Thinking on these things . . .

Nothing beats a good masseuse or chiropractor. You know, it's that feeling, when they put their hand exactly on a spot, and you suddenly realize "a ha!", that's the cause of my problem and stress. And then they work their magic and the knot is gone, the muscle relaxed, or the area adjusted. Ah...hurts so good.... What about when God puts his finger on a place in our heart that needs some work: that "ouch", that's a tender spot feeling...? Hurts so good? Recently God put his finger on an attitude I had and there was the immediate recognition that this is not the way it should be, and I have to do something about it. I didn't want to, thinking I was justified in how I felt, but that didn't change the fact that it wasn't right... By God's grace however I've realized what a blessing it is in itself to have God reach down into my heart and exert some pressure and say, "This is not right. There is a problem here". He is not le...

What do these pictures say to you? Add your comments at the www.thinking-on-these-things.blogspot.com page or on the Facebook comments and let's see what things you are thinking...!

I'm finishing up a week of preparing for Jr. Church in which the kids will be making "resurrection eggs"; plastic eggs each holding a different item that is part of the story of the last week of Christ. It's been an interesting and creative exercise, finding things that are symbolic, affordable, and, most importantly, able to fit in a plastic egg! What I've discovered is that while these items will tell one story to the little ones there's a powerful message in them for us: the adults, who have known the story for decades and find ourselves today serving the Risen Lord. Palm Lea f - People are fickle. Singing praises on Sunday does not guarantee you'll not be uttering curses by Friday. Guard your heart. Perfume - Mary sacrificed her most precious possession in anointing Christ's feet. She poured out her all and was blatantly criticized. Towel - Jesus left us an example of service, but it wasn't glamorous. Dirty feet can be disgusting and it...

Virginia's Birthday Reminder! Still time to send 100 Blooms for $29.99. Seeing this in my Inbox this morning I don't remember why I thought signing up for an online florist's birthday reminders was a good thing... It is too late. This will be the second time my mom celebrates her birthday on golden streets instead of 6412 Nature Dr. Is there birthday cake in heaven? Would that be angel food cake...? Gather ye rosebuds while ye may. Old Time is still a-flying; And this same flower that smiles to-day To-morrow will be dying. (Robert Herrick) There are a whole slew of proverbs, quotes, poems and songs that remind us of this very thing. Life is short. There are no guarantees that the one you see today you'll see again tomorrow. You may not have another chance. Carpe Diem. - Seize the day. And now my birthday reminder has become a reminder for us all. May we all express love today to those we cherish. Kind words are like honey, sweet to the soul and healthy to the body. Prov...

When the wee leprechauns came to our house this holiday they caused a bit of mischief and turned the milk green! My daughter drank it. My son wanted nothing to do with it convinced, because of how it looked, that it would taste terrible. Reminds me of James 1:2, "whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy..." What?! Trouble = Joy? Green Milk = delicious beverage? Remember this passage? If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? (Luke 11:11-13) It's a familiar phrase - When you can't trace His hand, trust His heart. One of my children knew I wouldn't give her something spoiled; although the milk was not as she expected it to be she t...

Ay, Top of the mornin' to ya lads and lassies. This mornin' being St. Patty's day a cheerful Iri'sh lass appeared to waken the wee ones from their slumbers and welcome the new mornin'. Of course the wee ones were a bit perplexed at the change in their mum but were happy to go along with discoverin' the mischief and the gold coins the leprecans had left during the evenin'. Until the wee mites were off to skool the Irish banter continued and the little lassie herself tossed back to her mum a few phrases of her own from the Emerald Isle. I found in the scant hour I spoke (or attempted to speak!) as one from the Isle across the sea that I had to speak more slowly, oftentimes thinking about how to phrase something differently so that's it's language reflected another culture and its way of relating to a subject. After the kids had left I found I was still thinkin' in this Irish brogue as I set about to brew meself a cup of coffee to draw off the mor...

It was a girlfriend's birthday - one of the "big" ones. Two months previous to the big day a trio of us met to plan. This could be no ordinary birthday. It had to be big. Really big. No thoughtful individual gifts would do, we needed to pool our creative and monetary resources and do something extravagant. The plans were made - met at 10 pm, wear all black, bring the signs, get balloons; she'll be so surprised in the morning when she looks out the window... My van and I were getting the balloons - lots and lots of them! All the way there it was extolled to me how better the money could be spent. How we could have gotten something beautiful and lasting or valuable and substantial; not something that would just last for a day or worse yet, all fly away during the night. "It's cold now, they won't even float. Whose idea was this? Didn't you even think about this when you made this plan?" By the time I reached the store if I'd had my phone I woul...

I am not the world's greatest recycler. I blame it on PBS. My kids were very young when this whole recycling thing was reaching its political correctness and every program they watched encouraged them to make things out of trash, consequently I could never throw anything away! Talk about TV giving our kids suggestions we don't want them following! I am amazed though how God recycles things for His own glory. This isn't a new concept and I've seen it most recently in Rick Warren's The Purpose Driven Life where he says, "God never wastes a hurt! In fact your greatest ministry may come out of your greatest hurt." It's not spiritual rocket science but still... I wrote "He's just not that into you" yesterday out of a heart that's been dealing with disappointment for a week and looking for answers. These have ranged from rationalization - that it's not that big of a deal, to determination - just suck it up, deal with it and move...

"He's Just Not That Into You" is the title of a recent movie. I have yet to see it but I assume it's a comedy. Because if it is not a comedy, if it is really about what the title conveys, than it's all about disappointment: Most obviously of course when you're into someone who is not that into you. When you've lost a job unfairly and no one speaks on your behalf. When you've been invaluable in an endeavor and are not given credit or someone else steals the credit. When you've done your absolute best and it's not enough. When you discover that "happily ever after" is only in fairy tales. When a dependable relationship collapses. When the person with the power wins out over the person with the ability. Do any of those sound familiar? Bring something to mind? The question is not what will you do if this happens but when ...because it does. Chances are it has before and most likely will again: your love will go unreciprocated, your wor...

Ask the Lord for rain in the spring , for He makes the storm clouds. And He will send showers of rain so every field becomes a lush pasture. (Zechariah 10:1) Rain in the spring. I watch it fall from heaven and observe how the landscape around me is transformed. This is what we want and what we need for the barrenness of a winter season has left our spirit browned and lifeless and we long for the lush greenness of summer. We need the rain because we desire growth and new life. Rain is associated in the Bible with God's blessing. He would withhold the rain when His people turned from Him but would open the windows of heaven when they listened to His commands and sought Him with all their hearts. (Deut. 11:13-17, Jeremiah 5:23-25) A prayer for rain is not only to pray that God will send down His blessings but also to align myself in right standing with God so that my sin does not stand in the way of His favor. (I Kings 8:35, 36) "Even now," declares the Lord, "return...