Preparedness

Psalm 10:17 NKJV "Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble; You will prepare their heart; You will cause Your ear to hear."


This week, we've seen some out-of-the-ordinary behaviors with the threat of the Coronavirus. Big box stores are running out of pallets of water and toilet paper, to mention a few of the essentials. Seems people are prepping for the possibility of self-quarantine and/or getting ill. Fights are breaking out, tension, anxiety.
Panic. 

Of course it is important to take the necessary precautions, practice common sense and protect those that are more suceptible. 

Humanity acting in fear.

Humanity acting impulsively.

Humanity weakend.

Humanity desperate.


~~~

I had a conversation with a dear friend this week. She shared an epiphany about herself, about life in the last few days. Reaching a place where she could relax, let go a bit, stand back, she felt things were falling into place. She could turn and look at her own reflection and say, OK, God, how about You and me; I want to seek Your purpose for me in this time of my life. I'm ready, for You have prepared me for more. I am so happy to hear this. She, more so of course. 

Humanity in Christ, long-suffering and redeemed. 

She felt at peace. 

When I think about this friend, she has ALWAYS brought me peace in our friendship, always reflecting her Lord. 

always serving Him in faith and love.

always persevering through trials.

always seeing a Good God through the hurts of life.

always sacrificing for others. 

She lifted her head and felt His sunshine after a very long winter. Butterflies are sure to come. 

Her prayerful spirit beams a ray of warmth on many, and now she wants to bask in His Love and Light for herself, concentrate on her own soul.  What more is she going to discover? I can't wait to hear about it, share with each other.  


~~~

One scenario is about fear and reaction and the other about love and trust. 
Both situations critical, for one person, for many. 

I know in the future, the conversations I hope to have will not be about what we fear, but how we received and reacted to God's provision and protection, how we allowed God to prepare our hearts and lives for His purposes when we followed His wisdom, how He is glorified in preparing us for more and our obedience in that calling. 

...how we saw in the darkness and came out the other side. 

...how we persevered through prayer and fellowship.

...how we prepared our own hearts to align with God's heart. 

Who among you is truly preparing for eternity? Do we daily prepare our hearts to hear and receive more from the Lord? Is panic setting in or peace? 

Lord, Thank You that Your Spirit continuously prepares us for Your good gifts. Our willing and humble spirits long for and hope to receive instruction, purpose, nuggets of wisdom and insight for this life. Lord, sometimes in preparedness actions, the road ahead may be even harder. You do not show us everything, but teach us to trust You. We see and delight in Your ways. Even in our preparing--obedience, we are shown where and taught how to see Your Grace and provident plan. We know there are seasons where our preparing is for the greater good and other times its for our own personal walk with You. Both Lord, glorify You when we cast out all fear and replace it with faith. We ask You Lord to calm us in times of anxiety, and call on You to lead us into a peaceful place of rest to receive more of Your plan and make You known, until we reach Your prepared Place for us, 

Thankful for Your preparation for me on the Cross.  Amen. 

A Holy Anomoly

Proverbs 18:24  There are "friends" who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother, (NLT)


It's Sunflower season again in my garden. Many of you know,  and join me in loving these whimsical, sunny-faced botanicals.

I harvested seeds from last year's dried blooms, bought a couple new varieties from Burpee.com and planted earlier this year, in April.

Up they came, only a week later.

So faithful...to me.

Planted specifically right out my kitchen window, I glory in them. Cup of coffee in hand, many a morning prayer are spent leaning on the counter and feeling the Holy Spirit infuse His peace, His Love,  and so much more.

I recommend starting the day this way. 

Right now, I am anxious for a new variety to open. They've been a little slower in the shadow of the mighty over achievers.

They're suppose to be a marroun color.








And then this happened...






A conjoined sunflower, the bigger one protruding a petal in the center of its core.

anomoly?  ...maybe.

noun

1. 1.

   something that deviates from what is standard, normal, or expected.

   "there are a number of anomalies in the present system"

   synonyms:

   oddity, peculiarity, abnormality, irregularity, inconsistency, incongruity,aberration, quirk, rarity  (Google)

2. 
   

Twins are formed by a fertilzed egg spliting--identical twins. Or,  by two separate fertilized eggs--fraternal.

So what happened down there in the dirt?

I don't know, but they are one flower, front and back and then some...bursting with joy, fully alive, swaying in the breeze together.  They catch what's going on from all sides.

 Friendship in the Lord is like that, standing tall with one another as we grow. We see a different perspective on things. One sees one way, and another can see things more subjectively, lacking an emotional attachment. Isn't that the way we're suppose to harvest wisdom?  Sharing and holding on to one another, we can trust each other in the heavier winds that blow, threatening to knock us down. We encourage each other as we share from our experiences of what the "garden of life" brings to us. We hold each other accountable.

For we are planted for one purpose, to bring God glory.

Even in our past, special friendships in the Lord, grab on and hold us to open up all our beauty to one another and the world. Sometimes there is so much love, we just don't have room, so it will just burst out further into the world. Eyes may roll, some may just scroll on by, thinking too weird for me...

How does their "garden" grow?  

My garden is FULL of the beauty of special friends. We are oddly peculiar to the world,  loving one another, praying for one another, trusting one another, dancing, singing, parenting, mourning and rejoicing.

From the deepest of  hearts, there is something very intimate when praying with a friend. 

That,  my sunflower friends, reflects our Lord and He sees all of us as His anomoly, unique and perfect  complete in His grace. God called each of us to stand out for Him.  The weeds of destruction are creeping in. Some of those weeds look beautiful, a disguise of evil that is not an anomoly, but the template of destruction long ago devised. 

  

 Lord, I give praise and thanksgiving for friends who gather 'round my table and plant their loyalty and own grace deep in my heart. Keep us faced towards You, soaking up Your goodness, Your purpose and Truth, for our own lives, and for the encouragement of each other.  You see all of us as Holy anomolys, perfect and complete in Your Grace. Blessed. Amen.