Check your Connections

3/4/10 Have you ever lost connections…….lost service when trying to Twitter……lost a Skype connection in a thunderstorm….lost a signal when texting on your iPhone or mapquesting on your iPod Touch…..lost e-mails on your computer when the server went down…..or lost documents when your hard drive crashed?

The first rule of thumb is to always check your connections. Nowadays some of those connections are no longer tangible like a plug in a socket or a USB port. Reestablishing a connection can be a hassle. Teenagers who are disconnected, even momentarily, often act as if it’s the end of the world.

Mankind is driven to connect. It’s our way of filling that empty space in our lives. Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) called it a ”God shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by any created thing, but only by God....”

Are you trying to fill this void through “virtual” connections? Do you spend vast amounts of time “on-line” in some form or another or with your cell phone glued to your ear? Granted, interaction and dialogue can be attained in a nanosecond…..but these virtual connections can only go so far and can disconnect without warning. We can connect with the Lord just as quickly and that connection is always open as long as we keep a clean heart. Do you need to check your connections? Do you need to reconnect with God? No electronic attachments or cyber service needed. Connect with Him at anytime. How ‘bout today?

The LORD hears when I call to Him. (Psalm 4:3b)

Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not. (Jeremiah 33:3)

Wednesday Confession Guide

3/3/10 O Lord, open my lips,That my mouth may declare Your praise.(Psalm 51:15)
As many know, Wednesdays are all about confessions for me and this one is no different---because I’m dealing with sin, I’m just not sure which one it is. Wonder what the root sin of preoccupation with self, ungrateful spirit, pride, lack of contentment or fear is? Is there one “biggie” for all of these ugly manifestations?
It’s all about lips you see. Mainly mine. Last week I saw two beautiful HHS girls driving by with their lips wrapped around a cigarette and I just wanted to scream out at them----WARNING!! Both your lungs and your lips are at risk. Your young, full, beautiful, laughing lips. Mine aren’t so beautiful----I know…. they are so much better than anyone thought they would be. I also know that I avoid mirrors lately because they remind me of how I really look. A gal who always depended on her smile to get her through life can be a little disheartened when her drooping/stroke-like lips make her want to cover up her new whoppy-jawed weird smile. Yes, I know I smile with my eyes. Yes, I know all the kind words that folks say---what else can one say without being cruel? I know all these things and yet I still struggle with----what is it I struggle with? Self-pity, pride, discontent. Sin---that’s it plain and simple---my focus has wandered again. My remedy: His Word.

Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean, scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life. Tune me in to foot-tapping songs, set these once-broken bones to dancing. Don't look too close for blemishes, give me a clean bill of health. God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life. Don't throw me out with the trash, or fail to breathe holiness in me. Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails! Give me a job teaching rebels your ways so the lost can find their way home. Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God, and I'll sing anthems to your life-giving ways. Unbutton my lips, dear God; I'll let loose with your praise.

(Psalm 51:7, The Message)

My prayer: May I use my lips for Your glory. “My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee; and my soul, which thou hast redeemed.” (Psalm 71:23, KJV) Nothing more is needed. Lord, help me to remember that and be grateful.

"Tea with Thee"

3/2/10 A cup of hot tea (cuppa)   is the ideal accompaniment to my morning routine. Sally B. asked me what would be a good tea? WOW, that’s a hard question----there are so many good choices but each tea lover would probably give a different answer. Black loose tea is usually my preference---a good hearty assam with real sugar and a drop of milk. No cream for me, it masks the flavor. Most teas are a good blend. Just don’t oversteep them. Add more tea, not longer steeping time, otherwise your “cuppa” can be “bittah.” For my recent cold winter mornings I have enjoyed a good Irish Breakfast Tea----Bewley’s, Barry’s or Lyon’s---all good, robust, black tea blends. I probably lean toward Bewley’s because of the memory it evokes---Grafton Street, 1993. Porridge for me---full Irish b’fast for Larry---both served with a pot of their signature tea. Not sure why, but I remember the sign above the entry of this famous Dublin establishment. It said Bewley’s Oriental Café, though there was nothing oriental about it---just a cafeteria-like line, small tables and a bustling atmosphere. Knowing my affinity for their tea, Josh brought me some back from his last trip there. Yum-m-m-m!

There’s just something about starting my day with my fingers wrapped around my warm teacup---most mugs are too big---a devotional book on the chair arm and my Bible open on my lap (the original laptop) that opens my eyes to infinite possibilities. “Tea with Thee.” The best “routine” morning times are like my tea---steeped just right, not rushed. An ordinary cup of tea, my daily Jesus Calling reading, simple scripture verses at my fingertips----ordinary beginnings can make a day extraordinary.

Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee. (Psalm 143:8)

Heart Rending Meditation

3/1/10 The cutting words tore through the fabric of my emotions. How grateful I am for the ONE whose veil was rent on my behalf. Sometimes when the world gets heavy, we need some “heavy” meditation. Today’s verse is just that. Just thinking on it and drawing near has removed the heaviness from my heart.

Hebrews 10:19-22 So, friends, we can now—without hesitation—walk right up to God, into "the Holy Place." Jesus has cleared the way by the blood of his sacrifice, acting as our priest before God. The "curtain" (veil) into God's presence is his body.
So let's do it—full of belief, confident that we're presentable inside and out. Let's keep a firm grip on the promises that keep us going. He always keeps his word. Let's see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out, not avoiding worshiping together as some do but spurring each other on, especially as we see the big Day approaching. (The Message)

"God never gives us discernment in order that we may criticize, but that we may intercede." -- Oswald Chambers

"SIP & SEE"

2/27/10 A “Sip & See” is such a lovely Southern tradition. It gives folks a way to see baby #2 or #3 and delight in his/her arrival. Over a cup of tea or punch, friends and relatives come together to mingle and coo and goo over the family’s recent bundle of joy. It’s a time of celebration for all that a baby represents---from chubby toes and fingers, smacking lips, and sweet smells, (mostly), to purity, innocence and hope. It’s all about the baby. He or she is the focus of the event. Today was Watson’s “sip & see”; I was disappointed to have to miss it.

I thought about it this morning as I sipped my “cuppa” and prayed for this youngster, just over a month old. I was having my own sip and see---a cup of Bewley’s Irish Breakfst Tea in one hand and my prayer journal in the other.
A "spiritual sip and see" is a great way to begin my day. I delight in it---a robust cup of tea, one with a bold smooth flavor. A “cuppa” that’s a real eye-opener to get me focused---so that I have eyes to see the One who is not only pure and innocent but also the hope for eternal life. I’m disappointed if I can't attend.

Friday Frame of Mind

2/26/10 If you’ve ever worked in an educational setting you understand that phrase. When you awaken, you know. You’re step is lighter. The sun is brighter, even if there isn’t any. Dressing is easier because “casual” has been purchased to support St. Jude. All and all one’s mood is pretty upbeat. Those moods based on circumstance can reflect a "Friday Frame of Mind" any day of the week especially when life hands you a little "ease." The facts of Friday that aren’t conditional, it’s always right before the weekend. That thought of 2 days off can make most anything tolerable. Circumstances shouldn’t so greatly affect one’s moods but they can, and often do, whether you work outside the home or not.

So, what can one do about it? Make the most of it!! If you’re feeling good, help someone else feel good. If you find yourself with a lifted spirit because it’s Friday or you are rested or you found a stash of money you had forgotten you hid, use your joy---spread it---do something for someone else’s circumstance that might make their day a little easier or a little brighter. If a friend is struggling with exercise, show up and walk with him or her, a dieting friend might appreciate a cup of tea and a Weight Watchers 1 point snack, a worried friend, who can talk your ear off, might need you to listen just one more time.
Live out the good news. Be a light. Encourage someone. Do good to all especially to those who are partners in the gospel.

But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called "Today," (Hebrews 3:13)

As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith. (Galatians 6:10)

The question is……will you share your “Friday Frame of Mind” while it is still “today” or do you have an excuse.

Monday Mind Seeks Refuge

2/22/10 Our inner refuge is where we go when the world gets to be too much. It’s the place we turn to when the hurts /concerns seem to drive us away. It’s a place without walls. It’s our mind. That’s where our reasoning power resides. It also houses our beliefs and opinions and lots of feelings. To me it can only hold so much---something that seems to lessen with age. Thus it needs to be filled with “worthy” thoughts. A Monday Mind. That’s what meditating Mondays are about---filling our minds with His word which is worthy. We create a refuge of thoughts. Then the right thoughts are there when we need them.

Today fill your mind to capacity with His truth.....

God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear,
though the earth give way
and the mountains fall
into the heart of the sea
though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake
with their surging.

(Psalm 46:1-3)

.....and your mind will find refuge.

FFTF 2 (aka Food for Thought Friday)

2/19/10 Whom would you choose to be chained to 24/7? Why did that person come to mind? How would you bide your time during your “imprisonment?” Would anyone you know choose you, if asked the same question?

My dear friend, who is also doing the Philippians study, and I discussed this question. In Philippians 2:12-14 it describes Paul’s time in chains. The palace/praetorian guard would have been with the prisoner, under house arrest, 24 hours a day. Paul speaks specifically of chains. Thus the question.

You might even ask yourself, what other things in my life am I “chained” to and how are they affecting me?

His Name is........

2/18/10 ........John. Names are important. Adam gave names to all the animals. In Bible study last night we studied Philippians 2:5-11 and recalled that the Father gave the Son the name which is above every name---the name at which every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of the Father. A good name is to be chosen rather than riches. (Proverbs 22:1)

To know someone by name and to be known by others who can call you by name is also a form of richness. Are their people whose paths you cross whose names you don't know---the checkout lady at Kroger or the clerk at the cleaners. Why not take the time to find out. Calling them by name just might make their day.

My mailman's name is John. What's your "postperson's" name?

Z=Zephyr (and you thought we'd never get here)

2/15/10 Last month in God Calling, the “two listeners” were encouraged to “Listen quietly.” “Cultivate silence. God speaks in silences.” A silence, a soft wind. Each can be a message to convey My meaning to the heart, though by no voice, or even word.”

Zephyr is from the Greek word Zephyros meaning a slight wind (usually refreshing). We need to attune ourselves to our Zephyr—whether His nudges are slight breezes or the whirlwind. He’s the wind beneath our wings, the wind in our sail and the wind at our back. He’s always there. We need to live in that truth.

The LORD is slow to anger and great in power,
and the LORD will by no means clear the guilty.
His way is in whirlwind and storm,
and the clouds are the dust of his feet.
(Nahum 1:3, ESV)