All in God's Character
As I sorted boxes of my children’s artwork, I admired how their childhood imaginations defied rules of perspective and laws of nature. Time has since redirected their imaginations from free-form artwork to the demanding issues of adult problem-solving. However, a quote by Oswald Chamber recently challenged me to rekindle my own child-like imagination:
When Biscuit, my seven-year-old Yorkie terrier, hears me talking on the phone or sees my husband and me hugging, he tries to nudge his way onto center stage and claws my legs. He does not tolerate us paying attention to anyone but him! His insecurities take over.
Remember when your parents said, just do what I say? Did you ever tell yourself, I’ll never say to my kids, because I said so? Did you keep that vow? I said it as well, and I broke that vow as well. I think God says the same thing to us!
You probably are in the midst of your Christmas shopping now. I find shopping stressful, do you?The crowds, the decisions, and the costs are overwhelming. Why have we allowed commercialism to take over this special celebration?
Picture a body of water on a windless day. The water appears as smooth as glass, reminiscent of a mirror. As you look at the glorious scenery, you also view a perfect reflection of the beauty in the water. Likewise, you will find your reflection if you peer into the water. What a peaceful image to conjure up. It relaxes me to think of it.
I’ve been surprised by familiar biblical passages that come from the obscure minor prophet Habakkuk. One of these passages inspired a benediction we often sang at my childhood church. I hear the melody as I read the words. “The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him” (Hab. 2:20). Imagine my surprise to find these words following five woes spoken by the LORD in His response to Habakkuk!
My Sunflower Vine vigorously twined up my garden trellis. I allowed a wild vine to grow nearby thinking they would just mature side-by-side. However, by the time I realized my mistake, the damage was done. The wild vine had choked my Sunflower Vine!
In deepest grief, the writer of Lamentations wrote of the destruction of his beloved city and nation. Even though his people had experienced terrible atrocities and even though they were still experiencing pain and suffering, he made an amazing statement about God: …great is your faithfulness (Lamentations 3:23).
God’s work of judgment is “strange” to Him. It’s a task alien to His nature. Scripture is clear that God’s act of judgment is always righteous and just, but as Lamentations states, God’s act of afflicting His people is not an act from His heart.
If I asked you to take a picture of something representing God’s mercy, what would your photo include? Would it be a selfie of you and your friend hugging—the friend you had previously hurt with your words. Would you take a picture of the warning you received from the police officer instead of a speeding ticket?
Sandwiched! Troubles behind and troubles on the horizon. We’ve all been there, right?
What is your typical response when difficulty hits?
My grandson climbed up into my lap. Of course, I loved that and hugged him tightly. He wanted to observe the actual process so I put my foot down on the pedal very gently. I did my best to go at a slow pace to keep him safe and sound. You can imagine the joy of holding him near while doing something I loved to do. My husband could not help but take a picture so we could hold on to that memory.
The filing cabinet housed an extensive collection of Bible story pictures for teaching children. My fingers touched then gently, encouraging my childhood memories to slowly resurface. I could almost hear the words of my teachers who held them while telling those amazing stories.
It had been a full day of running errands, traveling out of town, swimming with my grandchildren… That night I noticed the diamond in my ring was missing. It wasn’t a large diamond, but it was treasured.
How many of us would love to write a book? It would have a clever title and then right below it would appear our very own name. We could then identify ourselves as authors. How prestigious does that sound?
I could hardly believe it! I was moving into my new house that I had never even seen. My husband had called me a month prior saying he was putting a contract on a house. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I was unable to see the house first.
Recently, I was walking behind a grandmother holding her granddaughter’s toddler- hand.
The hands intertwined were a precious picture… two extreme ages, with the aged lending strength to stabilize the young.
The visual made me realize… aging is not what I expected.
At the moment of realization that I had left my wallet in a busy interstate highway gas station two hours earlier, my heart began racing while my brain began rehearsing the rapid steps of what to do next. Call the bank card company. Call the credit card company. Call the station where I left it. Tomorrow, go to the driver’s license office to reorder my license.
My youthful father transformed rugged acreage into a small working ranch. The five springs on the property helped him envision the land’s potential.
She finished reading the book and declared, “It was a journey I didn’t like being on.” Using that statement to describe a book is no big deal. But for many of us, that statement describes a complicated life situation that we can do nothing about. Many of us are on journeys we don’t like.
