Dear Warrior

Dear Warrior,

News has recently reached our ears that the fighting has been fierce where you are stationed. We have heard the stories of your company’s great heroics in gaining ground previously held by the enemy. A great sense of pride has been unleashed here at home and has united all our hearts. The young men and even boys have this eager gleam in their eyes to join in the battle; they are ready to rise up and take their place along side their heroes and even now are consecrating themselves before the Lord and waiting for the Holy Spirit to bid them “go”.

You should see the way the young women look at their warriors, they are so proud of them, so eager to cheer them on. The love in their eyes barely rivals though, that of the wives of your men. Their eyes shine brightly with pride and joy in every story told, no matter how many times it is repeated. There is no fear there; for we all know that this battle is the Lord’s and He has already declared victory. Still, we all know that the enemy continues to try to take prisoners so everyone here is continually burning incense before the Lord, praying always for your strength, courage, clear minds and pure hearts.

There have been some small skirmishes here as the enemy has sent spies to test our weaknesses, and snatch our little ones. We are learning to be vigilant here too; keenly aware that the battle you fight is not in some distant land but very near. You would be delighted to see how the princesses are rising up to fight against the enemy forces. Who knew they were all warriors under their feminine exteriors! I think they are surprising even themselves.

Daddy wanted me to tell you that reinforcements are in route! Many will arrive before you even get this. He has given his angels charge over you and all has promised that victory and peace will be ours very soon, and to the Victor goes the spoils!

We all send our love to you and your men. I hope you will relay my affection to our dear Captain. (Though, I’m sure you know, I’ve sent him a personal message already.) My friends and I also compiled a small care package with hope that you will be refreshed by it.

All my love,

Sis

The LORD will be your confidence and keep your foot from being snared. Proverbs 3:26

The Lord will keep you from all harm, he will watch over your life. Psalm 121:7

Dear Dreamer

Dear Dreamer, Keep on dreaming, but don't dream without living. Trust your dreams to me.

Love,
The Dream Giver
Psalm 33:11

The Big Brown Chair

This title sounds like it should be on a children’s book, but not this time. This time it refers to a virtual member of our family. In 1988 my in-laws built a new house and bought a new living room suit to go in the house. It included three pieces, a sofa, a love seat and an oversized chair. They didn’t have a place for the over sized chair so I took it home with me. Since then this big brown chair has been a fixture in our home. It has been moved 15 times across the country as far west as Amarillo, TX; north to Union City, TN and as far south as Miami, FL. Now it has come to a semi-permanent resting in Dallas, GA.

Why am I telling you about this chair? What is so special about it? Well, beside the fact that it was the first thing Lisa ever climbed on and where I fell asleep during many a 2 a.m. feeding for each of my three children it has, almost consistently for the past 21 years been my sanctuary. Morning after morning for all these years, God and I have met together in this chair. Many times Gary and I have knelt together and asked God to rescue us from feelings of fear, defeat and confusion as we faced “giants” in our lives. In this chair I prayed for my childrens' salvations, which God has graciously given there have been thousands of prayers, thousands of answers, great revelations, and heartfelt repentance all in this chair.

After 21 years it’s beginning to show its age, a spring or two is broken, the cushion is not as cushiony there are thread bare places here and there and the lining on the bottom is torn and sagging, but you know what, it doesn’t really matter to me. As far as I’m concerned I’d like to have this chair until the day I die. Sure I can and have met God in other places but THIS is my sanctuary, that place where nothing else can penetrate when I am one on one with my great and mighty God, the Creator of all things and Sustainer of all things.

While there have been times, like when my kids were babies, that I did little else but sleep in this chair, God, understanding that I am made of clay, has always met with me in one way or another. My hope is, that if you don’t already, that you have a place, a “closet”, where you know you will find God when you look for Him, a place where you can dig in deep and grow in your relationship with your Creator. It can be a challenge but it bears valuable rewards.

Confessions from the Sick-Bed

I have a terrible illness today. I’ve been feeling it come on for a week now but it really hit hard yesterday. Today I still feel pretty bad but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. What is so awful about this illness is that I could have prevented it from getting this bad. I could have stopped it at the first symptom but I simply put a up a half-hearted stop sign that failed to do anything and now I am miserable and have to fight harder to regain lost ground than if I’d just stood strong in the beginning.

“What is this illness?” you ask. “What could you have done to stop it? And most importantly why didn’t you stop it?”

All good questions, I’m not really sure I can answer the last one but I’ll explore it. The illness is Iwantitus; otherwise known as the “I want” disease. It is as common as a cold but not always recognized to be dangerous or even an illness. I assure you, it is both. The symptoms crop up innocently enough with a simple desire for something for yourself. Usually we don’t see this as a problem because plenty of wants are very healthy and should be pursued. The way I recognize the bad wants is how I react when I don’t or can’t get what I want. If my emotions move past simple and temporary disappointment into frustration, anger and depression I have Iwantitus.

My first hint that this was coming on was last weekend when I realized I was going to have to plan my day around the needs and wants of a couple of other people. Not a problem, I could do that. There were only two things that I wanted to do and they could easily fit into everyone else's plans. The problem came when scheduling for all these things changed three times in the course of the afternoon. I was able to complete the one task I had in mind and get a gift for my son. But my idea of spending a quite hour sipping coffee and writing kept getting bumped. In true contortionist fashion I bent. I adapted to each new schedule constantly holding on to the hope that I’d get my hour. Well, my hour never came. By the time all was said and done I was tired, hungry and cross. There! My first hint! I was cross. I tried to pass it off on being tired and hungry but that was a lie and I knew it. But since I didn’t treat it like a lie and expel it then and there I am now paying the price.

I was cross because I didn’t get to do what I wanted to do and although it was a little, insignificant want I allowed it to become an issue. Once I did that, I left a gap in my defenses and became vulnerable to this disease. Everywhere I looked I could see things I wanted that were either beyond my ability to obtain or just plain stupid. Then those nasty little demons, Never and Always, started to creep in and we had a full-blown pity party as out of control as those teen aged, house-wrecking parties they show on T.V. and movies. Finally, this morning, when felt myself get angry because my daughter had borrowed my favorite shaving lotion and didn’t put it back where I could use it, I realized how sick I really was and I needed to get a handle on this thing now.

So what do I do? How do you get rid of Iwantitus? Well, that LAST thing you want to do is let it “run it’s course” that could be fatal. Here is my Rx:

• Recognize the root of the problem. I am not trusting God. I don’t trust that he really cares for me and the things that he has given me are good, and enough. I’m not trusting that all the things in my life that I have no control over are under HIS control.

• Remember who God is and how good He is to me. He didn’t spare his only son from death on the cross won’t he also graciously give me all the other things I need? (Romans 8:32)

• Recount my blessings. Scripture teaches me that thankfulness works like a guard on my heart and mind to keep out fear. (Philippians 4:6-7)

• Recapture my mind and take every thought captive and submit it to the will of God. (2 Corinthians 10:5)

I really like order in my life but my life is filled with disorder, especially my little heart-shaped basket of wants. This morning I sat across from God at the table and slid my jumbled-up, trash-filled basket over to him and asked him to sort through it and discard the junk and put only HIS wants in there. Because all I truly want is to be filled with Him.

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world
as it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
if I surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life
and supremely happy with Him
Forever in the next.
Amen.
--Reinhold Niebuhr

The Engagement

August 15, 2009

My daughter is officially engaged! She has the ring and the euphoria to prove it too! This morning I slept in a bit and woke to hearing her and her fiancé down in the living room laughing and talking…apparently still a little giddy from the events of yesterday. I expect that will last a while. Hopefully they will be like (or better) than Gary and me and still be a bit that way 26 years from now. I want them to have a ridiculously amazing passion for each other 50 years from now. (Lord, let it be.) So, as I was getting up and dressed this morning I was thinking on all of this and God reminded me of our engagement. (Have you ever looked at the word “engage” in the dictionary? The definition is pretty exciting.) It is really beautiful how so many things in our world, traditions included, truly do come from the throne of God. Look at the engagement ring for example.

Yesterday Joshua offered Lisa the traditional engagement ring as a symbol of his desire and promise to make her his bride and Lisa, ecstatically, took that ring and will continue to wear it as a proof that she has agreed to that promise, accepted the privilege of becoming his bride, and will keep her heart faithfully committed to him. What a beautiful picture of Christ and the church! One that we can look around us and see everywhere; young engaged couples, brides and grooms, young married couples all the way up to the silver headed couples surrounded by three generations of children. All promising, living out the promise and living in hope of a continued promise over and over and over again. All of them, a living portrait of Christ Jesus and the Church. Do you see it?

Thirty-six years ago I became engaged to Jesus. He promised that if I committed my life to him that one day he would return and make me his bride. I accepted his offer, agreed to keep my heart committed to him the rest of my life and as a symbol of this promise he gave me his Spirit . The power of God’s Spirit in my life is equivalent to the diamond that now sparkles on my daughter’s hand. Everyone that looks at my daughter will know that she has committed herself to Joshua for she will proudly display that ring to anyone and everyone she meets. She will care for it and keep it sparkling, just like her eyes sparkle when she looks at him. Do my eyes still sparkle at Jesus? Do I display the power of God’s Spirit in my life with pride, careful to be sure he shines through me? My sweet husband has loved me well, selflessly, understandingly, faithfully for almost 26 years now. I adore him and I am honored to be loved by him. But even Gary has never loved me as perfectly as Jesus has before I ever knew who he was he loved me. He gave all he had so we could be together so while I wait for him to come back and take me home with him I will wrap myself up in his Comforter . Like my daughter and Joshua admire the ring on her finger, not for its beauty but for all the hope and love it represents, I will sink myself into the Holy Spirit and dream in hope of that day that I will, all dolled-up in a beautiful dress , be one with my Beloved.