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| Fri, 08-29-2003 - 8:41am |
Well, it's a brand new day, starting a brand new cycle for me. AF is here and temp has dropped. I gave an update last night on our check in thread. But, I'm ok and ready to move on and get on with it. Here's todays devotional.
Source: 15 Minute Devotions for Couples
Title: " Not Yet "
Scripture Reading: James 1:2-12
Key Verses: James 1:2-4
"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."
My thoughts on todays story:
Today's story begins with a beautiful teacup, and he describes how his master made him from a ball of clay--- molding and shaping him perfectly while spinning him on the clay wheel to make sure the cup was smooth. The teacup keeps telling it's master to stop the spinning, he's getting dizzy, and the master says,"Not yet!". Then the master goes through each process of placing the teacup in the oven for firing, brings it out to cool, paints it so beautifully, places it the oven again to harden it so that it's beauty and strength are captured forever. The whole time throughout the processes, the little teacup pleads with its master to stop----- "the oven is so hot, the fumes from the paint are horrible, please stop !!! " the teacup screamed. The master just kept saying," Not Yet!".
Finally when all the processes were complete, and the master pulled the little teacup from the oven to cool, the master handed it a mirror. The teacup just stared and said, "I'm so beautiful." The master then explained that is was not his intent to hurt the teacup, but to make it into something beautiful and strong that would last forever and unfortunately, he had to spin on the wheel, be put in the oven ( not once but twice) , and be painted, otherwise , he would just be a ball of clay.
How many of us have been this little teacup? A work in the process, going through the fire wondering ," Why Lord?" And I can almost chuckle to think that the Lord is just sitting back, waiting and watching saying, " Not yet Lisa". I could probably sit here all day and talk about different events that have taken place in my life that I KNOW have shaped and molded me and made such a stronger woman than I would've ever been, but I won't do that cause this post would be much longer than I'm sure any of you would care to read. If you like , maybe our "activity" for today could be for you to share your "teacup experience" with all the Sisters.
Prayer: "Father God, You are awesome, and we want You to fit into the biggest box You make in heaven- none of these little engagement-ring boxes. Sometimes we feel like You have left us to ourselves, but we know better than that. Give us the heavenly wisdom to recognize that You are doing a godly work in us. We continue to submit to Your will for our lives. When we feel like screaming and rebelling at You, may we remember that You are truly on our team. We thank You for all the good things You have given us, and may we accept the hard character-building traits that are part of our training. Amen.
Reading on:
1 Corinthians 10:13
Romans 4:20,21
Romans 8:28
John 10:10
Hope you enjoyed our devotional for today.

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Lisa, I'm so sorry AF found you...but you have a great attitute this morning!
Thanks for today's devotional!
I'm kinda "blah" this morning. I just KNEW O was happening yesterday...had definite O-type pains...but temp still the same this morning. I think Clomid can make your ovaries hurt sometimes, so maybe that is all that I was feeling...maybe those eggs are just getting ready to pop out! I hope! I'm CD17...and ready to O!
http://circles2.fertilityfriend.com/home/240a9
I have to get to work right now, but will definitely come back later to share my "teacup experience"!
I hope everyone has a wonderful day! I'll check back in later...
Anne
Anne - Proud Mommy to Rachel Elizabeth!
Looks like I'll be joining you in a new cycle Lisa. I started spotting this morning and expect AF to show up by Sunday. Time will tell I guess :)
I enjoyed the devotional today but I guess my thought process is out of whack this morning. Break down the tea cup story for me.. is it a life changing event? Sorry I didn't follow it so well.
Hope everyone else is having a fabulous Friday!
Kathy
Thank you very much for such wonderful work. I am starting to look forward to this more and more each day. And you are so right, it is difficult at times to remember that God does indeed have a plan for our lives and we can be so impatient b/c we are an instant gratification generation.
Again, thank you!
Logan
ttc1 c9 cd7
Just a quick hi before I head off to work. Temps are still high today, but I'm expecting AF to show either tomorrow or Sunday. Looks like a few of us will be on about the same cycle. Anne, just wanted to let you know that it's definitely normal to feel lots going on in your ovaries on clomid. I feel twinges just about every day after stopping the last pill. I would definitely not go by that feeling alone on determining when you'll O. Good luck, though, I hope it's very soon for you. I guess that's all for me today-no internet access at work, so I'll just have to talk to you all tomorrow.
Jen
My interpretation of the "Teacup Experience" would be something that we have gone through in our lives , that maybe we did not understand or even believe that the Lord would make us go through such things. But in the end , we understand why we had to go through a particular situation or experience, because you realize it made you a better, stronger person. Just to recap: The master made the teacup go through spinning on the wheel as clay, being placed in a hot oven, painted, and put in the oven again. What resulted was a beautiful teacup. But to become that teacup, some very unpleasant things had to take place first. What things have you gone through in your life that maybe weren't the most pleasant, but you became a better person because of it.
I'll will share my teacup experiences a little later. I just got to work and must get a couple of things done before I can "play".
Hope that helps Kathy!!!
Have a great day!
~Lisa O~
I finally got caught up on my work today and thought I would take this opportunity to share my "teacup experience" and explain how I know the Lord was working in my life during those times.
There are many situations that I can think of, but I'm about to share the most significant ones with you.
As many of you may already know I am an only child. My family was always very close. I thought I had the perfect family. Well, when I was 20-21, I caught my Dad cheating on my Mom. Won't go into details, but I was devastated. My Mom was out of town at the time with her job, and I called her to tell her. She did not believe me. Well, I guess in rebellion, I moved out of the house to live with the guy I was seeing at the time, HUGE mistake, and to make a very long, complicated story short, let's just say it was a very abusive relationship-- verbally, physically, mentally-- involving drugs and drinking ( on his part, guns, hitting, throwing things, etc. I feared for my life. I finally was given the courage ( and no one else could have done it but the Lord) to stand up to this jerk and leave and take him to court for the violence. I asked my Mom if I could come back home and of course, she said yes. ( And yes, she and my Dad were still together, even though Mom was starting to have her suspicions now about Dad.) About 4 months after that, my Mom asked my Dad to leave and they eventually divorced after 23 years of marriage. That was very hard!!! I started dating a guy that forever changed my life for the next 5 years. He basically introduced me to being a part of a real church family. I really enjoyed that time of my life and learned so much about myself, but unfortunately, that relationship was not meant to be. We broke up and I could not even stand to have to watch him proceed into another relationship, so I ran---- I moved to the town I am now in, and eventually met DH and we have a wonderful, happy, fulfilling relationship that I would not trade for any amount of money in this world. He is my world!!!
I know God was with me in those fires. I believe I held my parents up to think they could do no wrong, and thought my Dad was on a pedestal. God made me see that they were human and were capable of making mistakes. God put me in a situation where I was not safe nor happy but He brought me back out of it when he felt I was ready to move on and was capable of taking care of myself. He brought a wonderful man into my life to bring me to the church and to learn the word and know the presence of God, but he also knew that man was not my soulmate. He removed that man from my life and I was devastated by it, and I believe God knew I would be and that I would run, and that's exactly what I did. But , little did I know, He was already working on where my run would lead. I met DH and fell in love immediately. He is my true soulmate, my friend, my companion, my lover. And I believe that was God's plan the whole time. I went through many trials and tribulations to get to where I am today, but you know what, I wouldn't change a thing. All those things that God let me suffer through then, has made me such a stronger, more self confident woman today. I might not have realized it at the time, but God was right there with me through all my suffering, and I thank Him everyday. And I know God's not through with me yet. I've been in a job now for 5 1/2 years, 2 of those I haven't been sure about my future due to some downsizing that's been taking place, and I've applied for jobs, but nothing has come through, so I figure there's a reason God wants me to stay here. I'll know one day. Until then, I'm trying to follow as the Lord leads me so that one day, I too can be a beautiful teacup.
Thanks for listening to my "teacup experience"
~Lisa O~
When I was in graduate school, my mom was diagnosed with cancer. I had always had a very special relationship with my mom...and I have to admit, had been rather spoiled and self-absorbed....very slow to "grow up". When my mom became ill, I felt like the floor had dropped out from under me. I really struggled with the idea of losing her, was angry that God would not answer my prayers for her to get well. My mom initially was very optimistic that she would beat the cancer and be okay...but as each treatment option failed, it bacame clear that she was not going to make it. My days consisted of getting up early in the morning and going to her home to help her...then going to class and work...then back to her home in the evenings to do whatever I could and just to be with her...and then back to my apartment where I would study and write reports for school. The many times she was in the hospital, my dad and I would take turns sleeping on the sofa in her room. It was a really hard time. Our relationship deepened drastically through this, though. She spent a lot of time talking with me about her hopes and dreams for my life, talking about her own life, and her fears. I was the only one who would actually talk with her about dying...my dad just could not handle it and his way of dealing with it was to refuse to discuss it. My mom died 9 months after she was diagnosed. I honestly did not think I would be able to survive without my mom...she was my best friend...and I was not close to my dad. I felt really alone.
But God used that experience to teach me to stand on my own two feet...to learn the importance of not taking people I love for granted...to view each day as a precious gift...to stop being so self-absorbed and think more of others... I learned that I was much stronger than I realized. God MADE me stronger with this experience. I've also become less afraid of death...as I know that my mom is in heaven and I will see her again.
I still miss her terribly...especially during special times like when I finished grad school, got my first real job, and got married...but I know she is watching over me...she is in my heart.
Anne
Anne - Proud Mommy to Rachel Elizabeth!
http://www.fertilityfriend.com/home/2d440
I feel:
crabby
headachy
lower back pain
and.... AF will be here and I don't want her.
And so this is the time to place my burdens in God's hands.
Let go and let God.
Thanks for listening to me vent ladies.
Have a great weekend!!!!
~Lisa O~
Anne
Anne - Proud Mommy to Rachel Elizabeth!
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