Why I Celebrate Each and Every Birthday I Have…

TODAY, FEBRUARY 6th I BECAME A 53 YEAR OLD WOMAN…

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Think I’m insane to post my age? Perhaps you’d rather put less candles on your cake instead of another one? Not me! Let me explain why I celebrate each birthday with joy…

I could give you scripture such as:

²²Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed for his compassions never fail. ²³They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23

Or a quote such as:

With age comes wisdom.

We’ve heard these and others before. Nope, not why I celebrate each and every year…

In 2001 I was diagnosed with a serious heart ‘defect’. I was just 41 at the time. Imagine living till 41 and not knowing your ticker has never worked properly? In fact, it never pumped my blood correctly and my oxygen never performed the job it was supposed to. How could I not know this? How was I able to be an active kid and teenager? What about my children that I gave birth to- how did I survive this? These are all mysteries to me. However, I know the One who created me, including my custom made heart. I knew He had a reason.

In 2001 I was given the option of a very risky repair (open heart) or risk no action and live perhaps another 10 years- most of which would be unhealthy since my heart health would continue to decline. After much prayer, education and consultations, I chose the surgery. I wanted to continue to be wife, mother and a future grandmom! I wanted to experience more life. A risky surgery was the ONLY way this could happen. I now bear the most beautiful seven inch mark of courage which reminds me of the day my heart was held in my surgeon’s hands, the day God entered into an operating room with me. This was the most amazing ‘show and tell’ experience. The doctor was amazed and so were others in the operating room. This is the day everyone knew what David spoke of in Psalm 139- For I am fearfully and wonderfully made! They had never seen a heart like mine. Just like you, I was hand created by the same One who created this amazing universe.

Since that surgery in 2001 I have had one more repair- last May. Once again, the impossible was made possible because God permitted it. After the surgery was finished my surgeon told me that I have the most unique heart he’s ever seen. He told me he repaired something that he thought was impossible to repair. Of course, I instantly thought…’with God, ALL things are possible!’

How am I today? I am a new woman. Oxygen is flowing properly, heart is beating perfectly, energy levels are above what they’ve ever been my entire life…even as a child.

Why do I celebrate? I celebrate because the One who created me is the very same One who sustains me. Every day I run up and down multiple staircases thanking God each time. I’m not out of breath and am rejoicing for the great opportunity to reach new heights in serving Him. My entire world has opened up to me. I AM HEALTHY and NOTHING is holding me back from a full life! I do not take life for granted. Without these amazing healings I think where I might be today. Without the original surgery, I’m reminded I would be with my Creator in my forever home.

I look forward to my forever home, I have a child and some grandbabies, grandparents and inlaws…and a very good friend…already there. I look forward to seeing what Paul wrote about in Revelation 4- streets of gold… I look forward to hearing ‘well done, good and faithful servant’. I look forward to that day but I don’t want to miss a single opportunity He has for me here on this beautiful earth as I seek to serve Him daily.

I celebrate because I know each day is a gift. We are not promised tomorrow to be able to jump up out of bed and go about our normal day. Each birthday we receive a birthday gift from our Creator. We receive the breath of life.

Today I choose to celebrate with some of my great friends for lunch and then with my husband and son for dinner. Yes, today is going to be a great day to celebrate my 53rd birthday. This will be an incredible year! Thank you Lord for this very special gift!

Now, I think I’ll start my celebration by using the stairs!

Today Is a New Day!

Jun18

God’s compassions are new every morning, great is His faithfulness!

It’s early and I am watching the day unfold. The darkness becomes light right before my eyes and I am reminded today is a new day. The choice is up to me- will I embrace this new day or live in the past of yesterday?

The past has some very good memories- as a teen I accepted Christ, meeting the man who would become my husband, and the birth of our children and grandchildren. Yes, the past has many warm memories!

However, if I am totally honest, my past includes some events I would prefer to not remember- childhood abuses by two older boys, feelings of being lost in a big world, some bad choices I’d made, the loss of one of our children and the loss of several grandchildren. Yes, my past has many harsh memories.

As a woman of God I must decide if I believe in a loving merciful compassionate God and His Word found in the Bible. I am immediately reminded of His promise in Lamentations 3:19-24 – I have hope!

“I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therfore I will wait for him.”

His compassion IS new every morning. Will I miss out on them because I am dwelling in the pain of my past? Embracing God’s promises doesn’t magically erase the painful memories of my past. Accepting and embracing God’s compassion toward me helps me to remember the blessings, have hope for today while not letting my past pain rule who I am today. I AM a woman of God and I choose to exchange the pain of my past darkness to become God’s light as He unfolds His love, mercy and compassion on me today.

I encourage you to spend time with Him today, accept his compassion toward you and know today is a new day! Here is a worship song by Don Moen called Thank You Lord to help you start today fresh in Christ…

Are You Like a Duck?

Jun11

Look closely…the leader is in the front and the others are following his every move!

“I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free.” Psalm 119:32

I hear the gentle lapping of the water and as I gaze around me, admiring God’s beauty, at a distance I see something beautiful that catches my eye- a family of ducks swimming across the water. They didn’t stray from one another, instead they faithfully stayed close to each other. They were surrounded by a large body of water, they could have gone all over on this peaceful morning and yet, they chose to cling tightly to each other. I realized we can learn a valuable lesson from these faithful ducks. I asked myself a question- “Who and what do I cling to?”

It’s often easy to be a Sunday or Holiday believer, but what about all the other days each and every year? On those days when life is sweet I give God praise. Do I also praise Him when I walk through the pain life often brings? The daily struggles that come my way? This family of ducks follow their leader everywhere, staying close together. If the leader turns, so do they. In fact, they follow their leader’s every move. I am once again challenged: Do I stay closely connected to God in this same way? Attentive to His every Word? When He says “Go!”, do I go? When He says “Stay!”, do I stay? When He says “Serve!”, do I serve? When He says, “Be still my child.” do I sit patiently waiting and basking in His love? It is a challenging thought for me. What about you? I want to be like this family of ducks! I want to be closely aware of the Leader of the family of God. I want to follow my leader’s every move. Therein lies the challenge…as a daughter of the King of Kings- am I attentive and willing to stay closely connected to my God?

Here is today’s worship song by Chris Tomlin- I think this says it all. Is this the cry of my heart? I want it to be…do you?

I Want to Live Out My Purpose…Just Like Grass!

Jun8

Here I sit in the stillness of the morning. My senses have become alert…

The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17

The grass on the dunes sway with a rythm as they dance to the music God plays on the wind. Oh, to be like this grass. To live free, fully abandoned for You. To hear the songs You sing over me and to let myself embrace the beautiful movement of it all.

These grasses do not worry what today holds for them, let alone tomorrow. They are living out their purpose for this very moment. They are planted where You want them to be and their dance is comforting and encouraging to me . I sit here, amazed – before an audience of One.

Father, teach me to seek you daily, recognizing I am before you, before an audience of One each time I am before You during my quiet time. I want to dance to Your song that You created specifically for me. I want to spend each day planted where You want me to be and serve the purpose You created for me.

Is this your desire too? Then a great place to start is worship. Enjoy and be encouraged by this beautiful worship song as you stand before an audience of One today.

Is My Heart Like the Mall’s Prettiest Store?

Feb25

I spent some time at our local mall recently and was in one of the large stores enjoying the pretty lights, displays, clothing, jewelry. I took my time and meandered. Yes, I said meandered. I’ve come to call this retail therapy. It actually doesn’t require me purchasing anything, I just apreciate the quiet time on my own, to walk at a snail’s pace, touching (I am tactile) and just seeing what’s there. The store was gorgeous as I expected it would be. At one point I went down a hallway and into the restroom. The pretty store turned into a drab, dreary place with dingy grey walls that were marked up from years of neglect. Then the restroom? Well, someone probably should tell them it’s time for a redo. Again, drabby and dreary. Tiles were in need of repair or replacement, the paint was dreary, you could see drill holes where there once had been ‘something’ of use… Then it occurred to me… this is very much like many of our hearts.

We can do everything in our own power to make the outside look good. We can cut/style/perm/color our hair, put on make up, buy the right clothes and shoes… and when we look in the mirror we look put together. HOWEVER- when we go a little deeper than our outward appearance, is it like walking down the drab and dreary gray halls of the store? You know what I’m talking about. We each have that little something we’ve kept tucked away so long that it’s become drab and dreary. I’m reminded of David- a man after God’s own heart:

‘O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thougths from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord.’ Psalm 139:1-4

David would tell you that he struggled with drab, dreary grey heart issues. He would also tell you of God’s redemption through love and grace. Can you dare to ask God to search your heart today? Then can you go one more step further and ask God to take your drab dreary recessed area of your heart and apply his love and grace and forgiveness? Perhaps this can be your challenge today.

Be blessed daughters of the King of Kings. He loves you, He adores you and He already knows what’s in the deep areas of your life. Open up, ask and receive!

Blessings Can Sometimes Happen in the Middle of the Night…

Feb9

Yesterday was a busy day in our home. I think you’ve probably had days like this, I’m sure I’m not alone. I started my morning out cleaning because I had a lunch meeting at my home which meant I also needed to prepare lunch. If you know me, then you know I love to cook. Preparing lunch was the fun part of my morning. I made Italian Tomato Bisque Soup (with pasta of course!) and salads with tuna centered perfectly on the plate. I wish I would have taken a picture!! The lunch prep mess was cleaned up and I welcomed my guest. We enjoyed our meal…until I noticed something…my guest didn’t eat her complete salad, instead she was picking things out of the salad to eat. That’s when I found out my beautiful salad…well- she’s allergic to lettuce! To make it worse, she loves lettuce. Way to go Karen- put something she loves in front of her…something she can’t eat. Uggg…Hospitality failure… At least she enjoyed the soup and I enjoyed our conversation- or at least part of the conversation. She was struggling with life and found it hard to focus on God’s blessings. It became clear that God wanted me to share the ‘what so ever’ scripture with her.

Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy- think about such things. Philippians 4:8

We’ve all passed through tough times in our lives. We’ve all struggled in trust issues and faith. She was no different.

I shared this scripture with her and began to ask questions. The first question led to a chain of questions. What was it? ”What is your favorite season?” The following questions were related to her answers. Before you know it, she was alive, sparkling and laughing. When she left my home a couple hours later she had a glimmer of hope and a challenge to continue the ‘what so ever’ list.

A little later I went into my office to work on Sharing From the Heart ministry and knew I’d be in there a few hours. Imagine my surprise to come out of my office to find my daughter, Christin, had started dinner and intended to complete it. Thank you Lord! She made homemade wings with her own custom sauce, rice and veggies. WE LOVED IT!!! Again, no picture… Since she made dinner, I planned on cleaning up the kitchen but found I was too tired last night. Plan B was to wake up this morning and clean up. Imagine my surprise to wake up to a totally clean kitchen and to top it off…a homemade jelly roll made by Christin! She even cleaned up after that!! She left me a fun note:

Look, the desert gnomes visited last night & brought us a jelly roll. And then the chore fairies arrived & cleaned, including the dishes! You gotta love late night visitors!!

What a great blessing to wake up to! Today is a busy day and having to clean up would have made a long list even longer. I wonder if the dinner chef will arrive again tonight? If she does, I’ll be sure to take a picture! Speaking of pictures…here’s the picture of the delicious jelly roll I enjoyed at breakfast!

TODAY’S CHALLENGE- Start a ‘what so ever’ list of your own. It’s sure to bring a smile to your face and spirit! Oh, and share this scripture with someone else and begin with just one simple question- “What’s your favorite season?” and then begin the chain of questions with something like, “Why do you like that season?” One by one, we can help each other focus on Philippians 4:8.

Just When You Least Expect It… God Brings a Special Blessing!

Jan31

I’m starting to write this at 11:58pm on January 30th and I will be completing it on February 1st shortly after 12:01am. So odd. The end of one month and the beginning of the next. Was’t it just Christmas? And here we are heading into the second month of 2012 already. Time slips by so quickly. I remember hearing my parents comment that time flies faster and faster the older you get. Well, in just a few days I will turn 52. I celebrate my gray hair and each little wrinkle that decides to appear on my once smooth skin.

As I said, time flies by so quickly. I wonder how many blessings God sent my way that I’ve totally missed or even perhaps, dismissed? Today, or now since it’s shortly after midnight I guess it was yesterday, God blessed me- his daughter that was not trusting as much as I should have. He not only blessed me lightly…but he hit the ball out of the park! Then, shortly after the blessings, He blessed my daughter with a job interview that she is totally excited about! God doesn’t do things half way. He longs to bless his children abundantly! The question is, do we long to be blessed?

My lack of trust led to concern which led to worry which led to doubt. Do you know what I’m talking about? Have you been there? It’s not a new place to me…I think I’ve vacationed there many times in the past. Each time I stay there a little less. Growth.

I thank you Lord for the special blessings you send our way when we least expect it. Please help us to vacation in the land of expectation and not in the isle of doubt. Thank you for your faithfulness. You have blessed your daughter and my household today, I mean yesterday. I look forward to your blessings again today! AMEN

Looking For a Do-Over in 2012?

Dec30

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 2 Cor 5:17

Staples has an ‘easy’ button. The turnpike has ‘EZ Pass’. Mr. Clean’s ‘Magic Eraser’ can take away the grime you can’t seem to get rid of any other way. We seem to get excited when we find a way to make life easier, brighter, quicker, cleaner… Always in a hurry it seems. I don’t know about you, but I know I’m guilty of it! I want Mr. Clean to make my old items look new again!! Kind of like a do-over. Ultimately, aren’t we all in need of a do-over from time to time? A word spoken harshly, a choice made quickly, a relationship broken, wasted and squandered time, a lost loved one, a job interview… The list could go on and on. I’ve had more than my share of these moments. Some of which even happened after becoming a believer. Just because we accept Christ, doesn’t mean we never make a mistake, or dare I call it what it is- sin? This scripture reminds us of the awesome miracle of what happened when we accepted Christ- we are new, the old is gone, the new has come. It was our do-over!! My do-over happened in 1975 when I was just 15. As you can imagine, that means I’ve had almost 37 years to grow into my new skin. In the growing, I needed God’s pruning more than a few times. My mouth, my thoughts, my emotions just seem to get the best of me at times and then show the worst of me. I am new in Christ. The do-over happened in 1975. Since then I’ve been learning the meaning of living in unity and being faithful to the call He has given me. It continues to take time for me to achieve this, however He is faithfully walking me through my journey one day at a time. New Year’s resolution? Do-Over? All I know, is I resolve to grab hold of all God has for me in 2012. Join me on the journey of learning to live in our new skin. Each day holds a new adventure in Him!

What Do Coupons and the Proverbs 31 Woman Have in Common?

Aug25

‘A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies…’

How many times have you read this entire passage from Proverbs 31:10-31? I know I’ve read it many, many times and every time I must be honest and admit…this woman is a bit intimidating to me! In fact, I can almost picture the hit commercial for Enjoli perfume that I’m sure many of us can sing… “I can bring home the bacon, fry it up in a pan…”

Yes, how many times had I thought this Proverbs 31 woman was a woman who excelled in EVERYTHING in life and I was feeling a little lacking. Could I ever measure up to such a woman? Even when I was working full-time in corporate America- managing three departments, raising 3 children, helping to raise 3 other children, being a wife, volunteering at our church…yep, you guessed it- leading a ministry… I still didn’t feel like I accomplished the Proverbs 31 woman status.

I’ve now reached the stage in my life where I no longer work full-time in corporate America but instead as a consultant through my own business of Karen Pennell Consulting, I still have two of my children- young adult stage of life- living in our home, and leading a great team of women through Sharing From the Heart Ministry. My husband and I have s-l-o-w-e-d down a bit and are beginning to enjoy what the world calls midlife. I’m actually a card-carrying member of AARP at the ripe age of 51. Now that I have a little more time on my hands I find myself still contemplating this Proverbs 31 woman.

Just this week it has occurred to me… I do possess some of the fine qualities Ms. Proverbs has! Ahhh, at last I am beginning to see the picture more clearly!! My coupons have helped me achieve this life long search…

Ms. Proverbs did a great job…okay, she did a phenomenal job at ‘bringing home the bacon and frying it up in a pan’. Well, I cut the coupons that brings home the bacon that I fry in the pan and I do it for a fraction of the cost most people spend. Yes, I am sitting here with an accomplished smile on my face:)

I take the time to cut the coupons, look at the sale ads, plan my strategy for shopping and then go for the hunt! My cart fills with special treats for my family- each member in mind as I gather the items off the store shelves. Each item I add to my cart adds a smile to my face just thinking how happy my loved ones will be when they enjoy the fruits of my labor!

My husband and I are happy when we review the items we’ve added to our pantry and freezer and realize we’ve only paid for approximately 20-30% of them. Did we steal the 70-80% of items? NO WAY! Me, the new Ms. Proverbs in training, has found a 2012 version of this fine woman. With coupons, sales, and strategies- I’m:

selecting wool and flax, working with eager hands as I prepare my shopping trip strategy
bringing food from afar or at least maybe 30 minutes from my home
sometimes I get up while it’s still dark…or at least stay up after dark
providing food for my family and portions to give away to others in need
considering the deals and purchasing them
setting about working vigorously to plan, shop, put away, cook, clean up…but my family is a great source of help!
trading coupons for food, cleaning supplies, health and beauty supplies…
using my excess stocked items to bless others through food pantry donations in my community
prepared for when it snows this winter, I won’t be worried because I now have what I call our mini grocery store at home

Yes, I’m beginning to embrace Ms. Proverbs- I’ve come to learn she is a very wise lady! Who’da thunk…all because of coupons I’m finally beginning to see value in this role model the Bible tells us about. I think I’ve been awfully hard on Ms. Proverbs throughout my life. For this, I make a public apology! I am a reformed woman…working toward the Proverbs 31 challenge!! It’s a journey…are you coming with me?

Check out these items I purchased on my last shopping trip! Notice the Out of Pocket (OOP) expenses. Not bad for a Ms. Proverbs in training! Sign up for my coupon classes and you can learn to do this too! Register at www.sharingfromtheheart.net or www.karenpennellconsulting.com on the Sharing From the Heart page. Classes are free but registration is required.

Extreme Couponing Pic for Registration Open on Blog

Look at what I bought and the little I paid OOP (Out Of Pocket)!

Sharing From the Heart Ministry

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