The Remaining Gift

 

"Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift"

2 Corinthians 9:15 (NIV)

 

Last year, due to the busyness of the Christmas season, I was unable to wrap our Christmas gifts before Christmas Eve. Until then, an unassuming red box with a stick-on silver bow maintained its lonely vigil beneath our tree. The box was a gift our eldest daughter had brought to us the previous Thanksgiving Day. Oddly enough, it was empty! 

As Christmas Day arrived and family members gathered, each brought and placed a small object of remembrance and thanksgiving into the box as instructed by our daughter. Later, after an extraordinary dinner, we sat around a beautifully lit tree, opened the box one by one, took out the article each had put in, and shared our thoughts concerning it.

Cherished memories spilled forth, accompanied by gratitude, laughter, and an ocassional tear while the spirit of Christmases past and present wondrously filled the room, our hearts, and our lives.  As a result, those who had passed on took their rightful place within our family circle once again in almost tangible presence, reminding us that they live on beneath everything we do and all that we are.

Today, the red box, after being opened numerous times at two Christmas family gatherings, still remains! It appears no worse for the wear as its profound impact on our family lingers.

The God-given gift of a family is a circle that can never be broken, a gift that will always remain. And just as the impact of the little red box will  maintain a prominent place within our hearts after all else has faded, so will the spirits of those we love.

It is quite astonishing how full an ordinary, empty box can be when the true Spirit of Christmas fills it and pours the contents of his love upon our hearts and lives. This outpouring, is truly an indescribable gift which will always remain!

Thanksgiving Leftovers

“Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.”

Matthew 15:2

 



It is the day after Thanksgiving, and a surplus of leftovers is precariously stacked in my fridge.  So precariously, in fact, that the thought of having to unpack the milk for this morning’s cereal causes me to settle for dry toast with a smidge of jelly snatched quickly from one of a dozen jars in the door. I have no time this morning to risk the avalanche that may result, nor the energy to rearrange the fridge’s chilly interior before my first cup of Java Joe kicks in.

 

Yesterday, after pushing back from a table laden with ham, turkey, giblet gravy, dressing, and all the trimmings, I vowed never to eat again. Now, before the dawn breaks and with only the light of the refrigerator piercing the morning darkness, one bleary-eyed glimpse of Tom Turkey and a half-eaten pumpkin roll has me eagerly anticipating my next meal.

 

Leftovers are rarely seen as choice fare, but for the Canaanite woman, even leftovers were  desirable. Seen as only a “dog” within this pharisaical community, she was deemed unworthy of anything more than table scraps. However, the desperation that seized her soul regarding her daughter’s well-being propelled her to push past the disciples and the self-righteous glares of the crowd to fall humbly at the feet of the Master. This outsider had the vision needed to see the One who contained the power to alter the outcome of her daughter’s life, while those he came to save blindly looked on. The apostles must have felt a sense of smugness as Jesus’s initial silence appeared to validate their deeply embedded beliefs. Little did they know a few well-thought-out words from Jesus would swiftly extract their shallow roots.

 

The words of Jesus seem callous, yet he typically seized the moment to demonstrate his unconditional love and to foreshadow the coming salvation of the Gentiles. In spite of his seeming indifference and the intolerable attitude of the disciples, the Canaanite woman clung to the hope that she had placed in Jesus.

 

True, Jesus had come to save the lost sheep of Israel, but this humble, outcast woman believed in her heart that even scraps from the Master’s table were more than enough to restore her daughter’s life. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table,” she said (Matthew 15:27). Jesus’s response to her was, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted” (Matthew 15:28). As a result of her faith, her daughter was immediately healed.

Today, as I sit munching on my meager toast, an abundance of food is piled high in my fridge. Do I, an heir alongside of Christ, take for granted all I have, and yet feel entitled to more? Or, do I with undaunted faith desire whatever God has to give, knowing that even scraps from his hand will bring more healing to my bones than the surplus of leftovers stacked in my fridge?

 

It is not how much we receive but the spirit with which we receive it that brings not only the results we desire, but the leftover sounds of thanksgiving that our Master so longs to hear.

 

Red Light! Green Light!

"The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD."  Psalm 37:23

 

When I was a child, I often played an outdoor game called “Red Light! Green Light!” The child designated as “it” played the part of a stoplight, forcing all other children to freeze on command.

Yes. I know. Playing a stoplight does not rank high on a child’s list of things to do today, but in a day when children actively entertained themselves rather than passively expecting to be entertained, being a stoplight was a highly desirable position.

Once someone was designated as “it,” everyone else lined up about twenty feet away. “It” would then turn his back to the others and call out, “Green light!” As the children ran toward him, he suddenly shouted out “Red light!” and quickly turned around. Anyone “it” caught moving would have to go back to the starting line. Whenever someone reached and tagged the human stoplight, that person would then get to be “it.”

As I reflect on this game, I am saddened to think of how often God still sees me caught up in this same childish thinking―still on a quest to be “it.” As an adult, this can only be viewed as a less than favorable position. If someone says, “She thinks she’s it,” I certainly don’t want to be the focus of their statement!

Psalm 37 tells us, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord.” And in the same chapter, we are told, “Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him.”

Life is full of stops and goes. I often look at the stops in my life as being negative and the goes as being positive, but George Müller, a nineteenth-century British evangelist, stated, “The stops of a good man as well as his steps are ordered by the Lord.”

Nowhere in God’s Word is this truth more evident than when God led his children through the wilderness with a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. “Whenever the cloud was lifted up above the tent, the Israelites would set out; at the place where the cloud stopped, there the Israelites camped” (Numbers 9:17, HCSB). Both the stops and the starts were orchestrated by the Lord. For the Israelites, God was It, with a capital I, and they were to walk accordingly. No running ahead when God turned his back.

What about me today? What about you? Have you been running ahead of God lately? Every time we move outside of God’s direction, every time we desire to be “it,” we run the risk of being sent back to the starting line. Neither having to start over, nor being the stoplight is a highly desirable position. Proceed with caution!

Lord, help me to acknowledge you as It with a capital I, and to walk accordingly. Amen

“Since we live by the Spirit,

let us keep in step with the Spirit.” (Galatians 5:25)

 



Go With the Flow

These leaves finally let go of the lofty position they had held for so long, only to be carried by the wind and brought to rest in deep waters. Where the waters will carry them is still a mystery, but one thing is sure; they served their purpose along the way....They brightened up my day!

 

It was only in the letting go . . . .

 

 

that their beauty flowed from among the masses!

 

"There's an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth....

A right time to hold on and another to let go...."

Ecclesiastes 3:1 & 6 (The Message)

 

 

Fit for a King

A voice of one calling: “In the desert prepare the way for the Lord;

make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.”

Isaiah 40:3 (NIV)

Jackhammers, roadblocks, detours, and major traffic jams are pretty much the norm as our city’s main thoroughfare undergoes massive reconstruction. Soon its irregular pavement, potholes, and unmarked lanes will be transformed into one of America’s leading corridors, welcoming travelers from the Great Lakes of Michigan to the eastern Carolina shores.

Those of us who must maneuver our way daily through this seemingly endless obstacle course will welcome the day we can move from point A to point B unhindered by such “progress.” Roadways, whether accommodating the gleaming chariots of old or the world’s latest hybrid automobiles, have always been in a constant state of repair.

Isaiah 40:3 points toward John the Baptist as the voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.”  

 In John’s day, before the arrival of a king into a village or city, the residents not only began sprucing up the market square, but they set out to prepare the roadway for his coming. Great measures were taken to ensure the removal of any large boulders or obstacles that would hinder the king’s entrance into the city. On the day of his arrival, the city would be truly fit for a king.

Today, preparing the way can be compared to rolling out the red carpet for our nation’s celebrities or foreign diplomats. Think of the immense renovation process in a city prior to hosting a major event such as the Olympic Games. Imagine the embarrassment of the people of the city if, upon the Olympians’ arrival, the venues were still incomplete.

Some days our lives and circumstances resemble a broken concrete thoroughfare or dusty wilderness highway as unconfessed sin leaves our hearts emotionally devastated and in need of repair. Potholes, roadblocks, and detours along poorly marked wilderness paths can leave us circling the same mountain time and again with no clear off-ramp in sight. How do we exit this roundabout? How do we restore the highway of our God?

John’s desperate cry in the wilderness states our needed response: “Prepare the way” . . . Repent! “Make straight a highway for our God”. . .  Pave the highway! We must humble ourselves before him and pave the highway of our hearts by removing any obstacle hindering the entrance of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Preparing the way requires getting serious about God’s call to repentance. When we humble ourselves before him . . . he will come! And the venue of our hearts will be found “fit for the King.”

 

Unfolding Grace

 

Showing signs of being torn and battered by life . . . . .

 

 

 this butterfly briefly pauses to remind me . . . it's still flying! 

 

"We’ve been surrounded and battered by troubles, but we’re not demoralized; we’re not sure what to do, but we know that God knows what to do; we’ve been spiritually terrorized, but God hasn’t left our side; we’ve been thrown down, but we haven’t broken.....So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There’s far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can’t see now will last forever."    2 Corinthians 4:8-9, 16-18   (The Message)

Eye Opening Wake-Up Call

"You prepare a table before me. . ."  Psalm 23:5, NIV

"Breakfast is ready! Come to the table!"

Who has not uttered these words or at least heard this call?

Often what follows is silence and a period of waiting, soon to be followed by another call and another period of waiting ~ then, perhaps another, and another.

Frustration certainly sets in after I prepare a nice breakfast and those I have called do not come, or they simply choose to come on their own timetable. Then, upon arriving at the table they groggily devour what I have prepared with hardly a word spoken, much less one of gratitude. 

Starting our day with a good breakfast boosts our energy, increases our attention spans, and heightens our sense of well-being. By recharging the brain and body, we are more efficient in just about everything we do. 

Recently, God reminded me of how, more times than I care to confess, I hear his early morning call and yet keep him waiting after he has prepared a wonderful table for me. Far too often I choose to grab a quick bite on the run by reading a one-minute devotional, listening to my favorite worship CD, or by pulling up an inspiring message on my iPod. Though beneficial, these are all poor substitutes for spending time at the table with my Savior, enjoying his presence, gleaning from his Word, and pausing to give thanks. 

Just as eating a good breakfast maintains our physical and mental well being, coming to the table upon the Lord's call enhances our spiritual well-being. Our inner man is energized, our spiritual awareness and discernment heightened, and our knowledge and love for the Lord and others grows deeper. By recharging our spiritual bodies, not only do we become more efficient in all that we do, but all that we do glorifies Him.

Oops! I'm so sorry. I hate to run. But I think I hear my Father calling.

By the way, do you have breakfast plans this morning?

"When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him . . ."  Luke 24:30-31



Write On!

"Call to Me and I will answer you

 and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know."

Jeremiah 33:3

           Your journey is yet to unfold.  Cherish the turning of every page in each chapter.  You will not be disappointed.  There is no greater ending than the one I have penned.  Write on, My child! Allow Me to guide your strokes.  Dip your pen into the well of My heart and allow Me to reveal the beat of it.  ~ Your Loving Father ~

 

 

"We write this to make our joy complete."

1 John 1:4

Take It, Break It, Make It

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So often I find myself saying, "But I only have...." 


Each time I utter these words,  I imply the gifts my heavenly Father entrusted to me are not enough, and I have somehow come up short. Time and again, I forget God's divine power has given me everything I need for life and godliness. (2 Peter 1:3)


In Matthew 14:17-21, the disciples said to Jesus, "We have here only five loaves and two fish."  In their eyes, a few fish and loaves were not quite enough to feed the 5000 hungry men and their families that stood before them.  However, Jesus's response to the disciples perceived dilemma was simply, "Bring them here to me."


"Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, He gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were leftover."


As a result of the disciples giving what they had to Jesus, all of those present not only ate and were satisfied, but there were even enough leftovers for each of the disciples.


What? You mean that is all I need to do?  Just bring what I have to Jesus?


Yes.  As I  bring my giftedness to Jesus, He will take it, break it and make it.  He will not only make it enough, but he will make it more than enough....more than enough to satisfy not only my own needs, but  the needs of those around me.


The next time I am tempted to say, "But I only have....", perhaps I will remember this lesson and instead declare,  "I have not only...."  I have not only enough, but I have more than enough.  I have leftovers! 



Creative Expression

"Every creator painfully experiences the chasm

between his inner vision and its ultimate expression."

~Isaac Bashevis Singer ~ 

The above quote eloquently sums up the perpetual inner struggle I have exprerienced as an artist.  Once my brush goes to canvas the end result is seldom what I had in mind.  What is in my mind's eye is always far greater.

In view of this, I reluctantly ask myself...."Is there a chasm between the Master Creator's inner vision for my life and my life's ultimate expresssion?"

"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine according to His power that is at work in us, to Him be the glory...."  Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV)