DebraJ
The Wonder of It All
Nothing puts my heart in proper Christmas perspective as does hearing Mannheim Steamroller’s “Stille Nacht“. Always a beautiful song of the season, “Silent Night” has been arranged in so many different ways – but this version always reduces me to tears: When the fullness of time had come (the gong of the grandfather clock), the God of all creation came to earth as a tiny Baby (the playing of the toy piano), through an act of His powerful Spirit (the sound of the mighty rushing wind).
Waiting, working, caught up in the hectic pace we’ve made of this Birthday celebration, I’m so easily distracted. I wonder why I’ve allowed myself to become consumed by consumerism; taking what used to be a time of love and joy, and making it into a season of chores to check off a list (that never seems to end). Little by little I’ve allowed wrong attitudes to chip away at the intentions behind my rushed activities until they’re nothing more than things on a list I have to get done…
Until I hear again “Silent Night” and all becomes calm and bright ‘round the virgin mother and Child…
Until I again worship the newborn King, whom the angels proclaimed to the shepherds…
Until I join the wise men, led by a star to the place where He was born, in awe of the purpose for which He came…
Redemption. Salvation. Life. (Not what we humans have made it, but Real Life.)
Joy; full joy. Forgiveness. Peace.
Lord, I bow and worship with awe-filled wonder as You fill my heart…every part of this world…with Your redeeming grace. Help me to be still and live in the wonder of it all!
Silent Night! Holy Night! Son of God, Love’s pure light, Radiant beams from Thy Holy Face, With the dawn of redeeming grace. Jesus, Lord at Thy birth. Jesus, Lord at Thy birth.
Our Ash Tree is Gone
As I sat on the porch this morning, the gaping hole where our beautiful ash tree once stood filled my heart with sadness.
I tried to “Be Still” and remember “In Your presence is fullness of joy,” but my spirit felt empty.
I began reading my devotionals when a flock of squawky parrots flew overhead. I watched them and thought, “They will never come to my home again. They will never be as close as they once were, when they’d light in the top branches of that majestic tree.”
As I watched, I saw I was not the only one feeling this loss. Several of them, at least four, flew in place directly overhead – as if they were searching for the tree that had always been there. The rest of the flock circled several times while those four flew in place, before they all moved on. Soon they landed across the street in our neighbor’s backyard tree. No longer here, but at least nearby.
Moments later I heard rustling and saw movement in the trees lining our other neighbor’s cinderblock wall. It was the little squirrel. Every other morning, he would run from our back deck, up onto our roof, then race over the whole house to the ash tree, where he would leap across the four-to-five-foot chasm. Landing safely in the tree, he’d climb down and go to our neighbor’s fruit trees. Already he had found a new route.
I, too, am finding that life goes on and that things are just different now. I am so grateful our Lord is constant. He never changes. He is our firm foundation. So, I’ll look to Him to replace what is missing, when the time is right.
Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
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(More thoughts/lessons on our Firm Foundation are still to come.)
The Bruised Blueberry Bush
“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
Keith and I both love working in our gardens but we have very different gardening styles. I gently water, feed and nurture each plant, rejoicing in every tiny bit of new growth. Most mid-season pruning I do is light; more deadheading than cutting back. Keith is more the guerilla gardener, whacking back plants and pulling out anything that is underperforming. If a branch is broken due to one of us walking brusquely through the bushes, he either yanks it off or pulls out his snippers and immediately cuts it away. No patience or coddling from him with anything but his roses and plumeria. And even those aren’t always safe!
Last spring, I accidently broke a branch on my beloved blueberry bush as I carelessly moved the garden hose from one place to the next. I’m usually so cautious, but I was in a hurry and moved faster than I should have. So, I examined the branch closely to see if the wound was mortal or if I could coax it back to health. I couldn’t quite tell, so I decided to wait and see what would happen.
Day after day I watched it carefully. A week later I was quite surprised to see the branch hadn’t broken after all; it was just bent and badly bruised. The branch hadn’t been severed from the vine and was still fully alive. Berry buds were actually blossoming, and bees were even trying to pollinate them!
I took great joy in watching this bruised branch continue to flourish and guarded it carefully whenever I went near it. I was already pondering lessons relating to the “bruised reed” and how the Lord treats us, His children.
But remember, there are two gardeners at our house…with two differing gardening styles…
A couple of weeks later a neighbor visited us while Keith and I were working out front by the blueberry pots. (We have the greatest neighbors!) We stood and talked for a while, enjoying our conversation, but, as gardeners do, we were both surveying the land for what needed our attention. Suddenly, Keith reached down near where he was standing (which happened to be by the blueberry pot I’d been safeguarding) and YANKED that bruised branch right off the bush! Right in front of me!! Before I had a chance to step in and stop him!!
I was crushed.
“Why did you do that?!!” I asked.
“The branch was broken; it needed to come off,” he replied calmly.
“But I was watching it! I was pondering it! It was still blooming! God was using it,” I said.
“Well, it was dead,” he answered.
“It wasn’t before, but it sure is now,” I retorted. Our poor neighbor left soon thereafter.
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As I pondered the message God had for me in this turn of events, I wanted to be sure I was listening for His voice and not letting my thoughts get in His way. Among the many things I considered I kept coming back to these two points…
Jesus mends broken lives. As we’re on this journey through life we will be touched by sickness; the deaths of friends and loved ones; disappointments; betrayals; rejection; possibly even divorce. We may experience financial burdens and job losses; wildfires or car accidents. Things will be yanked from our lives. Jesus told us that as long as we’re in this world we’ll have tribulation. But He followed that statement with, “But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33). When we put our faith in Him, trusting in His love and goodness, He will faithfully get us through the dark days in which we walk. And we will find that, when we’re on the other side of the pain, we are stronger, more compassionate and better able to help others going through similar trials find joy and strength in the Lord, as well as hope for the future.
He wants our refinement, not our ruin. When we’re His followers His desire is for us to look, act and think more like Him each day. He’s given us His mind; His Holy Spirit is living in us; and His word is available to us, helping us to grow into His image. When we choose to live His way, in His strength, His power is on display in us. In the process, as our trust in Him matures, we’re able to bear fruit regardless of our circumstances – even on bruised branches – causing those around us to wonder how that can be. (Remember, as Paul said, God’s power is perfected in weakness.)
However, since I don’t know where others are in this process, I want to be careful to nurture whenever appropriate. So, I will ask and trust the Lord to show me what I need to do to bring forth justice for those He puts in my life.
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Lord Jesus, thank you for overcoming this world and for helping us live transformed lives. Please show me how and when You want me to act on behalf of others, so Your justice prevails. Amen