Please Welcome Chuck Weber, a new guest blogger who is helping out this week and next. Chuck was Chaplain at both State School and part time Chaplain at Hendrick Medical Center. He has also participated in the Kairos Prison Ministry. Surprised by Light In the lightning flash across the sky His mighty power I see, And I know if He can reign on high His light can shine on me. Ch: I’ve seen it in the lightning, heard it in the thunder, and felt it in the rain... My Lord is near me all the time... My Lord is near me all the time. When the thunder shakes the mighty hills and trembles every tree, Then I know a God so great and strong can surely harbor me. (to Ch:) When refreshing showers cool the earth and sweep across the sea, Then His rainbow shines within my heart. His nearness comforts me. (to Ch.) – Barbara Gaultney, Broadman Press, c.1960. On sixth floor in a shared room lurked an angry patient. The four of us, interns for hospital chaplaincy, had by turn tried to cheer up this 22-year-old woman. Every effort to talk to her had failed spectacularly. Maybe it was the pain! After all, she had broken her femur and her shoulder tumbling from a motorcycle. Maybe the shame! After all, the wreck was caused by her clothing getting tangled in the chain and spokes of the beast, in itself understandable were it not for the fact that the bed sheet in the spokes was all she was wearing at the time. Three of us has been summarily dismissed amid curses and imprecations. Today I was determined to venture into the room, hoping for success. The others laughed and asked me whatever was I thinking. She was the middle daughter of a Methodist preacher. She knew what we were going to say before we said it. Her rage was her only solace. Why pronounce another? I felt like I was walking on air. Only the day before, I had performed my first baptism as pastor of a tiny country church. Only eight days before, I had received ordination as a preacher of the Gospel surrounded by faithful men and women of my church. God lived in my heart that day like a fire of liberation. What could possibly go wrong? The sixth floor door to her room was in the oldest part of the hospital. The huge gray thing stood 50 inches wide and heavy as granite. Now sixteen inches from the closed door, the possibility of strife gave me pause. With a gentle tap, I listened for an answer. Hearing none, I slowly opened the door and called her name, announcing my own. She was asleep. A feeling very much like gratitude swept over me. As I turned to leave, I heard a voice behind the door. “Son, you got the shine on you.” Mostly hidden by the open door, the other patient in the room smiled at me. She must have been well over 80 years old. I had not come to see her, but...there she was. “What do you mean by that?” I asked. She laughed gently, “You know what I mean.” Fishing for an explanation, I said, “I came to see this lady, but I had no idea anyone else was in here.” “The Lord done put you here.” She paused. “He done put me here, too.” “How did you know...?” “Like I said, you got the shine on you. The Lord has been ‘specially good to you, hasn’t he?” She smiled from her bed, looking up at me. “The Lord God, he works that way.” “Yesterday I did the first baptism service in my life, as pastor of a little church in the country. One nine year old girl, a retired husband and wife and a 66 year old man all baptized. God has certainly been with me.” “His blessing shines in you. Sho’ ‘nuff, it does.” She and I talked for a few minutes, quietly, in deference to her sleeping room mate. I ventured to pray for her before I left, but she would not have it. She prayed for me. She prayed for her room mate, and she closed with hope and blessing. I gently shut the door to that room on sixth floor and made my way back to the chaplain’s office. Clock-out time was 35 minutes away. Affirmation had happened. God’s light surprised me. The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? – Psalm 27:1 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. – 1 John 1:5-10. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. – 2 Corinthians 4:6,7 I have heard it said “a Christian is a psycho-ceramic,” meaning that we are all clay pots and we are all cracked. Nevertheless, it is in this cracked pot that God invests his presence. For all we know of other religious faiths, the one assertion that is uniquely Christian is that God not only forgives us and draws us back to himself, but he also invests us with his own spirit, taking up residence in our very souls. His body is the church and parts of his body are each of us. We are his, yes, but we are also cracked vessels out of whom leaks the presence of God. How do others apprehend the love of God? Rarely by electronics or by dreams or by meditation. Most often God reveals himself through a regular person. An old lady once blessed me for nothing I had ever said or done that she knew about. The spirit of God led her to bless me. I did not deserve it nor did I expect it. Her broken pot helped fill up my own broken pot. Toward what end? Blessings surround my memory like incense. They keep me humble and they keep me expectant. This is how our social God operates. It was not accidentally he took upon himself the limitations of flesh. Doing so he enjoyed his own creation and showed us a stark and undeniable way to live a meaningful life. Perfect maturity is possible only with God alive in us, and that is his purpose. Father of Light, My life is a cracked pot. What I hold within me leaks out. Lots of things are in there and not all are seemly. My best self is yet cracked. Your spirit fills me still. I am amazed & brought low. Somehow you reach others through me, anyway. Sometimes I don’t even notice. That’s the way you are, I guess. Riches hidden in a common vessel, broken but still useful. Jesus was not beautiful to look upon, but was still completely you in this broken world. Grant my prayer that I notice you in action in me. AMEN

 Just Rest Your Eyes

For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.” ( Isaiah 30:15)

Bedtime in my house has always been a challenging time. I wish I had a quarter for every time I said, “You don’t have to go to sleep. Just rest your eyes.”  My older child would go just as fast as he could and make as much noise as possible to avoid having to go to sleep. We would have “be-still-a-thons”. The winner was the one who could be still and quiet the longest.  My younger child was very quiet in school but saved up all his words until bedtime when he let loose. One night he said, “Mama, I can’t go to sleep.” I said, “That’s because your eyes are open and your mouth is moving.” He closed his eyes and said, “Hmm Hmm Hmmmm, Hmm Hmm.” Even the dog doesn’t like bedtime. He stays home with my husband all day and they nap so when I get home he is rested and ready to go. The other night he would wait until I got still and then moan, bark or paw at me. Finally my husband took him into the man cave and closed the bedroom door. After a little bit we let him back in.  He acted like he was going to be quiet and then started woofing. My husband started to pick him up and take him out again and in a flash he jumped up next to my shoulder and gave us an innocent look.  People wonder why I look tired.

The truth is I am tired in more ways than just physical.  I carry emotional and spiritual burdens that are not necessary. I know that the word says, “Cast your cares on Him for He cares for you. (1 Pet 5:7)” I know, but I was raised with the belief that I should “Pray like everything depends on God and then work like everything depends on you.” The other day God showed me an image. I was on an escalator and even though it was going, I was running as fast as I could to get to the top. That is a very accurate description of how I operate. I pray that God will meet a need and then search high and low for a local resource that will meet it. I stay up trying to come up with alternate solutions, alternating with the serenity prayer.

When I looked up scriptures on rest, I found 766. Apparently God is serious about resting in him. The first references are about God resting on the 7th day and remembering the Sabbath.  I won’t share all 766 but here are few of the ones that spoke to me. 

 Isaiah 30:15 For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.” 

Matthew 11:28-30 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Psalm 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”

Jeremiah 31:25 For I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish.

Exodus 14:14 

The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be still.”

I believe that lack of rest, whether physical, emotional or spiritual is a huge problem for many of us. There are so many concerns right now. I encourage you to do your own search for scriptures about rest and peace and feed your soul with them this week.

keep your balance

When I was in school my mom put us in gymnastics and dance to help us learn how to be graceful. One of the things I had the hardest time with in gymnastics was the balance beam. Common sense says that if you want to keep your balance you look at your feet. The beam is very narrow and you don't want to make a mis-step. The problem is that looking at your feet and where  you place them actually makes it more likely that you will fall. The instructors told us that the best way to keep your balance is to keep your eye on the end of the beam.

Life is chaotic right now ans there is so much going on around us that we are tempted to look at our feet to try to keep our balance in life. There are so many scary things going on that we are trying to avoid getting caught in a situation. We try to protect ourselves form the virus, from violence, and from the destructive forces of our own sins. We feel that if we can just watch where we are going, we will be safer. In reality we need to keep our eyes on Jesus. He is our security and our source. 

The bible says in Jude 25 and 25  "Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen" We need to spend time with God in both prayer and study and keep our eyes on him. He is the one who is able to keep us from falling. 

In Isaiah 41:10 we read "Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." Sometimes all we really need is an awareness of God's presence in our life. When I was in elementary school, I was walking a narrow balance beam when I was at the park with my Grandpa. I started having trouble and he reached up and let me hold on to one of his fingers. There is no rational reason that this should have helped. There was no way he could help me if I started to fall. Somehow, though, the The just the fact that I could touch him gave me the confidence I needed. It is the same with God. 

The things that we are going through right now are not a surprise to God Here is what He has to say in Isaiah 43:2.

        But now thus says the Lord,    

    he who created you, O Jacob,

    he who formed you, O Israel:

    “Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

    2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

    and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;

    when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,

    and the flame shall not consume you.

    3 For I am the Lord your God,

    the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

    I give Egypt as your ransom,

    Cush and Seba in exchange for you.

    4 Because you are precious in my eyes,

    and honored, and I love you,

    I give men in return for you,

    peoples in exchange for your life.

I believe that it is 365 times in the scripture that we find the words, "Do not fear." Take heart and keep your eyes on him who is able to keep you from falling. 

It's not easy being green.

 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary. Galatians 6:7-9

My thumb is not bright green, but I am  learning more gardening skills. I am trying to figure out what plants like  how much sun and how much water. One thing I noticed is that a plant that was in a pot last year showed up in a spot where I didn't plant it. I have seen this a couple of times. One year a tomato plant grew up volunteer out of my mom's compost pile. Those were the biggest sweetest tomatoes I ever had. My gardening friends say that the wind ( which we have lots of here in West Texas) water, or animals can transfer seeds to other places.

I have seen this in my life, too. During both the lock-down and my grief journey, things have been hard, but I have seen blessings from unexpected sources. One time a stranger put gas in my car for me when I was scraping the bottom of the barrel for change waiting for my paycheck to come in. "random people" stepped up to help us on our road trip to the funeral. People have called me "out of the blue" too let me know they are thinking about me.This past week I was very sick with shingles. I had friends that brought me supper, hot tea and ginger ale, friends who brought me vitamins and pain killers and friends who prayed for me.  I asked God why they helped me when I had not done anything for them. The verse that came to mind was  Galatians 6:7-9.

 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.

For some reason, I had always seen this in a negative light. If you do bad things you will get bad things in return. I had never realized that when I have poured into someone's life, I may reap from an entirely different place. I am sometimes so tempted to "lose heart in doing good". One of my biggest temptations is the voice that says "That's not enough to make any difference."

Another verse that expresses the same thought in a different way is Ecclesiastes 11:1 "Cast your bread upon the waters and you will find it again after many days." When we do godd to others because God has been good to us, we  will receive a reward.  Like the plants that come up volunteer where they were not planted, our reward may not come in the way we expect, but it will come.

Psalms 1:1-4 says, "Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. whatever they do prospers. Not so the wicked. They are like chaff that the wind blows away.

If we are walking with God and taking delight in his law, He can bless us from any source He desires. as we read in psalms 50:10, He owns the cattle on a thousand hills."

More now than ever, the world needs Jesus and  it needs the church. Ask God to show you where to sow and how you are reaping. 



Ecclesiastes 11:1 says "cast your bread upon the waters, and you will find it again after many days. This is true of giving and it is also true of work we do for the kingdom.

Toxic - from the archives

Welcome to unseen this week. It has been a hard few weeks. I was looking back over old posts to see what spoke to me. I am reposting this story in hopes that it will help you too.

Toxic


Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28


One Summer when I was in high school, we went to South Padre Island with my aunt and uncle. We stayed in their condo, ate fantastic fresh seafood and got horrible sunburns. At night we teamed up and played Trivial Pursuit. We waded in the shallow water and looked for seashells, but what I liked most was body surfing. We would wade out and wait for a wave to come in. Just before it got to us we would jump and the wave would catch us and carry us in to shore. Over and over we waded out and floated in. One time when we were wading out, I saw what looked like a clear plastic bag with threads. I asked mother what it was and she said she didn't know. I asked her if she thought it would be OK to throw it out farther so no one got tangled up in it. She said that should be fine and I reached out to grab it. I was in for a big surprise because it got me first. It was not a plastic bag, but a Man of War jellyfish! What I thought were threads were venom filled tentacles. It stung me across the forearm and my third and fourth fingers. I tried to wash it off with the salt water but that did no good. You know how hard it is to run in the water? I did a really good job of it, with mother right behind me. We found the lifeguard and he examined the sting. Then much to the surprise of "us city slickers", he put meat tenderizer on it. He explained that it neutralizes the poison and lets the body carry it away. Over the next couple of hours, biology class became more real to me. I had read about lymph glands and how they store and eliminate toxins. Within about thirty minutes or so, the glands under my left arm and in my neck were swollen and sore. I have never forgotten where they are or what they do.


 There are toxic things in life just as there are in the ocean and the pain from them is just as real.  I could be that we have been "stung" by someone whether it was intentional or not. (In fact as I have been writing this today I am working on forgiving someone who criticized someone in my family.)
It may be that we have gotten tangled up in something that looked innocent and harmless but has hidden dangers. Whatever the source of the poison to our spirit, the result is the same. Ignoring the pain or trying to wash it away by ourselves is useless. Just like I had to go to the lifeguard for help, we have to carry our pain to God. He can take it away, not with meat tenderizer, but by the blood of Jesus.


There are many places in the Bible that urge us to let God take away our pain and other things that poison our spirits. 1 Peter 5:7 says, Cast all your cares on Him for He cares for you. In Matthew 28 we read this.


“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.   For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Many other verses echo this idea. Unfortunately we have an enemy who is all too eager to bring things back to our remembrance even after we have given them to God. God's solution to that is found in Ephesians 6.




  Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 

  Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.                                                

   For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.                   
   Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.                             
    Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,                           
    and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace                                 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.                 
    Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Ephesian 6:11-19)This week let's take time to be grateful for the gift of God that lets us cast our cares on him. Cast away and stand up to the schemes of the enemy who wants to give them back to us.

I have been making good headway on riding my bike. My balance is pretty good and I can go farther and faster. I was surprised about a week ago when I started having a harder time. I was winded more quickly and couldn't go as fast. It was harder to get started and I couldn't make it as far. I berated myself and told myself not to be a sissy. I pushed myself harder. I ran through the list of factors that I could think of that would make a workout harder. Wind ( which has been ridiculous the last few weeks) was one factor. Heat was another possibility since we had our first 100 degree day on May 3rd. Hills were a factor since I am taking more varied routes. I decided, though, was that the most likely scenario was that I wasn't working hard enough. I pushed myself harder and chided myself more. Then yesterday morning I decided to ride at 7:30 to beat the heat. The bike was difficult to get down the stairs and I heard an odd sound. I looked things over to locate the noise and it was a nearly flat tire rubbing on the ground. My difficulties were  not due to lack of effort or  lack of will but to equipment that was not up to par. My initial response was to take it to the gas station and air it up so I could keep riding. My husband and his logical brain stepped in and told me I needed to take it to the bike shop and get it fixed right. Don't tell him I said so, but he was right.

Sometimes my spiritual life is running along smoothly. God and I are communicating well. My ministry and work are flourishing and I am at peace with God and my family. The lock-down with Corona virus has not been one of those times. While I would love to tell you that I have been spiritual and a woman of great faith and valor during these times, it would not be the truth. I have been anxious, irritable and lonely. My technological woes have been legion. Right now I am at a public computer and have to type on a keyboard covered with a plastic bag to protect us all from germs. (Did I mention that I have been irritable?) I have had seasons of grief during this time also and told God Saturday that I didn't think He was being fair. I did the same thing I did with the bike. I told myself I needed to pray more, to give more, to trust. I said that I shouldn't question God and definitely shouldn't be angry with him.. None of these responses were any more effective than they were with the bike.The truth is that with everything going on, my spiritual equipment was not running up to par. I am not saying that praying, giving and trusting are not important. They are very important, but it is not the whole equation. We have to have God's power to do God's work. This is true whether we are running an international ministry or loving our family in close quarters.

So how do we keep our spiritual equipment in good working order?  The passage that is foremost in my mind is  Psalms 46

God is our refuge and strength,
    an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
    and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
    and the mountains quake with their surging.[c]

4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
    the holy place where the Most High dwells.
5 God is within her, she will not fall;
    God will help her at break of day.
6 Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;
    he lifts his voice, the earth melts.

7 The Lord Almighty is with us;
    the God of Jacob is our fortress.

8 Come and see what the Lord has done,
    the desolations he has brought on the earth.
9 He makes wars cease
    to the ends of the earth.
He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
    he burns the shields[d] with fire.
10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
    I will be exalted among the nations,
    I will be exalted in the earth.”

11 The Lord Almighty is with us;
    the God of Jacob is our fortress

It is tempting during times like this to feel that God has left us alone, whether we feel that way due to chaos and disease or due to wave after wave of grief. May we find the courage to run to Him, to rest in Him and to be still and know that He IS God. 

Cross Training

Cross Training

“Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:28

I have been helping my friend take her Great Dane through dog training. Some of the basic commands we are working on with her are sit, stay, let’s go, and leave it.  The dogs also need to learn to come when they are called. This is where my Benji falls down on the job.  He comes when he is called as long as he feels like it.  These commands are important for the dog as well as the owners. Sit is most important when the dog is working around other people. Some dogs are very busy and want to jump or “meet and greet”. The Great Dane is a lot of dog to be jumping on people; especially people who are older of have balance issues in general. Stay is usually the next step. The dog is supposed to sit or lie down and then stay where they are while the owner walks away. The owner goes different distances and is gone for different times to teach the dog to wait until she comes back. When the owner comes back and is ready for the dog to do something else she says, “Let’s go”.  Leave it is important when something is on the floor that the dog wants. This command trains them to pay attention to the owner and also to leave something alone that may be dangerous or bad for them.

What about in our Christian lives? Personally, I hate it when God tells me to sit. I feel the desperate urge to be busy either working or doing kingdom work. It’s not even always about needing to make more money. Sometimes it is about earning a good name or even distracting myself from things that are going on in my head. There are verses that I have been hearing over and over this week.  Psalms 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the heavens, and exalted in the earth. “Another is “In quietness and trust will be your strength. (Isaiah 30:15) I have been reminded that God gave us Sabbath for a reason. That has been a hard lesson because I did not grow up with the tradition of Sabbath. I am refreshed and renewed when I do have a time of quiet.

As much as I hate “sit”, I really hate “stay”.  I am always pushing myself to do better, to get a better, “more important” job. I push myself in my ministry wanting to reach more people. Even though I have mostly worked this out, I still want to be able to write like Rick Warren and have the reach that he does.  Also, I have to admit that in the last few weeks I have wondered where God is and when He is going to hear us. The scriptures I hear in these times are Zechariah 4:10 “Do not despise these small beginnings, for the LORD rejoices to see the work begin”, and Philippians 1:6. "He who completed a good work in you will be faithful to complete it." When I am uncomfortable waiting on God and wondering where He is and what he is doing, I can lean on verses like Lamentations 3:19, which says, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness, Oh Lord”.

As hard as it is to wait on God, it is just as hard when he says, “Let’s go.” Peter was excited when Jesus told him to get out of the boat, but he looked down at the waves and got scared. The same verses will help us whether it is time to stay and wait on God or go and do his work.

What about “leave it”? What do you keep going back to that God wants you to leave? For me this week it has been a work opportunity that didn’t pan out like I planned, largely because of technology and general chaos. I have been going back and analyzing what I did wrong and berating myself. (Always great, helpful ideas.) Another thing that I am trying to leave behind is knee jerk reactions to situations which are not helpful. For example, I don’t want to immediately jump to “What do I need to repent for” every time I go through a difficult situation. Isaiah 43:28 says “Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing. Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. In other words, "Leave it."

Finally, just like we want animals to come when they are called, let’s try to do the same thing when we hear God’s voice. In John chapter 10 Jesus is telling His disciples that he is the Good Shepherd and says, “My sheep hear me and know my voice and the voice of another they will not quickly follow.” This week, tune out the voice of fear, the voice of shame, and the voice of complaining. Listen for the voice of your shepherd, who has great faithfulness and new mercies every morning.

^{Movin' Right Along}

 “Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old.  Behold, I will do a new thing,
Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness
And rivers in the desert. (Isaiah 43:18-21)

I have been riding a bike again. It has been said that if you have ridden before it is easy to ride again. This is not entirely true. The hardest part is literally getting started. There is a lot involved with figuring out where in the arc to start the pedal, how to balance and how hard to push to get going. I have finally just about mastered this part and don't look like a flailing chicken anymore. Other challenges have been riding uphill and balance. Stretches that don't look uphill when you are walking or riding can be really tough to navigate when you are pedaling. Balance is important when you are riding on rough ground or uneven roads. The other problem I have had is that while some people are supportive and encouraging, there are those who think they are being cute and make fun of me. I have to choose to surround myself with the ones who are encouraging.

In our Christian lives, we see many parallels. It is hard to get started with something new God calls us to. Whether it is a new ministry opportunity or a new way of responding to old situations, it doesn't look pretty for a while. Recently I have started learning to practice kindness when I don't feel like it and not giving in to fear and insecurity. I do NOT have it down. Life has had some uphill stretches lately. I have found myself "weary in well-doing" as Paul says. (Galatians 6:9) Others in my life are also pedaling uphill right now and you probably are too. Balance in our lives is crucial as we walk with God and so is surrounding ourselves with people who can encourage us.
When we are trying to do new things, it is hard because we can't see the way. We are told in 2 Corinthians 5:7 that we must walk by faith and not by sight. Just like biking is an old-new adventure, sometimes God is helping us take old skills or experiences and use them in new ways. We need to trust that God is in control even when we don't understand. Right now we are in trying times, but He is still on the throne. 

What do we do when we find ourselves pedaling uphill? Paul had an answer for this. In Philippians 3:12-14, he says this.

12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Jesus himself knew about balance and we learn much from his example. In Luke 2:52 we are told that "Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man." Several times we see that he withdrew to a quiet place or spent time alone with God. (Luke 5:16; Matthew 14:13-36; Matthew 15; Matthew 16; Matthew 17:1-20) We need to try to keep our lives balanced as well, perhaps especially when we are under stress. 

Just as I need encouraging people as I exercise, we desperately need encouragement in our Christian life. Many verses address this, but we read this is Hebrews. "Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching." Even as we are practicing social distancing we need to look for creative ways to encourage each other, whether it be phone calls, emails, or mail. Also, I saw something new in  Romans 15:5 today. "May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had." God gives us encouragement!

Life is hard. It is uphill sometimes and we are often lonely and discouraged. Keep these things in mind as we move through difficult times. 

Pruning

Welcome back to Unseen. This has been a wonderful and terrible few weeks. Read on for what God showed me about pruning, both in my garden and my life.

Just a Trim!

Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.

19See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?

I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland (Isaiah 43:18-19)

Here in West Texas, February can mean any season. This past week we have had snow, 70 degree weather, and lots of rain. My poor plants are so confused. I decided it was time to prune them. They had green leaves but weren’t looking healthy. I trimmed them back and they looked so sad and pitiful. I told God that I was going to have to just prune them in faith. Sure enough after a couple of days they were full of green shoots. I was so excited! I was visiting with a gardener and he said that pruning them gets rid of dead growth and lets the plants get more nutrients. God’s creation is amazing.

While I enjoy the pruning process with plants, I hate it in my life. In the past I thought it was punishment. If I lost something or someone that was important to me I would immediately start thinking what I needed to repent from. I understand now that sometimes the things and people I lost were not healthy for me.  I have come to terms with that. Recently, though, I have come to realize that there are other things that God is trimming from my life. For example, recently I have been actively letting go of hurts because I realized that forgiving someone does not necessarily get rid of the pain. I am also letting go of needing to have all the answers. As a result, I have gotten rid of some spiritual dead growth and am seeing growth in areas of my life.

The prophet Isaiah tells us God’s feelings about holding on to dead growth. In Isaiah 43:18-19 we read “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.

19See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?

I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” When we are being pruned it can feel scary and we may want to turn back to what is familiar and comfortable. God wants us to lean into the new thing he is doing.

In Psalms 1, we read that the man who walks in uprightness will be like a tree planted by the water. John 15 describes Jesus as the vine and us as the branches. ⁵

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. ⁶ If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. ⁷ If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you^[b] will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. ⁸ By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.

Jesus describes how growth is achieved b y abiding in Him as our source of spiritual nutrients.

Ephesians 4 gives us examples of what we should prune from our lives and what we should seek instead.

 ³¹ Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, ^[i]clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. ³² And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.

Take heart if you are being pruned. God will not trim you away to nothing. Watch for new growth in our life if you are brave enough to let go of the things God is calling you to.