Jesus loves children and I picture him with his arms full—laughing and teasing; and snuggling them close to the very heart of God.

 

 

 

But Jesus said,

 

“Let the children come to me.

 

Don’t stop them!

 

For the Kingdom of Heaven

 

belongs to those

 

who are like these children.”

Matthew 19:14

 

 

 

Our Faith Cora’s little world is going to expand in all directions this winter when her new sibling arrives. She’s already declared that she wants a sister so they can play princesses; and she’s even picked out a name for the baby…

 

Popsicle

 

 

And she doesn’t want to discuss any other name possibilities…not even Mercy Kate, which is what Mommy and Day prefer.

 

She refuses to consider that it might not be a sister. If pushed, she’ll squint her blue eyes, tilt her head to view you sideways, and then declare that it is not a boy because she has no toys for him to play with.

 

If pushed a little harder, she’ll say that “if it is, but it isn’t a boy”…she thinks Pumpkin would be a good name for him.

 

She also says, if it’s a boy, he can’t live at her house…not even in the chicken house and especially not in her new tree house.

 

I explained what a contingency plan is and told her that she would need one; if it’s a boy and can’t live at her house.

 

She thought hard for several long seconds. Then said that he could live at Mama Jan’s house and she would visit him 10 times.

 

So whoever arrives this winter—Popsicle or Pumpkin or Mercy Kate—I’m guessing it won’t take long for all of us, Faith Cora included, to fall in love with the tiny little one who is currently being knit together.

 

 

 

You made all the delicate,

 

inner parts of my body

 

and knit me together in my mother’s womb.

Psalm 139:13

 

 

Just as you cannot understand

 

the path of the wind

 

or the mystery of a tiny baby

 

growing in its mother’s womb,

 

so you cannot understand

 

the activity of God,

 

who does all things.

Ecclesiastes 11:5

 

Amen.

 

 

I realized last night how comfortable I’ve become with saying “I don’t know”. The words are freeing; and so is the choice to not struggle with the “whys” behind it all.

 

It’s undeniable that horrible and senseless things happen in this world; and there are 24 available hours in everybody’s day to wonder why.

 

But it dawned on me that every single time I embrace my honest answer, “I don’t know”; then I am acknowledging a basic truth—God is God and I am not. And what a relief that is and what freedom it delivers.

 

I’m not supposed to know everything; and trying to explain things that I don’t know anything about gets me into murky places. Trying to speak for God, on something I don’t understand, is downright dangerous.

 

Just ask poor old Job; bless his heart. He lived right, but lost everything; and ultimately finally questioned God’s wisdom…and then experienced God’s response.

 

When roaring out of the whirlwind came the thundering voice of the eternal, holy, and incomprehensible God…

 

 

“Who is this that questions my wisdom

with such ignorant words?…

 

 

Where were you

when I laid the foundations of the earth?

Tell me, if you know so much.

 

 

Who determined its dimensions

and stretched out the surveying line?

 

 

What supports its foundations,

and who laid its cornerstone

 

 

as the morning stars sang together

and all the angels shouted for joy?

 

Job 38: 2; 4-7

 

Who, indeed?

 

Clarified in the presence of the invisible God.

 

 

 

When I finally get to heaven, I want to meet Job—hands down, one of the most flat-out amazing examples of a good man who chose to see God first and his problems second. Oftentimes, I approach God through my problems; which means my ability to see and hear him gets mighty murky. Job’s way is better.

Within a short time, the poor man lost everything that defined his life…wealth, all 10 of his adult children, and finally his personal health. He was blindsided; his good life totally upended through absolutely no fault of his own.

But his immediate response was amazing: he tore his robe in grief; then fell to the ground, and worshiped God.

He said,

“I came naked from my mother’s womb,

and I will be naked when I leave.

The LORD gave me what I had,

and the LORD has taken it away.

Praise the name of the LORD!”

Job 1:21

Sometime later, Job’s friend, obviously not a trained grief counselor or encourager, had the audacity to say that the kids had been killed as punishment for their sins. It would have been hard for me  not to haul off and wallop that friend, or at least, as our family used to say, “pop ‘em with your mouth”.

But all the while, so many important—yet invisible—things were happening in a different realm, away from the earthly stage; things that if known, would have dragged clear understanding of the tragedies out into the open.

Satan was behind the scenes, skulking around God’s heavenly court—just begging God’s permission to “prove” that Job had a price; and could be beaten and broken to the point where he’d finally curse God to His face.

But God knew his man better than Satan did.

And it’s absolutely the same today; our lives get turned completely upside down—very often through no fault of our own—and there are no logical earthly ways to make sense of it all.

But I stand firm, beyond any shadow of any doubt, that God’s still in charge—whether it’s on or off the earthly stage—He’s still got it.

 

 

 

 

The LORD loves refugees. He sent His son, Jesus, to enter our flesh and blood world, knowing full well he’d soon be a refugee—a middle-Eastern toddler with his family—fleeing the malicious murderous regime of the day.

 

Flash forward to a current middle-Eastern toddler with his family—fleeing the malicious murderous regime of the day—and see Aylan’s lifeless little body, face down at water’s edge.

 

And Jesus tells us:

 

…if you give even a cup of cold water

to one of the least of my followers,

you will surely be rewarded.

Matthew 10:42

 

Not one of us has the ability to help everyone, but all of us have the ability to help someone.

 

 

The following excerpted from

www.aholyexperience.com

 

If you’d like to help Syrian refugees stranded on the Greek Island of Lesvos, see the list below, and mail to:

 

Hellenic Postal Office of Mythymna

℅ The Captain’s Table

Molyvos 81108, Lesvos, Greece

 

ITEMS TO SEND for SYRIAN REFUGEES on GREEK ISLAND OF LESVOS:

 

Sneakers, gym shoes for men, women and children (all sizes) are a HIGH PRIORITY

Sweat pants of all sizes.

Briefs/underwear for men, women and children (all sizes)

Men’s trousers (small, medium and large) and shoes

Baby powder milk

Any non-perishables like nut butters or other long-lasting foods.

Diapers

Feminine products

Sleeping bags

Plastic to cover the floor/for shade

Tents/tarpaulin

Mats (camping or yoga mats)

Hats and caps for sunshade (adults and children/light colors because of the sun)

Electric Plug for multiple devices (European voltage)

 

 

 

 

http://www.aholyexperience.com/2015/09/5-ways-to-stand-up-be-the-church-in-the-worlds-worst-refugee-crisis-since-world-war-ii/

 

Totally love this:  my daughter-in-law very recently invited me to spend “100 days with Jesus”.

 

The blog author of www.thecottonhouse.com explains how she was inspired when she came across a page in her Bible listing over 250 names for Jesus; and shares how her view of Him completely changed as she started studying His names.

 

She began sharing her study yesterday, September 1, 2015, by posting the day’s Name, verse reference, definition and prayer. She invites each of us to join and follow daily through either Instagram (@100 Days with Jesus) or her blog.

 

Yesterday’s Name, ADVOCATE, resonated solidly within me.

 

Jesus Christ Himself, pleads my case with His Father, God Almighty…not because I deserve it in any shape, form or fashion, but simply because He loves me; and I chose to enter into a totally voluntary transactional relationship with Him.

 

Years ago, by virtue of age and relationship, I became my grandmother’s advocate. Her only child, my father, had died when I was a teenager. She enjoyed remarkable health, was an avid reader with a wonderful sense of humor, and lived independently until age 99. All of our lives, but hers the most, changed the day her hip broke; she fell and then ultimately lived her final two years in a nursing home.

 

One irritating and frustrating nursing-home-day, I told the charge nurse that I knew I was a pain to deal with, but if I were HER advocate, she’d be glad. She stopped short—then walked across Ma Mooney’s room and wrapped me in a huge bear hug.

 

It’s pretty simple really…I loved Ma Mooney and I advocated for her…albeit awkwardly and imperfectly. Jesus really really loves me and He advocates for me…not awkwardly and imperfectly…but with amazing saving Grace and perfection.

 

…we have an advocate

who pleads our case before the Father.

He is Jesus Christ,

the one who is truly righteous.

He himself is the sacrifice

that atones for our sins—

and not only our sins

but the sins of all the world.

1 John 2:1-2

 

 

Amen and amen.

 

 

And if God cares so wonderfully

 

for wildflowers that are here today

 

and thrown into the fire tomorrow,

 

he will certainly care for you.

 

Why do you have so little faith?

Matthew 6:30

 

 

Quiet porch thoughts while watching the very early morning sun brilliantly backlight jumbled strands of pink pearl clouds…

 

Why worry over tomorrow’s questions that have no available answers today?

 

I’ve no way of knowing what’s going to happen this afternoon…much less tomorrow or next week or month or year.

 

What you ought to say is,

 

“If the Lord wants us to,

 

we will live and do this or that.”

James 4:15

 

So, at those fork-in-the-thought-process moments, instead of racing down multiple “what if” paths…

 

How about…

 

Choosing to reframe the problem as a cleverly disguised, obstacle course and faith-building opportunity?

 

Look at the birds.

 

They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns,

 

for your heavenly Father feeds them.

 

And aren’t you far more valuable

 

to him than they are?

 

Can all your worries

 

add a single moment to your life?

Matthew 6:26-27

 

 

I love unexpected glimpses of God’s little criss-crosses of purpose running through the tapestry of my life. It always reminds me that He knows what He’s doing; and that all the stray threads dangling off the edge do have purpose and will eventually be woven back into the pattern.

 

Three years after Dan was killed, my sister-in-law and I took a hastily planned Fall Foliage tour trip to New England. The booking agent said the only reason we were able to be included was that someone else had cancelled.

 

An extended family that included a great-grandmother with two of her adult children and their spouses, from the Texas hill country, were some of our fellow travelers. Their laughter and teasing banter made it easy to see how much they enjoyed each other’s company. One of them, Debbie—a beautiful and outgoing blonde—was the quintessential Texas lady; her speech, like mine, peppered with multiple southern y’all’s.

 

The last morning of the trip, Debbie and I were alone in the hotel lobby for about 10 minutes while we waited for our airport shuttle. With tears in her eyes she told me how much she was missing her mom who had passed away; and I responded in kind, with a few sentences describing how hard it had been to lose Dan. We agreed that God was the only reason for hope, and foundation for survival, when your world unexpectedly turns upside down.

 

By the time we boarded the van, we’d texted pictures and exchanged email addresses; and I’d promised to add her to my Scripture on the go emails. The drive to the airport was filled with sharing family pictures and stories of kids and grandkids back home. Our paths criss-crossed in the airport a couple more times before we took separate planes back to different parts of Texas.

 

Back home the next day, my sister, Judy, called to say that she had a story to tell me. Seems a friend of hers, Shelly, had just called to add some new pieces to an older story.

 

Judy was one of the first people I called after I found out Dan had been killed; and she almost immediately headed to Nacogdoches from College Station. On her way, she called her good friend, Shelly, to ask her to begin praying for us.

 

Shelly now told Judy that, when she’d received Judy’s phone call for prayer three years ago, she’d been in the middle of a conversation with her daughter’s mother-in-law.

 

And, now three years later, her daughter’s mother-in-law had just returned from a fall foliage tour trip to New England. When Shelly asked about the trip, her daughter’s mother-in-law immediately began telling her about meeting a really nice lady, from Texas, whose pastor husband had been killed three years ago.

 

Shelly told my sister that, the more details she heard from her daughter’s mother-in-law, the more she realized she was hearing a story she’d already heard—three years ago when Judy called asking for prayer.

 

Shelly’s daughter is married to Debbie’s son.

 

Debbie and I arranged a phone conversation a couple of days later to talk about the amazing criss-cross that had occurred in our lives. Two Texas ladies—alone during the quietest 10 minutes of the entire New England touring trip—connected in those moments through our mutual faith in Jesus Christ.

 

But, unbeknownst to us in Cape Cod, we already shared a much longer and closer history; because, she told me during our Texas based phone call, she’d been praying for me for the past three years…ever since her son’s mother-in-law told her the story the first time.

 

We can make our plans,

 

but the LORD determines our steps.

Proverbs 16:9

 

I love love love how God always keeps the ground level at the foot of the cross…

 

We are all infected and impure with sin.

 

When we display our righteous deeds,

 

they are nothing but filthy rags.

 

Like autumn leaves,

 

we wither and fall,

 

and our sins sweep us away like the wind.

Isaiah 64:6

 

What a relief.

 

There’s not a single thing I can do that’ll make God love me any more, but thankfully, the inverse is just as true: there’s nothing I can do that’ll make him love me any less.

 

So, praise His holy name, He provides redemption and offers the miracle beginnings of new creation every single minute—of every single hour—of every single day…to every single one of us.

 

Therefore,

 

if anyone is in Christ,

 

he is a new creation.

 

The old has passed away;

 

behold,

 

the new has come.

2 Corinthians 5:17

 

And something else I love about the whole thing: it’s a private deal between me and God (and yes, I know that grammatically speaking, it’s “God and I”; but, as I told a good friend, “me and God” sounds warmer to me)

 

AND the transaction puts me in line for my next truly-out-of-this-world-transformed new beginning.

 

 

The timely timelessness of God and His word never ceases to amaze me.

 

When I was a child, I could close my eyes at night and make myself dizzy; going ‘round and ‘round trying to understand how God didn’t begin, but obviously was, and would also never end.

 

For years now I’ve emailed a somewhat daily Scripture On The Go and picture to several hundred people. I rarely go hunting for a specific verse, but  instead use one of the next-of-many I’ve previously highlighted in my study Bible.

 

One morning it just seemed right to add the quiet and God-sort-of-obvious blessing I could hear in the verse.

 

Then several months ago I began sharing them on my webpage and then to Facebook; where I tag each post with a few words that highlight the blessing.

 

Yesterday’s offering:

 

He found them in a desert land,

 

in an empty, howling wasteland.

 

He surrounded them and watched over them;

 

he guarded them as he would guard his own eyes.

 

Deuteronomy 32:10

 

The blessing: Blessings of Being Guarded

 

The tagline: The only true safety…

 

Then after everything was emailed, shared and posted, I heard the horrible news story of the two young reporters in Moneta, VA; senselessly murdered minutes before, on live television…all while doing their regular morning jobs.

 

I’ll bet it’s perfectly accurate to say that neither the reporter nor cameraman expected to die conducting that interview.

 

And I was starkly reminded once again…there is no guarantee of safety in this mortal life…but to be watched over by God, is to be safely guarded for all eternity.

 

“And I am giving them eternal life,

 

and they shall never perish,

 

and no one shall snatch them from my hand.”

John 10:28

 

Those who are wise

will shine as bright as the sky,

and those who lead many to righteousness

will shine like the stars forever.

Daniel 12:3

 

Years ago, my cousin Ronnie brought Linda into our big boisterous extended family—where she soon became a favorite cousin-in-law—everybody loved Linda. And the most often repeated comment about her was, “She is SO sweet”.

 

Always talking, smiling, laughing, hugging, kissing, and encouraging. If something negative was uttered in a conversation with Linda, you could be sure she wasn’t the one who’d said it.

 

She cried with me after Dan was killed. And often told me that when she couldn’t sleep well…which occurred more and more often as the cancer progressed…that she always prayed for me when she’d awaken during the night.

 

She’d told me a couple of months after Dan was gone that she was making me something special, but it was going to take her a while because she wanted it to be just right.

 

Near the one-year anniversary, she brought a shadow box over to my house—and it was just perfect for me—the colors, poem, scripture and even the song she’d added to the back.

 

She told me she’d bought a beautiful card years ago and promptly placed it in her car’s glove compartment. She said she’d occasionally think she should send it to someone, but never did. Then after Dan was killed, she said she realized why she’d never used it; that it was meant for me—to remind me—that our loved one’s love never ever ends and that we’re separated only for a short while.

 

The light of a distant star

continues to reach the earth

long after the star itself is gone.

In the same way, the Light and

Love your loved one gave will

continue to shine in many hearts.

 

And now it’s Linda’s turn to shine bright.

 

(Linda Head Collier – 7/13/55 – 8/14/15)