Category Archives: Family, Friends & Fellowship

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May 21, 2015

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Challenges & Difficulty, Family, Friends & Fellowship, Love & Works, Today: Make it Count

TRAIL MAGIC

You yourself have done this plenty of times, spoken words that clarify, encouraged those who were about to quit. Your words have put stumbling people on their feet, put fresh hope in people about to collapse. [Job 4:3-4 (MSG)]

5-15-15-hiking to RosenlauiawebWhile reading about one man’s trek along the Appalachian Trail, I came upon a new term: “trail magic.” A tradition along the Appalachian Trail and other long distance trails, trail magic is an unexpected act of kindness and can take many forms: snacks handed out at a trail crossing, cold drinks left in a stream, rides to or from nearby towns, a night’s stay at a home, a cook-out at a shelter, packages of ibuprofen or even an impromptu concert along the trail. Trail magic seems to serendipitously occur when a hiker needs it most: when his spirits are lowest, his legs weariest, or his supplies nearly depleted! There is also another kind of trail magic of which many hikers are unaware. Trail magic occurs when volunteers clear fallen trees and branches from the trail, paint blazes on trees, repair shelters or cut back poison ivy. Those who offer trail magic usually have hiked the trail themselves and know how strenuous it can be; they are known as “trail angels.”

I don’t live near any long distance trails and, while I love to hike, long distance hiking is not on my bucket list. Nevertheless, I can be a trail angel and so can you. A through hike on the Appalachian Trail is about 2,200 miles; it is grueling, challenging and lasts several months. Our walk through life can also be grueling, challenging and can last several decades. We have opportunities every day to be trail angels to those we encounter on our journey.

A friend, another church photographer, recently shared a “trail angel” moment and she didn’t even know she’d been an angel until it was over. We both love zooming in on the face of one of our church singers. She is absolutely beautiful, not only because of her features (although she is lovely), but because of the joy she radiates as she sings her praises to the Lord. We both try to capture her radiance but it seems to elude our cameras; that radiance, however, enhances the worship experience of all who see her. Recently, after church, my friend approached this woman to tell her how much she appreciates her singing and the way she shares her love of the Lord with us all. To my friend’s surprise, this beautiful woman got misty and shed a tear. It had been a difficult week for her. She’d been running on empty and needed encouragement and kind words. My friend’s message gave her a spiritual recharge just when she required it most! Those few words were trail magic for her spirit and fortified her for the challenging days ahead.

What little kindnesses can we leave along the trail of life for God’s children? Are there ways we can make that trek easier for our fellow travelers; are there obstacles we can clear or ways we can help them find their way? How can we lift their spirits or brighten their day’s walk? We don’t need to be hikers or find a long distance trail to be trail angels; we have that opportunity every day right where we are. What gift can we leave for those who might pass our way?

Miss no single opportunity of making some small sacrifice, here by a smiling look, there by a kindly word; always doing the smallest right and doing it all for love. [St. Therese de Lisieux]

Gracious speech is like clover honey—good taste to the soul, quick energy for the body. [Proverbs 16:24 (MSG)]

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May 11, 2015

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Attitudes & Behavior, Bible Stories, Family, Friends & Fellowship, Holidays & Holy Days

MOTHERS-IN-LAW – MOTHER’S DAY

“Yes, I know,” Boaz replied. “But I also know about everything you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband. I have heard how you left your father and mother and your own land to live here among complete strangers. May the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge, reward you fully for what you have done.” [Ruth 2:11-12 (NLT)]

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Now in my seventh decade, I view the Bible story of Ruth from an entirely different perspective than when I was younger. While I used to connect with the youthful woman, Ruth, I now relate to the older one (and mother-in-law), Naomi. In a time of famine, Naomi and her husband Elimelech moved from Judah to Moab with their two sons. Even though Jewish law forbade it, their sons married local girls: Orpah and Ruth. Unfortunately, all three men died, leaving Naomi, Orpah, and Ruth widows. In those days, there was little worse than being a widow; widows were ignored, usually poverty stricken, and often victimized. Since a widow’s closest relative was supposed to take care of her, Naomi decided to return to her relatives in Judah. Orpah and Ruth set out to go with her, but Naomi stopped and advised them to go back to their families in Moab, telling the young women that she had nothing for them. Orpah, perhaps wisely, chose to return home. Ruth, however, chose to stay and said those words we often hear repeated in wedding ceremonies: “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Wherever you die, I will die, and there I will be buried.” [Ruth 1:16-17 (NLT)]

What an amazing declaration of love! It’s one you might expect from a wife to a husband but not from a son’s wife to her mother-in-law. What was it about Naomi that could inspire such words from her daughter-in-law? What kind of woman earns that much love and loyalty? What kind of woman arouses such devotion that her daughter-in-law willingly leaves the safety of her homeland to share a poverty-stricken existence with her? She’s certainly not the kind about whom bad mother-in-law jokes are written.

Naomi must have been cool and calm, loving and gracious. Perhaps she kept the Biblical equivalent of duct tape handy to place over her mouth when necessary. I’m sure she never interfered or told her sons’ wives how to manage their households. In spite of the fact they weren’t Jewish, Naomi must have accepted, loved and respected her daughters-in-law as if they were her very own daughters. Finally, she must have had a deep faith in God that was evident in the way she lived. Otherwise, why would Ruth chose to follow Naomi’s one God rather than the pagan gods of Moab?

My fervent prayer is that I can be a Ruth to my mother-in-law, a women deserving of such love and devotion. Moreover, I pray that I can be a Naomi to my daughters-in-law. Heavenly Father, show me how to be a woman filled with kindness and wisdom, love and faith. May I be the sort of woman who can inspire these loving words: “Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.”

She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future. When she speaks, her words are wise, and she gives instructions with kindness. … Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised. [Proverbs 31:25-26,30 (NLT)]

 

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May 9, 2015

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Family, Friends & Fellowship, God's Grace & Love, Holidays & Holy Days, Knowing Him, Nature

HIS LOVE – Mother’s Day 2015

DSC05555-2redHe spreads his wings over them, even as an eagle overspreads her young. She carries them upon her wings – as does the Lord his people! [Deuteronomy 32:11 (TLB)]

These last few years, I’ve been blessed to watch a family of swans who nest in a nearby park. I’ve observed them take turns sitting on the nest, taking their babies for a swim and even teaching them to fly. Last year, I saw a mother swan actually taking her baby for a ride on her back, sheltering the cygnet with her wings. Moses probably never saw a swan because, if he had, he might have mentioned the swan in Deuteronomy as well as the eagle.

Thank you, God, for being like a mother bird, protecting us from harm, carrying us when we’re too weak to do it alone, and teaching us to fly. Thank you for our mothers and for every other woman who has acted in your place and boldly watched over and protected our young, helped them through the challenges of childhood and taught them the skills they need to be independent adults.

A mother’s love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity, it dares all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path. [Agatha Christie]

There is no friendship, no love, like that of a parent for the child. [Henry Ward Beecher]

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May 8, 2015

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Attitudes & Behavior, Family, Friends & Fellowship, God's Plan, Sorrow, Grief & Regrets, Today: Make it Count

SEIZE THE DAY

And now I have a word for you who brashly announce, “Today—at the latest, tomorrow—we’re off to such and such a city for the year. We’re going to start a business and make a lot of money.” You don’t know the first thing about tomorrow. You’re nothing but a wisp of fog, catching a brief bit of sun before disappearing. [James 4:13-14 (MSG)]

My wife was dead. All those things we were going to do together were now impossible. We had spent a lifetime working toward that distant goal, making promises to ourselves that now we would never fulfill. Sure, it’s important to plan for the future, but think about this: You’ve had the gift of yesterday, and you are living today with its choices and opportunities, but who knows if you will have tomorrow? You’ve heard it time and time again, but I will tell you – and I know it’s true, because the painful lesson is etched into my yesterday – no one has a guarantee of tomorrow. That’s why it is so important today to tell our spouses and loved ones what they mean to us. [From “Hiking Through” by Paul Stutzman]

5-8-15seizewebThe day I started reading Paul Stutzman’s book Hiking Through, about his journey on the Appalachian Trail, was the same day I learned that a friend’s wife has conceded defeat in her war against cancer. Having recently received the last rites, her remaining time is measured in just days and hours. What struck me is the similarity between both men’s situations. Like my friend’s wife, after a long and painful struggle, Stutzman’s spouse lost her battle with cancer. Both couples had persisted through their difficult yesterdays: the financial and professional struggles of the early years and the stress of raising children. They were approaching what I think of as the “wonder” years: those blessed years when careers are secure, the children are capable young adults, money is no longer scarce, health is still good, and there are time and funds enough for travel. Those highly anticipated carefree and joy-filled tomorrows will never happen for either couple.

Having lost my parents in their prime (my mother was only forty-seven and my father just fifty-six), I’ve always had an awareness of life’s brevity. That doesn’t mean I don’t waste precious moments of every today by reliving my yesterdays or anticipating my hoped for tomorrows. May these men’s experiences remind us all that we must take delight in every precious today granted to us. In Ecclesiastes, Solomon makes the point that there is a right time for each activity in life. It is, however, always the right time to praise God for the blessings of the day. Moreover, there is never a wrong time to tell those we love how much we care for them and how precious they are to us.

There’s an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth:
A right time for birth and another for death,
A right time to plant and another to reap,
A right time to kill and another to heal,
A right time to destroy and another to construct,
A right time to cry and another to laugh,
A right time to lament and another to cheer,
A right time to make love and another to abstain,
A right time to embrace and another to part,
A right time to search and another to count your losses,
A right time to hold on and another to let go,
A right time to rip out and another to mend,
A right time to shut up and another to speak up,
A right time to love and another to hate,
A right time to wage war and another to make peace. [Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (MSG)]

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May 6, 2015

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Attitudes & Behavior, Family, Friends & Fellowship, God's Grace & Love, Love & Works, Wisdom & Guidance

WHAT’S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE?

 Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious – the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. [Philippians 4:8 (MSG)]

5-16-15mottled duck - IW583-cropwebI remember playing a game called “What’s Wrong with this Picture?” with my children when they got their Highlights™ magazine. We’d look at a drawing and try to spot all of the weird and wacky things that didn’t belong in the picture. Sometimes, we continue to play that game as adults but, instead of looking for oddities, we simply seek out everything that seems wrong.

As I recover from my foot surgery, I have to remain off my feet as much as possible. That means giving up all sorts of domestic duties to my patient and loving husband. This reversal of roles has required an attitude adjustment on both our parts. Although he is at my beck and call, I know better than to abuse my role as patient (especially since he will soon have surgery and our roles will be reversed!)

This morning, I looked around the house and saw all sorts of things “wrong.” Fortunately, before I opened my mouth, I pondered the meaning of “wrong.” Certain things like adultery, theft and murder are clearly wrong. Certain things, like faithfulness, tithing, and compassion are clearly right. There are, however, a great many things that are neither exactly right nor wrong and they’re certainly not worth getting one’s undies in a bunch. These things include a tablecloth that is askew, dust on the tables, and crumbs on the countertop. There are even more things that are simply “wrong” because I have arbitrarily defined what is “right.” While my “right” includes towels that are folded in thirds, throw pillows always attractively arranged on the bed, and smoothies made with almonds and flaxseed, not everyone agrees!

We must  accept the disappointing truth that we are far from perfect. Moreover, the world around us isn’t perfect and, in spite of our best efforts, it’s never going to be. Finally, we need to remember it’s likely our definition of “perfect” or even “correct” has little to do with anyone else’s definitions of those words.

Jesus was the only perfect person and something tells me that things like less than stellar housekeeping or food not prepared his favorite way didn’t concern him. Unlike the Pharisees who spent much of their time deciding what was “wrong,” He was much more concerned with issues like love, compassion, healing, truth, righteousness and salvation. When He saw what was undoubtedly wrong, like the money changers at the temple, He reacted. When He saw the woman at the well, however, He didn’t see a woman who was wrong; He lovingly saw a soul to be saved and offered love and forgiveness.

Thank you, Heavenly Father, for those who help us in our daily walk and offer their loving care. Give us appreciative hearts and voices. Stop us when we are tempted to complain, whine, or correct what truly doesn’t need correction. Give us the eyes and heart of Jesus and the discernment to know what is truly important in life.

A happy home is one in which each spouse grants the possibility that the other may be right, though neither believes it. [Don Fraser]

Watch what God does, and then you do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents. Mostly what God does is love you. Keep company with him and learn a life of love. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn’t love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that. [Ephesians 5:1-2 (MSG)]

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April 24, 2015

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Attitudes & Behavior, Family, Friends & Fellowship, Wisdom & Guidance

KEEP MY MOUTH SHUT

Take control of what I say, O Lord, and guard my lips. [Psalm 141:3 (NLT)]

P1100857webIn yesterday’s “Frank and Ernest” comic strip by Thaves, while admiring a large fish mounted up on the wall, one of the men says, “He wouldn’t be up there if he had just kept his mouth shut.” Wiser words couldn’t be said! If only I’d seen the comic a day earlier when a woman I’d just met earnestly asked me how old I thought she was. She was quite attractive and I assured her she didn’t look old to me, but she insisted I give her my estimate. Responding to that question is akin to answering, “Honey, do these pants make me look fat?” There just isn’t a good answer. I’m a woman; I know better than to fall into that trap (or bite that lure) but, foolishly, I opened my mouth. Looking about my children’s ages and having a very responsible job, I guessed her to be about forty-five (I actually thought she might be as old as fifty). Big mistake; she is only thirty-eight and not approaching forty gracefully! I spent the rest of my time reassuring her how good she looks (which she does) and that she will age beautifully. Let’s face it: by the time I left, I wished I’d never opened my mouth at all! “Open mouth and insert foot” – good heavens, I inserted both feet plus an arm!

Sometimes, we’re like the fish that gets caught; we take the bait. Heavenly Father, please slap your hand over our mouths and even seal them with duct tape, if necessary, whenever any of us are foolish enough to consider speaking when it is best to leave things unsaid! Show us how to tactfully and honesty avoid uttering words that might inadvertently hurt someone even though we have only good intentions in our hearts.

If you keep your mouth shut you will never put your foot in it. [Austin O’Malley]

Step with care and great tact and remember that Life’s a Great Balancing Act. [Dr. Seuss]

Even fools are thought wise when they keep silent; with their mouths shut, they seem intelligent. [Proverbs 17:28 (NLT)]