Every Single One

The world's population is now over seven billion people.  Living in a rural setting, that number is alien to me, unfathomable.  Surely the earth cannot hold us all, as huge as it is.  Put yourself in the middle of seven billion people...how can you be distinguished from the masses, the broiling, teeming swirl of humanity that is constantly moving and growing?   How can you matter?

in·fin·i·tes·i·mal:  An immeasurably or incalculably minute amount or quantity.

There are 10 times more stars in the night sky than grains of sand in the world's deserts and beaches, according to scientists.  Astronomers estimated there are 70 thousand million million million - or seven followed by 22 zeros - stars visible from the Earth through telescopes.

Sort of makes the world's population seem small, doesn't it?

But doesn't it also start to put some things into perspective?

We think we have put God into a certain place.  Our mind pictures a throne of majesty and grandeur, yes.  Somewhere between earth and heaven, wherever that is.  We picture our galaxy, and then the mind wavers and recedes.  The vastness of outer space is mind boggling and fearful.  We try to accept the unimaginable distances and time and unknown and our hearts begin to pound.   Who is this God who can create and manage such wonders?  And who am I that He would create and plan a life for...me, this infinitesimal dot on the universes?



If I have not expressed jubilent thanks to my Lord for my life and the hope He gives me...every moment of my waking...then I am remiss, uncaring and traitorous.  For my God, who is the Creator of all things, is faithful and one day will tell me...this infinitesimal dot...the secrets of His creations and I will know and enjoy the wonderful things he has planned for me in heaven.  I love you, Lord, and I will not miss out on your promises!

Time Spent Well

It was beautifully penciled and colored, giving a very cool picture of what could be.  Visions of a well designed, colorful landscape was enticing...equal to the promise of spring on a bright, sunny day.  It would be enjoyable, pleasing to the eye, an example of what can be surveyed in God's creations.  It would also be expensive.  Biting the bullet, I signed my name.

Euphoria was short lived.  By nightfall, doubts were taking over and the urge to call and cancel was deep.  Could we afford it?  Could the money be better spend elsewhere?  Was it a smart decision?  How long would we enjoy it?  How long...?  There it was, the underlying crux I was battling without knowing. 

Seasons change and the years speed up that process, I'm sure of it.  Life takes on a cruising speed of its own, and you find yourself amazed when looking back...amazed and sometimes disappointed.  Joseph Cook, editor and writer, once summarized man's earthly life this way: "Man's life means tender teens, teachable twenties, tireless thirties, fiery forties, forceful fifties, serious sixties, sacred seventies, aching eighties, shortening breath, dead, the sod, then God."

As for man, his days are like grass; As a flower of the field, so he flourishes. For the wind passes over it, and it is gone, And its place remembers it no more. - Psalm 103:15

Statistically, 15 to 22 remaining years is projected for me, baring any life ending diseases.  My head is still reeling!   So, too, is my husband's because I felt the need to inform him of this...his more because he is astounded I would even look this up!    My astonishment is more tuned into the age old questions of "Where did the time go?" and "What do I have to show for my life?" and "What do I need to hurry up and get accomplished before my memory is mush?" and more importantly, "Have I lived my life for Christ or myself?"

Jesus teaches us to seek first the kingdom of God, and also “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."  (Matthew 6:34).  Bottom line, the present time is the perfect time, the only time, to follow and serve God.

Missed opportunities cannot be recreated and time gone by is not retrievable.  We cannot worry about what we have done with our lives, because today, this moment, begins anew.  However many moments are left are full of promise, and all we have to do is seek Him.

So, no more worries about something as trivial as landscaping.   I have better things to do with my time.

Scheduling God

It caught my eye as I was browsing...What would happen if we looked at our schedules as acts of worship?        

What, my schedule?  Worship?  We had just gone through a series of lessons on worship at church, and I was pretty sure this one wasn't mentioned.  I almost passed it by.  But curiosity got the better of this ole cat and I read on.

What constitutes worship has been on my mind for some time now...years really.  Is everything I do worship?  Is there such a thing as simply living my life without it necessarily being worship?

“Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering’” (Rom. 12:1, MSG).

Living a life is not worship...unless I make it so!  I can either reflect the glory of God and show the presence of Jesus in my life, or I can reflect the opposite.  Every day is a choice; every moment is a choice...whether I build up or tear down; whether I encourage or criticize; whether I forgive or not forgive; whether I give mercy or pronounce judgment; whether I share my faith or remain silent. 

Dusting can become meditative moments...vacuuming can provide times of prayerful thoughts...errands can be opportunities for reaching out...work can be filled with joyful attitude and calming spirit...travel time can be spent in appreciation and thankfulness for God created views of beauty and nature.

Schedules change from day to day...no two days are exactly the same.  As a child of God, we should remain constant, always looking to God in every instance of our schedules, allowing His nature to influence us in word and deed.  Then our everyday, ordinary life will be extraordinary and a fitting offering for the One who made us!    

Time Changes

Time as a noun is defined as the measured or measurable period during which an action, process, or condition exists or continues...i.e., duration.  As in, non-sleep.  Which is where I am at present.  After a particularly busy day, certainly tired enough to drop off into oblivion, how can time stand still with eyes glued to the ceiling?  How does the brain miss the timely signs of nightly rest when the remainder of this body knows full well the needed comfort of bed and sleep?

Instead, knowledge of a friend facing cancer surgery fills the mind and urgent prayers are lifted on his behalf...which brings to mind others facing surgery or treatment...more prayers offered.  The domino effect is raging now, and the mind races with urgent needs of friends, family, and friends of friends. 

So up out of the bed I go to precious time in the middle of the night, with only the ticking of a clock to match the clicking of the keyboard, to match the beating of a heart filled with love and hope for lives physically suffering and others grieving for lost loved ones.

Time stops for no one...except the Lord.  Joshua 10:13:
And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day.

So the dying continues, diseases ravage bodies, hearts and promises are broken.  But then births continue also, allowing laughter and joy to ring through our days, as love and hope tower above all else.  How comforting to know that what we experience, what we fear, what loss we bear has been foretold in words we can understand...

Ecclesiates 3:

     1 For there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

     2 a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time
        to pluck up what is planted;
     3 a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
     4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
     5 a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
        a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
     6 a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
     7 a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
     8 a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.

We have been given time on earth and not all that time is pleasant.  Our God knew of life trials we would face and has numbered our days.  I choose this new day to remember our Creator, to live my life fully with meaning and purpose.  I choose to value my time with heart-felt prayer and thankfulness.  I choose time with God.

Season of Love

Hours, then days of frantic preparation, this litany of gift lists, menu and last second decoration...consumed in too few hours like a fast paced movie you'd rather not end.  The energy level sinks among tattered bits of wrapping paper, a naked tree devoid of presents, extra chairs still scattered.  Procrastination is the word for the day, as memories of the night before run through your mind like a slide show. 

The blessing of family is precious; the opportunity to be together a gift in itself.  Watching your grandchild's face light up, exclaiming "It's just what I wanted!" is heart warming and lovingly contagious. Happiness abounds and you just drink it in.

"The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family

 all wrapped up in each other." - Burton Hillis

Thanking God for my life filled to the brim with a loving family, a loving Saviour and most of all for God's grace!  May Christ be a part of your lives this day and every day of the year!

Cabin Fever

Cabin fever is real.  So is bronchitis.  Next step is pneumonia which should be avoided at all costs.  Lack of medical insurance will teach you that if nothing else.

So, the lingering, lounging, endless hours go by while one thousand and two things need to be done before Christmas.  And since Christmas is my absolute favorite time of year, the plans for decorating this year would surpass anything I had ever tried in the past.  Visions of garland with red bows draping the front fence, millions or else thousands of white lights outlining the house, and snowmen and penguins dotting the landscape.  For the first time in a long time, we now lived in a place that just begs for lots of holiday delight.  Woe is me and my name is whiner.

Cabin fever does offer time for reflection...when not napping...and there is plenty of distraction.  Friends and acquaintances fighting cancer and other heartaches.  Reading blogs of women who have lost their mates and struggling to get through the holidays.  Watching videos of heart rending circumstance and courageous efforts to overcome.  Reading verses of encouragement and promise from God's Word and prayer for those suffering.

One week of cabin fever is no equal to a lifetime of suffering or a seemingly endless barrage of continuing bad news, nor is it useless. As with any time of sickness or helplessness, it is another opportunity to realize my dependence on a higher power, one who knows me and loves me and will never leave me. 

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:" (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

Tomorrow, God willing, I will be able to leave this house for a short trip.  I will whine no more and I will be grateful more.

Graciousness in Despair

Let me tell you about graciousness in the form of a woman...or two.

It was a day burdened with frustration, of time spent fruitlessly and endlessly.  Traffic crept, then time,  a typical "hurry up and wait."  Anticipating surgical procedures, the lack of nourishment, and unexpected emergencies pile and stack, bringing frowns to the faces and tiredness to the eyes.  Burdened lives of physical ills are heavy to the point of despair, and we wonder "why?" and "how long". 

God uses that.

Endless waiting provides opportunities for life reflection and status of soul.  Family and friends are prompted to open discussion of spiritual things, changes of lifestyle and the need for a savior.  A small room filled with persons make intimate conversation difficult, so expressions of encouragement and exhortation carry and words fall where they may. 

God's name is heard.

Finally, her husband's surgery goes well and she feels blessed.  Another's was put on life support and she is left devastated and helpless, all the while knowing that God will see her through.  The room is immediately drawn to her sadness and offers prayers in her behalf. 

God is honored.

The first lady, my good friend, carries the burden of Multiple Sclerosis...this day and every day of her life...a progressing, debilitating disease, making the endless traversing of a hospital stay difficult and draining.  There are no complaints...not a murmur passes her lips...ever.  I stand amazed at her resiliency and humbleness in spite of her ever changing, increasing dependence on other people or things.

God uses my friend to teach me gratitude and patience.

Driving her to where she will stay overnight, I meet her sister.  Another beautiful, gracious lady who welcomes me with warmth and appreciation...all from her wheelchair, for she carries the burden of polio.  I am then introduced to her loving husband, who suffers from Alzheimer's. Some have more than their share of burdens.  But I leave with beautiful, loving smiles following me through the door and the warmth envelops me, and I simply praise God for the pleasure of knowing these beautiful souls clothed in wearisome bodies.

God is worshipped.

May we be gracious and joyful in the face of despair, knowing that God is there even then, using the bad for good, teaching and admonishing us to learn and show compassion, growing our faith and giving us endless opportunities to do good, giving thanks to our Lord for all things and trusting Him always. 

It was a day full of graciousness and I, as well as others, was indeed blessed.