Are You Important?

Have you ever thought you were

not important?

In some situations,

when introducing myself

to someone, I will actually say,

"You don't need to remember my name.

I'm not important."

I mean, of course, that I'm

not a principal player

in the present situation.

I have a little cut on my finger.

I didn't even notice when I got it.

Thing is, I am frequently reminded
of the outrage my body is suffering (!)
by a little jolt when I wash dishes, crochet
or even push the bathroom door
shut behind  my back.

This finger is not very noticeable.
I don't usually take pictures of it.
It is not a star.
This finger's role is supportive.

Still, I have become aware that
the middle finger of my right hand
is useful and important.

To someone, you are a star.

To others, even yourself, you may seem
to be "just" support staff.

Still, you are important.

You know I Corinthians 12

27. Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.

12 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.

13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

14 For the body is not one member, but many.

15 If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?

16 And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?

17 If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling?

18 But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.

19 And if they were all one member, where were the body?

20 But now are they many members, yet but one body.

21 And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you.

26 And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it.

So, my dear fingers and toes,

hip joints and nose,

rejoice!  :)

Writing on the Wall

Deuteronomy 6 gives instructions about 

remembering and talking about

God's commandments at home.

Write them on the doorframes

 of your houses and on your gates.

Deuteronomy 6.9

Perhaps you have seen a

mezuzah or even tefillin.

(Have fun looking those up!)

Well, thought I,

what word or phrase would

I like to make as a motto

for our wall?

GRACE popped into my mind.

So, using some things I had on hand,
I drew out the letters and,
not without mishap,
cut them out.

I used the same contact paper
I got at Goodwill a while ago.

Using a Jot permanent marker,
I colored the front of the letters.

They were quite bold.

I decided I wanted to embellish
my letters, so I freehanded some
designs in the letters using
a craft knife and a hole punch.

- Hint:  If you decide to try
this in some form, cutting from
the paper side is a little
less tricky, think I,
because the vinyl side can stretch a bit
while being cut. -

Dollar Tree had some wall stickers.
I started out with one.

Two more ...

then the rest of one side of the
package were pressed into service...
(Get it  Oh, you did?  Sorry.)

(These inexpensive stickers needed careful handling.
Two got ripped.  They are hiding on the high
part...)

So, how much more can we say, "We were slaves...

but the Lord God brought us out...

with a mighty hand."

GRACE

Do I need a reminder?

Am I just stating a truth?

Both, I think. :)

FOREBODINGS

Do you ever get those feelings?

You know, (or maybe you don't)

the dark dread of something.

Sometimes it's just dark dread --

no "of" at all.

I can tell, sometimes, what it's all about.

Driving to a funeral, I will sometimes feel this way.

Then, I can reason it out, 

take a deep breath and

pray for help.

Sometimes, 

it is obviously

depression.

We've met, many times,

depression and I.

There are ways to 

shorten that meeting.

This is not what I'm thinking about.

Today, my father

called and said he is going to

spend some time in a

neighbor's garage.

Dad has been very sick.

Although the weather has moderated,

it is still barely above freezing.

I got a horrible feeling.

Now, when this happens,

I know it can just be my own fear

attempting to attract more

notice than it is due.

I know it can be just me, 

being out of sorts.

I know it can also be

God's Holy Spirit

warning me.

You know,

 And thine ears shall hear a word 

behind thee, saying, 

This is the way, walk ye in it, 

when ye turn to the right hand, 

and when ye turn to the left.

Isaiah 30.21

I have not heard

with my physical ears,

but I have certainly 

experienced this in my life.

So, how do I know

if I am just in a bad mood,

afraid or getting direction?

I stop and pray.

Today, I called Dad,

and told him I had doubts about his plan.

The feeling is relieved.

I still don't know the origin

of that heavy, dark feeling.

I do know

if I was meant to do more

about the situation

I would still feel uncomfortable.

This knowledge comes

from years of experiencing

guidance from my loving Father.

I trust him.

I put everything in His hands.

I listen for His direction.

He never fails. :)

Yep! Me, Too

Spotted in town, today.

On reflection, I kind of like
feeling like a "MIZ FIT"
upon occasion.

Although I love so much
about it, I like to remember
that:
"This world is not my home
I'm just a passing through."

:)

A Little Giving of Thanks, November Seventh

This is the coloring page I was
trying to get when I printed
the turkey picture.

To me it signifies abundance.

Now, I struggle with what I think
is called hoarding.
One might say the overabundance
of goods readily available  to me
has made a problem.

There has usually been an
abundance of food for me.
Even though I need to
slim down, I am so thankful
for abundant food.

There is, and has been an
abundance of love in my life.
I am loved by family and
church family -- so many
people on Earth and
gone before that I'm not
sure I could count them.

How grateful I am for
abundant love.

There are other things
I could list, but the greatest
is
grace.

Grace sufficient.

Life abundant.

I don't know if there is
a Bible verse that backs up
this thought, but
I'm so thankful for
abundant grace.

When I have stumbled,
fallen, acted out,
dissapointed...
all those places where
I fall short,
which is in every way,
really,
there is still grace.

No matter how many people
need grace and how much
of it we need
there is enough.

Wow!

Thank you, God! :)

A Little Giving of Thanks, November Sixth

As was crafting some little stars, today,
I thought of how thankful I am for stars.

No, not my little crafted stars, but the
real ones and what they represent
to me.

Stars often seem dim and insignificant,
though very pretty.
The stars that accompanied me
on my short walks around the
sanctuary building when I was
in Bible school looked closer
and interested me.
When I could not see them,
their light often softened
the cloudy dark.

Of course we know that stars are
not dim.  Their light is so strong
that it reaches us from far away.

Perhaps, sometimes,
God's plan seems dim.
We can not see it fully because
of the thoughts that cloud
our own atmosphere.

The plan is still in place.
Our Father is still in control.

These things are true
whether we see them
or not.

I'm giving thanks
that we can know this.

A Little Giving of Thanks, November Fifth

Okay, this may sound odd and a little "preachy."

What I'm thankful for today floated to the surface

again because I made an error in printing out the

coloring page and got the turkey.

It reminded me of how sidetracked some people

become about the holiday, Thanksgiving.

I get irritated when people refer to 

"Turkey Day."

Worse, someone I knew used to call

it "National Pig Out Day."

PLEASE!

It's not about the turkey
or the dressing.

It's not about the family
or the football.

It's not about the pilgrims
or any historical feasts.

Thanksgiving is about giving thanks.

Specifically, we give thanks to God 

for His provision of, well everything!

There is so much to be thankful for,

from salvation (the big thing)

to every breath we take.

 (That's no small thing!)

I guess to sum it up, I could say,

"I'm thankful to be thankful." :)

Seeing the Real Picture

Stop me if you have heard this one.

Wait! Don't!

I heard it years ago

and I still love it.

Then I saw a short film of Corrie Ten Boom

using some needlepoint,

I think, to illustrate this object lesson. 

So, here goes.

Here is the part of God's work we can usually see.
Got the picture?
Well, no, I don't have the picture
because I'm seeing a small part of the back of
the embroidery.

Sometimes we catch a glimpse of the whole picture.
We get an idea of what God is doing.
Still, we can't see the real beauty of it.
Why so much black?
Isn't brown kind of boring?
 

If you look at the right side

everything becomes clear.
(This is not my work, by the way.)

When we have seen God's plan come together 

we marveled at His handiwork.

When we see the whole picture,

as I think we will, in Heaven,

I think that we will be speechless

at the intricate beauty of it all.

The heavens declare the glory of God;

and the firmament showeth his handiwork Psalm 19. 1 Everything that He creates declares His glory! Even me! :)

For we are his workmanship

Ephesians 2.10

Growing Together

Last Friday I was taking

pictures of God's handiwork.

I noticed these things all in the same hedge.

They could have been all in the same bush,

but in a hedge of roses, I didn't try 

to figure it out.

A bud,

a full blown rose,

a fading flower

and rose hips, already
drying up,
were all there together.

How like us human beings, I thought.

While some are just starting, others

are coming to the end of their lives.

How like the way God works in us.

Do we despise the the bud because

it is not yet fully flowered?

Hardly!

Do we have the same tender smile 

for those who have barely begun

growing in some area God has 

been developing in us

for some time?

Well, do we?

Irritation, is more likely to be my reaction, 

unless the other Christian is very young.

Dear Holy Spirit has been gently pointing out 

to me that He has a purpose in our lives

and there is more to this journey than what 

I see.

What I think another "should" have learned

by now, is not my business.

Quite often I disappoint myself.

Grace and mercy are always there for me.

In becoming like Jesus,

I want to show grace and mercy

to others.

I want to remember that we are all growing

at different rates in different areas.

Speaking of which,

look what else was growing

in that hedge.

Still beautiful.

Still fruitful.
 
Nothing to do with a rose, at all.

While the Gardener may be growing
roses in your plot, right now
I may be producing
a lovely leaf
or 
some shiny red berries.

It's all according to His plan.

Oh, Lord, please help me
think mercifully
and show love
when I would criticize.
Thank You for Your
patience with me.

What is It?

Is it art?
Is it something you may have
seen?
Do you recognise it?

This is how I did it.

First, find an object.
This one reminded me of a small
pitcher we used to have,
lo, these many years ago.
So, (sigh) I bought it.

Next, take a picture at an
unusual angle.

I set my camera for macro,
removed the top of the pitcher
and
poked my lens in,
pointing as close to straight down
as I could manage.

Then, of course, mess with the
colors, the pixels and the composition.
I used GIMP 2.

Eat Violas!

Sorry to be so silly,
but if I can find something
pretty about an ordinary object,
then, with my limited resources,
add to it's beauty,
just think
what God is making
of you and me! :)

 He hath made every thing beautiful in his time Ecclesiastes 3.11

Artistic Cropping

Take a "nothing" doodle,

crop it,

play 

with

the

colors

and

maybe

crop some more,
and you may have something.
Maybe not.

Here's the thing, though.

If you have a Master Artist

offer to crop, which means cut down,

your work, that changes it so it's no longer

just your work.

If we hold on to what we think is

good and do not let, even ask,

our faithful

God 

to cut out the parts that 

do not fit His plan,

we will end up 

with just our own work.

Of course,

we would rather have 

His beautiful plan

than what we can

make on our own.

So, when I want

my own way, 

help me to remember this,

please,

LORD.

But now, O LORD, 

thou art our father; we are the clay,

 and thou our potter; 

and we all are the work of thy hand.  

Isaiah 

64.8

 Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? 

Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?

Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?  

Romans 9.20 & 21   

I sometimes wish I was 

more of an ornamental vessel.

Silly, me.

God made me for a purpose.

He knows what He's doing. :)

He Reigns!

I was thinking
(yes, that is dangerous)
about the title of this book
and how often people
act like they believe it.

Fact is, there are at least two
interpretations of this little
phrase, and the book
is a list of rules
about money.

I believe in being a good steward.
I sure can use some improvement
in this area, which is why
I picked up the book.

Back to my thought:
Whether I tend to think
that "it's who you know"
or
if you have enough money
(fill in the blank)
or
that dishonesty
trumps truth,
the fact remains

that

I want to keep focusing on this!

Thank You, God!

1 The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof.

2 Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne.

3 A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about.

4 His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled.

5 The hills melted like wax at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.

6 The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory.

7 Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods.

8 Zion heard, and was glad; and the daughters of Judah rejoiced because of thy judgments, O Lord.

9 For thou, Lord, art high above all the earth: thou art exalted far above all gods.

10 Ye that love the Lord, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.

11 Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart.

12 Rejoice in the Lord, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.