Things I've been learning in 2016

The new year will soon be here, and it’s a great time to reflect on lessons learned this past year. Here is a sampling:

A long-held dream can become reality. 

My goal was to write 50 words a day as a way to make progress on the huge undertaking of writing a book. After two years in the making, Life, Love and Loss was published in April, and I am overjoyed with the sense of accomplishment and the wonderful feedback from many who have been inspired by it. 

Love means letting go.

Things can change in an instant and we can never take them for granted. I lost a friend in January, buried my faithful furry companion in March, and walked with several others who experienced a significant loss. I’ve learned to be grateful for the time we had together and to treasure each moment as if it might be the last.

I can adapt.

My workplace transitioned through huge change this year. But there are new people to work with, new disciplines to learn and new opportunities to pursue. I’m learning to better adapt and go with the flow. 

My perception is not always reality.

It’s not accurate to take limited information and run with it. There is more to the story than the side that I see. Before accepting a conclusion, it is better to open dialog. I thought I was being phased out of my job, but I learned it was not true at all.

Discipline is surprisingly good.

I took the Whole Life Challenge and did things I didn’t particularly want to do (exercise more, pass up carbs and sweets, drink more water and get eight hours of sleep). I was pleased to learn that the way I take care of my body is directly related to fewer aches, improved wellbeing, greater energy levels and better-fitting clothes! 

God still loves to answer prayers.

I thank God for many prayers answered in 2016: improved relationships, better decisions, healed bodies and minds, trouble averted, opportunities given, and the continued blessings of friendships, old and new. God loves with an everlasting love. The impossible becomes possible when I abide in Him.

The possibilities are endless.

Prayers are always needed for wise government, peace in war-torn places, the spread of the gospel and homes for the homeless. The world needs solutions to humanitarian issues. Real change begins with prayer. I am a world changer, right where God has placed me.

Gratefulness is amazingly fulfilling.

Gratefulness trains me to look for the positive among the negative. It flips my view, and gets me out of places I could become stuck. Rather than focusing on the dark details, I can be a light that shines in the darkness. My light gets brighter as I thank and praise God for all He has done, and believe in all He is still doing! I’m determined to head into 2017 in a spirit of gratefulness, amazement and worship.

How about you? What were your most inspirational moments in 2016? What have you celebrated? What have you learned from the most difficult days? How are you better today than you were last January?

The Spirit of Christmas

T raveling to be together or

H osting guests,

I ncluding those less fortunate in our preparations;

S erving, giving, doing for others.

W onderful spreads of special foods,

E ating, feasting, celebrating!

P reparing room to

R eflect

O n the Reason for the Season.

C arols and singing…

L ittle children anticipating…

A ngels announcing

I mportant news: holy birth of the long-awaited

M essiah.

:

E xtraordinary,
M agnificent,
M erciful God who loves us so much
A nd sent His only Son so that
N o one need perish. All He asks is that we
U nderstand His precious gift is free…
E ternity with Him,
L ife for all who believe.

I nspiring awe, impossible to keep quiet,
S haring the good news with all.

G od has come… in the form of a baby… and we’re
O verjoyed…
D o not fear.

W e will walk with Him, abide
I n Him,
T rust in
H im… for all we need.

U nlocking the mystery of all history… Jesus Christ has come,
S avior of the world!


THIS WE PROCLAIM: EMMANUEL IS GOD WITH US!

8 Amazing Promises from Romans 8

As the beauty of the season begins to unfold, I'm in Romans 8, finding several amazing promises around why Jesus came to earth. The interpretations I share have come from reading various versions (NIV, Voice, Message and Phillips). In each of these, Paul's language is richly expressive -- as I'm sure it was in the original text.

1 - There is no condemnation for those who are walking with Jesus. If we've accepted Christ and are doing our best to abide in Him, there's no reason for us to be blaming, guilting or shaming ourselves for any past mistakes.

2 - Since the law wasn't enough, God made things more personal by sending His son to take on the human condition and live among us. Jesus freely took it on, humbling Himself as a helpless baby, limiting Himself to an earthly body to do what needed to be done to set us free from sin.

3 - Then, God sent His Spirit to indwell us, inspire us and intercede for us. What could be more helpful? We are adopted into God's family and get to call Him our daddy.

4 -  That also means we become heirs to all the treasures of His glorious inheritance. With that, God placed within us a deep and abiding hope to experience the true freedom that will be ours one day. In fact, all of creation is practically on tiptoe to see what is to come! We yearn and long for the day when all will be made right, once and for all.

5 -  While we wait as patiently as possible for that day, this time of enduring does not diminish us. No, we are enlarged in the waiting! When the waiting gets hard, the enduring gets long and there are no words, His Spirit prays on our behalf in groans too profound for words.

6 - Meanwhile, we can rest in the knowledge that God works in and through all things to orchestrate good, right and beautiful out of pain, ugliness and ashes.

7 - Paul begins to summarize: If God is for us, who can be against? Who would even try? What would be the point? We have an overwhelming victory in Him.

8 - God is totally for us -- backing us with the full force of the Holy Trinity, in love. He hasn't missed a detail. Nothing can separate us from the love of God... Absolutely nothing.

Heavenly Father, you offer us a love that is beyond anything we've ever known. It is difficult to grasp. Please open our eyes that we may see, our minds that we may believe and our hearts that we may fully receive all that you have given us.

Finding great riches

Step into the shoes of someone finding great riches: A surprising find, an unexpected check, maybe even a fabulous sale. I can imagine the excitement about receiving something more – even much more – than I was looking for. That is a great description and a wonderful way to think about scripture. I have been rolling that thought around for several days, since reading this verse:

I will rejoice in following your statutes like one rejoices in finding great riches. (Psalm 119:14)

Rather than thinking about God’s Word as restrictive, the psalmist finds pure joy in following God’s gracious guidance. Whoever wrote Psalm 119 (presumably David) took a great deal of time of examining the Word and reflecting on many different ways to express appreciation for it. He meditates on it, seeks it, trusts it, obeys it, delights in it, keeps it, hopes in it, follows it, dwells in it and ponders it.

This psalm – the longest one – is thoughtfully written as an acrostic, using each of the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet, in order. Eight stanzas are devoted to each letter. A beautiful poetic work. It centers on exalting the written revelation of God, taking joy in His Word. All but a few of the 176 verses follow that same pattern. In it, the scriptures are referred to as God’s Word, His law, statutes, precepts, commandments, testimonies, judgments, decrees or promises.

 “This wonderful psalm helps us to wonder at the immensity of Scripture,” said Charles Spurgeon. “From its keeping to one subject it helps us to adore the unity of Scripture, for it is but one. Yet, from the many turns it gives to the same thought, it helps to see the variety of Scripture… Its variety is that of a kaleidoscope: from a few objects a boundless variation is produced. In the kaleidoscope you look once, and there is a strangely beautiful form. You shift the glass a very little and another shape, equally delicate and beautiful, is before your eyes. So it is here.”

How rich we would be if we could treasure the Bible that way – to dwell in it and let it make its home in us. What a gift we have been given. Let’s read it, remember it, reflect on it, rejoice in it…!

The woods: Good for the soul

I’ve enjoyed numerous hikes in national parks, woodland preserves and rustic forests. While we know physical activity is good for us, exercising outside in nature goes above and beyond. When I’ve had a mentally exhausting day, there’s no better medicine than to head for the woods to take a hike.

I love the quiet. I very much appreciate the time to be unplugged from electronics and the beck and call of the next “to do.” Every step through crunching leaves is therapy. Whether stepping on spongy earth or crackling twigs, it’s like holy ground to me. I see the intricate pattern in the tiny mosses on decaying stumps, and the dainty ferns filling the forest floor. I smell that woodsy goodness and the world feels right again. 

As I plod along the trail, the worries slowly roll off. I make my way to the crest of a hill and a new view opens up. Much like the one I can receive when I cast all my cares on Him… the One who provides for every living creature… the One who designed this perfect, self-sustaining ecosystem… the One who gave the squirrels a place to play and assigned every bird a different voice and a new song. When the sunlight streams through the canopy highlighting dozens of amazing colors, I find a new peace.

For a lovely hour, I can forget about the ways of the chaotic world and walk through a sanctuary created by God, letting every gentle breeze caress me, allowing every critter's chirp and chatter to minister. Sometimes I have the sudden joy of seeing other wildlife, like a deer, eagle or great blue heron.

To me it’s no surprise that exercising outside in nature helps clear our heads, increase creativity and focus, recharge us and build our self-esteem. I fully believe God designed it that way.

A great article: What Hiking Does to the Brain is Pretty Amazing.

Faith

Recently, I started wearing a bracelet with five simple letters...
F-A-I-T-H.

A performer I once heard thought of the word as an acronym for "Feel As If There's Hope."

When I mentioned that to Ted, he disagreed because faith is not a feeling. According to Hebrews 11, "faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see."

After all, it was by faith Abel brought a better sacrifice, Noah built an ark, Moses' parents hid their baby from the king, Abraham took Isaac up the mountain, and Rahab welcomed the spies. By faith the people crossed the Red Sea on dry land, the army marched around Jericho until the walls fell, and Abraham and Sarah had a child in their old age. Examples abound in this chapter about how faith carried the believers through difficult and even unheard of things.

In the same way, my own faith has inspired and carried me through many difficult and amazing things. I can recall many situations that completely changed -- even overnight -- when I held onto my faith.

Paul says in a letter to the Corinthians that "we live by faith, not by sight" and "we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen." We may not see it, we may not feel it, and we may not even be able to put it into words, but when we have faith in God, the most incredible things can happen. Faith in God changes everything.

So, how would I define faith? My acronym would be this:

Find
Absolutely
Incredible
Transformational
Hope!

Peter abides - part 2

As a disciple of Jesus, Peter spent a great deal of time with Him, and they had many conversations not recorded. (How I would love to hear more...!) After Jesus died, rose and went to the Father, Peter was passionate about keeping Jesus' memory alive. He writes his letters from the perspective of one who walked with the living God and one who wants to portray Him as accurately as possible.

Here's a continuation of 1 Peter 1, in my own interpretation:

10 Prophets took great care in bringing such an important message...

11 with great reverence, prayer and searching to know when and how these things would unfold.

12 This was not self-serving, but the Holy Spirit's message coming through. A great mystery!

13 Get ready -- seriously, intentionally focused -- and ready for knowing Jesus more fully when He returns.

14 Abide in Jesus, not in the world, now that you know better.

15 In all your ways, strive to be like Him -- Holy!

16 Early scriptures (Leviticus) commanded holiness.

17 Remember this life is only temporary and God is sovereign; Lord over all. Live your days in awe of that and expectant of what is to come.

18 No amount of treasures or riches or works could do for you what God has done

19 with the precious blood of Jesus, freely given for all.

20 This was planned from the beginning of time but only recently revealed.

21 God gave us a real-life human example before our eyes to increase our faith.

22 So, love deeply as Jesus did.

23 We are born again in new hope; true children of God.

24 This world, our bodies and all that we now see is temporary

25 but the promise of God stands for eternity!

Dear Lord, help us live our lives in reverent awe of what you have done. Let us not become complacent or satisfied in this world, but let us live in the light of eternity with expectant hope of all you have promised. Even now, you are equipping us for this higher calling of being holy, like you are.