Author: sashakatz

This is who I am. Loved by Him. Loved by a girl I call Peanut Butter. And a Mysterious Teen who I call my First Born. Journeying with the same man since 11th grade. Joyfully living, moving and breathing in Him. Certain that we will see the goodness of God in the Land of the Living.

What I Have Learned Lately

On By sashakatzIn Uncategorized2 Comments

Emily P Freeman’s Blog Chatting at the Sky inspired me to collect my thoughts, quotes and other good things in one secure place.  As well as to share them.  I cannot think of a better way to become a more authentic self.  I cannot think of better way build on the great work of all of the exceptional women and men around me. I cannot think of a better way to encourage and inspire one another.

What I Learned as a Friend: I can serve others when I am under attack myself.

What I Learned as a Parent: Those who are in the decision-making position are not always right, even when they are a believer.

Verse: Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom. Let not the mighty man glory and his might. Nor the rich man glory in his riches. Let him who glories, glory in this, that he understands and knows Me. Jeremiah 9:23

Deep thought: I’m learning that the invisible God is working far more mightily and miraculously than I will ever see in the visible world. I’m learning to deeply trust what I cannot see. This is changing the core of my human perspective and my understanding of the very air I breathe.

Quote: The miracle, upside down work of God is that our failure isn’t an obstacle, it’s an opportunity to remember to sink into God. Not having what it takes is not a liability, it’s a prerequisite. Maybe there is hope for us after all.  A Million Little Ways by Emily P. Freeman (Chapter 5)

Book(s) that shape me: A Million Little Ways by Emily P. Freeman

My Prayer to You: May you breathe in the power of God; and breathe out His great plans.  May you be your authentic self.  May you serve others with your heart and soul despite your own storms.  I pray that you would trust a God that you cannot see and fine tune your sight to His invisible power.  I pray that you take in what He has for you, in part, through the good work of others.  And, at the end of every day, you never lose hope for the breakthroughs, miracles and every good thing He has planned for you.

My Insignificant Places

On By sashakatzIn FemmeFuel by JMathisLeave a comment

By JMathis

You reside in the space between my toes. In the ridge under my nose. In the flutter of my eyelashes. In the crook of my elbow.

You are here in all of my insignificant places. Yet, in my lofty search for significant meaning and grandiose gestures (capital S signs and capital W wonders, all in the backdrop of the HOLLYWOOD sign), I forget how very present you are in the nooks and crannies of my day-to-day existence.

I am always looking upward, pointing my Job-like fists heavenward, wondering and demanding as to when I will hear from you, and when you will make yourself known to me.

I lose sight that the very sky I scream at, is in actuality, an expanse that daily surrounds me, buoys me, and lovingly encompasses every square inch in, around and above my feet.

I forget that even the sky where you reside is also the space between my toes.

Help me to fearlessly taste the freedom of running into the clear-blue richness of your grace, without the paralyzing myopia of getting lost in the crags of my feet.

I want to jump head-first into my insignificant places and cartwheel into your presence, past my toenails, past my calluses. I want to do handstands into your glory, through each breath, through every blink of an eyelash. I want to somersault into the vastness of your forgiveness, each time I bend my arms for an embrace.

Dwell in me, breathe in me and envelop me and all of my insignificant places.

Make all of my insignificant places into significant spaces, worthy of you.

Help me to discover your Spirit in all of the places where you reside, even in those places that don’t seem to carry their weight in headlines.

You in me, and me in you.

Your significance in my insignificance.

Daily.

Planning 2015: Mother to My Son

On By sashakatzIn FemmeFuel by Sasha Katz, Parenting3 Comments

I am continuing to share with you my revelations for 2015.  Today, I share with you the mother I would like to be to my son.  Please journey with me.  Your comments and perspective are more than welcome here.

Mother

My sweet eleven year old boy has been doggie paddling through some rough waters. I think he has been hit in the face with some of that water.  He swims on, but I see that his self-esteem has taken some hits.  For a boy that mainly seeks to please, rarely voices any complaints and often lives in his own thoughts, it’s easy to keep on trucking without taking any pit stops.  As his mama, I am committed this year to taking a lot of pit stops for refreshments, rest and meaningful exchange along our life’s route.

My plans for him include a weekly date with me.  I am inspired to reach out to him and take interest in his life.  He loves lacrosse – – I am sports-challenged, but I plan to have him teach me the game.  He expressed an interest in starting a coin collection – – we can do that together.  I also am inspired to teach him how to be the man I want for me, his future wife and his daughters one day.  I’m learning that it takes a mom to instill in her son a deep understanding of women.  I’m encouraged to give him insights into a woman’s world so that he can navigate his way through it with honor and goodness.

I’m also remembering and learning again the timeless qualities of honorable manhood.  Honor, courage, commitment, sacrifice, love, compassion, forgiveness, wisdom and grace.  These are qualities I encourage in my kids, both male and female.  But I am breathing in the singularity of what these qualities mean for a boy in a boy’s world, or a man in a man’s world.  The angle is different.  I want to be the edge or angle that allows the light to shine in on his growing manhood.

The revelation, the different thing, the building block is that building character is bound to build long term self esteem in the boy.  I don’t really want to just tell him how wonderful he is anymore.  I don’t just want to talk to him about what is good and right and holy.  I want him to believe who he is and live who God made him to be.  As my boy grows into a man, I see that he has to know who he is on the inside; and that belief has to be something he comes to know independently.

If you are interested in reading a few of the articles I read on raising an honorable man, check out the following:   It’s A Boy!, How Moms Can Lead Their Sons into Good, Honorable Manhood and Protecting the Self Esteem of Boys.

 

Planning 2015: A Beautiful Life

On By sashakatzIn FemmeFuel by Sasha Katz4 Comments

The resolution hoopla is about to begin.  My first resolution email came today (but I actually loved it, feel free to check it out Real Change Starts with You by Dr. Nicholas Jenner).  The chatter comes from every direction.  Weight.  Toxic Relationships.  Bad Habits of all sorts.  I think it’s the balanced life that most of us seek.  The truth is that some of us make resolutions and don’t keep them.  Some of us refuse to make them because we know we never keep them.  My mom tends to think they’re stupid because you should be seeking positive change year round.  A lot of resolutions will be made and some will be kept.  Just like in the years past.

I’ve taken my mom’s lead on resolutions. I don’t normally have them just once a year.  Sometimes I have the smaller ones daily or weekly, but I try to reassess everything every three to six months.  I looked back on my general list from last year.  I planned to be flexible, intentional and supportive.  It’s hard to let yourself be the judge of that, but I think I sought after those characteristics and reached success in some areas of my life.  I had a few financial goals.  I don’t feel comfortable saying that I passed, but I don’t think I completely failed either. I had a charitable goal in regard to giving and becoming a voice for a handful of organizations.  As the year comes to a close, I think I did that.  Not perfectly, room for improvement and change this year, but I can half smile about that part of my list.

Ministry and parenting were on my list this year.  I committed to my ministry plans and I think I accomplished them.  Although in the larger scheme of things, I am not a parenting fail (as my son would say), but I am seeking the most improvement in this area.  Really praying for the Lord to keep my kids small voices in balance with my work life’s loud voice.  (I have a lot more to say on this later.)  And, the truth is, wife to my husband was not even on my list!  (Shame on me, I think?)

Today, I have had the pleasure of being home alone for the last several hours with my thoughts and plans for 2015.  Somewhere between The Eisenhower Matrix, a weekly graph from The 7 Habits of a Highly Effective Person and my desire to serve God with the time He has given me, I am half way to being where I want to be in 2015.  Meaning the first few months of the year.

One of the neat practices I recently adopted when planning my time is to keep my roles in tact.  The order of them changes with the different callings of each week.  But I keep them at the forefront of my planning.  Business partner, Writer/Reader, Wife, Mother, Churchgoer.  It’s fairly easy to see if I am neglecting the Lord’s calling on my life if one of these areas is hogging all of the time.  Given the thoughtful woman that I know you are, I am sharing with you what I have come up with in one area of my life – WIFE.  In the days to come, before we hit January 1, I plan to share with you all of my revelations and resolutions.  I hope that you do the same as we walk together this beautiful life that God has given us.

Wife

I have been trying to figure out how to date my husband since September.  It sounds simple, but for me, it hasn’t been.  Do we take the morning off of work to spend some time together?  Do we plan on the weekend and pay a babysitter?  Do I offer another couple to watch their kids once a month if they watch mine?  Do we pack them up for the weekend at the grandparents?  I was obviously frozen by the options for the last three months.  And, then, what do we do?  I was lucky enough to chat with another backstage mom at my daughter’s Nutcracker show to get some great ideas.  I concluded that we haven’t been having nearly as much fun as we could be.  So . . . in January, we are going on a touristy river boat ride we have been talking about since we got married. (This is the Jungle Queen that honked its horn as it passed my wedding ceremony on the river shore.)  In February, we are going to the SoBe Food and Wine Festival (that we also have been talking about for years).  Both were holiday gifts to him, my beloved.  And in March, I think we’ll take a cooking lesson at Sur La Table.  There you have it . . . working on being a more fun wife.

What is Your God Plus?

On By sashakatzIn FemmeFuel by Sasha Katz1 Comment

The past few weeks, God has been giving me a chance to really see where my security rests.  He is causing me to ask myself, Do I trust in Him or do I trust in the things He has given to me?  That’s a hard question when what you expect is not exactly what you see.  Do I trust in the fact that He gives me the ability to work?  Financial security?  Or do I trust that the Giver provides exactly what I need?  In His timing.  These are the things I ask myself as I move through a season of change.  As I move through what feels uncomfortable to me.  From the past, I know that God is always faithful to me.  What I don’t know is what that looks like from season to season.

Looking back in time, I see that my God shaped hole has to do with being afraid.  And, the biggest part of my afraid is going somewhere alone.  I have no idea where I would be going that God would not go with me.  But, when I am stretched, when I feel limited, when I feel weak, my fear is that this is the point in which God is going to send me off for a run on my own.  The fear is in part abandonment.  The fear is in part a question of His love.  That God shaped hole, that He filled so long ago.  I admit that God is using this short season to fill in the tiny leaking crevices.  In that God shaped hole.

When I look deep inside my soul, I see that I trust God.  But, I also have the fear that He just might make me go alone.  Although that is alternative to every Word our God speaks, I fear alone when life puts me in a pressure cooker.  If I really think about it.  If I believe it’s God who is allowing the pressure cooking.  If I believe He is the Master of All.  If I believe He is the bottom line for how much pressure He will allow.  If He’s the one flipping the on button, picking the temperature and choosing the time.  If He’s the one who is locking the top and putting us in there together.  He’s the one who is with me.  If I believe He is the Master of All.  If I believe He is who He says He is, I can’t be alone.  In the pressure cooker. Or ever.

Inside the locked top, He is the one who knows what causes me to grow.  He is the one who is letting the heat burn off my self security.  He is the one who tells me that He is my Helper.  He is the one who calls me to give sacrificially to Him under all circumstances.  The primary reason I don’t want to be inside the pressure cooker is my fear that I will find myself alone.  With no power or tools or faith to make it through the short season.  And that my whole life and all of my efforts will burn up in the cooker.

And, now the smile is rising up in me.  Now, I catch the wisdom of the Lord.  Yes, all that He really wants is for me to live like my whole life and all of my efforts are burned up in the pressure cooker.  He wants me to live my life welcoming the crashing waves as they pull out the sand from the shore.  He wants me to live my life welcoming the pulling out of my self security.  He wants me to live in anticipation of what He places within me after He pulls out something from the flesh in me.

I pray that you would ask yourself today where your security rests.  I pray that you would examine what you think sustains you in this life.  I pray that you don’t look surfacely and conclude you don’t have any secret requirements.  We all have a tendency to love God with all our hearts, minds and souls and then add something to that . . .  that looks and feels more secure than God alone.

What is your God plus?  Look into the eyes of God and ask Him to take it.  He is who He says He is.  His intimacy, power, love and goodness stand higher, deeper and stronger than whatever you are limiting Him by.  Sister, whatever you have decided to give up today, please do share so that we can all be strengthened by the deep wisdom and power of our God.

FF Dec 7

The Beauty of the Body

On By sashakatzIn FemmeFuel by Sasha Katz5 Comments

When the road you are walking on shakes and the thunder vibrates your path, it’s hard to keep your faith from flustering. It’s hard not to question your walk, your direction. It’s hard not to let a dart of doubt strike you – – it’s hard not to have a faith puncture right in your side. It’s the reality of the hardships of this life. We are a human lifetime short of eternity. And, sometimes we feel it more than we want to.

I think about the girlfriends in my life. I think about my own life. I think about how we, in a healthy way, process difficulties. It’s about giving my time and timeline to God. Turning over my thoughts to Him. Hearing Him lead me to scriptures. It’s a process of letting go, giving God the reins and going where He leads. It’s a process of building up faith to the point of total commitment to God’s plans for your life. You are eventually washed in the belief that God is only good and His care for you goes on indefinitely. This is how, for the most part, the believer processes hardship, life’s difficulties.

I tell you about these things because they’re true. But it’s only half of the story. There is another piece to a walk of hardship. God’s hand also holds you through the body of Christ. Recently, God has shown me the beauty of the body. I want to share with you a few examples of the body of Christ working in the lives of me and the sisters I have the privilege of knowing.

Many of you felt the tremor of our former pastor’s resignation last Spring. The open wounds and sadness were sort of like a Florida summer weather report where the constant rain and heat feel indefinite. But then came the ladies retreat at end of summer. I had a moment of taking in the hundreds of ladies worshipping God with pure hearts. With the kind of Crazy Love that Frances Chan writes about. With the kind of abandon that you only find when you know you have been saved by a Savior. As the Lord was allowing me to take all of that in, my faith was built in the way of the faithfulness of the body of Christ. No matter what happens on the top, where man sometimes fails, the body of believers has the ability to remain intertwined and faithful to the Living God.

Have you ever hit a brick wall? It’s the place where your faith and your life circumstances intersect. You know that God is good and His word is right, but that doesn’t gel with the facts you are facing. I had a period where my marriage seemed to be at the end. We could not see eye to eye on nonnegotiable issues for both of us. The reality of that brought me to my breaking point. At my weakest moments, I laid out my rock-and-a-hard place personal trauma. My best friend C said we are going to fast and she did that with me. Other close friends prayed and called me and took action to circle around my hardship. God worked through all of the efforts of the body of Christ to knock down an immovable brick wall.

I also see the body of Christ faithful in the way of meeting needs. And, you know, my sisters, the need is great. I think of my friend S whose dad’s life on earth ended. I think of my friend Y whose husband just had another serious surgery. I think of the 11 year old girl in my son’s class who just lost her dad unexpectedly. I see the body send meal after meal. I see the body send cards and give cash gifts to help with expenses. I see the body jump at the opportunity to be there in times of need.

What I know is that no person is an island even with God at her side. He is our sustenance. Our breath. But He made us to also need each other. Sometimes it feels like a leap of faith to accept food or money or prayers or help from a sister. It’s not natural in our culture to turn your back on complete self sufficiency. But, in God’s richness, He gives deeply through His body. I pray, I really pray, that whether you are on the giving side or the receiving side that you genuinely take in the love of Christ offered to you through the body.

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