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Author Archive for Christie Pickard

Bumps in the Road

Posted by Christie Pickard on Saturday, February 27th, 2010 in Faith | Comments (0)
It was truly a beautiful day. The sun was shining. The birds were singing. The flowers were blooming. I should have been in the best mood, but my day looked gray as I laid on the couch.
The house was quickly filled with the laughter and busyness of two energetic children. My niece and nephew would always make my day. Lilly Grace was three at the time and Eli was five. They had no idea that my world had been rocked and that I was struggling. Hugs and kisses and giggling were just part of the package when they were around… my brother knew I needed it.
He also knew I needed to get out of the house. We loaded up and headed to the state park. Hiking is one thing that is therapy to my soul. I love the peace that rustles through the trees as I walk and the view is always breathtaking. We began our hike near the animal rescue. There were owls, raccoons, and other woodland creatures in cages near the trail head. Seth and Lilly Grace were hand in hand as usual. He being a big burly six foot three and her being a petite three year old were a sight to see.
As she stumbled across the stumps of tree roots that had ruptured the ground beneath her tiny feet, she would look up and say, “Daddy, God loves me so much that He made these beautiful (sounded more like bootiful) flowers just for me.” And he would reply with a gentle, “Yes baby, He did.” She continued to describe the trees, the grass, the animals and the sky the same way and he continued to respond in the same manner. She then said, “Then Daddy, why did He make so many bumps in the road?” We all froze in our tracks. Tears began to stream down my face. Had God just spoken to me through a three year old? Was that happening? Did she really say what I think she said?
The very question I had for my Heavenly Father was coming right out of her mouth. God spoke softly to my heart as the breeze blew through the trees. Those bumps were not meant for harm, but for growth. To me, part of being God strong is realizing that God wants the very best for us, and though it may not seem like the best at that point in time or ever for that matter, we must remember the words in Jeremiah 29:11: “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.”

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To love like Him

Posted by Christie Pickard on Friday, October 9th, 2009 in Marriage | Comments (2)

When Sara told me this month’s theme, I got chills! It just happens to be my favorite topic! I love~love! I love falling in love, being in love, movies about love, books about love and cute little hearts added to anything is just fabulous! I love all the frills and thrills that encompass this word!

But my dear sisters above all else, I get most excited about God’s love! Sometimes when I try to wrap my brain around just how much God must love us, it overwhelms me. Tears quickly rush to fill my eyes, chills surge all over, and my heart is full. To think that God loved me so much that He would sacrifice His own pure and holy son for me, takes my breath away. It makes Ephesians 5 almost incomprehensible.

In Ephesians 5, it states that husbands are to love their wives as Christ loves the church. Let’s ponder this for a moment… Christ came to this world for the sole purpose of redemption through laying down His life for us…the unlovable. Can you imagine? The unseemly people that populate this planet at any given time are exactly who Christ loves so much. So is this verse implying that no matter how we look, act or love that he loves us and our husbands are to do the same? I believe so. It means that their love is to be unconditional of our person. I don’t know about you, but I like that idea! When I am being difficult, he has to love me. When I am 5 pounds heavier, he has to love me. When my hair is messed up and I don’t have my make-up on, he has to love me!

But wait! What does that mean for us? It also says wives submit to your husbands as to the Lord. As to the Lord… wow… not sure I ever read that part before today. So what it is saying is that my submissiveness is not based on my husband’s actions, appearance or my feelings that particular day. This is real important to us military wives. When they are away from us, we are to submit. When they are not being kind to us due to all the stress of deployment, we are to submit. When we are angry that they are packing their bags again, we are to submit.

I have always hated the word submit, so let’s just play with it for a minute. What happens when God tells you to do something you really don’t want to do? You submit. What happens when you are in circumstances that you don’t particularly like and you feel like God is why you are there? You submit (perhaps after many conversations). What happens when you don’t “feel” like He is there? You search for Him. What happens when you feel like there is a break in the relationship? You work feverishly to restore it. You begin removing the sin in your life through repentance and communication. We may get angry at God for our circumstances, but we would never be disrespectful to Him. We would always have in mind that He is God and He knows what is best for us. We don’t want to have a broken relationship with Him. So could we conclude that submission is respect? Respect for the direction, relationship (no matter how rocky) and love that you share.

This verse makes our love and actions independent of our mates love or actions. This is a hard concept for us to swallow, but it is there in Ephesians 5. I don’t believe I have put this much thought into these verses before today. I read it. I understood it on a surface level. I liked it. But now when I read with a fresh pair of eyes, I see so much more than ever before!

I see that my submissiveness is not based on his love for me. It is just what it says: submit myself to him as I would to Christ without reservation, without stipulation, without limit! What an awesome love is to be between to people! Imagine if we all took these verses and applied in the true context of the Bible what might come of our marriages! Imagine the families that would be affected by the waves of God’s love that would be coursing through our communities.

How would it change you if your husband loved you like this? How would it change him if you respected him the way that God has asked us to? Perhaps this is why God gives us this picture of love and respect that is not based on the behavior of the other party in the relationship.

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Our Father never leaves us!

Posted by Christie Pickard on Thursday, October 1st, 2009 in Faith | Comments (1)

Recently, our pastor tried to describe Luke 1:69 to us. Don’t scurry to get your Bible, I am going to give it to you. It is about the birth of John.

First, watch this video. I promise, there’s a point to it.

Now back to my pastor’s sermon.

Short history(basically in my own words)- The Lord told Zechariah that he and Elisabeth would have a child. Zechariah said um ok but we’re kind of old, so how are you going to do it. God said I am going to do it and then he silenced Zechariah(literally) until the baby was born for his unbelief (If God chose to do this today, I am afraid we would all be mutes). The baby was John the Baptist. John’s whole purpose is to declare JESUS is here! (What an awesome purpose!) So when John is born, God says ok so now you can talk again Zechariah. Zechariah, not wanting to be silenced again I’m sure, started singing praises(Luke 1:67-79). In verse 69 Zechariah says … He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David.

I have heard this passage a million times. I have heard this story a million times, but never have I thought of it this way. I was inspired during the service to begin writing my thoughts and now I am writing them here.

Every time that I have heard this message I have thought of the horn as a trumpet or a saxophone or some beautiful horn. I love to hear the band play at half time. I love to hear any kind of music. I have always viewed salvation as beautiful and it is,but never have I viewed it as strong. . . even though in the margin of my Bible it says that the word Horn symbolizes strength. I have always thought of it as beautiful, pretty, pleasing, maybe music to my ears…. but what I think I have missed before today is that it is the POWER to retrieve me from the deadly grips of sin to draw me into His amazingly loving arms to recover from my scars and grow to become more like HIM (just like the baby buffalo)!!!! Did I know that there was power in salvation? YES! I just never viewed this verse the way that it was intended.

I believe now more than ever that the kind of horn that it is referring to is the horn on the buffalo in this video. This baby buffalo is fighting for its life. The lions had it and then the crocodile had it and then the lions get it again. It looks like all hope is lost. It looks as if there is no way this baby will make it and then appears PAPA BUFFALO and his horn of strength! Shut up! Does the PAPA buffalo actually believe that he can take this team of evil lions??? The people in the background say it is too late, there is no hope for this little buffalo that has gone astray… but then the HORN starts flicking these massive lions around like they are boogers (sorry I know that some of you just gagged a little). They are no match for PAPA going to get his baby.

How many of us have been in the grip of sin(lions and crocodiles) and then Jesus swooped in and saved us from our certain doom with His Horn of salvation!!! Are ya dancing and shouting yet???

Even in our everyday life sometimes it seems that our face is actually in the mouth of a lion while another has us by the throat and yet there is a crocodile fighting for their piece of you. You feel like you can’t walk another mile. You can’t even see a light at the end of this tunnel. YOU see no way out. AND then without warning without even a hint that HE is near… God takes His almighty horn and begins to chase away those that intend harm to you!!! The Horn of Salvation is strength and it is strong enough to drag you out of whatever miry pit you may be wallowing around in!!! I have witnessed it again and again!

I could go on… This is good stuff guys! I just had to share! I hope you are as blessed as I was!
Love you all!
Christie

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The test of marriage

Posted by Christie Pickard on Tuesday, September 8th, 2009 in Marriage | Comments (0)

christiepickardDuring my husband’s recent deployment to Iraq, our marriage of 13 years was tested. Times of separation are never good for any marriage, but this time it was particularly difficult. It was our first overseas deployment. He had been mobilized twice practically back to back. It was two years almost straight, but he was in the US. Not to make light of any time we spend separated from our spouse, but overseas deployment is very different.

Initially we went through the arguments and frustrations of deployment. Withdrawal on his part before he left made me feel insecure in our relationship and insecure about him leaving. After he was gone, he would call home and there was silence. We had absolutely nothing to say to one another. It was so painful and difficult to comprehend. I was struggling to keep my chin up and function every day and he was struggling with leaving me in that situation. I could literally feel our bonds tearing apart. It was so incredibly painful and scary.

When he finally came home for R&R, we decided that things had to change. My husband and I went to the Christian book store together and picked out three Bible studies and bought two copies of each. (One had a video. I contacted the company and told them what we were doing and asked for a second copy of the video and they gladly sent it to me for free!) We planned to read our study on the same day and when we could communicate, we would talk about what we had read. It might be through text, emails, skype, yahoo, or on the phone.

One of the studies was “A Marriage without Regrets” by Kay Arthur. There is a book and a study guide available. It wasn’t too time consuming and it has some very good thought provoking questions that really encouraged communication. Please know that there are literally thousands of studies to choose from this just happened to be my favorite even though at times it was hard.

Communicate with your husband

Daily communication is so vital. In some cases, it is not possible to actually speak everyday, but I made some effort to contact him. I sent an email, text or even a real letter. He would make every effort to do the same. When you have had a horrible day and you feel the only step you can make is to crawl into bed; take five minutes and tell your spouse about your day. They want to feel a part of your life. He knows he is missing out, but he doesn’t want to be. Tell him little Johnny drew on the walls with crayons, you had an argument with your boss and you miss him so very much! He needs to hear you need him and miss him.  Don’t be all doom and gloom, because he does need to maintain his focus in the field. But by that same token, don’t be afraid to say you had a bad day.

Protect your marriage

Most importantly, protect your relationship! This was the most important part of our plan. Hold onto your seats! You are about to read a very radical concept in marriage safety. Don’t talk to the opposite sex about personal issues. That’s it in a nut shell! The key to affair proofing your marriage can lie in those few words of wisdom from days gone by.

Don’t go to dinner with them or allow them to bring dinner. Don’t be home alone when they offer to cut your grass or trim your hedges. Have a trusted friend, sister or your mother over if someone offers to help you. You are vulnerable. You may be angry that he is gone and some other man has to do his chores. You may just be lonely. Men are created with a desire to take care of us. They may not intend anything but to take care of their friend’s wife. They feel a sense of duty while he is away on his duty. That alone time and your sadness are a deadly combination and can cause numerous problems! Danger, Will Robinson!

Make some time just for the two of you

Finally, once he returns home, make it a point to have alone time. You two are going to have to reconnect. The military and military support systems offer many ways for you two to get away for little or no cost to you. Strong Bonds, Yellow Ribbon and A Weekend to Remember are just a few wonderful opportunities to reconnect after deployment. No matter what you choose, plan to reconnect in a way and time that is meaningful to the two of you.

Remember what First Corinthians 13:7 says: “Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”

Sgt. James and Christie Pickard live near Atlanta with their children. Christie is an Enrichment Specialist for a local school system and James works for a local law enforcement agency. He is also in the Army Reserves.

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And then he ran

Posted by Christie Pickard on Thursday, August 6th, 2009 in Kids | Comments (0)

I remember vividly the day we arrived at my dear friend’s river lot. We were busy unloading the car and I told my two year old, Cody, to stay right by my side and not move until I had his life vest out and on him. He looked up at me with those glaring blue eyes and adorable smile as if to say, “of course mother… I would never do anything against your wishes.” I smiled back at him as I began to hurry and unload the rest of our mountain of “needs” for the day.

The sun was beating down on us as it only does in Alabama and we were all anxious to get into that glistening water to cool off. In a split second, Cody was running in a sprint toward the pier. It was with great determination and joy that he sprinted. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw those short little chubby legs going as fast as they possibly could go. I panicked and dropped everything in my arms and began to run toward the water praying that God would allow me to run faster than a speeding bullet just for today!

A friend of ours was closer than I was and had noticed the run away freight train in the shape of my little boy headed for that cool, deep water. There he went… into the depths of the river… no flotation device… no mom… no dad… no fear! The horror of that moment rises in my throat again as I type this story. Our friend Jay hit the water about the same time as my little Cody did. He grabbed his batman shirt and yanked! It seemed that with one grasp, my baby hung in the balance of life and death. He popped his little head up and giggled as he spat out water (oh the horror that he was ingesting river water) and coughed a little. I made it to the end of the pier and grabbed Cody from the caring arms of our friend.

The relief I felt was strange. At the moment when I realized he was ok, I also realized the danger that he was in. I often thought that I needed to have him on a leash or a chain to keep him safe. I knew that when he was within my watchful eye that he would be safe and I could make sure of that. As Cody got older, it became harder to keep that watchful eye on him… literally.

Now he is 21 years old and as I find it harder than ever to watch him run into the sea that is the world without me, I find myself reflecting on God’s Word. I also wish now more than ever that I had a leash or a chain to keep him close to me and safe! I realize that what I must hold fast to is the Word of the Lord. Proverbs 22:6 says “Train up a child in the way that he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (KJV). Proverbs 3:5 reminds us to “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding” (NASB).

We can’t hold fast to our children literally, but we can hold fast to the Word. The Word says to train our children and trust the Lord. My mom always says when you are not sure of what to do, look for what you are sure of…

We can always be sure of the Word.

Christie is the wife of  a military police officer who serves in the United States Army Reserves. They live near Atlanta with their children Cody 21, Mollie 18, Justin 16 and Michaela 11. Christie has taught gifted students for nine years and is active in their local church.

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