So, I decided...

So I decided there is nothing better than to enjoy food and drink and to find satisfaction in work. Then I realized that these pleasures are from the hand of God. For who can eat or enjoy anything apart from him? God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy to those who please him. (Ecclesiastes 2:24-26)

So, I decided...these three words can get us into so much trouble at times, can't they? When we lean into our own wisdom or selfish inner drive, we often 'decide' upon things that aren't all that great for us. We pursue things or 'objectives' that are bound to cause us difficulties, but we just don't know it yet. When we lean into God's wisdom, we find our 'deciding' takes us down a different path. We don't always know what it is we are 'deciding' to pursue when we set out on this course of obedience with God, but we can rest assured that the path isn't going to lead us into stuff that will bring us harm or destruction.

The pleasures we enjoy all come from the hand of God - even those we think we have 'produced' by our pursuits in life. He gives us all we are blessed to enjoy and takes us through all that seems hard to find joy within. We aren't going to always understand his ways, with his plans seemingly a little too 'vague' for our liking at times. We don't have to understand to follow - it is in following that we come into understanding. The moment we 'decide' to be obedient is the moment everything within us will cringe just a bit. Why is that? Our own 'objectives' are not always going to be pursued, and we rankle a bit when we have to go another way. 

God knows the struggle is real. He knows we want things to be 'easy', 'smooth sailing' all the way. We want instant gratification. We pursue things we hope will bring us that gratification but have very little awareness of just how much that 'instant gratification' will cost us down the road. I have suffered 'buyer's remorse' on more than one occasion. I can remember the excitement of getting that thing I wanted so badly, only to realize it would not fill my 'enjoyment tank' for very long. If we are to 'decide' to follow Jesus, we might just realize that our 'enjoyment tank' might be filled with a different kind of 'fuel' than we'd think it needed. God knows the very 'fuel' our tank requires, and he provides it even before we 'decide' to allow him to fill it. Just sayin!

Beast of Burden?

Any concern too small to be turned into a prayer is too small to be made into a burden. 

(Corrie Ten Boom)

Come to me all of you who are tired from the heavy burden you have been forced to carry. I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)

There are far too many burdens being carried by people today that they were never created to carry. Some are of our own making, while others are really cast upon us because someone in our life didn't do what they were supposed to, leaving us to bear something we never thought we'd be carrying. A new year is a great time to consider what it is we have been 'carrying' that perhaps wasn't intended for us to carry. God's plan from the beginning was that every 'burden' was to be 'unloaded' at the feet of Jesus - nothing being too hard for him.

What happens when we carry a burden? We all know they can make us tire easily and even make our mental capacity a little too 'crammed full' for our liking. What we may not realize is how the burden we are carrying, even the ones we know are our responsibility, is that they actually change the way we 'walk'. Consider the beast of burden known as the mule - created solely to carry burdens but doing it a bit too grudgingly at times. We've all likely seen or heard of the mule that becomes too 'dug in' that the one asking for it to move forward has a struggle on their hands. I wonder if God is asking any of us to move forward today, but the burden we are carrying is making us 'dig in deeper' in our stubbornness, refusing to move at all?

Even the beast of burden doesn't carry the burden forever. At some point, it is unloaded, perhaps to be 'reloaded' again with a new burden, but it has a period of rest from burdens. God doesn't want us to be burdened, unloaded and burdened again. He wants us to be 'unloaded' once and for all. The responsibilities we consider to be burdens in our life may just feel like a burden because we have become so accustomed to bearing up under something we weren't supposed to bear ourselves! For example, parenting may be a burden right now, but what other burdens are we carrying that are actually making us feel that way? Sometimes we need to unload at the feet of Jesus and feel what it is like to be burden-free again. Then the things we know are our responsibilities may just feel a little less like a burden and a whole lot more like a blessing. Just sayin!

You 'feeling' your blessings?

"A man should always consider how much he has more than he wants." (Joseph Addison) 

“God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs." (Matthew 5:3) How much do you 'have' compared to what you 'need'? For many of us, our need appears greater than what we have, but in truth, we have been given so much - we just don't always remember how great those blessings are. As Addison reminds us, it is our duty to consider (reflect upon) our many blessings instead of always focusing so intently on our wants.

The more we recognize our need for God's grace, the less we focus on all the petty 'wants' we have in life. The closer we press into a relationship with Jesus, the less we find ourselves pining after things that don't matter all that much. God blesses those who recognize their need for him - with his entire Kingdom. If that doesn't make you feel a little bit special today, think about it a little longer. We have been given all we need in Christ Jesus.

A need is something essential to life. A want isn't exactly essential, but we crave or desire it. We sometimes get those two confused, focusing on all the wrong stuff, or coming at life with a totally off-kilter view of what it is that will make us 'happy', 'fulfilled', or 'blessed'. The message is that we have already received the biggest blessing we could ever need or want! God gives us all that is necessary for life, but he doesn't always make a way for us to enjoy or achieve all our desires.

The other side of that coin is that our desires begin to 'morph' a bit the closer we get to Jesus. There is a transition that occurs mentally and that begins to affect our desires. Perhaps this is why scripture tells us, "Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires." (Psalm 37:4) It is also important to recognize that "Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be." (Matthew 6:21) If we are struggling a bit with 'feeling our blessings', maybe we need to focus a little less on the feeling and a bit more on the connection we have with Jesus. We'll find all we need in him - all we want will begin to seem a little less important as we do. Just sayin!

Dazzle 'em

“Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you, then grab the initiative and do it for them." (Matthew 7:12)

A lot of times we make things so complicated in terms of defining 'good behavior'. I think God put it out there quite plainly - figure out what you would want others to do for you - then turn the tables and do it for THEM. Grab the initiative - this means we have to pay attention, be on top of our game, be looking for ways to be a blessing. Too many times we miss the moments when we could have made a difference if we'd have just 'grabbed the initiative'. 

Initiative is all about 'taking charge' - it is the 'setting in motion' of one action that may just lead to another. Don't take the initiative unless you are committed for the long haul - there may be more actions God will ask of you and you must be willing to step forward with the next action, not just the first one. If there is one over-arching characteristic of initiative, it would have to be 'responsibility'. We take responsibility for our own actions, but we also 'responsibly' become a blessing in the lives of others.

Let me explain that last statement a bit. To 'responsibly' become a blessing in the lives of others we need to be aware of some pitfalls that can occur. There could be a little bit of pride that begins to creep up inside of each of us, perhaps noting how many times we have taken the initiative and how far fewer times another has. When pride enters in, we begin to 'compare' our 'initiative taking' AGAINST that of another. This clearly is not what God had in mind when he told us to grab the initiative and be a blessing to another.

Bless, but don't seek credit. Bless, but don't keep a record of how many times you do. Bless, but don't get all wigged out when the blessing isn't returned. The 'need' to 'get credit' for taking the initiative suggests a heart that might just be struggling with a bit of a wrong motivation. The 'recordkeeping' pitfall is one of thinking we 'deserve' something in return for our 'right behavior'. If we look at what scripture says, right behavior is required of those who serve Christ - it is a response to his grace being given so freely in our lives. 

We might not always know how to take the initiative, but when we are open to God's leading in our daily walk, he will show us ways to be a blessing to those around us. It could be as simple as holding a door open for someone with full arms, or as complex as sitting with someone with a loved one on death's door. The key is to be 'available' and then to respond in the best way we are able. Just sayin!

Bless 'em

Although the mass hysteria to purchase truckloads of toilet paper has died down, there is still a significant shortage of the stuff we need on the grocer's shelves. The truckloads of goods come and go, but there still doesn't seem to be a restock of all that once existed on the shelves. I have observed more and more posts telling us how to 'make yeast' from various household items because it is scarce in the markets. We see posts proclaiming new ways to create hand sanitizer from aloe and isoprophyl alcohol; kitchen wipes using a half roll of paper towels submerged in a small amount of bleach and water solution; or even the re-emergence of the use of hydrogen peroxide to sanitize items. As the saying goes, "Necessity is the mother of invention." Some are more than 'well-stocked', having amassed a great deal of resources for their 'quarantined existence', while others are still frequenting the stores at the earliest time possible in hopes of obtaining just a few things they really need in order to make it through this week. There is nothing wrong with being prepared, or even wise in how we use things we already have, but when we deny others the very thing they have real need of in their lives, is this what God would want? While we could apply this to our 'stockpiles' of quarantine goods, we can equally apply it to the good things we have in our lives that God has provided all along in life. How about that good sense of humor - give it away to others who are needing a good laugh today. What about your gift of song - find a corner in your yard and let it rip - bless someone today with a melody of praise and worship. Maybe it is your talent to create - dig out that sewing machine, hunker down and sew a few masks for your local food bank workers so they can continue to meet the needs of the hungry while staying protected themselves. We all have so much to give from what is already in our 'resource rich' lives, but it takes action to give!

As the saying goes: Those who love money will never be satisfied with money, and those who love riches will never be happy with what they have. This, too, is fleeting. The more goods there are, the more people there are to consume them. How does any of this really benefit the owners except they can gaze proudly on their possessions? Sweet sleep comes to those who work hard, regardless of how much or how little they’ve eaten. But the abundance of the rich keeps them awake at night. (Ecclesiastes 5:10-12)

We all have things we can give in this time of great need across our countries. It may not have been much in the eyes of some with greater wealth, but even the widow's mite blessed the socks off of God! You and I have some form of a 'widow's mite' in our possession, but we have to be willing to give it away in order for it to be a blessing to anyone. We could not be more trusting of God's provision than to use what he has given us so freely to allow a blessing to come into another's life. This blog won't be long today because it is merely intended to give us food for thought. What is it you 'possess' that you can put to use today to bless another? What is it you have been gifted with as a talent that could be put to good use in order to create something of usefulness that would meet the need of someone who cannot meet their own need right now? Maybe you can still drive and are well enough to shop around the stores - be a blessing to those who cannot. Perhaps you have a high pressure washer and you could ask your neighbors if you could be a blessing by washing out their trash receptacles for them while you have time on your hands. You could place a large cardboard box at the edge of your driveway with a large sign indicating you are collecting non-perishable donations for a local shelter or food bank - then take it down to them once it is filled. There are tons of ways to be a blessing right now - using this quarantined time to do more than binge watch TV or surf the net. Begin by asking God to show you how to bless others and then be open to what he shows you to do! Just thinkin....

Bless me, bless me, bless me

Sometimes it is hard looking at our friends, seeing them move into gorgeous new homes, driving swanky new cars, or jetting off to far away places on vacation after vacation. We get a little envious at times, don't we? We'd like a new home - ours is good, but it doesn't have all the features their new ones offers. We wish our cars ran as smoothly with less visits to the mechanic shop, but they still get us places we need to be. We have desires to explore islands afar, but a simple tent in the woods is all our budget will allow at present. Yet, when we stop to think on this just a little, we might just remember how truly blessed we are in this life - all because of the extravagant generosity of God!

Have you ever come on anything quite like this extravagant generosity of God, this deep, deep wisdom? It's way over our heads. We'll never figure it out. Is there anyone around who can explain God? Anyone smart enough to tell him what to do? Anyone who has done him such a huge favor that God has to ask his advice? Everything comes from him; everything happens through him; everything ends up in him. Always glory! Always praise! Yes. Yes. Yes. (Romans 11:33-36 MSG)

Answer the question honestly - have you ever come on anything quite like this extravagant generosity of God? We probably all would find we have so much in the way of "riches" right in our own possession and we either don't see them, or we have been taking them for granted all this time. The immediate blessing that likely comes to mind is the incredibly unfathomable acceptance of each of us into the family of God. We are not from royalty, but we have been adopted into a family of incredible royalty! Now, there's a blessing for us to truly consider! What about the blessings of our ability to do simple tasks which we take for granted so very often? Things like brushing our teeth, combing our hair, and buttoning our own clothing. As a nurse, I have seen thousands over the years lose this very ability - through the effects of crippling arthritis, spinal cord injuries, or neurological assaults on the brain. We just don't know what a blessing it is to be able to complete these simple tasks until we find ourselves unable to do them!

Now that you have thought of a few blessings you maybe have taken for granted, it is important for us to keep in mind that we'll never figure out God. Try as we might, God's wisdom, grace, and unconditional love are unfathomable to us in their totality - we get bits and pieces of these, but not really a full understanding of them! Everything comes from him. Everything happens through him. Everything ends in him. Everything! All we "possess". All which seemingly just "happens" in our day. All are a result of him being the Lord of our lives. Nothing is by our own creation - we are nothing and able to create nothing without him. Nothing is by our own efforts - he gives us the breath and strength to undertake the task at hand. When we stop to consider one word that might describe God, we could probably sum him up with the word "Everything". When we stop to consider what we are without God, we think of one word: Nothing. So, if we want "everything" - we are really saying we want more of God - not the blessings, but the ONE who blesses us in ways we cannot possibly comprehend.

Before we start wishing for more of what we "think" we need, maybe we should start asking for more of what we "really" need! God is never more honored than when we bring our need to him. It is in the acknowledging of our dependence upon him that he is brought honor. Apart from God, we really possess nothing. In God, we are blessed with and through everything! It is not just what we possess, but what possesses us! God's greatest glory is not found in us figuring him out - - it is in us honoring him with our obedience and love in spite of the fact we don't understand all he does and all he is! Our "unlimited blessing" is really most rewarding when it is realized in the courts of God. Just sayin!

A new way - a new list

God's presence - my words - his attention - answers given. Isn't that how each of us would like things to work each and every time we need his answer to something we are dealing with? God's personal attention in our lives is the hope of each believer. I have never had a personal trainer at a gym (although I could use one), or a personal financial adviser, but I imagine those who enjoy the influence of these individuals in their lives see real benefit to their advice. But...all they offer is advice - we still choose what to do with the advice we receive. When we come to God, he gives more than advice! He gives answers! I cannot imagine a better personal trainer than the Holy Spirit! I cannot fathom better advice than what we find in the Word of God! I doubt there is anyone's attention more devoted to each of us than God's!

Let my cry come right into your presence, God; provide me with the insight that comes only from your Word. Give my request your personal attention, rescue me on the terms of your promise. (Psalm 119:169-170)

Whenever I have moments of distress, I want to stand assured my cries go directly to the source of all help: God himself! No middle man involved - just direct access, front and center with God. It took me a long time to realize the intention of God's heart is this kind of free access to him at any moment, regardless of how big or small my distress! In fact, I lived like most of us do, believing something was just too trivial to "bother" God with - so, in my misguided belief, I'd "work it out" myself. I'd have to admit to you that these 'self-made' fixes were really not all that beneficial to me! My way of fixing things differs vastly from God's! I want the immediate fix and he almost always wants the more permanent, lasting fix.

Who is your source of light in your darkness? Who is the provider of peace in the midst of chaos? If you cannot answer with ALL assurance that it is God and God ALONE, it is time to take a step back. In stepping back, we often see best where we have been heading! In the pursuit of light or peace, we often get caught up in the void of darkness and the pointlessness of our lack of peace. In taking even one moment to pause, we change our perspective. You probably think this is a little silly, but humor me. Go to the mirror. Look long and hard at the reflection you see - - not at the grey hairs, the wrinkles, or even the little hairs needing to be tweezed! Just look at YOU. Are you the same person today as you were a year ago? In a physical sense, the answer is definitely "no"! None of us lives from one day to the next without some change in our physical bodies. Cells alive yesterday are sloughed today; those here today may be gone tomorrow. It is the course of life.

Now, take a piece of paper. Draw a line down the middle. Put a small title at the top of each column - the one on the left should read "Past", the one on the right "Present". On the left side, begin to write down some of the blessings of God in your life you can remember from even the last three months or so (if you can remember the past six months, go for it). Maybe you were in financial need and you got an unexpected rebate check. Perhaps you were experiencing the loneliness of loss and you received a note which built up your inner man at a low point in your day. The blessings don't have to be "big", just whatever comes to mind. This is a powerful exercise because it focuses us on the many 'treasured' moments when God intervened with the 'fix' just as we needed it in our lives. If I had asked you to make a list of your failures, frustrations, or "unanswered" prayers, you'd have penciled a list in about three minutes flat! Why is this easier than recounting God's blessings? It is a matter of perspective - our focus. We "trouble" our worries, and our worries "trouble" us! Liberty comes in learning to change our perspective - not just in thought life, but in our entire focus. When we transition from believing God is only there for the "big" stuff to trusting him for even the "wee" stuff of life, we begin to treasure the blessings of having the "personal attention" of God! 

Did you think I forgot the other side of the paper? Nope! Here's your challenge: On the right side of the paper, begin to list the things you are trying to manage on your own today - to find the fix for in some manner you can 'manage'. Maybe you are dealing with a negative co-worker and have been continually frustrated with the interactions. Write the name of the individual there. Perhaps it is that "small matter" of being faithful with daily Bible study. Write it down! With each item you add, write a short descriptor of what you have been "trying" as a means of 'fixing' the issue. For example, if you have been "trying" to be faithful to daily study, you might write down "Daily study - reading plan, devotional book, and journal". You have "tried" a reading plan (a set list of what to read each day), going through devotionals written by others, and keeping a journal of what you are reading. None of these has made you any more "faithful". The faithfulness part is only something that comes as God brings the 'fix' into our lives. We don't need more of his love, we need to learn to love him more!

Now, tear or cut your list into two pieces right down the middle of those two columns. Go to the mirror again. Tape up the 'blessings' side. Now, each time you return to the mirror, reflect on what God accomplished in your life already. You may very well become overwhelmed by the fact of God's personal attention on your behalf! When we actually give him the chance to personally affect our lives, he proves himself faithful over and over again! The other side of the list - put it somewhere you don't always see it, but where you can get at it easily. Pick one day from your week (perhaps Sunday) and pull the saved list out. Sit some place quietly long enough to read through the list prayerfully each week. In other words, as you read about that financial need or troubling co-worker, give God some time to speak to you about the person, the circumstances, your response, etc. As you do this throughout the weeks ahead, when the things you have been "troubling" over, or that have been "troubling" you may very well change. As they do, add a date, and a short description of what God has done. You are going to be making a new list of blessings! Just sayin!

Hard, but better

I am so glad for a simple last name! To pronounce some of your last names is kind of hard, isn't it? The names in the Bible can be even harder! Add to the family names all the names of the regions in the lands referenced within those pages and you get some pretty good tongue twisters! Sometimes we skip over those parts in the Bible because reading all the names is hard and rather than face the challenge, we just move on. Ever wonder what you have missed out on just because you found something a little too difficult? Or you settled for something else that seemed a little easier or more appealing? Yep, the things we 'settle for' can be quite satisfying, but will they ever be as satisfying as the things we have to work just a little harder to obtain?

Of the land that we possessed at that time, I gave the Reubenites and the Gadites the territory north of Aroer along the Brook Arnon and half the hill country of Gilead with its towns.  I gave the half-tribe of Manasseh the rest of Gilead and all of Bashan, Og's kingdom—all the region of Argob, which takes in all of Bashan. This used to be known as the Land of the Rephaites. (Deuteronomy 3:12-13)

Two and a half tribes belonging to the nation of Israel decided that they wanted to stay on the "wilderness-side" of the territory when the rest of Israel was forging ahead into the land promised to them by none other than God himself. Isn't that so like us sometimes - good things are right there in front of us, but we choose our place of familiarity, comfort, and 'first appeal' over the unfamiliar!  We want what we have come to understand and appreciate instead of what we might have to work a little harder to really "get". We often stop just "short" of what God designs for us. Instead of being willing to take that extra step or go a little further, we shrink back. In today's vernacular, we call that "settling". If there is anything I have learned in my years on this earth it is this - God's "best" is not part of "settling". Yes, the land the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh "settled for" was sufficient to meet the needs of their families. It just wasn't all God had intended for them!

There are times we settle for what will be 'sufficient' - but will it be God's best for us? Settling for what we can see and touch is often not best for us - it is just easiest. Think about it - how much easier is it to open a bag of chips and nosh on them than to fix a salad and really get some positive nutrients into our system? Those who entered into the promised land were indeed facing some battles and challenges - giant challenges lay ahead. Their entry and possession of God's blessings would not be a "cake walk". The journey would be hard, but they were confident the rewards would be greater. Provision was made for each of these battles - as long as they kept God in right perspective (as the one true Lord of their lives). Protection was assured - as long as their eyes were fixed (on the one true Lord). By choosing not to "settle" in a place of comfort, they were given a place of reward.  Years later, they'd build the temple, celebrating all things good, remembering all things bad, thanking God for the journey.

On the other hand, Moses wanted more than anything to go into the Promised Land - to experience first-hand the enjoyment of it. Yet, he never would experience that full opportunity. He got the people there, but he would not go in with them. He saw the blessing, but he never partook of it - he didn't enjoy the experience of the land. He heard the reports, but he never got to make them his life-story - there would be no record of him being in the land. He had experienced so much of God's wonders already, but the enjoyment that laid ahead for the nation of Israel was not to be his. Today, we can make the choice to "settle" for what we think is best - what might promise some semblance of fulfillment in our lives - or we can be focused on what God has just around the corner. The choice is ours - what we do with our choice determines our outcomes! There is something I'd like us all to remember - the harder the choice, the deeper the blessing. Just sayin!

Service + God's Hand = Blessing

It hardly seems a day goes by anymore without some tragedy being reported on the evening news of a man or woman bent on harming others by some means of gunfire or violent outburst. The news is filled with these stories of a world in chaos. Maybe not all of the news is 'human caused' events, as even nature seems to be joining in the chaos with volcano eruptions, massive wildfires, and consuming floods. Do we daily lift our leaders before the Lord, asking him to give them wisdom in their decisions? I know that I am not one of those that "regularly" prays for our country's leadership - I almost have to be reminded of the issues, then I remember to pray! Do we daily lift those who have to face hardship after hardship, finding ways to bring them some relief if at all possible? Do we casually say, "I'll pray for you," all the while knowing we will forget about the need just about as soon as that individual is out of our line of sight?

2 When the country is in chaos, everybody has a plan to fix it—but it takes a leader of real understanding to straighten things out.... 9 God has no use for the prayers of the people who won't listen to him. (Proverbs 28:2, 9)

Well, if you have been taking a really long nap, you probably don't realize that this fits us to a tee! We are a country in chaos - and it seems that everybody has a plan to fix what they view as "wrong with America". I imagine it is like that just about everywhere right now - Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Mexico - the list could go on and on. People are unhappy, needs are not being met, jobs are not panning out, the spiritual health of nations are in states of unrest, and even 'nature' seems to be bringing no relief from the mounting stress upon mounting economic doom. What's the remedy? Simply put, it is that we have an obligation to be a light in a very dark world - each one of us is to be sensitive to the needs that exist and then to find ways to meet them. We have opportunities to affect the course of our nation's crisis - through our prayers and through our witness - but also through our actions. 

I may not know how to pray for all the intricate details of each person's issues right now, but I do know how to pray for my next door neighbor and the gal in the cubicle next to me at work. That is where revival in our country begins - each one of us, stepping up to lift up those individuals God brings into our paths and finding ways to be a blessing in their lives. As we do this, he enlarges our influence. This past weekend, with mom being home from the hospital about one week, my BFF found a way to bless her - with freshly baked banana nut bread. That loaf of bread lit up her heart, and it filled her belly with awesome goodness! It was a simple act, but one that meant so much. The ways we become a blessing don't have to be grandiose - they just have to be done in love!

Even if we are not burdened by a "nation in crisis" right now, we should be burdened by a neighbor in crisis. We may not be the leader of a nation, but we are a "leader" in our sphere of influence. Let's ask God to give us real understanding as it applies to those we have the ability to influence - those whose lives need just a little bit of kindness and love shown to them in a world that seems rather chaotic and challenging to them at the moment. You never really know how God will take the lives of those individuals we have touched in simple acts of obedient service and use those lives to influence others. The results can be astronomical when service is directed by the hand of God. Some days that service may be in the form of a heartfelt prayer - others may be finding ways to touch their lives in very tangible ways. Just sayin!

Be one - get one

Summing up: Be agreeable, be sympathetic, be loving, be compassionate, be humble. That goes for all of you, no exceptions. No retaliation. No sharp-tongued sarcasm. Instead, bless—that's your job, to bless. You'll be a blessing and also get a blessing. Whoever wants to embrace life and see the day fill up with good, here's what you do: say nothing evil or hurtful; snub evil and cultivate good; run after peace for all you're worth. God looks on all this with approval, listening and responding well to what he's asked; but he turns his back on those who do evil things. (I Peter 3:8-12)

Herein we find a very long list of character traits that we are to exhibit as the children of God - some of them a little bit hard for us to actually 'implement' in our lives, but which we are not given any lee-way. Living in such a manner actually encourages God's blessing in our lives - and it appears that it actually opens up a lot of blessing into the lives of others, as well. God's goal is to open us up to living in such a manner, bringing delight to his heart, and in turn, delighting us with the blessing of his presence, constant care, and protection in our lives. In the end, we reap huge benefit, but so do those around us. These character traits aren't just for our own good - they are to help us be better people and in turn, we all become better together.

Why does the first one to 'top the list' have to be to be agreeable? When we live in a manner that is compatible with the character of Christ, we are agreeable - agreeable isn't easy, but it is possible when Christ is at the core of our every choice and action. We are accommodating of others, gracious, and harmonious in our responses. Why is this so important? Because it reflects the very grace of God to others, and in turn, it draws others to us - agreeable people are like magnets. They never lack for friends because others like to be friends with them.

Being sympathetic - affectionate, appreciative, considerate, and understanding of what the other person is going through hits the list second. If your main focus is to be agreeable by keeping Christ at the center of all your actions, it will be easier to be considerate toward others. God wants us to learn to see life through the other person's eyes, instead of judging them from our vantage point in life. This engages us with their needs and better focuses us on how to pray for them, helping them through their time of need. There is no greater form of 'sympathy' than to identify with the needs of another and then take their needs before the Lord until you see that need being met through his grace and help.

Be loving and compassionate - this reflects a responsiveness on our part because love and compassion are action words. Loving and compassionate people are charitable in their response - kind, considerate, and accommodating. Love and compassion flow from being agreeable and learning to identify with the needs of others. In order to truly identify with the needs of others and then to develop a consistently loving response to those needs, one needs to add the trait of being humble - being courteously respectful of others in every way. No need to pretend you are important here, my friends - God honors the life that is real, genuine, and unassuming. A life that is humble is genuine - there is a transparency that does not assume any of us have it all together, but that we are willing to be opened up before others.

No retaliation comes next in the 'list' - the ability to not return like for like. It is quite easy to strike out when we have been struck first. It is quite another things to withhold angry response, returning evil with good. This comes at about the middle of the list for a reason. When we are learning to be reflective of the graciousness of a holy God, considerate of others, understanding of their vantage point in life, it is easier to NOT retaliate when they strike out. These traits build upon each other - there is first a change of heart that begins to affect how we interpret life (how we think), followed by a change of action (how we respond). Similarly, we are to not have sharp-tongued sarcasm - because sarcasm is caustic. It destroys the self-worth of another - rarely does it do much to build one up. It is usually directed from a heart that has little understanding of being charitable (kind and considerate), one that is struggling with pride (wanting to cover up our own faults by pointing out another's), etc. God wants his kids to be known for their gentle answer, truthfulness, and their compassionate embracing of each other - including their faults and failures.

The promise to us is that God looks well on those that are working to allow these traits to become part of who we are - he opens the doors of blessing in our lives. He turns a hearing ear to the heart that wants to live in such a manner - it honors him and brings his great joy. These are tougher traits to develop than we imagine - yet, with the help of God's Spirit resident within us, they are entirely possible character qualities that we can have worked into the fiber of our being. Today is a new day. Give it to God and see what he will do with it! Just sayin!

Most valuable

If you listen obediently to the Voice of GOD, you God, and heartily obey all his commandments that I command you today, GOD, your God, will place you on high, high above all the nations of the world. All these blessings will come down on you and spread out beyond you because you have responded to the Voice of GOD, your God: GOD’s blessing inside the city, GOD’s blessing in the country; GOD’s blessing on your children, the crops of your land, the young of your livestock, the calves of your herds, the lambs of your flocks. GOD’s blessing on your basket and bread bowl; GOD’s blessing in your coming in, GOD’s blessing in your going out. GOD will defeat your enemies who attack you. They’ll come at you on one road and run away on seven roads. GOD will order a blessing on your barns and workplaces; he’ll bless you in the land that GOD, your God, is giving you. GOD will form you as a people holy to him, just as he promised you, if you keep the commandments of GOD, your God, and live the way he has shown you. (Deuteronomy. 28:1-9)

We may not fully recognize the meaning of “blessing”. Webster describes “blessing” as anything that is conducive to our happiness or welfare. In other words, a blessing is something that is given or provided that directly provides for our protection and preservation. It is a thing that gives us a sense of approval and encourages us in difficult times. It is a sign to us that divine care is rendered in a loving, careful manner, seeing that every measure is taken to provide for our spiritual, physical, and material prosperity and happiness. We would do well to see that these blessings in our lives come directly from GOD, our God - they are not 'man-made'.

In exploring these various blessings or gifts promised, it comes without surprise that they are conditioned on the obedience of the one looking to God for these blessings. We do our part, and God does his. This is the basis of covenant relationship – there are conditions to be met. In order to fully understand, apprehend and appreciate the blessings in our lives, we need to be obedient to the revealed will of God as he has defined it in his Word. In so doing, we are given provisions beyond number, protection beyond our means, and deep-seated happiness that is not based on circumstance, but upon the sense of tremendous welfare we enjoy. We sometimes describe blessing in our lives as a “treasure”.

Treasures are wonderful things. They can be described as anything that we consider as a type of “wealth” that we could store up or hoard. Treasures are wealth of any kind or of any form that produce a sense of “richness” in our lives. They are more than money, more than flocks or herds, and definitely more than a fleeting thing enjoyed. A treasure is something held as precious, cherished, and prized. Treasures in the natural sense are often things “hoarded” for ourselves, kept for our own enjoyment or use. The treasures of God are never meant for self-gratification, or self-enjoyment. They are designed to be on display and to be put in use for his glory and honor. The treasures of God are given in generous measure to an obedient heart. In turn, what has abundantly been supplied is to be shared without measure. Perhaps the greatest blessing of all is that he is making us into a holy people – a provision that goes beyond my ability to comprehend or ability to provide in my own efforts.

God is in the work of making us each into something of extreme value – a treasure of his purpose. A thing of value is declared by the one who beholds it to be of worth, useful and important to the one that possesses it. In God’s eyes, we are a treasure trove – a valuable and productive discovery that he declares as "most excellent". As a result of his touch in our lives, we are declared to be something that is intrinsically valuable and desirable. He considers us to be of more value than any other possession he has. He declares us to be his riches – that which he esteems, prizes and regards highly. We are his treasures. Just sayin!

Did I just say that?

When you talk, don’t say anything bad. But say the good things that people need—whatever will help them grow stronger. Then what you say will be a blessing to those who hear you. (Ephesians 4:29 ERV)

Notice our passage today doesn't say "if you talk", or "should you be so inclined as to say something". It says "when" - because we all have moments when our "talk" escapes us kind of unnoticed by our brains! We get those words out there and then think, "Did I just say that out loud?" By then, it is too late! The words that escape our brain's filter often hit a target we never intended to actually hit!

The things people need to hear versus the stuff that comes out of our mouths sometimes can be vastly different. The things we each need to hear are the things that help us grow stronger as individuals and ultimately as a community. When these are the words spoken, we become an immovable force the enemy of our souls cannot deal with!

What helps you grow? It is a fair question because I don't always know what will be the exact "fertilizer" the seed deep within you needs in order to grow. I know you need something, but often I don't know what it might be. It is a good thing I don't have to rely upon my own strength, smarts, or "spirituality" to get those words right! I can rely upon God's strength, his wisdom, and his Holy Spirit within to help me get it "right".

What words actually become a blessing in a person's life? They aren't always the "fluffy" ones, with deep spiritual context. They can be the simplest ones like "I care" or "I am here". We don't always think what it is we have to offer is "good enough" for another to feel blessed by those words, but let me assure you of one thing - those may be the very words that set someone into motion who has been stuck in a holding pattern for a very long time!

A few words, aptly spoken in the appropriate timing are like a treasure one discovers quite unexpectedly. There isn't any "science" to it, but there is Spirit behind it. We don't have to fear the Spirit within giving us words that will hurt - for his love and grace overshadows the words he gives with greater blessing than we will ever realize. We only have to fear those words that escape without going through his filters - for those are the ones with the potential to rip apart or tear down. Just sayin!

I forgot that blessing

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. (Melody Beattie)

What or who is it you find yourself complaining the most about? Chances are that thing or person is never going to be viewed as a blessing in your life until you change your way of seeing them just a little! I used to complain about not having a car when I was first married with young kids at home. If I wanted to go some place, I walked, rode the bike, or hitched a ride from a friend. Many a grocery trip was comprised of one child in the child carrier on my bike and another peddling alongside, with a backpack of groceries on my back. Then one day quite unexpectedly I was blessed with a car - as a gift! My in-laws bought a new one and no longer needed that little VW Rabbit. I was overjoyed to receive such a blessing. That is...until it began to break down every other day! Isn't it amazing how quickly we can view a blessing as a curse when that blessing doesn't live up to our "expectations" of the blessing?

I look up to the hills, but where will my help really come from? My help will come from the Lord, the Creator of heaven and earth. (Psalm 121:1-2 ERV)

It is hard to always remain positive when bad things are happening, or people aren't behaving as we might have expected them to in a particular situation. It is much easier to begin to find fault and pick apart that circumstance, or the other person's character, than to just be grateful for the blessing they have been. Yes, the car broke down frequently. There was some type of wiring or computer problem under that hood, but most of the time it got me to where I needed to go. On the occasions it broke down, it actually drove me to learn a little about taking care of a car. You see, we didn't have much money, so every time it broke down, I had to break out the "auto repair for dummies" book and try to figure it out! Yes, my hands got greasy. Yes, it interrupted my plans a little to have the car not work as it should. Yes, it cost me a little extra here and there. But...it was a gift and a blessing - so I had to often adjust my perception by reminding myself of that fact!

Often we need to remind ourselves where it is our help comes from - because we look for it in the manuals, in other people, or in some form of man-made thing. The truth is, when we are truly standing in need, our help comes from the Lord. There were days I would be stranded somewhere with two small kids in the hot Arizona sun, head under hood, and hot pavement under my feet. In those moments, sweat dripping down my nose, I'd ask God to show me which wire, widget, or fuse needed a little tweaking. In time, he'd guide me to the right solution. Once it was the fuel injector, another time it was the fuel relay switch, and so on. In time, I got to know more about that little car than I probably knew about my entire house! Why? God helped me realize a blessing isn't always "self-maintained". Sometimes blessings in our lives need a little more attention in order to "function" at full capacity. 

What blessings have we been overlooking that may need a little bit of our attention today? It could be the blessing of a human nature, or something entirely material, such as the refrigerator that needs a good cleaning inside, outside, and underneath. It could be the one relationship you find is strained and just not going as well as you want it to, the one which demands attention, but you avoid like the plague because it is "so hard". Our help for dealing with blessings that are disguised or overlooked is to realize they all have come into our lives by God's hands and it is by his hands and guidance that they are maintained! Just sayin!

Really, God?

God’s blessings follow you and await you at every turn: when you don’t follow the advice of those who delight in wicked schemes, when you avoid sin’s highway, when judgment and sarcasm beckon you, but you refuse. For you, the Eternal’s Word is your happiness. It is your focus—from dusk to dawn. (Psalm 1:1-2 VOICE)

We don't have to fear the next turn in the bend, although we don't know what awaits us, we can be assured of this - God will bring blessing out of every circumstance we face. It may not seem that way as we are rounding that bend into what seems to be a tumultuous ride, but God's plan is to bring blessing even out of what is the hardest and most demanding of life's moments. God's blessings follow us - they are like the wake of a boat moving through the water - impacting those around us and leaving their lives just a little bit more blessed by having been touched by him. It isn't that we avoid the calamity, but that we refuse to be overcome by it - not giving into the pull toward judging the moment as too severe, unfair, or unrealistic.

Stop for just a moment to consider this - if we resist the desire to become judgmental or flippant about whatever it is we are facing, could this possibly be one of God's blessings he gives us in that moment? To face it without going down the path toward a sinful response of ungratefulness, complaint, or anger - maybe this is one of his blessings - this stable attitude with which we can focus not on the event, but on the one who promises to keep us as we go through it. There will be lots of advice from those around us as to how it is we are to face the moment - some will lean toward embracing it, others will advise we resist it, while still others will say we probably deserved it. Didn't Job have those who came to offer their advice on the matters he faced? What makes us think we won't have the same type of "advisers" rising up when we least need them! The best we can do is thank them for their desire to help, then lean into God's Word - for he longs to declare to us what it is we are to lean upon while we are going through the situation.

I would be remiss here in not admitting my own failure to keep a positive attitude on occasion as I faced unpleasant stuff. There are times when it is just easier to complain, resist, and get downright angry about facing the stuff I thought was too hard, or perhaps too unfair in my life. I didn't want to walk through divorce, but I made it through by his grace. I didn't want to be a single parent raising two kids, but with his grace and guidance every step of the way, my kids turned out pretty well and I was reasonably "unscathed" by the trip! I didn't want to lose my job, but whenever it happened, God made a way for me to stay totally caught up with my bills, never missing a beat in blessing me along the way. I didn't always embrace those challenges eagerly, waiting with marked anticipation to see how God would turn these things into a blessing. In fact, I think I complained a little too much, got angry a lot, and even worried way more than I should have. What I can tell you is this - God helped me see the blessing even when it was not very apparent at the get-go, turning my complaint into gratitude, my fear into trust, and my anger into submission.

Going down any path with God is not an assurance it will be an easy path, but it is an assurance you will make it through and in the end, although it may not look like it, there will come blessings untold!  Just sayin!

Experience his blessings

Oscar Wilde penned, "Experience is simply the names we give our mistakes."  So very true! We probably invented the great word "experience" to simply explain the many "mistakes" we made getting to where we are today!  We humans have a way of trying to make things appear as they are not - if we didn't the make-up and tummy tuck industry would be out of business!  Truth is sometimes not the most flattering - nor is it the most palatable. Albert Einstein told us that the only source of knowledge was through experience - you had to have gone through the experience to know if the knowledge was trustworthy. I like what Eleanor Roosevelt said, "People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and courageously. This is how character is built." 

Those who stand in awe of the Eternal—who follow wherever He leads, committed in their hearts—experience His blessings! God will use your hard work to provide you food.  You will prosper in your labor, and it will go well for you.  May the Eternal continue to pour out His love on you...May you have the privilege of seeing your grandchildren as they grow. (Psalm 128:1-2, 6 VOICE)

God's intent for us is for us to experience his blessings - not just some of them, but all of them. Not because we deserve them - but because he lavishes them upon us in immeasurable ways.  The thing about God's blessings is that they are meant to be "experienced" - not just thought about, considered, or kept in "reserve" for a rainy day. They are for now and later, here and there, you and me. Some might see the next sentence in our passage as saying we have to do our part and God will do his.  God made man to be the most fulfilled when he has work to occupy his hands - from this work, God brings many a blessing, but even a farmer will tell us there is no guarantee of a harvest just because one "works hard".

We might want to think some of God's blessings are a little "exclusionary" - good for some, but no way we are ever going to walk into those same blessings ourselves.  You know, no matter how much I look at the blessings of another, I don't think they aren't "for me", but that my blessings come in ways that are meaningful for my life. The blessings you receive are meaningful for you, but may not have the same meaning or purpose in my life. To consider a blessing in view of God's care over our lives is the most "sane" way to consider it. The blessing is to be experienced, worked through, and as Roosevelt said, it is to be built into our character.

The greatest blessing is his love. The benefit of his love is grace. The privilege of his love is nearness to his heart. These are blessings we ALL experience without measure - no one receives a greater or lesser portion of these than the other person. They are given in infinite ways, manifested in moments and ways only we can appreciate and embrace. We experience them a little differently at times, but they are all the same blessings!  Just sayin!

Bless your enemy?

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?'" (Martin Luther King, Jr) It is far easier for us to complain about what another has not done for us than it is to admit we may have done very little for them! It isn't that all of life is give and take - you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours. It is us giving without restraint - regardless of the return we might receive on that "investment" of service. Jesus never said we were to look for a reward in our actions as much as he said we should perform the actions "worthy" of reward.

Think of the kindness you wish others would show you; do the same for them. (Luke 6:31 VOICE)

Too many times we focus on what others need to be doing for us - what we believe we deserve becomes dominant in our lives.  It is a strange thing for us to think outside of ourselves at times - because after all, we were born thinking about self first above all. It seems the "nature" we are born with has to be "nurtured" out of us a little so that we begin to look beyond self and truly see others are part of the bigger picture!  Daniel Webster said, "What a man does for others, not what they do for him, gives him immortality."  Jesus tells us to think "beyond" ourselves - truly seeing the need of those around us and then finding ways to meet that need with a heart focused on blessing them fully and completely.

It is amazing how quickly we can identify our own need and then set things in motion to see that need met in some way.  It may not always be the best way, but in our eyes it is being met nonetheless.  I guess a good many of us might just have an issue with actually admitting our needs to others - either because it scares us to have someone see us as needy, or we aren't sure they will meet the need in a way we really desire.  It is much easier for us to bottle those needs up until we can somehow meet them ourselves.  How's that been working for you?  I know it never really worked well for me - despite all my best efforts to do so, I failed miserably at doing for myself what another would have done much better if actually given the chance!

It is good to get the full story on what Christ was saying in our passage today.  His mission is to somehow reveal what life with Christ at the center is to be.  Here's the context to what he summarized above:  "If you’re listening, here’s My message: Keep loving your enemies no matter what they do. Keep doing good to those who hate you.  Keep speaking blessings on those who curse you. Keep praying for those who mistreat you.  If someone strikes you on one cheek, offer the other cheek too. If someone steals your coat, offer him your shirt too. If someone begs from you, give to him. If someone robs you of your valuables, don’t demand them back."  (vs. 27-30)  Then he sums it up with, "Think of the kindness you wish others would show you; do the same for them." 

Enemies, those who hate and curse us - those who mistreat us - they are not the subject of our Lord's teaching here.  We are!  He wants us to learn to "counter" their attacks with love, not retaliation.  It is a truly amazing thing to go beyond one's own desire to blessed and to become a blessing when another least deserves it.  What Jesus is reminding us about is this misconception of blessing being for those who are a blessing to us.  He is showing us the greatest blessing we can give is that which is least deserved - and it will also be the hardest blessing for us to give!  It is the thing we would want were we in the same situation. Make no bones about it - learning to serve others in such a manner is not an easy task - but it is oh so rewarding!  Just sayin!

Bless my neighbor

Each of us must strive to please our neighbors, pursuing their welfare so they will become strong.  (Romans 15:2 VOICE)

I heard my pastor remind us about contentment yesterday, but what spoke to me kind of loudly was a little reminder he heard from a fellow pastor friend.  You see, that pastor's church was struggling with the constant envy of their neighbors.  When the neighbors got a new car, they wanted one.  They had "house envy" and even "TV envy".  What the pastor said one day to his congregation was awesome.  He proclaimed that he had heard so much complaining about the neighbors being blessed with this or that by his fellow congregants.  His reminder to them was profound - when you see your neighbor being blessed, just rejoice because it means God is in your neighborhood!  Let that one bounce around in your head a few times, will you?  Your neighbors blessing shouldn't be a cause of envy, but of rejoicing.  

I wonder what kind of a neighborhood we'd have if we stopped competing with each other and actually assumed the responsibility of pursuing things which actually contribute to their welfare? Instead of looking out for just our own needs, we might find ourselves taking the other guy's trash receptacles up the driveway at the end of a busy work day, or even raking up those leaves gathering in the yard.  Maybe we'd notice they need a hand in with groceries, or even that their daughter is lonely and seeking someone to play with.  We might just see a very simple need we could meet if we'd just stop long enough to look!

I spent the weekend cleaning the garage - a task I don't really like to do, but which reveals we have just way too much stuff!  I am not exactly a pack-rat, but as mom has aged, I see her tendency to want to save little things which "might have some use" down the road. I found lots of things which really could be discarded - so I made a trip to the local thrift store with a trunk load of items.  I had two bookshelves, small ones, that had been used for some storage in the garage which I no longer needed.  They still had much usefulness, so I took them to the curb, along with a metal bed frame and some carpet remnants.  It did my heart good to see that one of the bookshelves and the metal bed frame have already found a new home - free of charge.  It doesn't matter who claimed it - it matters that it found a new home, a new purpose.

Sometimes it isn't the big things we do which bless our neighbors, but the simple things.  It could be the plate of cookies and fudge at Christmas, or the assist running after the dog who is on the loose that speaks the loudest to our neighbors.  A few years back, I hadn't seen my neighbor out in the yard for some time, nor his dog being walked.  I saw his pick up truck parked where it always was parked. I noticed his house looked "the same" as it always looked. Then one day I came home to the police parked outside, the coroner's van pulled up alongside, and a group of undercover cops asking neighbors when the last time it was they had observed any activity in the home.  Alas, my neighbor had died at home, gone undiscovered for about five days, until one day another neighbor took it upon himself to call the police for a well-check.  It was a wake up call for me to pay attention to my neighbors!  

In some neighborhoods, fences just aren't there.  In Arizona, block walls separate one family from another.  I might get a little start when the neighbor girl's head pops over the fence and she proclaims my name loudly asking what I am doing, but deep down inside, I know she is lonely.  I know she just wants someone to talk with.  She even offers to bring in my groceries when she sees me. One day I could tell she was particularly lonely, so when she came over looking for something to do, I gave her permission to gather pine cones in my yard - even those which had not quite fallen from the trees.  I gave her an idea for a craft and off she went.  It isn't the big things which bless your neighbors, my friends - it may just be the small things done from a heart that really cares for them! Just sayin!

Risk it!

If you have ever tried to be on both sides of the fence at one time, you know it is not very comfortable straddling the fence!  You really cannot be on one side today, another tomorrow, then back again the next day without it taking some type of toll on either your emotions or your spirit.  Yet, this is exactly what some of us try to do in our relationship with Christ - we want to be as close to the old way of living as possible, but we want all the benefits of serving Christ.  We think it won't matter to walk so close to the edge of compromise, but it doesn't take much for us to stumble and fall right into temptation when we do.

If any of you want to walk My path, you’re going to have to deny yourself. You’ll have to take up your cross every day and follow Me. If you try to avoid danger and risk, then you’ll lose everything. If you let go of your life and risk all for My sake, then your life will be rescued, healed, made whole and full.  (Luke 9:23-24 VOICE)

For most of us, the choice to live so close to the old way of living isn't because we aren't really excited about what it offers, but rather we are "comfortable" with it.  The uncertainty of what might change in our lives when we fully commit to Jesus, choosing to walk as he directs, is kind of scary to us, so we hold as close to the line as possible.  Not too many of us actually thrive on uncertainty. We want the "balance" or "equilibrium" we experience when we can count on something being as it has been.  The thought of something different occurring in our lives just stops us short of taking that first step because we don't like the equilibrium to be rocked!

Jesus didn't come into this world to let the status quo (existing state of our lives) continue.  In fact, he came into this world to rock this world to the core - to upset the imbalance sin creates and return balance to our lives which grace brings!  Jesus was quite clear when he spoke to his disciples those many years ago, and the message is still as clear today - you cannot continually "walk the line" and expect things to change for the better in your life.  You have to draw squarely into the "camp of grace" if you are to experience the true equilibrium of his life.  This requires what he calls "risk" - the very thing we think will bring us hazard or loss, but is assured to bring us joy and blessing.

Looking again at what Jesus said, it is a daily choice.  It often involves us dealing with whatever fear we have of the unknown, stepping out in obedience (not really much faith, but a mustard seed size trust), and then leaving the rest to Jesus.  That is scary because when we leave the outcome to someone else in our lives, we might not get what we expected, but it is entirely truthful to say we might get what we had no idea was right there in front of us! We see the risk as great only because our obedience is small. The more we take steps of obedience, even if they are small ones, the further we move from the fence line.  The further we move into his grace, the more we will have our faith increased and our lives changed in ways we never imagined possible.

The risk of obedience may be greater than any other risk we have taken in life, but far more valuable than any other risk we could take. No, obedience is not always easy.  Yes, it has some fear associated with it because we are going into the territory of the unknown.  In each step we take toward God's will, there is increased risk, but with that risk comes blessings in immeasurable amounts we could not have realized apart from having taken the first step toward obedience in our lives.  Risk it - the first step is totally worth it!  Just sayin!

Connect wire A to wire B

As with each "campaign season", the airways begin to fill up with men and women spouting all manner of campaign promises, hoping those hearing their words will somehow "trust them" to bring about whatever it is they are promising should they win the election.  It is hard to nail jello to a wall, though.  Some of the stuff I hear asked and the way they answer the questions is kind of like nailing jello to a wall. They indicate they have a brilliant idea about how to fix this problem or that, but in very general terms - there isn't a whole lot of substance to what they share.  I have found the best way to pick a candidate for office isn't so much in how educated they are, or even how sophisticated their answers might be, but to listen between the words to see if I can actually hear their heart.  It is often revealed in what they say, as much as in what they don't say!  The same is true in our own lives - sometimes what we say is not as important as what we don't say. 

The words of the godless ruin those close to them, but through insight the right-living are spared. When prosperity comes to those who do right, the whole city celebrates; but when the wicked get their just punishment, there is joyous cheering. A city thrives through the blessing of those living right, but the words of a wrongdoer will bring it to ruin. (Proverbs 11:9-11 VOICE)

This idea of "right-living" conveyed in these verses is one which comes through in what may be left unsaid, but also in the blessing words can bring when used to comfort, cheer, or bring solution into another's life.  Words have powerful capacity to either bring to ruin, or build up in ways nothing else can quite "outdo".  I recently saw a media feed about a special education teacher who starts each day of class by calling each of his students to the front of the class where he is sitting.  In just a few sentences, he speaks positive things into their lives, then moves on to the next student.  He may tell them he can always find delight in their smile, or he loves how they laugh in delight when they have created something in class.  Each student does "better" in their day all because of the words of encouragement he gives.  Why is that?  I think it is because he has learned it is in what often goes "unsaid" in the lives of these special needs kids that they need to hear the most.  You see, they probably hear enough of the "don't do that", "sit still in your chair", and "you are getting yourself dirty by doing that" each day.  What he has identified is the need every person has to hear the blessing that often remains unspoken!

We can all be guilty of giving a "campaign speech" on occasion - those times when we say what we think someone wants to hear even if we don't have much heart behind the message.  The issue is one of being genuine in our responses. We don't convey meaning until their is a genuineness of heart in the message shared.  I recently saw some photo posts of a couple of friends with some of family members at a family gathering.  They smiled in each photo, but I observed something - in some photos, it looked much closer to genuine than in others.  It wasn't the lighting, nor was it the photographer's perspective in taking the photo.  Photos often capture the sentiment of the heart, don't they?  I wonder if our words capture the sentiment of our heart equally as well?

I have learned to look deeper than the words, or beyond the smiles.  Why?  The heart isn't always captured in the words, nor is it evident in the smiles we hide behind so often.  To really begin to connect with those around you, you have to become "skilled" in uncovering the heart of the individuals you are with.  It isn't easy at first, but as you begin to "not judge a book by its cover", you become more and more adept at "reading" another's heart - maybe in what is left unsaid, or in the emotion missing in the moment.  The reason we may not always want to trust what is being said is that we ALL have become quite skilled at saying what others want to hear, and hiding behind our masks of "happiness" when deep down we are thinking something quite different or feeling quite detached from the emotional connection of the moment at hand.

The heart is buried deep - we have to uncover it if we are to become a blessing in the lives of those we care so much about. It may not be the quickest thing to learn, but that heart connection is what will fuse a relationship together in ways which makes bonds unbreakable, even in the toughest of times.  If we are content to trust what is on the surface, we will never speak life into the core of another's being - the very thing they are longing so much the hear.  I think the special education teacher may have hit the nail on the head in his approach to his students.  His connection with the kids wasn't going to come by pointing out where they didn't measure up, but in showing them ways they were a blessing in his life.  We may not always connect with the other person at first blush, but when we begin to find ways to uncover their heart, while being transparent with ours along the way, we will grow deeply connected in the course of time.  

Connection is made - not delivered.  It takes connecting two wires together to allow energy to flow through the outlet in our homes.  It isn't just any two wires which can be connected to give this infusion of energy, though.  One must be connected to the source of power - the other draws that power from the source through the connection which is made.  We can become a conduit of "infused energy" within relationships - but to do so, we must make the connection. Just sayin!

Are and All

I know I am probably not alone when I share with you the "bent" I have in life to continually "think ahead".  It is sometimes a bit of a "curse" to not be able to shut off your thoughts, to constantly be trying to find ways for something to be "better".  It as though your mind is almost always set to "on" and there is very little time in your life when you let it go to "off". Sure, you have a "dimmer switch" of sorts, which allows you to "shut down" a little, but you might even find yourself waking from a sound sleep thinking through something which stumped you a little bit earlier in the day.  Some say this tendency is kind of "genius", but I am far from "genius" in my IQ.  I just have a mind which likes to be challenged, works hard at what gets put in it, and then looks for new ways to challenge myself.  When I am the one always trying to figure out the "puzzle" in front of me, I sometimes find it hard to be satisfied with what I have.  It is like I am always trying to improve upon what I have.  Sometimes God just wants me to stop doing the improving and allow him to go to work - for his plan or answer is going to be the best one anyway!

Take great joy in the Eternal! His gifts are coming, and they are all your heart desires! (Psalm 37:4 VOICE)

A little quote on a friends media feed the other morning caused me to stop a moment to ponder the truth behind it.  The idea was one of constantly being on the lookout for the things in life which will somehow make you "happy".  We probably all suffer from this one, at least a little.  We forget happiness is a feeling and not a "state of life".  We forget contentment is the goal, not always the things which tickle our happiness emotion.  The quote really challenged us to stop looking in the next "place", "job", or even the next "relationship" to be "the one" which will make us happier than we are right now.  The idea behind the quote was the truth that happiness is not found in "the next" anything, but in the way we approach and work through the present.  Happiness will always elude us if we are constantly looking somewhere else for it.

One thing I want us to keep in mind - God doesn't prohibit us from hoping for the future. In fact, he promises to meet our needs today AND in the future.  He promises to be our comfort today AND in the future.  Here is the issue - we sometimes miss him now because we are so busy looking for him in the future!  As our passage points out, God's "plan" for us is for us to take great joy in him NOW - not in the future - but in the present.  Yes, he has great things "coming" in our lives, but the things he has for us now are just as great - we just have to learn to appreciate them for the value they add to our lives today.  Some people spend years and years laying up their retirement funds, planning and preparing for the day retirement comes, only to find themselves bored out of their minds because they hoped for some form of happiness in retirement which really isn't found in all the "careful planning".  Yes, we need to plan - but we also need to live life today - in the fullness of his grace, love, and joy.

The promise to us is pretty awesome:  His gifts ARE coming.  If you didn't catch that - they ARE coming means they aren't "iffy".  In fact, they are ALL our heart desires.  Now, in case you don't know what that word "all" means in the Hebrew language, let me just give you a little Hebrew lesson.  It means "ALL"!  You don't need to give a big, long, complicated definition of that word - nor the word "are".  Both mean exactly what they say - his gifts ARE (count on it to happen) coming; his plan is to bless us with ALL our heart desires.  Now, lest we think this means every desire of our heart is "spot on", let me assure you there are probably some which are not exactly "spot on".  When we learn to bring our heart desires to God, asking him to guide us into what is best for our lives, then counting on him to "figure it out" in his timing and his plan, we do much better on the "happiness scale" than we we are constantly trying to make all our heart desires come true on our own!

The important thing to remember is the reality of God's "carefulness" over our lives.  He can be counted on to know what is best for us, when the timing is "spot on", and what we need to have prepared in our lives for us to be ready for the blessings we are about to receive.  There is nothing more tragic than to receive great blessings, but be too preoccupied with the next blessing we are hoping for to actually recognize or appreciate the present one!  Just sayin!