The Season of Winter

 

Winter is a hard season, one filled with bitter winds, slushy roads, sliding and slipping into ditches.  But it's also filled with glorious sunshine, crunchy sound beneath the boots, crisp and rejuvenating air, sledding down a hill, maybe even a snow machine ride.  

Wooded areas become exposed as trees give way to bare branches.  Things that were hidden as trees were filled with leaves and fruit can now be seen - that barn, branches laced with the sun's radiant glory.  

Life is now dormant, laying beneath the cold earth that may be covered with snow.  Life takes on a new role as roots go down deeper and the sap is being renewed for the season that is to come.

Winter is a time for rest and replenishing.  It's a time for quiet life to be within, not only in nature but also in our own heart and mind.

When the harsh winds of rejection, loss of a loved one, job, or friendship blow; it's easy to forget the 'sunshine and warmth'.  Our winters are a time to go deeper with Jesus and to put our roots further into His presence.  Letting the warmth of the Son fill our souls and lace our lives with His glory.

Winter is remembering who we really are without the signs of life and productivity.  For the tree as it stands tall, bare, and exposed is really all that it is, for without what's within there would be no visible life of fruit and leaves in the coming season.

We are completely loved and whole because we are the son or daughter of Jesus.  We are His beloved.  We are redeemed.  And no amount of doing, productivity, or lack thereof will alter that truth.  Our life is within, the hope and love of Jesus is the sap that keeps us.

Life within, where quiet growth may happen, is the truest of springs and the life that matters most.

The Miracle of Wonder

 

Luke 2:13-14 such extravagant wonder - the multitude of angels piercing the darkness with the glorious refrain of "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased."

The night was split open with the light of the angel and the glorious light of the promise of truth and hope.  The night was first broken by the angel telling the Shepherds that the promise, that had been passed down through the ages, came tonight.  Jesus, your Saviour was born and He is wrapped.  He is wrapped in cloths and laying in a manger.

After the multitude of angels left, the Shepherds looked at each other and said, "Let us go and see."  "Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us." Luke 2:15

Wonder.

This Christmas season, your hillside may be dark; fraught with loss and pain, and you may be waiting... waiting for light.  The Light has come - it split the darkness that night many years ago and the hope of Jesus, the promises He gives to us today - still split open our darkness with truth and light; giving us the gift of life; eternal life.

May that truth and hope fill you with the wonder of it all and like Mary, treasure it in your heart.

Come Out - Loose Him and Live

 

Life.  Sometimes I wonder if we really understand what living and life really is.

Let me take a moment and let's travel dusty roads to look back over the paths Jesus walked and the life giving He demonstrated and lived.

As He broke bread and told us to remember this - He gave thanks; all while knowing what He was about to walk through.

He gave thanks before breaking the bread and then it was passed to over 5,000 hungry people.

The kernel of wheat must die before giving birth to more kernels.

Jesus died, giving His life so that we may have life.  These are just a few...

Really.  Paradoxical to my way of thinking.  This is not the way I picture life coming and being given.  But it is the way of Jesus; upside down to we humans who strive after perfect as we were created to be in the beginning.  We plant, not even thinking of the seed that needs to die to produce the flowers and veggies we look forward to enjoying.

Lazarus laid in the grave for four days.  He was stinking by now and bound.  His sisters, Marry and Martha were grieving, after all they sent a message to Jesus to come and the road was empty of the visible presence of Jesus as Lazarus took his last breath.

As Martha met Jesus when He came, her words held the question, the wondering, the disappointment.  The words that followed also held her hope and belief in who Jesus is.

Jesus spoke to her that He is the Resurrection and the Life and she responded with, "Yes, Lord, I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world." John 11:27 (italics added)

Jesus paused at the tomb of Lazarus after he laid there for four days and lifted His eyes toward His Father, and gave thanks.  He gave thanks that He hears.  But first the instructions Jesus gave were to remove the stone and Martha who had just declared to believe Jesus; struggled to understand, declaring that by now there will be a stench!

Jesus reminds her, "Did I not say - to you - if you believe you will see the glory of God?"  As Jesus paused, He looked up and gave thanks.  He gives thanks knowing that His Father hears.  He gave thanks because of what God would do for the benefit of the people.  He wanted them to really know who He is and we learn that through the experience. 

God hears our cries - right at the entrance of our graves.

Broken pieces.  Brokenness given to Jesus gives way to the birthing of life; deep within our souls and that's what matters the most.  It's the fullest healing and sometimes it simply doesn't look like we thought it would.

And that remains a mystery, but one I'm learning to lean into when the next hard comes.  I may be like Martha and still say something practical like 'there will be a stench'; but I'm learning to trust the Giver of Life and the One who gave His life with thanks so that I may have eternal life; the fullness of life.

And so, I stop, look up and give thanks.  Thanks giving is thanks living.

Maybe for you, this season of thanksgiving is brutal.  Maybe life simply doesn't make sense and the road to your house remains 'empty' of the presence of Jesus.  Let's just sit 'together' for a moment and let's remember - He is here.  Jesus knew about Mary and Martha and Lazarus' last breath.  He hasn't forgotten you and like Jesus said, " Let us go..." He will come and He does come.  In your pain He just may not be visible.  That is okay - but I breathe a prayer that you may rise with faith like Martha did; choosing to still believe and some day, give thanks for who He is.

The Origin of Life

 

Life.  To be alive, breathing, spirit, you, living is to have life.

Genesis 2:7 says, Then the Lord God formed man of the dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Genesis 1:20 tells us that God created living creatures to swarm in the waters.

Genesis 1:30 says, and to everything that moves on the each which has life, I have given.

Life began at the word of God.  Life started at the mere spoken words that echo through time in the living of the creatures that God created.

But for man, life began when God stooped over and breathed into man His own breath of life and man's chest heaved with the first intake of God's breath.

When Satan slithered into the garden, lying on a branch of a tree and hissed the words to Eve to look at the fruit; He was after God.  Satan knew if he could get Eve to doubt God's goodness and take from the one tree that God said, "No", that the knowledge of evil would kill and destroy life in its purest form, God's breath.  The end result would be in expired breath, death.

But God didn't let us in this state without a way, a way back to life.  That very day He promised a Saviour, a Redeemer, One who would come and save the world; to give life by giving His life.

Although death has entered our world and we now know pain, suffering, and death; God wants to continue to breathe life into our souls.  Among this brokenness we can choose life and Jesus came to give us life and to give it abundantly. John 10:10

Life continues to be found in Jesus.  Life is found as we sit at His feet and inhale His grace, exhaling our expectations.  It's found as we inhale His forgiveness and release, exhaling our mistakes and choosing repentance.  It's found in the letting go and choosing to rest in His provision, His being enough.

Literally, life is found between the exhale and the inhale.  And deep breaths actually calm us down and can help us to regulate when anxiety and fears loom large.

Spiritually and emotionally, life is also found between the exhale and the inhale; the letting go and the receiving.

So today, in whatever state or position you find yourself in; stop, take a deep breath and let it go; receiving the breath of God in exchange.

Choosing God is choosing life.

Living in God's truth is living life abundantly.

Choosing to give thanks is to remember who God is and to add Him into your situation.  Choosing to believe His words of truth leads us to the doorway and on to the path of freedom.

Choosing to live out the truth of God and to believe Him is to find life and to find it to be enough and more than enough.  (Just so you know, it doesn't lessen the validity of what you're walking through it only puts it in its place and allows you to live the miracle of God's upside, miraculous way.)

Choosing God is to choose life.

Breathe in. Breathe out. Deep breaths

The Tightrope of Waiting - The Anticipation and Disappointment

 

Waiting holds a tension.  On one hand we have the anticipation, the sharing of a desire with one we know has the answers or can help.  We take the risk to expose what we hold within our heart.

It also holds disappointment.  Disappointment when that desire or expectation wasn't met in the way I wanted or thought it should be done or isn't happening at the speed I'd like for it to happen.

As I reflect back over the years of my life, as a young child waiting for Christmas morning, we had a tradition in my family.  Mom and Dad would put out the gifts out on Christmas Eve after we all went to bed.  Oh and yes, there was to be NO TOUCHING anything on the stack of gifts that was sitting on the living room floor days before.

Then Christmas morning the first person awake would rouse the others, but we had to wait till at least 5:00 to wake anyone!  

Oh, the anticipation of finally seeing where all the packages went and on whose pile they landed!  And there was always the small plate of fruit and candy that graced the pile.

Would we get what we wanted?  

Or as a young child waiting for a friend, or relative, or grandparent; standing at the window with longing and anticipation for their arrival.  "When are they coming?" the small voice calls out.  "How long?"

In John 11, Mary and Martha felt this deeply as they asked for Jesus to come because their brother was sick.  They knew Jesus as Healer, believing He could heal.  They spoke their desire and it was met with silence.  They waited.  Jesus did not come.  Lazarus died. 

Still no Jesus.

They were not aware of what Jesus told the disciples.  They were not privy to what Jesus was thinking and the conversation He had with them.   Anything greater than the healing of their brother that they requested, was not on their radar.  

They turned to the right source, the correct place that we should - to Jesus and yet, disappointment was felt deeply in the waiting and the loss.

As Jesus and the disciples return, Martha goes out to meet Jesus.  Disappointment lines her words as she tells Jesus, "If You had been here, my brother would not have died."  and yet, she still holds faith along with it,  "Even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You." (John 11:21-22)

There is more dialogue, but the story ends with Jesus calling Lazarus forth from the grave that he had been in for four days.  And because of this greater declaration of healing and power, many believed in Jesus.

Now this is not prescriptive to our deaths and hard but it is for our awareness that in our waiting and the disappointment we feel, anticipation can take its place.  

We can shift our thoughts from how it's turning out to "I wonder what God is up to?"  The tightrope of waiting takes a loosening as we experience the greatness of God at the graves of our dreams, ideas, and desires.  It loosens as we learn to know the God who holds all things in His hands and may at times declare, "I am glad I was not there so that you may believe.  Let us go to him."

When faith is added to the waiting, we can stay with an open hand and a wonder of what is God up to.

We can rise as Martha did to meet Jesus, still going to Him along with the disappointment.  Hope, faith, trust, run parallel with the unmet longings and dashed desires as we learn to know the goodness of God at the graves we experience.

Jesus told them to remove the stone and with horror Martha declared, "That by now there will be a stench since Lazarus has been in there for 4 days."  Jesus again reminds her of her faith and in believing she would see the glory of God.  So they removed the stone. (John 11:41)

And with faith, we remove the stone.  We remove whatever is keeping us from seeing the glory of God.  It may be the stone of fear, doubt, anger, unforgiveness, etc. and with faith and belief we open up and wait to see the glory of God.

No resurrection can take place unless there is a death.  (Ouch, as I write those words.)  The darkest nights and deepest disappointments can give way to the glorious resurrection of anticipation, hope, and Jesus Himself.

The Tension in Waiting and the Strength of It

 

Wait is not something that comes naturally to many of us.  

We may have moments of patience, of waiting but when it touches a spot that really matters to us; we usually want it now or to at least know of its timeline.  

We order a pair of shoes and we check its status. 

The deck furniture that's taking longer than you expected; so you make you  call to check its status. 

A child who is expecting a grandparent to come, waits and peers out the window; looking expectantly. 

We wait and think it's a trial.

But what if the wait is the place of strength?

What if this place is the place where one's soul finds a peace and strength that exceeds our understanding?

Wait in the Hebrew means to bind together, to collect, to expect, gather, look.

When Jesus tells us to be still, to yoke with Him and receive His rest; we join Him. 

In Isaiah 40:31 when it tells us to wait upon the Lord and our strength renews, is a place that intrigues me.

I'm sensing an upside-down way. I'm curious about this way and wonder at its possibilities...

When I bind myself to Jesus and look with expecting wonder, I discover hope.

When I look for Him, bind myself to Him; I have access to His strength.  

As the water and tea leaves join, the water begins infused with the strength of the tea leaves. In the same way as I stay with Jesus, His strength infuses my heart and mind and I can rise. I can soar. Because of He who never tires or sleeps.

The wait is not to be feared, but it's an invitation to something greater than ourselves. It's an invitation to know Jesus, deeply and personally.

The wait is the space for curiosity and wonder what God is up to.

The wait is the 'peering ou the window', to look for the ways of God.

To wait is to receive God and to know His unbounded strength and love. 

Today, in the midst of your prayer is an opportunity to trust the One you have given your heart's desire to. It's the space where you wait with expecting and wonder because of the One you joined forces with. And when it goes differently than your human mind thought would be good, that's when you gather evidence of His goodness and believe His heart is still good towards you.  Because sometimes it's more about knowing God than it is about receiving exactly what you asked for. 

The Touch of the Master

 

The Touch of the Master's Hand, has long been a favourite of mine.  It has given me much hope in the redemption of Jesus, His touch that transforms.

As we read the Gospels, of the time Jesus spent on this earth, He touched people, bringing life to brokenness.

He sees beyond to what we can be and to who we are.  He sees beyond our mistakes, the wrong choices we make.  His love knows our worth.  After all, He created us and knows exactly who we are. 

The Touch of the Master's Hand

by Myra Brooks Welch

"Twas battered and scarred, and the auctioneer thought it scarcely worth his while

To waste much time on the old violin, but he held it up with a smile.

"What am I bidden, good folks," he cried.  "Who will start the bidding for me?

a dollar, a dollar" - then, "Two!  Only two?  Two dollars, and who'll make it three?

Three dollars, once; three dollars, twice; Going for three -"  But no,

From the room, far back, a grey-haired man came forward and picked up the bow;

Then, wiping the dust from the old violin, and tightening the loose strings,

He played a melody pure and sweet, as sweet as a caroling angel sings.

The music ceased, and the auctioneer, with a voice that was quiet and low,

Said, "What am I bidden for the old violin?"  And he held it up with the bow.

"A thousand dollars, and who'll make it two?

Two thousand!  And who'll make it three

Three thousand, once; three thousand, twice; And going, and gone!" said he.

The people cheered, but some of them cried,

"We do not quite understand what changed its worth?"

Swift came the reply; "The touch of the master's hand."

And many a man with life out of tune, and battered and scattered with sin,

Is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd, much like the old violin.

A "mess of pottage", a glass of wine, A game - and he travels on.

He's going once, and going twice, he's going and almost gone.

But the Master comes, and the foolish crown never can quite understand

The worth of a soul, and the change that's wrought 

BY THE TOUCH OF THE MASTER'S HAND!

The touch of Jesus transforms.

The touch of Jesus heals.

The touch of Jesus creates.

The touch of Jesus plays the music in our lives.

Does your life feel 'out of tune' today?  Maybe pain, pride, fear, success blinds you?

The touch of Jesus is for you today.  We can go to Him like the people did those years ago.  The lame, the blind, the hurting, the bleeding, the seeker; went to Jesus for His touch and for His voice of truth.

As I think of being the hands and feet of Jesus, a question or two that I ask myself is, "Do I see beyond the person who stands before me, beside me, to who God has created them to be?  Do I see beyond their choices and am I willing to partner with Jesus in drawing out beauty, in 'playing the music'?"  I think of the quote by Sara Hagerty, "Little did I know that most of the treasures within a person lay hidden below the surface waiting for a voice to call it out.  Beauty in another requires participation".

May Jesus' touch first impact our own lives and then, to go, and be that touch, that one voice that calls out the beauty that lays beneath.