The Plumbline

When my soul is in the dumps, I rehearse everything I know of you...(Psalm 42:8) Do you ever end up in the mulligrubs? Oh, you don't know what mulligrubs are - let me tell you a little about that place. It is a place of despondency, sullenness, or even an ill-tempered mood. Now, answer my question honestly - do you ever end up in the mulligrubs? As hard as you tried not to end up there, your day started wrong, went on being wrong, and ended even more wrong than it started! The outcome - mulligrubs. Grumpiness is another term we may hear used for this old-fashioned word. If we were to say this of a baby, we'd say they have the 'colic'. Misery and woe - pain they cannot explain - pain no one else seems to know how to fix. The 'toned down' meaning of this term is kind of feeling 'blah', or being in a 'funk'. Truth be told, we all 'get there' from time to time, but probably have learned to mask it a little better than someone else! In the dum...

Ruined lives surround us no matter where we live.  People start out well, but somehow through a series of misadventures and wrong turns, their lives end up in a state of shambles, almost like falling down shacks.  Along the way, they may have heard advice to not take a certain path, or to turn away from what they were pursuing with such earnest.  In ignoring the warnings, they compounded their misfortune and increased their speed of decline.  Now, at the bottom of the pit, they live with nothing more than regrets and the constant wondering of the "what if".  The worrisome part of their decline into the pit is the possibility of them having blamed God for the decline - for putting them in the pit.  In reality, it was their failure to heed warnings, to turn away from their self-directed pursuits.  Why is it we blame God when things end in ruins?  He isn't a God of "ruin", but of "hope", "possibilities", and even "impossibilities".   ...

The blues - ya singing 'em?  We all have a time here and there when we just get into the "mulligrubs" - the place where we are kind of ill-tempered, grumpy, or just plain grouchy.  Our circumstances have been internalized and we are allowing them to affect the attitude we display about everything we touch in life.  Melancholy is not meant to be a way of life for a believer, but we sometimes find this path kind of worn smooth by our frequent passage over it, huh?  Sometimes our "souls" just need a good talking to - they need to hear clearly they are not where they need to be!  There is a song I remember from grade school - about the old gray mare not being what she used to be.  Now, if we were given to singing the blues now and again, we might just bemoan the fact the "old mare" or "old stallion" isn't what s/he used to be!  Physically we age and the aging process is sometimes less than kind to us!  On the other hand, I think we sometimes ...

I like salty treats - even to the point of craving them sometimes.  Whenever I consume them though, I usually end up drinking a lot of water - because they make me thirsty.  In the end, they leave me thirsty for a long time, not just while I am taking them in.  My body simply cannot process all the sodium in the salty treats without a whole lot of water.  In fact, whenever we find ourselves in the midst of the "excesses" of life, we often crave what we most need to help us deal with the excess. God—you're my God! I can't get enough of you!  I've worked up such hunger and thirst for God,  traveling across dry and weary deserts. (Psalm 63:1 The Message) So, we crave what we most need to deal with what we find ourselves enduring!  Sometimes we are "enduring" stuff by our own doing - like when I eat a huge bowl of Cheezits or eat a whole candy bar.  The sodium from one and the sugar from the other just cause me to "crave" the very thing which...

Ever hit bottom and find yourself recognizing the depth of the pit all while life continues to demand more and more of you?  I think all of us have experienced being overwhelmed in some "pit" at one time or another.  The impact of the "pit" is determined by the perception we maintain IN the pit.  We can continue to look down - seeing only the darkness of the lowest point.  We can look outward - seeing only the closeness of the walls surrounding us, seemingly holding us in a position of bondage.  Or...we can look up, taking notice of the glimmer of light breaking in the distance, and take hope!   5  Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul?   Why are you crying the blues?      Fix my eyes on God—soon I'll be praising again.  He puts a smile on my face.  He's my God. (Psalm 43:5 The Message) David penned these words a long time ago, but they have awesome value for us today.  In the midst of th...

I call out at the top of my lungs,  " God ! Answer! I'll do whatever you say."     I called to you, "Save me  so I can carry out all your instructions."     I was up before sunrise,  crying for help, hoping for a word from you.     I stayed awake all night,  prayerfully pondering your promise.     In your love, listen to me;  in your justice,  God , keep me alive.  (Psalm 119:145-149 The Message) Desperation is condition in which hope has faded - - there is a sense of hopelessness, a sense of just wanting to give up.  These are the times when we are often heard just crying out to God, "Hey, are you listening here???"  It is our "God! Answer!"  There are times I think God has allowed me to get to the place of "God! Answer! I am pretty desperate here!"  Yep, you read that right - - he allowed it!  He put me in a place where I came sma...

 I'm feeling terrible—I couldn't feel worse!   Get me on my feet again. You promised, remember?   When I told my story, you responded;  train me well in your deep wisdom.   Help me understand these things inside and out        so I can ponder your miracle-wonders.  (Psalm 119:25-27 The Message) I was watching a game show the other night with mom.  The introductions of the contestants included the regular demographics - where do you live, where do you work, what are your hobbies?  I have to say that I cringe each and every time I hear someone say, "I am an author.  I write self-help books."  I am so amazed that anyone could actually figure out how to help "self"!  In my own experience, I have observed that my "self" is pretty doggone unreliable and no amount of me helping "me" really "sticks"!!! David opens this section with the cold, hard truth that he is miserable!  Have yo...