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Her children will rise up and call her blessed..  Proverbs 31:28

A few weeks ago, I heard a speech on Mothers and the way they feel at times as they carry out their role.  I picked up a few words of wisdom, and I think it can apply to almost every mother no matter the generation.

Mothers come in all shapes and sizes, all nationalities, and all religions.  Mothers are created biologically, through adoption, fostering, or just grace.  As the old saying goes, “God couldn’t be everywhere, so he made Moms.”

Mothers have a huge job, and in the midst of all they do, sometimes they begin to feel invisible.  They get no recognition on a day to day basis as they run their household, work outside the home, work in the home, plan and cook meals, coordinate schedules, and basically hold the family together.  As they go about their jobs day to day, Moms can begin to think that no one sees or cares about the job they are doing.  The good news is that God sees and cares because Moms are “building cathedrals” through their efforts.

I love the analogy of that.  I’ve seen many cathedrals and never thought about the fact that you can’t name the people who built the great cathedrals.  If you scan down to find the names – most often it says “unknown”.  People completed their work not knowing that any one would notice.  That’s basically how I see Mothers.  We build character, instill love, teach manners, teach respect, discipline, love unconditionally, and exemplify love for God, just to name a few things, but we don’t think anyone notices.  Sometimes we wonder why we spend so much time on what we think no one sees.

As a mother and  a grandmother, I can say with great assurance, that people do notice and appreciate the efforts that mothers make, and that God sees and smiles on Mothers.  If you build those “cathedrals” well, God will bless them.

My prayer is that every Mom will feel especially visible on this Mother’s Day, and that each one can take the time to feel loved and appreciated.

It is with great admiration for the greatness of what you have built, are building, and will build when you think no one sees, that I wish every mother a Happy Mother’s Day!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Surely I am with you always, to the very end.  Matthew 28:20

When I read a book, I find myself visualizing each character – their appearance, their personality, their faults, their successes, their failures, and the components that make them tick.  I begin to identify with the characters, and I certainly want things to turn out in their favor in the end.  From my vantage point, I can see the mistakes they could make, the pain that awaits, and I want to help them avoid these.

This habit leads to the problem I sometimes have of the awful urge to skip to the end  of the book to make sure I like the ending and that things turn out as they should for my characters.  This is a horrible habit to have in almost any book, but especially when you are reading a story which has a twist at the end!  You miss the whole idea.

There are many times when I also would like to skip to the end of a situation, a close ballgame, a movie, an illness, a life altering decision, and so many other things, but then I would miss the beauty which leads up to the end.  I probably would have never read Gone With the Wind if I had known the way Rhett would leave Scarlett.

We all face challenges and difficulties in this life, and it’s easy to let our thoughts become negative.  If we let those thoughts control our life, we are defeated before we ever begin to fight.  If we are spiritually, emotionally, and mentally prepared, we don’t have to skip to the end because we can be sure that at the end of a great hardship lies an even greater blessing.

Mistakes are survivable, and they can become teaching tools to sharpen and make you a better person.  Don’t skip to the end of life – just enjoy it!

Garth Brooks said it best in his song, The Dance.                                                            And now I’m glad I didn’t know the way it all would end, the way it all would go;  Our lives are better left to chance – I could have missed the pain, but I’d have to miss the dance.

 

 

 

 

 

O for a thousand tongues to sing my great redeemer’s praise, the glories of my God and King, the triumphs of His grace.  

This morning as I dragged myself to exercise class, I began to dread the class, not because of the exercise, but because of the awful music which has no discernable lyrics that is usually played.  To my great surprise, as I rounded the corner, I heard the unmistakeable chorus of My Girl,  and my mood brightened immediately – I felt energized and happy!  We continued the workout with My Guy, Stand By Me, Shout,  and more of my favorite songs.  I asked the young instructor why she chose this music, and she said, “I love these songs because they tell a story, the music is memorable, and I don’t think there’s a single generation that doesn’t love it.”  Thank you!  I know every word of these songs, and it makes me feel good to sing along.

I began to think of all the other songs that I love, and a lot of them are hymns.  Charles Wesley wrote over 6000 hymns, and many of them I grew up playing and singing as a child, a young adult, and an adult.  There is hardly one in the United Methodist Hymnal that I haven’t at least heard.  The lyrics tell a sweet story, each verse is different, the chorus is energizing, and they all speak of our God and King.  These are the “Praise” hymns to which I can relate.

The first hymn in the hymnal is “O For A Thousand Tongues to Sing”, and it speaks of voices raised in adoration and praise.  When you have a congregation or group of Christians lifting their voices in worship, it is a wonderful testament to our faith.

Last week, I heard a minister explaining to the people assembled for the funeral of a friend, that although hymns were not in vogue now, they were the foundation and essence of our faith.  He went on to say that the word “war” in the hymn we were about to sing, was referring to the Christian movement of winning people to Christ and waging “war” against the evil one. The hymn in question was “Onward Christian Soldiers”, and I was saddened to hear that this great hymn was under scrutiny of political correctness by those who don’t even know its origin.  It was written in 1865 to encourage churches to “put on the whole armor of Jesus Christ”.

I am proud to say that we sang it along with “He Lives” and it was a marvelous testament to a Christian man, a life well lived and a God well served!  Hymns are always in vogue.  

Onward Christian Soldiers marching as to war, with the cross of Jesus going on before!

 

Life has a sweetness to it, and a beauty and power that I want to celebrate.”             Valerie Harper  

There are just times in your life when the presence of God is so real and enfolds you so completely that you realize you never want this feeling to end!  Saturday as we celebrated the life of a very special young lady, I was surrounded with a feeling of what can only be described as sweetness.  I felt the entire church gathering pouring out their love and care for a wonderful young lady and her family.  It was evident that God’s presence was there blanketing all of us, and it was such an uplifting experience.

It is sometimes in the hardest of times that God grants us grace to count these times as the sweetest ones.  We feel united in our faith in a Savior and in our heavenly home.

The thing is, you know this feeling can’t go on forever, but you don’t know how you’ll give it up.  St. Augustine called the time in your life when you feel God’s presence in such a real way and the time after  it leaves you as  the sweetness.   It’s such a sweet time that reveals a God that is omnipresent, omnipotent, and omniscient.   How comforting to know that God is present everywhere, that he is all powerful and all knowing.

No matter how long the sweetness lasts, when it leaves, you won’t be the same.  You might hate to see it go for now, but the result will leave an imprint on your life.  You will never forget the feeling of this sweetness.  The good news is that it can come again!

As I left the service, a familiar song kept repeating in my heart, and mind,   Jesus loves me this I know; for the Bible tells me so; little ones to him belong; they are weak, but He is strong.  Yes, Jesus loves me, Yes, Jesus loves me, Yes, Jesus loves me;  The Bible tells me so.

 

 

Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Jesus Christ to all generations forever and ever.  Amen.                                    Ephesians 3:20-21

Ordinary is defined as “no special or distinctive happenings; normal”.  Using that definition, ordinary is different for each of us.

The Lenten season has come and gone, Easter has once again filled us with joy and become a memory, and suddenly, we realize that  life has returned to ordinary time.  There are no special holidays coming up for a while, pollen is here in force, spring break is drawing to a close, azalea and dogwood blooms are waning, and we are all going back to the ordinary time of our lives.

We tend to view the ordinary time as boring , but it is in the ordinary time that God works to speak to us and change our life.  If we are attuned to the still small voice, we can become aware of how He is working.

As we were watching the Masters golf tournament this weekend, I continued to see that beautiful bridge which crosses the course around the 12th and 13th hole.  I began to think of all the times when God builds  bridges between the ordinary time of our lives to the extraordinary time, and all the times I cry, “Lord, build me a bridge.”  He can take an ordinary day, reveal a truth or sign, and suddenly the day is extraordinary.

I had an experience with this last week.  Hummingbirds have always been a sign to our family of God’s presence, His love, and His care – a sign that all our loved ones and friends are under His care.  On the Monday after Palm Sunday, the day after Grace died, I was standing at the kitchen window when suddenly, a hummingbird appeared at the feeder on our deck -the first one I’ve seen this year.  He fluttered around the feeder, looked toward the window, hit the other feeder, lingered, and was gone! God appearing to me!  I wasn’t expecting it, but God turned an ordinary, sad day into extraordinary in the blink of an eye.  I felt a great peace about Grace, Robert, and all those who have gone before.  God’s bridge from ordinary to extraordinary.

There are bridges being built every day which are sometimes missed. If we are just open to Him working, every day can be transformed from ordinary time to extraordinary!  Lord, build us a bridge!

 

 

 

Most people would succeed in small things if they weren’t troubled with blind ambition.  Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Recently I read of a  young Iowa basketball player named Jordan Bohannon who deliberately missed a free throw which would have broken the current record of 34 consecutive free throws held by a former player, Chris Street.  Chris was killed 25 years ago in an automobile accident.  Jordan gave up his chance to break that record because he wanted to continue to honor Chris Street.  In an interview he said, “Life is bigger than basketball.”  The fans were ready for a record to be broken, but Jordan was thinking not so fast.

In the Elite Eight tournament, Loyola players were seen to be holding up four fingers in the final minutes.  Since a basketball game consists of a first half and a second half, I was a bit confused until the announcer explained that this was a gesture of the team’s  commitment to the final four minutes of each and every game.  Don’t be so fast to ever count them out.  The character of that team has shone through any nay sayers and brought them to the Final Four.

Character is more important than accomplishments because character lasts for eternity.   You might not remember Chris Street, but you will probably recall the unselfish act performed by Jordan Bohannon.  You might not remember the highly rated teams in the tournament, but you’ll probably remember Loyola and Sister Jean.

Character consists of several things, but most of all, your values, your integrity, and your honesty.  I like to think faith plays a huge part in their character development.

As we seek, to raise our children and grandchildren, it’s important to instill these in their lives.  I watch a lot of different sports on a lot of different fields, and you can tell the kids whose parents believe in the development of character and display character themselves.  They realize that winning isn’t the ultimate goal, it’s how you play the game!

Character is what you are when no one else is looking.  copied

 

I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.  Philippians 3:14

It is interesting to recall how our Easter Egg Hunts have gone over the years in our family.  When our kids were small, we always hid the eggs in the most obvious places in our yard so they could easily see them and pick them up.  As the years progressed, the hiding places became more difficult – under a bush, behind a tree – more difficult but still expected places.  When we began to offer a Prize Egg, then the competition became rather intense and the hiding places became ridiculously hard!  They had to work for the prize.

Growing in the Christian faith is much like that Easter Egg Hunt.  We begin to learn the obvious roots of our faith by looking in the simple places where we are spoon fed the basics of the Bible.  Later, we begin to delve deeper into the faith by trying to discover the truths of our faith by Bible Studies or organized classes and services.  Lastly, we step out in faith and begin to personalize our faith and the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of it.  We need to know the goal or prize and pursue it through service to others and living the faith.

Sometimes this life can be so discouraging that we tire of looking for the prize.  We get tired, discouraged, and overwhelmed.  In these times, we need to remember why we follow Him in the first place.  As we strive for the prize or goal of spiritual perfection, we are blessed with an awareness of what we can be in the Lord’s presence one day.    The prize of focusing on our goal is the assurance that one day we shall behold Him.

On this Easter,  my mind turns to two very special people that won the prize recently.  Selfishly, we wanted to keep Grace and Robert here because we love them, but we can celebrate  their victory and joy as they have received the prize and  are beholding Jesus face to face.

As we go through the rest of this Holy Week and it’s sadness and suffering, it is good for us to see the prize and victory that Resurrection Day brings!

The sky shall unfold preparing His entrance; The stars shall applaud Him with thunders of praise;  The sweet light in His eyes, shall enhance those awaiting, And we shall behold Him then face to face.   “We Shall Behold Him”  Sandi Patti 

Happy Easter!                                                            

 

“Therefore to keep me from being conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh..”  11 Corinthians 12:7

Thorns represent sin, sorrow and hardship, but  the crown of thorns used on Jesus was also a brutal instrument that caused much agony.

Life’s little thorns can sometimes end up being lessons in disguise.  Last week, Randy noticed that water was pouring out of the meter in the yard between us and our neighbor, but more on the neighbor’s side.    We called the water department, as I was secretly thanking God that it wasn’t our yard!  Long story short, it turned out that the leak was between our houses, so they ended up digging up all my 30 year old juniper to get to the leak.

As I was moving the left over juniper brambles, a thorn or thistle lodged in my hand, and I immediately thought how sometimes everything goes wrong.  A thorn in the flesh can hit us with the chance to enjoy a good dose of self pity.

Thorns together with roses are said to represent pain and pleasure.  The thorn is an emblem of Christ’s passion, but it is defined as “anything troublesome”.  The latter statement helps put it in perspective for me.  Jesus wore an entire crown of thorns to demonstrate how much he loves us.

It’s easy when things are going well to thank God from whom all blessings flow, but when thorns crop up among the beauty of our lives, that’s another matter.  I read recently a quote by George Matheson which reads, “God, I have never thanked You for my thorns.  I have thanked you a million times for my roses, but not once for my thorns.”  It’s the thorns in life which make us value the the roses all the more.

We fall to our knees during thorny times, and it is during these times that we learn to value the thorns in our life.  It takes the thorns to push us into the corner of surrender where we totally rely on God for the sufficiency we need to get through our difficult situation and realize these are necessary conditions for blessings.  Thorns can be evidence of God working in our lives.  Sometimes it’s through tears that rainbows are seen.

The water leak is fixed, new juniper plants are planted, and the thorn is removed.  Sometimes God just needs to get our attention so we remember to be thankful for the thorns.

Christ wore that crown of thorns to the top of a hill called Calvary and there died to take away all our sins.

 

 

 

Don’t assume that you know it all.  Run to God.  Proverbs 3:7

Years ago when we were serving in Bowdon, Randy decided to take on the project of putting together a swing set for the kids.  If you know Randy, then you ascertain, correctly, that this is a monumental task for him.  He ordered the set, unloaded it into the basement garage, and locked himself down there for the duration.  It was to be a surprise.  On the second day of listening to banging, frustrated words, and  out of sheer curiosity,  I went down to check on the progress.  Now, I assumed that he was putting it together in sections and would then move the sections outside to assemble.  Never assume.  I really hated to mention that the set might  not make it through the garage doors, so I simply asked if he had measured to be sure?!  The answer was “no.”

A few weeks ago, I was the “Mystery Reader” for my youngest grandson, Reese’s class.   I assumed that I would be reading the book, but Reese surprised me and showed me what a great reader he is!   He read it sight unseen!  I was so proud!  Never assume!

I wonder how many times we assume a lot about others just looking on the outside.  There are many times when I hear of a divorce, an illness, a suicide, an addiction, or other terrible situation, or even more happily an unexpected accomplishment, and hear myself and others saying, “Well, I would have never guessed that about them.” We assume that all is well, but we haven’t bothered to listen to what they are Not telling us or showing.  We don’t bother to check in and see how people are really coping with life.  We hesitate to get involved because we think that we might be seen as nosy or judgmental.

In the day to day perfunctory greetings of “How are you today?” and the usual answer of “Fine, and you?”, we forget that our purpose is to get involved in the lives of others who might need us.  We shouldn’t assume that people don’t need the support we might be able to lend.  Never assume.

 

 

 

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”  Ephesians 2:10

I have a really bad habit of shopping for gifts when they are on sale, putting them away, and then forgetting I bought them.  This means that sometimes for Christmas, a birthday, etc., I have more than enough items for a gift.  Some of them must be returned after the event.  The other day, I had items spread out with corresponding receipts.  Randy came through and said, “Oh, are these the items that didn’t make the cut?  Are these the things that weren’t good enough??”

In this world today, I hear many stories of people who think they aren’t good enough to live and function in our society.  Atelophobia is defined as “fear of imperfection or fear of not being good enough”.

It’s hard to see people who are berated by others in our society.  Social media has opened doors that allow some to bully or berate others, especially our children. What I’ve found is that the ones least qualified to judge you are the ones most eager to do so.  The One most qualified to judge you, won’t.

In our society filled with school violence, bullying, anorexia, depression, and so many other things which might result from feeling inadequate or feelings of not being good enough, it’s time to make sure each person knows how much they matter and that we are all good enough.  Christ is more than ready to meet all of us and cover us up in His grace which is greater than any feeling of inadequacy or unworthiness.

“God’s strength is enough to fight and win our battles, God’s riches are enough to supply our needs, God’s wisdom is enough to teach and direct us, but most of all, God’s love is more than enough for all of us.”  copied