Yes, I'm Whining

When I moved to Southern California from the East Coast, I couldn't believe the fabulous weather. For someone who thrives on sunshine and warmth, I was in heaven! And then I moved to Northern California. The weather still beats New York or even Seattle, but jeesh, it sure isn't what most people think of when they think of California-style weather. Wind and cold from Alaska have just as much influence as warm trade winds from Hawaii. So here it is literally the last day of May, and the leaves are dancing wildly in the trees, and the San Francisco fog is hovering over the hillside just waiting to wash over the landscape. I know that summer is technically still about 3 weeks away, but it could at least act like late Spring around here instead of mid-winter. Yes, I'm whining. Oh well, at least it's not snowing or raining. Thank you, Lord, for that.

He Is

BOOKS OF THE BIBLE QUOTE from Pricilla Shirer

from the song “HE IS”

In Genesis, He's the breath of life

In Exodus, He is the Passover Lamb

In Leviticus, He's our high priest

In Numbers, the fire by night

Deuteronomy, He's Israel’s Guide

Joshua, He’s salvation's choice

Judges, He’s Israel’s Guard

In Ruth, the kinsmen's redeemer

1st and 2nd Samuel, our trusted prophet

In Kings and Chronicles He is Sovereign

In Ezra, He’s the true and faithful scribe

In Nehemiah, the re-builder of broken walls and lives

In Esther, He’s Mordecai's courage

In Job, the timeless redeemer

In Psalms He is our morning song

In Proverbs, He is our wisdom

Ecclesiastes, He's the time and season

In Song of Solomon, He is the lover's dream

In Isaiah He is Prince of Peace

In Jeremiah, the weeping prophet

Lamentations, the cry for Israel

Ezekiel, the call from sin

Daniel, the stranger in the fire

Hosea, the forever faithful

Joel, the spirit’s power

Amos, the strong-arms that carry

Obadiah, the Lord our Savior

Jonah, the great missionary

Micah, the promise of peace

Nahum, our strength and shield

In Habakkuk and Zephaniah, He's brings revival

In Haggai He restores that which was lost

IN Zachariah, He’s our fountain

And in Malachi, He's the son of righteousness rising with healing in His wings

AND THAT’S JUST THE OLD TESTAMENT

In Matthew Mark Luke and John, He is God and Messiah

In the spirit filled book of Acts, He is the reigning fire from Heaven

In Romans, He is the grace of God

Corinthians, the power of love

Galatians, freedom from the curse of sin

Ephesians, our glorious treasure

Philippians, the servant's heart

Colossians, He’s God and the trinity Thessalonians, our calling King

In Timothy, Titus and Philemon, He's our mediator and our faithful pastor

In Hebrews, the everlasting courage

In James, the one who heals the sick

In 1st and 2nd Peter, our faithful shepherd

In John and Jude, He's the lover coming for His bride

AND in the Revelation, in the very end, when it’s all over, said and done, when time is NO MORE. He is and will always be the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Prince of Peace, son of Man, Lamb of God, The Great I am, Alpha and Omega, God and Savior

He is Jesus Christ the Lord

He is everything!

Awakening from a Long Slumber

Snow White has awakened from her slumber. Despite current hardships, she and her husband are on the road to reconciliation after years of mutual unhappiness. Her medical issues are under control. She is even seeking, for the first time in years, to discover and fulfill her purpose. And in the middle of all this change and growth and renewal sits Christ. He has been the fountainhead from which the waters of healing, forgiveness and hope flow. Remarkable. Inspirational.

Getting Real

Last night, seven of the Groovy Tuesday gals got together for our monthly gabfest. We laughed. We shared. We got serious. We got silly. We got advice! Most of all, we enjoyed the pleasure of each other's company, and a safe place to get real, be real, stay real for God. I am so thankful for these God-honoring women in my life.

Mindful

I used to tell my Dad that he didn't carry on a conversation with me, he lectured. Yikes, I've been reading back through some of my old blog posts, and I think I can come across the same way. Maybe it's all those years of teaching school kids. Or maybe it's prideful intellect. Humble me, Lord. My desire is to get real, stay real and live real for You.

Milk Toast Truth

"The danger we have is that we want to water down what Jesus said to make it mean something that aligns with our common sense." (Oswald Chambers)

It's not easy to accept and obey what goes contrary to my view of the world. My personal view is just that --- personal. Sure, others may see things the way I do, but that doesn't mean we see or live Truth. Truth is truth. It either is or isn't. There is no such thing as "your truth" and "my truth." If our truths contradict each other then one or both of us is not speaking Truth. We're speaking milk toast truth --- a watered down version of truth. Without ultimateTruth, life is merely chaos and randomness temporarily brought/forced into some sort of structure by our own design. That would make me god of my life, and heaven knows, my common sense is not always the best. I'll take real Truth over experiential truth. It's not always the easier path, but the ground underneath is a sure foundation and not sinking sand.

Now if I can just get my mind and actions to line up with my desire to live by Truth.

In Praise of our Feathered Friends

French school children hand feeding birds in front of Notre Dame. I don't ever want to lose a child-like wonder, amazement and sheer delight of nature, and particularly of our little feathered friends.

What Me Worry?

I just got news that a friend's mother received a death sentence diagnosis of cancer. Cancer SUCKS!!!! I hate it, Lord. I know we are not immortal, and I know that something is going to take down our bodies, but cancer is just insidious. So this is where I ask for your immeasurable peace. Take away my concern and anger and replace them with your calm, omnipotent presence that reassures me that You are totally in control and that everything falls under Your plan and purpose. And please, if it's within Your will, heal this woman miraculously and completely.

Mom, God and Peace

Mom landed back in the hospital last night. I think the last time I posted one of her late night emergency room visits was in March. She had gone so long without a heart episode and now they seem to be picking up again. She turns 92 on June 6th and has had a heart problem most of her adult life, so I should be thrilled that she has lived such a long life. But I'm not ready yet for her to leave us, and I don't think she's ready either. That's where I have to lean on God for His peace that passes all understanding. If I turn to Him and trust Him, then worry is supposed to melt off me like ice cream on a hot day.

I say "supposed to" because I don't always fully submit to God the things I am worrying about. But last night, with all the comings and goings of a very busy emergency room, I let go of my worry and put Mom in the able hands of God and His assistants -- the nurses and doctors of the ER. They are truly angels gifted with an efficiency, sense of humor and compassion that lets God's peace fill me despite the circumstances.

God Convicts not Condems

Guilt and condemnation is not God's style. He does reveal sin in my life, encourages me to acknowledge and confess it. He wants me to go a step further and change my behavior to sin no more. And the cool thing about God is if I am willing, He will provide a road map so I can step away from that behavior, feeling or thought.

God is Love

God desires to know me (and you) and engage in an intimate, love relationship with me.

I've heard it said a thousand times, God is love. So just what exactly does that mean? Women's magazines would have me believing that love is a feeling --- feeling good, feeling happy, feeling wanted. Unfortunately, feelings are mercurial. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 spells out the definition of love as: patient, kind, not envious, not boastful, not proud, not rude, not self-seeking, not easily angered, keeps no records of wrongs, not delight in evil, rejoices with truth, always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres, never fails. That's not very touchy-feely but is sure is clear. Love goes beyond expectations, rises above circumstances and is enduring. Love is not based on my behavior or attitude of-the-moment.

Praise God for His definition of love! It's wonderful to be the recipient of such a love. It's much harder for me to express love to others His way, and for that, I need His help. Being a mom is the only place I come close to living His standard of love.

From Head to Heart

Knowing God encourages me to hear God, which compels me to obey God so that I may experience God. It's His unconditional, persistent, perfect love that I want to experience. I want to fulfill His purpose for me so that I, in turn, can glorify HIm. So, I've decided to do a character study on God. I know that others have done this before me and I can always read what they wrote, but I want to discover His character for myself.

Disappointment

It's ironic to me that I would follow a post about amazement with a rant about disappointment. People do tend to disappoint --- repeatedly. That's why the thought of God loving us each individually and unconditionally, despite our repeatedly disappointing Him, is so amazing. Thank You, Lord, for loving me even though I am sure that I can disappoint You. That is all.

Expect to be Amazed

Expectation and amazement. Too often believers don't expect much of anything from their God, the God of relationships, and they are so infrequently amazed because they aren't even seeing what God is doing. I know that was true of me until I made the decision to expect to hear from God, and expect to be amazed by Him. I can honestly say I'm not always hearing what I expect or want to hear, which means I'm so busy whining that I fail to be amazed. But in looking back, He has always been faithful and I experience time-lapse amazement.

I am amazed by the complexity, multiplicity and sheer beauty of the plants flourishing in my back yard. I am amazed that "our" hummingbird comes back every year to dine on "his" astromeria in my sheltered garden. I am amazed at the annual ritual of new life that emerges from bird nests in my trees.

I am amazed at the uniqueness of each person born, both in physical characteristics and special strengths and talents. I am amazed at the evolution of my son from a babe to a young man. I am amazed at my dad's enduring love even though he passed away a year ago.

I am amazed that God was walking with me even when I didn't know, or care, that He was there. I am amazed that He so loved me, and so wanted an intimate relationship with me that He pursued me relentlessly, passionately.

I am amazed at the simplicity and complexity of life. And I expect to be continued to be amazed by His hand on it all.

I Am Still Confident of This

I am still confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living,
Wait for the Lord;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the Lord.

The Lord your God is with lyou,
He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.

He will be the sure foundation for your times,
a rich store of salvation & wisdom & knowledge;
the fear of the Lord is key to this treasure.

(Psalm 27:6, Zephaniah 3:15, Isaiah 33:6)

A Deeper Level of Fellowship

I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to (her) and will dine with (her), and (she) with Me. -Revelations 3:20

Dancing Feet

I love little kids. They are so uninhibited. They go with their feelings, theirs desires, their wants, their needs. Totally spontaneous and sometimes out of control. I watched a handful of kids groove to an Irish band tonight at the farmer's market downtown. So innocent yet needing salvation like the rest of us. It's easy to see why Jesus adores children. It amazes me that God loves me like a little child, wanting to father me, love on me, teach me, grow me. Thank you, heavenly Father for your steadfast love.

It's Gonna Be Hot so Rise to the Occasion

It's going to be just plain hot today. Temps in the 100 degree range are going to stress out my spring blossoming plants. I feel like that sometimes, like the circumstances I am under are just too stressful. So I am crazy about my God who gives me what I need when I need it.

On a day when the weather reminds me of tribulations, my daily devotional reading tells me, "...do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you...rise to the occasion...it gives God the opportunity to manifest the life of Jesus in (you)...May God not find complaints in (you) anymore, but a spiritual vitality." (Oswald Chambers) And the best part is I know my God will give me the strength to endure any trial that come my way if I lean heavily on Him. (Having said that Lord, things are just fine right now, thank you. No trials needed!)

So at the beginning of what is going to be a very hot day, I am cooled by the living waters of Christ.

Human Connections

I love people. I find their life stories fascinating, not from a gossip perspective, but from a you-are-one-of-a-kind-special perspective. Oprah once did an everyone-has-a-story show and it was amazing to hear what roads people had traveled so far in their individual lifetimes. Maybe that's why traveling interests me so much. I like to take different roads with different adventures meeting different people who have traveled on their own roads.

I had a conversation today that reminded me how uniquely wonderful God has made each and everyone one of us. I wish I always treated everyone as the treasure God made them to be, but in my humanness I find that I sometimes am unkind, or impatient, or judgmental. I guess I practice conditional love even though I say I love people. That's why I am thankful that God's love for me -- and everyone else---is unconditional.

"We love Him because He first loved us." (John 4:19)

Happy Mother's Day

And indeed, it is a happy day. My son drove up from LA to surprise me. I still have my Mom who will be 92 in less than a month. And my "adopted" daughter was in town. We only spent 48 hours together before the "kids" had to leave for their respective out-of-town lives, but what sweet hours they were. Happy indeed.

Remembering a Yes

It has been one year since our beloved cat, Cleo, died. My son picked her out of a litter on Memorial Day weekend at a party. He had been asking for a pet but I kept saying no because as a single parent I didn't want the responsibility of a pet added to my to-do list. I must have been in a particularly good mood that day because when my son came into the room asking if he could have one of the 8 week-old kittens, I spontaneously said yes. After all those no's, my son said he could hardly believe his ears and went running back out of the room before I could change my mind. I remember looking at the litter and liking a different kitten than my son did, but it was to be his pet and I let him have the final say. It turned out to be little Cleo with the spot on her nose. She was one of the best yes's I have ever said.

How many times have I said no to something and not experienced the joy or experience the yes would have brought me? How many times have I said no to God when He so wanted to bless me with a yes?

Social Networking

I've been learning a bit more about on-line social networking. I like the idea that it's based on the premise of giving rather than the expectation of getting.

Inspired to Reach Beyond My Grasp

You always know when the vision is of God because of the inspiration that comes with it. (Oswald Chambers)