Something Uncomfortable: Day 109

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I am not good at waiting. I’m not good at waiting for people to do things. I’m not good at waiting in line. I’m not good at waiting to go somewhere. And I’m especially not good at waiting for God to answer me or follow through on a vision He’s given me.

This has been especially true as He has called me into the different phases of my life in ministry. When He called me into full-time youth ministry, I had to wait over a year for my internship to be approved and for my return to school to be finalized. When He called me to be a mommy, I had to wait several years before becoming pregnant. (Being a parent is a ministry… we are raising warriors for the Kingdom of God. That’s a ministry.) My first child spent the first year of his life throwing up all day every day. That coupled with the fact that after I deliver a baby I get high blood pressure that lasts for months, made me have to pull out of youth ministry. And so began the wait for my next phase of ministry.

For the last year, God has been tugging at my heart telling me that He wants to use me again. But I have had no clear cut direction as to how He was going to do that. So I wait. And I wait knowing that whatever that means, it will be good. But this morning, I am overwhelmed with uncomfortableness as I wait… perhaps because He wanted me to share this with you.

Jeremiah 29:11 keeps racing through my mind this morning, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

As I wait in my impatience, I know that His timing is perfect. If I redirect my focus on what I am doing right now, He will use me in this moment while I wait for the next big thing. Because He is good, I will wait.

What are you waiting for? Do you trust that His plan and His timing are perfect?

Something Uncomfortable: Day 108

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After dropping my kids off at school this morning, my friend and I went out for coffee. At the last minute, I decided I should run by Sam’s Club to pick something up. 

I wasn’t sure if I would have enough time to make the stop and get back to pick up the kids on time. I struggled with myself, trying to determine if it was worth the risk. I mean, I did NOT want my kids to have to wait on me if I was late. I decided to be uncomfortable and go for it.

When I walked inside Sam’s, I realized that they rearranged the entire store… without consulting me. ARGHH!!! My uncomfortable level shot through the roof. I almost aborted the mission. Instead, I stayed the course, found what I needed and made it back to the school on time!

Have you taken a chance lately?

Something Uncomfortable: Day 107

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When I have company over, I find it next to impossible to let anyone help me with anything. It is especially difficult in the kitchen. 

We went with our houseguests to the water park today and packed a picnic lunch. I packed lunch for my family and then let my friend pack lunch for her family. I told her what there was and that if she could find it, she could pack it. SOOOOOOO uncomfortable! But I am so proud of myself. I didn’t even ask what they packed. I simply asked if they found everything alright. Yay me!

What do you need to let go of today?  

Something Uncomfortable: Day 106

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I am NOT good at receiving a compliment. Usually when someone says something nice about me, I say things like, “Oh, it’s no big deal.” Or I give all the glory to God. I find it nearly impossible to just say thank you.

I’ve been trying to get better at this. So today, when my friend paid me a compliment, I said thank you. And then I giggled and told her she just gave me my something uncomfortable for the day. 

Oh, we are funny people, aren’t we?

Are you better at giving or receiving compliments?

Our Un-McVersary

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Our what? According to my QuickBooks file, we have not eaten at McDonald's (or any similar fast-food chain) since June 24, 2011. Happy Un-McVersary to the Schneiders!

Prior to that date, I was not functioning well because of my hormone imbalance. Some days the brain fog would be so bad that I physically could not make dinner… or lunch… or do anything that required me getting off of the couch. On those days, I would call Adam in a panic and beg him to pick up dinner. 

It wasn’t always McDonald's, but it was McDonald's A LOT! I just ran a report in QuickBooks and here’s what I found: From June 25, 2010 to June 25, 2011, we ate McDonald's 93 times and spent $1,156.96 on that nasty processed food. I.could.die!! And frankly, I’m surprised we didn’t. I can’t even fathom what the total would be if we included the other random restaurants.

Please understand that there is no judgment being passed by me if you are eating McDonald's more than you should. I get needing to survive. AND I get that we are all in different places regarding what we eat and why. This has been a big part of my family becoming healthier, so I thought I was important to share.

Since cooking at home more and making healthier food choices, we have noticed the following changes:

• I have lost approximately 20 lbs.
• My allergies are better and I’m taking less allergy meds.
• My daughter’s allergies are better and she is off all of her allergy meds.
• My son’s allergies are better and he is off all of his allergy meds.
• My son’s asthma seems to be gone and he is off of all of his asthma meds.
• All of us have been sick less often and when we do get sick, we recover quicker.

I firmly believe that when we fill our bodies with processed junk foods, our bodies have a harder time fighting the stuff we normally need to fight. So what do I do when I just can’t make dinner? I pull out some frozen Homemade Chicken nuggets or a Home Run Inn frozen pizza (no preservatives) or we have a sandwich. And if we need to pick something up, we opt for things like Chipotle. 

We still have a long way to go on our food journey, but the progress we have made in the last 12 months is mind-blowing! Happy Un-McVersary to us!