God’s love

Three Little Words

“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.” 2 Peter 1-3

When I read this today I immediately thought of Harold Camping and his ridiculous time-stamp for Christ’s return. I thought about how much damage has been done over the 2000+ years of the church by people taking a truth and twisting it, either to make a buck or get some notoriety for themselves. This is no surprise. Jesus talked about it, so did all the apostles.

The problem with partial truths is that a half truth holds the power of the truth, but either adds something or leaves something out so that facts are confused and distorted. That was our downfall from the very beginning. Our separation from God started with three little words……..

“Did God say?”

I think an out and out lie is easier to deal with because it can be exposed for what it is. A partial truth has the power to mangle and deceive and leaves a wake of destruction in its path. Yet the light of truth will continue to shine through the darkness of every deception. Two things we know from Scripture:

There will be a time when Christ will most definitely come back, we just don’t know when.

He will come when we are not expecting it.

“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming……”2 Peter 3:10,11

Two other things we know….
The time is closer now that it was before.

There will be people that don’t believe it.

“Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.”

But here is the best part of the story, if you are living and breathing, you still have time.

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9

We serve a truly awesome God!

Upside down justice

“Can anyone teach God knowledge to God, Since He judges even the highest? One man dies in his full strength, being wholly at ease and secure; his body is well-nourished, his bones rich with marrow. Another man dies in the bitterness of his soul, never having enjoyed anything good.” Job 21:22-25
Does it ever seem like we are living in an upside down world? Evil acts go unpunished. Something in us wants, craves justice. Sometimes we feel like taking matters into our own hands. There have been several movies that portray someone doing just that. The other night I happened upon one. I was over at someone’s house and a movie started. There was a heartfelt scene with a Dad and his daughter lovingly interacting. Then it all went terribly wrong. A home invasion. Three men burst in, killed the wife, kidnapped and later killed the daughter. The father barely survived. It was merciless, they killed without remorse. I left after the first scene.  
I later found out what happened. The “perps” got off, so the Dad ended up finding all three and ingeniously divising each one’s torturous death. He ended up terrorizing the whole town and in the end, he was blown up. Death by napalm. It wasn’t a satisfactory end for anyone. No one got justice, and nothing he did gave him any satisfaction in the end. He died clinging to a necklace his daughter made for him. It was hopeless.
We may say about someone, why is this person still taking up air? They do no good for anyone, they are miserable and life seems like a chore to them. There is no joy in their days, and they weigh others down with their bleak outlook. Why, we wonder, can’t they just die peacefully in their sleep? But thankfully, that is not up to me to decide. I am sure I would get it all wrong.

When my thoughts meander in that direction, the only way I know to get peace is to give God back His sovereignty. At times like that, it is tempting to wrestle it away from Him. But He alone has control of how many breaths, years, months, anyone has. We must give back to God’s what is God’s. When I let it rest with Him, He blesses me with the peace and strength I so desperately seek.

My thoughts calm.

I don’t have to worry about justice. I know that belongs to God. All that is wrong will one day be made right. And in the meantime, I will rest in Him. I remember how mercifully He has dealt with me.

The Word is a tremendous comfort in times like these. When I read these words in Job today, I was reassured. Others have felt the same way down through the ages. But God doesn’t change. And one thing is for sure. I can rest in His justice, and mercy. For really, what does any of us deserve?

It is because of His great love and mercy He has saved us from what we all deserve.

Because of His love for me, I get what I don’t deserve.

The Final Frontier

One sings in her wheelchair as she is pushed along the halls, mostly Que Sara, Que Sara, sometimes Amazing Grace. She has an amazingly strong voice. We try to meet all their faces as we pass, and say hello and smile. You have the sense of wanting to give them back their humanity in this land of the seemingly lonely and forgotten.
When I first started to do the nursing home thing again, I recoiled. It felt like the Land of the Lost. My friend calls it the Roach Motel. You check in but you don’t check out.
Where my Uncle is staying there is a gentleman there who insists that he will get to Heaven by train. When my Aunt sees him, he makes the announcement, “I have my ticket, I am leaving today at three o’clock.” Hey I kind of like that idea, like going to Heaven on the Hogwart’s Express! One lady, mutters constantly….”I don’t know what the hell I am doing in this place.” Once she never stepped out of her house looking anything less than dressed to the nines with hair perfectly styled. Now my Aunt says she looks like a street person. Unrecognizable as the woman she once was.
They give these places fancy sounding names like “Rehabilitation Center” “Care Centers” “Guest Homes.”
I have to say, now that I have been “doing the circuit” again, there is something else that is clear to me. It is not all hopeless. I walk past rooms that are decorated in pictures from home, their pets, Scripture verses, shelves of books, colorful quilts in bright colors.
All in all, I have made up my mind that you die the way you lived.
If you are positive when you were young, you will be positive all the way to the end. Unless you don’t have your mind, that is. Then it’s different.
I walk along the halls and see signs of life and hope, and see signs up giving up.
It all comes down to life and death in the end.
I am determined that I will choose life no matter what. That is the hope I have in Jesus. That is the hope that Henry has. Elaine met him walking the halls. They got to talking and he told her he comes from a long line of ministers. He told her with a sparkle in his eye, “Today I am reading the book of Numbers!”
If I ever end up in one of these places I want to be like Henry.
Or the guy waiting for my three o clock train to Heaven.
And honestly, sometimes it doesn’t sound too bad. No responsibilies, a shelf full of books, three square meals….I just really hope that I can keep my eyesight and my mind.
“And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow–not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.” Romans 8:38

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.

The Dad you never had

Father to the fatherless, defender of widows—
this is God, whose dwelling is holy.
God places the lonely in families…….Psalm 68:5,6
That’s Our God!
I am blessed, truly blessed. I had a real Dad. We were pals, and still are. My Mom was the disciplinarian in the family, Dad could never do it. I never doubted that he would have walked through fire for me. His own Dad left the family when he was very small. That day haunted him all his life. I don’t think he has ever fully recovered, even at 82 the memory is as clear now as it was way back then. He determined that when he had kids, it would be different. I can never think of a time in my life when he wasn’t there for me.
But I know that is not the case with many.  
This post is for you. For all of you who longed desperately to see a face in the crowd rooting you on, and for everyone who was crushed and disappointed when Dad broke a promise……for the hundredth time. For those of you who never had a Dad who cared enough to make the promise in the first place, and everyone who ached for love and kindness and got harsh critisicm instead.
Or angry words……
For those who longed to hear, “I am proud of you!” You might be all grown up now but even so, the child in you still wants to hear it.

And that thing you were really really good at, that God made you good at?  That thing you stopped doing because nobody was in the stands? When you gave up on yourself? God saw that. He was cheering from the stands and saying…..I knew you could do it!

He was proud of you then and He’s still proud of you now. Feel His love wrapped around you today.

He’s the Dad you never thought you had.

If you always longed to feel the strength of a big hand wrapped around yours, letting you know that everything in your world was safe, take heart. God can fill that void perfectly. He can take all those empty spaces and replace them with His great love and protection.

Oh, how He wants to do that for you today.

And Daddy, remember how you shopped for weeks looking for that perfect Christmas gift for me? You must have been so excited for me to open it, that beautiful hat and matching scarf. Back then I thought I was too cool to wear it. Forgive me for being too childishly selfish to fully appreciate your gift of love. I wish I had it back now. If I did I would wear it proudly and never let it go……I love you! Happy Dad’s Day.

Heaven is for Real

“See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven. Matthew 18:10

Ever want to see what Heaven might look like through the eyes of a four year old boy? I couldn’t resist picking this book up as I strolled by the book aisle at Costco. I usually try to stay away from that section, but this is one I just had to buy.  It beckoned me, it did. I always want to hear what children say, since Jesus thought they were pretty important.

To be honest, my motive for buying it was simple. I wanted a bit of escape from this life for few hours. I had read “90 Minutes in Heaven” and found it to be totally credible. I ended up reading this one in a couple of hours. The book chronicles little Colvin Burpo’s journey to Heaven as he lays in surgery after his appendix ruptures on a family vacation.

To hear Colvin’s descriptions, as only a four year old would tell it, is precious. We have no way of knowing if he actually went there. Maybe it was a very powerful dream, maybe it was a vision. Maybe he actually went. I do believe that in these last days, we are seeing many things that the Bible talks about. I also think that as time goes on, we will see more of them.

“And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.”

This much is true. God wants us to go to Heaven and be with him when we die. In Colvin’s own words:”Well, Jesus told me that he died on the cross so that we could go see His Dad.”

I believe that what little Colvin saw was real. I think there is wonderful potential in these types of books, and that is to point the way to the truth of Scripture. I loved how Colvin’s Dad, who is a Pastor, provides Scripture verses after several examples of what Colvin saw, constantly letting his son tell his story his own way and in his own time. This is a very close family, and a very real family. At one point while Colvin was in surgery and they thought he wouldn’t make it, his Dad tells about how he went into a room and raged at God while praying.

Later Colvin describes that during the time he was in surgery he recalled seeing his Dad in that room praying and his mother in another room, also praying and talking on her cell phone. That gave me chills, since they never told Colvin any of that.

One thing is for sure. Heaven is for real and God wants us to go there.

Sometimes it takes a child to remind us.

We’re All A Bit Difficult

“By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:35

In a recent conversation I said, “The frustrating thing about people is, you can’t make them do the right thing, that’s why I like animals,” I said. She smiled and scoffed,”You can’t even make your cat do the right thing, that’s not a good analogy for you.” I took offense to that because, well…..she was right. The truth is, I spoil him! He jumps on my lap while I am trying to post, he steals my chair when I get up from the table, and he would snatch food right off my plate if I let him.

But it’s easy for me to look past all that because it is easy to love him. He follows me everywhere. He greets me when I come home at night. He circles around my feet when it looks to him like I might sit down, and then he plops into my lap and turns upside down…..one very blissful cat.

It’s the same with people I love…….It’s easy to overlook their faults and little idiosyncracies, even lavish them with affection, because I love them.

But what about strangers? What about someone I don’t know? What about the difficult people in my life, your life? Those porcupines.

What makes dealing with them so frustrating? Because I can’t make them behave the way I think they should. I can’t make them do the right thing, make the right decisions. BEHAVE.  

And because I don’t love them, even though God says I must.

When I am describing “difficult people,” it’s always those people out there. I naturally assume that I am not one of them. It’s a finger pointed outwards, accusingly. We have all worked with them, sometimes even lived with them. Maybe you live with one now. You know the kind……
Complaining, egocentric, selfish, negative, narcissistic, disagreeable, argumentative…….It would be oh so easy to just cross them off. But I can’t.

Because God doesn’t cross me off. No matter how many times I disappoint Him.

Probably, most “difficult” people don’t think they are difficult. And there are times, I am sure, when I am difficult for others to deal with……. and very difficult to God.

Because I know how much slack God gives me each and every day, how much He has lavished on me…….it helps me to deal a bit less harshly with the porcupines in my life. I can only hope.

God reminded me of this today when I was busy complaining to Him about someone else.

Lost and Found

“In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away!” Luke 15:7 New Living Translation

I posted earlier in the week about our resident Intel cat who greeted me in the parking lot at work on Wednesday, very displaced and perturbed. Her feeding station is all the way around the back of the building, but the landscapers had shown up and she got scared and fled. Seeing her like that bothered me, I wanted her back in her safe place, away from people who may not be too friendly to her. I saw fear in her eyes. I know she recognized my voice and wanted to trust me, but because she was disoriented and scared, she ran from me.

I contacted Steve, our resident Intel saint. He takes his dogs to hospitals and care homes to visit the shut-ins and does so much for the feral cat population at Intel. He has been known to come in on his days off to trap cats and take them to the vet for neutering….He was worried about “Mrs. Howell” too. I worked all week, but a bit distracted. Thinking of her scared there in the parking lot, wanting food.

Yesterday to my joy and relief, I heard her meow when I called. She had found her way back…….She was very happy to see me, as you can see in the photo.

I thought then……how in God’s name do people live through it when their children are lost? I cannot begin to understand how they keep functioning among the living. How do they get up and go to work everyday, knowing they are out there somewhere. Lost…..scared…..confused, maybe trapped somewhere by something or someone they can’t get away from? I can’t imagine anything worse.

That’s how God feels about us when we are lost to Him. Maybe it’s you that needs to find your way back. Maybe you are out there somewhere far away from God. Away from love, safety, home. Maybe you just feel like you are……He wants you back. He longs for it. With every fiber of His Holy being. He sheds tears when we turn away, intent on going our own way, even for a moment. God-sized tears. Jesus came to bring you back.

Like the father of the prodigal son, He waits. He gazes out the window hopefully, longingly. He aches to see that lone figure upon the road. He aches for you.  And He will keep waiting until every minute of what we call time on this earth is up. 

And all of Heaven will rejoice. Welcome home!

I encourage you today to insert a name after this last line and pray that the individual you hold in your heart will come to the Lord and find out what it means to be truly home……I hold Curtis up today, Lord. He needs to find you. Amen

The Best Worst Day in History

Just then, as Pilate was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him this message: “Leave that innocent man alone. I suffered through a terrible nightmare about him last night.”

Pilate saw that he wasn’t getting anywhere and that a riot was developing. So he sent for a bowl of water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood. The responsibility is yours!”And all the people yelled back, “We will take responsibility for his death—we and our children!”
 

 At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”
 

 
Then Jesus shouted out again, and he released his spirit. At that moment the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The thickness of this curtain was about 4 inches thick…..
 
The earth shook, rocks split apart, and tombs opened. The bodies of many godly men and women who had died were raised from the dead. They left the cemetery after Jesus’ resurrection, went into the holy city of Jerusalem, and appeared to many people.

The Roman officer and the other soldiers at the crucifixion were terrified by the earthquake and all that had happened. They said, “This man truly was the Son of God!

The awful, wonderful cross became the bridge that continues to span the chasm between God and man….

Hallelujah, what a Savior!

All verses taken from the book of Matthew.
All photos from Google images

Invite Yourself

“For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son,” Colossians 1:13
 
“If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it. If He had a wallet, your photo would be in it. He sends you flowers every spring and a sunrise every morning… Face it, friend. He is crazy about you! ” Max Lucado
 
Have you ever uninvited yourself from an event, a party, a rest? Deemed yourself unworthy? Maybe you thought you wouldn’t fit in, so you mentally crossed yourself off the list. You came up with all kinds of reasons….
 
I don’t have kids or grandkids to talk about…..
I am not in that social group…..
I’m not smart enough…..
I can’t make witty conversation…..
I am not attractive enough……
I don’t have a great career….
I am single….divorced…..my marriage is rocky…..blah blah blah
 
God says you are royalty. Jesus thought you were worth dying for and even now, He is interceding for you before the Father. The Holy Spirit makes His home within you. God says you are all that!
 
So, give yourself a break today. Invite yourself to the party. Carve out an hour or so of rest. Get dressed up and wear the hat. Know that you are worthy of going to Buckingham Palace. Envision yourself waiting to meet the Queen at the Garden Party. I bet if you think hard enough, you can find someone in your life who thinks you are just wonderful the way you are, perfect in fact……God does.
 

 
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 2 Corinthians 5:17

all pictures from google images