Hanging in there

II Chronicles isn't the most gripping book of the Bible, but amongst the lists are some beautiful nuggets. I love David's songs and God's response to him. The one that made me stop and think this morning has to do with building the temple. It took me back to a song I learned in the '70's, "Behold the Tabernacle of God is with men."
The Israelites had to build a place for God and then go to that place to worship Him. Jesus changed that. He brought God to us, within us. I am the tabernacle of God and I bring Him to men and women when I join them. I have known that for decades, but it touched me in a new way today.
"... I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices." II Chronicles 7:12 What was a building in the Old Testament, is me in 2009. He chose me. He risks His reputation with me every day. I pray today that I will be a blessing and bring honor to God who does things in very strange and unusual ways.
The same God who made the Rockies to show us His majesty, chose you and me to show His love and mercy to the world around us. I am humbled and in awe.

Celebrating diversity

Brothers. They couldn't be more different, and the same parents raised them. As boys one was compliant and the other wasn't. They both made sure their baby sister, on the right, got here safe and sound. I had high risk pregnancies and landed on bed rest for each one. Jesse, lower left, and Andrew, lower right, did the cooking and cleaning for many months while I sat on a recliner.
Brothers. One went to college and one didn't but both are incredibly smart. The same parents raised them. How does that happen?
I am still reading through the Bible and as I read through Samuel and Kings there are some very different kids sharing the same parents.
God formed each child individually, to be an individual. It isn't up to me to turn them into little replicas of what current society calls good. It is up to me to study them, get to know them, see what God is working in them and then get on board with God. As it says in Romans, God is the Potter, not me. He is the artist. I get to be amazed at the beauty of His creation while I work along side Him, but I need to see and appreciate what He is doing.
It is up to me to teach my child to know God, to hear His voice and to obey. The hardest part is when they reach the age when I can't make them obey, when it has to be a decision they make for themselves. In one case, he reached that age at about two. ( Well, maybe that's an exaggeration.)
The hardest part is when they are adults and I think I know what they should be hearing. I have to trust them to hear God. I have to trust God to speak loudly. I have to let them walk with God, not with Mom. That is really hard.
Brothers. I love each one, I am proud of each one and I am still getting to know each one. As I pray for them today I am celebrating diversity, and praying for the baby sister who is learning to walk with God and not with Mom. It's hard.

Keeping count?

I know it has been longer than usual, but it's spring! I have been in the garden watching things come back to life and removing the things that are just plain dead. Renewal; it's breathing in the air just after a rain. Smell the fresh.
I am still working my way through the Bible and once again I have been amazed at how it is new with every reading. God's word is still able to surprise me.
What struck me today is that God isn't counting my failures or sins. That is wonderful, but He is asking me to forget the count too. That is hard.
"All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation." II Corinthians 5:18 & 19.
Not counting sins ... I am a good counter ... I need to quit ... I need to lose count.
Once again it comes back to the realization that it isn't about me. It's about being a blessing, a source of life to others. It's learning to not only speak the truth in love, but with the motivation to reconcile, not just to God, but with each other. I can only think of one way to succeed. I must be fully immersed in Him, completely covered by His love. I need to view those around me from a new perspective; from His perspective.
So, I think it's time to dig up my old Steven Curtis Chapman CD, "I'm Diving In."

Thoughts on the Dakotas

I have been distracted lately so no post, sorry. I have been touring the Dakotas! I know the winters are no fun, but the spring is beautiful. On the left is Theodore Roosevelt National Park and it is worth another visit. On the right is supposed to be two fields of corn or wheat or something, instead it is still an impressive lake. When you go to the store the next time and buy your food, pray for the farmers. It was a tough winter and a very wet spring and although most of the roads are no longer under water, there are an awful lot of fields that have become home to ducks and geese and coots and other water birds.
There are two fewer ducks in South Dakota. It was them or us and I thought Steve and I were more valuable, so when they flew at my car I didn't swerve. I am sure the guys in the oncoming lane were grateful. Those were some slow ducks, in every possible way. I was thrilled that the windshield held up under the whack. I never did get a pheasant ...
Ah, the circle of life.

Words of Life

I am sure that every parent wonders how badly they have messed up their kids lives. I can think of one exception, but for their own protection I won't name them.
First, let me say that being a parent is exhausting, and sometimes what comes out of the mouth really isn't what is in the heart; it's the frustration and fatigue speaking. That being said, here is what I'm pondering.
I Corinthians 3:16 "Do you not know that you are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?" My children gave their hearts to God when they were quite young. Being an exhausted Mom it never occurred to me that when I spoke to them, I was speaking to the dwelling place of the living God. (Just a light thought as Mother's Day approaches.)
Did I speak with respect? Did I speak words of life? Or did I scream like a harried woman on the brink of insanity? For the most part I was somewhere in between. I know that I blew it more than I want to admit. But what was in my heart then, and now, were words of life.
I know why Grandparents are so important. It is much easier to speak words of life when you aren't exhausted and feeling like a total shrew.
If you have grand-babies living far away, find some children nearby whose grandparents live far away, and speak words of life to them. Then, when you have a chance, speak words of life to their parents too.
Even if you aren't a parent or grand-parent you can have a profound effect on the lives of little ones around you. Whenever you can, speak life; words that encourage, words that build up, words that cause the spirit of a child to rise and believe that he or she is loved and precious and created with a purpose. Speak the words that you long to hear.
I Thessalonians 5:11 "Therefore encourage one another, and build up one another ... "

Gideon get's courage - Judges 6 & 7

I had the opportunity to visit Los Vegas a few years ago and I took this picture. It seems strangely appropriate for my thoughts today, idols and Asherah poles.
I am reading in Judges; Gideon intrigues me. His lack of courage surprised me. I know about his fleeces, but somehow they never struck me as motivated by fear. I thought he wanted to be absolutely sure he was obeying God. Reading about him this week, I think he was scared out of his mind. The wonder is that God didn't give up on him, or mock him, or even yell. In Judges 6:17 & 18, Gideon asks the Lord to stay put, if it really is Him, until he brings back an offering. He couldn't just run down to grab a Big Mac. He had to prepare and cook it from scratch. Then, when it is the Lord, and Gideon agrees to obey, what God asks of him is really scary, so "he did it by night." (vs. 27)
He tried to do the Lord's work in secret. It didn't work; he was exposed pretty quickly, but still no rebuke from the Lord. I find comfort in that. God knows my weakness and loves me still. I have to think that by the time Gideon's troops were winnowed down to 300 and God gave him the victory, Gideon had more courage than when God asked him to tear down the idols and Asherah pole.
It's all about progression, forward motion. We put one foot in front of the other, even if we are shaking, and we see God. Then we put the next foot in front of the first, and again we see God. One of these days I want to run, flat out, no fear, no shaking in my boots, no more baby steps. A full on run, complete with leaping and whooping. I wonder if God plays tag.

Life, death and life again.

This picture was taken in 1984, of a precious friend we haven't seen for many years. When I see this now I think of C.S. Lewis's book, The Last Battle. The last chapter is the most beautiful description of what it might be like when we pass from life to death to real life. The characters are stuck in a stinking shed, where they think life is as real as it gets, some of the characters have the courage to leave the shed for the unknown. Each step away from the shed takes them higher up and further in on a new adventure, where the colors are brighter, the air is fresher, the water sweeter and life more vibrant. Rob and his two sons were killed in a car crash just before Easter, leaving behind his precious wife. I cannot imagine Dusty's agony. My brain cannot grasp being a childless mother and I grieve for her and all she has lost. But as I think of Rob today, I have to smile. He's going higher up and further in with Byron and Gabriel. I can see the teasing twinkle in Rob's eyes, and some how, I am sure there is a football arching it's way through the air. There is wrestling in the grass, and squeals of delight and laughter without the bellyache. Someday we will be there too, in the best yard of all, in our Father's house, where there is no more sorrow only joy unimaginable. See ya' Rob. Dusty, you are in my heart and prayers daily.