Tag: truth be told

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Truth Be Told

No More Ideas Down The Drain By Tina Hunt

…make the most of every opportunity. (Colossians 4:5b, NLT)

Most of my best ideas come when I’m in the shower. And most of them are gone by the time I dry off, moisturize, get dressed (change my mind and get dressed again), dry my hair, and finally make my way to my computer.

So my best ideas come in the shower and go right down the drain. No matter what I tried to remember the golden nugget, sure to unfold into a great article or life-changing devotion, it floated away on a cloud of soap bubbles.

Until today.

Today I got the idea for this post. Today I realized I could call out to my personal assistant Siri, and tell her to take a note. Not a part of the Apple Nation? Let me introduce you to Cortana, the Droid version. Still have room for one more gift on your Christmas gift list? I hear they’re running great deals on the Google personal assistant and Alexa from Amazon.

Don’t like all the technology? Put a pen and tablet on the back of the commode. In most bathrooms, the toilet is within a couple steps of the shower. Don’t step off the bathmat until you write down the amazing idea God just gave you.

Truth be told: To do any less is to squander, or waste, the opportunity God gave you.

What if that nugget or devotional thought is just what someone needs to read in your blog, or in the Upper Room? What if God gave the idea that you needed to hang on and keep going to someone, but they didn’t think it was important enough to jot down or dictate. Technology can be so overwhelming, you know…

My phone is always in the bathroom with me. Why not make it work for me instead of being a distraction?

Use it…or lose it…the idea, that is.

Hey, Siri. Thanks for taking this note.

Tina Hunt writes to inspire. She loves the challenge of a devotion’s brevity, a Bible study’s clarity, and an article’s ability to change lives. Communicating truth, whether written or spoken, defines Tina’s passion and purpose. Tina’s thoughts can also be found at PotOfManna. Tina is an active member of Word Weavers, serving as a chapter co-president, online president, and mentor

 

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Truth Be Told

Your Own Best Advice

by Tina Hunt

Two of my “go to” counseling statements are: so how’s that working for you?; and if your best friend in the whole world was going through this, what would you tell them (what advice would you give them)?—aren’t you worth your best, most loving, advice?

Continue reading “Your Own Best Advice”
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Truth Be Told

Lesson Learned: Time Value

(I wrote this reflection several years ago. I smiled when I rediscovered it. I feel like the Apostle Paul when he wrote to the Philippian church about contentment: he saw it as a lesson he was still learning–and I’m still learning this one.)

I ran into the grocery to grab two items: Chinese noodles and upholstery cleaner. I didn’t find the cleaner I wanted so I grabbed the noodles I needed and headed to the check out. There was, of course, only one lane open, but I wasn’t worried, especially since there was only one person ahead of me already in the process of checking out. As I took my place in line the woman checking out apologized to me since she had more items and I, with only one, had to wait.
I looked up at her and smiled. Then I said something to the effect that it was okay to wait. Truth be told: I look forward to the moments which force me to slow down and breathe. Quiet-slow-me-down moments are a blessing not a problem.

Now, to be very honest, I have no idea where that came from. Not long ago I wouldn’t have been able to say anything like that. Life is different now. I contemplated this during lunch recently as I sat on the porch amid flowers, humming bees, and singing birds. I was overcome with a sense of the rhythm of the way life is supposed to be. I looked across the table and was thankful for the 87 year old woman I had the privilege of sharing lunch with. Lunches used to be practically swallowed whole while driving down the road to my next appointment. I neither enjoyed the food nor appreciated the beauty that flew by my window.

I understand now time is far too precious to waste fretting about where I’m to be next. It’s too fragile to stuff to the point of breaking. It’s too fleeting to miss the wonder of being present for the discovery of a child, whether they be a grandchild or the child in you.

My mind had moved on to dinner and a meeting I need to schedule. I had moved on from what I mindlessly said to the shopper ahead of me in line. She turn to me as she moved her cart away from the checkout, and thanked me for my wise advice. She told me she was headed to a meeting with other young moms and that she would be sharing what she heard in our brief encounter. I finished my errands and came home.

Driving home, I decided I needed to put these thoughts on paper. Before I did, I checked a friend’s online diary and found her quote du jour:

“There is no such thing in anyone’s life as an unimportant day.”
— Alexander Woollcott

And, there are no unimportant moments, either.

 

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Truth Be Told

God in a Booger

Truth Not Lies Board Showing Honesty

“Mom, I think Tina could make a sermon illustration out of a booger.”

I saw the two of them giggling back in their pew as I delivered my sermon that morning. When service was over I cornered my friend and asked what she and her daughter found so humorous, since I obviously missed the joke.

She told me what her daughter said, and I couldn’t help but giggle myself.

Truth be told, I do believe we can find a spiritual implication and application in everything.

Isn’t that what Jesus did?

He wanted to make a point and the nearest thing at hand was a wineskin, or a woman’s sewing. As he walked the paths teaching a team of oxen, a fig tree, or an ear of corn became the vehicle to explain a truth.

Over and over Jesus called attention to the obvious and everyday things around him to point to the truth of God.

Look around you. What do you see? A leaf, a car, a baby? What do you hear? A siren, a bird song, a laugh?

Do you see God? He’s there. He wants to be seen. He wants to be shared.

“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the Lord. (Jeremiah 29:13-14a, NIV)

Oh, and just to relieve your wonderment: I’ve never preached about a booger!

[bctt tweet=”A sermon illustration out of a booger?#messgae #mess” via=”no”]

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Truth Be Told

Your Mess May Be Your Message

Shame is an incredible de-motivator.

Shame whispers questions and breathes doubt into our hearts and minds, stifling our creativity and limiting what God wants to say through us to others.

Truth be told: I know this because this demon did a nasty number on me for several years.

Thankfully, I’ve done some major work on my thinking in this area and God has lavished his balm of grace to my heart and mind. Still, it is a weak spot the enemy likes to attack.

When he does I have two tools to remind me he doesn’t get to win.

First, is a little picture I keep on my desk as a constant reminder. It was a gift from a seminary professor many years ago.

The brown tape spots in the corners might bother some people, but they remind me how it has reminded me in different places and times over the years.

I found the other reminder while writing a book about the Prodigal Family. The Christian faith is full of people who understand the battle with shame. And the Book we revere, the Bible, tells their stories.

The next time you feel like God can’t use you, just remember………..

Noah was a drunk

Abraham was too old

Isaac was a daydreamer
Jacob was a liar
Leah was ugly
Joseph was abused
Moses had a stuttering problem
Gideon was afraid
Samson had long hair and was a womanizer
Rahab was a prostitute
Jeremiah and Timothy were too young
David had an affair and was a murderer
Elijah was suicidal
Isaiah preached naked
Jonah ran from God
Naomi was a widow
Job went bankrupt
John the Baptist ate bugs
Peter denied Christ
The Disciples fell asleep while praying
Martha worried about everything
The Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once
Zaccheus was too small
Paul was too religious
Timothy had an ulcer

…AND
Lazarus was dead!

Now, no more excuses.
God can use you to your full potential.
Besides you aren’t the message,
You are just the messenger.

I wish I knew who wrote this. I would like to thank them.

There are many ways to use the ugly, shame-filled parts of our lives to bring healing and redemption.

You mess may be your message. Will you be the messenger?

[bctt tweet=”Shame is an incredible de-motivator. #writer #novel” via=”no”]