A Good Mystery

 

Daily Gratitude Year 3-Day 309: Today, I am grateful for a good mystery.  

I am one of those kids who picked up a Nancy Drew in 2nd grade and fell in love with the mystery.  I went on to read The Hardy Boys...Trixie Belden...and, today, still enjoy the mystery genre from Catherine Coulter to Evanovich and including newer authors on the scene like M. K. Gilroy.  

I love the twists and the the turns... and finally getting to an answer. A mystery is a reading roller coaster ride.  Since I get motion sick, this is my preferred method over the traditional theme park ride. 🙂

Maybe that is why I find it easier than some to come to terms with the unknown will of God, until the plan unfolds.  I like the mystery.  If I can't change it...then I must embrace it and ride it out. Sometimes it is blessings beyond measure and other times...it is a storm to ride out holding tight to his promises.  The BIG PICTURE is His and my little, life story somehow plays a part.  Crazy, right? Amazing, too.

This was my verse of the day:

Ephesians 1:9-10: "making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth."

Time for a dissection to dig a little deeper: 

"making known to us" - sometimes He reveals things to us 

"the mystery of his will"-sometimes His will is a mystery

"according to his purpose"- sometime His purpose is unclear

"which he set forth in Christ"- Christ was, is and will be the catalyst

"as a plan"- there is a plan

"for the fullness of time,"- in His time...not our time

"to unite all things" - it all fits together...but for not is a puzzle

"in him"-IN HIM...not to...or from..or with...but wrapped up IN HIM 

"things in heaven" - things I do not know, see or understand

"and things on earth." - things I may know- but may not understand

I believe he works all things together for the good of those who love Him.  Loving Him changes what is "good".  The goals and purpose of our season here takes a plot twist when we learn to love Him with wild abandon and embrace loving our neighbor with no expectation of reciprocation.  

To be at the center of His will will means "plot twists" happen.  In the end... hindsight provides 20/20 vision. If you stand today, looking back on a situation and the reasons are still unclear, it is good to remember...this is not the end.  

Today, I will choose to be grateful for a good mystery and the mystery of this life as it unfolds by His hand. Let us embrace the "plot twists" and keep turning the pages.

My True North

Daily Gratitude Year 3-Day 275: Today, I am grateful for the compass provided in God's word. It is my "true north".

If I open His Word and read it, I will never be without direction. I may not always like where it is pointing or the truth it holds, but that is where our relationship changes and my trust grows. He does not change. Like a compass, there is true North and direction I can follow with confidence. I may wander, get tossed in a storm...but I will not be lost.

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. - Psalm 119:105

I have always loved that song by Amy Grant that she wrote with Michael W Smith back in the early 80's. It is still popular for the sense of worship it evokes in the words of David and the contemporary melody.

I am so grateful that in this past three years - where I have not always enjoyed the journey... I have never felt abandoned. Not once! Yes, I have felt the shadow of death...but it is only a shadow. The shadow can't hurt us. Grief hurts...but that is because we have known love. A price worth paying. I would not trade the tears because I would certainly have to give back the joys, the celebrations and the laughter. Let the tears flow...and let my Lord count and collect them...and keep them in His bottle. Let our tears be a sparkling offering.

"You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?" -Psalm 56:8

Our pain does not go unnoticed.

The promise of what is to come and the comfort of knowing those who go before us...those who walked in truth... will be waiting. In fact, the shadow is simply a reminder of the dangers missed... the consequences that grace spared us...and the promise of what lies ahead. Praise God, that by His mercy and providence... I don't get what I deserve.

Today-I know my compass is true. I get excited for time in the scripture and in prayer. Relationship and truth...together they give direction. For a sailor on the seas, knowing where North is provides the knowledge needed to stay the course. It doesn't mean the journey will be without squalls...those sudden gusts of winds and localized storms that often provide rain, snow or sleet... or the hurricanes that rock us to the depths of our souls.

As I read, study, play, create and make notes in my journaling Bible...I attempt to "write the vision and make it plain, that he may run who reads it". I pray that it will be my legacy.

Today, I am grateful for the compass provided in God's word. It is my "true north".

Drawing Circles

Daily Gratitude Year 3-Day 189: Today...I am grateful for circles that draw people in instead of shutting them out.

Edwin Markham (poet and scholar, 1852-1940) wrote this great poem:
He drew a circle that shut me out--
Heretic, a rebel, a thing to flout.
But Love and I had the wit to win:
We drew a circle that took him in!

Short and sweet but full of "meat" to chew on.

I Corinthians 13:8 in many translations: Charity never faileth. (KJV) Love never fails.(NIV) Love never ends.(ESV) So...to paraphrase...LOVE ALWAYS WINS!

We celebrate the anniversary of our marriage this weekend. I have always loved the senior couples interviewed in the classic movie "When Harry Met Sally" in 1989. We had only been married a couple of years. That movie struck a chord that resonated deep with me. I remember thinking, "I want to look like that when we are in our 80's."

Every girl wants and hopes to be a beautiful bride. Still...is just a day. It is a big day, full of promise and a new beginning...in a "deal sealed" before God...but a marriage is every day after the wedding day! It is not without effort.

This image crossed my path...and for days it haunted me...so I dug for "the rest of the story" (I grew up on Paul Harvey):

This is a photograph of the graves of a Catholic woman and her Protestant husband in Limburg (Netherlands). They were not allowed to be buried together. In the Protestant part of this cemetery, J.W.C van Gorcum, colonel of the Dutch Cavalry and militia commissioner in Limburg, is buried. His wife, Lady J.C.P.H van Aefferden, is buried in the Catholic part.

They were married in 1842, the lady was 22 and the colonel was 33, but he was a protestant and didn't belong to the nobility.This caused quite a commotion in Roermond. He was a commoner and a soldier...and she was a lady. But, love always wins.

They loved and cherished each other for 38 years. When the colonel died in 1880, he was buried in the protestant part of the cemetery against the wall. His wife died in 1888. She chose not to be buried in the family tomb. Her choice...the loving choice...simply takes my breath away...and is beautifully captured in this poignant and powerful image.

With the wall of exclusion between them... she chose her grave as close as she could get to husband on her Catholic side. Two clasped hands connect the graves across the wall. Again...love always wins! ( Wendy Williams Vastine...if you could get this on your "Things to photograph before we leave Europe." list, I would be forever grateful.)

The imagery here is so powerful. What circles do we draw and what walls do we build high that keep people out? What circles do we create that draw people in? It is all about choice.

God spoke to Moses in the form of the 10 Commandments (not suggestions) and said: "Love me." (refer to the #1-4) and "Love each other."(#6-10) He does not change.

So...when God took human form, as Jesus, the message was the same. Jewish leaders... threatened by Jesus... were looking for a way to draw a circle that kept him out of the temple and from influencing "their people"... get him in trouble...and maybe even stoned to death. They were looking to "catch him" in something blasphemous. They failed.

Matthew 22: 34-40 But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

What is our part? 2 Timothy 2:15:

"Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth."

So...at the end our days on this earth ..when we stand before God, will he say... "Lucy, you have some 'splainin' to do!" (probably not in the voice of Desi Arnez" or will he say, "Well done, good and faithful servant. You finished the race.Welcome home."?

"Rightly handling the word of the truth" is our instruction and our responsibility. How do we test it? First, we have to know The Word. Then, we might try this simple test based on Jesus response to the religious leaders.

What if we asked these two questions:
Does it help, teach or seek to help us "love God more"?
Does it help us to serve, reach, teach and "love our neighbor" more?

I know I return to this often, because for me... it has been this amazing revelation... that connects the Old Testament and the New Testament and it seems all the puzzle pieces keep falling into place. It is exciting! I heard a quote years ago that says, "The Old Testament is the New Testament concealed. The New Testament is the Old Testament revealed." As I flip back and forth from Old to New...the wonder and amazement grows. His "Master Plan" is a "Masterpiece"!

"But Love and I had the wit to win: We drew a circle that took him in!" Isn't that what Jesus did? The Samaritan woman at the well...the hated Tax Collector...the Loud mouth fishermen...the prostitute with the demon...the heady physician...the "Sons of Thunder"...the bleeding woman... the lepers...the children...the soldier who came to arrest him received a healing...and the thief on the cross.

What walls do we build that keep people out? Are all truly welcome "at the Lord's table" or in "His house"? I am reminded that Jesus washed Judas' feet and offered him bread and wine from the same cup ...just like the other eleven.

What did Jesus mean when he said in Mark 3:24-25 " If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand."? What if the "body of Christ" stood hand in hand and drew a circle that loved others in...into relationship? Love is not without sacrifice...and Jesus paid the ultimate price...tearing down the walls that once divided Jew and Gentile to make them one. Then, he offered this simple instruction "Go and make 'disciples' of every nation."

Today...I am grateful for circles that draw people in instead of shutting them out. I am grateful for this amazing picture that reminds me that "Love always wins."

Stop! In the name of Love!

Today...I decided to post my "Daily Gratitude Post" over here.  The found image of a bear and then I used my scrapbook supplies to share the message. I hope your day bears beautiful things.

Daily Gratitude Year 3: Day 161: Today...I am grateful for bears...and bearers.

So...the "safety girl...grew up with "Mr. Life Is Too Short To Not Run at Full Throttle". Actually...there were two of them under the roof...the "original" and the "younger model."

I learned many lessons watching Dad and Matt! I learned to hold my breath...and how to pray for their safety (which helped me take a breath). And, I prayed that the work of their hands would be blessed. I was on the "cooking and coping" team that supported the work and pitched in when and where we were needed. Some days...we lived with the "bears" when things were not going well. Other times, we savored the fruits of the labor with the "bearers of good things." It all came in the same package deal.

Flash forward...recently we have been taking Mom and Aunt Judy to a specialist in Toledo. This is family adventure at it's finest. Last year, I posted on one particular hairy adventure traveling in white out conditions. I was so grateful for Matt and Uncle Larry's skill and hours behind the wheel...they carried the stress of the drive with grace and good humor. It was that trip that I first learned about "the bears" on every trip in the Suburban.

Jennifer said we had to watch for "bears". Really? On I-80...in Illinois? This addiction to word play runs in the family and marries into it, just to keep the genes strong! So... every time we would get close to a turn or an exit... I would hear the GPS female voice announce... "Bear Right" or "Bear Left". We would look to the left or to the right on every turn in the road and there were never any "bears" to be seen. Not even once. Kind of disappointing. I like bears... at a safe distance.

Even more disappointing...Matt quickly and easily takes direction from that GPS woman...a virtual stranger who only shows up for the big trips in life... without questioning her! He does not even "know her"...yet, he trusts her directions without question (most of the time). Jennifer and I rarely have that experience. Of course...the truth of the matter is...when that GPS woman gets annoying, he can turn her off. wink emoticon Not so with wives and sisters.

Paul penned in 1 Corinthians 13:7: "Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." Of course...Matt (and Randy...not to exclude my honey) have certainly had to bear my faults and failings. Matt for all of his life. And, my Randy, for nearly 30 years.

The word "bear" or "bearer" is defined as "to carry" or "one who carries". Love carries. Isn't that true? It carries the burdens, shares the joys...and divides the sorrows. Love holds us up and carries us. When life, circumstance, health issues, loss or troubles get us down...love rescues us and gives us hope and strength to endure because we are not alone. Bearing, caring and sharing is a powerful thing.

Love carries us to a place of joy equal to none other...like at the birth of a child, a child's first words, a "yes" to a marriage proposal, and an "I Do" before God, family and friends. June is a month for celebrating love. Think of the times you have swelled up with emotion so full that you experience "happy tears". A moment when you are so overwhelmed by love... that it leaks out (better the eyes than the bladder!).

Then, there is that most life changing act of love in history. It was the day the Son... who loved us so much... that he would CHOOSE to bear our sins. He carried them to the foot of an old rugged cross and allowed himself to be nailed to that tree so we could be free. Jesus would bear my sin... alone... for my pardon...and yours. Is it any wonder that at the moment of true understanding...confession...repentance and belief that happy tears spring from the well of former brokenness as new life begins? Birth...and rebirth often inspire happy tears.

So...we are to go forth and live our lives not as bears...but as bearers.

In Colossians 3:12, the teaching is to "dress for success." We are to put on "compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience." These are definitely Jesus inspired and Holy Spirit refined character traits. Some are more easily developed than others. Practice. Practice. Practice. The more we "wear them", the more comfortable and naturally they fit.

The clear direction for behavior continues in verse 13:
" Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive."

We are to "bear with one another"...not "bear left" or "bear right"...not be a bear... but "bear with". Apparently, complaints against each other are not new to human behavior...but common enough to be mentioned in this 2000 year old letter. "Forgiving as the Lord has forgiven you." Ouch...the instruction is clear. That "well of brokenness" , that he transforms into a "spring of living water", is supposed to flow with forgiveness, too.

How often did I casually pray "The Lord's Prayer"? Remember this line:
"Forgive us OUR SINS...AS WE FORGIVE those who sin against us?" Think about the implications. If ever the line of a prayer might plant terror in my heart...it would be that one. Forgive me in the same measure that I forgive others. How I shudder at the thought!

Still...it is a key component in the prayer Jesus taught us. It is our "model prayer"...and example... so we know what to include when we pray. It is not magic. It is powerfully transforming. It leads me to infer that the "power of a prayer" and the "act of forgiveness" are stuck together like Gorilla glue... and not to be separated.

We are to be bearers of forgiveness reflecting the forgiveness that we have been granted.

Love bears all things. He is love. He bore all things that we might be free.

Today...I am grateful for bears (at a distance)...for those who forgive the bear in me...and bearers. Especially "The One" who hung on a tree...so we can be free.

Write the Vision

In January 2013, I started a daily "gratitude post" on Facebook.  It started as a "one month" goal of posting something I am thankful for... and then I discovered that an attitude of gratitude changed everything.  At the end of year one...I was going to stop, but as I wrote about stopping...I discovered from the many comments that I was not alone on my gratitude quest...so I've just kept going.  I savor and welcome those who have joined this journey. I relish every comment and "share" when something God put on my heart speaks to another soul... where they are...in the moment... in their walk with Him. We are all pilgrims. Our journeys intersect at home, at work and in cyberspace.

This is a layout I created to go with my gratitude post from a few days ago.  I am entering the world of "Bible Journaling" and this verse is speaking to my heart.  Perhaps it will call to yours as well.  The layout is simple and uncluttered.  I didn't want to lose the message. 

This is old photo of my youngest son...the one who just graduated form high school. I seemed perfect for the verse.  

Daily Gratitude Year 3-Day 140: Today...I am grateful for the simple task of making a list...and writing a vision. 

I am not a big list maker...but as I get older and my memory is less reliable...I find that a simple list is not just convenient, it is necessary. It is quite satisfying to cross something off when it is accomplished. I am planning a graduation party and I need my lists to accomplish the task and reach the goal!

When I make a list that doesn't get accomplished...here is my guilty secret...I will write down what I did instead of what was on the list... just to have the pleasure of crossing it out. Sometimes the day takes us down a different path, but it doesn't mean the tasks completed were unworthy of recognition.

Do we live by lists or do we make lists to help us live? Imagine the day there was no pen and paper at our disposal. No "Post-it notes"?

Habakkuk 2:2-3 is a great pair of verses that I might have to memorize:

And the Lord answered me:“Write the vision; make it plain on tablets,so he may run who reads it.For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie.If it seems slow, wait for it;it will surely come; it will not delay.

WRITE THE VISION! How I love this instruction. I have some instructions posted all around my desk to inspire love and gratitude daily.

SO HE MAY RUN: Sometimes I run...some times I trip!

WHO READS IT: We must read it to find the vision and the path.

FOR STILL THE VISION AWAITS: Find the vision. Even in failure or what feels like failure...there is hope.

ITS APPOINTED TIME: Oh yes...God is not finished with me yet...I am a work in progress and far from perfect.

IT HASTENS TO THE END: As I learn and grow...I do think the little planet spins faster as we get older.

IT WILL NOT LIE - God's plans...His vision...his path is straight and true...even when it seems to zig and zag! HE is the TRUTH.

IF IT SEEMS SLOW - Anyone else feel that arrow straight to their impatient souls, like I did?

WAIT FOR IT...How much longer? I do get impatient. I always say I fail His patience test so He keeps giving it over and over. He is a patient God.

IT WILL SURELY COME - That is a promise you can take to the bank!

IT WILL NOT DELAY - In fact, His perfect plan is in motion, even when we can't see His handwriting on the wall. Will it be "Well done good and faithful servant."?

So what will we do with THIS day. Let us WRITE THE VISION! Write in on our hearts, in the margins of our Bibles (oh yes...it is His living word ready to reveal truth and guidance).

Today I will review my party planning lists...and cross off the things I accomplished. Then, I make another list. Hopefully, it will all come together as envisioned, but even if it doesn't...we will "run with it."

In truth...it is the gathering of friends and family that matters. Making special moments and celebrating accomplishments and relationships is what counts ..not a perfect menu or cute decorations(although I like both of those things).

I am grateful I can WRITE THE VISION and press on toward a goal.

Today...I am grateful for the simple task of making a list...and writing the vision.

Aimed for Monochromatic...

And missed the mark! I really tried to follow a prompt for a  monochromatic layout.  Look at the "Guilty" album by Barbara Streisand and Barry Gibb for inspiration on the power of  white on white.  So...off I went and chose some white elements and began.  '

Add...take away...add take away...next thing I know the white has been swapped out for ecru/neutral tones and the gold paint and glitter have found their way to the page.  Oh well...that is the benefit to a digital page, no mess to clean up.

I am not sure I will use this in his tabletop book of images, but it will get printed for his scrapbook. 

Sometimes, creativity takes you down a different path. :) I say...go with it. Enjoy the ride.

Back to the blog...

It seems that the thing I always have to give up when things get full is this blog.  I have a daily gratitude post on Facebook that is a real commitment and this little creative spot is the last to get my time.  Perhaps, I need to merge them.

I am fortunate to be doing another LOAD(Layout A Day) this month with Lain Ehman and my "Scrap sisters" on line. It is a creative bunch of girls who love story telling.  This time...for the first time...I started giving myself "permission" to skip a day.  My goal is 31 in 31 but with Walker graduating, family visiting, Randy traveling off and on...I will NOT let this hobby I adore take from my family time and making the memories I love to write about.  I am keeping it real and whatever happens, happens. Ahhh....sweet freedom. 

That said...the first day was about "musical style".  I am working almost exclusively on Walker's graduation books - so those stories must by told. Yes...it will be a lot of Walker.  I hope you enjoy his stories and photos for the art and the heart. 

This layout tells of his eclectic music style and uses a great Dr. Seuss quote. It fits him and his crazy shoe pairing.  He wanted to pay homage to his Swedish Roots and to his USA birth. I love his confidence and comfort in being his own person. 

Scrapbooking Technique notes:  I chose papers to compliment the road in the photo.  The accent colors were pulled from the shoes. The photos reflect the quote intentionally. Simple, fast and done!  

What is your music style?  Tell that story, today. 

Valerie