Good advice


“Stop trying to protect, to rescue, to judge, to manage the lives around you . . . remember that the lives of others are not your business. They are their business. They are God’s business . . . even your own life is not your business. It also is God’s business. Leave it to God. It is an astonishing thought. It can become a life-transforming thought . . . unclench the fists of your spirit and take it easy . . . What deadens us most to God’s presence within us, I think, is the inner dialogue that we are continuously engaged in with ourselves, the endless chatter of human thought. I suspect that there is nothing more crucial to true spiritual comfort . . . than being able from time to time to stop that chatter . . . ”
— Frederick Buechner (Telling Secrets)

This is good advice and the closest I will come to making any kind of a New Year’s resolution. I know better. No sooner do I put pressure on myself to do what I should already be doing that I fail miserably within a few weeks. The best thing I can come up with for 2010 is to keep doing the same things I did in 2009 but lean on God even more and myself even less. The best way to keep myself honest is to keep the Word close at hand. It shows my utter failure to do anything at all of eternal value in my own power. And it also shows that the giants of the faith had the same stuggles that I have. That makes me feel a bit better.

So today, and hopefully tomorrow I will get up and start all over again with a spirit of thanksgiving regardless of what is going on in my life, knowing that each day, each breath, is a precious gift from You, God. Thank you for the compass of Your Word and ones you have placed in my life to straighten me out when I need a bump on the head.

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does. James 1:22-25

Miracles in the Mundane


I have had the blahs the past two days. It is grey out which isn’t usual for us in Arizona. I have wanted to hole up and do nothing except grab a blanket and read. I have contemplated taking down the decorations but no far have had no motivation to do it. Company is gone, and I need to think about cleaning house, making Dr. and Dental appointments, and moving onward with the routine of life.

Sometimes in the afterglow of celebrations, returning to the routine can feel somewhat mundane. But it is in these times especially that our faith becomes real; that in spite of the blahs, we get up, get moving, start the day, do what needs to be done. That is when the real miracle happens and the mundane becomes the miracle itself because God reveals Himself to us in it.

Each day becomes a celebration all over again because God is placed squarely back on the throne of our lives. Yes, He lives. He is truly God with us, Immanuel. I think of how Peter must have felt when He thought Jesus was gone forever. All hopes dashed, dreams crushed in the dust. He did the one thing that always gave him comfort, he went fishing.

John 21:1-4
Jesus Appears at the Sea of Galilee:
After these things Jesus manifested Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and He manifested Himself in this way. Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together. Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will also come with you.” They went out and got into the boat; and that night they caught nothing. But when the day was now breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.

Can you imagine the joy Peter must have felt when he realized who it was on shore cooking breakfast for him? That is how God works, just when you think He is gone forever He shows up and produces a miracle in the mundane!

An invitation

Photo by Ben James
You’re invited!
To: The wedding supper of the Lamb
Date: Sometime in the future
Dress: Come as you are, clothed in righteousness
Time: For all eternity
Guest list: All who accept the invitation
Then I heard the sound of massed choirs, the sound of a mighty cataract, the sound of strong thunder:
Hallelujah!
The Master reigns,
our God, the Sovereign-Strong!
Let us celebrate, let us rejoice,
let us give him the glory!
The Marriage of the Lamb has come;
his Wife has made herself ready.
She was given a bridal gown
of bright and shining linen.
The linen is the righteousness of the saints.
The Angel said to me, “Write this: ‘Blessed are those invited to the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.'” He added, “These are the true words of God!” Revelation 19:6-9
Jesus said:
“Don’t let this throw you. You trust God, don’t you? Trust me. There is plenty of room for you in my Father’s home. If that weren’t so, would I have told you that I’m on my way to get a room ready for you? And if I’m on my way to get your room ready, I’ll come back and get you so you can live where I live. And you already know the road I’m taking.” John 14:1-4

All we have to do is accept the invitation…..Counting my blessings today with thoughts of both earthly and heavenly homes.
A place of no tears, where sorrow and sighing are no more
Eternal light
Squeaky floors and screen doors
No more sadness, no more goodbyes
A tea pot on the stove
Reassuring hum of refrigerator
Shoes by the door
Books, books and more books
A river of life that runs right through the middle
Worn Bible
A barrel of firewood
Rustling grocery sacks
Car tires announcing arrival
The most beautiful music you could ever imagine
Squeak of ironing board
Eternal conversations with God
and loved ones
This makes #186 toward 1000 and beyond,
holy experience

Something we can all do….


We all pray whether we think of it as praying or not. The odd silence we fall into when something very beautiful is happening, or something very good or very bad. The ah-h-h-h! that sometimes floats up out of us as out of a Fourth of July crowd when the skyrocket bursts over the water. The stammer of pain at somebody else’s pain. The stammer of joy at somebody else’s joy. Whatever words or sounds we use for sighing with over our own lives. These are all prayers in their way. These are all spoken not just to ourselves but to something even more familiar than ourselves and even more strange than the world.
By Frederick Buechner

Prayer……its something we can all do! At any time of the day, and He will hear.

Psalm 5:3
My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning I will direct my prayer to You, and I will look up.

“Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; praying at the same time for us as well, that God may open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; in order that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak.” Colossians 4:2-4

Camp stories


I have actually seen bears sit at tables like this. One time in Yosemite I actually saw one open a full jar of mayonnaise, proceed to lick it clean and then belch loudly before padding off the to next site. Another time a neighbor left their small dog tied to the car door overnight. The window was open a crack, just a crack mind you. The next morning they told us the dog had been so scared that he wedged himself into the car through that impossibly small crack. If they hadn’t told me, I would never have believed it! We nicknamed him Houdini after that.

Another time we had just set a beautiful table for breakfast, eggs, bacon, pancakes, the whole 9 yards. No sooner had we put the first forkful into our mouths we hear shouts of, “Bear, bear!” echoing throughout the camp. We looked up to see a good sized one trotting right towards us. I guess the human fear was overridden by the smell of bacon and maple syrup. It was every man (and child) for himself, as we all ran in different directions. He proceeded to clear the table of everything, including us.

In their latter days of camping my Mom had taken to sleeping with a scissors close by her bed, “In case I need to cut my way out the back when the bear comes in.” I guess she was assuming that the bear would automatically use decorum and come in through the front flap. Ever tried to cut into heavy duty canvas? I guess with the presence of adrenalin and fear anything is possible. Just ask Houdini dog.

This picture brought back some good memories of camping in my youth.

Merry Christmas to all…..


May you find a quiet corner today where you can sit in the silence and thank Him for His wondrous Gift, of Himself. Go out, look at the stars and think of how it must have been to see that other star that lit up the sky and broke open the heavens so that Angels spilled out.

May you wonder as they did, what can it possibly mean? May we follow the star all the way to the cross, and then the empty tomb, and then follow Him for the rest of our lives.

May your Christmas be blessed, remembering the one who came, the one who has come, and the one who will come back in a much different way than He came the first time. May we be ready!

And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” Acts 1:10,11

My prayer is that my life will leak out more and more of Your light, so that others may find You.

God’s bailout plan


Do feel tired, world-weary, stressed, bogged down and over-loaded? Feel like you need a bailout? God has the answer……and His bailout plan is eternal, the best kind! That is the Good News of Christmas!

For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:7,8

When we were powerless to save ourselves, He came down and did the impossible, awful, terrible, unthinkable thing. God Himself died for us so that we could be with Him forever. Not only that, this plan was in the works from the very beginning, before man took his first breath. He knew we would fail, He knew we would stray from Him, He knew this even as He breathed the breath of His own Spirit into our nostrils. Given the choice, each one of us eventually turn and go our own way, away the very One who loves us the most. It’s insane, it’s crazy, it’s radical!

It’s a God who loves us so much it hurts Him.

So not only do we not have to fear death, we don’t have to fear this life either! At any moment during the day we can stop, reflect, pull back from the stress of life and know that we can draw a ready supply of strength and help from our Comforter. Now that’s what I call a bail-out plan!

The Son of God became a man to enable men to become the sons of
God. – C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

But would we notice?


The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;
those who lived in a land of deep darkness —
on them light has shined.
Isaiah 9:2

I sometimes wonder if it happened all over again, would we stop long enough to notice, or try to explain it away? Sometimes I wonder about myself, as I start my day, get up, check things off “my agenda.”

But really God it is Your day, You have redeemed all my days and each one is a precious gift. I confess that I am sometimes too caught up in my plan that I ignore Your whisperings in my heart. Forgive me, Lord. Help me to slow down and have better Spiritual hearing. Help me to remember that my days belong to You.

“Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.” Psalm 139:16

A few of my favorite things……

Things that just make me feel good…….adding to my list of gratitude today:
Don’t robins make you feel like they have something important to tell you?
Libraries are my happy place…
Cat hugs are always great!
How can you see this and not feel all warm inside? The miracle of new life…..
I want to go back to Kindergarten!
Sitting at the bottom of Yosemite valley, I greet my familiar granite faces in wonder, again. I wait, cupping my chilled hands around my cup, and wait for first rays to reach me where I sit.
Cabins in snow, always a favorite…..

More things……Baby animals of all kinds, kites flying against a summer sky, puppy breath, the hush of snow fall, the wonder of God’s whole creation, cry of coyotes in the wee hours, owls, angel statues in cemetaries, birdsong in the morning, falling asleep talking to God, hugs that are serious like they really don’t want to let you go, the reassuring sound of the ocean washing over all my worries, good advice from someone who really cares, books and more books, musical laughter, and most of all the knowledge of where all these things come from, that is the best gift of all.

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17

#170 toward 1000 and beyond,
holy experience

A light unto my path….


“Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105

I have allowed things to crowd You out Lord, the voice of Your Spirit has become dimmed, so this morning I run to Your Word. I cling to it as a drowning man clings to floating driftwood, knowing that it is my only hope of survival.

Like the lamp that lights the way to Narnia, Your Word is my gateway to communion with You. I hear the familiar Words and draw comfort. I begin to feel your Spirit’s stir once again in my soul here in the quiet, and I am restored.

Thank You Lord, once again You greet me with Your Presence. Your grace covers me like a cloak. Words leap from pages as if they are meant just for me! Thank You for being patient with me again and again. I take one step toward Your Word and I am blessed beyond measure.

I hug it to my chest, panic subsiding, I drift. I reach Your golden shore.

“A voice is calling, clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness; make smooth in the desert a highway for Our God.” Isaiah 40:3
“The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows upon it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers the flower fades, but the Word of the Lord stands forever.” Isaiah 40: 7,8