The Challenge and The Grace

 

Daily Gratitude Year 13 - Day 217:  Today, I am grateful for the grace to meet the challenge. 

"If God permits a challenge, He will provide the grace to meet it. " -Max Lucado

Max Lucado is one of my favorites! His writings have encouraged and blessed my heart for many years. He has a way of making big concepts simple without losing their meaning and depth.

"So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most." -Hebrews 4:16 (NLT)

Some days have stressful moments. Some weeks seem like they are "too much" to handle. Some seasons are full of challenges. Our God meets us there with a pitcher of grace to refill our empty cups. 

It happens when we remember to meet up with him. Morning, noon, and night, the recharge is available. We can lean into it and rest in the "shelter of His wings." To me, it sounds like a hug when we need it most. 

"So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God."

Such an invitation! Whatever the day, week, month, year, and decade may bring. His grace is sufficient. 

Today, I am grateful for the grace to meet the challenge.

 

Armor over Shackles?

 

Daily Gratitude Year 13 - Day 216:  Today, I am grateful for a choice of armor or shackles. 

I am always finding goodies from Toby Mac. He has a depth to his lyrics that always touch my heart. This quote is short but powerful. 

"Wear your tragedies as armor not shackles." -Toby Mac, #Speak Life 

I am always finding goodies from Toby Mac. He has a depth to his lyrics that always touch my heart. This quote is short but powerful. 

Choice is that special gift God gave humans. Free will. It has been our greatest blessing, and at times a curse. Perhaps, it is what makes God's heart for humans... made in His image... so special in his sight. The heavens and nature obey His commands and instructions. Humans always seem to push the envelope. We can tell God "no."  

Imagine that. It is, also, why He delights in a relationship with us. To be mutually chosen, loved, and treasured is hard to fathom. With our weaknesses and imperfections, He still chooses to love us. 

When Job was suffering, his friends were most supportive by being present. When they opened their mouths, not so much. Although, they did speak some truth in their words, including this verse about who Job was to those around him. 

“In the past you have encouraged many people; you have strengthened those who were weak. Your words have supported those who were falling; you encouraged those with shaky knees." -Job 4: 2-4

Suffering is never pleasant. Grief, loss, financial trials, and other things can change the trajectory of our life plan. It does not change who God is. When we offer our lives as "a living sacrifice" (Romans 8:1), we are empowered, through Christ, to turn our wounds into armor. We can choose trust in our survivorship as an armor. He is our shepherd and our shield. 

Today, I am grateful for a choice of armor over shackles.

 

The Hummingbird's Return

Daily Gratitude Year 13 - Day 215:  Today, I am grateful for the hummingbird's return. 

They are the most magical little birds. They move so quickly it is hard to capture them on camera. I found this incredible image to share. 

Thank you to our local flower shop for giving some great tips on plants that attract them. They like our bright red zinnia blooms. I did not know they liked salvia. (Thanks for the tip, Kinner's Spring Flowers.) 

We hope they will come back the rest of the summer and return next year, too. They enjoyed our pond and the Hosta flowers. Now that we have replaced the pond with cement and furniture, I was afraid they would be history. The zinnias were enough to bring them back, but the salvia may increase our visits.

Our deep desire for the hummingbird's return made me think about passages telling of Christ's return. This one was just right... and coincidentally (or God-wink) we were in Philippians this morning near these verses. 

"so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. Hold firmly to the word of life; then, on the day of Christ’s return, I will be proud that I did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless. But I will rejoice even if I lose my life, pouring it out like a liquid offering to God,[a] just like your faithful service is an offering to God. And I want all of you to share that joy." -Philippians 2:15-17

Are we as excited and hopeful about Christ's return? Are we filled with the wonder of the promise? May we never lose our sense of wonder. Let us remain like children in love with nature...and seniors who slow down to watch the children and the birds. 

Today, I am grateful for the hummingbird's return.

The Rear Guard

 

Daily Gratitude Year 13 - Day 214:  Today, I am grateful for our "rear guard." 

To be guarded is to be fiercely protected. It is not casual. The guardian will do whatever it takes to insure the safety of the one in their care. It is a serious matter. Think team sports, Secret Service, or well-hired security teams. "Who has your back?" It matters. 

I was drawn to this image for the colors... and then I read the passage. It is so upbeat. Then I went to read the Isaiah, to make sure I was not grabbing a passage without context. What a chapter! Most of us love the happy verses. This chapter is half reprimand and half a reminder of God's deep love for us.

“No, this is the kind of fasting I want: 

Free those who are wrongly imprisoned; lighten the burden of those who work for you. Let the oppressed go free, and remove the chains that bind people; Share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help.

"Then your salvation will come like the dawn, and your wounds will quickly heal. Your godliness will lead you forward, and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind. Then when you call, the Lord will answer. 'Yes, I am here,’ he will quickly reply". -Isaiah 58:6-9

I have been praying, brewing, and studying the huge concept of "holy." I am far from done. "What do I know of Holy?" is a song from Addison Road. 

There is so much to unwrap. Isaiah 58 declares who God is, what pleases him, and what he will not tolerate. His love is... as I often say... deep and wide. But there are things His Holiness cannot tolerate. He longs to keep us on the straight path because it is safer, pleasing to Him, and easier to walk. He is our rear guard when dangers arise. The enemy's arrows may hit, but the wounds will heal. He can manage our brokenness, but we have to release it to Him. 

He's got our back!

Today, I am grateful for our "rear guard." 

Kiss the Waves

 

Daily Gratitude Year 13 - Day 213:  Today, I am grateful we can "kiss the waves." 

"I have learned to kiss the waves that throw me up against the Rock of Ages." -Charles Spurgeon

The ocean is a powerful reminder of our smallness. When all you can see from any direction is sea water, it is humbling. The vastness of the ocean reminds us of our smallness. 

I love being by the ocean. The waves lapping the shore keep the beat while birds fly overhead. It is calming. It is the music of the seas. They create a song my ears can hear, my nose can scent, and my soul can feel. 

When storms blow in and the waves grow taller and more fierce as they slap the shore, they can be dangerous. Sailors take to the shore when possible. The beach clears as people take cover. Big waves can be scary. 

Spurgeon's analogy is beautiful. When the waves of life throw us against the rock, we can choose to kiss the waves and cling to the Rock of Ages. There is no safer place to be. 

"Then he asked them, “Where is your faith?” The disciples were terrified and amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “When he gives a command, even the wind and waves obey him!”-Luke 8:25

Two dear friends lost siblings this week. I am grateful that they both know how to "kiss the waves.

Jesus calmed the storm. The Rock of Ages is safe and secure. Cling tight in fearless wonder. Even the wind and waves obey him. 

Today, I am grateful we can "kiss the waves."

The Meaning in the Meantime

Daily Gratitude Year 13 - Day 212:  Today, I am grateful for "The Meaning in the Meantime."

"God help me to see 
...the good in the 'not knowing'
...the joy in the 'in between' and
...the meaning in the 'meantime.'

This prayer is a perfect way to start or end the day. Every chapter in our story has unexpected twists, turns, and unknowns. It is easy to become frustrated. There is a song lyric that says, "God's still writing my story." 

There are times our hearts are wounded, weary, or completely broken. Many people report... and I have known this to be true... in the deepest, darkest disappointments and the loneliest trials, the Holy Spirit wraps us in His love and calms our fears. What the enemies flaming arrows seek to destroy, He protects. We may never know the reason for the trial, but we can find peace hiding behind the shield of His faithful companionship.

"It ain't over until it's over." is the old saying.  What feels like treading water is endurance building. When God seems far away, I always try to ask myself, "Who moved?" I know the answer. It wasn't Him. 

Breathe deep and seek the good in the not knowing when the knowing would be too much. Delight in the littlest joys in the "in between times." Look for the meaning in the waiting. It may be obvious or it may remain a mystery until we have a bird's eye view. In time, we gain perspective. 

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts." -Isaiah 55:8-9

Today, I am grateful for "The Meaning in the Meantime."

Cloud Watching

 

Daily Gratitude Year 13 - Day 211:  Today, I am grateful for cloud watching. 

It is one of summer's delights we leave behind when the season's change. 

I remember laying in the grass watching clouds morph into many different images. I grew up in a world with television. Many generations had only clouds as their moving pictures. 

This image of Curious George made me think "cloud watching." It is always better with a friend, a sibling, or a sweetheart. The heavens really are full of wonder. 

Does God reach out His powerful finger to draw cloud shapes to see if we notice? Is it His breath pushing them across the canvas of blues, yellows, reds, oranges, and grays? The sky is a picture show and the clouds take on ever changing roles in the story. 

Praise the Lord from the earth, you creatures of the ocean depths, fire and hail, snow and clouds, wind and weather that obey him, mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars -Psalm 148:7-9

Take time to do some cloud watching this week. 

Today, I am grateful for cloud watching.