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If you just read the title of this and are still reading, you don’t have time for cute stories or complicated formulas, so I’ll just get to the point, if that’s OK.
If you are in a situation where you are at a complete loss as to what to do, it’s because you need to reset your glance and your gaze. You have allowed your gaze – your long-term focus – to become set on your circumstances, your prayer request, your frustration, your pain, your desperate desire for change, or something other than the Lord. You’re glancing at God, asking Him to fix whatever you’re gazing at.
Nice try. I understand why. But it doesn’t work that way. Reset your gaze on God, and your glance on the world around you.
That’s what it means to wait on the Lord.
That’s what it means to praise, or to worship
Yes, that’s in the Bible. [click to continue…]
It usually starts in the fingers and toes. Then blitzes the middle of the back, radiating out from there.
It’s cold. Oh baby, it’s cold. And those extremities start to go into rebellion. They just…don’t… want… to… moooove.
Do you know what I’m talking about? Throw on the socks, wrap up in the blankie, and you’re still shivering. Body parts you usually ignore are sending you a signal – Do something now! Your ears – normally quite the lady or gentleman – are getting a bit irritate with all this. Your already-cold nose starts running – for cover.
Oh baby, it’s cold.
For relief, you look outside for some sunny encouragement. What you find are swelled up birds, vapor-blowing animals, and icicles on your icicles. The ground is so frozen that even with the howling wind (was that a chill that just ran up your back?), nothing moves. [click to continue…]
Joy. It’s probably the most common word associated with Christmas. You see it on the faces of every witness and every participant. Though it was expressed very differently, every single character in the drama that was the birth of Jesus experienced profound joy.
Maybe that’s why we try to go back and relive the story every year. Maybe that’s why we do the children’s pageants, exchange the gifts, and pull families (best we can) back together for Christmas. Maybe we’re in search of the joy that can be so elusive.
The details of the coming of Jesus – and those who experienced it – point the way to how you can I can experience a joy that’s timeless, and doesn’t depend on the circumstances or the calendar. Here’s a sampling of the 12 Joys of Christmas that are yours to experience year-round. [click to continue…]
They were two branches off the same Vine.
Designed in the Vine’s image, each a was unique expression of the nature of its Creator. One was tender and sensitive, with stunning intuitive wisdom. The other was strong and masculine, with a compelling view toward the horizon.
They loved being branches of the Vine. And they loved each other. But they’d cut themselves off from the flow of the Vine’s life. They believed the lie that they could thrive on their own. The result: An odd combination of life and death in the same form.
Form without flow.
Image without reality.
As they dreamed of a future together, they asked one another, “How can we shape ourselves so our offspring can know our love and be fruitful?” [click to continue…]
What’s that look in a mother’s eyes? What’s that gaze that reaches past surrender and wonder… past the promises and the warnings, the family reunions and the local gossip? Away from the comforts of home but aware of the God of all comfort? What’s that careful attention to every detail, that thoughtful meditation on every experience?
It’s just love shining…
in a soul that’s mining the heart of God for the truth.
What’s that invasion into this man’s only mental refuge – his sleep? What’s that dreamy interruption – not once, but three times – of this man’s thoughts? A man who has come to the end of his own understanding? A man lost in futility who, when he peers dimly at a dark future, believes that no matter what he says or does, it will end badly? [click to continue…]
As I give thanks to You at the end of the day or greet this day with hope, the one thing lately that I want above all else is to live with a full heart. The one thing I fear most is passing through what’s left of my days with sterile laughter, superficial comfort, or counterfeit gladness.
I don’t want to say, “I love you” and not mean it. I don’t want see your handiwork in all its glory and not be moved by it. I don’t want to chase a life of ease and catch up to an empty heart.
So I come to You, knowing there’s no one who can fill my life with that kind of love, or free my soul from that kind of passionless bondage, like You do. And I pray that just as the morning sun fills the earth with light even on a cloudy day like today, that You would do what only You can do: [click to continue…]
Dylan hadn’t smiled for days. His grandmother, whom he loved dearly, had died, and the ten-year-old was crushed. His friends were worried about him, and convinced him to visit their special friend, an old man they called The Storyteller. The Storyteller loved children, and often helped them with the special stories he would make up. The Storyteller also knew Dylan’s grandmother.
“This is Dylan,” one of the kids said that Monday afternoon. “His grandmother died last week, and he’s very sad.”
The Storyteller looked up from his gardening and sized up the boy. “Sad” was an understatement.
“Looks like she found the Big Surprise,” said the Storyteller, with a twinkle in his eye.
“What’s the Big Surprise?” asked Dylan dejectedly.
“Well, let me tell you about it,” said the old man as he turned to sit on the grass and the kids sat around him. [click to continue…]
When the Son of man comes will he find faith on the earth?
-Jesus Christ (Luke 18:8)
Welcome to the waterdown season.
Welcome to the days when we’re thankful, but not really sure Who to thank.
Where we count our blessings, but choke on the Name of the Blesser.
Welcome to the days where we deck the halls and hang the balls,
And sing wistful songs about traffic jams and bells and chestnuts.
When the world becomes a Winter Wonderland without a Wonderful Counselor –
And seeks peace on earth without the Prince of Peace.
But I’m not whining or pining away for the days of Rockwell or Currier and Ives,
Because God has always had a remnant of believing hearts and transformed lives.
And I’m still hopeful and expectant that in the city sidewalks or crowded stores,
In festive churches or feastful tables, someone out there still believes. [click to continue…]
Something happens at the end of the day when the to-do list loses its power, the however-many words we use have escaped us, and the sinks and tubs and TVs have done their duty. Life gets still. Sometimes for a fleeting moment before sleep. Sometimes, like last night for me, for a surprising length of time. Borrowing from ancient practices, I like to call these moments the Watches of the Night. Even though the body is tired, another part of you is still very awake.
It’s there, in the quiet stillness, that you can hear Him if you listen in your spirit.
It’s the same Gentle Whisperer that Elijah heard in the mouth of the cave.
He’s the Mighty to Save, who quiets your soul in the most beautiful of ways… He rejoices over you with singing.
This is no task for angels or even people. This is a visitation in love fitting only for One who can take such personal delight in you, despite your weakness or failure. And in the Watches of the Night, He Himself becomes the descant of your soul.
Listen with your heart, and in the Watches of the Night, you can hear Him lifting your soul, singing to your hope that He will come back to you again. He sings to your regrets with His stubborn love, casting them into the depths of the deepest sea. And in his delight over you, He buoys your heart to face new challenges and new opportunities for patience and endurance. [click to continue…]
Bryce is a prisoner in his own home. His really nice home with the pool, three-car garage, RV parking, and more bathrooms than family members. His “friends” are (too) curious about his life and trappings, like something of a bad sequel to The Great Gatsby. And despite his material success, Bryce remains restless, empty, and hungry for that One Honest Touch.
Tony is a prisoner in his own accomplishments. A hyper-achiever, he lives in a world of “What mountain have you climbed lately?” Last year’s exploits are old news to a bored world, many of whom live vicariously through Tony’s courage and imagination. Inwardly terrified to admit he’s just as bored and scared as they are, Tony longs for that One Honest Touch.
Madison is a prisoner in her own skin. Always a head turner looks-wise, for as long as she can remember, Maddie’s life has been revolving door of one vain relationship after another. Superficial. Super-physical. Super-lonely. Her striking beauty has always ensured her all the attention she could ever ask for. But it never has given her what her heart cries out for most – that One Honest Touch.
Deep Connection
All of us were created with a capacity, and need for, deep connection. A Touch. And our spirits never rest until we have it. [click to continue…]
If you just read the title of this and are still reading, you don’t have time for cute stories or complicated formulas, so I’ll just get to the point, if that’s OK.
