Get A Grip

As a child, fall promised the molasses taste of sorghum syrup, crisp Rome apples for jelly making, the smell of fresh cut hay, and the North GA State Fair.  Each year the midway beckoned our adventuresome spirit to bypass the carousel and head over to the Himalaya roller coaster.  Finally in our early teens, we were ‘big’ enough to experience the thrill of those coveted rides.  One of them, the Bullet, intrigued us as much as it filled us with expectant anticipation.

Looking like a couple of space-age hammers, two long arms with oblong capsules attached held a fascination as they lured us to the line.  My brother and I rode together, grinning so big it’s a wonder we didn’t attract moths.  As the handle-like poles swung back and forth, laughter bubbled out.  As we went higher, the carnival sounds faded as quickly as our mirth.  Held upside down for a moment, I knew I made a big mistake.  Then the centrifugal force of fast circles held my chin to my chest, causing pain and I just knew my next site would be heaven.  I shifted my eyes to the crossbar finding my brother‘s white-knuckled death grip and tears flowed down my cheeks. 

“Just hold on Dimple.  It’ll be over soon; just hold on!”

As if I could let go!  I couldn’t even move!

Have you ever been in a similar situation with no way to avoid imminent harm?  Do you know the tingle of feeling a clear and present danger paralyzing you against the typical fight or flight response?  Are you a crier, looking to others for help?  Where is your focus, here on this earth or your future? 

  

HOPE is the assurance of something better than right now.  It is the knowledge the temporal events of this life being the worst you will ever experience.  It is resting in the promise of eternal life.  It is security and safety, no matter what you are experiencing right this moment. 

HOPE, Hold Onto Promises Eternal, when things overwhelm you.  Cry out to God for wisdom.  Ask Him for the guidance to take the next step and the endurance to get through this season.  We face trials not only to test our faith but to strengthen it.  He will never give us a situation for which He will not be there with us to lead us through.

If you don’t know Jesus, ask Him into your life.  He’s right there waiting for you.  That soft knocking you hear is Him letting you know He’s seeking you.  That quickening you feel in your chest is an urge to answer His call. 

   

Jesus never promised an easy life; He promised incorruptible rewards.  He promised never to leave or forsake us.  He promised us abundant life.  Keep your eyes on the future, eternity with Him.

John 16:33 “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

Ready or Not, Here I Come!

Growing up in a time of dial phones, black and white television, and wind up watches, recess couldn’t come fast enough.  We looked forward to weekend playtime and had friends over for games.  The playgrounds at school had swings and monkey bars as well as fields to play kickball.  We had swings, a big field of red-top clover, a larger yard, and lots of trees.  With five of us, school chums came to play at our house.  What’s another dozen kids Daddy would say and for Momma, it had to be easier having us all there rather than scattered out to multiple places.  We lived in a rural area and our house as the gathering place saved our parents a lot of windshield time although it probably gave them a few extra prematurely gray hairs.

If there were ten or more of us playing hide-and-seek, we would count up to fifty.  If just my siblings and I, it went something like “1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 – all good children go to heaven.  8, 9, and 10 – I’m not counting again.  Ready or not here I come!”  Such fun we had in finding the perfect hiding place in a short amount of time. Fun fizzled when the place so easily accessed was not so easy to get out of.  Calling out for help?  Not an option for the game continued.  Staying put?  Breathe through it.  We rallied to rescue our sibling without involving our parents.  If they knew we were hiding where we weren’t supposed to be playing, there would be whippings.

We have all experienced consequences to our actions, both good and not so good.  We have stretched, and sometimes broken, boundaries in the name of spreading our wings.  We have gotten ‘stuck’ between dumb and certainly not smart trying to do things on our strength and knowledge rather than asking for help.  Sometimes, we rally a cheering section to encourage us to stay stuck because we are comfortable there.  We keep our failures to ourselves because we don’t want to be embarrassed. 

Worst of all is getting caught doing something we shouldn’t be doing.  We know better.  We’ve been taught right and wrong.  We’ve been told to stay away, keep back, and move on from certain things, people, and places.  We hear but do we listen?  And when we get caught, do we hang our head in shame or shout back in defiance?  Do we admit our wrong and ask forgiveness?  Do we turn from our wrong and face the consequences of our actions?  Or, do we smile with understanding and do it again?

The Bible encourages us to pray and ask forgiveness for our sins; to repent of them.  To repent is a change of mind or purpose, a direction reversal from our current state.  To repent brings us to a penitent state or to be sorrowful, contrite, for sin or wrongdoing wanting to amend and atone for our actions.  It is not punishment but correction we receive when we ask forgiveness and truly repent. 

Not one of us makes it through the day without sinning in some way.  A constant battle against the flesh rages within a contrite heart.  We cannot hide from our wrong doing because it lives within us.  We cannot deny it for, frankly God already knows.  We pray and receive forgiveness because Jesus has set us free.  He took all our sins for all of us to the cross.  Nothing you do or say could make Him regret taking the punishment for you.  Nothing you can imagine or partake in can prevent Him from loving you.  Nothing on this earth can stop Him from wanting you with Him in eternity.  No man or law passed by man can overtake His word as truth.

Are you prepared for Jesus to return to take us home?  Have you admitted to Him you are a sinner in need of a Savior?  Do you believe in His redemptive work on the cross?  Have you asked Him to come into your life and change you? 

On that day when in the twinkling of an eye He arrives, I want to be doing His work.  Will you join me to be ready when He comes?   

Counting Costs

I am blessed beyond words for the grace and mercy of the county sheriff’s office.  I received a generous award from the motorcycle patrol this past week.  How is a ticket a blessing?  Glad you asked….

He could have stopped me a mile earlier, in a construction zone, with twice the fine.  He could have charged me with no proof of insurance for I had the old card in my wallet instead of the one that started the first of this month; instead he gave me a warning.  He could have added aggressive driving to the ticket requiring I appear in court.  Only one violation noted and the opportunity to pay the fine within a set period as well as reduce the points on my license blessed me.  The bigger blessing is that I did not cause harm to another or myself.  The biggest blessing - I recognize my failure.

  

I am a gentle soul with a loving and giving spirit…until I get in the car to drive.  It’s like a transformation occurs.  I become someone I do not know, and I definitely don’t like.  I qualify as a bully driver and act as if I’m the only one that knows the rules of the road.  The kind officer pointed out to me how delusional my thinking.  I was following too close.  Yes, I was.  The guy in front kept slowing down to reach for something in the front seat or drink from his go mug or talk on the phone.  I wanted him to get out of my way so I didn’t slow down as much as I should have.  I was not a safe distance behind him.  I was not even in a hurry to get somewhere!  But hey, he was in the fast lane, going under the speed limit, and I am the better driver, right?  WRONG!

How often do we feel we exhibit righteous anger at the actions of another?  How often do we lovingly point out to a teacher of the word they don’t have their facts straight?  How often do we purposefully not participate because it’s just not our thing?  How often do we discount the service of another in favor of our judgmental heart or critical spirit?  How often do we compare what others are doing to us doing better?  How far do we carry a grudge against someone? 

How genuinely do we put the other person’s feelings first?  How inconsistently do we stop and T.H.I.N.K. before we speak?  Are our words Truthful, Helpful, Inspirational, Necessary, ­and Kind?  How joyful are we in serving others?  How forgiving are we of ourselves and others?  How honest are we about our actions?  How quickly do we take it to God for guidance?

We see how others respond to our ‘helpful’ words and get angry when they speak harshly or treat us badly.  We choose not to recognize we hurt them in what we said and claim they stepped on our feelings.  We convince ourselves we are offering constructive input.  We determine we are not critical in spirit, and it’s their problem to handle.  We have become a society which focuses on fast food, instant responses, incoherent communications, and ourselves. 

I justified my bad behavior by offering excuses instead of asking forgiveness.  I determined to have my way instead of purposing in my heart to do what is right.  I pushed on when I should have backed off.  I blamed the person in front of me when it was me in error.  I’ve asked Jesus to take Lordship over that part of my personality.  It is abundantly apparent to me I haven’t surrendered it for I still did it.  I was wrong, and now I have to pay for it.       

  

Sin is like that too.  Oh, it feels good.  Why would we participate in it if it felt bad?  We hear that little voice telling us it won’t matter this one time.  But, we do it again and again until it becomes a part of us.  We know the world is okay with it for everybody else does it.  Are we really sure about that?  Is it everybody or is it just those we hang around with who are doing what our flesh wants to do?  It’s just a tiny little lie, so they feel okay about what we say.  It’s not like it hurts anyone, right?  It might mean the difference between life and death for eternity, so why would we be less than truthful about it? 

If we are doing something we shouldn’t and we feel no conviction then something is wrong with our hearts.  If we are not sharing the truth of God’s word and living out that truth, we could cause someone else to stumble.  Sin is sin, whether it’s a white lie or murder; it’s still sin to God.  We grieve the Holy Spirit when we sin.  We discount the cost Jesus paid for our sins.

In this week of the holiest remembrance of the resurrection of Jesus, let us reflect on who we are in Christ.  We are redeemed.  We are ransomed.  We are co-inheritors to the kingdom.  We are children of God.  We are forgiven of our sins.  We are saved from eternal death.  Most of all, we are loved!

If you have not yet accepted Jesus as your Savior and you’ve heard God’s word before, why are you waiting?  If you want to know more about God and what Jesus did for us, read the Bible.  If you need to hear the words to understand the teachings, there are audio Bibles.  There are links to several church sites provided in this blog.  They contain verse by verse, chapter by chapter teachings to encourage you.  There is also a link to blueletterbible.org to help you study God’s word by going deeper into the meaning of the Hebrew and Greek texts. 

Of all the promises from God, we are not given another day.  Of all the power of Jesus, we must welcome Him before He can save us.  Of all the urging of the Holy Spirit beside us, He cannot become a part of us until we accept Jesus as our Savior.  If yesterday is a memory, tomorrow is not promised, and every day is today, why not make this the day of your salvation?   

We are all sinners and fall short of the glory of God.  Jesus took our sins to the cross and paid for them with His blood.  He loves us so much He gave His life for us before we were born!  No sin, even murder, is too big for the cross.  Cry out to Jesus, bring your pain and fear to Him, lay it at His feet, ask forgiveness for it, and repent.  Tell Him you believe He died for you and rose again.  If you are sincere in your prayer, you are saved.  As a child of God, you are a co-inheritor to heaven!  We will stand before Jesus, and I will see you there.

Lord God, Thank You for Your love being a constant light in my life.  Thank You for never leaving or forsaking me, just as You promised.  I pray those reading these words cry out to You for salvation, today.  I pray they seek a relationship with You, call You Friend.  May the only time I follow too closely be in my walk with Jesus.  I love You and praise You for You alone are worthy of our worship.  In Jesus Name – Amen!  

Me Lucky Charms

Incredibly blessed in 2003, we celebrated our 15^th wedding anniversary at Waterford Castle in Ireland.  For two weeks, we toured the country gathering memories like the most precious of crystal treasures!  We ate shepherd’s pie at the Flesk in Killarney, a ham & cheddar sandwich on freshly baked bread in a public house, aka a pub, established in the late 1600’s in Cork.  We sipped in Galway, a pint for him and a Bushmill’s for me.  We savored the earthy aroma of a turf fire in Bundoran as we curled up to read with a cup of Irish tea and delightful soda bread.  We hiked along the cliffs of Moher, rode a jaunting car around Muckross House, explored uninhabited Innisfallen Island, and toured Trinity College where we saw handwritten and decorated pages of the Bible.  We listened to gypsy bands on Grafton Street and lingered at the fountains in St. Stephen’s Green.  We enjoyed a stroll along the quay in Dingle and got lost in County Tipperary ending up in Carrick On Suir.  Of all our adventures, Ireland holds a special place in my heart.  The fact I am Scot-Irish-Native American may have a wee bit to do with that.  But I believe it is the charm of the country, the hospitality of the people, and the luck of a life with a kindred soul sharing wanderlust.

From the time we stepped off the plane at Dublin International; we enjoyed the best of kindness from a culture of people ready to laugh spinning a tale to share a bit of themselves with the Yanks.  We chose a cab from the airport as flying all night and driving in a new city intimidated us.  Our first night at the Grafton House gave us a tiny glimpse of the quaint European charm awaiting us for the next two weeks.  We returned to the airport the next day, picked up a car and traveled around the island spending a night here or two there.  We visited countless archeological sites, ancient tomb portals called dolmens and castle ruins.  Our hearts entwined with the culture, the people, the lifestyle, we didn’t want to leave.  We knew we must, but we vowed we would return one day.

That day can no longer happen as he passed some time ago.  Those treasured moments are tucked away in a special part of my heart.  The memory of his laughter is a balm on my troubled soul as I recall the shared joy of exploration and discovery.  Thousands of priceless moments spin until I secure them away again.  Those loving moments of the man of my dreams soothes my sleep now.  How lucky I am for the loan of such a charming and funny soul-mate, one full of romance and a vast fount of historical knowledge.  Travel together was not just learning about new places and cultures, but an adventure! 

Though we never thought to see another sight as beautiful as Ireland, we visited some amazing places in our short time together.  God was having an exceptionally good week when He created this world for there are wonders words cannot express; you have to engage all of your senses living them as they happen.  A crashing wave on the Pacific coast accompanied by the piercing cry of an eagle or a perfumed trade breeze in the South Pacific islands while savoring sweet fruit juices, each carries a plaintive cry of our hearts.  Hearing an iceberg calf crash in the coastal waters of Alaska or the roar of a grizzly in Denali cannot compare to the untouched and quiet splendor of the tundra.  Sunrise over the Atlantic, noon over the plains of the Midwest, or sunset over the Rockies of the Southwest is not nearly as dramatic as seeing the light play over water, grain or mountains.  Each moment is but a glimpse of what awaits us. 

No tower in Paris, ruin in Mexico, castle in Ireland, or grand cathedral in any city anywhere will come close to the splendor of our mansions in heaven.  No priceless display in any museum in any part of the world will compare to those beautiful crowns we receive for serving His kingdom.  No carefully prepared and elegantly served meal will match the celebration at the Wedding Feast of the Lamb.  No one can witness the innocence of a child’s smile, feel the arms of a loved one holding them close one last time or listen to the abandoned laughter of pure joy and continue to doubt. 

On this day of celebration where everyone claims a bit of Irish blood, I recall our Emerald Isle trip.  There are no leprechauns guarding pots of gold or lucky charms to attach to dreams, but treasured moments I hold most dear.  I know I will one day see my husband again, and we will be on an unending adventure in a place more beautiful than any I’ve ever seen or wanted to visit.  I will sing, laugh, and dance where the only man-made thing will be scars on the hands and feet of Jesus.  I will need no more salve for my hurts or tissues to wipe away the tears for I will be praising and worshiping my King with unfettered joy.  No wishes, no dreams, no memento from any earthly destination will compare to the jeweled reality of heaven.  I will be home, forever.  

Resistance Training or Endurance Testing?

I’ve never been much of a participator in sporting events.  Pushed to go outside and play, I would find a quiet spot in the shade to curl up and read.  At recess, I so disliked team events.  Always the last one chosen, I was self-conscious about being a klutz!  Grace was not visible in my coltish legs, flat bottom, and a chunky torso, so others tended to laugh at me.  The typical ‘running like a girl’ applied to me with few exceptions.  If the mad rooster or one of the bulls were chasing me, then I could top a two-minute mile easy!  I just preferred solo activities inside, and still do.

I am not a hit the gym daily hard body, but I used to go three or four times a week.  Across the street from my workplace and offering a discounted membership, it was a convenient, cost-effective, and enjoyable alternative to unwind after work.  Co-workers and friends encouraging each other reaped the health benefits through exercise, and I looked forward to it.

One of my friends and I were challenging each other on crunches.  We did five sets of twenty with a minute or two of rest in between.  This built up to sets of fifty followed by more sets.  Over a month or so, our endurance improved to completing five hundred crunches!  We felt great with our accomplishment and began some light weight training.  Then, I got laid off and had to let the membership go; a few months later my husband died and a few months after that I developed hypothyroidism.  The weight I lost returned….with friends and family….unwilling to leave!  A couple of years go by where my health improves as my faith strengthens.  I quit smoking.  A couple of weeks later we lost my Dad.  I didn’t go back to cigarettes, but I did increase the ice cream, and the weight increased in proportion to the amount of comfort I consumed!

The training and routine of regular exercise gave me discipline and energy.  I learned to enjoy working out with my girlfriends.  I miss the activity and the comradery.  I miss those jeans I no longer own.  Each day is easier than the day before to skip taking a walk or getting moving in some way.  Sitting in front of the TV with a bowl of something creamy and cold is such a habit I don’t even realize I’m doing it sometimes.  I’ve become so resistant to exercise; I can barely do ten crunches, let alone ten sets of fifty. 

Life can throw us off a steady pace.  Whether its illness, loss, financial challenges or a perceived lack of time, we drift away from our routine.  We miss opportunities or avoid them, to work toward a goal.  We fail to rally our cheering section to hold us accountable making it so very easy to skip a task we should be doing.  We lose out on celebrating accomplishments as we fall deeper into unhealthy habits.  We willingly walk away from doing what we know is right.

We do this with areas other than exercise too.  Expectations develop into temptations, pulling us into daily crazy.  We leave quiet time with God to later, only ‘later’ keeps getting pushed.  We allow ourselves to become overwhelmed with worldly pursuits until we collapse.  We promise God we will make it up to Him.  We are sincere in our justification that our lack of time with Him is just an anomaly until we rarely think of quiet time anymore.  We take advantage of new mercies daily as we continue to avoid spending quality time with God.  We have trained our resistance to excuse us.  We embrace our ‘new normal’ of missing time with God, and it grows.  Before we understand what we are doing, we skip attending church, miss fellowship opportunities, leave out Bible study, and prayer comes only when we are in trouble.  Each time is easier than the time before until we are fully in the world.  The fire for the Lord becomes a spark within us until it banks to a smoldering ember.

Eventually, we come to ourselves, or we get a well-deserved ‘God-smack’ to redirect our attention.  We realize how resistant we have become to doing what we know is right.  We cry out for forgiveness.  We pour out our heartbreak and pain for we know we have grieved the Holy Spirit.  We thank God for His faithfulness even when we drift away.  We rededicate ourselves to the pursuit of Jesus and ask the Holy Spirit to help us with our self-control.  We redefine our day to put God first; the fires burn brightly again, and everything else falls into place. 

I ask you, believer to believer, have you laid aside time with God to sleep a bit more or play a while longer?  Has it been so long you feel unworthy to approach Him?  He’s right there waiting for us to turn around.  Come as you are…we know we can.  Let’s live like we know where we are going to spend eternity, because we do.  Let’s be salt and light to a darkened world, as we are called to be.  Let’s love without reservation, forgive without requirement, for we are greatly loved and have been forgiven much.  Let’s quit resisting our training and let the testing of our endurance become enveloped with His loving grace!  

Rescued!

I am not the most graceful person in fact you might call me a klutz; my family does!  I am a girly-girl where my sisters were tomboys.  I am more about soft skills such as singing, reading, writing poetry where they were all about bike riding, sword fighting with sticks, and climbing trees.  They like playing in the dirt and having dirt clod battles where I am more about dolls and coloring books.  They are muscle and deep tans where I am fair and don’t like to sweat.  Ridicule often came to the one who preferred clean hands, trimmed nails, and fixed hair because I was a social moron to playing outside. 

Looking back, I see how it happened.  My best friend required subdued activities due to a heart condition.  We played together because her siblings were adults with kids of their own.  If her Momma got her a coloring book, I got one too.  If my Momma got me a doll, she got one too.  We played quietly and contentedly while my siblings and our friends ran in loud abandon.  It’s been almost 50 years since she went home to the Lord, and I can still hear her laughter, the lilt in her voice as we sang hymns together.  Some of those gentle activities remain as my favorite hobbies today.  Not as a tribute to one of the most gentle of souls I have ever known, but because of ‘conditioning’ to a less strenuous version of fun.

At one point, I guess I was about nine or ten, I decided it was time to learn how to fit in with my siblings.  We still wore dresses to play in, but I think that was a day I had not gone in to put on ‘play clothes’ prior to going outside.  My brother and sisters were on the limbs of a dogwood tree in the edge of the woods behind our house.  Encouraging me on where to put my feet, they directed my steps to climb with them.  It’s all fun and games until my slick bottom shoes caused me to slide right off the limb!  It’s not funny when I can’t reach the branch above to pull myself up, and my feet aren’t touching the ground.  I’m dangling, by the elastic of my underwear!!   

My siblings are doubled over with laughter because, we do that in my family…you fall, and it’s funny, we laugh as we help you up.  I’m crying from embarrassment and pain.  Not only can I not get out of my predicament, the tree had a knot where a limb had fallen off.  A rotting, and dirty, protrusion of wood stuck out from the trunk.  It caught on the inside of my knee and tore all the way up my leg, to my underwear.  One of my sisters finally realized I was in quite a difficult situation and she starting calling out to Daddy. 

Daddy came and lifted me off the tree.  He’s trying not to laugh as I cry into his shoulder.  He carries me to the porch and for the next few hours, Momma and I use peroxide and tweezers to get wood out of my leg.  In fact, splinters worked their way to the surface for a few years after that.  I carry a small bit of the scar today, and the family carries a moment of extreme humor to share with others.  Learned what not to do…monkey's climb trees and I don't qualify!

How often we have moments of laughter followed by extreme pain.  How often we play with abandon only to find, we are flirting with danger.  How often we listen to instruction of others that leads us into precarious situations.  How often the consequences of our actions are life lessons we never forget.

What do you do when you fall?  How do you hold on when you stumble?  When do you cry out for help?  Who do you call when you’re hanging by a thread? 

Our Heavenly Father is there for us in every situation.  Jesus was with me on that limb, and He kept me from hitting my head or breaking a bone.  He was with me as I cried with the cleaning of the wound.  He comforted me as I poured out my heart to Him about being a misfit.  He gently led me to stronger relationships with my siblings by helping them with homework or learning to read.  He taught me how to climb into His arms for instruction and correction.  He’s led me to a compassionate understanding of physical and emotional pain so I can listen to others as I pass a tissue, offer a hug or lift them in prayer.

Are you at the end of your rope?  Isn’t it time to reach for the saving hand of Jesus Christ?  He rescues those who believe He is God come to earth as the Word made flesh.  He died for us so we may be forgiven of our sins; so we may be in right relationship with God; so the Holy Spirit can live within us when we accept Him.  He prepares a place for us to spend eternity.  Jesus loves us so very much and He's waiting for you to answer His knock.  He will never leave you out on a limb, or hanging on by a thread.

"And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you.  He will be with you.  He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed."  Deu 31:8

Well Done!

Our taste for particular foods is a conditioned response.  As children, we tend to eat as our parents do, or what they forced us to eat.  Case in point, my folks always cooked the vitamins out of vegetables, prepared meat well done, and got creative with leftovers. 

Have you ever smelled a bottle of vitamins?  By all means cook that unappetizing aroma of turnips and greens out of my veggies!  Is that why those and rutabagas are so ‘good for me'?  Hated them as a kid and intensely dislike them as an adult. 

Well done beef or pork is quite good if prepared and cooked properly, low and slow with minimal seasoning.  No need to turn them into a burnt offering.  It requires a bit of patience and planning, but melt in your mouth with no pink meat grilled to juicy perfection is an art. 

Being from the south where they fry butter, any vegetable, fruit, meat, or dessert, can be battered and dropped in hot oil.  Make it crunchy, and the kids will come.  Can't you just hear it…Johnny won't eat his grits, well fry them!  I draw the line at fried pickles though…yuck!

As an adult, I do prefer my beans or broccoli tender crisp and my steaks medium to medium-well.  The most laughs, or gags, occur with Cowboy/Cowgirl Stew.  Butterbeans with mayonnaise stirred in, and a biscuit crumbled over it, a creative leftover my Grandparents and my Momma used.  Hey, don't knock it ‘till you try it.  Five kids turning their noses up and whining over dried beans yet another day produced a need for some recipe ingenuity.  Since beans don't fry up very well, cream ‘em, name ‘em something different and the children have a hot lunch they enjoy.

Our leftovers in life are not always so easily repurposed, but using them for something unexpected is exciting.  How we choose to view them and incorporate them is specific to our call, our talents, and our gifts.  Sometimes it's leaving them behind or throwing them out to change directions, try a different recipe, or sing a new song.  How often have we held onto that last piece of something sweet only to later learn if we had given it up, we would have had something far more precious?  

Take my childhood memories for examples.  They qualify as leftovers.  I am an adult and cannot recapture those halcyon days of my youth where my biggest worry was falling out of a tree.  I can repurpose those memories into stories, poetry, or lyrics to bring glory to God.  He's called me to write, He's given me a ‘wee bit of talent for spinning a tale,' and those who know me well will concur, I have the gift of gab.  Mixing this together in a sweet offering to God is not just my goal, it’s my passion.  Learning and incorporating new knowledge to my walk keeps my eyes on Jesus.  Sharing these stories and insights with you applies His call, gift, and talent to me, for which I am most grateful.

He's not finished with me yet.  There's still His business to see to, His purpose to accomplish.  He stirs me up and pops me back on the fire of refinement.  He puts turnip greens in front of me and expects me to clean my plate.  Sometimes, He takes away something I hold dear.  His plans for me are so much bigger than any of my dreams, He replaces that lost with something pure and beautiful.  It's not always easy, and it's uncomfortable most of the time but I pray this leftover will one day hear, "Well done My child, welcome home."

"His Lord said to him, "Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your Lord."  Mat 25:21 (NKJV)

Man Made Materials

With five growing kids, we got new shoes at times of the year when we could save money and get the most wear from them.  Easter dress shoes, summer flip flops, and school oxfords or tennis shoes were typical for us.  We didn’t want for footwear but, oh the dreams of this girly-girl to have shoes matching her outfits.

As a thirty-something, I attained a measure of that silly school girl dream.  One of the local discount stores had pumps for five dollars a pair.  I had at least ten different colors to match my dresses; how uptown I felt with a rainbow of shoes from which to choose!

One day I had on the red pumps as I stopped by the mall on the way home from work.  With errands to accomplish, I was rushing through one business after another.  Roughly thirty minutes into my task, it felt like I was walking on white-hot coals covered with scalding water.  Miserable, I was tempted to take those pretty, little shoes and throw them in the trash.  Instead, I stepped into a shoe store.

Explaining my dilemma to the salesman, he asked to see one of my shoes.  He pointed out the ‘all man-made materials’ label.  He told me my feet were overheating from the lack of breathable material.  I told him I wanted a pair of leather dress pumps in flat black, as opposed to shiny patent leather, with heels no higher than 2 ½” and under $50.  I gave him my size thinking no way would my feet go back in those cheap shoes.

When I got home, the kaleidoscope of shoes in the floor of my closet went out the door.  Inexpensive they may have been, but there were ruining my tootsies.  Believe me when I say, if your feet hurt, you get a bit grumpy.  I didn’t want to ruin my sunny disposition because of sore feet.  A $49 investment over twenty-five years ago continues to reap dividends today.

I attended a private Methodist funded college.  One of the required courses designed to raise awareness of different religious doctrine while increasing our tolerance level to other views was World Religions.  As much as I disliked the exposure to all this propaganda, I’m glad I took the class.  The enlightenment has served me well throughout the thirty plus years since then. 

Know what I found that semester?  All but one religion were founded and developed by a man; all but one present writings inspired and written by that same man.  All but one requires we ‘earn’ our way to a better future.  Some even offer the option of a ‘do-over’ to try again to obtain the next level up in the structure of society.  But, if you messed up in this life, you might return at a lower level. 

Some have so many rules none of us could ever measure up!  Some are more intolerant than I could ever be yet they call me narrow-minded or want to kill me for believing different from them.  Some have multiple gods of men or women possessing some super human strength or beauty.  If you don’t believe me, research it, you can find all the information on the web.  There are those we’ve heard of and some not so well-known, far too many to list here.  Using the phrase, ‘origins of world religions’ for the search, we get a history timeline of world religions and its founders with over sixty-five entries.

Christianity is the only religion based on one God; the only religion where the text has been proven again and again through archeological finds.  Our God inspired the written word, guiding His elect to pen the knowledge so we know how to live.  God’s word tells us in 2 Timothy 3:16, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” 

God doesn’t need us but He wants us, “For God so loved the world He sent His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”  John 3:16-17  What a beautiful gift.  Free without strings to earn it or to keep it!    

Only one investment continues to pay dividends throughout eternity – Jesus.  Isn’t it time to focus on the only proven truth?  Is now the time to not only accept the insurance but revel in the assurance of your future?  Is this the day to throw out those man-made materials for real, abundant, life? 

“Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.”  John 14:6 (NKJV)  

Muck Out the Stall

Growing up on a small farm where we raised vegetables and animals to supplement the food stores, we all had daily chores.  We could be in a snowstorm or planning a special event, but tending to the animals and the gardens came first.  Then we could play.  I do believe this structure of ‘working to eat’ is where we all got the ethics we exhibit today with our jobs.   

Part of our fun would sometimes be the task, such as riding the fence line.  Now done with ATV’s, we had horses then.  Horses require special care to prevent them from harm.  Brushing and feeding them brought great fun but cleaning out the stalls?  Not so much.

They had to have fresh hay and soft dirt on which to stand or their feet could become damaged.  Everything had a purpose, and if we could no longer ride them, they would have to go.  None of us wanted to lose the horses, so we took turns mucking out those stalls.

Our Mom and Grandmothers would put this stuff we cleaned out of the barns in their gardens, always abundant with sweet smelling blooms.  How they worked those flower beds as regularly as they tended the vegetable gardens!  They grew a variety of plants that bloomed throughout the year.  The fertilizer no longer seemed so bad when the fragrance of the flowers perfumed the air.  Without fertilizer produced by the horses, roses are weak in fragrance and pale in color…the women in our family had the most verdant rose gardens.

Daddy and our uncle owned broadcasters, or in simple farm folk lingo a manure spreader. They filled it up and hooked it to the tractor.  They pulled this monstrosity around the pastures, distributing the organic material.    This not only enriched the soil, it aided in protection against erosion.  It helped to control weeds as the grass roots penetrated deeper from this soil enhancement.  No water pollution creation from this natural substance and the smell?  It went away, eventually.

We all have muck in our lives.  Some of it stinks more than others, but it is all dirty.  We must continue to refresh and refine because we live in a fallen world.  We must repeatedly clean out the refuse lest we become too comfortable.  It will destroy us if we remain standing in it.   

Accepting Jesus as our Savior is the first step to cleaning out the filth in our lives.  We realize then what grieves God, and we want it gone.  As we keep getting rid of the sin in our lives, God blesses us for we are submitting to His will.  As we learn more of salvation, we grow deeper roots in the foundational truths of all God has for us.  As we fellowship with believers, we bloom into a beautiful mix of love and forgiveness to share with others.   

God uses our muck, the ugliness, and the sins to lead us to witness, especially to those who have no hope.  He gives us assurance so we may comfort others.  We share our testimonies not because we are good, but because we understand how bad we were before Jesus saved us.  We spread the good news of Jesus because it is God’s desire that none should perish.  We are loved and forgiven much.  With a thankful heart and a joyful spirit, we share this beautiful truth with others.  As we mature in our walk, we accept Jesus as our Lord.  We willingly give up those things that are not glorifying to Him or the advancement of God’s Kingdom. 

We are imperfect.  We make mistakes.  We find we must muck out those stalls again, and again.  The fragrance of Christ envelops us as we transform from the mire to the Christian God wants us to be.  The perfume of His righteousness will fully develop once we are in heaven.  In the meantime, we ask forgiveness for our sins every day because we have direct access to God through Jesus. We focus on the future; we cling to the hope and assurance of where we will spend eternity.  Our life here is short and fleeting as we long for our forever home.

I ask you to take a moment to inventory your life.  Do you need hope to fill your heart?  Do you need to forgive or be forgiven?  Do you want to have assurance of your eternity?  Do you feel like something is missing in your life?  Is joy something for which you long but it always seems just outside of your grasp?  

Salvation is free and simple to anyone who accepts Jesus as their Savior.  Embrace His love and forgiveness.  Pray to Him, believe in Him.  

Repentance of sin will come once you have welcomed Jesus into your heart.  He will show you and guide you.  Then, He will help you muck out those stalls!  

Top Value

Growing up in Georgia and part of a big family focused on savings, we frequented stores that gave reward stamps.  Yellow or green, the amount based on how much you spent, we pasted them into books.  We got a catalog and spent those books dreaming of what we could get for them when we had enough to trade in.  S&H Green stamps got us a Sear’s bonnet hair dryer that lasted through Momma and four girls, with long hair.  Top Value stamps got me a pressure cooker that worked for over 20 years.

Though those companies are long since bankrupt, the concept exists today with programs funded by the merchants and service providers to which we are loyal.  Frequent Fliers, Valued Customers, Honored Guests, Referral Programs and others give us points that convert to gifts, discounts, or cash-back.  I have a card wallet just for holding those reward cards.  Guess I am an equal opportunity loyal customer because there are so many places from which to choose where to purchase groceries, sundries, gifts, clothes, and gas.  Favored restaurants give ‘free’ meals if you register the card online, accept their box filling emails and keep their card presenting it each time you dine with them.  Services will ‘give’ a monthly discount for referred customers who sign up for specific, and sometimes costly, plans.

Calculating and research proves, these are pretty much schemes to get me to spend more with them.  For example, a favored retailer sent me a birthday gift, 30% off a regular priced item.  The small print read, valued at $125 or more.  My 30% off birthday gift would cost me a minimum of $87.  Give me two!!  We all need to buy groceries, and some stores allow an earned discount of 10 cents off a gallon of gas, once you spend $100 with them.  Sounds good doesn’t it?  So here’s the kicker on that one.  You must use your discount before the end of the month whether it’s to fill up the can to mow the lawn or your car; it's good only once.  The ratio of this savings is a real eye opener.  My vehicle has a tank capacity of 17 gallons if it’s empty.  I am saving, at most, $1.70 for spending $100.  But, hey, we’ve got to eat so we may as well frequent them and save on gas.  I feel so valued by that revelation, don’t you?

There is a most excellent reward program.  It exists for all of us.  The giver will never bankrupt; the gifts will never go out of style.  For believers, these are our golden tickets to the most exquisite of treasures.  We get to redeem them for crowns to repeatedly give to our King as we worship Him through eternity!  Our rewards there are based on what we do here to advance His kingdom.  Our rewards there are pure, protected from rust and decay.  Our awards are custom made, always fit, and never break down.  They are always shiny, never tarnish, and the perfect color.  

You can be a part of this loyalty program too, but first, you must sign up.  How do you do that?  It’s quite simple really.  Pray to Him with belief in your heart Jesus is God; He came to earth to live and die for us, to pay for all of our sins.  He rose again; ask Him to be with you forever.  That’s it.  You are now a child of God!  You are now a co-inheritor to the Kingdom.  Your deeds and life are all a testimony to Him and the Kingdom of God.  Your rewards await you. 

Oh, and get this, God doesn’t scheme nor does He do lame.  I can guarantee our rewards are of utmost value, with a greater ratio than $1.70 to $100!  

Candle in the Wind

Such a poignant song, ‘Candle in the Wind’ speaks of brief moments in time others share with us.  How they burn brightly for a while, and then they leave, taking their light with them.  When my husband died, the brevity of life hit me hard.  I had lost other family members, friends, and unborn children, but this was my best friend, my soul mate.  He had shared the load of those other losses, but he could not share this one.  At his service, I gave a eulogy encouraging others to embrace their loved ones.  To take every opportunity to tell them how much they enrich our life is precious for too soon, they cannot hear us.  We are here only for a blink, a moment, compared with eternity.  Those moments are valuable and far too few when you lose your spouse.  No matter how long you were together, you want more – love, time, songs, adventures, embraces, conversations, touches, encouragement, kisses, - more of everything!  How we miss the warmth of their candle beside ours as if in the extinguishing of theirs our light diminishes.

A candle requires maintenance to keep the flame steady and bright.  The wick must be trimmed to prevent wavering fire.  We must keep it out of a breeze lest it causes one side to melt faster than the other.  We need to let pillars burn for an hour or two to keep the height reducing at an even level.  We must keep all candles away from combustible objects.  We must never leave them unattended.

When the flameless candles came out, I welcomed the forever flame concept.  No longer did I need to be concerned about falling asleep while enjoying candlelight!  No longer was it a big deal to run the fan while having candles lit.  The bright LED’s, or the softer flicker of incandescent bulbs gives the illusion of a candle without all the fuss or the hazards.  I still enjoy the flameless candles, but I do miss the scents of favored wax ones.  They require battery replacement to prevent dimming or going out completely, but oh the convenience and the beauty.

Just like a candle, we require maintenance to keep our flame steady and bright.  We must guard against becoming an illusion of what we claim to be.  When we face trials, especially loss or a crisis with our health, we have an opportunity to strengthen our faith.  I’ve not only seen loyalties waver like a candle flame, I’ve lived them.  Burning bright with promise, I claimed faith would get me through this season of widowhood.  But the winds of change blew hard, and the shell melted unevenly, to the point of me collapsing in a puddle.  I didn’t lack faith, but doubt had crept in causing my flame to waver.  I focused on my circumstances that prevented from seeing the next step.

I relate our trials in this life to the wick trimming of a candle.  We must have our faith strengthened to keep our flame burning bright.  The hardships we face are temporary, and no one escapes them.  There is a variety in what we face and when we face it, but we all encounter challenges to our resilience and independence.  How we come out of these seasons of suffering is in direct proportion to our faith.  How well we hold up through the trials stems from how well we stay focused on God - being in His word, fellowship with other believers, singing praises and prayer.

My light may waver and dim from time to time because it needs maintenance, but His light is always shining brightly.  In the darkest times, I seek the comfort of His love and peace that surpasses all understanding flows through me, giving me strength and increasing His light in me.  What about you?  Is your candle lit?  Does the wick need a trim?  Do you need your batteries charged?  Pray.  Seek Him with all your heart.  He’s waiting for you; a lighthouse in every storm, His light is always on.

Start the Year Off, Write

New beginnings rarely follow the calendar hanging on the wall or the one in our electronics.  In fact, I have found they appear with every sunrise.  Each morning as the sky takes on the brilliance of a fresh day or hangs with the leaden clouds of a cleansing rain, we have an opportunity to try again.  I am not referring to the daily routine of rising and going to work; I am talking about our first thoughts.  Those moments of beginning awareness as the fogginess of sleep lifts, offer us a moment of newness.  Our mind is a blank slate offering us a Genesis sort of challenge as we open to the endless possibilities of the day ahead.  As the light of day chases out the darkness of the night, we get the chance to begin anew.  Only sometimes, we do not move to fresh ground; we do not greet the day with joy.  We hide.

Some mornings I find myself reflecting on the seasonal changes of the world around me, how they mirror the years in my life.  The bleak landscape of winter gives way to the refreshing newness of spring that succumbs to the heat and laziness of summer followed by the apple crisp fragrance of fall.  Cycles of life, change us, mold us, refine us and define us, if we let it.

Some days I get a rush of adrenalin like on a roller coaster.  We face peaks and valleys in our lives, rapidly moving to get off where we got on.  An endless circle of difficulties where we are frightened or thrilled followed by a sense of accomplishment and joy.  Although I enjoy the rush of sharp curves and the fall of my stomach when on an amusement park ride, in life they can, and usually do, scare me.  I find myself wanting to get off and take a breather, grab some ice cream or popcorn and watch others ride for a while.  Just to listen to them scream as I sit safely cocooned in the shade of a big tree without a care in the world is thrilling enough thank you very much.
   
Sometimes, my day starts with musings best left alone.  When I find myself wallowing in the city of Uncertainty living at the corner of Fear and Regret, I must challenge myself.  Sitting across the street are neighbors you may know too, the Been’s – Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda, and Has.  A family with a mansion full of things they can’t, or won’t, let go off.  Weights really, dragging them down, and I share in the packrat mentality of associating memories to objects.  When we get together, there is so much gloom and oppression I can hardly raise from the bed.

Just around the corner on Busy Avenue is the younger family in the area, the In’s – Plug, Tune, Link, and Join.  We travel different courses.  I like the scenic route sometimes, but they are always on the freeway, rushing to get some place, to see someone, to do something.  I scramble to keep up with the blur of their movements, but a tricycle cannot match a Porsche, no matter how fast I pedal!  How do they get any rest?  My eyes hurt from all the blinking lights, and my legs cramp from racing around acquiring things.  They seem energized from the frenzy of every moment in their day while I feel drained just watching.  I cannot even carry on an intelligent conversation with them because their lingo is an abbreviated style limited on vowels.  There is no secret decoder ring to help me; the legend hidden in some file on a phone without an on switch.  

Some mornings I find myself in the cul-de-sac of Memory Lane, and I want to linger there, especially at the If house, deep in retrospective conversation with What.  Speculation of the past is destructive and a waste of time really.  It puts us in a vicious vortex over which we have no control to break free.  Applying the same analysis to the future becomes paralyzing.  I repeatedly spin in place, going nowhere fast with all day to get there; stuck in what was, afraid to move to what can be.

Eventually, I go to the next house where I reach for the elusive treasures.  Those memories shared with loved ones no longer in residence; those dreams shattered with a broken heart.  I move in a trance from room to room, touching and remembering, wishing and mourning.  I open up boxes to find the scents of a past adventure and I want to relive it.  I want to sit and do nothing as I recall every minute detail of the moment.  As if alone I can somehow experience how I felt then with the love of my life, as if in the total recall, I can somehow bring them back.  As if I no longer have permission to live without them by side, as if I am a part of something now broken, a puzzle missing pieces integral to the beauty.  It is dark, and no one can see me cry so I may as well just grab an economy size pack of tissues and drown in the flood of tears.

The brick and mortar house, where I sleep, is not my home.  It is where I am staying for a while.  It is nothing more than a temporary shelter.  The memories are not in the wood and fabric of the interior of the place but nestled within the chambers of my fractured heart.  Holding onto the souvenirs of travels, the tangibles we exchanged, the furniture we purchased together, is burdensome, and it is heavy.  The bigger the shelter, the more room to stash another object; how easy it is to become a hoarder when you grieve for everything has a memory attached!

With a new year, I leave behind the resolutions often made and broken quicker than a lightening flash.  I reach out to embrace the revelation of a new season in my life.  I strap in with the faith of a child, knowing I am safe.  Filled with the excitement of a toddler just told they are going to Disney World, I take those tentative steps.  Knowing if I stumble, You will steady me and if I fall, You will lift me up to brush off the dirt, kiss the bruises, and set me back on the path again.  With every struggle, I know I am one blessing closer to coming home.

I ask you to join me, inventory your future and let go of the past.  Set your eyes upon eternity, where you will call home.  Imagine for a moment, will it be an adventure filled with light, love, and excitement?  Will it be the worst horror show ever with you alone in the middle of darkness and despair?  I chose life.  What about you?