Month: October 2017

“For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life” (Psalm 56:13).

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life’” (John 8:12)

I am fascinated by the many times that light and life are referenced together in the Bible. (One of these days I want to do a study on the subject. ) Light is essential to life.   Plants need the sun in order to grow and we need the plants for food. Looking at Genesis 1 we notice that God said, “Let there be light” before the sun was created.  In 1 John 1:5 we read “God is light” and “in him there is no darkness at all.” My physical body needs the light and my spiritual life needs light.  God has provided the light!  God is the light!

The Bible refers to evil as darkness and good as light. John reminds us “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Later in that same chapter John says “Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness” (verses 10-11). Our relationship with God determines our relationship with others.  Living by the truth means we come into the light. The light reveals the truth. (See John 3:20-21)

I just now looked out my window and saw the sun break through the clouds brightening my yard! I can see very little blue sky but there is just enough of a break in those heavy clouds to allow the sun to shine through. A beautiful sight!  Oh, how I need to allow God’s light to brighten my soul. My soul longs for the light of His Son as my body longs for the light of the sun.

My Christmas cactus plants are starting to bud because the daylight hours are getting shorter. They work their beauty according to the light/dark patterns. I haven’t seen any hummingbirds since early October. They flew south because of the shorter days and consequently colder days which will come. Even my dog, Molly, wants to go to bed earlier because it gets dark earlier. I suppose I should follow her example. The sun controls so many things in our world. Now, if we could just allow the Son of God to control our lives, what a difference that would make!

Dear God, shine your beautiful light into my life. Let my relationships today be illuminated by that light.  Amen

(Speaking of light: Remember Daylight Saving Time ends this Sunday, Nov. 5.)

 

 

“We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time” (Romans 8:22).

You probably heard about the recent rock slides in Yosemite National Park. Twice in two days part of El Capitan fell to the valley below. Apparently, there are many rock slides or rock falls, as they call them. Once source stated there have been more than 1,000 falls in the last 150 years in Yosemite. That’s a lot of falling rock!

I was reminded of a trip Wayne and I made to New Hampshire a few years ago. It was our last vacation trip together.  One of our stops was the mountain where the “Old Man of the Mountain” used to be. This particular mountain had a rock overhang that resembled the profile of a man’s head. It fell in 2003. There is a small park where you can stand in a certain spot, depending on your height, and look at the mountain through a cut-out in the shape of the “Old Man of the Mountain.” The idea is to let you see how it looked before it fell.

One might think that God’s creation is falling apart. It is. All of creation, including, people, suffer because of sin. Our bodies get old, wear out, and die. Some say we have more natural disasters now than in the past. I don’t know if that’s true but I do know that Jesus said “nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains” (Matthew 24:7-8). The earth, as we know it, is wearing out.  The Apostle Peter tells us in 2 Peter 3 that the present heavens and earth will be destroyed, but look at the good news! “But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13).

Praise God, we don’t have to worry about the earth or our bodies wearing out. New ones are coming! “So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation” (2 Peter 3:14-15a).

 

 

“But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear”  (Matthew 13:16).

The Boy came to visit this week.  His mom and dad came, too.  The Boy (aka. Youngest grandson) is full of energy, imagination, and love. We helped him celebrate his 7^th birthday with a huge decorated cookie, gifts, and lunch at Cracker Barrel.  He likes chicken and dumplings and ate them all.  He spent a good chunk of time playing with his new Lego set Sunday afternoon. Mostly, he doesn’t spend a good chunk of time doing anything.  He’s usually going from one thing to another. So Mom was happy with the Lego choice.

Molly likes The Boy, too, to a point.  Even Molly has her limitations!  She runs and jumps after The Boy around the yard and in the house. She lets him know when she’s had enough. It isn’t long until Molly’s curiosity gets the better of her and she’s back nipping at The Boy’s heels or looking for him when he hides. We’ve had a lot of tail wagging, giggling, and yelling and some barking around here this week.  It’s definitely a change of pace for Molly and me and a welcome change, too!

^{Molly sharing her blanket with The Boy under Grandma’s desk while Grandma was at the computer.}

 

As The Boy, Molly, and I were walking to the mailbox one evening the temptation to climb the bank on the side of the driveway was too much for The Boy. He started to climb the steep, dirt bank. I reminded him he’d just had his bath. Of course, that meant little to this rambunctious boy.  I was reminded of the Bible verse I’d read that morning. “Blessed are your ears because they hear.”  So I asked if he would like to have blessed ears. If so, he needed to learn to listen to Mom, Dad, and Grandma.

It’s a struggle to listen and to obey as children and I think as adults, too. Jesus said, “Blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear” when He was teaching with parables. The people often missed the message. I wonder if I miss the message.  I wonder if my eyes are always open, watching to see what God is doing. Or, if my ears are really listening to what God may be telling me. I suspect I have missed some blessings because I was too busy to  see God at work or to hear his voice.

Dear God, you have given us your creation, our families and friends, the Church, and most of all your  Son, Jesus.  Thank you for your mercy and love. May we allow the Holy Spirit to show us how you are working in our lives and in the Church.  Help us to listen for how you want to include us in that work.  Amen

 

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8).

The summer of 1988 was the last year our oldest daughter, Marianne, would be free to be home all summer.  She would leave for college in August and college students often find other things to do in the summer besides spend time with family—like jobs or summer classes. We decided to take a trip which we hoped to be a memorable one for all of us. I was having a hard time with the prospect of my firstborn leaving home and so was Wayne, though, he didn’t admit it. We wanted this trip to be special.

We decided to visit Niagara Falls. We planned it for the week before Marianne was to leave for college.  We couldn’t leave the day we’d planned and at this point in time I don’t remember why.  Two days later we headed to Niagara Falls, arrived safely and began to explore the beautiful sights.  That part was great! We had a motel room for one of our two nights there, but for whatever reason that I don’t remember we didn’t have a room for the other night.  We looked on the Canadian and U.S. sides and found one room with one king-size bed.  There were four of us!

I considered using the van – only briefly. Not a good option.  We unloaded our luggage and decided one daughter would join Wayne and me in the bed and the other daughter would sleep on the floor on the extra blankets in the room. But to make matters worse the sheets on the bed had not been changed so we had to wait for them to clean the room. The bathroom needed some attention as well. We finally got some sleep that night though not as comfortable as we’d hoped. The trip we wanted to be memorable was—but in the wrong way.  We can laugh about it now, but not then.

I tell this story because it illustrates disappointment. We have a lot of those in life, don’t we? Some disappointments are rather minor, such as our delayed trip, but other disappointments are traumatic. I’m thinking of those who suffer through floods, shootings, death of loved ones, ill-health, miscarriages, and broken families. In the past three years my disappointments included the death of my mom and my husband. My mom didn’t get to celebrate hers and Daddy’s 70^th wedding anniversary and Wayne and I didn’t get to celebrate our 50^th. We had talked about and planned for those milestones.

I think about those in Bible times who were disappointed such as Naomi and Ruth who lost husbands to death. Joseph, who was sold as a slave and unjustly put in prison. The early Christians were persecuted for their faith just as many are today. The thing is, in spite of our suffering and disappointments God is still God. The sun still rises and sets. The beauty of Niagara Falls didn’t change. God doesn’t change!

We who are Christ followers have hope. We hurt and weep through our suffering. We pray. We still hurt and weep, but we know this isn’t all there is. Peter says it this way:

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade – kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:3-5).

Thank you, Lord, for shielding us by your power as we endure sufferings and disappointments on this earth. Thank you for giving us living hope through the death and resurrection of your Son, Jesus. Amen.