Pumpkins

Daily Gratitude Year 5-Day 243: Today, I am grateful for pumpkins. 

I'm not jumping the gun on fall. Here in Morton, Libby's has been canning pumpkins for weeks. Harvest is in full swing and the Pumpkin Festival is just 13 days away. I can almost taste the Apple Cider Slushie made with Tanner's cider, the Pumpkin Chilli and Pumpkin Baked Beans. Others are craving the Pumpkin Ice Cream.

It may seem we are crazy for pumpkins... and maybe we are... but they really are special. Healthy and decorative. They bring our little community together in celebration and Thanksgiving. As someone said yesterday... Pumpkin Festival is a Homecoming for our community. 

It will be close to our 30th Pumpkin Parade as a family. The humble squash will shine for another celebration. 

The pumpkin is so versatile. From breads and pastries to soups and pasta fillings, it is not just something to carve at Halloween, to decorate for fall and serve at Thanksgiving. Canned pumpkin can make its way into a healthy diet at any time of year (provided the pumpkin harvest is good). 

Our neighbor is highly involved in the Libby' s harvest. We pray for his safety and the protection of all involved.  They run around the clock and accidents can happen when humans are weary. We give thanks for the farmers who plant and tend the crops and the workers who facilitate the harvest. 

We humans are a little like pumpkins at times. Kind a mess on the inside, but full of potential when cleaned up and cleaned out. When we offer ourselves to a sovereign God, and let him have his way, he can carve us into something unique, beautiful and light-bearing. The ordinary becomes extraordinary. Like pumpkins, we come in many colors, shapes and sizes. The diversity is endless and so are the possibilities. The master carver is never without a plan. 

"Your very lives are a letter that anyone can read by just looking at you. Christ himself wrote it—not with ink, but with God’s living Spirit; not chiseled into stone, but carved into human lives—and we publish it." - 2 Corinthians 2:3 (The Message)

Today, I am grateful for pumpkins.

Love Is Patient

Daily Gratitude Year 5-Day 242: Today, I am grateful love is patient.

"We all like to say love is patient, until it requires us to be patient." - Jon Bloom

Such a simple gratitude, but it holds deep waters of truth. Real love... true love... must exhibit patience over and over again.

"Love is patient and kind;"-1 Corinthians 3:4a

This goes beyond raising children and marriage. For example:
A gardener is patient with plants.
A chef shows patience in the kitchen.
An artist is patient with the canvas.
A woodworker is patient with the wood.
An carpenter is patient with the process.
A writer is patient with the pen.
A farmer must be patient for the harvest.
A teacher must be patient with every learner.
A parent is patient with potty training.
A spouse patiently pours love on long days.

Are we not instructed to "do all things with love?" Then to do all things with patience follows suit. Solomon writes:

"Better is the end of a thing than its beginning, and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit." -Ecclesiastes 7:8

Patience without love is not real patience.

We have a big picture God who is deeply invested in each chapter of our lives. His heart is for us to seek his face. He longs to help guide and write our story. Human wants... natural instincts... coveting can confuse us. Acting with patience is often an intelligent, calculated choice. Patience can look like a superhuman power, as perhaps it is. It flows from the heart of God. 

I am grateful when when people love me with patience. 
I need to be more intentional in choosing patience.
When achieved... a great by product... is a sense of calm.

Patience can be grown artfully, with practice. A stronger love results. Patience grows a love with deep roots that can stand time, tests and storms. 

Patience says... "I will wait. I am with you. I will help you. I am cheering you on to the finish line."

Perhaps, a good dose of patience is as good as fresh flowers. 

Today, I am grateful love is patient.

New Directions

Daily Gratitude Year 5-Day 241: Today, I am grateful for new directions.

"Changing direction in life is not tragic; losing passion in life is." - Max Lucado

When was the last time you made a change, taking a new direction? Perhaps, it wasn't your choice. Or, you were passionately driven to a change and everyone else believed you were crazy. 

We all have seasons of change. Some forced. Some supported. Some feel lonely. Others, set a fire in our souls. 

Just as the fall leaves will turn glorious shades of yellow, red and brown... so will our lives have seasons of new directions. Like a river, life is always constant and ever flowing. We adjust or we fret ourselves into a frenzy. We chase a dream or we let it die and sift through our hands.

We succumb to what is comfortable... it sucks us in... and miss fully living. We choose to ignore the possibility of new directions. 

"So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus." -Romans 6:11

Jesus says, "Come!" The truth is, it is an invitation to come alive. Fully alive.

One of the biggest lies Satan uses to distract us, confuse us and discourage us from choosing Christ is that it means giving up the things of the world that seem so good. In truth... most are empty joys and self destructive if given enough time. Love of possessions and power eventually corrupt. 

It is why we are instructed to die to our sinful desires that we may come fully alive as we seek Him and his way. With Him, when life takes a new direction, we tighten the life-preserver of prayer and submit to his sovereignty. We let him take us down the river... bumps, bruises, rough waters, glorious, views and excitement that brings us fully alive.

"For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive." -1 Corinthians 15:22

Come alive! Death loses its power and sting, because there is nothing to fear. We can't lose. Letting prayer offerings invite God to be our guide on this whitewater raft called life just might be the best adventure yet. 

Who doesn't love a good adventure? 

Today, I am grateful for new directions.

Father, Defender & Holy

Daily Gratitude Year 5-Day 238: Today, I am grateful for the many facets of God. 

There are times I want to capture God in a photograph. One where he looks grandfatherly, friendly and full of love. Why? Because that component of his personality is safe. His love and care are without measure. It is the most comfortable and comforting part of his character. 

Bottom line... I like to perceive him as safe. 

He is full of love, but he is so much more. Other components are a bit terrifying. His glory strikes awe... and when full, our feeble human bodies cannot take it. We cannot look upon his face in our human form. The truth is - there are times God hides his face from us to protect us. 

The high priests spent a year preparing to enter "The Holy of Holies" in the temple. Unprepared, death was certain. God in his holy dwelling, was overwhelming and simply... too much. 

Reread and rethink this passage. 

"Father to the fatherless, defender of widows—  this is God, whose dwelling is holy."-Psalm 68:5

Father to the fatherless... he adopts us. He chooses us to be his children. 
Defender of widows... and orphans... don't mess with those in his protection.
Where HE is becomes holy ground... be careful.

"God said, "Take off you sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground." - Exodus 3:5  

This is one of my new favorite passages from summer reading. It declares a certain behaviour when we enter his presence. I adore the idea of barefoot. 

The dirt from the bottom of our shoes does not belong on holy ground, yet this same God chose to come and be for us, with us and even one of us. 

Time after time, the Bible warns of what will come to those who ignore the needs of widows and orphans. Our care for "the least of these" becomes the measuring stick God uses for determining justice.  

I think of our laws and our lawmakers and cringe. Animals are more protected than children. And... then I look in the mirror and wonder about the times I have failed to be his hand and feet when needed. 

When seeking the face of God, we must be prepared for the reflection off of his many facets... not just the ones we find comfortable. Like a diamond, letting the light disperse... he is beautiful, holy and full or wonder. His ways are not are ours... they are perfect. 

Today, I am grateful for the many facets of God.

Power of Refreshment

Daily Gratitude Year 5-Day 238: Today, I am grateful for the power of refreshment.

So today, I prayed. "Lord, I'm pretty tired. I need some refreshment and restoration.

This was His reply: 
"The generous will prosper;Those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed. -Proverbs 11:25

Is it God showing his sense of humor or responding with an answer to a very real need? Perhaps... it is a little of both. 

It is easy to focus on what I need, but true joy comes in being an agent of hope and encouragement for others. 

When we lift our hands in love and praise to the Father of the Stars, we find a unique strength that fuels us for whatever the road may bring. His light is reflected when we feel a renewed desire to lift up and love someone else. His grace is sufficient to meet our every need, to plot our course and to fill us with contentment. 

He restores our souls, and we can pass it on to others. 

Take a deep breath.

Today, I am grateful for the power of refreshment. for the power of refreshment.

So today, I prayed. "Lord, I'm pretty tired. I need some refreshment and restoration.

This was His reply: 
"The generous will prosper;Those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed. -Proverbs 11:25

Is it God showing his sense of humor or responding with an answer to a very real need? Perhaps... it is a little of both. 

It is easy to focus on what I need, but true joy comes in being an agent of hope and encouragement for others. 

When we lift our hands in love and praise to the Father of the Stars, we find a unique strength that fuels us for whatever the road may bring. His light is reflected when we feel a renewed desire to lift up and love someone else. His grace is sufficient to meet our every need, to plot our course and to fill us with contentment. 

He restores our souls, and we can pass it on to others. 

Take a deep breath.

Today, I am grateful for the power of refreshment.

Another Enough

Daily Gratitude Year 5-Day 239: Today, I am grateful for another "enough". 

Somewhere on the path to knowing him better and trusting him more comes a particular ah-ha moment.

And to wake up knowing that God is on my side is enough. 

Enough. My one, little word to focus on for the year, that I haven't mentioned much. I still have much to learn. I loved this reminder, today.

Knowing God is on my side is kind of a big deal. Although, I must be sure that I am on God's side, too. 

Is my relationship with him a top priority? Am I moving closer to his heart and trusting Him for every need? Do I let him be my enough or do I chase worldly wants and things? 

I still have a closet that is way too full and cupboards, too. For me... it is not always about wanting more, but learning to let go of what is no longer necessary. 

I am always a bit fascinated by the way Jesus called his disciples. So often, it was a simple "Come. Follow me." There was no waiting and not time of preparation. It was a simple "yes" or "no" for those who could not take the leap of faith.  

"You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!" -Isaiah 26:3

Where are my thoughts fixed when anxiety rises?

"But now the Lord my God has given me peace on every side;"-1 Kings 5:4a

He grants peace to those who seek his wisdom, as he did with King Solomon. People came from across the world to seek Solomon's wise and Godly counsel. We still read and put to use his teachings in Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, today. God was, is and will continue to be enough, when we seek his face.

"in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you." -2 Timothy 13b-14

Guard the good! It is what the Holy Spirit does. It stirs us to find contentment in the enough. The Spirit teaches us to trust his hand and provision... and settle into a life of gratitude and joy.  

Today, I am grateful for another "enough" lesson.

The Power of Refreshment

Daily Gratitude Year 5-Day 238: Today, I am grateful for the power of refreshment.

So today, I prayed. "Lord, I'm pretty tired. I need some refreshment and restoration.

This was His reply:

"The generous will prosper;Those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed. -Proverbs 11:25

Is it God showing his sense of humor or responding with an answer to a very real need? Perhaps... it is a little of both. 

It is easy to focus on what I need, but true joy comes in being an agent of hope and encouragement for others. 

When we lift our hands in love and praise to the Father of the Stars, we find a unique strength that fuels us for whatever the road may bring. His light is reflected when we feel a renewed desire to lift up and love someone else. His grace is sufficient to meet our every need, to plot our course and to fill us with contentment. 

He restores our souls, and we can pass it on to others. 

Take a deep breath.

Today, I am grateful for the power of refreshment.

A Tale of Two Trees

Daily Gratitude Year 5-Day 237: Today, I am grateful for a tale of two trees.

I have been slowly working my way through a book called "The Book of Mysteries". Written by a Messianic Rabbi. I intended to do one lesson a day but there are days... okay weeks... I have to let the teaching brew in my brain for clarity and understanding. 

Between the book's pages... pages a tree gave its life to become... is an education on Jewish customs and Hebrew words. Each teaching brings new life and understanding to some scriptures I have known all of my life. It is written as a fiction, but loaded with things to learn. One recent lesson was called "The Other Tree". 

On of my favorite Christmas programs, the children sang Ray Boltz' song "The Perfect Tree". In the final moment of the program and the final chorus of the song, the Christmas tree was turned to reveal a cross. It was breathtaking.   

I will never forget Randy's engineering efforts to make that tree turning moment possible. It took time, testing and contemplation... and I believe a few tools borrowed from our friend, Mark. The boys spent time with Dad in the garage and somehow, it all came together. 

The concept of the cross being the perfect tree is not new to me. What is new... or perhaps, I am just slow... is the sense of balance it brought to the scales of God's justice. 

The Lord God made all sorts of trees grow up from the ground—trees that were beautiful and that produced delicious fruit. In the middle of the garden he placed the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. -Genesis 2:9

In the Garden, "The Tree of Life" was the one thing God told them they could not eat. It was positioned in the center of the garden. In choosing to be obedient, they were choosing Him. Deception and pride led to disobedience and the Tree of Life, became a tree of death. 

God is justice. He cannot tolerate injustice. Still, he longed to reclaim the relationship with the only being he created on this little planet that could choose him or refuse him. Nature must obey. We can turn away. 

2000 years ago... on a hill called Golgotha ... which means "the skull", a symbol of death... stood three crosses. They were instruments of torture. Trees of death. Our Jesus... God and man... Immanuel (God with us)... was without sin but the mobs demanded his death. So there Christ was raised up, on the middle of three trees, and a tree of death became the tree of life, for those who would believe. 

Wow! Right? The scales of God's justice move slowly, but in perfect time. The sin debt was paid. Jesus made the way. He is the portal... the door... between life and death. New life is his to give. Is it any wonder that in the early days after the resurrection, "The Way" was what they called those who followed him? 

And now he has made all of this plain to us by the appearing of Christ Jesus, our Savior. He broke the power of death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the Good News. -2 Timothy 1:10

He didn't just take our sins and my place on the cross, he made the way. He invites us to the table. The invitation is open. We choose or refuse. Why? Because he is love, justice and mercy. He wraps all of those components up in a gift we call grace. 

The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God. -1 Corinthians 1:18

We we are invited to know the saving power of a life giving, death conquering God. 

Today, I am grateful for a tale of two trees.

Love Overpowers Criticism

Daily Gratitude Year 5-Day 236: Today, I am grateful love is more powerful than criticism.

What inspires us to work harder - love or criticism? Now, there is a time and a place for constructive criticism, but love must lay the groundwork so the recipient can be built up and inspired. 

The tongue is a hard beast to tame. This scripture gives direction and purpose to the tongue: 

Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them. -Ephesians 4:29

Easier said than done, right? Perhaps the struggle is not foul or abusive language, but the second part of the instruction: "Let everything you say be good and helpful."

"Love has the kind of power criticism only wishes it had." - Bob Goff

I love working with people who building up others. I was blessed to be surrounded with people who loved children when I was a child. I remember one in particular.

Her name was Miss Spaulding. She was our 6th grade science teacher. If my memory serves me correctly, she truly was a "Miss". I seem to recall she may have fostered some children, but her students were her children. It was many years ago and my memory fades. What I do remember was her ability to speak firmly, yet pour love on us at the same time. 

Miss Spaulding had a phrase that meant we were pushing her last button and we had better shape up. She would say, "Children, I love you dearly, but you must behave." She didn't yell. She didn't lose her cool. She confidently spoke the promise of love and discipline in her one simple sentence. 

Strange events meant we lost her before we finished the school year. She didn't show up to teach our class and at first, we let the clock tick. But, knowing her character, we eventually became concerned and some of us went to the office to tell Mr. Askew, our principal. 

Miss Spaulding was an early recipient of a pacemaker, back when the procedure was difficult. She died in the bathroom that day. We all felt the guilt of "We should have gone sooner." but the truth is... it would have not made a difference. It was the mid-70's. 

A part of her stayed with us and remains to this day. Her perfected application of love with firm direction.

"Children, I love you dearly, but you must behave."  It echoes in my memory. It brings back thoughts of her. She wanted the best for us and we were... collectively... a handful at times. We were a bright, wide-eyed crew. Using the world "children" from her lips was not an insult, but an embrace. It held far more power than yelling or threats. 

"Children, I love you dearly, but you must behave." Isn't that the same truth our Lord speaks over us. He wants us to learn his ways. He wants us to see with his eyes and love with his heart. Sometimes, he needs to remind us to be have. 

Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. -Ephesians 4:15

Love is far more powerful than criticism. Relationships can be made or broken based on which we choose to apply. 

Today, I am grateful love is more powerful than criticism.

The Wonder of Harvest

Daily Gratitude Year 5-Day 235: Today, I am grateful for the wonder of the harvest.

The pumpkin harvest is in full swing. Other crops that started as hard, dead and lifeless seeds have soaked in the soil, rains and summer sun and found full life. There is a grandeur in summer that is full of goodness and delight. 

Summer is followed by fall. We are teetering between the two. Fall brings the harvest. I hope I never outgrow the wonder of a seed that fulfills its promise and potential. 

"God is able to perform, provide, help, save, stop, turn... He is able to do what you can not." -Max Lucado

Remember the faith of a mustard seed?

Jesus said, “How can I describe the Kingdom of God? What story should I use to illustrate it? It is like a mustard seed planted in the ground. It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of all garden plants; it grows long branches, and birds can make nests in its shade.” -Mark 4:30-32

And this account of the same lesson:

“You don’t have enough faith,” Jesus told them. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.” -Matthew 17:20

Three out of four gospels record this parable, so it is obviously one to ponder and embrace.

There are days we feel tiny and insignificant. Yet, scripture is full of examples of the tiny, the countless or overlooked that seem to matter to God in a big way. If he numbers the stars and calls them by name, is it any wonder that he tends the tiny mustard seed until it reaches its full potential? How much more he cares for us? 

I continue to consider the magnitude that we are the only creation that cost Him his breath... and then Jesus paid the price to reclaim all that sin had managed to taint with darkness and grief. He never asked us to fix our past, only confess it. He takes care of the debt we could not pay. He asks us to believe and move forward in a new way. Changed by a personal encounter with grace and once again breathing fresh air. He is light, life and our future. 

He is able to do what we cannot do on our own. He can bring from us from a sense of lifelessness into full life and glorious bloom. Some are granted a longer growing season, but each one of us receives the gift of this day. Each one of us is still learning and growing until we reach our own harvest season. 

Today, I am grateful for the wonder of the harvest.

One Picture, One Thousand Memories

Daily Gratitude Year 5-Day 234: Today, I am grateful a picture is worth a thousand memories. 

Mama rarely took pictures, but the first day of school was always an exception. Oh my, but April and I are styling in these pictures! I am on the left and April is on the right. Red, white and blue was ll the rage as the Bi-Centennial was just a few years away. (Note the shorts under my dress... because they were mandatory to play on the monkey bars at recess.)

When I look at this image, I see Case and Gladys Corbin's barn across the road. So many summer memories of playing in the barn with their grandchildren. 

On the right side of the image, the roof of the little white playhouse my Uncle Bobby built us a high school project. It stood long after we grew up. Since our lane was really, really long, it provided shelter on cold days as we would wait for the bus. Because of our Midwest winds, you can faintly see the cable attached to the roof that kept it from blowing into the deep drainage ditch. 

Yes, this picture is worth a thousand memories. In this very spot, we stood every day. Talking, waiting, dreaming, imagining and full of excitement. We would watch the clouds for shapes and the bridge for a glimpse of the yellow school bus on the way from the Behrend's and the Peter's. 

To my left, growing from the banks of the deep, deep ditch was a mulberry bush. If offered sweet berry treats in season, if you could beat the birds! Wild Asparagus would pop us to our delight (and Grandpa Lindgren's) in the same ditch. There was always wilde sweet, sugary purple clover, we would collect and make into teas with Mama Ina Mae. 

One rare picture. One "first day of school". Wonderful memories. One moment in time, captured... and then... it unfolds so many more echoes of days gone by. Precious memories.

In just a few days, we will mark 22 years that April has been gone. It is pure joy to see and remember her sparkle. In this image... we were celebrities waving at our biggest fans. 

At the time of Jesus, the camera had not been invented, but memories were equally precious. In 2 Peter, this verse states clearly the value of remembering. Words create the pictures. They give us images with the words. 

I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body, because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. -2 Peter 1:13-14

This life and it's body really are fleeting. His promises are of forever. Heavenly reunions and worshiping together once again takes the sting of death away and replaces it with a longing for what is to come. While we are here, we must create a snapshot for future generations. 

Today, I am grateful a picture is worth a thousand memories.