New Look, New Bling, New Awards

So much happened today . . . where do I start? Let’s start with my new look. What do you think? I have to give major thanks to Susie at Bluebird Blogs for my new header. She was very easy to work with and open to my suggestions. She worked with me until I got what I wanted. So if you’re interested in working with her you’ll have to wait until August because she’s been so busy designing that she’s not able to take any new orders at this time. Check out her other designs and you will see she is worth the wait.

My new bling is pictured above. I have to extend a big thank you to the ladies at Pinks & Blues Girls Blog for their very generous giveaway. I entered their contest and really just forgot about it. I was so surprised to win and did a happy “bling” dance. What is a happy bling dance you ask? Well let’s just say I’m glad there were no video cameras around at the time. Thank you again ladies for the beautiful necklace and ring. Check out their blog - it's a family affair.

Mary at Just Going With the Flow gave me Rockin Girl Blogger Award (pictured above. I’m honored. I love reading Mary’s blog. She has three beautiful kids and she looks at life in such a humorous way. She said some nice things about me and I’m truly blessed. Thank you Mary. But if that wasn’t enough to make a girl smile - Tammy at Family Doin’s gave me this new Reflection Award (pictured below). I am blessed again. She said some very nice things about me. I’ve enjoyed reading her blog because she is inspiring, funny and I love how she shares about her family. Thank you Tammy.

Now I’m supposed to give these awards to five bloggers. This is my dilemma. I can’t just pick five. There are so many people from our church that blog. As the pastor’s wife I just can’t choose among my wonderful people. Then there are my blogland friends that I’ve come to enjoy reading. I love you all. I want you all to know that I’ve blessed by reading your stories about your life, about your families, about God, about your struggles and about your triumphs. You’ve made me laugh, made me think and encouraged me. I love all your wonderful pictures, especially your beautiful children. So thank you all for sharing your lives with me.


© Nadine Z. 2007

Preaching, Teaching and Parables

My husband is an excellent preacher and he is also an excellent teacher. At church they tease him because he usually has three main points to his sermons with two – three sub points. He has a knack of making the harder things go down smoothly. I’ve learned so much from him through the years.

Jesus was excellent at preaching and teaching, but he also told many parables. Parables are just stories that illustrate the point you’re trying to make. My husband says that I’m storyteller. I do love to tell a good story and sometimes they make a point.

I’ve been very busy lately preparing for various teaching assignments. I’ve taught last weekend at the prison with my hubby and another couple. In two weeks I’ll be teaching again with couple of people. I’m not sure how I’ve gotten myself into all of this.

This Sunday, I’ll be preaching if you want to call it that for the first time. How did I get myself into this I wonder? Oh yeah…my wonderful hubby had this bright idea. I haven’t asked for this opportunity. I’ve not made any vows against doing it either. You know the type of vow I mean…"I will never, ever as long as I live preach on a Sunday.” The moment you say something that stupid you find yourself doing it. I didn’t do that. It wasn’t until last Sunday that I knew what I was going to speak on. Panic didn’t set in because I told my wonderful hubby that if I couldn’t come up with anything he was preaching.

Enter wonderful hubby offering to help me and that he did. I decided to speak on forgiveness. You can say he was my inspiration when he announced on Sunday morning that I was preaching next week. Now my "out" was out of the question. To his credit he was a great help in organizing everything. I appreciated his help so much. The rest is up to me. I thought that I would be nervous about this, but I’m not. I can’t say I’m looking forward to it, but I’m not dreading it either.

I find now that my kids are out of the house, my life is changing. My role is changing as their mom. It’s different parenting grown children. You pray for them, make yourself available if they seek advice, but ultimately the decisions they make are theirs. I love both my kids. Tom and I are very proud of them. I find now that I have more time to do ministry stuff that wasn’t there before when they were little.

There's a class this weekend, but I’m not teaching. I’ll be there helping out with the bookstore and working on my lessons for the next class in two weeks. I’ll let you all know if it goes well on Sunday or if they throw tomatoes at me.

Have a great weekend.

© Nadine Z. 2007

Going to Jail – Part II

Back in April I wrote a post about going to jail to minister to some intimates. Click here to read. At that time we made arrangements to teach one our extended courses called the 101 – The Art of Hearing God. Instead we taught 104 -Reaching Your Destiny in God. We thought the lessons would be more valuable to them. The manuals were donated by the author.

These men are in a special program. They have to apply for it and usually have three months or less on their sentence. They have special privileges, they learn about God and work on dealing on their issues that landed them in jail.

This course we taught deals with issues of strongholds in our lives and how to be free from them. It covers submission verses obedience – how God calls us to be submissive to Him and the authorities He places in our lives. Forgiveness is explained. How important it is to extend forgiveness as well ask for it. It was a powerful for these men.

We have spent Friday night (6:30 pm – 10:00 pm), Saturday (8:00 pm – 9:00 pm) with breaks for lunch and dinner and Sunday after church (from 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm). We learned that weekends are the only time they get to watch movies and it’s a treat for them. Something they look forward to. This course was not mandatory. They could have chosen to stay in their cell and watched movies at any point. Instead they came and listened, asked questions and allowed us to minister to them.

God was good and gave us some powerful words of encouragement. It touched them and some had tears in their eyes. They thanked us for coming, but we were the ones who were blessed. We were honored that God used us in any fashion to minister love and hope of the Father to these men.

We watched how they encouraged one another. They asked questions because they wanted to understand. The chaplain who arranged for this class told us when she went to get the men after a break, one of them was resting in his bunk almost asleep. One of the other guys woke him up and said, “Come on it’s time to go.” She reminded him that the class was not mandatory. His response was for them it was. He valued what he was learning and wanted his bunkmate to value it also. One inmate shared that since he gave his life to Christ six months ago in jail he feels more free now then when he was on the outside. He said he will never land in prison again. Isn't God good. Freedom in Him is powerful.

© Nadine Z. 2007

Gratitude

Father’s Day was filled with mixed emotions. It was the first time that both our kids were living elsewhere. They are great kids and called their dad to talk to him. I had made a special breakfast and we went off to church as usual.

During the break after worship, my husband does announcements. One of the elders said he has an announcement. This is not unusual, but what was unusual was all the elders got up. It seems for a while the elders have been collecting offerings for us. They wanted to bless us on Father’s Day with money to help pay off all the medical bills we incurred during Tom’s chemo and subsequent testing.

Our church is not very big, except it is filled with people with big hearts. They blessed us extravagantly. We were blown away by their generosity. It will cover not only Tom’s medical bills, but also cover my recent medical expenses. I was blessed beyond mere words can express.

Expressing gratitude seems to be inadequate at times like these. To our church Tom and want you to know, “We love you all so very much. We’re grateful and appreciate so very much your generosity to us.” May God bless you. May He open up His flood gates in heaven and pour down blessings on you.

© Nadine Z. 2007

Pictured above is our church.

Father’s Day

On Friday, my daughter moved out of the house and into her own apartment to go back to school. She will be studying psychology. I’m really very proud of her. Tom helped her move on Friday. Since I had to work, he rented a truck and drove one way to her place and I came up later. Her school is two hours away and I didn't get there until after six o’clock.

I helped her set up her kitchen, while Tom put together some furniture -a desk and two chests of drawers that came in a box that had a billion pieces in each of them. It was midnight when only two of the items were put together. She told us to go home since we had a two hour ride ahead and she would put her desk together. Tom looked at me and said, “Honey, there is no way she could do that. It’s too complicated.” So I see the dad gene going into overtime and I agreed to stay until it was done.

We rolled into our driveway at five o’clock in the morning. We watched the sun rise as we drove home. We were so tired. We realized how old we were while trying to get out of the car and everything hurt. I have to say my hubby was the hero to our daughter, but not just on that day. She so appreciated all the help she received from us getting her settled into her own home.

We slept until 12:30, then got ready for a church BBQ at one of the members home. They live out in the country and have ninety cherry trees. They were kind enough to host the event, while another family provided lamb for roasting. Everyone brought something to go with our meal. We had a great time relaxing, visiting and eating. We also got to pick cherries (Bing and Rainer) to take home. We had communion together later on and it was just the perfect way to end the day.

This morning, I’m grateful for the fathers in my life, my God, my husband, my dad (who went home 18 years ago), and my father-in-law. Tom is such a great dad, not only to our children but to the church. He is compassionate, loving and supportive. I thank God for choosing such a wonderful man to be my husband and father to our children. I’m proud to be his wife and I love the life we share together. Now it is just the two of us at home. Our children are grown and on their own. But our nest isn’t empty because of the love we have. We enjoy each other. Our children will always be a part of our lives, even though they don’t live at our home. Our love for them doesn’t change. We find that we pray even more for them. They are good young adults and we are proud of them. We love that they are pursuing their dreams.

I just want to say, Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there. May God bless you and your family today and always.

© Nadine Z. 2007

The Long Train

My drive to work takes about fifteen minutes. I usually pray on the way for my day as well as for others. It keeps me calm as I drive. I find that I’m not as irritated with other drivers when I’m praying. I have to cross over four railroad tracks on my way to work. Usually this is not a problem, but this morning I could hear the train as I drove parallel to the tracks. I thought if I could get ahead of the train before I crossed the track then I could out run the train. But alas, that was not to be. As I about to cross the railroad tracks the gate comes down and now I’m stuck.

I see the train approaching very, very slowly. As I wait, I noticed an ambulance come up behind me. He had to wait too. Fortunately there wasn’t a patient in the ambulance. But what if there were? Emergency or not they would have had to wait. I waited maybe a total of five or six minutes. There were over hundred cars that passed by. A hundred and three train cars to be exact. What else is there to do but count the cars as you wait? Five minutes is not a long time at all, but it was just annoying.

If I get to work at the right time there is a parking spot that is close to the entrance. There is a woman who leaves just as I get there. At the hospital there is designated parking for employees, which by the way is not close at all unless you are a doctor. I usually have to park clear across the lot. I don’t mind, but this morning I figured I missed my window of opportunity. When I finally got to work, that spot was opened. So if I didn’t get stopped by the train, I would have been too early for that opening.

Timing is a funny thing. Sometimes we think we are missing our opportunity because a long train gets in our way. Sometimes we feel five minutes is more like twenty. What if we got stuck by that long train just so we could get that perfect spot?

What if God places obstacles in our way to slow us down so we don’t miss that perfect opportunity He has for us? What if we try to out run Him? Do we really win if are out of step for what He has for us? What if what He has for us takes a year rather than a month? Timing is important. Favor with not only God but with man also plays into it, but that’s another story altogether.

Father help me to appreciate Your timing. Help me not to be frustrated when You put obstacles in my way for my own good. Thank You Lord for caring enough.

© Nadine Z. 2007

Things We Do for Love

In celebration of our 26th wedding anniversary, I did something for my honey that I knew he would like. The funny thing is when you’re doing something for someone out of love you can be blessed also. My husband loves my hair straight. (See picture above.) This is not to say that he doesn’t tell me how beautiful I am all the time. He loves me curly hair or straight. As you all can see by my sidebar picture I have naturally curly hair. I keep my hair curly because it is easier. I add gel and let it dry.

In order to have do my hair straight, I have to use a chemical straighten every three months, wash and blow dry my hair in sections and then use a curling iron. This takes about a good hour and half about once a week and there is the daily up keep.

My husband was teaching a class in Kelowna last week. So I thought I would surprise him by straightening my hair. He came home just as I was finishing up. When I came down the stairs he was very, very surprised. It was so curly that it reached a little bit pass my shoulders, but straight it goes half way down my back!

The smile on his face and how he kept telling everyone how great I looked really was great for my ego. I will be keeping my hair in this style for a while because he loves it so.

So how much am I really sacrificing a week? A couple of hours? It is a very small price of inconvenience to but that smile on my husband’s face. We do little things all the time for the people we love and some require very little effort. Some require a little more. Either way we do it because we love them – whether they are our children, parents or spouse.

We who are human can express our love in such simple ways. Why do have trouble believing that our God love us enough to do the same? Why are there times when I have trouble trusting that He will take care of the troubles that I face? He does little things for us daily just because He cares for us. Matthew 7:11 says, “If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”

Thank you Father for all the times you took care of me in the little ways. You are faithful in the everyday and on a larger scale. I’m grateful for the sacrifice You made for me. I’m thankful for Your love, grace and mercy.

© Nadine Z. 2007

26th Anniversary

Twenty six years ago today I married the love of my life. I’m so grateful to the Lord for bringing Tom into my life at such a young age. I remember all the planning that went into the wedding. I thought my wedding day would never approach, but it did and went by so quickly. It was a beautiful day, but it was just one day. The best was yet to come.

The last twenty six years have been anything but boring. I’m blessed because I married my best friend. Through thick and thin he has been there for me. He has honored me and loved me. He believes in me and encourages me always. He is perfect for me.

Don’t get me wrong this doesn’t mean we never fought. Our old pastor back in New York use to say if you didn’t fight once in a while, then one of you isn’t necessary.

As different as we started out, we have become so similar. I have rubbed off on him and he has rubbed off on me. He is such a good man and has taught me so much especially how to love people. He has encouraged me in my relationship with God. I have grown and matured as a person because of his positive influence, love and guidance.

I love spending time with him whether we are doing something or just relaxing. There is no one on this earth I would rather spend the rest of my life with. The picture at the beginning of this post is the beautiful flowers that awaited me along with my favorite chocolates (Lindt milk chocolate truffles). We went out to a fabulous dinner (Bonefish Grill) and had a couple of martinis. What a wonderful evening. We exchanged cards and if you couldn’t tell by the picture, we gave each other the same exact card. The card read: True love is spending one day getting married…and the rest of your life feeling glad you did.

I’m so glad I married you Tom. I don’t regret it for a moment. I love you more with every day that goes by. Thank you for twenty six wonderful years. Thank you for treating me special on the other 364 days of the year and not just this one. You are great husband and fantastic father. Our children possess so many of your great qualities. You’re a good man and I’m glad you’re mine. I thank you for today and look forward for tomorrow.

I’ll always remain forever yours Nadine.

Enjoy these pictures from our wedding.

Our wedding party above - made up of family and friends.

Tom's family

My family

P.S. To read Tom’s loving post click here.

© Nadine Z. 2007

Perspective

Many a sermon has been preached about Jesus walking on water. I don’t claim to have anything new to add, but during my prayer time this morning I read Matthew 14:22-34. I find scripture amazing. You can read the same verse at different times in your life and get something new out of it each time. This morning I started to wonder about perspectives – the apostle’s, Peter’s and Jesus’. There is so much in this story, but I just want to look at a small aspect of it.

Picture this – it’s really late at night (verse 25 “During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them”). The apostles were afraid because they see someone approaching their boat, walking on the water (verse 27 Jesus tells them, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”) What must have been going through their heads when they realize what was going on?

Peter had enough faith to step out of the boat and walk towards Jesus. When he saw the wind he became afraid and started to sink. He cried out to Jesus for help. Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. He said, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”

I imagine that different apostles observing this would have different perspectives of the situation. Maybe one of them thought, “Peter is such a brown nose. He’s only going out of the boat to impress the boss?” Or maybe one of them might have been thinking, “Boy I wish I was brave enough to go out there.” Yet another one might be thinking, “He’s nuts, doesn’t he see the waves out there.”

I wonder what’s going through Peter’s mind. He took a big leap of faith and in the middle of it fear overcame him. “Oh no, what have I done? What was I thinking coming out here? I’m going to die." But how cool was it that he went out of the boat? No else even tried.

How about Jesus? What was He thinking? I won’t even attempt to presume to what Jesus taught.

How different was that situation than some of the exercises of faith we face? Do we stay in the boat? Do we venture out and try? Do we criticize others that take that leap? Are we jealous of them? Do we wish we were brave enough to try? What situations call us to leave the comfort of our boat?

What struck me was that even though Jesus said “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” He immediately reached out to help Peter. Isn’t it comforting to know that if we get out of the boat that Jesus is there cheering us on and if we start to fall He will immediately reach out to help us. I thank You Lord for that.

What’s the name of your boat?

© Nadine Z. 2007

What a Day

This post is a continuation of sorts of my last one. My day started early – around 7:00 am. I cleaned my house. I showered and got dressed for the memorial service that started at 11:00 am. It was a lovely service filled with fond memories of a life well lived. The family celebrated his life and shared stories of a man that was greatly loved. A dear friend, DC did the eulogy. She spoke about how eternity gets closer at times like these. She encouraged all to live life fully from this point on until we get to the point we reach eternity. I’m probably not doing her justice but it was really well said.

I left around 1:00 pm and headed for graduation service No. 1. I had the pleasure of watching one of the young ladies in our church graduate high school. Would you believe that they ran out of diplomas to give the kids and had to gather up diplomas they already gave out to some the children. This way no parent would miss the shot of their kid receiving a diploma. Tell me this – how do you run out? I mean didn’t they know the amount of children graduating? Apparently the person who placed the order was not a math major.

I got out of there by 2:30 and headed home. I called to find out the situation with the young woman in our church that was about to give birth. I had to make a couple of phone calls about that to others. I got home and an hour later I was headed to graduation No. 2. Two more young ladies from our church was graduating. I’m happy to report they had enough diplomas at this graduation. These ladies made me laugh walking in doing a little dance. They were so happy and their faces expressed their joy.

While graduation No. 2 was taking place the young woman from church was headed to the hospital. It’s now about 6:30 pm. I’m starting to get a little tired. I wonder why? I made several phone calls and head for the hospital. When I got there I was happy to see how well she was doing. She had an epidural and was feeling no pain. Her parents and some other friends arrived and we laughed with her and her husband while we waited. At 9:50 pm she gave birth to an adorable little baby. I got to see the baby and take pictures. Mom and child are doing well.

I headed home around 10:30 pm. I got to talk to my wonderful husband who by the way has been out of town since Wednesday. He checked with me a couple of times throughout the day for updates on all the happenings. He felt terrible he had to be away during this time.

I wanted to make potato salad for a special dinner tomorrow. So at 11:30 pm I was peeling potatoes. At this point I remembered one of my many phones calls with JG. She taught she was funny when she said, “Don’t forget you promised to make two cheesecakes for tomorrow.” Ha ha. Thanks for the laugh.


Today was a good day. It was a celebration of life in so many forms. All that was missing was a wedding. Life should be lived every day to the fullest. Even though it was a busy day as the pastor wife/friend, I would not have wanted to miss a moment of it. I love these people and was able to express my love to many of them. I thank You Lord for the opportunity to experience so many different rhythms of life in a day.

© Nadine Z. 2007

Passages, Graduation and New Life

We all go through experiences in life that mold and shape us. These things leave their mark on us – good and bad. Life consistently changes its rhythms. This week alone demonstrates various aspects of life.

A dear friend suffered the lost of her dad. My prayers are with her and her family during this difficult time. When someone you care about loses a loved one you can’t help but remember a time when you experienced the same thing. I lost my dad to cancer eighteen years ago. I watched as my mom and sister struggled to let him go. I think he hung on longer just to give them a little extra time. My dad became a Christian and I knew I would see him again someday. He had been so sick and lost his leg to an infection. It was a difficult time. Passages are a part of life, but it doesn’t make it any easier.

On Saturday five different teens from our church are graduating high school. I remember my children’s graduation as well as my own. It was a time of transition from childhood to young adulthood. You have your whole life ahead of you. It’s a time for many to leave home and begin life on their own for the first time. It’s scary for some and exciting for others. It a special time for parents as they let go and watch their child spread their wings.

In our church a young couple is awaiting the birth of their fourth child. She’ll probably have her baby by Saturday. The birth of child is a special event in every young couple’s life. After waiting for this child for nine months you finally get to look upon his face, hold his hand with your finger, hold him in your arms, count toes and dream of what he will become. No matter how much you prepare for his arrival you just can’t prepare for how such a small person can steal your heart and take your breath away.

Life comes full circle this week - a birth of a child, a graduation into adulthood and a passing of a father. But life is big and these are just moments in time on our journey.

Lord I pray you comfort those who mourn. Bring peace to their hearts and minds. Lord guide the young adults who are embarking on their new adventures. Bless new life and let it arrive smoothly.

© Nadine Z. 2007