“Most of life is not lived in crisis — which is a good thing. Not many of us would be able to sustain a life of perpetual pain or loss or ecstasy or challenge. Continue reading “Whoa, Pay Attention!”
Category: Spiritual Growth
No Worries!
My little Wren was so happy to find her new A & M home. She quickly checked it inside and out before she decided it was perfect. Then she started immediately ‘moving in.’ Twig after twig, spider webs, leaves and a little bit of yarn and voila! A comfy new home for her soon to be family. Continue reading “No Worries!”
In Due Time
‘In Due Time’ seems to be my summer-time theme. It started at the writer’s conference in June as a phrase repeated by several speakers and then picked up by the group of fellow writers I had the pleasure of hanging out with. All of us are praying that ‘in due time’ our work will be published.
While visiting my son in July, I was praying for my daughter-in-law’s salvation. I was asking God to send someone who she would listen to when His answer came quite clearly, “In due time.” I had to smile. His peace then came over me with such completeness, the worry and anxiety washed away.
Of course, it’s not a new phrase. We usually call it God’s timing. God’s timing is just one of those things I don’t believe we will ever come to understand, not here on earth anyway. Ecclesiastes 8:6 tells us, “For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter, though a man’s misery weighs heavily upon him.” The King knows the exact time and procedure needed for every situation. Even when we are in the middle of an unfortunate circumstance, we don’t have to know or understand what God is doing about it. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. (Isa. 55:8) We couldn’t understand if we tried and I’m beginning to think it’s a waste of our time and energy.
I believe our job in the situation is to trust Him and rest in Him. I like the way the Psalmist words his prayer in Psalm 131 (The Message).
God, I’m not trying to rule the roost,
I don’t want to be king of the mountain.
I haven’t meddled where I have no business
or fantasized grandiose plans.
2 I’ve kept my feet on the ground,
I’ve cultivated a quiet heart.
Like a baby content in its mother’s arms,
my soul is a baby content.
3 Wait, Israel, for God. Wait with hope.
Hope now; hope always!
Oh, that I could be this way and not meddle in God’s business and try to hurry things along or figure out a way to fix a problem I’m facing.
Learning to wait for His timing, His ‘in due time’ is not always easy. What a blessing He offers, that we can cuddle us in His arms and be content and wait. And look, we can wait with hope, hope now and hope always!
Anyone else waiting for His timing? What Scripture do you go to while you wait?
Thirsty?
It’s forecast to be another scorcher today but hopefully not like Monday’s temp of 108! Summer here in Texas can be brutal especially with no rain in sight. The plants are taking a beating and we’ve got to be careful to water our pets and livestock. We should be drinking even more water than usual. It’s a dry and thirsty land.
We don’t function well without many long cool drinks of water and our souls don’t either. Sometimes I think we forget to water our souls with living water. I know that I can be going along just fine with a little glass or a sip now and again but then dehydration sneaks up on me and I find myself confused, frustrated, and not doing well at all.
All it takes to get things running smoothly again is getting myself to the source, God’s Word. He wants us to come to Him, read His Word and be filled to the brim. He wants us to be like the deer in Psalms 42, panting for the water, the living water only He can provide. In verse 5, David reminds of what he would do, “Fix my eyes on God – soon I’ll be praising again. He puts a smile on my face. He’s my God.”
Stay thirsty for the Lord, just don’t wait until you are feeling the effects of dehydration to know that you’d better get yourself to the source of living water. Fix your eyes on God, praise Him, and He’ll be putting a smile on your face again in no time. For, He is your God!
Have a blessed day and start it off with a l-o-n-g cool drink from your friend, the Lord.
Let Them See Jesus
Have you ever been put off by a fellow Christian’s behavior? Maybe someone who teases past your comfort point or one who is just a bit too sarcastic that it makes you feel uneasy? When that happens, sometimes we might not stay around them long enough to see the heart of the person, to see Jesus in them.
Recently I met someone whose teasing sense of humor was relentless, and I noticed that I steered clear of him every time we were in the same room. Not until he spoke to the whole group and shared his love and compassion for people through Scripture did his true heart shine through. Then, no matter how much teasing followed, the truth in his heart could not be overshadowed. He didn’t change, but my attitude toward him certainly did.
It was like those hidden picture pages in the children’s magazines. You know, the ones that have you looking for hours for a silly toothbrush in a drawing of a library, and you cannot find it until you do. Then, you can’t not see it. Once I saw Jesus in this gentleman, I couldn’t not see it, no matter how silly his jokes or how endless his teasing, Jesus shined through.
I hope people can see Jesus in me. I wouldn’t want the way I act or the things I say to get in the way. I’m afraid there have been times that my sarcasm has come through much louder than my Jesus. Hopefully, as I’ve gotten older and maybe a bit wiser, that happens far less often. A quick review of James, Chapter 3 is always a good idea! That tongue can certainly get out of control sometimes.
What do you think? Do people see Jesus in you clearly or do they have to get passed your humor, sarcasm, or something else to see Him?
Search Me, Lord
Lined up on my back fence was a male cardinal and three fledglings. He was busy feeding them one by one as he’d fly off to find food and return to continue his meal time duties. The whole scene was lovely except for one glaring abnormality – one of his babies was obviously not a cardinal. Continue reading “Search Me, Lord”
Listen for the Real Thing
I walked outside one morning to find a beautiful bird gleaning the foliage of our backyard bottle brush tree. Since I’d never seen this bird before, I quickly ran back inside for my bird book and phone. Continue reading “Listen for the Real Thing”
Get it Handled
Years ago, I had the privilege of teaching the Lydia Class in Sunday School. This was a lovely group of senior women whose ages ranged from 75 to 85 and beyond. I remember being very excited to teach them but at the same time a bit anxious about just what I could possibly teach them, after all, I was in my thirties! When I received the material to use for the class, I was surprised to read the topic for the first lesson, adultery. Really? For the Lydia class?!
Sunday came, we all got settled into our little classroom, opened with prayer and as soon as I got the word amen out of my mouth, one of the sweet little ladies spoke up. “Patti” she began, “we thought we would set your mind at ease about today’s lesson and let you know that we all agree that we’ve pretty much handled the adultery thing!” We all laughed and I quickly responded, “I am so happy to hear that you don’t have a problem with sexual immorality now that you are 80, but y’all there’s a second part to the lesson, how are you with… murmuring?” Suddenly, it was very quiet.
Sometimes we get to a point in our lives where we have conquered a certain sin or two but then there are other sins that are a bit harder to give up. The murmuring, complaining, and grumbling that we all are guilty of from time to time, that one, is a bit harder to stop. The Israelites were known throughout Scripture as a people who murmured and complained and God dealt with them sternly. Grumbling was one of the sins they committed which caused them to wander the desert. Complaining may not sound like a serious sin to us but God takes it very seriously.
In Philippians 2:14-15, Paul implores the people, “Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure children of God, without fault in a crooked and depraved generation…” He wrote this around the year 61 AD, the world was crooked and depraved then, too. It was no harder for them to stop complaining than it is for us now, but He still wants us to stop, He still wants us blameless and pure.
Romans 12:18 says, “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” We need to cut out the murmuring and complaining and take responsibility for our conversations, because they do ‘depend on us’ in order to have a peaceful outcome. I know, we can only be responsible for our part of a conversation, but I’m guessing we all could work a bit harder at removing the complaining and griping that is so very easy to fall into.
Join me in a challenge. Let’s pray that God will show each of us when we are about to murmur and complain, and ask Him to help us stop before we start. Before long it may very well be a sin we get to call ‘handled’.
All Birdys Welcome
A friend of mine, who knows I love birds, gave this cute bird sign to me for my birthday this year. Of course, as an English teacher, the first thing I saw was the misspelled word. Continue reading “All Birdys Welcome”
Forgiveness & Revenge
Forgiveness is not an easy thing for me. Maybe it is for you. Continue reading “Forgiveness & Revenge”
Gold Star Momma 