Up the Sunbeam

Why Not?

2012-01-25T08:36:00.000-08:00

I can feel my own spine lengthen and stretch in empathic connection with the waves as they rise, and rise, tension building almost to breaking, until they finally arch their backs in defiant determination just before they commit to the forward, crashing, headlong fall into the waiting shoreline. Whatever sand and rocks await them, the water will both surrender and subdue. What is left of the mighty wave when the rocks are done with it? What is sand, but stone pounded fine by crashing waves?

On the same day these giant waves were joyously galloping to shore, risking surrender to subdue, Drummer Boy set out for some beach combing. No matter that his age names him adult, when there is fun to be had on a wide open beach, he is a child at play, imagining all manner of adventures. I think this particular day he was caught somewhere between shipwrecked Robinson Crusoe and an episode of Man vs. Wild where he and Bear Grylls would be in full survival mode, needing to find shelter to stay alive.

The possibilities were endless!

He decided to build something.

He looked.

He planned.

He gathered.

He stuck a stick in the sand . . .

. . . and then another.

He propped and placed and rearranged.

He persevered.

He wove his ideas together and made them real.

He sat down inside his imagination.

He enjoyed the shelter his hard work afforded.

He smiled the smile of satisfaction.

He took his rest after the accomplishment.

Some people look at the world around them and think, "I couldn't possibly."

Some people look at the same world and think, "Why not?"

"For nothing is impossible with God."

Luke 1:37 NLT

There is such excitement in the air! I am feeling that same rising tension of the waves as I am about to arch my back and commit to landing on the shore to both surrender and subdue! Remember that dream I hinted at in my One Word post? This dream, the one I let go of, but wouldn't let go of me, well, it's almost time!

Just at this same moment, my Heavenly Father is surrounding me with people and stories and illustrations that inspire me as I follow Him into the "impossible."

I am so inspired by Angela Zhang, the girl in this video, who looked at a problem that seems pretty impossible and blithely said, "Why not?" I am inspired by two young friends, a brother and sister, who look at the world and see no barriers! I am inspired by Drummer Boy who builds shelters out of sticks and a recording studio out of his dreams! I am inspired by She So Sweet who sets goals and then sets her jaw to make sure she reaches them! I am inspired by my Hero Husband who has vision as big as all outdoors, and the passion to make the vision a reality, all while inspiring everyone he meets!!

I am inspired by Jesus, the One who calls me friend. He saw a world stuck in a life of impossible and He threw Himself and everything He had into coming to our rescue. He surrendered to the limitations of a human body and the pain of the cross so He could subdue sin and death. And then, with salvation won for all who would believe in Him, He sat down at the right hand of His Father, mission accomplished. Oh!

May I just whisper this? I want to inspire. I don't whisper out of self-doubting fear, but in awe, in reverent, holy awe.

It is a great work to inspire others.

I recently heard singer/songwriter, Justin McRoberts, say that "every great work takes the shape of the cross." The shape of the cross is the way of sacrifice, of laying down self, of surrender, of grinding toil and dogged determination and wrung out sweat and tears . . . the shape of the cross is the way of LOVE. Know what else? The shape of the cross is the shape of victory! It is the way of the wave, throwing itself on the rocks, flowing into all the cracks and crevasses and jagged places, wearing rough edges smooth in the crashing.

Even knowing all that it will cost, I still want to inspire.

I want to surrender myself to the challenge and subdue the obstacles through perseverance.

I want the joy of getting to sit down inside my imagination.

Knowing God laughs at the word impossible,

I choose to say, "Why not?"

Is there something on your heart you've been calling impossible?

Who inspires you?

________________________________

A heartfelt thank you to these generous bloggers

who make these communities available!

A Few Words from the Hinterlands

2012-01-22T20:24:00.000-08:00

--
I can hear the telltale clanking.

The monkey wrench has been thrown into the machinery again.

The gears are grinding to a halt, and the flow of words has stopped. I keep anxiously watching like a weary traveler waiting at an empty baggage claim for bags that do not come. I wish I could see down the chute and open everything up to fix the problem.

I wish it was as easy to focus my thoughts as it is to focus my camera.

I flit and flutter, scanning my mind for an idea, just one good idea, to perch upon.

Where, oh where are the words hiding? Why won't they show themselves? What have I done to chase them away, and what can I do to bring them back? Are they alive and green somewhere under the frosty cold?

What if I've already written everything I know? What if there are no more good ideas? What if nothing I say is original or creative or special? What if the keys have gone silent for the last time?

Wistful wishes, wretched what if's, mixed up images, where's, why's and what can I do's--is that all I've got? Is that the best I can do?

One more time I am reminded of my limitations, of the formless, nameless, blank landscape at the outer reaches of me. I hate this place, but when I visit these hinterlands, I discover afresh how lost I would be without the One who is strong in my weakness. And so, I write anyway, haltingly, with grinding gears and clanking metal, offering up what words I can pin down, praying that in the obedience will come the naming.

"Light is sown for the righteous,

And for the upright of heart -- joy."

Psalm 97:11 YLT

The hope of the writer springs eternal . . . at least I think it does. The light is there for me to reap, the joy is there for me to find and the words will come again. God loves words. Surely He must love my loving words, my play and work in words, and even more, my passion for His words. This is not my best post, but neither will it be my last. I have not had my last drop of inspiration, no matter what my what if's wonder.

What do you learn from bouts with writer's block?

How do you break free when you're in the clutches of it?

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Joining Ann Voskamp in counting His graces for her Multitudes on Monday

I hope you'll join in if you haven't already!

In the counting of the endless gifts I say with C. S. Lewis,

"This also is Thou!"
Counting my next 1000 Gifts, joining Ann in The Joy Dare--like a scavenger hunt for graces, gifts and glory!! Wanna come along? I dare ya!!

JANUARY’S JOY DARE:

#1043-1063

15. one thing you wore--the beautiful cross Hero Husband gave me so many years ago--the one I never take off

one thing you gave away--my time

one thing you shared--playoff football with Hero Husband--I never get tired of sharing this love with him

16. 3 ways you witnessed happiness today

First sip of morning coffee

Drummer Boy happy to have figured out his computer trouble

Hero Husband calling to tell me how he had resolved an urgent problem

17. one gift that you made laugh--She So Sweet's pretend scowly-face complete with dimples

one gift that made you pray--the morning news--so much in the world that needs God's touch

one gift that made you quiet--the expectant hush of solitude

18. 3 gifts from God’s Word

" . . . His love endures forever." 1 Chronicles 16:34

" . . . But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is." 1 John 3:2

"For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; " Psalm 91:11

19. a grace in the kitchen--coordinated efforts

a grace in the weather--rain! Finally!! We need it desperately!!

a grace that might never have been--lunch with a good friend

20. 3 gifts you saw only when you got close-up

creamy white nourishment of grains of rice

90% off on some great earbuds

care tag on a sweater that said "Tumble Dry Low" when I didn't have time for line drying

21. one thing in the sky--rain clouds bringing relief to the dry, dry earth

one thing from your memory--the dog I saw yesterday, head out the window of a truck, nose pointed skyward in the rain

one thing that’s ugly-beautiful--a messy kitchen that shows we have more than enough to eat

A heartfelt thank you to these generous bloggerswho make these communities available!

The Father Who Delights

2012-01-14T22:31:00.000-08:00

--
There are few things as toxic to a relationship as disapproval.

Husbands and wives, parents and children, pastors and congregations, employers and employees, teachers and students and among friends--disapproval does damage and leaves wounds that rarely heal on their own. Stories abound of grown men and women who find themselves crippled in their adult lives because on some level, they are still trying to win the approval of fault-finding, never-satisfied parents, sometimes years, even decades after those parents have been laid to rest.

Spirits wither and waste under the harsh, hot glare of disapproval and I pray that as a fallible, imperfect parent, I would not fall into communicating in ways that feel like criticism and disapproval to my children.

Human disapproval is bad enough. What about disapproval from God? Isn't He always stern and endlessly disapproving, looking with disdain and disgust down a long nose and a longer finger, always pointing out our failure?

I hope you don't really believe that!! I sure don't, but isn't that the way He's characterized by the world, and sadly sometimes by the church?

Even if we have studied Scripture and intellectually know better, sometimes we inherently cannot fathom His grace and fall into thinking these fearful things of Him. Remember the wicked servant who was entrusted with one talent by his master? Do you remember the reason he gave for burying the talent instead of investing it to multiply his master's money?

"‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man . . . So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’" Matthew 25:24-25 NIV1984

The funny thing is, it was a complete mis-characterization and misunderstanding of the character of the master that led the servant to live in fear. The master proved himself to be generous in delegating responsibility to those whom He trusted, quick to give credit where credit was due and honorable in rewarding the efforts of his servants. He was not the "hard man" the servant accused him of being. Despite the kind of man the master really was, the servant's projection onto his master of a mean-spirited, hard-hearted, disapproving character caused the servant to be like an intimidated athlete who plays to avoid losing instead of playing to win. It turned out to be an extremely costly mistake and his loss was incalculable.

Relationally speaking, delight is directly across the color wheel from disapproval. Where disapproval leaves wounds, delight binds them up. Where disapproval creates distance, delight invites closeness. Where disapproval poisons communication, delight creates safety. Just ask the two servants who received from their master the enthusiastic, " ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ " Matthew 25:23 ESV

"The LORD directs the steps of the godly.

He delights in every detail of their lives."

Psalm 37:23 NLT

Can we really believe that? WILL we?

It's true.

He means it.

Yes, REALLY!

Like Hero Husband dancing with She So Sweet, the daughter he adores, our Heavenly Father dances with each of us. It is with eyes warm and filled with delight that He looks at us, holding us close to His heart, proud of us and all He is making us to be. We are His GOOD creations, and new creatures in the freedom won by Christ, His Son. Jesus bore all our deserved disapproval from His Father and left in its place God's unbounded joy and delight in calling us His very own.

I know what you're thinking. What about sin? What about God's correction? What about when I'm wrong and blowing it?

Even in His correction of us when we get out of step with Him, His heart's desire is only to resume the dance. If we won't follow His lead, the joy in the dance is lost for both of us, so He corrects, shows us how to get back in time with Him and then whirls us around the dance floor, laughing and loving us right out loud. His delighted Father's heart toward us never leaves!

"So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus."

Romans 8:1 NLT

Even when our behavior displeases Him, it is not because He disapproves of US, it's because He counts as enemy anything that we allow to get in the way of His best for us--unending, uninterrupted communion with Him. THAT is a BIG difference.

And so, there are few things as nourishing to a relationship as delight.

God. Delights. In you!

Is it easy or hard for you to imagine God's delight in you?

What difference does it make to KNOW it's true?

If you have somehow found your way here and you have never met the Father God I write about and you would like to have this kind of relationship with Him, please don't hesitate to email me at fridaydreamer[at]fridaydreaming[dot]com, and I would be privileged to introduce you to the One who longs to delight in you!

________________________________

Joining Ann Voskamp in counting His graces for her Multitudes on Monday

I hope you'll join in if you haven't already!

In the counting of the endless gifts I say with C. S. Lewis,

"This also is Thou!"

Starting my next 1000 Gifts, joining Ann in The Joy Dare--like a scavenger hunt for graces, gifts and glory!! Wanna come along? I dare ya!!

JANUARY’S JOY DARE:

#1025-1042

9. a gift in your hand--my Nikon D70
a gift you walked by--the now clean stairs I finally made it a point to vacuum
a gift you sat with--She So Sweet after school, hearing about her day, laughing
I O. a gift that’s sour--the lemon in my homemade hummus, so tart and tangy
a gift that’s sweet--a gingery dinner
a gift that’s Just. Right.--a golden retriever fetching a big stick and watching him roll in the grass for pure joy
I I . 3 yellow things that strike you as fresh mercy
bowl full of bananas
highlighter ink accenting my schoolwork
She So Sweet in her lemon yellow sweater, lighting up the room before the sun wakes up
12. something above you--a bright white morning moon streaming through She So Sweet's window
something below you--the four fancy wheels, leather comfort, seat warmer and great music in my rolling home-away-from home
something beside you--My tripod
13. 3 sounds you hear
Steel guitar
Drummer Boy's music on my Ipod
The resonance of Hero Husband's voice
14. 3 ways you glimpsed the startling grace of God
Children we can trust
Patience where I didn't expect to see it
Being the object of God's delight

Better late than never I hope, Bonnie! =)

A heartfelt thank you to these generous bloggerswho make these communities available!