A Truly Good Life

I Timothy 6: 18-19  "Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life."


This is #BirthdayWeek. My husband's comes first, then a week later, mine. A couple of years ago, I found the perfect thin, artificial Christmas tree for a corner of my home below the stairs. It sits in a beautiful pedastal pot. I loved it so much, after many years not putting up a tree, I decided to decorate it for the coming up holidays after Christmas.

A Valentine's Day tree, a St. Patrick's Day tree, an Easter Tree.

Then, once those passed and the weather began warming up, I took the tree down until the late fall, Thanksgiving week.

But not this year. COVID19 keeps us home bound and I just like my crazy tree. So, I decided to decorate it for #Birthdays.

It required a trip to Dollar Tree, one store I can count on to be open for some "essentials."

What can I decorate a tree with for birthdays? Balloons and bows!

Found a cute changeble date calendar at Dollar Tree

I share a birthday with a friend I've known since 2nd grade. That is a very long time! She lives in Michigan. Purchasing a beautiful card and writing a note, butterfly stickers on the envelope, I got it in the mail early...

Then it dawned on me, I forgot to put a stamp on it. I can't blame this on the "virus," can I?

I received the most beautiful, special birthday card today from my sister and a surprise visit from co-workers.

Celebrate Good times, Good friends, family.

~~~

Walking around my neighborhood, I stopped to take a picture of this driveway artwork. #COVID19 inspired, the heart also reminds me of hands on each side, holding the world. Yes, it is temporary, just like my tree, a reminder of so much to be thankful for because the world is spinning fast and right now, we're hunkered down in our own little world, zooming and coloring, sewing masks and binge watching all of Netflix, baking bread, gardening...

What are you doing you wouldn't have done before COVID19?

Celebrate health, privilege, opportunity, talents, discoveries in our world, in yourself, in God.

How is Your relationship with Him?  Have you got the time?

~~~

At the beginning of this week,  a minimum of 16 chrysalises spread themselves from one end of my butterfly garden to the other. COVID19 afforded me the time to watch, chart and capture the event of metamorphosis in each step. I learned that some are not successful. One butterfly emerged damaged, unable to fly. I did the research on what to do and settled on leaving it up to nature, partially. I did give it some honey water which it gladly drank from and I kept it close to many flowers it walked on and hopped around with its curled up wings.

I also experienced a butterfly that could not emerge from the chrysalis. For many hours it struggled and though I tried to help the process, it as well did not survive.

Yesterday and today, many birthdays happened. Chrysalises opened up everywhere and healthy Monarch butterflys emerged to check out the world from a much different perspective.

A hummingbird made a nest in the middle of my front patio on a butterfly ornament.

My best friend put her beloved pet down today.

The governor and mayor reported the new statistics and crowds gathered at the beach to "protest" lockdown and closed recreation areas.

Celebrate life, love, gifts, freedom.

Life consists of good things and things we make good.
Life is constant and changing.
Life is fleeting and precious.
Life is worth living...at home, in the garden, with each other and family.
Hopefully, we'll be able to have beach bonfires again soon.
With God, we can take hold of life, the good and the not so good, with hope.
Make life good by being good to each other.

God makes all things good in His time. He celebrates us and doesn't forget a stamp! (He doesn't need one)!

Heaven is the hope we hold on too. Let us reflect that, in the good and not so good. In this COVID19 time, may we look back and say, that was not so bad, this is the good that came from such as time as this...

Lord, we thank you for the good times and yes, we can, with faith, give thanks even for the hard times, the sad times and dissappointments. In You, all things work together for the good to those who call You Lord. We pray for strength when our days seem long or uninspired. We thank You that You bestow grace on us, when we least expect it and forgive us always. Help us Lord, to be generous and help others see the Good in life, a life lived for bringing You the Glory. Thank You Lord for one more year. May I bring You praise and glory to the best of my human capabilities and may You Lord be seen in my goodness, not of myself, but because You are Good to me. Grace Upon Amazing Grace.
Amen.

So Close, Yet Still So Far

Matthew 13: 57-58:  And they took offense at Him. But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his home town, and in his own household." And He did not do many miracles there because of their own unbelief. 

Where is it the hardest to live your faith? At your work? Maybe. At church?...lots of spiritual comfort there. With your neighbors? We are called to love and serve our neighbors. All is good in the neighborhood. 

Let's ask this...Who do you have the most expectations for? Who do you find easy to judge, to "correct," to metaphorically be comfortable with, really be yourself...?

...Your household.  Your kin.  Your close family. 

The townspeople of Nazareth didn't get Jesus. He was from their lowly town and nothing good ever came out of Nazareth. How could this son of their neighbor, this brother of one of their buddies, ...this Nazarene, be so knowledgeable of scripture, share such wisdom? After all, he (He) was the son of a carpenter, he grew up with them, had the same experiences, same customs...

These fellow citizens with Jesus, missed it. Their unbelief, skepticism, maybe even jealousy, kept them distant from really seeing God, who came to bring fellowship with the Father--so very close.  He was their own neighbor, friend, maybe even their half-brother. 

God moved among them yet their unbelief, their own ideas about themselves, that they just were not worthy enough, --and who was he (He) to tell us any different...kept them from knowing who He really was--the Messiah. In the last part of this verse it says that He did not do many miracles there. 

It wasn't because there wasn't a need. 

Great is the need, our need. Greater still is our sin and our need to reconcile. 

They didn't ask Him, seek Him, truly follow Him, listen and process the Words that would heal, Their pride and their unbelief, maybe even unwillingness to truly connect and know Him brought their own isolation from the One who walked among them. 

So close, yet still so far. 

In my special education class, the Renaissance kids (student leadership) collaborate with our students for one period during the week. They interact and stimulate conversation, peer to peer, teenager to teenager. It is awesome. 

This week's project: a miniature hot air balloon made from a Dixie cup, yarn and...you got it, a balloon--a bit under inflated with helium. Pictures of our kids were taken the week before, cut out, mounted on cardboard placed inside the Dixie cup. The kids got to see "themselves" float around the room. 

I got to thinking about faith and trust and my own "balloon ride" in that journey  I had quite a few crash landings, but God never left me and continues to teach me His ways, His direction--and I pray I am listening and honoring Him.  

Sometimes it is just a "cardboard cutout," of ourselves, a flattend version minus the things we want to hang on to that we've placed in the basket of faith. God sees all of us. The launching moments of climbing high brought us salvation, but soon, the basket comes floating back down, the heaviness of our burdens not allowing us to see beyond to the horizon of what God can and wants to do in our lives. It's like having a brand new Mercedes Benz, but never driving it, keeping it locked up in the garage. 

Having experienced life, its hurts and God's healing,  some want to help, to understand, to encourage and give a good word, maybe some wisdom from their own ride. Unwilling to accept, the root of bitterness keeps JOY waiting in the wings. 

It is the miracle of seeing who Jesus really is and how to live free, soaring under His protection and purpose that gives true hope in a broken and hurt-filled world. 

The belief in ourselves and our feelings rather than His desires for us, more than the belief in the power He has to change us and our thoughts, is like the under-inflated balloon. It soon floats down to the street view. It's comfortable there. It's what we know.  

You don't get it. That's who you are, not me...Who are you to tell me?...

--and they took offense. 

So close, yet still so far.  

Lord, Please help us to accept wisdom, even when the lessons are so hard. Help us to be discerning, to be obedient to Your will for us and how to let go of the hurts that keep us grounded and isolated. Help us Lord to get close to You and not drift away in our own worldy thoughts. Lord, I don't want to be a cardboard version of myself in You, but be all You want me to be, learning to fly high in surrender and feel the love of those you've put in my life for  fellowship as we help each other through the ups and downs of this life. Thank you Lord for giving us Your Word. May we study, discern and know its truth and live accordingly so that You will be glorified and believed in us. I believe Lord, help me with my unbelief. Amen. 

Sidewalk Prophets~ "Live Like That" 

Living Liberty, Fullness of Freedom

II Corinthians 3:17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

Where does your liberty, your freedom hang out?  Where does it surface, show itself, invade your space, overflow...

Where does it go when you don't see it? Is it hiding, absent, not available? 

What does the word freedom mean to you? 

Does it conjure up ideas of democracy and patriates? America and the red, white and blue? 

Yes, probably.  I think there's more...

Is liberty a statue or a state of mind and soul? 

We will celebrate freedom/liberty in a couple of days. 

Can't we celebrate it everyday?  It's why we have it, right? 

I know...known of  some people who seem chained, un-free, without liberty. 

I am sure we all have felt this at one time...more than one time. 

Words tumble out like heavy chains linked together with negativity. They trod through life with shoes made from disappointment, shoulders burdened with the world's expectations and troubles. 

When Jesus Christ reigns supreme in our hearts and in our minds, freedom is ours forever. The Cross, like Holy bolt cutters, severed each link. God is our liberator through His Son. The more you meditate on that fact and live it,  in worship, prayer and submission, those chains begin to break apart. 

Shoes seem lighter today. 

Shoulders won't be sore; you'll sleep more restful and feel His peace. 

Words become more gentle, humble and kind, encouraging and uplifting. 

More of Him, less of the world...that is true freedom and a hope not found in the bitter man, but the believing man. 



And isn't that something we need to celebrate everyday?!  

Thank you Lord, for the freedom, the liberation I have in You. Though the evil one wants to find clever ways to weigh me down, keep me from all You want to give me, I know that You Lord, conquer over my enemies, those in thought and those visible. Chains are replaced with Your Hope and Your Joy. I desire to use my freedom in You to further Your Kingdom. Help me Lord to live knowing that everyday, I am free and filled with the Spirit of the Living God. I am free to celebrate that gift in love and deeds for those who need to know how to find that same peace. I'm free to worship you at every minute and proclaim my gratefulness. May I never lose this passion and become apathetic at the thought of true freedom. 

Thank you Lord for the liberty I have to write and post this blog, for that freedom, many have died for. I am forever grateful. God bless them, their families.  Amen. 

Happy 4th!  God Bless America. 

Chris Tomlin 

Crowned in Grace

Isaiah 61:1 "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me, to bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to captives, and freedom to prisoners."

 June bursts into July like a firecracker.  An explosion of  pictures with  rainbow filters, commentary, debate, and questions permeate our social media and conversations. 

Amongst my circle of close friends, we dialogue.

How can we be more like Christ? How do we do this?  Our own God-filter doesn't screen the darkness perceived;  it lets the light in, giving us a correct focus.  Light scatters the darkness.  

We live and breathe the Good News.  God is the Doer. 

So, we step ahead, continuing to soak in the Light and give off the Light. 

I took a small day-trip this week, going with another friend to visit a very sick young lady. As moms, we both can relate to  "the living in a hospital" situation, tucked away in the lonely, fearful sections of our memories.  This young girl suffers with a genetic affliction, a life-long chronic disease.  She is a miracle girl really, holding on with all her strength. Her hope, to once again hold a camera to her eye and capture God's miracles in her photography.  Her Facebook page holds a last attempt before this ground-breaking surgery 5 months earlier, a  most courageous step. As we visit, dialysis filters her blood because her kidneys sleep;  her two new lungs, new liver, her new pancreas fight to be accepted. She is our brave hero. 

Her heart,  bound up tight by the love and sacrifice of her family and her knowledge and love of the Lord from an early age, beats with a passion to live. At three years old, she sat in her car seat on a long trip and told the story of the Savior from His birth to Revelation, amazing her parents. Her dad shared that story with us. 

Now in her early 30's, to us,  she is held captive by her disease, yet her joy is a smile from her dad and a promise he'll return with a little chili from the cafeteria. I wish I could open the windows so she could breathe in the smell of the ocean which is not too far away or hear the booming fireworks as Freedom is celebrated tomorrow night.   

While walking back from lunch with her dad, planters in front of a bungalow held a certain plant, four of them.  I stopped to take a picture of the Crown of Thorns also known as a Crucifixion plant. 

 I know the Truth as the blood of the Lamb of God trickled down, our sin filtered out by our own belief in the Miracle,  through Grace and Perfect Love so that we can be free to resume a relationship with the Father.  How many stopped to notice the four pots of thorns as we walked along the broken up sidewalk, notice the hospital rising up from the everyday lives of people out strolling the beach town and making a living, a place where the afflicted hope to be healed?  The captive sit at their bedside, pace the halls, and press into their own crown of thorns circling their heart.  

We are all afflicted. We all fight to be accepted. We're held captive by our opinions, our politics, and even our religion. We're imprisoned by our anger, our fear, our weak faith.  

The Crown of Thorns, it flowers.  In it, there blooms Life. 

The red flower bursts forth through the thorns to capture our attention. 

In our freedom,  may hope be found in our thanksgiving, in our humble awareness of grace.  We are capable of great love in our freedom to choose His Great Love. God sets us free to be a Light among the crumbling sidewalks of this great nation and beyond. 


Plant it Lord, deep into my own affliction, bloom in me the grace I need for the moment, for the day, for change and culture. You Lord, are the King of Kings, Giver of Life, crowned in Eternal Glory. Make me into a healer, not a wound-maker. Make me a locksmith, ready and equipped to provide a key for the captive. Holy Spirit, be upon me, prompting and urging me to pray for our nation, our leaders, our children, speaking words of hope, forgiveness and truth in love. Lead me into obedience in Your Word and in my actions. I  ask Lord for healing, for Grace upon amazing Grace to trickle down, for compassion and wisdom to walk this busted up path, knowing where it leads. Help me to lift open windows for others to    see Your power and to listen with an open heart, the boom of Your hope, an eternal fireworks show of Your sovereignty. 

Be near our dear girl Lord, her family and her doctors. In Jesus Name, Amen.  

Grace Given, Grace Required

Romans 6:14 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means!

Two observations in the commute of life had me pondering this week.

Bicyclists, 15 or more, traveling in lanes of traffic as if they were of the “serious sort” of sport enthusiast pedaled a few cars in front of me, waiting in the left hand turning lane.  No spandex graced their bodies, no aerodynamic helmets fit their heads, no gleaming reflection from sculpted calf muscles pushed their bikes forward.  Oh, and their bikes?  Just your everyday garage sale-find 10 speeds. Young, diverse, street-wise appearance, —“West Side Story” on wheels. They held, staggered in the lane, ready and waiting for the light to signal green and pump up the hill. When that happened after patiently waiting, they exploded around the corner, at ease with the flow of cars, jockeying for position, in obedience and care of the rules of the road. (I wondered if they were from the reform school over the same hill and rewarded this pleasurable outing).

                                                                 ~

Every morning she glides by in her shiny Mercedes Benz, oblivious of the lane where others wait their turn, or disregarding THAT line, where one has to move with the flow. She waits for a small opening then cuts in at the front of the line, or even worse, continues straight to the signal and makes an illegal left hand turn from the right lane (meant to go straight) in front of the cars legally turning left into the school parking lot. Her way is unsafe, a violation of the rules, and renders us wide-eyed and appalled at her response to our attempt of informing her of this violation. (and we did that twice). 

“Well, I didn’t cause you and accident, so why do you care?”

One group enjoying the privledges of freedom and watching for the signals, staying in the correct lanes; another not wanting to give up what she thinks she deserves, parking her car facing outward for a quick getaway.

For right now, both of these scenarios enjoy the blessing of grace.  But sooner or later that Mercedes might get a little to close for comfort.  I really hope know one gets hurt, but her attitude makes me keep my distance.

Lord, I am grateful and thankful for your grace and I ask that you remind me always to remain humble in any blessing given to me. Freedom in grace does not mean freedom to disobey. We know you are a God that forgives but You are also a God who tells us that to whom much is given, much is required. Remind us when we stray out of Your lane and encourage us to be graceful and thoughtful to others.  Amen