Great Tailed Grackle

Reading about nature is fine, but if a person walks in the woods and listens carefully, he can learn more than what is in books, for they speak with the voice of God.  George Washington Carver

Have you ever watched a grackle?  These are what I call bully birds.  When they find food they puff up their wings and make obnoxious sounds to keep smaller birds away from the food source.  So ultimately they hog the food. 

Last night I was in the house and I heard a bunch of grackles and they were making an awful noise.  They were all squawking at the same time and were getting louder and louder.  I went out to the patio to investigate.  It was a grackle murder.  My dog was out in the back yard and I guess the grackles were squawking at him and he got tired of it.  My dog is a hunter by nature and I am thinking the grackles were thinking this dog is too old to hunt.  He’s too slow.  That was their first mistake, thinking he was slow.  When I walk out onto the patio there are several grackles squawking at him.  At first I couldn’t see my dog because he was behind the storage building in our back yard.  One grackle was on the ground all puffed up and the other was at the top of the fence.  I call out to my dog and he comes strolling around the corner with a grackle in his mouth. 

I ran over to him and told him to drop it.  He did, but it was too late.  The deed had been done. I had to promise him a treat to get him away from the bird. I know, I was reinforcing his murderous behavior but there was no way I would get the bird away from him otherwise so I resorted to bribery.

I like most animals and critters, except snakes, spiders and ants and maybe a few others I can’t think of right now, but I find it amazing how God created the order of things on earth. 

My brother-in-law and I were talking recently and we were discussing how nature is God’s creation and how just watching nature can show you a picture of God. The grackles might fight each other for food but when it came time to protect one of their own, they didn’t hesitate to try to scare my dog away to save another grackle.  Just as God created that nature in a grackle, so he created the same in us and the protection of our families. 

As I get older I spend more time thinking about God and His creation.  We were not created by mistake.  We are part of a great plan and God didn’t create us on a whim.  If you start to look at everything in life from God’s perspective, you will be amazed at what you see and learn.  God intends for us to gain wisdom by the things around us. If we are too busy to slow down and see those things around us that we can learn from, wisdom will elude us.     

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, the very nature that surrounds me was created by You.  If I listen carefully and observe that very nature You created, wisdom can be found.  Help me to slow down in my busy life and observe Your Creation.  What an awesome God You are and I praise You for creating this amazing earth where wisdom can be found in the smallest things.                            

Scripture: Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”  And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food”; and it was so. Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.  Genesis 1:26-31

 

77 Percent

Deny your weakness, and you will never realize God's strength in you.  Joni Eareckson Tada

I tremble for my country when I hear of confidence expressed in me. I know too well my weakness, that our only hope is in God.  Robert E. Lee

There will be no "knights in shining armor" in God's kingdom; our armor will have many dings and dents. No, no perfect Hollywood heroes will ride in to save the day; just wearied saints who look to God and, in weakness, find Christ's strength. This, indeed, is the essence of God's kingdom: divine greatness manifest in common people.  Francis Frangipane

A new poll finds that 77 percent of Americans think religion is losing influence on everyday life.  This was on the news this morning as I was getting ready for work.  The report stated that this is the highest rate since the late 1960’s.

This is not hard to believe when you watch the news daily and see the atrocities that humans commit against each other.  When we begin to accept that it is ok to remove “In God We Trust” from the very foundation of what makes this country, we are increasing that percentage each day.

I often ask myself why we turn to God during terrible circumstances but not when things are good in our lives.  Many times I think it is because we become complacent.  When terrorists bombed the Twin Towers in New York the majority of the country turned to God to ask why and in the next instant we asked Him for help.  Why do we stop praising Him when things get better and then blame Him when the tragedy comes? 

If only 20% of the American population thinks that God has influence on their lives then we are in trouble.  If I don’t believe in Him, the One who created me, at all times then what hope do I have in this world or the next.  When I think of the enormity of where many people of this world will spend eternity it scares me.  This is an enormous task we are faced with and it does become a daunting task if we are trying to do it without God. 

We can bring others to Christ with God’s strength or our own.  It would be like fighting a giant with a sling-shot and a rock. Maybe we could do it by building a boat where a body of water doesn’t exist.  How about feeding four thousand with a loaf of bread and a few fish? Jesus came to earth in human form to save us.  I don’t want my life to be wasted.  I believe there is much more work to be done and we are the only chance some people will have to reach heaven.     

We must first understand our weakness without Him.  If we want to bring others to Christ, we must first “believe” that God can do it through us and then we must “pursue” it with everything in us.      

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I know that through Your strength I can do things that I never dreamed.  Your ways are not ours and I need to be reminded daily of Your Greatness.  Help me to pursue others for You.  I understand I can’t do it on my own.  You are my strength and my salvation.                       

Scripture: Job: God’s Final Judgment and Glory

We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other, so that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer, since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed. Therefore we also pray always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work of faith with power, that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Thessalonians 1:3-12

Walking On Water

There are three kinds of faith in Christ: 1. Struggling faith, like a man in deep water desperately swimming. 2. Clinging faith, like a man hanging to the side of a boat. 3. Resting faith, like a man safely within the boat (and able to reach out with a hand to help someone else get in).  D.L. Moody

When we were young my parents decided to build a larger home.  One of the things they had to do was build up the foundation.  To do this they had a friend who worked in construction.  He had a bulldozer so he came out to our property to remove some trees where the house would be built and also to remove dirt on part of the property and use it to raise the foundation.  The removal of the dirt left a large hole in the ground.  Once the dirt was removed he would fill in the hole with the trees he knocked down and then fill in the remainder with dirt.

Since this friend used the bulldozer in his business it was quite a few months before he could return to fill in the hole.  Since we lived in Louisiana there was a lot of rainfall and the hole filled up with rainwater.  My brother was the adventurous sort, so he decided to build a boat to use on what we called the pond.  He decided to build his boat out of a piece of plywood and gallon milk jugs.  When the friend came by to visit he saw the boat my brother was building and he told my parents he would be back the next day to fill in the hole.  He was concerned my brother would try to float his boat in the pond.  I am thinking if I built a boat made of plywood and milk jugs I would need to be practicing my walking on water skills.

This story started me thinking about the disciples out in the boat while Jesus was on the mountain praying.  When a storm blew in I think Jesus knew they were afraid of the tossing sea.  I think he also knew they would be afraid when they saw him walking on the water.  What better way to teach the disciples a valuable lesson in faith.  So as Jesus walks toward them on the water, they thought he was a ghost. Here is where doubt creeps in.  Peter decides to test Jesus so he says, “If it really is You command me to walk out to You.” Jesus knew Peter would doubt him again because as soon as he walked a few steps he became afraid and started sinking.  But who does he cry out to when fear sets in?  The very One he is supposed to believe in, Jesus the so called ghost.   

Then I started thinking about what I would have done in Peter’s shoes.  I don’t think my faith would be strong enough to allow me to walk on water.  I am afraid I would have done exactly what Peter did under the same circumstances.  I would have sunk like a rock.  Why do we have such a hard time believing and having faith in God?  I think part of it is because we are depending on our own abilities and not the Father’s.  We know our capabilities but we don’t fully understand God’s.  We also test God don’t we?  Instead of stepping out in faith with confidence we take small steps.  We tithe and then wait to see what will happen.  We wait until we have an illness and then we turn to Him for a miracle.  We ask for things that we don’t need and then do our best to get it, knowing that God knows what is best for us but pursuing it anyway. 

How do we learn to have faith that believes that God can do anything? How do we live every day knowing God can do anything?  If we are following God’s Word then we should not doubt what God can do.  If we become a faithful follower of Christ, doubt in the One who created us will no longer happen.  Along with that comes the peace that surpasses all understanding.   

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, my faith sometimes is shaky.  I often doubt You and the things You do in my life.  Help me to trust in You and believe that You know what is best for me.  I won’t always get what I ask for but that is ok.  When that “walking on water” moment happens, help me to be prepared to trust in You.                       

Scripture: Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone there.  But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary.  Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea.  And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.” And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”  And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.  Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.” Matthew 14:22-33

 

Concierge Service

The first step toward a daily following of Christ is the denying of self. A.W. Pink

The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others.  Albert Schweitzer

I was watching the news the other day and found out that college students can now have concierge service.  This particular company offers all types of concierge services to college students such as laundry service, dorm cleaning and decorating, party organizing, and grocery shopping to name a few. The founder of one of these companies’ states that his service offers a seamless transition to college life, and it is not considered an indulgence by the parents of the students but a need. The student with enough money can have everything done for them at a price. 

The thing I found interesting about the concierge service at college is the lesson it is teaching young adults.  One of the things mentioned as a benefit is that it gives the student more time to study and they even suggested that they mentor the students since their parents aren’t there.  So a parent choosing a concierge service is like picking a stranger to teach your kids how to live.

I grew up with three siblings and we all went to college.  We stood in line with everyone else to purchase books, parking stickers, and when I was a freshman I had to park at the stadium and walk a half mile across to the other side of the campus. 

The things I learned by not having a concierge service were life lessons.  Money can buy a lot of things and a concierge service is one of them.  But what does it teach young adults about life?  Many times it teaches them to be self-centered.  How will a young adult learn what God’s plan is for their life if they are not able to let go of self? 

Call me weird, but I learned some of the best life lessons through doing the very things that these students are taught they don’t have to do.  I learned to be independent and that there are some things like standing in line to purchase books that I will have to do later in life.   I learned to do my own laundry and that my parents were not going to be there to pick up after me or to hand out money when I needed it.    If I received a parking ticket for parking in the wrong lot, it was my responsibility to take care of it.  Money comes and goes but life lessons last forever.  We can’t teach young adults to love others if all they ever focus on is self. 

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, thank you for the life lessons I learned during my college days.  These lessons taught me how to survive in a tough world. Tough times come for everyone eventually.  I praise my parents for preparing me for the long journey ahead and You for standing by me on the tough road of life.                          

Scripture: Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic.  For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.  James 3:13-18

 

Blue Light Special

How often we look upon God as our last and feeblest resource! We go to him because we have nowhere else to go. And then we learn that the storms of life have driven us, not upon the rocks, but into the desired haven.  George Macdonald

When I was a kid we would often go to the nearest large town with my Mom to shop.  This is often the case when you live in a small town.  We didn’t have much to choose from besides the Piggly Wiggly or Weingarten’s and there was always the TG&Y which is similar to a five and dime.  The local five and dime wasn’t really a good name for the store because by the time I shopped there, nothing in the store cost a nickel or a dime. 

Anyway, we would go to the nearest large town that had a Kmart.  If you are near my age you may remember the “Blue Light Special” at the local Kmart.  The way it worked was there was a blue light on top of a pole.  The light looked like one of those lights on top of a 1970’s police car.  You could see the blue light from anywhere in the store, but to make sure you didn’t miss out on the special they would also get on the overhead speaker and announce the “Blue Light Special”. 

The “Blue Light Special” would be something like buying 2 for 1 or you could get their deli sandwiches for a bargain price.  Although the only thing I remember about their sandwiches were the bread was soggy from sitting in the deli case all day. Anyway the store used this to grab customer’s attention and you could get a bargain at the same time. 

As a kid I always thought the blue light was cool.  I mean it flashed and the light circled and blinked in different directions all in an effort to grab your attention. 

This started me thinking about how God tries to get our attention.  Sometimes he pursues us with great fanfare.  If we read the Bible we find that there is nothing that happens in this world that hasn’t passed through God’s hands first.  Job is the best example I know of where God allowed things to happen to Job through Satan.  How would we have handled the things Job went through if we were in his place?  Loss of our family, possessions, sores covering our body.  Job talks about how he felt abandoned by God during these trying times.  God has a purpose for everything under the sun.  He loves His children and wants what is best for them.  He wants to draw us back to Him.  Sometimes our “Blue Light Special” may be an illness, or a horrible storm that devastates lives.  We live in a fallen world where tragedy will happen.  How we react to the tragedy is what is important.  Will it draw us closer to Him who loves us or push us further away.  The choice is up to us.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, there have been some terrible tragedies in our world and they continue to happen on a daily basis.  I pray for those who have lost loved ones and entire communities to storms or who have lost children to a gunman’s hand.  We live in a fallen world and that means sin has entered our presence.  I praise you for the tragedies in my life that helped to draw me closer to You.  I look forward to the day when You return to make things new again.  Pain and sorrow will pass away one day and I look forward to that will great joy.                     

Scripture: Job: Man’s Frailty and God’s Majesty

But Job answered and said: “How have you helped him who is without power? How have you saved the arm that has no strength? How have you counseled one who has no wisdom? And how have you declared sound advice to many? To whom have you uttered words? And whose spirit came from you? “The dead tremble, those under the waters and those inhabiting them. Sheol is naked before Him, and Destruction has no covering. He stretches out the north over empty space; He hangs the earth on nothing. He binds up the water in His thick clouds, yet the clouds are not broken under it. He covers the face of His throne, and  spreads His cloud over it.  He drew a circular horizon on the face of the waters, at the boundary of light and darkness. The pillars of heaven tremble, and are astonished at His rebuke. He stirs up the sea with His power, and by His understanding He breaks up the storm. By His Spirit He adorned the heavens; His hand pierced the fleeing serpent.  Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways, and how small a whisper we hear of Him! But the thunder of His power who can understand?”  Job 26:1-14

 

The Last Chapter

The purpose of the Bible? Salvation. God's highest passion is to get His children home. His book, the Bible, describes His plan of salvation. The purpose of the Bible is to proclaim God's plan and passion to save His children.  Max Lucado

Have you ever thought about what kind of book you would write about your life?  What kind of chapters would it include?  Would there be chapters you would rather they were never written? What really matters in the book of your life is how it ends.    

Our life on earth is like an unwritten book.  The pages are blank when we are born.  It is up to us to fill in the blanks. What would be your story if you were writing your novel?  I know for me I would have chapters that I would rather they had never been written.  These are filled with the mistakes I made in my life and the sins I have committed. 

Then there are chapters that I would be pleased to have someone read.  These would be filled with the things I have done for others, the times I showed love or kindness or longsuffering for another. 

My problem with this autobiography is I am afraid there might be more bad chapters than good.  There would also be chapters where it started out good and ended badly.  These are the ones where I was showing love to someone but then took the credit for myself instead of giving the glory to God, or I started out loving and the chapter ended in anger. 

I love books with happy endings.  I am disappointed when the end doesn’t live up to my expectations.  It is a big letdown.  What if God created the Bible and didn’t tell us the ending?  What if He left out the Book of Revelation?  When I picture the events in Revelation and then think about if God had left that book out that scares me even more.  Can you imagine living on earth when the events in this book occur?  

God gives each of us the opportunity to see how the story ends.  He didn’t leave us hanging for the sequel.  There is a beginning and an end.   Right now you are in the process of writing your story.  How will your story end?   

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, there are good and bad chapters in my book.  I want my book to be filled with chapters of grace and mercy, pages filled with love and kindness toward others. I would want to include in every chapter my love and thankfulness for your grace and mercy on me.  Thank You for giving me the opportunity to write my story.  Help me to make it a best seller for Your Kingdom.                        

Scripture: But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Romans 6:22-23

The Killdeer

In a Tibetan village I noticed a crowd of people standing under a burning tree and looking up into the branches. I came near and discovered in the branches a bird which was anxiously flying round a nest full of young ones. The mother bird wanted to save her little ones, but she could not. When the fire reached the nest the people waited breathlessly to see what she would do. No one could climb the tree, no one could help her. Now she could easily have saved her own life by flight, but instead of fleeing she sat down on the nest, covering the little ones carefully with her wings. The fire seized her and burnt her to ashes. She showed her love to her little ones by giving her life for them. If then, this little insignificant creature had such love, how much more must our Heavenly Father love His children, the Creator love His creatures!  Sadhu Sundar Singh

Most of you know by now that I love to watch nature.  I love to watch nature because it is like seeing God in every movement. Birds are interesting to me.  When God made birds he was extremely creative.  Where else would you have a bird whose body is too big for its legs, but that can stand upright without toppling over?  You already know about my past experiences with trying to construct a bird nest for Gladys and the Pips.  Only God could create something that can build a nest like that.

In the spring and early summer on my parents farm there are always opportunities to see nature at work.  One of the birds I see at the farm is the killdeer.  The reason it is called a killdeer is because that is the sound it makes.

One of the interesting things about this bird is where it builds its nest.  I don’t know if they do this everywhere, but at the farm they build their nests in the middle of the shell driveway.  I don’t think this little bird has knowledge of what kind of predator a car is because they certainly build the nest in a dangerous place.  Anytime you drive out of the driveway the mother bird will run out. There is also a rock pile that we use for planting lavender and they will build their nest at the top of the pile on the rocks.  Their eggs are also camouflaged so you can’t tell them from the rocks.

Another interesting thing they do is they will play like they are injured if you get near their nest.  They will flop around like they have an injured wing and they make a lot of noise to get your attention.  They do this do draw predators away from the nest. 

When I think of God’s creation and how it is all intended to work together, I don’t understand how others can’t see we were created by an amazing God. 

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, when You created the earth, You also created amazing creatures to live on it. If I want to see You, all I need do is sit still and watch nature.  The amazing capacity of survival that you created in the birds of the air is a small example of Your Greatness. I can barely fathom the uniqueness of these small creatures. You tell me if I seek You all these things I need will be added to me.  You are my Savior and Redeemer.  I praise Your Holy Name.

Scripture: “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

“So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.  Matthew 6:25-34

 

Least Likely to Succeed

My attitude was and still is like that of David, who was ashamed that the armies of Israel would tremble before Goliath. Without hesitation he stepped forward with complete confidence in the God who had proven Himself to be faithful (1 Sam 17). For David, the size of the giant was irrelevant.  Dave Hunt

As you step into the battle for truth, God will supply all you need, and your faith will grow ever stronger in Him. The church needs more "Davids"--men and women ready to be used in defense of the truth against the "giants" of unbelief.  Dave Hunt

My Dad came over to our house last night and we started talking about God and how He works in our lives.  One of the things we discussed is how God does the unexpected.  God doesn’t do things the way we would do them.  That is why He is God and we are not. 

The conversation turned to David.  I always love reading about David.  His own family didn’t think he was qualified to be king.  Jesse thought he was only capable of herding sheep so he didn’t even put David in the king lineup with his brothers.  David’s occupation as sheep herder didn’t make him king material as far as the world was concerned. 

God thought differently.  He knew exactly whom He would choose as king. As Samuel watched all of Jesse’s sons as they were presented as potential king, God kept saying no not this one.

Another thing I like about David is he failed over and over again but God still loved him. He murdered, he lusted after someone else’s wife and killed to get her. Yet David accomplished amazing things through God.  In our world if you were heading into battle with a rock and a slingshot you would be laughed at and ridiculed just as David was in his day.  The key here was that David had a heart for God.  He loved God even though he failed over and over again.

As Dad and I talked, we discussed how our ways are not God’s ways.  God doesn’t accomplish things in the way we think He should and isn’t that the ultimate blessing.  Our power and might is nothing compared to God’s.  Why do we place limits on what God can accomplish in our lives through Him?  Sometimes I think it is insecurity and at other times I think it is our need to control our circumstances. 

If we ever get in line with what God has planned for our life, a slingshot and a rock wouldn’t sound so silly would it? If I come to the end of self and turn it all over to God the possibilities of what God can do are endless.   The unexpected will happen.  

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I praise You for giving me examples in the Bible of men and women who were ordinary, who through your strength became extraordinary.  I pray that You will use me in the same way.  It may not be a rock and a slingshot, but who knows, maybe if I turn myself over to You, I will have potential just like David.                       

Scripture: The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.  He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.  Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.  Psalm 23:1-6

 

The Peanut

When I was young, I said to God, "God, tell me the mystery of the universe." But God answered, "That knowledge is reserved for me alone." So I said, "God, tell me the mystery of the peanut." Then God said, "Well George, that's more nearly your size." And he told me.  George Washington Carver

Do you ever get impatient with God?  One of the hardest things for me to do is to wait.  In the world we live in there is a great aversion to waiting.  We don’t want to wait in line, wait until we can afford something, wait for dinner or wait our turn.  We are not waiters we are doers.  We want instant gratification.  Why else would the drive-thru and the microwave be invented than to make things move faster so we can run to the next thing on our list of important things to do?  So we treat God like the drive-thru window at our favorite fast-food restaurant.

The problem is, we tend to do this with God as well.  We want immediate answers to our prayers.  We don’t want to wait on His timing, which is perfect, we want it now.  So instead of meditating on His Word and praying continuously, we pray once and then wait for something to happen.  The great irony is, when God doesn’t respond immediately we blame Him for not giving us what we want or we stop praying all together.  Then we go a step further and tell ourselves that God really doesn’t care about me so why should I go to him to meet my needs. This is when Satan gets in the driver’s seat and begins to take over our life.

I started thinking about why God doesn’t give us more responsibility.  If we can’t wait for Him to answer, why would he give us more knowledge or responsibility?  It is ironic how we want answers to the big stuff before we get the answers to the small stuff.

I think I need to teach myself how to wait.  Maybe I should pick the longest line at the bank.  Have you ever noticed that when you pick the shortest line at the bank, the longer lines move faster?  You get in the shortest line at the grocery store and the person in front of you pulls out a folder full of coupons and a newspaper so they can get the comparison price.  Maybe instead of spending my time in line getting frustrated I should spend it praying. 

If I am no longer waiting impatiently in lines for stuff that will make no difference to my eternal life, maybe I would get closer to the One who created me.  A side effect of this might be that my spirit reflects joy instead of impatience.  Then maybe I just might let the person behind me who only has one item go in front of me and show that person who God really is.  Jesus made himself last when he lived on earth.  If we are to become more like Him, we need to learn to be last.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I get impatient waiting in line.  Too many times I want to know the mystery of the universe before I have even learned the mystery of You.  Help me to slow down and wait on You.  My impatience often make me miss the very things You are trying to teach me.                     

Scripture: Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.  James 5:7-8

Show me Your ways, O Lord; teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; on You I wait all the day.  Remember, O Lord, Your tender mercies and Your lovingkindnesses, for they are from of old.  Psalm 25:4-6

He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.  Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; do not fret—it only causes harm. Psalm 37:6-8

 

Buried Treasure

When you leave this world, will you be known as one who accumulated treasures on earth that you couldn't keep? Or will you be recognized as one who invested treasures in heaven that you couldn't lose? Randy Alcorn

When we were kids we would go on what I like to call adventure vacations.  We didn’t go to fancy resorts or Disneyworld.  Every summer we would go camping to various State Parks. 

One of the vacations we went on was to Murfreesboro Arkansas.  We went to Crater of Diamonds State Park.  This is the only diamond producing site in the world that is open to the public.  The other great thing about the park is whatever you find you get to keep. The park officials will identify what you find and you get to keep it no matter what the value.  Plus there are over 40 different types of minerals and rocks found at this location.

So imagine you are a 5 or 6 year old kid and you get to go to a 37 acre plowed field and dig in the dirt.  You are handed a kid size shovel and bucket and you actually get to go sit in the dirt and play in it.  You may not be the kind of person who likes to get dirty but for me this was like the best treasure hunt ever. 

This reminded me of the treasure that is found in the Bible.  There is hidden treasure buried in this amazing Book that is just waiting to be dug up. Sometimes you have to continue to dig deeper to find the good stuff.  The beauty of the Bible is there is so much treasure to be found.  The thing is you have to keep digging.  Just when I think I have mined everything I can get out of a single verse, another treasure appears that draws me further in.  Most likely you will never find all the treasure to be found in the Bible in one lifetime.  

If you are looking for the adventure of a lifetime, open the Bible.  You will be amazed at the amount of treasure that can be found and the best treasure is on the other side.  Heaven.  

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I was thinking about those long ago days of the adventurous vacations I took as a child.  This memory brought thoughts of You and how much treasure you have buried in the Bible.  Your heavenly treasure is there for anyone to find.  I never get tired of studying Your Word as there is wealth beyond measure in every verse.                    

Scripture: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:19-21

Techno Wizard

There's not a single thing on offer in this all-too-temporary world for which you should ever sell your soul.  Alan Keyes

I have a new phone and so does my husband.  We were talking last night and Jerry was telling me about a guy he knows who still has a flip phone.  He decided to buy a SIM card cutter to save money and insert it into his new/used phone. I didn’t even know what a SIM cutter was so I looked it up.  I guess is cuts your SIM card down to size.     

The phone I recently bought is an iPhone.  You already know how technologically challenged I am.  I was talking to Jerry on my way home from work and I forgot to end the call.  I am driving along and since the phone had been on speaker all of a sudden I hear Jerry say “Hang up your phone”.  I thought I would wreck the car because it sounded like he was inside the car with me. 

I went to dinner with my nephews and they had to show me how to set my percentage so I would know how much battery life I had left.  There is also this woman on my phone who tells me where to go.  I didn’t even know she was in there until my nephew showed me how to find her.

One of my nephews told me he is taking a special class this summer related to technology.  He used words I’ve never heard of so I had to ask him to explain it to me.  It has to do with pixels and moving them around and reconfiguring something to restructure the design.  If you really want to feel dumb you should talk to a 16 year old or maybe a 4 year old.  I’ve found they know more about my technology than I do.  

My husband bought a Galaxy so his phone looks like a big screen TV.  Do you remember the cell phones that first came out?  They were the size of your home phone and you had to have a special antennae on your car to use it. 

Technology is taking over the world.  Everywhere you look there are commercials about the latest and greatest technology.  As soon as you walk off the showroom floor with your new phone it is obsolete.  Technology companies have us figured out too.  Instead of making a chip that is compatible with your current phone that you can change every few years for $20, they make technology that doesn’t work with your old one so you have to buy a new one for $499.  The only way to not pay that $499 price tag is to call the company and tell them how long you have been with them.  You have to convince them that you are a good customer and have been for years.  That is how Jerry and I bought our phones for $50.  We did have to spend several hours on the phone with a representative and then get transferred to a manager but in the end we didn’t pay $499 per phone.

I started thinking about how God works in my life.  He doesn’t keep changing the plan.  The same plan that existed hundreds of years ago is still good today.  The billing hasn’t changed and I don’t sign a two year contract. With God I have a lifetime contract and my bill is already paid.  Christ paid my bill on the cross.   

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I sometimes get tired of technology.  Many times it takes me away from spending time with You.  If I forget my phone at home I start to worry and ask myself, “what if something happens to my car?”  If I stop and remember that You are always with me, not having my phone doesn’t matter so much anymore and it's not necessary for me to be a techno wizard.                

Scripture: The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.” Zephaniah 3:17

Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”  John 8:12-13

 

Near Misses

The best moment of a Christian's life is his last one, because it is the one that is nearest heaven. And then it is that he begins to strike the keynote of the song which he shall sing to all eternity.  Charles Spurgeon

Have you ever looked back over your life and thought about your near misses?  What I mean by that is the times you missed getting hit by a car, or getting into an accident or you happened to move one way or another and disaster didn’t happen.

I started thinking about some of the near misses in my life where God saved me.  There was the time I was driving down the freeway to church and there was a car in front of me.  I was watching the driver in front of me and all of a sudden he swerved to the right.  I looked ahead of me and there was a tarp in the middle of the road.  It wasn’t just any tarp; it was one that an eighteen wheeler uses to covers its cargo. The problem was it wasn’t flat but was folded and stood about 3 feet high in the middle of my lane.  I swerved to the left and missed it by inches. 

There are red lights and stop signs I have run by not paying attention.  There was the hospital stay where the dose of medicine was too large and I passed out and the emergency medical team had to come in and revive me.

My husband told me about one he had many years ago.  He was at a golf tournament and a storm blew in.  He had been standing under a large oak tree but had moved away from it.  Soon after he moved lightning struck the tree and there was a man standing under it and a large limb fell on him and it killed him instantly.  Jerry had been standing in that spot just 10 minutes earlier.

God has a purpose for each of us.  We can either live up to what God’s plan is for us or we can squander it on things that don’t matter to our eternal life.  It is a scary thing to think that our last breath could be tomorrow, today or in the next few moments. 

I want my life to have meaning.  Not just meaning in the sense that I was successful or powerful or beautiful.  When I think of my last day on earth, I want it to mean something to God’s kingdom.  If the last thing someone says of me when I am laid in the ground is that she loved God and lived her life for Him, then every near miss was worth it.  I still have time, whatever God allows, and what I make of it is up to me.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I praise You for giving me this time.  Only You know when my last breath will be on this earth.  Help me to use it to tell others about You. If You can be glorified by something I do, I praise you for the opportunity.                   

Scripture: But as God has distributed to each one, as the Lord has called each one, so let him walk. And so I ordain in all the churches.  Was anyone called while circumcised? Let him not become uncircumcised. Was anyone called while uncircumcised? Let him not be circumcised. Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, but keeping the commandments of God is what matters. Let each one remain in the same calling in which he was called. Were you called while a slave? Do not be concerned about it; but if you can be made free, rather use it. For he who is called in the Lord while a slave is the Lord’s freedman. Likewise he who is called while free is Christ’s slave. You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men. Brethren, let each one remain with God in that state in which he was called. 1 Corinthians 7:17-24