Category: Season

When You Can't, He Can

5/1/2013

In the aftermath of any life-altering event, it’s challenging to think or hear clearly in the never- ending din of society; when the return to life-as-normal has to be resumed though your soul cringes at the merest thought of it and huddles in a corner while it whimpers
that it isn’t ready to face reality just yet. Even so, you gradually unwind from your huddled position and slowly begin to press onward as you go through the motions of taking care of routine business matters: bill-paying, grocery shopping, yard work, etc. All the while, you share a half-hearted shallow discourse with others who cross your path, using pat, non-committal phrases as you ensure yet another well-meaning soul that you are doing ‘okay.’ (Doesn’t that word speak volumes?!) You return to work only when you have to and thankfully end up losing yourself in the many familiar details of your job. Here
at work, people cannot see the numbing pain that is masked by your smile and your diligent – though rote - productivity, yet they could see it if they chose to look closely into your eyes.

Resuming life-as-normal is a daunting task after any traumatic event. Life was already challenging to deal with when it did not contain a life-altering event. Inundated with high emotions and stress, we look to have our life made easier by the electronic products that
we have grown accustomed to. Yet the more our lives have been flooded with them and all the knowledge that comes with it, the more our vision has been clouded to the point where life feels more complicated and overwhelming than ever. The technology we look to every day that was meant to give us more free time and greater ease of living while supplying us with the means to draw the world-wide community closer to us has instead made us a society rife with pseudo relationships, enslaved us to apps and social networks, and created a Pavlovian response in each of us so that we immediately reach for our phone whenever we hear a ding, or bell, or some other (usually annoying) sound announcing that we have been sent a text, an email, or a push notification relating to a breaking story, all the while hoping that it’s someone reaching out to us in this turbulent season of life who will lend us comfort or supply at least one answer to the many questions we have. For all of our communication capabilities, we struggle to find even one person to turn to in time of need and wonder if anyone anywhere cares that we are struggling each day to simply survive.

When you can’t deal with life in all of its craziness, what should you do?    Return to the basics and begin by trusting in the One who will not disappoint.

When you can’t find where you fit into life, Jesus will never reject you when you come to Him.

John 6:37 (AMP) “All whom My Father gives (entrusts) to Me [Jesus] will come to Me; and the one who comes to Me I will most certainly not cast out [I will never, no never, reject one of them who comes to Me].”

When you can’t find inner contentment or tranquility, set your mind on Christ.

Isaiah 26:3 (AMP) “You [God] will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You.”

When you can’t clearly see the direction to take or the decisions to make, He will guide you.

Isaiah 42:16 [NIV] “I [God] will lead the blind by ways they have no known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.”

When you can’t see how you can pay the bills or supply clothes and food for you and your family, He will provide.

Philippians 4:19 [AMP] “And my God will liberally supply (fill to the full) your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

And when you can’t calm the anxious thoughts that race through your mind, share them with Him.

1 Peter 5:7 [AMP] “Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him [Jesus], for He cares for you affectionately and cares
about you watchfully.”

When you can’t see how sense can be made of this mess, He will make it all work out, somehow and in His time.

Romans 8:28 (NIV) “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

Trust in the One who will never leave you to handle this life on your own.

Deuteronomy 31:8 “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

When you can’t, He can.  The choice is yours. He’s waiting for you.

(For more information about forming a relationship with the Lord, see How You Can Find Him located at the top of this page.)

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But a Moment

4/18/2013

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When a person receives unforeseen news that is of a devastating nature, the world takes on quite a different look than it had only a moment prior. The darker colors outdoors appear to be abnormally dismal, the still-leafless branches on the trees seem to be in the foreground of any view regardless of where one looks, and the jaggedness of last year’s thistles stand out in stark relief against the background of the pale, new growth of spring. The world looks ‘off’ and seems to match the numbness from the intense pain residing in the heart.

Psalm 31:9-10 “Be merciful to me, O Lord, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and my body with grief. My life is consumed by anguish and my years by groaning; my strength fails because of my affliction, and my bones grow weak.”

Such was the case today for me. Numb from the news of the telephone call, I wandered outside to retreat into the privacy of the garden where my tears could flow freely and I could speak plainly to the Lord of the deep pain in my heart. I sought for some tangible sign of hope to ease the ache that had suddenly taken up residence in my soul. And, as is just like our Father, I found it in quite an unexpected way.

Psalm 23:4 “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

It was not that many days ago that I had been in the yard and saw a lone dandelion standing proud and tall against the edging where it was safe from the blade of the lawnmower. Its bright yellow flower petals had been gleaming in the sunshine and it seemed to live unmindful of its reputation as a weed that people spent so much time and effort trying to eradicate from their perfectly manicured lawns.

During my trip to the garden today, I espied it again, only to find the remnants of that happy-colored flower of yesterday in the form of a perfectly rounded seed head.   Its blooming season had ended and the seeds were poised so as to be caught up by the wind and borne to a new home where they could patiently wait for the next season to show their bright yellow heads to the world once more.

It was in this dandelion that I saw a reminder of the assurance of hope that has been promised to us as God’s children.

Job 14:5 “A person’s days are determined; you have decreed the number of his months and have set limits he cannot exceed.”

Just like the dandelion, we each have our season on this earth. God alone knows the length of time given to every one of us. For that brief span of time, we grow, bloom and shine brightly in the life He has gifted to us. And when the time allotted to us has been fulfilled, He calls us home to Him.

Psalm 116:15 “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.”

During our lifetime, we release seeds (figuratively speaking) into other people’s lives that will remain long after we are gone. While an individual may no longer be physically present with us, these seeds will gently remain in us as sweet reminders of the one who released them.

Psalm 112:7 “He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.”

I thought that after the news of today that I would be full of ‘why’ questions. Why her? Why when she was so young? Yet I could not question the God who knew the length of her life before she was ever born. We were blessed to have her for nineteen years. Instead, with tears streaming from my eyes, I looked heavenward then proclaimed loudly through the sobs caused from the deep ache in my heart, “Even so, I trust in You and in Your timing. And I trust in the promise You gave of everlasting life for all those who believe. I will see her again one day.”

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

Until the time comes for us to begin everlasting life with Him, we have His promises of complete care for all that we need in this life.

Psalm 23 “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

Truly we are here for but a moment. What will you do with it? What will you do with Him? The choice is yours. He’s waiting for you.

(For more information about forming a relationship with the Lord, see How You Can Find Him located at the top of this page.)

                                        Dedicated to Maria Kathleen Elias
                                               February 22, 1994 – April 18, 2013
                            Look for us by the gate. We’ll be there before we know it.

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Sweetly Content

4/12/2013

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Contentment is not a word that we hear much about today. While it is a true joy to be around someone who lives out the practice of being content, it seems that the
prevailing, underlying emotional current in our culture is predominantly one of discontent. One has only to look
at those in their environment or listen to a nearby conversation to know that people, in general, are not happy with the current state of their life. Oh, they may put on a façade of cheeriness, but if you really listen, you will eventually be able to hear words that speak of the restlessness that’s in their heart.

As a society – and specifically as Americans – we operate under the adage that ‘more is better’ or ‘bigger is better.’   We want more money, a faster/bigger vehicle, a larger home, and invariably, that all-too-elusive perfect romantic love. Too often we spend the majority of our lives working to attain more of just about everything in the hope that once we achieve what we feel is our ideal, we will finally be truly content, completely satisfied and thoroughly pleased with life
at long last. Sadly, once we do achieve what we thought would make us happy, we find that there’s a completely different set of problems that we inherited along with it that leaves us longing more than ever for something other than what we worked so hard to attain; something that will give us true, lasting contentment.

One of the most challenging times, it seems, is when we see the evidence of fulfilled dreams in the lives of others.  We want what he/she has and, while we can be happy for them on the surface, there is also that unspoken, deep-seated question as to why our own dreams continue to remain unfulfilled.   Before much time has passed, a greater discontentment settles within us
and, if we aren’t careful, resentment begins to grow towards the person who has had their dream fulfilled.

Ecclesiastes 3:11a “He [God] has made everything beautiful in its time.”

This verse can be true for any of us who allow God control of our life. The problem we get into is asking how long it's going to take and then moving forward on our own when we feel that the process is taking too long. Only God can answer how long something will take as everything has its own time. To wait on Him and the time assigned to accomplish the task ensures success.

In the person spoken of above who had their dream made a reality, while we could see the evidence of their dream come true, what we could not see was the agonizing, tear-filled span
of time – be it days, weeks, months or years - that the person spent living in the darkest hours of their soul when they cried out in prayer to God over the unfairness of their situation, or the longing they had for the vision in their heart to be made sight, or of the struggles they had to endure while God molded them into the person they needed to be in order to receive the full measure of blessing that God had for them.   Because we didn’t see the painful bleakness and saw instead only the proof of what appeared to be a sudden downpour of blessing in their life, we feel the discontentment of our own situation even more and begin to wonder what’s wrong with us.

The talents we have been given and the hunger for the dreams in our hearts that we have longed to be made realized has been placed there for a specific reason. How many of us are willing to endure a season of emotional isolation from others in a parched, sun-scorched
desert in in order to see our dreams fulfilled?   What would you be willing to do to have everything made beautiful in time as stated by God?

Philippians 4:11-13 ”I [Paul] am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.  I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.  I can do all this through him [Christ] who gives me strength.”

First, we need to learn the secret that Paul spoke about of being content in any and every situation.   What’s the secret? To resolve [be firmly determined] in your heart to be content regardless of what you see around you.  How can we possibly do this? Because God will always give His children everything they need.  Period.

2 Corinthians 9:8 “God is able to make every grace overflow to you, so that in every way, always having everything you need, you may excel in every good work.”  [Emphasis mine.]

What does the word contentment mean anyway?   It’s an inner sufficiency; a satisfaction found through the depth of one’s own life with God independent of our surroundings.  Simply put, it’s daring to take God at His word and then relying on Him to do what He has said He will do.

Why would we want to cultivate contentment?   Your environment is not evidence as to a limitation to God’s abilities to move you where He needs you to be. You are the only thing that can limit what God can and cannot do in your life. When you live in the contented assurance
of who God is, regardless of the conditions you reside in each day, you can rely fully on Him to lead you into the more beautiful life that He has in store for you.

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Are you concerned that your dreams are too big for Him to fulfill?   There is no need to worry as His imagination and abilities are larger than we could ever fathom.

Ephesians 3:20 “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.” [Emphasis mine.]

Second, once you realize that you already have everything you need when you belong to Christ, true contentment will permeate you.   You will know that those dreams you have carried in your heart for so long are not only possible, but will, in God’s time, begin to be made a reality as He sends showers of blessings your way.

Isaiah 43:19 (AMP) “Behold, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs forth; do you not perceive and know it and will you not give heed to it?   I will even make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.”

Let Him do a new thing in your life.  The choice is yours. He’s waiting for you.

(For more information about forming a relationship with the Lord, see How You Can Find Him located at the top of this page.)

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"Why me, Lord?"

3/26/2013

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Have you ever asked this question during a time in your life when it seemed as if the whole world was against you and one thing after another went wrong?  Everything from failed relationships, mechanical issues and an unexpected
medical report to those smaller, nit-picky things such as oversleeping the alarm, dropping an over-ripe berry onto a new outfit (the outfit being white, of course), or stubbing your toe.  While some of these things happen because of our poor choices, some of them are not. You know that if one more piece of bad news is received, or one more thing doesn’t work as it was designed to do, you would scream as you ‘went down for the third time’ beneath the tidal wave of life-circumstances to never again resurface.  While this sentiment is over-exaggerated, I think we have all been there at varying times and unanimously agree that we would prefer to not repeat
them.

Job 8:11 “Can papyrus grow tall where there is no marsh?   Can reeds thrive without
water?”

A recent bout of personal challenges made me think about the flower and vegetable seeds I have diligently tended to over the last few weeks while trying to get them to germinate indoors so I could have seedlings to plant outdoors at the proper time. Some of the seeds began to grow and pop their little green heads through the soil almost immediately without me having to do more than simply poke them into the dirt and apply a squirt of water.   But, with other seeds, it was not so. Day after day, these seeds didn’t make any show of growth. And finally, after many weeks of no apparent sign of germination – and feeling great frustration over having, once again, wasted time, effort and materials over one more growing season – I carefully researched why these seeds had not sprouted and discovered that, while most seeds need no special treatment to germinate, other seeds have very specific requirements that must be met before
germination could occur.

Seeds with a coat so hard that it cannot absorb moisture have to go through a process called ‘scarification.’ This means that their coats needs to be broken or scratched either by something sharp (i.e. knife, fingernail file or sandpaper), by passing through an animal’s digestive tract, or by enduring heat (such as in a forest fire) that results in chemical changes to the seed so that germination can take place.

Other seeds need to go through a ‘stratification’ process which is where seeds are exposed to cold, moist conditions that trigger the growth process. Still other seeds benefit by soaking in water, or by being in either total darkness or complete light for a specified period of time. Once the proper conditions are met for each seed’s requirement, germination is almost sure to
follow.

1 Corinthians 15:38 “When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else. But God gives it a body as he has determined, and to each kind of seed he gives its own body.”

God designed both seeds and humans with specific requirements for all the stages of life. Each – both seeds and humans - exhibits similar characteristics in the growth process.  While every human has exactly the same life lessons to learn, we come to understand specific skills through differing circumstances, usually at varying speeds and at dissimilar times.  It is God who provides the proper conditions for each of us during specific seasons in our life.  While we may not understand why we experience certain situations or events, God does have a reason for them even if we cannot see what that reason is right now, or even if we won’t see it until some distant point in the future, if ever.

Ecclesiastes 11:5 “As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.”

Some of us may require a passage through darkness. Yet God is there illuminating the path.

Psalm 18:28 “You, Lord, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light.”

Sometimes our path takes us through the heat of the fire or into deep waters. Yet God is right there with us – protecting us all the way.

Isaiah 43:2 “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through
the rivers, they will not sweep over you.  When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.”

Every circumstance is an opportunity for our growth and, always, for God’s glory to shine. If we don’t lose heart, God will renew us day by day …

2 Corinthians 4:16 “ Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.”

… and will also reveal to us the wisdom we need to glean for growth from each situation if we but ask Him.

James 1:2-5 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.   Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”

In the midst of the seasons full of “why me” questions, He longs to show you His kindness and compassion.

Isaiah 30:18 “Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you
compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!”

Will you wait for Him? Once your seed germinates, a beautiful garden of fragrant blooms is just on the other side of this period of growth.

Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

He’s waiting for you.

(For more information about forming a relationship with the Lord, see How You Can Find Him located at the top of this page.)

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When You Can't, He Can

But a Moment

Sweetly Content

"Why me, Lord?"

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