SEEKING

Are you seeking? Busy day ahead? What should one seek first? 

The answer for me was found in the prayer room at church when I was there all alone.

Big! Bold! In plain sight!!

Does that answer your question? It did mine!

FLOURISHING AND FADING

Flowers have many meanings in scripture. They show us God's care and comfort.

"Look at the lilies and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?”  Luke 12:27-28)

Phlox blooms are worth waiting for in the heat of summer.

God's creatures (zebra swallowtail) are nourished by the floral gooseneck.

Evening primrose blossoms as we watch. Ah the joy of that moment each night. Then it fades away & we see it anew the next night.

Phantom hydrangeas in white purity.

Lamb's Ear in side bed reminds us to, "Behold the Lamb of God." (John !:36)

Solomon's Seal and Lenten Roses faded after the spring season. Tthe praying hands hostas died during the Feb. ice storm, the Curly Fries are awaiting transplanting as the summer heat" is roasting them....but the Cross still stands! 

"It (Rose of Sharon) shall blossom abundantly and rejoice with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, the majesty of Carmel and Sharon."(Song of Songs 2:1)

We grow inside and out and bloom with God's care. "God is like dew to His people helping them blossom like flowers, keeping them firmly rooted and fragrant..." (Hosea 14:5-6)

Flowers are given as gifts of love---from the Father above and earthly friends.

Flowers  emphasize the fragility of life.

The grass withers, the flowers fades but the word of our God stands forever. (Isaiah 40:8)

Enjoy every God given moment filled with His creations. (Jeremiah 15:16)

"SONSHINE"

A good beginning to my day starts with a "cuppa."

Today's tea was a much needed black tea with caffeine!

It came came with a message. Its own moniker. "A SIP OF SUNSHINE."

Just what I needed----or thought I needed.

As I picked up my Bible, I knew I needed more. More of Jesus. 

"More of Thee less of me" as a "notation" reminded me.

"I am not enough, but Jesus is." (Cole, 5/8/22)

I'll have a second cuppa and sweeten it with gra-TEA-tude!

SONSHINE! The true sunshine I need in my life comes from Him. 

May God's Son shine through  me today.( Micah 6:8)

GOSPELICIOUS!

"Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him." (Psalm 34:8)

But.....it's important to go beyond that. Let others see the truth of God in you in your actions of taking refuge in Him. 

The gospel being lived out is gospelicious! (my marginalia, Cole '20 ?)

It allows others to see the gospel message in action.

A gospelicious life style draws others to "taste and see".

HA!.....ha....haaah

Hope you are able to make a "right' turn onto this road until I return from Mississippi to finish writing this entry. I know.....it's so me! I keep forgetting to make the "right" turn myself!

For dear friends, Aubrey and Gayle, its' just a right turn and a left turn to the right turn onto Laughter! (Though in MS the word rhymes with slaughter---but not for me!) 

Laughter is contagious. Unlike many COVID19 strains and Omicron BA.5 variants and subvariants that are floating around these days, laughter is worth "catching."

I wish joy and laughter were as easy as a drive down a road. Folks dealing with chronic pain would have this address in their GPS. More often than not....they wear "guilt" over their inability to choose joy as they live with said pain, day in and day out. Pain is no laughing matter!

Old wives tales say it takes more muscles (53) to frown than to smile (12) David H. Song, Chicago plastic surgeon, gives the numbers smile (12)  frown (11). Regardless of the core numbers it takes more effort to frown.

Most folks in ongoing physical pain are not worried about numbers of wrinkles at this chronic stage. Sufferers are grateful for every laugh line that appears!

Relief is at the top of the list. Plus, for Christians, acceptance is key.

Choose joy. We're trying.

Learn life lessons. Okay will try today & ask my prayer warriors to pray. (Psalm 30:2)

Trust God. We're still trusting. (Psalm 62:8)

Share what you are learning as a way to encourage others. (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

Today for my suffering friends I prayed that "joy came with your morning"....despite the pain. (Psalm 30:5) and your "mourning was turned to dancing as our Lord clothed you with gladness for your day." (Psalm 30:

GENTLE AND LOWLY

Gentle and Lowly.Think kind and humble. Merciful coupled with humility. (Matthew 11:29)

Anyone known people described by those adjectives? Sadly, I would not qualify for those descriptors.

Gentle and Lowly. The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers as Dane Ortland's book title says. Sinner. Sufferer. That's me.

Maybe that's why it's so hard for me, a sinner,  to think I receive that kind of love, forgiveness and comfort in my sufferings, over and over from the Lord....from His heart. 

"Perhaps it isn't sin so much as sufferings that cause some of us to question the perseverance of the heart of Christ. As pain piles up, as numbness takes over, as the months go by, at some point the conclusion seems obvious: we have been cast out." (Ortland, p.64-65) What's God's answer to that. "Come unto Me." (Matthew 11:28) He will never cast me out. Jesus never rejects His own.....those who come to Him. (John 6:37)

Ortland goes on to share more comforting words: "For those united to him,  the heart of Jesus is Not a rental; it is your new permanent residence. You are not a tenant, you are a child. His heart is not a ticking time bomb; his heart is the green pastures and still waters of endless reassurances of his presence and comfort... " (Ortland, p.66, emphasis mine)

He is worthy of our worship. May we "Ascribe to the LORD the glory due His name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness." (Psalm 29:2) May I see the beauty and holiness of God today.

Gentle and Lowly, 2 words that succinctly sum up His holiness.

Son Buddy sums up the book in 2 words. "It's rich."

POSSESSIVE APOSTROPHES

Get out your hymnals......

Now that's a statement rarely heard in churches theses days. Usually words are on a screen or written out in the bulletin. Some churches no longer even have hymnals in their pews racks.  For those who know how to read music, I imagine that is a real loss especially if the hymn is unfamiliar to them.

.....and turn to page  517 Taylor said. In FEC hymnal it's listed by title, The Solid Rock.

In my old Cokesbury hymnal at home, it's listed by the first words, My Hope Is Built on p. 24.

Why did Taylor want us to turn to this old familiar hymn of assurance and faith? 

Taylor wanted us to focus on the apostrophe ' after Jesus' name. 

He wanted us to see the duality of the possession indicated by said apostrophe. The hope we have is in Jesus, who not only shed His blood for our salvation but He also imputed His righteousness to us.

Whose are we? We are His Beloved. Ownership of sorts. There is no "Sort of" ownership with Jesus. Believer, we are totally His possession forever. God see us through His Son's righteousness from now until eternity. Hallejujah!

Simply put................apostrophes are punctuation marks (not diacritical markings helpful in accents and appearing over letters) marks to indicate omission of letters/ numbers or to indicate possession.  Only when a word ends in "s" and is possessive does one place the apostrophe outside the "s." 

In the life of a believer that all important possessive apostrophe reminds us we are His. 

Our hope is built on nothing less than that---Jesus' blood and righteousness.

BOTH.....His blood and His righteousness!

GREEDFLATION

Greedflation. Another new word for me. For corporations it can be jacking up prices for impure gain. (New York Times 6/2022) Do they raise prices and then advertise a sale?

For hoarding consumers it can be emptying store shelves, while the getting is good, for their own gains.

Interestingly enough, today is "Prime Time"----Amazon's big, if not BIGGEST, shopping day. Hopefully a day to be frugal not just one of accumulation. Even the frugal might consider sharing their savings with others.

Greed. Certainly not a new concept. Think Me First. Self-centered  All about me.

In our culture it can start around age two. " He won't share" for a toddler means, means "he" has it and I want it. Though the scenario might change the concept is often present, in full measure, during the career years. 

This year golfers are all a "twitter" over the defection from the US tour of some of its members to join the Saudi Arabia LIV tour. Why? 

Three Guesses.....1) $    2) $$   3) $$$   Which has one ask. How much is enough?

Sadly, the answer often remains the same.....always a little more. 

What does God say about greed? It certainly does not define greed as contentment.

Be not eager for money, but eager to serve. (1 Timothy 6:10)

..do not forget to do good and share with others....(Hebrews 13:16)

I say the opposite of greed is selfless.

"Whoever is greedy for unjust gain brings trouble to his family...." Proverbs 15"27a) 

"Keep your life free from the love of money." (Hebrews 13:5)

Don't let "Greedflation" define you as a part of your conversations.

More later.................I would have put I'm going shopping but folks who know me, know I am NOT a shopper! Nothing wrong with shopping, it's just not in my wheelhouse.

SWEET FRIENDSHIP!

A sweet friendship is one that has the added element of fellowship! I t spans time and distance.........even across the pond, the BIG one.

It's what I share with Katya. A friend who gives wise counsel. (Proverbs 1:5) How grateful I am that she is in my life. Her life is a testimony of ministry to others especially during times of trauma. A friend who loves at all times....(Proverbs 17:17)

Her sweet smile radiates from a heart that loves Jesus!

Today might be World Chocolate Day as the sticky on my keyboard attests but there's nothing in the world any sweeter than a friendship with a sister in Christ! TRUE FELLOWSHIP.

WORD PLAY!

Word Play or Play on Words.

Wordsmiths love words. That's a given. Many are also given to playing with words. 

Bananagrams. Boggle. Crosswords, Scrabble. Whirly Word. Words with Friends. (Alphabetized for your convenience)

And oh yea, these days...WORDLE.

Pandemic/ COVID words could qualify for their own dictionary---social-distancing, super spreader and mask-up stand out to me.

Words I saw or heard this past week---Blursday. Flightmare. Staycation.  Stagflation, a period of sluggish economic growth with high inflation....need I say more.

Words so new that auto correct puts a line of red dots under them.

What about the latest craze..........cultural creations. These words come and go based on the "Hot Mess" circumstances in the world.

Trending Now? Too many to recount and most misunderstood by me. Sentient, however is a word used by a google tech man that caused him to lose his job. AI, artificial intelligence, is able to feel, hear, see, smell or taste.

Only God's Word allows me to perceive (sentient) truth as I, by His Spirit, can "taste and see" that the Lord is good: blessed is the man  who trusts in Him. (Psalm 34:8) 

Allow God's Words to play in your mind by the guidance of the Holy Spirit---they will become the joy and delight of your heart. (Jeremiah 15:16)

RX FOR DESPAIR & STRUGGLES

RX---I could post a pic of LOTS of drug and other pain relieving accoutrements but....that would put the focus on me. I don't want my pain, physical and emotional, to be my ID/significance or leverage. 

Instead Psalm 118:5 reminds me, Out of my distress, I called on the Lord: the Lord answered me and set me free. Simply put but truly a 12+ hour struggle for me. But God...was faithful even when I was not.

Jesus Calling Daybrightener 7/5

As Sarah Young puts it, "I can never be in control of my life's circumstances" but I can trust in His control. Seek to know God better. Christ is central. Stop clinging to the old ways. Continue to be on the look out for God's hand and be thankful.

Regardless of which RX verse gives you the most comfort and relief, take it daily with a cuppa Gra-TEA-tude to the One who gives life in abundance! (John 10:10)

CHRISTMAS IN JULY!

Christmas in July!

That's what it looks like at our house.

Just stick a flag in the Christmas poinsettia on the table, have food all over the counter along with a hodgepodge of seasonal napkins, custard stirring on the stovetop and voilà! One difference was the sound of the ice cream freezer whirring because that's where the custard went. 

Freedom was celebrated---Freedom as an American. 

Freedom as a Christian (John 8:36)

Happy 4th, Friends! Oops---day late......&.......you know the rest. 

"So me"--these days!