Category Archives: MONDAY MUSINGS

Uprooting the Beauty With the Beast

03 Monday Jun 2019

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Today’s Monday Musings is a look inward where I find I may, as they say, not see the forest for the trees; throw out the baby with the bath water, and so on. You’ll find my actual gardening addiction may parallel some plane of your life where the busy-ness suffocates the beauty. Dig in šŸ™‚

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Wild violets – disguised in their dainty blooms.

I know it’s true, I’m a hypocrite; a two timer and a shell of a housewife. I’ve backslid into the wayward life of a ground grubbing, weed wrenching maniac. Just last year I wrote and spoke on the topic of letting go; releasing the weights that pull us away from embracing new seasons. I’ve said that we must let go of what holds us back from celebrating the beauty within each new season, accepting, acknowledging and praising. Oh, I have accepted (that weeds and grass rule my life); I have acknowledged (that it’s up to me to get them); and I have…uh, prais…no, it’s time to come clean, cleaner than my fingernails. My praising in the garden was beautiful that first round of dew laden blooms, before the devil woke up the nutsedge, the bermuda grass, and the wild violets. I am a compulsive gardener; I need help.

How does it happen? I walk through the gardens once a day (a tip from Mama’s cousin for a successful garden). I figured if she did so, and lived nearly 100 years, that’s all the encouragement I need! And the therapeutic effect of evicting those weeds, clearing the ground filth and watching a garden take bloom, or become a dinner plate of delicious is just beyond compare! First an innocent walk-through, and the next thing I know, I’m up to my elbows in dirt, swatting those biting flies, with blurry eyes from the salty sweat; it’s time for dinner with nothing planned, there’s laundry to do and the dust bunnies are playing. Shame. So much shame.

For those of you laughing out the words “mow it down or spray it brown”, go sit with my husband. No thank you, I love my flowers and I hate that dead brown stuff left everywhere that he escaped my guard with his Round-Up wand. So what I end up with is this. I have weeded myself into a corner; a vicious cyclic corner where I have failed to adore the beauty and the Maker of it. I am so enrapt with weeding out the bad, that I haven’t given due respect to the beauty of opening buds and unfurling leaves that are the product of my work and God’s grace. I now ask Him to rescue me, remind me of His far greater purpose for me, and to return me to the communion I had with Him in the midst of His garden.

To apply a grain of wisdom I’ve gleaned, I hope to be able to read the newspaper, listen to the news and observe the unwelcome changes in life with a new eye for the good, the grandeur and splendor of life’s garden,Ā rather than combing the corrupt with a long handled weeder. I want to acknowledge and praise God for the bountiful blessings instead of attacking life with a hoe, and a garden trowel. What is wrong with me? Who cares if my butterfly garden seating area is clean and welcoming, if I have no time to sit and invite others into it. Who cares how clean my rows of Blue Lake bush beans are, if I never pick and share them? Likewise, who will hear about Jesus the great physician, if I haven’t made time to visit the sick? I have weeded out life’s blooms; so focused on the work and blinded to the beauty.

But the summer is young. There is time for reforming. Oh, I’m not saying I will give it up. There is so much beauty in gardening that I cannot leave it as long as there’s breath in me and God gives me the ability. The secret is in balance. Schedules work for other important parts of life; I shall schedule my dates with the dandelions, and be sure to sit a spell mid the bluebirds’ perch at the wheat field’s edge, and inhale the fragrance of the warm moist garden dirt. If I am truly nearer God’s heart in a garden, then I will be using that time to meditate on His word and plan what I might be doing for someone else before the day is gone. When I begin to feel overwhelmed, I will stop and pray for the strength to walk away.

In Jesus’ teaching, as recorded in Matthew, I read that He doesn’t want me to be so aggressive toward the evil deeds that I uproot the good that can be accomplished toward all people. Ā I think He was teaching us to hate the sin and love the person, and the Father will sort it all out in the end. I know that if I begin to weed or hoe the garden while the young seedlings are too small, it will uproot them too. They would never get a chance to produce fruit.

“He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, Ā but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. Ā So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ Ā He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’Ā Ā But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them.” (Matthew 13: 24-29 ESV)

NICE DAY, Part 4: Angry Words Do Not Make Nice Days!

06 Monday May 2019

Posted by in Children, MONDAY MUSINGS, Reflections

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I think the first child’s antics are more surprising because young parents have no idea! No. Idea. At that stage, we haven’t even counted as high as the number of emotions, trials, and tests we’re about to encounter. Everything your first baby says and does is amazing and funny because, hey, you haven’t heard it before. And no matter how many others do the same things, you still laugh, because it really is funny! I never get tired of remembering ours, and hearing about others’ memories as well. While remembering the cute things kids have done and said is heart warming and good, I wonder if I am the only one who may once in a while, find those memories followed by an unpleasantness that doesn’t belong there. I’ll explain later.

Our son was our first born, surprising us one evening with an early labor, in breech position, arriving at 9:20 PM. He has been a late nighter ever since, and a late riser as well, so the sun was always up before he was. Even still, the bed and breakfast were about all he wanted of the house. As soon as he was tall enough to see out the window, he checked the weather first, and then would report to me, “It’s a shine-shiny day out, Mama!” Interpretation: I want to go outside. See, what this kid knew was that the indirect approach worked so much better that the direct. A bedtime fighter, he found any excuse he could to resist bedtime routine. I had to pin him to the floor to brush his teeth, while he sputtered, “But my lips are reflexive!”, followed by “I wanna watch Gonny Cawson (Johnny Carson)! As if! When he wanted to go fishing a few years later, Ā rather than beg to go, he tied a construction paper fish to a stick and held it out the door as I was coming inside. Written on it was “I got an itchin’ to go fishin’!” Sly little dude. Next came fifth grade, with Mrs. Pittman’s rule of Ā ‘no locker opens after class starts’…did I mention he procrastinated other things as well as bedtime? To see Dora Pittman tell this is quite funny, as she slides one arm slowly back, leaning ever so slyly toward an imaginary locker to retrieve a book that should have been out of there before the bell rang! Some 30 years later, she still calls him her ‘locker boy’.

Yes, memories are fun…but sometimes it gets painful. There’s a little black-caped masked demon about an inch tall that occasionally comes slinking into the picture of a good memory, and it’s name is Regret. I hate that imp! He messes with my mind, and if I give him any attention, he starts growing until he is bigger than the picture. That’s the unpleasantness I was referring to earlier. I’m guessing there is a trigger for almost anyone to be reminded of their failures, for we all have some sort of regrets I’ve been told. For me, the trigger is remembering my kids’ childhood which makes me ask, why is such an awesome responsibility placed into the hands of the inexperienced?? Now, I know most of you were nauseatingly good, patient, creative parents; I mistakenly thought I was at the time. Let me just cut through the chase and bare my blisters: CHILDREN WERE NOT MADE TO BE YELLED AT. There. That is my regret. I grasped at the details and missed the big beautiful picture. Math problems, tooth brushing and choosing which toy to take, should never be a source of pain or anxiety. These everyday life things can create havoc, or heaven. The things that we think must be done should never override patience and gentleness. I was given the most precious gifts on earth, and I let them and the Giver down when I lost control and yelled. Mamas and Daddies, no one else would tolerate our ill tempered yelling, so why dish it out on the very ones who love and trust us to be their Rock? Seriously, they need more good memories, not more math; calm evenings more than clean teeth; and the time it took to choose which truck to take with him could have been spent planning supper, or tickling him into a decision. I wonder how many times he was about to make a choice when I again, called “would you come on now!” Oh how that dastardly bandit Regret can run off with your fun! But, God is good, and has forgiven me. My children say there’s nothing to forgive or forget; they say they had a great childhood. The problem lies within where forgiveness does not come easily for ourselves. I’m working on it, but I still hate those angry words that messed up good days.

“If a person thinks himself to be religious and does not bridle his own tongue, but deceives his own heart, his religion is useless.” (James 1:26)

Lest I leave the impression that I was a total monster, I do have a memory of handling things well. This son of ours has an artist streak in him that was once used on the refrigerator, in crayon. I actually had a roll of film in the Kodak, and it makes a cute photo when a toddler is cleaning the refrigerator in his training pants. I think he was as proud of his job of removing the masterpiece as he was of making it.

cleaning up artwork
sneaking M&Ms

Happy Monday, stay calm, and make it a nice day! Go ahead and sneak a few M&Ms:)

 

 

 

NICE DAY Part III: I Wanna Go Home!

22 Monday Apr 2019

Posted by in Celebrating, MONDAY MUSINGS, Uncategorized

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As spring break was nearing its soggy end, the few nice days on the beach more than filled three-year old Grayson’s bucket. He had it all, yet he was fed up. Boy do I ever identify with that!

I hope you have had a beautiful Easter weekend, full of the hope and love that Christ poured into us those many years ago. Isn’t it great to know that He never changes; unlike we ourselves, who change our minds and attitudes even in the course of a few days. As promised, this week’s post is another inspiration from the mouth of babes. I do apologize for not having it ready this morning, but I, too, enjoyed the weekend, traveling to our daughter’s

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At Steffy’s, Easter 2019

yesterday after a fun Saturday evening at my sister’s, where we ate a scrumptious meal, loved on the littles,

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Great nieces and nephews

and praised God for His constant blessings and that ultimate HOPE, the resurrection! Now that will be a most welcome change for those who die IN Christ; “in the twinkling of an eye” (I Corinthians 15:52) we shall be like HIM! [see how those words in bold make their own statement šŸ™‚ ]

“This World is Not My Home” is an old spiritual song that most of us probably know. Let me first say, I actually love my life here – in spite of the wrong turns, rough spots and cloud bursts, it’s been a great journey so far. But for the very young, as well as the aging, this world can be foreign soil at times. The older I get, the more I understand that song, and the desire little children have to be at Ā home. As I was saying, my great-nephew was taken to the beach with grandparents, parents and baby brother. Now how does a three-year old get spring break – he has teacher parents. NICE! One thing however was different this year – a baby brother. That five month old just may have stolen a bit of Grayson’s spotlight, as well as some golden silence…but I’m not saying where I heard that! Haha!

The day before going home time, Grayson looked up at his grownups and said, “I’m ready to go home now”, and just to be sure they didn’t mistake that for wanting to retreat from the beach into the condo, he added, “I mean MY home, I don’t belong here”. Oh my, bless his little heart! He was fed up. He was tired. Too much had changed, and he had filled his sand bucket and dug all the holes he needed to. He knew where peace and solace were.

I’m so grateful that my nephew and his wife have made a home that their little one loves and longs for. How about us? Have we looked into our Father’s design enough to know what home he has prepared for us? It is overwhelming for me to think about eternity. But because I believe the bible as God’s inspired word, I do believe there is a place that is perfect, without change, awaiting the children of God. The more things change here, the more I want to go home. Reading about it in the never-changing word of God, I know it’s where I belong. I am enjoying this great trip He has given me, but I know I’m going to enjoy going home even more.

Finding the glimpses of God and His design within nature is what motivates me from one day to the next. As that natural beauty becomes slathered over in asphalt and shadowed by tall buildings I have to look harder to find it. Thank you God for little children who often bring it right to us. As long as He wants me here, I’ll keep filling sand pails, so to speak, and sharing inspiration, but oh, won’t it be good to go home!

Please share your “littles’ expressions” here! Out of the mouth of babes….you know.

 

 

NICE DAY Part 2: Umbrellas and Flashlights – Up In the Basement

08 Monday Apr 2019

Posted by in Children, MONDAY MUSINGS

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Umbrella Girl

 

On this rainy day, I am reminded of my little Umbrella Girl. My brother had brought his wife and 2 yr old daughter back from North Carolina, where they lived while he was in active duty with our United States Marines. Trying to get settled into our grandparents’ old home in Jones’ Mill, TN and start a farming operation, didn’t leave a great deal of time right then to play with a tot like their inquisitive Sara. One pretty day Aunt Trisha drove down to take that little golden-haired girl home to play. We hadn’t had a toddler in our family in a while so I’d about forgotten how sharp their little minds are. About five minutes out of the driveway, an unexpected spattering of raindrops fell onto the windshield. I must have said something like “would you look at that?” Sara, sitting in the front seat (no there wasn’t a whole lot of concern 26 years ago about car seats) with her little legs straight out in front of her, cast those big eyes up at me and said in a most grown-up way, “And ya haven’t gotcha umbrella!” Exactly right. I did not carry an umbrella for unexpected showers. How did she know? I have, since then, carried a small umbrella in the front glove compartment. There have been several “cloud bursts” in life, some for which I was not prepared; I have since then carried in a compartment of my heart, encouragement from God’s Word, to cover and protect. “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28 NKJV) Ā Yep! We may not see it coming, but God sees all, and knows those who love and trust Him, and He will take our storms and make them work for our good. We have God’s Word on it; that’s our umbrella.

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Flashlight Sisters

Another story of being prepared was spurred by a sweet conversation between my two great nieces about five years ago. Ā If you have read my January 11, 2014 post titled “The Cream in My Coffee: A Tale of Two Sisters, then you know this story. The girls were overheard by their grandparents discussing their order of birth. The older, Katja, had told her little sister, Isabella, that after she had been “cut out of Mommy’s belly” the younger had later been placed there and was born, having in the meantime been in “God’s imagination”. (Be still my heart!) This did not set well with little Isabella! With a quivering voice she replied that “it was dark in Mommy’s belly” and that she should have been given a flashlight! It was her opinion that they should have been there together in the first place, to prevent her from feeling afraid. We can rest assured however, that being in the mind of God with His plans for us, we do not need a flashlight. David wrote, “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?…” (Psalm 27:1)

Kids really do say the funniest things; they are so honest and open. They aren’t concerned with being politically correct; pulling no punches, they want us to understand them in no uncertain terms. Little Micah Simons was proof of that this morning in the church nursery. She told us “No” several times when offered the wrong book or toy – she wasn’t letting anything get in the way of her own agenda! I loved watching her take care of her doll on her own terms! But sometimes they get their terms a bit mixed up. Alan is my brother’s third child, and could say some of the cutest things, most of which didn’t make a lot of sense, but gave us so much fun!

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Making funny faces.

I recall at age four (which by the way, is the BEST age for conversation) he sat with me on our front porch and asked life questions, like “just what is a ‘hickernut’ Aunt Trisha”, and “how will we bust ‘um?” and “why are they on the ground?” Alan is still trying to get this life thing figured out, like we all had to, so what I recall him saying later that day fits him perfectly. We had just moved into our new house, and he and sister Emily were visiting. I showed them the attic, complete with some really great toys left over from my kids’ childhood. The day being a nice autumn temperature, they had some time to play up there. Later, he asked me if he could go “up in the basement” to play again. We never had a basement, nor had one been mentioned. Ā He’d heard that somewhere else, and put it with anywhere other than ground level. Up or down. Life for most young adults is up and down; it’s confusing to say the least. I wouldn’t go back and do it again, would you? I pray daily for the youth of our family, friends and church. Sometimes life is a real kick in the pants and I long for them to know the Warrior who will lead them through their battles and fight for them like no-one else ever could. Will you bow down with me, to look up, and plead on their behalf? “Oh our God…we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you.” (II Chronicles 20:12 NIV) Help them Lord, to know up from down, right from wrong, and how to speak up for themselves through Your power. In Jesus’ name, amen.

You know, the fact that they can’t always tell us what they want, or that we don’t always listen, doesn’t stop them. Thank God that He made them persistent. I can learn from that; I can keep trying, praying, listening to God for His answers, and never give up. Keep asking questions, like Alan did that day, which is how we learn at any age. Oh, if we could just be like those little children – open, honest, inquisitive without judging – and take each day as an adventure! Most of us will admit we’ve been about as deep in the basement as we can be sin-wise; but thanks be to God, we can still be UP – up in HIs arms, under His umbrella, in His light. Have a Nice Day!!

(Part 3 in two weeks: Sweet Things Make Nice Days! Perhaps if I am brave enough a Part 4 will emerge. It’s title will no doubt be “Angry Words Do Not Make Nice Days”.)

NICE DAY!

25 Monday Mar 2019

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“CHILDREN ARE A BLESSING AND A GIFT FROM THE LORD.” (PSALM 127:3) CEV

I used to think that verse meant one’s own children, but after watching a couple of generations growing up, I realize it is certainly not a blessing exclusive to the parents. Littles of our friends and relatives, or even a toothless smile from a shopping cart at a much-needed time, can just MAKE. YOUR. DAY!! Right?

As much as I feel “nearer to God in a garden”, I know where you reallyĀ can get as close to the heart of God as anywhere this side of Heaven – sitting with a three or four-year old!

Three year old Grayson, one of my great nephews, found Spring peeking into the back door of Winter, and able to go outside after a nasty round of influenza A, was observed enjoying his own blessing. Kids are the best at observation and appreciating!! At three and a half now, he is so old and accountable that he is allowed to go into their fenced backyard by himself. Last week his daddy shared with me what his neighbor observed as the door slid shut between Grayson and his grownups. He said the boy looked each way, taking it all in, then proclaimed in as manly a voice as possible, “Nice Day!” Knowing a thing or two about this little guy, I wrote the following for Grayson.

GRAYSON

As in any good family yard, we have many things to do.Ā There’s mud for playing, and a dog, uh-oh, what’s on my shoe?Ā Toys, a trampoline, a slide and swing set; I can’t wait to play ball, but it’s not summer yet. The neighbor is grilling, but I am not. Dad said we’d play – I think he forgot. No flowers yet to pick, nor grass forĀ bare feet, but with that bright sunshine, life is sure sweet! A look to the left and a look to the right, I breathe in the air and I feel alright! Not a worry in my pocket, just one thing to say, with a nod to my neighbor, I shout, “NICE DAY!”

Yes, children are a blessing for a number of reasons. They ground us, in more ways than one! Getting my head out of the air and back down to basics is one of the best reasons for being around them. God said “…But to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8b) Who is more honest than a three or four-year-old? Who Ā needs more mercy than a little child? Humility – oh my, they are the best at that! They have no other choice, being so dependent on all of us. They are the best reminders of how God wants us to be.

Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven”. (Matthew 18:3-4) NKJV

Part 2 of Ā “Nice Day” is taking form already as I recall several other touching or funny ways our “Littles” have blessed us. Ā They really do say the funniest things! So, bye for now, I hope your Monday is going just right! See you back here in two weeks, with a few quotes from Katja, Isabella, Alan, Sara, and more!

 

 

MAKE WHAT YOU WILL OF IT

11 Monday Mar 2019

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Happy first Monday of DST! I’m sure many more households had their version of adjustment, and ours was typical of needing to be reminded – again – that it is what you make of it. Yeah, yeah, the facts of an hour darker, and the weather, can be called “it is what it is” but that’s as far as our attitudes have to be dictated. The day, the moment, the situation, whatever you are living, is lived in light of what you make of it.Ā 

I am a light-lover; no, not one who loves lightly, but a lover of light. I was not looking forward to daylight savings time because if the sun ain’t up, neither am I. Ā Well, not voluntarily anyway. Ā It actually is my favorite to be up and watch the sunrise – I stress BE up; it takes a grand alarm clock system to do that, but once up and awake I am happiest just about dawn. My first awakening today was a phone call about 20 minutes before my alarm was to sound. Viewing what appeared to be wet outsideĀ againĀ sent me back under the covers grumbling about the weather man. I fell asleep and dreamed about the outcome of that day-opening phone call. Next, the old-fashioned clock radio blared a ten minute warning that my cell phone alarm would soon be calling me out. One peepingĀ eye confirmed the dreariness of the day. Back under the covers. As I took the ten minute snooze, a cold little nose in a furry little face told me to stop snoring please, and as I did, he snuggled in between my husband and me, luring me to doze again. When that dogged cell phone commenced its irritating tune that I really need to change, I saw no promise of sun. Clouds, drizzle and dampness outside caused a Monday malfunction – I went back to sleep. Another phone call brought me to my senses and I faced the day, about an hour late.

As sluggishly as my day approached the starting line, it is pacing itself pretty well and I hope yours is too. I found a few markers along the route to point out how to make more of the race. Those would be prayer for hope; scripture for direction, Ā and love for endurance. That first phone call – one requesting prayer for her day; my sweet daughter was concerned about some who were about to lose their jobs today, and she asked my prayer for their sakes. And I thought, yes, how wonderful that we have an intercessor to take all our concerns to God Who sustains us not only in hope for eternal life, but in our day-to-day matters. That sweet Holy Spirit! He comforts us and understands our groaning from dawn to dawn, all day long, never leaving, no matter how many clouds overshadow the way. “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” (Romans 8:26 NKJV)

Next came the morning walk with that fur faced alarm. Chilly air on my face and bird melodies in my ears, made it good to be alive. Once he had communicated with the world, you know the sniffing input and the output which should be self-explanatory, we happily returned to a warm house and hot cup of coffee. Ain’t life good?

Scripture – a big part of my writing – came into play as I sat down to work toward a deadline for an article submission. Reading again those steadfast promises lifted my mood and attitude like sunshine themselves. The fog was clearly lifted!

That last phone call was from my sister. Bless her heart! May I say again, Bless Her Heart! Still wearing a back brace, she needed help to take a rectal temp on her 19 pound grandbaby; (maybe a little moral support?) and later finding 3 out of 4 grandchildren have influenza A, and the fourth with a stomach ache – well the whole family really needs blessing, right? And IĀ counted my blessings at that moment! Only love – L. O. V. E. – took me into the house with my flu vaccine already four and a half months old. Get it? (I hope we don’t.) By the way, the sight of that sweet baby boy melted my heart. Even sick, they are so worth it all!

Arriving back home and greeted by my fur baby spinning in circles, I knew it was a good day. I am alive. With loved ones. A modern washer and running water. With hope, and scripture, and love. And the sun came out! OK, I tried to have a bad day, really I did, but God just kept pushing all that good stuff under my nose, and here I’ve gone and had a good day after all. Key words (I have emphasized) for making it a great day are in the following verses.

17 God also bound himself with an oath, so that those who received the promise could be perfectly sure that he would never change his mind.
18 So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us.
19 This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into Godā€™s inner sanctuary. (Hebrews 6 NLT)

YOU GOTTA ASK TO GET SOMETHING!

13 Wednesday Feb 2019

Posted by in MONDAY MUSINGS, Prayer Life

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Hoping to warm my hands around a nice hot cup of coffee for the drive home, I stopped by a coffee shop and saw one of my favorite flavors was featured. “I’ll have a medium with cream please” was answered with “drive up to the window and we’ll have it ready”! The window opened, I extended my card, and heard, “well, I’m sorry, I can have that flavor brewed in about 5 minutes, or I still have our other flavor if you’d like that”. Uhhhhh…..weeelllll… with the menu long behind me, my mind went blank, and I sort of stuttered out something to the effect that I would just take a regular coffee with cream. (Wasn’t that what he sort of just offered me?) Well, my husband must have felt sorry for me because at that moment, he leaned over and suggested, “hey, you oughta just give her a cup of coffee for that”, to which my face turned red and I handed my card out to the guy anyway. No, he said, it was on him. I drove home holding a LARGE cup of coffee for a 50 cent tip. Gary asked me how I liked that; I said, “you mean besides the embarrassment?” With a shrug, he said “You gotta ask or you get nothing. PutĀ thatĀ in your blog.” I guess he meant put that in your pipe and smoke it.

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” Matthew 7:7 NKJV

So often, I’m afraid, we go without answers and assistance because we do not ask. And I happen to know our Heavenly Father is way more eager to give, than the coffee guy is, although I have to say he was awfully nice! Ā James 4:2 tells us that though we may lust, covet, fight and even murder to have something, we do not have because we do not ask. Those are strong words! A child of God has the most powerful ‘amazon’ ever; no credit cards needed. “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” Matthew 7:11

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.” Psalm 23:5

 

I’LL TAKE A SIDE OF FAITH WITH MONDAY’S MEATLOAF

21 Monday Jan 2019

Posted by in Faith, MONDAY MUSINGS

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Sweeping over an icy crust of snow, the 20 degree wind made quite a statement. Dear friends had just made their 0700 exit out of the driveway for their eight-hour trek home. The house pulled its quilt of quiet over my ears, and I felt secure, knowing my God hears my heart and would take Kim and her family safely home; and that I could retreat into a warm house and begin plans for the day. Priority #1, another cup of coffee with my fur baby and the newspaper. How suddenly that security can flip.

On my way through the hall, I tripped on a small bag that my friends had forgotten. Calling to see if I could catch up to them, I received no answer. A couple more calls and texts, coupled with finding out their family back in West Virginia knew nothing of their visit to Kentucky, Ā left me feeling a bit less secure. Another hour later I had imagined them knocked in the head and their car taken along with daughter, phone and Lifesavers! Whoa, how fast I can go from “God’s going to take care of them” to “they’ve met with disaster’! Ā A look at the newspaper was NO help – headlines of shootings, accidents and the like. Oh ye of little faith…

When Peter asked Jesus to command that he walk on the water to his Lord, his faith and the Lord allowed him to do so – walk on a boisterous sea! Even then, while accomplishing that amazing feat, Peter saw the contrary winds tossing the waves, and he began to doubt. He feared. And began to sink. Thank Goodness, Peter cried out to be saved, and grasped the extended hand of the Lord. Jesus said, “Oh you of little faith, why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14: 28-31)

I knew Who it was to whom I prayed; I believed He heard and would deliver. But as soon as I caught a glimpse of a possible situation, I left ‘Amen’ and let ‘what if’ rev up my heart. So I wasted a little time I could have spent in that peaceful morning calm, but was again reminded of His faithfulness and goodness. A sweet text let me know it was a matter of her phone being on vibration, and the other two passengers sleeping. Stopping for gas, she saw my (several) calls and messages, and apologized for my worry. No, Kim dear, it is I who apologize to our Lord for taking my eyes off Him and looking into the world of possibilities. And, yes, we had meatloaf this evening, it is Monday!

Then those who were in the boat came and worshipped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.” Matthew 14:33 NKJV

 

BEAUTY AND THE DEEP

14 Monday Jan 2019

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a little beauty mask fun – clean pores and laughter

Thereā€™s an innocent little lie that many a young girl was told through the ages. ā€œBeauty is only skin deepā€ was meant to make adolescence somehow less painful for those of us who saw freckles, crooked teeth and plain hair staring back from the mirror. Which wouldnā€™t have mattered if we didnā€™t leave the house and meet the golden curls with a button nose and rosy complexion, and hear how pretty they were but because they were immature enough to flaunt it, that it was only skin deep. Hearing that beauty was only skin deep made me think not only that there was not much under those lustrous locks and long eyelashes, but even worse, with no outer beauty, I was a lost cause. Nothing. Not even skin deep. Itā€™s probably why I love Anne of Green Gables.

Well, I grew up in spite of it; and praise God, His word expounded on the issue of beauty. In fact, it put the old adage to death.

ā€œDo not let your adornment be merely outward–arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel– rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.ā€ I Peter 3:3-4

The thing we girls should have been told is ā€œbeauty is what lies beneath the skin, in the heartā€. Even if Iā€™d been afraid of a ā€˜skint kneeā€™ bleeding out my beauty, at least I would’ve known it wasnā€™t all that outward stuff. Anyway, kids eventually realize the difference between flesh and bones, and the invisible heart and soul. Now, donā€™t get me wrong – I am all for teaching children to appreciate and compliment others for their accomplishments, and thereā€™s no way around recognizing a pretty little cocker spaniel versus a scrawny old mutt. But boy oh boy, have I ever loved some of those mutts! Why? Because we find out real soon that they can be loyal, smart, and clean up real well! Thereā€™s nothing wrong with attractiveness, as long as thereā€™s acknowledgement that it is in the eye of the beholder – an opinion, and that true beauty is defined by the Maker – a thing of the heart.

Notice that Peter used the word adornment to speak of outward beauty. But he used the terms heart and spirit to describe incorruptible beauty. Adornment can be changed on a dime. The heart and spirit of a person are developed over time, formed in a furnace of trial and error, and have a way of becoming a permanent fixture. A gentle and quiet spirit, and the inside heart of a girl, not the outside looks; those are the things of beauty. Donā€™t let the world tell you or your daughters or your sisters that they need a certain body type, eye color, hair style or hip shoes to be beautiful. Point out how beautiful their grandmothers are (yes the ones with wrinkles, gray wiry hair, and chicken wing arms) because of the love they lavish on others. Point out how pretty the mentally challenged child is when her eyes sparkle at ā€˜helloā€™. Remind them that babies are so beautiful because of their innocence. When you are looking into their eyes right straight into their hearts, every single day, when they are at their worst – tell them they are beautiful! Theyā€™ll know what you mean.

The valuable and virtuous woman of Proverbs 31 has 21 verses of descriptors and none of them say anything of her looks, but one points out that if she does have charm and outward beauty, they are deceitful and passing (vs 30). Yes, girls, beauty may start at skin level, but goes SO muchĀ deeper than that. Our grownups didnā€™t mean any harm, bless their hearts; they were just repeating what theyā€™d been told, Iā€™m sure.

RESOLUTIONS

07 Monday Jan 2019

Posted by in inspiration, MONDAY MUSINGS

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I read yesterday that to submit a photo to someplace or another, it must be of ‘high resolution’ with at least 300 something or others, and I do not know what that all means but I do know where I’m going with it. First, I’ll learn what it means in case I want to use that knowledge; secondly, I am using a play on words, and setting for myself ‘high resolutions’.

Many years ago, I made the New Year’s resolution to never make another New Year’s resolution. I kept it. I was tired of setting new goals or plans just to let myself down by Spring. That was because I had been resolving to the wrong person to do this or that. I’ve grown since then (in more ways than one, and that’s due to some of those lost resolutions). Last evening our congregation was challenged to “turn your world upside down” as a way of encouraging us to reach out to people and do it for the sake of Christ. I have no idea what form that will take, and I doubt if my world looks rearranged, let alone upside down, but my heart is certainly taking on new shape. New resolutions, to the One Who Cares whether or not I do. Not for me, for Him. Jesus. Lord.

Several other things have worked to realign my heart lately. First, my wonderful friend Linda, mailed to me a devotional/journal titled “40 Days of Prayer” and a sweet note that she would like for us to begin January 1, doing this study together. Now that’s inspiration! Forty days, I can do that. Prayer, I can do that, always have. How hard can that be? Well in just 6 days, I am growing in my thoughts and faith about prayer and in the ones Who hear my prayers, that beautiful Godhead three. (John 16:23-24) Next, my husband watched for his first time “The Passion of the Christ” about a week ago, and sobbed, followed by a discussion about what Christ did for us. Then, there are the many needs for prayers just in our circle of friends alone, reminding me daily of the brevity of life, and of what really matters.

So today, when I am usually scurrying about with laundry, cards, pick-up/clean-up house detail and such as will have to be done over and over every week, I am writing. Working on another project yesterday, and mulling over all of the above, (resolution issues), I felt too scrambled to write. But this morning, I knew what it all came to – a daily resolve to pray more personally, do what I do as unto the Lord, and love fiercely.

There’s an exercise class at ten o’clock; I just may make it in time! No promises for a year, or even a week. But today – a day at a time – I will appreciate and use the things God has made available to be a better me for Him. It all takes on a higher resolution when it’s for the right Person!

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” Ephesians 4:20-21 NKJV