The Bucket List

 

Do you have a bucket list? Most people do, even if they may not refer to it in those terms. We all have a list of things we would like to accomplish or places we would like to go. 

About this time last year, my husband and I were just returning from a fabulous cruise around the Baltic Sea. While I had never had that on my bucket list, I’m so glad we decided on that region for our 50th wedding anniversary celebration. We saw stunning scenery and visited places that I not only had never dreamed of visiting, but we went to some places I had never even heard of! Eidfjord, Norway. The Aland Islands, Finland. Alborg, Denmark. 

I recommend adding “Viking Homelands Adventure” to your bucket list! The beauty of that part of the world is breathtaking and had me often calling Psalm 19 to mind: “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork.” 

Bucket lists are often focused on places we want to go. Things we want to accomplish. But have you ever considered having a spiritual bucket list? For some help making that list, turn to Psalm 37 and look at the verbs.

Fret not.

“Fret not because of evil doers….” Have you ever found yourself fretting over the evil in the world? Being distressed by what you see around you? It’s easy for us to be overwhelmed by the craziness in our world. To be discouraged and frustrated. That’s why this imperative - don’t fret - is a good item for the bucket list.

This is an imperative, which means we have a choice to obey or disobey/ignore this instruction. We are able to “fret not” as an act of the will. Not by our emotions, but by deliberate choice. It doesn’t come easily or naturally to us, so we must accompany this choice with prayer. Lord, Your word tells me not to fret, not to worry, but I’m finding myself overwhelmed. I need Your help. Help me to remember that you are my refuge and strength. (See Psalm 46.)

Trust in the Lord.

Trust in the Lord. Not in your feelings. Not in the news media or in social media or in any other person or thing. Trust in the Lord. It seems so simple, yet sometimes is so hard to do. But it’s a very basic discipline of the Christian life. Trust in the Lord. Period. 

Delight yourself in the Lord.

Again, this seems so obvious, doesn’t it. And we think to ourselves, well, of course I’m delighting in the Lord. 

But are you? Really? What brings you the most joy? How do you spend your time? Is the way you spend your time, your energy, your money, a reflection of your delight in the Lord? If not, then why not? This item on the list leads to some time in prayer and reflection, perhaps to some repentance and recommitment. It leads to the question, are my eyes “fixed on Jesus?” (See Hebrews 12:1-2)

And the list goes on…..

Commit your way to the Lord.

Be still before the Lord.

Refrain from anger.

Forsake anger.

Fret not. There it is again. At least two more times, depending on the translation you are using. Since it’s repeated, it must be important. Really important. So, as you’re working on your spiritual bucket list, this might be a good place to start. 

This is a repeated instruction throughout Scripture. It isn’t limited to this Psalm. It sometimes is phrased a little differently.

Fear not. Be strong. Don’t be afraid.

It all leads us to the same place. Don’t worry. Trust God.

Because God is in control. Of all things. And He can be trusted. So there’s no need to fret.

Thinking About Worship

Because today is Saturday, and it’s the day before I go to gather together for worship with my church family, worship is on my mind. It’s a topic dear to my heart, one I have written about often, and these are photos I have shared many times. I’m sharing them again because they help to tell the story of what is on my mind.

This picture was taken in one of my favorite cities on earth, Jerusalem, at one of my favorite places in that favorite city, the southern steps to the Temple Mount.

 



This photo below, taken from the Mount of Olives, can put that into context for you. The walled area in the center of the photo is the Temple Mount. The Dome of the Rock is just out of the photo, to the far right just beyond the trees. The Southern Steps are there in the center, just outside the wall of the Temple Mount, just above a small clump of trees.

On each of our trips to Jerusalem, we have had opportunity to sit on those steps and worship. What precious memories I have of those times. Being in that place, very near where Peter preached on Pentecost and 3000 souls were saved (Acts 2:14-41). Hearing the Word proclaimed to us by our pastor in that same place. Praying there on those steps. Worshiping. Those are favorite memories indeed.

I believe there is an important lesson to be learned from those Southern Steps up to the Temple Mount. You see, the interesting thing about these steps is that they are uneven. Some are wide, some are narrow, some are in-between. The result is that there would have been no casual skipping up the steps to worship at the Temple. The nature of the steps requires that the approach be slow and deliberate.

And therein lies the lesson. One we need to remind ourselves of often as we ask ourselves this question: In our increasingly casual world, have we become too casual in our approach to worship?  

Consider this quote from Oswald Chambers:  "If we have never had the experience of taking our casual, religious shoes off our casual, religious feet - getting rid of the excessive informality with which we approach God - it is questionable whether we have ever stood in His presence."

I find myself thinking about that this morning. Our world has become increasingly casual. My concern is not whether your wardrobe is trendy or traditional, or whether your preference is music is casual or classical or country or something in between. 

The issue is not our personal preferences. The issue is what we think about God. And about how we treat Him. My concern is that our casual approach to life has carried over to a very cavalier attitude toward the things of God. 

May we - may I - never be too casual in our approach to a holy God!



"Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts."  (Isaiah 6:3 NASB)

Nothing Is Impossible

 "For nothing will be impossible with God."  (Luke 1:13 NASB)

Photographs are great reminders of things that are somewhere deep in your memory, but are brought to mind when the photo brings it back to life. This particular photo is a very special one. It was a banner day in my journey to stroke recovery. On that day in 2017,  I was so blessed and thankful to be able to once again lead our Life Group Bible study. A thing that had once seemed impossible following my stroke.

That memory is especially important to me now that we are dealing with my husband’s cancer diagnosis. And once again I am reminded that nothing is impossible with God.

On that day in 2017 we were studying in the Old Testament book of Ruth. We spent a lot of our time talking about Naomi. If you haven't read it lately, take some time to read Ruth chapter 1. Naomi's story is a sad story. There was a famine. They had no food so Naomi and her family had to relocate to a foreign country. While they were living in the foreign country, her husband died. Then both her sons died. It's a really sad story.

But God made a way for Naomi. God provided exactly what Naomi needed.

Just as God has provided everything I have needed to get through the challenges I have in my post-stroke life. And just as God will provide everything we need in this cancer journey.

Your story may not be exactly like Naomi's story. Or exactly like my story. Or like Al’s story. But you have a story. Each of us has challenges and trials and difficult circumstances to deal with. We all have a story. We all have "stuff" to deal with. 

God provided everything Naomi needed to deal with the challenges of her life. He has provided everything I have needed to face the challenges of my life.

And He is able to do the same for you.

Because nothing is impossible with God!


"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen" (Ephesians 3:20)

A Lesson from the Banana.

Have you ever had this experience? What a disappointment!  As I was looking at the bananas on the kitchen counter and considering my breakfast options this morning, my mind carried me back a few years. I remember it well.

On that morning, I was looking forward to having a banana smeared with peanut butter, a favorite breakfast treat. But it was not to be. When I peeled the banana, the entire thing was black. Not a bruise here and there. But black. As in, rotten.

I had never had that experience with a banana before. Nor have I since. It looked great on the outside.  Perfectly yellow with just a few flecks of brown. It felt like a banana should feel when it is perfectly ripe.  But it's what's on the inside that counts with a banana. And what was on the inside was ugly. Black. Something was rotten in Denmark, if I may borrow a Shakespearean phrase.

Yuck. No banana for breakfast.

But thinking about that banana makes me realized how often many of us are just like that banana. We look good on the outside. But inside there's a blackness. Anger. Resentment. Bitterness. Sin.

We look good. We may sound good. We may even smell good!  But what's inside is rotten.  And it's what's inside that counts.

"Search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts.  And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."  (Psalm 139:23-24)

Already?

Summer has two bookends - Memorial Day and Labor Day - and here we are. Heading into the Labor Day weekend when it seems summer just started yesterday! 

In spite of it passing so quickly and losing the entire month of August (see yesterday’s post), we enjoyed a pleasant summer. Time with friends, a birthday, a surprise visit from both our sons, and lots of good books. Today I’m thinking about how quickly time passes!

The signs of the season change are already evident. The crape myrtles that line my street are losing their blooms. The apple orchards are open. We're beginning to see pumpkin everything - Cheerios, pancakes, and coffee creamer, to name a few - everywhere we turn. And it's time for some football! Go, Gamecocks!

I love September. There's a subtle change in the temperatures, which around here means mostly upper 80s instead of upper 90s. But hey, we'll take what we can get! And gradually we will move to lower humidity, a welcome change for us all.

All these signs point to one thing. It's time for fall, y'all!

I know fall doesn't officially make an appearance for about three more weeks. But turning the calendar page to September means it's that time again. Add in the fact that it’s the Labor Day weekend, and it's as good as official.  

Fall has arrived. The signs are everywhere. You can't help but notice.

There are other signs that are obvious as well.

"But understand this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power."       (2 Timothy 3:1-6a NASB)

I'm certain you have noticed some of these things in our culture. They are just as obvious as the cooler air and the football season.

We can look at the calendar and know when fall arrives. We don't know exactly when Jesus will return, but as we look at these signs around us, we can't help but be aware the day is closer now than it has ever been.

Are you ready?