Cane River...but the best is yet to come!

     "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners...but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night.  He is like a tree planted by streams of living water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers." (Ps.1:1-3)
     I've always loved the imagery of this beautiful psalm--don't we all want to be like that "tree planted by streams of living water?"  Yes, Lord, might it be so for our family and friends that we would be like those trees standing strong in Your Living Water.
     But when I read these words of God, He reminds me of Cane River.  Those ever-flowing streams of living, vibrant, sparkling water...surrounded by lush, green trees...sunlight flowing through the canopy overhead and dancing on the water.  And the sound of those rushing waters? I'm sitting outside on the porch right now listening to their achingly beautiful melody.  Ah, like a divine, ceaseless symphony of peace and praise to the Maker of the heavens and the earth.
     Cane River--just the tiniest taste of heaven.  Surrounded by God's wild, majestic creation--

And enveloped by the love of family--

 (on the truck getting ready to head out fishing)

 (all gathered on the porch of the old log cabin)

 (discussing the day and plotting strategy for the next outing on the stream)

 (a few good men just back from "slaying them"--though we throw back all the fish!  Believe me, the magnificent Rainbow, Brook and Brown trout are safe when the Preyer/Oglesby/Fountain crew arrives!)

 (more than a few good men enjoying being together)

 (Peter intent on catching a big one)

(Mary Norris at Upper Blue Sea Falls.  This doesn't begin to do the falls justice--it's huge and generates a powerful wind from the streaming, powerfully flowing waters.  Truly does make you want to raise your hands in praise to our glorious Creator and Sustainer!  Only our God!)
      Father, thank You for the priceless gift of this world.  If this beauty all around us is only the pale and poor imitation of the "real" and perfect heaven and earth that will one day be revealed, can you even begin to imagine what God has in store for us?!  "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him" (I Cor.2:9)
     Might we remember, when we're struggling through one of those hard, dark days that life inevitably hands all of us, that the best truly is yet to come.  It's not a cliche...it's rock-solid, wondrous Truth.  Our Awesome God who can craft the waterfall, the singing stream, the swaying trees, and the priceless and irreplaceable people in our lives is now, even at this very moment, lovingly and creatively preparing the perfect place for His beloved children.
       So thank You, Lord, for the gifts of Your creation.  Thank You for eyes to see them, ears to hear them, lips to sing of Your praise, and hands to raise in joy.  And most of all, thank You for the privilege of loving You and those You have placed in our lives for our short time on earth.  Help us to love You--and them--well.  We fail so often--but Your grace abounds and Your mercies are new every morning.  Oh thank You, Father, for forgiveness and fresh starts.
     And thank You for the joyous promise of heaven.  We can't imagine...but we rejoice in the certain hope of the wonders just ahead...
     To God be the glory.

What's your treasure?

     "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Mt.6:21)
     Oh don't we all need to be reminded that what we treasure reveals our heart's deepest desires and direction.  And when we start treasuring the wrong things, it's time to reevaluate, repent, and return to our priceless treasure: the Lord Jesus.
     But boy, it's so easy to get off track, isn't it?  And it can be such a seemingly slight and subtle movement off course.  We slowly begin to veer towards the world's pale and poor imitations of treasure and away from our greatest, truest Treasure.  It's a little here, a little there. a tiny move in the wrong direction...and the next thing you know, you're waaaaaay off course.  Missing God's best.  Losing the peace and joy only He can give.  Forfeiting the gifts His grace generously bestows when we're walking in His will.
     C.S.Lewis put it so powerfully in The Screwtape Letters: "It does not matter how small the sins are, provided that their cumulative effect is to edge the man away from the Light and out into Nothing.  Murder is no better than cards if cards can do the trick.  Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one--the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts."
     Oh Father, protect us from such indifference to You and Your Word!  Lead us relentlessly towards the Light and give us strength, every day, every hour, to choose rightly.  Help us in our daily lives to see You high and lifted up, rather than to focus on ourselves, our circumstances, and our often selfish desires.  Jesus is our greatest treasure and the surest source of infinite and indefatigable joy...not our possessions...not our pleasures...not our success...not our healing...not our comfort...not even our families and those we love most dearly.  
     It's funny the things God uses.  A few minutes ago I was trying to figure out how to delete a few photos from our overburdened computer.  But, being a techno-moron, I accidentally deleted the entire photo library.  ALL OF IT!   Every picture from our daughter's wedding; every picture of family and friends from the past few years; every picture of the grandparents; every picture of old Moses before he died and Bingley as a puppy; every picture of high school graduation, college graduation, state championships; every picture of family vacations; every picture of proms and school events; every picture of birthdays...ALL OF IT GONE!
     Let me tell you, for a techno-moron, this was not only a terrible, horrible, helpless feeling...this was a DISASTER.  I tried pushing every button I could find to restore it.  I asked the computer's "Help" button in a million different ways how to find it.  (Note to self: my definition of "help" and the computer's definition of "help" vary dramatically.  Computer jargon that only a Ph.D can understand is not "help" in my world.)
     The panic began to rise as I realized I had foolishly and quite literally thrown away the most important thing saved on our computer--our cherished photos of loved ones.  And no matter what I did, I couldn't get them back.  My ignorance and inattention had lost them seemingly forever.
     Here's the ridiculously good news--after nearly 45 fruitless, frustrating minutes, God somehow led me to push some button (I still don't know which one it was) and bing--they magically and wondrously reappeared.  I couldn't believe it.  I wanted to weep with relief and joy that the treasure I thought I'd lost, had been found.
     Remind you of any stories Jesus told in the New Testament?  About lost coins, lost sheep, or lost pearls?
     Suddenly I didn't care a whit about the laundry or the dishes or the golf schedule or the yard or the items on my to do list.  All I could think about for that moment was those irreplaceable pictures.
     But what are some pictures in comparison to the Treasure of treasures?  Even those pictures--of far more value to me than most material possessions--pale into nothingness when measured against the masterpiece of our Redeemer.  One day those pictures will all fade into oblivion.  They will be completely forgotten...but our Lord reigns forever and ever.  Hebrews 13:8 says "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."
     Think of that--the same power...the same love...the same grace...the same goodness...the same beauty...the same forgiveness...the same majesty...the same compassion...the same glory today as He had two thousand years ago...and as He will have two trillion years from now.
     Jesus is the Treasure that never fades or weakens or dims.  Ever.  What else in your life can you say that about?  Nothing...save the Word of God.  And His Word describes Jesus, our Living Word.
     So it all comes down to the question: what is your treasure?
     Or as John Piper once probed, "What is your deepest root of joy?  What God gives to you?  or what God is to you?"
     Jesus, You are our Pearl.  You are our Treasure.  Anything less than our Savior as the exalted Sovereign King of our lives and as the Treasure of our hearts will ultimately lead to emptiness and loss.  But when Jesus is our Treasure, as Piper says, "the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be our shepherd, and He will guide us to springs of living water, and He will wipe away every tear from our eyes." (Rev.7:17)  Christ will be our "everlasting pleasure."  Hallelujah!
     To God, our beautiful Treasure, be all the glory.

Not last monday...but today

     Yesterday morning, I awoke and found myself saying, "Oh boy, I wish it were last Monday."  Why?  Because last Monday we were all in the mountains...delighting in the beauty and the coolness and the "margin" (no schedule, no rushing, no urgent agenda)...and especially enjoying all the fine, young fellows who were staying with us for a golf tournament.  There's just nothing like the excitement, energy, and fun of being away together with family and friends.
     So yep, yesterday, as I awoke and thought of getting back to a more normal routine with all it's chores and ordinary, run-of-the-mill concerns, well, I missed the mountains and the freedom and the crazy fun of the adventure that lay before us.  Now it was back to the everyday...and that seemed somehow dull and grey in comparison to a week earlier.
     Yet the moment those words left my mouth, that still, small voice whispered--"This is the only Monday, June 23, 2014 you'll ever have.  This is your one shot at this particular gift of a day.  Are you going to waste it by wishing it away?  Are you going to throw it away on the ash heap of regret?  Are you going to disdain the irreplaceable gift of these 24 hours graciously given to you by Your Sovereign Father?"
      Oh shame on us when we waste even one day God so generously hands to us by looking back with regret or looking ahead with worry.  No, this present moment--that's why they call it "present"--is God's gift of today.  That's all we have folks--right now.
     Yes, praise the Lord, we have the glories of heaven ahead of us, but these irreplaceable moments today are all God has given us to enjoy and savor.  Yesterday--gone.  Tomorrow--not yet.  What's the point of regretting what's done or worrying about what's future.  We may not be here tomorrow.  Do we really want to waste these few moments we have today in fretting or fussing or worrying or wringing our hands?
     The words to Hebrews (what else?  But that's what I'm studying this summer) keep coming back to me: "Today if you hear His voice do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness." (Heb.3:7)  And "But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called 'today,' that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin." (Heb.3:12) And "again He appoints a certain day, 'Today,' saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted, 'Today if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts." (Heb.4:7)
     Today matters.
     "Today is the day of salvation." (2Cor.6:2)
     "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." (Ps.118:24)
     Today is the day we can worship and thank and praise our Lord for who He is and what He has done.
     Today is the day we can love those God has placed in our lives.
     Today is the day we can forgive.
     Today is the day we can count our blessings rather than recounting our woes.
     Today is the day we can obey what God has told us to do--whether it's writing a letter to encourage a friend or reading a book with our child or unselfishly serving a family member or appreciating our spouse (and telling them!) or truly savoring the sunset or simply enjoying the gift of laughter with someone we love.
     Stop waiting for tomorrow.  Stop worrying about what's past or what's ahead.  Live the abundant, eternal,  loving, faithful, joyful life Jesus died to give you, now...right now.  
     Today.  And you know what--our forever faithful Savior will be right there with us tomorrow as well.  So let's leave the future--and the past--in His hands.  And trust and rest in Him today.
     To God be the glory.
   

When it's just one of those days...

     A very worn out Mr. Bingley can tell you: it's been a tough couple of days--

     This is not the kind of exhaustion caused by happy squirrel chasing or joyful dog frolicking.  Nor is our puppy whipped after a nice, long walk or a relaxing swim.  Nope, sadly, this is a bone-weary, crummy-feeling tiredness...the kind that, in us two-legged creatures, can strike with ferocity when we're discouraged or disgruntled or defeated.  Almost nothing in this world harder than that kind of weariness, is there?
     Let me explain.
     Last week was all joy and happiness for Mr. B and the rest of our crew.  Surrounded by the magnificent mountains...savoring the blessed coolness...enjoying freedom from the daily grind of chores back at home...and relishing time to breathe, read, write, and think.  "Margin," I think it's called.  Margin, plus family and friends, plus God's stunning mountains--yes, a good, good week to be sure.
     But then, it was back to "reality."  Meaning--arriving home in the early evening to a home that clocked in close to 90 degrees.  A broken air conditioner quickly lead to busted attitudes. Where had that joyful, rested, grateful vacation spirit gone?  We'd left the mountains at 77 degrees and returned to Raleigh at 95 degrees...with our furnace-like house not far behind.  Too bad we weren't in the mood for hot yoga.  But we most definitely were not in the mood.
     After unloading in the stifling humidity--inside and out--for what seemed like hours, it was time for laundry, unpacking, cleaning up, and finally facing the hard reality of that lengthy to-do list that I'd happily forgotten about for a week.
     By the way, have you noticed that to-do lists never seem to diminish when left alone?  No sir, they multiply exponentially, like bacteria spore under a heat lamp.  Those lists just fester and grow uglier, longer, and more urgent.
     Happily, for a distressingly large amount of money (since it was after-hours), the very nice man from the AC/Heating company fixed our problem, and we were back in business...well, that is, after about 24 hours since that's how long it took the house to recover from the shock of the sauna conditions.
     The next day, however, things were looking up...the house was down to a cool 79 degrees, and I only had about 3 more loads of laundry to finish up...well, that and the dreaded to-do list.  But still, progress.  That night (i.e. last night) we went out for a fun family dinner and had a big time--seriously, one of God's greatest gifts has to be good food combined with great fellowship!  And waiting for us back home was another of God's finest gifts--chocolate cake.  Oh yeah, things were definitely looking up.
      Until we opened the door.  I won't go into details except to quote my husband's exclamation last night: "Oh no, Bingley had a sick stomach!"  The rest of us could smell it even outside the kitchen door.
     Then as he walked inside, he yelled, "Oh no, Bingley has had another sick stomach!' (By the way, wasn't that a nice, quaint way to describe it?  I never knew my husband was a poet.  I'm sure Bingley appreciated the dignity and restraint employed by his "daddy.")
     Finally, a moment later--as more of the horrors awaiting us unfolded, Richard screamed, "Oh no, a third one!  Grab the paper towels and clorox now!"
     Here's the really remarkable thing--I don't recall seeing hide nor tail of Preyer or Peter after Richard's first exclamation.  I've never seen those boys move so fast.  They vanished within milliseconds and were not located again for a good half hour.  Gee, thanks guys.
     So it was left to good old Dad, Mom, and Janie (bless her heart--way to hang in there, girl!) to cover our noses as best we could and clean up the kitchen.  Bingley looked pathetic--so sad, so disappointed in himself, and so confused by all our gagging.  Yes, it was a lovely ending to the day.  For the first time in my life, I wasn't all that interested in chocolate cake, if you know what I mean.
     Some days are just like that, aren't they?  In fact, that's simply the cyclical nature of life--some days we inhale the mountain top air of contentment, rest, and happiness.  Others, well, it's choking on the garbage dump of exhaustion, failure, and discouragement.
     But here's the thing--we have the choice as to whether we'll complain or commit it to the Savior.  Whether we'll focus on the mess and all that we lack or fix our eyes on the Messiah and all that we possess in Him.  And whether we'll resent the circumstances God has given us or rejoice in our God whose over all those circumstances.
     Let me be honest here--I often flunk the test...at least initially.  But here's the glorious thing about our God and His Word--the more we immerse ourselves in His Word, the more He speaks to us through it and can correct and change us mid-course.
     And our God can move us in a moment from fussing and fretting to praising and trusting.  Only our Lord can take an ugly, thankless, complaining heart and transform it in the twinkling of an eye into a heart overflowing with gratitude for His glorious grace and goodness.  Through His Word, our God replaces our worry with worship.
     Here's how He did it with me: by glancing at a simple verse framed in our house, "Do all things without grumbling or disputing." (Phil.2:14)  I can't explain it, but reading those words suddenly jerked me back to the real reality--the real reality that God is right here in the midst of all the messiness of our lives. That He is present, that He is moving and active, and that He is using it all, somehow, someway, for His greater glory and our ultimate good.
     Funny how quickly we forget...and sometimes all we need is a quick little reminder to hit "reset."  Reset our attitude, return to our sovereign King, and rejoice in His continual grace in our lives.
     Once God reminded me, He brought to mind the wonderful verses I've been reading this summer from Hebrews: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight [like complaining, self-pity, and ingratitude] and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.  Consider Him who endured from sinners such hostility against Himself, so that you may not grow weary or faint-hearted." (Heb.12:1-3)
       Says it all, doesn't it?  Lay aside the weight of all that sin and shame, fix your eyes on Jesus, and keep running your race.  Not your neighbor's race...your God-given race.
     And while you're running, keep looking to Jesus; keep seeking His grace for another day; keep asking for His love and wisdom to deal with whatever you're facing;  keep trusting in His perfect provision for your race; and keep rejoicing in Him who has already run the race for you and with you.
     So, thank You Jesus for all of it--the mountains, the friends and family, the coolness, the heat, the sickness, the mess...and the Messiah over all of it!  Help us to keep running our race with joy, looking to You, rejoicing in You, and living for You.  'Cause You've got it all, every single bit of it.  And You will carry us through to the finish line.
     To God be the glory.

Gifts of Friendship!

     "Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work; If one falls down, his friend can help him up.  But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!" Ecc.4:9-10
     The house at Roaring Gap is a lot quieter now...and it makes me sad.  We've had the privilege and joy of having a bunch of Raleigh boys up here for a golf tournament, but most of them have gone home now...and we miss them all.  We miss the noise and energy and fun of all those friends joking and laughing and eating and chatting and cheering for basketball and soccer games on TV and sitting on the porch at night.
     You know, here we are surrounded by astounding beauty at every turn--and it is wonderful--but even God's lovely creation pales in comparison to the treasure of friendship.
   Thank You, Lord, for the irreplaceable gifts of our friends and our children's friends.  Each one a unique little gem of Your handiwork.  And each friend a gift from the Father in the life of one another.  Friends prove yet further evidence of our Lord's absolute sovereignty and complete goodness.                     C.S.Lewis put it this way: "But in friendship...we think we have chosen our peers.  In reality, a few years' difference in the dates of our births, a few more miles between certain houses, the choice of one university instead of another, posting to different regiments, the accident of a topic being raised or not raised at a first meeting--any of these chances might have kept us apart.  But, for the Christian, there are strictly speaking, no chances.  A secret Master of Ceremonies has been at work."
      Aren't you thankful we have such a "secret Master of Ceremonies?"  Aren't you thankful for friends?
       Just a few memories of the gift of friendship our boys have enjoyed over the past few days here in the mountains--
      One of Preyer's best buddies warming up and getting ready to play--

   And then there was the cookout the first night--lots of buddies.  Now there's an unbeatable combination--food and friendship!  Oh yeah!  Thank You Lord!

     Peter getting ready to caddie for Preyer.  We won't mention that Preyer "fired" him after a couple of holes since the bag was too heavy for Peter to carry!  But thank You, Father, for the priceless gift of brothers and sisters!

     Then there was the whole Raleigh gang following Peter when he was in a playoff.  "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." (Prov.27:17)  Thank You, Lord, for the way You use friends in  our children's lives (and in ours!) to sharpen and refine us.

     And one more--four irreplaceable boys from One magnificent Creator!  Pure joy!

     Makes me smile with happiness just looking at it...and remembering that every precious friend comes straight from the hand and heart of our generous, gracious Lord.
      Oh Lord, forgive us when we take for granted the remarkable and astounding gift of family and friends.  You crafted each one of them and divinely placed them in our lives.  Help us to be wise, good, and kind friends to those You have so lavishly given to us. Might we love them as Jesus has loved us.          Thank You, Father, for all Your good gifts.  To God be the glory.  

Creation and rustling pages

     "Oh sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord all the earth! Sing to the Lord, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all peoples!  For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; he is to be feared above all gods...Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it!  Then shall all the trees, of the forest sing for joy before the Lord, for He comes, for He comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness, and the peoples in his faithfulness." (Psalm 96:1-4,11-13)
      Another day glimpsing God's glory in the mountains.

The boys swimming with Bingley--

     And the other night, we sat on the porch and enjoyed a spectacular light show as the moon slowly rose over the horizon.  Beginning as a tiny thumbnail of orange on the edge of the horizon, the bright orange disk gradually grew and grew until it lit up the sky with it's deep amber brilliance.  What a mighty God we serve who has created such a magnificent heaven and earth!

      C.S. Lewis wrote, "At present we are on the outside of the world, the wrong side of the door.  We discern the freshness and purity of the morning, but they do not make us fresh and pure.  We cannot mingle with the splendors we see.  But all the leaves of the New Testament are rustling with the rumor that it will not always be so.  Someday, God willing, we shall get 'in'...We will put on glory...that greater glory of which nature is only the first sketch."
     Looking around the mountains, that splendor surrounds us at every turn...it is a beauty that causes a bittersweet joy and ache.  A realization that this is but the tiniest glimpse into the perfect heaven and earth which shall one day be reality.
     It is the here and now...but not yet.  And so we wait in that sometimes wondrous, sometimes painful in-between.  Praising the Creator for His magnificent creation...yet knowing and trusting that one glorious day, "we shall get 'in'" and witness firsthand His finished, awesome masterpiece.
     On that wonderful day, we too, shall be finished and perfected works to the glory of our God.  Oh how far I have to go in my present sinful, selfish state.  Ugh, so much ugly me and not enough of my beautiful Savior.
      But, praise God, He is not finished with me, or any of us, yet...just as He is not finished with this magnificent world.  Thank You, Father, for the promise and hope of the rustling of those leaves in our New Testament...thank You for the promise of glory.  Thank You for the One who is even now, rustling those pages and who is the Word, our Redeemer and Perfecter, the Lord Jesus.
     To God be the glory.
       

Happy Father's Day!

     Happy Father's Day!  Thank You, Father, for our fathers--earthly and heavenly.  I have been doubly, no triply blessed: the gift of my wonderful Daddy, now in heaven.  Then the gift of my husband and the amazing dad he is to our children.  And finally, the unfathomable gift of my Heavenly Father.  
     Nothing profound here--just thankful.  And realizing it's grace.  Start to finish--grace upon grace upon grace.  None of us deserve our dads.  None of us could ever begin to deserve the love and approval and forgiveness and blessing of our Heavenly Father.  And yet He gives it.  He pours it out upon us in the gift of His Son, the Lord Jesus.  And in response?  Profound, humble gratitude.
     Just last night, we celebrated our daddy and the gift of love.  And of family.  It was what Ann Voskamp once referred to as a "cathedral moment."  A cathedral moment that passes all too quickly where you recognize--in that very moment--the joy of life's ordinary, simple, but oh so wondrous times.  Our cathedral moment was a simple dinner at the lake with almost all our children (only missing Mary Norris' husband Matt who had to be out of town).  It was pure happiness.  Just sitting together, laughing, talking, and eating.  Seriously, what could be better?  I wouldn't have traded those minutes around the table for a trip around the world--and that's a good thing since that ain't happening in this lifetime!  I truly think about nothing in this big wide universe beats sharing a good meal with the people you adore.
     So thank You, Lord, for the gift of simple, joyous moments shared with those we love.  Happy Father's Day to our earthly and Heavenly Daddies!

     Give us eyes to truly grasp these cathedral moments where our God breaks into common, everyday life and infuses it with His gracious, generous gifts of love.  To God be the glory.