Honor Thy Parents

I have not done well in this category. I've challenged and spoken badly about my mother for years. Even as I type this I feel that I want to write "Because.......". However, I will restrain myself. I read in the Daily Bread this morning about setting up a legacy,basically. Setting up to take care of the parents in their old age and getting ready to be an active example for the children you have and those around you. I say those around you because I know, in my own life, there are people that I have looked up to who have taken such great care of their parents and had such wonderful relationships and I have wanted to emulate them. It is true in some respects that we are a product of our environment, however, if you don't care for your surroundings, FIGHT to change them.

Life looks different to me now. I am regrettful that my mother is so far away but will need to set an example for Hannah to follow with regard to parents. Perhaps what we do with Nancy will be an engraining example for her.

"Honor you father and mother, as the Lord has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the Land the Lord your God has given you." Deuteronomy 5:16

I believe God knew it would not be easy to either be parents or to be children. He did not command us to obey our parents....but did expect us to honor them. We only get one set of parents, good or bad though they may be, and we will love them for who they are whether we want to or not because we are wired that way. So the last quote from the Daily Bread today is "Honoring our parents is learned by example." That is the line that struck home for me.

Love is Kind

We reviewed that Love is Patient. The second line in the Love chapter is "Love is Kind". At first you may think, "Yeah, of course it is!". Why would we have to be reminded that love is kind? think about your everyday life and how you interact or react to the ones around you that you already love and those that you should loving. Are you kind? The deep breathe for "patience" that you take before you react, is it followed only by kind words or is it just a preemptual response to the ensuing boil over?

I know that for me, in my every day life, I often forget to be kind. As I read in Ephesians 4 this week, I am reminded of a few things. One, "In your anger, do not sin. Don't let the sun go down on your anger." Vs. 26. then if we drop down to verse 30 we see a list of things that are not Christ like behaviour and therefore would not be loving. "Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice." And then here we go..... vs. 32 "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." Then, in

Chapter 5:1-2 "B e imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of LOVE, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God."

Imitators of God....what a challenge that statement is! So our impatience, behind the back comments and dirty looks aren't godly?! Hmmmm. Love is kind. Simple, to the point and yet, oh so challenging.

LOVE

February is the month we celebrate those we love. Lovers, girlfriends, boyfriends, husbands, wives, best friends.....you name it, if we love it we celebrate it this month. Candy, flowers, chocolate, jewlery, cards, fancy dinners and the list goes on. What part of the celebration that we obsess over do we find the characteristic of love as listed in the Love Chapter, I Corinthians 13?

The very first complete sentence in this chapter is "Love is patient." Not love is patient if or love is patient when. Simply, Love is patient. Period. No excuses or prerequisits. How well do you follow this simple statement? I know, for myself, that I don't follow it as well as I should. That's for sure. And that counts for every loved aspect of my life. Daughter, husband, dogs, friends, family, you name it.

Why would that be the first statement on the list? Before selfishness, envy, jealousy and so on. Amazing isn't it? Or maybe it's not very amazing at all. God knew the nature of the beast He created and knew that above all else we would need to be so very careful, sensitive, understanding and PATIENT! It really will make you stop and think for a moment when you are about to loose your cool and you think.....this person is driving me CRAZY! Take a deep breath, look to the Lord and be still in your heart while you let Christ take over.

The Deep Freeze

Have you ever noticed that when you are coming into the heart of the cold of winter. The time when it freezes everything solid, that it freezes the ground so cold and hard that it looks smooth and impenetrable? A freeze so cold and forebearing that you could never imagine that life would again push through it and the hope of spring is forever away. Then you come to a point every winter where the cold seems to surrender to the cries of nature and finally gives in to a small thaw. Just enough of a thaw to make mud. The kind of mud that slips off the frozen depths below it. A thaw that puts you in mind of the coming spring. Lets you know of the coming warmth and the hope of new growth as well as the beauty of blossoms, the greenest greens of the entire year, colors so vibrant they take your breath away!

And then.....it freezes again! But this time, the freeze leaves gaps in the defrosted and refrozen earth. Gaps that hold ice crystals and air. A freeze that traps motion so that when the final defrost in the spring actually happens, nature can pick up right from where it left off. Withour those gaps in the ground, how would the crocus and the daffodils be able to penetrate their frozen beds?

God just amazes me. He does the same thing with our lives. Freezes us and waits for us to wake up before we pick up and go again. Sometimes the spring rains have to change our whole landscape with an avalanche of rain or an ice storm that kills off all the imperfections that were starting to take over our lives. We always assimilate to the potter with the clay but the winter freeze and thaw has the same affect. Think about what is frozen in your life today and where the gaps of air and ice crystals are that He is getting ready to have burst forth with wonder!

Highs and Lows

It is funny to me how we focus so much on being happy. How happy are you? Is happiness really a good moderator or should we rather look at how content we are? Yesterday we looked at how life can change to meet the path God has for us. How we can make plans that don't include God's plan for us. If we look again at Genesis 39, we will see that Joseph's life took a dramatic turn. Some may say it took a turn for the worse!

Joseph was in a position in Potiphar's house where the only person over him was Potiphar himself. When Potiphar's wife couldn't get her way with Joseph, she turned his life upside down. Her lack of control and self seeking attitude changed Joseph's life from a ruler of a high ranking household to a prisoner. Did Joseph curse God or wallow in self pity? No! He sought what God's purpose was for him now, in his new location and was blessed for his dedication.

Paul said "Be content in whatsoever state you are in." Can you say that?

Man Plans, God Laughs

We spend so much of our lives dreaming dreams and making plans. How much time do we spend seeking God's will for our lives? God's dream for our life? My devotions this morning were about Joseph and how God redirected his life and through it all Joseph was faithful to God and "God was with him".

I have strayed, for sure, from the benevolent protection of my God. I have sought my own way. Yet, He changes my path around to go back in the direction He wants me to travel. Who knows how I would have gotten to where I am now if I had stayed on the straight and narrow road from the beginning. Yet, so many of the roads I have traveled have prepared me for where I am now. Having some time off in the winter prepared me for an entire fall and winter with a newborn in the house. I even babysat my boyfriends granddaughter one winter, which gave me insight to how children need to be inspired and stimulated and how very porous they are.

I spent another whole winter living on my own in an old house cutting and splitting firewood, stoking the fire and keeping the house, then got a job in the spring only to be laid off, which to me was devastating! I figured out how to make money by selling baked goods at a farmers market. I am interested to see what the Lord has in store for me now.

A career I can take my daughter with me to work. The ablility to use the talents and skills that He has allowed for me to develop. I am so interested to see what the next turn in the road will be. Thank you Lord for your grace and the hope you give us each new day. The opportunity to awaken each morning and have a new day full of possibilities. What can we do today? Look at your path and see what is it that the Lord is preparing you for? How is your life like that of Joseph in Genesis 39? Can you say the Lord is with you? Are you seeking Him first and then making your plans?

I love Proverbs 16:9 " A man's heart plans his way but the Lord directs his steps."

New Year Decorations!

I certainly have not been as attentive in my postings as I would have hoped. But now that the move is over and we are more or less settled and the baby is on a regular nap schedule, I can spend some time in the afternoons working on endless job searches, drawing, my workouts and cooking!! Today I took some time to go outside in the snow while Hannah was napping and watch the voracious birds at the feeder. I took my camera with me and was able to capture some of the wonderful birds hard at work to keep fueled while the large snowflakes blanket the rest of their world.

I am always awestruck at how little birds never seem to get cold or frostbite. Sometimes you can even see them sitting in a tree all covered in ice! Amazing the design from the master Creator. My crabapple is dappled in reds, beiges and blacks as the Cardinals, Juncos, Tufted Titmice and the Chickadees all take turns at the feeder. I could not have decorated my little crab apple any better than the Lord has done it! How truly fortunate I am to be able to bathe in the wonder of this creation while my own little wonder sleeps away.