brainstorm

As I peacefully awake to a calm day, my mind is quiet before the storm that is on the horizon. The winds of sound with life and activity begin to reverberate in the echo chambers of my ears. Then the swirling thoughts of “what do I need to get done today?” “I forgot about that!” “What will I wear?” “I wonder how he is?” “What can I do to help?” and a trillion gusts of questions begin to blow across my mind. Soon, the storm in my head feels as if the atmospheric pressures will explode into a downpour of tears releasing the activity in my brain. The world is chaotic these days with war, refugees fleeing, guns firing, people dying and crying. And my mind is full of a flurry of why’s, what will happen and what if’s. The storm rages on.

I need shelter. I need peace. I need to quiet my mind. I need to stop the confusion raging in full fury ready to destroy and damage. Have you ever felt that you were there looking for a way out of the winds? I have and so, I dive deeply into the Word of God - into His scriptures - into the shelter of the Most High. I find the calm in the midst of the storm. I am safe, loved, protected, comforted and reminded that there is peace. Psalm 46 reminds me of that. My soul can rest safely in the storm because neither death, darkness or demons can hurt me. Verses 1-3 tell us that:

God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.

God is with us, for us and is there to help us. HIs wisdom, justice, truth, holiness, power and love is for us. So, even in the chaotic world, we are never to fear because He is the one we can go to find shelter in our storms. That’s reassuring. Listen to Psalm 46 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2emelR7lGmw

rearrange

Spring is an amazing season of rebirth, new beginnings and hope. After the long, dreary days of waking to the morning and retiring to bed in darkness, we feel rejuvenated and alive when the sleeping earth stretches her arms to welcome warmer days. There is a change and it’s time to rearrange.

Rearranging simply means changing time, position or order of something. At the molecular level, molecules undergo a reorganization of its constituent parts and there can be spontaeous chemical reactions. Does “spring fever” sound familiar? And then there is the transformation of rearranging - moving our furniture or the spring cleaning as we purge. Others want to create a newness and begin to plant seedlings, anxious to get them in the ground and watch them thrive under the summer sun, reaping their harvests in the fall.

And then there are those of us who wish to create a new story of ourselves and rearrange some of our old habits and create a more vibrant way of living. It can’t always be night. We don’t have to be alone. It doesn’t have to be broken. We don’t have to be sucked into the vortex of our culture. We can thrive - not just survive. We can live; not just exist. What can we do?

We can pray in the power of prayer - read the Word - encourage others are just a few activities to start the day. Being vulnerable with difficult truths - acknowledging our faults with others is another. Walking in God’s Truth is to start rearranging some of our thoughts and knowing that We are God’s big plan! That’s a reason to praise Him! What rearrangements will you work on this week as we spring forward?

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Romans 12: 1-2

stained

There is beauty in the broken. Have you ever looked at a stained glass window and marvelled at the different pieces that make it unique and beautiful? That’s something like our lives. We are all broken, have been hurt and are pieces of different parts of who we are, but when we put them together, we are a work of art. Our creator is the potter and we are the clay.

There is also the stain of sin in our lives and yet, Jesus took all of those bloody messes, screw ups, mistakes and forgave us to create a new spirit in us. How beautiful is that?

Stained glass painting began over 1.000 years ago. The actual term “stained” comes from the silver stain that was applied to the side of the window facing the outside of a building. When the glass was fired, this silver stain turned a yellowy color ranging from gold to lemon and the stained glass was used to let the light shine through a painting. The large stained glass windows for churches is evident today from the Renaissance in Europe.

Glass panes were too expensive for the average person and it wasn’t until the late 1400’s that middle class and wealthy people started putting them in their homes. They were often smaller panels that would celebrate the history of the family, be amusing or showing instruction. But always, the light shines through.

Isn’t it amazing that God shines HIs light through us. There is no cost because Jesus paid for our sins. As we approach the season of Easter, we think about what He did for us. Each of us shows a different picture from what he’s done in our lives - all the colors of our lives - all the different nations and races and peoples - were created to glorify Him. God wants to shine through us.

This third I will put into the fire;
I will refine them like silver
and test them like gold.
They will call on my name
and I will answer them;
I will say, ‘They are my people,’
and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’”

Zechariah 13:9

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday. To many people, that really doesn’t mean anything. To others, it is the reminder that we are human and have a physical expiry date and that we need to connect with God and be reconciled to him. March 2nd marks the beginning of Lent, which is often observed with fasting or giving something up from now until Easter or April 14th this year. It’s a 40 day journey. Before Jesus started his public ministry, he spend 40 days in the desert. Are you ready to take your journey and be reminded of what He did for you? Let this season be one to let the light shine brightly in our dark world.

flittergibbetty

There once was a young girl named Freya. She was small for her age and as she grew, she started to fret. At first it was just the little things like not being able to tie her shoe when others in her class could. Then it was thinking that she wasn’t as smart as her friends. And each fret grew into a bigger fret until poor Freya was fretting everything from what outfit to wear for the day to what to eat for breakfast. No one seemed to notice until school photos. When all the children were smiling their beautiful smiles, showing their quirkiness and childlike traits, the camera man noticed that there were rather large fret lines across Freya’s forehead. When he tried to make her smile, she realized that she was fretting even more because she couldn’t and the lines showed even deeper on her little forehead. What was she to do? Freya simply fretted more and that’s when the photographer snapped the camera much to Freya’s dismay. “O flittergibbetty!” she exclaimed.

Do the photographs of our lives show fret lines? Perhaps when we look in the mirror in the morning, we should be checking for lines on our foreheads. Are we worried, concerned beyond belief, consumed by anxieties or anger?

At times, fretting displays itself in hopelessness or angry disposition to injustices. Maybe it’s fear of the future or perhaps bitterness due to suffering. It could be frustration. We cannot worship with worry. We can’t smile with suffering. We simply fret with frustration. When the word “fret” is translated, it means “to be warm” or “heated” or “agitated or angered.” It is really faithless frustration. Is there an anecdote?

There is, as King David revealed in Psalm 37. We are to trust in the Lord, do good, take delight in Him, refrain from anger, commiting our way to Him as we wait patiently for His return. We are not to be anxious about anything. More easily said than done, but there is healing in the scripture when we read:

Psalm 37: 1-13. We are told three times in these verses, “Do not fret.”

Do not fret because of those who are evil
    or be envious of those who do wrong;
 for like the grass they will soon wither,
    like green plants they will soon die away.

 Trust in the Lord and do good;
    dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
 Take delight in the Lord,
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.

 Commit your way to the Lord;
    trust in him and he will do this:
 He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,
    your vindication like the noonday sun.

 Be still before the Lord
    and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
    when they carry out their wicked schemes.

Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;
    do not fret—it leads only to evil. 

For those who are evil will be destroyed,
    but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land.

 A little while, and the wicked will be no more;
    though you look for them, they will not be found.
 But the meek will inherit the land
    and enjoy peace and prosperity.

 The wicked plot against the righteous
    and gnash their teeth at them;
 but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
    for he knows their day is coming.

wind

The wind of change is sweeping across the landscapes of our lives and the nations in this world today. We can let it carry us away. We can fight against it. Or we walk with the wind, knowing that it will blow us into a different tomorrow and a new season. For the better or the worse.

The wind can howl and destroy along its path; driving the tumble-jumbleweeds of confusion across the pathways of our days. It howls its haunting fury - ruffling feathers and downing oaks. We get entangled in the mess, the chaos and the confusion. But just as destructive as it may be, it can also gently fill our sails and guide us through the waves to a safe harbour. Sometimes fierce and ferocious; sometimes pleasant and peaceful. The quietness is palpable and the stillness permeates the air in silence when it has blown by. And we listen. For an answer to our questions.

Jesus commanded the wind. He would “speak to the wind and it would change direction."

Elijah, the prophet knew about the wind. In 1 Kings 19 verses 11-12,

The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”

Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.

Sometimes the answer comes softy. Are we listening?

Winds bring words from the past that are used to remind us of history. The people, their stories, their song. There are winds that bring spiritual healing to the hearts, minds and souls of the people. Winds bring a story we need to hear carried across time itself for the next generation. Words on the wind make music to make the heart sing. Bring that music into your life. Feel it. Dance with it. Listen to it. Speak it. Share it. Even in the silence, you will hear a whisper of the wind. Change is coming. Listen for it.

praise

Years ago at a conference, the main speaker told a group of us that praises were the most important words you can give a child, an employee or any human being. If you want to talk “science” - the research indicates that there are multiple psychological effects of praise. Boosting self-esteem, improving and increasing work performance and giving power to people are just a few of the benefits of those praises.

Now and then I hear the story behind some of the worship songs I listen to. It is amazing how many struggles, heartaches and pains lead to the most amazing music! The heartfelt words resonnate with us and we feel connected through the lyrics. People have seen miracles when they praise God. I love to read the praises of King David from the Psalms.

I once heard a story about a woman missionary in China who contracted a deadly disease many years ago. She lay quarantined in a room, with no medical help for days on end and was given up to die.

The one thing she could do was pray and so, minute by minute, hour by hour, she pleaded with God to heal her. It seemed futile. Suddenly she was given a vision, much like kings and prophets of old were given.

She saw an old-fashioned scale, the kind often seen on justice statues, with a fulcrum and plates held by chains on each side. The scale she saw was heavily weighted on one side, while the other side was way up in the air because it was empty. The scale was clearly out of balance. (sometimes like our lives are)

When she questioned God about what she had seen, he revealed to her that the heavy side was her prayers—she had certainly prayed many of them—while the empty side was her praise. God revealed to her that the praise side needed to be filled to outweigh the trouble she was facing. When the scale was balanced, her healing would begin.

And so, this desperately sick woman stopped pleading for her healing and started praising God. She praised Him for His greatness, for sending Jesus to die for our sins and for all God’s blessings in her life. She praised Him for being her Savior, her healer, her provider, and for everything He’d ever done for her in every aspect of her life.

At first, she was so weak that her praises were mere whispers, but as she continued her praise and worship to God all day and all night, she grew louder. Some thought she was delirious, some feared for her life; but all were amazed when, after several days, she walked out of that room healed. She had taken “the praise cure” and she was completely made well. “https://goodsamatlanta.org/todays-virtual-good-sam-devotion-8-12-2020/

And so, for every plea, let there be a praise. Instead of just dwelling on our problems, our worries, and our sorrows, let’s fill our moments with praise.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations. Psalm 100: 4-5

A great song to listen to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic8lWLV4nwY