To Be

 

Daily Gratitude Year 14-Day 123: Today, I am grateful for reminders "to be."  

This was my verse of the day. 

"Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer." -Romans 12:12

It landed on my soul like manna in the desert. That 40 years held a lot about learning to be content in your circumstances. The desert years were about learning trust, obedience, and patience. I, like the Israelites, often flunk the patience test. Never fear. There is always a "retake" test so that we can grow. 

In the morning worship we are currently studying Acts. That is a book I need to spend more time reading. It scared me as a kid. All I saw were the beatings and the hate for those who claimed victory through Jesus. I feared, as a child, that I could not withstand something so hard. 

As an adult, I see the miracles and the power of the Holy Spirit moving in every chapter. I see the community that insured those who were in prison, hungry, orphaned, or widowed were never alone. There was always enough. Perhaps not ample and plentiful, but there was enough. When the huge, heavy temple curtain ripped from the top down... think about that... everything changed. God's Spirit set free! 

 "And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split." -Matthew 27:50-51a

We get "to be" in the presence of the Almighty God. Not just knowing he is omnipotent and omnipresent, but experiencing the daily ordinary walk with Him, or simply being in His presence. Remember when Moses asked God his name, so that he would be able to tell the Pharaoh (his Grandpa by adoption) who sent him? God replied, "Tell them "I AM" sent you. I AM is part of the "be" verbs. They are the first conjunctions we learn in any new language we are seeking to learn. 

The great "I AM" is living, moving, and present. Not past tense, but fully present. We get to celebrate in hope. We learn patience waiting on His direction. We can talk to Him constantly and he inhabits it. He left His Holy Spirit, so we would never BE alone. 

Hard times, bad days, and troubles are real. We are not exempt, but He never leaves or forsakes His children. 

Today, I am grateful for reminders "to be." 

To Be Heard

Daily Gratitude Year 14-Day 122: Today, I am grateful to be heard. 

Knowing we are heard is sometimes enough. We may not be able to change our situation, but we want to be heard and understood. We know that "according to His will" is not always in alignment with our desires. It is why Jesus taught us to pray, "Thy will be done." 

For me, there is a comfort in knowing the prayers of His children are heard. What we think we want may not be what is best for us now. He sees the whole puzzle put together while we live out our little chapters and ordinary days. 

I love to get down on the level of small children and watch their little minds work as they figure out the world. They do not miss a beat and they use the vocabulary they have. "A headache in my stomach" is one that comes to mind. Sometimes, understanding is limited by our language or our perspective.  

"And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him." -1 John 5:14-15

To be heard, to be held, and to be loved. It is all a part of being "known."  

Today, I am grateful to be heard. 

Making the Best

Daily Gratitude Year 14-Day 121: Today, I am grateful we can "make the best" of everything. 

"The happiest people don't have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything." -unknown

This is the power of reframing. It is not rose-colored glasses. It is more than optimism. It is evaluating, re-evaluation, and recognizing there is a "worse than" scenario for most tough times, trials, and struggles. It matters who you take along on the ride. 

If you plant ten seeds and only three flowers grow, you still have fresh flowers to enjoy. Not every investment has the intended and expected return. 

Corrie Ten Boom, Victor Frankl, and even excerpts from Anne Frank's diary remind us of the power of what we tell ourselves about a situation. In the early part of my life, the concentration camp survivors often hid the tattoos on their arms. For some, it was a shame they should have never carried. For others there was still fear. For some, it was the past they could not change but they hated the daily reminder on their wrist. Honestly, some things are too horrific to tell the story again and again. They made their best of the days they had left.  They are the stories that show the power of making the best of what you have. 

Faith, hope, and love are the game changer. Greet the day with those three ingredients and the day will go better. 

"So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love." -1 Corinthians 

Today, I am grateful we can "make the best" of everything.

The Unique

 

Daily Gratitude- Year 14 - Day 120 Today, I am grateful for the unique. 

Isn't it incredible that each one of us is unique? Even identical twins have differences. We are originals... each one of us. It is something to celebrate. 

“For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.” -Psalm 139:14-15

Fearfully and wonderfully made! Fearfully suggests a sense of awe and reverence for the work of God that happens in the womb. Wonderfully is a word we hear often that celebrates every nuance. The Lord delights in our uniqueness. 

None of us is perfect. There is something beautiful in learning to celebrate imperfection as part of our uniqueness. 

The Love-of-my-Life has a new show he is watching. We both enjoy it and it is okay if I fall asleep because it has not storyline. It is called "The Repair Shop" and master artisans repair broken things that have been worn out by use, life, or mishaps. Often the item needing repaired has been handed down from parents or grandparents. One of the questions they are clear about it if the owner wants the item restored to its full and former glory, or if they want to leave signs that it has been loved a long time. Most often, they choose to leave a little reminder of the past. They rarely choose perfect. Perfection would replace the uniqueness of the item. 

Embrace your uniqueness today. Sing, dance, draw, and dazzle a world that needs your special superpower... what ever it is. My little brother says my Mama's hugs were her superpower. I'd like to think it is one of the things she passed on to me. 

Unpack and celebrate your unique gifts and talents today. Honestly, the world needs you. 

Today, I am grateful for the unique. 

Each Good Day

 

Daily Gratitude- Year 14 - Day 119: Today, I am grateful each good day. 

"They were content with each good day as it came, taking pleasure in every meal, and in every word and song." -JRR Tolkien

Yesterday, I was traveling alone and listened to a podcast reflecting on a visit to the "Anne Frank House" that was really atop the factory that Otto Frank owned before the war. What struck them was the "ordinary" in Anne's diary that made it all extraordinary. The power in her story is that she was a teenage girl who saw the world through teenage eyes. 

Man's inhumanity toward other men is woven into the pages of history at every turn. In those times... when humanity is behaving at its worst... people pause to take in the extraordinary in the ordinary moments. 

The Frank family and those hidden with them had to stay as silent. Even the normal life actives like a "potty break" could expose them, so they waited until they thought is was "safe." Can we even imagine it? They did not feel the sun on their skin for two years. 

A meal with loved ones or friends, sunshine, laughing, and taking a walk in the fresh air... these are simple things that are a part of a collection of simple things that are precious in every day. 

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” – James 1:17

Savor the good and perfect moments, even in the hard days. God's goodness is found most often in the simple things that matter most. 

Today, I am grateful each good day. 

Change the Ending

Daily Gratitude- Year 14 - Day 118: Today, I am grateful we can change the ending. 

Mistakes and failure are not final; each day comes with new opportunities to choose differently and to choose well. There are times we make unintended mistakes. I am grateful it does not end there. Every morning dawns a new day. Even a rough morning can improve by noon if we choose differently. 

Choice is the gift that God gave to man. It is our superpower and our curse at times. One of my favorite scriptures comes out of a Bible study long ago:

"He said, “Who told you that you were naked? -Genesis 3:11a

How long was the pause before God's second question? 

Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” -Genesis 3:11b

Adam and Eve could not press an undo button. Their disobedience had consequences. Still, God did not abandon them. They lost the garden, but they would live to have more good days... even great days. He would labor on the land. She would suffer pain in childbirth and then hold the wonder of a newborn in her arms. I think only God could come up with punishment that was also our reward. 

To work the land and see it bear a harvest that feeds your family creates a sense of wealth and success that only comes when you do the work with your own hands. Gardening is something many enjoy. Others appreciate knowing how their food is grown, so they garden. 

To be gifted with children to love and care for is a miracle every time. We fail as parents on many days, but children are forgiving. "I'm sorry." goes a long way on both sides of the relationship, just as it does in marriage. 

Real life does not have the undo button we have become accustomed to on our computers. It requires confession, humility, and making the effort to try and again. By God's grace and mercy, we can change the ending. 

"You can't go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending." -CS Lewis 

Today, I am grateful we can change the ending. 

Search & Rescue

Daily Gratitude- Year 14 - Day 117: Today, I am grateful for search and rescue. 

It has been a stormy spring. I am reminded that in every kind of weather, our first responders and military show up. Search and rescue teams put themselves at risk to save others. They arrive with a sense of calm and purpose. They don't ask, "How did you get yourself into this mess?" They comfort and guide the rescue. 

Honestly, a bad decision is sometimes obvious. Other times, misfortune steps into an ordinary day. It is not about the "how," it is about the "now" when help arrives. 

Some of the people Jesus encountered had lived difficult lives. Circumstance, illness, loss, and fear brought them to the place where they were ready to reach out for help and rescue. It is often in crisis or pain when God finally gets our attention. When things are going well, humans do not always recognize the need for a Savior. Pride goes before a fall. In the trials, we find ourselves seeking help. 

"For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” -Luke 19:10

He came to rescue us, but we can refuse to acknowledge Him. 

Today, I am grateful for search and rescue.