Joy in the Journey

  Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom. 2 Corinthians 3:17 (NIV) Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty. 2 Corinthians 3:17 (NKJV)   It is hard for me to understand how people live without God.   Thankfully over half of my life has been lived with a real relationship with the Trinity.   Beyond that I was raised in church and as much as that means nothing on its own, I believe God was always preparing my heart to welcome him.   I cannot think of a time in my life that for better or worse was not influenced by my idea and/or knowledge of God. Just a few days ago I listened as my very dear friend, Kim, recounted events in her mother’s life. To say the situation is unstable is a vast understatement as it leans precariously close to deadly.   My heart broke for my friend, first of all because I love her and I know she loves her mother.   I also fe...

As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. Be strong and courageous.   Joshua 1:5-6a   Does your family do the high/low game?   It’s the game where at dinner or bedtime, each person in the family tells their high and low point of the day.   The idea is to make us more aware of our blessings and show us that in light of those blessings the lows maybe aren’t so low or are at least bearable. Yesterday, in an effort to distract myself from some things that had occurred during my day,   I played the game with three of my grandchildren.   They are all under the age of nine so their answers were quite precious.   Two art projects and a “cool way to play football with a soccer ball” made the high list. The lows were benign in the extreme. It warmed my heart as my high and low were the exact same thing and I was still in the throes of trying to process it. To be perfectly frank, I’m still trying to proces...

Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”           John replied, “I am the voice of one calling in the desert, ‘Make straight the path of the Lord.’ ”  John 1:22-23   “Who are you?” How would you answer that question? I suppose it could depend on your mood, right?  It would also depend on who is asking, which already half answers the question.   I identify myself very often by my relationships.   Otto’s wife, Paul/Joseph/Jeffrey/Laura’s mom   “Grammy” to their children,   Charlene’s friend but Mrs. Davis’ assistant (Charlene is Mrs. Davis) etc.   My identity is very much tied to the people around me. Here John the Baptist is saying that he is the one making the road ready for Jesus.   John is the precursor. That’s a mid-size word that simply means the one who comes before.   So here John is identifying ...

  “Well done my good servant!” his master replied.   Because you have been trustworthy in very small mater, take charge of ten cities.” Luke 19:17 Most people I know are grateful for a “well done.”   While it may be enough to know that we’ve given a project our all, it is still nice when someone gives us that little pat on the back.   It shouldn’t be the motivation for doing things well. We should be working to please God but it’s nice when that work gets noticed. I spend a lot of time with a little girl who is the personification of the word encouragement.   Those of us who know her well tease that she will never have to take a spiritual gifts assessment. Her gift is very obvious. My little angel, Brianna, came into the world with what some people see as a disadvantage. Brianna has Down syndrome. What she also has is a heart that never stops looking for ways to hearten and promote the people around her. Whenever she sees someone do even the tiniest...

The day of the Lord is near for all nations. As you have done, it will be done to you: your deeds will return upon your own head.   Obadiah 1:15   My day job is in a public elementary school. One of my duties occurs at the end of the day when I stand outside with a few other people as we attempt to get all the students home safely.   Today a co-worker of mine followed after a boy accused of bullying.   This is not some power hunger teacher who was out to prove her authority.   Her name is Beth and she is an extremely lovely and kind person who claims Jesus Christ among her friends. Her purpose today was to stop trouble before it got started. As she walked away I was thinking how glad I was that it was her and not me. I can’t stand bullies in general and this boy in particular, has rubbed me the wrong way since he was a first grade student. Beth followed him and I got busy with some other children and didn’t see if she had to intervene or even speak to...

The Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. Genesis 2:7 From the day I learned to read I’ve been reading. I read voraciously.   There are books and magazines all over my house and in my car. You never know when you might get stuck somewhere, or have to wait for some reason. You should always have reading material at the ready. Some of the things I read are for educational purposes or spiritual growth and some are just fluff, fiction.   Today, proving once again that he can speak anywhere, anyway, any time he wants, God used a line from a book that is very much in the chick lit drama to get my attention. In the book a man is dying and being very cavalier about the whole thing. As he is making jokes about his possible heart transplant his doctor warns him about how much worse it could get. “You’ll see taking a decent breath as a gift from God.” My first thought was, ...

Only be careful and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them. Deuteronomy 4:9   Yesterday in church I saw something so sweet and it reminded me of how dear and tender our Lord is with us. Seated in front of me was a family consisting of a man and a woman, their teenage daughter and a son who looked about six or seven. I’ve never seen them before and so supposed that they were visitors. Sadly the service yesterday was bad. I don’t know if our pastor had a rough week or what was going on.   I do know that it was far from the norm for our church.   It was disappointing to my husband and me, regulars, but what must it seem like to a visitor? Thankfully, at the point of the service where we greet each other it appeared that the family I thought was visiting knew a few people. I decided they must have been there...