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May I Hold Your Emotions?

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If you look carefully inside my hands you may see my oldest grandson’s emotions!

I met my daughter Melissa at the mall yesterday during lunch time in order to help her with the kids.  They were scheduled to have their pictures taken.  We played a bit while waiting for their noontime appointment.  We waited and we waited some more.  About 25 minutes later, as Caleb was moving one of the large stools in the waiting area, it slipped and landed on his foot , scraping some skin from his toe.  He fell to the ground sobbing, landing on something gooey in the carpet – which promptly stained his freshly laundered khaki shorts.  Of course, at this very moment they were called to the room for the photo session.

Things sort of melted down at this point.  Caleb was crying and felt his toe was hurting too badly for him to walk.  The situation was looking bleak for getting a picture that would contain any smiles.  Melissa was doing a great job comforting him, as well as reminding him of the chic- fil-a lunch and cupcake dessert promise that lay on the other side of the picture taking.  It seemed all begging was to no avail.

As emotions were flying, I thought of one of my favorite scriptures – 2 Corinthians 10:5.  Certainly now was an opportune time to capture some of these emotions.

    We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

The Spirit was surely at work at this moment.  Remembering the scripture, I cupped my hands and walked over to Caleb.  I told him that I would like to hold something for him while he got his picture taken; his sad emotions and the pain from his foot.  I would hold it carefully, and then when he was done I could give it back to him.  Amazingly, Caleb put his little hand in between my hands as if to place his emotions inside.  Then, an amazing thing happened!  He stepped onto the mat where the girls were already standing, posed for a group picture and gave us all the most beautiful smile imaginable.  He could not have been more cooperative or giving throughout the session.  When it was over I told him how proud I was of him for giving over his emotions and that he could have them back if he wanted.  He didn’t reach for them.

Later, he told his mom how hard it was for him to control his emotions when he got hurt.  He expressed to her that he just couldn’t seem to figure out how to get it back together and was so glad  that Nana was there and offered to hold his emotions in her hands.  And then he proudly told her that after the pictures were over he didn’t even feel the need to take them back anymore!

Melissa and I were sort of amazed that this worked.  However, it’s really not that complicated.   You see, Caleb really believed that I was capable of taking his emotions and reliable enough to keep them for him.  Again, I am learning from children.  If I really believe that God is capable enough and reliable enough to be entrusted with my emotions…I can let go and be at peace!  Thank you for this lesson Caleb.

Philip. 4:6-7

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. [7] And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

1 Peter 5:6-7

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. [7] Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

A Song of Encouragement

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Ever go to encourage someone and then discover that you have received  much more encouragement than you have given?  Last night was one of those nights.  I went “back to school” for a lesson in encouragement.  Before dinner my friend, Deidre, sent me a text – “Peggy & Scott & I going 2 sing 4 joan…can u come?”

Scott, and his mom Peggy are here visiting friends. Having spent months in the hospital with brain injury after a nearly fatal motorcycle accident, Scott wanted to spend an evening of his time here encouraging Joan, a dear sister in Christ and special friend to Deidre.  Joan is currently in ICU on a ventilator fighting for her life. She was heavily sedated when we arrived –  not conscious.  Her devoted husband was waiting in the room for our arrival.  Donning yellow gowns and latex gloves, we were escorted into her room filled with lighted machines, tubes and high pitched beeps.  Deidre’s husband, Paul, prayed.  And then we sang hymns and spiritual songs-lots of songs. Scott closed out our time with a prayer.

Psalm 42:8
By day the Lord directs his love,
at night his song is with me–
a prayer to the God of my life.

I would not have thought of extending this encouraging gesture. I assumed Joan would not be able to hear us.  The above Scripture is written in context of the psalmist’s desperate need for God’s comfort and hope.  This passage describes to me the deep comfort found in God’s love and his night-time song to me. I felt God’s love and comfort extended to Joan through the night-time songs and prayers.  I watched the touches of tenderness shown to her and through this short hour of singing I learned a deeper  meaning of encouragement.  Thank you for encouraging me with the comfort you showed to our sister.  And if you are reading this, please say a prayer for Joan. She needs our prayers.

Isaiah 49:13
Shout for joy, O heavens;
rejoice, O earth;
burst into song, O mountains!
For the Lord comforts his people
and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.

Sippy Cups – Simplicity

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Every so often these writings will center around children – both teaching them and being taught by them.  Today I was taught.  This morning I took my prayer walk with my 18 month old grandson. He listened attentively, while occasionally turning around to ask the question, “All done?”  It occurred to me how wonderfully refreshing it was to pray in a way that a toddler could comprehend.  We thanked God for the beautiful things we saw and asked him to mold our hearts and to be with us in all the things planned for our day.  We enjoyed the things God made and prayed for some specific people.  It was pretty straight forward; heart felt and very simple. (Our singing this morning was perhaps not the most spiritual, as it mainly centered around “Wheels on the Bus,” his personal fave.)  It was a good prayer time; I think God heard us.

Last night after midweek I went with a friend to get ice cream – (actually frozen yogurt, to be more health conscious – never mind the chopped up heath bar strewn throughout).  She was telling me about the simple world of her special-needs son; sharing her contrasting feelings of having a very difficult lot in life, while at other times feeling that she has been given a special secret to the joy of life; learning to feel and notice things in a way that she would not without the “tutoring” from her special needs son.  I thought of the scripture, Matthew 6:25-34
    “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? [26] Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? [27] Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
    [28] “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. [29] Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. [30] If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? [31] So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ [32] For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. [33] But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. [34] Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

If I can just live out the profound simplicity of this verse today, it will be a simply wonderful day.

Morphed!

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I’ve always admired those close up pictures of butterflies that “some people” are able to capture.  Well, yesterday was my day.  While on a prayer walk  I spied this beautiful creature enjoying some sweet nectar.  Butterflies always remind me of the amazing change that happens while going from a worm to a graceful, fluttering specimen of God’s handiwork.  I carried a scripture with me throughout the day today.  It reads,

John 5:39-40
You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, [40] yet you refuse to come to me to have life. (NIV)

The Message puts it like this, 39 “You have your heads in your Bibles constantly because you think you’ll find eternal life there. But you miss the forest for the trees. These Scriptures are all about me! 40 And here I am, standing right before you, and you aren’t willing to receive from me the life you say you want. John 5:39-40 (MSG)

When I was still more in the worm stage of my Christian walk the Scriptures were still important to me.  However, they were too often more like something I read to feel better about doing the right thing (which is still better than not doing the right thing), rather than to value and bask in the relationship to which they led me.

When I was a kid I wanted to be able to tell my Sunday school teacher I was a daily Bible reader.  She had said we could read verses, or just say some from memory.  So…on some days when I had failed to put effort into reading I would lay my head on my pillow at the end of the day and remember that I had forgotten!  So, in order to be a “good Bible student”…I quoted to myself, “Jesus wept.”  Voila, I was a daily Bible reader.
Wow.  I’m embarrassed to write that pathetic Pharisaical confession.   I’m glad the worm has morphed from those days!  As I continued on this prayer walk I marveled in the delightful reality that I get to walk and talk with my best friend –  the creator of the universe,the Almighty God, my Wonderful Counselor, Prince of Peace and Lord of Lords… And amazingly, He tells me that he is delighted to hear from me. Utterly delighted.  It’s hard to fathom, but it’s true.  And to top it off as I came to the end of the path this scene was before me. 

And guess what!  My Father owns it and made it for my pleasure. Very few days am I able to see this kind of scenery on a prayer walk. (Please note…this is not the norm.)   However, I’m grateful that the relationship is not dependent on the scenery or circumstance!  I don’t want to miss the forest for the trees.  I want to not just put my head in my Bible…but my whole heart!  It leads me to the most fulfilling, amazing relationship possible.

A Century Ride or a 25 Minute Ride?

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A few days ago while on facebook I noticed that my friend Erica had completed a century bike ride in Colorado.   A century ride goes for at least 100 miles.  This particular ride went through four mountain passes. This was particularly inspiring to me since she has had lupus.

Two weeks ago I purchased a Schwinn one speed, pedal brakes old fashioned bicycle at Target.  It had dents in the fender so I got it for $91.  It’s a beautiful light blue retro style bicycle – the vision of my dreams when I was a youngster.  Being the youngest of four girls, new bicycles were not in the picture. They were simply too expensive.

Yesterday I rode my bicycle for 25 minutes to the local elementary school and back.  My route had four small hills (which did get my heart rate up).  I didn’t want to ride yesterday.  In fact, it was almost dark when my husband and I went out.  It seemed so pointless since there was so little daylight left.  However, those short rides are becoming near daily events and are increasing my strength. Today I rode for 45 minutes. Over the years I’ve learned that spiritually, consistency is key. Reading the Bible consistently helps me discern Godliness from worldliness. It keeps me from fuzzy thinking.

Hebrews 5:13-14
Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. [14] But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

Long journeys start with shorter, but consistent effort.  Some day perhaps I’ll do a century ride.  But then again, maybe not.  The encouraging thing to me is that today I got on my bike and began pedaling.  I’ve discovered that I really like to ride.  Even the difficult hills are rewarding, especially when I reach the crest and then coast for a while.  On my first ride I had to get off half way up a hill and walk. Now I don’t have to get off.  I’m making progress. When we spend consistent time with God we can build our spiritual character layer upon layer.

2 Peter 1:3-7
His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. [4] Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
    [5] For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; [6] and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; [7] and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.

Sometimes I can get stuck spiritually – It seems there is so much to pray about and so much to learn that it feels overwhelming to start – as if  I need to take a century ride.   However, I can be glad that every day I can learn something, pray often and make progress.  I can take my tried and tested ride to the school yard and back or explore new routes as long as I keep pedaling.

Digging Through the Roof

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I must confess this web site construction is currently “over my head.”  I’ve googled “web sites for dummies” and read some blogs about starting them.  I’m swimming into unknown waters and about to get a headache from so much reading.  However, I’m determined to “make a go” at this thing.  I’ve found that sharing things I’m learning from the Scriptures is not only helpful to others, but also to me.  That’s what this site is about – sharing scriptures.

Yesterday morning in our “early service” (I’m teaching the kindergarten Sunday school class this term) we looked at Mark 2:1-5.
A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. [2] So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. [3] Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. [4] Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. [5] When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

Today I did a lot of “spiritual activity.”  Somewhere in there I believe I tried to “get to Jesus.”  However, I will challenge myself to ask how much daily effort I will make to “dig through the roof” so to speak – to get to Jesus.  I’m determined to not just dig…but to let the digging always lead me to the person of Jesus. Without him I’m spiritually paralyzed.