Archive for the ‘life’ Category

Curses Be Gone

Posted in life, women, WONDER, tagged #badtoworse, #cursesbegone, #familyeffort, #godhasapurpose, #gogirl, #ididit, #ieshiachamps, #shesmyhero, #uphillclimb on April 17, 2018| 2 Comments »

Screen Shot 2018-04-17 at 6.53.50 AM Ever wonder if someone is cursed? Maybe even yourself.

The story might go something like this: a person is born into a bad situation, lives their childhood with a parent or parents who do not care for or model love and care. They might end up homeless, abused and neglected.

How on Earth can they ever turn their situation, their life around, when it seems that everything and everyone in their life has gone wrong and they have been done wrong by people. One would think that this person has been cursed from the beginning.

Such might seem to be the case of Ieshia Champs.

This young woman, whose dad was deceased, and mom drug addicted dreamed a dream that was so far from her reality. She has experienced homelessness, teen pregnancy, dropped out of high school, experienced loss of a job, loss of her children’s dad to cancer, her home to fire and was near to the point of giving up on life itself.

Anyone who knew her, she herself, must have wondered if she was cursed.

Then a woman stepped in, her pastor, who told her to go back to school (that meant starting with her, unfinished, high school diploma), and study to become the lawyer she had dreamed of becoming when she was just a child.

And now she is set to graduate from law school.

There is so much more to this story.

This story is one of a woman being prompted, encouraged to fulfill what God had whispered into her heart, as a child, by one who did not just see possibility in her, but spoke it.

This story is one of a woman who has worked so hard, been determined, to reach her goal.

This story is one of a family of five young children, who helped their mamma with flash cards, being a mock jury, and her oldest son who would look after his little siblings needs, as his momma would cry tears of struggle for the process. (you’ve gotta see the beautiful images of her grad photos with her five children … please click and watch the video).

This story is also of faith, for Ieshia would seem to have a strong faith in God.

On her Facebook page is Jeremiah 1:5:

“The Lord who formed us,
knows for what particular services and purposes
he intended for us!”

This verse, part of the commissioning of young Jeremiah, by God, Ieshia has lived, herself. She understands that God has had his hand on her life and a plan for her life, even before she was born. She knows God, and she is purposing to follow him through it all.

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Soft Soap and Wishful Thinking

Posted in life, The Kids, WONDER, tagged #cdlewis, #easierisnotbetter, #softsoapandwishfulthinking, #truthandcomfort on April 15, 2018| 2 Comments »

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In an effort to reduce what we need to pack and cart to a new home, I have determined to use up the products in our home, rather than keep purchasing more.

Into the recesses of my bathroom cabinet was solid bars of hand soap that has been gathering dust, simply because liquid hand soap is so much more convenient. easier. This act of stewardship has resulted in my realization that I actually love using the solid soap. It is more tactile, lasts longer and you never use more than you need. Screen Shot 2018-04-14 at 11.56.50 AM

This realization reminded me of words by CS Lewis (to the right).

I found myself reflecting on how liquid soap (comfort) is often how I live my life, as a mom. I want to help my kids to find what looks like the easier life (comfort). Yet, it is often the harder, effort-filled, negative-consequence-experienced reality (truth) where they (we) learn the best and most lasting lessons.

If they make mistakes and I rush in to ‘save’ them, to make their lives more comfortable, they will not have the opportunity to learn the truth found in, and through those mistakes.

After all the truth will set you free! And that freedom is greater than any comfort that exists.

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In Everything You’ve Made

Posted in life, Nature/Creation, WONDER, tagged #createdbyhim, #creationspeaks, #godincreation, #ifcreationsingsyourpraises, #ineverythingyouvemade, #sowilli, Creation, Hillsong, thisismyfathersworld on April 12, 2018| 4 Comments »

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“I can see your heart in everything you’ve made”
Hillsong

The words caught my attention as I drove to work one morning, sun peeking through the heavy clouds, opening up a segments of the mountains for my view.

Sign …

That’s my soul language … the amazing nature of creation.

If I feel heavy with the struggles of life …

the light of a sunrise or sunset can catch my breath,

spring flowers can bring a smile to my face,

a surprise path-crossing with a coyote can make my heart sing,

a ladybug holding tightly to a rose bush can give me child-like glee,

or (like last night) the song of an owl late into my sleepless night,

can remind me that I have a heart within me created by the same one who spoke life into all creatures, who set the Earth on it’s axis.

“For once you have spoken,
all nature and science follow the sound of your voice”

For me it is God’s beautiful, amazing and wonder-filled creation that reminds me that, no matter the weight on my shoulders, no matter the sadness in our world, no matter that I do not have the answers, He does. He’s got it. He is big enough for whatever I am not.

Not only does creation realign my mind, heart and soul, it also reminds me that my calling, like the rest of creation, is to praise the creator.

“If creation sings your praises, so will I”

This is my father’s world, and it teaches me about the one who created it, and the pride he has taken in each and every part of it. Through what he created I come to know his heart, he attention to detail (just look at a bee under a magnifying lens), his vastness (just look up at the stars on a clear night, or the changing moon), his miraculous ways (the metamorphosis of a caterpillar to a butterfly), his redemption (just look at how a dead seed, planted and watered, comes alive again), his love (just look in the mirror).

“This is my father’s world
And to my listening ears
All nature sings, and round me rings
The music of the spheres

This is my father’s world
The birds their carols raise
The morning light, the lily white
Declare their maker’s praise

This is my father’s world
I rest me in the thought
Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas
His hand the wonders wrought

This is my father’s world
Oh, let me never forget
That though the wrong seems oft so strong
God is the ruler yet

This is my father’s world
Why should my heart be sad?
The Lord is king, let the heavens ring

God reigns, let the earth be glad”

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The Hardest (most needed) Word

Posted in life, WONDER, tagged #apology, #dowhatishard, #justsaysorry, #reconciliation, #sorryseemstobethehardestword, #thehardest(most needed)word, sorry on April 10, 2018| 2 Comments »

Screen Shot 2018-04-09 at 8.40.17 AM We all have inner voices, voices from our childhood, or younger years, that speak to us still. They sometimes speak louder than the voices of our adult years, as though imprinted permanently onto our brains.

In the mid 1970s, when I was just a child, I remember the voice of Elton John singing,

“… sorry seems to be the hardest word”.

Those words imprinted themselves within me. I grew up determined to say that hardest word. I am not always wise enough or strong enough to do this, but it is goal, reminded to me by that memory from childhood).

I also struggle to understand why it is so hard for some to say. I struggle to understand why we would allow ourselves to be so weak as to not speak that word that gives strength, both to the one speaking it, and the one hearing it.

Like this song message, I also have another, associated, memory that goes with this message. So many times I remember, as a child, having wronged one of my younger brothers, and my parents ~~instructing~~ forcing me to apologize, to say sorry. Many times my apology was just an act of going through the motions, with little to no apology coming from my heart. Though it is easy to look at that method of discipline as being meaningless, because of my frequent insincerity, I do think something longer-term was accomplished. Even today, when I do something that I know is wrong or hurtful, I hear my mom’s voice telling me that I need to say apologize.

Ever notice how rare it is for nations, for leaders in many fields, to make apologies to individuals, or groups of people, wronged in the past? Part of that not happening is often due to the legal and financial ramifications of saying sorry … for saying we are sorry says that we are responsible, and being responsible for doing someone wrong might mean that we owe compensation.

Imagine the mistakes and hurts in our world that might be moved toward resolution, reconciliation if people, leaders, would say that hardest of words?

“Oh it seems to me
That sorry seems to be the hardest word”
Elton John

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Would Drain the Ocean Dry

Posted in Faith, GOD, life, Walking with God, WONDER, tagged #drawmeastory, #frederickmartinlehman, #images, #theloveofgod, #wordpictures, #woulddraintheoceandry on April 8, 2018| 3 Comments »

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A good story teller, a good poet, will always include visuals for our brains to hold onto, so that, though we may forget their words, we will not forget their story, their message.

I have always believed that the best story-teller, the best and most creative writer of the poetry and stories of our lives is God, the creator, father, redeemer.

His story is even grander than the Grand Canyon.

Recently an old hymn (about one hundred years) has been playing in my head, but I didn’t hear it until the other morning.

… actually, I heard it, but I wasn’t listening

As I awoke Saturday, with the morning sky still awaiting to break, with the rains pouring down, I began to listen and hear the words, the message,

Could we with ink the ocean fill,
  And were the skies of parchment made;
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
  And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above
  Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
  Though stretched from sky to sky.

The words began to form images in my mind, that kept me from thinking of anything else (perhaps that was the intent of God, who had a message).

The evening before my mind was full of a good message on the phone, a bad message on social media and a most frustrating message via email. I was too inwardly focused to even pray, so I did all that I knew to do, and asked that sweet handful of trusted friends to pray.

My early morning alone, became a reminder that joy comes in the morning … after the storm, after the storming down of heaven’s gates by faithful friends. After my eyes were refocused … off of myself.

Those words from the hymn, The Love of God. The first two verses and chorus written by Frederick Martin Lehman, but the third (above) goes back much further into history.

The words of the third verse were found, inscribed on the wall in a room of an insane asylum, after the patient died. It was later discovered that those words were written by Jewish poet, Meir Ben Isaac Nehorai, in 1050, and can be found in Rabbi Hertz’ “Book of Jewish Thought” for the synagogue Pentecost celebrations.

Perhaps it is because the Hebrew language is a spoken one, stories and poems told, over and over again, from generation to generation. Those which have survived the ultimate test of time, often the ones which create visuals in the minds of hearers. The word pictures searing eternity onto the minds and hearts of those who heard.

The longevity of those words, perfectly inserted into a song about the vastness of the love of God.

Words, written just a millennium after the death of Christ … the greatest imagery of the promise of redemption, of love, used in the prophesy of the Old Testament.

The love of God is greater far
Than tongue or pen can ever tell;
It goes beyond the highest star,
And reaches to the lowest hell;
The guilty pair, bowed down with care,
God gave His Son to win;
His erring child He reconciled,
And pardoned from his sin.

When hoary time shall pass away,
And earthly thrones and kingdoms fall,
When men who here refuse to pray,
On rocks and hills and mountains call,
God’s love so sure, shall still endure,
All measureless and strong;
Redeeming grace to Adam’s race—
The saints’ and angels’ song.

Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.

Refrain:
Oh, love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure—
The saints’ and angels’ song.

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I Hope You Dance

Posted in FAMILY, life, Walking with God, WONDER, tagged #birthdaygirl, #freedomandsurvival, #idonttakeyouforgranted, #ihopeyoudance, #mommalovesyou, #promiseme, Contrasts on April 5, 2018| 9 Comments »

cris bday It was a trying time, when I was in my years of having babies … dreaming of … praying for babies.

You were the seventh confirmed pregnancy … I knew better than to imagine your future, my future with you, your future with your one older sister, your dad and I. It was always a tentative dance between excitement and frailty.

Sure enough, there was nothing confirmed about your future through all nine, nail-biting, knees bent in prayer months. Even your first breath was delayed … eternity in those moments.

Your first two years were like a smash dance of smooth public appearances mixed with screamo music coming from your lungs deep into every night. You had a voice, and you were not afraid to use it … when you chose to.

Then, you turned two and life with you went from,

a time to weep to a time to laugh
(Ecclesiastes 3:4a)

And your laughter was endless, rockus … and like your cries, it was loud and very much self-determined.

I recently looked back on pictures from the years of childhood of you three siblings, of your childhood, and I was astounded by how many I have of you dancing. You, mid-spin, in the midst of movement, of expression, of dancing.

And, my dear, life itself is a dance.

I did a little investigation in dance.

There is little known about the origins of dance, as it need only involve one’s body, mind and soul … no tutus have been unearthed in archeological digs of the middle east. Certainly there have been paintings in caves that show how dance was used in rituals, religions, cultures and events in early Egypt, Olympia and in early Hindu temples.

But dance, movement of one’s body, incorporating our souls (as in that naked dance before God, performed by David the King), is something that words cannot describe. It is an event, an experience that is innate, what we are made to do, as an expression, as a reaction to having been given breath, life.

As with David, it is an expression of truly getting it … understanding that to dance, like that, is what we were created for, with and by.

To dance, with abandon, is:

the butterfly, emerging from it’s cocoon, stretching it’s wings
those videos of cows, released from the barns in the spring
the baby (maybe delayed) but stretching out it’s lungs for that first breath
the little girl, or boy, twirling in circles … moving without a care in the world

I want this for you. This no-care-in-the-world freedom.

The thing is, life is made up of two parts, freedom and survival.

In the midst of life we need to strive for our very survival. We need to work, and struggle and sometimes it is just hard, it just hurts. We want the unabashed, joyful movement of being free indeed.

They go together … freedom and survival, tripping over ones feet and twirling on our toes, holding our breath and breathing, standing still and dancing with wild abandon. The parallelism from those contrasting verses of Ecclesiastes (3:1-8) reminds we mortals that we were created to do it all … in the right time, but also that we do not walk either contrasting life experience without the ability of joy … without the ability of dancing through it all …

for it is what we were created for,

for it is how my mourning was turned to dancing (v. 4b),

in your delayed first breath, eternity in that moment.

So dance, birthday girl.

“I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance
Never settle for the path of least resistance
Livin’ might mean takin’ chances, but they’re worth takin’
Lovin’ might be a mistake, but it’s worth makin’
I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens
Promise me that you’ll give faith a fighting chance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance”
I Hope You Dance

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In the Eye of the Beholder

Posted in life, WONDER, tagged #buyersseedreams, #howiseethings, #intheeyeofthebeholder, #iseedust on April 3, 2018| 2 Comments »

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Ever notice that, no matter what you do, there is always more you could do?

In our purging, cleaning and repairing of our house to see, that lesson of ‘always more’ has become so very evident.

The more I clean, the more I realize that could be cleaned.

The more I purge, piling into boxes to go to the thrift store, the more I wonder if I really need what I still have.

The more we repair, the more that we are aware could also be fixed, or painted, or replaced.

Then there’s the ‘new’ projects that keep surfacing … the lightbulb the blew out the other evening, the dishwasher handle that broke off this weekend.

I keep hearing this voice in my head saying, “people who see the house are going to only see what needs to be done” (like I do). Certainly there will be those who do only see the little nicks in the paint, or the dust that was missed, but most will not see what I see at all, for they will see our house with fresh eyes. They will see a living room big enough for a crowd, a kitchen full of cabinets, and extra living space in the basement. That is what they are looking to buy, not our dust, or the paint nicks (that they will cover with their paint colour preference).

We are so critical of what we possess.

It is like when a photo is taken of ourselves. We look at our image as needing lots of work! Our friends and loved ones see our smile, the warmth in our eyes.

We tend to see our homes, ourselves, through a critical eye, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. So I will try to close my eyes to what could be improved, and leave things to those who will see through their eyes.

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Indeed

Posted in Faith, GOD, life, Walking with God, WONDER, tagged #christisrisen, #deathforlife, #eastersunday, #hehasrisen, #heishere, #indeed, #jesuspaiditall, #myeyescansee, #walkingwithjesus, Easter on April 1, 2018| 3 Comments »

“Christ is risen
He is risen indeed”

The traditional greeting of Christians on Easter Sunday. It is called the “Paschal greeting” and was used in Orthodox and Catholic early churches. Sometimes it is accompanied by three kisses, on alternate cheeks.

It is said to have come from the gospel of Luke (v. 34):

“It is true!
The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.”

This said after two disciples met a stranger on the road, as they walked to a village called Emmaus. This stranger, who appeared to know nothing of the events of the days prior, when Jesus, the prophet, was crucified.

You see, the stranger was Jesus himself “but they were kept from recognizing him” (v. 16).

The stranger was told, “but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning but didn’t find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see Jesus” (v. 21-24).

They seemed to think that, because of Jesus’ death, maybe Jesus hadn’t been the redeemer/saviour that had hoped him to be, and because they did not see Jesus, who was supposedly alive, they had missed out. All this blind disappointment, in the man walking by their sides.

Then this stranger rebukes them, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.” (v. 25-27).

So this stranger (aka Jesus himself), slaps them upside of the head with what he always uses … what the prophets said. He reminds them that, according to the prophets, their long-awaited saviour had to suffer, had to die.

Then came the fork in the road, Jesus continuing on, but the disciples stopping in Emmaus for the night.

The disciples “urged him strongly, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.”” (v. 29). So Jesus joined them for dinner.

It was there, at the table that the lightbulb came on for the pair.

“When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him” (v. 30-31).

“He took the bread,
gave thanks,
broke it
and began to give it to them”

Let’s rephrase that:

He sat before them,
gave thanks for the broken bread,
his body, days before, broken,
for them

It was in the reminder of Jesus’ broken body, for their broken lives, that their eyes were opened to who is was … for them. It is today, Easter Sunday, that we are all reminded that his body was broken, for our broken lives … but are our eyes opened to this, our Saviour?

” … and he disappeared from their sight” (v. 32). A bit anticlimactic … Just when he is known to them, he leaves them … again.

“They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”” (v. 32). Not so anticlimactic after all, for now that their eyes were fully opened, they realized that something in them had been stirring as they walked and talked with him on that road, to Emmaus. Something in them knew they were in the presence of their Saviour, but, as with all of us, they were blind to his presence.

“They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together and saying, “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon” (v. 34-35).

It is true! … almost as if they were saying, Indeed, the Lord has risen!

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Why be Kind? (part 2)

Posted in life, WONDER, tagged #bekind, #fbpoll, #fbquestion, #thebestof, #whybekind, #whynotbekind, kindness on March 29, 2018| 1 Comment »

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In our society, kindness is getting good airplay. From Ellen Degeneres’ show benediction of “be kind to one another”, to The Kindness Project, to the hit movie, Wonder, to the #beccatoldmeto campaign, the work of Orly Wahba’s life vest inside movement, or the resurgence of performing random acts of kindness, to volumes of books and a web full of videos, kindness is in.

What is kindness and what is the opposite of kindness?

Those were the two questions I asked on my FaceBook account, a few weeks ago.

Over fifty-five people responded, mostly females, varying in ages from four to … retired (I wouldn’t want to be unkind in my estimates). Those who responded live in North America, mostly in Canada.

The other day, I posted the results of the question,

why be kind?

The responses were great to read, and I loved that, in a few cases, a conversation between two or more strangers would break out (I guess you could say kindness broke out). Some said that to show kindness was innate, others firmly felt that to be kind was a conscious choice.

Many shared that it was anything but altruistic, as it “feeds their soul”, “makes one feel better about oneself”, “elicits kindness in return”.

A great many people referred directly or indirectly to the Golden Rule (Matthew 7:12) of:

“do to others what you would want them to do for you”

Some said that we should be kind because it is how we want to be treated, some saying that if we are kind to others, kindness would come back us.

Others felt that to be kind is the right thing to do and it could change the world.

Still others responded that, as Christians, kindness has been offered and modelled by Christ, therefore it is expected of us.

A few mentioned the difficulty of knowing how to give and receive kindness, the struggle of giving from a place of brokenness, emptiness. Whereas another said, “kill them with kindness, it can defuse tension and transform relationships”

There were great quotes (mostly by Mother Teresa) and, from a ten year old, “well, if we weren’t kind, everyone would punch each other and hate each other and the world would go downhill.” Amen!

One person sent me a link to an article on five researched-based reasons to be kind, including:

it is inbuilt (there can be innate tendencies)
it can have positive effects on the brain (drug-free mood-enhancing effects)
can help you live longer (but only the one performing the act of kindness, not the one receiving it’s benefits)
is contagious (if you are kind, and they are kind …)
it can make you happier (for up to a month after committing the kindness)

As I read and reflected on the results of the question, why be kind?, I found myself reflecting on one particular response …

“why not be kind?”

Our lives are complex, demanding and sometimes downright difficult. There are so many different directions that we are pulled, so much expectation on us each day. Then there is the news … that daily onslaught of what is wrong in our world.

If each of us were to make the effort each day to show kindness to another, truly it would be doing for others as we would like to be done to ourselves. Truly it could improve the day for another sojourner on this planet … and it would probably improve our own day as well.

“why not be kind?”

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What is the Opposite of Kindness (part 1)

Posted in life, WONDER, tagged #beccatoldmeto, #bekindtoeachother, #changeourworld, #feedkindness, #justdowhatsright, #oppositeofkindness, #selfishness, #whatiskindness, #whatistheoppositeofkindness, apathy on March 27, 2018| 2 Comments »

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What is kindness and what is the opposite of kindness?

Those were the two questions I asked on my FaceBook account, a few weeks ago.

I decided to break the two questions into two posts, and reverse the questions.

What is the opposite of kindness?

To respond to what is the opposite of kindness is much more difficult than the reverse, and a number of people indicated that to be the case.

One person said that the opposite of kindness is “one who lacks patience, grace and self control letting their emotions take over to be disrespectful”. Another said, it is “anything that makes anyone feel anything but joy, self worth and loved”. Still another simply said that the opposite of kindness is “wickedness”.

We don’t have to go too far to see what an absence of kindness looks like. As long as our humanity, our world struggles, we will continue to see and experience a lack of kindness.

If I were to break all of the responses down to two words that are the opposite of kindness, they would be selfishness and apathy.

Probably half of all responses fit into those two words. Though other words, such as neglect, meanness, greed, indifference, disloyalty, cold, rude, bitterness, darkness, cruelty, self-absorption, and thoughtlessness may have been the different words used, they all communicate selfishness and apathy.

Either we are unkind because we are too concerned with ourselves, or we just don’t care about others.

A response from one friend was of an image of two wolves, with opposite characteristics, and it reminded me of this story:

A grandfather is talking with his grandson and he says there are two wolves inside of us which are always at war with each other.

One of them is a good wolf which represents things like kindness, bravery and love. The other is a bad wolf, which represents things like greed, hatred and fear.

The grandson stops and thinks about it for a second then he looks up at his grandfather and says, “Grandfather, which one wins?”

The grandfather quietly replies, the one you feed.

Perhaps we need to feed love, bravery and … kindness, in every day of our lives. And to feed these things might just change the world around us.

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