Happy Birthday, Brandon!

Can it really have been 35 years since that morning you woke me very early (4:06 am, to be precise!) to announce you were ready to enter the world?  Since that morning when we rushed over to the hospital, which fortunately wasn't too far away, for you to be born.  At 5:17 am!  Once you were ready to come "out of the oven", you didn't waste any time!

This is one of those days when I get very sentimental.  When I take trips down memory lane.  Remembering.

Remembering the day of your birth.  Remembering that you slept all night when you were just 3 days old!  Unbelievable!

Remembering the cute little blue hat you wore with your Easter outfit when you were three years old.

Remembering violin lessons and ball games and homeschooling. 

Remembering trips to museums and the zoo and shopping when we went to London. 

Remembering silly jokes and laughter.

Remembering you and Jason Brown tying each other's aprons in the production of "The One and Only Original Christmas Factory" at First Baptist Church in Rock Hill.  Rembering you and Jason turning green when you rode the Scooby Doo roller coaster at Carowinds.

Remembering.  Thirty-five years of wonderful memories.

And now you're all grown-up. 

There are still ball games, but now you're the coach!  There's still music, but now it's a guitar instead of a violin.  There's still laughter.

You're all grown up.  And I am so full of pride and joy and love.  I am blessed to be your mom.  I am so proud of the man you have become.  And I love you so very much!

"And this is my prayer, that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God."  (Philippians 1:9 ESV)

Some Days

Some days it's hard to get going.

Some days it's hard to wake up.

Some days it's hard to get out of bed.

Some days I just don't want to.

Some mornings are just hard.

Today is one of those days.

But I did it anyway. 

I got up.  I let the dog out.  I put the bird feeders out.  We had our breakfast.

I really didn't want to do any of that.  But I did it anyway.

I sat down with my coffee.  Even that didn't help much.  But I drank it anyway.

I opened my Bible.  I read these words:

"The LORD is my strength and my shield, in him my heart trusts, and I am helped."  (Psalm 28:7 ESV)

And I was encouraged.

I'm still moving pretty slowly this morning.  But things are getting better.  Because I was encouraged by the Scriptures.  Because I am helped!

Thank you, Lord, for another day.  Thank you that even on these days when I'm off to a very slow start - perhaps especially on these days - You are my help, my strength and my shield.  My heart trusts in You.  Amen.

"Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you.  Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life."  (Psalm 143:8 NIV)

It's Hard to Say Good-Bye: Remembering Anne Sevier

I've just finished reading a mystery set in the city of Venice, Italy.  Many years ago, when she returned from travels to Europe which included a visit to Venice, my cousin Anne Sevier gifted me with a gondola charm for my charm bracelet, a souvenir purchased in that beautiful city.  It was perhaps at that point that my love of travel and my desire to see the world were born.

That gondola charm is one of many memories of Anne that have flooded my mind since yesterday afternoon when, at the age of 106, her days in this life ended. 

Anne's mother and my grandmother were sisters.  And long before I was born, Anne and her brother Richard lived with my grandparents following the death of their mother.  She has always been more to me than just a distant cousin.  More like an aunt.  Perhaps even like a surrogate grandmother, since I never knew my grandmother on that side of the family.

This is really a bittersweet time.  Certainly Anne lived a long and very full life. She was the last member of that generation of our family to leave us.  But she was ready to go and is now joyfully reunited with family in heaven.

So many memories of Anne have been flooding through my mind since yesterday afternoon.  Some of the fondest memories of my childhood were visiting her during the summers.  She typically taught one session of summer school at Winthrop (Winthrop College, now Winthrop University) and I would spend at least a week with her.  When she went to teach her classes, Anne would drop me off at the college library under the watchful eye of Miss Schinn, the college librarian, and I would spend hours sitting in the floor in the children's section, reading book after book.  There were more books there than in the entire library in my little home town!

During those summer visits, Anne arranged for me to have swimming lessons in the college pool.  I was never a very good swimmer, but I remember those days fondly.

Anne introduced me to Rice Chex.  We always had Wheat Chex, my mother's favorite, at our house.  Sorry, Mother, but I prefer Rice Chex! 

When I was in high school, Anne and her brother Richard built a house in Landrum, our home town.  Later, when I was a student at Winthrop, Anne would give me a ride home on the weekends.  We had some interesting conversations during those commutes.

I remember one conversation in particular.  It was near the end of my senior year, not too long before graduation.  Anne and I were talking about the Bridesmaids' Luncheon that she and my aunts were planning to host before my wedding.  She asked if all the girls in the wedding party drank their iced tea sweetened.  When I replied that they did, she said, "Good.  That will obviate the need for iced tea spoons."

Seriously?  Obviate?  Who uses a word like "obviate"?  Anne did.  When we arrived home, I had to check the dictionary to find out what it meant!  It means "to eliminate or render unnecessary", in case you were wondering.  I've never forgotten that definition!

So many memories.  Hearing about her travels when she returned from far-away places like Paris and London and Hong Kong.  Our family having vacations with her and Richard to places like Daytona Beach and Cedar Key in Florida, and to Little Switzerland here in the mountains.  Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.  Her apartment in Rock Hill, in an old house on the edge of the Winthrop campus.  That house is no longer there.  In fact, the dorm where I lived during my senior year at Winthrop was built on the very spot where that house used to stand!

It was in that house that I first ate Rice Chex.  That I first ate blueberries.  That I played with Anne's collection of porcelain Dickens figures.  She would likely have been horrified to know that, when she was in class and I was in the apartment, I played with those figurines as though they were dolls.  How glad I am I never broke one!  I always wondered if she had noticed that every time I was there, the figures were always rearranged!  Many years later, when Anne and Richard sold their house and moved into an assisted living facility, she gave me those "Dickens people".  Yesterday afternoon I gave them a special dusting and rearranged them.

Anne was a brilliant woman.  She was funny.  She was opinionated.  She was demanding. She was inspiring. She was an outstanding teacher. She was kind.  She loved her family.  And good books.  And travel.  And good conversations. And I loved her so.

It's hard to believe she's actually gone.  It's hard to say good-bye.

In a few days we'll say our last farewells.  Until we meet again.



Grow old along with me!
   The best is yet to be,
The last of life, for which the first was made:
   Our times are in His hand
   Who saith, 'A whole I planned,
Youth shows but half;

trust God: see all, nor be afraid!'

(Robert Browning)



Another Day!

It's a beautiful morning here in the mountains. We had some rain overnight and everything is fresh and beautiful this morning.

As I look out on this beautiful scene, words from one of my favorite hymns come to mind:

"Great is Thy faithfulness!

Great is Thy faithfulnes!

Morning by morning new mercies I see."

Another day.  Another reminder of God's love and His faithfulness and His grace.  Another opportunity to praise Him.  Another opportunity to receive His blessings.  Another opportunity to be a blessing to others. 

Another day to stand in awe of who He is.  Of what He has done.  Of what He continues to do.  Another day to be amazed by our awesome God!

Another day.  What a blessing!

 

"But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope:  the steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."  (Lamentations 3:21-23 ESV)



My Monday Morning Prayer

"The heavens declare the glory of God and the sky above proclaims his handiwork."  (Psalm 19:1 ESV)

Truly all creation sings the Father's praise!

On our recent trip to Oregon, we flew into Portland on an absolutely glorious sunny day.  As we began our approach into the city, from one side of the airplane we had a stunning view of Mount Ranier and Mount St. Helens.  On the other side, we were "up close and personal" with Mt. Hood.  And I wondered, with such beauty, how anyone could deny a Creator!

Living in the mountains as I do,  I often have a beautiful view of a clear night sky, without the distraction of any city lights.  I gaze into the night sky, and I stand in awe of the Creator's handiwork!

This weekend's "super moon" is yet another example of the majesty of creation.  Again I was in awe, just as I am this morning as I view the beauty of the mountains around me.  I hear Haydn's oratorio running through my mind.....The heavens are telling the glory of God!

Psalm 19 is a wonderful reminder of the majesty of God's creation.  But there's more to this Psalm.  The Psalm is really in two parts, the first being the hymn of praise to our God for what He has created, and the second about the words of the Lord, about His rules for living.  Check that out in verses 7-9.  The Psalmist ends with a prayer we know well.....

"Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer."  (Psalm 19:14 ESV)

But before he gets to that prayer, he makes another request of the Lord, and that is the verse that grabbed hold of me this morning.  He prays, "Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me."  (Psalm 19: 13 ESV)

It's the word presumptuous that got my attention this morning.  I think I had previously always understood that to mean "inadvertent".  In other words, the Psalmist was praying, as did I, not to sin inadvertently, not to sin accidentally or unknowingly.  But as I read Psalm 19 this morning, that didn't seem to be what he was saying.  So I dug a little deeper, did a little research.

The word which is translated presumptuous actually means proud or arrogant.  And that means something altogether different from accidental or unknowing, doesn't it?

And so I am praying that verse this morning.  Please, dear Lord, keep me from presumptuous sin; may I not be proud or arrogant in my attitudes or my behavior to You or toward others.

Keep me from presumptuous sins.  May my words and my thoughts, the meditations of my heart and my actions, be acceptable in your sight.  You are my Rock and my Redeemer.  Amen.

What's It All About?

If you're thinking that title sounds like a song from the 1960s, you would be right.  Asked another way, the question might be "what is the purpose of my life?"  And that is the question I'm asking today.  What's your purpose?  What's my purpose?

You may be answering this way:  I'm a teacher; I'm a nurse; I'm a pastor;  I'm an engineer;  I'm a sales person; I'm a mom.  All those are valid answers, but they really only answer what you do.  They don't address your purpose for doing it.

And that's a core question we each need to answer.  Why do we do what we do?  Why do we not do the things we don't do?  What is our purpose?

I've been reading anything: the prayer that unlocked my God and my Soul by Jennie Allen.  In a chapter titled "seeing God", she writes about Jesus' prayer in John 17.  This is some of what she has to say:

Not only did Jesus pray for himself but he prayed for his disciples and us.
He prayed this prayer: "Father, glorify yourself through me.  Glorify yourself through them."  (John 17, paraphrased) 

Everyone sitting with him that night felt the weight of a call so large, so costly, so significant:  the call to show the glory of God to the earth.  A few men meant to display God.

Friends, we're up.  Those men are gone.  Now we show God.  But we would rather be at Target and on Facebook.

Those are powerful words, wouldn't you agree?  And they hit right at the core question that began this post.  What is life all about anyway?  What is my purpose?  What is your purpose?

Jennie would say - and I would agree with her - that our purpose is to display God.

We're here on this earth for a reason.  For a purpose.  And that purpose is to glorify God.  To display God to the world.

That purpose is not to make more money or have a bigger house or have a nice vacation or a lot of Facebook friends.  It is not to have more stuff.  It is not to have a closet stuffed full of more clothes than we could possibly wear.  It is not for our children to wear name-brand sneakers and have 10 different Iron Man (or Superman or Buzz Lightyear or whatever) action figures.

It is to display God. To our families.  To our children.  To our communities.  To the world.

Something to think about.

"Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."  (1 Corinthians 10:31b ESV)

What I Learned from the Rocking Chairs

One of the tasks that is always part of our spring cleaning is scrubbing the front porch rocking chairs.  Winter really does a number on those chairs and every spring they need a serious scrubbing.  This year that task was more challenging than usual.  At first I couldn’t understand why.  Then I remembered that the chairs didn’t get cleaned last year.

Last spring my husband and I packed up and moved in, temporarily, with his parents.   His dad had knee replacement surgery (at age 87!) and the resulting rehab, so we were there to care for his mom who has Alzheimer’s.  Our temporary move lasted much longer than expected, and one of the results of that “adventure” in our lives was that the usual tasks around our own home – like cleaning the rocking chairs – just didn’t get done.

The result of that neglect, however unintended it might have been, was that the chairs were really, really dirty and really, really hard to get clean.  In fact, in some cases the dirt was so deeply imbedded in the wood of the chairs that it just wouldn’t come clean, and even looked a bit scarred.

As I scrubbed those rocking chairs, it occurred to me that our lives are a lot those chairs.  The chairs are exposed day after day to all kinds of conditions.  To wind.  Dust and dirt.  Pollen.  Rain.  Chipmunks and birds.  The result is that the chairs are covered in all the “stuff” to which they have been exposed.  And that “stuff” leaves its mark.  Sometimes even leaves a scar.

Like those chairs, we’re exposed to all sorts of things as we go through our daily lives.  Attitudes.  Differing worldviews.  Words.  Relationships.  All sorts of things.  And not all of it is good.  The result is that, just like those rocking chairs, we get a little dirty and need some cleaning up. And, like those chairs, when the task goes undone, the cleaning becomes more difficult.

There’s a significant difference between us and those chairs.  We have a choice.  We don’t have to sit and wait for somebody to come along once or twice a year and give us a good scrubbing.  We can take action ourselves.

Think for a minute about all the “stuff” you’ve encountered just this week.  The attitudes.  The complaining.  The gossip.  Maybe some less-than-desirable language.  We’re exposed to all that – and more – every week.  From our co-workers.  From the person behind us in line at the grocery store or the coffee shop.  From the TV shows or movies we watch or the books we read.  From our neighbors.  Maybe even from our family members!

Whether we want it to or not, that “stuff” clings to us, becomes imbedded in our memory.  Just like the weather and the pollen and the dust cling to the rocking chairs on my front porch, bad attitudes and unkind words and negative attitudes and criticism cling to our spirits.

So what are we to do?  Walk around with blinders on and cotton stuffed in our ears?  That’s probably not a very good solution.

For those of us who belong to Christ, the answer to the question may be obvious.  We turn to the Scriptures for help.  While there are a number of passages we could turn to, let’s look at a few verses from one of my favorite books in the New Testament:

“But now you must put them all away:  anger, wrath, malice, slander and obscene talk from your mouth.  Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.”  (Colossians 3:8-10 ESV)

If you look back to the beginning of that same chapter, there is another specific instruction:

“Seek the things that are above, where Christ is…….Set your mind on things above, not on things that are on the earth.”  (Colossians 3:1-2 ESV)

If you remember anything your English teacher taught you, you will probably recognize this as an imperative statement.  In other words, it’s more than just a suggestion…..it’s a command.  In the Greek language (the original language of the New Testament), it’s a present perfect imperative, which means it is to be an ongoing action, a habit of life.

That’s how we deal with the “stuff” that would “dirty” us.  We put it away (another present perfect imperative) and instead focus our attention on “things above”.  It's a choice, really.  An act of the will, not of the emotions.  We choose to "put them all away" and to keep on seeking the things that are above.

The chapter concludes with some positive, encouraging instructions. 

“Put on then…..compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another….forgiving one another…..and above all these, put on love.”  (Colossians 3:12-14 ESV)

That’s what God taught me as I was cleaning my rocking chairs.  Scrub away ("put off") the dirty stuff of life and replace it with the clean stuff.  And when my focus is on Him and on “things above”, that other stuff, although it will come, won’t stick.

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."  (1 John 1:9 HCSB)

"to make her holy, cleansing her with the washing of water by the word."  (Ephesians 5:26 HCSB)

 

A Foggy Morning

This is the view from my front porch this morning:

I know there's a beautiful mountain view out there somewhere.  I just can't see it!  It is really foggy this morning.  On the other side of all that fog is a beautiful view.

Life is a lot like that.  Sometimes the circumstances and stresses of life are like this morning's fog; they obscure the view and keep us seeing life as it really is.  But this morning's fog won't last.  I'll eventually have that beautiful view again.

Tough times come to all of us from time to time.  And it's sometimes hard to see beyond the "fog" of the situation. But eventually the fog will lift, and we'll be able to see the beauty that was there all the time.

In the meantime......"let us lay aside every encumbrance, and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."  (Hebrews 12:1-2 NASB)

When You Don't Understand

This morning I read one of my favorite Old Testament prophets, Habakkuk.
As I was reading, it occurred to me that we here in the 21st century have a lot in common with Habakkuk.

Habakkuk lived in a time where justice had essentially disappeared, where violence and wickedness abounded.  Although the circumstances were different then, we certainly live in a world where there is much we don't understand, where it seems that the "bad guys" are winning, where life doesn't make sense, where violence and wickedness are all too common.

What did Habakkuk do?  He had a talk with God about the things that were bothering him!  He asked questions. 

"O LORD, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not hear?"  (Habakkuk 1:2 ESV)

And when Habakkuk asked questions, God answered!

"Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded.  For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told.  For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans....."  (Habakkuk 1:5-6a ESV)

Habakkuk didn't really understand that answer.  Why would God raise up a wicked nation and allow them to prosper?  So he asked some more questions.  And then he said this:

"I will take my stand at my watchpost and station myself on the tower, and look to see what he will say to me."  (Habakkuk 2:1 ESV)

As God answers Habakkuk and explains to him what is about to happen, there are two verses that I believe we can hold on to in our own "Habakkuk" situations, in the times when we don't understand what God is doing.

"For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters that cover the sea......the LORD is in his holy temple, let all the earth keep silence before Him."  (Habakkuk 2:14, 20 ESV)

Just like Habakkuk, you and I are often faced with situations we don't understand.  Life can be hard!  And we often have more questions than answers. 

In those times, I believe it's important to follow Habakkuk's example.  To have a conversation with God.  Ask questions.  And then continue to follow Habakkuk's example and wait to see how God will answer.  Through it all, we hold on to the truth that ultimately God's purposes will be fulfilled, eventually the earth will be filled with His glory, and that God is in control.  He is in His holy temple.  He is in charge.  Nothing that happens to you or to me comes as a surprise to Him.

What does all that have to do with you and me on a practical level?  We may not have Chaldeans at the gate of the city.  But we do live in a world that is a bit out of kilter, don't we?  Looking at the big picture, we find ourselves in a world that is turning its back on God and His Word.  We live in a country where we are slowly but surely finding our freedoms eroded.  And we don't like it very much!

But bring the question closer to home.  We have questions about so many things.  Why do some people die so young?  Why does this person, who works so hard, have trouble finding a job and that person, the laziest person you know (!!), always seem to have everything fall into place so easily?

Maybe you are in the middle of a really hard life situation.  Financial stress.  Problems at your job.  Family stresses.  Illness.  Or if it isn't you, it's someone you know, someone you love, who is having a really hard time.

Sometimes life just doesn't make sense, does it?

It only makes sense when we follow Habakkuk's example and trust God through every situation.  Even the situations we can't explain.  The ones that defy logic.  Through the good times and the bad times and through all the times in between.  Habakkuk trusted God.  Even when life didn't make sense. 

"Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD. I will take joy in the God of my salvation.  GOD, the Lord, is my strength."  (Habakkuk 3:12-13 ESV)

What Habakkuk was saying was this:  even if my crops fail, even if I have no food, even if I lose everything, even then I will rejoice in the Lord.

Put in 21st century terms, he would be saying:  even if my investments tank, even if I have no money in the bank, even if I lose my job, even if I get transferred to a job I don't want or a city I don't want to live in, even if I get really sick and I have no insurance, even if I don't have any money to take my family on a vacation or buy a bigger house or go out to dinner, even if there's no money in the bank and no food in the refrigerator and all my credit cards are maxed out,  even then I will rejoice in the Lord.  No matter what, even then I will rejoice in the Lord.

When we don't understand what is going on in life, there's a lot we can learn from Habakkuk.  We can follow Habakkuk's example.  Talk to God about whatever the situation is.  Ask Him questions. Wait to see how He answers. And through it all, trust Him.



 "When you don't understand,
When you don't see His plan,
When you can't trace His hand,
Trust His heart."
(-Babbie Mason)

Perspective

To an artist or a photographer, perspective might have to do with how objects relate to one another, or it might have to do with size and shape.  For the rest of us, perspective most often has to do with point of view, or with how particular circumstances are viewed.  Both would be accurate definitions, and one definition is really not so different from the other.

Consider these photos from our recent trip to Oregon.  We visited Cannon Beach while were there and saw Haystack Rock, a large rock (about 235 feet tall) adjacent to the beach.  It's actually accessible by foot during low tide.

From a distance, further up the beach, it looks like this:

But, when you get closer, you become aware of just how enormous this rock actually is!

Can you see how small the people are in relation to the rock?

Life's problems are a lot like that.  Distance changes our perspective.  When we are in the middle of a situation, the problem seems enormous and insurmountable.  But distance, whether in taking a step back to look at the problem differently, or in time removed from the situation, can make a big difference in how we view things.  Our perspective changes.

I've been thinking this morning about many in my circle of family and friends who are dealing with some really tough stuff right now.  There are all sorts of issues.  Grief.  Illness.  Job stress.  The list is quite lengthy, and my heart is burdened for these dear ones and the challenges in their lives right now.

As I was thinking about all these things earlier today, and lifting these dear ones in prayer, a line from an old hymn kept floating through my mind......"Oh, what peace we often forfeit; oh, what needless pain we bear.  All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer."

And then I read these words in a devotional book:

"Prayer takes the focus off of you and places it on the Lord Jesus Christ.  This is a deep and abiding spiritual truth.  Prayer is a gift from God that puts the focus where it belongs so you can find the solution to your problem.  When you take your eyes off of your circumstances and look into the face of the Lord Jesus Christ, your entire perspective changes."  (from Encouragement in His Presence by Dr. Don Wilton)

Perspective.  Point of view.  Attitude.  No matter what word we use, the truth remains that, regardless of our circumstances, when our focus is on Jesus - and not on circumstances or situations or ourselves - we are able to view whatever comes our way as part of the "all things" that are working together for our good and for His glory (see Romans 8:28).  Keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, rather than on our circumstances, may not immediately change our situation, but it will certainly impact our attitude about the situation.  It will help us to see the situation from a different perspective.  It will help us deal with, and get through, whatever comes our way.

Are you dealing with some tough stuff right now?  Is there a situation in your life that seems as big as Haystack Rock viewed up close?  Talk to Jesus about it.  Tell Him exactly how you're feeling.  It will make a difference!

"Prayer places your focus where it should be, on the Lord Jesus Christ."  (Don Wilton)

"Casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you."  (1 Peter 5:8 ESV)

Happily Ever After

Today is a special day.....our wedding anniversary!  41 years ago, we promised "to have and to hold, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, and live happily ever after."  Wait.....that last part wasn't in there, was it?

But we are living "happily ever after"......just like in the fairy tales.  Has every moment of every day been perfect?  No.  That's not how real life is.  But through the ups and downs and ins and outs of real life, we are happy and content and committed to each other.  And I love that man more than I ever would have thought possible!

Today we're flying out to the West Coast.  It's a combination business trip (for him) and then a few extra days to enjoy Oregon.  Since I've never been to Oregon before, this is another check off my bucket list.  Only two more states to go, and I will have been in all fifty!!

Today we're celebrating......as we do every day.  Every day of life is cause for celebration!  Today we celebrate our 41 years of marriage, and look forward to the years ahead.  Today we celebrate how much we love each other.  And today we celebrate that not only do we love each other more and more each day......we still like each other!  After all these years!

Happy Anniversary, Sweetheart!  I wouldn't want to do life with anyone else!

While We Can

It was a Saturday morning much like this one, four years ago.  Except that on that particular Saturday Brandon, Steph and AJ were here visiting for the weekend.  I love weekends like that, with family around.  They happen much too seldom, but that's a subject for another day.

On that particular Saturday morning, four years ago, I got "the phone call".  The one I had been dreading but knew would one day come.  The one that told me that, at age 88, my beloved Daddy had gone to be with Jesus.

In many ways, that seems very long ago.  Yet the memory of that day is as vivid as if it had just happened this morning.  And although I've grown accustomed to his being gone, I still miss him so much!

How I would love one more hug, one more conversation, one more visit, one more surprise phone call - just because!  How I miss the twinkle in his eye, his sense of humor, his laugh.  And how I miss those more serious conversations.  About the Scriptures.  About politics.  About life.

How I would love to hear that voice just once more say "Top o' the mornin' to ya!"

I wouldn't even mind hearing that same joke I've heard hundreds of times......just one more time! "Have I told you the one about......", he would say.  "Tell me again", I would say.

His passing was sudden and unexpected.  Well, I suppose not completely unexpected, since he was 88 years old!  But certainly not expected on that particular day......June 13, 2009.

I think that's a reminder to live each day to its fullest, because we never know when it's time to go.  And it's a reminder to love our family and friends - and to let them know how much they are loved - because we never know when it's time for them to go.

 

We must love them while we can, we must love them while we can,

For time just seems to hurry by, and the days slip into years

And the moments that we have will disappear,

So love them while we can.

(-Chris Christian)

Is It Any Wonder?

This was the view from my front porch this morning.

We often enjoy beautiful views like this one.  Or this one.

Or this one.

Or this one.

So, even though I would very much love to live closer to our sons and their families, and even though I would very much love to live closer to our church, and even though we have enjoyed the beauty of God's creation in all the places we have lived and all the places we have traveled around the world........is it any wonder that we were drawn to the beauty of these mountains?

How blessed we are to be able to behold this kind of beauty day after day.

 

 

"O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!  When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars which You have ordained; what is man that You take thought of him, and the son of man that You care for him?  O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth!"  (Psalm 8:1,3-4,9 NASB)

Remembering One of My Favorite Places

Have you ever noticed how you can find the most interesting things when you're looking for something else?  It could happen when you're out shopping for the "perfect" purse, but instead come across a cute scarf or pair of sandals.  Often it happens when I'm searching all over the house for some lost item, and then "discover" a treasure I hadn't seen in ages.

That happened to me this morning.  As I was searching through the bookshelf for a book I wanted to use in research for a writing project, I came across another book, completely unrelated to the project at hand.  So, my original project was put on hold and I began re-reading this delightful little book.


I purchased this little book shortly after our first trip to Israel, and I have enjoyed it immensely.  It's sort of a combination of travelogue, as the author recounts experiences from his travels in the Holy Land, and devotional, as he connects the people and places of Israel with the Scriptures. 

As I read this little book, I travel down memory lane to the places we visited, recalling the sights and sounds and smells of the land, and remembering the people we met along the way.  And once again today, as I was distracted from my original purpose by this little book, I'm remembering our visits to Israel and looking forward to our next visit in December.

Today, my mind has taken me - as it often does - to En Gedi, one of my favorite places in Israel.  It was at En Gedi, on our first visit to Israel in 2010, during our Sunday morning worship, that Psalm 42 really came alive for me.  I've written about this before.  There's something really special about being in this place......

seeing these deer........

and then reading "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God.  My soul thirsts for God, for the living God."  (Psalm 42:1-2a, NIV)

I can never read those verses now, or sing that chorus, without remembering being at En Gedi.  En Gedi is a dry, barren place where it's really hard for a deer to find a drink of water.  On a hot day in the desert, wouldn't a cool drink of water be ever so refreshing?  That's what I think about when I remember En Gedi, and when I read Psalm 42.  Now, whenever I read that Psalm, I have to ask myself......how thirsty am I? Do I really long for God the way one of those thirsty deer would long for water?  When I sing that chorus, do I really mean it? That's one of the treasures I brought home with me from Israel, after having walked many of the places where Jesus walked, and after having experienced the context of the Bible.

What a blessing.....an absolute treasure....to have traveled to the land of the Bible, to have walked where Jesus walked!  I can't wait to go back! 

We're going again in December.  Won't you come go with us?  There's information about the trip at this link: http://www.templetontours.com/holyland/31201.pdf

In the meantime, I'll be remembering previous trips.  Looking at pictures over and over.  Treasuring the memories and the lessons learned.  And enjoying this little book that distracted me this morning.

Dealing with Frustrations

 

"Where do I go when there's nobody else to turn to?

Who do I talk to when nobody wants to listen?

Who do I lean on when there's no foundation stable?
I go to the Rock. I know He's able. I go to the  Rock."
(Dottie Rambo)

 

Do you ever feel that way?  Life can be frustrating, can't it?  There are big frustrations - HUGE frustrations.  And there are little frustrations.  And there's everything in between.

 

We can be frustrated by all sorts of things.

 

By the power company deciding to shut off your power for a few minutes just as you're about to blow-dry your hair.

 

By standing in the slowest line at Walmart.

 

By traffic.

 

By chronic illness.  Or by waiting for a diagnosis, hoping for the best but expecting the worst.  Or just waiting to get an appointment with a doctor!

 

By a spouse or children who just don't listen.

 

By being left out, not invited to a friend's birthday party.  Or even worse, being left out of a family gathering.

By being ignored.

 

By waiting for a phone call that never comes.

 

By having too much month at the end of the money.

 

By your job.  Or by not having a job.  And not being able to find a job.

 

By really needing a vacation.  By wanting to take the family on a nice vacation but really needing to put tires on the car instead.

 

By being misunderstood.

 

By not being able to lose those last few pounds.  Or by not being able to stick to your healty eating plan, no matter how badly you might want to.  Or by not getting started on that healthy eating plan in the first place, even though you know you need to.

By wanting to be taller.  Or shorter.

 

Frustrated by all sorts of things.  By people.  By circumstances.  By life.

 

Just frustrated.

 

Where do we turn?  What do we do?  How do we cope? The words of an old gospel hymn may help us answer those questions.

 

 Living below in this old sinful world
Hardly a comfort can afford.

Striving alone to face temptations call,
Where could I go to the Lord?

Where could I go, where could I go?
Seeking a refuge for my soul.
Needing a friend to help me in the end,
Where could I go to the Lord?

(Billy Sherrill/Glenn Sutton) 



 

 

Life can be frustrating.  For believers and unbelievers alike.  Putting our faith and trust in Christ is not a guarantee that life will no longer have challenges or frustrations.  But it is a guarantee that we don't walk through those situations alone.  That Christ Himself, through the person of the Holy Spirit, is with us in every difficulty.  And that we can turn to Him for comfort in every situation.  Indeed, where else could we go?

 

 

"On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God.  Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us."  (Psalm 62: 7-8 ESV)

"Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God."  (John 6:68 ESV)

 



How Are Your Communication Skills?

Have you ever had the experience of a phone conversation, or perhaps a visit, where one of the parties obviously didn't want to be there?

Maybe you're a parent or a grandparent receiving the obligatory phone call for your birthday or some other special occasion.  What if the person on the other end of the line just mumbles or yawns or just says the same stilted sentences that they have always said, and says them over and over?  How would that make you feel?  Would that make you feel loved?  Or special?  Probably not.

Maybe you're a parent or a grandparent with grown children.  How often are they in touch with you?  Every day?  Or maybe once a week?  Or less often?  Are they only in touch when they need something?  How does that make you feel?  Does it make you feel loved?  Or special?  Probably not.

Have you ever thought about how often we approach our time with God that very same way?  As an obligation to be checked off our list for the day.  Or we're only in touch when we need something or have a problem.  How do you think that makes God feel?  If, as an earthly parent, that approach would leave you feeling unloved or unnecessary, how much more must the heart of our Heavenly Father be grieved to be treated that way.  What does that approach say about the genuiness of our relationship with our Heavenly Father?

What is your communication with God really like?  Do you just rattle through, as though on "speed talk"?  Do you only communicate with God when you need something?  When there's a problem in your life that you can't quite solve on your own?  Do you come to God with the same well-worn phrases or the same "laundry list" of prayer requests?  With the same spiritual-sounding, but perhaps meaningless to you, phrases that you heard somebody else say?  Do you rattle off the same words in the same order every time?

Is that a genuine communication?  Or would that perhaps qualify as "vain repetition"?    (See Matthew 6:7 KJV)

What is genuine communication?  How would you describe that?

Think again about your communication with your parents or perhaps your grandparents.  How would you describe that?  Is it regular, perhaps even daily?  Do you find it necessary to be very careful as you speak to them and use only certain prescribed sentences, or can you be open and honest, saying whatever is on your heart and mind?  Do you communicate with them only when you want something or because they can give you something, or do you talk to them simply because you love them?

I think that we can agree that the essence of genuine communication is that we are open and honest.  That we don't need a reason to talk with those we love.  That we enjoy talking with those we love.  That we miss those conversations when they don't occur.  And if that is true in our human relationships, is it not even more true in our relationship with the Lord?  If we truly love Him as we say we do, will we not want to be in communication with Him.  Will we not want to talk to Him?  Will we not miss those conversations when they don't occur?  Will our communication with Him - our prayer life - not be much more than just asking for things? 

Why do we communicate with the Lord anyway?  Is it because we love Him?  Or because we want what He can give us?  Why do we love Him?  Is it because of what He does for us or what He gives to us?  Or is it simply because of Who He is!!

There's another side of communication.  Communication is more than just talking.  Communication involves listening.

One of our sons went into the Air Force right after high school.  Following basic training and tech school, he was assigned to a base in another country.  Back in those days, we didn't have cell phones or Skype.  We received long-distance phone calls and heard a very British voice saying, "Collect call from the United Kingdom.  Will you pay?"  The answer was, of course, always "yes"!  I looked forward to those phone calls, but I was sometimes frustrated when Brian called home because he didn't say much.  I finally realized that the reason for the call was not so much because he had a lot to tell us, but was more because he wanted to hear a familiar voice, to hear the sounds of home.

Prayer is like that.  It's not always about talking.  Sometimes it's about listening.  It's about hearing from our heavenly home.  About hearing what our Father has to say to us.

Many of us may need to work on our communication skills a little bit.  In this era of cell phones and internet and texting and Skype, there's really no excuse for not staying in touch with our family and our friends.  We can always find time and a method for communicating with those we love.  Sometimes it's a lengthy conversation.  Sometimes there are challenging issues that need to be discussed.  Sometimes it's just a quick "hi, just checking in to say I love you."  Whatever it is, it's important to communicate with those we love.

How much more important to communicate with the One who loves us most.  Not to only communicate with our Heavenly Father when we need something or when we have challenging issues to deal with.  But to talk with Him - and listen to Him - on a regular basis.

When Jesus taught His disciples about prayer, He didn't say "if" you pray......He said "when" you pray.  Regular communication is an important part of our lives.  With our earthly families.  Even more so with our Heavenly Father.

Regular communication is necessary to maintain any relationship.  It's one of the ways we express our love for family and friends, and for our Lord.  By staying in touch.  By talking regularly.  By listening.

That's what communication is all about.  How well are you communicating with those you love?

"And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think they will be heard for their many words.  Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.  Pray then like this:
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name......"  (Matthew 6:7-9 ESV)

"Pray without ceasing."  (1 Thessalonians 5:17 ESV)