Rabbit Trails

 

I love to follow rabbit trails. I feel free when I meander along behind curiosity. The key word here is meander. It’s natural and unforced. There is no agenda, score to keep, or checkmark to check. It often starts as a small question or musing. 

Presently, I am reading the young reader’s Viking Quest series by Lois Walfrid Johnson. These charming books have introduced me to the North Sea and the mountains of Norway. I have never had a desire to travel to Norway, but my interest is now piqued, because I followed a rabbit trail. I wanted to have a better visual of the setting for these stories, so I used YouTube to look up Norway and the North Sea. One video led to another, so I have been learning fascinating things about this beautiful part of the world. At the back of each book, the author lists resources to further explore. I’ll likely look at some of those. Those of you who homeschool may already be used to rambling down rabbit trails. Children (people) learn so much when they explore ideas that interest them without external pressure to do so. Do I have a need to know about Norway? Not really. I just found it interesting. And that’s reason enough.

 I don’t know where I learned to follow rabbit trails, but I’ve done it a long time. My husband loves learning, so he probably influenced me. The internet has made it so easy too with videos, articles, and book suggestions. You can go a long way on one trail if you desire or veer off in another interesting direction.

God has taught me so many things when I allow myself to follow rabbit trails when reading Scripture. Questions pop into my mind, and instead of strictly adhering to a reading plan, I allow myself to leisurely wander off schedule and pursue that path to see where it might lead. (I also love pictures of literal pathways. You will often see them on my Facebook page when we go hiking or biking. I’m always curious as to where a path might lead.) I love when I have plenty of time to do this and to talk to God along the way. My excitement about what I am learning spills over onto other people, and they too learn a few things.

Have you learned to wander? It’s fun! As the saying goes, “All those who wander are not lost.”

I’d love to hear about what you’re learning or any paths you have explored!

joyce hague

The Road Not Wanted

 

The road of life is full of twists and turns, isn’t it? Things seem to be going fine, and then unexpectedly the road that opens up before us is one we do not want to take. If we could just close our eyes and make it go away, we would, but life doesn’t work that way. Standing at the start of that road and looking ahead, all looks hazy and the path cannot be clearly seen. But we know enough to know that that it won’t be easy, that there will be deep valleys and hard climbs, and we aren’t even certain where exactly this particular road in life will lead. Even here, as we take our first steps on this rocky path, our eyes fill with tears for the pain and challenges we know will come. How do we step forward onto this difficult road as those who are followers of Christ?

We step forward in faith, knowing that God is the One who ordains our paths (Psalm 139:16). This road is His choice for us, His plan for our lives. Although this may be hard to understand, there is comfort in knowing that this path did not come to us by chance, but by a purpose ordained before we were ever born.

We step forward in faith, knowing that God is good and wastes nothing in our lives (Romans 8:28). He will use this hard path before us for good. He is conforming us to the image of His Son, and this trial will bear the good fruit of making us more like Christ as we fix our eyes on Him.

We step forward in faith, knowing that we are not alone for God walks with us (Psalm 139:5-12). He hems us in on all sides as our refuge, help, and comfort. Not even one step of this dark path will we tread without His strong arms undergirding us.

We step forward in faith, knowing that God will give grace for each step of the way (2 Cor. 12:9). His grace will enable us to keep putting one step in front of the other and to keep our eyes fixed on Him, even in the darkest moments.

We step forward in faith, knowing that God cares for us and we can throw all our worries and burdens on Him (1 Peter 5:7). In the long nights and when the tears and trials come, when we are overwhelmed by our lack of being able to control the situation, in humility before our God who holds all things together, we surrender control and throw our fears on the very capable shoulders of our loving Heavenly Father.

We step forward in faith, knowing that we are surrounded by those who have faced their own dark roads and who have found God to be faithful (Hebrews 11:1-12:1). We realize that we are not the only ones who face hardships, and we are encouraged by the testimony of those who have gone before us and their deep trust in God. He sustained them and held them fast, and He will do the same for us.

We step forward in faith, knowing that while we may not have light to see what is on the other side of this dark path, we do know where our final road will lead (1 Peter 1:3-9). No matter what happens in this trial, we have an inheritance in heaven that awaits us and that can never be taken away. We will one day see our Savior, where all will be light, all dark paths and tears will be no more, and we will know that all the trials we faced were worth it for the glory that is before us.

So, as we step onto this road that we never wanted, we fix our eyes on what is unseen and not on the darkness and uncertainty we see ahead in our physical sight. And when the tears and trials come on this path, we’ll throw ourselves onto the One who is light in the darkness and who walks beside us. He is for us, and we trust Him.

-- Amy O’Rear

 

Contentment and the Creative Urge

 

By virtue of being made in the image of God, humans are naturally creative. We love to make things and try out new ideas and display our skill. You’ve noticed it, haven’t you? Beautiful patterned fabric when plain colors would be faster and work as well. Walls painted with vibrant murals instead of perfectly functional whitewash. Music and rhythm that makes us have to get up and move. What’s the practicality in that?

We may not all have the same idea of beauty, but we do seek to surround ourselves with what we love. I grew up in the hills of West Virginia, and though we didn’t have much money, we always had enough to visit the garden center for begonias and coleuses to plant in pots for the front steps. My mother spent hours and hours cultivating dahlias that she traded with friends and neighbors all up and down the dirt road. I have driven by sad little houses perched on the hillside and noted red geraniums and yellow marigolds rising out of coffee cans and old cooking pots.  These people are saying to anyone who cares to notice, This is my place, and these are the things I value.

I have written elsewhere about a time in my life when I failed to cultivate the beauty that I love, when I let clutter accumulate, took no interest in decorating, and neglected to hang pictures on the walls. Looking back, I realize that I was just getting through each day waiting for my circumstances to change. I was discontented, looking to a day when I could move someplace else and create the home I wanted.

I was in a meeting with a group of women when the speaker said something like this: “If you are not happy with your house or your income, or some other aspect of your life, you are saying to God, ‘You’re not taking good care of me. You’re a bad provider.’” That statement made an impact that I obviously remember to this day, and it made an immediate difference in my attitude. When I accepted that I was in the place God intended for me at that time, I started to take interest in my surroundings and worked on beautifying my home, making it mine for whatever time I might be there.

Peter reminds us that believers in Jesus are “strangers and pilgrims” on earth (I Peter 2:11), and Paul reminds the church in Philippi that “our citizenship is in heaven” (3:20). But in the meantime, we live here. As children of God, we can display our gratitude for God’s goodness by living lives of contentment—certainly not complacency with situations that need to change—but a settled and satisfied feeling that our God who loves us is taking good care of us.

Then, out of a heart of joy and appreciation, we can open up the creative urge within, put there by God, to build, paint, plant, write, rearrange our environment and reflect God’s image in our surroundings.

 --Sherry Poff

The Root of Restlessness

 

I’m going to say it: school is starting in just a few weeks. I know, no one wants to talk about it. We are all in denial. Summer flew by. But it’s coming soon and truth be told, it’s causing me a little bit of dread.

There certainly are nice things about having consistent schedules and expectations. And school is important and good and all those positive things. Fall sports kick off and there are fun memories that are made through those. But what I’m feeling negative about is all the chaos and busyness and whirlwind schedules that can overwhelm a heart.

I’ve been reading Sanctuary: Cultivating a Quiet Heart in a Noisy and Demanding World by Denise J. Hughes. It’s really a fitting read to bring into the calendars and must-do’s of the fall season. The emphasis is about finding our sanctuary, our holy refuge, our quiet place in the Lord, even while being surrounded by the loudness and intensity of the modern world in which we live.

When I am pulled in every direction: kids, husband, friends, extended family, church, school, house, etc. etc. etc., and I try to do it all myself, my heart becomes restless. Can you see it now? The exhaustion that comes with trying to keep up with everything and everyone? THAT is what I dread. That is what I want to step away from and find the quiet place for my heart. 

So as I look into these two weeks ahead of me, when I know the ease and gentle flow of the summer will come to an end, how do I find that peace in the chaos? I look to the One. In my reading, Hughes has talked about how when my heart and focus are pulled in every direction that is where the worries come. I become distracted, prone to wander, and divided. I can’t keep up with all the things.

Sadly, my frequent choice has been to daydream all the possible results of the chaos of my life. If I think about it, I can be prepared for it, right? I can worry away all of the possible terrible-ness of every item on my calendar, of all the conflict. Wrong. Wandering this path keeps my heart divided and “a divided heart is at the root of all restlessness.”

The root of my peace and hope and security is Jesus. Just Jesus. So rather than letting my mind and heart play through every possible scenario and try to keep track of it all myself, I can bring every single thing to the Lord. This dread I feel? I hand it to Him. The scheduling conflicts and overload? I talk with Him about it. The decisions needed to be made for the kids? I ask Him for guidance. Then I find rest. 

I love this summary in Sanctuary, “How can we stitch together the fragmented cares and worries of our hearts? We can begin by laying each care at God’s feet. Today, enter the sanctuary of God’s presence and list the ways in which you feel stretched right now. Invite God into each of those circumstances. Ask for wisdom. Then ask God to give you a one-thing heart - a heart that truly wants only one thing: Christ. Since the old sanctuary in the Bible pointed to Christ, we find sanctuary when we find rest in Christ’s presence.”

--Sandy Gromacki

I Am Not Responsible!

I love being a mother!  I always wanted a big family. My first baby was not born until I was thirty-two so I was in a hurry!  Six years later my fifth child was born.  For the next twenty-five years my job was being a mother, homeschooling, as well as keeping house and running a family.  Life was hectic and even frantic at some times.  But I loved being a mother.

They are all grown and gone now.  As a parent of five adult children, four of them married, I have found that parenting adult children is far harder than parenting young children.  The first reason is that in general they may not want your advice.  They want to make their own decisions about values and beliefs, standards, and behavior.  They want their chance to make those decisions, especially when they disagree with what you would choose.  Occasionally they may want your input and they may make the same decisions you would make.  Perhaps more often they will choose differently.  Sometimes it is not a matter of right or wrong.  It merely is different from what we wish they had chosen.  They will make some good decisions and some bad decisions, just as we did.  

My problem is that somehow I feel responsible for their bad decisions.  (I would like to take credit for their good decisions, but somehow that doesn't work either!)  As an introspective individual I immediately start analyzing my parenting style, how I disciplined, how I encouraged my children, what I taught them and how I taught them, where I wish I had handled things differently.  (I do sometimes think I did something well.)

When I was busy taking responsibility for something that I was not really responsible for some years ago, I found something Ruth Bell Graham wrote.  She also had five children and did not always feel good about her parenting skills.  I would like to share her words since parents of adult children are not the only ones who need them.  It is entitled "My Part (the possible); God's Part (the impossible)".

My Part (the possible)

            love expressed

            to pray intelligently, logically, urgently, without ceasing in prayer

            enjoy being a mother

            provide a warm, happy home

God's Part (the impossible)

            conviction of sin

            creating a hunger and thirst for righteousness

            conversion

            bringing to a place of total commitment

            showing ourselves as we really are (without ever discouraging)

            continually filling us with His Holy Spirit for our sanctification and His service

For severaI years I have kept a card with these lines in a little holder on the windowsill above my kitchen sink.  I read them over and over again.  More recently I have turned these thoughts into a mantra, summarizing them into just one phrase, "I am not responsible for . . . ."  Sometimes I add what I know I am not responsible for, sometimes I don't need to do that.  I repeat these words over and over again.

I am so grateful that I can trust God's parenting.  I am so glad that He is responsible for the important things in my children's lives.

I AM NOT REPONSIBLE!  HALLELUJAH!

                                                            Faith Himes Lamb

Just Talk to God

 

This summer in Preschool summer choir, we are learning about prayer. Growing up, the kind of prayer I was primarily exposed to was either before meals or at church in the form of long prayers with big words. As a perfectionist, this perception of prayer led me to think that I needed to approach praying in just the right way. It wasn’t until later in my spiritual journey that I began to view prayer as more accessible, an avenue to come to God as I am and talk to Him about anything and everything in my life.

I think when one is asked to pray out loud, it is easy to fall into a certain mindset of making sure we say the right thing in the best way. But when that is the only kind of prayer a child hears, it doesn’t seem as accessible. It feels more like something for adults who know the right way to do things rather than an avenue of connection to God available to anybody.

In summer choir, we are defining prayer as simply “talking to God.” We are talking about talking to God at any time about anything—whether we are happy, sad, angry, or confused. My goal is to make sure the kids in my class know they can go to God whenever, not just before meals or at church. And that they can talk to God about anything, even if it’s not a “nice” emotion.

I am not one to kneel down and pray for extended periods of time. I applaud those who do; it is an admirable practice. My thoughts have a tendency to wander, and there will end up being twenty minutes of thinking about a variety of other things before I remember that I was praying. But that is not to say that prayer is not a part of my life. I talk to God throughout my day about anything and everything going on in my life. I have thanked Him, questioned Him, and poured out my feelings to Him while at work, in my car, and lying in bed.

This is the kind of prayer I think of when I read 1 Thess. 5:17: “Pray without ceasing.” It does not mean we need to always be on our knees. It means to have an ongoing conversation with God throughout our everydays. We can get so caught up in our lives that we forget to let God be a part of it. We can get so focused on praying “the right way” that we either over-focus or ignore doing it. My encouragement to you today is that praying to God can happen at the grocery store or driving to work, when you’re excited about how life is going and when you’re mad at God.

Just talk to God.

    --Concetta Swann

Reflections on Independence Day

 

Our family is a nerdy bunch. When we go on vacation, we always work in trips to museums, historical sites, and other educational activities. Recently, we visited the Missouri State Capitol and the Lewis & Clark memorial in Jefferson City, MO. On a previous trip to Missouri/ Kansas, Dan and I visited Harry Truman’s home and presidential library, Ulysses Grant’s home, and an amazing World War I memorial. I cannot say that I remember every detail of the many things we have seen and experienced, but cumulatively, they have laid the groundwork for the love I have for my country. It has instilled in me an awe and reverence for those who came before us, those who made a huge sacrifice for the freedoms and benefits I enjoy today.

Those who colonized and settled America faced incredible challenges – hunger, attacks, back-breaking work, weather challenges, sickness, pestilence, and government oppression. The Revolutionary War and its era are sometimes romanticized in novels and movies, but in reality, it was quite ugly. and every man who signed the Declaration of Independence paid a high price for doing so. These strong, resolute men (I love that word – resolute) did hard things – things that took courage and grit. Many who followed them paid with their lives and limbs to keep us free. Mental health challenges followed them for the rest of their lives. These trials should not be taken lightly. I live comfortably because they lived heroically.

I am so grateful and humbled to be an American, but I often feel unworthy since I know that there are many people worldwide who do not enjoy such liberty. Why did God choose to place me here? I am no more important than anyone else. Today, (I am writing this on July 4) I thank God Almighty for creating this country. You know it was a work of God, right? It was an unlikely win. So many came here seeking the freedom to worship freely (among other reasons) and no doubt they were praying the whole way. Our Founding Fathers had a respect for God and His guiding principles. Their words and Scripture are written on memorials all over this land. Their astonishing wisdom and understanding of the fallenness of man are reflected in systems of government they established. They understood tyranny. I believe their acknowledgement of God and requests for His guidance are why we have been so greatly blessed. I know they had shortcomings, as do we, but God used them anyway.

So, I encourage you to give humble thanks to God for leading men and women to found this land and for sustaining them in terrible hardships. Pray for our leaders to follow and obey God’s commandments. Thank veterans and military personnel for their hard work and sacrifices. Pray over our country’s brokenness too. Satan continues to find ways to divide and destroy our people. We have broken families, drug addiction, immorality, sex trafficking, depression, anxiety, suicide, murder, violence, unrest, porn addiction, etc. We deserve God’s judgement, but I am praying for His mercy and for revival. Let us “appeal to Heaven.” 

Independence Day

When we think about the birth

of this great nation,
Congress declared July the 4th 1776
and issued a proclamation.

With this decree, the thirteen colonies
are now free.
We will no longer live
under England's Monarchy.

Five great men
were given the task
to draw up papers
for freedom at last.

Thomas Jefferson,
we can remember.
A founding father,
Patriot and a Continental member.

Together these men
drafted the amendments.
Franklin, Livingstone, Sherman and Adams,
united they authored the Declarations of Independence.

Battles were fought,
and blood was shed.
Life was lost,
and men were dead.

"FREEDOM" came with
A heavy price.
War is not pretty,
nor is it nice.

We can thank
the Lord above.
He gave us these United States,
a country we can love.

Men fought for our freedom,
and with their lives they did pay.
That's why we celebrate
Independence Day.

(Debra L. Brown. "Independence Day." Family Friend Poems, June 26, 2019)

  “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” 

Beautiful words from the from the “Declaration of Independence”

 

joyce hague

Our Story

 

This year, in much of my personal reading, I have immersed myself in the eighteenth century, especially the time period of the American Revolution. I have read biographies of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Alexander Hamilton. As a family, we visited Boston and Philadelphia in May. We got to see and walk around many important sites from this time: the Old North Church where the lanterns signaled how the British were advancing, Lexington Green where the first shots of the Revolutionary War were fired, the location of the bridge in Concord with its “shot heard ‘round the world,” Breed’s Hill where the battle of Bunker Hill took place, and Independence Hall in Philadelphia where we stood in the room in which the Declaration of Independence was signed. These places play important roles in the beginning of our country.  To stand in these spots and try to imagine now, 250 years later, the sights and sounds of that time was surreal. Why? Because I am an American, and those places and the biographies I’m reading tell the start of our story as those who call America home. What happened in the 1770s paved the way for everything that has happened since then.

At the same time, I’m spending this summer studying Acts for my personal benefit but also in preparation to teach a ladies’ Bible study this fall. And this, too, is my story. For my identity as an American and all that ties me to our nation’s history pales in comparison to my identity as a follower of Jesus Christ, a member in God’s family. And Acts tells the story of this beginning: the first days of the church, the gathering of a people who believed that Jesus was the Messiah promised. This is the story of the new covenant and what life for believers looked like following Jesus’s fulfillment of the Old Testament sacrificial system. We read in Acts how the believers gathered, how they handled challenges both inside and outside the church, how they made sure that the doctrine taught stayed pure, and how they spread the good news of Christ throughout the known world. We are inspired by these believers’ willingness to die for a cause they believed in – not the kind of freedom our forefathers in America fought for, but a much more important freedom, a freedom from sin and bondage that Christ had accomplished through his death on their behalf.

The story of our church, Grace Baptist, starts way back in Acts. The early church gathered, so we gather. The early church prayed together, listened to teaching, ate together, celebrated the Lord’s supper together, and so we do as well. We carry on what they began. Let’s learn from their example and continue the mission they received from Jesus Himself... to carry the good news of the gospel with us everywhere we go. And in doing so, may Christ’s church, the global body of believers from every nation and tribe, continue to grow and expand until we finally reach the climax that our story is moving toward: an eternity with God and His people in a new heaven and earth where we will truly be home.

--Amy O'Rear

Collision

 

Sometimes in life there are stretches of time that feel like being hit with one wave after another. The last couple years have been like that for my family. Every member of the Swann family has dealt with health concerns and car troubles of various kinds. We’ve lost a beloved family dog and navigated a confusing job loss. It’s been a lot, and sometimes all I can say to God is “Really?!”

 But God has also brought many good things into our lives through the same period of time. Of course, the most significant thing personally has been my relationship with and recent engagement to Andrew. He has also brought new friends and a new dog into our family. A new job was provided without the need for searching. We have seen great health improvements despite the other health issues. Our family has grown closer as we have navigated all these ups and downs together.

A few weeks ago, we sang “From Everlasting (Psalm 90)” in the morning service, and the lyrics of the second verse hit me deeply: “O God, when joy and tragedy collide / And loss reminds us life is but a sigh / From everlasting, You are God / And all our days are held within Your hands / Your perfect love and favor have no end / We rest within the wisdom of Your plan / Everlasting God.” The collision of joy and tragedy can be such an overwhelming and confusing thing to experience. There can be such a rollercoaster of emotions, and sometimes both happiness and sorrow are coexistent in one moment.

 I love that the Psalms reflect this seeming paradox of life so well. David often begins with crying out to God because of the troubles he is facing but ends with praising God for His faithfulness through it all. I feel this duality deeply, and in some ways I am thankful for it. I am grateful that even though life has thrown some pretty great hurdles into my family’s life recently, God has continued to demonstrate His faithfulness and brought joy in other areas of life. He holds our days in His hand, and His perfect love for us will never end.

 

--Concetta Swann

Some Summer Prayers

 

Sometimes it can be hard to find the exact words to pray. Maybe my mind is distracted. Maybe it’s a day when my heart hurts. Maybe things are really confusing. It’s often in those times that I have to find scripture to pray the words I can’t say on my own.

Here are some examples of ways you can pray through scripture and the promises of God no matter what your summer days may hold.

Father God…

• Philippians 4:8  Please keep my mind on things that are true, noble, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable and excellent. Fill my heart with praise. I want to be consumed with thoughts and truths that bring you glory.

• Deuteronomy 31:8  You go before me. I know you are with me. You promise you will not leave me or forsake me. Though I may feel that from others, I will not fear or be dismayed because of you, Lord.

• Psalm 34:17  Help me with ___________, Father! Please deliver me. I know you hear me and will help me with my trouble.

• 1 Peter 5:6-7 Humble me, so that your name and glory are the purpose for all I do. God I give you this stress and worry: __________________. Thank you for your care. I choose to trust in you beyond anything else I could carry.

• John 16:33  Let your Spirit fill me with your peace that passes understanding. This world does not hold peace, but you do. And I will praise your name forever that you overcome this world. You win.

•  Romans 8:38-39  Thank you that your love never fails, that there is nothing that will ever separate your love from me. I will cling to that promise. If I lose the love of any other, I know that You, my redeemer and sustainer, will always be faithful in love.

• 2 Corinthians 1:3-4  Please comfort me today. Trouble and pain and hurt are weighing me down. You promise not only to comfort me, but also to use your comfort so that I may be a comfort to someone else. Open my eyes to see others who may hurt like I do so that I can offer them only the true comfort that you give.

This is just a smattering of verses you can carry with you where we can see the power of prayer and the power of God’s Word. What verses are you using to communicate with your greatest friend and creator today?

--Sandy Gromacki

Still Storming

         Recently I spent several days with my aunt in South Carolina.  Soon after I left Greenville it began raining.  It was not a strong rain, irritating, but not troubling.  I was headed to my son-in-law's mother's house.  Jan lives just below Atlanta.  Soon after I got to her house we went to run an errand.  By this time the rain had increased to a downpour, making it hard to see.  As we passed a high school we heard a loud scary siren.  I checked my weather app and found we were in the middle of a tornado warning.  A tornado was on the ground just a few miles from us.  We were told to take shelter immediately.  We did not, just kept driving.  We found later that several structures were destroyed.  One father was trapped in the rubble of his house, while his teenage son was thrown three hundred feet.  (That's the length of a football field!)  The son is still in the hospital in critical condition.

    Some storms bring minor damage, a branch still attached to the tree, blocking the stairs from my deck, but doing no damage.  Other storms, like the one in Henry County, destroy buildings and injure people.  I found as I thought about storms, that I had written about storms back in March, so consider this part two.  Why do I feel a need to write about storms again so soon?  Probably because my storms have only intensified since then.  Storms come into all our lives.  Some are minor, some major.  If you are not in the middle of a storm right now, you will be soon

    In the old hymn, "Master, the tempest is raging," one line says, "Carest thou not that we perish?"  Sometimes we feel that we are perishing, even though our storm may not be obvious to others.  In Matthew 8 the disciples were with Jesus in a boat on the Sea of Galilee.  The disciples were fearful, but Jesus was asleep.  When they woke Him, He said, " 'Why are you so fearful, O you of little faith?'  Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm."

    I quote John 14:27 often.  "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."  I know He will give me peace, but sometimes it is hard for me to claim.  Sometimes I fret; sometimes I feel like crying; sometimes I cannot sleep.   Has He not given us specific steps to claim that peace?  Hallelujah!  He has!

    First, Isaiah 26:3 says, "You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You because he trusts in You."  Our focus must be on our dear Heavenly Father.

    Second, Psalm 119: 165 says, "Great peace have those who love Your law, and nothing causes them to stumble."  I must love His word and spend time in it.

    Third, Philippians 4:6-7 says, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."  Prayer with thanksgiving.

    I am going to strive to put these three things into practice.  I need peace.  I am not going to tell you which I need to concentrate on.  I will let you decide what you need.  But I leave you with II Thessalonians 3:16, "Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always in every way.  The Lord be with you all."

                                                                                    ~~Faith Himes Lamb

    

Witness

 

I sit on the upper deck of a rented beach house watching the variety of life around me. It’s early morning (well, early for a vacation day), and brown pelicans glide in silent groups just overhead and out over the water. It’s fun to watch them suddenly drop out of formation into the water where I believe they are catching their breakfast. Yesterday we watched dolphins surfacing briefly out there as they also patrolled the ocean for food.

My granddaughter Marley continually collects sea shells that she lines up on the lower balcony railing and loves to show to anyone who gets near. These shells really are marvels bearing evidence of many kinds of ocean life.

Out on the beach, a woman runs by with a golden retriever, folks are setting up blue and yellow umbrellas, and already a few children are playing in the surf with their boogie boards. And here comes a man walking a black standard poodle.

This week, I am reviewing John 1:1-14, and as I whisper the opening words to myself, my eyes fill with tears of emotion. “In the beginning . . .”—before all this activity, before the dogs and the birds, and even the seashells, “was the Word.” Here at the ocean, it’s easier to imagine the formless void that existed before “the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters”(Genesis 1:2).

The John passage goes on to say of Jesus, “In Him was life”—all this life! All the abundance of life forms we see here and so many more all around the world. The summer months particularly put the variety of life on display for us. Maybe you are watching raspberry vines for ripeness and scanning tomato vines regularly for growth. Maybe you just enjoy the bounty of others’ gardens during the summer, but the evidence is all around us that our Creator is imaginative and wise.

The John passage goes on to say “the life was the light of men”—intended to show the way to God and to give us entry into His presence. For me, it’s easy to believe in God at the beach. The vast ocean is such a mystery, but the witness of the dolphins and pelicans shows us that there is life beneath the water.

And the birds, bugs, and plants in my back yard at home also point me to a God who is wise and wonderful. My hope is that I too can be a witness—maybe not as powerful, but possibly as faithful as the waves that continually crash on the sand here at the edge of the continent.

Leaning

 

On a recent Saturday morning I awakened with the song, “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms” rolling around in my head. I have no idea why. It stuck there for several hours. The next day during Sunday School, I knew we would be singing that song. I just knew it! What I didn’t know until later was that my husband requested it since he knew it had been on my mind. I thought surely the Holy Spirit was speaking to me as He sometimes does in unusual ways. My curiosity led me to look up the lyrics and the origin of the song. 

In case you have forgotten, the lyrics go like this (don’t rush, take your time):

What a fellowship, what a joy divine, leaning on the Everlasting Arms

What a blessedness, what a peace is mine, leaning on the Everlasting Arms

 

Chorus: Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarm

Leaning, leaning, leaning on the Everlasting Arms

 

What have I to dread? What have I to fear? Leaning on the Everlasting Arms

I have blessed peace with my Lord so near, leaning on the Everlasting Arms

Chorus

 

O how sweet to walk in the pilgrim way, leaning…

O how bright the path grows from day to day, leaning…

Chorus

 

According to hymnal.net, this song is based on Deuteronomy 33:27 (ESV),

 “The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.”

Anthony Showalter, a music teacher, received letters from two of his students on the same day. Both of his students shared that they had lost their wives in death. Mr. Showalter’s response to them was short. It was the Scripture verse above, and from this verse he found the inspiration for the first stanza of this song. He sent it to a writer friend, Elisha Hoffman, who wrote the other stanzas.

During some of the darkest hours these students were facing, their teacher had a simple message. Lean on the Everlasting Arms. God is our refuge. The principle was solid many years ago, and it’s solid now.

It’s such a solid principle that even my 6-year-old grandson gets it. He and I were watching a video of the Kentucky tornado that happened recently. It was a bit intense with people whirling around in a car and screaming, so I asked him if it was scaring him. He said no. (Earlier he had told me he was not afraid of something else because God was with him.) I said, “Because God is with you, right?” He said, “Yes, but I guess those people forgot.” Out of the mouth of babes! May I never forget when life whirls me around like crazy! If I do, y’all feel free to remind me!

Now that song will be in my head the rest of the day….and that’s okay.

joyce hague

When Fear Comes

 

When Sherry Poff asked me if I would like to contribute to Cup of Grace, I told her that I was not really a writer. But when I prayed about it, I decided that sharing some of the verses from the Bible that have helped me through my 77 years to trust and live and enjoy my relationship with God might be an encouragement to some of you. So I pray that these verses that I share with you now and then will be hidden in your heart so that the Lord might bring them to mind as the Spirit leads you through all situations.

FEAR: Fear is a very powerful word! It can cause us to feel and do things we should, or it could cause just the opposite reaction in our lives.

I was in Walgreens a while ago when all of a sudden, the lights went out. People just stopped where they were! A woman behind me said out loud, “I’m afraid of the dark; let’s get out of here fast!” A man behind her spoke up right away and said, “Don’t be afraid; God is in charge of my life, and we will all be fine!” Then the lights came back on! We all laughed, but it was great timing. I appreciated tat the man was bold enough in his faith to speak up to others with encouragement.

When I got home, I started thinking about Bible verses that tell us not to be afraid because it is true that God really is in control of our lives. I believe the Bible is the only real truth we have here on earth because it is God’s Word, and so I can trust what it tells me.

I’m going to share a couple of passages that I have memorized, and that I have quoted over and over again when that feeling of fear has come up in so many different situations.

Psalm 91. My fifth grade teacher had a huge impact on my life spiritually. One of the things she had us to was to memorize Psalm 91. She told us a story about one of her friends that illustrated how God could take care of us in “scary” situations. I have never forgotten it! Verse 4 says, “He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust.” This friend came home one night and thought she heard a noise in the kitchen. She went in to check and turned the light on and saw a man crouching down on the floor. She was so frightened that all she could shout out was “He shall cover thee with his feathers, He shall cover thee with His feathers, He shall cover thee with his feathers!” Obviously, the man thought she was nuts and jumped back out of the window he had entered. (I am still waiting to use this example! Thank goodness!)

When John and I were engaged, and he was sent by the Army to serve in Vietnam, we chose this psalm to claim. It has been called “The Soldier’s Psalm.” John especially liked verses 14 and 15. “Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honor him.” I’m so thankful that John came home from the war to marry me!

Psalm 4:8 “I will both lie down in peace and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.”

My grandmother, Taddy (Ella Belle Lippincott), quoted this verse to us at night when as children we were afraid of the dark. It had helped her as a child during storms that came. I have quoted this to my own children many times. Hearing the Scripture out loud brings such trust and comfort.

Another time I will share with you some verses that have brought me peace when my fear involved transitions and emotional situations and the worrisome fears that involve our families.  We all are afraid at some time furing our lives, but we can have peace when we sleep and have trust we we are awake because we have the Living God and His word in which to have faith.

--Mary Ramsey

Happy Day, Everyone!

 

Is there a holiday or observance more fraught with emotion than Mothers’ Day? It’s natural to have strong feelings about Mom, whether those feelings are warm and loving, resentful and angry, or filled with contradictions. We all have mothers, just by virtue of being human, and I think it’s safe to say that usually, we love our mothers.

When I think of my own mother, I feel a mixture of emotions: joy for the things I learned from her and the love she always gave me; sorrow that she isn’t still here on Earth to offer more advice and love; and regret for the questions I never asked and the insensitivity I know I showed at times.

I remember long-ago Mothers’ Days when I was a child in the hills of West Virginia. It used to be tradition to wear flowers for Mothers’ Day—red or pink if one’s mother were still living and white if not. Even in that celebratory tradition, there was a touch of sadness for all the white flowers in the room.

And think of the many cards we all made under the guidance of well-meaning teachers. What mom can just throw away her child’s handprint pressed into a piece of clay or a bouquet of flowers printed on paper, no matter how poorly colored? (Maybe you can, and maybe someday I can—but not yet, and my kids are in their forties!)

Scripture is full of examples of mothers—good and bad, but mostly good, I guess. There is, of course, the faith of Jochebed, the perseverance of Naomi, the obedience of Jesus’s mother, Mary, and others. We also have in our personal lives many good examples to follow. If that’s your own mother, you are blessed. If it isn’t, thank God for putting you in a community where you can see faithfulness, perseverance, and obedience lived out in the women around you.

For me, this week has been emotional for more reasons than Mothers' Day. A long-time neighbor pulled out of her driveway early Friday morning to move across the country. While we didn’t spend every day together, she had been next door to me for so long, she felt like part of home. She and I collected one another’s mail when necessary, stood in the road and chatted about gardening and neighborhood doings. I knew where her extra key was, and she could find ours if she needed to. I miss her. Then later on Friday, we had Senior Chapel at GBA—always a time of mixed joy and sadness. It’s the plight of teachers to learn to love young people and then tell them goodbye—over and over. Kind of like a mother.

Of course, I have my own children who love me so well and give me reason to be proud. But I don’t believe it’s possible to think we’ve done everything right, and when children choose things we don’t necessarily approve of, questions and lurking guilt threaten to spoil the mood of the most pleasant times.

Here is my comfort this week: God is bigger than my mistakes. He can work even when I can’t see it. His ways are not my ways, and all his ways are good. He knows what I am going to say before I say it. Nothing takes him by surprise. There is no place I can go—or my friends or students or children can go—to get away from God. (Numbers 23, Isaiah 55, Psalm 139, and others).

So happy day, everyone, whether you are a mom or want to celebrate your mom. Let’s all rest in God’s faithfulness.

--Sherry Poff

Rest

 

There are certain words that can lead to a physical response. I find this true of the word “rest.” It’s likely because I am one of the billions who are desperate for more rest. So when I read it, I feel my muscles relax, my breath slow, my brain calm. It’s something we all desire . . .  more rest.

We are a tired people that live in a hectic society. Finding rest feels counter-cultural. When in fact, God created us to NEED rest. In fact, He talks a lot about it at the beginning of the Bible. I’ve been listening to Exodus and Leviticus while I do the dishes and put away laundry lately. Ironic, I know. And dispersed throughout He calls His people to rest, to sabbath, to do as He did after creating all things.

 Even as I write this, I am day dreaming about taking a nap. I believe that Satan loves to sink us deep into the lie that resting should make us feel guilty, judged, wrong, when in fact resting is OBEDIENCE! I love this *convicting* quote from Elisabeth Elliot: “Rest is a weapon given to us by God. The enemy hates it because he wants us to be stressed out and occupied.” When do I most often take my eyes off God and focus on my own issues? When I’m stressed out and relying on my own strength.

What do we do when we see our toddlers and young children breaking down in tears and arguments and a fiery rage? Send them to bed! We know they need rest. I think about this verse a lot: Psalm 30:5. It says, “For His anger is but for a moment, and His favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes in the morning.” There’s a lot we can dig into here, but one of the thoughts and truths I’ve seen lived out in my own life is that those days that are heavy and hard and exhausting sometimes are easily answered by sleep, waking up refreshed and renewed with new mercies. Why? Because God created us this way.

 Our God is a restorative God. That’s another word that gives a sense of relief - restore. He restores from dark to light, from sin to salvation, fear to peace, tiredness to rest. We see His goodness and mercy in all of these.

 We find our dependence upon God in our need for His rest. 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 “But He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

I know, my friend, you are just as tired as I am. Life is tiring, busy, hectic. It takes a lot of the Lord’s strength to stand against that societal busy-ness and find your time of rest. He promises peace and rest that we need. How can you do that today?

--Sandy Gromacki

Open My Eyes

 

“Your physical eyes can be wide open even while the eyes of your heart are sadly blind.”  This statement comes from Paul David Tripp’s daily devotional, “Everyday Gospel”.  I was a day behind in my daily devotions due to a hectic schedule earlier this spring, and this was the devotional I read the Sunday morning that we had a joint service with the Spanish church.

I love and am often amazed at how God will take something I have studied either in my devotions or my lessons for our ladies’ Bible Study and reinforce it with Pastor’s messages.  This particular devotional was reinforced in my mind by Pastor Yensi’s illustration of his mother’s blindness and how she used her sense of touch to help her “see” and “feel” Yensi and his siblings grow.

The more I thought about Pastor Yensi’s illustration, this devotional became so much more meaningful to me.  As Tripp mentioned in his devotional, our most important sight doesn’t come from our physical eyes, it comes from our heart.  You see, through using other senses that God had given her, Pastor Yensi’s mom could “visualize” her children growing because she had use of her sight previously.  It’s a scientific fact that when one loses use of one sense, the other senses take over and help to compensate for that loss.

Nothing can accommodate spiritual blindness!  In Deuteronomy 29:3-4, Moses, as he was preparing the nation of Israel to enter the Promised Land, reminded them of their physical sight and the warned them of spiritual blindness. He said, “You have seen all that the Lord did before your eyes in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land, the great trials that your eyes saw, the signs, and those great wonders. But to this day the Lord has not given you a heart to understand or eyes to see or ears to hear.”

Moses was telling the Israelites that they had seen and experienced with their physical eyes all that God had done for them to bring them to this point, but they had not grasped or understood the true spiritual significance of all that God had done for them with their spiritual eyes—their hearts.  They had seen God’s love and power but were blind in their understanding.

We, too, can see and be blind at the same time. “Apart from an act of divine grace opening your eyes, you can look at wonderful things in creation but not see the glory of the one who has designed those things and set them in place.” (Tripp) We can read the Scripture, listen to messages, and study the Word all we want, but if we don’t seek with our hearts, God’s message, we become spiritually blind.

Living on top of a mountain has really given me a great appreciation for all that God has given us through His Creation. I enjoy the wildlife: deer, opossums, rabbits, birds (different varieties), wild turkeys, fox, bobcats, obnoxious geese, to name a few.  But what I love most is going out on a clear night, turning off all the lights, and looking up at the millions of stars in the sky.  I am reminded of how God told Abraham that he would multiply his seed like the sand in the sea and the stars in the sky. I am so thankful that I have the eyesight to experience that wonder and understand the Sovereignty of God.

Years ago, we would sing the hymn, “Open My Eyes.” May that be our prayer today.

Open my eyes that I may see
Glimpses of truth Thou hast for me;
Place in my hands the wonderful key
That shall unclasp and set me free.

Open my ears that I may hear
Voices of truth Thou sendest clear;
And while the wave notes fall on my ear,
Everything false will disappear.

Open my mouth and let me bear
Tidings of mercy everywhere;
Open my heart and let me prepare
Love with Thy children thus to share.

Open my mind that I may read
More of Thy love in word and deed;
What shall I fear while yet Thou dost lead?
Only for light from Thee I plead.

Chorus:

Silently now I wait for Thee,
Ready, my God, Thy will to see;
Open my eyes, illumine me,
    Spirit Divine!

Bonnie King