FULLY ALIVE!

Your life will be as bright as the noonday sun. Job 11:17

Monthly Archives: July 2016


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A Fowl Story

It started three days ago. This is the short version of the story.

Driving to a doctor’s appointment, I drove through a puddle of something on the highway. The cars before me had flown right through it, so I followed. It was pretty much unavoidable anyway since it covered both lanes. Anyway, I drove through it. Okay, nothing happened. Good. So, I kept driving.

I was running early for a change, so I decided to shop a little before my appointment. I wheeled into a parking space, literally jumped out of the car and rushed into the store. I had about 25 minutes to navigate TJ Maxx. If you’ve shopped there, you know it takes more than a few minutes to cover this “inside flea market” but I was going to give it my best, and I did.

Exactly 25 minutes later I was walking back to my car. As I approached to put my packages in the back, it hit me. The foulest stench ever! I thought, “What on earth is going on in this town?” I didn’t have time to give it a lot of thought; I had to get to my appointment. About 15 minutes later I was at the doctor’s office and when I exited the car, the odor was on that side of town, too. “Wow, something foul is really going on here today,” I thought before dashing inside. Yep, I smelled it when I returned to my car and I smelled it at my next stop. It was then that I realized that it was my vehicle not the air that was smelling.

Walking around my car for a quick inspection I noticed brown stuff on the tires and rear fenders. It wreaked! The temperature was rising and so was the odor, so I went to a car wash thinking it just needed a quick rinse. I paid the attendant to blast my car by hand then drove to my next stop. The moment I opened the car door, the stench hit me. I drove back to the car wash for another rinse.   I suggested the attendant focus on the tires, so he did.

Well, my day was pretty much shot so I headed for home only to arrive and find the stench was even stronger. I drove to a local car wash where the attendant scrubbed the tires before I drove through the automatic wash; this particular car wash offered an undercarriage wash feature – just what I needed! Returning home I found the stench still there but much less offensive. I shot the tire wells with a little Febreze and spritzed a little inside the vehicle before retiring for the night. (Yes, the night. “This” car wash business had literally consumed a day.)

While watering my lawn the next morning I caught a whiff of something foul. Yes, my car! For about an hour I scrubbed the tire wells, the rims and the rear bumper. I prayed more Febreze. All seemed well, but I checked about an hour later and spritzed a little more Febreze just in case.

Today, three days later, the stench is knocking me off my feet. My post master suggests that I take my car to a garage and have them place it on a lift so that we may inspect the underside.

It was foul. Actually, it was fowl – chicken poop to be exact! That’s what the brown stuff on the highway was. That’s what I had driven through. And that is what had stuck in the treads of the tires, splattered the tire wells and covered the underside of my car. Between the heat of the day (we’ve had temps in the high 90s all week) and the heat of the car, it was baked on the underside. It was under the hood! It was stuck in the nooks and crannies.

While having my car powerwashed (including the underside, engine and tire wells), I thought – “Hmm, just like sin.” It can seem like nothing or, at most, just a little something. Everyone is doing it. At first you don’t realize the impact, so you carry on as usual. It rears its head a little at first then slightly more. You catch a whiff of it, but you still think it’s no big deal. It is persistent. It will not stop until it has taken over. You read a Scripture or two, whisper an “I’m sorry” and try to make a quick deal with God. But sin is powerful. It is pervasive. It gets into the nooks and crannies of your life and your heart. It gets baked in and baked on.

First, we don’t recognize it as sin. We don’t call it by that name. We dress it up – we made a poor choice, we blew it, nobody’s perfect. We water it down – we made a mistake, took a misstep, goofed. No, we sinned.

Scripture does not describe sin as a “mistake” or a “failure.” God does not excuse sin as “bad behavior” or a “slip up.” Sin is serious; it is violating God’s law, and it is an offense against God (Romans 4:15, 1 John 3:4, Deuteronomy 32:51, Psalm 51:4, Exodus 32:33). Sin separates us from God (Isaiah 59:2)!

A spritz and a spray could not address the root of the foul odor that had attacked my car. I had to remove the source of the odor not just continuously try to cover it with perfume. It took intentional, focused, specific and time-intensive effort. I had to recognize that it wasn’t the air and it wasn’t just the tires. It was chicken manure, and it was caked and dried in the tire tread, tire wells, wheel rims and underside of the car.

Likewise with sin. Scripture is clear that the only way the problem of sin could be dealt with was through an intentional, focused, specific effort. That “effort” was a perfect substitute, Jesus Christ, experiencing the wrath of God for sinful man by dying on the cross and fully atoning our sin.

Understand then, that when you sin, it is not a trivial matter; it is not a mistake. Begin by calling it what it is. Until you do, you cannot address it.

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Amazed

Having worked in the field of education for more than 30 years, I was sure that I’d seen and heard it all, but I really never cease to be amazed.

I am amazed by the fashions of the students and the adults, like the guidance counselor who came to work with her shirt tied Daisy Duke style because she’d gotten her navel pierced the evening before and wanted to show it off…to elementary students!

I am amazed by the excuses for not doing homework and for coming to work late, like the teacher who said she woke up and decide to try a new route and got lost on the way.

I am amazed by the behaviors, like the teacher who thought a student might have intentionally clogged a toilet with paper too much tissue, so she gave her a paper towel and told her to use it to take all that excess soggy tissue out of the toilet. This one also falls under the category of amazing thinking – a paper towel to keep her hands clean while she took tissue from a nasty, recently used toilet? Hmm.

Fortunately, not all of the things that amaze me are negative. Daily I am amazed by the glory of nature – the beauty of the clouds, the majesty of the trees, the melody of the birds. In the Psalms David declared, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard.” (Psalm 19:1-3). Nature alone is proof that He is and that He is great!

I cannot share these amazements, good and bad, without acknowledging that sometimes I have been amazed by my own thinking and my own behavior and surely I confess, it was not always good. Some of it was selfish. Some of it was vengeful. Some of it hurt others. I am especially sorry about that and this, perhaps, is why I am most amazed by God and His grace, His mercy and His love for us even when we falter.

As Deuteronomy tells us, He is “God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God” (Deuteronomy 10:17 ESV). Sometimes we forget that or, at the very least, we take it for granted. The Desperation Band sings, “You dance over me while I am unaware. You sing all around, but I never hear the sound. Lord, I’m amazed by you – how you love me! How wide, how deep, how great is your love for me! Lord, I’m amazed by you – how you love me!”

He formed light; He created darkness (Isaiah 45:7, ESV); He made “heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and” He preserves all of them (Nehemiah 9:6, ESV). He is “the Rock, His work is perfect, all His ways are justice.” He is “a God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright” (Deuteronomy 32:4, ESV) and yet, He loves us. He loves us. So much so that He pursues us! As long as we live in this sinful and fallen world we will sin – even those of us who are believers (though Jesus paid our sin debt), and we may still have to deal with the consequence of sin. He knows the pain of sin, so He teaches us and shows us His way, a better way, the way that He desires for us. He pursues us. He never lets go of us. He loves us! He is amazing, and I am amazed!

LISTEN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1SoPfCIm80


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BOGO?

You know you want it!  As a matter of fact, you don’t just want it, you gotta have it.  It might have something to do with the fact that it’s 3:00 am and you’re obviously wide awake.  More likely it has to do with the fact that you can really see yourself with it.  Why wouldn’t you have it?  You should have had it already?  Actually, you should have thought of it.  Clearly everyone except you has one.  It just makes sense to have it.  Life would be so much easier with it.   And it’s so cheap.

What is it?

WHATEVER they are selling during the graveyard shift of television – that period between 1:00 am and 6:00 pm when “good” television has signed off.  Rather than playing the National Anthem and really signing off the way they did when I was a young girl, networks and affiliates sell their airtime to sponsors, and sponsors use this time to sell us on the latest, greatest, can’t-live-without-it inventions.  It is the time of infomercials.

I’ve been sucked in, and so have you.  Even now a Showtime Rotisserie is perched on a Baker’s rack in my kitchen.  A PedEgg is tucked away in my luggage.  I’ve secretly been thinking about buying that “red pan” – you know, the one that nothing sticks to.

There are a few products that I would actually volunteer to do infomercials for.  I’m a firm believer in that Showtime Rotisserie.  Cooking is easy AND it cleans up even easier.  The Mr. Clean Magic Eraser really is magical.  It cleans EVERY thing from walls to tubs to tennis shoes.  I’ve told a gazillion people about these and other gadgets; they’re amazing.

When you discover a great product, don’t you want to tell?  If you knew the cure for cancer, wouldn’t you share?  Of course you would, so let me tell you about the best discovery ever.  It’s a balm.  And it comes from Gilead (Jeremiah 8:22).  No, it’s not for scaly elbows or dry, cracked heels.  It is for the sin-sick soul!

Do you need the balm?  There’s no BOGO ( buy one-get one free) offer.  You don’t have to telephone within the next seven minutes, and there’s no shipping and handling.  You don’t even need a major credit card or checking account.  You just need to “confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, and you will be saved” (Romans 10:9-10).

Do you already have the balm?  It’s a much better “deal” than a Sham-Wow or a Spin Mop, far more needed than a Slice-O-Matic and will serve one better than George’s Lean Mean Grilling Machine.  Share it.  Look for opportunities to tell others the good news not of the infomercial but of the Savior, the Balm in Gilead.  He will heal their sin-sick souls.

RESOURCES

There is a Balm in Gilead:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fcMxI_6xsk

Sharing Your Faith 101:  https://billygraham.org/story/sharing-your-faith-101/

 

 


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Window Shopping

It was almost a ritual.  Sunday School followed by morning worship that lasted most of the day (so I never understood why they called it morning worship) then home to a dinner that my mom had actually prepared just after breakfast, a nap for dad and then a short drive into town just as the sun was setting to go window shopping!

Those of you under the age of 50 probably have never heard of window shopping – looking at the goods displayed in shop windows, especially without intending to buy anything. If you have heard of it, your probably can’t understand it. Well, think of it like shopping online. You put a lot of stuff into your cart, but you never check out! Researchers (yes, someone actually studied window shopping) say that there are great benefits from window shopping – exercise, relieved stress and raised aspirations are just a few, not to mention you save money!

For us, it was a great family time. It was almost a kind of “date night” for mom and dad as they walked along whispering to each other, gazing into the windows of the furniture store, reminiscing about old times and making plans for their future – and ours. For my sister and I, it was a time of dreaming. Our favorite window gave a gaze into the local 5 and dime. As we grew, our interests shifted to the clothing stores. Sometimes we would stop for ice cream and enjoy our cones and sandwiches as we walked, talked and “shopped,” our imaginations running wild.

That’s what window shopping is really about – letting your imagination run wild. You imagine all the things that you could have, the life you could live. Imagination can be a good thing. And not. Especially when it comes to living the Christian life. We were not meant to live a life of imagining what could be, what we might have. John 10:10 teaches us that Christ came that we might have an abundant life, here and in the hereafter.

When you window shop you never go into the store, you never try on the goods, you don’t even get to touch them. You simply watch from a distance, separated by that pane of glass and separated from the joy of touching, holding, knowing, having. When we window shop God’s word, we read of all that He has promised – rest, power, strength, peace, victory, life eternal! (Matthew 11:28-29; Isaiah 40:29-31, Proverbs 1:33; John 14:27, Romans 8:37-39), but we separate ourselves from possessing these gifts and knowing the full joy of them. Just as we cannot really imagine owning some of the possessions behind the glass of the store windows, we tell ourselves that we cannot really receive God’s blessings. For certain, we don’t deserve His love.

We look with our human eyes and think with our human thoughts, so it is difficult for us to comprehend. God does not love us because we are lovable or because we deserve His love. Our hearts are innately deceitful and wicked (Jeremiah 17:9). We are evil and we do evil (Romans 3:10-12). But it is not just God’s nature to love; He is love, true love, not the sappy movies and Valentine’s Day kind of love but agape love, love that sacrifices, and He chooses to lavish His love on those who need it the most, those who least deserve it, those who rebel even against Him (1 John 4:10; John 6:44; Romans 5:8).

Unlike the cold panes of glass that separate us from the stores’ goods, God invites us to come – come drink, come eat, come live (Isaiah 55:1-2). Don’t let Satan trick you into thinking you are unworthy. He will have you forever on the outside looking in, nose pressed against the glass, desiring what you think is beyond you. Come. Come into God’s covenant. Come into His love (Isaiah 55:1-3).


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Lessons From a Squirrel

If we would pay attention, all of life can teach us a lesson, even a squirrel.  For example, just this morning as I sat on my screened porch for quiet time with my LORD, I learned that the porch is not always the best place for me.  I can too easily become distracted by the swarms of birds that come to my feeders, the neighbor’s cats that slither betwixt and between my Hostas, the beeps of the garbage trucks, the hoot of a faraway owl and THE SQUIRRELS.

This morning in particular it was a squirrel that distracted me, so much so that I stopped to capture video.  I’m thinking that it is a mother-to-be squirrel because she is obviously building a nest in my neighbor’s attic (not the neighbor with the cats).  I watched her sneak in and out of the attic venting carrying small branches of leaves.  She would poke her head from the venting, watch and listen for things or people that might harm her then, when she deemed it safe, climb to the roof ridge before scurrying down one side of the roof and making a jump to a nearby tree.  She would gnaw a branch from a tree then, with branch in mouth, make the return trip – jumping back onto the roof, climbing to the ridge then down to the vent and into the attic.  I captured a series of photos and three 10-minute videos.  She must have made a gazillion trips.

So what did I learn? I mean, other than not to have my quiet time on the screened porch. I learned a lot, but I will share just one lesson – one I believe is powerful. God calls us to be lifelong learners.

My neighbor’s attic is not that squirrel’s first home. It very likely is not her only home because typically squirrels construct at least two nests – one to live in and a backup in the event something happens to or danger comes near the first. My neighbor’s roof may not be the first roof that squirrel climbed. Squirrels are continuous learners, forever learning which trees to climb, how to escape from predators (remember those cats), where to build nests, how to find food (like they’ve discovered my bird feeders), where to hide their goodies, etc. They cannot afford to become complacent and to stop learning, and neither can we.

Proverbs 1:5-7 teaches us that the wise hear and increase in learning, that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge and that fools despise wisdom and instruction. Paul reminds us in Philippians 3:13-14 that as believers we are to be continuous learners growing in the LORD. TM Moore writes, “The basic meaning of the word, “disciple,” is learner. A disciple is one who learns. A disciple of Jesus Christ is one who learns from Him.”

What are we to learn? A lot! Our calling is to learn about Jesus, who He is, what His plan is and how we fit into that plan. Colossians 2:2-3 (MSG) says Believers can be woven into God’s tapestry of love, be in touch with everything there is to know of God and “have minds confident and at rest” because they will be filled with the wisdom and mystery of God. Who wouldn’t want this?!

Jesus commands us, “Learn from Me” (Matthew 11:29 ESV). The verb “learn” as used here expresses continuous action. When we want to talk about an action that is happening now or at this time and is unfinished, we use the present continuous tense. Learn now, learn later, learn repeatedly, learn continuously. That’s a lesson from a squirrel. That’s a lesson from our LORD!

SOURCE

http://www.colsoncenter.org/the-center/columns/talking-points/16887-lifelong-learners

 


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In the Eyes of Passersby

As with most things in life, there is a “best” posture.  A posture for divers.  A posture for runners.  A poster for walkers.  Mine is surely not “the best.”  It’s kinda “slumpy” at times, especially in the third mile.

But I’ve noticed something interesting about myself and my walking; it happened just this morning, but I realized this was not the first time.  I even came to realize that it is something that happens with a degree of automaticity.

Let me try to paint a picture.

I was in my third mile.  It was hot; it’s always hot in July in North Carolina.  And it was humid; it’s always humid in July in North Carolina.  My clothes were beginning to droop as was my hair, my brow, my spirits and, yes, my posture.  Heading home there is a slight hill.  In my car I barely notice it; walking, it’s Mount Everest!  I was really thinking that I might not make it, and then it happened.

Someone drove past me.

I immediately straightened my back, picked up my pace and unfurled my brow. It’s as if I suddenly forgot how tired I was, how sweaty I was, how desperate I was to reach the shower and my air conditioned home. I instantly had a walker’s posture!

Isn’t that how we are at times – changing our posture, changing our “walk” when others are around to see? Here’s a news flash: “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes…” (Hebrews 4:13a NLT) Add to this that “[p]eople judge by outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7 NLT).

As Christians and believers, ours is to ALWAYS be a posture that reflects our LORD, not just when others pass us by. Joy Williams asked in her song by the same title, “Do they see Jesus in me?” That’s the “best” posture in our daily walk, one that reflects Jesus to others – His love, His mercy and His grace. He alone is “the one to whom we are accountable.” (Hebrews 4:13b NLT)

Listen:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwiF3HE4cQ8

 


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Thinking About What You’re Thinking About

An amazing discovery I’ve had since retiring is that my mind wanders. Not short trips but journeys.  In a matter of minutes my thoughts race from laundry to shopping lists to telephoning a friend to a Scripture I read to a program on television to a conversation with my mom to whether I should mow the lawn or not and back to the laundry and should I do a load of “whites” or “colors.”  It’s easy to dismiss that kind of thoughtlessness, but Scripture teaches that as a man thinks in his heart, so he is.  What does that mean?  Studylight.org writes, “A man is as his thoughts.”  I like to put it this way, “You are what you think about!”

The way that we think determines to a large if not complete part how we live, what we do, who we do it with, where we go and who we are.  Just let that soak in for a few.

My thoughts dictate whether I am going for a walk or lounging in the recliner.  My thoughts lead me to telephone a friend or dwell in quiet time.  My thoughts guide my decision to drive through a fast food restaurant or stir up a meal from the pantry.  My thoughts determine whether I will pray about a situation or gossip about it.

It is crucial that we think about what we are thinking about and, as 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 teaches, learn to take our thoughts captive.  Our minds do not have to be open pastures allowing any and every creature to pass through.  We can and, more importantly, we should erect fences that hold captive the thoughts we should dwell on and keep out those that would not only prove detrimental to our well-being but those that rob us of peace with God, peace in our relationships and peace with ourselves.  You know, the spirit-killers and joy-robbers – the thoughts that keep us from being who God created us to be.

Philippians 2:5 (AKJV) says, “Let this be the mind in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” This Scripture should raise for you as it did for me the question of How – How do I have the mind of Christ?

First, you must know Christ. If you don’t know Him, you cannot possibly have his mind. Settle this business first! You can visit the SALVATION tab at the top of this page to learn how you can have a personal relationship with Christ as your Lord and Savior.

To those who know Him, Scripture gives guidance for our thought life.

  • Romans 12:2 (NASB) says, “do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Women are somewhat experts on renewal; you know, new hairstyle, new wardrobe, new shoes. Those things are nice, but what we need is a new mind, new thinking. We need to continuously renew our minds through prayer and the study of God’s word. Renewal is an ongoing process.
  • 1 Peter 1:13 (KJV) says, “gird up the loins of your mind.” I love Scriptures like this because I am forced to go deeper in my study to understand the meaning. Gird is not a word we tend to use freely in the American language, and our use of the word loins is typically preceded by the words beef or pork.

The Art of Manliness.com writes, “Back in the days of the ancient Near East, both men and women wore flowing tunics. Around the tunic, they’d wear a belt or girdle. While tunics were comfortable and breezy, the hem of the tunic would often get in the way when a man was fighting or performing hard labor. So when ancient Hebrew men had to battle the Philistines, the men would lift the hem of their tunic up and tuck it into their girdle or tie it in a knot to keep it off the ground. The effect basically created a pair of shorts that provided more freedom of movement. Thus to tell someone to “gird up their loins” was to tell them to get ready for hard work or battle. It was the ancient way of saying “man up!”

Well, we don’t have to “man up,” (Ladies, don’t get upset.) but we do need to “step up” and “mature up,” especially in our thinking. This Scripture calls us to prepare our minds for the battle. What battle? The battle with Satan. He knows that if he can wriggle his way into your thoughts (doubt, anger, bitterness, jealousy, revenge, etc.), he can control you. Remember, “a man is as his thoughts,” and “you are what you think about.”

Just as the Hebrew men lifted their hems and tucked them into their girdle to free themselves to fight more effectively, so we need to hem up our thoughts, tuck in those that are of Christ (I am his child, John 1:12; I am a friend of Jesus, John 15:15; I am no longer a slave to sin, Romans 6:6; In Christ Jesus I have wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption, 1 Corinthians 1:30, etc.), and keep out those that are of Satan (I am no good, I am a loser, I am weak, I can’t help myself, etc.)

Think about what you are thinking about.