Following The Warm Light

 

        I enjoy the clouds and dreariness of a rainy day.  There is something calming about it, as well as the need (or desire) to slow down a bit.  While I can’t explain it, it somehow has the ability to subdue the need for clamoring to get everything done. The light from the sun is hidden in these moments, yet not completely, allowing for us to experience ‘day time’ even when the sun isn’t visible.                                                 That said, I don’t like days like this to be more than a day or so.  After this limited time period, I’m rested and ready to take on the challenges  of all the busy-ness of the list staring at me from the table!

Glowing candle light is another facet of light I completely enjoy.  There is something warm and welcoming about a candle.  There was a Christmas some years ago where candle light could be seen radiating out of the windows of a small church I attended for Christmas Eve Service.  I can still recall the scene; inviting and embracing.  Once inside the flickering light could be seen in the smiling eyes of those attending.

Still, the bright sunshiny day is the place where exuberance and lightness of mood can really be witnessed.  It seems on these days, not only I feel this way, but the general population, as people are out and about shopping, or taking walks, running, playing with children or heading to the beach or other special place to soak in the sun!

When I think of light, however, my favorite thoughts wander to Christ.  He tells us He is the Light.  It is his light that fills our souls to overflowing so that others can see Him through us, as we live out our lives in obedience to him.  Isn’t this why we were created?

As I reflect on the variations and levels of light, there is yet another Light that is even greater than we can witness between Believers here on this Earth.  Imagine, if you can, the Light that will be available when we reach heaven.  This will be a place of no darkness.  After all, darkness can’t reside when Christ is present.  

I admit I have a difficult time picturing what it will be like when I live in a world of no darkness; always light!  I don’t sleep well in the the day time and rise nearly when the sun comes in my windows.  I suspect I won’t be sleeping much in heaven either!  What a joyous thought!

While I wait to reach a place of eternal Light, I will attempt to project the light of God in my life so that others may see a glimpse of a God, who loves all his creation.  That requires searching His Word for instruction and being obedient to the lessons found there.  It means that even on my ‘rainy days’ — those days when I don’t feel particularly ‘sunshiny’ I need to reach out to the God of Light and ask for an extra dose of His!

He’ll give it, just because I asked.  He wants His Light to shine in and through us.  What a great testimony to his goodness, grace and mercy. 

Family Bibles

        

        I am fascinated with people who come to church with an electronic Bible.  Even Pastor’s will, sometimes, use an iPad or other device when delivering a sermon.  Using the electronic devices can be very handy when looking up references or if there is a question which requires an immediate answer.  

Still, there is something uniquely comforting when reading a Bible which can be held in your hands, with paper pages requiring turning.  It’s true paper Bibles can be tattered and deteriorate after drying up, allowing the binding to fall apart as it ages, and as the leather cover peels away.  The physical pages can be so worn, it becomes impossible to read the words.

There are those who would tell you not only is holding a physical Bible important to them, but holding a family Bible is invaluable.  This book can have notes written from messages heard years before, or underlined scriptures that had particular significance to someone who read the Word at a previous time.  Or there may be colors used which denotes something special or a date signifying something remarkable about a given day.

Some have said holding a family Bible is like holding the family’s past. With what can be gleaned from the notes, colors, and underlinings, is to peek into someone’s thought process, or spiritual journey that may hold a significance to our own, which is yet to be determined.  Sometimes a person will even include a prayer list between the covers, from people prayed over from fifty years prior!  Can you imagine the answers God must have granted?

There is yet another perspective shared by a friend who said, her personal Bible had become so worn and tattered, she finally broke down and bought a new one.  Once she did, however, she realized she missed the notes she made over the forty years she’d used it.  So she decided to do something about it!  She painstakingly laid the Bibles side by side and recorded exactly the same markings in the new Bible.  She said it was beyond gratifying as she recalled the reasons why she’d made all those markings over the years.

The concept of family Bibles is so important to another friend, she shared that sometimes these treasures make their way into her re-sale shop.  With all the information noted between the pages, and particularly on the front pages, the family can eventually be located and these gems returned to family members who otherwise would not have the opportunity to hold them in their hands.  

Regardless of mode, paperback versions or electronic devices, it’s reassuring to know God’s Living Word never becomes tattered, worn, have peeling covers or in any way becomes deteriorated.  His Word is eternal, and has the ability to engrave our souls with His very own DNA.  It’s powerful and trustworthy.  It’s alive and food for the soul.  It never changes.  God’s promises are forever because God keeps every promise he’s ever made.  

I encourage you to reach out to God through His Word and see not only the words on the pages, but the impact those Words can and will have on your life when you accept them as truth.

Photo Credit: https://unsplash.com/s/photos/family-bible 

Finding The Truth

 

         I remember taking the Praxis exams when I was ready to graduate from College.  As I was waiting in the lobby before the time to enter the exam room, the students there were discussing the likelihood of passing it the first time.  One student said, “I’ve already taken it twice, I’m hoping three is the charm.”  Another agreed and acknowledged it was her second try, while still another commented she knew one student who took it many more times (than three) to finally be able to pass it successfully.

For just a moment, I panicked.  This was my first effort and I had no desire to take it again.  Since writing is my ‘thing’ I wasn’t horribly concerned about the Language side of it, but Math was another beast altogether! 

One of the elements of the test includes reading short stories (or paragraphs) and then being able to answer questions which determines your understanding level of what is written.  I was amazed with how many students were terrified of this component of the test.  My perspective held with it being no different than having a conversation with someone, and seemed perfectly logical.  

That said, when reading the Bible as a Believer, it’s completely different!  While the words can make perfect sense, with a perfectly clear secular understanding, what God wants us to ‘hear’ or ‘understand’ can be completely different!  The Holy Spirit can step in and give us insight on a scripture we’ve read a hundred times, and either missed a very relevant point, or see the point from a completely different perspective!  

It's the growing process, I believe; kind of like when a little person is learning to talk.  They say part of a word as they understand it, and then it changes later, and then finally to where understanding the word is possible from those hearing it.  Even then, the child still may not have a clear understanding of what he is saying!  (Our young grandson learned to sing a song, but when asked if he understood the words, he didn’t have a clue!)

A friend tells the story of not knowing much about God as a child.  It wasn’t until she was an adult and turning the pages of her father’s Bible which was discovered some years after his death, when she happened on scripture he’d underlined.  Even with the reading of the words, she couldn’t understand.  Her heart wasn’t ready; but the words stayed with her.

Eventually she re-read those underlined words and realization became clear.  She allowed the Holy Spirit to open her mind and her heart; accepting the words as Truth.  Over time she gained wisdom and understanding; now recognizing the words of guidance, found between the covers of the Book, for her life.

God’s Word is still as relevant today as it was centuries ago when it was written.  Understanding can only come when we are open, like my friend, making those Words relevant to every facet of our lives.  It doesn’t have be something to be feared like the Praxis test I took years ago.  The Holy Spirit wants willing hearts and minds to stir and mold, as we are shaped into the person and workers He wants us to be, to further His Kingdom.  Allow the Holy Spirit to move you and give you insight into the words you are reading.

Photo Credit: https://depositphotos.com/1523697/stock-photo-old-book-with-ray-of.html

The Red Bricks

 

          A friend tells the story of how English Ivy climbed the outer walls around his house and spilled over into his garden.  While the Ivy added beautiful character to his home, it had become time to take back the control of ‘it’s travels!’  As he began working with his gardening tools, he removed weeds, which added another element of the needed purging.  As he scraped and dug to get to the roots, he hit something hard.  Digging, he discovered a red brick, then another and another, until he unearthed an old brick pathway that had long been neglected and forgotten.  

The Ivy made him wonder what stories that red brick pathway could tell, if it could talk!  Imagine the people who walked its path; perhaps a child who rode his bicycle on it, or the comfort it might have given an older person who ‘planted’ his cane beside him on the hard surface for steadying as he walked; or the woman who lived in the house who might have used it on her way back and forth to the garden she once tended.  

Thinking of these possibilities of a simple red brick path that’s been ‘unearthed’ makes my mind meander over to the tedious work of an archeologist.  It’s amazing and exciting and gives me great joy, when I read that archeologists have uncovered another artifact that that proves once again, the Bible is completely accurate.  One of the most recent discoveries was another Dead Sea Scroll.

We are a modern people with an ‘it’s about me’ mentality.  We are focused on moving forward and upward on the corporate ladder, working long days to be able to provide for our families in the best way possible; while materialist advertising attempts to usurp our thoughts to look only at our own wants and desires rather than our suffering neighbor, or perhaps the homeless and sometimes even our own families when it comes to spending ‘time’ with them.  

We’ve been given God’s Word which outlines the ‘ancient paths’ which God laid plain for us to follow.  Because of our lifestyles, we’ve become much like the English Ivy that climbed those walls.  We’re going in all directions at breakneck speed, and neglect the paths designed for our greater good.  Weeds and roots begin covering and burying what we know to be true and right until the path isn’t even visible.

When we finally realize our paths designed by God have been hidden from our sight and ultimately our lives, we need to get out the ‘gardening tools’ and get to work cleaning!  It’s time to pull out the Bible and dig into the nuggets, including those within the Old Testament, to find those timeless paths written down for our benefit.

Perhaps your life is filled to overflowing with the schedule you keep.  Perhaps ‘Ivy’ has covered your personal red brick pathway.  Changes in our world sometimes come at such a rapid pace, it’s hard to keep up, as we attempt to adapt.  We are told the changes are for our good; but are they, as the world would like us to believe?  Is this the time to ‘unearth’ the ancient pathways and see what God wants from our lives instead?

Photo Credit: https://pixabay.com/photos/nature-wall-plant-brambles-flowers-2212972/ 

What Can I Do For Jesus?

 

       I read a post recently about responding to the question, “What do you want me to do for you?” that Jesus asked the blind man as he passed him by.  His response was that he could see. I suspect he was asking for his physical eyes to no longer have visual impairment, but could it have also been a spiritual request?

A friend of mine has been having a hard time with marital circumstances and even housing for herself and her children.  She has been asking God for help she says her eyes have been opened to what people can do, which isn’t always kind.  

As God’s children, we often place our requests before the Lord.  We ask for all kinds of things, like health, financial assistance, guidance and wisdom, to name just a few.  We are instructed to pray about everything, and because we are human, we often ask selfishly.  (Yes, I’m as guilty as anyone else!)

But someone else posed a different kind of answer, which set me back on my heels just a bit since it was quite profound, really.  What about responding with, ‘What can I do for YOU, JESUS?’  It’s so easy to get caught up in our own lives, we forget there are others who likely have needs greater than ours.

Yet, aren’t we, as Believers, supposed to take care of each other?  Certainly, the first church in the book of Acts did this.  They even brought goods (probably food- but maybe other items) daily to share with others in the community to make sure everyone had enough!  We have organizations set up, even within our own churches that are meant to help the ‘needy.’  This is a wonderful thing and I laud each community who does this.

But what would happen if we individually looked out for our neighbor, (even if we don’t know them well, or worse, didn’t get along with them!), our church family, along with our personal families who don’t live with us any longer?  Sometimes, even our immediate families are left to their own means, because we ‘expect’ them, since they’ve left home, to make it on their own.  

I’m not suggesting necessarily paying bills when people are deliberately setting out to be wasteful and expect someone else to pay it.  But stuff happens—even the COVID issues, which has been quite the hit in many family’s pocket!

As we age, being able to help someone becomes even more difficult because we don’t have the monetary means, or perhaps even the physical means of getting around as well as we used to.  In fact, we may be the one in ‘need.’  Does this mean, then, we are no longer responsible for ‘helping our neighbor?’  I think not.  There are still ways to help others.

Jesus wanted to know what the blind man wanted.  If Jesus asked you that same question, how would you answer?  Once you’ve figured that out, ask yourself the next question.  “What does Jesus want me to do for him?”

When we answer these questions honestly, it should tell us where our hearts are. 

God Helps Those Who Help Themselves

      My memories of fourth grade in elementary school, brings about mixed emotions.  Our family was very poor, but we were a family of faith.  My sister and I were taught to share our belief with everyone, and this included with friends at school.  There was a day, in gym class, I will never forget.  

I don’t remember what precipitated the conversation.  It could have been how I was dressed, the shoes I wore, or any number of things.  But my response to the unkind remarks about whatever it was, included, “God will take care of me.”  The comment following has remained with me, even as a visual of the event in my mind.  One of the five or six girls, who were surrounding me said, “God helps those who help themselves!”

There is no memory of what happened next.  It stops there.  I suppose it made me wonder if our family wasn’t doing enough to bring us into economic materialist wealth. It as easily, could have been something else.  Regardless, material wealth never happened.  But recently, there was a conversation about the use of this particular expression.

A teacher was explaining that she had worked in a Second Language environment to college-age students.  They were working with pronouns (myself, yourself, etc.) and students had to fill in the blanks with the correct word in their workbook.  One student, after class, came up to her, questioning one of the sentences.  “God helps those who help______.”   The teacher explained to the student before her, that this is a very common expression used by, or at least heard by, people in the United States.  Confidently she said, “The answer is “themselves.”   

The student’s response rocked the instructor, as it did me! He said: “Oh, I thought God helps those who helps others.”  Apparently, there is some credence to the expression, according to some ministers, who cite, 2 Thessalonians 3:10 or James 4:8, for validation.  But consider the idea that “God helps those who cannot help themselves,’ as suggested by the student.  This is where God’s Grace comes in.  The expression might be more of a proverb, than an actual Biblical truth.

We are told to love our neighbor as ourselves.  When we love someone, we care for them-- and care can be manifested in a variety of forms.  It may be a physical need we are caring for, if a loved one is ill.  For a neighbor in close proximity, it may be taking meals, or offering transportation somewhere.  For a stranger, it may be impractical for a ‘physical’ helping, although offering a gift card for food would be a wonderful way to help—and there are many other ways of ‘serving’ that help others.  

But love can also be demonstrated through small kindnesses to a stranger by offering a seat on a bus or train, a smile or kind word, carrying groceries for the elderly, letting someone go before you in line, paying for a coffee, or groceries, and list can go on and on.  These acts of kindness are acts of love like God instructed us to do—in an effort, to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, body and strength, while we love our neighbors as we love ourselves.

Fulfilling My Destiny

   

      God has a way of getting our attention.  When we recognize Him as Lord and Savior, our plans change as our lives take on new meaning and direction.  I remember in ninth grade thinking I’d like to become a teacher.  But then I realized that would require college, and since we had no money, college would likely not be an option.  It never occurred to me that I might have been able to attend on a scholarship!  I’m not certain I even knew what a scholarship was.  As it was, I was the first in my family to even graduate from high school!

          As my high school years continued, I altered from teaching to a business track.  That could be accomplished by doing well in classes, and while a business degree would have raised my starting pay, I figured high school with good grades would be enough.

Those plans changed again when I met my ‘now’ husband.  Instead of going to work, I got married, and had children.  Even so, I had always been a ‘writer of something!’  I was a journal keeper and kept diaries even for my little ones (Only the first three. After that, time was such a precious commodity, the next two didn’t fare so well!) so they could see a glimpse of what their childhood was like. 

Imagine my surprise when my last child was born, that I decided to begin writing ‘for real!’  I’ve tried to decide what my starting point was; and there are moments in the files of my memory, that give me a clue it wasn’t as sudden an idea, as it seems.

God laid the groundwork for my life before I was even born.  I had choices, however, and possibly (maybe even probably) took the ‘scenic route’ to get to where God wanted me.  As I cast glances back over my life, especially when I was younger, I wonder if I could have begun writing sooner, rather than later—in my mid thirties.  Yet, it’s because of my life’s experiences I am able to write with heart.  That’s not to suggest writers shouldn’t begin early.  But sometimes there are those of us who don’t recognize God’s tugging toward his ‘blueprints’ right away.  

I read an article recently about reaching for the destiny God has designed for us.  God absolutely has a plan.  Not only must we recognize it and then choose it, we also must understand that his plan is not for us alone.  While writing seems like a very solitary and sometimes private journey, the words put on paper aren’t just for me.  They are for everyone who reads them and then listens to what God wants them to know.  Even though the words are the same for every reader, the meaning can be quite different.

This isn’t just true of writing.  It’s true for every destiny of ministry God gives us.  We are placed here for a purpose; a purpose only we can fulfill.  God gives us the wisdom to touch people’s lives, even if only for a moment—and sometimes even when we aren’t aware.

I encourage you, to recognize the road God is calling you toward –and follow.  It may well be out of your comfort zone, and the last thing you expected.  Trust him to use that calling to be the witness he wants you to be.  You will be blessing others, just as he will bless you.