Marilyn's Mussings

The Gift of Anticipation

2020-12-31T10:03:00.001-06:00

This plant, bursting with potential, was delivered to my door before Christmas. It was my pleasure to observe the progress each day as it became what I knew was going to be beautiful blooms. The daily watch heightened my anticipation for what was to come. I was not disappointed.

There are numerous blessings that God freely gives to us before we know we need them. This year has been a constant reminder of that aspect of God's providence and we have prayed that we not take those precious gifts for granted in the future. But for some blessings, I think God waits for us to know we need them. He gives us time to feel the need and wrestle with our own inability. He waits for us to come to Him. We thought we did that months ago but have felt the need more with each passing day. We purposefully offer the sacrifice of praise. We continue with conviction and anticipation as we look to the One who every good and perfect gift comes from. We look to He who works all things together for good. We look to our Father who does not slumber. Anticipation is a gift that adds tremendous value to its object. Like a child waiting for Christmas, our hope and anticipation is tied directly to the delight at the reception. Our gratitude and praise to Him comes from a heart that knows want.

We were not very far into 2020 when any bad situation was explained by "Well, you know it is 2020." Then came quips like "Let's not set the clocks back for daylight savings time because we don't want to add even one more minute to 2020." And while we have eagerly looked to 2021, our learned cynicism now sneers at the realization that our situation is not the fault of the calendar.

Today is the last day of 2020. My daughter gives me a calendar each year filled with pictures of grandchildren. This year, that calendar is stacked in a 2020 post office somewhere. I do not know what the 2021 calendar looks like but as we turn that virtual page tomorrow, my anticipation is in The Christ. We look to 2021 with hope and anticipation in Jesus. He will not disappoint.

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also given people a sense of who he is. But they can’t completely understand what God has done from beginning to end. (Ecclesiastes 3:11 NIRV)

In His Time

Hebrews 13:15, James 1:17, Romans 8:28, Psalm 121:3

Christmas Isn't Christmas 'till it Happens in Your Heart

2020-12-26T22:48:00.007-06:00

Many years ago, a dear friend of mine sang a Christmas chorus while we were busy about a task. I had never heard the song but the simple chorus caught my attention and touched me deeply. Some time later, we moved and became a part of a church whose tradition it was for the entire congregation to hold hands across the isle and sing a chorus of benediction at the end of each service. It was there that the same Christmas song came into my life again. We sang it every Sunday from Thanksgiving to the New Year. For all the years we worshipped there, tears rolled down my face each time we sang the chorus. Oh how precious Christmas is to us as believers! Click here to hear the whole song.

CHRISTMAS ISN’T CHRISTMAS (Chorus)
by Jimmy and Carol Owens

Christmas isn’t Christmas
Till it happens in your heart.
Somewhere deep inside you
Is where Christmas really starts.
So give your heart to Jesus,
You’ll discover when you do
That it’s Christmas,
Really Christmas for you.

I love that chorus and while I still sing it alone, I miss singing it with fellow believers. I miss holding hands with people I love in Christ while we sing to The Christ. I miss the hands that squeeze at the end of the song, and the hugs. And I miss the encouragement gained from having been together before we depart to the world. Oh that all people would come to experience the richness of knowing the one whose birth we celebrate at Christmas.

Prepare Him Room - The Greatest Love

2020-12-22T10:00:00.221-06:00

Have you ever watched someone with a baby? Oh, the faces, voices and sounds! The love that wells up in us for an innocent baby tends to make our response honest and vulnerable.

What then is our response to baby Jesus?

God lovingly placed a star in the sky the night Jesus was born. Far away in the east, the Magi saw it. Much of what they did involved the stars, so God put that star where they were looking. He meant for them to come. Scripture says they went straight to Jerusalem and asked where the baby was. It must have puzzled them that the religious leaders did not know about the birth of the new King. By now Jesus was no longer a newborn. The religious leaders knew the scripture but were unaware of the Savior.

With new information, the Magi headed to Bethlehem. As they began, that same star reappeared! They followed the star to the exact house in which Jesus lived. There, they bowed down and worshiped the Christ Child.

"Worship" in the ancient Orient, paints a picture of falling on one's knees with forehead to the ground. It is what one would do in the presence of someone they consider vastly superior to themselves. The mental image of the regal Magi with their foreheads pressed to the ground before baby Jesus is powerful. The Magi could not have known what else would come in the life and death of Jesus, but God did, and so, now, do we. So what is our response to baby Jesus this Christmas?

The love that wells up in our vulnerable heart to the Christ Child calls for worship. It leads us to drop to our knees with our forehead to the ground in complete submission. We worship the One who gave His Son, the One who gave His life, the One who loved us with perfect love from the beginning and will to the end. No one in this life deserves that kind of worship except Jesus. He does not demand it, but the love He offers compels us to give Him our heart, our life, our treasures, our all.

Right now, people who love each other are exchanging gifts.

What part of your heart, life or treasure does your love for Jesus compel you to give to Him today?

(Matthew 2:1-12)

Advent 2020 - Dawson Family of Faith

Prepare Him Room - Joy Made Complete

2020-12-15T10:00:00.087-06:00

I love nativity sets. I love each artist's depiction of Mary and Joseph with hearts to follow God, and the sweet baby they both look at adoringly. As we gaze with them, we are acutely aware of what Mary and Joseph knew then, and what the world did not yet know. This baby was the Son of God, Immanuel, Jesus the Christ.

There was no fanfare in the city of Bethlehem the night Jesus was born. Mary and Joseph slipped in so unnoticed that there was not even a place for them to stay. Our Savior's first bed was a manger. It was a non-event for the city. People went about their everyday routine interrupted only by the activities of the day.

The fanfare happened in a nearby field with shepherds and sheep. It was unexpected and sudden. The shepherds found themselves standing in the midst of great light - the glory of the Lord, the manifest presence of God Himself. An angel appeared with a message. It was good news, the best of news, news of great joy for all people. "For Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." (Luke 2:11) Then, just as suddenly as that one angel appeared, a whole multitude of angels appeared. Together, they praised God for the news they themselves delivered. It must have been a spectacular sight!

And then they were gone.

Everything was strangely the same but forever different. With hearts full of joy, the shepherds hurried to Bethlehem, not to see if it was true, but to see what they already knew was true. And there He was. Jesus. Just as they had been told. They returned to their life praising God and sharing with great joy this good news. People were amazed. God was glorified.

It is interesting that the spectacular celebration was for people outside of the miraculous birth. They were uninvolved, but joyful benefactors. We are too - only because someone shared with us this Good News of great joy. Christmas reminds us of the fresh joy His coming brings to a heart without Him.

May the Good News of Christ's birth not be only something we casually retweet with a click.

It is precious and personal, good news of great joy to all people. The perfect gift.

Is the joy in your heart glorifying God and pointing people to the Good News today?

(Luke 2:8-20)

Advent 2020 - Dawson Family of Faith

Prepare Him Room - Eternal Peace

2020-12-08T18:00:00.011-06:00

Have you ever thought that if God would just call you by name and tell you what to do, you would do it?

That’s what happened to Mary.

She was a young, innocent teenage girl when God sent His angel Gabriel to her with a message. He called her name, eased her fear, and told her that God had chosen her to be the mother of the long awaited Messiah. She got important details. The pregnancy will be a work of the Holy Spirit. The baby will be the Son of God. His name will be Jesus. Mary's response was simple and full of peace. "I am God's servant. May it be as you have said."

She got some personal information too. Her relative Elizabeth, who was way too old to have a baby, was six months pregnant. "Nothing is impossible with God." So Mary went to see Elizabeth. It was there, through Elizabeth, that God lovingly confirmed what He was doing in Mary. With the confirmation came more peace for Mary, so much so that it propelled her to song!

God still speaks today. Not audibly, though I believe He could. But because the Holy Spirit lives in us, His voice is always inside us. He speaks through the Bible, through His people, through thoughts and circumstances. There are other ways, but we know it is Him when there is peace, His peace, that is like none other.

So God has called you by name. He has told you what to do. Will you do it?

The scripture says Mary "got ready" after Gabriel left. In the original language that means to "get up, stand up, come back to life." Mary did that quite literally.

What about you?

God is speaking.

Are you Listening?

Do you need to get up and do something?

Do you need to come back to life in Him?

Just as His peace led Mary, He will lead you too.

Let the peace of God rule in your Heart! (Colossians 3:15)

Maybe you've never known that kind of peace. His name is Jesus. He is the Prince of Peace. He lived a perfect life, died for the punishment of our sins, and came alive again to give us life. Just as Mary received Him in her arms that first Christmas, people all over the world have received Him in their hearts since then. The invitation and the gift this Christmas is for you. Is there room in your heart? He comes with peace.

(Luke 1:26-56)

Advent 2020 - Dawson Family of Faith

Prepare Him Room - Certain Hope

2020-12-01T08:38:00.010-06:00

Did you have plans? Then something unexpected happened?

Joseph had plans. He was going to make Mary his wife and they would have a life like those around him. Yes, he was of the line of David, but so many others were as well. He surely had no idea how that detail would play into his future.

And then he found out his anticipated bride was pregnant. In kindness he prepared to remove himself from her quietly, but before he could, an angel came to him in a dream and stopped him. The baby Mary carried was from the Holy Spirit. This was the sign Isaiah told us would come. Imagine the intimacy both Joseph and Mary felt when God revealed that long awaited sign to them personally. Oh, the hope that must have swelled in their hearts!

And now that God-given hope would empower Joseph through the coming hurdles. With purposeful obedience amidst the hushed voices around him and the questions within him, he proceeded. He journeyed to Bethlehem with Mary, full term, and found there was no place to stay in the crowded city. Another hurdle. But God, his God, the One in whom he had placed his hope, provided a place for them. It was there that baby Jesus came into this world, just as it had been prophesied.

We make plans and many times something unexpected happens. Then what? How do we prepare for those times? The answer is to trust God's plan and keep our hope in Him. Notice that God Himself did the preparing for Joseph. It was God who put Joseph in the line of David and got he and Mary to Bethlehem and all the details in between. Joseph’s plans changed but God’s plans for him never did. Joseph placed his hope in the One who could. It is He who works in us too. Our hope is in Him. He will not disappoint.

The hope in us - Jesus Christ

Have you received the message of hope that comes from the life, death and resurrection of Jesus?

Ask God to help you remove any "no vacancy" signs in your life and help you experience the hope of Christ Jesus today.

(Luke 2:1-7, Matthew 1:20b-21, 23, Isaiah 7:14, Philippians 2:13)

Advent 2020 - Dawson Family of Faith

Your God Shall Be My God

2020-11-17T20:00:00.002-06:00

Have you ever pondered exactly when Ruth became a believer?

Naomi had two daughters-in-law. Scripture is clear that they both had a good relationship with Naomi. She was special to them in that she was the mother of their husbands. But upon the death of those men, they were forced to walk together through a tragedy like none other. The shared grief must have fostered a unique kind of closeness between the three women.

When Naomi decided to go home to Bethlehem, she encouraged the two young women to go back to their own homes in Moab. "May the Lord show kindness to you, as you have shown to your dead and to me. May the Lord grant that each of you will find rest in the home of another husband." (Ruth 1:8b-9 NIV)

Scripture says that she kissed them but they wept aloud as they protested. After some discussion, the one daughter-in-law, while weeping, kissed Naomi and left. She loved her and maybe it was hard, but she left all the same. Ruth stayed. Scripture says she clung to Naomi. Naomi said "Look, your sister-in-law is going back to her people and her gods. Go back with her." (v.15)

Ruth's response? “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God." (Ruth 1:16)

This was a life changing moment for Ruth. She was a Moabite. Here sister-in-law went back to her Moabite people and her Moabite gods. Ruth said that Naomi's God, would be her God. It brings tears to my eyes as I type these words. Ruth chose our God, The One True God!

But don't miss this: The God Ruth chose, she also identified with Naomi, her mother-in-law. What did Ruth see in Naomi that would make her choose her God? Naomi had surely shared her God with the women her sons loved. Maybe this was a test for Ruth. Whether it was a confirmation or fresh, Ruth took a bold step of faith. She wanted more of The One True God.

I love the stories of how God uses a mother-in-law to bring a daughter-in-law into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, much like in Ruth chapter one. The more common and less flashy stories are the natural mentoring relationships that are possible for two believing women. The rest of the book of Ruth shows a beautiful picture of that kind of relationship.

The challenge for us is obvious. When the other part of our mother/daughter-in-law relationship spends time with us, what do they see? Not what do I see. What do they see? Do they want more of our Jesus? Don't we want that most of all?

When your God is my God, that is our most important shared love.

My son, your husband is a wonderful addition.

What Does "Your People Shall Be My People" Look Like?

2020-11-11T14:00:00.067-06:00

When Ruth said to Naomi, "Your people shall be my people," neither of them were thinking about where they would spend Thanksgiving or which traditions they would hold on to for Christmas. But those decisions have the potential to crumble mountains in some families. Decisions about the holidays may be the hardest "in-law" test for new couples and their parents. From what I have observed, the mothers-in-law that navigate holidays the best are those who had the most heartache as daughters-in-law. The difficulty they experienced seems to make them the most gracious to the new couple.

Holidays are hard. My first thanksgiving with my husband's family was a bit of a shock. Everything was completely foreign to what I knew and I wanted to cry. Every couple's prior holiday experiences are different and both assume that what they came from is the right way. They will need time to adjust and figure out what their own holidays will look like. I came to appreciate the Johnson family gatherings and the relationships that were nurtured and celebrated in what, to me, was a very different arena. For the young couple, "your people shall be my people" implies a desire to participate to some extent in extended family gatherings, no matter how different.

Many of the traditions that are precious to us are tied to experiences shared only by the family. Late one busy Christmas Eve, we were hungry, had nothing for dinner, and the fast food places were soon closing. My husband headed to our favorite chicken place and lined up last in the drive-through line. When he pulled up to the window, they handed him some semblance of what he ordered, and to make up for what was lacking, handed him additional bags of chicken, biscuits and fries. They were ready to close. The daddy of our family came home looking proud that he had scored a big win and the kids cheered. That began our tradition of eating fried chicken every Christmas Eve.

The story itself is silly and as I look back I think about things like...there were only four of us and the kids were little, just how much extra chicken did they give us? The amount of chicken may have grown with each telling. But still, when someone says "remember that Christmas Eve when..." I am carried back to the reaction of each person, and the delight and laughter at the simple surprise. It is a fun memory for the four of us and even though the new members of our family were not there, "your people shall be my people" bids them to imagine bags of chicken, laugh with us, and eat fried chicken.

But new memories come quickly. The first Christmas with both our son-in-law and daughter-in-law while I was trying to figure out my empty nest, the kids came home to decorate for Christmas. Our son and son-in-law, cut from the same cloth, played off of each other in a way that was entertaining to all of us. Our daughter and daughter-in-law joined them and enhanced the play. It was nothing like all the years prior. The Christmas music that used to play in the background was replaced by the guys finishing quotes for each other from sitcoms and Christmas movies. What once entailed remembering each Hallmark ornament and telling stories as we opened them, was now "Hey! Let's decorate the tree with the Christmas stuffed animals!" The memory still makes me laugh. Decorating for Christmas has never been the same. But my family is not the same. Every memory added to memory underpins who we are.

Once again, it's the relationship.

And when they start their own traditions that embody so much of what they learned as you watched them grow in their faith, you get to see, because you are their people.

"Your people shall be my people." What a blessing!

Sometimes You Need an Interpreter

2020-11-05T14:00:00.000-06:00

Entreat me not to leave you,
Or to turn back from following after you;
For wherever you go, I will go;
And wherever you lodge, I will lodge;
Your people shall be my people,
And your God, my God.

Ruth 1:16

The many years of history you shared with your son have built the relationship you have with him now. The years were full of happy, caring and loving experiences, as well as hard experiences. You went through them together. You also had misunderstandings the two of you wrestled with and resolved. That combination fostered the strong, trusting relationship you both enjoy. You know his heart and he knows yours. Communication at this point in your lives is easy.

Your time with your son's wife is obviously quite a bit shorter and is at least in some part filtered through your son. As much as you may want it, your relationship with her will never be what she has experienced with her own mother. You just don't have that history. Still, your relationship with her has its own unique place and your desire and her's is to enjoy a strong trusting relationship with good communication.

That desire is a great beginning but not without difficulties. The insecurities of a relatively new relationship may skew the intent of words spoken. It is possible for either of you to say something that is misunderstood or that triggers something not known from the past.

After Naomi lost her husband and both sons, she was clearly bitter while feeling both old and useless. She made plans to go home to Bethlehem and encouraged both her daughters-in-law to do the same. But Ruth wanted desperately to stay with Naomi. Naomi was now, the only living connection she had with her late husband.

They had grief in common, but the seasons of life were different, and how they dealt with grief was different. This caused a disconnect in communication.

If Ruth's husband had still been alive, maybe he would have said the following to each of them:

"Ruth, mom is really at a bad place since Dad died. She is telling you to go home because she wants you to have a good life and she feels old and useless."

"Mom, Ruth really wants to be a part of your family and have a relationship with you. She feels like you don't want her and are pushing her away."

Ruth's husband was no longer living and could not help, but your son can. He is in a unique position. The love he has for both of you gives him an ability that no one else in your lives possess, not to fix communication problems, but to put them in context. He knows the heart of his wife and the heart of his mother. He has the ear of both and the trust of both. There is an interpretation that he can offer to both women regarding intent and motive and it is valuable. When the women desire to have a close relationship, they will be able to receive his interpretation as helping their communication and not see it as him taking sides. Eventually the two women will build a long history with a strong, trusting relationship of their own. What a gift to the man they both love.

May we always listen with ears attuned to the other woman's world and offer grace.

Autumn is Peeking in my Window

2020-11-01T16:01:00.000-06:00

Autumn is peeking in my window and while the air is crisp and cool, my heart is warmed at the sight. The beautiful trees that have been slow to cooperate with the calendar show vibrant colors that contradict the loss of life within. It is the rhythm of the seasons and it reminds us that our sovereign God controls the universe.

There is a rest in Autumn unlike the other seasons. It is as if the activity of summer stops to regroup and shift gears, carving out a time of quiet that is full of expectation. The stores declare that Christmas is nudging its way in, but we refuse to listen. We need the sabbath of Autumn.

The change in season doesn't last long but if we want it, Autumn offers a time of relative calm, and renewed perspective. The season itself prompts us to look outward, beyond ourselves, and forward to all that is coming. The sights and smells stir up the heart's memory and bend us toward thankfulness. One of the constants in our life, no matter how we have celebrated it in the past, is Thanksgiving Day and the heart of that day drives this season.

On the first Thanksgiving, the centerpiece of the day was a shared meal. It still is. It is a meal for which someone lovingly planned and prepared, with familiar smells and tastes that define the day. But Thanksgiving is so much more than a meal, it is about relationships. The request to share a meal with someone expresses a desire for a relationship or to nurture and grow an already established relationship. So as we gathering around the Thanksgiving table with those precious to us, may we always feel the impact of the invitation and the privilege of who is there. It is humbling indeed, to be invited to share the Thanksgiving meal with those who are not family. Equally as powerful is the participation in serving a Thanksgiving meal to those who are without family.

The Thanksgiving setting is the perfect environment for conscious thoughts and recognitions of what and whom we are thankful. At our house, each person's plate holds a few kernels of dried corn. Before the meal, we pass around a small terra cotta bowl holding corn from years past. Each person in turn adds their kernels to the bowl while offering words of thanksgiving. We then bow before the One we are most thankful for and acknowledge that every good and perfect gift comes from Him.

My heart is full of anticipation even now. I can miss a lot of annual events in my life, but please don't let me miss Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving anchors my perspective for all that will follow.

Immediately after the meal, a lazy transition to the rest of the day settles in, accompanied by the sweet recognition that Christmas is on the way. Now starts the anticipation of the coming of the Christ child. Our sabbath is obviously over as the planning and decorating begin and our rested senses are heightened with excitement!

Jesus Himself invites you to the table. He desires a relationship with you.

Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. (Revelation 3:20 NKJV)

Lessons From Naomi and Ruth - It's a Foreign Land

2020-10-23T23:00:00.003-05:00

Entreat me not to leave you,

Or to turn back from following after you;

For wherever you go, I will go;

And wherever you lodge, I will lodge;

Your people shall be my people,

And your God, my God.

Ruth 1:16 NKJV

During the late 1970's and early 1980's, this was a much loved scripture chosen many times to be read at weddings. As a young woman, I too loved it and thought it to be romantic. The fact that it was in the Bible made it all the better. While these words are beautiful when read aloud and are certainly fitting for a wedding, the context of the scripture is not about a marriage relationship at all. They are words spoken by a woman to her mother-in-law. The life story of that woman, Ruth and her mother-in-law, Naomi, is written in the Old Testament book of Ruth. God used the lives of these real women to tell about the coming Christ, our Redeemer, who would come years later from the lineage of Ruth.

Naomi, her husband and two sons found themselves in the midst of a famine and moved to a foreign land. While there, the two sons married women from that land. Tragically, Naomi's husband and two sons died, leaving Naomi, Ruth and her other daughter-in-law alone. While Naomi was making plans to go home to Bethlehem, the other daughter-in-law went home to her own family. Naomi tried to convince Ruth to do the same but she chose to stay with Naomi instead. The scripture above is part of the words she then spoke to her mother-in-law.

So there the two of them were, Naomi in a foreign land, but home to her daughter-in-law, about to embark on a trip to Bethlehem, home for Naomi but foreign to Ruth. That’s where we start too. Wherever you are with your daughter-in-law, her world or yours, it is foreign for one of you. What you share, however, is the earnest desire to include and be included in each other’s world.

The pressure of that mutual desire sometimes inadvertently nudges the two of you into unexpected moments of awkwardness. Differences, even nuances, suddenly scream for attention in the middle of a pleasant visit. Early on, I told my daughter-in-law that we would teach her to be a night person. In my eagerness to convey to her that she was one of us, I unwittingly made her feel just the opposite. She is most definitely one of us and it has nothing to do with something as trivial as bedtime. I am thankful for the grace she continues to extend to me and thankful also, that she feels comfortable in my house to go to bed at her choosing.

The biggest thing you have in common is your son and your love for him. Strangely enough, he is also your biggest difference. You both are women and you both love him dearly, but your roles in his life are strikingly different. Scripture says that he is to leave your home and cleave to his wife, your daughter-in-law. You, of course, want that for him. The love of a mother and her child is God ordained and also "till death do us part." The marriage relationship will never replace it, there is no competition, but it is the marriage that shows the relationship between Christ and His church and it must come first. Just like the real lives of Ruth and Naomi, God wants to use the real life of your son and his wife to tell people about Himself and the gospel.

When he said “I do,” he stepped into a world that is foreign to you, but is now his home. You took a step too, though few noticed, from Mother-of-the-Groom to Mother-in-Law. The role we love, Mother, is the bridge between them, and is who you are as you join with your daughter-in-law to build a bridge between your two worlds.

The earnest desire to include and be included...

that's not law, it's love.

Suddenly You Are A Mother-in-Law

2020-10-19T23:00:00.031-05:00

From the moment they put him in your arms, he captured your heart. You wondered how it was possible to instantly love him so much. But you did, and it was wonderfully satisfying. You were forever a willing captive to that love. You took that precious blue bundle home and showered him with love, kisses and snuggles. The two of you began a journey in which your lives would forever be intertwined.

By the time he was a toddler, he was your little man. You cared for him, prayed for him and supported him in every aspect of his life. You were there when he fell off his big wheel, kicked the soccer ball and struggled with his math facts. When he asked Jesus to come into his heart, you were there too and you got to watch him grow in his faith. You prayed him through middle school and prayed for the woman he would marry. In what seemed like a blink of the eye, your little man became a responsible, accomplished grown man.

Somewhere close to the same time that you were snuggling with your blue bundle, there was a pink bundle. She too, was precious to her mother, and was showered with love and kisses. She too, forever changed the life of her mother. Like your little man, this little lady grew and had life experiences that would shape her adult life. She most likely dreamed about the man with whom she would spend the rest of her life. Then, God’s providence brought her to your son, they fell in love, and they got married.

What starts out as one life forever changed by the birth of a child, multiplies as life continues. A mother’s love for her child is tremendous, fierce and God given. It impacts the rest of her life and his as she pours that love into the life of her son. The exponential impact from that one life happens when his life is joined with his wife and the somewhat parallel relationship between her and her mother.

When two people marry, the love, new relationships and changes for both families, come down like unexpected rain in a sun drenched, massive cornfield. It is surprising but refreshing. Even when it's uncomfortable, you adjust, because you don't want to miss it. Just like the rain, it is a God given blessing. Remember that blue bundle you received? It too was surprising but refreshing. At times it was uncomfortable, but you adjusted because there is no way you would ever choose to miss one minute.

So, here you are in that corn field, lifting your face to the sky, stretching your arms wide and receiving what God has given you. There is no way you want to miss it!

I thank God for the blessing of you Kassi!

I love you!

Am I At The Right Place?

2020-10-04T20:37:00.001-05:00

While I was teaching at Jacksonville State University, students many times would wait after class to ask questions. One day a young man approached me with quite a different question. "You are a Christian, aren't you?" he said. During the conversation that followed, I learned that he too was a believer in Jesus Christ and we formed a friendship. He had an elderly grandmother who lived in Gadsden, where I lived, and she was a member of Twelfth Street Baptist Church, where my membership was. She had been a shut-in for some time and I had never met her.

A few years after John graduated, his grandmother died and I went to the funeral home hoping to see him and offer my condolences. I walked into the parlor where her family was receiving friends and did not see John. I had not so much as seen a picture of her or any other member of the family. I suddenly panicked and wondered if I had walked into the wrong place!

That's a little bit how I felt this morning when we went to church for the first time since March. Am I at the right place?

I certainly felt safe. All the doors were open, the pews that were acceptable to sit on had cardboard spacers and everyone in the congregation had on a mask. But those masks coupled with the the distance kept me from recognizing anyone there. The familiar feeling of the building bursting with the church family was missing. The familiar visual of hugs and smiles was missing, and the familiar sound of conversation and laughter was missing. I so wanted to be back at church but my heart was scattered.

I decided that I would make a concerted effort to settle into this one more, crazy, new reality and tried to focus. In a few minutes we began to sing (through masks...sigh) Phil Wickham's "Living Hope." These words brought me to tears and back to my real reality:

Then came the morning that sealed the promise
Your buried body began to breathe
Out of the silence, the Roaring Lion
Declared the grave has no claim on me

Praise God! Jesus Christ who died for me is alive! God used that song to touch my heart and bring it to Him in worship. He had waited patiently.

The most important element this morning was Jesus and He was not missing at all. The other important element was my heart and it was hovering at the door. I was so distracted by what wasn't there that I almost missed Jesus.

Jesus is the same no matter what, no matter when, no matter where. Lord God, during these unprecedented times, give us a heart for worship - no matter what, no matter when, no matter where...even with our socially distanced and masked church family.

Do We Need a Priest?

2020-09-29T21:50:00.005-05:00

We were living in Japan in the Fall of 1967 and Billy Graham was coming to Tokyo. The whole church buzzed with excitement. As they made plans to take a group each night, I made plans to invite my friend Maya. Maya did not attend our church, her family was Catholic, but she was a good friend and I loved her. She was as excited as I was at the prospect of an adventure to Tokyo and ran into her house to ask her mother if she could go. Maya's mother said yes, but with one requirement. She had to go to confession first.

My 11 year old mind was puzzled. Not knowing the mind of her mother, I still wonder if she wanted to make sure Maya was all "confessed up" before going to a religious gathering, or if it was such a bad thing to go hear the protestant evangelist that she needed to confess ahead of time. So I dismissed the whole priest thing at that point and decided that was for Catholics and the Old Testament.

You can do that for a while...until you read Hebrews.

God began appointing priests in the Old Testament to represent the people to our Holy God. But those priests were just a shadow of who was to come. Jesus, the Son of God, is our High Priest. Jesus represents us to our Holy God as He sits at His right hand. While the priests could sympathize with the people they represented because they were mere men, Jesus sympathizes with us because He came to earth as a man, faced our same temptations but never sinned.

The priests offered sacrifices for the sins of the people but not until after they offered sacrifices for their own sins. Jesus had no sin, so no sacrifice was needed for Him, but He as our High Priest, has made the sacrifice for our sins. The priests made many sacrifices. Jesus only made one. It would be a perfect sacrifice that would forever end the need for sacrifices and it would be costly. It would need to be a sacrifice that would satisfy the wrath of God for our sins. Our sins deserve death. It would have to be perfection. It could only be Jesus Himself. No thing, no animal, no person would be enough. Jesus, our High Priest gave the sacrifice of Himself and on the cross, He died a most cruel death. For me. God the Father received the death of Jesus as payment for my sins. Three days later God raised Him from the dead. Oh what a Savior!

Do we need a priest? Oh yes, and His name is Jesus!

I hope my friend Maya knows Jesus as her priest. I hope you do too.

Earlier there were a lot of priests, for they died and had to be replaced. But Jesus’ priesthood is permanent. He’s there from now to eternity to save everyone who comes to God through him, always on the job to speak up for them. Hebrews 7:23-25 (The Message)

Who Can "Read" You?

2020-09-22T21:00:00.001-05:00

It was Leah's birthday and her big present was a new desk for her room. Stephen was four and very excited to be in on the secret. We emphasized over and over that he was not to tell Leah about the gift. That evening, the cake was set before her and the candles were lit. Before we could sing the first note of "Happy Birthday," Stephen blurted out "We got you a present and it's not a desk!"

Kids are easy to read, so much so that many times there's no reading involved, just listening. Adults, however are much more savvy. Knocks in life teach us to hide thoughts and feelings that might make us vulnerable. Even in our inner dialog, we may question, spin, and justify motives until we have masked the truth from ourselves. God knows, but a busy life is fertile soil for not acknowledging Him in those matters.

Hebrews 4:12 is a verse we all love and many have memorized.

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword.

It speaks of the power of the Word of God. It says the Bible is His living Word, present tense. It prompts us to pray scripture because it is effective. His Word is our sword, our offensive weapon in this world.

But that's not the whole verse.

...piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow,

and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

This is harder to grasp. What is that two-edged sword doing when it is piercing and dividing?

The Word of God is certainly invasive and it penetrates our life. It is not meant to be just academic. That last phrase says the sword is discerning the thoughts and intentions of my heart. The thoughts and intentions I justified and tucked away. His Word, the powerful Word of God does that. Mohler said that when we read scripture as we should, scripture reads us to us. This is not academic but personal. "Scripture untangles the human heart and unearths sin like no other book can."

Who is able to read you? The Father reads you well. You know that. But His Word is powerful enough to read you too, even the things no one else sees, the things you decided not to see. After all, it is alive and He is the author. Praise God that in His mercy, He uses scripture to untangle our human heart and show us where we fall short. May we meet Him in His Word and let Him speak to us through it. That's where we find a personal, authentic and growing relationship with Him.

We Love Our Grandchildren When We Love and Support Their Parents

2020-09-15T17:47:00.002-05:00

Being a mother is a journey. The responsibility is huge, but the joy is even greater. At the outset, our lives are immediately and forever changed because our hearts are involved in a different way than ever before. The change prepares us for the trip but also makes us vulnerable along the way. As we go, we bask on the mountaintops of exceeding joy and struggle through the valleys of difficulty. The shared adventures of happiness, sadness, laughter and tears, provide a strong bond for the family of origin.

When our children marry, our journey changes but is not over. It is enriched, first by their spouses, then by their children. Just as the mother's family multiplies, so does her love. The heart has a great capacity to love. Our children's spouses are a treasured part of our family and we receive them with joy. But the excessive and outrageous love one feels for a grandchild is a mystery. Mixed up in there somewhere is the inseparable love for their parents. Where one stops and the other ends is not detectable. We love our children when we love their children and we love our grandchildren when we love and support their parents. The role of grandmother doesn't replace the role of mother, it gives it another dimension. Mothering your grandchild's mother is an act of love displayed through nurturing. What an honor!

Do you know the story of Rizpah in 2 Samuel 21? She is not well known and it might be easy to miss her in scripture. Her sons were hung on a mountain for something they did not do. Her sacrificial love prompted her to stop her life for what was probably about six months. During that time, in love she protected their bodies from vultures and wild animals. She faithfully stayed with them until the king came to bury their bodies. She was a mother.

There is one that loves more than a mother. His name is Jesus! He died for sins He did not commit and lives again! He did it all. Sacrifice, protection, faithfulness, unconditional love, giving up His life for someone else. We can know Him better through our human efforts in the role of a mother. But He did it with perfection!

I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms

(Ephesians 1:18-20 NIV)

What Your Grandchild's Mother Want Most From You Is Unconditional Love

2020-09-08T10:42:00.002-05:00

Before I began writing about mothering mothers, I survey between forty and fifty young mothers. I asked them to tell me what they need from their mothers and mothers-in-law. They were to include both things they need and have, and things they need but do not have. I found their comments to fall into four general categories:

Affirmation and Encouragement
Boundaries
Help
Unconditional Love

By far the most comments were about unconditional love. What a great reminder. The unconditional love that flooded our hearts when we became mothers is still what they crave most. A fresh reading of 1 Corinthians 13 as the mother of a mother is powerful!

Love and pray for them as they make decisions and establish their own traditions. Support them as they blend two new families in a world that differs from the one in which they were raised. Loving them unconditionally through this process will provide them not only affirmation, but security also. Offer them advice when asked but tell them often that they are loved. Assure them that there is no condition in which your love will be withdrawn.

What I heard the young mothers say was "Love me! Love my child!" So I will finish with more comments from their own hearts. As you read this small sampling, listen with your heart - the heart of a mother.

Love Me:
"I need her to love me unconditionally. To really love me."

"I need love. I need to know they love me even when I am hard to love."

"Remember that I am a broken, sinful, imperfect person. Be merciful with me and forgiving."

"Say I love you."

"I need her to approve of my husband and support him."

"Be there to talk when I need it."

"Call me to keep in touch because sometimes I forget to call."

"She is real with me. I don't feel like she is unapproachable about things. I can talk to her because she doesn't judge me or make me feel stupid."

"Do not expect me to trust you when you have not attempted to get to know me during our marriage and all of a sudden have a great interest in being my friend after a baby arrives."

"Treat the son or daughter-in-law much like the real daughter or son. There will always be a difference but it is nice to feel included. . . Talk about the other side of the family to the child. . . Ask about [their] family."

Love My Child:
"Listen to me brag on my baby without comparing to the other grandbaby. Totally ok if you do it in your head."

"Be excited about the first word, step, smile, even though you have already experienced it before."

"I need her to WANT to spend time with me and the kids."

"She never tires of my children. I know that she gets worn out sometimes . . . but she never acts like she would rather be somewhere else with someone else."

"To a grandmother who has multiple grandchildren . . . try and give them equal attention/love . . . It can divide families and hurt feelings if one grandchild has all the photos in the house, etc."

"If you are wanting to keep the grandchild, don't wait to be asked, offer. If you don't . . . it appears you don't want to . . .we won't ask because we don't want you to feel obligated."

Your Grandchild's Mother Needs Help

2020-09-01T12:36:00.010-05:00

I remember the first time I took my sixteen-month-old grandson to lunch. It was our first excursion for just the two of us and I was so delighted to spend time with the little man. But oh my! I had forgotten how much was involved. It began with me juggling Jonathan, money, and mandarin oranges at the cash register, and ended with renegade milk leaping into the air while I grabbed for my running toddler!

Mothers need help! But asking for help is sometimes difficult. In What Every Mom Needs, Elisa Morgan and Carol Kuykendall recognize that "most of us go to great lengths on our own before actually asking for help." The reasons for this are varied but most boil down to a feeling of guilt. Somehow we as mothers think we should be able to do it all, that other mothers do it all, and we are expected to do it all. We reason, "we've made the choice to be mothers, and now we will deal with whatever motherhood throws our way." Life situations from unexpected pregnancy to medical help for conception add to that mindset in their own way.

Asking may be hard because she fears judgment, has a hard time letting go of control, or is simply too busy to ask. Whatever the reason, meet her where she is. Ask how you can help the young mother in your life and keep listening even if she tells you she doesn't need anything. Find out if she is more comfortable with you helping wherever you see a need or if she prefers to tell you specifics. Make it safe for her but be assured that she needs help. If you need to be asked before you feel comfortable helping, tell her. Good communications is key for both parties.

In surveying young mothers, I gathered a list of how mothers need help and how they have been helped by mothers. It was extensive and touching. But the general theme was as follows. "Offer Help. Don't wait to be asked. Anything helps. Anything you like to do and want to do is appreciated." There was also appreciation for unsolicited help. "Every time I had my plate full she was there to lend a hand." Here are a few other comments.

"A mom who is willing to rock, pace, sing to a colicky baby even though none of it helps. She smiles as if she is having the time of her life."

"Amazing willingness to come and help any time of the day at the drop of a hat."

"Babysit and allow time for us to build our marriage relationship."

"Spiritually I see her teaching me how to teach my child."

I also received many comments about mothers help with cooking, gardening, decorating, sewing, parenting advice, childcare, laundry, and sick children.

You have great value and she wants to know what you know!

Healthy Boundaries Yield Healthy Relationships

2020-08-25T15:36:00.001-05:00

The powerful influence of a mother in a woman’s life cannot be overstated. She longs for your affirmation and will receive it partly in how you exhibit trust in her by respecting the choices she makes as a mother. It is important to remember that God has entrusted your grandchild to his parents. They are a team, responsible to each other and to God. When they make decisions that differ from their family of origin, no judgment or criticism should be implied. Just as we stood on the sidelines cheering them on as they worked together with sports or academic teams, encouragement and support from us is most effective. They are directly involved in the "game" and God Himself is their "coach."

While we resist the temptation to correct or criticize the parenting style, if the child’s well-being is in danger she should be told. She wants that. One mother said "Tell me if I am making a horrible mistake!" However, most of what we want to share is preference and experiences. I sang an eleven word song to my daughter-in-law that I had authored during a desperate moment with my first-born. I told her how I continued to sing it to both children for many of their first years and how it was an immediate comfort to them. I laughed at myself afterward, wondering if I sounded like there was magic in the words and tune that she needed from me. She told me later that singing "Mommy, Mommy Crockett" to the tune of "Davey Crockett" calmed her own newborn. They are developing preferences and experiences of their own and I am sure will have the same temptation to offer them as advice to their own children.

Actively support the decisions she has made as a parent. While you may see no harm in feeding your grandchild a Chicken McNugget Happy Meal, his mother may have chosen a totally organic diet. The organic diet may not be your preference but it is hers and the well-being of the child is certainly not at risk. Respecting her decision is interpreted as affirmation. The message sent is “I am on your team. I trust you with my grandchild and I will not undermine you as the parent.” She will gain confidence and energy in her role as mother from your trust in her choices.

Can you imagine cooking dinner in the familiar environment of your own kitchen, and a professional chef showing up to give you unsolicited advice, or take over your kitchen without an invitation? You may not see yourself as a professional, but the young mother in your life sees you as a mother with much positive experience. While a mother's advice is valuable, it is much better received when asked. Not until she perceives the need will the question formulate. She wants to know your opinion as she makes her decisions, but if we are not careful she might find more safety in a google search than with us. The computer doesn't tell what it knows until asked and is not offended if the user chooses to follow a different path.

Words are powerful and are sometimes used too casually. As mothers, our intention is never to hurt or intrude but we are sometimes over zealous in our desire to help. The young mother desperately wants to do things right. Well intending words spoken can easily be heard as criticism. Both parties realize the magnitude of the responsibility. Today my daughter-in-law and I were talking by text. In the course of the conversation I offered an opinion about something she "needed." Five minutes later I suddenly thought "Did I just tell her what she 'needed?'" That was certainly not my intention but came out so easily. I immediately apologized and she graciously told me that she was not offended. A continuing attitude of mutual respect between mother and daughter or daughter-in-law, along with purposeful communication will accomplish much.

Read what a few young mothers said about boundaries:

"I need help but I need respect for boundaries."

"I need advice on what worked for you when I ask so it doesn't seem overbearing."

"I need advice, but I need understanding if we choose not to heed the advice given."

"Support me in my decisions on rearing even though they may be different from yours."

"Remember that my house is my home and you are a guest (a much loved guest). My home is not like my room in your home."

Affirm Your Grandchild's Mother With Words

2020-08-18T18:33:00.004-05:00

Unlike the workforce, being a mother has no purposeful time-line for evaluation and the little ones who say thank you, do so at her direction. If you are a woman of influence in a young mother's life, tell her how proud you are of her as a mother. Acknowledge how hard she works. Tell her often and be specific. Empty flattery is worthless but a casual observation of this young woman's day yields plenty to highlight.

Find out what mode of communication the young mother in your life enjoys. A note in the mail or words on her facebook wall might be just the pick-me-up she needs. An encouraging text message straight from the scripture is always good.

I was busy at home one day enjoying a sweet memory of my last visit with my daughter and grandson. He was less than a year old, but as she corrected him she talked to him about making good choices. My heart swelled as I thought about what a good mother she was. Then I suddenly realized that more than enjoying that warm fuzzy feeling, I needed to tell her how impressed I was with how she corrected him. I sent her what she would refer to later as a "random" text message that affirmed her as a mother.

I can remember being in the throws of motherhood and wishing there was some report card I would get to tell me if I was doing an okay job with my kids. As mothers of mothers, we can be that report card! Hallmark sold a Mother's Day card this year that said "Behind every great kid is a mother who thinks she is screwing him up." I sent one to both my girls. We laughed and they took comfort in knowing they are not the only ones who realize the magnitude of every decision they make for their child.

Maybe you think your comments don't mean that much to her. Maybe you think she already knows how you feel so she doesn't need to hear it. I asked some young mothers what they need from their mother/mother-in-law. Here are a few of their responses:

"Tell me how proud you are of the mother I have become."

"Say 'you are a great mom.'"

"Validate how truly hard motherhood is."

"Recognize my strengths as a mother, wife, or other areas and take time to share them with me."

"I need her to affirm me as a mother, wife and woman. Her approval is so important to me. I want to please her."

She needs to hear from you!

Mothers Need to be Mothered

2020-08-11T08:14:00.003-05:00

One of the times a woman most needs a mother is when she becomes a mother. Many women erroneously think the need is primarily for the mother's experience. While that experience is important, what is more needful is found in Webster's definition of mother, "maternal tenderness or affection."

The care the young mother provides for her child is a joy, but also a serious task and it times feels quite overwhelming. Most mothers alternate between feeling competent and knowledgeable one day and completely inadequate the next. She needs to know that a mother is there for her as she rides this emotional roller-coaster of tremendous responsibility. One young mother expressed it this way: "Don't forget that I am your child just because the baby came along!"

It is my joy to be in “mother-to-a-mother” relationships with both the daughter I raised and the daughter my son married. This season of life has drawn us closer together than anything else and I realize we are bridging our way to the future as we lay down planks of love and respect. I am also grateful for the other women who pour into their lives. It is not possible for them to have too much "maternal tenderness or affection" and I have great affection for those who love my children. My girls are each five hours away in opposite directions. The pain of the distance I am from them is lessened by knowing that other godly women are loving them as a "mother."

As a child, I remember girlfriends who had nurturing personalities. Looking back, they seemed to have a kind of "mothering" nature at a very young age. I also remember teenage girls who babysat regularly and looked forward to having babies of their own. I was neither of these. It was not until my first child was placed in my arms that I was aware of any nurturing aspect of myself. Even still, I have girlfriends who never had biological children but are some of the most nurturing women I have ever known.

Women by nature are relational human beings and God has put in us the desire and ability to nurture. Different life events and circumstances may cause us to become aware of this innate characteristic at varying times in life, but I believe it is a God given part of what makes us distinctly women. Mothers nurture and those who nurture, in a sense, mother.

In His infinite wisdom and according to His perfect plan, God made us nurturers for a purpose. If you are without a daughter, or maybe, like me, your daughters live far away, look around you. There is a young mother who has lost her mother, her mother lives far away, or maybe her mother just never had what it took to mother her. She needs you. The only requirement is God's love in you flowing to her. Mothers need to be mothered.

The Unusual Journey From Mother to Grandmother

2020-08-04T16:39:00.020-05:00

“Dum dity, dum dity, dum dum dum” I said to Jonathan as we played in the floor. With bright eyes and determination, he scampered down the hall to find the familiar yellow book filled with monkeys. I looked across the room at the baby’s young mother. Not so many years ago I read the same book to her.

I was consciously aware that in some sense, I had passed a baton to her. I was no longer a primary player in this mother-child relationship, and she was doing the job that I had done for years. The responsibility for Jonathan was hers. The comfortable role of mother that I loved dearly was also hers.

As Jonathan crawled into my lap with the book, I closed my eyes and tried to breath in the privilege of the moment. My busy one-year-old grandson snuggled close and waited with anticipation. Eager to join him in his wonder, I opened the Dr. Seuss classic.

One short year ago, Jonathan came home from the hospital with parents as new as his car seat and crib. I was there to offer my expert assistance. He was only a few days old when I desperately wanted to give him a pacifier. His mother said no. That first week home, I thought I would help bath him each morning. She and his daddy bathed him at night. While I enjoyed watching the new mother embrace her role, secretly, I felt a little left out. I answered her questions, helped where I could, and enjoyed my time with the new baby. But I watched while she made the decisions that I used to make, and noticed that many were different than mine had been. Like a middle school girl, I wasn’t sure where I fit. So much for expert assistance.

My struggle was in defining my new role. I felt caught somewhere between mother and grandmother and I didn’t know which direction to turn. I loved my grandchild as much as I had loved my own children, something I did not think was possible. My love for him had kicked in some crazy, maternal, automatic response from me that can only be compared to what had emerged in me at the birth of my two children.

However, as the weeks passed, I watched my daughter embody the role of mother with confidence and I saw that same maternal, automatic response coming from her, only better, and it was not crazy. It made perfect sense. God, who had given this child to her, had given her a mother’s heart as well. With understanding came another familiar feeling. A feeling of gratitude to God because He had allowed me the honor of being a part of this young woman’s life. He had given me a fresh reminder that the job I treasured, being a mother, was still mine.

It was the end of something, and while sadness vied for my emotions, the sadness could not compete with the tremendous pleasure I felt at the prospects of what was ahead. My primary role was “mother-to-a-mother” and the indescribable delight of being grandmother was all bonus.

Living in Exile

2020-07-30T19:31:00.002-05:00

I was reading through the book of Revelation this week and as I began I was struck by the apostle John's situation. He was the last living apostle and he was old, around 90. All the other apostles at this point were gone, having died horrible deaths for their faith. Now here was John, the youngest disciple, still alive, still sharing Jesus. And that's what got him in trouble. Because of his continued testimony of Jesus Christ, he was exiled to the Island of Patmos.

So I was thinking about what a rich life he had lived, all he had seen and experienced, how we got to see him mature in his faith. He was "the disciple that Jesus loved." He knew Jesus loved him! But then, at the end of his life, he was taken away from the every day of his home, his people, and his God given ministry. A 90 year old man, alone, left to die out in the elements on a small island, certainly not able to do ministry.

But we don't have to wonder what he was thinking. While I might have been all inside myself wallowing in self pity, the very next verse tells us he was in the Spirit and he knew it was Sunday, the day of worship! He surely must have been worshiping when he heard a loud voice like a trumpet. When he turned to the voice he saw that it was Jesus in His glory! The Jesus he loved and who loved him, familiar but different.

The rest of Revelation tells us all the things he saw and heard. While an emperor sent John to die, God redeemed that sentence in a mighty way. He had a message for John. God told him to write down everything He was to show him. Then He preserved it for all of us.

John, the beloved disciple walked with Jesus during His earthly ministry, but in his last days, he experienced "The revelation of Jesus Christ" unveiled, glorified and exalted. What a tremendous gift.

Over the last months, I, like you have felt something akin to living in exile from my family and normal life. Most recently I have watched my involvement in different ministries being chipped away. Tears come as I type. This pandemic is nothing compared to John's suffering, but this I know - the same Jesus who redeemed John's exile to Patmos is my Jesus. Can we be where John was spiritually? John did what scripture teaches. We can too.

Ephesians 5:18 tells us to be filled with the Spirit. Hebrews 3:15 says that when we hear His voice not to harden our hearts. Worship. Listen. Expect. Respond. See. Keep loving God-That's our core.

I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet (Revelation 1:9-10)

The Toddler Challenge

2020-06-30T21:25:00.002-05:00

The Toddler Challenge has been all over social media and even showed up on some news programs. A mother sits her toddler at the table with a cookie or a bowl of candy and tells the child not to eat it until she returns. She leaves for a short time and keeps the camera rolling. This results in so many cute pictures of precious, though not always innocent toddlers. My favorites are those in which the child licks his lips, or smells the treat, or just excitedly holds his hands back in anticipation. But the one that made me laugh the hardest was the little fellow who popped a piece of the candy in his mouth and chewed fast, while full body dancing. He then calmly sat down to wait for his mom, the picture of innocence.

The Toddler Challenge is interesting, funny and sweet, as well as a great open door for teaching.

Our response to "challenges" are not usually interesting, funny or sweet, but God always intends they be an open door for Him to teach us.

He sets us up with choices. God does not tempt us, but He does allows things in our fallen world to come before us that ultimately offer us a choice. It is not God but our own earthly desires that call us to make the wrong choice. (James 1:13-15) The more we listen to the Holy Spirit inside us and not our mind, will and emotions, the more we are able to resist temptation. Like Jesus we can "learn obedience" through suffering. When we yield to the Holy Spirit we are allowing Jesus to be who He is, our Overcomer, and God is glorified!

But my musings today are not about temptations, but trials. We have all been in the midst of a trail for months and I, like you, am so weary of it all.

James 1:2-3 says "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness." My paraphrase: Trials are hard, have faith and you will be stronger in the end.

While that is true, there is more in that verse. I found it interesting to learn that trials, temptations and tests are all the same in the original language. To me, a trial seems to be just a really hard time we go through, but a temptation or test happens when we want something that we are not supposed to have right now or ever. James is putting them in the same bucket. That is a completely different perspective. It's more personal. The trial is the test. I guess I knew that we might be tempted during trials, but I didn't know the trail was the test. We are not just gritting our teeth waiting for this thing to be over so we will be stronger in our faith. We are actively being tested and it is more than a chocolate chip cookie.

God has allowed our fallen world to bring us trials that we cannot escape.

A test

Spiritual Warfare

My Jesus is the Overcomer and He will go with me.

The test will make my faith stronger.

May God be glorified in each of our lives during this trial

as we yield to the Holy Spirit in us!

Why Did Jesus Suffer When Tempted and How Does it Help Us?

2020-06-20T20:48:00.000-05:00

It has always bothered me when people have said that Jesus was tempted so He would know what it feels like for us, and help us. That doesn't make sense to me. Because Jesus is God, He would have known that before He ever came to the earth. So was it that He was tempted so that we would know that He knows? Or is it simply part of Him being fully man?

Then Hebrews 2:18 tells us that because Jesus "suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted." Why did Jesus suffer when tempted and how does that help us?

Obedience is not always easy and we are faced with the temptation to not obey every day. Just making those decisions can be painful and choosing to obey even more painful. We don't always stand up to temptation very well. Sometimes we do okay but other times we don't suffer at all as we choose to disobey.

But Jesus learned obedience when tempted and it was painful. While He never sinned, as a man He was susceptible to sin. Suffering temptation became His teacher. Each temptation must have gotten harder because it matured Him. Each temptation prepared Him for the next. He faced increasing temptation after temptation and experienced victory after victory until the ultimate temptation and the ultimate victory. He always obeyed. All the way to the cross.

In The Life-Changing Power in the Blood of Christ, Jennifer Kennedy Dean tells about some scientists in South America who developed an antidote for the deadly poison from some snakes. They took the venom from a snake, diluted it and injected it into a horse. Each day they increase the concentration and eventually injected the horse with pure venom. By then the horse had developed antibodies against the venom and was not overcome by the poison. That helped the people when they used the antibodies in the blood of the horse as an antidote for them.

Jesus was never overcome by temptation. Instead God the Father made it serve His purpose to prepare Jesus for the very reason He came to earth. You see, He didn't come to earth to show us how, He came to do it for us! He suffered temptation for us because we could not do it for ourselves. He provided an antidote for us as surely as that horse did for the people in South America. But unlike those people, we don't just get the antibodies, we get a total blood transfusion! The blood of Jesus is our life!

(Hebrews 2:10-18; 5:7-9; Philippians 2:8; Luke 22:42-44)