Monday Morning Memo: Beauty At Its Finest

Dan and I had the opportunity a few weeks ago, to go to Tennessee and North Carolina for a few days.  We usually make this trip a little earlier in the season and the colorful, fall leaves aren’t too prevalent.  So, I was excited that since we were going a little later this year, we would probably get to see beautiful leaves in all of their glory.

Well, of course that wasn’t the case.  The news kept talking about the fact that since it has been warmer later this year…the leaves were behind schedule.  Naturally…of all years for us to go later and the leaves just weren’t cooperating!

I was struck then as we were driving back home that the closer we got to our area…the more beautiful the leaves were.  I even mentioned to Dan that the colors were much more vibrant in our own state.  We then arrived home and all I had to do was look out our back window…and this is what I saw:

Yep… beauty at its finest.  Right in my own backyard.  

Not seeing fall leaves on our trip wasn’t earth-shattering by any means…but why do we often look in other places for something in life to make us happy…when if we just looked in our own area where God has placed us…we would find beauty.  Oh, if I just had a home like the Jones’…then I would be happy and willing to entertain guests.  Oh, if I just had a husband/wife like she or he has…then my life would be so much better and I could be the spouse I’m meant to be.  Oh, if I was just married…my life would be complete.  Oh, if I was just single…I could be happy again.  Oh, if I just had a better job…one where I am recognized for all of my many talents…then I could show joy to others at my workplace.  Oh, if my kids were just as well-behaved and talented as our neighbor’s kids are…then I would feel like a success and not a failure.

This type of thinking goes along with the saying, “The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence”.  Things oftentimes look so much bigger, brighter, more profitable, more happiness inducing and maybe even more colorful…on the other side.  But if we really knew the truth…we would probably find out that those who are living on the other side…are wishing they lived on our side of the fence!

I wonder…what would happen if we looked for the beauty in our own home and neighborhood?  I wonder…what if we worked on being the spouse that God wants us to be and worked less on trying to change the husband or wife with whom we live?  I wonder…what if…while we waited for God to bring us our life mate…we worked on being the person He wants us to be while we are single?  I wonder…what if we did our absolute best in our job every day…even if it isn’t the dream job like we think everyone else has…but concentrated on being the beautiful, hard-working soul that others need to see right in our own place of employment?  I wonder…what if we spent more time pouring the love of Jesus into our own kids and complementing them on their positive traits instead of comparing them to everyone else’s “perfect” kids?

I wonder.  We might just find out that where God has placed us at this moment…in this job…with or without a spouse…with these kids…is exactly where He wants us to be…showing HIS beauty and love to those who are peering over our side of the fence.  

Today, let’s remember Paul’s words in Philippians 4:11-13 (The Message):

“Actually, I don’t have a sense of needing anything personally. I’ve learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I’m just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I’ve found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am.”

Yes, we just might find beauty at its finest…right in our own backyard.

Monday Morning Memo: What a Ride!

I will be the first to admit that my post today isn’t deeply spiritual and it probably won’t have any points that really make lightbulbs go on in your head.  In fact, I’m guessing that most of you have already, in one form or another, had these same thoughts.  But, that being said, I’m still going to share it with you because it’s what is rattling around in my brain.

One of our daughters lives about 30 miles from us and there are a few different routes we can take to get there.  But, more often than not, we have a particular route we usually use because the road is a little straighter and a little less “hilly”, so our speed can stay more constant.

Last week I headed towards her home to watch my adorable, brilliant and absolutely amazing three grandsons (you knew I had to brag a little!), while our daughter had an appointment.  As I was driving, I remembered that one of the other routes to her home has lots of hills and curves…but I figured it might be a more beautiful route to take with the leaves changing in color.  So, I decided to throw caution to the wind and take the more scenic road.

It did not disappoint me.  Several areas of the road had lots of trees on both sides and they appeared to encompass the road.  The colors were so vibrant and I found myself in awe of God’s creation that was all around me.

Of course, the reward for seeing nature in all of its beauty came with a price.  I had to drive a little slower.  I had to be much more careful maneuvering the curves just in case someone was coming around the bend from the other direction.  The hills had to be taken more carefully too because there was no way for me to see what was on their other side.  But I was willing to make these concessions…to be rewarded with seeing God’s handiwork.  

As I was thinking about this later, I realized how much being a follower of Christ can be like my drive that day.  I think so often, there is more than one path to get to a destination.  Now I don’t mean there is more than one way to get to our heavenly destination.  Only those who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior will spend eternity with Him and there are no other routes to get there.

I’m thinking about the multiple paths we can choose in life while we are still breathing on this earth and serving Him.  I often have the choice to pick the easy route.  I can do just the bare minimum…making sure I never ruffle any feathers or stand up publicly for my Biblical convictions.  I can keep to myself and just worship Christ in nature, instead of making it a priority to worship Him with my brothers and sisters in the faith.  I can do just enough to get by so that Satan won’t bother me too much…because I surely won’t be a threat to him.  

Will I still end up spending eternity with my Jesus?  Yes, I will.  But I have to wonder what beauty I will miss seeing because I made the choice to take the easy route.  What unexpected blessings will I fail to see because I didn’t take the journey with more hills and curves?  What might be waiting for me just over those hills or around those curves, that would just take my breath away…but because I feel the need to be “safe”…I’ll never know?

Hunter S. Thompson once said, “Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming – Wow, what a ride!”   I don’t know about you, but I can feel my heart beating and my blood pumping just reading these words!  That’s how I want to “land” in eternity and I want to experience everything my Jesus has for me until I get there.

How about it?  Will you join me as we forge ahead…making sure to follow His road map instead of ours?  I sure hope so, because it will be a lot more fun with you along for the ride!

“I will praise the Lord as long as I live.
I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath.”

Psalm 146:2 

Monday Morning Memo: The Manure Pile

As many of you know…my mind often works in strange ways.  I can read something, and what pops into my brain would probably never come to anyone else’s.  Yep, call me an odd duck…because that description fits me well J

This just happened again when I read a couple verses in the Bible.  I found them in Luke !4:34-35.  It says, “Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again?  Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for the manure pile. It is thrown away. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!”  When I read these verses, I wondered what in the word does salt have to do with a manure pile!

So, I started doing some research and as always, I found several different explanations for these verses.  But there was one that sort of stuck in my warped mind…so naturally, that is the one I will share with you.

In these verses, Jesus was referring to his followers being like salt in the world and if we lose our “saltiness”, we’re not fit for even the manure pile.  But for that to make sense, we need to know why salty salt is good on a manure pile and why unsalty salt isn’t.  I have never bragged that I’m an expert on manure piles…so I had to do some investigating.

The explanation I found was that in Jesus’ day, people cooked over fires that used dried animal manure as fuel because deserts didn’t have a large supply of wood.  The people learned that when they mixed salt with the manure, the salt caused a chemical reaction which made the fire burn brighter and hotter for longer.  But after a while, this process broke down the salt, causing it to become unsalty, and so the chemical reaction with the manure stopped and the fire would go out.

Jesus used this illustration to get across to the people that they were supposed to be like salty salt, so that when they were mixed in with the “manure” of the world, they were able to cause God’s Word to burn brighter and hotter.  In other words, their lives should be causing the “chemical reaction” so they would shine brightly for Him!

So, and here comes the really warped mind part, all I could think of as I read this explanation was… how hot is my manure pile?  If how I am living my life determines how brightly I am shining for others who don’t know my Jesus…do they see Him in me or is my “fire” petering out? Have I lost my “saltiness” in the unsaved world around me…or am I making sure my life is kept “seasoned” by my close relationship with my Jesus? 

You’ve probably already guessed that I can’t end this without asking you the same question…how hot is your manure pile?  Is it burning hotter and brighter because the “salt” of your life has been thrown in the mix?  Or are your embers starting to go out?   

I think we can all agree that we are living in a world that needs Jesus.  If we aren’t shining brightly for Him…I’m doubtful that anyone will be too interested in our cold embers.  So, let’s make a point this week to throw ourselves into the “mix” so that those who are lost will be drawn to our flame!

 “You are the light of the world—

like a city on a hilltop 

that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp 

and then puts it under a basket.  Instead, a lamp 

is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone 

in the house.  In the same way, let your good deeds 

shine out for all to see, so that everyone 

will praise your heavenly Father.”

Matthew 5:14-16

Monday Morning Memo: By Faith

In a blog post last January, I shared these words:  “I realized after that day, that my word for this year needed to be “POWER” and I needed to claim the verse in I Samuel 12:16, ‘Now stand here and see the great thing the Lord is about to do!’.  I’m guessing that many times I don’t see His power at work because I am in the way.  I look at too many trials from my human point of view, instead of claiming His power.”

This year has definitely been a time of seeing God’s power at work.  He has shown me over and over again, that His plan is perfect…His timing is perfect…and His ability to make all things new has just blown me away.  I have learned to pray boldly…not timidly…asking God to do great and mighty things and He hasn’t disappointed.

So, I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised when He led me to begin Throne Thursdays, which I shared with you last week.  Since I have seen Him work in such mighty ways, I knew He wanted me to pray boldly for others so they may receive His mercy and find grace to help them when they need it most.  Many of you have taken me up on my offer…and I am humbled and feel very privileged to take your concerns to the throne of our all-powerful God.

I don’t think it was any coincidence then when my devotional reading took me to Hebrews 11 this past week.  What a powerful chapter in the Bible. It begins with:  “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see. Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation.”  The chapter then tells us….

By faith… we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command…

By faith… Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did…     

By faith… Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying…

By faith… Noah built a large boat to save his family from the flood…

By faith… Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him…He went without knowing where he was going…

By faith… Sarah was able to have a child, though she was barren and too old…

By faith… Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice when God was testing him.

By faith… the people of Israel went right through the Red Sea as though they were on dry ground. But when the Egyptians tried to follow, they all drowned.

And the list goes on and on.  We read over and over again in the Bible about the miraculously things that happened and I think we often think those times of seeing God’s power at work only happened in the Bible days.  Sorry, I don’t buy that!  I’m afraid we don’t always see God’s mighty hand at work because we don’t have the faith that He can accomplish it.  We need to remember that by faith…God can do immeasurably more than we can even imagine!

You see, faith is a choice…not a feeling.  It means choosing to trust God even when life doesn’t make sense.  It means stepping out boldly even when we might not feel bold.  It means living by faith…even when we can’t see what’s up ahead.

If you aren’t praying boldly…asking God to work in mighty ways…you are missing out on so much.  I want to encourage you today to approach His throne and say, “By faith…I am going to completely trust you God, knowing that your plan and timing are perfect and your ability to make all things new will just blow me away.  By faith, God, work in me and through me, so that my life will impact eternity today!”  

“So let us come boldly to the throne 

of our gracious God. 

There we will receive his mercy, 

and we will find grace 

to help us when we need it most.”

Hebrews 4:16