My friend Connie told me me today that when you cast your bread upon the water - which we are commanded to do (Ecclesiastes 11:1) you, by the nature of casting - LET GO OF THE BREAD. You trust it to the place you've cast it. And walk away, knowing it's out of your hands.
She told me this, because I'm fretting about this company that is looking at my new Greeting Card line. (Based in part on these two Characters and their friends).
The company is an old established company, whose demographic buyers are exactly the type who would buy my designs. But, I'm fretting. I'm fretting because the VP liked my stuff, and sent it on to her project managers to review. What if they don't like it? It's happened before - 7 zillion times. (Translation, 7 zillion is equal to 20 years of trying to get the same project published in the right venue and having it loved by so many VP's who made so many nice noises and even, at several points, brought me into their headquarters to discuss the direction of the line - and then other's...Project Mangers...nixed it. Or I nixed it, because they wanted 'artistic control or editorial control' over what my Characters look like or what they say. All in all, there have been no RIGHT fits yet.) Hope deferred makes the heart sick. (Proverbs 13:12) Hope deferred makes the heart sick and I think that sickness is exponentially added on to by repeatedly getting your hopes...not just put off...but smashed. Stepped on and crushed. Crushed so badly that sometimes it takes years to pick up the pieces of what was your hope and glue them back together enough to cast out again. But, I'm back to casting again. Second time this week, with the first company having the VP like it and the Art director nix it. This time I'm hoping the new company is it. I'm hoping this time it will be returned to me in the form of a contract for my work. Oh God, I'm asking you please, this time, let it be the right time, the right company for my work to be released to the world. Jesus, you are the one who gave me this gift. This gift I'm trying to multiply and have been trying to get out there for years. You Jesus, you gave. Now please bless as I try once more to see if this is the right home/publisher/for this gift you have given me. Thank you, Jesus. She said, turning her back on the water now, where the bread is cast. Turning her back, knowing it's out of her hands...she walked away joyful. Hopeful, and trusting.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Sunday, February 7, 2010
How to get good things from God
Numbers 10:32 (Paraphrase) If you come, you will share in all the good things the Lord does for us.
One of the reasons I go to Church and to a wonderful Church that teaches the Bible and has a wonderful Pastoral Staff - is because I want to 'share in all the good things the Lord does.'
It's important to have our own walk of faith, but in this verse in Numbers, Moses is trying to explain to his brother-in-law why he should stay with them, and I find it interesting that Moses uses the words, 'if you come, you will share in all the good things the Lord does for us.' Sometimes just by being around the right people, who are seeking what is good - you get an unexpected share of good things, from above.
One of the reasons I go to Church and to a wonderful Church that teaches the Bible and has a wonderful Pastoral Staff - is because I want to 'share in all the good things the Lord does.'
It's important to have our own walk of faith, but in this verse in Numbers, Moses is trying to explain to his brother-in-law why he should stay with them, and I find it interesting that Moses uses the words, 'if you come, you will share in all the good things the Lord does for us.' Sometimes just by being around the right people, who are seeking what is good - you get an unexpected share of good things, from above.
Saturday, February 6, 2010
There will be war in the Promise land
Numbers 10:9 (paraphrase) When you arrive in the Promised Land and go to war against your enemies, God will hear you and save you from your enemies when you sound the alarm with these trumpets.
The first thing that strikes me about this verse is that God is speaking and saying 'when you arrive in the Promised Land and go to war'. He is saying, 'When you get to where I've called you, to the place that is the center of my will for you, and my promise for you - there WILL be war. You will have enemies, and you will be in strife with them. ' We all like to think, there is a place on earth, where we will be in the center of God's will and have no enemies, and there will be no strife. Where once we get there - it will be ahhhh and wow. And it will be but it won't be only ahhhh and wow. It will also be dealing with the enemies, that God has allowed to be there - so we will call on God. We will use the means we have to sound the alarm and ask God to hear us and save us. I love this. God apparently knows he needs to allow things in our life to keep getting our attention off whatever is around us and back to realizing a need for him. Even in the Promised Land. Even where we know he has put us - without a doubt. It's comforting in a way, that the strife I experience is simply so I can call on God to help me.
The first thing that strikes me about this verse is that God is speaking and saying 'when you arrive in the Promised Land and go to war'. He is saying, 'When you get to where I've called you, to the place that is the center of my will for you, and my promise for you - there WILL be war. You will have enemies, and you will be in strife with them. ' We all like to think, there is a place on earth, where we will be in the center of God's will and have no enemies, and there will be no strife. Where once we get there - it will be ahhhh and wow. And it will be but it won't be only ahhhh and wow. It will also be dealing with the enemies, that God has allowed to be there - so we will call on God. We will use the means we have to sound the alarm and ask God to hear us and save us. I love this. God apparently knows he needs to allow things in our life to keep getting our attention off whatever is around us and back to realizing a need for him. Even in the Promised Land. Even where we know he has put us - without a doubt. It's comforting in a way, that the strife I experience is simply so I can call on God to help me.
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