On Jesus Christ and Our Human Nature - Part II

The teachings of Jesus are all out of proportion when compared to our natural way of looking at things, and they come to us initially with astonishing discomfort.

Initially, we trust our ignorance,calling it innocence, and next we trust our innocence, calling it purity. Then when we hear strong statements from our Lord, we shrink back saying, "But I never felt any of those awful things in my heart." (lies, resentment, hatred, pettiness, unforgiveness, etc) We resent what He reveals. Either Jesus Christ is the supreme authority on the human heart, or He is not worth paying attention to..

If I will take an honest look at myself, becoming fully aware of my so-called "innocence" and putting it to the test, I am very likely to have a rude awakening that what Jesus Christ said is true, and I will be appalled at the possibilities of evil and wrong in me.

(My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers 7/25, 7/26)

On Jesus and Our Human Nature - Part I

"Beware of thinking of our Lord as only a teacher. If Jesus Christ is only a teacher, then all He can do is frustrate me my setting a standard I cannot attain. What is the point of presenting me with such a lofty ideal if I cannot possibly come close to obtaining it?

No one can make herself pure by obeying laws. Jesus Christ does not give us rules and regulations -- He gives us His teachings as truths that only can be interpreted by His nature which He places in all of us.

The most wonderful secret of living a holy life does not lie in imitating Jesus, but in letting the perfect qualities of Jesus exhibit themselves in my human flesh.

(My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers 7/21, 7/24, 7/23)

The Gift That Keeps on Giving

We hosted our annual margarita party over the weekend. A beautiful summer evening, nice outdoor setting, good friends, yummy food, margaritas and sangria, and of course, the ubiquitous music (Spanish guitar, Brazilian jazz, Latin American beats). It doesn't get much better than this.

If you're guessing that I've got a theme going in my recent blog posts, then you guessed right. I can always tell the difference in my life when I'm plugged into music and when I'm not. Music gives me joy, peace, a song in my heart, happy feet and on track.

Hmm, sounds like how I feel when I stayed plugged into God's Word. l can always tell when I have been reading the Bible on a daily basis, and when I have been slacking off. Someone once said if he had only one book in the whole world to read, it would be the Bible. I have to agree. It has passion, drama, love, life, death, deception, hope, joy -- the entire gamut of human emotions and human experience..

But even more, it has truth, grace, compassion, forgiveness, redemption, purpose and a path to abundant living here on earth with more to come in the afterlife. And the best part is that the Bible has so many layers that no matter how many times it's read, new truths become apparent to the reader. I'm thinking that the latest number one book on the New York Times bestseller list falls far short of this phenomenal storyline.

Lovin' the Possibilities of a New Day

I love mornings. I love the newly rising sun rays coming in my windows --- the hello-new-day songs of the birds --- the dewy moisture on my garden --- the freshness of the air. I love the potential and possibilities of a new day. A new 24 hours.

God loves new days, too. He showers us with His loving grace and a fresh start each and every day.

I feel another zippety-do-da day coming on. It's my choice to have the kind of day I want. Oh, I can't always choose what comes at me, but I can certainly choose my reactions to whatever comes my way. And today, I choose "plenty of sunshine coming my way, zippety-do-day, zippety-day!"

My friend, Lorri, has been taking an unwanted journey this past year. She has chronicled her trip in an honest and often heart-rendering blog. In it, Lorri makes it very clear that the Lord has been her rock and her salvation in this time of trials. She has chosen to accept the path that she is on with grace, humor and total faith that she is in God's hands and in His will.

Not as I will, but as you will. (Matthew 26:39)

Her willingness to be used by the Lord for His purposes has translated into hundreds of daily hits on her blog by fellow cancer sufferers, survivors and family/friends of such. This week, Lorri raised the bar.

Let us throw off everying that hinders us...and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. (Hebrews 12:1)

Read her words below, printed with permission, from an off-the-blog email she sent. She has passion and purpose, and once again, has chosen to use her circumstances to glorify her Maker. (Her blog is listed on my web resources on the left of this page).

I took Jesus to a Biker Bar. Well, okay, it's not an actual Biker Bar, it's the Young Women's Breast Cancer boards on the internet. My heart is stirred that this is my mission field. When you have cancer, and you don't have Jesus, you use the F word a lot. You are angry and bitter. Some of these young woman are in their 20's and they have stage 4. It's a place Jesus needs to be. There are a handful of other believers there, but definitely not the majority. I'm excited and ask for prayer as God uses me literally right where I'm at to share the good news. And I'm glad for myself to have the resource of other women in my same medical shoes (I posted about it today.)

I think I'm in love! I want to love hurting women to Jesus and I'm delighted that he can use this cancer girl as an instrument of his work. Please pray for the young women with cancer and for God to continue to equip me to minister in this hurting place. ....Lorri

Continuing on the Zippety-Do-Da Theme

Music is one of God's sweet gifts to us. The sounds of birds chirping in the morning, wind whispering in pine trees, a babbling brook, waves crashing on the shore, laughter of children --- all music to my ears. So is straight-ahead jazz, reggae, bossa nova, techno, rock n' roll and countless others. I love music. Singing, listening, dancing, and even trying my hand at playing music.

If you love music, too, here's a tip. Log onto www.pandora.com You can create your "own radio stations" based on your music preferences. lt's not perfect, but it sure is a treat. Check it out!

Zippety-Do-Da Day

Okay, I may be showing my age here, but I had a zippety-do-da kind of day today.

For the uninitiated, that song was sung in one of Walt Disney's movies by a real person walking through a cartoon-drawn meadow. It was quite a progressive cinematic feature in its day, but I was a kid and, heck, what did I know about such things? All I know is the man singing was so happy and had the proverbial blue birds of happiness flying around his head (you know me and birds). And the lucky guy was walking in a cartoon, for heaven's sake!

So, to honor your zippety-do-da, happy-go-lucky kind of day, I'm going to sing the lyrics to you (just pretend). And if you didn't have that kind of day, I sincerely hope you have one tomorrow.

Zippety-do-da, zippety-day;
My, oh my, what a wonderful day!
Plenty of sunshine comin' my way;
Zippety-do-da, zippety-day.

An Impression of Light

If I had to choose one word to describe my impression of Norway it would be "light." Light as in 24 daylight. Light as in blondes (real not dyed). LIght as in reflections off the water.

Having lived in Alaska as a kid, I had already experienced the endless days of summer, but somehow it had more of an effect on me this time. Maybe it's because I'm more aware of time now and it would knock my socks off every evening when I looked at my watch and it was 10:00, 11:00 or midnight. My traveling companions and I just never got over the lack of delineation between day and night.

I thought California had its share of blondes. Norway is a country full of them! Some of the whitest blondes I have ever seen. Beautiful, beautiful ethereal, angelic blondes.

And water. Islands may be totally surrounded by water but Norway has water -- salt and fresh -- everywhere. Waterfalls. Lakes, Fiords. Ocean. Water is a defining characteristic of this country.

Light.

Is the World Crazy or Is It Me?

Item: A shop owner opens her store one morning only to find that someone has stolen her beautiful geranium from its pot by the door and replaced it with a fern. Does the thief think that the swap makes it okay, and thus, not really stealing but exchanging? Is it the rule of I-want-it-so-it's-mine?

Item: A teacher is told that excessively verbally abusive, disrespectful students won't be kicked out of school for their disruptive behavior because the school doesn't want to lose their per-student, daily revenue from the state. Does that make it okay for the teacher to put up with untenable job conditions? Does that make it okay for these kids not to suffer the consequences of their actions? Does that make it okay not to get the parents involved in resolving the problem? Who is in charge anyway? Is it the rule of money-talks-so accountability-can-take-a-walk?

Item: Topic of discussion on a website --- should 8-year olds be allowed to wear a thong? Why are we even having this discussion? What does an 8 year-old want/need a thong for? Is it the rule of sexualizing-our-children-for-our-amusement?

If this is the new world order, I believe I'm an anarchist because I want no part of it.

We're Back and Lots to Share

We have all returned safely from our respective trips and glad to be back home. In future blog entries I will be sharing some thoughts and highlights of our adventure in Norway. (Oh, and for those of you who prayed for Mom while we were gone, the July full moon came and went, and Mom stayed at home in her own bed with no visit to the ER for her heart.)

Curse of a Full Moon

Tonight is a full moon. I hope that this month's full moon doesn't carry the same curse that May and June's moons did. My 92 year old mother ended up in the emergency room both those nights with heart problems.

We've all heard that weird things happen on a full moon. I'm here to tell you that I believe it --- at least in the ER. In May, we took Mom in around 1:00am and as the time passed, I couldn't believe how many cops (city, state and highway) came in with "perps." There was so much coming and going that I finally asked one of the nurses if they were giving away two-for-one coupons to Starbucks or something. So in June, when we arrived at the hospital at 3:30am, it was quiet; no busy cop/perp traffic. I jokingly asked the nurse if they weren't giving out coupons this month, and she said, "We ran out of them earlier this evening when they were lined up 8 deep. You just came in during the lull."

So there you have it --- empirical evidence that weird things do, indeed, happen during a full moon.

Unsubscribe

Mind if I rant? I was annoyed today when I tried to unsubscribe from emails I have been receiving from American Airlines. It should just take a click of a button and then I'm history, gone, relegated to the bye-bye pile. But no, they want a user-name and a password and a 100-word essay just to dump me (kidding about needing the essay). I don't remember either pieces of information so now I either get to go through a whole process to unsubscribe, or I just keep receiving and deleting their emails. I'm not picking on AAirlines. I've had this happen with other companies. Hello out there in cyber-space! If we don't want to hear from you anymore, then we just don't want to hear from you anymore and it shouldn't take a divorce to make that happen.

Hmm, I wonder if there's any similarity between unsubscribing to AAirlines and unsubscribing to God. There used to be a time when I would receive God's "emails" on an as-wanted basis. You know, I-want-to-hear-from-Him-on-this-subject-but-not-on-that-one. Then I decided to walk closer with God, and subscribe to His "emails" on a regular, on-going basis. And I have to tell you there are days when I would like to unsubscribe because what He is telling me is hard to hear/feel/do. Or I just don't want to hear/feel/do. Or He's asking me to assess what I hear/feel/do.

I could just delete those uncomfortable emails. It would be a lot easier, and desirable, than unsubscribing to God which requires more than a user name and a password. Actually, I think the way it goes is once you are subscribed to Him, it's for eternity. I have the option of deleting individual emails, even for a long period of time, but there is no unsubscribe option. It's a long-term contract between Him and me. Thank goodness, because in my moments of pouting or rebellion, I could easily hit the unsubscribe button and divorce myself from the most precious, important, loving emails I will ever receive.

It's Christians I Can't Stand

Let me give you the whole title first -- "I'm Fine with God, it's Christians I Can't Stand." That's the name of a book I am reading by Bruce Bickel and Stan Jantz. The title is catchy and the authors can be sarcastic. The subtitle of their book is "Getting Past the Religious Garbage in the Search for Spiritual Truth." I don't agree with everything they have to say, and am annoyed at times by their writing style, but I must admit that Christians can get in their own well-meaning, and sometimes not-so-well-meaning, way.

The book's ten chapters cover a variety of topics but it's the last one that I can really get behind ... "I Can't Stand Christians Who Give Christ a Bad Name." I am called to be a light on a hill, like a lighthouse in the fog. I am not called to be an interrogation lamp in the judge's chambers.

If I chose to live in a Christ-honoring way, then it's my earnest desire that others see Him working in me, and say, "I want that in my life, too. I want her peace, her joy and her steadfastness despite circumstances. I want to experience the same unconditional love and acceptance that she has."

Map Quest

"You are here. Where do you want to go? Who do you want to be? How can you get there? What does God's Word say? The unaware life is not worth living

(Deborah Newman, Living on Purpose, Full Fill Magazine spring 2008)

Equal Opportunity God

...(God) makes His sun rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and unjust. (Matthew 5:45)

My God is an equal opportunity God. He loves us first before we ever choose to love Him. He loves us all --believers and nonbelievers.

His Daughter

Everything you lacked from your earthly daddy, God will fill in; you are part of His family. (Lysa Terqeurst, Design 4 Living Conference)

...part of His family. He chose us, we didn't choose Him. Just like we didn't choose to be born from our earthly father, but we possess half of his DNA. But earthly dads can fail us; even the best of them can fail us. God will never fail us -- you --- me. He will never desert us --you--me. He will never forsake us--you -- me. We are His.

Party Girl

Satan is the caterer of pity parties. (from Debbie Alsdorf as told by Lorri Steer, Design 4 Living Conference)

That quote made me think of parties. I like parties. I like the controlled chaos, the conversations, the food and refreshments, the social gathering of people known and unknown. My husband and I throw an annual summer bash and cram a whole lot of people into our small house, thanks to the spillover into both the front and back yards. We look forward to seeing our diverse group of friends meet and mingle. The guests cater the food, since the invitation asks that everyone bring a dish and a smile.

Hmmm, a party catered by Satan. Deviled eggs anyone? Humor aside, he does love to entice us with lots of tasty dishes when we throw a pity party. I can see the menu now: it's-not-my-fault, I-can't-help-it-I-was-born-this-way, my-parents-didn't-go-to-my-soccer-games-when-I-was-growing-up, the-family-pet-licked-my-brother's-hand-but-just-bit-mine, I-don't-deserve-an-ill-fated-medical-diagnosis, her-house-is-bigger-than-mine, she's-cute-and-I'm-not. Frankly, they might taste good going down the first or even second time, but after awhile, this gunk is going to muck up your digestive system and give you heartburn.

Adventure

Various family members have taken off for far-flung adventures including Norway, Italy and Peru. It will be fun to get together to share our photos and stories. My husband and I are struck by the people we meet on these trips. They, more than the man-made sites and natural landscapes, are the treasured memories that we bring home with us. So stay tuned. Who knows who we will meet this time around?

Popcorn Prayer

When I prayed, I saw God as a vending maching. (Lysa Terkeurst)

Oh yes, I can relate. When I first started praying to the God of the universe, my prayers were totally self-centered and "pay-off" related. "Lord, please give my husband that pay raise that we need." "Lord, please heal me of my cold so I can go to the party tonight." "Lord, please give my son a job so he can live on his own." "Lord, please ..." gimme. gimme. me. me. me.

My prayer walk these days are more complicated. "Lord, forgive me for disappointing you again." "Lord, make me hunger for your Word." "Lord, I'm having a hard time with obedience. Give me a desire for an obedient heart." "Lord, thank you for loving me. Saving me. Granting me unwarranted grace." "Lord, I desire to know you." "Lord, I believe, help me with my unbelief."

Independence

Happy 4th of July !!!
Let freedom ring.

Idols

We often don't want what God has to bring because we're good with our idols. (Unfortunately) we love our idols but they don't love us back. (Kelly Minter, Design 4 Living Conference)

Kelly's not talking about wooden tiki statues or voodoo dolls. She's talking about the earthly things that consume our time, attention and passion whether it be the quest for money or fame, an obsession with a relationship, living for and through our kids, things we own or aspire to own, a chemical addiction ----- the list goes on.

The problem is, these idols only bring us brief relief or happiness. The shiny new car rusts. The drugs lose their effectiveness. The kids grow up and move away. The boyfriend or husband disappoints us. Fame is fleeting. And while money can buy security, it truly cannot buy us true inner contentment and peace.

Only the Lord our God can fill the deepest hole within us --- a hole that begs to be filled with unquestionable, unconditional, unending love.

Heroes

With over 1,000 wild fires burning all over California, it's no surprise that we're experiencing gloomy, smoke-filled skies and trouble breathing even though we're not near any of the flames. We've been complaining about the absence of our usual, cloudless blue skies, and bemoaning the fact that our exercising has been relegated indoors to the gym. We're getting off easy compared to the hundreds of firemen who fight the fires in difficult conditions in order to keep our lives safe and sound. I must shout out a big thank you to these heroes. (As a side note: Did you ever notice that all firemen are attractive -- it must be a job requirement --- but then what man isn't good looking in a uniform?)

Fair Trade

I recently attended the Design 4 Living women's conference and posts in the coming weeks will cover some of the material and insights I received from that event.

There were several vendor booths, and I was attracted to TradeAsOne.com. To quote the mission of the organization, By purchasing Trade As One products, you bring jobs to the poor. You give them the power to build a future. In return you get something beautiful. That's what it means to trade as one.

TradeAsOne.com has partnered with dozens of businesses in poorer nations and created a website of their handmade items, including jewelry, handbags, woven baskets, body lotions, coffee and olive oil, The premise is that we all shop anyway for ourselves or for gifts, so why not shop with companies that offer a fair wage and a promise of a better life? We are talking about women such as those who were sold into sexual slavery and are now living a life of dignity, or single moms who previously had no hope of a better future for their children.

I make jewelry but I still bought the cutest "people pin" with body cut from soda cans. Not only will it look great on the lapel of my bluejean jacket, but it will give me an opportunity to promote TradeAsOne.com when people comment on it --- because I just know I'm going to get asked where I got it.