Christian living

Jonah’s Timeout

Then Jonah prayed to his God from the belly of the fish. He prayed: “In trouble, deep trouble, I prayed to God. He answered me.From the belly of the grave I cried, ‘Help!’ You heard my cry. Jonah 2: 1,2 The Message
Jonah had a tough assignment. This was no job for sissies. It wasn’t just a tough sales presentation where every word and action will be judged, critiqued, and torn-apart…..or the boss telling you to fire an employee when you know they need the job desperately. This was God telling Jonah to go to a very strong and prosperous nation, also a nation that was notoriously cruel and bloodthirsty. This was a people that would put hooks in the noses of their captives and lead them off to slavery. They were also a huge threat to Israel.
Jonah responded immediate by running the other way, as fast as he could. So would I.
Just imagine if God asked you to go preach on a street corner in Iraq!
One of my favorite poets, Robert Frost said this about the book of Jonah: “After Jonah, you could never trust God not to be merciful again.”
Jonah had an idea that the Ninevites would repent. He knew His was a God of mercy. But forgiveness is hard, and God knew that Jonah had some issues inside himself that he had to deal with. Jonah was actually not running from God but from himself. Ever run away, only to find that the issues you were running away from followed you?
God gave Jonah a timeout so He could really hear was God was trying to say. God had to take him to a place of desperation, darkness. All the way into the belly of a great fish. Sometimes God has to take us somewhere unpleasant, sometimes flat on our back, so that we can really hear what He is trying to say to us.
After three days Jonah came to a place of understanding:
“You hurled me into the depths, into the very heart of the seas, and the currents swirled about me; all your waves and breakers swept over me. I said, ‘I have been banished from your sight; yet I will look again toward your holy temple.’ The engulfing waters threatened me, the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head. To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you, LORD my God, brought my life up from the pit.” 3-6
Sometimes we need God to take us into the whale belly so we can remember who He is……..”Then the word came to Jonah a second time”, and this time he obeyed. After he preached to them the Ninevites believed God and the whole city declared a fast and called on the Lord. Here are the King’s own words:
“Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence.Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.”
God spared that great city…..Read Chapter 4 and you will see a beautiful picture of the great compassion of God and how He desperately wants people to turn to Him so that they can receive His forgiveness and love……..I love the discourse between God and Jonah after Jonah gets mad when the people repent.
Prayer: God, help me to learn from my “timeouts.” To remember that you love me, but you also love others and wish to show your compassion and love to everyone. Help me to remember who You are, and learn obedience when you call on me to show Your compassion and love to others, remembering that it is not up to me to decide who is worthy and who is not. Amen

Nothing to say?

I thank you God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and for the blue dream of sky and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is yes. ~e.e. cummings

Whenever I start to write anything, I notice two voices speaking at once. The one that says, yes this feeling is true, someone will relate to this, you have something to offer. And then there is the other rising up simultaneously…..Oh that will never do, you really have nothing to say today, who do you think you are, the nerve….what do you think you are, an authority? You are really making a fool of yourself with that one…..Then I remember, if God is moving in my life, there is always something to say. If I am alive, that is reason enough to write about it!

I look at this picture above and wonder who chopped that wood, and then I think of the time my Dad and I stacked wood together. Every now and then he reminds me of it. I look at the photographer’s name, Brunhilde Reinig and I hear my Grandmother’s voice speaking in German to her sisters, I remember that I love you in German is Ich Leibe Dich……and I wish that could have been said and done, instead of the Holocaust and I wonder again how it could have happened. I think of the German speaking people who did good, who hid Jews at the risk of their own lives…..

I think of the trip to the grocery store yesterday with my best friend and her Mom who is suffering with Alzheimer’s. It was sad, it was tragic, and yet there were some humorous moments. She always has to get three items no matter what….potatoes, ice-cream and hamburger…..And we always have to go in the same door. And she gets insulted if you tell her to make a list. My friend tells me even when she was in her right mind she was insulted if you suggested a list. Funny how disease touches some parts and leaves some parts untouched……

I think of she and her brother, each of whom have grieved both parents already, neither one are the person they were before. I think of the many divorced people out there who are grieving walking dead…..dead to them anyway. What heartache they carry. I think of how wonderful it is that little green shoots of love can bloom again in that same heart……love born again.

Yes, as long as there is life, there are words to say.
As long as there is God, there is Spirit movement……and hope.

http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/ by Brunhilde Reinig

Clay jar or crystal pitcher?

“Give your entire attention to what is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.” Matthew 6:34 The Message
I lost a day to worry. That opened the door to depression. Thinking about events on “the road ahead.” I was bogged down and I couldn’t see things clearly. I have touched on the fact that I am a worrier before. But Jesus commands us not to worry. This is a problem if I want to live for Him! I hate to think of the many moments and days I have wasted on events that may or may not happen. It all comes down to one thing…..When I worry I am living for myself and not for God. When I worry I am taking Him off the throne of my heart and life!  
Paul was having some discouraging moments dealing with the Corinthian church. He was right in the thick of things, not like me, worrying about things that haven’t happened yet, he was fighting a real battle. I can imagine that he was in prayer, and God spoke to him about the clay jars lining the walls. I can imagine him feeling as humble and lowly as one of those jars. But God showed him how valuable he was and he spoke these very wise words……
“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.” 2 Corinthians 4:7-10

Paul knew where his strength was, I forgot for awhile. A few weeks ago out of the blue I thought of a song that I sang years ago. I had totally forgotten about it, but as I remembered it tears sprang to my eyes. That particular time, life was simpler (or maybe it just seemed so)……I was young and life was not so complicated. I had yielded myself to God and I saw His power work through me in a way that I never forgot.While I was thinking of that song a beautiful image came to my mind, an image of a crystal pitcher with clear water being poured into it. I have wondered about it ever since. Then this morning I read this:

“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.” Revelation 22:1 

I think He was trying to tell me that He sees me as that crystal pitcher filling with the water of life……His life. Most days I feel just like that little clay jar, humble, weak and scarred; yet He has poured His pure Spirit inside of me and even now is turning me into that Waterford crystal vase, sparkling with His life, reflecting His light for all to see. He sees me as the finished product already and wants me to see myself that way too!

This is the comfort I bring today…….”For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” 1 Corinthians 13:12

If Paul can carry on right in the thick of the battle, I can surely carry on when the things I am worried about haven’t even happened yet!

Where isn’t God…..

“Praise the LORD, my soul,
and forget not all his benefits—
who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,
who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” Psalm 103:2-5
I have always wondered why people who don’t really give much thought to God blame Him when catastrophes happen. They ask, “Where was God?” Most of the time they say it when especially evil people do terrible things to innocent people. Every terrible event in history it seems to come up again. I heard it concerning the Holocaust, events in Africa, every war that has ever been fought. And here at home it came up again after 9/11.
When it’s a natural disaster, the question comes up again. They say: ”Why did God allow this? I have also  heard some Christians try to pin it on God as His judgment on whoever got struck down.
Why didn’t God do something? The question should rather be, “Why didn’t we do something, or for that matter, “Why didn’t I do something?”  We are creatures of free-will, and that was given to us as a supreme gift from God. This is a sacred gift, and He will not take it away. We can use it to do good, or use it to cause tremendous grief and suffering for others. Yes, He could certainly stop all evil for good, and someday He will. But the time is not now. It has been said…..
“Evil flourishes when good men do nothing.”~British statesman Edmund Burke

The truth is, evil flourishes anyway. It just flourishes more when good people do nothing. It is the result of sin, and that is a word we don’t use much anymore.

God was watching, has been watching, and His heart has broken along with all those who have suffered loss. He has been there in every foxhole and trench, every death camp and burned village, in the towers that fell. I have heard the stories. His Spirit was there residing in people who came alongside to help, hiding people at the risk of their own life, putting people on trains to freedom, getting people to safety, jumping in front of bullets raining death.

Believe me, I understand about asking why and where when you are in deep sorrow. Some people have gone through some things so horrific, so unimaginably terrible that I can’t imagine how they got through it, are getting through it. But I do know this, it is possible to get through it victoriously with Him but not without Him.

When Jesus was on the cross they scoffed, “Where is Your God?” What they couldn’t understand was that by His very act He was saying…..”I am right here.”

“He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! He’s the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”

If you are going through something right now that you think is unfair, unwarranted and you feel neglected and abandoned by God, please draw comfort from the fact that He is surely with you. He still loves you and He is working for your ultimate good.

Maybe you are asking where He is. He understands that. The asking is in itself an acknowledgement of Him. That is something He can work with.

photo credit: http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/ Anna Cervova

The Path to Freedom

You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence. Acts 2:28

I have recently started to hit the trail a bit again, since the weather is so spectacular now here in Arizona. I grew up hiking, so it is something familiar to me. I greet the trail like an old friend. Hiking is a bit like life. I have been on some hikes that I absolutely thought I could go no further. The trail became the enemy and I hated every step I took, I cursed every bend and corner. The end result was the only thing that kept me going. That, and the fact that I had encouragers along the way. The funny thing was though, once I got to the top I tended to forget how hard it was. With distance, the pain faded a bit. Its easy to laugh about knees shaking like jackhammers after you’re off the trail.

In life and hiking there are times when you reach a point where you simply don’t have it in you to keep going.

In one of Martin Luther Kings recorded sermons he tells about such a time. He had just gotten another phone call, a death threat, threatening he and his whole family. Not long before he had been arrested and thrown in jail for driving 30 mph in a 25 mph zone. He was sitting at his kitchen table, a cold cup of coffee before him. He was trying to figure a way out. How he could turn it all over to someone else and go back to the quiet life of a scholar like he had planned. Here is how he describes that moment:

“I discovered then that religion had to become real to me, and I had to know God for myself. And I bowed down over that cup of coffee. I will never forget it……I prayed a prayer, and I prayed out loud that night. I said, “Lord, I am down here trying to do what’s right. I think I’m right. I think the cause that we represent is right. But Lord, I must confess that I’m weak now. I’m faltering. I’m losing my courage.”

It was then that he heard an inner voice…….”Martin Luther, stand up for righteousness. Stand up for justice. Stand up for truth. And lo I will be with you, even until the end of the world.”  Three nights later a bomb exploded on the front porch of King’s home, filling the house with smoke and broken glass but injuring no one. He took it calmly: “My religious experience a few nights before had given me the strength to face it.”

We have all reached that crossroads…….we ask the question: “How can I get out of this?” We can’t take another step. We want escape. But it is at that point where the Holy Spirit comes in and does what we can’t do. He takes over…….Peter was at that point after he denied Jesus, but what happened just a few days after that? The day of Pentecost! After Peter was done preaching those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. Acts 2:41

Lord, I am thankful for all those who didn’t give up in the fight for freedom. The ones still fighting today. I thank you for Your Precious Holy Spirit because now you are not only walking beside us, but are actually within us! Thank you for all those times when You picked me up when I thought I couldn’t go on. I continue numbering my gifts today, though I know I can never put a number on what you have done, it is infinite……the numbers teach me much about You……sleeping in peace without angry steps at the door…..getting to enjoy the view after the climb…..the prayers of encouragers along the way……freedom to learn……to go to school without fear….to worship without fear….open windows without bars……weakness that causes me to lean on You…..laughter to lighten the way……little streams that sing songs of hope….yes you can! #598-608

holy experience

Just an ordinary day…….

“Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality. Romans 12:9-13 NKJV

The really good stuff in life is made up of ordinary days, many of them over a long period of time, like a string of beautiful pearls…or maybe I will say opals, I have always loved the fire in them. Tragedies all start with ordinary days that begin like any other. You get up, and if you are like me you have coffee right away, soon after you hit the floor.

I remember I slept in on September 11, 2001…..I was awakened by a phone conversation I heard taking place in the next room, my roommate talking with my Mom. I heart snatches of, “Yes, I am watching it now….” and “No, she is not awake yet…..” I will never forget that day, the moment…..starting out like any other.

Another day many years ago started with irritability on my part, with my new husband…….I was critical, I was not kind. I remember being focused on what I wanted, not really thinking of him. It wasn’t terrible, there were no raised voices, but we did end up separating and doing different things that day. I should add that we came together marvelously later that afternoon….but that is not what I remember the day he died. I remember what happened earlier.

That taught me a lesson that I have kept close. Ordinary days are anything but ordinary. They are all a gift.

So today, over that cup of coffee, catch their eye and hold it for a moment longer…..tell them you love them so they really believe it. Grab their hand as they walk by. Swing them around for an impromptu dance in the kitchen. As my best friend is fond of saying….”sometimes you just gotta give it a little dance….”

Laugh for no reason……..Make the call if you are far away. Lori

photo credit: http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/ vojko kalan

Behold Your God……

A voice says, “Cry out.”
And I said, “What shall I cry?”
“All people are like grass,
and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field.
The grass withers and the flowers fall,
because the breath of the LORD blows on them.
Surely the people are grass.
The grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of our God endures forever.” Isaiah 40:6-8
Isaiah 40 is one of my favorite passages of Scripture……the imagery in it captures my imagination. As I read it I see Isaiah stepping up to a giant canvas, brush in hand…..waiting to see what God will do. The canvas seems to take on a life of its own as the Spirit speaking through him begins to fill it with all the colors of Heaven and earth, lush valleys, flowering meadows, lush streams and God, the Master Creator above it all…..He paints a stark picture of the brevity of our lives, the futility of trying to live a life without God……the breath of His mouth blowing us into the dust we started out as. He is over all, in all and through all.
But then here in verse 11 is another picture he paints of God…..

“He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young.”

……that of God as Gentle Shepherd wanting to heal a wounded Israel, a wounded world…….

Saint Jerome says of Isaiah: “He was more of an Evangelist than a Prophet, because he described all of the Mysteries of the Church of Christ so vividly that you would assume he was not prophesying about the future, but rather was composing a history of past events. ”

In the midst of all this beauty we see another picture start to form…….all the vivid colors of the painting melt away with the fervent heat of a relentless desert scene and a lone figure walks down a dusty road. We hear the shouts of John the Baptist carried across the desert wind and we watch the crowds coming out to see this crazy fool of a man who was telling them to repent. They couldn’t stop themselves from listening because somewhere deep inside they recognized truth.

The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! John 1:29

The lonely figure is now walking towards us and as He gets closer, we see that He is wearing a crown of thorns and bleeding, stumbling under the weight of a massive cross…….”Behold the man,” Pilate says, and then he turns and washes his hands as if he could dismiss Jesus that easily….His wife watches from a distance, eyes sunken in from lack of sleep from the nightmares she had the night before….about Jesus. Matt. 27:19

Suddenly it all comes together………Isaiah states: Behold Your God! The statement itself demands a response from us. Isaiah rings with promise…..we no longer have to wait. The highway in the desert has been built, it is straight and plain and visible for all to see. There are many other roads to take but only this one leads to Heaven…..

“In the wilderness prepare
the way for the LORD;
make straight in the desert
a highway for our God. Isaiah 40:3

photo credit: http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/ by Anna Cervova

Fellowship of the Unashamed

An African martyr’s last words…….
I am part of the Fellowship of the Unashamed.
The die has been cast, I have stepped over the line.
The decision has been made. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ.
I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is
redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure.
I’m finished and done with low living, sight-walking, small
planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tame visions,
mundane talking, cheap giving, and dwarfed goals
My pace is set, my gait is fast, my goal is Heaven, my road is narrow, my way
is rough, my companions few, my Guide reliable, my mission clear.
I won’t give up, back up, let up, or shut up until I’ve preached up, prayed up,
paid up, stored up, and stayed up for the cause of Christ.
I must go until He returns, give until I drop, preach
until all know, and work until He comes.
And when He comes to get His own, He will have no
problem recognizing me. My colors will be clear.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes………” Romans 1:16
Since time is short today, I thought I would share this writing that I found. When I read it I can hear the echoes of the Apostle Paul as he travels from city to city with the Gospel message. Once his life’s work was persecuting the church, and by the end of his life he is ready to die and does die for the cause of Christ. What happened in between? He met Jesus. What happened to this African martyr? He met Jesus.
Will He be able to recognize me?……it is a sobering question, but one I think I can never stop asking.
 “For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

Get thee up into a high mountain…..

Or even one that is not so high, but high enough……

You who bring good news to Zion,
go up on a high mountain.
You who bring good news to Jerusalem,
lift up your voice with a shout,
lift it up, do not be afraid;
say to the towns of Judah,
“Here is your God!”
Isaiah 40:9
There is something very good and healing about climbing a mountain, even a hill. You get a clearer perspective on things, you see things down below, sounds rise up as you climb higher, and you forget your problems for a bit, they tend to shrink while you are up there. Your eyes are on the trail. Where I live you have to watch for rattlesnakes sunning themselves on the rocks.  Believe me, my eyes were peeled yesterday. It was a gorgeous day in Arizona, the sun was shining brightly and there were many out enjoying the day and I was sure the snakes felt the same way……but there were none that I could see.
It was so what I needed. With my first step I felt lighter, with every step I felt my heart lighten, my spirits lift.
The Bible talks about going up to God’s holy mountain…..that captures my imagination because I love hiking. I grew up in California, hiking the Sierra Nevada in Yosemite.
The desert is a bit different, but the feeling I get is the same. Climbing for the joy of it, the view all along the way.
Channels of communication tend to open up……..You don’t have all the interruptions, the telephone, computer, chores, television….it’s just you and your companion and the sound of footfalls. You hear a birdcall you may not have heard before and you ask, “What was that?” In a few short moments you are reconnected with someone and something you have missed…..maybe without even realizing it. Conversation flows freely.
The time is precious and I feel I something has been redeemed……I have been redeemed.
Thank you God for reminding me again why I need to do this….
Here is Elaine on the trail……she insisted that i was trying to kill her for taking the Huff and Puff trail, yes, it is actually called that…..She thanked me later!
It was a very good day.
Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
but those who hope in the LORD
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
Isaiah 40:28-31
 
 
all photos taken from my iphone

And it was Very Good…….

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day. Genesis 1:31

I  like to think of that first day after creation, when God paused and called it very good. The Bible says He rested, but we all know that God neither slumbers nor sleeps (Psalm 121:4) so it wasn’t that He needed a rest. He did it for us. To show us the pattern we needed to live successfully on this earth. So today, I pause as the Trinity did on that day. I like to imagine that day and when I do, I imagine all three members of the Holy family in a circle with Adam and Eve, the animals looking on curiously from the fringe……

I imagine them dancing in the sunlight, and yes a bit of resting too, as they sat back to enjoy the fruits of their labor. That was the first Church service for Adam and Eve as they reveled in everything they saw around them. As they praised and thanked their Creators for giving them life, lavishing on them, loving them…….It was a perfect day.

So today, I pause and thank Him for all of the same. Bringing me to the end of yet another week in good health…..able to enjoy some time off and remember where all this comes from. To praise Him, to thank Him yet again. To remember that He could have created all this in a nanosecond, but instead He did it in seven days just for me and all of us. For us to remember that this day is different from all the rest……
 

Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. Genesis 2:1-3

photo credits: google images