Christmas in June

Welcome to Unseen today. Summer has arrived and with it  new challenges and lessons. Read on to find out about an unexpected lesson I learned this week.

Emmanuel

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Look! God's dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  Revelation 21:3

Well summer in West Texas has come in with a bang. It has been over 100 several days in a row but today we are having a cold front. It is only 98. Every time it gets like this I promise God that I will not complain about winter the next year. One year I did learn that we don’t have a lot to complain about. Before we were married I went to visit my husband in North Carolina. There were these tall green things with branches which they said were trees,( which were not to be confused with mesquite trees).  Then I flew to Ohio to visit my friend. We were talking a mile a minute all the way back from the airport. We got to her house and got settled, finally going to sleep very late. The next morning she woke me up to let me know she was going to work. She told me that if I needed to go outside for anything to dress really, really warm because it was really, really cold. I assured her that I would and went back to sleep. When I woke up I realized I had left something in the car. The sun was gorgeous and reflecting off the snow. (This was actual snow and not ice like we have here.) I put on about three layers and went outside. I felt like I had walked into a brick wall. I quickly got what I needed and went back in. When she came in I told her about my trip outside. She said “I told you!”  I said, “Yeah, but the sun was shining!” She replied, “I know, Honey but it doesn’t work up here.” We had many more adventures on that trip that we will revisit later, but it was a wonderful holiday. The memory sparked Christmas carols in my mind and before I knew it, I was singing Emmanuel, Our God is With Us.  I thought it was a strange song to be singing in summer but in my spirit, I heard God say, “I am not only Emmanuel at Christmas time.

 The beautiful verses in Isaiah 7 that we read at Christmas tell us this. “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Sometimes I know that God is Lord, but don’t feel like he is Father and I don’t feel like he is near.  I have been reading in Joshua this week and Joshua had some of the same thoughts I have had. He felt that he was up against a task that was too hard for him. This is what God told him. “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9   Isaiah 41:10 is a wonderful promise to us. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Jesus gave his disciples a job. He said in Matthew 28:20, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel, teaching and making disciples of all men. Then he gave them a promise. He said, “Lo, I am with you always even to the end of the age.

We go through seasons in our lives. Sometimes it is spring and we see God’s hand in every flower and bird song in our lives. Sometimes it is a long dry summer when things are hard. Sometimes the harvest we seek seems to fall into our laps. Sometimes it is winter and we feel that God has left us and nothing will ever be green and alive again. In every season, Jesus is Emmanuel, which means, “God is with us.” No matter what you feel, believe today that it is true.

Sheltered life.

Sheltered life

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. and strength, a very present help in trouble. Psalms 46 :1

I admit it. I lived a sheltered life. When I was 17 I was in Austin for Thanksgiving with my family. For some reason I was there without my parents.  I, of course, had a wonderful time. Being with my mom’s family was always a treat for me. The problem came when it was time to go home. My Grandpa was chosen to take me to the airport. I had to fly through DFW to get to Amarillo. Even though I had done this many times he was worried about me. I assured him I would be fine but he decided to take matters into his own hands. As I was checking in he told the stewardess that I needed to pre-board, with the 5 year olds and the elderly people in wheelchairs. I protested but it was all vain. When you are 17 life is a crisis anyway. I was so embarrassed! I lined up with the other pre-boarding passengers sure that everyone was looking at me. I found my seat and sat down, covering my face with my hands. The stewardess came up and asked me if I was going to need help finding my gate in Dallas or if I was going to be OK. I told her that since I was going to be 18 in 3 months I was probably going to be fine. She smiled and said, “That’s what I figured, but we have to keep Grandpa happy, don’t we?” Once I got over my embarrassment, I realized that regardless of how it looked to me, my Grandpa had done it out of love and was only trying to protect me. I did, however do my best to finagle for someone else to take me to the airport after that.

Life is hard. Our family is going through a tragedy right now, and I am feeling sad and sort of lost. I have been talking to God about it and I let him know that I didn't think it was fair. I told him that I felt like he was wrong and I was angry. The good news is that I did not get struck by lightning. The bad news is that I did not get an answer. What I did get was a clear sense of His presence. I felt an assurance that he will hold me and shelter me in the middle of this storm. I still wish he would take this storm away for all or our sakes. but I know that he loves us and is in the storm with us. He is our shelter. 

The verse that come to mind are Psalms 46:1   God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. and strength, a very present help in trouble. Psalms 62:8 Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us.There are many, many more verxes that tell us that God is a shelter, a refuge and a shield. I need that right now. Storms will come, but we have a shelter and a hiding place. If you are in a similar place today, take your questions and your hurts to God and let him love you and hold you. 

i've Got My Hands Full

I’ve Got My Hands Full

Cast your cares on Him for He cares for you. 1 Pet 5:7

 I want to share 3 memories

#1 I was at Camp Blue Haven, one of the prettiest spots in the world. We were sitting in the dining hall which was “rustic”, with long tables and plank floors. My sister was kitchen help that year and came out of the kitchen with two plates of Rice Krispy cookies balanced on her arm. She had broken her wrist falling off the rope swing after a series of poor decisions.  I was impressed with her ability to balance, but even then I wanted desperately to be able to do things as well as she did. Instead  of complimenting her, in a burst of passive aggressive teasing, I said, “Don’t drop it.!” Guess what happened next.

#2

It was senior year and I was in the choir musical. We practiced at 6:30 in the morning. I would sit at the bar with a bowl of Grape Nuts in front of me and my hot rollers to the side. I would take a bite and put in a curler. By the time I was finished with my cereal the curlers would be cool. I would brush out my hair and gather my things, and then rush to practice. When practice let out at 7:55, I would make my way to the office and call Mom. The individual items were different, but the message was the same. “Mom, I forgot my PE uniform and my history book.” (Or clarinet, homework, book report)  No matter how hard I tried, I never got to school with everything I needed during the time we were practicing. Bless my mom’s heart! She would hang up and gather my lost items and put them in my locker. My other memory of this time was frantically taking notes in history class, only to realized I had dozed off . My line of notes ended in an indecipherable scribble snaking to the top of the page.  

#3

One night this winter it was bitterly cold. My husband asked me to go get  him 2 twelve packs of coke. I decided that while I was out I would get something warm to drink. I got out of the car carrying the cokes and the drink carrier with hot chocolate for me and coffee for him. The steam was wafting into my nostrils and my mouth was watering. I unlocked the door and as I was pushing it open the drink container tilted and my hot chocolate fell spilling every drop. I sat down and cried because it was the last straw for the day and I couldn’t think of anything else to do. My husband looked at me dumbfounded for a few minutes and then suggested that I go find replacement hot chocolate.  

In all 3 of these cases the problem happened because we were trying to carry too many things and not asking for help. This is a common theme in my life. It is also a common theme in my emotional and spiritual life.  I take too many things on myself without asking for help from God or my brothers and sisters. Things I have tried to carry on my own are guilt, worries, and hurts. I can quickly get overloaded and drop things like compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience (Colossians 3:12) Fortunately God knows our tendency to do this and has provided the solution.

When it comes to my guilt, it is useless. Salvation comes from God and his based on His work, not mine. Ephesians 2:9 tells us that “we are saved by grace through faith, not by works lest any man should boast.“  We are even told that our righteousness is like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6).

My worry is just as pointless. Matthew 6 tells us the danger and futility of worry. Do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink or what you shall wear. For which of you by being anxious can add a single cubit to your height.

Carrying my hurts has been a tough habit to break.  I tried for a long time to make excuses for people’s behaviors, burying how I felt. The result was that the hurts just festered and didn’t go away. Then they would spew out at random times and leave destruction in their wake. Ephesians 4:31-32 says this. “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. “ 

Galatians 6:1 says “Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ.  I realized that whenever I read that verse I focused on bearing other people’s burdens.  I neglected the other half of the equation. I need to be willing to let other people bear my burdens. God has designed us so we are part of the body.  One part needs to help the others.

Can you partner with me in trying to lay down our burdens?

Toxic

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.

Shut That Door!

Shut That Door!


How many times did your parents say that to you? Now TV has the answer for us. Magic Mesh will keep out the bugs, let the sun in and let children and pets come in and out on their own. (Now, for a limited time, they will double your offer at no extra charge.) I admit that if I had a yard I would have one for my dog who is very insistent when he wants to go out, no matter what the time. Here's the thing, though. Doors can be good. They can keep out unwanted pests and unwanted people. They can keep things safe that are important to us. They can keep cold or heat out.
A bigger problem is that sometimes we have Magic Mesh in our minds and our spirits. Things from our past can come bursting through. The two things that I have the most trouble with are resentments and regrets. Even if it is something that I have forgiven someone for, the emotions have not gone. If I am not careful when something reminds me of an instance and the feelings flare up, I can start to rehearse the situation and the resentment comes crashing through my Magic Mesh. Regrets  and guilt are common "mesh crashers".  Whether I am reminded of things that I messed up on by a song, a picture or somebody on Facebook who did it right, it is an opportunity for the enemy, the accuser of the brethren, to come in and remind of things that I did wrong. It might not be a sin. It might be a time that I messed up on a job or made third alternate on a team or disappointed my dad, my husband our my children. If I don't shut the door, he will replay the incident in vivid color. In many cases I can hear the whole lecture that I got. Even as I write this I can hear pieces or reprimands and have to resist getting sucked in.


Fortunately, God knows our hearts. Psalm 103: 14 tells us "For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust." He has a solution. Better than that, He is the solution. Here is a beautiful verse.  "I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more(Isaiah 43:25)


 I had not noticed before that it says he does this for  His own sake. I have often felt like I had to beg God for forgiveness or make deals or promises. Not true.
That takes care of sins. When it comes to regrets, this is what he has to say.
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new creation. (2 Corinthians 5:17)  We also read in Isaiah 43:18-19 "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, 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.

Will you join me this week in trying to shut the doors in our minds? Magic Mesh is good for sliding doors, patios and trailers, but not for our minds and hearts.

We're Surrounded!

                                                        We're Surrounded!

As the mountains surround Jerusalem so the Lord surrounds his people both now and forevermore. Psalms 125:3

My family and I are all science nerds. We have discussions about surface area and the possibility of alternate universes around the dinner table or in the car. Once we had been to Amarillo for a funeral and the kids had really been troopers. As a way to break the tone of sadness and as a reward for them we stopped at a place called the Discovery Center in Amarillo. It is an interactive science museum for kids  (and their parents) There were so many fun things to look at and try. There was a car with square wheels that rolled.. I still can't figure that one out. There were experiments with magnets and a planetarium. As we walked into one room we saw a larger than life sized head of Archimedes with its eyes closed. As we walked past it triggered a motion sensor. The eyes popped open and it said, rather loudly, "Hello! My name is Archimedes." Once my heart started beating again we listened to him describe the way he discovered water displacement as a way to determine the weight of things. The next room was my favorite. It was all about bubbles. There was a straight bar in a shallow dish of bubble solution attached to a rope and pulley. When we pulled on the rope a sheet of bubbles came up. Another exhibit had huge bubble wands in wading pools. My favorite was a tire cut in half and filled with bubble solution. a hula-hoop was attached to a rope and pulley.  Standing inside the tire, you could pull on the rope and a column of bubbles came up around you. It was  a fantastic sensation, with the lights shimmering through the huge bubble all around you, almost like standing inside of a rainbow.

So many times in our lives we feel like there are too many things for us to deal with. We are in a battle for our souls and the souls of those we love and it is a tough battle. Some times we feel like the enemies and battles are too much for us. When we feel this way we need to understand that this is only part of the story. In 2 Kings 6 there is a story that I discovered. Elisha's enemies are looking for him and when they find him they surround his camp. His servant looks out and says what we would probably say. "Oh, no. What are we going to do. Elisha does no panic.He says "Those that are for us are more than those that are against us. Then he simply prays that God would open the servant's eyes. When He does the servant sees the reality. All around them are horses and chariots of fire. At Elisha's request God strikes the army with blindness. Then Elisha performs the first Jedi mind trick. He tells the blinded army. "This is not the road and this is not the town. Follow me and I will take you there. He leads them into the city and God opens their eyes. They are given food and water and sent back home. The raids on Israel stopped.

 The Lord has promised to surround us and protect us. We read this in Psalms 5:12 "Surely, Lord, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield." One of my favorite parts of the blessings in Deuteronomy 26 is the part where it says "the enemy will come at you from one direction and flee in seven. Besides the presence of God and his power, we have believers past and present cheering us on. This is what we read in Hebrews. 

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. (Hebrews 12:1)

We have nothing to be afraid of. We are surrounded by God's goodness and power as surely as my family and I were surrounded by that column of bubbles. As the Lord instructed Joshua in Joshua Chapter 1 Be strong and courageous. Do not tremble or be dismayed. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Picture your favorite story place. Maybe it was tucked in under soft blankets with your mom sitting beside you or curled up in your Grandpa's lap in a rocking chair. Let the magic of the words "Once upon a time" drift over you. All right, boys and girls: today's story is The Three Little Pigs. Once upon a time there were three little pigs who had to go find their way in the world. The first little pig built a house made of straw, the second of sticks and the third out of bricks. Then along came the Big Bad Wolf. He went to the first pig and said, "Little pig, Little pig, let me in!"  to which the pig responded "Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin!" The wolf then informs the pig that he will "huff and puff and blow your house down."  The little pig escapes from the blown down house and runs full tilt boogie to the second pig's house. The wolf is angry at losing his dinner and quickly goes to the second pig's house. The two pigs also refuse to let the wolf in even by the hair on their chinny chin chins. He huffs and puffs and blows the second house down. The two pigs run to their brother's house. He lets them in and they apologize for teasing him about working too hard. The wolf comes along soon and tries to blow the house down, but  no amount of huffing and puffing will topple it. At this point, depending on the version you read, he either goes away to eat fried chicken or climbs the roof and slides down the chimney Where he is boiled in the pot over the roaring fire he did not notice.


So aside from the obvious lessons of don't tease your brother and look before you slide down a chimney, what can we learn from this story? Actually quite a bit. What was better about the third brothers house? It was stronger and had a stronger foundation. The first two pigs houses went up quickly, which they thought was great. Unfortunately, they also came down quickly. There are many things in our lives that are that way. The first thing that comes to mind is marriage. It breaks my heart when I see marriages crumbling that I thought were sure things. Psalms 127:1-2 says this "Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. A Song of Ascents, of Solomon. Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain." If God and his will are not centered in a family it is a losing battle.  Watch the news for a few minutes to see the battle the family is engaged in.


More basic than this is the foundations of our faith. Jesus told the parable of the wise and foolish builders. We all know the song but read the story.


 As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. ⁴⁸ They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. ⁴⁹ But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.” 


 If you have walked with God for any length of time you have had an experience that shook your faith down to its bare bones. If not you will. It may be a loss or a disappointment or an illness. If your foundation is strong, your faith will come out stronger for the test. all through the Bible and in our own lives we have examples of this.


The writer of Hebrews cautions us to build on that foundation in Hebrews 6:1."Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God,"


What can we do to strengthen our foundations? It may be different for different people. Maybe it would be to talk to people who are farther along in their faith walk. It might be to look back over your life and see what God has brought you through. You might try reading scriptures that you haven't read for a while, like the Gospels. Challenge yourself to read familiar scriptures, like the Lord's prayer or the twenty-third Psalm, with fresh eyes.  Whatever it takes for you,  find a way to shore up your foundation. There is an enemy much more dangerous than the Big Bad Wolf who would love to huff and puff and blow our spiritual house down.