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Accountability, Christian, Christianity, God, Heaven, Hope, Inspirational, Life, Love, Neighbor, Patience, Spirituality

When I Go Up

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morning rainbow

This may sound a little morbid but I have been thinking more about heaven lately.  Maybe it is because of everything that is going on all around us; our world seems to be in a crazy mess.  Perhaps it is due to recent losses of loved ones.  I think it might just be the fact that the older I get, the more I feel I just don’t belong here.  And before you go down the slippery slope that I sound a little too suicidal, I have no such desire to give up and “end it all”; just the contrary.

I was raised on the pillars of honesty, integrity, respect, the love for God as well as the love for fellow man (yep, man…all inclusive…includes both male and female…get over it).  Over the past decades, these pillars have been eroded away to the point where I’m not sure anyone knows the true meaning to those above mentioned words.

And while I could use this as an excuse to give up on life, I know we still have a job to do in this world while we’re still here.  Could it be just to remind our “fellow man” that we are still in this together and perhaps to make a difference in someone’s life?  I’m not really referring to our social media intimate strangers as much as the person next door or down the street.  How well do you know your neighbor?  Not that well huh?  Maybe if we really did reach out and form a bond of friendship beginning in our neighborhood, we could begin the healing process in our community…

The old adage of “Don’t judge a book by its’ cover” has so much meaning behind it for we may all have different covered bindings but we were all written by the same Author.  Our plots or storylines may vary but isn’t that part of the excitement that we aren’t all the same?  And while we still have air in our lungs, we still have blank pages to be filled in; our novel is not complete until the Author completes the last sentence.  So that’s my challenge; to fight homesickness for heaven and do what God wants me to do while I still have the time here on earth to do it.  What about you?

2 Timothy 4:7(NIV) I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

The following is in a lyric/poem form of how I feel toward the life after this one.

 

When I Go Up

Written by Stephen R. Wilson

When I was a kid and had my whole life before me

I could be anything I wanted to be,

A policeman, a cowboy, an astronaut too

I had all the time in the world to figure out what I wanted to do.

When I grow up

I want to catch the bad and protect the good,

Drive some cattle and ride the angry bulls

I want to go up and fly among the stars,

 Mercury and Mars, when I grow up.

When I grow up

I want to drive around in a bright red racing car

Be a sprinter that could run so very far,

Become a doctor that could heal the very sick

So many choices, take your pick.

When I grow up.

Now I find myself all grown up and a little past my prime

There are less days ahead than what I left behind,

But there seems to be a yearning

From somewhere deep in my soul,

That this is not my home

But somewhere up ahead there is so much more,

You see I believe that Christ died for me

On that cross at Calvary,

And when he ascended, He said He’d be back

For all those that truly believe,

 So as I remain faithful to live my life for Him

My heart is more than longing to be in heaven without sin.

When I go up

I want to see my Savior face to face

My only desire is to be in His embrace,

To hear the words I love you

Without condemnation or disgrace.

When I go up.

When I go up

I’ll get to see my loved ones who have gone on before

The sound of laughter, joy but even something more,

There will be no more hurting, no more pain

Tears will be replaced by praises to God, angel’s sweet refrain,

When I go up.

Accountability, Christian, Christianity, God, Hope, Humor, Inspirational, Life, Listening, Love, new life, Spirituality, Transformation

Unexpected Expressions of Love

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rainbow cross

We have a rather strange anomaly at our house.  You see, written out on our expansive driveway are the words, “I LOVE YOU”.  Normally you can’t see the affectionate message because it is virtually invisible to the naked eye…unless it rains.  After a downpour, the hidden message comes to life.  I can only conjecture that the desperate scribe was in an adequately sized “dog house” at the time, the size of which would sufficiently house a Saint Bernard.  In his hurried act of desperation, he scribbled these words with the only thing he had at the time…I’m going to guess perhaps a chrome wheel cleaner.

I chuckle to myself every time I see it because it reminds me how unexpected expressions of love are displayed in our everyday lives and many times we are just too busy to see it…or may be express it?  (Of course, I could also be chuckling to myself because I wasn’t the one in the doghouse…)

A second, much more recent example occurred on Mother’s Day.  I like to get my wife a little something for Mother’s Day and strive to make it a little special.  Let’s face it guys, where would we be on Father’s Day if we didn’t have our wives as mothers…right?  And if we didn’t honor them with a little something, we would probably be writing “I LOVE YOU” on our own driveways, anything to get out of that proverbial doghouse.  Anyway, I had picked up a gift and had planned to make her breakfast.  I had also noticed the daisies dotting the horse pasture, blowing in the breeze.  I schemed to get up early on Sunday morning, sneak out the door and cut some of the daisies and put them in a vase just as something special.

What I didn’t expect was her reaction when she saw the flowers.  Jenny exclaimed “You picked me daisies!!” with an excited look and misty eyes.  My expression was one of surprise and confusion; I couldn’t figure out the response I received.  I later asked her about it and she explained that I went out of my way for a simple expression of love and it meant much more to her than going to the local Walmart for a bunch of flowers.  (Hhhmmmm…I wonder what will be growing out there in August for her birthday?)

You see, it doesn’t necessarily need to be a large material item to express “I love you!” or  “ I really appreciate you!!”…sometimes it only takes you being present in the moment.

God also showed His love for us in different unexpected ways.  One of those expressions can be seen after a thunderstorm; a beautiful rainbow.  And before the symbol of the rainbow was used and abused as a symbol for sexual immorality, it was THE symbol from God as a covenant between Himself and man.  Genesis 9:12-17 (NIV) says–And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.” So God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth.”

Even though God had destroyed the earth by water because there was so much evil on this earth, He still loved us enough to make a covenant between himself and all life on earth.  To this day, that is exactly what I think about when I have the privilege to see a rainbow in the sky; a promise kept and a really cool expression of love.

Another unexpected and ultimate expression of God’s love for us has to do with our redemption.  Romans 5:8 (NIV) states—“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  And while I still can’t quite grasp that kind of love, I have to accept it as a gift I can never repay.  John 3:16 explains—“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” The cross, once a symbol of death, has become a beacon of life for ANYONE who believes in Jesus Christ as their lord and savior, who confesses their sins and becomes a new creation.  Simply speaking, this is the kind of love that sets the standard for all of us to follow.

So as you go on with your ordinary lives, take note of all of the unexpected expressions of love that surround you.  Participate in expressing that love as much as you can.  You definitely don’t want to be that guy (or gal) making a run to Walmart to purchase that chrome wheel cleaner so you can scribble a desperate message of love across your driveway.  If you need some help with expressions of love, try reading 1 Corinthians chapter 13 (NIV) reflected below; it is known as the LOVE chapter and for good reason.

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Daisies

Christian, Christianity, God, Halloween, Hope, Humor, Inspirational, Life, Spirituality

Serpent in the Mount—A tine tingling tale…

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Jackolanterns2

It’s that time again; time for the ghosts and ghouls of another Halloween to make their annual appearance.  And while my wife and I aren’t really into the spookiness of Halloween and pretty much stick to the autumn aspects of pumpkins and mums, we still get the childlike joy of driving around looking at the ”haunted” decorations and of course, being awed by the little beggars, dressed to impress…or distress.  I have never been one to race to the front of the line so I could be publicly humiliated in the local house of horrors either;  screaming like a little girl while being stroked by a synthetic hand is not my idea of a good time.  I find real life scary enough sometimes and thus, my account of a rather frightening experience just a few days ago reflected below…

My son-in-law and I decided to take on a joint venture and purchased an old rototiller, offered to Justin by a co-worker.  Justin brought home the mechanical prize and it was immediately evident it needed a little work.  We stored the metal toothed wonder on the outside of my garage and one day I got adventuresome, deciding to put a little gas in the machine and give the cord a good pull to see if it would breathe life again.  It didn’t take long until I found it was indeed hemorrhaging fuel so I decided to catch the escaping liquid and give my shoulder a rest.  Justin later took a long look at it and decided it needed several gaskets and other parts in order to resuscitate our “find”.

Fast forward to a few days ago; Justin had taken the tiller to another area for storage until the parts had arrived for the gasket transplant.  On Saturday, Justin proceeded to rebuild the carburetor and remove the gas tank for cleaning.  I walked over just as he was making final adjustments.  After all was in order, Justin tweaked the choke, gave the rope one good pull and the tiller sprang to life.  We smiled, gave mental “high fives” and was standing there admiring the purr from the engine when Justin suddenly became a little more animated, jumping back exclaiming “WHOAA”!

I quickly looked down at the back of the tiller just in time to watch an eighteen inch baby copperhead crawl out of the drive belt area of the motor mount and proceeded to drop down on to the pavement below,  slithering around, trying to find a safe exit into the grass.  I am standing three feet away, suddenly feeling quite exposed as I am dressed in my “business hippie” style of button down shirt, jean shorts and bare feet; my phalanges seemed especially naked to this juvenile reptile.  This surreal “oh crap” moment, full of fright, wonderment, shock, and disbelief was over in a second.  Justin steered “junior” back on to the pavement where he planted his size ten boot upon the venomous infant’s head and half of its’ body.

So what is scaring you these days?  Could it be the world around us with its’ uncertainties relating to the economy, governmental corruption, climate changes or a myriad of other headlines reflected in several different languages, currently lining the bottom of bird cages around the world?  Perhaps you are personally dealing with a chronic illness or disease OR the big “C” (cancer) has come to haunt your household.  Whatever your fright fight might be, I want you to know there is One who knows you intimately and is right alongside you during these scary times of life.  2 Corinthians 1:3-5 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.  For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ”.  God knows our every need and can soothe our every fear; we just need to give it to Him and let God work everything out for His good.

God even knows my innate fear of snakes.  And while Justin and I are still wondering where the rest of Junior’s family resides, I have to resign myself to the fact that scary things do happen in the every day and I need to trust God to both protect me and give me the wisdom to know what to do in the frightful situation.  Prayer is a great start; wearing shoes and looking down at the grass more while walking through the yard might not be a bad idea either…

Accountability, Christian, Christianity, Forgiveness, God, Hope, Humor, Inspirational, Life, Love, Spirituality

Well, that’s not FAIR!!

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surprised smiley

As I was growing up, our family never really had a whole lot of material things to hold on to.   In fact, my youngest sister and I still joke about being so poor, all we had were catfish heads to play with instead of toys.   But what we did have made all the difference in shaping our lives to adulthood.  We had food on the table, we were clean, we wore clean clothes even though they were seldom brand new, and we had love in our home.  We learned how to count and perform basic math in our heads by playing dominoes.  We were taught respect, how to use our common sense, and the necessity to implement the common courtesies we learned along the way.  I’ll never forget one of those “lessons learned”.

One day when I was just a boy, my mom and I were walking down the sidewalk in our small town, running errands.  I was walking to mom’s left side and she quickly corrected me by urging my slight frame to her other side.  I looked at her a little puzzled and she saw the question on my face.  “Men and boys are ALWAYS supposed to walk on the outside of the female, closest to the street” she responded with a matter of fact persona that begged the question “why”?  Mom’s response was enough to send me into a tailspin.  “Well, because if a car swerved toward the sidewalk, it would hit the male first as protector, protecting the fairer sex.”  “Well, that’s not fair!!”, I screamed inside my mind as I had mental images of being sprawled out in the middle of the street, teeth littered around my body as the maiden in distress stood over my lifeless form, hands clasped together and pressed to one of her cheeks declaring, “my HERO!”

It took me more than a few years to completely understand what Mom was trying to teach me in that moment.  You see, we all have the grave responsibility to be more than what we are; to step out of ourselves, our comfort zones, and to be made available to meet other’s needs; even up to and including death.  What parent wouldn’t think twice about running into a burning home to rescue their children but what about your special needs neighbor?  What about the stranger you see every day walking to work because they can’t afford a means to get from point A to point B?

The news this past couple of weeks has been full of unsung heroes doing what they did not because of a possible fifteen minutes of fame or a handshake and “atta boy” from our POTUS but because it was the right thing to do.  Whether it was the hero who would rather take seven bullets from a madman than to fathom another life lost or the stranger in South Carolina who went from door to door in his boat, trying to save anyone in need instead of thinking about his own loss of property, there are true heroes out there but there needs to be more.

Here is another example.  Jesus Christ was sent here from His home to dwell among strangers and haters, not because He enjoyed deprecation but because it was the right thing to do; not only was He being obedient to His Father but He loved/loves us with a fierce love we cannot comprehend.  Jesus had the ultimate reason to cry out “well, that’s not Fair!!” as He hung from that cross, completely broken and humiliated, bleeding and aching from the weight of OUR sin.  Perfect love conquered His own need for preservation as a man on this earth so we wouldn’t have to suffer an eternal separation from the One who made us, our heavenly Father.

What about you and me?  Isn’t it time we turn away from the deceptive mirror of self we have been staring in to far too long and instead, peer out the window of our safe, selfish little cocoon to a world full of need.  And even though we can’t save the whole world, why don’t we just start with the world around us; our city, our neighborhood, our own home.  Pray for the courage to be THAT person who makes a difference, that man or woman who is brave enough to put away the “Me-Me’s” and embrace the unique needs of others.

As for the lesson learned so long ago, I still irritate the people around me, stepping forward to open the door for a lady, whether they be nine or ninety or to walk on the outside, closest to the street.  You see, the common courtesies have been engrained in my very being along with another sentiment; sometimes life isn’t fair…but life is a privilege and passes too soon so we have to make the most of every opportunity to serve those around us.

John 15:12-15 (NIV)– My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.  You are my friends if you do what I command.  I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.

Accountability, Christian, Christianity, God, Humor, Inspirational, Life, Spirituality

Imitators

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Over the edge 2

Our granddaughter is almost eight months old now and is beginning to imitate other’s actions such as waving bye and attempting to move her finger up and down across her lips while making noises; she prefers her entire fist though, resulting in a saliva fest.  It seems our entire life is spent either following someone else’s example or being a role model for someone else to follow.

I remember growing up during my influential years in the 1960’s and 70’s where everyone seemed to be expressing one’s self in different ways.  Smoking was one of those things taken for granted and a lot of my family participated in this freedom to inhale toxic fumes.

Living in the country afforded a few freedoms as well.  For instance, the freedom to burn trash in the open air.  Being the imitator as a kid but without having the means to try smoking with an actual cigarette, I found some dry hollow reeds down along the creek bank by the square brick burning pit while I was burning trash one day.  The gray-white fibers of the reeds resembled the white paper of the cancer stick.  I decided I wanted to look and act as cool as my older siblings so I broke off a four inch section of the reed and put the tip of the “cigarette” in the flames until the end glowed red from the embers.  I put the imitation cigarette to my mouth like I had seen others do many times before and inhaled.

What happened next was nothing less than life changing.  Small flames entered my throat along with smoky air, singeing my esophagus in the process.  My eyes grew wide from the pain as well as the smoky pungent smell of burning reed racing down my lungs. I involuntarily coughed uncontrollably, the blackish gray smoke bellowing out as if more anxious to rise to the surface than I was to get it out so I could breathe again.  I stood there, continuing to cough violently as well as mentally kicking myself across the yard.  I desperately glanced in all directions to see if anyone else had witnessed the blatant stupidity of a young boy trying to imitate the foolishness of others.

Fast forward more than a couple of decades and I find myself once again in the present, hopefully much more wiser and aware of the consequences of imitating others or following someone’s example without first analyzing and reasoning out their intentions and possible negative outcomes.  However, I am greatly concerned and have been for some time that it seems many blindly follow and imitate the latest trends, fads, popular people in the spotlight, and yes, even governmental politics bent toward entitlement and socialism without first stepping back for even a split second to think of the eventual consequences of said blind following.

Don’t you think it is past time to be the responsible, accountable “grown-ups” we are supposed to be and pray to again become the examples of those growing up around us?  And before you judge me for seemingly being such a self-righteous hypocrite, brandishing my pistol of one-sided opinions, may I remind you that I only write what is on my heart that God is also speaking to me; I’m certainly aware of my own shortcomings—and I need help.

Ephesians 5:1-2(ESV) reads, “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.  And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” What an awesome reminder of whom we should imitate constantly in thought, word, and deed so we have a chance to be that example others are looking for to follow.  And now that I find myself in the position of tribal elder in our little family nucleus, I am once again reminded of the grave responsibility we have as humans to impress upon our next generation not only the common courtesies and manners of life, the do’s and don’ts that separate the civilized from the savages but especially the eternal.  For it is only through the grace of God that we are still here, breathing on this earth and it is only by His mercy through His son Jesus Christ that we have a hope for a future far better than our present circumstances.

The next time you see a child doing something they shouldn’t, even to the point of foolishly ingesting noxious fumes from a weed, fight the inner adult child within that wants to sit back and see what happens so you can be entertained, and use this as a time of instruction, of lovingly guiding that student on to a better path of wisdom and understanding.   And remember, those eyes are on you whether you want them to be or not, imitating your every move; make the most of it.

Proverbs 14:12 (ESV)—There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.

Christian, Christianity, God, Hope, Humor, Inspirational, Life, new life, Patience, Spirituality

Transplants—Cultivating the Best from Change

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wilted

My wife and I are weekend garden warriors who like to piddle in the yard whenever we get the chance. Our new home is basically a blank slate on the outside and I’m sure we will have red clay up to our elbows in no time. But it seems no matter how long we have been gardeners, there appears to be a mystery surrounding the act of transplanting.

Depending on the flora species, most plants get a little touchy about having their root system manhandled.  Many times, they tend to be perfectly happy in their root bound state and transplanting that plant to a new, different, larger home may result in a temporary sagging of leaves and pretty much a visually sad state. You see, the plant needs time to scope out the new soil, stretch out its roots in the larger expanse, and nibble on the new aromatic fertilizer but temporarily as a result, some of the leaves may get droopy and yellowed and the whole plant may seem depressed. It doesn’t understand that in the long run, this change is necessary for its very survival.

My wife and I have been experiencing some droopiness of our own. For you see, our physical move has been very much like that displaced vegetation. And even though we DO know long term it will be very beneficial for us, the adjustments to the physical surroundings, culture, and lifestyle are sometimes pretty overwhelming. “What do you mean you don’t have a Gold Star Chili or donut shops down here?” But we both know who the master potter is and that He will give us exactly what we need, when we need it so we can continue to grow and bloom for Him. However, the fertilizer, the spiritual nourishment we most desperately need to grow bigger and better than ever before is yet to be determined; we need a church home.

Whether you are a believer in Christ or not, attempting to integrate or graft one’s self into the right living organism called the local church is as important as finding the right sized pot and proper fertilizer for a houseplant and the very act of finding a church home is not a small feat. You cannot force yourself in to just any environment and expect to grow spiritually. Many times due to traditions (we have always done it this way), infighting, or just a simple lack of vision, a church body can become stagnant and unhealthy. Maybe in those circumstances, a little weeding needs to be done. And on the other end of the spectrum, a growing, vibrant church can be just too “busy” to cultivate and nurture the souls of new converts or those looking for a church; they may have a “live long and prosper, now scoot!!” or “danger, stranger!” mentality that leaves the individual wondering what just happened. Yep, sometimes even a healthy church “plant” becomes too large and needs to be separated and replanted from the main plant to remain healthy.

We have confidence that God, our master Gardener, has the perfect spiritual “garden” in mind and that He will plant us among other believers in His time, all different but yet the same, to grow and prosper for His glory and purpose. And even though the act of being transplanted to a new “pot” can be more than a little stressful and yes, painful at times, we can cultivate the best from change and grow to appreciate its’ abundant rewards.

But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.  2 Peter 3:18 ESV

For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.  Romans12:4-5 NASB

 

Christian, Christianity, God, Hope, Inspirational, Life, Patience, Spirituality, Waiting

Pacing in the Waiting Room—Part Deux

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…the rest of the story

hash marks

Before you go any further, if you haven’t read Part I of this story, please retreat to that earlier post.  If you have read the first part, you might be interested in how our story has played out this summer.  You may even be interested in re-reading the first post to refresh your memory…truth be told, I had to…

Part I basically ended with getting an offer on our house in Ohio.  That was definitely an answered prayer but we were suddenly presented with the “Oh no, what we gonna do now” question as we basically had forty-five days before we had to move out of our house and into what and where?  Even that was a real answer to prayer as it commonly is a thirty day turn around to close on a property but the buyer asked for extra time due to going through the VA for a loan.  As I had time off saved up, I quickly called my daughter and asked if I could crash at their place for a few days so I could look for homes and a job.

Having updated resumes and reference sheets in hand as well as a fresh suit and shirts, I headed south to North Carolina to pursue living accommodations and a new IT position somewhere while my wife kept the home fires burning up north.

My wife and I had been looking on the web for homes and had several listed that we were interested in and it wasn’t difficult to schedule showings on these homes.  With iPhone in hand so I could Facetime my wife and integrate her in a “virtual” tour of the candidate homes, I followed the surrogate realtor from one property to another.  After seven showings of prospective properties within our budget, we came up short, not one property meeting our needs.  Needless to say, we were bummed.

Since I had worked in healthcare related Information Technology for almost thirty-four years, I hit the area hospitals and soon found out that all applications needed to be completed online.  After leaving the last job prospect feeling completely rejected and defeated, I meandered back to my car, wondering if this was really God’s will that we make this drastic change in our lives.  I turned the car on and started down the hilly streets of Morganton headed toward the interstate.  I had recently purchased a new CD from Danny Gokey and it was playing in the background.  As I headed on to the interstate, the third song from the CD was playing and my complete attention was drawn toward the words highlighted below.

“Tell Your Heart To Beat Again”

Written by Matthew West, Bernie Herms

Broken like you’ve never been before
The life you knew in a thousand pieces on the floor
Words fall short in times like these
When this world drives you to your knees
You think you’re never going to get back to the you you used to be.

Tell your heart to beat again
Close your eyes and breathe it in
Let the shadows fall away, step into the light of grace
Yesterdays a closing door you don’t live there anymore
Say goodbye to where you’ve been
Tell your heart to beat again

Beginning just let that word wash over you
It’s alright now, love’s healing hands will pull you through
So take one step, look back up
See the rise and feel the sun
Because your stories far from over and your journey’s just begun

Tell your heart to beat again
Close your eyes and breathe it in
Let the shadows fall away, step into the light of grace
Yesterdays a closing door you don’t live there anymore
Say goodbye to where you’ve been
Tell your heart to beat again

Let every heartbreak and every scar
Be a picture to remind you, who has carried you this far
‘Cause love sees farther than you ever could
This moment He is working everything out for your good

Tell your heart to beat again
Close your eyes and breathe it in
Let the shadows fall away, step into the light of grace
Yesterdays a closing door you don’t live there anymore
Say goodbye to where you’ve been
Tell your heart to beat again

With every fiber of my being, I knew God was speaking to me through these revealing lyrics.  I was now an official “distracted driver” as I was praying and thanking God for His goodness and guidance.

Unbeknownst to me, my daughter and son-in-law had talked to his next door neighbor about selling our home so quickly.  The neighbor’s response was, “you know, we are currently building a house on other acreage and had planned to move out of our house so we could prepare ours for market.  Do you think your in-laws would be interested in looking at our house?”  On the last night before I was to return to Ohio, my son-in-law and I toured their home, iPhone in hand so my wife could tour as well.  My heart leapt as I wandered through the rooms and garage.  Later my wife told me I was moving around so fast, she could hardly see anything!!  Once the tour had concluded, I asked the homeowner what the asking price was  for the home. His response sent me into shock as Justin and I just stared at one another; as it turns out, his asking price was below appraised value!!  You see, the house was PERFECT for the two of us and right beside of our daughter and her family!

I returned to Ohio on that next day which was on a Wednesday and my wife and I returned to North Carolina two days later.  My wife was able to tour the house in person and after giving the nod to purchase the house, we went about securing the loan from the local Credit Union and met with the attorney that would handle the contract.  We flew through the inspections and on June 11th, we moved out of our home of almost seventeen years.  The next day, on the morning of the 12th, we closed on that house and immediately hit the road for North Carolina where we met our movers on the 13th to move in to our new home.  On the 15th of June, we closed on our new home and were able to pay off our two year old car loan as well.

And now here we are in September.  I went back for my last week of employment which ended on June 26th.  We are now a one income family for now and are doing just fine.  My wife and I decided it be best if I began the employment search after our vacation in October.  I no longer have the sense of urgency for a high salary/high stress career; rather, I have a peace that God is truly in control of our lives and we were redirected to this area not just to be with our daughter and family but for another purpose, a holy purpose, yet to be revealed.

Christian, Christianity, Forgiveness, God, Hope, Humor, Inspirational, Life, Spirituality

Living the Trashy Life

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dumpster

There is an unofficial sport known worldwide but yet goes pretty much completely unnoticed. These pseudo athletes do not appear on cereal boxes nor do they get pricey endorsements. You can normally see these “thrill seekers” meandering around neighborhoods near college campuses in late summer to early fall but they can be found anywhere at any time. Who is this elite group of daring individuals you might ask? Dumpster divers…

For some of you, this term brings on a snicker and an involuntary head shake but for others, well, they are feeling their face grow warm as the emotion of embarrassment overtakes them. These “divers” cross over socioeconomic lines and you may be surprised who around you has taken “the plunge” one time or another.

Ok, and now for the true confession….been there, done that. It was circa 1980 and my wife and I were about as poor as our government leader’s morals. We were living in Franklin House apartments just around the building from our complex’ dumpster. One day coming home from work, I spied an exercise bike sitting beside of the grime laden dumpster. I debated for a while and decided to investigate further, eyeing the primitive pedaling apparatus up and down with a critical eye. Not finding anything wrong with the piece of equipment, I looked all around me for prying eyes, picked up the bike, and cantered off to our apartment like a dog with a new bone in its’ mouth.

I beamed with pride as I showed my new bride the find of the decade. She returned my look with a suspicious glare. I mounted my mechanical steed and started pedaling, my upper body lunging back and forth in rhythmic procession. Suddenly my rhythm was disrupted by a crack of metal and my body being hurled toward the now exposed post of the defunct exercise bike; I narrowly missed impaling my at the time, slight, terrified frame on the “pedals of death”. My thrill was replaced with humiliation as I sheepishly picked up the now evident piece of garbage and retraced my steps back to its’ rightful owner, the lowly dumpster.

There is another type of dumpster diving that is far more destructive which I dare say is one of an unforgiving heart.   I think at times, we all have been guilty of holding a grudge or carrying a hurt left by another. And how many times have we heard the name of the person who committed the offense only to trigger something inside that entices us to dive into the deepest recesses of our minds to the dumpster of unforgiveness. Once there, you plunge in to the deep bin of bitterness laden with the stench of resentment, scrambling to find that one rotting memory so you can once again experience the painful sting of the event. Once relived, you carefully place the decaying memory exactly where you found it so you can easily retrieve it later; feeling justified in your righteous indignation and condemnation of the offender, you once again snap back into reality. When will we realize that we cannot inflict harm upon the ghosts of the past; we are only hemorrhaging our souls. Only our forgiveness of others can neutralize the pain of those excruciating memories and only Jesus can sterilize our hearts and place our hurts in the proper perspective of being healed memories and lessons learned.

And unlike my botched attempt at turning trash to treasure, there are many who have successfully found the unwanted, underappreciated waste of humanity and have turned the items into something beautiful and useful again. Hhhmmm…sounds just like Jesus; He’s in the restoration business, turning our sinful lives into bright, beacons of hope and grace.

So what about you? Isn’t it time to shed those rags of self-pity and breathe in the pristine, life changing air of forgiveness? For life is too short to allow bitterness and unforgiveness to rob us of our joy and zest for life that God so freely gives…

 

Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4:31-32 NIV

Christian, Christianity, God, Humor, Inspirational, Life, Spirituality

Lookie What I Did!

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In hopes of one day selling our house, my wife and I continued our routine of “depersonalizing” our abode which basically involves removing anything that would be misconstrued as either reflecting the homeowner’s image, personal tastes, or anything being used on a regular basis by said occupant. Our latest attempt consisted of replacing any pictures of loved ones in an eight picture collage frame with photos of nature we had taken over the course of the past few years. As we poured over literally hundreds of pictures to select the top contenders, we were pleasantly surprised at how good most of the photographs actually were. We even exclaimed something to the effect of “BOY, we did a great job taking these, huh?”

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Almost instantly, I was dragged through Humbletown by a still small voice that echoed loud and clear in my ears. “Yes, you did a good job hitting that small, round button on the camera but Who gave you that moment in time? Who planted that seed or allowed the rain to fall or provided the nourishment in the earth to make the flower grow? Who gently blew on that blossom to make it open for all to see? Who put breathe in your body or eyes in your head to see and proclaim the majesty of God in all its’ vast and varied forms?” Yep, it was a “lookie what I did!!” smack down; a moment of clarity to put everything into proper perspective. A reminder to self that we are indeed the created and here only by the grace of God, our creator, to proclaim His magnificence.

Which begs the question, why this reminder? Maybe it’s nothing more than to remind us to fully enjoy everything God has created for us; to make it always about Him and not so much about us. Hhhmmmm less about self and more about Him? What a novel thought but it brings forth images of salmon fighting with all their strength to navigate upstream, against the current to their intended destination; for as Christians, we are constantly swimming against the current of this world’s absurdities. You see, we now live in the world of the “selfie” which unfortunately is a perfectly coined phrase for the bigger picture of self-indulgence.

My wife and I tried a selfie once…we were in the UK at Windsor Castle, standing in front of St. George’s Chapel, trying to “capture” this moment in time. Unfortunately due to my short Welsh arms, all of our selfies look more like two large insects attacking the camera lens. What we ended up with were two middle aged heads blocking St. George’s Chapel…

S and J selfie

If you have ever been on any social network, I know you are familiar with the term selfie. Sometimes as I peruse Facebook, I wonder about the motivation behind these images. Is it really just mere fun or more about a sense of significance and self-worth i.e. “Look what I did!” or “Look where I am!!” I think many times we wear ourselves out trying to impress each other or gain approval from other people who really don’t matter when at the same time, we neglect the loved ones who really DO matter. And if you have a hard time figuring out who that is just ask yourself, who would I want hanging around my deathbed?

So with that being said, I have a challenge for everyone. What would happen if we replaced our “selfies” with images of selfless acts? What would Facebook look like if we posted entries about how you helped your neighbor or friend or, dare we say it, a stranger? Do we really need to see another gluttonous image of someone seated behind a mound of overpriced incredible edibles? I can only answer that for myself; no…

The next time you pick up your camera or phone to capture that special event, please take a split second to think about your motivation, your intent. Are you about to embark on a self-indulgent moment that will fade as quickly as your Facebook post or are you investing that time to share something special with your loved ones or to proclaim that glorious sunset you are about to try and capture is truly a gift from God to us? Which one do YOU think would impress our Heavenly Father more?

Christianity, Humor, Inspirational

Staged

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The Merriam-Webster definition of the word TRANSITION is: passage from one state, stage, subject, or place to another: change. Transition is an important part of life and can be both exciting and scary simultaneously. If we are fortunate enough to live for any length of time, we will go through many “transitions” through our lifetime; from childhood to adulthood, from student to teacher, and if we are truly blessed, from child to parent to grandparent. As for my wife and me, we are soon transitioning into the grandparent mode.

What makes this transition even more “fun” is the fact we decided to make a physical move to another state which involves my finding other employment. Since we both have felt a great sense of urgency for some time to make this move, the Saturday after Christmas was a complete tear down, inside and out, of anything that screamed Christmas and/or wasn’t necessary to keep around for the “staging” of the house to prepare it for market. The word stage seems so innocent but packs a punch as anything that makes a house a home disappears as every room is “staged” to highlight the positive attributes and accentuate the room size as well as to minimize any negative or problem areas. What was once our safe refuge, our haven of rest has quickly become a sterile model home.

At the same time, my resume has been updated and polished so as to gain the “WOW” factor. I guess you could say I’ve also been “staged” as I look for employment.

We all try to stage ourselves from time to time, to mask the “real” us from the prying eyes of the public or the hearts of those we love, or even God. Just ask how someone is doing and you’ll probably have a four letter “F” word flung at you so quick, you’d think a fast ball was thrown at your head. “FINE!” they would say while deep inside, they were far from it; for inside their hearts the rooms weren’t swept, the beds weren’t made and there was half eaten pizza tossed on the counter top. It is so easy for clutter to accumulate in the recesses of our soul; but instead of dirty floors it may be resentment, and instead of unmade beds it could be betrayal, and instead of that stone cold stiff piece of pizza it might just be unbridled anger eating away at the peace you so desperately need.

But fortunately for us, Jesus is in the renovation business and he loves fixer uppers. Jesus doesn’t want us to wait until we are perfect (which we’ll never be in this world) to come to Him, He wants us just as we are; a broken down shack full of cracked walls, leaky pipes, uneven floors and drafty windows. God wants to make our hearts His home but we have to give Him the permit to do a remodel on us. And don’t think this will be a painless process; there will definitely be some pain involved as our “stuff” is thrown in the trash bin and walls are blown out to make room for perhaps more love and compassion.

While we allow God to change our hearts and minds, He knows we are a work in progress and it takes time. Only God knows how much change we can actually take at one time but one thing is certain. God isn’t “staging” us to impress anyone else. He IS changing us into what we were meant to be in the first place…an object of His affection.

Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ    Philippians 1:6 (NKJV)