The Gift of Receiving

We have been friends now for most of my life. We have tasted both the joys and sorrow of life together and my respect for her has grown with each passing year. In the Spring of this year my friend became a widow and a mantle was placed on her shoulders that she never had to bear before. I have watched as she carried this new burden with both dignity and grace.

Because she is my friend I want to do more than just watch I want to help, but how? This has become a theme in my prayers, "Father, show me how to help." Today as we walked together I listened and through listening came up with some practical things I could offer to do. My friend is highly capable and very independent, accepting help does not come naturally.

I shared my prayer with her and she shared what she had been praying with me. She had been asking God to show her how to carry the load she'd been given. We talked about how sometimes God sends His answer in human form. God didn't create us to be independent but interdependent.

I have been doing a study on Spiritual Gifts. When I look at Spiritual Gifts I think about how I can use the gift God has given me to serve others, but today I saw something else. Today I saw the grace of God extended to me by my friend as she allowed me to participate in her life.

Father, thank You for the special gift of grace You have given each of us so that we can serve one another. And thank You for the precious gift I have received by giving me a friend who allows me to be part of her life.

Anxiety or Peace?

"I have trained myself not to feel emotions," he said. I responded by asking,"What are you afraid of?" Emotions are a natural instinctive state of mind responding to circumstances, mood or relationships with others. Anxiety or fear is a common emotion that is experienced when we are not in control of the circumstances of our life.

I have found in my life that the pathway that leads me to experience inexplicable peace and intense joy is a pathway that without God would lead me to paralyzing fear. Often in life I have come face to face with my utter vulnerability. How I respond determines the path I take.

How can circumstances that cause my knees to buckle in fear ultimately bring me to a place of inexplicable peace and intense joy? It is because these are also the same places that I am invited to bend my knees in humility and call on a God who has promised to answer me and show me great and wondrous things that I do not know.

I find as I walk through life that I am often humbled by my vulnerability. To be honest my natural inclination is to be anxious. But I am learning  that the very thing that causes me to be anxious can lead me to an intimate encounter with God. This happens when I choose to humble my heart and bend my knees and listen to the voice of the Spirit. When I do this, this is what I hear; "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let you gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Don't be anxious about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:4-7)

Lord Jesus, thank You for bringing me to places where I encounter the truth. I am not the god of my circumstances but You are. Thank You for giving me access to You through prayer. And thank You for giving me emotions so that I can experience peace that passes understanding and joy that is a foretaste of eternity!

The Faith that Produces Joy

Her heart was heavy, the path she had been forced to walk was not of her choosing. She was the mother of young children and they looked to her to see the pattern they were to follow. With quite resolve she spoke the words,"I am a woman of faith." Because of her faith she chose to rejoice, because of her faith she chose to join in the celebration. She celebrated life, her life. She celebrated because she was sure of what she hoped for confident of what she could neither see nor feel.

There is a joy in this journey of life that is found in the determination to lay hold of that for which we were laid hold of by Christ Jesus. This is a since of joy that is found by those who are willing to press on toward "the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."(Philippians 3:14) It is the joy of believing that God is at work in the trails and the sorrows.

While peering intently through a veil of tears until we see His face we discover He has given us endurance. Choosing to rejoice in His promises and His love a miracle begins to take place within us. The storm is raging but the anchor of hope has firmly gripped the solid rock. The power of the Holy Spirit is revealed as joy and peace are poured out into our hearts.

The one who is willing to trust in God even when what they see causes them to tremble will become strong. "Do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength."(Nehemiah 8:10) The one who is willing to let their heart's joy be based on the hope of receiving God's promises finds safety. They discover, "The LORD is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart exults, and with my song I shall thank Him."(Psalm 28:7)

My Lord, today as I rejoice in You I ask that others would be refreshed by my joy. Thank for Your Spirit that produces joy and peace in my heart as I trust in You.

Forty Years Ago Today

What I am about to tell you is not logical. What I am about to tell you makes no since at all but I know it's true because it happened to me. Forty years ago today at 9:30 am I saw a stranger framed in the doorway of the church and I heard in my heart, "This is the man you're going to marry." Okay, that seemed a little weird even for me so I tried to shake off that feeling but it wouldn't go away.

A few weeks before I had read about how Abraham had arranged a marriage for his son Issac. It was such a beautiful story that I responded to it by asking God to do that for me. The next day I met Mr. Jones. Mr Jones prayed a heartfelt prayer for his grandson and I was so moved by his prayer that I went up to him afterward and told him I knew God would give him what he had requested. He looked at me for a moment and asked, "Who are you?" Suddenly, I was completely embarrassed and thought, "Who do I think I am that I can come up to this elderly man and tell him that I know God will answer his prayer?!?"

He recognized my discomfort and when on to ask,"Who is your mother?" As soon as we established the fact that he knew both my mother and my grandparents he quickly added, "I have a grandson I want you to meet!" The stranger I saw framed in the doorway of the church was Mr. Jones' grandson. He had come to church that Sunday on a blind date that his grandfather had arranged. After dinner that day Mr. Jones talked about how when you marry someone you bring two families together. I learned latter that Mr. Jones had encouraged his son to write my mother when he had enlisted. He had tried to bring the families together then but he was a generation off.

On our first date we were together from 9:30 am to 11:30 pm. We shared on a level I had never experienced before. Part of our evening together involved talking to a hurting friend of mine. After we finished talking to her Steve said to me, "Some relationships are exclusive so that when the couple is together if anyone come they feel like they are intruding. Other relationships are inclusive so the people they encounter feel welcomed. Lets make our relationship be inclusive."

Forty years ago today I met the man that I was to marry. Forty years ago today God answered my prayer and the desire of Mr. Jones to bring two families together. Forty years ago today God gave Steve a vision of a relationship that would be inclusive and reach out to others and welcome them into our love for each other.

The Maze

We walked beneath the deep blue of the Autumn sky. My granddaughter and I were finding our way through a maze of corn. The tall stalks blocked my ability to see anything except the path I was on. From my perspective all I could see were tall corn stalks but my granddaughter showed me an aerial view of the maze. I was stunned by the detailed picture that had been created by cutting different paths into the crop of corn.

There are times when I feel like my life is a maze, a puzzle with complex and confusing turns. I get confused and unsure of the correct path to take. I can't really see the big picture and sometimes the path I'm on makes no since to me at all. However, I believe their is an eternal view to the life I live.

In God's word I am given a glimpse of eternity which helps bring meaning to this complex passage I find myself on. There is a sanctification process that occurs on this journey as I rely on faith because my earthly vision is blocked. My lack of understanding could cause me to walk in fear except for the promise I have found in God' word.  "Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ."(1 Thessalonians 5:23)

I believe that I have been invited to be a part of the story of redemption. Living out my part in this story must be done by faith, being sure of what I hope for and confident about what I do not see. If this journey I am on depended on my own understanding I would be lost in the maze. But I believe in the promise given me that, "He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it."(1 Thessalonians 5:24)

Lord Jesus, thank You for leading me on this journey and giving meaning to my life.

Exercising Vision

I was twenty one years old she was ageless. One day when we were walking together she paused and stood quietly looking into the distance. I asked her what she was looking at and that was when she taught me how to exercise my vision. "Find the farthest place on the horizon,' she said, 'and focus on it."

Now that I no longer measure my life by years but by decades I often exercise my vision. I look intently to the horizon where time and eternity meet. It is there I see the One who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand. "God is enthroned above the circle of the earth; its inhabitants are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a thin cloth and spreads them out like a tent to live in...He brings out the starry host by number; He calls all of them by name. Because of His great power and strength, not one of them is missing." (Isaiah 40:12,22)

When I was twenty one I learned that in order to exercise my vision I needed to be willing to pause, to quiet myself, to look beyond where I was until I could truly see. I learned then that focusing on the farthest point on the horizon not only exercised my vision it also gave me perspective. By exercising my vision I have leaned the perspective of place of time and of eternity.

I sit by my grandchild's bed. I gently place my hand on their closed eyes. Their days are filled with sight. Now that they are still I pray that they will have vision. I close my eyes until I can see the Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named. I quiet myself and pray. I pray that they will be rooted and firmly established in love and that they, "may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the length and width, height and depth of God's love."(Ephesians 3:18)  I also pray that God will give me the opportunity to teach them how to exercise their vision.

To Be Seen

Her shoulders were bent, her head was bowed, her spirit was broken as she walked into the church. She sat as one in a crowd of many and tried to prepare herself to listen to what was being said but round and round in her mind the same prayer kept circling, "Lord, help me! What am I supposed to do!" She was a prisoner of circumstance.

As she tried to focus her thoughts on the melodious voice of the preacher suddenly he paused in his message and began to talk about Hagar. Hagar was the female Egyptian servant of Sarai. Sarai gave Hagar to Abram in hopes of obtaining children through her. The preacher explained how Hagar became a prisoner of circumstance when she became pregnant. The Lord found her alone in the wilderness and gave her hope. "So she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, 'You are the God who sees me.'"(Genesis 16:13)

The words the preacher spoke became a ray of light to her darkened soul. After the service she timidly stood in line to speak to the one who had given her hope. When her turn finally came she slowly lifted her eyes to the preacher and asked with quiet voice, "How did the fact that God saw Hagar help her in her circumstances?"

He looked at her and smiled. "So you are the reason I told the story of Hagar. It had nothing to do with the message I had prepared but I felt the Holy Spirit urging me to tell the story about the God who sees." Then he paused and looked kindly into her tear washed eyes and said, "The answer to your question will come as you meditate on what it means to be truly seen by God."

And so the lonely prisoner of circumstance became a prisoner of hope. The truth of being fully known by God became her meditation day and night. She discovered that her true identity was not found in what others thought of her but in the reflection of the eyes of God. All her life she had wanted to be known, to be understood, to be seen. The circumstances didn't change but she did. The timid hurting woman became a beautiful woman of inner strength because as she meditated on what it meant to be seen by God she also received the quiet confidence of one who is seen, understood, known and loved by God.

The Perfecting Storm

Storms happen.

The storm struck. The ship was caught and could not face the wind, there was no choice but to give way to it and be driven along by it. Since they were so violently storm-tossed they jettisoned the cargo. On the third day of the storm the ships tackle was thrown overboard, after all what good is tackle if you're fighting for your life? When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small tempest lay on them, all hope of their being saved was at last abandoned. This is a description of a storm at sea that Paul encountered in the book of Acts.

Storms happen.

Storms in life show me my true vulnerability. Yet, in the book of James I am told, "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trails of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness, and let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete lacking in nothing."

Storms happen.

The storms I encounter in life test what I really believe about the power of God. It was during a storm that Jesus' disciples began to understand that Jesus was Lord of the wind and the waves. The storms invite me into a more intimate relationship with God. Job's response to God after the storm in his life was, "I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you."(Job 42:5)

Storms happen.

Often with the storm comes a deep feeling of confusion. The book of James not only tells me to consider these storms joy but also invites me to ask God for wisdom in the midst of my confusion. I am invited to ask for wisdom yet there is the stipulation that I must ask in faith and not doubting because the one who doubts is looking at the waves of the storm and not the Lord of the storm.

Lord Jesus, when the storm clouds gather, when the winds blow me in direction that I did not choose, when the sky becomes dark and I can no longer see to navigate and I feel nothing stable beneath my feet remind me to count it joy not panic. Help me remember that You are the Lord of the storm inviting me to know You in a more intimate way. Help me to pray for wisdom with my eyes on You and not on the waves so that I can know the thrill of walking with You on the water in the midst of the storm!