walk this way

Sunday, January 2, 2011 (6:48 a.m.)

Lake Arrowhead Chalets #120

Lake Arrowhead, CA

Most Loving and Beloved Lord God,

Thank You. Thank You for rest. Thank You for fun. Thank You for family. And thank You Lord for the struggles and challenges that remind us to put our focus on You.

Lord, I love when I wake up thinking of You. I especially love when the most bizarre thoughts and songs tie into what could possibly be another way of considering You.

Take this morning as a perfect example. I was thinking about moving home today. I was also considering a hiccup with a much-loved one last night. At the same time I was remembering so many of the mistakes I have made through the years. Where did all of this take me? ♫Turn your eyes upon Jesus Look full in His wonderful face And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, In the light of His glory and grace♫

Yes Lord. Even before getting to the end of the chorus I was remembering words like ‘forgiveness’ and ‘grace’. Grace – God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.

And then completely unexpectedly, practically out of the blue came another song. Looking up the rest of the words to it, I can’t possibly believe You would take me in this direction. Rather than spend any more time considering the rest of the lyrics, I am still drawn to the chorus that took me there in the first place. ♫Walk this way♫

The first (and only) verse I found mentioning these words is Isaiah 30:21. And it speaks of You Dearest Lord. You telling Your people, “This is the way; turn around and walk here.” Mm. Yes Lord. I want to follow You. I long to walk where You would have me walk.

And speaking of walking, it’s time to “Walk this way” as we pack up the car and move home again. How I ask Your mercies on us Lord. Mercy for safe travels in inclement weather. Mercy in continuing to build healthy relationships. Mercy to learn to love and know You better. Mercy as we continue to turn our eyes upon You Lord.

Continue speaking to me Lord. In ways that not only get my attention, but my obedience as well. I love You Lord. Thank You for loving me so well. Amen.

(395 words ~ 8:00 a.m.)

love

Saturday, January 1, 2011 (7:32 a.m.)

New Year’s Day

Lake Arrowhead Chalet #120

Lake Arrowhead, CA

Wow Lord,

Would You look at that? 2011. I thought I’d start the day with You. How awesome that we’re starting a whole new year together as well. Thank You Lord. You are so good.

Lord, I love You. I want desperately to love You so much better than I have in the past. Will You teach me how? Teach me to know You and the things that You love.

How perfect You are. No sooner do I have the thought forming, but You have direction for me. Beginning with Ephesians 3:16-21, Your Word verily comes alive for me! How I thank You Lord. How I love You!

Turning the pages to focus on these particular verses, I am drawn to the titles of other sections. “Living in Christ’s Freedom” (Galatians 5:1-15) “Living by the Spirit’s Power” (16-26). Oh Lord, make it so!

(9:10 a.m.)

How easily I get distracted. I start out strong and little by little am drawn to watching the 122nd Rose Parade and baking and frosting cinnamon rolls. The tradition of this favored event pales in comparison to the richness of Your Word Dear Lord.

Various versions of Ephesians 3 speak deeply to my heart and soul right now. One titles Chapter 3 as “A Loving People”, with a brief theological section explaining “The Family of God”.

Oh Dearest Lord, how I long to live this in my everyday life. I want desperately to live a life of Your love. Your strength. Your presence. “Rooted and grounded…

(11:59 a.m.)

[love – take three!] “… in love for each other” The Illustrated Bible Handbook. Oh yes blessed Lord! “As we live together as family, loving one another as Christ loved us, we will grow together toward all it means to be a Christian.” I want that Lord.

Ephesians 3:14-16 (TLB), “When I think of the wisdom and scope of His plan, I fall down on my knees and pray to the Father of all the great family of God – some of them already in heaven and some down here on earth – that out of His glorious, unlimited resources He will give you the mighty inner strengthening of His Holy Spirit.”

Lord, I can’t even begin to fathom the wisdom and scope of Your plan. Oh, but I long to take part in Your unlimited resources that will give me the mighty inner strengthening of Your Holy Spirit. It reads wonderfully Lord. So much to even think of asking for. But I am.

In The Living Bible verse 17 reads, “And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in Your hearts, living within you as you trust in Him. May your roots go down into the soil of God’s marvelous love;”. The Cotton Patch Gospel says the same thing this way, “God grant that Christ, through your faith, might establish residence in your hearts. May love be your taproot and foundation.” Yes Lord. May love be my taproot and foundation!

And now as I quote to the end of the chapter I ask again and again Lord, please may it be so! “and may you be able to feel and understand, as all God’s children should, how long, how wide, how deep, and how high His love really is; and to experience this love for yourselves, though it is so great that you will never see the end of it or fully know or understand it. And so at last you will be filled up with God Himself. Now glory be to God, who by His mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of – infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes. May He be given glory forever and ever even through endless ages because of His master plan of salvation for the Church through Jesus Christ.”

Yes. Oh yes. Oh yes, Dear Lord. Fill me up with YOU. Long and wide, deep and high! Fill me to capacity with You and Your love. What a perfect way to begin not only a new year, but a new decade.

Thank You Lord. Thank You for Your patience with me. Thank You for Your blessings. And mostly importantly, thank You for Your love. I love You. SO much! Thank You. Amen.

(738 words ~ 12:40 p.m.)

leaving behind

Friday, December 31, 2010 (3:24 p.m.)

Lake Arrowhead Chalets #120

Lake Arrowhead, CA

Beloved Lord,

Attempting to avoid You today is doing me no good at all. I keep thinking that if I just keep putting You off the year won’t be gone. How bizarre is that kind of thinking?

So. Instead. Let me come right here before You and confess that I have no idea what to do with a brand new year. You are so good. So perfect. So honest and faithful and true. And I don’t even know what to do with that.

In years past I have entered into the new year with plans and expectations of things being different, better in some way, than the year we were leaving behind. Leaving behind. Yes, Lord. Talk to me about the things I will be leaving behind this year.

I have this list of fears that are so very subtly burrowing their ways into my subconscious. I don’t want to think about them. But I’m also not letting them go. Let me leave them behind Dearest Lord. Yes, let me leave them behind with You to take care of exactly as You know is best.

There are the giant great big, “What if…?”s that are practically screaming at me. And in confessing that, I am instantly aware of satan’s crafty way of tripping up Eve when he introduced her to doubt (Genesis 3:1-6).

Thank You Lord for leading me to the Book of Ezekiel right now. With all the things that were going wrong with and for the people of Jerusalem You still called them to hope in You. As I read of Your promises to Your beloved people I am again reminded that while I indeed do NOT know what tomorrow holds, I absolutely know Who holds it! Thank You Lord for holding not only all of our tomorrows, but our hearts and hands, our very lives themselves.

In Ezekiel 39:28 You are quoted as saying, “Then my people will know that I am the Lord their God, because I sent them into captivity among the nations, but then I brought them back to their own land, leaving no one behind.” Thank You Lord. You want desperately for us to learn. To listen. To obey. To worship and adore You. Teach us in this upcoming new year to become the people You want so very much for us to be.

I love You. I do not want to attempt to put You off or hold You at bay. I want to come rejoicing, with thanksgiving in my heart for all the blessings You have provided. Let me take those into the new year while leaving behind the fears and failings.

I love You Lord. VERY Happy New Year to You! Thank You. Amen.

(460 words ~ 4:35 p.m.)

Friend Jesus

Thursday, December 30, 2010 (7:51 a.m.)

Lake Arrowhead Chalets #120

Lake Arrowhead, CA

Blessed Lord,

I keep humming ♫You’ve Got A Friend in Me♫ and wondering if I should be trying to change my focus over to ♫What a Friend We Have In Jesus♫ Tell me Lord, do You want to talk with me this morning about being my Friend?

I’m feeling especially lost and sad right now. The sun is shining, the snow is melting and we’ve received news of the death of a dearly loved, fine, good 91 year-old gentleman. I guess sad might be an appropriate emotion after all.

(8:59 a.m.)

Stick with me, Lord. Stay with me here. I truly don’t know why I am being so stubborn. I’ve known all morning long that I need to begin our time together with a heartfelt ‘thank You’ and I wouldn’t do it because I just didn’t feel especially thankful. How selfish is that Lord?

You ARE my Friend! That in and of itself is more than enough to be truly thankful about.

Forgive me for caving in to all the negativity my mind keeps recalling. There is fear and sadness swimming around in there. But there is also faith and joy. I start to smile and then suck right back inside myself. I know this wave will pass. I can choose to dive under it, push past it, or even ride it in to shore. There are always choices. I have to decide which is best.

So I will thank You, Lord. Thank You for being my Friend! You are a precious gift. A gift I do not want to take for granted. You are big enough and strong enough and willing to hold all my burdens (Matthew 11:28-30).

You are the calm in our every storm (Matthew 8:23-27). You are all that we are not. And I AM thankful! Thankful to know You. Thankful to trust You. Thankful to turn to You and call You my Friend. Thank You Jesus. Thank You for loving me without conditions or limits. Thank You for forgiving me every single time I ask. ♫Thank You for being a Friend♫ A Friend. My Friend. THE Friend. Dear Friend. Good Friend. Friend Jesus. Yes. Thank You Friend Jesus.

Mm. And here it all finally comes together. The origin of the word: from Old English, German, Dutch and an Indo-European root meaning ‘to love’, shared by FREE. Hmm. Free to love Jesus. Mm. Yes! Thank You Jesus, my Friend who I am free to love. Thank You Lord. I DO love You. Teach me to do it well. Thank You. Amen.

(438 words ~ 10:01 a.m.)

faith

Wednesday, December 29, 2010 (7:26 a.m.)

Lake Arrowhead Chalets #120

Lake Arrowhead, CA

Amazing, Awesome God,

Thank You. So many thoughts. So much appreciation. Such love. Joy. Peace. Patience… (Galatians 5:22-23)

(8:59 a.m.)

We woke up this morning to snow falling. What a sharp contrast to the sunrise I experienced yesterday on the Newport Beach pier. Lord, You amaze me!

Attempting to do my own tracking of this particular storm, I checked outside our windows periodically throughout the night. I was completely unprepared for the amount of powdered-sugary appearance that had fallen between 5 a.m. and 7. What a sight to behold.

Thank You Lord. Thank You for the husband who had a boy scout’s foresight to go to the grocery store late last night in preparation to staying indoors all day today. Thank You for his willingness to work through the fact that we had far too much stuff and way too little space to bring back all we had acquired during our week’s stay at the beach.

Only You could have kept each of us involved from resorting to our usual snarky grumblings. You were absolutely there guiding us in our coming together as a team to get us safely from one place to another.

Thank You Lord. The other day when I had tears of sadness over leaving one idyllic spot for another, You were there allowing me to express myself. No longer do I need to feel like a whimp or a wuss. I get to just identify myself as one who is highly emotional and feels some things more deeply than others. Another huge contrast to the brutal conclusion I used to draw of myself.

Thank You Lord that it is truly You working in and through me that continues drawing me to Your will, Your way and Your Word. It is Your Word that I turned to first this morning. Particularly the book of Hebrews, as it pertains to faith. Faith in You. Faith to persevere. Faith to believe. Faith to trust. Faith to dream. Faith to hope. Faith. “Forsaking All I Trust Him” – Faith!

I practiced faith yesterday Lord. There was grumbling and growling and I chose to trust that it would pass. And it did. There were hurt feelings and tears and I chose to believe that those too would be resolved. And they were. You are good Lord. You are faithfully working in each of us. Turning our hearts and our wills to You. Learning. Believing. Hoping. Trusting. All in You.

Which brings me right back to my very first thought this morning. ALL of my faith is in You Lord! Thank You for growing faith such as this in me. I love You so very much. And I thank You beyond all realms of my own understanding. You are good and I am grateful Lord. Thank You. I love You. Amen.

(470 words ~ 10:16 a.m.)

Ah, but God...

Monday, December 27, 2010 (11:36 a.m.)

2000 Court Ave. Yellow House

Newport Beach, CA

Most Loving Lord,

I love You! You’ve got my back [and my front J], my insides, my outsides, my bottom, my top. In You I am safe and secure. And I thank You.

Tears are falling on my glasses and those that are not being shed, I know are softening and nourishing my soul.

Lord, I love You. That’s what it all comes down to today. It’s been almost a week. I’ve held up pretty well. It’s officially the third day of Christmas and we change locations tomorrow. All of this adds up to packing and memories and losses and choices and the sun sparkling on the ocean and my foundational decision to trust You with it all.

Choking back tears several hours ago, finally gave way to deep heaving sobs and the reality that I don’t want to go back. Thank You Lord for reminding me that You would not have me go back, but forward. Ever forward with You. Thank You Lord.

Thank You that with You I have the courage and the strength to face sadness. I can be as emotional as I need to be without there being something arrantly wrong with me. And it all keeps coming back to, “I love You”.

I watch stand up paddlers surfing the breakers and I grin from ear to ear while laughing out loud. I think of going inside to delicately pack up our most treasured Christmas decorations and begin again to feel the reemergence of sadness. And this is where I take another deep breath and remember Your very kind reminder to me much earlier on our walk together at the ocean’s edge. “Ah, but God…”

Thank You Lord for reminding me that every single thing I can’t do on my own, You are ever near to help me with it. I don’t want to pack up to go back? Ah, but God reminds me I’m going home or forward, or just leaving one place for another.

I don’t want to be overcome with emotion. Ah, but God is here to do in and for me that which I cannot do for myself. Never will You leave me nor forsake me. I HAVE to leave this current setting. In two days I won’t be waking up with a view of the Pacific Ocean right outside me window. Ah, but God not only will You go with me wherever I am going, You will go in me and before me.

Praying a favorite benediction of Michael Fischer’s I found on the Internet just now I ask You Lord to ever bless this family with Your truth and love. Wherever it is that we go may we be ever aware of Your presence there with us. Let the truth of these words sink into our hearts, souls, minds and bodies nourishing and nurturing us every step of our way.

“As you go on your way may Christ go with you. May He go before you to show you the way; May He go behind you to encourage you; Beside you to befriend you; Above you to watch over you; Within you to give you peace.”

Ah, but God You are so good to us. Thank You. I love You. Amen.

(556 words ~ 12:24 p.m.)

Christmas Eve

Friday, December 24, 2010 (6:57 a.m.)

2000 Court Ave. The Yellow House

Newport Beach, CA

Most Incredibly Good and Awesome God,

Here we are. It’s officially Christmas Eve. The stockings are hung. The tree is beautiful. Everyone is doing their level best to get along with one another. What else could we possibly need? Oh yes ~ YOU!

As beautiful as this has all been up ‘til now Dearest Lord, but for You it is all for naught.

Lord, how I thank You for the laughter that has decked these halls. Thank You for the little mishaps and ‘hiccups’ that have come along to remind me of the importance of looking to You for all our strength and hope.

Without the internet at my immediate disposal right now Dearest Lord, I am unable to sing all the words to the melody humming itself within me. ♫…All our hope is in You, Lord. All our strength [or is it ‘faith’?] is in You…♫ And once again I am distracted.

Focus, Woman! Mm. Woman. That IS what You are growing me into. No longer the fanciful girl of just a few short years ago, with idyllic visions of sugarplums still dancing in my head. No. A woman ~ YOUR woman “rooted and built up” in YOU, “strengthened in the faith” as I was taught and “overflowing with thankfulness” (Colossians 2:7).

Lord, I can’t possibly thank You enough for all You have done (and are continually doing) for us. And IN us! You are so incredibly good and we are genuinely, eternally grateful.

Thank You for Your loving gift of Your beloved Son (John 3:16). Teach us to be ever prudent in following Your well thought out and perfectly executed “Owner’s Manual” [Your Holy Word] for the care and use of such a prized gift as this.

With all the trimmings and trappings that could so easily sidetrack us this day, how I ask Lord that You would continue to point us right straight back to You every single time we begin to veer off the course YOU have set for us. Truly Lord, let our Christmas Eve hymn of all hymns be purely ♫We are one in His Spirit, We are one in His love…♫ Yes Lord. Let us TRULY be such so that others will absolutely ♫know we are Christians by our love, by our love. Yes [so] they will know we are Christians by our love♫ Thank You Lord. I love You SO much. VERY Merry Christmas Eve! Amen.

(424 words ~ 8:47 a.m.)