Monday Morning Memo: Mixed in Manure?

It started last week when my husband came into the house looking perturbed. He had just taken our dog, Truman, out to allow him to have his morning run.  But much to Dan’s dismay…instead of watching him run…he found the dog rolling in a pile of poop.  Isn’t that what you wanted to hear to start your week?  

 

We had no choice but to give Truman a bath.  It wasn’t what we had planned for that morning…and it surely wasn’t what I wanted to do during my recovery…but if we wanted to get near him again…a bath was greatly needed. 

 

By the way, did you know the Bible talks about poop?  OK…maybe they refer to it using a much “nicer” word…manure.  But it’s all the same thing.  Luke 14:34-35 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!”  Aren’t these some of the strangest verses in the Bible?  I wouldn’t even think of putting salt, flavorless or not, on poop (excuse me…manure)…so what in the world does this mean?  

 

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!

 

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 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.  Maybe we’ve been a little like Truman and we’ve been rolling around in the “manure” of the world instead of living for Christ.  If so, we may need a good “bath” from Him…allowing Him to clean us anew from sins which have caused us to lose our saltiness.  

 

Let’s make a point this week to throw ourselves into the “mix”, with our saltiness, so that those who are lost will be drawn to our flame.  Time is short and there is a lost world that needs to see our light!

Monday Morning Memo: A Slap in the Face

Oh, it was hard not to laugh.  I knew I would just make him more upset if I even smiled…but it took everything within me to keep a straight face.

 

When our grandson, Zeke, was just three years old, he came running to me one day…crying. Through his wailing, he told me that Eli, his then five-year-old brother, had slapped him in the mouth.  Of course, as he told me this, Zeke slapped himself in the mouth to demonstrate what had taken place.  It became comical when he kept showing me over and over again how he had been hit and he was slapping himself with quite a bit of force.  Even when I told him that he didn’t have to keep showing me, he said, “Grandma, but this is what he did!”  

 

Eli was called into the room and he admitted his transgression and apologized.  All was well once again and they ran off and resumed their play.  But I’m guessing that Zeke’s mouth stung for awhile…not because of the initial incident… but because of the continual demonstration which occurred afterwards!

 

We laugh at this, but how often do we do something similar to ourselves?  Life can be painful and it probably isn’t really uncommon that someone hurts us with their words or actions.  The pain from those times is real and I’m not trying to diminish the effects which it can have on us.  But, if we are honest, I’m guessing there are times when we continue to bring it up over and over again…reliving the pain which in turns just makes it more anguishing for us.  Even after there is an apology, it is so easy for us to just keep mulling it over and over again, until it consumes our entire day.

 

Forgiveness is such a hard thing to live out.  Oh, we say we have forgiven someone, but actually demonstrating that forgiveness is often very difficult.  I think we feel like the other person needs to suffer for their actions and so if we continually harp on it…they will endure the pain they deserve.  We want to scream out to anyone who will listen, “But this is what they did to me!”

 

There are also the times when the other person never apologizes.  Never admits any wrongdoing.  Never comes to say they are sorry.  Those times are difficult, and it is so easy to allow their transgressions to make our life miserable.  We feel that releasing this pain will somehow let them “off the hook”, so we grasp it with clenched fists to hurt them, but all it does is hurt us.  

 

I know that some of you have been through horrible events over the years and my heart grieves for you.  You have had to endure more than your fair share of pain and hurt and you have been “slapped in the face” figuratively and maybe even literally.  Getting past the anguish and moving on is so difficult.  But I want to urge you today to take inventory of your thoughts and actions to see if maybe some of the things you are holding onto, as a result of this pain, need to be turned over to Jesus.   Maybe instead of living it over and over again, you need to let Him take over and fill you to the brim with His peace.

 

Remember, giving it to Jesus doesn’t mean that what the other person did was right.  It isn’t justifying their actions.  It is you realizing that you won’t answer for anyone else, you will only answer for your response and your actions.  Jesus is waiting for you to trust Him completely with your past, present and future, but to do so you will have to let go.  Let Him have your pain and hurt today and allow Him to fill you anew with His Spirit.

 

I realize that sometimes it is even hard to know how to pray in this situation, so I’m sharing this Prayer of Forgiveness that I came across.  Use it today and make the choice to give it all to Jesus.  It won’t be easy…but it will be worth it!

PRAYER OF FORGIVENESS:

 

“Father, I lay down (person’s name) to You.  Lord, I’m having a hard time letting go of the hurt.  God, I want to forgive, but the pain is almost too hard to let go of.  But today, I choose to give it to You.  When they (tell Him what they did), it crushed my soul.  I give you that hurt.  Lord, heal every part of me that is being affected by this situation.  I release them and the situation to You.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.”

Monday Morning Memo: Will You Be There?

The word which has been rolling around in my head is “expectation”.  It seems to me that we spend much of our life in “expectation”.  When we are growing up, we live in expectation of becoming a teenager, of being able to drive, of graduating high school, and then going to college.

 

Many of us then live in expectation of finding a good job, finding a mate, getting married, having children, and then being blessed with grandchildren.  We now have eight, amazing, beautiful, multi-talented grandchildren and believe me…we waited in expectation for each one of them to join our family!  

 

Is there anything wrong with living with expectations?  Of course not.  I think it is good for us to have events for which to look forward.  Sometimes it is those anticipated happenings which give us hope and a bright outlook and so it is often good for us to look forward.

 

But, and you knew there would be a “but”, the problem occurs when we are only living for future times and wasting today.  We can become so focused on our future “possibilities” that we miss the certainties of the present.  How many parents spend years just waiting with expectation for the day when their kids will be in school, only to miss the precious moments of today?   How many people can’t wait until they get that perfect job, and neglect the opportunities they have today to make a difference in the lives of others?  How many adults wait with expectation for the day when they can retire, grudgingly enduring today and making everyone around them miserable in the meantime?

 

I think we need to remember that there are short-term times which we should approach with expectation.  If I truly want to be more like Christ, I should begin each day in expectation of spending time with Him.  I should be excited.  I should be hungry to learn what He has to teach me.  And believe it or not…I should even have more expectation to meet with Him than I do to see what is posted on Facebook.  

 

If I desire to look more like Christ, I should also wait with expectation for the times when I gather in His house and hear from one of His messengers.  I believe I should anticipate and look forward every day of the week to what He will teach me during the next time of worship with my brothers and sisters in Christ.  This means that on Monday morning, I should already be praying for and looking forward to the next Sunday.  Now some of you may be thinking… are you crazy LuAnn?  I should spend the next 6 days in expectation of next Sunday…just because I’m going to church?  Well, if we can wait with expectation for months and even years for events which have no eternal significance...I happen to believe we can do it for 6 days 

 

I have a challenge for you this week.  Every morning when you wake up, approach your quiet time with the Lord with expectation.  Enter into His presence expecting Him to work within you and through you.  Each day during your quiet time, tell the Lord that you are already looking forward to next Sunday.  Begin praying for your Pastor that the Lord would work in him or her throughout the week as he or she prepares their sermon.  Begin praying that during your time of worship, you will hear Him whispering in your ear and be open to His leading.

 

I believe that if we live today with expectation…God will begin to work within us in a mighty way.  I’m excited to hear how He is speaking to each of you and how your life is changing because of listening to Him.  He is expecting to meet with you today…will you be there? 

 

“I rise before dawn and cry for help;
I have put my hope in your word.
My eyes stay open through the watches of the night,
that I may meditate on your promises.”

Psalm 119:147-148

Monday Morning Memo: The World is Watching

My devotional reading took me to Mark 3, where the names of the twelve disciples are listed.  To be honest, I usually just skim through this section of scripture…because I’ve never really thought their names were that big of a deal.  But when I read them this time, one of the verses really stood out to me.  It was verse 17 where it says, “James and John (the sons of Zebedee, but Jesus nicknamed them ‘Sons of Thunder’).”  It may have stood out to me more this time…because it made me think of The Chosen episode where this occurs.  Regardless…it made me pause.

 

I don’t know about you…but I think it would have been awesome to have Jesus give me a nickname.  I mean, how cool would that be?  That is, as long as it referred to a positive attribute of mine.  I would have been thrilled if scripture would have listed my name, and then clarified that Jesus nicknamed me “Patient LuAnn” or “Daughter of Peace” or even the title of my first devotional book, Image Seeker.  Any of those would have been amazing.

 

Unfortunately, many of my attributes aren’t so positive.  If you have read Image Seeker, you may remember that growing up my nickname was Walter Cronkite…yeah…not really what a young girl wanted to be called.  But the name was fitting…because I did talk a lot and I always wanted to beat my siblings in telling news to the world.  In other words…I received the nickname because I was a blabber-mouth!

 

That “label” is probably ok when you are 10, but it’s not so pretty at the age I am now.  My lack of patience probably isn’t something I would want Jesus to refer to either if He gave me a nickname.  Moreover, neither is my sometimes-cynical attitude very becoming.  What if scripture referred to me as “Impatient LuAnn” or “One Who Blabs” or “Skeptical One”.  Maybe I should be thankful that Jesus didn’t list a nickname for me in scripture.

 

Of course, those around me probably have nicknames for me and I’m confident some of those aren’t very flattering either.  The sobering fact is that the world is watching me…and you…and will label us by what they see us doing and saying.   Will they see love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control?  Or will they hear us saying one thing…but living out something entirely different?

 

Now we know we won’t always make others happy and our ultimate goal should be to please our Savior.  Each of us is a work in progress, and fortunately, Jesus loves us enough to keep chiseling away at those attributes which aren’t very pleasing to Him.  I think as we look more and more like Him, others are bound to see His reflection in us and will hopefully want what we have. Maybe then they will give you and me the nickname which we all should be striving to receive, “Christ-Follower”.

 

“Anyone who wants to serve me must follow me, 

because my servants must be where I am. 

And the Father will honor anyone who serves me.”

John 12:26

Monday Morning Memo: Rinse & Repeat

I shared in a life update at the beginning of March, that I had just had surgery on the Achilles tendon of my right foot.  It was the result of me tearing both of my Achilles tendons at the same time last August and after spending the winter in two boots, trying to get them to heal, it was determined that surgery would be needed.  Since the right ankle was deemed as the worst, it was the “lucky” recipient of the first surgery.

 

We had hoped to wait until this fall to operate on my left one, but due to increased pain, surgery was completed this past Tuesday.  Having the second surgery only four months after the first one wasn’t ideal, but if you know anything about my past health history…nothing rarely goes as planned.

 

The day of surgery, my doctor walked in and said, “Well LuAnn, it’s just rinse and repeat.  What we did last time, is what I plan to do again today”.  And he was right.  This operation was pretty much like the last one, except this one had some extra bursitis to clean out.  So now I have begun another year-long recovery.  If you’ve ever had this type of surgery, you know the word “fun” is rarely used to describe these days.

 

I’ll be honest, during these past months I have prayed and prayed and prayed, trying to find out why God has allowed me to go through this time of pain and waiting…but I’ve heard lots of silence.  No writing in the sky…no lightbulb moment…no big spiritual revelations.  The only thing I have sensed is Him saying, “Not your will LuAnn, but Mine”.   I guess that was an answer…but not the one I wanted.

 

How do you do when the Lord’s answer is “wait”?  Hopefully you are better than me because I wouldn’t win an award for waiting patiently.  I always feel like action is necessary to follow His will and so patiently waiting, while I recover, is just a huge waste of time.  I think I often feel like the Lord needs my help to get something accomplished and I’m probably mistaken about that.  He needs my obedience…He doesn’t really need my help.  But He does allow me the privilege of having a role in seeing something come to fruition…because He loves me that much.  

 

It’s similar to how it was when our children were growing up.  There were many tasks around the house which could be accomplished easier and much quicker if I just did them myself.  I didn’t need any help from them to get certain jobs done, but because I loved them and wanted a closer relationship with them, I would sometimes ask them to help me.  Those times brought us closer as we worked side by side to see our task completed.  It’s the same way with our Jesus.  He is more than capable of doing everything himself, but because He wants a closer relationship with us, He offers us opportunities to work side by side with Him.  What a privilege!

 

In Appointed to Bear Fruit, I read these words, “We must be willing at every moment to surrender to His will. The Father is at work, through the Spirit, to bring the completed work of Christ to the world. He knows where workers are needed and sends them to these places. Even though it may seem that going there will lead to financial loss or greater family struggles, we are to rejoice because we have confidence in what the Father is doing. With all humility, we should accept the portion which God has prepared for us. Glorify His name by believing His promises for your spouse and children. No matter what happens, we can have complete confidence that the Father is directing our lives, and great joy can be found in submitting to His will. Nothing else will ever bring the true satisfaction that our souls are longing for”.

 

Yes, it comes down to surrendering to His will in every moment and I’m pretty sure that means every moment of waiting.  Maybe during this time, He has more pruning to do in me, so I am prepared for whatever lies ahead.  Ouch.  That’s a scary thought J

 

Are you also in a time of waiting?  Do you feel like what you are going through is just another time of “rinse and repeat”?  If so, you and I can have complete confidence knowing that He is working out His perfect plan behind the scenes.  And when everything is in place…at just the right time…He will invite us to work with Him, side by side, to see His plan come to fruition.  For now, we will have joy, knowing that even as we wait, He will never leave our side!

 

But Jesus replied, “My Father is always working, 

and so am I.”

John 5:17