Sinking Sand

Earlier this year, one Sunday morning we talked about the wise man and the foolish man - a parable of Jesus from the Bible.  The foolish man built his house on the sand.  When the storm blew in, his house and home were lost.  In contrast, the wise man built his house on the rock where it was able to withstand the storm.

I have been thinking about Oh! so many different tangents that follow this story.  Applications to my life and my heart.  I will share some of them here - and see if you can follow my crazy line of thinking.

First is the obvious - what am I trusting in? Living a life here on this earth requires we have an understanding of eternity.  Jesus phrases it "abide in me".   He says, "I am the vine; you are the branches."  When a decision comes - when a societal issue arises - when it comes to my interaction with my children and my neighbors - am I basing my conversation on a life that abides in Jesus Christ.  Is my mind filled with the wisdom that comes from Scripture? Psalm 1 talks about a tree that is planted by the rivers of water that yields fruit in season.  So, I ask myself - where am I getting my counsel from? my delight?  If I am wise, I will look to the law of the Lord and meditate on it.  All too often we look at the immediate because that is all we see in front of us.  Our decisions come from what we think is right - or how a decision will makes us feel or will make someone else feel.  God is interested in our feelings, but He is most interested in justice and mercy and humility.  Faith in God causes us to pause and an understanding the Scripture causes us to remember.

Spiritually speaking, we could look like this when we trust in the name of the Lord:

As Paul exhorted us "having done all, to stand."  

There is a person in that lighthouse.  Do you see him? How small he looks compared to the roaring sea. The crashing waves.  Despite the sturdy workmanship of the lighthouse, he still appears to be in danger.

This led me to another strain of thought.  Life is perilous at times.  Don't jump ship!  Trust in the name of the Lord our God!  We are not the lighthouse.  God is the lighthouse.  God is our refuge and strength - a very present help in times of trouble.

I love this old hymn - "The Lord's our rock in Him we hide. A Shelter in the time of storm. Secure whatever ill betide. A shelter in the time of storm.  Jesus is the rock in a weary land, a weary land, a weary land. Oh, Jesus is the rock in a weary land. A shelter in the time of storm."

Isn't that precious truth? I'm weary - and I've capitalized on that recently listening to Worn by Tenth Avenue North. 

(What's that? you want to hear the song? … ok, we've got time for that…

This link will take you to their Godtube video.  I'll wait...

Worn by Tenth Avenue North

Moving on...)

Don't get me wrong.  I enjoy and appreciate this album and Worn in particular.  What I realized is this, recently,  my focus has been wrong.  My mountain lodge is about to become a beach condo.  What is all this focus on me - on  my feelings - on my strength… No, no! We may be in a weary land, but the subject of that sentence is Jesus!!  Focus on where our strength comes from.  Focus on the miracle of the shelter.  Turn your eyes to the one who is walking on the water!! 

Once my sister shared an analogy with me.  Something she used to explain her walk with the Lord.  She explained that she pictures her walk with the Lord like a harbor.  When you're in the harbor, you can see how far you've drifted from the dock.  In the harbor there is safety.  But there is a lure to the open waters.  something that tugs at you.  However, when you turn and set your sights out on the sea, you can be miles away and have no real idea how far you've been swept.   Only once you navigate back to the harbor can you see how far you'd gone.

From sinking sand, He lifted me!!  He will lift you too.  

Psalm 31: 1-3

"In you, O Lord, do I take refuge; let me never be put to shame;

In Your righteousness deliver me!

Incline Your ear to me; rescue me speedily!

Be a rock of refuge for me; a strong fortress to save me!

For You are my rock and my fortress; and for Your name's sake You lead me and guide me

You take me out of the net they have hidden for me; 

For You are my refuge."

A Picture is Worth 1000 Words

I had the great privilege of working in the largest gallery of inspirational art in the southern United States during the mid-1990's.  Because I was on the custodial crew, I was able to observe and study these paintings and sculptures while no one else was in the building.  There were some paintings that were as small as a street sign, but many of these portraits would fill your entire wall - if it would fit in your house at all.

There was one room that was a particular favorite of mine.  The room was bright - the walls light blue - and it was at the very end of the hallway.  The artists were European from the 19th century.  I've decided to post a few here today.  Take a moment to ponder each one.  There is nothing I could say that would say more than the artists strokes themselves.

Vashti Refuses the King's Summons, Edwin Long RA.  Long is also known for a portrait of Queen Esther and the Babylonian Marriage Market.

Martin Luther Discovering Justification by Faith, Edward Matthew Ward

The Martyrdom of St Perpetua and St Felicitas, Felix Louis Leullier


I came away from this room with the determination that making the right choice could mean you lose everything.  That there is more to this life then my will and my plan. And that there is something worth dying for.  Each of the people represented in these paintings were suddenly given a choice - the decisions they made in turn changed each of their lives forever.  I pray that when the time comes - the choice I make will reveal the person of Jesus Christ at work in my life. What does the Lord require? to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with our God.

Hold On

According to the Free Dictionary of Idioms, "hold on" means "to be patient" as in: "Everything will work out alright. Hold on."
It can also mean "to wait for someone or something".  As in, "hold on while I get the napkins" Or on the phone, "hold on while I get her for you".


How may times have I been in conversation, whether it's on the phone or otherwise, only to be stopped by an attempted interruption of one of my children.  They get that finger held up to say "wait a minute" and "hold on to that thought"

It can also mean "Don't let go!!"
Little Miss was out on the monkey bars recently.  She decided she couldn't make it all the way across and in a panic she started screaming for help.  As I ran out to get her, I was yelling to her "Hold on".  I honestly meant it rather impatiently - as in "I'm coming. Relax" When I got there, instead of grabbing her, I stood there and looked at her.  I took in her long arms - her fingers that were straining as they bore the full weight of her body.  I noticed how straight and calm her body was as she held herself in place. And I smiled as I mentally measured the distance between her toes and the ground.  Her eyes grew huge and her panic returned. "Mom!" she blurted, "help me down!" I replied "Honey, let go. I'm right here.  You won't hurt yourself. I promise"

I began to think about all the things I hold on to - my home, my traditions. Fear, disappointment, wrongdoing. What do we choose to hold on to? Why do we hold on? One of my favorite Twila Paris songs says:

"we can hold on to sorrow, hold on to pain
hold on to anger when there is nothing to be gained
we can hold to a thread at the end of a rope
but when we hold on to Jesus we are holding on to hope"

I also know that sometimes we need to hold on.  I've recently been listening to Rachael Lampa's song "Beauty's Just a Word" It is a beautiful ballad and the lyrics say something like "hanging by the thread end of a rope, you find hope."  Jesus Christ holds every answer; all the peace and fulfillment we are looking for.  There is a bigger picture and a brighter tomorrow than this "momentary struggle"



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXZ3bwoH5H0

In speaking on spiritual tenacity, Oswald Chambers wrote "Tenacity is more than hanging on, which may be but the weakness of being too afraid to fall off." He goes on to say "the greatest fear a man has is not that he will be damned, but that Jesus Christ will be worsted, that the things He stood for - love and justice and forgiveness and kindness - will not win out in the end... Then comes the call to spiritual tenacity, not to hang on and do nothing, but to work deliberately on the certainty that God is not going to be worsted." (You can read the entire encouragement in My Utmost for His Highest, the February 22 reading.)

Trust in the Lord. Wait patiently for Him.

Hope of all the blood-bought throng

It's the title, isn't it?  They're lyrics!!

It's from a song we used to sing - "Maranatha, Maranatha! Hope of all the blood bought throng... Maranatha, Maranatha! Is the theme of this our song.  Coming soon! the Savior whom we long to see... Maranatha chimes keep ringing melody."

We sang it at a place ~ Maranatha Bible and Missionary Conference.  It means "the Lord is coming soon".  I grew up going to this place each summer.  My dad went there as a child.  My uncle committed himself into the ministry in the dunes of Maranatha.

What is this place? Where is this place?              


and...

So much of my childhood - my memories - is tied up with this place.  So many fun and happy times.  

Jan waving in the door of our cottage. circa 1985

We were so silly there.  Laughing. Always laughing!!  Playing tricks on one another. We ate well and enjoyed good conversations with good friends.  We made new friends - and saw them again, year after year.  But mostly I remember this wood plaque that was attached to the pulpit in the tabernacle.  It said "Let go and Let God"

Let go!

Let God!!

What issue, situation, or circumstance am I still trying to manage, to funnel, to control? I've become sick with fear and anxiety.  I've let these problems become my focus.  I remember one of my parents' pastors saying that when a problem becomes all we think about - all we talk about - all we want to ponder.  It's time to completely take our eyes off of it and put our eyes on the Savior.  Think about and talk about the Lord Jesus Christ until He is all we want to ponder.  Then, when we do get back to looking at our problem, we can see it through the lens of our Lord.

Let go!

Let God!!

What is He wanting to do in my life, in this situation, in the lives of those affected.  He will be glorified, and I hope my heart and mind is able to respond in such a way that this life, my life, glorifies Him as well. 

"Coming soon, the Savior, whom we long to see..."

What will my life say when He returns? What sort of legacy will I have left? It starts now.  

"Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.

"fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."

Hebrews 12:1-3

I broke the window

When I was growing up we had a playhouse.  My dad built this playhouse the spring of 1977 - this thing was perfect.  Candy cane striped paint.  A window box full of flowers.  Green carpet with a "full kitchen" and a table.  There were even screened in windows that would open.  We even had a peeked, shingled roof.  It was perfect.


One summer Sunday morning, I was playing outside - which was not a very good choice in my Sunday go-to-meeting clothes completely with pipi longstocking braids.  But! There I was - saving the known world in my backyard.  As circumstances would dictate, to escape the clutches of the evil-doer, I needed to climb out the window of the playhouse, i.e. evil lair.  So I removed the screen and pushed the window open.  As soon as I climbed through the window, it broke into a hundred pieces in the grass on the ground.

I ended up surrounded by glass in the grass - in my bare feet -

I was terrified to call for my dad because I knew I'd be in trouble for disobeying - but in desperation, I sent my little sister to "go get dad".  I had decided it would be better to be face the wrath of dad (and possibly mom) then to cut my foot or worse.  I looked up to see him coming down the hill - and he was coming fast.  He came running - as if the only thought on his mind was to get to me as fast as he could.  He scooped me up in his arms and carried me to safety.  "Are you hurt?" as he checked me everywhere for pieces of glass stuck in me.

Once he knew I was sufficiently safe ~ he gave me this huge bear hug and said "get in the car. It's time for church"  That was it.  No disapproving look even.  I don't even know when he went back to clean up the glass.  They never spoke of it again.  But remember standing there dumbfounded.  Relief overwhelmed me.  In that moment he became my rescuer, my hero.

That is JUST how God is - and that is how we are.  We don't turn to Him when we've messed up because we're afraid of His reaction.  But He is just ready to scoop us up and carry us through it.  He wants us to call out to Him.  I've needed this reminder.  God is our rescuer, our Savior.

Old Encouragement

Recently I was cleaning out my email and I came across one titled "meant to encourage but I do go on".  I had sent it to my younger sister.  I don't know what was going on in her life at the time, but the contents make a good post for today ~


When Scott and I were house shopping, we encountered a vicious dog at one of the homes.  I had just taken in the back yard, and glanced up at the blue sky above us when he came trotting over to us - sights set on three year old Hannah while I held the toddler Micah.  I stopped in my tracks and fear gripped my heart. He growled while showing all his teeth in a mouth dripping with foam.
My heart raced - I knew if we ran he would run after us.  We turned and walked calmly back towards the car.  Scott had picked up Hannah, but the dog was not backing down.  All the while his menacing presence made me want to scream out in fear. When we started to put the kids in the car - it started to bark at us.  I wondered if a neighbor would hear the commotion and come to help. As the minutes dragged on, the dog didn't tire - and yet it never lunged at us either. Not once did that dog try to take a bite. Scott had already figured this out -  this barking maniac was menacing, but he didn't seem to put his money where his mouth was. :) Scott decided the only way to deal with him was lunge toward him and see if he would cower in fear.
He puffed himself up - put his arms out and growled back at the dog while taking a huge leap in his direction. This behavior was more than the panicked dog had planned for.  He recoiled, darted and ran away.  All that bravado without any of the bite.

We have an enemy. He seeks to divert us from the course set by God. "A thief comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and have it in abundance."  Our enemy cannot destroy us, but he will work hard to distract us. It seems he most likes to startle us when we have just closed our eyes and turned our chins up to enjoy the "blue sky".  Without warning he jumps around the corner and terrifies us with his rabid barking. We stop in our tracks and fear grips us.  But this enemy is all bravado. No matter how good he is at barking, "he has already been rendered impotent. One full-on victorious leap by the people of God will send him running."

I am studying about the devils attempts to distract us this week and much of my language today comes out of what God is doing in my heart tonight.  Just never let him allow you to think for a moment that God is not faithfully executing His perfect plan.

Thanks be to God Who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.

In all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him Who loved us.

Thanks be to God Who gives us the victory though our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved [sister], be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.

YOU are a victorious overcomer, completely capable by God's Spirit to stand against the attacks of the enemy.  Trust the Lord!!  He will deliver you from this already beaten foe!!

If ever I was waxing eloquent, it was that day!! Oh my!! But isn't it true -  Put on the armor of God that you may be able to stand, (and somewhere, it continues) having done all to stand.

When life is routine

I'm not funny lately.
I'm not deep.
The kids aren't even particularly interesting.
I hoped maybe someone at church would give us some material ~
        but, we're all so normal

maybe someone funny will drop by the house and give me something to talk about

In the meantime, I'll tell you what I have been thinking about - prayer in one accord.  I've been thinking about the first few chapters of Acts and that it says repeatedly: they continued in "one accord" in prayer and supplication.  I've been thinking that I would like to know that unity of the Spirit.
There you have it!