Wedding Day

My niece is marrying the man of her dreams today. She was willing to wait as long as it took for Prince Charming to arrive. And when he did arrive, he was definitely worth the wait!

How often we settle for less because we are impatient. We despise waiting for anything. We want what we want when we want it--which is NOW! And, because we are good at manipulating circumstances, we can get something now. Something--but is it the best? 

There's an old adage that says "He who acts in haste repents at leisure."

I don't want to live with regret. Instead, I want to be more like my niece, willing to wait for God's best. And, while I'm waiting, I can spend time getting to know King Charming--the Creator of all things bright and beautiful.

Showers of Blessing (continued)

So did you? Did you ask God to shower you with a particular blessing? Have you heard anything yet? If so, do you care to share?

If you haven't heard yet, remember Ezekiel 34:26 says He will cause the shower to come down in His season, not necessarily ours. Just because you haven't heard yet, doesn't mean you won't hear. 

Remember, His answers are one of three: Yes, No, and Maybe. Or, as one of the characters in the book I'm writing has just learned, sometimes His answer is "Yes, but wait!"

May God give us patience as we wait.

Showers of Blessing

We got so sick of rain in the Pacific Northwest this spring. Now that we're enjoying the warmth of summer, it feels okay to talk about showers--showers of blessing.

God promised to send showers of blessing on His people.

"And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing;

and I will cause the shower to come down in his season;

there shall be showers of blessing."

~Ezekiel 34:26

What is a blessing you'd like to receive from the Lord? Have you asked Him? Why not ask Him today?

Keep in mind that He will send it in His season, i.e., when the time is right for you and those around you. But go ahead and ask. He loves hearing from His children.

"If" by Rudyard Kipling (Part 10)

I love the poem "If" by Rudyard Kipling . . . thirty-two lines of wisdom that provide possibly the best instruction in manliness (why not womanliness, too?) written by a father to his son. The father concludes that if  his son will assimilate this good advice into his conduct, then

"Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!"

_____________________________________

This is our final day to consider the poem. Let's look at the last four lines:

"If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,

Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!"

 

Why does he call it the unforgiving minute? 

 

Sometimes what you're doing is hard. Minutes seem like hours, and you'd like to throw in the towel. Press on despite hardship. Keep going even though there are things you'd rather be doing. Robert Frost alluded to this when he wrote "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." 

 

"The woods are lovely, dark, and deep, 

But I have promises to keep, 

And miles to go before I sleep, 

And miles to go before I sleep."

Promises, commitments, obligations need to be kept regardless of our mood or preferences. We can "sleep" later, but now the clock is ticking and we must be busy with the task at hand.

Jesus spoke to this often. "I must be about my Father's business," and "I always do what pleases him [God]." Don't you suppose Jesus was thinking about His Father's business when He hung on the cross?  Don't you think He was grateful when the work was done, when He uttered the words, "It is finished." All those unforgiving minutes (and hours) were over and He was free to give up His spirit.

If you can fill your unforgiving minute with sixty seconds' worth of distance run . . . . if you can give it your best shot . . . if you can strive for excellence in your chosen (or assigned) task when you'd rather be doing something--anything--else, then you are mature . . . and, according to Kipling, you'll be a Man, my son!


And keep one thing more in mind, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving"
(Colossians 3:23-24).

"If" by Rudyard Kipling (Part 9)

I love the poem "If" by Rudyard Kipling . . . thirty-two lines of wisdom that provide possibly the best instruction in manliness (why not womanliness, too?) written by a father to his son. The father concludes that if  his son will assimilate this good advice into his conduct, then

"Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!"

_____________________________________

The next four lines of this remarkable poem are these:

"If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch,

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,

If all men count with you, but none too much;"

Ever notice how many famous people, Christians as well as secular, lose their virtue along the way? Or how many media personalities have sunk under the weight of adulation? Or how many political leaders have sold out to lobbyists in order to maintain their power? It's a rare person who manages to retain his principles and his virtue when examined under the microscope of popularity.

Similarly, a man (or woman) can lose his balance as well as his effectiveness when he becomes thin-skinned. A man (or woman) of principle, one who can claim "the earth and everything that's in it," is one who does not find his significance in temporal relationships where foes and loving friends can hurt him. Rather, he finds his significance in the unchanging Lord of the universe.

The one who keeps God as his North star will, naturally, value all men because all men are made in the image of God. But he will not over-value men because he realizes that all men (and women) have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Rather, he will keep his eyes on God and follow wherever He leads.

"If" by Rudyard Kipling (Part 8)

I love the poem "If" by Rudyard Kipling . . . thirty-two lines of wisdom that provide possibly the best instruction in manliness (why not womanliness, too?) written by a father to his son. The father concludes that if  his son will assimilate this good advice into his conduct, then

"Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!"

_____________________________________ 

 

Now let's look at more of "If."

"If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

Ever been there? Have you been so burned that your heart is broken, your nerves are shot, and your body aches? You have nothing left to give. You are spent. Yet for some reason--family, friends, honor, necessity--you feel compelled to press on.

 

And so you do! By force of Will, you command your heart, your nerves and body to hold on.

The apostle Paul must have felt that way when he "boasted of his sufferings."

"I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches . . . ."

How could Paul continue under those conditions? He understood a key Biblical principle that helped him (and will help you and me) when he had no power left in himself. Paul was willing, most gladly, to suffer for the cause of Christ--even boasting in his weaknesses, "so that Christ's power may rest on me."  

When Paul asked for relief to take away his "thorn in the flesh," the Lord told him:

 

"My grace is sufficient for you,

for my power is made perfect in weakness."

We have the same indwelling Spirit the apostle Paul had. And that Holy Spirit will give you and me the power to press on  when we are at our weakest. So, hold on! Surely, your reward will be greater than the earth and everything that's in it. Surely, your reward will be a "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."