A Different Set of Circumstances

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Fixed on Faith #10: The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances.

I have been writing Fixed on Faith posts for quite a while now based on the Bible verses, Proverbs 4:25-26, “Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.” It is so easy to become distracted with technology at our fingertips. Discontentment reigns as we are able to view how other people live, seemingly more successful and happy than we are. Keyword: seemingly. No matter where I am, I live. How I live is another story. I have lived in many places and I wonder how many of those years I used wishing to be somewhere else. In a bigger house. In a better neighborhood. In a different church. In another climate. One can wish away a life without even realizing it. No matter my circumstances, how I live is important.  When I choose to live by faith because I am loved, I am redeemed, and I am safe, it changes how I see. “If Satan can keep my eyes from the Word, my eyesight is too poor to read light-to fill with light…Without God’s Word as a lens, the world warps” (Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts). Satan whispers the words, “failure”, “cheated”, and “worthless” into our ears and all too often, our hearts ache with a feeling of emptiness.

“The secret to joy is to keep seeking God where we doubt He is” (Ann Voskamp). The secret to living joy-full is not in the circumstances, the location, the state of health or wealth, it is in Christ’s filling us up of Himself.

Galatians 2:20 –“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

The life I live in the flesh can only be lived with contentment through faith in the Son of God. The flesh is weak and can be easily misguided into wishing for someone else’s life, location, church, or family. Sometimes a move away from something or someone is necessary. When we choose to use God’s Word as a lens, when we seek Christ to guide us, we will know whether He is leading us away from a valley of circumstances or through it.

Where Greatness Lies

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I Chronicles 16: 10-11, “Glory ye in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the LORD. Seek the LORD and his strength, seek his face continually.”

The holidays are here along with the hustle and bustle, cleaning up after Thanksgiving leftovers, extra things on our to-do list, shopping, decorating for Christmas, and planning holiday activities. It is a lot to think about and we can quickly feel overwhelmed. We want the Christmas season to be great, but if we wear ourselves out by doing too much, we are left with no strength and are weary by the end of the holidays. Greatness in the season does not have to mean being strong for each and every activity that comes along. Strength lies in knowing when to say, “Yes” and what needs to be, “Not this year”. Either way, being able to rejoice in our hearts because we made the right decision is quite rewarding. The right use of strength is seeking God’s glory in everything.

Maybe you do have the time and energy to fit as many activities in as possible. But if you are in the camp of , “It’s been a rough year. I want to do a few fun things with family/friends/church, and the rest of the time watch Hallmark movies in my fuzzy socks and comfy pajamas sipping a peppermint mocha. I want to read a really good book tucked under a warm blanket…”, that is OK too. If you would love to have people over, but do not want complicated, homemade soup simmering in a crockpot all day and a loaf of homemade or bakery bread is one solution for a low stress get-together meal. Or invite your guests to bring their favorite ‘potluck’ dishes to share. Greatness can be found in the ordinary. After all, Jesus ministered to thousands with every-day fish and bread!

It is easy to get caught up in what everyone else is doing and feel pulled along. Peer pressure does not happen only with the young, but it also happens in our lives as busy adults. The right use of strength is doing what is best for your family, even if it means simplifying by doing less and even if it means a get-together over coffee after the holidays and hustle and bustle.  Whatever choice we decide to make, let’s seek the Lord’s wisdom first and do everything in honor of Him. Bringing glory to God will not happen if we feel overpowered by activity lists and lose the wonder and magnificence of the Christmas season. When we seek His strength, we preserve our own.  

“Greatness lies not in being strong, but in the right use of strength.”

I’m Learning

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On the weekends, I try to make enough breakfast on Saturday to be Sunday morning breakfast as well. I double the recipe for waffles so that Sunday morning, all we need to do is cook sausage links and reheat the waffles. Last Saturday, I was on a time crunch because my dad and I had wanted to go to WalMart before the crazy traffic started. I asked my 22-year-old son to help finish making the waffles so I could shower and get dressed before breakfast. He was willing to help but had never manned a waffle iron before. I showed him about how much batter to put in the machine and told him to watch the light. I instructed that when the light clicked off, the waffle should be done. “Easy enough”, I thought, and left it to his available hands. After I showered, I called down to him from upstairs to check how he was doing. “I’m learning”, he replied. When I was dressed and ready, I walked in the kitchen to a mess on the kitchen counter. Batter was spilled as he had put too much batter in the waffle iron several times. Not only was it over the sides of the waffle iron, but also on the counter. However, he had successfully cooked all of the batter for waffles and had started working on cleaning up everything.

There was no complaining. He did not stress that he was making a mess. He simply stated that he was learning.

To Learn:  to gain or acquire knowledge of or skill in (something) by study, experience, or being taught; commit to memory; become aware of (something) by information or from observation

Learning is acquiring, studying, experiencing, memorizing, observing. It is a process. And the process is messy at times. Emotionally. Physically. Spiritually. I began to think about just life in general and what my response is to different situations that come my way. If you have taught children, you know we have to let go to let them learn.  Let them make a mess and figure things out under our watchful eyes. While we may show patience to children, it is difficult to be patient with ourselves. But God our Heavenly Father is ever watchful, ever patient, never leaving us to fend for ourselves. He gives us instructions in the Bible on how to live. He knows that making mistakes and learning we can trust Him is necessary. It is vital in learning to love, to forgive, to show grace to ourselves and to others. For the times we just cannot seem to ‘get it right’, “I’m learning” is a great point of view.

I am learning to show myself grace when I am tired and let the to-do list alone.

I am learning to accept help.

I am learning that perfectionism stifles.

I am learning that it is OK that our path in life has had many bends in the road and our journey does not look like anyone else’s.

I am learning that through grief, through disappointments, I will be OK as long as I take one breath at a time and trust God to get me through ‘this moment’.

I am learning my gifts, my strong attributes, my weaknesses, and it is a journey. I could scold myself thinking I should know all this already at my age. I have a choice between stressing over ‘not getting it right’ or making progress by acknowledging that as long as there is life, there is more to learn.

It is the end of the year and the new year will be here before we know it. Let’s not choose stress and guilt to be our anthem in 2019. Let’s pick up where we left off, clean up what needs to be cleaned up, and count the experiences in 2018 as a lesson learned.  Let’s choose life.

Life is learning. And learning is life.

From Days Wrapped In Silence

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In 1864, after the severe wounding of his son during the Civil War and a few years after the loss of his wife who died in an accidental fire in which he suffered burns trying to save her, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow penned the poem, “Christmas Bells”. What we know now as the song, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” as a Christmas carol, is missing a few verses from Longfellow’s original poem.  What once was just a nice pretty carol for me, has now so much more meaning and appreciation. “I can make no record of these days. Better leave them wrapped in silence. Perhaps someday God will give me peace”, he wrote in his journal a year after his wife died.  From grief filled days wrapped in silence, to writing, ‘God is not dead, nor doth He sleep’, Longfellow put his heart into this and I encourage you to read the historical background on this carol. (The Story Behind “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day)

Christmas Bells

“I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And thought how, as the day had come,   
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Till, ringing, singing on its way,
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent,
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And in despair I bowed my head;
“There is no peace on earth,” I said;
“For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead; nor doth he sleep!
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men!”

From grief filled days wrapped in silence to a place of peace takes time. Maybe bells of peace and good will are not tolling in your life right now, but comfort will come in our God who is not dead and who neither slumbers nor sleeps.

Psalm 121:1-5, “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.  Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper: the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.”

Rise Up Again

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I do not have it all together. Just because I write about self-discipline, compassion, love, faith, grace, I am, by no means, an expert on anything. I am far from it and mess up on a daily basis. In fact, my son gently said to me, “You were a little ‘sharp’ this morning.” And this was on Mother’s Day this year. ((sigh))) I have not forgotten his words or how gentle he was in telling me. I could accuse the people who try to talk to me before coffee (even after they have been warned). My son is ready for a full blown conversation if you even look him in the eye in the morning. I.am.not. My prayer in the morning should not be, “Give me coffee”, but rather, “Give me Jesus”.  I could excuse my behavior because I am not a morning person and everyone in the house should know this. I could blame my failure to ‘get it right’ on anyone and anything but myself. And I can scold myself ’til kingdom come for my too sharp tongue, but that is not what grace is about. God does not want us living constantly berating ourselves for our imperfections. We need to ask forgiveness, forgive ourselves, and move on. Every day there is new grace, new compassion, and new mercies. And I can say, “Amen” to that all day long, but I need to live it. Did you mess up this week already? Did you fail to ‘get it right’ today? That’s OK… me too. But remember this: “It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is his faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23

For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief. -Proverbs 24:16

365 new days. 365 new chances. I will fail to ‘get it right’ again, but how will I respond? I am a sinner saved by grace and when the Spirit tells me Himself of through another person that I have hurt someone, I can choose to stay frustrated, or rise up with dignity to a new morning, to new graces, to God’s ever present faithfulness.

Carrying Joy

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Sometimes I feel a note or a kind word is just not enough. I feel helpless and inadequate many times in offering support and I tend to believe that my ‘little note’ or what-have- you is not enough. But the ‘little things’ are not so little, really. What may seem small to me, may be the big thing that breathes peace and which helps someone live another day less burdened. To ease an aching heart, to carry a burden for a dear one, to offer kind words, to sow seeds of comfort–All these are carrying joy.  A note, a phone call, a simple “Hello”, a prayer in Jesus’ name- beautiful ways to let someone know you care.

“The Little Things in Life” -Author Unknown

“If you have eased some aching heart today,

Or helped to carry burdens not your own, 

If you have spoken kindly by the way,

Or in some darkened household comfort sown,

You need not say, “This day has been in vain”;

But wait for earth’s tomorrow with a smile,

For you may carry joy where there is pain:

The little things in life are those worth while.”

Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop: but a good word maketh it glad. -Proverbs 12:25

A Prayer for Missionaries

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2 Thessalonians 3: 1-2 , “Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you: And that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith.”

I have received several phone calls lately from family who are concerned for our safety here on the Juárez, Mexico/El Paso, Texas border. We feel the tension here in El Paso over the news concerning the immigrants who are coming our way. Already, we have seen the border patrol ‘environment’ more alert and dressed ready to take action if need be. We have seen people lined up at the border waiting for asylum and piling up at the border wall. We have had conversations with our church people over what to do if we cannot cross anymore, even temporarily. We feel no alarm when we cross the border as of yet and once we get up in the mountain where our church is, all is as it has always been. That may change, however, if tensions keep rising. We are watchful.

I have been posting lately a few prayers I had found in the back of a hymn book and I saw this one recently and thought it a fitting time to share it.

A Prayer for Missionaries 

O God, bless all those who have gone out to bring the message of the Gospel to other lands.

I remember before You

-Those who have to endure hardship and discomfort;

-Those who have to face peril and danger;

-Those who have had to leave their families and their children behind while they went out to other lands;

-Those who have had to struggle with a new language and with new ways of thought;

-Those whose health has broken down under that strain, and who have had to come home, not knowing whether they will ever be fit for their task again;

-Those who have to face constant discouragement in a situation in which no progress ever seems to be made.

Especially bless those who work in countries where new nations are being born, and where there is strife and trouble and bitterness in the birth-pangs of the new age.

Bless those who preach in the villages and the towns and the cities; those who teach in the schools and the colleges; those who work in the hospitals and among the sick; those who have laid their gifts of craftsmanship or administration at the altar of missionary service.

Help us at home never to forget them and always to pray for them. And help us to give generously of our money to their work so that it may go where we ourselves cannot go.

And bring quickly the day when the knowledge of You will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea: through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.

(Found in the back of the hymnal: Praise! Our Songs and Hymns)

Thanks to God! {A Hymn for Thanksgiving}

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Thanks, O God, for boundless mercy from Thy gracious throne above;
Thanks for every need provided from the fullness of Thy love.
Thanks for daily toil and labor and for rest when shadows fall;
Thanks for love of friend and neighbor and Thy goodness unto all.

Thanks for thorns as well as roses, Thanks for weakness and for health;
Thanks for clouds as well as sunshine, Thanks for poverty and wealth.
Thanks for pain as well as pleasure- All Thou sendest day by day;
And Thy Word, our dearest treasure, Shedding light upon our way.

Thanks, O God, for home and fireside, Where we share our daily bread;
Thanks for hours of sweet communion, When by Thee our souls are fed.
Thanks for grace in time of sorrow, And for joy and peace in Thee;
Thanks for hope today, tomorrow, And for all eternity!

(Hymn by A.L. Storm)

 

Distracted Living Is Dangerous Living

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We have a schedule for nearly everything in this day and age. We set alarms and reminders for when to wake up, when to start making dinner, when to take medicine, when we have appointments. But seeing the hand of God work in healing, in miracles, in faith coming to light is something that cannot be scheduled. We have to show up every day willing to be observant. “The masses will follow the leader who is the loudest”, I read once. God leads with a still small voice and the followers are few. We live in a distracted society and the rush of time dominates. Distracted living is dangerous living, I think, for when we are distracted, it is easy to miss the “God-moments” in a day and His prompting in the right direction. We want the big moments for the big testimony, yet the big moments are made up from a collection of all the beautiful things, the noble acts, and the sacred connections. If we miss the small moments every day, we will miss a lifetime. Every gift matters as it is God’s reminder that He is mindful of us. He visits us in the messy daily life loving us, teaching us, showing us how to live. To change from the hurry and worry mindset to halt and worship can take mere seconds if we choose. We are not forced to live open to grace. He gives us each the liberty to decide. Help me, Lord, to choose You.
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#straygifts update: Here is an all Chrysanthemum collage. I really did buy this many colors when they were on sale last month! That is, all except the top left corner. The red mums were the very first ones I bought a few years ago. I did not know much about perennials versus annuals, so when I noticed leaves coming back in the spring, it was quite a surprise for me. I have learned a few things since then and know that I love to see last year’s plants come back to life after a cold season.
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Pleasure is spread through the earth
in stray gifts to be claimed by whoever shall find. ~William Wordsworth, 1806

 

In Life’s Seasons {A Prayer for All Seasons}

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“God for all seasons,

Who gives summer’s warm breezes the crispness of autumn,

Who lays upon earth’s breast the snows of winter,

Who makes streams flow in springtime,

Who in summer calls forth to fruit the sleeping folds of nature,

be the God of all seasons of my life:

days of joy and nights of sorrow,

weeks of anxiety and years of patience,

lifetime of work and play,

the eternity of Thy grace.

Some of my days fly by with creative work or relaxation; others linger with their tiring requirements.

Some days I would cling to with joy; others I would cast away with vengeance.

Some days escape me through the work to be done; others never seem to end.

Strengthen me to live all my days not only in the time it takes to live them but with the peace and patience necessary.

Save me from the waste of today caused by wanting tomorrow.

Help me to stop fighting against time and tide. Cleanse me of anxiety so I may take my days in stride.

Shed Thy Spirit upon me so I may cease worrying about the mysteries of life and wholly enjoy the blessings I can count.

Lead me in my waking moments so I may conquer life rather than complain about it.

Comfort me in my resting moments so I may be strengthened in soul and body for the living of the next day given to me by Thy providence.”

(Found in the back of the hymnal: PRAISE! Our Songs and Hymns)