I love Bear Grylls. Do you love Bear Grylls? A lot of people love Bear Grylls.

David and I have watched LOTS of his shows about survival in all kinds of conditions. How to catch a skunk, how to eat things you catch (including a skunk), how to sanitize your own urine to drink (ick!), how to start a fire, how to make a knot to wrap around a rock or a tree and then a slight tug will untie it for you, how to build shelter with whatever you can find, etc. etc. etc.

One of the survival tips that has always fascinated me is how to most effectively cross a river. Whether it’s a quick-flowing river with rapids, or a freezing cold river, there are things you must do to get across without dying. Always a good goal.

No matter what kind of river it is, the main thing he always makes sure we know is to…undress. Now (and maybe it’s just for TV) he doesn’t strip down to his birthday suit. He strips down to his skivvies. The idea here is to take off as much of your clothes (including shoes and socks) as you possibly can, stuff them into your backpack (hopefully waterproof/resistant) and start crossing…the less clothes you have on, the easier it will be.

If you’ve ever been pushed into a lake or a pool with your clothes one, or caught in a pouring Texas rainstorm, you know how heavy clothes can get when they are soaked. Not only will the extra weight of wet clothes slow you down, but just the resistance in the water isn’t conducive to making good time.

Crossing bodies of water is nothing new with Bear Grylls (thanks Captain Obvious).

Friends, we have stepped into this raging river of Covid-19. We’re starting the trek across this wide, uncertain river…from this side of it to the other. This isn’t going to be an easy crossing…mainly because we humans don’t know how to act being all quarantined and alone, with nothing to do, nowhere to be. We’re used to being able to come and go as we please: hang with friends, go to WalMart, eat at our favorite restaurants, go to the gym, go to church. I mean, we’re Americans, for crying out loud!

Whether you agree with having to stay put in your home or not, this is a reality. So what do we need to remember as we cross this river? Let’s take a few clues from Bear Grylls.

Bear’s suggestion is that we take off anything that slows us down or hinders our progress. But the write of Hebrews had the same advice.

“We should remove from our lives anything that would get in the way. And we should remove the sin that so easily catches us.” 

(Hebrews 12:1)

What gets in the way and slows us down?

FEAR

All of us face fear at times. All of us! Even though Bear Grylls has crossed a buncha rivers in his time, I’m sure there’s a tiny sense of fear that he feels when he’s about to jump into that cold water. But he couldn’t let fear stop him…he had places to go. He suppressed his feelings and jumped in! (I’ll talk more about fear in my next post.)

BLAME

When we’re faced with a situation that is out of our control, it is so easy to blame others. I’ve read things online and heard things in the news of people blaming the government, blaming other countries, blaming the health system. As my pastor (also my husband) says, “To blame is to ‘be-lame’”! That’s true. Blaming never solved anything and never helped anyone. Even if we knew exactly who or what to blame, it would change nothing!

DISTRACTIONS

One of the main distractions in this present circumstance is getting too much information. I urge you to turn off the news shows, no matter which source it is. Turn them on long enough to get the latest updates, and then either turn the TV off completely or change the channel.

Instead of focusing on the distractions, focus on some attractions. Watch one of your favorite movies, play a game with your kids, write a letter (with your human hand and paper and a pen) to an old friend or family member, finally clean out that hall closet, exercise. There are lots of good positive things that are a whole lot more attractive than the droning news!

ANGER

What are you angry about? There are some legit reasons: some of you may have been laid off from your job, or lost it all together. Some of you may be angry that you have to work at home instead of escaping to your personal cubicle with no interruptions. Some may be angry that people are being stupid and insensitive and buying all the eggs and bacon at your local store.

Don’t be angry. After all, not unlike blame, it does no good except to raise your blood pressure. Anger affects you and the people around you, and it changes nothing about the situation. Accept the circumstances and adjust your attitude. It’s as simple as that (although far from easy!)

The only flaw in this idea is this: don’t pick these up again. When Bear Grylls reaches the other side of the river, he puts his clothes, socks and shoes back on. When you reach the other side of this river, leave these things where you left them. There’s never a reason to pick these up again. Granted, they may creep back in at times, but lay them aside every time they do.

God knows all of these things you’re dealing with and wants to help. If you’re finding it hard to pray right now, here’s a prayer that I found that can give you words:

“God, I find myself so fearful about; distracted by; angry about _____________. I don’t know what is going to happen, but I know that You are not surprised, and You are working all things together for good.

“God, help me trust You more fully today. Increase my faith today. I ask for Your peace. Thank you for freely giving us peace of mind no matter what happens around us.

“In Jesus, name, amen.” 

Remember these things:

Instead of fear, God gives us power: we can face anything because we are safe in His hands.

God gives us love: we can go in Jesus’ name and love and serve other.

God gives us clear thinking: insouciance, if you remember that from our Ruth study; a calm, self-controlled mind, instead of panic and confusion.

Hang in there! We’re gonna get through this!

 

(Original 3/19/2020)

 

One day, life is good. The sun is shining. The early Spring birds are singing. Your job is going great. Your family is getting along. Your husband (or wife) made you breakfast in bed. Your youngest told you he loved you for the first time last night.

Then suddenly, something happens in our world that all-too-quickly yanks the peace right out of our hearts. That something-that-happens is beyond your control. That something-that-happens starts ripping little pieces away of your wonderful life.

Before long, your carefree heart starts to beat a little faster. Your worry-free tummy starts to curl up in knots. Your clear thinking is jumbled and confused and messed up…filling up with the what-now’s, what-if’s, I-can’t’s and oh-no’s.

What do we do when the something-that-happens messes us up so much that we find our internal world turning upside down? We find that the fear that is taking over is so thick that we could cut it with a knife?

Well, nothing that happens…let me repeat that…NOTHING THAT HAPPENS…is a surprise to God. He didn’t wake up a week or so ago and exclaim, “Oh, dang! I didn’t see that coming!”  Yes, He did.

Jesus even told us in John 16:33, “I’ve told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I’ve conquered the world.”

If Jesus told us that he wants us to be deeply at peace, then that means IT IS POSSIBLE to be deeply at peace. So many times, when going through tough stuff, I find myself doubting that I can ever be at peace. But Jesus says I can. And I trust Him.

Do you know what was going on when Jesus told His disciples that they could be “deeply at peace”? At that very minute, Judas was meeting with Jesus’ enemies to plot His arrest. Jesus Himself KNEW that in only a matter of hours, he was going to be betrayed, arrested, forsaken, rejected, mocked, humiliated, tortured and crucified. Why would He tell His disciples to be at peace when He knew that their world was about to be turned completely upside down?

Because He was at peace about it…and He wanted those He loved to be at peace about it, also.

Notice that Jesus didn’t promise peace; He offered it. We don’t just get peace automatically because we know Him or follow Him or obey Him…we get it when we seek it and accept it.

What Jesus did promise was difficulties. Peace is offered; trouble is promised. There’s no avoiding it. This is earth, not heaven. Jesus was attempting to comfort His disciples…not by telling them they were victorious, but by talking about His own victory. And His victory could be theirs…and ours. Knowing that Jesus has already claimed victory is the foundation for our peace. Because we know that Jesus is in control, we can be in control. 

There are lots of somethings-that-happen that can completely mess us up, but let’s talk about the elephant in the room: the virus that has gripped the world by the throat and threatens to take everybody down with it. I’m not going to talk about it in any specific ways…except to urge you to be very picky in who you listen to (experts and non-experts alike). Stay off the internet if you must!! But this latest scare has caused a whole lot of fear and panic and disruption and hysteria in our families and our communities. We are finding it very hard to find and experience any peace whatsoever.

When you are looking for a peace that dispels fear and anger and doomsday thinking, the only place you can go to is God’s Word.

365 times in the Bible, we are told to “fear not!” 365! That means every single day of the year, we can choose to “fear not”. And do you know why the Bible tells us not to fear? Because we get a-feared! It’s only natural! On the other hand, the supernatural thing is to seek the peace that replaces fear and doubt.

The most important thing to remember is…God is right there with you. He sees you. He knows exactly how you’re feeling. Every single emotion you’re experiencing, God knows about it. And He wants you to give those feelings and emotions to Him…let Him handle them. He does a lot better job at it than we do, anyway!

One way to give all of that back to God is to write them all down on a piece of paper. Talk out loud to God and say, “God, here they are. Every emotion I’m having during this tough time. I’m kinda scared and nervous. But I know none of this was a surprise to you. And the way I’m feeling isn’t a surprise to you, either. So please take these emotions and hold them for me. And in exchange, give me the peace that you offer for free.”

You’ll probably have to do that every day. It’s rarely a one-and-done thing. We humans are very prone to giving God control…and then taking it back before we go to bed (then it keeps us up all night, tossing and turning, because we can’t let it go.)

So I wanted to give you some Scriptures on peace that I encourage you to write on index cards or post-it notes or on your bathroom mirror…and look at them, read them, over and over, every single day! Memorize the ones that speak to you most personally. It’s not a magic formula…it’s called using God’s words to change us from the inside out…no matter what the news tells us!

 

Colossians 3:15
“…let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts.”

1 Peter 5:7
“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.”

Philippians 4:6
“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need [what you’re feeling], and thank him for all he has done.”

Philippians 4:7
“…experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”

John 14:27
“I am leaving you a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”

John 14:1
“Don’t let your hearts be trouble. Trust in God, and trust also in me.

Isaiah 26:3
“You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!”

Romans 8:31
“If God is for us, who can ever be against us?”

Galatians 5:22
“…the Holy Spirit produces…peace…”

 

Let me add that, besides these verses, one of the most powerful things you can do to derail fear and invite peace is simply to practice love. “Where God’s love is, there is no fear, because God’s perfect love takes away fear” is a powerful verse (1 John 4:18). 

When we are giving ourselves away for the purpose of serving others in love, forgetting about ourselves for a while, there’s a lot less time to think about the things that can cause fear. We live in a very self-centered, self-focused age. This crisis is literally forcing us to depend on each other.

If you’re not vulnerable to this virus and are able to help, I encourage you to find people that need help…and help them. And if you ARE vulnerable to the virus, please stay put…and let others help you. There’s absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. 

Don’t forget that, as the church, we are commanded to love one another…and sometimes loving one another means going to the store and picking up necessities for someone else who cannot.

I hope that these verses and these words can bring you some comfort and encouragement, but I also hope its spurs you to action. This is the time for believers to shine…not for our own glory, but for God’s glory alone.

Shalom!
(Now, go wash your hands!)

One day, life is good. The sun is shining. The early Spring birds are singing. Your job is going great. Your family is getting along. Your husband (or wife) made you breakfast in bed. Your youngest told you he loved you for the first time last night.

Then suddenly, something happens in our world that all-too-quickly yanks the peace right out of our hearts. That something-that-happens is beyond your control. That something-that-happens starts ripping little pieces away of your wonderful life.

Before long, your carefree heart starts to beat a little faster. Your worry-free tummy starts to curl up in knots. Your clear thinking is jumbled and confused and messed up…filling up with the what-now’s, what-if’s, I-can’t’s and oh-no’s.

What do we do when the something-that-happens messes us up so much that we find our internal world turning upside down? We find that the fear that is taking over is so thick that we could cut it with a knife?

Well, nothing that happens…let me repeat that…NOTHING THAT HAPPENS…is a surprise to God. He didn’t wake up a week or so ago and exclaim, “Oh, dang! I didn’t see that coming!”  Yes, He did.

Jesus even told us in John 16:33, “I’ve told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I’ve conquered the world.”

If Jesus told us that he wants us to be deeply at peace, then that means IT IS POSSIBLE to be deeply at peace. So many times, when going through tough stuff, I find myself doubting that I can ever be at peace. But Jesus says I can. And I trust Him.

Do you know what was going on when Jesus told His disciples that they could be “deeply at peace”? At that very minute, Judas was meeting with Jesus’ enemies to plot His arrest. Jesus Himself KNEW that in only a matter of hours, he was going to be betrayed, arrested, forsaken, rejected, mocked, humiliated, tortured and crucified. Why would He tell His disciples to be at peace when He knew that their world was about to be turned completely upside down?

Because He was at peace about it…and He wanted those He loved to be at peace about it, also.

Notice that Jesus didn’t promise peace; He offered it. We don’t just get peace automatically because we know Him or follow Him or obey Him…we get it when we seek it and accept it.

What Jesus did promise was difficulties. Peace is offered; trouble is promised. There’s no avoiding it. This is earth, not heaven. Jesus was attempting to comfort His disciples…not by telling them they were victorious, but by talking about His own victory. And His victory could be theirs…and ours. Knowing that Jesus has already claimed victory is the foundation for our peace. Because we know that Jesus is in control, we can be in control. 

There are lots of somethings-that-happen that can completely mess us up, but let’s talk about the elephant in the room: the virus that has gripped the world by the throat and threatens to take everybody down with it. I’m not going to talk about it in any specific ways…except to urge you to be very picky in who you listen to (experts and non-experts alike). Stay off the internet if you must!! But this latest scare has caused a whole lot of fear and panic and disruption and hysteria in our families and our communities. We are finding it very hard to find and experience any peace whatsoever.

When you are looking for a peace that dispels fear and anger and doomsday thinking, the only place you can go to is God’s Word.

365 times in the Bible, we are told to “fear not!” 365! That means every single day of the year, we can choose to “fear not”. And do you know why the Bible tells us not to fear? Because we get a-feared! It’s only natural! On the other hand, the supernatural thing is to seek the peace that replaces fear and doubt.

The most important thing to remember is…God is right there with you. He sees you. He knows exactly how you’re feeling. Every single emotion you’re experiencing, God knows about it. And He wants you to give those feelings and emotions to Him…let Him handle them. He does a lot better job at it than we do, anyway!

One way to give all of that back to God is to write them all down on a piece of paper. Talk out loud to God and say, “God, here they are. Every emotion I’m having during this tough time. I’m kinda scared and nervous. But I know none of this was a surprise to you. And the way I’m feeling isn’t a surprise to you, either. So please take these emotions and hold them for me. And in exchange, give me the peace that you offer for free.”

You’ll probably have to do that every day. It’s rarely a one-and-done thing. We humans are very prone to giving God control…and then taking it back before we go to bed (then it keeps us up all night, tossing and turning, because we can’t let it go.)

So I wanted to give you some Scriptures on peace that I encourage you to write on index cards or post-it notes or on your bathroom mirror…and look at them, read them, over and over, every single day! Memorize the ones that speak to you most personally. It’s not a magic formula…it’s called using God’s words to change us from the inside out…no matter what the news tells us!

 

Colossians 3:15
“…let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts.”

1 Peter 5:7
“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.”

Philippians 4:6
“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need [what you’re feeling], and thank him for all he has done.”

Philippians 4:7
“…experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”

John 14:27
“I am leaving you a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”

John 14:1
“Don’t let your hearts be trouble. Trust in God, and trust also in me.

Isaiah 26:3 “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!”

Romans 8:31
“If God is for us, who can ever be against us?”

Galatians 5:22
“…the Holy Spirit produces…peace…”

 

Let me add that, besides these verses, one of the most powerful things you can do to derail fear and invite peace is simply to practice love. “Where God’s love is, there is no fear, because God’s perfect love takes away fear” is a powerful verse (1 John 4:18). 

When we are giving ourselves away for the purpose of serving others in love, forgetting about ourselves for a while, there’s a lot less time to think about the things that can cause fear. We live in a very self-centered, self-focused age. This crisis is literally forcing us to depend on each other.

If you’re not vulnerable to this virus and are able to help, I encourage you to find people that need help…and help them. And if you ARE vulnerable to the virus, please stay put…and let others help you. There’s absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. 

Don’t forget that, as the church, we are commanded to love one another…and sometimes loving one another means going to the store and picking up necessities for someone else who cannot.

I hope that these verses and these words can bring you some comfort and encouragement, but I also hope its spurs you to action. This is the time for believers to shine…not for our own glory, but for God’s glory alone.

Shalom!
(Now, go wash your hands!)

 

I had a whole other blog written to send out on the subject of New Year Resolutions…then God grabbed my ear and redirected me down a whole other road.

I’ve made basically the same resolutions every New Year since I was probably in my early 20’s. I’m not gonna tell you what they are, cuz that’s my business haha Suffice it to say, they are probably no different than the resolutions you’ve made since your early 20’s (or whenever.)

There’s actually nothing wrong with making a resolution. After all, “resolution” is a strong word. Webster’s Dictionary defines it these ways:

• the act of analyzing a complex notion into simpler ones
• the act of solving
• the act of determining
• a formal expression of intent

Those are all good things to do in our lives. When things seem to be not working out for us, or not working the right way, we need to resolve to figure it out.

And why New Year’s Day? That’s obvi. Brand new years are brand new beginnings. A brand new year beginning can be a hook that we can hang our resolutions on.

But here’s the downside of resolutions. We usually make them inside our own hearts and minds. We rarely share them with anyone else. I mean, after all…what if we fail?? Then everybody will say, “Told ya so!”

Another downside of resolutions is that we think we’re coming at our past/failed resolutions in a whole new way…except we really don’t. Our resolutions are really all the same resolutions…in updated outfits.

So, while talking to God about how to address this subject, he blatantly and in my face brought back a favorite Bible verse of mine. In fact, I did a whole women’s retreat YEARS ago based around this very verse. It impacted me deeply…and since then, I’ve allowed the verse to pale into the background with all of the other all-too-familiar verses.

What’s the verse? I thought you’d never ask.

Psalm 51:10
“Create in me a clean heart, O God.
Renew a loyal spirit within me.”
(NLT)

Other translations use a “right spirit,” a “steadfast spirit,” a “faithful spirit,” a “new spirit.”

God very plainly told me, “LeeAnn, instead of making a resolution, I need you to make a renewal!”

Sometimes we don’t need new goals…we need new hearts.

Now don’t get me wrong. There are some vital goals that we definitely need to reach. One goal/resolution I’ve had for many years, I decided this year that I need professional, outside help to reach it. Is that weakness? Absolutely not! The weakest thing you can do is to think you’re strong enough to do it by yourself. Usually, we are NOT! And the strongest thing we can do is ask for help.

This year, I’m going to focus on renewing my heart. Strengthening my joy. Increasing my love. Expanding my service to others. To spend 87.361% more of my time focusing on other people and not on my own stuff.

Do you remember the situation in which David wrote those words in Psalm 51? King David had sinned some great sins: murder, adultery, covering up his sin, and a hard heart toward repentance. David thought he was large and in charge…all that and bag of chips.

But then the prophet Nathan had to call him on the carpet about his actions. And only after this confrontation did David come openly and honestly to God, in complete brokenness.

(I guess you could say instead of getting a “curtain-call,” David got a “carpet-call.”)

God was loving, kind and forgiving, as is His nature. In verse 2, David asked God to “blot out” his transgressions. In another version, it says, “Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.”

The idea of “blotting” is like erasing something from a page.

I love how a certain bible commentator puts it, when discussing this passage: “Out of thy debt-book, cross out the black lines of my sins with the red lines of Christ’s blood; cancel the bond, though written in black and bloody characters.” (John Trapp)

Throughout the following verses, David is pouring his heart out to God. He admits that his sins are always on his mind; he knows that he’s been sinful since the time his mother conceived him. But he also confesses that God, even while David was in the womb, desired faithfulness and was already teaching him wisdom in that secret dark place.

David wasn’t sorry he got caught; he was truly and deeply in agony for having hurt the heart of God.

Skipping to verse 10, David had no doubt that his sin had been forgiven; he knew for reals that God had cleaned up the heart he had. But he wasn’t satisfied with that.

David’s plea here is for a brand new heart.

In Ezekiel 36:26, God made a promise to all who believe: “I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.” (NLT)

And beyond all that, David didn’t only desire a brand new heart; he knew that just wasn’t enough. So he also asked God to “renew a loyal, steadfast, faithful spirit within me.”

He needed a new spirit in order to keep on keeping on in the way of godliness. He was admitting that he wanted an humble reliance on his Father-God. Our heart can fail us…clean or not. And the best way to keep our heart as clean as possible is to make sure our spirit is renewed! A steadfast spirit is vital in keeping a cleansed heart clean.

So how does this apply to you and me, here on the 4th day into the new year of 2020?

If we make our utmost priority to renew our heart and our minds, to seek to be more loyal, steadfast and faithful to God, that is truly all that matters in this whole world. This year, no matter how much debt you’ll pay off, no matter how much money you’ll make, no matter how many bad habits you’ll kick, no matter how much weight you’ll lose…if you aren’t daily seeking God’s way of handling your earth-life, none of it will really matter much at all.

Is it a good thing to set those different goals? Absolutely! God gave us our minds and our bodies and our habits and our finances and our abilities and our relationships. We should always seek to honor him with how we handle all of those things. But the goal of drawing closer and closer to God, daily renewing our hearts and minds, will keep us spiritually balanced so that the other goals will take their right place and not become the overwhelming top priorities.

So this year, commit to renewing, not resolving.

And just see what God will do! You’ll be amazed!!!

I recently watched a video of an awesome song done by one of my most favoritest singers. She was talking about pride and humility…two of the trickiest character qualities to deal with. You can’t have the latter without the lack of the former.

“Pride comes before a fall,” Proverbs 16:18 says. I love how The Message paraphrase puts it: “First pride, then the crash—the bigger the ego, the harder the fall.”

Ouchie!

This singer said, “Why do we gotta fall? We should just stay low.”

It makes the most perfect sense. I mean, physically, it is simply impossible to fall if you’re crawling. And if we are staying low, if we were to fall, it wouldn’t hurt nearly as badly as if we were way up high. It’s really the best news. Just stay low.

That’s humility, my friends. And remember, humility isn’t thinking less of yourself; it’s thinking about yourself less. Stop concentrating on how you look to others, your reputation, your life status, your perfection, you new car, your diet, etc.

Besides that helping to keep your humility in check, your “image” of perfection or “got-it-all-together-ness” is intimidating to others. Nobody likes to look at that kinda stuff. It makes them feel bad. They start to play the comparison game, and that’s one of the most dangerous games to play. (Besides Trivial Pursuit against my husband! Witness?)

Stay low. If we walk in humility…recognizing that ain’t none of us all that and a bag of chips…then the Lord will lift us up. It’s that simple. Is it easy? Oh, goodness no! Because our human nature wants what we want, and we want what we want right now. We are all about us, all of the time.

The Bible tells us that Jesus wants us to come to him as little children. Have you ever been around little children? Earlier this summer I was beyond blessed to get to spend some good quantity and quality time with my newest great-nephew. He’s 2 years and 9 months old. He has no pride. Oh, he can be a tad stubborn at times, but there is no pride found in that preciousness. Most of the time I was there, his goals were simple: have a snack, play outside, get a nap, drag Aunt LeeLee to his room to watch the movie “Sing,” use his talent (drumming and singing), and to laugh and make us laugh. 

Another simple goal: running!

This 2-1/2 year old loves to run. Very little if any walking is done, unless he’s holding someone’s hand. And there were times that, as he was running, he would fall. Little humans do that. He never was hurt…physically or emotionally. He’d just get right back up and start running again, maybe laughing as he did.

The benefit of being all of 3 feet tall is this: when you fall, you’re closer to the ground. It doesn’t hurt as much (except when the little toddler at a wedding we attended fell down, got up and immediately turned to run with his friends and ran right into a big wooden post. That hurt a bit.)

Children are closer to the ground. When we as believers practice staying low, we stay closer to the ground. And when we stay closer to the ground, our pride won’t make us fall. And if something happens to “accidentally” make us fall, we don’t have far to fall.

The song that I listened to talked about why we fall. And the reason is this: we are holding things in our hands that keep us from being humble. 

Let’s look at this in a totally, non-spiritual (is anything really non-spiritual, tho??) way, shall we.

My much loved and much missed father-in-love passed away 6 years ago this month. He was at the ripe old age of 75 years old. Believe me…he had many years left on this earth, based on his health and attitude and usefulness.

But one day, he decided to move an antique wardrobe of sorts from their attic to the downstairs portion of their home. As he was descending the steep and narrow stairway that divided upstairs from downstairs, he lost his footing. He fell and hit his head on the tile floor below. He suffered traumatic brain injury and died within a few days.

Why am I telling you this very sad story?

Because it is a lesson to every single one of us. I am not by any means lessening the act of service my father-in-love was doing on that day in August of 2013. But because he was trying to maneuver a heavy object that was compromising his balance and vision, he suffered a great loss…as did we all.

My loves, listen! In the spiritual/emotional/mental world that we independently and personally live in, most of us are holding onto things that are way bigger than we are, that are way heavier than we ought to be holding, and are way wider than we can see around. And because of that, we are most destined to fall.

Mark. My. Words.

Have you heard the story about a monkey in a cage?

As the story goes, the ancient way to catch a monkey was to place a banana in a narrowly-barred cage, and leave it out in the forest. When the monkey gets there, he sticks his hand into the cage and grabs the banana. But the banana is too big to fit back out through the bars of the cage. As the hunter approaches, the monkey won’t let go of the banana, and thus is captured, soon finding itself inside the cage, right along with the fruit he loved too much to let go of.

Get it??

We have an enemy that wants to catch us and cage us. And whatever you hold most dear, that keeps you from a life of surrender and humility, that will be in your cage. 

Maybe you’re holding onto it right now? Maybe your arm is going to sleep, holding onto something inside the cage that’s meant for you. 

What are we holding onto, y’all? What is so “important” to us that we hang onto it for dear life?

When we finally come to realize how great God really is, and that all His promises are true, then we’ll understand that, no matter what it is, it doesn’t even compare to the riches and the promises that God wants to place in our hands.

“I’m gonna let it go! I’m gonna get real low!”

“I’m gonna let it go! I’m gonna get real low!”

“I’m gonna let it go! I’m gonna get real low!”

“I’m gonna let it go! I’m gonna get real low!”

“I’m gonna let it go! I’m gonna get real low!”

Why did I repeat that 5 times? Because it’s SO important.

We simply CAN NOT move forward into humility when we are holding on to things that keep us prideful and/or self-centered!

Let it go! Get real low!

From a post today by Jon Acuff:

“Do you know why strangers rage at each other online and are so quick to be angry and offended these days?

Because their passion has no other outlet. When you refuse to deal in joy, you don’t quit being emotional; you just funnel all that fury somewhere else.

Many a troll was born from the heartache of a goal he dared not finish.

Maybe a troll is just someone who lost to perfectionism so many times he gave up on his own goals and decided to tear down someone else’s.

Does your passion have a healthy outlet? If so, what is it?”

This is so true. I’ll be honest, when I see certain friends on FB lashing out about or arguing with what someone has said online, or caustically announcing something someone in their life did or said to them in person, for all the world to see and jump on their bandwagon, it breaks my heart.

If these same people would take those emotions and re-channel them into a healthy outlet, as Jon says, it would change everything. Everything!

For one thing, it takes a whole different set of emotional tools to go positive rather than negative.

It also prevents bringing others down with you…as others, in their struggle to channel their OWN emotions positively, will feel like they’ve really done something when they dive into your negativity with you.

Romans 14:13, in the Message Paraphrase, says this:

“Here’s what you need to be concerned about: that you don’t get in the way of someone else, making life more difficult than it already is.”

In the Living Bible Translation, it puts it this way:

“…don’t criticize each other anymore. Try instead to live in such a way that you will never make your brother stumble by letting him see you doing something he thinks is wrong.”

And for anyone who is OGKJV:

“Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumbling block or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way.”

Can’t add anything to that.

So just be careful what you say, how you say it and who you say it to.

One more verse that I attempt to live my life by every day.

Philippians 4:8 (LB):

“Fix your thoughts [and your words] on what is true and good and right. Think about [and say] things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others. Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about.”

Make this your goal every single day. If you do this, soon you’ll find that it becomes the normal pattern of your life.

How old are you? Do you remember “graduating” from something?

Man, I sure do.

On the day of my 8th-grade “graduation,” I remember being asked, and completely privileged (to a degree), to play “Pomp and Circumstance” on the piano as my 8th grade compatriots sashayed across the stage, as it were.

On the day of my high school graduation, I remember my lifelong closest friends…many of whom I had been classmates with since kindergarten. And some of them I am even in touch with to this very day. Which makes me grin!!

On the day of my college graduation from Belmont College/University in Nashville, Tennessee…I can’t even tell you how proud and excited I was…the first female in my family to graduate from college. So many amazing, special people in my life showed up to celebrate with me. Hey guys…the tears were flowing…just sayin’!!

But look…K-12 and beyond…these years are defining moments/years in our personal development. I don’t know if this is a generational thing or just a thing. But I have very strong emotional attachments to friends that I remember having very early on in my childhood. And the fact that I am “friends” with them on social media in this day and age thrills me to the core. I have even gotten to spend quality time with some of them in person in recent years.

But this post is about “graduating.” So let’s back to the subject, shall me??

Graduation!

Such an important word and concept and life-defining moment!

The word/concept of “graduation” brings this roller coaster of emotions. So many emotions of “past trials” and “past successes,” along with the long-expected hope of what the future holds.

If you are the parent or grandparent of an upcoming grad, you know that you’ve done all you can possibly do to form and shape their mind and fill their heart. So now that the graduation time is here, you simply take a step back and allow them to shine! Everything they’ve done…all the work they’ve put in…has prepared them for the next big step…whatever that is.

When I get to moments like this, I like to look at what people before me have said…wise people who have crossed this path and have walked this road.

Here are some of my favorites:

Nora Ephron, whom I adore!, said, “Your education is a dress rehearsal for the life that is yours to lead.”

Yes!

Arthur Ashe said, “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.”

Orrin Hatch said, “Graduation is not the end; it’s the beginning!”

Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us.”

And some “unknown dude/dudette” said, “There are no regrets in life. Just lessons.” ( but I’d bet my left eye that my father-in-law said this at some point, for reals!)

And my all-time favorite…

“Kid, you’ll move mountains.” (Dr. Seuss)

Golly gee…I so very much want to move mountains!! Don’t you? And I’m sure all the graduating seniors across the nation want to move mountains, as well.

But here’s the crux of the matter, my friends…for you younger ones who are heading into new territories of college or careers…or you older ones who are facing empty nests (or kids coming home to live with you again), or whatever the change in your life…this is the bottom line…

“Life is 10% what happens TO you and 90% how you RESPOND to it.”

There’s no way we can control what happens to us…no matter how young or old we are. If you are “graduating” from one stage of life to another, you will admit that the unknown is very real and very scary. But always remember that, no matter what happens, you can choose to ask God to give you wisdom and you can choose how you respond. That’s the only control that we have.

Isaiah 43:18-21 (Message Paraphrase) says, “Forget about what’s happened; don’t keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand new. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it? There it is! I’m making a road through the desert, rivers in the badlands. Wild animals will say, ‘Thank you!’ – the coyotes and the buzzards – because I provided water in the desert, rivers through the sun-baked earth. Drinking water for the people I chose, the people I made especially for myself, a people custom-made to praise me.”

I recently gave a dear friend this verse. She’s about to move away from me…and things are going to be drastically different for her. (And for me, if I’m being honest.)

I am usually the very first person to say, “WHY?”

But, my sweet ones, the one-word question I need to ask every single time isn’t “why, but  “what?”

Graduating from one season into the next is sometimes exciting, sometimes terrifying, and most always uncertain. Instead of asking, “God, why is this…?” ask “God, what do you want to teach me through this?”

Choose to praise God…choose to trust Him…and choose to live each day resting in His peace.

No matter what!!

Every. Single. Day.

(I wrote this blog on Earth Day 2008…eleven years ago.
Hard to believe. Not much has changed.)

Today is Earth Day, 2008.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about this idea of “protecting” and “taking care of” the earth. I have heard the phrase “going green” ad nauseam. Every other commercial reminds us how rotten we are as humans if we don’t “reduce, reuse, recycle.” If you take all of the talk too seriously, you start feeling guilty for using a paper towel instead of a cloth napkin…for using a paper grocery bag instead of a “re-usable” grocery bag…for throwing a banana peel in the trash instead of putting in your own personal composter.

Bad things? No. Obsess much? Maybe a little.

So I wonder: How are we, as Christ-followers, supposed to respond to this? How “green” should we go? To what degree are we to “take care of the earth”? Where do we draw the line between worshipping the creation, rather than the Creator.

Scripture tells us these things:

“God claims Earth, and everything in it, God claims World and all who live on it.” Psalm 24:1 (The Message)

“…God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see…Everything was created through him and for him. He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together.” Colossians 1:16-17

We didn’t create the earth  – God did. We don’t preserve the earth – God does. But listen to this:

This world we are living in is passing away. This earth was never meant to be eternal. We should expect it to deteriorate.

“That’s why I don’t think there’s any comparison between the present hard times and the coming good times. The created world itself can hardly wait for what’s coming next. Everything in creation is being more or less held back. God reins it in until both creation and all the creatures are ready and can be released at the same moment into the glorious times ahead. Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens.” Romans 8:18-21

And did you know that Jesus never gave any command that had anything to do with taking care of the earth? Just FYI.

The earth has two purposes: God made it for us – us humans to enjoy and work and live off of. He also made it for himself – to reveal Himself to us. (See Psalm 19:1-4) In 345 A.D., St. Augustine wrote, “Some people, in order to discover God, read books. But there is a great book: the very appearance of created things. Look above you! Look below you! Note it. Read it. God, whom you want to discover, never wrote that book with ink. Instead he set before your eyes the things that he had made. Can you ask for a louder voice than that?”

So again, what is our role as Christians? I do believe that we need to do whatever we can to help keep the earth healthy, because it is God’s creation. But we have to remember that God, ultimately, is in control – not me. My faith and future firmly rests in Him. And He isn’t surprised by what is happening in our world.

Well, here’s what I’m going to do (and lots of these things, David and I already do and have done for a long time)…

 • I’m not going to buy into the environmental religion and make it my “little-g” god. But neither am I going to respond to it with apathy or anger (even after I’ve heard the latest “environment evangelist” selling his/her wares within earshot.)

• I will reduce – I’m going to try to use less plastic drink bottles, paper products, etc.

• I will reuse – wherever I can. I, however, am NOT going to reuse ziploc bags or aluminum foil, nor wash paper plates.

• I will recycle – to the extent that wise time management will allow. I might even buy a couple of recycle bins to put on my back patio to help out in this area.

• I will buy organic. I’m not a nut when it comes to organic, but I will buy organic when I can afford it and find it. Being in Cortez, we don’t have a huge variety except at WalMart and our two grocery stores. (Oh, how I wish we had a Whole Foods Market!!!) I love it when the farmer’s market starts up in the summer and I try to gather all the fresh produce I can from those vendors. There’s really nothing better than locally grown food.

• Replacing my regular light bulbs with fluorescent? Not so sure about this one. I personally don’t care for the light coming from these bulbs, especially in my home. Also, the details I’ve heard about how difficult it is to “legally” dispose of them bothers me. So, we’ll have to wait and see. I will, however, be sure I conserve energy by turning lights off in rooms in which I am not.

• And above all else, I have decided to honor Father God, rather than Mother Earth. “She” has no control over me… and vice versa.

So, as I’ve heard from wise counsel in my life, “Do what you can…with what you have…where you are.” Take care of what God has entrusted you with. Don’t over-extend, over-consume, over-complicate, over-indulge. Practice balance in all things, including “taking care of the earth.”

And finally: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away…” Revelation 21:1

Look at where a good bit of your TIME, your TREASURE and your TALENT are spent.

Do you spend a lot of your TIME on your phone, looking at social media or perusing Pinterest? Do you spend a lot of your TIME on your couch, watching daytime tv or binge-watching This is Us? Do you spend a lot of your TIME worrying about what others think or trying to live up to other’s lives, comparing and contrasting and complaining?

Do you spend a lot of your TREASURE on Amazon purchases? Do you spend a lot of your TREASURE at Walmart or Target or Macy’s? Do you spend a lot of your TREASURE on “things” like cars, clothes or comfort?

Do you spend a lot of your TALENT just entertaining yourself? Do you spend a lot of your TALENT in situations that aren’t building God’s kingdom or building up someone else? Do you spend a lot of your TALENT (and I’ll add experience here, too) reviewing to yourself how blessed you are and thankful for how God has equipped you?

All of these questions lead us to re-examine ourselves. Matthew 6:21 says that if any of the things that are mentioned above are over-occupying our thoughts, minds and actions, they are being misused. They are becoming the very things that we are building our lives around. Because our heart isn’t just our blood-pumping muscle, and it doesn’t necessarily mean red puffy hearts and Valentine’s day cards and dates with our significant others. Heart, in this passage, has to do with the seat of our personality and our attention…where we make our decisions from.

So Jesus is saying in this verse, your decisions and your attention are going to be wherever/whatever the things you orient your life around are.

That’s scary sometimes, when we look back on a day in the life.

Did I give any time to building others up?

Did I give any treasure to invest in eternity?

Did I give any talent to bless someone else?

Choose wisely.

David and I were watching a news show a while back, on which they featured a woman from the University of California Berkeley, a biologist, who is developing a new genome editing tool called CRISPR (“clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats”)…a tool that could transform the field of biology.

                    (I started this blog June of 2017, so I’m sure there’s been even
more development and research of this “tool”.)

The short version is this: CRISPR allows scientists to edit genomes with unprecedented precision. In laymen’s terms, it can go in and find any DNA “mistakes or abnormalities or deformities” and, like a tiny pair of scissors, go into the DNA strand and “cut” that bad part out.

It would be miraculous in some ways…curing childhood diseases like muscular dystrophy, sickle cell anemia, down syndrome, autism, etc. The thought of being able to keep any parent from losing a child to some horrid disease or disorder is a glorious thought.

But let me just say this…besides it being way too close to playing God and makes me very uncomfortable…the things that we experience in our life, good or bad, shape and build us into the people God wants us to be. 

For instance, the cancer that I experienced in 2010 and beyond was crap! But I wouldn’t go back and change it for anything. Was it fun to go through? Was it fun to know that I was facing something that could take my life? No. But, looking back, those things I faced, including about 2 months of pure hell when I nearly died of an unrelated lung disease, have made me the person/woman I am today. 

We can’t get rid of all the bad things in life that can happen to us. Even if we could completely get rid of bodily disease, abnormalities, deformities, there’s still accidents, disappointment, deaths, bad decisions, failed businesses, broken relationships, SIN to deal with…and those have absolutely nothing to do with our DNA.

This is earth…not heaven. Heaven is a place where, if our DNA matters at all, it has no “mistakes” in it…it’s perfect. But this ain’t heaven. And until then, God allows the crap we experience to build our character, our faith, to increase our trust, and our love, to give us a story that just might change someone else’s life for eternity. 

“I’ve told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I’ve conquered the world.” (John 16:33, message)

Think of all of the “overcomer” stories you and I would never have heard of or read about…people that had “mistakes” in their DNA…or their child had “mistakes” in their DNA. The victory and overcomer stories they are able to share, and we are able to hear and learn from, would be nonexistent. 

Consider and look up the stories of these famous overcomers:

Nick Vujicic 

Helen Keller

Stephen Hawking

Marlee Matlin

John Nash

Andrea Bocelli

Aaron Fotheringham

Michael J. Fox

And those are just the ones in the public eye. Think of all of the hundreds of stories we’ve heard of families and communities, cities and states, that have been positively affected by just one little boy, one teenage girl, one young man, or one woman who didn’t let their “mistake” define them or make them victims, but used whatever it was to make the world a better, stronger, happier place.

Just last night on The Titan Games, we saw a young man, Chris Ruden, who was born with one arm shorter than the other, with only two fingers that looked similar to a lobster claw. He rocked it! He hid it from people until he was 17 years old, until one day, he decided “NO MORE.” And because of that, we watched him compete in one of the hardest, physical competitions there is today (at least on tv). He inspired me!

Chris said “Limitations are self-imposed.” I couldn’t agree more.

The CRISPR developers and researchers have admitted that there are definitely limits…”moral” limits…that they need to consider when exploring the uses of this new technology (which is years down the road before they are able to make it available to the public). I concur.

           [On January 24 of this year, medical leaders have said that they
aim to tighten genome editing guidelines. This pushes public
availability even farther down the road.]

So if they can make this happen without crossing any moral lines, I’m all in. I have family members who have conditions from birth that make it very hard to make it through some days. I know the pain it causes them and the whole family. But getting rid of all those DNA problems won’t solve the problem of fixing humans altogether.

Until then, let’s all use whatever God has given us from birth…the good, the bad, the ugly…use it to make the world a better place. Our weaknesses are nothing in God’s hands!

“But he answered me, ‘My grace is always more than enough for you, and my power finds its full expression through your weakness.’ So I will celebrate my weaknesses, for when I’m weak I sense more deeply the mighty power of Christ living in me.” (The Apostle Paul, 2 Corinthians 12:9, The Passion Translation)