Hope – Page 8 – Growing 4 Life

The Cluttered Past

4 Comments / September 30, 2013 September 30, 2013

Let me first state here that I tend to be a Type A personality to a certain extent. I like my i’s dotted and my t’s crossed. I like a plan and I like life to go according to that plan.

Of course, God has been working on me in this area for a long time. Obviously, life doesn’t always–or even often– go according to plan. Sometimes things in life do not fit into a neat little box.

Take e-mail for instance.

Yes, e-mail.

Being inundated by e-mails is one of those modern-day issues that didn’t exist at all a mere 20 years ago. But now–in 2013–it is how businesses and stores and marketers and charities and, oftentimes, even family and friends communicate with us. That makes for a lot of e-mails.

Let me take you back a few years. Back to the day I decided to sign up for a g-mail account. As the e-mails started pouring in, I would go crazy trying to organize them. I would spend hours deleting, filing, and sorting e-mails.

Of course, the problem was that I would have to do it all over again the next day. The other problem was that I would inevitably delete something I would need weeks or months down the road. I was so frustrated and couldn’t figure out how to make it easier.

And then came the conversation.

I was having a conversation with a young twenty-something about my frustration with this. His response to me was simple: just leave them all there.

The internal dialogue started. What? Leave all of the e-mails in my box, cluttering cyberspace, not to mention my screen?? Why, I could never do that! It goes against all that is within me. It’s not even right.

But his suggestion made my wheels start turning and a day or two later, I started entertaining the idea. What if I did do that? Any e-mail I needed would be available with a quick search. Would it really be that big of a deal to let them just sit there? Perhaps it was a just a head thing that I was bothered by the screen full of e-mails? Eventually, I came to the conclusion that I didn’t have much to lose if I put his suggestion into practice for a day or two.

And so I decided to give it a temporary try. I forced myself to put my obsessive compulsion to have a clean inbox aside and let the messages sit there staring at me.

At first, it was hard. But, very gradually, over time, I got used to it. So much so that it became my normal.

Now, years later, I have thousands of messages in my g-mail account. If you e-mailed me last October, it is still there. If you e-mailed me three years ago, it is there. In fact, unless it was definitely junk with zero chance of ever needing to be recalled and therefore deleted, it is there.

And I bet you are thinking so what?

Well, I got to thinking about my life.

A few months ago, because of knee issues, I was told that I will never run again. I was and continue to be disappointed about this. No, I was never a marathon runner or even called myself an “official” runner. But I enjoyed running as a form of exercise. When I ran, I felt free and powerful. And now those days are over.

I have struggled to work through this. The typical thoughts —This isn’t fair! Why me? Now what do I do for exercise? — all raced through my mind.

But, no matter what, this experience is now part of who I am. It is woven into the fabric of my life. I cannot delete it. I cannot go back and edit it. I am now the woman with the arthritic left knee that can no longer run.

I am also the mother of four almost grown children.

I am a woman who has had a miscarriage.

I am the woman who drove a car into a barn (and no, I am not telling that whole story, so don’t ask!)

All of this stuff makes up my past. It is messy. Some of it is embarrassing. Some of it is painful. And some of it is wonderful. But all of it is what makes me who I am.

Sometimes, I just want to clear out my life “in-box” and be given a second chance. A second chance at being a wife (learning to be submissive in marriage has been painful for both me and my husband), a second chance at being a mother (all that yelling and frustration was pointless and hurtful). Even a second chance at being a church member, a co-worker, a daughter. Of course, this isn’t possible.

But I am not the same person I was then. I’ve grown in grace, in spiritual maturity, and in love. Oh, I have a long way to go yet, but, looking back, I can see that there has been some progress. And all of my experiences from my past were used by God to change me.

Instead of viewing the untidy mess of our past as a liability, let’s view it as a blessing. Oh, maybe not what we typically view as a blessing, but a blessing, nevertheless.

For we would not be who we are now, if it weren’t for what we went through then.

If you are a committed Christian, then God has used all of your circumstances to mold you to be more like Jesus.

And, just like my e-mails that sit somewhere in cyberspace, so the moments of our lives take space in the recesses of our mind, molding and making us into the person we have become.

And, while the current e-mails stare at me when I hop on g-mail, the ones written three years ago are hidden way deep in cyber space. I don’t look at them every day. I don’t search for them. Our memories should be a little like that, too. We shouldn’t be wallowing in despair and discouragement and regret over the past (unless there is something unresolved and unforgiven–a topic for another post on a different day).

And, unlike e-mail, our pasts come with baggage. And we have a decision to make. Will it make me a better person or will it make me a bitter person? Will I grow more like Christ from my past experiences or will I grow less like Christ?

That is the question.

If you are reading this right now can you look back and see how God has created beauty from the ashes of your life? Or have you been so wrapped up in despair and self-pity, that you haven’t been able to see any growth or change at all? Only you can answer that question.

Wednesday Wisdom: This Could Be the Day!

Leave a Comment / September 25, 2013 September 25, 2013

I can still remember when I first heard this song. I was a young mom, catching a quick break to listen to a popular radio program at the time. At the very end the radio personality would often play a song. When he played this one, it really struck a chord within me. I still love this song today because it reminds me that Christ could return for us at any moment! How quickly we get caught up in our own lives, forgetting this glorious truth!

None of us have any way of knowing when that day will be, but I can guarantee you that it’s closer now than it’s ever been. Each day moves us one step closer. Oh, may we live in light of this wonderful truth–Jesus could come today!

(You can hear this song here. It is a beautiful song, well worth the few minutes of time.)

THIS COULD BE THE DAY

In these days so dark and faithless

As the plan of God unfolds

Christian, won’t you help the helpless?

Won’t you feed their hungry souls?

Brother, sister, time is short now

Serve in love, live by faith

For the things of earth are passing

This could be the day!

This could be the day

that the Lord returns in glory!
This could be the day

that He calls His children home!

So be faithful in service

As you watch and pray

For this, Oh, this

This could be the day!

In these days of desperation

when it’s so hard to live right

Turn away from all temptation

you must fight against the night

Brother, sister, time is short now

Serve in love, live by faith

For the things of earth are passing

This could be the day!

This could be the day

that the Lord returns in glory!
This could be the day

that He calls His children home!

So be faithful in service

As you watch and pray

For this, Oh, this

This could be the day!

We must give of our lives

For in the wink of an eye

He will come

He will come for His bride!

This could be the day

that the Lord returns in glory!
This could be the day

that He calls His children home!

So be faithful in service

As you watch and pray

For this, Oh, this

This could be the day!

The Choice to Trust

Leave a Comment / September 23, 2013 September 23, 2013

There are some stories in life you could not possibly make up. We experienced one of those stories this weekend. It all started with the sighting of a kitten.

It was Saturday morning and my husband had decided to clean the garage that morning. A few minutes after he got started, he walked into the house and announced that we had at least one kitten staying in our garage. A streak of black had rushed by his feet in the midst of moving things around but he couldn’t find it now.

I was more than a little dismayed because A) We have no official cats anymore, B) I was really looking forward to having birds around to feed this year, now that we have no official cat, and C) I’m not a real big cat lover and I knew the inevitable outcome of combining a motherless kitten with the nurturing 14-year-old that resides in our home.

*Sigh*

At any rate, thus began the search for the black kitten that had been spotted. The kids could not find it and at lunch the announcement was made that there was probably at least one more–maybe even more. Oh, great.

The kids enthusiastically renewed their efforts to find the kittens as soon as lunch was over. I cleaned up the lunch dishes and then went to check and see how the hunt was going. I saw my son, my oldest daughter’s boyfriend, and my 14 year old daughter all gathered around the back corner of the garage. Apparently they had found the kitten. But it wasn’t the black kitten. It was a gray kitten.

The poor animal had backed itself way back under the step and the kids were having a very difficult time getting it out. It was hissing and using its sharp claws to defend itself. The little thing was scared to death and had no way of knowing that we were not the enemy.

Finally, my son donned some work gloves and with the combination of a few long-handled tools and the gloves, they were able to pull it out.

At first, it threw a fit, clawing and biting, but surprisingly, it settled down into my son’s arms within a matter of minutes and lay there just as if she was used to people. She was really skinny and rather pathetic-looking but her striking gray eyes and gray fur led me to believe that she had the makings of becoming a very beautiful cat–and for me to say that is something, because I am not a huge cat fan (as already mentioned earlier). The one peculiar thing we noticed was that she did not have a tail.

Our daughter excitedly grabbed our prior cat’s crate and set up a little home for it. She googled kittens so that she could care for it properly and also googled “cats without tails” to try and solve the mystery of this lacking body part. (She came to the conclusion that it must be part manx cat. Who knew??)

As she carted that crate around the rest of the day, she and the other kids would search for the black kitten every so often. It had been last spotted headed up the attic steps in the back of the garage. There is no door to get to the upper level, so it was probably in a hiding spot among our Christmas decorations or boogie boards.

The kids would search but they just couldn’t find it.

After discussing it, we had finally made an educated guess as to how the kittens had come to be in our garage in the first place (although we will not truly ever know). Because we live next to our business with its large shop and various outbuildings, we do have cats around here. They are wild, mangy creatures who help control the mice population and forage in our dumpster. We co-exist peacefully –they keep their distance and we keep ours.

A few months ago, however, a black cat had started showing its face during the day and the office girls had named it Nevin. One day they watched it walk towards our house. It started making this journey several times each day until finally they concluded that Nevin must be a girl (Oops! Oh, well, they weren’t changing its name now!) with a litter of kittens somewhere in the vicinity of our home. And so we had gone searching for them. That had been at least a month ago and we never did find them. Until Saturday. It might be important to note here that Nevin has not been seen for the last few weeks, either, which would explain the kitten’s skinny, starving body.

Okay, now back to our ongoing search for the missing black kitten–

Sunday dawned as a lovely, cool autumn day. After church, Eric searched for the missing kitten once more but with no success. Meanwhile, the little gray one was just eating up all of the attention she was getting and had quietly settled into her {temporary} home.

Around 3pm, my oldest and youngest daughters decided to go on one last search for the missing kitten. I didn’t think too much of it as I sat reading on the sofa.

Until I heard an urgent voice calling my name.

Now what I expected to see was a mangy, sick kitten. I sat unresponsive for a nano-second, gearing myself up to save the kitten for the sake of my girls (wouldn’t be the first time) when, all of a sudden, I heard words I had never expected to hear.

“It hung itself.”

What?!?

“The poor thing hung itself on the volleyball net. It must have gotten so worked up and flustered that it just kept pulling the net tighter and tighter around itself until it choked itself to death.”

I felt sick to my stomach. Even though I am not a great lover of cats, I wouldn’t wish this on any animal. The poor, poor thing. If it would have just come out when we called to it. But instead it had cowered in fear and eventually grew so frightened that its manic, crazy actions had actually caused its own death.

I just couldn’t help but make a comparison. Do you see where I am headed?

Wow. It couldn’t be any clearer. The tiny gray kitten fought and scratched but eventually submitted its will to the girl who truly cared about her. She was able to find food and water and a warm bed, where before she had only known starvation and a cold concrete floor. But it’s tiny sibling was not so fortunate. He had lived a {very} short life of great fear and had ended up sacrificing his own life because of it.

We do the same thing, don’t we?

We don’t trust that God knows better than we do and we stay hunkered down in our corners, on the concrete floor or caught in a net, starving, dying…unwilling to let the God who loves us provide for us a much better life.

And, yet, if like that gray kitten, we would settle down and rest in the will of our Heavenly Father, we would be amazed at the love and joy and peace that would flood our existence.

Why can’t we see it?

Why couldn’t the black kitten see it?

I don’t know. I don’t know why some see and others don’t. That is a question only God can answer.

But what I do know is that submission to God leads to indescribable peace and joy and protection.

The safest place to be is living a life of submission and obedience to God and His Word. We need to trust Him wholly and completely. He knows best.

Tis’ so sweet to trust in Jesus

Just to take Him at His Word

Just to rest upon His promise

Just to know, “Thus saith the Lord”

God’s Faithfulness in the Small Stuff

4 Comments / September 3, 2013 May 23, 2020

We climbed in the truck at 6:30am for the 9 1/2 hour drive to our daughter’s university. The atmosphere was full of nervousness and excitement and sadness, as she nervously anticipated starting a new life there and I sadly contemplated how quickly she had grown up. But the trip was uneventful–at least for the first hour or two.

About a half hour in, my husband’s tooth started bothering him. He had mentioned having a toothache the night before, hoping it wouldn’t bother him over the weekend. Well, it did not take long for him to realize that it was going to bother him A LOT over the weekend. And so I began to use my iPad (how did I survive without that thing??) to find dentists who take emergency cases located in the vicinity of our destination.

I was just ready to start calling, when I looked over to see Eric in agony. “I really don’t think I can make it that far.” And thus began a crazy half hour of phone calls, figuring out where in the world we could go to relieve him of his pain as soon as possible and not lose too much time in the process.

After checking some reviews, I ended up calling a dental office in a town about 30 minutes from where we were. They would gladly see him, but could not get him in until 12:30 pm. It was only 10:30am. Oh, well. Eric was in severe pain by this time and we didn’t seem to have much of a choice. We plugged the address into the GPS and headed that direction.

Upon arriving at the dentist’s office, we found ourselves very pleasantly surprised! We were ushered into a small room to fill out paperwork in comfort. While there, the patient coordinator (an employee hired for the specific purpose of making patients and their families comfortable?!) handed us a free water bottle filled with chocolate candy. They treated us like royalty, quickly getting Eric in to see a dentist by 11:30am. While he was being seen, the patient coordinator, a petite middle-aged woman with a sweet demeanor, offered us drinks and homemade brownie bites. And so, while Eric was sitting in the dentist’s chair in misery, the girls and I were sitting on leather furniture, sipping coffee and gatorade, eating brownie bites and chocolate, and watching the fish in the two huge tanks they had in their office. It was quite the experience and totally unexpected. And, to top it off, they only charged us $50! We have no dental insurance so that was such a blessing.

The dentist prescribed an antibiotic and some pain killers to help with the infected tooth and so, after our adventure at the dentist, we made a stop at Target for the prescriptions, where we ate lunch simply out of the desire to save time. We were on the road again by about 12:30pm –the time of the original appointment.

It was disappointing to lose so much time, but God was so faithful in leading us to this particular dental office!

As we continued on our way, we were relieved to have that behind us. But an hour or two later, we ran into another problem. I was in my own little world, just looking out the window at the beautiful mountain scenery, when, all of a sudden, Eric’s serious voice told me to “turn off the music.”

I glanced at him and knew immediately that something was wrong. He started making his way over to the side of the road because the truck had completely lost power. He jumped out and lifted the hood of the truck. Now this always makes me nervous. I have heard of men being killed when looking at their vehicles parked along the road because of inattentive drivers. I hate when any of my family members are out of a vehicle alongside a major highway. I asked the Lord to protect him as he worked to fix the problem. I breathed a big sigh of relief when he climbed back into the truck. Not only was he safe, but he had fixed the problem (as he so often can–he is sort of amazing that way…)

On we went, on our way. It did happen once more, but this time he could hop out quickly and do what he knew to do, so it wasn’t quite as scary. Thankfully, after that, it did not happen again (until the way home–but that is another story…)

Again, God showed His faithfulness to us.

As we moved closer to our destination, we ran into more and more Labor Day traffic. We were delayed by at least four official accidents, but we mostly never could figure out why the traffic was crawling along at a snail’s pace, to free up, to slow down again. It was so strange.

Until it was all said and done, we lost at least two hours due to traffic, making our total trip time (including the “dental” delay) fourteen very long hours.

As we moved closer to the college, we planned to park our truck and 5th wheel in a huge parking lot near the girls’ dorms but across a highway. The question that still needed to be answered was: how do we get all of her stuff to the dorm?

God was faithful yet again! Two families we know from home pulled up shortly after we arrived (texting had told them of our arrival time) and one family piled all of the stuff in their large van and went with Eric to the dorm and the other family took my daughter and me over to the building where she could register.

I cannot tell you the warm feeling I felt upon arriving at a strange place at night time and seeing friendly faces ready to help however necessary.

That day showed us that God is faithful even in the midst of great frustration that is very temporal in nature. Sometimes, seeing Him in the small stuff can really help us to trust Him with the really big issues that come up in life.

Yes, that was a rough trip down. It could have gone much better but we were vividly reminded that it could have gone much worse, as we passed all of those accidents along the way.

Yes, God was with us through the whole entire fourteen long hours–even when things weren’t going quite the way we wanted them to– because He is faithful!

And sometimes in life we find that we are the one in the accident or the one with the broken-down vehicle that’s sitting alongside the road. I have been there and done both. But even then God has proved His faithfulness.

Nothing can happen to us without God’s knowledge. Nothing can happen to us that will remove us from His care. And so we can trust our Heavenly Father as we ride the roller coaster of life because…

He is faithful!

Wednesday Wisdom: A Well in the Wilderness

2 Comments / August 28, 2013 August 28, 2013

I received a bit of bad news regarding my health last week. Oh, it could have been much worse, but it was certainly discouraging to say the least. As I have been processing the ramifications of the news, I shared my discouragement with my sister-in-law. She sent me this. It is written by Susannah Spurgeon, wife of the famous C.H. Spurgeon. After doing a little investigating, I found out that Susannah became an invalid around the age of 33. This is an amazing testimony of faith. May we all have this attitude in the midst of trials.

“It shall not seem hard unto thee.”—Deut. xv. 18.

DEAR LORD, I have this morning lighted upon one of the secret springs of sweet waters; an ancient, hidden well in the wilderness, which Thy love, as it were, kept covered up and concealed, till my great need moved Thee to open my eyes to discover it. How precious has Thy thought been to me, Oh Lord! How strengthening and refreshing are these “cold waters to a thirsty soul,” which Thou hast thus made to break forth in a strange place! For I thought I was suffering a hard thing, Lord, in the dealings and discipline which Thou hast seen necessary for me; and, though Thy grace kept me from openly murmuring and complaining, my inner self constantly cried out, “This is hard, Lord, this is very hard.”

But now Thou sayest, “No, My child, it must not even seem hard unto thee. Thy trust in Me should be so perfect, thy faith in My love so strong, thy obedience to My will so complete, that nothing should seem grievous which I appoint, no trial that I send should affright or overwhelm thee. Have I not always been to thee ‘a very present help in trouble’? “Lord, my heart says, “Amen!” to Thy gracious words, and then trusts Thee to work all this loving obedience in me by Thine own mighty power.

“IT shall not seem hard unto thee.” The peculiar trial through which I may now be passing, is the very “it” which must not seem hard to me. God’s bow is never drawn at a venture; He makes no mistakes, either in telling the number of the stars, or in meting out to me the griefs which shall teach me to glorify Him. And, dear reader, if you would find comfort from the words which so comforted me, you must look upon your present trouble, whatever it may be, and say, “Lord, this shall not seem hard to me, for I have received so much bounty and blessing from Thee, I have known so much of Thy pity and pardoning love, that I dare not mistrust Thee, or question for a moment the Divine wisdom of Thy dealings with me.” Ah! our eyes are so dimmed by earth’s fogs and shadows that we cannot see clearly enough to distinguish good from evil and if left to ourselves, might embrace a curse rather than a blessing. Poor purblind mortals that we are, it is well for us that our Master should choose our trials for us, even though to our imperfect vision He seems sometimes to have appointed a hard thing.

III that God blesses turns to good,

While unblest good is ill,

And all is right that seems most wrong,

If it be His sweet will.”

Yes, it is in absolute and loving surrender to the will of the Lord that the secret of true rest and peace is found. This is the alchemy which turns earth’s sorrows into Heaven’s blessings; here is the antidote to every sting, the cure-all of each care, the unfailing remedy for all disquietude. Dear Lord, if I am Thy child, trusting, loving, obeying Thee, how can Thy will for me seem “hard”? Nay, rather, I should joyfully meet and welcome it, well knowing that Thy love to me could only send a message of peace, however dark might be the envelope which enwrapped it.

This comfort cannot apply to troubles which we make for ourselves, and which we sometimes glorify into spiritual hardships, when they are really selfish sins; these are not God’s will for us, but our own perverse way, and they bring nothing better than bitterness and tears. But a God-given burden or sorrow, carried out into the sunshine of His love, and laid at His blessed feet, immediately loses all its “hardness”, and is transformed into a blessing, for which our soul praises the Lord with tender thanksgiving.

“It shall not seem hard unto thee.” Ah! dear Master, it must grievously pain Thy loving heart when we, Thine own redeemed ones, think any of Thy dealings with us harsh or stern. Thou hast loved us from everlasting, Thou didst not spare Thine own Son when a ransom was required for our souls, Thou hast led us, and fed us, and cared for us all our life long; can we be so wicked and ungrateful as to deem anything “hard” which Thy wisdom and love appoint?

“It shall not seem hard unto thee” Since this precious text rippled from the pages of God’s Word, like “a brook by the way,” I have been drinking of its waters with great joy! and when a trouble, great or small, oppresses my soul, and causes my heart to faint within me, I take another draught from this sweet spring, and soon am ready to say, ” ‘Tis no longer hard, Lord, for ‘I am filled with comfort, I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation.’ ”

If-Then

2 Comments / August 26, 2013 August 26, 2013

I never, ever leave my car windows open. It has been as much a habit to close the windows as to unbuckle my seatbelt when I get out of my car. And so when we were awakened by a deafening crack of thunder the other night, the only thing on my mind was my computers. As I lay in my bed listening to the heavy rains gush down I had one thought: Should I go unplug them? In the end, I decided not to, as the worst seemed to be over and I just didn’t want to cross the dark parking lot in the heavy rain to reach the office computers.

Imagine my surprise when I stepped outside the next morning to find my car windows down and the car seats absolutely drenched! I thought back to the day before and I remembered that I had come home from Sam’s Club with a ton of groceries that needed unloaded. I had gotten distracted and had forgotten to close the windows.

But there are certain natural laws we cannot change. Such as: IF I do not want wet car seats, THEN I must close the windows.

I can’t wish this away or pray it away or change it. It is what it is.

It reminds me a little of a conversation I had with a young lady one time. She expressed to me her deep desire for a godly husband and her discouragement at finding one. However, when looking at her Facebook page, I saw her pictured in bikinis and drinking alcohol. She did not give the impression that she was a godly young woman. But here is the thing–

IF you desire a godly husband, THEN you must be a godly woman.

I think so often we want good things, but we aren’t willing to take the necessary steps to get what we want. This young lady certainly isn’t alone. I, myself, have been guilty of this many times. For instance–

IF I desire a healthy body, THEN I must eat right and exercise.

IF I desire to know God, THEN I must study His Word.

IF I desire to have a clean and organized house, THEN I must be willing to clean and organize.

We can’t get around these natural laws, but we sure do try, don’t we? We want clean houses without working, great bodies without effort, and a close relationship with God without trying. But all of these are impossible without taking the necessary steps.

I remember watching the show “Bewitched” an occasion or two when I was little. Seeing Sam twitch her nose made me slightly envious. Who wouldn’t want her ability to mold her circumstances to fulfill her desires without any effort on her part aside from a little wiggle of her nose? But, in case you haven’t figured this out already, that isn’t real.

We’d like to think it is with our positive thinking and selfish prayers, but the bottom line is that most times our goals just take good, old-fashioned hard work.

Of course, once in a great while, I guess there are exceptions. But I am not really sure I know of any.

No, if you want to know God, then you need to study His Word. If you want a healthy body then you need to eat right and exercise, and if you want a clean house, you either need to either do it yourself or give up your hard-earned money and pay someone else to do it. Either way, these things are going to cost you something.

Scripture talks about this in a short little verse in 2 Thessalonians (3:10) For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat.

We live in a world that wants everything for free. We want the whole world but we don’t want to pay anything for it.

This applies to jobs, finances, health, raising children, our family relationships…actually, almost all areas of life.

I think it is important that we examine our lives in light of this thought. Am I willing to do the work necessary to have the things I desire and then leave the rest in the Lord’s hands? Of course, sometimes godly women do not find godly husbands. Sometimes healthy bodies get diseased. But, outside of the things we can’t control, are we trying our best or are we just throwing our hands up in the air and crying “this is impossible!” because we aren’t willing to do the work?

It is certainly something to think about, isn’t it?

Spilling the Oil

Leave a Comment / August 8, 2013 August 8, 2013

I searched the mail for the package I was awaiting. Yes, there it was! I grabbed it in anticipation. I had ordered some peppermint essential oil, a key ingredient for a lot of the homemade cleaning supplies and personal care items I make. I carefully lifted the well-wrapped container from the brown box. As I tried to remove the bubble wrap surrounding the container it slipped from my hands. I watched it fall to the floor. It broke into many pieces and the precious oil spilled all over my kitchen floor.

Yes, I could buy another bottle (and I did), but it was still annoying and also a waste of money.

You see, when that peppermint oil left my hand and broke on the floor, I was never going to get that bottle back. I could order another bottle, but I’d never get that particular bottle back.

It reminds me of the years we have with our children. I think I am especially thinking about that as I see my kids growing into young adults who are ready to begin their own lives. Suddenly, I am here at this place and I realize that those precious years are over, spilled out and surrounding me with thousands of incredible memories, daunting failures, and even some wonderful triumphs.

It can haunt me if I think on it too much. Sometimes the kids would ask me to play a game with them or I’d know that I should discipline one of them for something and I’d put it off, thinking to myself there would always be tomorrow. But then one day there is no longer any tomorrow. They have grown up and the relationship has changed.

But it isn’t just in the area of children that this is tempting. Perhaps it is who we were before we became a believer that we regret. Or maybe it’s a bad financial decision or a tragedy that we didn’t see coming and just can’t get over. Maybe it’s a broken relationship that we can’t get past, still a spilled mess that we can’t seem to garner the energy to clean up. It may even be the “good old days” that keep us from living fully in the now. We just miss what was and can’t seem to get ourselves back to the future.

I could have stood there and mourned that lost bottle for hours. But what good would that have done? Staring at the strong-smelling contents spreading across my floor wouldn’t have made any difference in the world, except to encourage me in my sadness and regret.

But in getting a towel and wiping it up, leaving the pleasant peppermint aroma behind as a reminder, and then heading to the computer to order another one, I made a purposeful decision to move on from that mistake and start again.

I guess that is how it is with life, too. No, I can’t go back and change my actions with my small children, but I can embrace these moments I have now. After all, that is all we are really guaranteed, isn’t it? We can’t change the decisions, the circumstances, and the hearts of others. So, instead, we need to wipe up the mess, leaving the pleasant aroma of memories behind so that we don’t forget, and move on.

Looking back to the past can be very tempting. And a moment or two of nostalgia is okay, but it never does anyone any good to stay there for long, does it?

While we should appreciate our pasts and the events and people who have shaped us, we need to keep our faces turned forward and grab hold of what the Lord has for us next.

The Danger of the Internet

2 Comments / July 25, 2013 July 31, 2013

Did you think I was going to talk about pornography when you read the title? Pornography definitely is a growing and serious danger in this culture where absolutes barely exist in the mind of most and the internet make it very, very accessible. It has destroyed thousands–maybe tens of thousands–of marriages.

Or maybe you read the title and you thought I was going to talk about the danger of online buying and how now, at the press of a button, we can buy almost anything our heart desires, as long as we have a big enough credit line. This, too, is a danger and we need to be on guard to be good stewards of the material possessions God has put in our care.

But I think one of the biggest dangers and most deadly for many Christians is the temptation to compare. You see, when I was growing up, I didn’t know (or need to know) what was going on in anybody’s life outside my family and close circle of friends. Oh, I might have heard about someone’s exciting job promotion or dramatic weight loss through the grapevine, but it wasn’t part of my everyday existence.

But, alas, came the birth of Facebook and suddenly people are posting all that is good about themselves. We want to present our best side to the public and so most of us post about the good things we are doing and the exciting, positive happenings of our lives. And, of course, this is the natural thing to do, and I am not saying it is bad (please be sure to understand that).

Blogs and Pinterest are also danger zones in this temptation for comparison. We see the amazing, incredible creations of others or the business accomplishments they have had or the homestead they have created or the amazing interior decorating or even the huge amount of followers they have and we grow dissatisfied and envious.

It is very, very tempting to compare and become unhappy when we dwell on what we can’t do or don’t have. We have to be so careful to keep a proper perspective if we are investing our time in viewing these sites, because envying isn’t doing anyone any good (and it is also a sin! Exodus 20:17).

God has given each of us certain gifts and talents. He has given us each different body types. We have been blessed with different types of families. We have different tastes in style, food, and hobbies.

Some husbands are romantic. Others are not.

Some kids do fabulous things for Mother’s Day. Others do not.

Some people have the resources to take fantastic vacations. Others do not.

Some people are naturally thin. Others are not.

Some have kids who always win awards. Others do not.

Some have amazing, interesting jobs. Others do not.

Some are amazingly talented and crafty. Others are not.

I have occasionally found myself envying someone on the screen. I have to catch myself and make an intentional decision to be happy for them. This is not always easy for me (am I alone here?) as I try to tell myself that they certainly have their own struggles and that the grass is not always greener on the other side. And, as a Christian, it is my job to rejoice with them! But sometimes it is hard. Especially if it is an area I am struggling in. God continues to work in my heart in this area.

You see, it is a heart issue. We need to learn to be content in all circumstances (Philippians 4:11) and then, and only then, can we visit Facebook or Pinterest or any other site with an open heart to learn something or to rejoice with others, instead of being filled with that dreaded sense of envy and jealousy.

This is linked up here :)

Nothing New Under the Sun

1 Comment / July 18, 2013 July 18, 2013

There are just a few short chapters that tell us about Noah in the Bible. Most of our attention has been focused on the building of the ark, the flood that wiped out life on the earth, and the beautiful rainbow that was the sign of a holy covenant. But yesterday as I sat through a dramatic presentation of this fascinating piece of history, I realized how very much we have in common with this man who lived so long ago. If Noah was human (and scripture assures us that he was), then it is very likely that he, too, struggled with some of the same things we do–

1. Doubt. It had never rained before. Noah and his family must have doubted a few times while they built a huge boat far from the sea, waiting for the rains to come. But God had told him and they were trusting. Like Noah, we are waiting for an event–the rapture–that has never happened before. But God has told us in His Word and we are trusting. It may not be in our lifetime, but then again, it may be!

2. Wickedness. Noah and his family were the only ones found righteous on the earth. They loved God and truly wanted to live by His statutes. Can you imagine? Sometimes we may feel like we are alone as we stand for righteousness and Truth in a world gone crazy. Although, while the number seems to be shrinking each day, we can be thankful that there are still many out there who love God and truly desire to live by His Word.

3. Mockery. I couldn’t find this in the scriptures, but I can’t help but wonder if as Noah and his family were busy building that boat they felt the mockery and hatred of others. It is just human nature to despise and make fun of anything that is different. Building a boat in your backyard is certainly different. These days we aren’t building a boat, but, instead standing against the flow of what is popular. It is not a very comfortable place to be, but I wonder if Noah felt that way sometimes, too?

4. Confirmation. Through the building of the ark and the subsequent flood waters, Noah must have seen God’s Hand work in amazing ways. Just the fact that he gathered wild animals and kept them in a big boat for many days would have required a miracle or two. These workings of God were perhaps assurance to Noah that he was doing the right thing. We have confirmations, too. God is truly personal and cares so much that He provides us with encouragement just when we need it. Oftentimes He teaches us a new truth from His Word, confirming that we are on the right path. How faithful is He!

5. Heartache. How great the heartache must have been to shut that ark door, knowing that all of humanity outside would perish. Have we ever thought of that before? They weren’t just all strangers to Noah and his family. I am sure there were many aunts, uncles, cousins, and other family members. The wives of Noah’s sons probably had parents and siblings. All would perish in the flood waters. Don’t you sometimes feel great sorrow at the many who are perishing today? We encourage them to come into the ark of safety through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, but they have no interest. We experience that same heartache, as well.

It is not my intent to add any words to scripture. I just think that oftentimes we forget that these stories were true happenings to real people. They weren’t fairy tales. Old Testament men and women weren’t perfect. And many of them dealt with similar feelings and experiences that we are dealing with today. Somehow I find that comforting in this world where so much seems to be going wrong. And knowing that God is in control and has a plan that we can read in His Word is encouraging. Sure, just like Noah, we don’t know every detail. But we know we will be with God, just as Noah knew he and his family would be safe in the ark. We just need to trust that God will care for us through the storm of wickedness and evil that seems to be overtaking this nation, knowing we will land safely in Heaven eventually.

I thank God for showing us the examples of men and women who loved Him deeply and were willing to sacrifice whatever was necessary to serve Him. May we be like them, as we strive to please our King!

Lay aside every weight

Leave a Comment / July 11, 2013 February 16, 2018

I love the movie Up. It’s a movie for children but underneath all of the fun, comical nonsense there is a beautiful story that only adults understand.

The plot is about Carl, a grumpy elderly man. His wife has died and construction crews have come in to demolish his home so that they can put up a high rise. Life is looking pretty gloomy. He decides he is going to take the adventure he and his wife had always wanted to take together and heads off to South America by attaching a gazillion balloons to his house. But he doesn’t count on Russell, a young stowaway. Their adventures are unrealistic and very ridiculous, and yet, so touching.

I hadn’t watched it for a long time, but someone was watching it when when I came home the other night. I was compelled to sit down and watch a bit of it. At one point, Carl, has finally arrived at his destination. He is ready to rest. But Russell has it in his head that he needs to save a very special bird that is being stalked by a very evil man and he takes off by detaching quite a few of the balloons from the house. Carl rolls his eyes and knows he has to go after him. So he tries to leave. But his house has too much weight for the balloons that are left and it won’t lift off the ground.

And so Carl starts taking his stuff from his house and tossing it on the ground to lighten it up. I don’t know how they can make a cartoon show so much emotion, but somehow they manage to make you understand that Carl is making the choice to remove the fetters of his past and move on to a new future. He wasn’t erasing his memories but he was tossing the stuff that was keeping him so emotionally chained to the past.

And so out went his wife’s favorite chair and so many other material possessions that had brought him comfort, so that he could save the life of a small boy named Russell.

Wow. Did that scene hit me. Perhaps it is because of where I am at in life right now. In a lot of ways, I have been hanging on to stuff. A lot of it. While some of the stuff is material, most of it is mental. Life has really been changing for me over the past year or two and I see much more change ahead.

But I guess in a lot of ways, life is changing for all of us all the time. We have to always be very careful not to get too attached to the things of this world, whether they be material possessions, memories, or even people.

It reminds me of Hebrews 12:1.Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

We can easily think of the sins that keep us from running a good race. But what are the weights we need to lay aside? I am no theologian, but could the weights be things like memories and longings for the past and perhaps even frustration at the life we have been given? These things keep us from running the best race we can run. Just like Carl could not move on to a healthy future with the weight of his past, neither can any of us.

The movie Up was able to convey that thought so beautifully. I don’t know what weights are holding you down. Life has a way of throwing us some serious curveballs sometimes. We can either accept them and move on or we can wallow in our longings for the way things were or the way we wish things to be. The choice is up to us. As for me, I realized I have some things I need to start tossing from my house, so to speak!