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Posts Tagged ‘Storm’

The Good, The Bad and the Fitness Program

Posted in Daily Life, My Writing Journey, The Christian Life, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 26, 2012| 1 Comment »

This morning I looked out my office window to see the first deer of the season snacking on a big birch tree just a few feet away.  Gentle, graceful creatures with soft gray hides and inquisitive eyes, they always brighten my day.   I am blessed to work in a facility that is surrounded by meticulous landscaping, about a hundred trees and a scattering of wildlife that often frequent the area.  As pleasant as the arrival of  deer is, the sad thing is it signals the nearness of winter.

Winter is not my favorite season by a long way.  I hate being cold.  But winter scenery is another matter.  I do love the beauty of billowy clouds, snow on the evergreen, even the bare tree branches against an azure sky.  I love the first sign of twinkle lights in  windows and the first sound of Christmas carols on the radio.

What I don’t like is coming to work in the dark and leaving work in the dark.  I vote against bitter wind, sleet and below zero temperatures.  I’d like to ban storms or at least limit their visits to when I’m already cuddled in front of the pellet stove with a cup of hot chocolate and a good book.

Alas, every season, every activity, every hobby contains the good parts and the bad parts.  I’m a writer. It’s what I love to do.  I love the light bulb burst of a new idea and I love the furious flow of words from my brain to the paper or computer screen.  I don’t love writer’s block, editing for the tenth time or getting to the middle of a great manuscript and finding myself at a loss of where to go next. If only writing were fun and productive all the time.  Or for that matter, parenting, cooking, working, teaching, reading and so on and so on.

Jesus certainly faced the same challenges in His life on earth.  I would guess He loved the opportunity to heal but didn’t care for the moments when healing didn’t happen because of someone’s lack of faith.  I’ll bet he loved spending time with his closest friends and followers, but hated the moments when it seemed they hadn’t learned a thing from Him; when they questioned who He really was and failed to accept the power in His very name.

Today I spoke with a friend who is really under attack right now and it’s no surprise.  She has had a renewal of faith and is on fire with hope, enthusiasm and joy.  I don’t imagine satan likes that much.  So, he’s out to shake her up.  She’s finding herself in the not so likeable part of the Christian walk.  It’s a reminder that there’s work to do to stay focused and motivated through the ups and downs of life.  Here’s the workout program.  Repeat as often as necessary until you feel those spiritual muscles bulging.

1)  From a  kneeling position, inhale deeply, exhale and pray.  Pray early, pray late, pray always.  Pray when it’s going well and when it’s not.  This will build strength within.

2)  From a sitting position, lift your Bible as often as possible and read.  This will strengthen your mind and your resolve.

3)  Spread your arms wide and reach out to others.  This will strengthen your commitment and build your confidence.

4)  Ask others to join your fitness club.  Ask them to pray with you, talk with you, share with you, commiserate with you and praise God with you.  This will build up your joy and inner peace.

And remember this – if you weren’t on the right path, satan wouldn’t pay you a bit of attention.  He doesn’t care what you’re doing as long as you aren’t doing what God wants you to do.  He doesn’t have a plan for your life.  He just wants to make sure you aren’t following God’s plan for your life.  A good exercise program like the one above will keep him from achieving his goal.

You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord Himself is the Rock eternal.  Isaiah 26:3-4

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Heavy Storms and Shallow Thoughts

Posted in The Christian Life, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on July 9, 2012| 1 Comment »

We had quite the storm blow through last night.  Of course compared to some of the weather patterns across the nation it was pretty small scale.  But to us it was definitely noteworthy.

My little granddaughter, Brinkley, was over for the evening and we were engaged in a game of Snap (rules being made up as we went along as usual) when my granddaughter, Bailey, called and told us to look outside.  We ran out on the front porch and were treated to a magnificent lightening show over the range of hills several miles from us.  It was close enough to have entertainment value but far enough away to not concern us greatly. 

We watched for a few minutes but given that the temperature was over 100 degrees we soon tired of the activity and returned to our air conditioned living room.  We had hardly gotten back into the game when we heard thunder that rocked house followed by the sound of high winds.  With Brinkley clutching my hand, we stepped back outside. The first thing we noticed was our willow tree looking like it was about to topple over and a dust storm making it difficult to see anything else.  The lights flickered, we lost power, it came back on and then we lost it again- not for long, but long enough to play a quick hand of Snap by candlelight which was great fun for Brinkley.

The storm lasted a couple of hours and then died out as fast as it had come.  Other than a lot of debris in the front yard from the wind and a search for the garbage cans, we were left pretty much untouched.

However, on my way to work this morning I saw several downed trees.  When I got to work and read the paper I found that two homes had burned about 15 miles away, the cause listed as lightening.  About 70 miles away a 20 unit apartment complex burned, the fire also triggered by lightening.

I pondered how shallow my thoughts were once I realized there had been no damage to my home or my family.  It’s easy to close yourself into your own little world and let the tragedies outside be nothing more than news stories – down the block, across town, across the nation, on the other side of the world.   All the time I see the stories and I am embarrassed to say they don’t always cause me much concern.  What a selfish way to live.  Especially when you think about how easy it is to get involved just by offering a prayer for the situation.

So, here’s my challenge.  When you are suffering from summer heat, offer a prayer for those who are suffering without air conditioning or without even a home.  When you thank God forbeing spared damage from the storm, stop and pray for those who weren’t.  Whenyou feel the grip of a little one’s frightened hand, pray for the child who has no one to comfort her.  Just as we use everyday things to remind us of God’s goodness, use the same to remind us of the world’s harshness.  Whatever you do, keep your heart soft and compassionate.  That’s what Jesus did.

“Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united  with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,”  Phil 2:1-3

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Gucci Shoes, Liz Claiborne Dresses, and Army Green Rain Gear

Posted in Motorcycling, The Christian Life, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 22, 2012| 2 Comments »

It’s 4:30 a.m. and the sun should be peeking over the hill.  Unfortunately, thick rain clouds make it difficult to know for sure if that’s happening.  If you read my previous blog you know we are leaving bright (well, maybe not bright) and early this morning on an 8 day motorcycle trip.  And it’s seriously threatening to rain on our parade.

Yesterday was 82 degrees and gorgeous, teasing me into gleeful anticipation.  I picked out my outfit for this morning with thoughts of sunscreened arms under a clear blue sky. The shirt I chose was pink with a Harley logo on the front to match my pink leather chaps, a gift from my biker husband on our 40thanniversary.  This morning I’m tucking the shirt in my bag and pulling out my turtleneck and black leathers, much more suited to inclement weather.  And – the rain gear.

I have nothing against a little sprinkle, although this looks to be a bit more than that.  What I do have a problem with is army green which is the color of my rain ensemble.  It’s not pretty.  It’s not complimentary to my light complexion and blonde hair.  And it certainly is not fashionable!  The best you could say about it is it’s serviceable.  How boring is that?

Don’t get me wrong.  I can appreciate the serviceability, just not the lack of fashion.  It’s boxy, plain and well – green.  However, from past experience I can tell you it works.  It keeps me dry, cuts the wind, even adds some chill resistance factor.  Should the skies open up as they threaten, I will be prepared.  When we arrive at our day’s destination, I will be relatively dry.

It’s much like the full armor of God.  I don’t want to need it.  I want to wake to sunshine every day.  I want to throw my head back, suck in the fresh air and sing at the top of my voice.  But many days are not conducive to blind enjoyment.  In fact on most days I will face some type of threatening storm.  Much as I’d like to skip through life in Liz Claiborne dresses and Gucci shoes, I will most often find myself in army green.  In some environments it will not be considered fashionable.  On some days people will point their fingers and mock me.  On other days it will feel cumbersome and hindering.

But I’ve had experience enough to know it will always be serviceable.  Beyond my rain gear which deflects water, these garments will deflect the arrows of the enemy.  They will protect my most vulnerable parts from accusation and anger, from jabs and jeering, from harm and hatred.  They will keep me safe in the bloodiest wars, give me courage in the scariest situations and cover me with peace in the midst of turmoil.

The full armor of God may not be what I see in the glossy ads of fashion magazines.  But it will inevitably be the garments my world envies when they see me survive and thrive in a land of death and destruction.

Today I will wear my rain gear with this in mind.  My God has a garment for every situation.  Rain clouds will not frighten me.  I will throw out my army green, oversized arms and praise His name – with His living water running in torrents down my face.  I will smile at Mother Nature because as hard as she tries, she is no match for Father God.

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.  Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.  In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Eph 6:13-17

No posts next week, friends.  I will be on the road!

 

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I Will Remember Sunshine

Posted in My Writing Journey, The Christian Life, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 4, 2012| 3 Comments »

I’m sitting at my desk looking out my huge window on a very dreary day.  It’s not storming, it’s overcast.  It’s not pouring rain, it’s a light drizzle.  It’s not dark but it’s not light either.  It’s gray.  It’s one of those days when your interests and emotions are not stirred in the least.

Bright sunshine always makes me long to get out in it, walk or garden or jump on the motorcycle.  Raging storms always send me into action repairing damage, bolstering up, hunkering down.  But days like today – they are uninspiring.  I don’t know what I want to do.

Life is so like that, isn’t it? There are good days when I want to shout and sing.  I have more energy than I can harness.  I want to have fun, accomplish things, be with people, sweep – anything that means movement.  There are stormy days of crisis when I have no choice but to jump to action. I find myself forced into fighting back, pushing through, climbing out.

But many of my days are like today, just days when nothing happens to fuel my fire. I don’t want to make plans for lunch.  I don’t want to think about the evening activities.  There’s just nothing that sounds appealing when surrounded by gray.  Even writing is hard because so much of my inspiration comes from my environment and no one wants a scene depicting a day with no extremes. I would call this a not bad, not good, middle of the road, no reason to get excited about anything day.

Here’s the scary thing about blah days.  On bright and beautiful days I am inspired to pick up my cross and follow Him.  In the midst of a big storm I am committed to pick up my cross and follow Him.  But on gray days, like everything else, I don’t want to pick up anything or follow anyone. 

I wonder if David’s day was gray when he let his army go to war without him and in his listlessness found himself pacing his roof top.  I wonder if gray days were the ones where Solomon looked beyond the borders and saw more color in foreign women.  Scary thoughts.

A gray day plan is critical if I am to keep myself on the narrow road, fully focused on moving forward and not sideways, or worse yet, standing still.

1)   Find purpose in every day. I must choose actions even on gray days that lead me forward.  Reach out to someone, pray about something, focus on a scripture, clean something, write something – do something I can look back on and feel good about.  Prov 16:3  Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.  Prov 3:6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.

2)    In a world of overstimulation, remember that God calls me to commit and to be diligent every day no matter the weather.  Col 3:23  Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as if working for the Lord and not for men. 

3)    Give thanks even when it’s not exciting.  1 Thess 5:18  Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

4)    Remember glorious sunshine of past days that set my feet to dancing.  And remember raging storms that strengthened my grip on His mighty hand.  I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.  I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds. 

In case you’re interested, my plan for lunch today includes my umbrella, my sweater and my Bible.

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First Person Faith

Posted in The Christian Life, tagged , , , , , , , , , on April 16, 2012| Leave a Comment »

My wonderful Bible study group had quite a laugh when my good friend Katie shared her story.  She had begun having terrible headaches a couple of weeks earlier and was quite concerned because they had come on suddenly.  The headaches would begin shortly after getting to work and would increase in intensity throughout the day.  She believed it had something to do with her eyes even though she’d recently had them checked.  She finally made another appointment with her vision care provider.  Each day prior to her appointment things worsened and she became more and more concerned as did her husband.  Something was seriously wrong. The day before her appointment she was getting ready for work and spotted a pair of glasses in an unusual place in her bathroom.  She pulled off the glasses she had on only to discover that for two weeks she had been wearing her son’s glasses instead of her own!  The frames were similar enough no one noticed the difference and her son hadn’t said a word (he had switched to contacts).  Only her eyes had figured things out!  The prescription wasn’t working, thus the severe headaches.

It was a funny story but at the same time illustrated how seeing through someone else’s eyes isn’t always the best plan.  When it comes to faith, we need our own prescription so to speak.  We can’t use our parent’s or our pastor’s or our best friend’s.  If we can’t stand on our own and defend what we truly believe deep in our own heart and soul, we are going to be susceptible to some pretty horrendous headaches.

You can’t always rely on someone else’s answers to pass a test!  The foundations of our faith are what get us through.  My ability to weather a storm comes from the experiences I’ve had surviving smaller storms and the repeated assurance that it was God who got me through.  He doesn’t apply the same prescription to my situation that He does to another person’s. There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all-crisis.  Every solution and every assist He offers is unique and individualized.

Reading God’s word brings new thoughts and ideas that I’m going to need at some point.  If I only let others tell me what they read, I’m not giving myself the opportunity to allow God to speak to me personally and prepare me for the road ahead. 

When I study the Bible I get inside the characters and the stories.  If I just listen to someone else retell the stories I might miss key points that are there just for my instruction.  I’m influenced by their voice not His.

If I sit back and bask in the retelling of another person’s great Sunday morning worship experience, I miss out on the soul stirring music, the heart healing testimonies, the life lifting messages.  I only get the fringe benefit.  It won’t be enough when I have to withdraw  a big measure of strength and courage.

As a writer let’s just say I need a first person faith.  A third person point of view just doesn’t cut it.  God has prescribed for me a specific lens through which I will be able to see His hand on my life.  I need to make sure I’m wearing my own glasses.  (Of course, cute frames are an added asset!)

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Storm Shelter

Posted in The Christian Life, tagged , , , , , , on April 12, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Watching newscasts of the horrendous weather in the midwest makes me so thankful I live where I do.  It is just shocking to me that you could be sitting on your porch enjoying the sunset one minute and the next be staring at a pile of matchsticks that was once your home.   Storms in life are often like that – they blow in suddenly and leave you staggering, wondering what happened.  Even if you see the storm approaching it is usually impossible to outrun it or hide from it.

A storm that I am altogether too close to is the one my niece is going through with her six year old daughter.  I mentioned little Allie in a previous blog and her battle with leukemia for the second time in four years.  Allie has been very sick with some terrible side effects.    My niece commented on her facebook post this week that Allie was so depleted physically by the chemotherapy she couldn’t even get out of bed.  She doesn’t fully understand why she feels so bad.  Life is just one big storm for her.  Allie’s hiding place is when her mommy crawls into the bed with her, pulls her close and just cuddles – sometimes for hours.  Allie still feels sick but she also feels safe and warm.

Most of us have outgrown the opportunity to stay in bed all day and cuddle with a parent when our storms descend.  But – there is a hiding place every bit as warm and safe and sheltering. Deuteronomy 33:27 tells us “the eternal God is your refuge and dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms.”  I love that picture because it tells me that when I curl up and let God wrap His wonderful arms around me I am safe.  And if I get to thrashing around in the midst of that storm and fall out of bed – underneath are His everlasting arms. He will catch my fall and gently place me back on the mattress of His love and compassion.

The psalms reinforce His promise by assuring us that He is our hiding place, He is a strong tower, He will hide me in the secret place of His tabernacle, He is my refuge and my shield.  Psalm 91 says “He will cover you with His feathers and under His wings you can take refuge.”

Aren’t you thankful God has provided a hiding place for his children – a place of guaranteed safety, of intimacy, of communion with Him?  A place protected by an impenetrable shield so that even though we can’t avoid the storm we can weather it by letting Him pull us out of the wind and the rain and into the center where peace resides.

But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. Ps 5:11

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