I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.
Isaiah 41:16 NIV
Have you ever been around chickens—I mean more than just at dinner time? We had chickens while I was growing up and my parents still keep chickens today which makes things a little more difficult when they go on vacation. This summer they took an extended vacation which meant they needed their one and only daughter—their favorite daughter—to come to their house several times a week to gather eggs, and to feed and water the chickens.
Chickens are rather silly creatures. If you have never spent time around them you probably don’t think they can provide much entertainment, but that is where you would be wrong. I opened the gate to their coop and 13 hens and a large rooster came barreling out, flapping their wings, and making their little chicken noises. The chickens tend to stay in a large group until something scares them—a leaf, a shadow, a loud noise—then they take off running, none of them know where to, just away from whatever startled them. Since they are pretty skittish, the hens generally give you a wide berth, and this particular rooster generally leaves you alone unless he feels you are threatening “his” hens.
When it came time to feed them, all of the chickens would pause and warily eye me as I walked over to the large metal trash can that houses their food. Hearing their food bag crinkle, they would come trotting over and I would toss them a handful of food. That is when the rooster acts like he is the boss. Seeing the food fall to the ground, he would start a gurgling clucking sound, alerting the hens to the fact that there was food available. If they were not close by, the hens come running. I laughed at the rooster; there I was giving them the food and he acted like he’s the one who found the food—claiming all the glory for himself!
Everything was all well and good until I started to walk over to get the garden hose to refill the water. I noticed the rooster looking at me in that suspicious way roosters do before they decide you are a threat: part in nonchalance—head turned looking out of the corner of their eye, the other part so focused you know they are watching your every move. I was not between him and the hens so I didn’t think he should feel threatened but I gave him a wider berth anyway. It didn’t matter. He came running at me with his neck feathers raised and he kicked me!
You may not be aware that rather than pecking you, roosters typically kick their attacker. They jump, flapping their wings, and lifting their feet they kick and dig their claws into you. At the very least, they can deliver a nice welt and a bruise. I backed away and yet he still came at me. I was stuck; if I ran he would chase me and, as he was not allowing me to put space in between us, I decided to do the only other thing I could—catch him when he jumped at me! He jumped and I stuck my arms out to grab him. He ended up hitting my hands and bouncing back from me but it was enough—he left me alone! I then escaped to the house to call my parents to tell mom that her “nice” rooster had just kicked me!
Thinking about the chickens though made me realize once again how much the animal and natural world reflect the spiritual world. How often do we act towards God the way that rooster acted towards me? God showers us with blessings and just like the rooster with the food, we act like it was all our doing—as if we had total control bringing the good event to fruition.
Like the rooster kicking me when I was trying to get the hose to give them life-giving water, we eye God suspiciously when He is doing something new in our lives. We know He has taken care of us and yet when something new comes our way, when we hear Him calling us to do something we don’t want to do, we act like the rooster. We kick, we fight, we throw a tantrum. We get in the way of Him giving us the very thing we need. Just as the chickens don’t know that water is contained in that big, scary, green, garden hose; we don’t know what is on the other side of our comfort zone.
The rooster ended up behaving after that incident. He didn’t try to kick me again, and he was generally well behaved for the rest of the time I was housesitting. It didn’t take his little pea brain long to figure out that I was on the same side with him and the hens. Do we learn that quickly with God? Do we show even less faith and trust than a chicken?
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If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
I Corinthians 13:1-2 NIV
I hate technology. I may be the only millennial to have ever uttered those words but it is true. I do not get along with it. I am not constantly tied to my phone and I probably would not even have a Facebook page if my friend had not made me one years ago so we could easily group chat about her upcoming wedding. Why we couldn’t have had a text message group rather than a Facebook group is still an area of consternation to me but I digress…
I frequently wondered where this dislike of technology come from—my parents were fairly easy adapters to computers and such so why was I so resistant? Then one day I remembered my first interaction with a computer that to this day affects my attitude towards them.
I was about 5 years old when my daycare/pre-K got a few computers for us to play on in an effort to familiarize us with the then-new technology. We were in the playroom where the computers were along with the scooters, blocks, finger paints, and, in general, all of the fun stuff. As there were many of us, we had to be divided into groups to play with all the various toys. The teacher told us to raise our hands when she said one of the activities, however, she did not tell us beforehand what our choices were going to be. The first activity she mentioned was the computer, that sounded like fun so I raised my hand. Three of us were picked to play on the computer first. She next asked who wanted to ride the scooters, which sounded like more fun so I raised my hand again in an effort to switch my vote. The teacher said I had already raised my hand to play on the computer. I was upset—I loved the scooters and we weren’t always allowed to play on them! If I had known they were an option I would have chosen them and not the computer!
Over to the computer I went, but I kept looking at the kids on the scooters—they were riding around laughing and having much more fun than I was having. When I looked back at my computer screen there was a message box displayed. I couldn’t read very well and the teacher seemed busy so I clicked on it and it went away … like, totally away—the box, the computer game, everything. Confused, I called out to my teacher and when she came over she took one look and in an annoyed voice said, “Oh you broke it.”
She told to get out of my chair so she could try to figure out what went wrong. I remember just sitting there staring at my teacher’s back. She was at the computer a long time and I had no idea if she would be able to fix it or not. I don’t remember if there was anything else to do at the table or not; I was too upset. I had just broken one of the brand new computers and that was the first time I had ever touched a computer!
This teacher was not a particularly harsh individual. I don’t remember much about her, I don’t even remember her name, but I do remember the harsh words she spoke to me that day. Unbeknownst to her, those words colored many of my future interactions with technology. Our words have power.
I mention this not to paralyze us so that we are afraid to speak but to remind us that the Bible tells us to let all we do be done in love (I Corinthians 16:14). I Corinthians 13:1-2 says: If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
I do endeavor to speak gently and with love to those that I interact with but this is not necessarily my strong suit! (See my post about gentleness here!) I am sure that teacher had no idea that some 20 years later I would still remember the words she spoke to me—and I cannot even remember her name! Likewise, I remember compliments and other things that people have said to me in a much brighter light. A heartfelt compliment can bring a smile to the person that compliment was paid years later. Given the choice between the two, the second is the legacy I want to leave.
People will remember different things about us. Some will remember the good, some will remember the bad, most will remember a mix, the kind and unkind things we have said. Just like my teacher, we cannot control what people will remember about us. Despite our fumbling words, and despite when we say things that come out all wrong, we can pray that God will use our fumblings to still reach through us to the people that we were put on this earth to minister to. We cannot control how people perceive our words, but we can control the attitude and tone in which we speak. We can ask God to help cover everything we say and do in love because our words have the power to change a life.
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Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV
I love going to thrift shops, flea markets, and yard sales. I enjoy seeing things from previous eras, things that were owned by others—relics from other lives. When I see an item from a bygone era, I always wonder what all it has seen. It is so strange to me that in many cases these inanimate objects will spend more time on this earth than I. Is this item in its original condition? Has it been remade into something new?
I love thrifting but I can’t say I always come up with a winner. Often I’ll find a few little things that I had my eyes open for, but rarely do I find a really nice piece for a price that I’m willing to pay, that I can just bring home and plop down in its spot. No. What usually happens is I find something that seems like it’s in good condition, but is … a little ugly. It might be painted an ugly color, or have a stain so thick you can’t even tell what kind of wood it is. In such cases I have to look at the pieces with an imaginative eye. What would it look like if I painted it? What if I refinished it or switched out the hardware?
This happened with a little end table that I received from a relative. The end table was skinny, which was what I needed for the room I had in mind. It had collapsible leaves that could turn into a card table if extra space was needed; but this little end table had one drawback—it was homely. It had the kind of thick lacquered stain that was popular in the ‘80s; its hardware was dated and tarnished, and I just did not harbor very high hopes that this end table would be anything besides homely. Still, I figured, it would do until something else came along.
My husband and I brought it home and I started thinking about ways I could improve its looks. I could paint it, but what color? I like most of my furniture to be neutral but I just couldn’t picture this table in black, white or gray. Suddenly, I got an idea! I would paint it the same color as my front door—a deep teal-hued navy! I liked the idea even more when I found a beautiful cream and gray drawer-pull for the drawer on the front of the end table. I went to work, sanding, wiping, painting and reinstalling hardware. Finally it was finished. I stepped back and looked at it and I couldn’t believe it—I loved it!
I still have that end table and it’s one of the favorite pieces in my house. I still can’t believe what a coat of paint did for it! I am so happy with it. Thinking over its transformation made me think of what God does for us. He takes us, if we allow Him to, and sets to work on us. He sands our rough spots, removes old traits that don’t reflect well on Him or His kingdom, He swaps out old habits for new ones, and over the course of a lifetime, He turns us into something more beautiful than we ever could have imagined. Sometimes He does have to strip us down to the barebones before He can begin His work. Sometimes.
Overtime He remakes each of us into a new creation if we allow Him. He watches as we transform from something ugly into something beautiful right before His eyes. How He must feel when He looks back at a life once doomed and headed for total depravity and destruction who yielded their life to Him and allowed Him to work His divine magic into something beautiful! It must be very gratifying to see us as we transform into the person He created us to be. How awesome it is that He can make all things new, even us!
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I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13
I have seen the saying, “Love is how happy your dog gets when you get home,” and I am inclined to agree with this saying. I love my dog, and I think she loves us too. Actually though, I think she would love anyone who fed her.
Our dog is a Red Lab named Rosie. Greeting me with enthusiasm is not the only thing she does with great excitement. To Rosie, all of life is one big adventure. A tennis ball? “Woohoo!” To her this is an exciting event! She wildly runs in search of the tennis ball, finds it and brings it to me. I throw it and she gets to retrieve it. What fun! In Rosie’s world, life just doesn’t get better than this . . . well, possibly breakfast and dinner—but it’s close!
There are many times in the course of the day that she gets all wound up. She looks at me with her big mouth open in a smile and every time I take a step, she takes a little leap. She just can’t control herself. I could understand this excitement if we were getting ready to go for a walk or a car ride, but we’re not! Often times, I am a wet blanket and tell Rosie there is nothing to be excited about. Nothing. She usually doesn’t believe me and stays excited for a little bit until, true to my word, nothing exciting happens and she decides to take a nap—just a short say two hours or so?
I was thinking about this and it seems that much of the time we do the exact inverse of how Rosie is in her excitement for life when it comes to our faith. Here we are with direct access to the Creator of the Universe any time we want and we barely take time to speak to Him in prayer. We get to go to church and worship and sing praise to the One who sent His Son to die for us and we act like it is a chore. In short, we act like there is no Good News, and nothing to be excited about when in fact there is everything to be excited about!
Now I am not suggesting that we run around our whole lives on some superficial high—that’s not realistic—but I am suggesting that we need to realize the magnitude of what Jesus did for us when He willingly laid down His life for us. My Pastor stated a while ago that we have had the best news ever delivered to us and we act like its bad news. We are afraid to tell people about our faith for the backlash that could occur. We act like Jesus dying on the cross for us and saving us from eternal damnation wasn’t a big deal. We act like there is nothing to be excited about. But there is!
Because of Jesus’s death on the cross you, me, and anyone who chooses to believe does not have to suffer eternally. Through the Holy Spirit we have a helper and an intercessor. Because of who God is we always have a friend to talk to, to cry to, and to be excited with throughout all of life’s ups and downs. We have every reason to be excited, so maybe we should act like it. Maybe we need to be like Rosie and instead of bemoaning how different everything could be, we need to approach the little things in life like the adventure they are. Maybe we need to approach life more with the unbridled joy with which Rosie approaches life.
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These things I have spoken to you so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.
John 16:33
I knew a family that seemed to have it all. He was a successful lawyer, she a talented photographer. He had just made partner in a large firm, she had started her own business and it was going great. They had just moved into this big beautiful house tucked away in the woods. It was top notch technology in this house complete with the fanciest coffee maker I had ever seen. Their lives seemed utterly devoid of tribulation.
I pictured them on a quiet morning drinking their coffee from their fancy coffee maker and sitting on their flower-covered porch as the sun broke through the trees and filtered down onto the house. “How great their lives must be,” I thought. Imagine having such a beautiful, quiet start to your day!
I dream of having quiet mornings where I make my coffee and drink it on my back porch as I watch the sun crest over the distant hills. Of course I only get to do this sporadically–weekends, and the occasional work day that starts a little later than normal. But to do it every day? Heavenly!
Anyway, I Idealized their life in their beautiful house, choosing to see only that which I wanted to see in their lives. I would think of the picturesque setting and think how nice it must be to have a life like that. Then, as I got to know them better, I found out about the less beautiful side of their lives. About her health issues and all the complications they created. About the struggles they endured behind their smiles. And I realized I wouldn’t want to trade places as I once thought I would.
How often do we do this? Envying the part of someone’s life that we see while ignoring or not acknowledging the rest. We want to pick and choose the good, ignore the bad, and imagine that other people really do have the dream life that we always wanted. But it doesn’t exist–no one has the dream life.
The perfect life does not exist here on earth; we don’t know what people are hiding behind their smiles. We cannot envy the good in someone’s life and think that they don’t have struggles too.
We all have struggles in this life–Jesus told us we would! But He told us something else too. He told us that He has overcome the world. Did you catch that? He has overcome the world–the whole world, and all the troubles it contains. He has overcome the pain of loss, the discouragement of medical troubles, the hurt of betrayal. He has overcome it all–and through Him so can we.
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All things therefore whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, even so do ye also unto them: for this is the law and the prophets.
Matthew 7:12
I self-identify as something of a country girl. I grew up on a river and I definitely ran around barefoot for 90% of my childhood. I didn’t grow up on a farm though. After growing up pretty much in the middle of nowhere, I am much more comfortable on a dirt road with no cell signal than I am in a busy city. It’s just not me.
You can imagine the culture shock then, when my husband and I moved to the city as newlyweds. There was on-street parking (I cannot parallel park to save my life!), all the noises of a city—the police and fire sirens (we lived one street over from the fire department), the traffic, and all the hustle and bustle. And there were the homeless people.
Growing up in a rural area, I knew a lot of people who did not have much—some hardly had anything, but everyone had some type of shelter, albeit a shack-like structure, trailer, or house. No one stood on street corners holding signs asking for money or food. No one slept on park benches. (To be fair there weren’t many parks, much less benches where I grew up.) I knew there were homeless people in the city, of course, and it’s not like I had never been to Pittsburgh before we moved there as newlyweds! Still, there is something about seeing homeless people as I drove from the city to my rural home versus seeing them day in and day out and not necessarily on the same street corner.
It bothered me. I would sit at the stop light in my car waiting for the light to change, trying to keep my eyes off the poor soul holding the sign in front of me. Should I give him some money? What if he spent it on booze or drugs? Should I give him food? Or, was he just a scammer who didn’t need food and just wanted the money?
I was contemplating this one night on my way home from work. I was stopped at the infamous light and there he was—holding a sign saying he was homeless and anything would help. Anything would help. I didn’t have any cash on me but out of the corner of my eye on the seat beside me I saw the granola bar and the untouched apple from my lunch. I told myself that he wouldn’t want it, he would think I was stupid giving him food—who did I think I was offering my leftovers like I was some generous benefactor? A still small voice seemed to whisper in my ear, “This isn’t about how much he needs it; are you willing to give it.”
I put my window down part way and offered him the granola bar and apple. He was very grateful!
I don’t know what is the right thing to do. I’m sure there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. I only know what I was shown that day—that a lot of times helping others is not necessarily about them. Oftentimes it is about us. How we help and treat others shows the condition of our hearts more than anything else. Jesus told us to help the least of these. And He didn’t follow it with a list of qualifiers. He didn’t say give to the poor but only if they are trying really hard and still can’t make ends meet. He didn’t say to help the poor but only if they are poor because of reasons outside of their control. He said to help them. Do we listen to this command?
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