Resolutions?

(click on the comic to make it bigger)

I forgot that it's almost 2012. New Year's always creeps up on me, being so close to the busy family times at Christmas and I am not prepared for another celebratory affair.

Some people think nothing of New Year's. It is just another day. Other people have parties, make resolutions, and watch all the various events on TV (Times Square, parades, and  football). Sometimes I think the beginning of a new year is when it is easiest for people to make good changes. Or attempt to. Beginnings are always hopeful, and since the calendar is providing us with a beginning once a year, it's up to us how we use it.

T.S. Eliot wrote that every moment is a fresh beginning. For me, that means I can start over at any moment. Brush the dust of my feet. Jesus told His disciples to brush the dust of their feet when they left a town that did not welcome them or who hindered them. Jesus wanted them to let it go and move on. Did you fail at something this year? Brush the dust off your feet. Did you discover what you really want to do? Do you have a goal? Do you want to read Gulliver's Travels, like Charlie Brown? Don't put it off like Charlie Brown. Use this New Year's time to take a step, or to research it. After all, as Agatha Christie said, "The secret to getting ahead is getting started."

Daring

Thoughts linger on a cold evening

Tucked under and blanket so warm

Safe they may be, but daring

They are as I cease to dream

Small scale.

With God all things are possible

But not all desires come to pass

Yet in faith I will ask

That which God is able to do

In love.

Yield, or give way, to the presupposition we should not take for granted, that all things are possible with God. It may not be possible for us to accomplish our dreams (likely not) but there are no bounds for our Creator, who is not restricted by time, place, or situation, as we are. 

Jesus said, in Matthew 19.26, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." So, I can't dream small scale because I believe these dreams I have are a derivative of the passions and gifts that God has given to me. They are meant to be used for a purpose, and God includes all that in His plans. And if it is His will, thy will be done.

Anything not done in submission to God, anything not done to the glory of God, is doomed to failure, frailty, and futility. This is the unholy trinity we humans fear most. -Carolyn Weber

The Argument

What in me is dark, illumine,
What is low, raise and support;

That to the height of this great Argument

I may assert the Eternal Providence,

And justify the ways of God to men.

-Paradise Lost, John Milton

We live in a world of arguments. We are faced each day with situations and scenarios that tug on our faith with intentions to collapse our foundation. It happens within us. The voices start to go off in our heads, telling us we aren't smart enough, or we will never accomplish our dreams, or we will never find a job, or that we are always going to be lonely. And it sounds so convincing and we give in to such thoughts and soon find ourselves believing the lies.

When you hear these voices rise in your mind, recognize the warning sign right away. It's the devil talking. He is the enemy, and he wants us to feel dejected, inadequate, and hopeless. Once we are ensnared in lies we are much more apt to fall prey to his devices to bring us down.

As I read Paradise Lost I feel like I am getting the inside scoop on how Satan thinks and what happened at the beginning of creation. Satan and his legion of followers are kicked out of heaven and they want more than anything to have their revenge on God. Yet, the gates to Heaven are shut, and Satan knows there is no way to breach those gates.

Rumor reaches Satan's ears that God is going to create a being on a place called Earth. God was going to give man free will, and it is here that Satan saw his opportunity to have his revenge on God. It would come in the devised plan to ruin the newly created man and woman. Satan patted himself on the back for such a clever plan. If he couldn't get to God directly, he could at least cause the man and woman to defy God and fall.

Little did Satan know that God already knew the scheme. He saw it, and yet He still allowed free will because love is not true if it is forced. God already had plans in the works to send His one beloved Son to earth...

I love the perspectives of this epic poem. The reader gets to hear the devils speaking, planning, and the debating that goes on in hell. Then, the reader gets to hear the talks in Heaven, where God speaks to the angels and sends them to earth to keep watch over Adam and Eve. The imagery in the lines of poetry brings you into the supernatural realm where the battle for man is just beginning.

Upside Down

But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.

-1 Corinthians 1.27-29

What do we have to boast about? Nothing we have accomplished or achieved is due to our own strength. We didn't make it possible to be smart, or to have certain gifts and skills. If we could handle everything ourselves, we wouldn't need God, who is the source of our lives.

God has an upside down way of thinking. Or, come to think of it, God turns our way of thinking upside down with truth and love. We need to go against our own impulses to be the best, the most powerful, the smartest, the most loved, and the last word. We need to think about how Jesus would act, and follow suit. Think in terms of how at the end of all things, the last will be first and the first will be last (Matthew 19.30).

When you think about how God uses the weak, it changes the way you view your life. We, as a culture, value success. If we are prosperous and successful in our business or career, we are highly valued and sought after in society. People don't rush to meet and greet a homeless person, or someone who cannot find a job. But these are the people Jesus would rush to. 
See? Upside down.

"God doesn't need justification. He certainly doesn't need us. God doesn't need anything. Yet, it doesn't make us superfluous or unimportant, the fact that God doesn't need us," I rushed on, "Actually, quite the opposite. It's because He loves us in spite of not needing us that makes His love so, well, awesome.... in the original sense of the term." -Carolyn Weber

Voir la Joie

Star Light

Star Bright

Make way for

God's good light

When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. -Matthew 2.10-11

We give gifts to our family and friends on Christmas as a reminder of the gift we have in Jesus. It should be a time of thankfulness and joy at the great gift that God gave to all of us. Instead of giving gifts to Jesus, we show our thankfulness in the way of giving gifts to others. Jesus doesn't need our wrapped presents; He just wants our hearts.
And on this joyous Christmas Day, remember that it's all about Jesus. He is the greatest gift of all!

Voir la joie (see the joy)

Christmas Eve

By Christina Rossetti

Christmas has a darkness,

Brighter than the blazing noon,

Christmas has a chillness

Warmer than the heat of June,

Christmas has a beauty

Lovelier than the world can show:

For Christmas brings us Jesus,

Brought for us so low.

Earth strike up your music,

Birds that sing and bells that ring;

Heaven has answering music

For all angels soon to sing:

Earth put on your whitest

Bridal robe of spotless snow:

For Christmas brings us Jesus,

Brought for us so low.

What are your Christmas Eve traditions? My family's Christmas Eve over the past few years has consisted of a lasagna dinner, followed by the traditional Christmas Eve service at the church I grew up in, at 8:00 PM. We dress up and gather in the sanctuary for the traditional reading and singing of the Christmas lessons and carols. The service fills me with memories. Being in that sanctuary automatically triggers recollections of going to the traditional service with the whole family as a child, of singing in the youth choir as a teen, and the memorial for my Dad two years ago. A feeling of joy about the arrival of my Savior arises as the sadness of missing my Dad lingers in my soul. I sit on the cushioned pew remembering that as we celebrate Jesus' birthday, the reason He came here at all was to die for us. He changed the world, and filled us with hope. If the Creator of the Universe is willing to come down to earth to suffer and die on my behalf, and yours, this is a love deeper than anything we could ever comprehend. It is the love of God that has always been and always will be.

The service always ends with everyone holding small candles, now lit with a tiny flame. The lights are turned off and we sing all the verses of "Silent Night" as old and young voices mingle in harmony and the dark world is lit up with God's light, Jesus.

All Gifts

Enamored with a thought provoked

Fostered by intensity of hope

That all this brings me closer to You

In everything I say and do

My passions & gifts are not to hide

But bursting forth from every side

For the goodness of others

I am to show love

As all good and perfect gifts

Are from heaven above

But a step is a necessary move

One can't do much when stuck in a groove 


Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
-James 1.17

First Coming

by Madeleine L’Engle

He did not wait till the world was ready,
till men and nations were at peace.
He came when the Heavens were unsteady,
and prisoners cried out for release.

He did not wait for the perfect time.
He came when the need was deep and great.
He dined with sinners in all their grime,
turned water into wine. He did not wait

till hearts were pure. In joy he came
to a tarnished world of sin and doubt.
To a world like ours, of anguished shame
he came, and his Light would not go out.

He came to a world which did not mesh,
to heal its tangles, shield its scorn.
In the mystery of the Word made Flesh
the Maker of the stars was born.

We cannot wait till the world is sane
to raise our songs with joyful voice,
for to share our grief, to touch our pain,
He came with Love: Rejoice! Rejoice!

Indeed, if we waited until everything was good and right in the world before we rejoiced, we would never have the chance. God didn't humble Himself and come down to earth for His own good. He doesn't need us for any of His plans to come through. And yet...He came for us. In our time of need, to feel our pain, and be like us. No, lower than us. He did not live in a palace. He did not eat gourmet meals. He did not seek out the kings and rulers to dine with. He hung out with the lowly, the unwanted, the sinners. And we should rejoice of His coming always!

I am a longtime admirer of Madeleine L'Engle. Her writings are chock full of beautiful imagery alongside stark truth. Her poetry is less well-known. It's her fictional books of the A Wrinkle in Time series that she is probably most widely known for. Those are excellent books, by the way. I have the propensity to read them all again because it's been a long time since I read them. In high school and college I read all the Madeleine L'Engle I could get my hands on: poetry, non-fiction from her journals, adult fiction, children's fiction. I even wrote my High School Senior English paper about her.

She had a way of writing about the world (or her fictional worlds) with the ability to see the good, even through the pain and suffering. Her quiet strength is full of wisdom and experience. Reading her poems back in those days kind of got me to really appreciate reading a poem slowly and deciphering the lines. The poems and her non-fiction challenged me to write more and to write with more depth in my thoughts.

Restless Shores

These restless shores of my heart

Are flickering in the moonlight

The tide is turning

But is it coming in or going out

So hard to tell when the moon

Is in the shadow of clouds

Starlight speckles through

Translucent wisps

And I catch a glimpse

Of shoreline receding

Rest awhile where you are

Even nearness can seem so far

The turning is a sign of things to come

The whisper floats quietly across my skin

As I let the words sink slowly in

For in rushing, I would miss the sign

Dream Within A Dream

Has anyone seen Inception? If you have, you'll understand this post. If you haven't, go out and rent this movie, watch it, then come back and read this post. Or, just keep reading...you'll catch on...

I had a dream within a dream last night. I woke up this morning remembering that I had woken up from a dream, in my dream. It was so strange. In my dream, I was awakened from a dream by some commotion around me. It turns out I was sleeping near a small stage where a group was getting set-up to lead in worship songs. An old friend from my Senior year of high school (and her sister, whom I don't think I have ever met) got up on the stage, setting up their microphones.I just stared at them, thinking about how weird that was. I didn't think it strange that I was sleeping out in the open on a cot, but instead, that an old friend was on stage about to sing.
I rolled over and tried to wake up enough to get up and out of the way as more people began to gather. Nobody seemed to notice me, though.
Then my alarm woke me in the real world.
Or was it the real world? (just kidding)

Whenever I have strange dreams, it gets me thinking. Why do we have such seemingly random dreams that have no meaning? Or do they have a meaning? Why do some people have such vivid dreams, while others don't dream at all, or cannot remember them? And why do some people have dreams that show a clear sign to do something or go somewhere, and then it shows up in their real life? In a book I finished reading recently, the writer explained how God showed her the next place she was to move through a dream. Then she kept seeing signs in her everyday life that clearly pointed that way, so she moved.

The Bible has several occasions where God uses dreams to deliver important messages and directions. An example for the season we are in is from Matthew 2.13:

Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him." And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, "Out of Egypt I called my son."

This was a very important message, and Joseph obeyed, which did two things with one action. It protected the baby Jesus from harm and it fulfilled prophesy. Isn't God efficient? 

Comfort & Joy

To draw the curtains at night on a street where people bent against the wind, and where a steady whirl of snowflakes blurred the outlines of trees and shrubs, and made the trees black against the heavy gray sky, and to turn to a room where a fire glowed in the basket grate and a smell of fresh bread filled the house -- this was comfort, security, peace, community. - Dorothy Day

We miss the true weather of Winter, and the comfort and joy that comes along with it, in Florida. We don't need to step inside a coffee shop to warm up with the most amazing maple soy latte as I had in Arabica Coffee Co. in downtown Portland. In Florida, we are buying an iced latte to cool off.

Emily and I got our coffee and sat near the back on a bright orange love seat that looked very vintage-y to me. It reminded Emily of the couch in the TV show "Friends", and it did, but smaller.

People lingered here, with their books, studies, and laptops, sipping locally roasted coffee. I realized as I was finishing my maple soy latte that I wished I had gotten a bigger cup.
Emily and I sat here, lingering like the locals, enjoying our coffee, talking for an hour or so catching up on life, before setting out into the chilly weather to explore the streets of Portland.

Portland

Downtown Portland is full of brick buildings and interesting little shops. I love exploring cities, especially by foot. You can see so much more when walking. You can turn down a narrow brick-lain street lined with pubs and shops. There is always something unique to see. The arts district was like a second downtown, full of tiny galleries and restaurants.
On the waterfront, ships and small boats sat idly on a calm, smooth sea. A piece of the Berlin Wall stood on a walkway as we walked out toward the end of the dock.

Downtown Portland Menu (click on the links to learn more):
~Shop-Ten Thousand Villages- a little store that sells all fair-trade products from around the world. ("The Giving Tree" at my church sells some items from Ten Thousand Villages)

~Lunch-The Farmer's Table- Quaint little restaurant located on the waterfront. I could easily say it was the best beef stew I ever tasted.

~Shop- Longfellow Books- A mix of new & used books means a great selection and a wide variety where I easily found two books that were used (which means affordable!)

Give

Give, and it will be given to you.
Good measure, pressed down,
Shaken together, running over,
will be put into your lap. For
with the measure you use it will
be measured back to you.
-Luke 6.38

This is the season of giving, but why isn't every season a season of giving? It is more difficult to put other people in front of yourself, yet we, as Christians, are supposed to do so in all situations. Jesus commands us to firstly, love the Lord with all our heart, soul, and strength.
And secondly, to love our neighbor as ourselves. (Luke 10.25-27)

What a struggle this is for us. Every single day. Did I love my neighbor when a guy passing me on the sidewalk asked me for $2? I am not sure if he was homeless, but why did I not oblige? It is not my place to say what he will use the money for. Why am I not seeing God in every situation?

Who knows what goodness will blossom out of my saying "yes Lord", and letting Him take care of all the details? But it starts by taking the opportunities to do good that are thrown in our path. 

Best Light

The earth expanding right hand and left hand,

The picture alive, every part in its best light...

-Walt Whitman

I took a walk around the fields behind my friends' house to check out the centuries-old rock walls that separate fields when they used to be working farms. It was cold, about 32 degrees, and I would come across patches of frozen water that captured leaves in a freeze. But it was a sunshiny bright day, so no chance of snow. Blast.

There is such a beautiful, serene quiet out there. Just you, nature, and the rustling of all the leaves my boots shuffle through. Tall shadows were already formed as the sun lowered in the sky, even though it was only 2 PM. The days are short, here. By 4 PM the sun is setting. So when the day is bright, get outside!

I liked the way the light was starting to glow. The shades of colors were golden, which shouts Autumn. The snow hasn't arrived, yet, and we all hoped for it this week. The only disappointment of the trip, and yet, the beauty of golden colors did not escape me. Plus, I can just take another trip up there....

Powerful Words

Man shall not be quite lost, but saved who will, 

Yet not of will in him, but grace in me
Freely vouchsafed.
-Paradise Lost, John Milton

What do you do to keep yourself occupied during flights? I read (surprise surprise). I sit down in my aisle seat, pull out my book and set my bag on the floor in front of my feet. I start reading immediately, especially if I am traveling alone.

When I got on the plane bound for Portland, I stayed true to my ritual. I pulled out my paperback copy of Paradise Lost by John Milton and dove in. I looked up and out the window as we rose into the sky. I like to watch the buildings and streets grow small. After a few minutes, I turn back to my book.

As I was reading Book III of Paradise Lost, a section caused me to pause and re-read, where some descriptive words about God were used throughout a stanza. I wrote each word out in my journal separately:

Omnipotent

Immutable

Immortal

Infinite

Eternal King

Author of all being

Fountain of Light

I just love these words. They provoke deeper thoughts about our all powerful God as you think about what the words means. These words are un-achievable for you and me. We can never be infinite, author of all beings, or a fountain of light. Yes, we have eternal life, but it not of our own accord. It is because we accept the gift from God.

This is what astonishes me. That our God, who is all those things (all-seeing, all-knowing, all-powerful, author, live-giver, everlasting) cares about me. I am just one tiny person who doesn't say the things that need to be said, who doesn't always do the right thing, who wavers, who questions, and who fails. But God still holds me in His arms. He can count each red hair on my head as I speed above the clouds on a plane. Psalm 63.7-8 says, "for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me." David wrote these verses while he was in the wilderness. We all have times where we are in our own wilderness. Like David, my soul clings to God, and these words comfort me in knowing that no matter where I am, I am safe in my Lord's arms.

European Tour of Maine

This pile of snow was in Norway

Checking out the train at the South Paris station

The apple orchard in Sweden

Bookstore in Oxford

When I travel, I like to find cool places or historic sights in the place I am traveling to. I like to learn a little about the area and have a few ideas of what to do. One of my fun little excursion ideas was to visit all the towns that were named after a European city or country. In addition to Norway, Sweden, and Paris, we also took a tour of Oxford and Poland, but we missed a few others (Denmark, Dresden). And by taking a tour, I mean driving through the town and seeing their tiny community and the views they have of the mountains nearby. I did spend a few hours in an Oxford bookstore called the Maine Bookhouse. It was pretty amazing. I kept finding books that I had never seen before. It was one of those places that surprised me. Being in a tiny town in the middle of nowhere, I wasn't expecting the variety of old books that I fall for. I ended up with a stack of books, which presented a problem. How would I carry all those books on the plane? I only had a small suitcase. The owner was so kind and was happy to ship them to me for free! Such awesome people in Maine! 

Maine's Charms

I am in Otisfield, Maine. If you've never heard of it, that's because you have to look hard to find it on a map. It's about 45 minutes NW of Portland. My friend Emily and her husband Nick and two little boys live here. Their house sits on a decommissioned Christmas Tree farm, so the rows and rows of trees remind one of Christmas all the time. And they are so tall because nobody is cutting them down.

The town consists of one stop sign (that I could find), two fire stations, and a community hall. That's it. But this area has charm and beauty every way you look. This is in the heart of the lakes district. Every couple miles (it seems) there are large glassy lakes with dense trees packed up to the water's edge and mountains reflecting in the calm water. In the summertime, this place is booming with vacationers. The rolling hills, curving roads, views of the mountains, and abundance of nature is what draws people here. We stopped at a barren apple orchard where my friends picked apples a few months ago, with views of the mountains and a ski slope, and I found one lone apple on the ground.

Maine, you have provided cold weather (20-35 degrees) and a beauty of nature so foreign to my everyday, but no snow. I still like you a lot. My explorations of you will continue....

Thinking Cold Thoughts....

I am getting ready to go on a trip to Maine. Packing for cold weather is a bit challenging when you are in the warm weather. I just need to think cold thoughts....

So, I have made a list of my travel essentials. It's pretty short. As the phrase goes "take only what you need to survive":

1. Bible, journal, books, pens

2. My Olympus Pen E-PL1 Camera

3. Scarves, mitts, hats, tall socks, boots, coat

4. A suitcase with some other stuff (other stuff may include jeans, shirts, bath items, &c.)

See? packing is as easy as 1-2-3-4!!

Freedom

Freedom is experienced when we hand everything to God. Let Him handle our burdens, cares, and worries. The Psalmist wrote:

Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.  -Psalm 55.22

Several years ago I did not understand what that verse really meant. My legs and arms were tied together in my own worry and timidity. Once I learned how to let go, and I mean truly give each situation and worry to God, I felt what it meant to be free, and I am still learning everyday. The truth of God's promises had finally gotten through the wall of my resistant heart. And since I got a taste of that free air where all faith and trust lay with the Creator of the Universe rather than with a person who is bound to mess up, I never wanted to go back to the way I was.

I can't go back to yesterday because I was a different person then.         -Lewis Carroll

Set loose the ties that bind you. My ties began to fall off as I learned to travel by myself. Traveling is an adventure, one that is (much of the time) out of your hands. You have to learn to go with the flow. Enjoy the journey, because God is going to make sure I get to my next destination safely. This freedom allowed me to pay attention in the way of observation and even conversation with strangers. I sit there and take notes in my journal on what I see around me. I make up stories in my head about the people I see. I see the kindness of strangers in busy places. A funny comment will reach my ears. Or, I am presented with an opportunity to help a stranger with directions or something else.

Once you are free from the burden that ties you down and clouds your sight, you quickly see how much you had missed before because you were shrouded in that cloud. Whatever that cloud is made of, it is a veil covering your joy.

They trespass, authors to themselves in all,
Both what they judge and what they choose; for so
I formed them free, and free they must remain...
Man falls, deceived
By the other first; man, therefore, shall find grace,
The other, none; in mercy and justice both,
Through Heaven and Earth, so shall my glory excel,
But mercy, first and last, shall brightest shine.
-Paradise Lost- Book III, John Milton

Whatever You Ask

Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it. -John 14.13-14

More. Don't we always want more?

And yet I know that I always have enough in God. While I want more in life I know that in God I have all that I need. Never am I left wanting for food, clothing, shelter, love of family...

Jesus says in the verses above that He wants to give us what we want. If we ask in His name, and if the purpose is to glorify God, we should ask and Jesus says He will do it.

I admit, my prayers are lacking in the asking arena. Yes, God knows my heart and my desires, by He wants me to take that step of faith to ask for that which I want. Asking and seeking God opens our eyes and hearts to what He is showing us in all our days. When we see a prayer answered (whether it be a "yes" or a "no"), our hearts leap with a profound knowledge that it came from God, and our thanks is aimed in the right direction. Up to God.

This is how we stay connected with God each day. Reading the Word, praying, & opening our eyes, ears, and hearts to what God is doing.

Listen. Ponder. Grow.

My Bible, journal, and current book I can't put down

What does it mean to meditate on God's Word?

It's less about thinking, and more about listening to God through the words of Scripture. It's allowing the passage to sink into your soul and memory. It's about sewing up the seams of your scattered pieces with God's Word, and equipping yourself with the wisdom you will need at some point soon, when the devil comes along trying to challenge your faith. That darkness can be thwarted by your shining light, which comes from knowing God's Word and living it in faith. Constantly growing will be the opposition, so a constant growth in Godly wisdom should be an everyday goal.
Stop and listen. Ponder in your heart.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer says "...just as you do not analyse the words of someone you love, but accept them as they are said to you, accept the Word of Scripture and ponder it in your heart, as Mary did. That is all. That is meditation."

Love Feasts

These are blemishes on your love feasts, as they feast with you without fear, looking after themselves; waterless clouds, swept along by the winds; fruitless tress in late autumn, twice dead, up-rooted; wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever.
-Jude 12-13

What are the blemishes?
False teachings, fear, the ungodly, doubt and worry that we can't let go, lies we fall for, a darkness covering our souls. I am sure we can think of more. These things will steal all our bounty. Our joy. They feast upon what we have established as good. And we become dried up like Autumn leaves that have fallen to the ground.

It is so obvious, isn't it? It doesn't matter what the past looks like. Don't let it hold you back, or fill you with fear and shame. Think of each moment as a brand new sheet of paper to fill with your great stories. Or, as T.S. Eliot wrote, "Every moment is a fresh beginning."

Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. -Proverbs 4.25

 Let our feasts be full of love and fellowship. God, please help me stay on course and not get distracted by things that will tear me down or take away my central core of You. Help me keep to the narrow path, even when it is the hardest thing to do. Even when I am scared or worried about what could happen.