God’s goodness

When you feel like dust

For as the heavens are high above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
As a father pities his children,
So the LORD pities those who fear Him.
For He knows our frame;
He remembers that we are dust. Psalm 103:11-14
Sometimes I feel my dustiness…..When I am tired, when I roll out of bed and everything is creaking. When I can’t seem to sleep when I need to, and then nod off in the chair, unable to keep my eyes open. We are so frail, and yet there is a part of us that will last forever. The part that God breathed life into……
Our Spirit.
That is the part that keeps on going when the body and mind are all tired out. That’s that part that will keep on going when we take our final breath on this place we call home.
But until then, we take time out in between the all tired out times. I am planning one of those timeouts tomorrow. I will be heading to the coast…..and blessedly wonderful temperatures. Instead of being huddled inside to escape 110 outside, I will be throwing the windows open to greet balmy perfect breezes and temps of around 70 in LA.
I am looking forward to practising more with my camera……
and reading….
and maybe some blogging too!  
And……a special shout out to Michelle DeRusha over at “Graceful” for introducing me to “picnik” a wonderful site where you can play with your photos and do cool editing stuff.

New Every Morning

Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness………Lamentations 3:22-23
Four days……12 hours long…….working continually……..we made it. This past week we merged two giant factories automation systems and hundreds of programs that make everything work and dealt with the impending disaster that came with it. It was like trying to make fire and oil co-habitate. My part in it was small, but stressful, since factory managers and group leaders were hovering close by. At the worst possible time one of them came up and asked if I needed any help. He must have seen my glazed over look. I was overwhelmed.

Praise God, by the time we all left last night, my area was almost normal. No doubt there were sleepless nights for all involved. I can only praise God for the end of the week. He brought us to the other side, just as He always does.

I am sure there will be glitches, but there are people there working them out. Today is a day of rest for me…….I am meditating on the great old hymn this morning as I anticipate some much needed mental rest for a few days.
Great is Thy faithfulness,” O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not
As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be. “
Great is Thy faithfulness!” “Great is Thy faithfulness!”
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided—
“Great is Thy faithfulness,” Lord, unto me!
I love the line about no shadow of turning……..God never changes, and that is the one thing we can always count on.
Hymn written by Thomas Chisolm who died in 1960 at age 94. During his lifetime, he wrote more than 1,200 poems and hymns including O To Be Like Thee and Living for Jesus

From death to life…..

“In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life;” Romans 6:11-13

I wasn’t going to listen to Romans this morning on the way to work. I thought…..I listened to this last week. I have heard it all before…..But I forgot one very important thing about God’s word. It has staying power, the power of life in it. It never fails to bring life to the hearer. As I listened to the words of Paul again, speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, I began to get chills up and down my arms.

I was hearing it against the backdrop of everything we have been through these past many months

I got a picture in my mind of impassioned Paul, speaking in front of a courtroom, striding back and forth. One moment Prosecutor of sin, the next brilliant public Defender of the faith, (as if it needed any defending.)

As I listened to the first 6 Chapters the words flowed over me and I reflected on the past 3 days…..that’s where the chills came in. We can go through anything, my friends, because we are a people who have been brought from death to life. That’s how we roll.

That is the reason for the hope that lies within us. That’s the thing that makes it possible to rise up in the morning and do it all again, and with an attitude of hope that no circumstance or person can ever stamp out. That’s the brilliant backdrop, the reality that we can’t see with our eyes, but that we feel with every fiber of our being.

Each one of us knows the truth. We were built to last. Though our bodies are perishing, our God stamp……our spirit, our soul will live on. And one day, we will rise, as He rose, with new bodies. Bodies that can live in God’s world, with Him forever. What a tremendous hope!

 “Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.” 1 John 3:2-3

And He is with us now. As I look back on the past few months, I cannot deny God’s hand at work….we have talked about it, Elaine and I. I have stood beside her, helping her to navigate this particular valley of death. That’s what it has felt like anyway.

Dealing with all the stress of a Dad with dementia, one minute angry and accusatory, the next minute apologetic….

His move into a rest home……..

Her Mom’s move in with us…….

Learning to live under the same roof with Alzheimers and everything that goes with it……

The emptying out of their house, which we did ourselves, with the help of some very helpful “angels” to cart off some of the biggest items, finishing only just last Tuesday.

Moving everything left into storage.

And finally, the sale of their home…..I can only say that God has been glorified through it all, because we know the truth of these words……”I will never leave you or forsake you……and He hasn’t…..and He won’t.

And in between all these lines there is the everyday life, the toughest part. Where the nitty-gritty battles are fought day in and day out. The fatigue and stress of living with someone who has lived their whole life through a prism of negativity. The life you escaped from.

I look back in disbelief at what we did……the three of us.

I look ahead with hope, because He showed us again that He will never leave us.

A Place of Refuge

How abundant are the good things
that you have stored up for those who fear you,
that you bestow in the sight of all,
on those who take refuge in you.
In the shelter of your presence you hide them
from all human intrigues;
you keep them safe in your dwelling
from accusing tongues. Psalm 31:19,20
Ever been falsely accused of something? It hurts……Even though you know the truth, and the ones who love you best know. It still hurts. Especially if it is someone in your own family. Jesus knew all about that. His own brothers doubted Him. Those in His hometown did too.”Isn’t this the carpenter’s son…..” And He was God! If you are suffering from this heartache today, please turn it over to the One who truly does understand. He is the One, the only One who can heal from this particular wound that runs so deep.
Let the Balm of Gilead bind up your wounds today……be comforted.
He doesn’t miss a trick…….
From heaven the LORD looks down
and sees all mankind;
from his dwelling place he watches
all who live on earth—
he who forms the hearts of all,
who considers everything they do. Psalm 33:13-15
Lord, I pray for those today who have been hurt by those who should be closest to them. You know this heartache well. Only You can heal these deep wounds. Bring them to a place of healing today and bind up their hearts with Your precious Balm of Gilead. Let them feel this warmth in their hearts today and let them be restored in You. Amen

Every Day is a Grace Day

“The grace of God means something like: Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are because the party wouldn’t have been complete without you.” Frederic Buechner

Ever wonder why some days you wake up and all through the day you have this wondrous sense of well-being? It is as if you are stepping in Grace, walking in Light. The normal things that bother you just can’t touch you on days like this. You feel a strong sense of God’s Grace surrounding you…..

You’re walking through a primrose path……lilies strewn at your feet……tip-toeing through tulips, you are walking in the light and nothing negative can touch you.

And then there are those other days when you feel like the whole world is conspiring against you. As if the very forces of nature are working to make things difficult, like a cosmic battle that you can very definitely feel, but can’t see. A black cloud seems to follow you like dust follows Pigpen in the Charlie Brown cartoon.

You are stepping in something alright, but it is not grace it’s something else.

Yesterday I had one of those good days. I was walking out the door at the grocery store and this wonderful sense of well-being washed over me. It followed me to Starbucks, where I acted out of character and spoke to a stranger who was doing a beautiful pencil sketch, a copy of a photo.

I said, “That’s gorgeous.” Because it was. He didn’t even acknowledge me……not a look up, not a thank you, not a grunt or a smile. He just kept sketching and looking down. Something like that would have ticked me off on another day. This day, it didn’t even faze me.

I think sometimes God gives us those as wonderful gifts of grace, not only because He loves us, but because He knows someone else needs a blessing……someone we come across needs lifting up…..someone in our life needs our strength and encouragement. He blesses us and it spills over like sunlight onto anyone who walks in our path. I think these days are what carry us through the other days.

In truth, every day is a Grace day. However we wake, it is with the breath He gives us. We grumble, we groan, we give thanks, we bless others, we curse the traffic and gas prices, we laugh……

And it’s all Grace.

5 Great Reasons to Believe

“Come to me, all of you who are weary and loaded down with burdens, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28

When I was wide awake this morning at 3am, I was thinking about how grateful I am that I can turn to the Lord at any time and He is always there. This started a mental list of reasons why I love being a Christian and wouldn’t trade my relationship with the Lord for anything in the world. As the cats blinked at me in puzzlement at the sudden light flooding the room, I wrote the first two down. The rest came a bit later.
 
We have a friend to turn to in our best and worst days……….He loves the part of me that no one sees. Yesterday I was feeling a bit irregular, like I wasn’t fitting anywhere. Every now and then those days come and I feel much like I did back in high school, like I want to hide in the bathroom stall. Like I want to avoid people, like I don’t like this version of me. But God loves even the part of me that no one sees. I can take all those strange feelings and He knows exactly what to do with them!
 
Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested. Hebrews 2:18

We have an instant family…….Many people given the choice, would not have picked the family that God picked for them. But through that family we got here. However dysfunctional it may have been, (or still is) it made you what you are today. Through that family we have the opportunity to become part of God’s family! God has adopted us as sons and daughters, how cool is that? It always amazes me that when I talk with someone in God’s family, conversation never seems to run out.

God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. Ephesians 1:5

We have a purpose, we no longer have to wonder why we are here or how it all got started………Suddenly we have new eyes to see with. We are seeing things through the Spirit that we never saw before. We have an assignment, a task, a mission, above and beyond what we do for money. God becomes our life-coach.
 
For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. Romans 1:20
 
We have abundant life now, and eternal life later………We no longer have to fear death! The Bible is clear that the instant we die, we are with the Lord. We have a taste of it now, in the Holy Spirit who has been given to us as a deposit, a guarantee of what is to come.
 
The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. John 10:10

We can always find that place of rest………Whenever I feel burdened and stressed and I long for the ocean or that retreat in the mountains, I can take these feelings to the Lord and I get the true refreshment that only He can give. I can go into my closet and pray and He refreshes my soul. He knows what I need. It is a bit like taking a power nap in the middle of the day. I feel like I can go on again.
 
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Matthew 11:28

The Best Offering

“It was by faith that Abel brough a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. Abel’s offering gave evidence that he was a righteous man, and God showed his approval of his gifts. Although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us by his example of faith.” Hebrews 11:14

The question was posed to me, “How can a loving God send a person to hell when all their life they have done good things, maybe living a better moral life than a believer?” Many people have grappled with this question, and it has become a major stumbling block. It has caused some to question their faith, and it has kept some from seeking a relationship with God. The problem is, they are looking at it from the wrong angle. They are thinking that the works themselves are what makes a person righteous, when in fact, works by themselves can never save anyone.

The person who counts on their own good works to get them into God’s good graces, rejects God’s plan and provision for salvation. They are saying in effect, “I think my offering is good enough.” Look at what Isaiah says: “We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind.” 64:6

And it’s not only unbelievers who can fall into this trap, many in the church today are trying to do good works apart from the Holy Spirit, and as a result they are burned out, discouraged, and ready to quit. We were never meant to do anything apart from the Spirit. Sometimes we try to go back to doing things through our own efforts we fall flat on our face. And God lets us!

It’s kind of like what happened to Cain. He thought his offering was good enough and then was mad when it wasn’t accepted. Abel, however sacrified from the choicest of his flock to give back to God. Somewhere along the line, Cain held back his best. He rejected God’s plan, and then sulked even when God came to him:

“Why are you so angry?” the LORD asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected? 7 You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.” Genesis 4:6-7

God never intended anyone to go to hell, in fact He is not willing that any should perish……and all we have to do is reach out and take God up on His offer of salvation. Jesus sacrificed Himself for us so that we might become righteous. He is our righteousness!

The best offering………….
Blessings of this past week…….continued strength and humor inspite of difficulty and challenge……the joy of the Spirit in the midst of joyless company……good conversations about God……fellowship and shared commiseration with friends…..knowledge that we are in the midst of Grace at all times……fruitful quiet times that carry me through, and enable me to help others go through…..questions from others that renew my faith….the support of a best friend who understands…..continued good health……furry ones who give comfort….#647-657

holy experience
Photo by Brunhilde Reinig: public domain pictures

Spring has sprung……NOT!

See! The winter is past;
the rains are over and gone.
Flowers appear on the earth;
the season of singing has come,
the cooing of doves is heard in our land.
The fig tree forms its early fruit;
the blossoming vines spread their fragrance.
Song of Solomon 2 11-13
Well, not quite yet. The weather report called for a chance of snow in San Francisco last night! About 50 insomniacs gathered in the Twin Peaks area around midnight, but no snow! However, right now it is only 48 degrees in Mesa, Arizona which is highly unusual! I have had my heater on more than I ever have this year. I confess I have enjoyed it. It has felt a bit more like winter.
I remember growing up in the farmland and orchards of the San Joaquin valley of California; I used to love it when all the cherries and almonds would blossom. After months of fog, rain and dampness, the sun would shine forth in brilliance and infuse people with false hope. Everyone would go out and start working in their yards, looking for rakes and garden tools long buried under Novembers mulchy leaves. We would glory in it, our faces upturned toward the sun……
Mom and I would go downtown to JC Penney and shop for my Easter dress, matching patent leather shoes of course, and the louder the better. Easter Sunday could not come fast enough. We would eagerly watch the weather the week before, hoping and praying for sun. Many times we would wake to ferocious biting winds with enough force to blow a hat clear into the next town, or a cold pelting rain. We would dash from the car to the church, fighting vociferously with inside out umbrellas. All the blossoms would be blown off the fruit trees.
Every now and again it would happen though…..we would get that perfect day.
For now though, I am enjoying the nice change. I am sorry for all of you dealing with more snow and ice and all the problems that brings, but when our summer starts and I walk outside at 5:00 AM and it is already oppressively hot, I will remember this wonderful winter!
I know that Spring will come, and on its heels the beginning of a long hot Summer, but that is as it should be. Even that will bring it’s own rewards. The seasons are God’s way of reassuring us that life does go on. It is reliable, this marking of time, this rhythm.
God’s rhythm. And it is very good.
And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years……Genesis 1:14
photos taken from publicdomainpictures.net

Modern Day Miracles

“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ,” Ephesians 3:16-18

I have been extremely grateful, ever since I got back from my trip back home…….I got the chance to see again what miracles God is doing in the lives of people. At times, it leaves me speechless, and at those times I just breath a prayer of thanks and gratitude. Endless gratitude. God is performing miracles in the lives of people, yes indeed, and I got to see Him again at work in those I know and those I don’t.

I have heard about two families brought back together from impossible places, a family who was torn apart by addiction, both homeless and scattered across the far reaches of a place I can’t even imagine. Children who weren’t sure where their next meal was coming from or where they would stay the night….I think of the agonizing nights and days spent praying for these people, these children. Lives on the brink of ruin, close to death, living out destruction. They were prayed for by so many people, for so long. Everything was done for them that could be. But in a situation like that, there is only so much that can be done…..and then our prayers landed them in a mission. That mission gave them a roof over their heads, some food, the husband a job and the Good News of Jesus Christ. We kept praying that it would “stick.”

The wife came back, got sober and clean, and so did the husband! They have now been baptized into the family of believers……my best friend got to attend church with them, her Nephew and his family, when she was there. They recently got their 2  year certificate of sobriety…..To hear of this miracle from her, to know that 6 kids are now safe and doing well, against all the odds. That is something only God could do.

Yet another friend has also been released from the prison of addiction, one we didn’t even know about until recently, a friend from long ago. She is now clean and sober, part of the family of God reunited with her daughter. She is now working with other recovering women, her life a testimony of praise!

Two impossible situations, two families brought from death to life…….No, my friends, I do not need to see anyone walk on water to believe. I see change, real and permanent, and lasting. The power of the Living God at work……

The list goes on:

Changed lives around me
Our answered prayers
The tears of gratitude
The grace that was extended
A real apology resulting in changed actions…..not just words.
Courage to rise from the ashes of bad choices
Faith to believe it is real
The knowledge that it is real
Joy that comes from seeing the heart-changer at work
A testimony of changed lives in all of us…..#631-641

Endless gratitude today, celebrate it with me, Ann and so many others……

holy experience

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