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Patience and Endurance

Today, Grandson and I plant on barren ground. Scattering seeds, leaving them to soak up sun and water, we hope for a sea of wildflowers next summer.

And I am reminded that I am an impatient person.

Chances are, these wildflowers will not be at the height of their glory for two or even three years. IF they germinate and take root. IF they are not choked out by other grasses and weeds. IF the mix of sunlight and shade is right. When it comes right down to it, I have no idea if I will ever see one blossom from these seeds.

But we scattered, hoping.

This morning, it was only wildflowers. But throughout my days, I plant many other seeds. I’m beginning to realize what an impatient person I am. I would prefer to see results now. I want guarantees. I grow weary of sowing, when I see nothing sprouting.

Do you grow tired of planting in hope on barren ground? Do not give up! The Scriptures encourage us.

We all know the admonishment, “Do not be weary in well-doing….” But sometimes, we do grow weary. Sometimes, we do want to give it up. Sometimes, we think all we do is in vain.

So how do we hang in there?

Willpower will not keep us in the race. Willpower is too easily convinced to quit. The only thing that keeps us hanging in there is hanging onto the Vine.

Patience is one of the fruits of the Spirit. He gives us the power to endure, even though we do grow weary, even though we might sometimes want to call a halt to the sowing.

Christ promises that His Spirit brings us the power to endure. I suspect that most of us have experienced only a tiny speck of the power and endurance that the Spirit can produce within us.

And — the strange thing that we know but that our human nature resists — it is only in the battle, in weakness, in struggle, that we learn to cling to the Vine, who builds our endurance and makes us strong.

I guess that’s why James tells us to Consider it pure joy, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. (James 1:2)

But when you cannot see the joy, when you grope in darkness for encouragement, when it seems you have nothing left within you to continue to plant hopeful seeds, then cling to the Vine.

The Father says,

Don’t be afraid, for I am with you.
Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you.
I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.
             (Isaiah 41:10 NLT)

When we hold onto the Vine, the Vine holds us. And He promises victory!

We pray also that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light.   (Colossians 1:11-12)

May His power give us patience and endurance, fill us with joy, and enable us to live in our inheritance as His children.

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Weary and discouraged? “What do you choose to see?”

I am trying to open my eyes today, because it is the only thing that will keep me going. I am straining to see, looking through a dark and blurry glass.

It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger. He kept right on going, because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible. (Hebrews 11:27)

Moses moves the children of Israel out of Egypt, no longer afraid of the people who had kept them as slaves for 400 years.

Walking away from that which held them captive for centuries! Walking away from a power that previously crushed and crippled! Walking away, without fear.

I want to walk to freedom, without fear, keeping my eyes on the One who is invisible.

But what if today I cannot open my eyes, much less see? I am blind and captive and weary.

So I go to the Scriptures for daily manna, ask for the Bread that gives life. I ask for eyes to see, eyes of faith.

Father, let me see.

Let me see the One who is invisible. Isn’t that what faith is? Seeing God in whatever we are looking at? Seeing, in the midst of all of my life, His gifts, His glory and power, His working for our good? Eyes not open to the One Invisible see only hopelessness, no redemption.

Eyes that can see are eyes of faith, able to live.

But Father, I cannot see today! Today, I cannot walk by faith. Help my unbelief.

The answer is gentle: You have eyes, child. What do you choose to see?

It is truth. Christ, the Truth, came to open eyes that are blind. His Spirit does that now, every day.

The Spirit reminds me: I have eyes. I have just been looking at the wrong things.

I have been looking at the Egyptian slave drivers, at bricks that must be made without straw, at the king who drowns baby boys in the river, at enemies who pursue me to snatch away my freedom, at the impossible Red Sea, at barren desert around me.

I must shift my soul’s gaze.

Let us run the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith…
(Hebrews 12:1-2)

Jesus, the One who opens our blind eyes, also gives us new eyes of faith.
     Eyes to see the invisible.
     Eyes to see things that will last forever (2 Corinthians 4:18).
     Eyes to understand the hope, riches, and power given to the child of God.
            Ephesians 1:18)

Jesus, the Truth, will perfect my faith … is perfecting my faith. But if I do not keep my eyes on Him, daily take in the Living Water and Bread of Life, I become discouraged and weary.

Interesting, that the Hebrews 12 passage says that if you keep your eyes on Jesus, you won’t become weary and give up. And that’s exactly what happened to the Israelites in slavery. Even when Moses brought them God’s promise of rescue and a new land of milk and honey, they refused to listen. They had become too discouraged by the brutality of their slavery. (Exodus 6:9)

Jesus, you have opened my eyes to the Invisible One. You are Truth. You have initiated my faith. Perfect it!　

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Psalm 40: Joys, Wonders, Plans

Every September, we trek to Maine for a week of recreating and renewing ourselves and our friendship. The Maine Ladies have almost a decade of memories tucked away that we sometimes bring out and inspect and admire yet one more time, relishing our treasure.

We are a group of seven. Although we are almost never all together throughout the rest of the year, we keep in touch. We share a spiritual connection and, when any one is missing from the September Maine vacation, we feel as though our body lacks an arm or foot or hand.

The amazing thing about us is that … we are. All agree, this is a combination of ladies that none of us would have ever thought to put together. We come from different towns and varying life circumstances. No two of us attend the same church. Yet, somehow, this group came together, clicked, and endured.

All of us agree, this group is a gift from God to each one of us.

Oh, the joys of those who trust the LORD,
who have no confidence in the proud
or in those who worship idols.

O LORD my God, you have performed many wonders for us.
Your plans for us are too numerous to list.
You have no equal.

If I tried to recite all your wonderful deeds,
I would never come to the end of them.

May I just say AMEN! and stop here?

Oh, the joys of placing myself and my life in the hands of our Father,
     instead of resting my hopes in those who are so sure of their
                   own capabilities, strength and control
    or laying my life on the altar of all those things the world today worships and 
                   adores.

What joys? All the wonders He performs for us. And I could write about the monumental, life-changing miracles like making us new creatures or engineering a new job or healing a heartbreak.  But today, let’s think about the small, too-often overlooked gifts of every day, like friendships, a word of encouragement at just the right time, a rainy day.

I’m still reading Ann Voskamp’s book One Thousand Gifts. It’s a book to be taken in small bites and then digested. To remind herself to look for the daily gifts, she keeps a written, numbered list of all those things for which she is grateful. Her list tells of ordinary things in her farmer’s-wife life, like “nylons without runs” and “kettle whistling for tea on a cold afternoon.” She calls this a list of all the ways God loves her, “the pulse of His love.”

I can make my own list every day:
     a grandchild snuggling close
     music of the rain in the woods
     someone else cleaning up the mess after I cook dinner

These tiny little things that we love season our lives, come as gifts from the heart of our Father. When we start paying attention and offering thanks, we do indeed hear the heartbeat of His love for us.

And what excitement, what security, what peace comes with knowing that God’s plans for us are too numerous to list!

I rest in that, knowing the Lord of the Universe has plans for ME (amazing) and hearing every day the pulse of His love.

　

Scripture: Psalm 40:4-5(NLT)

You can read more of Ann Voskamp’s thoughts on her blog at www.aholyexperience.com.  (Her post today on forgiving your parents is … wow … for every child and every child who has become a parent.)

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Psalm 40: In the Pit, Remember

Because I am a writer, part of my job is to study the craft, sharpen my skills, practice, practice, practice. Someone once suggested that Psalm 40 is “the writer’s psalm”, a passage to combat writer’s block, fatigue, burnout, fear of failure, discouragement, lack of courage—everything that writers face in their writing lives.

I’d suggest that it’s also the mother’s psalm, the retiree’s psalm, the factory worker’s psalm, the administrator’s psalm, the bookkeeper’s psalm, the social worker’s psalm, the student’s psalm, the truck driver’s psalm …

David writes for all of us whose hearts are set on pilgrimage. He was, like us, one who trusted in God, who believed and received God’s unfailing love and faithfulness. He was also one who sometimes landed in the mud at the bottom of the pit of despair.

Jeremiah 38 tells the story about the prophet who is doing exactly what God tells him to do, yet he is thrown into a cistern and left to die, because those who don’t like what he’s saying want to silence him. At the bottom of the pit, Jeremiah sinks into mud and will soon starve, unless rescue comes quickly.

And sometimes we’re thrown into the pit and we start sinking into the mud of despair, the mire of discouragement, the muck of … what? Fatigue? Low self-esteem? Guilt? Loneliness? Worry? Temptations? Fill in that last word yourself. What is it that drags you down, holds you captive, and keeps you from walking on solid ground and singing new songs?

I waited patiently for the LORD to help me,
    and he turned to me and heard my cry.

He lifted me out of the pit of despair,
    out of the mud and the mire.
He set my feet on solid ground
    and steadied me as I walked along.

He has given me a new song to sing,
    a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see what he has done and be amazed.
    They will put their trust in the LORD.

Although the writer puts this in the past tense, not all of the muck and mud and mire is behind him. If you read the entire chapter, you’ll see him crying for help yet again. Rescue me! I’ve lost courage! I can’t find my way out!

It’s as though he begins writing to remind himself of what God has done in the past, remembering that God can — and will — pull him out of the pit.

A lesson for us. A lesson for me. God has pulled me out of the mud so many times when I could not free myself, when I could see no escape, when all I could do was cry, “Help! I’m sinking!”  I’m guessing He has rescued you, too. He hears our cries. His love for us is never forgetful or absent.

Not only does He pull us out, He sets our feet on solid ground, steadies us as we go onward, and gifts us with a new song of praise. Out of our times in the pit come new strengths and new thankfulness.

These three verses remind me to remember. Remember what my Lord has done in my life. When I’m in the mud at the bottom of the pit, I must remember. Cry for help and rescue, yes. But do not lose heart, because I know that He hears, He rescues. And then He strengthens and renews!

He brings good things from our hard places, not only for us, but also for others. Many will be amazed. Many will know that only the LORD could have done this. Many will put their trust in Him, too.

I hope when people look at my life they know that only God could do what has been done, what is being done. I do know this—when you share with me stories of your hard times and rescues, you encourage me, my faith is strengthened, I am reminded —

If God is for us, who can be against us ?

Scripture: Psalm 40:1-3 (NLT); Romans 8:31 (NIV)

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The Might of Higher Communings

One more statement to add to the list of swallowings: My human desires swallowed up by His divine nature.

 

By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.
2 Peter 1:3-4 (NLT)

 

Read the first statement in that passage again, and try to answer this question honestly:  Do I believe that?

On the days when you feel overwhelmed, on the days when all that is mortal within you rises up and shows its ugly face, on the days that living a godly life seems like a hopeless ideal … can you still believe that God makes available to you everything you need to live a godly life?

Even more radical, can you believe that your nature can change, that you can share God’s divine nature? Wow. Sounds extreme, doesn’t it? Spirit, help our unbelief!

Tucked between those two statements is the secret of “how” this happens. We have received all of this by coming to know him, and by acting on the promises He has made us.

In Diary of an Old Soul, George MacDonald writes:

And he who thinks, in his great plenitude,
To right himself, and set his spirit free,
Without the might of higher communings,
Is foolish also…..

How we long to have our spirits set free. On those days when discouragement, defeat, black moods, temper, selfishness, bitterness, unforgiveness, and a host of other mortal powers threaten to shipwreck our lives — how our spirits cry to be free of those things!

We struggle to right ourselves. But we’re very much like the disciples of Jesus, tossed about in a little boat in the middle of a stormy lake. We know we can’t save ourselves. All we can do is cry “Master, Master! We’re going to drown!” 　

Only the Master calms the waves. Only the Spirit of God can cleanse us. Only the “might of higher communings” sets us free.

Isn’t it wonderful that Peter is the one who writes this to us? Peter, the disciple who walked on water, and then sank. Peter, the one who declared Jesus was the Son of God, and then deserted Him when He was arrested. Peter, who surely knew just as many ups and downs in his faith walk as we do, but whose life was changed by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Now Peter knows his death is near, and he encourages us, tells us that God gives us everything we need to live godly lives.

We receive what we need by coming to know God and by acting on His promises to us. 　

Psalm 25:15,20

My eyes are ever on the LORD,
for only he will release my feet from the snare.
Guard my life and rescue me;
let me not be put to shame,
for I take refuge in you.

Only the LORD releases us from the snare, from the mortal. He rescues us, guards our lives, holds us in His hands, gives us everything we need to live His life. 

Our mortal is swallowed up by his divine nature. Amazing.

This is the hope to which you’re called today, child of God.