Let Him In

“There is a sacredness in tears.  They are not the mark of weakness, but of power.  They speak more eloquently than 10,000 tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition, and of unspeakable love.” ~ Washington Irving

 

 Write to Laodicea, to the Angel of the church. God’s Yes, the Faithful and Accurate Witness, the First of God’s creation, says:

Look at me. I stand at the door. I knock. If you hear me call and open the door, I’ll come right in and sit down to supper with you. Conquerors will sit alongside me at the head table, just as I, having conquered, took the place of honor at the side of my Father. That’s my gift to the conquerors!

~ Rev 3:14, 20

     The recent domestic terror in Charlottesville was described recently as  “and act of terror by racist, violent hateful, Christians.”  I may not have that exactly right, but you get the gist.  A friend of mine saw it and responded, “There is no room for hate in the life of a Christian.”

     I was so happy to see her response.  I do NOT post political commentary as I feel in my role as a public educator, those opinions are best kept to myself. There is enough opinion in the world and plenty of folks who love to express it. This is an awful act.  But to have the word Christian involved is scary.  And many groups have committed violence in the name of Jesus. We must rise above the political and unite in Jesus Christ.  Our lens must be how it affects the Kingdom of Heaven and those who want to get there.

     He stands at the door church, and is does not pound, or batter down, or remove the hinges, or use a battering ram.  He knocks.  He wants to come and and sit and eat and talk.

     Please, please, invite him in. Unstuff your ears and try, try, try to listen in love.  Let your actions reflect your power base. Let Him in.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMuLFTbqb2M

James Cleveland

 

Because of Him,

Linda

Eat First

With the Lord’s Supper

For T. C.

A Sunday that included the Eucharist.

I recognize this.  Even in the children’s moment

you connected, like a prelude, the joy

of what was to come.

 “Break Thou the Bread of Life.”

Built the excitement, familiar, comforting

     Break Thou the bread of life, dear Lord, to me

     As Thou didst break the loaves beside the sea;

     Beyond the sacred page I seek Thee, Lord;

     My spirit pants for Thee, O living Word!*

And us so close to the sea!

 

The great prayer of thanksgiving lead us through

the  tide-pool of the ritual fully formed, and yet, like a watched bloom…

We waded through the prayer, almost unsuspecting.

At the words of institution echoing the first last supper,

it came bursting through the break in the loaf,

rising up like the star of Bethlehem.

 

The pieces hungry for the hand, the cup,

like sea spray, stinging and healing all at once,

The unworthy mouth that longs for You to abide under

its roof. Sopped in the juices, carrying

the preacher’s charge,

straight to my soul,

Walking the journey,

fully nourished.

*Mary A. Lathbury – Break Thou the Bread of Life

Because of Him,

Linda

Crying Out

 

“The wise want love; and those who love want wisdom.” 

                                                     ~ Percy Bysshe Shelley

 

 “This is God’s Message, the God who made earth, made it livable and lasting, known everywhere as God: ‘Call to me and I will answer you. I’ll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own.’

                                  ~ Jeremiah 33:2-3

     Crying out.  Oh there has been crying out. Sadly, it has not been to God.  The aisle is not a church aisle.  It is not limited to any particular location, though it can be viewed 24/7 in repeating cycles. There is little understanding, this is even less wisdom being displayed on the large screen, and across the nation.

     Jeremiah is clear in his reporting.  He entreats us to call out to God, that we will hear marvelous things. Things that we could never figure out on our own.

     Take the time to call out to God. Take the time to pray for ALL in leadership, for all power comes from God.  Take the time to thank God for the love that you have, and seek wisdom, even if you are wise.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMnIVe4-QUY

Wisdom Song

 

Let us pray for wisdom, cry to the Lord and receive the love that only God can give.

 

Because of Him,

Linda

     

Prickly Plants Included

“Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what’s going to happen next. Delicious ambiguity.” 

 ~Gilda Radner

 

God isn’t late with his promise as some measure lateness. He is restraining himself on account of you, holding back the End because he doesn’t want anyone lost. He’s giving everyone space and time to change.

~ 2 Peter 3:9

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgJFUW3VenY

Beloved – Feliz

     I know we are not God.  God can see us changing.  God is loving us as we change, forgiving us as we learn the new “ropes.”  We are thinking our new changes so hard, we are (sometimes) sure EVERYONE can see the new us.  And yet, it takes longer for folks to see what we know is happening within us. We can feel the Master’s hand gently encouraging us to follow Him, showing us new things about himself and about ourselves.  

     Be patient.  The fruit is there, the buds are not going to burst forth until the perfect time, which God knows.  The thistle in our front yard, considered a weed by many, is about to bloom.  I am looking forward to this prickly plant sending forth a bloom.  

     At some point, we are all prickly, and God knows in just what time we will burst forth, as we trust the Master Gardner. We cannot know what is next all the time, so it is ours to make the best of it and look for the sun shining on the prickles, illuminating them just before the flower shows itself.

 

     Beloved, oh you are. So loved. Let it wash over you.  Go ahead.       There.  That’s it. The cool morning breeze refreshes and reminds us God can make all things new.  Prickly plants included.

 

Because of Him,

Linda

Attachments area

Preview YouTube video Jordan Feliz – Beloved (Lyric Video)

Jordan Feliz – Beloved (Lyric Video)

Words…and Social Media

“Words, like angels, are powers, which have invisible power over us. They are personal presences, which have whole mythologies… and their own guarding, blaspheming, creating, and annihilating effects.” 

 

                                            ~ James Hillman

 

Parents rejoice when their children turn out well;
    wise children become proud parents.

 

                                             ~ Proverbs 23:24

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anVweXDcxhA

Hawk Nelson

 

     Where do your words come from?  What is your thought process before opening your mouth.  In this culture of unrest, sensitivity, nasty social media comments, how do you aim your words?

      One of my professors gave me a quizzical look when I said I couldn’t see the value in Twitter.  She looked through me, and said, “Linda, it all depends on how you use it.”  Those words changed the way I saw social media.  I stopped posting my every move and endeavored to post uplifting, positive, heart healing comments, posts, responses.

     I have let a lot go.  I have resisted saying so very many things.  I do not haunt my own grown children’s accounts, though I am very interested in my children and the things that they care about.

     Today, look at the words that lift you, the ones that pull you down, the ones that made/make a difference.  Think on that as you get ready to write your next email, send  you next tweet, “like” your next Facebook post.  Be His voice.  Make the Lord your proud parent.  He is!

     Because of Him,

     Linda

You’re a good good Father

“I have spread my dreams under your feet
tread softly, because you tread on my dreams.” 

~ William Butler Yeats, “He wishes for the cloths of heaven,” 1899

 “Don’t bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. This is not a cat-and-mouse, hide-and-seek game we’re in. If your little boy asks for a serving of fish, do you scare him with a live snake on his plate? If your little girl asks for an egg, do you trick her with a spider? As bad as you are, you wouldn’t think of such a thing—you’re at least decent to your own children. And don’t you think the Father who conceived you in love will give the Holy Spirit when you ask him?”

 

     ~ Luke 11:10-13

  

     We grow up, watching our parents, choosing the things we don’t like about the way they “parent us” claiming “I will never do that when I am a parent.  And then we become parents.

     We may not do the things we dreaded that our parents did, but somehow we come up with our own special glitch. Some that make our own children say, “When I am a parent, I will never do that.”  We try to step outside of our worst nightmares and do wonderful things for our children, and those are not to be discounted, but we also say things out of fear, hope, anger, dreams we never fulfilled that guide or sting our children.  Then they say, “I’ll never do that when I have kids.”

      The bottom line is: we all make wonderful choices, and awful mistakes.  It is so hard to give ourselves a break, and not focus on the things that hurt, the things that we would do differently.  The one thing that redeems us (my opinion) is that we have trained our children to know and love God, who is the perfect parent, the perfect friend.

     That is a wonderful thing.  When they look up, when they get to know God, God will fill in the gaps that we have missed, remove the splinters (if they allow it) that they have gotten caught on.

 

     Lord, you’re a good good Father and we thank you for straightening our course, tending our wounds, healing our hearts.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBwXHpKVS5I

 

Because of Him,

Linda

Pray Hard, Work Hard, and Be Kind to Yourself.

“I pray hard, work hard, and leave the rest to God.” 

 ~ Florence Griffith Joyner

 

“Don’t look for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don’t fall for that stuff, even though crowds of people do. The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires total attention.

~ Matthew 7:13-14

 

     Just like with our bodies, change takes time.  We alter our behavior, we eat a little less, increase our activity a bit at a time.  Following God can be whole hog, never look back. For some that works, and for others, it is like a familiar scent that you keep encountering and you look for the source.  Little by little, the path changes, the focus on the sounds around one changes.  We go from hearing the clink of a coin on the pavement, to hearing a whisper in a cricket’s song. 

     Once God has our attention, and we want more, we must exert more effort, and once we do, as with a new regimen, we are feeling better, following more nearly, hearing more clearly, loving Him more dearly.

   Inch by inch, step by step, Day by day.

    Because of Him,

     Linda

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqEHaQ1RbME

Day by Day