40 Words for 40 Days: Day 8

Hello! It’s the end of our 33rd day, but before I share our word, I have two stories to tell.

    Eight years ago, three little children, who shall remain anonymous, clamored into the kitchen, breathless and wide-eyed talking so fast I could barely understand them. They waved for me to follow. As we dashed out the door, the somewhat compassionate comment of a brother went something like this, “...and we got ours over but sister didn’t...she was trying her best...” In a few seconds we all stopped short in our tracks and stared up. Before my eyes was a massive hole in the neighbor’s floor to ceiling picture window! Our three musketeers had been throwing rocks over the ridge of their house!!! Amazingly, one missed! It was a costly cast.

    Not many months later, I recieved a knock at the door from another neighbor. This time she led me in a silent procession to her yard where we halted to examine the entire side wall of her garage. Dotted, like a modern polka dot blouse, were umpteen splatted plum marks from the ground to the roofline and across the entire wall. How could they have done so much damage in such a short time? I’d been making dinner, thankful for their contentedness in riding their trikes. And to make matters worse, they’d used all the ripe plums from a third neighbor’s tree to accomplish their masterpiece! Oh the hours of holding sudsy buckets, leaning on ladders and scrubbing until our hands ached!

    From the broken window, to the stains and finally for the stolen plums we were given the exact same response from each tender neighbor...

Can you guess what that was? It’s our word for today:

FORGIVENESS

    We can now laugh at those stories because our dear neighbors didn’t harden their hearts to us. By readily offering forgiveness, we saw the true nature of uncondional love in them. A forgiving heart invites ourselves and others to dwell in peace and freedom. Revenge and hatred fan fires of destruction, we’ve seen so much of this, but kind acts rooted in forgiveness are like drenching Living Water on the flames. And furthermore, receiving Jesus’ eternal forgiveness by grace, then sharing it with others, has the power to change the world.

    Goodnight and God bless you. I’ll be here again tomorrow, Lord willing!

40 Words for 40 Days: Day 7

 How is it suddenly 1:30 a.m., wasn’t it just midnight? I’ll tell you how. A precious friend, who couldn’t sleep, texted: Awake?

    And in our sorting, even though we spoke of both good and painful things, I left our conversation feeling deeply encouraged. So that must be our word for this 34th day:

AWAKE

    Do you remember when Jesus prayed in Gethsemane? He brought his disciples to watch and pray with him. I believe he wanted their encouragement, but three times they fell asleep. The second time he admonished them saying, “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation.”

    Does that declaration resonate with you? It does with me. In these difficult days, I want Jesus’ words to align me. Otherwise, I’m tempted to react in frustration, feel mortified at another’s different mindset or even plow forward with a preconceived idea of what they’re thinking, when I truly have no idea. To be AWAKE, is to engage first with a listening ear, then, before I answer, to be alert to a spirit of condemnation or accusation in me. The only way forward from here, beloved friends, is to think, speak, act and respond in love. It feels as if landmines are everywhere! Therefore, we must be AWAKE to the power and necessity of living as vigilant prayer warriors, for the fight is not against flesh and blood, but against every evil principality of darkness, as Ephesians reminds us. And as we do this, we stand against fear, united in love and abiding in hope.

    Romans 8:37-39 proclaims this truth, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us form the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

    God bless you!

40 Words for 40 Days: Day 6

 Hello! On the eve of our 35th day our word is LEAST.

    Pastor Jim Fleming taught Dennis and me a phrase, 22 years ago when we lived in Memphis.

The posture of a follower of Jesus is to be:

~lowest of all

~least of all

~servant of all

    When we approach others, choosing to surrender to Jesus’ humble ways, no matter the response we receive, there is freedom. In these years when five of our eight are in Middle School and High School, my parenting model has changed dramatically. It’s simpler. I seek peace, search for needs, request respect, pray and seek, and endure through huge meltdowns, to come to the real heart of each matter.

    Jesus lay in the stern of the boat while the storm raged around him on the Sea of Galilee. He chose the least of all places to rest his weary head, but at any moment he could calm the storm. As his children, ready to serve, we know that for now he hasn’t calmed the storm in our land. That means we have much more to do, loving people well and praying for mercy and healing. As we bless and serve amidst many who have no hope, now is our opportunity to share the hope upon which we live! When we are less, God is greater.

40 Words for 40 Days: Day 5

 Welcome to this little square of words. Drop your burdens for the moment and breathe. I imagine we’re sitting with our backs against a weathered tree trunk, as old as time. Sun beams stream through it’s branches, spreading across the soft grass on which we sit. There may even be a picnic basket nearby. With this peaceful image before us, let’s settle into this evening’s thoughts.

    CALLED is where we land, on this 36th day. As brothers and sisters in Christ, we are CALLED not only to love one another, but to love our enemies. And love is an action word!

    “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”

John 3:16

    There is no condemnation in Christ, there must be none in us! A children’s song reminds us of this, “They’ll know we are Christians by our love...” I’ve been reciting this verse to myself lately when I’m tempted to speak death to anyone, especially those with whom I disagree. And finally, this beautiful truth to which my daughter in-law, Line, directed me years ago. Though Jesus models every virtue, there are two traits he specifically asks us to learn.

    “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

Matthew 11:29

    Amidst the roaring of voices, arguing and seeking to tear people apart, we mustn’t respond with arrows and stings. We stand courageously for truth, but we are CALLED to do so with gentleness and humility. And by living this way, we find rest for our souls. Wouldn’t it be lovely if others found rest in our company as well?

    Good night dear friends, I look forward to catting again tomorrow. Sweet dreams for now.

40 Words for 40 Days: Day 4

 Hello there! Did you find a bit of sabbath rest today? I did, by falling asleep on the couch, sandwiched between Emmaus’ long legs and a cushion. I’d promised Ezra (13) we’d watch Madagascar, with Zion (13) and Emmaus (14). Like Grandpa Nichols used to say, “I was awake, just had to examine the back of my eyelids!”

    Today’s word, on this 37th day, is SONGBIRD. I awakened wondering what ideas this word might bring to our day and first off, the birds serenaded me through the open window. I thought of the geese flying south for the winter, the partridges that flutter and scurry amidst the tall prairie grass and the coos of the morning doves perched on the roof ridge. God provides for each of these precious creatures; we can trust in his love to care for us. Later, we worshiped, with the hymn Amazing Grace on our lips. And in the early evening, when baby Karsten needed comfort, Mama Line’s voice was the song that settled him.  

    As I sit with you now, in the hush of a quiet house, my Bible is open to Psalm 57. I’d had no time to read earlier, and here are the words that greet me from my planned reading: “Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge, in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge till the storms of destruction pass by.” Yesterday, my friend Tiffany, spoke of this very idea, of God’s wings quieting the roar of the world, like a soft blanket, sheltering us. I imagine wings and feathers are intricate elements of our songbird idea.

    In this season, let’s lift our voices in praise of our good God, who lifts our spirits as well. Each morning he is with us, having watched over our souls even in the darkest hours of the night. Let us trust in him as our comforter and shelter, just as Isaiah 40:31 says, “But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”

    I must end with one of my favorite verses, that encourages us to be songbirds of joy in these days. Psalm 61:8, “And I’ll be the poet who sings your glory, and live what I sing every day. As I switch off the lights, though it’s nearing 1 a.m., I hear a bird singing through our window. Instead of focusing on the dark night, I find I’m listening to his song instead.

40 Words for 40 Days: Day 3

 Hello dear hearts, may I tell you about this morning before I share our word? Thank you, I will!

    Our two puppies, now big pawed and lanky adolescents, whimpered from their kennel awakening us early on this grey day. Just as they bounded back inside, after a quick run in the grass, our grandson met them at their fluffy dog pillow, and nestled down between them. (It’d be like you and me plopping down in the center of a pair of wild horses rolling in a pasture!) With morning licks and hearty toddler giggles, those two puppies and baby burst through my weariness. In their company my heart felt light and my mood brightened, just as the sun streamed through the clouds onto the kitchen floor. It’s the image of today’s word, that has stuck with me all day, on this 38th day. 

LIGHT

    These days our loads feel heavier than ever and many claim a rising darkness that speaks of the end of the age. I have contemplated this and felt fear creep up inside me, dousing all joy and tempting me to isolate and prepare for the worst. The truth is, every day is a day closer to eternity. Every day is a gift, given to be filled with what? Well I believe the answer is LIGHT. And where is light most necessary? Where does it shine the brightest? Why, in the darkness, of course. Light pushes back the dark, it slices right through it, illuminating our path.

    These are not days in which we retreat, hide or huddle, wishing for the restoration of a false normal. As our math tutor, Renee, said long ago, “normal” is just a setting on a dryer. These are the days where we stand brightly, as lights on a hill, shining the love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control that Jesus illuminated for us. Jesus is the light. When we love like he does, darkness must flee!

Be the light dear friends, our world is waiting!

40 Words for 40 Days: Day 2

 Hello dear friends,

    My household is quiet, except for the steady rhythm of clothes in the dryer and an occasional whimper from sleeping puppies, dreaming of romping through the prairie. My word for day 39 is SACRED. What a word! All day I’ve been pondering it.

    If we truly believed, as C.S.Lewis declared, that all that truly matters is that which is immortal, how would we live? I wonder, if we paused to look into the eyes of each person with whom we interact, what would we see? We would see a sacred human. What would we hear if we asked the questions that really matter, without preconceived answers clogging our conclusions? We’d hear things that surprise us; beautiful, interesting and maybe even painful things we never knew.

    When my mind is rooted and grounded in God’s Word and I see myself as a sinner saved by grace, I see others through a lens of humility. I’m deeply challenged to follow through with this thought in every aspect of my life. Can I see each person as sacred, created in God’s image? Can I pray for them even if we don't see eye-to-eye? Yikes! Honestly, the roaring of angry voices all around tempts us to believe that those who think differently are our enemies. NO! This is false. We are not each other’s enemies. We are citizens, comrads, stewards of our globe and members of the human race in this time and space. As we interact with one another, let’s decide that our words and attitudes will begin with today’s word, SACRED. We are all sacred because we are created in God’s image. Believe this, as you dig deeply into the reasons for your worldview, and trust others to do the same. In so doing, our hearts will be prepared to love, bless and release one another. With dignity and kindness we speak value into this season of chaos and give weight to the hope within us, that depends only on Christ himself.