it hard for her to have another full time job unless it is very flexible).
And the spring before that she had a job in a local coffee shop. It's not her best venue, but she was learning and doing well enough...and they fired her because she "just didn't fit in around here". 
The situation with The Beau and his parents is somewhat similar. Up until late December, things were very hunky dory, and everything had fallen into place: God had opened many otherwise-utterly-impossible doors. Then BOOM! The parents get weird.
So the question is: Is God opening doors and then slamming them in our face? If so, WHY???? Are we doing something wrong? Is there something we are missing in His leading? Both of us want her to follow Him as hard as she can...so if we're missing His leading, what's wrong with our methods for discovering His leading?
Or is this just a result of sin and total depravity...in others? Though I admit to plenty of that in both of us as well, it seems that these events do not add up to US having the problem...
We really could use some scriptural comfort and godly wisdom here, if you have any of that to spare.
besiderself
_____________________________
Many wise words are spoken in jest, but they don’t compare with the number of stupid words spoken in earnest.
Shallbe's Batty Belfry
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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/19/2008 9:53:20 AM
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kj88il
Posts: 1531
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: besiderself
So the question is: Is God opening doors and then slamming them in our face? If so, WHY???? Are we doing something wrong? Is there something we are missing in His leading? Both of us want her to follow Him as hard as she can...so if we're missing His leading, what's wrong with our methods for discovering His leading?
Or is this just a result of sin and total depravity...in others? Though I admit to plenty of that in both of us as well, it seems that these events do not add up to US having the problem...
We really could use some scriptural comfort and godly wisdom here, if you have any of that to spare.
besiderself
personally....i believe God opens the doors......unfortunately, satan has been given the power to make things VERY difficult for us here on earth....to test our faith....and it is satan who slams the doors shut!
my whole lift has been like this, esther. i have never had more than a few years of peace and happiness...before - sometimes literally - almost everything is taken away, or broken badly. and my daughter has run into the same nanny-related issues as yours.
a couple verses i cling to...
Rom 8:28 All things work together for good of those who love God, and are called according to His purpose.
Ps 34:19 A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all.
Ps 14: 6 You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the Lord is their refuge.
and one to remind your dd to hold fast to her integrity...even if it costs her what seemed to be the right job.' maybe it was just the right job to put her in KY...to find the next right step.
Ps 25: 21 May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope is in You.
there are always more doors to be opened. God never runs out of ways to rescue and guide us!
i'll be praying for your dd...and for you. i know how much heartache is involved when it's your child struggling with these things, too. ((((esther and dd))
_____________________________
Kimberly
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
Matt 11:29 "...for I am gentle & humble in heart, & you will find rest for your souls."
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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/19/2008 10:00:31 AM
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ShallbeRebuilt
Posts: 1816
Joined: 11/8/2007
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Thanks so much, Kimberly;
That post was very encouraging to me. When dd gets home a bit later today, I'll share it with her, too.
She is home this week, teaching a dance class that she had committed to months ago. She flies back to KY on Saturday, but is apprehensive because of the whole situation. She has yet to inform the current employers of her decision to quit: The Beau advised her to get her paycheck and deposit it before telling them she wasn't going to work for them any more, which I thought was wise.
besiderself
_____________________________
Many wise words are spoken in jest, but they don’t compare with the number of stupid words spoken in earnest.
Shallbe's Batty Belfry
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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/19/2008 10:03:19 AM
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kj88il
Posts: 1531
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: besiderself
Thanks so much, Kimberly;
That post was very encouraging to me. When dd gets home a bit later today, I'll share it with her, too.
She is home this week, teaching a dance class that she had committed to months ago. She flies back to KY on Saturday, but is apprehensive because of the whole situation. She has yet to inform the current employers of her decision to quit: The Beau advised her to get her paycheck and deposit it before telling them she wasn't going to work for them any more, which I thought was wise.
besiderself
definitely....unfortuanately, i don't think you can trust most people when it comes to money...they rarely want to part with it. lol
_____________________________
Kimberly
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
Matt 11:29 "...for I am gentle & humble in heart, & you will find rest for your souls."
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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/19/2008 11:58:03 AM
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WaitingforBoaz
Posts: 3344
Joined: 2/11/2008
From: The Hundred Acre Wood
Status: offline
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Good Morning Esther and All!!!
{{{{{{{Esther & Daughter}}}}}}}
I have had this same thing happen a few times in my life. I can usually look back and see if it was a testing of my faith or if perhaps I was not listening and I just went, but was not sent IYKWIM. In the middle of it I rarely know. Many times there was just no answer. So I took what I thought was a step of faith. Sometimes it worked out well, sometimes it did not. I think the scriptures KJ shared are great. I have no great wisdom or learning to share. I am kinda in this situation right now, do I go back to school? What do I take? I am not getting any answers right now. I will probably once again take a step of faith and hope for the best if I get no answers.
~Blessings~
_____________________________
Nadine
"It's like everything good collided today" quote from my 8yr old daughter
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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/19/2008 11:45:14 PM
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ShallbeRebuilt
Posts: 1816
Joined: 11/8/2007
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: utilityfielder
quote:
Gary, that sounds delicious. About the cajun chocolate chip cookies...is it just a regular choc. chip recipe, but add cayenne? I may have asked this before...
Hi Esther,
Yes they are normal chocolate chip cookies, although the recipe does call for both white and brown sugar, and real butter. If you want the recipe, I can PM it to you and anyone who wants it.
quote:
So the question is: Is God opening doors and then slamming them in our face? If so, WHY???? Are we doing something wrong? Is there something we are missing in His leading? Both of us want her to follow Him as hard as she can...so if we're missing His leading, what's wrong with our methods for discovering His leading?
There could be many things at work here. Like Kimberly said God may be allowing Satan to give her (and us in our lives) trials. And God may be trying to teach us to lean only on Him and not on the plans that we have made. And God may be teaching us to be flexible.
The bottom line is in all things praise God.
I'm pretty sure those cookies would be an AWESOME hit around here...and The Beau likes choc. chip cookies AND spicy things, so that should really please him...Do PM the recipe, if you don't mind.
As far as the other stuff...I really do know all those things, but sometimes when you're in them it just seems so hard to understand. Especially when you or one of your babies is hurting.
Thanks for the encouragement, though...
besiderself
_____________________________
Many wise words are spoken in jest, but they don’t compare with the number of stupid words spoken in earnest.
Shallbe's Batty Belfry
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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/20/2008 2:12:48 PM
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ShallbeRebuilt
Posts: 1816
Joined: 11/8/2007
Status: offline
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Kimberly;
One thing I really like about you: you are not wasting time during your job transition. You are using the time to pray for your friends here on CW!
THANK YOU!
I will post updates a little later tonight.
besiderself
_____________________________
Many wise words are spoken in jest, but they don’t compare with the number of stupid words spoken in earnest.
Shallbe's Batty Belfry
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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/21/2008 10:04:52 AM
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ShallbeRebuilt
Posts: 1816
Joined: 11/8/2007
Status: offline
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Morning Batty peeps;
I told you I'd post updates, so here they are:
My dd flies back to KY today. She has a two week window in which to find another job. If she can't find one in that period of time, she has to come home.
The Beau had a tough week with the family. One night they invited him over for dinner and to spend the evening: he went and things seemed somewhat normal. But the next day his brother called him up and started raking him over the coals again. Please pray for him...he feels so cut off from his family. He wondered aloud to dd whether they even realize that other people besides themselves are hurting in this situation.
I've been worrying again about finances, school, scheduling and singleness. I made the following post in the "singleness and friendships" thread, but I've been thinking that it might apply somewhat to these other things as well:
"I experience similar feelings when I think of being single the rest of my life. In fact, the loneliness at those times can be almost physically painful!!
But the problem when that happens, I've discovered, lies with me; not with the possibility of singleness for the rest of my life.
God promises to give us the grace to deal with whatever He allows to happen to us. But He doesn't give us all of our grace at once for everything we're going to face in life, and then let us deal it out as we need it. He gives us the grace we need at the moment we need it--and not before.
So when I start thinking about being single my whole life, it DOES hurt, and it's almost overwhelmingly painful because I am trying to deal with something for a whole lifetime in one moment. I don't have the grace reserves to do it, so I can't!
But if I face singleness one day or one moment at a time, which is the scriptural way we are instructed to deal with life, then I have plenty of grace at each moment to deal with my singleness.
I hope this is making sense.
I am not single-for-my-whole-life today. I am only single for today. I have no way of knowing whether I'll be single tomorrow, or next year or the day I die...that's all in God's hands. If I try to cope with a lifetime of singleness with the amount of grace available to me just at this moment, it's like trying to put out a huge forest fire with a five gallon bucket. Can't be done. But if I use the grace He has given me for today to deal with the loneliness of today, then I have plenty of water to put out the little campfire. He has given me sufficient grace to face my singleness at this moment...but not enough to face a lifetime of it.
So my answer, when the possibility of loneliness for the rest of my life starts to overwhelm me, is to tell myself the truth...
I am not single for my whole life today. I am only single today.
I must discipline my thoughts and bring them into subjection to God's truth--I can not know what will happen in the rest of my life...in fact, I barely have any inkling what might be happening 15 minutes from now. But God knows. I can trust Him to handle it. For now, I must only deal with the loneliness I feel this moment. I turn my thoughts away from what might happen in the rest of my life, and focus them on this moment in time.
And I find that the fear and loneliness dissipate. There is plenty of grace to spare for THIS moment of loneliness. I can cope with life for this moment. God gives me guidance and courage for this moment.
I encourage you to see if this works for you. When you start to have thoughts about "the rest of my life", discipline yourself to tell yourself the truth. Today, this moment, IS NOT the rest of your life. Nor can you know what the rest of your life will be like. Seek God for help for the loneliness of today, this moment, only...and I believe you will find yourself quite able to cope, and will not suffer from bitterness or anger."
Over the next few days I plan to think about how to apply this concept to the other issues I am worrying about: scripture does encourage us to plan ahead, and I want to be wise about that. But are there some things that I am worrying about that are not in my control and therefore need to have grace-for-the-moment applied?
Probably.
I'll keep you updated. Does any of this apply to you?
besiderself
_____________________________
Many wise words are spoken in jest, but they don’t compare with the number of stupid words spoken in earnest.
Shallbe's Batty Belfry
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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/21/2008 1:03:17 PM
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kj88il
Posts: 1531
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: besiderself
But if I face singleness one day or one moment at a time, which is the scriptural way we are instructed to deal with life, then I have plenty of grace at each moment to deal with my singleness.
I am not single for my whole life today. I am only single today.
I must discipline my thoughts and bring them into subjection to God's truth... For now, I must only deal with the loneliness I feel this moment.
And I find that the fear and loneliness dissipate. There is plenty of grace to spare for THIS moment of loneliness. I can cope with life for this moment. God gives me guidance and courage for this moment.
besiderself
oh esther...that was wonderfully insightful! you have such wisdom....i'm so glad you share it here with us.
just last night...i had tentative plans for the evening...and they fell thru. i hadn't put much hope into them, so it wasn't a BIG disappointment...but disappointing, all the same. but after a couple hours, i was lying in bed, reading, still fighting the leftovers of my migraine...and i actually said aloud, "this isn't so bad. i'm perfectly content lying here reading tonight. my world didn't end. and i don't even miss what we had planned. maybe it just wasn't what i was supposed to do. so God removed it from me. hmmmm....maybe i'm not so unhappy being alone afterall."
now...i know i don't ALWAYS have that kind of peace about being alone (giggle), but it was good for me to realize...like you were saying....that for that short time...i had enough grace to get thru the night...without crying, or beating myself up, or wondering WHY!
one of my devotions this week was on discipline. it IS imperative we take control of our thoughts...before they get away with us. there's just no point in agonizing over a lifetime of lonliness...when that may not be God's plan for us at all!
i like it, esther! thanks!! 
_____________________________
Kimberly
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
Matt 11:29 "...for I am gentle & humble in heart, & you will find rest for your souls."
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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/21/2008 3:47:39 PM
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ShallbeRebuilt
Posts: 1816
Joined: 11/8/2007
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: WaitingforBoaz
Wow!!!!!
Yes, every word applies to my life right now.
This is the focus of the book we are reading for the Book Club. The book is good, but I have not read anything in the book as good as this post yet. 
I would like to ask your permission to quote you over there. Just the stuff about aloneness, not the personal stuff if you would like that left out.
Thank you Esther..... I'm sorry your going through it..... but you really did help me today. This is alot of what God has been trying to show me, you just solidified it.
(hugs)
~Blessings~
Nadine:
I am so glad this helped you. I have been forced to learn it over the last months just to survive. God has been good to give them to me: please use them to bless others.
quote:
now...i know i don't ALWAYS have that kind of peace about being alone (giggle), but it was good for me to realize...like you were saying....that for that short time...i had enough grace to get thru the night...without crying, or beating myself up, or wondering WHY!
one of my devotions this week was on discipline. it IS imperative we take control of our thoughts...before they get away with us. there's just no point in agonizing over a lifetime of lonliness...when that may not be God's plan for us at all!
Kimberly, I think you've got the idea. Sometimes I still don't make it through the night without crying or wondering why...it helps to realize that finding out the why of it wouldn't make the pain go away. BUT...the grace gets me through anyway--I wake up the next day! And sometimes the grace is enough to even bring my mood up. Once I discipline my thoughts, I am able to concentrate on other things...like my blessings, and how I can be of help and support to others. Then the fear goes back into it's hole for awhile.
I have a blessing coming my way this next week, in fact! Dd is in KY, and ds and the "little girls" are going to visit my husband's mother 6 hours away for a few days. I have to work on Monday and I've still got to show up for the play rehearsals...but other than that I have the house to myself! I am going to watch movies I won't let the girls watch, eat baked brie for breakfast and drink wine with supper.
w00t!
besiderself
_____________________________
Many wise words are spoken in jest, but they don’t compare with the number of stupid words spoken in earnest.
Shallbe's Batty Belfry
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RE: Besiderself's Batty Belfry - 6/21/2008 4:04:35 PM
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humbleinspirit
Posts: 15414
Joined: 4/13/2005
From: Just Outside of Boston
Status: offline
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Good Afternoon Esther, I hope things for your daughter gets better!
I am very tired again. I have slept off and on since early last night. I think that it might be time for a nap again! 
On that note. I hope to catch you later on this evening!
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Hi Esther!!!! I haven't seen you in awhile so I thought I'd stop in and say hey! 
