About Dawn

I met Dawn for the first time when Tom brought me to a family Sunday dinner. The loud voices from the house didn’t help my anxiety. When I walked in, someone challenged me to leq wrestling and I kindly declined. Tom introduced me to his mom, a tiny, soft-spoken, silver-haired lady who said she had something for me. Evidently Dawn heard it was my birthday and she had made me a German chocolate cake from scratch. That is the Dawn Edens I have known and loved for about 33 years. She had never met me before and she was already sharing her heart with me.

She had a way of making people feel seen. My brother still has the pillowcase she made him when he was with us one Christmas. She made sure he had something made with love from her sewing room. If she wasn’t making you biscuits, sewing something from her massive fabric stash or playing cards with you, she was either calling or dropping a card in the mail. She especially loved the children. From infants, to toddlers, to teens she always asked about her babies. She taught the toddlers how to twiddle their thumbs, the kids how to make biscuits and clean up. She listened to young adults and asked questions about what was going on in their lives. Many times, I’d hear her preface kids’ names with “my” she claimed ownership. “How is my Jessica, my Nikki, my Patrick, my Jared doing?” Whether you were blood kin, married in or adopted in—you were HERS for life!

That heart also reached out to babies not even born yet from people she didn’t know. She sewed for a local pregnancy resources group in Titusville. One time, we delivered a bag of baby items she created, including booties. Later we received a story from the ministry. When we shared it with her, her face lit up! There was a young lady who walked in with a crisis pregnancy. Her boyfriend was pressuring her to end the child. She was gifted with Dawn’s handmade baby items. She held the booties and decided then to keep the child. Dawn touched even a stranger’s heart with her unconditional love.

She took pride in raising her boys with the Ten Commandments. I can hear her now, reciting the last five: NO murder, adultery, stealing, lying, coveting. In the last 10 years I realized she had been quietly teaching the first five with her LIFE. The ones that describe faith and relationships. She loved the Lord with all her heart, mind and soul. She didn’t take His name in vain. She kept the sabbath day and attended church when she could. And when she couldn’t get there, her church came to her. She also honored her parents. I loved hearing about her father with the neighborhood kids; she loved her daddy and respected her mom.

We are all grieving the loss of such a loving woman. Now it’s our turn. What will you do with the gift of her unconditional love? Don’t hoard it for yourself, it dries up too quickly. The trick is to give it away as often as possible. That’s how it GROWS! Her legacy was love and faith. She learned that love from Jesus, who gave the ultimate price.

He said something in the book of Mark related to those Ten Commandments she lived by. (Mark 12: 28-31)

One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”

Have you ever felt compelled to step into a life of faith and love like Dawn had? This could be your day. Pick up a Bible, start with the three letters of love by John towards the end of the Bible. Call a trusted Christian friend. Even Tom and I would welcome any questions you have.

Don’t forget to share the love Dawn showed you. You’re going to need it. Because as Dawn used to say, “Getting old ain’t for sissies!”

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us run with endurance the race that is set before us..." 

Hebrews 12:1

Fear

In the 80's, I decided to see what the slasher movies were all about. I wanted to see why everyone liked them so much. I found myself in a seat to watch Friday the 13th. 

Pretty quickly I saw a lot of blood and a lot of people being mean to each other on the screen. I didn't see the entertainment in it. The storyline was simple. The jump scares got me every so often. But really it was just a gore fest.

As I sat there watching, my fear started to build. But it wasn't the movie. It was the audience around me. They were cheering the killings and laughing at the damage the killer was doing. I was trapped in a large room with people living vicariously as a serial killer.

This week I had a familiar feeling when Charlie Kirk was shot on campus in front of hundreds of students. My social media feed was full of reels of the killing. It was a senseless destruction of a person made in the image of God. He was a person who was not afraid to speak up about what he believed. He was silenced.

Very quickly the social media audience reacted. There was a lot of shock and sorrow. But what is most horrific to me is the celebration of death. The blatant parading of glee at a shocking murder. 

This isn't a movie. This is a real life. I fear the enemy is outside the theater now. Pray dear reader that you do not become numb to the tragedy that feasts on the fear of the audience. Do not let Fear win.

Jesus, come soon.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6:12

Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” Romans 12:19

Sleep

Paul writes in Ephesians 5:14, “Awake, O sleeper…”. I have to admit, I’ve been asleep at the wheel of my writing for a while and find this passage pulling at my heart.

Let’s take a look at two other passages about sleeping. In Mark 4, we see Jesus after a long day of teaching to the crowds. When evening time came, he says in verse 5, “Let us go over to the other side”. He was ready to get in a boat and sail to the other side. He found a cushion in the stern and fell asleep. Suddenly a storm with gale force winds arrived and was tossing the boat. The disciples, who knew how dangerous the storm could be, panicked because the boat was taking on water. Jesus was sleeping through this commotion.

They pleaded with him in verse 38. “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” In verse 39 it says, He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Hush, be still.” And the wind died down and it because perfectly calm. Verse 40 says, And He said to them, “Why are you afraid? How is it that you have no faith?”

They did make it to land after that. They were amazed and asked themselves, “Who then is this, that even the wind and sea obey Him?”

In Matthew and Mark, it’s Jesus who is facing His own storm. He had a simple request for his disciples. Could they stay awake that night with Him in the Garden and pray? This was a prayer not for Jesus’ fear or protection from things, but that the disciples would not enter into temptation. Matthew 26:41 says, “Keep watching and praying that you  may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Three times he came back to them and three times He found them sleeping.

In Mark 14:38, He asked them to watch and pray in the same scene in the Garden.  Staying awake was for their benefit, He knew the storm was coming and they were going to need their faith.

After Jesus was arrested, beaten and then crucified His disciples scattered. Even Peter denied knowing Jesus three times. I cannot imagine the weight of guilt they all carried. I have to wonder, did they replay that scene on the boat where they thought Jesus didn’t care about the storm? How could they not care about His simple request to pray?

When I go back and read the prayer Jesus lifted to His Father, I can see how Jesus stepped in and prayed for them. In John 17, we see what He prayed. He prayed for God to “keep them from the evil one” and “sanctify them in the truth”. That prayer was answered. The disciples went on and changed the world with the Good News of Jesus Christ.

What I want you to see dear reader, if you read a little bit further, you will see in verse 20, “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they may all be one; even as You Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent me.”

I saw a post the other day that said something like, if you could hear Jesus praying in the other room for you, how would your faith improve?

He already did…Jesus prayed for you and me. Isn’t that amazing? And those words echo through generations. We cannot fall asleep in our faith and stop watching and praying. We need to be about the work of Jesus.

Revelation 3 is a message to the church in Sardis. And I can relate to this call to action. In verse 3 and 4 it a triumphant Jesus says, “Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God. So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it and repent. Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you.”

Our work is not done! My charge to you comes from Ephesians 5:14-16:

“For this reason it says,

‘Awake, sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
And Christ will shine on you.’

Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil”.

Shine a light in this dark world. Watch and pray.

Building

From time to time I come across scripture that reminds me of other passages. And then, when it speaks to my current situation, it is so loud! When people say they "hear from God", that's how I hear Him. His voice speaks from the Bible and bumps into my life. I wanted to break my blog silence to share it with you today.

I've been walking through the Old Testament lately and came across 2 Samuel 7. David is in the midst of a time of peace, some downtime to think. He looked around his nice cedar home and realizes God doesn't have a house. He doesn't feel right that the ark, "the presence of God", was still in a tent. He felt convicted. He mentions it to Nathan, and Nathan agreed and told him to go and do, that God was with Him. (Notice here that neither checked with God on this idea.)

Later, God speaks to Nathan and tells him differently. It's an interesting passage--go read it. (2 Samuel 7:1-17)

Then, I heard an echo from the New Testament. Hundreds of years later, Jesus took three of His disciples up a mountain. (Matthew 17:1-17) Jesus is transfigured before them and Moses and Elijah show up. Peter, so excited, comes up with an idea. He suggests to Jesus that they could build them three tents to keep them there. But God had the final say. He said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” This knocked the three men down on their faces. When Jesus touched them, they looked up and all was back to normal. No bright light, no Moses or Elijah, no special mountain top community.

For several weeks now we have been missing our church family. We've been isolated in our homes to watch church online. We supported our local church for many years...helping paint, serving in ministries and giving to keep the building open. And now, the doors are closed to protect the people from an invisible virus.

All over the world, church buildings are closed. And there are many versions of man's home for God. From thousands of square feet with stained glass to mud bricks and dirt floors. When we wanted to "get close" to God, we felt the call to enter the doors of the building. But now, those places are empty. So we do our best from our home with televised worship, online preaching and streaming sermons.

What I realized after reading those two passages in isolation, is that God cannot be contained. He doesn't seem to want a building. He wants the people IN the building. My mistake is trying to put God in a box.

John 14 shows us Jesus talking with His disciples. They were concerned about seeing Him again. He assures them that He is going to prepare a place for them. Imagine that...the One who we've been trying to build a home for wants us to come live with Him in eternity! No wonder the building on earth is not that important to Him. As long as He has a place in our hearts, He has the only home He ever wanted.

Dear Reader, in this time of isolation, quarantine and fear...be encouraged. You don't need to visit a church building to experience God. Open your Bible and read. He speaks to our hearts all the time. We just need to get a little more quiet time to hear that still, small voice.

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.  In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” John 14:1-7 ESV

New Adventure

It has been a long time since I've written in this blog. The reason is, I have been on a new challenge! I've written my first book, a Bible study.

Many times when I dig in the Bible, God does some talking to me. He speaks to my heart. I am ready to share this study with you. It's called, "Give Him 40". It's a study about incidents where God took people through a 40 day experience.

I hope you enjoy it. I loved writing it and hope to do more.

Can I encourage you to take a step toward your dream today? Don't just talk about it. Get an accountability team and have them hold you to what you say you will do.

I am so thankful mine did.

God be glorified.

Give Him 40: A 40 day Bible study
In the Bible, the number 40 generally symbolizes a period of testing. I am asking you to give God 40 days of your life. It’s a little over a month of study. But I promise you, if you put your heart into it, you will not regret that time.

Worthy

I have a worn dollar bill tucked away in my wallet. It's away from the other bills that are crisp, folded and ready to spend. There is a tear that almost splits the paper in half, and without a little clear tape--it's not likely to be accepted at any store. It's my reminder of value.

There is one place that will take that dollar. In fact, they will take it and give me a brand new crisp dollar bill in return for it. The bank actually has an agreement with the place the dollar came from: the Federal Reserve. If you read the bill carefully, you can find out a lot about it's origin and age. Signatures, imprints and serial numbers call out each bill as unique.

For every dollar they get, that government entity recognizes it as legal tender. Dollar for dollar, coin for coin. As long as it's a little over half there, they count it as whole.

Counterfeit bills don't make it back out into circulation. You can't even get an even trade for it. Once it's flagged, it's bagged and the route from which it came is traced to the culprit who tried to fool the system. Fire is it's destination.

Real currency that is torn, stained and ragged is returned to the Federal Reserve where they print more to replace them. And the tattered money is incinerated. Never to be seen again.

I know people who wouldn't pick up a penny, much less a damaged dollar bill. They can't see the true value laying at their feet.

Have you ever looked into the eyes of someone who's been torn apart by the world? How about someone tattered by substance abuse? What about those who are half there because a physical or emotional abuse have left them hanging? Or have you crossed paths with the one who wears their sin as clear as a torn dollar bill, and can't seem to fix it on their own?

The world will say there is no value in that person. The world will say to lock them up, take them out of circulation...they add no value to this earth.

But the Creator of that soul knows full well the value of that human. They have His imprint, His signature, He strung together their DNA...He knows their name and the path that has dropped them at His feet. Where others will step over them and abandon them, God stoops, reaches out and grasps them in His fingertips.

"There you are! I knew I'd find you...my treasure!"

And in God's hands, something amazing happens. That torn human becomes reborn. The tattered life is renewed, the battered soul is bright and fresh again. Where once stood a devalued life, now stands a priceless child of God--ready to face the fire that would've suffocated them before. Because a new life is not without it's trials and consequences.

It's time to spend your life wisely.  The price has already been paid for us. Let's look forward in 2017 and dream of God-possibilities!



"Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” Luke 15:8-10

Submission

Submission. Some find that an ugly word. Especially if you are being forced to submit by a dictator or abuser. I think we can agree: it all depends on who or what you are submitting to.

On website forms, there is a submit button. This sends the information you provided to the webmaster of the site.

Writers must submit their manuscripts to editors before a book is published.

A potential blue ribbon cook or baker must submit their best recipe to the county fair judge.

Submission can be a good thing.

When you have something physically wrong inside of you, one must submit to a surgeon. I find that the most vulnerable of acts.

You literally put your life into the hands of someone else.

They don't bully you into the operating room. They don't hold you hostage until they remove your tonsils. Usually you see a couple doctors before the surgery. You might get a second opinion. You do your homework and find that one doctor you trust.

And then you lay yourself on a table and trust that doctor will make things right after a few cuts, removal and stitches.

It's all who you believe you are submitting to.

When it comes to God, people have a hard time with the word submission.

I think it's because they have a distorted view of who God is. They may believe He is a dictator and abuser. They might consider Him an untrustworthy father. I don't blame them, I wouldn't trust a god who was unpredictable, mean or a joy stealer.

I think they just haven't done their homework.

Just who is my God?

He is personable, not some virtual webmaster waiting for me to press a button on my prayer form. He listens to me and answers me with scripture or through others.

In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me. Psalm 120:1

He is helpful. He's not an editor who rubber stamps a manuscript "rejected" just because he doesn't have patience to wade through my life. He takes time with me and helps me edit my life story.

For I, the Lord your god, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, "Fear not, I am the one who helps you." Isaiah 41:13

He is a fair judge. He doesn't look at my outside, and He certainly doesn't take any bribery or deals just to let me slide.

Truly God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. Psalm 73:1

Most of all, he is a Good Physician. Submission to God is all about the trust. He has the power to make me nothing and yet He loves me as if I'm the only one on the planet. Can I trust that He has my best interest in mind when I need spiritual heart surgery? Yes.

And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. Ezekiel 36:26

I need to be willing to be willing...which is my definition of submission. If I am willing to be willing, that's all He needs to work with...a living sacrifice. What have I got to lose? Just my fear and that hard heart that's been knocking around in my ribcage for years.

I appear to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Romans 12:1

Restore

I love art. I love realism as well as some abstract. I also love to hear stories of someone finding an old painting in a garage sale or in their attic and after a little clean up, the beauty is obvious to all.

Art restoration is an art in itself. The technician works very slowly, sometimes with a qtip or a damp cloth and gently removes the years of dust and sometimes residue from smokers. Canvas tears are mended, and even small areas are sometimes repainted. They take every detail into consideration, even the pigments used in the era the artist created the work.

The end result is a far cry from what the world thought was trash...the work reveals what the artist intended with their masterpiece.

We are God's masterpiece. And some find they have been locked away in the cellar of life and discover damage, soot and painful rips in their heart's canvas.

Galatians 6:1a says:  "Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness."

Did you know that it is up to us to gently restore a fellow believer back to their intended purpose? That doesn't mean judging or labeling them. It also doesn't mean making them over into someone completely different either. The world says they are done and useless. But we have an idea of what the Artist intended with a person. We see the possibility under the struggle.

You take into consideration the person's life history, their "voice" and their dreams. It means taking the time to wash away with gentle words the clouds of shame, and revealing the true beauty of their faith hidden under years of neglect. The application of scripture cleanses and renews their spirit. Challenge them to study it with you. Encourage dark days with music and uplifting conversation.

Help them to reframe their life with positive steps of restoration. And when the work is done, they find the beauty of the masterpiece that they have always been. They just needed a little restoration.

For we are the product of His hand, heaven’s poetry etched on lives, created in the Anointed, Jesus, to accomplish the good works God arranged long ago.
Ephesians 2:10 (Voice)

Weed B-Gone

I came upon an interesting site the other day. I thought the county was falling down on its road beautification job because of a weed crawling up a road sign. Then I noticed the weed was coming out from the inside of the sign post.

That's a pretty smart weed. It's basically wearing armor. No weed-whacker I know could cut through a steel sign post. The weed was thriving and getting pretty bold with its tendrils grasping for more leverage.

 

If you look closely you can see it here.

I would imagine after a while it could overtake the sign and people would miss the caution sign.

I talked to my husband about it and wondered aloud how you could rid the sign post of the adventurous weed. He said it would have to be killed at the root.

“But, it would leave a bunch of dead vines and leaves hanging from the post.” I complained.

It would be a tedious job, yanking and cutting. A little like getting bubble gum out of a shag carpet.
If it had just been taken care of when it started to grow in the pole.

Many times God tries to show me something about life in picture puzzles like that.

And I saw it. Sin is like a weed. And if you don’t catch it early or pull it out by the root, time only makes it a bigger problem to eradicate.

It’s easy to overlook sin too. Some days it is pretty obvious, but most of the time it starts with a small misstep: a sharp word planted in someone’s conversation, a seed of gossip…a casual flirtation that becomes habitual…a hidden seed of bigotry left to grow out of sight. And the next thing you know its as obvious as a large weed growing inside a road sign pole.

The words are recorded, habit is entrenched, prejudice brings fists and the seed grows and bears fruit that tastes of death.

Did you forget a weed by the road you’ve walked? Has it grown up tall and green, inside a protective cover of apathy or deception?

You can let it grow and bear that bitter fruit and taint your own caution sign, your testimony. Or, you can get to work with a confession saws all and pull it up by the roots.

As my pastor likes to say, "Do it now!" And I agree.

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. James 5:16 (ESV)

I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah  Psalm 32:5 (ESV)

See Glass

Sometimes when I am collecting shells on the beach, I find small treasures of broken glass. They aren't sharp shards that cut. The ocean has tumbled them into nuggets of what looks like frozen gelatin. The pieces have lost their slicing ability and have a soft beauty.

The colors can range from browns (beer bottles) to greens (soda pop or wine bottles) to blues (medicine bottles). It's interesting how there can be beauty in a broken object. The use is long gone, because the object is in pieces--never to be glued together again. The labels are long gone, the color whispers of a possible past the bottle had.

I like to collect them and keep with my shells, like frozen water droplets. Others create mobiles or wind chimes out of driftwood and fishing line. Still others make one-of-a-kind jewelry.

What has been broken in your life dear reader? How many out there have shattered dreams, lost loved ones or fragmented lives all jumbled together and cutting deep? No matter how you try to carry it, a sliver works it's way into your heart.

Some days I will visit the ocean at sunrise. I pour out my broken heart to God and my tears mingle with the salt spray. And He takes my fragile pieces and tumbles them in the waves and washes my soul.

I still have the broken pieces, but the edges are worn soft and the labels are washed away. He creates something new out of them. Something to share with others. The beauty of healing shines through and I can move forward and know that a new purpose has come out of that pain...

You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?
Psalm 56:8

Fine

We have deep ditches on both sides of the road into our neighborhood. During the hurricane season, these can be full and overflowing. While driving one evening, I came upon a stopped car with it's warning lights blink-blinking. When I stopped to wait to drive around, I looked at the ditch beside the car and noticed the top of a man's head. (Did I mention these are deep ditches?) I immediately thought the car had knocked some cyclist in the ditch.

I got out to help and called, "Sir are you OK?" I heard a muffled reply.

I calmed my squeamish nerves and prepared to help an accident victim. I followed the tracks of small wheels to where his head was bobbing. They seemed too small and numerous for bicycle tracks. Then I realized with even more squeamishness it was not a bicycle in the ditch but a riding lawnmower.

The man was OK--he had all his appendages and there was no blood. But his mower, his zero-turn- large-deck-expensive looking-riding lawnmower was sinking into the muck of the ditch. He was knee deep in water, trying to tie a rope on the frame to haul it out.

I called again, "Sir, I didn't hear you--are you OK?"

"Yeah I'm fine." Not even turning his head, he wrestled with a sturdy knot.

"Can I call someone?"

"No, I'm good. Don't need help." His tone was short and I decided the only injury was to his pride.

As I got into my car to leave, his wife got out of the vehicle with the blinking warning lights and gave me a sheepish wave. I wondered how many had stopped to offer him help and he waved them off? We live in redneck country and must've been a truck with a good winch on it within a couple blocks.

Sometimes people don't want help with their messes. It's true in life too. You have a friend who suddenly is quiet--they don't text or call. You haven't seen them around for a couple weeks and you check in on them. You can tell in their eyes they are struggling with something.

You ask, "Are you OK?" and they answer, "Fine".

For me that word "fine" is a four letter word. "Feeling Inadequate Need Encouragement" is more like what's really going on.

They have hit a ditch and they are struggling to get out. They took a wrong turn or made a bad choice and they are off road emotionally. Their wheels are deep in the muck or up a tree. They are convinced they can get themselves out of the predicament by their own power. The problem is their pride. They figure if people will just drive around them and leave them to their own struggle, they will get back on the road...eventually.

That's a hard life. Sure they can say they "won" several battles. But did they really? How many times have they seen that same ditch?

The Bible says it's better to have friends who will help you out of those emotional or spiritual ditches.

By yourself you’re unprotected. With a friend you can face the worst. Can you round up a third? A three-stranded rope isn’t easily snapped. Ecclesiastes 4:12 (MSG)

I want to encourage you to find some friends who will hold you up during your F.I.N.E. moments. People who don't gossip and have known your quirks and weaknesses for a while. My prayer is that they just show up with their tools. And remember to reciprocate. There is nothing like a friend who has been down that same road.

The man finally got his mower out of the ditch. Car and mower were gone by the time I was back down the road to home. But I wondered, will his pride be enough to get him through the next time something like this happens? And will he be able to laugh about it later? I hope so...I hope it wasn't his wife that planted the mower in the ditch.

Got rhythm?

When I was younger, I wanted to be a drummer. I wanted to be the one in the background of the song that kept it moving forward, the one who would set the pace and add an exclamation point to the tune with a cymbal crash. I loved the softer rhythm as well, the swish of the drumbrush that sounded more like a broom gathering up all the notes and dumping them into my lap. The bass drum was like a heart beat...sometimes I could feel it in my chest.

Drummers were used in battle as a kind of communication. The enemy could hear the drums coming way before the soldiers arrived. They could announce the charge or retreat. They could round up the soldiers for a march. The drummer could encourage the war weary who needed to take one more hill. Or, they could induce a solemn feeling as a flag was raised and lowered to half-staff.

I love to see a military drummer or a historical reenactment that bring the sound of the past to life. Even a high school band with their drummers make the dust bounce on the ground as they march by. I think my favorite thing to watch is a competition between two school drum lines. They face off in the middle of a football field instead of a battle field and make those drums talk.

I like to think of the Holy spirit as my own personal drummer. I try to let Him set the tone of my day in the early morning by reading scripture. I find a few verses that I can meditate on all day and the drum in my spirit gets louder.

The cadence gets my feet moving and sometimes bids me to be still. The bass drum is there with a thud, and I feel it in my chest. As long as I have breath, I know the Spirit's rhythm is there. And the enemy won't beat me, because my heart is already engaged in the drum roll of heaven.

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:28-30 (MSG)

Casting

This week I had a couple friends that were caught in anxiety. I was trying to come up with some encouragement and a bible verse came to mind:

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7

Immediately a picture of a man, knee deep in water, tossing a cast net into the waves came to mind.

I thought that was a nice picture. Just throw your anxiety out into the water and be done with it. But no, God was showing me something else. Anxiety is the net.

Anxiety is like a net, and we are the not-so-bright fish that are caught in the trap. We are swimming along in the shallow water of life and then we aren't. We are wrapped in a tangled grip of nylon and lead weights...and the more we struggle, the tighter the net wraps around us.

We find ourselves on shore in the hot sun, gasping like we ran a marathon and the fisherman standing over us...pulling out his scaling tool and fish knife.

I know that sounds a bit over dramatic, but if you've ever had a real anxiety attack...it's as if your heart is being wrenched from your chest and you can't breathe. It is debilitating and frightening.

So what is the solution? Anxiety is triggered by things we believe are true, whether its our job security, bills or family situation...we are very sure that the thing we dread is going to come true and our body reacts with the fight or flight response. Our breathing gets faster, our mind starts trying out all kinds of possibilities, our heart rate picks up and still there seems no way out of the situation.

So what if we introduced into our mind what is true about God?

Anxiety in a man's heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad. Proverbs 12:25

What if we started to look up His promises to us about being our provider, our healer and our concerned Father? What if we started thanking Him for the little things as well as the big things?

I have found that the enemy always starts with our heads. If he can get us to believe we are what he says we are, then we stop believing what God says we are. And once we start doubting what God says, we are back in the Garden with Adam and Eve...staring into the eyes of that serpent that hissed, "Did God really say..." (Genesis 3:1)

Could it be that simple? It could be. Maybe it's time to start swimming in the deeper water of study. Pick up your Bible, find a passage that speaks to you and dive in. There are no nets there.

It's when we go swimming in shallow worry that we find ourselves already caught.

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Matthew 6:25-34 (ESV)

Dumpster Diving

There were these two people, standing in a dumpster. (No, it's not a joke unfolding.) Were they private investigators, looking for evidence of a crime? No. Were they blackmailers looking for stuff to hold over their neighbors? No. Maybe they were hungry? No. They were two desperate people, looking for a money order that was accidently thrown away.

In their flurry of taking out the trash the night before, a scrap of paper was tossed in the white bag, tied up and tossed in the dumpster. Mercifully, it was not the day the truck was supposed to come. If it had, I would imagine those two friends would've been more frantic and maybe even chained themselves to the dumpster...well maybe not that, it's only money.

So they stood with gloves on and the lovely aroma of other people's trash in their nostrils, looking at probably 30 or more identical garbage bags. The treasure hunt ended successfully. They found it, a little wet and a little smelly. They were very thankful it was not the dead heat of summer or a crazy rainstorm.

I would imagine their neighbors thought they had lost their mind. But these friends knew there was buried treasure there. They knew the price of it and were willing to get dirty to dig it out.

Jesus is like that. He knows the value of people and was willing to go into "the dumpster" to be with them and lead them out.

While traveling, He went out of His way and walked to Samaria. (Samaria was avoided by all upstanding Jews.) He sat at a Samaritan well in the heat of the day, to speak to a woman who had a questionable reputation. (John 4:1-30)

When He was in the midst of ministry, there was a desperate leper who came to Him for healing. Walking near this man would've been out of the question, much less touching him. But Jesus did touch him, and healed him.

And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” Mark 1:40-41 (ESV)

Even during dinner, He was approached by an obvious woman of ill repute and allowed her to touch His feet. Even with the party host fuming at the invasion, Jesus took the time to show her love.

Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner. Luke 7:39 (ESV)

Have you ever gone out of your comfort zone for Jesus? Have you ever visited someone in prison, gone to the bedside of the dying or said a kind word to the stumbling drunk in the parking lot?

Jesus didn't promise following Him would be soft pews, stained glass and pretty music. He said to leave the 99 sheep and go after the one that is lost.

Expect brambles and mud outside. Expect to be judged by your peers or strangers. You may even have to take a trip into places you never would've thought you would go like a distant land that is hostile to Christians. Because the lost sometimes find the most obnoxious places to run away to. Jesus wants us to go after them, because He did. If you're worried about the smell or the dirt, it will wash off. But the treasure you will find is priceless!

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. Matthew 6:19-20 (ESV)

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Matthew 13:44 (ESV)

EXIT

Sometimes the way out is the way inside...

We were heading down the hall out of the movies one evening and saw an obvious couple coming in the EXIT by way of a group of people. The door is usually locked and no entrance is allowed to the theater except by way of the lobby after you pay for your tickets. I remembered kids doing that when I was a teen (eons ago). Sometimes they were caught-but other times they weren't.

At our church we are getting ready to do an outside facelift. We have been entering via an exit door on the parking lot side. It's a little confusing to new visitors, especially if it's closed or locked. That is, until a smiling face opens it from the inside and assures them that's the way inside.

I was a little wistful at the thought of the sign on the door possibly changing or being removed. When I see that exit sign, I feel like I am exiting the World for a couple of hours to meet with God and His people. I can totally focus on music, prayer and scripture and it fills me. Leaving the World and it's worries outside on the hot parking lot asphalt, I welcome the Living Water that refreshes my soul.

There is a gate in Jerusalem that has been sealed. No one can enter or exit through this gate. It's called the Eastern Gate or the Beautiful Gate. Ezekiel 44:1-3 speaks of it staying closed until the return of the Messiah. Once before it was open and this is how God's glory came in to fill the temple. Another time it was when Jesus rode into the city on a donkey and was received as a king. They say when Jesus returns the final time, the Eastern Gate will open to receive Him.

Some think that the door to heaven is sealed shut for them; locked tight and entry is forbidden. Others think this door is wide open for anyone to stroll through--whether they believe in God or not.

Can I tell you something? Heaven's door is like an EXIT door. It's the way God came down to be with us. He exited heaven and became a baby, lived with humans for 30 something years and returned after His resurrection from a horrible death.

And Jesus promises something. He said "I am the Door". So it's not like we have to murmur a special password to St. Peter or do a certain number of good deeds to get in. We simply have to understand Jesus is The Door, the only way inside...the One who exited heaven and stands waiting for us...holding it open to all who want to come by way of Him. Unlike the movie theater,  your ticket to Eternity is already paid. 

There is one more door I'd like you to think about...it is the door of your heart. Many have answered that door when Jesus came knocking. There are several that have sealed that door as tightly as the gate in Jerusalem. There is no entrance for a Messiah there. But when you think about it, there is no exit either.

There is no way for the guilt and pain to leave your life.

Not allowing Jesus entry into your life traps the dark, it bottlenecks within. There are sleepless nights that swirl with the dust of regret. There are outbursts just waiting for agitation to scratch the surface and explode like an over-filled balloon. There are numerous ways to try to forget all the junk, but in reality they only magnify the dark.

The Bible says that Jesus stands at the door and knocks. Time to throw open that rusty lock, slide back the chain and remove the chair you tucked under the doorknob. You will find you had only taken yourself hostage.

Dear reader, the way out is the way inside. It's not an escape, it's entering in to where God is waiting for his children to return from their awkward exits. He doesn't lock and bar that door. He has provided a way for you to return through His son Jesus Christ.

I pray your exit strategy includes The Door that is always open to receive. And one day I hope we both get to see the fear-filled beauty of His return...when He blows through the doors of that Jerusalem gate at His Second coming.

I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.
John 10:9 (ESV)

Present Joy

I cleaned up Christmas today and tucked it away in boxes for another season. Some of the wrapping was worth recycling, boxes were stowed and the more ragged stuff was tossed.

If you like to recycle like me, your family has experienced the fun of second guess gifts. Some people know exactly what the gift is by the box size, shape and weight. They get their face all ready to "act surprised" until they open the box...and what they thought was inside is not there. So the surprise is as real as the gift that unfolds before them.

Another year is here and it seems to be wrapped up in questions and anticipation. It seems to be the same 12 months, 365 days...Looking back at previous years you know pretty much what is coming. So you brace for the parade of days.

If 2014 was rough, you look for dark clouds on the horizon. The ribbons of fear are hard to break as you struggle through month by month.

Those that had an uneventful 2014 look forward to the year, but not with happy tension that should be peaking out from beneath the folds of the morning.

Have you considered time as a gift from God? When I think of the next day coming, I am tempted to assume I know exactly what the day holds. But God is the gift giver, and He is the best at surprises.

This new year, I challenge you to accept each day as a gift from God. And as you unwrap the day, expect to be surprised by Joy. Especially when you think you have the future already figured out.

If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! Matthew 7:11 (ESV)

Them Bones

How many of you have had a broken bone? Was it an arm or leg? What was the purpose of the cast? What would have happened if the bone started to grow back wrong? Resetting a bone can be a painful experience. There can be pins, plates and rods that are involved.  If it’s not done, the patient can be crippled for life. Doesn’t it help to know someone else who had that procedure and can walk you through what to expect?

 

The hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. And he led me around among them, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley, and behold, they were very dry. Ezekiel 37:1-2 (ESV)

 

I told someone the other day that a Celebrate Recovery Step Study we have at Central Life is a lot like resetting a broken bone that healed wrong.

 

Now stick with me—don’t get freaked out! If you are committed to this, a step study walks you through a process of healing that is necessary and sometimes painful. The key is to keep moving forward with the next step—and never go farther than the chapter you are studying for the week!

 

We come to CR because there is something not quite right in our life—something that has hobbled us. The first study book shows you how much damage there is. There might be more than you thought. You should be prepared to work on the most crucial area first. There will be tears and bravery is necessary. You step out of denial and with the help of the Step Study leader, your accountability partners and eventually a sponsor…plans are made for emotional and spiritual surgery.

 

In book 2 and 3, the most painful part is accomplished and the pins, rods, plates and cast are in place. The healing begins. The structure seems rigid, however it is there for a reason: to keep you aligned with God’s word. There will still be some pain involved, but the laughter will come more often. You will become close friends with people that are braver than you are. It is a safe place as long as the procedures are followed.

 

Beware: quitting a Step Study or not doing the homework is like not using the cast and crutches the doctor provided. Pretty soon you will be back to the broken life that isn’t properly healed. The habits and hurts flood back in and you can acquire even more brokenness and pain.

 

It is possible, if I hadn’t been through it myself, I wouldn’t ask you to try.

 

The last book shows you how to grow and move in this healing. It’s a lot like physical therapy after the cast is off. The recovery is not complete without these final chapters. When you learn new habits, you replace the old ways of doing things so you will avoid further injury.

 

Once you complete the Step Study, you are not done with CR. In fact, the recovery in one area may reveal deeper hurts that need healing that would have never surfaced before. Going through multiple Step Studies is not a sign of failure. It is a sign of surrender to God’s healing.

 

When you have completed your first Step Study, why not consider becoming a sponsor or Step Study leader? There are many broken lives out there that need resetting. They need to see someone with similar hurts and habits that survived the process.

 

I used to invite others to CR before even attending meetings consistently. I look back and wonder how I could ever ask someone to take such a painful step if I had never attempted it myself. I am evidence that the process works.

 

My prayer for the future step studies comes from a passage in Ezekiel 37.

 

Heavenly Father, may you look upon these broken bones and breathe new life into them. Raise up leaders, sponsors and accountability partners. We need an army Father! Pour out your healing upon us. Make us ready to serve, ready to speak and ready to love. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Hammer Time

My friend loves to go to the beach at sunrise. These days it’s a bit too cold, so I thought I’d share a summer sunrise with you.

This interesting cloud is called an anvil cloud. It’s in the shape of a blacksmith’s anvil. She told me when she took the picture; there was actually lightning flickering within the cloud. It must’ve been quite a sight.

I remembered when I was little and a storm was going on, my parents would say God was bowling. The lightning would still startle me and the anticipation would build as I waited for the thunder clap.
When I saw the anvil cloud I got to thinking and started to read about blacksmiths.

A blacksmith uses fire and hammers to make the cold steel or iron to conform into tools or decorative pieces. He works in a dim shop so he can see the color the metal is changing in the furnace. Forging heat for metal is an orange-yellow. If it got too hot and turned white or yellow, some metals would lose their strength and they could crack or break. So the blacksmith is constantly monitoring the furnace.

Once it’s the right color, the item is pulled from the coals and placed on the anvil to be forged. Large pieces require the help of a striker: an apprentice that wields a large sledgehammer.

Depending on what he is creating, he could be hammering, drawing it out to lengthen or forming it over the anvil. All this time he checks the color, placing it back in the coals and keeping it hot.

There is a term called “upsetting”, this is where the blacksmith will make the metal thicker on one end by shortening the other. There is also punching for either decoration or a hole is needed to attach something. He can also weld two pieces together.

Finally the finishing comes where he will break off scale with a wire brush, file to remove burs and edges. Then he heats it one more time to a desired hardness so the item will hold up to use. He gives it a final polish using a grinding stone.

Sometimes the hard times can be the enemy trying to trip us up. But you know what; I think sometimes people give the devil too much credit.   

What if that difficult time you are going through is actually time on God’s anvil? What if he is turning up the heat in a situation to make you stronger for the next? And some of the stuff that’s being taken away, what if God is removing the burs and scales of your life to reveal the beauty underneath?

…a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. Isaiah 42:3

Know this; He knows exactly how much you can handle. It may be dark now, but God is in His shop. He is turning up the heat and He has you in His hands. Though the sparks fly and the hammer falls, know He is doing something new in your life and you will come out of this even stronger than you were before.

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:2-4

Heaven's Pennies

I’ve got a coin purse on my wallet that doesn’t like to stay closed these days. Loose change slips out thru the zipper closure and rides the bottom of my purse. It becomes buried treasure on Friday afternoons at work when the vending machine calls.

 

Some days that’s the only quarter I can find for a shopping cart at the local grocery. Sundays I dump it into a coin cup at home. (I bet you thought I was going to say church offering plate.) It makes a good emergency fund for grocery items. Monday starts the coin gathering all over again.

 

I have been reading through Job with a friend of mine and we have met the youngest of Job’s friends, Elihu.  After we waded through his grand introduction of himself, the advice he gives Job seems to cut through the mire of all the suffering Job has been experiencing.

 

²⁹ “Behold, God does all these things,
    twice, three times, with a man,
³⁰ to bring back his soul from the pit,
    that he may be lighted with the light of life.  

 Job 33:29-30 (ESV)

 

Could it be that suffering can be a good thing? Like scratched pennies from heaven, can misery have some value?

 

When I look back through difficult times in my life and tally the columns of sickness, grief, depression, loss…I have to ask, was it all for nothing? Or was there value even there?

 

You see, the World hands us coins of sorrow now and then. Some days we just feel like tossing it back on the ground for someone else to pick up. We see no value in it. We reject it and wonder why it weighs heavy on our spirit.

 

What I want you to see is, that coin has two sides to it. And one actually says, “In God we trust”. When we receive that pain and acknowledge our trust in Him in all circumstances, He takes that thing the enemy meant to harm and disarm us with and refines us.

 

These days my coins are heavy on my shoulder and it’s time to turn them in to something lighter. And I know just how to do that. In God’s economy I have riches beyond what I can imagine stored up. I just have to thank Him for it.

 

So what will it be for you? Why not flip a coin? Heads you win.

 

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:2-4 (ESV)

Brokering Peace

When there is a battle going on, one of the alternatives is to broker a peace deal. Sadly, many times those deals don't last because one side isn't happy with the concessions it made. The last deal that Egypt tried to work out between Israel and Hamas didn't last a day. Hamas called it “surrender" for them and they continue to fight.

In Job 22:21, a friend of Job named Eliphaz advised him, "Agree with God and be at peace". (ESV)

Many people I know seem to be trying to make peace with God on their own terms. They like to try to get God to agree with them. "If you will just save my neck, then I promise to..." "If you let me win the lotto, then I will give..." "If you will change my family member, then I will..."

We make deals all day with God, all the while feeling like we need to do a little more to “get right” with Him. There is no peace in that!

There was a young man who came to Jesus and thought he had his deal all sewn up. He was ready to do any good deed to get eternal life.

“Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” Matthew 19:16b. (Well at least he left half of the deal open for Jesus to add the prerequisite.)

Jesus pointed him to the last five commandments…the ones dealing with how you treat others. The young man knew he could close the deal because he was sure he kept them all. But, for some reason he thought there must be one more thing he had to do to be faultless.

So Jesus gave him that one more thing and the deal for eternal life was hanging, waiting for that handshake to seal the deal. You see, Jesus saw straight into his heart and asked that young man to give up his worship of wealth…

Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”  Matthew 19:21 (ESV)

The young man went away sad, because he was very rich.

When we look at the list of demands—the whole Ten Commandments, not just the last five—we become like the young man, sorrowful, because we can’t seem to reach that requirement of perfection.

The thing with God is that there are no treaties or peace deals to be made with Him. He requires total surrender. And for many, that price is too high to pay.

What if I told you someone had already lived that perfect life? What if I told you that he is willing to trade your life for his? Does that deal seem too good to be true? It really is a free gift; you just have to accept it. There is nothing you have to do, no contract to sign, no extra points you have to earn…there is no “then I will” clause for you to fulfill. It’s all Jesus Christ and what He did. He lived that perfect life and exchanged it for yours on the cross.

Is today the day you make peace with God? I would hope so.

I like to think that later on, that young man “got it”, because there is mention of a “young man” following Jesus in Mark 14:51-52. In the end, he had nothing but a linen covering…and even that was snatched from him. I like to think that young man sold everything and followed Jesus to the end because that was just too sweet a deal to turn down.

“Give in to God, come to terms with him and everything will turn out just fine. Let him tell you what to do; take his words to heart. Come back to God Almighty and he’ll rebuild your life. Clean house of everything evil. Relax your grip on your money and abandon your gold-plated luxury. God Almighty will be your treasure, more wealth than you can imagine."
Job 22:21-25 (MSG)