Eeyore And Tigger

I was listening to a sermon this morning while I walked inside, and the pastor asked this question...."Do you have an Eeyore or a Tigger anointing?  When this pastor spoke of these "anointings" he had my attention.  It gave me pause as he went on to speak on hope and keeping our focus on believing truths, the truths we find in the Bible.  It makes sense.  We don't ignore the facts of a situation, but we find our hope and faith in God's Word, letting that speak over our circumstances.

Of course we all know a few Eeyores and at times I can catch myself heading down that road.  Woe is me....Woe is the world.......Things are looking pretty dark....... Eeyore has a world view of life.

Tigger is another story.  He bounces around with joy and sees the good in all of life.  He is very aware that bouncing is what Tiggers really do best!  He has a spring in his step and an out of this world view of life.  In my way of thinking, he is not letting the world steal his joy.  Joy that comes from knowing where to keep his heart focused.

I expect most of us fall somewhere in between Eeyore an Tigger as we navigate life unless you are an eternal optimist or pessimist.  We can get caught up in what the world tells us, shows us, gives us.  Granted, we don't want to ignore what is going on in our world or our corner of it, but there is so much more joy available to us when we intentionally "pitch our tent in the land of hope".

This verse found in Acts is one my sister Jo holds close and one that she needs right now as she battles major health issues  While she rests in the care of doctors and they search for answers, she has pitched her tent in the land of hope.  And as God works through the doctors and nurses and hears the many prayers of those who love and care about her, we too, put our tents in the land of hope.  God's promises sustain us!

None of us can get through this life without God's promises, found in His Word.  And our hope that is built on truths, is found in His Word.  Whether we are having health issues, coping with this new "normal", or challenged by finances, we just keep relying on His promises.  Like Tigger, His promises can make us glad from the inside out.....ecstatic.....and filled with hope and joy in spite of our circumstances!

Sunday's Coming!

I woke up about three this morning with this thought popping into my head. "It's Good Friday.....but Sunday is coming!" Every time I woke up after that the same thought would present itself.  I think God was trying to get my attention.

 Of course it is not Good Friday yet, but in some ways we have been living in a season of Good Friday now for quite some time.  Darkness, despair, suffering, death....our TV's, newspapers, and phones are filled with it and even though stories of hope are presented to us to try to balance some of the reality brought into our lives through the Covid-19 crisis, it cannot be avoided.  Our world is a mess. It looks bleak when we focus on it all.  But just like when Jesus died on the cross......it was not the end.  Sunday was coming!  And Sunday will be coming again for all of us concerning this pandemic, too.

Yesterday I headed out for the first time in three weeks to get the eye injection required for me to keep the vision in my left eye.  The doctor comes to our city every Monday and Tuesday to take care of patients in north Iowa.  They usually see an average of 80 each day!  My first appointment was set for 2:50 pm, but on Monday they changed it to 12 noon when there would be few patients.  Then I received a call yesterday morning asking me if I could come in at 11 am instead because they had a free slot.  When Joel and I went into the Retina section of the clinic we were the only people their besides the staff.  No one was scheduled for that time before lunch so they wanted us to come in to protect me from possible exposure.  Can you believe it?  How nice of them!  I am sure they did this for others too.  What a blessing!  It was surreal to be in that big clinic and not see anyone but staff in scrubs and masks.  We were in and out of there quickly and home within an hour.  Today it really stood out for me that in a season of Good Friday days was a Sunday is Coming moment!  We saw the sun peaking through the clouds....the SON Himself was made known in the grace and kindness of a staff that was concerned and caring.

We all have our "Sunday is Coming" moments we can think on and share with others.  Moments where we see the light at the end of the tunnel.  Moments when we know deep within this too shall pass and we will see Sunday come!  Moments when the goodness inside of all of us comes forth and shines a beacon in the darkness and uncertainty of our lives.

In the midst of Holy Week, we focus on our Lord Jesus and His journey to the cross.  We remember His death and the tremendous suffering He endured to save us all from death and destruction.  In this dark time, we hold close to us what we already know to be true.....Sunday is coming!!!!  Sunday is coming. 

When we wake each morning we are faced with the new reality that our world is shaken to its very core.   It can feel as dark, hopeless, or endless as Good Friday, but we are all called to stand firm and hold on to the hope that Sunday is coming!  Sunday is coming!

Pitching My Tent

"I am glad from the inside out, ecstatic.  

I have pitched my tent in the land of hope."

Acts 2:26  Message Bible

It is the the middle of the first week of Advent, a time that we are focusing on hope.  H.O.P.E  And don't we all need a little hope in our lives.  Hope for today, hope for tomorrow.  Hope for the coming of a baby.  Hope for healing.  Hope for a miracle.  And isn't God the God of miracles?!  Isn't the birth of a Savior, our Savior, a miracle? 

When I read this verse, I cannot say that I am feeling really glad from the inside out, or ecstatic in any way.  Just saying.......but I have pitched my tent in the land of hope.  During the storms of life, that tent needs some deep stakes to stay upright.  It shakes and the tent flaps whip about in the wind and rain, but faith keeps it grounded.  I visually can see myself pounding those stakes in hitting each one harder and harder, deeper and deeper.  And with metal hitting metal hope rises and faith is strengthened. 

Maybe what Ann Voskamp says holds some truth.  "Hope isn't about thinking something will get better.  Hope is about believing Someone better is already here"  We have the privilege of knowing the end of the story of Christmas.  Of knowing about the baby born in a manger, the son of God and of man.  A carpenter's son and yet God's only Son with three years of ministry that healed the sick, cleansed the lepers, brought the dead to life, cast out demons and offered eternal life for all.

Hope sustains.  Life may be challenging, but because of Jesus we can keep our tent pitched in the land of hope., knowing there is hope for today, and in the waiting for tomorrow.  Knowing there is hope for eternity. 

One Brave Step Up The Mountain

"It is a new week and you just keep being brave

 because blessed is the one who perseveres, 

who does the hard thing and puts feet to the floor and just begins, 

who doesn't stop putting one brave step in front of another.  

Because tough times never last

 but those who hang on tight to God always do."

Ann Voskamp

Today I read a few powerful thoughts from Ann Voskamp, the author of One Thousand Gifts.  She spoke about doing the "hard things".  About putting our feet to the floor and just beginning.  She wrote about taking one brave step and starting up the mountain we face.  That God will take the mountain, all we need to do is take courage and take the next step.  She reminded us to lean in and take that next step.

I have been hearing a lot about leaning in lately.  It began last week when I faced the fact I needed surgery again for this large ugly kidney stone that is one big mountain of trouble in my right kidney.  Between the stone and the stents I am fighting infections and my body is already dealing with a lower white count from the breast cancer treatments.  I did not want to deal with it, but it is what it is.  And God is who He says He is!  Through devotionals He keeps reminding me to lean in to Him.  Trust Him in this season.

A week ago I had a visual encounter where I was standing arm in arm next to Jesus, leaning against Him.  I was shaking from head to toe but I was standing firm with Jesus keeping me upright.  I remember thinking, well if Jesus is on my right, who is on my left side then....and when I turned I realized Joel was linking arms with me too.  Of course, he has always been my support.  my earthly rock provided by God.  Beyond Joel, much to my surprise, I saw Dr. M, the urologist.  It shocked me.  My thought was, okay, he is part of this healing journey too.  Then I looked around and saw faded out faces of who I knew to be friends and family.  Those praying and sending their love.

The mountains can look so big.  They can be so big.  BUT GOD......... We need to have the courage to take the first step up the mountain.  Maybe for you it is a financial burden.........or chemo........or trusting someone when it is hard to trust. For me this time it is yet another surgery this Wednesday afternoon to rid the stone from my kidney.  (Going up through the urethra to laser the stone) Everyone's mountain is different, but the source of our strength is not.  Our strength comes from God.

"The great ones are simply the ones who believe God can.  

In Him, you. can. do. this.  

The hopeful stare up the steps.  

The faithful step up the stairs."

I am always amazed at the courage people display in difficult circumstances.  Ordinary people, living ordinary lives, who are hit by circumstances that are in no way ordinary.  Ordinary people who dig deep, finding courage and strength to face the worst of the worst and who do so with hope and faith in their God, in our Lord who tells us to lean in.  "Lean in, trust, and see Me move mountains".  

Today I am asking for your continued prayers for the surgery Wednesday afternoon.  Praying that the long tedious process of lasering the large stone into small ones will go well and swiftly.  That I will come home that evening and recover well.  I also ask for prayers for all those who fight their own battles with God by their sides. Those who persevere and faithfully keep taking that one brave step up the mountain they face.  

This Too Shall Pass

We woke up today to -28 degree weather with a -58 windchill.  Yes, that is correct.  No typo....it is that cold here in northern Iowa.  So cold that not only are all schools and colleges closed, but mail delivery has been suspended in our state and surrounding states as well.  This is as bad as it gets.  Michigan, Wisconsin, and Illinois have declared states of emergency......This is record breaking cold.  Joel and I cannot remember -58 wind chills, ever.  And we have a few memories of cold weather over the years!

Like when we went to Malta Montana for Internship and woke up to -30 in late October.  We quickly discovered there were no heat vents in the small kids bedroom so we went to a local hardware store and purchased electric wall heaters!  Montana has some cold winters!  Or when our middle daughter was married on Epiphany in north central Minnesota and the actual temperature that evening was -37.  Yeah.  Cold.  But -58 is a new one.

Nature has a way of stopping our world from moving forward, and extreme cold is no exemption.  So grateful for our warm house, good furnace, and gas fireplace.  As we sit this morning reading in the quiet (our cable is experiencing an "outage") we are nice and warm, snuggled in under quilts and staring at a toasty fire.  We have soup to warm our stomachs and books to warm our souls.  We are blessed.

I think of the firefighters who brave the cold.........our police officers who still work to keep our cities safe.............emergency workers and more.  At risk for those who are at risk or risky.  Again, we are so blessed.

Sometimes life also throws things at us that seem to stop our world from moving forward.  I read today of the death of a friend's brother.  His long battle with cancer is over and he is with Jesus this day, but those left behind feel his loss greatly.  Another woman I know was recently diagnosed with an aggressive cancer, and her world is now at war with an enemy of the body.  Maybe the hopes you had for a child or a loved one seem lost.  Maybe the dreams for yourself seem far away.  The world, our world stops momentarily, a shift occurs and we prepare for what is ahead, just as we do for cold weather. 

But we are not alone.  God is with us, and nothing.......not one thing surprises Him.  Not one thing is too big for Him.  Not one thing prevents God from moving forward..........Today, if your world seems to have stopped, take a deep breath.  Pick up the Word and seek peace.  Stay warm wrapped in His love.  Remember that God is bigger than any problem we face.  This too shall pass.  Just like this brutally cold weather, this too shall pass. 

Ain't No Battle, Ain't No Valley, Ain't No Grave

When I lay in the hospital that first night I was so discouraged that the surgery had failed.  It had been an ordeal with bad results that still knots up my stomach when I think about it.  Joel was sleeping in a recliner next to my bed, and I was quietly talking to God.  I asked Him what He, Jesus, and Holy had to tell me.  I immediately saw three separate segments of scenes.  Jesus was in the first one and I could see only a close up of His scared hand.  God said to me,  "Jesus, my Son, and man of God suffered."  Immediately I was looking at the throne of God.  God was sitting on the throne and asked me to come sit by Him.  I was a young child and climbed up next to Him.  I said, "We are not even to look at your face, so I don't think I should be sitting beside you on the throne."  God replied, "You are my child, my heir and you can sit right beside me!"  He had His arm around me holding me close.  Then I saw a long brick road with trees lining both sides.  They were barren, no leaves or fruit.  I saw a palomino horse slowly going down the road.  For reasons that are personal I expect, I sometimes see Holy Spirit as a Palomino.  Behind Holy Joel and I were on our hands and knees trying to move forward. At times the horse would look back at us.   I immediately thought, "This is the valley of the shadow of death."  I noticed we were slowing going through...opportune word....going through.  There was no real explanation given for what I was seeing that night.  I tucked it away and tried to sleep.

Then this week I was listening to the song "I Raise A Hallelujah" and saw the brick road again.  I saw Joel and I on our hands and knees behind the palomino horse.  I noticed the horse's tail actually was the word Hallelujah.  Then all around this valley the sky became a beautiful sun-gold color and as I looked I realized the sun gold was people.  People surrounding us, praying, singing, and smiling.  I am not sure what it all means yet but praise was in the atmosphere.

Joel has told me over and over that in the last three months he goes back to the prophetic word we were given at Bethel Church where a woman shared that she saw us going through a season "on our hands and knees".  I told her I did not want to go through any more struggles and she said, "There is grace in it."  She went on to say that this season would end.  We would stand back up and be blessed more than ever with a "new thing" that God has for us.  The man who also spoke over us told both Joel and I to hang on to our joy.  Our strength would come from the joy of the Lord.  Joel keeps holding tight to the words.........you will stand up again and there will be amazing new things ahead.

The brick road I saw in my visual encounter brought to mind the prophetic words we received.  Do we understand it?  No.  Do we embrace it?  Not really.  But somewhere in the midst of it all there are things we know.  God looks at us as His kids.  He loves us so much He sent His Son to suffer and die....AND raise again.  Going through the valley, any valley, we are not alone.  Even in death, and it will come for all of us some day, we have victory.  Victory is ours because of Jesus.  It is a done deal!

Spending so much time at the cancer infusion center, I have observed so many who are in a battle to live.  Who are hurting, weary, and yet hopeful.  This weekend at the ER infusion room I was in a chair next to a woman who was getting an IV antibiotic like me.  Her arms were covered in bruises where veins had failed.  She was obviously weary.  We saw her again yesterday at the cancer center, smiling and nodding at us in recognition as we walk a familiar journey.  I thought about how the enemy uses cancer for evil, to discourage and try to destroy God's beloved.  He is such a coward. Tears rolled down my face as I thought about the bravery and hope expressed in all those who fight to live.  I pray they all know that they have Jesus fighting for them!

There is a chorus of a song I have been listening to that says it all.  We do live with hope for healing, for a long full life filled with purpose.  Even while we fight battles, we do so from a place of victory! Walking through the valley we do so carrying a Hallelujah victory sign.  And when our time on earth is fulfilled, the ultimate victory is ours.   Jesus already paid the price for our healing and for our salvation.  Wherever you find yourself today, remember that victory is yours!

Confirmation, Cancer, and Hope

This past weekend we packed up our car and headed out of town, leaving behind the dark cloud of cancer.  We went north to celebrate our granddaughter's confirmation.  A time of affirming her baptism and confirming her faith.  We are so proud of her.  Her statement of faith still resonates with us.  So very grateful that God is the center of the lives of our children, in-laws and grandchildren. 
It was great to hug on some of our kids, snuggle with grands.  We are so blessed. 

Daughter Bethany and Mom

(our confirmation family does not allow their pics on here 

so they are absent in photos but not our hearts!)

Granddaughter Abbi and Grandma

'

Grandson Noah

What a wonderful time it was!  It ended too quickly.  God has continued to give me different scriptures that are letting me know He is fighting my battles.  Seeing some of the family has helped me to understand that there is a whole team who are leading the way in prayer. 

Sometimes we can only stand firm and let God fight for us.  The endless appointments, tests, labs, and diagnoses have been more than challenging.  In the midst of the cancer journey a problem with my kidneys surfaced through the PET scan.  We saw the urologist Tuesday and each kidney has a very large stone and in the rt one is is causing some blockage.  So tomorrow morning I will have day surgery to have a stent put in my kidney.  I also saw the oncologist and he has shifted his plan to be a powerful neo-adjulent hormonal therapy, hoping to avoid chemo for my body.  We are digesting this and will decide if we are on board 100%.  IF it does not shrink tumor on skin and inside in 4 weeks he will then go to chemo for 3 months.  Surgery will still be around March, doing chemo or hormonal treatments first since it has invaded the skin.

My emotions are up and down and all around.  Sometimes I feel strong and sometimes not.  During the latter times I ask Joel to remind me of what we know for sure..............That God is with us.  That He fights for us.  That we know that we know that no matter what comes, the victory is ours.  Even in death the victory is ours.  Yet we declare as scripture says, "I will live and not die, and declare the works of the Lord."

Which brings me back to our granddaughter who confirmed her faith in God this past weekend.  A step of faith and commitment in our grand, who knows where her help comes from.  So grateful we were able to be there celebrating with family and their friends.  Let hope rise! 

 What I woke to Monday morning in Minnesota

Sunrise of Hope!

The Yellow Brick Road

I was quietly sitting with my eyes closed, having asked God to speak to me through what I call a visual encounter.  Letting God use my mind/imagination to show me things He wants me to see.  This day I saw round brown stepping stones scattered around in front of me.  I watched myself step from one to another, back and forth, in no real order.  When I looked up I saw a large beam of yellow light coming towards me in a straight line.  Suddenly a huge  being came down out of the sky landing on the ground a few yards in front of me.  The earth shook when he landed.  I questioned if this was God, but he turned around and I saw several wings on his back.  This giant angel started walking towards the source of the light and with each step the ground shook.  I then heard the words........"Follow the yellow brick road." 

The yellow brick road.  I love it when God uses the familiar to get His point across.   Sometimes Joel and I feel like we are just hopping from one stone to another with little direction.  And then God sends us a clear message of what His plan is and we find ourselves saying..."Are you sure, Lord?"  Are you sure this is what you want us to do?  Maybe we will just go back to what  was comfortable, wandering from stepping stone to stepping stone, a bit like the Israelites in the wilderness.  Is this the right path....maybe this is.......And then God says, "Follow the yellow brick road".  Follow that beam of light beckoning to us from God Himself.

Have you heard the story about a man who fell off a cliff, but was able to hang on to a branch sticking out of the side to keep himself from crashing.  He asked God for help and heard.........."Let go of the branch".  He asked again and got the same answer.  The man then said, "Is there anyone else out there?"  God's response required some big time trust and made no sense.  Maybe someone else had a better idea?

Sometimes God requests us to do something that does not make a lot of sense at the time.  He asks us to trust Him whether we understand the purpose or not.  In His word we read................."For I have plans for you, plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."  (Jeremiah 29:11).  That is what we hang on to.

I remember when we were sure God wanted Joel to get an "early out" of the Air Force, move to St. Paul and go to seminary.  We visited friends at Luther Sem and were so sure it was God's plan we spent time looking for a house to buy and found one by a grade school and close to the Seminary.  We almost put in an offer but decided to wait until Joel got the papers releasing him from the Air Force.  We went home and Joel went it to fill out the paperwork for an early out.  The clerk, said, "You can't get an early out, you have orders!"  Joel was surprised to say the least, but asked...."Where am I going?"  The clerk said, "The Philippine Islands."  Joel was overdue for a remote one year tour without his family, so he asked if he was going accompanied or unaccompanied.  The clerk said, "Accompanied".  We then began the process of moving overseas to experience what turned out to be two of the most amazing and life changing years of our lives.  We thought we had the path all figured out and were sure we knew what God had planned, but the "yellow brick road" led us to expand our family, meet friends for life, grow our faith, and experience living in a third world country.

The yellow brick road looks different for each of us, and at different times in our lives.   God sees beyond ourselves to His plan for His children and He asks us to follow Him.  Sometimes it is risky, sometimes it is confusing, sometimes it is glorious, but always it is best because His plan for us and for His world is good, not evil.   Do you find yourself on a yellow brick road?  If so, remember that God is leading the way.  He asks us to follow him and trust him on our journey as we listen and watch for His directions.  Just follow the yellow brick road....................

Pitching Our Tent

It has been awhile.........Last week is a bit of a blur as I was hit hard with an intestinal flu that had me sleeping 12 hours at a time and bonding with my bed, only coming up for water and air.  What is up with that?  I was down for the count and it was not until yesterday that I felt at all normal.  Yay for normal.   This past week has had us contemplating winter.

We are in a winter season of our lives.  My health issues continue to come in rapid fire like a machine gun in the hands of the enemy.  We recently learned of the high radon we have been exposed to for the past 14 years.  It is sobering to say the least.  Our close friends have just started the greatest adventure of their lives as full time RV'ers and we are tossed by the waves of our loss and their rich blessings of a new future with Jesus at the wheel.  We were supposed to already be there to welcome them to Arizona this fall......and life intervened with breast cancer.  A shift for us that left us with a restless peace of sorts as we still call Iowa home. We just spent yet another holiday alone....family far from us and making their own memories.   Speaking of Jesus at the wheel, it seems God has clearly directed Joel (and me) to take a call as a part time Interim at two small churches south of Mason City.  It was not on our radar, nor our bucket list, but then God stepped in.  A story for another time.

We are weary of winter.

What sustains us in the winter seasons of our lives?  Hope.  Hope that comes from God's Word and His promises.  It carries us, encourages us, leads us.  Sometimes He just gives us a word.......one word that is manna for the day.  Sometimes He wakes us in the middle of the night to speak clearly.  Other times we sit is silence wrapped in His wings as we wait and believe tomorrow will be better.  Hope.  There is a verse that I found years ago in The Message.  It is found in  Acts 2: 25, 26.

"David said it all.
I saw God before me for all time.  

Nothing can shake me, He is right by my side.  

I'm glad from the inside out, ecstatic: 

  I have pitched my tent in the land of hope."

Pitch that tent in the land of hope.  Hammer the stakes in deep and climb inside.  Let it be His wings that enfold you.  Rest, weep, sing, or just breathe.  Hold on to the thread of hope...hope that may be light as a feather but also is able to carry us as we soar like eagles.  Winter will turn to Spring.

Havilah Cunnington spoke recently on the seasons of our lives.  She gave people 5 things to hold on to in the winter season.  1.  God will be faithful to you.  2.  God is fully aware of your season.  3.  God is all powerful in every season.  4.  God is working everything out for good....5.  Seasonal change will eventually come. 

Today is a good day for a miracle!  Doesn't that statement alone give you hope?  I'm all for that. There is hope that seasonal change is coming.  Hope that promises and prophecies will be fulfilled.  And always the hope of knowing the ultimate victory is ours. Hope is ours for the choosing.  Pitch your tent in the land of hope and rest in knowing God is faithful.  He is always faithful.

We Are The Storm

To use an old quote........March is coming in like a lion this year....I hope that means it will leave like a lamb!  We started yesterday with rain, then sleet, corn snow, and then snow with high winds adding to the mix.  All the snow that left with our 50 degree weekend weather, has been replaced by a few inches of the white stuff today. Ugh!  It is really pretty to look at the trees and bushes dressed in winter white, but still.....ugh!  Let winter be gone..........come Spring, come!

We also have birthdays that come in March.  Our daughter, our daughter-in-law,  and myself.  My birthday will be coming in like a lion for me ~~ 70.  Seriously.  When did I get that old?  And how?  Only by the grace of God.  To have a child close to 50 and finding myself facing my seventh decade is a bit sobering.

Recently we heard a story about a man who came to visit a place he used to work.  He drove up and got out of his car, a little unsteady on his feet.  He walked around inside the place he had worked in the 50's and reminisced about his life then.  People gathered to hear his story.  Someone offered to walk him back to his car, thinking this 80 plus year old guy may like having someone to lean on.  He said he would like the company and then shared how old he was.  He was 102 years old!  Still on the move! (And still driving?)

When I turned 60 it was a big deal for us.  Truth be told, not many people believed I would live to be 60.  Lyme was sucking the life right out of me.  And then healing came.  Joel keeps telling me we are going to live another 30 years.  I am not so sure I want to, but don't tell him that!  He has great plans for a long life, and we should have plans and dreams.  That is what keeps us going.  How old was Moses when he did his best work for God?  Over 80 I believe.  Yeah.......

I remember when I lost a college friend.  I had roomed with her our first year, and lived with her a couple weeks while working in Minneapolis.  Shortly after that she was killed in a car accident.  The same thing happened with another woman we knew from Bible college.  And another friend died in her early 30's from severe diabetes.  Cancer claimed a few others over the years.  So, I guess what I am saying is how blessed I am to celebrate 70.  Nearly 3 decades of Lyme, and three different kinds of cancer have not ended my life.  I. am. still. here.  So are you!  Life is worth celebrating!  Every minute of it.  So on the first day of Spring I will be dancing a happy dance and rejoicing at 70!

Sometimes it is hard to hang on to that when storms come into our lives.  Just like the snow storm we had yesterday, the winds blow, visibility is low, and there is nothing we can do but stay safe in our homes.  A storm of sickness, disease, or tragedy can do the same.......and we find there is nothing we can do but stay safe and secure in our Father's arms.   I found a wonderful image yesterday that gave me pause and helped remind me that when the enemy comes against us, and he will.......we need to remind him that we not only can stand strong in the storm with Jesus but that we ARE the storm!

Seventy is going to be an awesome year!  I'm so grateful to be here to celebrate and live it.  And if Satan whispers lies to me,  I will remind him that this soon-to-be-70 year old woman is the storm. Celebrate your life today.  You may be walking in divine health, you may be battling disease, or like so many laid up with a nasty winter virus that won't let go.  Wherever you find yourself, celebrate!  Sometimes life comes like this March ~ as a storm....but then the Lamb comes and we remember with Jesus we are the storm!  So grateful. 

Hope Remains

We woke this morning to our "high" for the day...a balmy 39....and it has been a downhill slide ever since.  Winds are blowing the last of the leaf stragglers from the branches, sending them into yards that are not their own.  Gusts are producing single digit "feels like" wind chills.   Even the squirrels seem to be hidden away while gusts cause the branches to bend and sway.  All of nature is sending out a decree ~ Winter is on its way.

This is not a surprise, right?  We live in the Midwest, a place of four seasons.......where Winter arrives every year following the colorful beauty of Fall.  So we are prepared.  We brace for it, making sure that our snow blowers are in top operating condition.  We check to see that the snow shovels are in good shape and the furnace is running well.  We store the deck and porch furniture, and we hang Christmas lights way before Thanksgiving!  Yeah....no surprise.

Then there are the "life is what happens while you are making other plans" seasons that often take us by surprise.  A car accident, a medical report, a sudden death.  How can we prepare for those events in our life, the "winter seasons" that bring a cold wind into our hearts?

We prepare by staying strong in the Word.  We build a foundation for ourselves in the scriptures, prayer, and worship on a daily basis so that when a winter season comes we are able to be sustained in the hope that comes knowing our God and His promises.

Winter comes and winter goes whether in seasons or in life.  But hope remains.  Hope for Spring....hope for new life.   Yes, Hope remains.

Prisoners of Hope

God has been sending this verse my way the past week........first in Katie Davis Majors book, "Daring To Hope", then Chris Gore's book, "Walking in Supernatural Healing Power", and then through devotionals. I have a tendency to read more than one book at a time, and so picking up both these books in one day and finding myself "coincidentally" reading chapters with the same title ~ Prisoners of Hope~ ?  Hello God!

Prisoners of hope. It is where we need to position ourselves as stated in 2 Chronicles.  "Position yourself, stand firm, and let God fight for you".  Yeah. This verse in Zechariah is a promise I am holding tight to.

Last night we received a phone call from a long time friend, Vic.  We went to The Lutheran Bible Institute together.  His wife  Arlene and I were roommates our first year along with two others......four of us sharing a big dorm room, and she was my personal attendant at our wedding.  We have a history.  They called to tell us that another man we went to college with was having brain surgery today after fighting a spreading malignant melanoma for 2 years.  They had found 2 tumors in his brain.  The last time we saw this man and his wife was at Luther Seminary in 1974, where he was taking classes.  We went to visit them there and came away from the weekend with the desire to get an "early out" from the Air Force and head to the Sem.  God had other plans, though, and we went to the Philippines for 2 years.  A move by God and the Air Force that completely changed and blessed our lives.

After a brief visit with Vic on the phone, we hung up, looked at each other, and prayed.  There is so much sickness in our broken world.  At our age, you hear more and more about others who are in need of prayers, and we needed to position ourselves in prayer.

Another man, a retired pastor and good friend, sent us a group email a few days ago, letting us know that his wife did well with the radiation she has needed to battle an aggressive cancer that returned after one year.  She will have surgery early in November to remove the tumor in her belly, and may not need the scheduled chemo after.  He asked for continued prayers as they can see the results of those prayers.

Prisoners of hope.  That is where we position ourselves as followers of Jesus.  That is where we stand firm ~ in the promises of God's Word.  There are times we fight hard, there are times we rest, and there times we let God fight for us.   But in the midst of any difficulty, we remember all God has done for us.  We remember all He promises, and we declare we are prisoners of hope.  Held captive by Love manifest.  Held captive by Jesus and the assurance that He wants to restore us double portions. Double for our trouble.....and there is this troubled world we live in.

As I have stated often, we believe fully that God wants us well.  That Jesus died for our salvation....wholeness from sin and sickness that He paid the price for over 2,000 years ago.  It is finished.  With Holy Spirit in us we have the authority and power to pray, and it is from that position that we do pray.  Prayer is a powerful weapon of God.  It moves mountains. 

Our friends have mountains in their lives right now.  Because we live in a broken world, the enemy uses sickness and disease to kill, steal, and destroy.  God uses prayer, the medical and natural world, and His Son to heal, build up, and restore.  We say, "Come Lord Jesus."  Because God loves us and never comes to kill, steal, or destroy,  we remain prisoners of hope.  And in that hope, THE HOPE, we embrace His promises and we pray.

The Floodgates

The water just keeps rising....record floods.....record rain falls.......causing record 911 calls......record rescues.... yes, the water just keeps rising.  It is heartbreaking to watch homes hidden under dark liquid that is relentless in it's pursuit to go where it wills.  I am caught up in the stories shared by those rescued, and the willingness of volunteers to risk their own lives to save those who are desperate for help.  We hear and read about such a "us against them" mentality in our country, it is comforting to see people put politics and prejudice aside to do what they can to help those in their city.

I expect there are some who question where God is in this disaster.  Some may believe He has caused it and that is certainly not close to being true.  Ann Voskamp spoke of God's tears mingled in with those of His children during this or any terrible catastrophe.  He is not surprised by this, but He did not orchestrate it.  Our world is broken, choices are made, nature gets out of control, weather is affected by climate change and more.  He weeps with His children.

It is still going on, this relentless storm that keeps circling Texas, going out over water and gaining power and then heading back to land.  It is hard to comprehend the 50 plus inches of rain and I cannot imagine the despair in places like Rockport TX where everything is gone.  The landscape has changed to the point that citizens are grieving a world that no longer exists.  God have mercy.

I read a post today about a Baptist college professor who is in his home with his wife and five young children.  Triplets under age 1, an 8 year old and 5 year old.  They are staying in their master bedroom, watching the water close in on their home.  Tornado warnings find them in the bedroom closet.  It is heartbreaking to hear him question, "If we flood, how can I get on my roof with 3 babies and two young kids?  Lisa Buffaloe has written about her own family in Texas and Beth Moore has written a beautiful article about "her Houston".  She mentions agencies where people can offer help of all kinds. Wonderful relief agencies are heading to Texas, and there are many reputable ones where you can give from your pocketbook if you cannot give of yourselves.

Our hearts ache for Texas, and parts of Louisiana.  The challenges ahead for everyone will be long lasting and so so difficult.  It may be hard for people to believe that God is with them.  It brings to mind the woman who was separated from her teenage girls.  She was rescued from the water by volunteers with a boat and reunited with her girls.  She kept saying, "God is good.  God is so good."

It may be difficult to grasp in the midst of tragedy, but God is bending His ear to hear the prayers,  and God is releasing His love and power for all those walking through this valley.  When I watched the endless stream of people walking through water to dry land, the boats rescuing people from their homes, and the helicopters rescuing desperate people from their rooftops, I could not help but see God working through the people who are reaching out their hands.  Thank you God for the goodness of people.

The floodgates have been opened with a 500 year flood.  As we join together in prayer I believe God will continue to open HIS floodgates, His blessings over His created ones.  Hurricane Harvey has  been persistent in his destruction.........but God.  God will be persistent in His blessings.  We live in the hope for a better day ahead.

Fine Tuning Our Focus

For the last several months we have driven down a busy street in our "micropolitan" city, passing by a confederate flag flying high on a flag pole in the front yard of a small house.  It seems out of place up here in the upper Midwest.  We don't know who lives in the house, and are not curious to find out.  Sometimes we pray for whoever lives there....other times we pass by in silence.  Just kitty-corner across the street is a church.  An apostolic church where many of the faces inside on Sunday morning are not white.  These are black Christians who would deeply feel the historic significance of this banner waving their way.  Sobering.  Especially after the past couple of weeks.  Sobering.

This week a good friend of our oldest and her family grieves the loss of two fellow police officers in his department in Florida.  I watched a TV video yesterday of this man washing and sweeping the blood off the street where the police officers were ambushed.  Washing the blood of his good friend off the street.  A symbol of deep compassion, solidarity and respect.  A family of blue coming together to grieve the loss of two of their own who were called to serve and protect.  Our son in blue has experienced this kind of loss just last year in the department he works for.  It is all so sad.   Sobering.

Just a couple of days ago I was reading author and speaker Ann Voskamp's blog where she shared that she is in the midst of recovering from what was a minor surgery and quickly evolved into the beginning of heart failure. A shocking "suddenly" that turned their world upside down.  Sobering.

Ann's story brought me to that of my sister's.  A little over three weeks ago she had a heart attack and ended up having 6 bypasses.  She is a walking miracle.  We just went up to spend a day and night with her as the siblings take turns keeping her company this week. The doctor said she will experience 1% improvement a day ......6 months will bring full recovery.   She is doing so well, but the scars are vivid reminders of all she has gone through.  It is all sobering.

When life throws such circumstances our way it is so very hard not to focus on the hate....or the horror.....the shock...or the trauma.  So darn hard to walk through the valley of the shadow, but we never walk alone.  Never.  It is important to keep our focus on the truth the Word holds for us.  We don't deny what is going on, but we don't empower it either.  We need to fine tune our focus.  We choose to empower what we know about our Lord, what He promises. The sobering events may leave us wounded and in pain, but God is still with us.  God is still faithful in our broken world.  He weeps with us, He walks with us, He listens, He reminds us Who He is.  The Lord who provides........protects.........sees.........heals.............fights for us. Yeah, that is who God is.

"He gives us beauty for ashes

the oil of joy for mourning

the garment of praise 

for the spirit of heaviness."

Isaiah 61:3

Rejoicing Over The Ashes Miracle

Sunday afternoon we went to the lake to sit by the water, stroll the walkway,  and just relax.  At five we headed over to the Central Gardens to watch an outdoor concert.  Such a fun afternoon.  We went to bed that night relaxed and thinking "all is well" with no clue there was a "suddenly" coming.

At 7 am my phone rang, waking me to the news that my sister Janelle had had a heart attack, was at the hospital and having tests.  Soon we were told she would need emergency open heart surgery. After many hours of surgery she was in ICU after having 6 bypasses.  At age 62.  Yesterday we drove up to see her for a short visit.  She is surrounded by her four girls, and good health care. It is still hard to digest, the suddenly of open heart surgery when the day before she had been out walking and running around her favorite lake.

Suddenly.  Too often we have to deal with the suddenlys of life.  All is good until it is not.  Then what.  Well, for my family today's suddenly put everyone "on their knees" in prayer.  We are a praying family and for that I am so thankful.  We reach out to pray for each other and pick up our phones to text prayer groups like The Knee Team to ask for prayers when needed. There is both power and peace found in prayer.  Jesus our Healer!

All day long Monday I kept hearing a hymn in my head, and found myself humming and singing...."Great is they faithfulness....." "great is thy faithfulness.......morning by morning new mercies I see...."  It reminded me of the verses that God has been highlighting for me out of Isaiah 61, joy for mourning, beauty for ashes and a garment of praise for a spirit of heaviness.  The beauty for ashes came first from Joel, then again as I was meditating......later it was on a TV teaching and then a song.  Beauty for ashes.  New mercy!

While I was meditating Sunday morning God showed me sweeping with a broom a bunch of dirt and grim off the floor.  I questioned what it was, and heard...."symptoms".  I picked them up in a dustpan and was going to put them in the garbage and I heard, "put them on the fire".  I looked to my right and saw a fire smoldering, so I dumped them there and then heard....."beauty for ashes".  Beauty for ashes.

As promised we do receive from God, beauty for ashes and I am declaring that for my sister as she goes through months of recovery and changes after this "suddenly" in her life.  Long story, short, it is a miracle that she is still here and we are on our knees with humble thanksgiving. Janelle is a strong woman and will walk through this journey carried by love, prayer, and her own determination.  But I am also praying and giving thanks for all the beauty that will come from this.  Overwhelmed with gratitude that God is giving her beauty for ashes.

Don't You See It?!

Forget the past............see, I am doing a new thing!  

Can you not see it?   

Today I read through Isaiah 43, after one verse popped up on Facebook.  I had been searching for a scripture, for something to wrap itself around my heart and calm the internal shaking as I waited for one more doctor appointment and one more test result.  Everything about this journey has been unpredictable, so I was holding my breath in anticipation of what was to come.  My, always hopeful, always steady, always strong hubby was showing some defeat as he walked with me through another cancer journey.  He was just as weary as I was, which had a sobering affect on me.  I hate when he is burdened with my stuff, but when you have been married 49 years that is what happens.  

So I grabbed on to Isaiah 43:19 that said,

"Look at the new thing I am going to do.  

It is already happening. 

 Don't you see it?  

I will make a road in the desert, 

I will make rivers in the dry land." ''

 Yes......we were ready for that.  A new thing......Just walking out life carefree and healthy.  In a devotional today I read..........."You will never be in complete control of your life.  It just isn't possible.  You want to feel completely safe and secure.  But even if you plan out every detail, the world will mess up your plans So just stop trying to be in control.  Stop trying to make your life completely safe and predictable.....and boring.  Instead grab My hand and jump in with both feet."   (Sarah Young, "Jesus Calling".)

It is what we want, isn't it.  Just to feel safe and secure as we live each day.  Yeah.  But our world is broken, and we need only watch the news or read a newspaper, tweet, or Facebook to see just how broken it is.  In the midst of us trying to control what is uncontrollable, Jesus says............Come on!  I am doing a new thing....See it???  Take my hand and lets jump into this together.

I am all for adventures in faithful living.  Oh, yeah.  Where do you want us to go Jesus.....we'll go!  What do you want us to do, Papa?  We will do it.  Come Holy, come!  It all sounds easy.........

Unfortunately, the enemy does not want us to surrender and jump in.  He wants us defeated and at times he throws so much crap our way that we lose our focus.  We just want to survive another day without melting into a puddle that has us surrendering not to God but to Satan's antics.  Joel and I have found it very difficult to move forward in hope lately.  And that is okay.  No condemnation and all that.  We have been taking breathers from the battles.......letting Papa and His angel armies fight for us.  I have read 6 lightweight mysteries in the past 10 days.  Joel has "putzed"  and napped more. Today's news made us stand a little straighter and injected us with more hope.  There is always hope.

The doctor's report was that the "big chunk" (doctor language) taken from my back had wide "clear" borders.  Yes!  Stitches were removed and the redness and bubbling on skin was just a reaction to the stitches.  Healing continues~ I go back every 3 months for 2 years and then every 6 months.  Good news.  We were so ready for good news from the world of white coats and stethoscopes.  We were putting our hope in the words from the doctor.  Necessary, but also not the final report.  The final reports come from God's Word.  And today His word came to us from Isaiah 43.

"Look at the new thing I am going to do.  

It is already happening. 

 Don't you see it?  

I will make a road in the desert, 

I will make rivers in the dry land." 

Saturday's Scribbles: This Moment Now

"Today the sun will set at 4:49.  

I can grieve the dying light, or I can admire the moon. 

Neither response is always right or always wrong. 

 Occasionally, we'll do both at once.  But sunset is yet to come.  

All I truly have is this moment now,

 and this moment now is gentle light and quiet shadow. 

 And it is beautiful."

Christie Purifoy

Saturday's Scribbles

Hello Friends!

On this beautiful warm Saturday I am pondering relationships.  God has created us for relationships with Him, Jesus, Holy Spirit and others.  God really wants a close relationship with His kids.  He beckons us through His Word, through His whispers, through His endless love.  In any healthy relationship, we talk and we listen.  We love and we receive love.  We give and we receive.  This is what God wants.......for us with Him.

In our skin on skin relationships we practice all the above...and one more important one?  We forgive and we are forgiven.  We are responsible for doing life really well together within our families, our friends, our community, and the world at large.  How we treat the clerk at the store, the person driving the car next to us, those who look different than us, the one who shares our bed, the people in our home, our church, impacts all and it impacts our relationship with God.  Big time.

I started writing down thoughts about relationships yesterday morning and then last night we had friends over to break bread and fellowship together.  Always beautiful.  Always insightful.  This morning I realized that this couple really practices what I was writing above.  They desire and seek a close relationship with God and they intentionally "work" at relationships within the church and community.  They do life well, seeing the best in each other and other people, expecting miracles, and "pitching their tent in the land of hope".  They are 10 years younger than us but I "want to be like them when I grow up".

"I saw God before me

 all the time. 

 Nothing can shake me; 

He's right by my side.  

I'm glad from the inside out, ecstatic; 

I have pitched my tent in the land of hope."

Acts 2:26

Psalm 16

The Message

This week brought the death of two more police officers in the Des Moines IA area.  Our son wears the uniform there and it hit close to home as I wrote about HERE.  How the storms hit as the officers did their jobs while stunned by the death of a family member.  And what hurts our son hurts us and what hurts our officers hurts us all.  What hurts each person hurts the world.  We stop the hurt when we reach out and embrace another in respect and love.

I confess that Joel and I have had to work hard at keeping our tent pitched in the land of hope this past year.  At times the winds have blown hard, weapons have formed against us, and the good soil where we have pitched our tent has turned to sand..  Or so it seems.  So where do we turn when things get so darn complicated or our dreams disintegrate.  Where do we turn when confusion reigns and our tent is shaking, threatened to be swept away in the storms.

We turn our faces upward.  We turn our face and our focus on that One who gave us the land of hope through the Sacrifice.  Jesus.  We don't close our eyes to God's promises.  We shelter right in under His wings knowing God is right by our side.  Nothing can shake us.  Well, as humans we may feel shaken, true.....but we, like David seek God's calming presence.  We seek more of a relationship with God ~ seeing Him before us at all times.

We need God and He loves having a relationship with us.  We need family.  We need friends.  We need our neighbors, our community, our police, our state, our country, our world.  We need to reach out and touch the One and the ones who we know and don't know.  We help others keep their "tents" from landing in hopelessness.  We love on each other and open our hearts to be loved, to understand. To do life, well like our dear friends.  And most importantly we remember with God beside us we cannot be shaken.  We will not be shaken.  For we have pitched our tent in the land of Hope.

What Is Right With People?

We are saying good-bye to September today.  The months seem to blend together and yet are divided by the elements and events of our lives.  Last September I was one week out of cancer surgery and recovering well at home.  This past year has been a bit of a roller coaster ride and continues I must say with all that comes at us from the political arena and the shootings, the stabbings, the bombs, the train and plane crashes. The police, the lone gunman, the radicalized, the broken all fill our screens and our minds with images we would rather forget.  My words are often an echo from one day to the next..........."What is wrong with people!?!"

It is too easy to focus on the worst of the worst laid out before us, so today I need to ask, what is right with people?  I can't help but think about the people in the most recent tragedy in New Jersey, who reached out quickly to help others even though they believed the glass ceiling was coming down and could land on them.  I remember the Somali citizens coming together in St. Cloud to condemn what one of their community had done in the mall that night...stabbing innocent people as he acted out his own twisted thinking on people shopping.  I remember those who went around in their cars praying over Charlotte, N.C. while other church leaders came between the police and those protesting and rioting.  I even remember our family during this political season, who gather together as one, yet vote both "sides" in the elections.  We don't always understand each other's perspectives, but we do respect each other and the right to vote each person holds.

What is right with people?  On Friday nights Steve Hartman always has a short segment at the end of the CBS national news that warms our hearts as he shares a story of what is right with people in our country. Joel and I try not to miss it.  It leaves us with a smile and a renewed hope for our country.

Forgiveness, honesty, understanding, service, love, peace, respect, encouragement, and so much more.  This is what is right with people.  And we need to center ourselves in the midst of all that. There are so many good, honest, loving, faith-full, forgiving, serving, respectful people in our country, in our world.  Oh, Lord, let me be listed among them.

Today, as I deliberately shifted my thinking from what is wrong with people to what is right with people the world came into balance once again, and my equilibrium returned.  It is a good place to be.

Living Hope

As I pondered Bonnie Gray's  One Word Advent writing prompt for this week ~ hope ~  I found myself thinking about a statement I heard yesterday about hope. Bill Johnson of Bethel Church said, "If we embrace fear it will turn our hope into hopelessness."

There have been times during this season of my life that I have let fear take up residence and hopelessness has come to visit.

We were excited!  Our trip to Arizona last winter brought with it a desire to move there and begin a new ministry.  We felt called by God.  Retired.....we wanted to refire for our Lord.  We planned, purged, organized, and began to pack as we put our home on the market in the middle of August.  Just two weeks later during a routine physical and mammogram, it was discovered that I had breast cancer. We were stunned.  We took our home off the market immediately, and began to try to digest what my future, our future would hold.

Surgery followed and even with a good prognosis I am in the midst of 6 weeks of radiation, 5 days a week.  The side effects to my skin are starting to take their toll, and even though the end is in sight I began to think about all the what ifs that are ahead.  I began to wonder why, when God healed me of 27 years of Lyme Disease through prayer, I needed to have surgery and radiation for the cancer.  The more I pondered and questioned, the more fear set in and the more fear set in the more hopelessness seeped into my pores.  Yesterday I had a meltdown and what came out of my heart through my mouth was not pretty.  Our dreams looked so far away and near impossible.  This cancer diagnosis was not a surprise to God. We had prayed and prayed about moving.  So God, what was this about? Hopeless.  I felt hopeless.

But during this Advent season of remembering and waiting and preparing, we look to the One who has it all planned out.  We have living Hope that breathes life into us and helps us remember why Jesus came to earth.  He came for us.  Isaiah 53 tells us he suffered and died for our sins and for our sicknesses. The two are tied together and we cannot accept one without out considering the other.

Living Hope came into the world as a baby.  Every day we open our eyes to a new sunrise and we have hope.  Like Annie says, "The sun will come out tomorrow...."  And every day we open our eyes to God's Son, too.  Our living Hope.  Fear has no place when we remember that He has us, He is with us, He knows our future and He is our Hope.

"For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord. 

 Plans for good and not for evil.  

To give you a future and a hope."

Jeremiah 29:11