Crown Me…
Every girl loves a tiara, sparkly and brilliant…
Not many ‘queens’ left – their crowns are on display in some museum or high security place for others to ooh and aah.
One day all the crowns – be they rhinestone or diamond, be they for the prom or the monarch – will pale in comparison to what awaits the followers of the King of the universe.
“For the Lord takes delight in His people; He crowns the humble with salvation.” (Psalm 149:4 NIV) So many equate humble with powerlessness – but it is the humble person who shines brightest when he doesn’t have to have the spotlight, doesn’t have to receive all the recognition, stands by what he believes. The Lord delights in us, His people? Even when we blow it and even when we act anything but humble? He delights in us because we trust in His Son. Crown me – with salvation…
“And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.” (1Peter 5:4 NIV) Today’s crowns fade, the prom queen gets old, the monarch leaves the crown to the next generation – everything here is temporary. Someday, a wondrous day, the One who sees us through it all, will come and a crown of glory that never fades will be ours – that glory, it is His. His glory of giving up all for those who love Him, and it is through His sacrifice we will someday shine. Crown me – with glory…
“Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award me on that day” (2Timothy 4:8 NIV) You, me – no righteousness to be found. All our good deeds are marred by all our less than righteous thoughts, actions, and words. Because of a Savior who was willing to give us His righteousness, God sees Him when He looks at us. So someday we need not fear the Judge, on that day our judgment will be His love. Crown me – with righteousness…
“Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.” (Revelation 2:10 NIV) Will we be faithful to the end – always standing for God no matter how unpopular that stand may be? No matter the cost of that stand? If we are, eternal life with no more struggles is ours. Crown me – with LIFE…
This Life…
There are times that mark a life – when hurricanes came and turned our lives upside down, when a loved one died, when 9/11 changed everything…
Reminders – life here is never static, always changing, growing us…temporary.
Sometimes we try to go back – back to that childhood hometown. Try to find the house we lived in, the school we went to – remembrances of days gone by. Sometimes not much has changed, sometimes places are no longer there.
There is something that never changes: “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” (James 1:17 NIV) An unchanging Father who gives freely…
So many good and perfect gifts, not enough space to count them all. A baby’s first cry, a puppy’s slobbery kiss, a waterfall’s mist, a band on our left ring finger, oh the list is endless… Those things change and leave us with sweet memories – but they each come from the Father who sent a Savior who “…is the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8 NIV)
Jesus walked rough roads, laughed with delight, worked, touched lives — and then He sighed, knowing that it’s not supposed to be so hard. He gave Himself so that all that truly delights our soul can be ours today and forever.
What if we lived life like an offering, not an obsession. To pour ourselves out for use in touching another, not keeping the lid on tight. Wiping away tears, laughing til it hurts, loving til it makes a difference. These can’t be done in isolation, rather with His presence as I risk being there for those I know and love and those I don’t.
“God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” (1John 5:11-12 NIV) If you have Him, He has you. This life – yes, in Him it’s eternal…
Be The Same…
Funny, we never see children trying to be different, unique, set apart. No, they watch what somewhat else does and then they imitate it.
I think this is what the Father who dearly loves us had in mind when He said “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children.” Ephesians 5:1 NIV Instead of everyone going their own way competing to stand out and be different perhaps we are called to be the same…
This calling of the world to be your own man, to go for the gusto, to climb that success ladder – I think it’s tearing apart hearts and souls. Don’t get me wrong, we are each created with unique abilities and vulnerabilities. But instead of using our uniqueness to surpass the next person in some way, aren’t we supposed to be using it to draw each other into unity?
“Make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.” Philippians 2:2 NIV
Be the same isn’t being like each other, it’s being like Him… Imitating His love, His forgiveness, His compassion. Yes, we each have our unique gifts but there is one purpose to them. We each have our unique personalities but there is one reason for them. We each have our unique weaknesses and strengths but there is one God who uses them…
Hebrews 13:8 NIV tells us “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” His love for us doesn’t change, His purpose for us doesn’t change, His eternity for us doesn’t change.
Today is a chance to be the same as Him – to speak hope into one who is hurting, to speak life into one who is doubting, to speak forever into one who has given up. When we do this we do become alike, after all we were created in the image of God. We become alike in mind, spirit, and purpose. We become a body who truly makes a difference because we empty ourselves and fill up others… Be the same…
If you stopped by because you read my devotion over at Encouragement Cafe, WELCOME! So glad you are here!
Touching…Marvelous…
Watching babies once they find their hands is too fun – everything to the mouth. They don’t just want to hold the toy, the dog’s ear, their mom’s hair – they want to taste it, make it their own.
I’ll never forget my ten month old daughter discovering a furry rug her grandmother had gotten for her. Laying down on it, rolling around, she finally put her thumb in her mouth staring up in delight.
Touch, such a sweet gift — as we grow we downplay it, we don’t act on it, we hide our reaction. Cool breeze, a hug, sunshine warming away the shivers – we take these gifts for granted.
Daily we have opportunity to touch — another life with acceptance, the hurting with understanding, the lonely with our company. It’s in the touching, the reaching for another that we find our own need met. God has set eternity in our hearts and like babies we need to experience it, make it our own.
Eternity is now, not some distant time. Those who have Jesus Christ as Savior may close their eyes one final time on earth but they open them in the Savior’s arms. The first touch in ever after… If this is so, then I should touch each life I have the privilege of knowing like it matters forever…
“He has done marvelous things; His right hand and His holy arm have worked salvation for Him.” Psalm 98:1 NIV There are fifteen Bible verses with the word marvelous – all attributed to God’s ways and deeds. The way of a butterfly on wing, a rose that fills the room with sweetness, a swirling wind of leaves – all creation saying He is marvelous.
Sharing what He has done and touching a life with the good news of His salvation… a touch of marvelous…
What’s On Your Lips?
Some days start out with bread, peanut butter, and honey – I always find a drip left no matter how much I wipe with my napkin…Before heading out the door, I spin the tube of pink up and smooth on a smile…No easy way to enjoy the cone of frozen cream and sugar without having it smeared over my lips…
But these are the not the things that people notice on my lips…
What’s on our lips is heard more than seen. ‘Can I help you carry that?’ ‘Just calling to see how you are.’ ‘I miss you too.’
Do you watch somebody talk to you by looking in their eyes or at their lips? Maybe it’s just me but I seem to always be watching their lips. How we use our lips defines how others will be drawn to or deflected from our hearts…
Most grand is if we use our lips to glorify the One who fashioned them when He knit us together in the secret darkness of our mother’s womb. Psalm 34:1 NIV says “I will extol the Lord at all times; His praise will always be on my lips.”
Psalm 63:3 NIV is the why of His praise always being on our lips “Because Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You.”
It’s amazing how many Bible verses there are about lips – a good number of them are not how I want my lips described. Sad to say our lips don’t always appear as though we love God let alone anyone else…
So today I’m asking ‘What’s on your lips?’ Encouragement – discouragement, respect – contempt, anger – understanding, kindness – harshness, praise – apathy?
Think about this “Gold there is, and rubies in abundance, but lips that speak knowledge are a rare jewel.” Proverbs 20:15 NIV The knowledge of the Creator, the knowledge of extending grace, the knowledge of forgiveness, the knowledge found only in a Savior whose lips spoke ‘Forgive them’ even as He spread His arms wide with nails in hands…
May our lips have praise on them today. Here is a lovely, ethereal song – it gets stuck in my head and I am blessed…
If you stopped by because you read my devotion today over at Encouragement Cafe, WELCOME! So glad you are here!
Peace Whispers…
Yesterday mama and papa bird landed outside my window to entertain me for a few minutes. His was bright red with black eyeliner. She was plumper with a brown back and blonde breast – but it was those tail feathers and beak that caught my attention…bright orangey red. Truly she looked like she kept lipstick in her nest.
I watched as they hopped around and flitted to and fro and then zoomed off as suddenly as they had arrived. It was such a vivid picture of how creation doesn’t worry or fret – daily His little critters build their nests, find their food, and show off to us…to remind us – remind us of how much beauty is all around us, how much our desire to be our own god has spoiled things, and how much He loves us that He would grace our world with such beautiful reminders…
Just before dusk the rumbling started, the sky lit up and I was called outside. Sitting on the porch I closed my eyes and listened as the rumbling got louder, increasing in frequency. As my husband joined me he pointed up high in the tree where a large bronze hawk sat keeping watch, waiting for the storm to pass. He was majestic and showed no fear. He wasn’t tucked in far amongst the branches, but rather just perched on one below a clump of leaves acting as his umbrella.
Slowly the drops began to fall and that wonderful smell that only summer rain brings made me breathe deep and exhale peace. I sat quietly…swirling breezes playing in my hair, rain coming harder, wind sweeping it down the street. Fresh, all the air was fresh. Satisfied, all the ground was satisfied. Soothed, the God who commands the storms, who pulses the lightening and rumbles His power, who provides – soothed my anxious mood.
Clouds lifted, drops became mist, the hawk took off over the rooftops. How do we in our anxious world find peace? By looking at all He has made realizing He has it all under control. Peace comes in the whispers of His assurance and the shouts of his beautiful creation…
Summer Ribbons…
Summer – this gift tied up with ribbons of life…
Creation is never more alive than in the heat and busyness that is summer. Bunnies abound in our grasses right now. Birds chase around comically. All busily eating and putting on winter’s fat for the lean cooler months.
All of us are busy too – going on vacations, or to the beach, or to a picnic, or baseball game. Slurping watermelons and spitting their seeds. Fanning as we sit in the shade. Dipping toes and whole bodies into cool water.
Each of these are gifts – and the opening – the untying of their ribbons is the fun. To wake up on a summer morning and rush outside to feel what little chill there is to the air – a curly blue ribbon of sky above. To listen to the cicada bugs rattle away telling of afternoon rain coming – a silky brown ribbon of wings. To smell the clean air as the storm pelts all wet – a twist of ribbons white and flowing. To taste the peaches and the Vidalia onions and the cucumbers and tomatoes – a rainbow of ribbons wrapping us in delight.
Days of summer fly by, one tumbling into the next – I don’t want to them to fade away unnoticed. I want to tug each ribbon open daily and drink in the gift of this humid, sunny, go barefoot, stay up late listening to the crickets time.
Ann Voskamp wisely said “May we see calendars not so much as rows of boxes to fill up with things to do – but as boxes that we get to unwrap – the present moment is always the gift.” Each day our wonderful Creator gives us ribbons and ribbons to tug open His gifts – given to delight us in ways He created us for, too often we are scurrying after that which has no eternal value.
I still love the old saying ‘Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift that’s why it’s called the present.’ Take time each day to see the abundant, lavish ribbons of His love and savor sweet summer a little longer…
Mason Jars…
It’s hard for us to let things sit empty – we have this need to fill them… Jugs become loose change collectors, boxes become mail catchers, some jars become candle holders – others become flower vases…
Never does a bouquet look lovelier than when it’s in a mason jar. The simplicity of a jar topped off with the intricacy of God’s handiwork, the perfect pairing.
It is the same with people, we are vessels longing to be filled up. Sometimes we fill up on work, on people, on money – funny how we never feel filled up…
Sometimes we fill up on social media, entertainment of one kind or another, the latest gossip…still empty…
God longs to fill us – with His mercy, His love, His forgiveness. Oh when we let ourselves be filled with His offerings how every little nook and cranny finds fulfillment. Yet we can’t get enough. The more He gives of Himself the more we can be filled. The more we are filled the more we can offer to others…
I want to be the mason jar, no frills or airs – just a vessel saying ‘Fill me Lord with love, joy, peace’. Let me be a bouquet of patience, kindness, goodness. That others will see gentleness, faithfulness, self-control… Let my filling be that of the Holy Spirit who has been given to us as a deposit so that we will never doubt the return of our Savior.
We are God’s handiwork, made in His image – to be image bearers to a world trying alcohol and pills, power and popularity, never feeling like they are filled up. Let us be so filled that others are drawn to find out what our sweet fragrance is.
God’s handiwork, His vessels, His ambassadors to the lady in line, the waiter at our table, the receptionist at the office. What the world needs now… a Savior, sweet Savior…
And the Hands That Made It…
Recently I was challenged to set a timer for five minutes and do…nothing. To sit back and breathe and listen – to let the tension roll away and be filled for good use…
I wondered during that time about things…I glanced at the beautiful quilt and I could feel God say ‘whose is it?’ and I replied in my heart ‘Yours and so are the hands that made it’…
My eyes wandered to pictures of children and grandchildren and again I was asked ‘whose are they’ and I replied ‘Yours and so are the bodies that made them’…
I noticed a silk flower arrangement I made about year or so ago, definitely not my skill set, but it turned out so lovely and He asked ‘whose is it?’ and I replied ‘Yours and so are my hands that made it’…
We are His, dear ones, and He wants us to know – to know beyond a shadow of a doubt how loved, how protected, how cherished we are… Though the tensions of the world may say otherwise, this is only temporary.
Finally my eyes wandered to a picture of my mother when she was a little girl. This time I asked ‘whose is she?’ and He replied ‘Mine and I made her and all eternity is hers’… Sweet comfort for the soul of a daughter wanting to know she will see her mommy again someday.
Emily Freeman is the author challenging us to be still and she said “Stillness is to the soul as decluttering is to the home.” Take the challenge, set the timer, declutter your soul…breathe, empty your hands to the Hands that made you…
If you stopped by because you read my devotion over at Encouragement Cafe, WELCOME! So glad you are here!
H. U. G….
Handing. Us. Grace. – every blooming flower, newborn cry, mountain meadow, crashing wave, bird in flight, frog croaking, butterfly fluttering – hugs from our Creator…
I’m a hugger – I especially love hugging someone unexpectedly. I don’t understand non-huggers – cause I know deep inside they need a hug, and they know it too. I also don’t understand timid huggers – you know, kind of come at you from the side, or lean forward so only shoulders touch, or make it quick with a pat on the back…
Look, if I’m gonna hug you it’s going to be full on, squeezing, and all that stuff – or I’m not going to hug you at all. A hug is a way of extending grace to each other. Especially those we are closest to. Sometimes I may not think my hubby deserves a hug, but I give him one anyway (knowing there are many more times I don’t deserve one and he still gives me one anyway).
Our love, kindness, feelings are so fickle. One minute we’re all sunshine and sweet thoughts and the next we’re on a tirade of ‘how dare they’ or “I can’t believe they’ or ‘how could they’. Grace is favor extended when most undeserved. You know, like what God does for us every minute of every day.
I can guarantee you that our offenses against a Holy God far outweigh all the wrongs done to us by friends or foes. Yet He still grants each next breath, a perfect sunrise, and even a mouthwatering dessert now and then.
He Hands.Us.Grace (H.U.G.) – can we hand.out.grace (h.o.g.)? Melt a frown, calm the worry, renew the passion – h.o.g. someone’s attention with a hug… Enjoy this link to a video that will definitely wrap you in His hug today…
http://www.andiesisle.com/creation/magnificent.html
If you stopped by because you read my devotion over at Encouragement Cafe, WELCOME! So glad you are here!
parisrenae 