“Knock and the door shall be opened unto you.” How many times have we recited or sung this quote from Jesus? Yet have we ever really thought about where that door leads? Salvation? Heaven? Certainly....Absolutely. But is there something more? Was Jesus talking about walking through Himself as the entrance to Heaven? Certainly. Yet does that Open Door offer even more than eternal life insurance? Certainly His ultimate gift born of agonizing sacrifice is something to be intensely grateful for every day of our existence here. Yet is there even more in His invitation? To what is He inviting us?
As He often does, God keeps giving me images of parenting and grandparenting to help me understand who He is and what He desires. This morning, after continuing my reading in Tozer’s The Pursuit of God, I was struck by his reference to time and space in our relationship with the Trinity of God. We only pursue God in response to His pursuit of us. When we respond to that pursuit, we find Him right there with us, as near as our breath. He has been waiting there all along, hoping we’ll ‘knock’ so He can fling wide the door of His heart to us. Right now, in the present moment, His immanence scoops us into His waiting arms.
When I visit my new granddaughter, I try to wait patiently in the wings, hoping for the opportunity to scoop her into my arms and hold her against my heart. I know there are many wanting time with her, desiring her attention. So I wait, aching to hold her close, to comfort her when she cries, to make her smile, to help her fall asleep when she’s taken in so much ‘input’ that she has trouble finding that place of peace. When she hears her father’s voice, she immediately stills and listens for him. It is sometimes he alone who can comfort her.
I have come to understand, though I know that understanding is only partial, how much God longs for us to turn our face to Him, to realize how near He is, how He waits there longing for us to choose to respond to His overtures of love. How He longs for us to hear His voice whispering our name and fling ourselves into His arms.
I remember one evening Emma fell asleep over my heart as I rocked her. I could have happily held her all night long, my heart nearly bursting its confines, like the Grinch of the Christmas tale. And I remember rocking her mother and her two brothers and feeling the same way. I didn’t love one child more than the others; I loved each one as if he or she was an only child. With each one, it was as if my heart would explode with love (and that love has never diminished). Our tender-hearted Father loves us more than this. There is so much more beyond the door than we can imagine...not just in Heaven, but right now. Don’t leave Him waiting with unrequited love. Pursue Him and you will find that you don’t have to take a single step; you will bump right into Him.
***************
"You have said, Seek My face [inquire for and require My presence as your vital need]. My heart says to You, Your face (Your presence), Lord, will I seek..." [Psalm 27:8]
"Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you. For everyone who keeps on asking receives; and he who keeps on seeking finds; and to him who keeps on knocking, [the door] will be opened." [Matthew 7:7-8]
"...always He is trying to get our attention, to reveal Himself to us, to communicate with us. We have within us the ability to know Him if we will but respond to His overtures."
"It is not a sovereign and irresistible force which comes upon us as a seizure from above. It is a gift of God, indeed, but one which must be recognized and cultivated as any other gift..."
[Tozer, The Pursuit of God]
Saturday, December 30, 2017
Friday, December 8, 2017
Don’t Shoot the Messenger
This week my Vipre security software on my phone came up with a malware warning, but it was for Google Play, which operates all the Android apps. What do I do with that, I thought. Vipre proceeded in an endless loop of not being able to clean by uninstalling (of course) and I could not get it out of the loop to do another scan. Vipre has a reputation for trustworthiness. I finally just turned off my phone until I could figure out what to do (to the distress of my family who couldn’t get hold of me). The people at the AT&T store couldn’t really help me except to advise removing Vipre, which I did. My phone then seemed happy again.
Immediately God showed me the analogy to our current culture...and all the way back to Israel’s history with the prophets. When your prophetic watchmen begin to annoy you with their warnings, you find a way to either ignore them or get rid of them. That way you can have a false sense of security that all is well and you don’t have to change anything in your life. All the while, something insidious is eating away at your foundation. You go blithely on your merry way like Scarlet O’Hara, setting aside dealing with any serious issues for ‘another day.’ Isaiah 28:15 says, “...for we have made lies our refuge, and in falsehood have we taken refuge.”
Sometimes we choose false prophets because we like what they have to say. Your computer sometimes pops up a virus warning, via some unheard of security application, advising you to take instant action to solve the virus problem they say you have. However, what they're really trying to do is download spyware on your computer. The very program that is offering to solve your problem is trying to rob you. So with the false prophets, who are really self-serving wolves in sheep's clothing. Isaiah 28: 16-17, however, leads us back to the Cornerstone and the Plumbline for all truth. We musn't be deceived by gladly receiving something 'our itchy ears want to hear.' [2 Timothy 4:3]
If you find yourself spending less ‘real’ time in quiet with the Father, search your heart to see if
you’re ignoring Him because you’re afraid of what He might have to say to you. If we turn off or delete the prophetic because it makes us uncomfortable, we’re still walking down the same dangerous road, whether we admit it to ourselves or not. Been there, done that. In the end, we always need to come back, knowing every course correction He gives us is out of love. He’s not trying to spoil our fun, He’s trying to keep us from spoiling our lives, the lives of those we love, and, ultimately, our entire nation and world. I guess the phrase, “Don’t shoot the messenger” is applicable here. If the messenger is a trustworthy, untainted one, he’ll always alert us to danger and point us back to the Cornerstone. Our spiritual antennae should start beeping when we realize we have appeased our consciences by removing the source of the warning from our visual screens, instead of addressing its content.
*********************
2 Timothy 4:3
Isaiah 30:10
They say to the seers, ‘See no more visions!’ and to the prophets, ‘Give us no more visions of what is right! Tell us pleasant things, prophesy illusions.’
Immediately God showed me the analogy to our current culture...and all the way back to Israel’s history with the prophets. When your prophetic watchmen begin to annoy you with their warnings, you find a way to either ignore them or get rid of them. That way you can have a false sense of security that all is well and you don’t have to change anything in your life. All the while, something insidious is eating away at your foundation. You go blithely on your merry way like Scarlet O’Hara, setting aside dealing with any serious issues for ‘another day.’ Isaiah 28:15 says, “...for we have made lies our refuge, and in falsehood have we taken refuge.”
Sometimes we choose false prophets because we like what they have to say. Your computer sometimes pops up a virus warning, via some unheard of security application, advising you to take instant action to solve the virus problem they say you have. However, what they're really trying to do is download spyware on your computer. The very program that is offering to solve your problem is trying to rob you. So with the false prophets, who are really self-serving wolves in sheep's clothing. Isaiah 28: 16-17, however, leads us back to the Cornerstone and the Plumbline for all truth. We musn't be deceived by gladly receiving something 'our itchy ears want to hear.' [2 Timothy 4:3]
If you find yourself spending less ‘real’ time in quiet with the Father, search your heart to see if
you’re ignoring Him because you’re afraid of what He might have to say to you. If we turn off or delete the prophetic because it makes us uncomfortable, we’re still walking down the same dangerous road, whether we admit it to ourselves or not. Been there, done that. In the end, we always need to come back, knowing every course correction He gives us is out of love. He’s not trying to spoil our fun, He’s trying to keep us from spoiling our lives, the lives of those we love, and, ultimately, our entire nation and world. I guess the phrase, “Don’t shoot the messenger” is applicable here. If the messenger is a trustworthy, untainted one, he’ll always alert us to danger and point us back to the Cornerstone. Our spiritual antennae should start beeping when we realize we have appeased our consciences by removing the source of the warning from our visual screens, instead of addressing its content.
*********************
2 Timothy 4:3
For the time is coming when people will not have patience for sound teaching, but will cater to their passions and gather around themselves teachers who say whatever their ears itch to hear.
They say to the seers, ‘See no more visions!’ and to the prophets, ‘Give us no more visions of what is right! Tell us pleasant things, prophesy illusions.’
Tuesday, November 28, 2017
Lessons from Emma
Just after returning from helping to care for my newborn granddaughter, I sat in my prayer chair once again and saw before me her tiny trusting face, looking intently into my eyes as if to say, “I am entrusting myself to you without fear, for I know you hold me securely and you love me. I am content to go wherever you take me.” She later fell asleep, resting against my heart and I thought mine might break with love for her.
God reminded me upon my return that this is how He loves us: “Emma doesn’t work for her food or work to be loved. She doesn’t strive to be successful. She is loved. She is...and she is loved....You are to be like her, looking into My eyes, knowing I have you secure in My Arms. Trust Me to have chosen—and to choose—what is best...Remaining humble will help keep you tethered to My Peace.”
This is how He cares for us. This is how He longs for us to trust Him...abandoned entirely and absolutely to His tender, loving care. I would never have allowed little Emma to fall from my arms, even if I had to allow myself to be broken to prevent it. (Isaiah 53:5)
We trust man and distrust God. How ironic. We look to other humans for our fulfillment, our help, our contentment, yet we say, “Why did God let this happen? Why did He do this to me? He must not love me. I must not be important to Him. He doesn’t care about me. He cares about others, but not me. He is unjust and unequal in His treatment of us. Or He is not powerful or wise enough to intervene.
How we malign Him, if we think He doesn’t love us as I love baby Emma...and so very much more. How interesting that Emma's middle name is Grace. God doesn’t require us to comprehend, only to trust. Emma cannot see clearly beyond the borders of her mother’s face. The rest of the world exists like an Impressionist painting. Her mother and father are her world...their voices known from the womb. May it be so with us. May our Father be our world, our reality...and the world dim and hazy beyond His face, as we hear His voice singing over us.
God reminded me upon my return that this is how He loves us: “Emma doesn’t work for her food or work to be loved. She doesn’t strive to be successful. She is loved. She is...and she is loved....You are to be like her, looking into My eyes, knowing I have you secure in My Arms. Trust Me to have chosen—and to choose—what is best...Remaining humble will help keep you tethered to My Peace.”
This is how He cares for us. This is how He longs for us to trust Him...abandoned entirely and absolutely to His tender, loving care. I would never have allowed little Emma to fall from my arms, even if I had to allow myself to be broken to prevent it. (Isaiah 53:5)
We trust man and distrust God. How ironic. We look to other humans for our fulfillment, our help, our contentment, yet we say, “Why did God let this happen? Why did He do this to me? He must not love me. I must not be important to Him. He doesn’t care about me. He cares about others, but not me. He is unjust and unequal in His treatment of us. Or He is not powerful or wise enough to intervene.
How we malign Him, if we think He doesn’t love us as I love baby Emma...and so very much more. How interesting that Emma's middle name is Grace. God doesn’t require us to comprehend, only to trust. Emma cannot see clearly beyond the borders of her mother’s face. The rest of the world exists like an Impressionist painting. Her mother and father are her world...their voices known from the womb. May it be so with us. May our Father be our world, our reality...and the world dim and hazy beyond His face, as we hear His voice singing over us.
“And a little child shall lead them...” (Isaiah 11:6)
“Unless you become like one of these, you shall not enter the kingdom...” (Matthew 18:3)
Saturday, November 11, 2017
Seeds
I always receive so much by listening to Andrew Wommack (Gospel Truth, Nov. 9). He always challenges me out of any complacency I consider accepting. He also makes me laugh. This week he was discussing the concept of the Seed. Since I am also awaiting with great anticipation the ‘outside’ arrival of my granddaughter (she actually arrived 9 months ago), it seemed especially poignant to consider the beauty and strength God creates from a seed.
Interestingly enough, my daily Bible reading simultaneously landed upon Jesus’ reference to the mustard seed and all the potential the Father placed within it, though it is so tiny as to be almost unnoticeable. I remember decades ago reading a wonderful book called Poustinia, from which I retained a strong visual image of an extremely large tree, solid and firmly rooted, with birds and other animals resting in its branches and humans doing likewise underneath. Catherine Dougherty challenged us to become such trees, having developed fruitfully throughout our lives in both the stillness and friendship of God’s presence.
Some of us lament our age; others rejoice in it. I believe we should always choose the latter, whether we are in the first few decades or the final quarter. Young, middle-aged, or seniors, we can aspire to be such trees. We seniors should exult in what God has wrought in us through the decades. We should offer respite to others of any age. Let's give that solace, peace and hope which result from keeping company, through trials and triumphs, with the One who created us...the One who has gradually taught us wisdom and humility through the years.
The seeds He gave man at the Creation held within them the life of future plants similar to themselves, yet never exactly the same; He is such an artistic Creator. The unique secrets and potential he encased within all of us only develop into the beauty He planned, when we allow Him to tend, guide, and prune us along the way.
We don’t have to understand and foresee it all; we just have to trust Him that He will cause everything to flower in its time, if we cooperate with Him. Things which seem impossible, inconceivable, and even ludicrous, become reality when we trust in Him with a pure heart and allow Him to transform us and others near us in the garden. One plant sends seeds drifting onto others and onto ready soil, where it springs up to in turn bear fruit, bringing life and health with it.
Unfortunately, seeds not planted by God can also follow the same pattern, bringing forth evil, which we thoughtlessly spew forth in the form of criticism, judgment, and negativity. Bitterness is a tare with deep roots.
Let's be awe-inspiring mustard trees, pointing upward. Let's invite others to rest under your branches, no matter how old you are. Ask God to help you rid the ground beneath you of any tares which might lead others astray. Don't let them be confused by the uncomfortable, lumpy ground beneath them. Don’t let them come for rest and find discord. Be the kind of tree whose branches remind them of the Everlasting Arms. And while you’re planted there, grab his hands and pull those arms about yourself, too. You’ll make Him smile.
******************************************
Interestingly enough, my daily Bible reading simultaneously landed upon Jesus’ reference to the mustard seed and all the potential the Father placed within it, though it is so tiny as to be almost unnoticeable. I remember decades ago reading a wonderful book called Poustinia, from which I retained a strong visual image of an extremely large tree, solid and firmly rooted, with birds and other animals resting in its branches and humans doing likewise underneath. Catherine Dougherty challenged us to become such trees, having developed fruitfully throughout our lives in both the stillness and friendship of God’s presence.
Some of us lament our age; others rejoice in it. I believe we should always choose the latter, whether we are in the first few decades or the final quarter. Young, middle-aged, or seniors, we can aspire to be such trees. We seniors should exult in what God has wrought in us through the decades. We should offer respite to others of any age. Let's give that solace, peace and hope which result from keeping company, through trials and triumphs, with the One who created us...the One who has gradually taught us wisdom and humility through the years.
The seeds He gave man at the Creation held within them the life of future plants similar to themselves, yet never exactly the same; He is such an artistic Creator. The unique secrets and potential he encased within all of us only develop into the beauty He planned, when we allow Him to tend, guide, and prune us along the way.
We don’t have to understand and foresee it all; we just have to trust Him that He will cause everything to flower in its time, if we cooperate with Him. Things which seem impossible, inconceivable, and even ludicrous, become reality when we trust in Him with a pure heart and allow Him to transform us and others near us in the garden. One plant sends seeds drifting onto others and onto ready soil, where it springs up to in turn bear fruit, bringing life and health with it.
Unfortunately, seeds not planted by God can also follow the same pattern, bringing forth evil, which we thoughtlessly spew forth in the form of criticism, judgment, and negativity. Bitterness is a tare with deep roots.
Let's be awe-inspiring mustard trees, pointing upward. Let's invite others to rest under your branches, no matter how old you are. Ask God to help you rid the ground beneath you of any tares which might lead others astray. Don't let them be confused by the uncomfortable, lumpy ground beneath them. Don’t let them come for rest and find discord. Be the kind of tree whose branches remind them of the Everlasting Arms. And while you’re planted there, grab his hands and pull those arms about yourself, too. You’ll make Him smile.
******************************************
“The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed which a man takes and sows in his field. 32 It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it grows up it is larger than any garden plant and becomes a tree, so that the birds flying about come and nest in its branches.” Matthew 13:31-32.
For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. -1 Peter 1:23 (unlike verse 24)
Thursday, November 9, 2017
Home
This morning as I write from my tiny place in this tiny town, I know I have settled into Home. He has blessed us with multiple places to live, according to our needs, as He is wont to do. With each successive fit of worrying, He has patiently reminded me that He has always cared for me, for us, and always will. And where He is, is always home.
Staying with kind and generous friends for the better part of a year has been a great blessing, where I was offered lovely and hospitable homes, as a guest.. There He was, in the midst of them. Now He has helped me nest into this home, seemingly of my own. Yet, I realize, I am still a guest. A guest of My Father. It is nice to have a corner on this coast to call our own, but truly nothing is our own. Everything comes from His generous hand and belongs to Him. He lets us enjoy it; He wants us to enjoy it; but it isn’t ours.
What makes this home is that He has offered it to us out of His goodness and that He dwells here with us. He makes the humble places...and people...beautiful. He invites us in to rest. He offers His hospitality to the weary traveler, saying, “Stop awhile and enter into the habitat of My heart. You’ll find rest here, and if you choose to stay, a Home for eternity.”
Staying with kind and generous friends for the better part of a year has been a great blessing, where I was offered lovely and hospitable homes, as a guest.. There He was, in the midst of them. Now He has helped me nest into this home, seemingly of my own. Yet, I realize, I am still a guest. A guest of My Father. It is nice to have a corner on this coast to call our own, but truly nothing is our own. Everything comes from His generous hand and belongs to Him. He lets us enjoy it; He wants us to enjoy it; but it isn’t ours.
What makes this home is that He has offered it to us out of His goodness and that He dwells here with us. He makes the humble places...and people...beautiful. He invites us in to rest. He offers His hospitality to the weary traveler, saying, “Stop awhile and enter into the habitat of My heart. You’ll find rest here, and if you choose to stay, a Home for eternity.”
Wednesday, September 13, 2017
Turtledoves
I've recently discovered reruns of Touched by an Angel on our cable network. At the end of each episode, a dove usually comes to represent God's presence in the resolution of the conflict. Did you ever wonder why the dove is used to symbolize the Holy Spirit? Of course we know that at Jesus' baptism "the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove...."*. That alone is reason enough. However, I've come to understand how much more symbolism is packed into that image. (Plumbing the depths of God's imagery in Scripture is definitely a lifetime process.)
I was unaware that in the time of Abraham a contract was ratified between two people when they walked together over the blood between the halves of the animal sacrifice. 10 witnesses stood on either side to serve as 'enforcers' of the agreement in the future, should either side renege. However, when God made the covenant with Abraham, only He passed between the halves of the sacrifice. He already knew we wouldn't keep our side of the covenant and that He Himself, through His Son, would have to pay our penalty for us.
The dove** was not divided, however, as were the other animals. It remained whole. Chaim explains that the word for dove or pigeon (tsiphar) in the Hebrew carries a second meaning of a humble or soft voice bringing the presence of the Holy Spirit. The second word used for bird in this passage is gozel, which can mean 'to pass over.' Hmmmm, where have I heard that passover thing mentioned before in Scripture? Ah yes, the angel of death passed over the Hebrews when they put the blood on their doorposts in Egypt. Yeshua, Himself, was the Lamb at the Great Passover. Wow, the whole Trinity of God was represented in the Covenant ADONAI made with Abraham. (Why am I surprised?)
Another meaning for the word tavar, whose first meaning is turtledove, is to search out one's heart to discover the truth, which, indeed, is a function of The Holy Spirit according to Scripture. The wonderful thing is that ADONAI knows it all, every beautiful and ugly detail within our hearts, and yet has provided Himself to stand in the gap between who we are and who we should be. He made the Walk through the sacrifice, and He is the Sacrifice. He presents us with one of two interlinking turtledove ornaments as a remembrance and presses the other close to His heart. May we do the same.
*Luke 3:22
**Chaim explains why the singular, versus the plural, of the word(s) for bird might be more correctly used, in his Study 68 of Hebrew Word Study: Revealing the Heart of God. The chapter includes other insights as well.
I was unaware that in the time of Abraham a contract was ratified between two people when they walked together over the blood between the halves of the animal sacrifice. 10 witnesses stood on either side to serve as 'enforcers' of the agreement in the future, should either side renege. However, when God made the covenant with Abraham, only He passed between the halves of the sacrifice. He already knew we wouldn't keep our side of the covenant and that He Himself, through His Son, would have to pay our penalty for us.
The dove** was not divided, however, as were the other animals. It remained whole. Chaim explains that the word for dove or pigeon (tsiphar) in the Hebrew carries a second meaning of a humble or soft voice bringing the presence of the Holy Spirit. The second word used for bird in this passage is gozel, which can mean 'to pass over.' Hmmmm, where have I heard that passover thing mentioned before in Scripture? Ah yes, the angel of death passed over the Hebrews when they put the blood on their doorposts in Egypt. Yeshua, Himself, was the Lamb at the Great Passover. Wow, the whole Trinity of God was represented in the Covenant ADONAI made with Abraham. (Why am I surprised?)
Another meaning for the word tavar, whose first meaning is turtledove, is to search out one's heart to discover the truth, which, indeed, is a function of The Holy Spirit according to Scripture. The wonderful thing is that ADONAI knows it all, every beautiful and ugly detail within our hearts, and yet has provided Himself to stand in the gap between who we are and who we should be. He made the Walk through the sacrifice, and He is the Sacrifice. He presents us with one of two interlinking turtledove ornaments as a remembrance and presses the other close to His heart. May we do the same.
*Luke 3:22
**Chaim explains why the singular, versus the plural, of the word(s) for bird might be more correctly used, in his Study 68 of Hebrew Word Study: Revealing the Heart of God. The chapter includes other insights as well.
Monday, September 11, 2017
Somewhere Safe with Somebody Good
Loving rereading my favorite modern author Jan Karon's Somewhere Safe with Somebody Good* in anticipation of her newest book coming out next week. Here's a sampling:
"I ask you to give Timothy your words, and to anoint all that he says and does to draw Sammy into the circle of your astonishing grace. May it be a tender time, somehow transforming in ways we can't know." [p. 226]
"At the altar of defeat, he laid the stick of grace. Then he turned and went home to the yellow house where he had been given everything and more, none of it especially deserved." [p. 228]
"He wept face forward, then, into the gale of those aghast at what was happening, wept for the wounds of any clergy gone out into a darkness of self-loathing and beguilement; for the loss and sorrow of those who could not believe, or who had once believed but lost all sense of shield and buckler and any notion of God's radical tenderness, for the ceaseless besettings of the flesh, for the worthless idols of his own and of others; for those sidetracked, stumped, frozen, flung away, for those both false and true, the just and the unjust, the quick and the dead....
He wept for himself, for the pain of long years and the exquisite satisfactions of the faith, for the holiness of the mundane, for the thrashing exhaustions and the endless dyings and resurrectings that malign the soul incarnate...."
"...And the people wept with him, most of them. Some turned away, and a few got up and left in a hurry, fearful of the swift and astounding movement of the Holy Spirit among them..." [p. 252]
*from her Mitford series, beginning with At Home in Mitford
"I ask you to give Timothy your words, and to anoint all that he says and does to draw Sammy into the circle of your astonishing grace. May it be a tender time, somehow transforming in ways we can't know." [p. 226]
"At the altar of defeat, he laid the stick of grace. Then he turned and went home to the yellow house where he had been given everything and more, none of it especially deserved." [p. 228]
"He wept face forward, then, into the gale of those aghast at what was happening, wept for the wounds of any clergy gone out into a darkness of self-loathing and beguilement; for the loss and sorrow of those who could not believe, or who had once believed but lost all sense of shield and buckler and any notion of God's radical tenderness, for the ceaseless besettings of the flesh, for the worthless idols of his own and of others; for those sidetracked, stumped, frozen, flung away, for those both false and true, the just and the unjust, the quick and the dead....
He wept for himself, for the pain of long years and the exquisite satisfactions of the faith, for the holiness of the mundane, for the thrashing exhaustions and the endless dyings and resurrectings that malign the soul incarnate...."
"...And the people wept with him, most of them. Some turned away, and a few got up and left in a hurry, fearful of the swift and astounding movement of the Holy Spirit among them..." [p. 252]
*from her Mitford series, beginning with At Home in Mitford
Sunday, September 10, 2017
Frog in the pool
Some might think I'm a little daft, but this morning I went for a swim in the housing development pool. Right now there is only a gentle rain falling, and the pool water is still warm from the summer's heat. No one else was swimming (of course), so I enjoyed the peace of the moment, with the trees gently swaying (calm before the storm). It turned out to be a great place to talk some things over with the Love and Lord of my life.
Along with the leaves blown into the pool, there was also a small frog, swimming and floating, swimming and floating around the perimeter. I wanted to rescue him, but the question arose in my mind, 'Was he better off in the pool than on land tonight?' What if, in trying to rescue him, I was actually sending him to his doom? Maybe the instinct God put in him sent him to the pool for safety. Perhaps the seeming water danger was not as bad as the greater danger on land? Yet he was working so hard, I couldn't imagine him doing that all day and all night without drowning. Finally, I went to get my flip flop to lift him out, only to completely lose sight of him in the pool. Perhaps he went into one of the drain vents as I went on my rescue mission.
Does God ever refrain from rescuing us from the smaller danger because He knows a much greater danger is at hand should He save us from the first? The worst an earthly danger can do is kill the body. An eternity without God is a much bigger danger than a 5+ hurricane. If we don't even recognize the eternal danger of refusing His salvation, what good will it do to save our homes and possessions for the moment? It could actually be, like my frog rescue, a harmful decision.
Only He knows what's best for frogs in a storm, but I know for sure that nothing is more important than gratefully gripping His outstretched carpenter's hand and being pulled to safety for all time.
Along with the leaves blown into the pool, there was also a small frog, swimming and floating, swimming and floating around the perimeter. I wanted to rescue him, but the question arose in my mind, 'Was he better off in the pool than on land tonight?' What if, in trying to rescue him, I was actually sending him to his doom? Maybe the instinct God put in him sent him to the pool for safety. Perhaps the seeming water danger was not as bad as the greater danger on land? Yet he was working so hard, I couldn't imagine him doing that all day and all night without drowning. Finally, I went to get my flip flop to lift him out, only to completely lose sight of him in the pool. Perhaps he went into one of the drain vents as I went on my rescue mission.
Does God ever refrain from rescuing us from the smaller danger because He knows a much greater danger is at hand should He save us from the first? The worst an earthly danger can do is kill the body. An eternity without God is a much bigger danger than a 5+ hurricane. If we don't even recognize the eternal danger of refusing His salvation, what good will it do to save our homes and possessions for the moment? It could actually be, like my frog rescue, a harmful decision.
Only He knows what's best for frogs in a storm, but I know for sure that nothing is more important than gratefully gripping His outstretched carpenter's hand and being pulled to safety for all time.
Saturday, September 9, 2017
Shelter
I have found it interesting to examine my own behavior in the midst of Hurricane Irma's threat to
the Tampa area. I came over early, ironically, to get away from the threat to the east coast. I wanted to be sure, also, to be here for my daughter's baby shower and my son's wedding. Scripture has some interesting comments about man's plans, which I have tried to keep in my heart anytime people ask me about mine for the future. Recently I have commented that 'my cup runneth over,' with happy fall events.
I can still say that, no matter what happens over the course of the weekend, my cup runs over with my Heavenly Father's goodness to me and to my family. He truly is a Good, Good Father.... Knowing His goodness is not dependent on circumstances going my way....although I most certainly pray for the protection of my family and the homes and provision He has provided to us. I am, indeed, praying for His miraculous intervention, something I have seen over and over since I've been in Florida dealing with hurricanes. Meteorologists have repeatedly had no explanation for the way hurricanes have stopped in their tracks or moved in a completely unexpected direction.
Yet how quickly many forget His intervention and begin thinking their lives are under their own control. How quickly we can forget the level of His grace involved in our very existence as we get
absorbed in our day to day activities and personal priorities.
I have been a surprise to myself in a different way, however. Instead of my usual first-thing-in-the-morning prayer time, seeking Him early and eagerly, I have sought the distractions of busy activity and mind-numbing entertainment instead of running to meet Him in my prayer chair. I would have thought it would be the opposite. But I find myself fighting my way to prayer in this time of severe crisis, struggling to bypass old television shows, jigsaw puzzles, baking, cleaning, organizing, and, worst of all, endless weather reports. The Source of every bit of protection, power, and loving care is
patiently waiting to talk with me and give me the reassurance I crave. Why am I sitting on the floor playing with toys, instead?
Proverbs 8:17 says that He will love those who seek Him early and that they will find Him. Chaim Bentorah delves into the Hebrew here and summarizes it as those who seek Him eagerly and as their first priority will discover His Presence, hidden knowledge, and understanding. It's rather like the person who arrives early to dinner and is able to talk privately and informally with the host (or the King, in the case of an ancient parable).
Why wouldn't we desire to put on our sneakers and eagerly run out to meet Him in the dawn of the morning? Even if morning isn't the best time for us to be alone with Him, due to the current season of our lives, do we wish it were? Do we open our eyes declaring our love for Him, whether we must hit the ground running or not? Do we hungrily seek a time that is ours alone, anticipating it and preserving it against the tyranny of the urgent, as my mother used to say? His secret place is waiting, and its shelter is unsurpassed. There the winds quiet and the storm cannot be felt. Shalom waits there. His Name is ADONAI.
*********************
Psalm 91
the Tampa area. I came over early, ironically, to get away from the threat to the east coast. I wanted to be sure, also, to be here for my daughter's baby shower and my son's wedding. Scripture has some interesting comments about man's plans, which I have tried to keep in my heart anytime people ask me about mine for the future. Recently I have commented that 'my cup runneth over,' with happy fall events.
I can still say that, no matter what happens over the course of the weekend, my cup runs over with my Heavenly Father's goodness to me and to my family. He truly is a Good, Good Father.... Knowing His goodness is not dependent on circumstances going my way....although I most certainly pray for the protection of my family and the homes and provision He has provided to us. I am, indeed, praying for His miraculous intervention, something I have seen over and over since I've been in Florida dealing with hurricanes. Meteorologists have repeatedly had no explanation for the way hurricanes have stopped in their tracks or moved in a completely unexpected direction.
Yet how quickly many forget His intervention and begin thinking their lives are under their own control. How quickly we can forget the level of His grace involved in our very existence as we get
absorbed in our day to day activities and personal priorities.
I have been a surprise to myself in a different way, however. Instead of my usual first-thing-in-the-morning prayer time, seeking Him early and eagerly, I have sought the distractions of busy activity and mind-numbing entertainment instead of running to meet Him in my prayer chair. I would have thought it would be the opposite. But I find myself fighting my way to prayer in this time of severe crisis, struggling to bypass old television shows, jigsaw puzzles, baking, cleaning, organizing, and, worst of all, endless weather reports. The Source of every bit of protection, power, and loving care is
patiently waiting to talk with me and give me the reassurance I crave. Why am I sitting on the floor playing with toys, instead?
Proverbs 8:17 says that He will love those who seek Him early and that they will find Him. Chaim Bentorah delves into the Hebrew here and summarizes it as those who seek Him eagerly and as their first priority will discover His Presence, hidden knowledge, and understanding. It's rather like the person who arrives early to dinner and is able to talk privately and informally with the host (or the King, in the case of an ancient parable).
Why wouldn't we desire to put on our sneakers and eagerly run out to meet Him in the dawn of the morning? Even if morning isn't the best time for us to be alone with Him, due to the current season of our lives, do we wish it were? Do we open our eyes declaring our love for Him, whether we must hit the ground running or not? Do we hungrily seek a time that is ours alone, anticipating it and preserving it against the tyranny of the urgent, as my mother used to say? His secret place is waiting, and its shelter is unsurpassed. There the winds quiet and the storm cannot be felt. Shalom waits there. His Name is ADONAI.
*********************
Psalm 91
Thursday, September 7, 2017
Does God have tattoos?
I don't know why I am often amazed at the way God uses phrases, images, and even slang, from our current culture when He speaks to us. Why wouldn't He use our current world and circumstances to illustrate His point? Any good teacher does so. Still, it always takes me by surprise (and usually makes me laugh).
I've been reading two such examples in the oft-referred-to Hebrew Word Study book I continue to relish. I'll select just one for today to keep this post succinct, as I try to do in this blog so you can be assured you will be able to read the post as soon as you see it (and not wait until the later which never comes). 😉
I've always loved Adonai's assurance that our names are written/engraved on His hand once we accept His invitation of adoption. What I didn't know was that many ancient cultures believed that one's 'heart' was centered in the palm. Assyrian mothers often had their sons' names tattooed on their palms when their sons grew up and went into the army, to represent their continued love and care for them and the connection that would always remain. This tattoo on the hand kept their sons close to 'their heart.'
The extended meaning of the word for forget ('I will not forget you') in Isaiah 49, says Chaim, is I will not leave or neglect you. Unfortunately, many with whom I've spoken cannot say that about their earthly parents, some of whom not only neglected them but caused them harm, physically or emotionally.
Whether or not you had parents who loved, cared for, and nurtured you when you were growing up, Your Heavenly Father promises always to do so. Your name is tattooed in His palm through much pain and sacrifice. You are never distant from His mind. In fact, He is aware of Your every move and thought and circumstance. He longs for you to be just as aware of His and of His tender heart towards you.
When my children were small and I had to be away from them, it was like there was a band stretching from my heart to theirs. I could feel the pull, the tug on my heart every moment until I returned to them (or they to me). They were on my heart and mind. It isn't all that much different now that they're grown and live their own lives in God's care away from me. Our Heavenly Father still sees our name written in His palm no matter how old we are....raising our own little ones or dealing with the aches and pains of old age.
Don't every forget how treasured you are, should you never have experienced it from a single other human being or even been betrayed by those who should have loved you the most. You can't even number the tender thoughts of love He has toward you. Love Him back with as much whole-hearted abandonment as you're able, and you will find He is the embodiment of the perfect Parent of which you've always dreamed.
******************************************
Isaiah 49:15-16 Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)
Psalm 139: 1-18
Adonai, you have probed me, and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I stand up,
you discern my inclinations from afar,
3 you scrutinize my daily activities.
You are so familiar with all my ways
4 that before I speak even a word, Adonai,
you know all about it already.
5 You have hemmed me in both behind and in front
and laid your hand on me.
6 Such wonderful knowledge is beyond me,
far too high for me to reach.
I've been reading two such examples in the oft-referred-to Hebrew Word Study book I continue to relish. I'll select just one for today to keep this post succinct, as I try to do in this blog so you can be assured you will be able to read the post as soon as you see it (and not wait until the later which never comes). 😉
I've always loved Adonai's assurance that our names are written/engraved on His hand once we accept His invitation of adoption. What I didn't know was that many ancient cultures believed that one's 'heart' was centered in the palm. Assyrian mothers often had their sons' names tattooed on their palms when their sons grew up and went into the army, to represent their continued love and care for them and the connection that would always remain. This tattoo on the hand kept their sons close to 'their heart.'
The extended meaning of the word for forget ('I will not forget you') in Isaiah 49, says Chaim, is I will not leave or neglect you. Unfortunately, many with whom I've spoken cannot say that about their earthly parents, some of whom not only neglected them but caused them harm, physically or emotionally.
Whether or not you had parents who loved, cared for, and nurtured you when you were growing up, Your Heavenly Father promises always to do so. Your name is tattooed in His palm through much pain and sacrifice. You are never distant from His mind. In fact, He is aware of Your every move and thought and circumstance. He longs for you to be just as aware of His and of His tender heart towards you.
When my children were small and I had to be away from them, it was like there was a band stretching from my heart to theirs. I could feel the pull, the tug on my heart every moment until I returned to them (or they to me). They were on my heart and mind. It isn't all that much different now that they're grown and live their own lives in God's care away from me. Our Heavenly Father still sees our name written in His palm no matter how old we are....raising our own little ones or dealing with the aches and pains of old age.
Don't every forget how treasured you are, should you never have experienced it from a single other human being or even been betrayed by those who should have loved you the most. You can't even number the tender thoughts of love He has toward you. Love Him back with as much whole-hearted abandonment as you're able, and you will find He is the embodiment of the perfect Parent of which you've always dreamed.
******************************************
Isaiah 49:15-16 Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)
15 Can a woman forget her child at the breast,
not show pity on the child from her womb?
Even if these were to forget,
I would not forget you.
16 I have engraved you on the palms of my hands,
your walls are always before me.”
not show pity on the child from her womb?
Even if these were to forget,
I would not forget you.
16 I have engraved you on the palms of my hands,
your walls are always before me.”
Adonai, you have probed me, and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I stand up,
you discern my inclinations from afar,
3 you scrutinize my daily activities.
You are so familiar with all my ways
4 that before I speak even a word, Adonai,
you know all about it already.
5 You have hemmed me in both behind and in front
and laid your hand on me.
6 Such wonderful knowledge is beyond me,
far too high for me to reach.
7 Where can I go to escape your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I climb up to heaven, you are there;
if I lie down in Sh’ol, you are there.
9 If I fly away with the wings of the dawn
and land beyond the sea,
10 even there your hand would lead me,
your right hand would hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Let darkness surround me,
let the light around me be night,”
12 even darkness like this
is not too dark for you;
rather, night is as clear as day,
darkness and light are the same.
Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I climb up to heaven, you are there;
if I lie down in Sh’ol, you are there.
9 If I fly away with the wings of the dawn
and land beyond the sea,
10 even there your hand would lead me,
your right hand would hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Let darkness surround me,
let the light around me be night,”
12 even darkness like this
is not too dark for you;
rather, night is as clear as day,
darkness and light are the same.
13 For you fashioned my inmost being,
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I thank you because I am awesomely made,
wonderfully; your works are wonders —
I know this very well.
15 My bones were not hidden from you
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes could see me as an embryo,
but in your book all my days were already written;
my days had been shaped
before any of them existed.
17 God, how I prize your thoughts!
How many of them there are!
18 If I count them, there are more than grains of sand;
if I finish the count, I am still with you.
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I thank you because I am awesomely made,
wonderfully; your works are wonders —
I know this very well.
15 My bones were not hidden from you
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes could see me as an embryo,
but in your book all my days were already written;
my days had been shaped
before any of them existed.
17 God, how I prize your thoughts!
How many of them there are!
18 If I count them, there are more than grains of sand;
if I finish the count, I am still with you.
Saturday, August 19, 2017
Sleepwalking
I remember a day, years ago, when I stood at the window of the middle school in which I taught, communing with the One Who loves me best, before the onslaught of the day.. Certainly not an unusual morning in that respect. What was unusual, however, was that even as I began to carry out my various job responsibilities, I felt like I was walking a couple feet above the ground. It was as if I moved in a dream. His Presence, His reality was still so strong that although I completed all my tasks and even had conversations with people, I was dwelling in a different realm. I don't remember how long it was before I came back to earth, so to speak.
I was reminded of this experience recently. The Lord told me I was 'sleepwalking' in Him, and that this was possible on a regular basis. It was a form of finding and entering His Rest. Often I start out the morning feeling connected to Him, but then, as my day progresses, I get caught up in carrying out my responsibilities and lose touch with Him. I forget He's as near as my breath. I forget to ask Him for wisdom in dealing with an ill-behaved but needy middle schooler or an oblivious teacher. I forget to take His hand and ask Him to help me see behind the outward behavior to the soul inside. I allow anger, frustration, and discouragement to reign over me instead of His Holy Spirit.
Paradoxically, I want to learn how to draw close to people and yet see them from a distance...from above the earth. I want to experience sleepwalking in Him once again. To love unreservedly yet from the place of His rest; where my mind, will, and emotions are not tossed to and fro with every wind of someone else's behavior or the whims of our current culture.
I want to be tucked deep into His heart while withholding nothing which He calls me to offer to others. To enter fully into the life He's given me, yet never let circumstances rule over me and slam me about, as I react to one thing and then spin about to confront the next. I want to walk above, efficacious in my work because I'm always connected to the Source of all fruitfulness.
Chaim describes something similar in a scene of painting with one hand while the other arm is wrapped around the Lord. Yeshua, too, holds a paintbrush in his opposite hand, while holding him with the other. "Let's do this together," He says. Why do I keep forgetting and running off from His embrace?
Help me, Lord, to remain in Your reality and Your Rest while working diligently and with excellence...working not for men but for You. And not only for You but with You and in You. Keep me sleepwalking in Your Presence.
*****************
Colossians 3:23: "And whatever you do, do it heartily and unto the Lord and not unto men..."
*Hebrew Word Study: Revealing the Heart of God, Study 43
Tuesday, August 15, 2017
Wrestling Match
Always intrigued by Jacob's wrestling match with 'the angel,' I was interested in Chaim Bentorah's deeper investigation into the Hebrew terminology for this account*. I had always felt that Jacob was really wrestling with himself over his own character and future. Or, even more so, with God's will for his life over his own.
These wrestling matches do, indeed, leave you scarred. But so did Jesus' Gethsemane battle. And His was cosmic, its outcome affecting all of us now and for eternity. Ours, too, obviously on a much smaller scale, can affect the lives of many, including our own family. Decades ago I faced my own individual whirlwind with deep implications for my family's very existence, not to mention the impact on future relationships of all kinds. At the time, I knew I was in the midst of a huge personal decision about which way my life would go, but I had no idea how far-reaching its implications.
Beth Moore challenges us to see battle scars of various kinds as marks of our love for God, rather as objects of self-pity in which we wallow. Even now, as we wrestle on a day-to-day basis with our Lord's command to forgive, or with letting go of offenses, or with choosing His will over our own in any form, the scars of these wrestling matches, whether small skirmishes or all-out war, are invisible signs of our deep love and commitment to Him and His ways. They may be invisible to others, but they are not to Him. He touches their puckered skin with tender awareness of what it took for us to choose life, which is ultimately what we're doing when we choose His will over our own.
That's what Jesus did, and the life he wrought for us is beyond reckoning. In the smallest corners of our world, let's pray for God's grace to be like Him....
****************************
Genesis 32
1 Thessalonians 1:5-7
Hebrews 6:11-13
*Hebrew Word Study: Revealing the Heart of God; Study 22
These wrestling matches do, indeed, leave you scarred. But so did Jesus' Gethsemane battle. And His was cosmic, its outcome affecting all of us now and for eternity. Ours, too, obviously on a much smaller scale, can affect the lives of many, including our own family. Decades ago I faced my own individual whirlwind with deep implications for my family's very existence, not to mention the impact on future relationships of all kinds. At the time, I knew I was in the midst of a huge personal decision about which way my life would go, but I had no idea how far-reaching its implications.
Beth Moore challenges us to see battle scars of various kinds as marks of our love for God, rather as objects of self-pity in which we wallow. Even now, as we wrestle on a day-to-day basis with our Lord's command to forgive, or with letting go of offenses, or with choosing His will over our own in any form, the scars of these wrestling matches, whether small skirmishes or all-out war, are invisible signs of our deep love and commitment to Him and His ways. They may be invisible to others, but they are not to Him. He touches their puckered skin with tender awareness of what it took for us to choose life, which is ultimately what we're doing when we choose His will over our own.
That's what Jesus did, and the life he wrought for us is beyond reckoning. In the smallest corners of our world, let's pray for God's grace to be like Him....
****************************
Genesis 32
1 Thessalonians 1:5-7
Hebrews 6:11-13
*Hebrew Word Study: Revealing the Heart of God; Study 22
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