Perseverance of the saints...and Moms!

     This is what I wrote about on March 15:

Yes, we are quite the gardeners around here.   At the time of this picture, I knew this pile of brown, ugly, straw-like debris would eventually be transformed into a beautiful green flower.  (I've forgotten the name again even though my dear friend and excellent gardener, Nancy, told me what it was!).  Yes, I knew this dead pile of mess could and should one day grow into something lovely and living... but still, nothing much happened for an awfully long time.   And you begin to second-guess and doubt... and grow weary with waiting.
     Sometimes, I feel like this as a mom.  Like this ugly, dead tangle of brush--desiccated, defeated, discouraged.  Do you ever know the feeling?  Maybe one of your children has messed up... or maybe you've messed up... or maybe life has just messed up.  And here's our (or at least my) tendency:  I begin to worry and doubt and fret.  "What on earth?  Will I never figure this thing out?  I must be a terrible, awful mom."  Weariness in the battles of life can make cowards of us all.
     But here's what God's never-failing Word just reminded me: "And let us not grow weary in doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up." (Gal.6:9)
     Sometimes we moms--well, frankly all of us whether we are moms or not--just need to be reminded; Don't give up!  Sure, it can be tough.  The battles of life can be long and frustrating and demoralizing at times.  But we do not fight them alone.  Never ever alone.
     Colossians puts it this way: "May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light." (Col.1:11-12)
     It's His strength that enables us to persevere in His power.  It's His might that equips us to be patient and transforms our discouragement into joy.  It's His joy--His glorious, malaise-shattering joy even in the midst of our sometimes long, heavy slogs through parenthood... or whatever challenges you may be facing in life.
     And we can and must choose to continually "give thanks to the Father who has qualified you"--He is the Qualifier of weary moms... and discouraged students... and fearful fathers... and worn out caregivers... and battle-fatigued believers.
     We choose to daily, hourly, thank our Supernatural Qualifier.  O the power of thanksgiving in the midst of the battles!
     We can persevere in faith and joy as moms--or wherever Almighty God has placed us--because it's HIS strength and might and patience and joy and hope and love and resurrection power which He pours into and through us.
      It's all Him, and He is the One who qualifies us.
     And here's our part--to persevere and refuse to give up.  To just keep going to Him again and again: asking for His thirst-quenching, joy-filling, heart-revitalizing, energy-restoring, hope-renewing resurrection power to do whatever He's called us to do this day, this hour, this minute.  And then go to Him for the next moment...and the next... and the next.  Trusting that He'll provide and do what we can't.  That He'll do the impossible.  And that one day we will reap a harvest if we.  do.  not.  give.  up.

     This is what God can do when we refuse to give up.  Same place; same plant--six weeks later.
     Beauty from ashes.
     Like I said, I'm no gardener.  God did this completely, 100% all by His own Perfect, All-powerful Self.  We did nothing for these flowers save persevere in hope that, despite all evidence to the contrary, if we refused to give up, God would give us a harvest of beauty.
     And He did.
     And He always does.  Sometimes it just takes a while.  Ah, but the wait and the perseverance makes it all the sweeter and more satisfying in the end.
    So Happy Mother's day to all you wonderful Moms out there!  It can be tough, can't it?  But our God is working and moving.  And He's the One who can and will do all the reviving and resurrecting and equipping and filling and strengthening.  We just need to depend upon Him and ask Him to enable us to keep on doing good and refuse to give up.
     'Cause the harvest is coming.  He's promised.
     To the God of all perseverance and strength and joy and grace be all the glory.
   

Throw-back. Thank. Trust.

     I don't do "Instagram."  In fact, I don't even know if I spelled that correctly.  But I understand from my tech-savy kids that today is "Throw-back Thursday" in which people send out an old picture on Instagram (whatever that is exactly!).  So just to prove that you can teach an ancient, over-the-hill dog new tricks, here's my version of Instagram--only without the Instagram, the smartphone, and whatever else you need for whatever Instagram actually is.
     Because even if it's the low-tech, fake, old dog version, sometimes it's really good to have a "throwback thursday" to remember God's faithfulness in the past... and trust He will not fail us in the future.  So here's where we were on Labor Day, about 8 months ago:

      I needed to be reminded of what it feels like to have hope in little else but the Almighty.
     And maybe by our limited physical sight, things at the time looked overwhelming, even desperately hopeless.
      But not with our God.  
     No, not ever with the Omniscient Omnipotent I Am.
     He knows the end from the beginning, and on that dark day, He foresaw this bright day when Janie would be picking up her high school cap and gown for graduation.  And she'd be singing again.  And laughing again.  And, sometimes, fussing again!
     Our Lord is not bound by any "odds" or hampered by difficulties or discourage by setbacks or frustrated by failures in His people.  Nope, He's God.  Enough said.  
     I loved this prayer I read the other day from Scotty Smith: "Gracious Father, there are times when the 'odds' feel quite stacked against us, as your people... But just when I begin to retreat into a basement of fear or question your concern and faithfulness, once again you open the eyes of my heart and show me the way things really are... the way of the Gospel will always be strength in weakness, the transforming treasure of the gospel in fragile clay pots, like us.  It was three hundred poorly armed soldiers, not thirty-four thousand fighting men, You sent with Gideon to defeat the Midianite army.  Jesse's youngest son, David, a young shepherd, was Your choice to be king of Israel.  Most profoundly, it was the crucifixion of Jesus, not an insurrection of zealots, that won our salvation.  Father, the odds are never really stacked against your covenant purposes and your transforming kingdom.  You're not 'trying' to do anything.  You never have to resort to plan B.  You never hedge your bets. You are God and there is no other."
     Maybe no one else out there needed reminding of this today, but I always do--slow learner that I am.
     No matter what it may look like in your life right now: God is in control.  He is superintending all the events in your life for your greater good and His greater glory.  He has no plan B--it's always His Perfect Plan that cannot be thwarted.  Period.
      "And we know that for those who love God, ALL things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28)  Not "most" things.  Not "nearly all" things.  Not the "positive" or "good" or "successful" things.  ALL ALL ALL things.  This word in the Greek means...
ALL, as in, God takes every cotton-picking thing in our lives--the good, bad, indifferent, confusing, frustrating, worrisome, troubling, terrible--and supernaturally combines and transforms them ALL into something good and beautiful and ultimately glorious.
     All things--not my words.  His.   Do we believe it?
     Sometimes it helps to take a little "throwback thursday" to recall His faithfulness to us in the past when things looked awfully discouraging or even desperate.  He did it before.  He will do it again...and again.  Because that's who He is--the God who never fails, whose compassion never fails, and whose faithfulness never fails to extend into eternity and beyond.
     "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not.  They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.  The Lord is my portion, said my soul; therefore will I hope in Him." (Lam.3:22-24)
     So today, might we take a "throw-back thursday" and recall His goodness, His faithfulness, His mercy, and His grace to us in the past.  Then tell Him thank You.  And trust Him to do it again... and again... and again...all the way till He  takes us home.
     Throw-back.  Thank.   Trust.   That's the formula to soothe a troubled soul and heal a harried heart.
     To God--our forever faithful, Trust-worthy One--be all the glory.
   
   
   

The Sun returns!

     O my stars--the sun!  The sun!  The sun!!!   Who knew how glorious the sight of blue skies and bright, streaming sunshine?!  It seems like weeks since we last spotted God's life-giving globe in the heavens.  Around here, it's been rain, drizzle, clouds, more drizzle, punctuated by occasional thunderstorms and downpours.  We're feeling positively mildewed... and begun to adjust to our London-like weather.  No wonder the English have such nice skin--surely not a spot of sun damage.
     Yesterday's downpours have led to today's SUN and warmth and beauty.  O boy, it was all worth it-- all that rain and mush and gloominess--if it could lead to this.  This spectacular day of blue and brightness and lush green surrounding us at every turn.  Trees, flowers, grass, all celebrating the arrival of spring and warmth and, did I mention?, SUN!  Thank You Lord!
     Now, I know full well the forecast calls for more English weather ahead, but that's okay, because all we needed was a little reminder, a little hint that the old sun is still shining above us even when we can't see it or feel it.  And if we have to endure some rough patches of weather--as in life--well, these too shall pass.
     It's just as true as the day King Solomon wrote it thousands of years ago: "For behold, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone.  The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land." (Song of Sol.2:11-12)
     So the time for folding laundry and answering emails and cleaning up has past for the moment... Moses and I had to come outside and have a little quiet time.  That's him resting--okay, soundly snoozing and snoring--in the glorious warmth and light.  And this is me, writing and rejoicing in the goodness and never-failing faithfulness of our God.
     The rains in life will come.  Sometimes downpours of sorrow.  Sometimes drizzles of irritation.  Sometimes thick clouds of discouragement or defeat.
     But the sun always returns.  The sun is still there, always there.  Always over our world and ready to reassert it's life-giving, joy-promoting light and warmth.  Sometimes we just have to wait and trust--the sun's still there and it's coming.
     And so, too, our Son.  We may sometimes wonder where He is or when He will show up again.  But He's there.  Trust me, He's always there.  Always in control--even when we cannot see Him or feel Him.  And one day soon, the clouds and rain and drizzle will pass, and He will make all things bright and new and beautiful.  In His time.  In His perfect time.  But in the meantime, He gives us sneak peaks of His glory--and so we rejoice and remember and thank our glorious SON.
     To God be the glory.

Awe at the greater miracle!

     "This illness does not lead to death.  It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it." (John 11:4)
     "When Jesus perceived their thoughts, He answered them, 'Why do you question in your hearts?  Which is easier, to say,  "Your sins are forgiven you," or to say, "Rise and walk?"  But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins'--He said to the man who was paralyzed--'I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.'  And immediately he rose up from before them and picked up what he had been lying on and went home, glorifying God.  and amazement seized them all, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, 'We have seen extraordinary things today.'"  (Luke 5:22-26)
     Yesterday, OneVoice, the singing group Janie has the privilege to be a part of, sang at Providence Baptist Church (More on that another day!)  It was a WOW day.  So beautiful and such a gift to hear not only the girls all singing together (and they sounded wonderful) but then to hear Dave Owen's sermon on the healing of the paralytic from Luke 5.
      Remember the story?  Four friends carry their paralyzed buddy on a stretcher, cut a hole in the roof of a house, and lower their friend in front of Jesus... all  because they had faith that Jesus was the answer.  And He was... and is.
      But what they didn't realize is that the Savior was the answer to a much deeper and far greater problem than paralysis of the body--He can heal paralysis of the soul.  Only Jesus, only Jesus has the power to forgive sin--mankind's most desperate need.  It is sin that destroys families, peace, hope, and joy.  It is sin that separates us forever from the perfect, holy God who made us and loves us.  It is sin that creates and feeds guilt and hate and fear and addiction and worry and regret and despair and loneliness and war.
     Of course Jesus has the power to heal bodies.  He can raise the dead and restore sight and repair limbs
     ... and heal damaged brains of teenaged girls.  We have seen Him do the impossible firsthand.  I will never doubt the omnipotent power of our Sovereign Lord to do the unimaginable and unthinkable.
       But more importantly, these kinds of healings are for one purpose--to show forth the glory of Almighty God so that we will see Him high and lifted up and capable of not only healing our bodies, but infinitely more importantly, of healing and restoring our souls.
     I love how Dave O. put it: "Jesus is showing that our deepest need is not to be able to walk again but to be born again.... Jesus did the miracle which they could see that they may know that He had done the greater miracle which they could not see."
     Dave O. quoted Tim Keller on this.  And he said something to the effect that we love to rejoice over the miracle which we can see, but the point of the miracle is not to show us Jesus will meet all our physical needs.  The point is to show us that Christ can meet all our spiritual needs.
     All this is to say, we should be constantly amazed by the stupendously miraculous work of the gospel that saves to the uttermost all who come to Jesus by faith!  Yes, we praise the Lord for His miraculous work on this planet in healing and restoring broken bodies.  May I never ever grow immune to the wonder and amazement and joy over His miraculous healing of Janie!  To God be the glory over and over and over again!
     But may our awe move us to see His infinitely greater work in coming to this broken and hopeless planet to save and redeem sinners.  Might His grace--His truly amazing, remarkable, beautiful, perfect, and scandalous grace--move us to amazement every single day.   He saves the sick: sometimes--in His mercy and by His sovereign plan--physically... but always spiritually.  And that is the greater deliverance.
     If Jesus is your Savior, then you are a miracle.  Live today in the astounding wonder that He chose to heal you spiritually.  Might we all stay amazed at our amazing Lord!  He is worthy!
     To God be the glory.
     

Past blessings...future blessings

     Hope they won't kill me, but this is from the bridesmaids' luncheon for the daughter of one of my dearest friends.

      McKinley (2nd from the right) got married two weeks ago today--and beside her are her two beautiful sisters and equally beautiful mama.  And later today, the daughter of another dear friend is getting married.
     All of this reason for JOY and celebration!  But also amazement--where did the time go?  I can see McKinley right now as a preschooler.  She loved to walk on her tippy toes and ate sandwiches with nothing but mustard on them.  And then there's Blair.  She's getting married today.  Well, she should still be a tiny, precious twin girl, always flanking her identical sister and trying to keep up with her big brother.  And then there's the daughter of another very dear friend whose wedding will be coming in August.  Sweet Caroline used to spend the night with us and always wanted a light on in the bedroom.
     Not to mention my daughter's graduation from high school in June.  Who would have thought it?  Who would have dreamed it?  Back in that ICU as she lay unconscious, and us told to expect feeding tubes and wheelchairs for life--and here she is about to graduate and go to college in the fall?
     "Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be the glory..." (Eph.3:20-1)
     All these happy transitions are wonderful.  Simply wonderful.
     But still--where did the years go?  When did we say goodbye to the endless diapers and the little pink bows and Goodnight Moon and ballet classes and naptimes and balloons at Harris Teeter and kick the can games?   What happened to the legos and sticks made into guns and cinnamon toast for breakfast?
     It's easy to become melancholy if you consider what has come and gone.  But that's clearly the wrong way to see it.  No!  It's the joy of all that God has given us in our lives--so much fullness of love of family and friends.   Stop focusing on what is gone and instead fix your eyes upon all that God has done and is doing in your life.  
     We choose our focus and that focus determines whether we will feel bitter or blessed.
     Dr. Suess once wrote: "Don't cry that it's over; smile because it happened."  I love that.
     I recently read Ann Voskamp's words: "You don't always get always.  You get awe."
     And "If you don't take it all as a gift, you end up taking it all for granted--which amounts to not taking anything from life at all."
    We are none of us promised tomorrow.  Nor tonight.  Nor even the next hour.
     But, as believers, we are promised that He who gave Himself for us, will be with us forever, even to the ends of the earth.  We are promised His strength and joy and peace and hope and love on this journey of life.  We are promised eternal, abundant Life.  We are promised His perfect peace and presence and power.  And we are promised, through the gift of His Holy Spirit, that we can do all things through Him who strengthens us.
     So today, I choose not to cry that my children are growing up and away... I choose to smile and rejoice that it has happened.  I choose to laugh at the crazy, extravagant gift of my husband, my children, my siblings and family, my dear friends.  Who could have dreamed or imagined that God would give me the gift of such extraordinary people in my life?!  Who could deserve such joyful extravagance of love?  Certainly not this sinner saved by grace.
     But that's it, isn't it?  Grace.  All by grace.
     And so we smile that it happened.  These friends.  This family.  This busy, unpredictable, ever changing life.  These weddings.  These graduations.  These losses and gains.
    "Consider what great things He has done for you." (I Sam.12:24)  
    We may not have always... but we have awe at His goodness and grace.  And so we rejoice at His gifts and trust that He has our tomorrows in His hands of blessing.
     To God be the glory.

   

A song in the midst of sorrow

    "Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in You, my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge, till the storms of destruction pass by.  I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills His purpose for me.  He will send from heaven and save me; He will put to shame him who tramples on me.  God will send His steadfast love and His faithfulness.  My soul is in the midst of lions; I lie down amid fiery beasts...They set a net for my steps; my soul was bowed down...My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast!  I will sing and make melody!  Awake, my glory!  Awake, O harp and lyre!  I will awake the dawn! I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to You, O Lord, among the nations." (Ps.57)
     What a reminder of the gift of music.  The Bible tells us over and over again to "make a joyful noise unto the Lord" and to sing His praises.  But I especially love this Psalm's reminder that we can and should sing God's praises not just when life is sunny and bright, but right in the midst of hardship or uncertainty or even sorrow.  We don't do it by feeling... we do it by faith.
     Psalm 57 was written when David was fleeing for his life from King Saul.  The powerful King of Israel was relentlessly pursuing David and had tried repeatedly to kill him.  Now David sat huddled in a dark cave, surely feeling as if the world was closing around him and he had no way out--and yet David writes this Psalm.  He acknowledges overwhelming danger and fear--but he goes on to proclaim that "I WILL give thanks to You, O Lord... I WILL sing praises to You."
     Even as the "storms of destruction" raged, David's heart was "steadfast" because he knew, despite the constricting, brutal circumstances at the moment, he served a God of "steadfast love" and "faithfulness," who always always always "fulfills His purpose for me"--even when we can't see or understand those purposes.  That's faith--trusting that it is enough that He understands and that He who is in complete and perfect control, is also perfectly good and loves us beyond all understanding.
     And so David trusts and knows he "will sing and make melody!"  He will awake the dawn with harp and lyre.
     He will fight despair with the music of praise.  And so can we.   I couldn't help but think of Amy Carmichael who often shared, "I sing the doxology, and the devil flees."
     Last night we were on our way to our youngest son's band concert, but right after we left the house, we witnessed the scene of a tragic wreck involving a bike rider being hit by a car.  I felt sick to my stomach, as I thought of the families of all those involved and of the bewildering sorrow and pain they would be enduring.
     We eventually arrived at the concert, but I felt so stunned and devastated by what I'd seen,  I felt hollow and lost.
     But as these kids played their hearts out, and we listened to the beautiful melodies, you couldn't help but remember King David's words.   And joy was awakened.
     A song even in the midst of sorrow.
     Praise even in the midst of perplexity and pain.
     The gift of music to lift the downcast heart up to see that God is still upon His throne.  And somehow, someway, He is making all things new.  And bringing resurrection glory to this broken planet.
     He's doing it one song at a time.  One note at a time.  We WILL choose to remember and to praise Him who is forever faithful and worthy of our music.  
      Thank You, Father, for the inestimable gift of music to raise our gaze and move our hearts to see You and worship You in Your glory.  Our hearts are steadfast--and we WILL sing and make melody.
      To God--the Giver of all our songs--be all the glory.
   

Thankful for teachers!

     It's teacher appreciation week at Broughton High School and at St. David's.   So, for the record, can I just say, THANK THE LORD FOR TEACHERS!!!  I really don't know how they do it.  Teaching vacation Bible school for 5 days always wiped me out, so I simply cannot imagine teaching day in and day out.  All that responsibility.  All that adolescent energy.  O mercy, I need to go take a nap just thinking about it.
     But there truly is no higher calling on this planet than shepherding the hearts and minds of the next generation.  No higher calling... no tougher calling... no more demanding calling... and surely, no more rewarding calling.  Thank You, Lord, for the men and women willing to make those sacrifices necessary in order to influence and shape our children--our future.  Give our teachers strength.  Give them vision.  Give them courage.  Give them grit.
     I couldn't help but be reminded of one of my favorite quotes by the great basketball coach (and even greater man), John Wooden.  His father passed this creed down to him, and he carried these words in his wallet till the day he died.  Wooden shared this with his players and others:
    "Be true to yourself.  Make each day your masterpiece.  Help others.  Drink deeply from good books, especially the Bible.  Make friendship a  fine art.  Build a shelter against a rainy day.  Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day."
     That's good stuff--and spoken like a true teacher.
     So Lord, thank You for our blessings--and today, in particular, thank You for the gift of teachers.  For those that taught us and for those that are teaching our children. Give us all teachable spirits that we might listen for Your voice and learn of You.
     And no matter how our day may have started or has progressed--even if poorly or not the way we'd hoped--might we entrust with You the remaining hours.  For You make all things new.  O Lord, whatever portion of this day remains, make it a masterpiece to Your glory.  To God be the glory.