Up the Creek Without a Paddle

How many of us have felt the icy fingers of fear? When circumstances surround you that truly threaten to overwhelm, and you feel like you’re drowning and will be taken under for the last time, it’s an emotion common to man. Your flight or fight response kicks in. Some of us want to withdraw and pull the covers over our heads. Others have the default of lashing out at anyone that might be in the way or have a different opinion or perspective on the situation. Your mind perseverates over options like a whirlpool threatening to suck you down as you pluck at solutions on the way into the abyss producing grating notes of panic like a broken record of discordant sounds.

Recently I had a few days where I felt like that. Thankfully it was only a few days until I got a hold of the Lord’s hand and have let Him walk me through the possibilities and the truth of the situation. I’ve also walked with a friend who is going through a much more significant reason for fear. My prayer list reflects the knowledge of many people around me struggling for sanity in the midst of much more dire circumstances that have sent me into a tailspin.

Recently my bible study (thank the Lord for women to study with and teachers insightful that gave me new insight into 2 Corinthians 12.) This is that familiar verse where Paul boasts of his weakness, so that the power of Christ may rest upon him (vs. 9). How counterintuitive!!! Weakness so that power may be revealed??? He goes on to say that he has repeatedly asked the Lord to take away His thorn but the Lord said to him, “My grace is sufficient for you, my power is made perfect in weakness.” (vs. 7,8,9) And Paul concludes: For the sake of Christ, then I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak I am strong. (vs. 10).

When I am weak, I am strong. When I am weak I am strong. Not an easy concept to tell your panicking mind in the throes of your weakness careening you into the black tunnel of fear.

Recently I was in a study on Gideon where we saw that when he was most panicked about fighting the Midianites, Gideon sought the Lord passionately and was led through to victory. The Lord even had him reduce his army to only 300 men in order that there would be no question that the victory was the Lord’s! But we saw later, in Gideon’s plenty, he did not hear God speak into his life because he no longer clung to Him so desperately.

And so, when thrown into the turbulent river where fear threatens to overwhelm, we have to do what Paul and Gideon did: lift our eyes to heaven. Lie back in the waters and hold onto the oar that is our only hope of getting to safety; not to panic like the drowning victim that fights his rescuer, but to go with the flow of whatever situation is happening, waiting on the Lord before you take a step or give a response. WAITing on the Lord. WAITing on the Lord. Not trying your own quick fixes and trying to struggle out of the circumstances, but WAITing until He gives you a nudge that you confirm seems to be a word of guidance rather that a quick response of panic. Resisting your impulse to fight and struggle, or to despair and give into hysterics, but to surrender to GO WITH THE FLOW, knowing He can see where this raging river turns into calm water. And that He will bring you there with Him. He always does you know. He always HAS you know, if you but think back to similar situations.

That acronym of False Evidence Appearing Real, is so true. The devil wants us to give into our paralyzing emotions, where we lash out and we see the worst case scenario looming like the edge of the waterfall we envision falling over screaming in terror… which might not even be part of this stream of circumstances!!!

Priscilla Shirer in her study of Gideon makes this amazing statement: WE WILL EXPERIENCE MORE VICTORY IF WE CHOOSE TO SURRENDER. In my life coaching materials, we have a Surrender Exercise that is vital to the process. SURRENDER. Lying back in our Rescuer’s arms even as the waters threaten to overcome. Listening to His voice (that means getting in the Word!!!!); when all you want to do is talk about it or think about it until the solution comes out of the barrage of lament, instead of getting quiet and waiting for His still small voice that we have heard so many times. It is so hard to get quiet enough to listen, especially in the face of calamity.

But I have seen that face be faced. I saw it at the head of a casket recently with a wife’s sweet smile across a crowded sanctuary of mourners, often comforting others who came to comfort her. The worst had happened; her husband was taken way too soon. A vibrant, giving man with an obituary a mile long of accomplishments and service to mankind, snuffed out like a bright light in a storm. But despite the sadness, there was a smile and a calm that spoke volumes about the heaven she was envisioning for her loved one and believed with no question.

And at bible study, I hear prayer requests shared from deep within aching hearts, yet with a peace and calm in the face of many different traumas of life, with the sweet restraint of trust and belief in the power of prayer. Some of these requests are shared once again, still sending sharp shards of pain, even after years of laying the request at the feet of Jesus and walking away in a quiet knowing that if he won’t change the circumstance for reasons beyond our comprehension, He will change our heart and its ability to love and cope in the midst of the storm.

He is our Rescuer. Only when I allow Him to rescue me can I hope to have any strength at all. When I am weak I am strong. I’m beginning to get it.

Power is Perfected in Weakness

Power is perfected in weakness.

So then where, Lord, is that power?

I’m overcome by powerlessness.

Fear abounds hour after hour.

It rises up within me,

Threatens to paralyze.

My mind is held captive

By the devil and His web of lies.

Up the creek without a paddle…

That’s exactly how it has begun to feel.

But then I remember the acronym:

False Evidence Appearing Real.

I know You are always with me.

But You feel nowhere near.

So I try to lay back in your arms

And refuse to give into the fear.

I know all things work together

For good, no matter how bad.

You’ve always used hard times to grow me.

If I’m honest I’ve never been had!

No matter how dark the valley,

You’ve always taken me through.

Why should I doubt this time?

That is exactly what You will do.

So as my boat is capsized,

I don’t panic, let go of the oars.

I hang onto your promises

And wait til you open the door

Of heaven and come down and rescue,

Again and again and again.

Now I see my panic

Is truly a form of sin.

So I keep my wits about me.

Though capsized I go with the flow.

I wait for that quiet knowing.

I lay back until I know

Your arms are tight around me.

Though turbulent waters threaten to drown.

For when I’m weak you are closest

If I but look up and not down.

Thank you heavenly Father

For speaking once again to this child.

I am strong though I am weak

As long as we’re reconciled.

-by Sherrill Schlimpert,

based on the wisdom of my friend Sarah,

who is an earthly example of weathering the storms of

life with grace and dignity and strength.

Our Treasure Within

Our Treasure Within

       Has it been a year since I last made a blog entry? What  a busy year it has been, so many blessings.  And yet I've seen so much pain in so many people around me.  And thinking back, besides a new grandbaby and wonderful trips and visits with the family who are all healthy and prospering, there was mono last winter and shingles and of course a sinus infection that slowed my tracks for months.
       And so what do I feel moved to blog about?  Back to the problem of pain.  Why does God allow suffering?  It's in finding the answer to this problem that we either become His followers or wallow in our own journey trying to find answers and antidotes.
      But the answer is written over and over throughout the scriptures! There are so many SO THAT verses, verses that tell us we suffer SO THAT we may bring Him glory in the way we do it:  Praise be the God of comfort...who comforts us in our troubles SO THAT  we may comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. 2 Cor. 1:3.   I will give you treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, SO THAT you will know I am the Lord...who summons you by name. Is. 45:3  Do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you, but rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ SO THAT you may be overjoyed when His glory is revealed.  I Pet. 4:12. 
     I marvel every time I see a SO THAT verse of which there are so many more, because suddenly in the midst of the confusion of life,  the Word shouts the truth in simplicity -  that we so easily lose as we walk through the next episodes of our journey - the reason we need the sustenance of the Word daily, lest we forget.
     None speaks louder to me than 2 Cor. 4:7-12:  But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power if from God and not from us.  We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.   We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, SO THAT the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.  For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, SO THAT his life may be revealed in our mortal body. 
     It seems so clear today in the warmth of my living room in front of a warm fire with the snow painting a picture of beauty outside my window.  But what of my friends?  One undergoing brain surgery today- a single mom with 2 small children, another caring for a dear one with stage 4 rectal cancer at age 49 who doesn't know the Lord,  or of the young mother suddenly cast away to be a single mom of two little ones?   Suddenly the warm fire and the tranquil scene outside is not enough beauty to stop the stab of fear that runs through me. When will it be my turn again?  I may not have suffered such dramatic encounters with pain. And yet pain is pain, regardless of the reason, big or small. For we are, as the scripture says, jars of clay, weak beings that suffer scars the moment we are put into the world - disappointments, unanswered prayer, sickness, worries, even just daily hassles of time pressures and setbacks.
      But what beauty there is when these jars of clay shine the beauty of their faith through the fissures of the brokenness that pain has left them marked in one way or another!  There is nothing more beautiful than seeing the light of  hope shine through the faces of those who SEE the SO THAT even through their tears, who accept that this life is but a stairway to heaven - one full of detours to the next step - and yes, full of beauty when we reach the next one of blessings, those times where we can bask in thankfulness for the manna given to go on.
     Yes, there is nothing more beautiful than seeing those who show us how to go through  trials fulfilling the command of Phil. 4: 4-7:  Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again:  Rejoice:  Let your gentleness be evident to all.  The Lord is near.  Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and you minds in Christ Jesus.  Even the secular media loves those stories - we do see stories of courage and hope and perseverance occasionally sprinkled in the midst of the bad news -  they just don't see the source of their power within.
    That peace that passes understanding - surely there is nothing more beautiful.  And there is nowhere I see it  more clearly than from the dear clay pots around me that shine it out through their suffering. And I thank God for them, role models of followers that show me the way.  The problem is to remember this - to keep it in our minds when they get clouded by our disappointments, setbacks and fears.  But that is a blog for another day.

The Song of the Valley

When they walk through the valley of weeping,

 it will become a place of refreshing springs.  – Psalm 84:6

Many are the plans of a woman’s heart. (Pr. 19:21)

But when your plans differ Lord, how do we start

to process our pain?

The psalmists show how.

We flail and cry, until our head we bow

to the Author of our story.

He always knows what’s best.

Though we can’t see how, we must surrender and rest

by remembering His deeds

when He’s touched us before.

When we look back, we see how He opens the door

To hidingin Him.

We don’t need to fear.

He was with us there. He’ll be with us here.

We can trust in our tomorrows

because He’s touched our yesterdays.

So through the valley of weeping, we must cling til the praise

rises up within us – and we see where we are…

Maybe not where we planned to be, but

 with Him walking so far,

holding tight to His hand,

knowing He is our fortress

and in any onslaught we can stand…

if we remember His touch,

  hide and  cling,

we’ll learn, even in the valleys, we can walk and sing.

- by Sherrill Schlimpert, April 2010

Waiting for the LIght at the End of the Tunnel

 

 

 

We all know what it's like to feel like it's taking forever to see some light at the end of our proverbial tunnel.  Our tunnels can be fairly short or interminable, but it's the waiting that is so hard.  Waiting...it's just so...wasteful.  It's a time where we want time to pass, where we wish our life away. 

I think it was no coincidence that I noticed in church this morning how many verses were flashed on the screen that had to do with waiting, the same day that I went to see Les Miserables at the movies.  Talk about waiting.  The misery in the movie depicted a lifetime of waiting to get out of an existence so miserable most of us can't even begin to imagine.  For many in that time of history their light at the end of the tunnel truly didn't come until the next life.  The last words of the whole movie were,  "Tomorrow will come", as you finally saw a happy ending to all the lives that were finally in victory in the next world.  It was a tragic, dark story at long last turned to good:  of how God's love shown to one man resulted in him showing love to others through sacrifice and mercy.

How like that should be in our lives.  Knowing that we have been shown love and mercy by our creator,  how we should spend our lives passing it on, despite hardship or sacrifice.  Instead, it seems we focus on the light at the end of the tunnel instead of learning to tunnel-walk, waiting patiently for the light, knowing it is there.  We simply won't be satisfied until we are out of the dark!  We are like pouting children wanting the prize at the end at any cost, refusing to see the need to wait until it is offered.

I like the term tunnel-walking, because that's what life often seems like: walking in the dark, waiting to get through to the other end.  But instead of wishing that time away, maybe we should do what Jesus told the disciples in Gethsemane in Mark 14:38:  Watch and pray.  They had no idea there even was a light at the end of their tunnel.  All they saw was the darkness of their savior being crucified.  They didn't understand the promise that He would be with them always.  But we have His word!!  We know that He is at the end of any tunnel as well as with us through it.

And yet we have such trouble with waiting.  Waiting for the flu to get over. Waiting for our prince charming.  Waiting for the morning sickness to end.  Waiting for the baby to sleep all night.  Waiting for the cancer treatments to be over. 

I watch some with such long excruciating waits.  My little friend who has been in the hospital for 3 months in extreme pain with 2 preschoolers being raised by her parents - will she ever see a day without pain?  My mother-in-law who prays at age 92 for the Lord to take her every night because she is so tired of the fatigue of simply living where everything is hard, from going to meals to showering. My divorced friend who wonders if the pain of her divorce will ever end and quit waking her up in the middle of the night.

And yet Isaiah 25 tells us that at the end of our wait "the sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces."  And He tells us in Mark 13 to "keep watch...If He comes suddenly you don't want Him to find you sleeping." We're told over and over to watch.  Watch your life and doctrine closely.  Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.  I Tim. 4:16

So even if our tunnels are long, maybe what we need to be doing instead pining for the light at the end of the tunnel, is to simply watch for the Light.  Maybe we don't need to just wait for the circumstances to change, but to watch for what the Lord is telling us in the midst of our tunnel. 
Let us like in Micah 7:7 say:  But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord,  I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.  Let us also be like the Psalmist who says:  Wait for the Lord, be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. 

I pray that the next time I enter a tunnel I will be less frantic and more quietly waiting and watching - for the light always comes - and sometimes before the end.


Walking in Darkness

The darkness seems so dark.
It seems in will never end.
Why, Oh, Lord will relief
Take so long for you to send? 

We beat at the walls
That close in all around.
It seems the light at the
  end of the tunnel
Will never ever be found.

How can this serve you?
When I'm so paralyzed
   in misery?
How can this be of you?
Why won't you set me free?

And then I begin to understand
That faith without trials
   is dead
That true faith is to believe
With no evidence of what is ahead.

And so we learn to watch
As we pray and as we wait.
We know we are not promised a life
Of always a pleasant fate.

But we are promised deliverance
And His presence in time of trial.
And if we watch closely
We know of that there will be no denial.

Though the light may not come
At the tunnel's end.
The light will be with us
If we ask for Him to send

His strength, His courage
To hold up under any fate.
He'll teach us to walk in the tunnel
And upon Him to wait.

Praising Persistently

Praising my Savior all the day long...

I have not been one who has ever understood the endorphin high that you are supposed
to get from exercise.  There is nothing about getting my heart rate up that feels good to
me.  It feels more like torture to me actually.  The only way I can make myself do it at
all has been in an aerobic dance class when I'm embarrassed to give up too quickly the
way I do with an exercise video at home or when trying to run/walk my dog.  Until 
Zumba that is. Now I get it.  In fact, there is something about the Zumba beat and the
unabashed unleashing of inhibition as even us oldsters shake a tail feather along with
the young gals, that totally is worth getting to the gym by 8 a.m. Can't believe I can say
that. 

 

Now this is something else I can't believe I'm going to say - and maybe you won't
understand it unless you actually try Zumba yourself.  But, I'm going to say it...I find
myself praising the Lord through this exercise in a way that totally gets me a natural
high! Yep, Praising Persistently though Perspiring!  I know it sounds crazy to be
thinking about the Lord while shimmying to the beat of totally secular music - 
"uh, uh, I work out."  But I'm here to tell you that is what happens everytime I start the
Zumba dance.  I get this picture of heaven where we all will be around the throne with
the legions of angels all dancing in perfect unison - a majestic wave of praise pulsating
up  and down and back and forth in  a beautiful syncopation. I also get this picture of
David and the old testament Israelites dancing in delight and worship.

All of the women there may not be thinking of heaven but the smiles and giggles as we
put ourselves through the gyrations tell me that it is truly community in the finest
sense.

I love those transcending moments, because as I grow older, I see the world in direct
opposition to heaven, as it really is, with all the sorrow and the pain that inevitably hits
us all.  Unlike the immortality thinking of youth I now know that we all  get a chance
at some point to feel like a modern Job, wondering what God is doing when He

doesn't always answer our prayers in the way we'd like. I used to think that meant
something was going wrong. But now, though none of us can know the mind of God
and understand why He allows certain pain and suffering that seems so unfair, I finally
have come to understand that He does use pain so that we can share in His suffering. 
Growth often comes because of the direct relationship to how we need to depend on Him.
The more intense the suffering the more we finally get the message that we aren't in
control and need to rely on a Strength beyond our own. 

 

Right this moment, I can think of a childless couple who would be great parents, a single
mom who has become paralyzed and blind with an autistic child, a woman who became 
homeless with three children evicted from government housing because her husband got
caught selling drugs.  Where is God in this?  And yet, if we look hard enough and wait on
Him, we can see how God does work all things to good (Romans 8:28).  I see the
friendships developing because of the prayers and the empathy for this couple.  I see
the testimony of this little mother who has so much physically working against her,
who continues to have a platform for shouting her testimony of faith by her constant
cheerfulness in the face of so much hardship.  I have watched this homeless woman find
an apartment and get a job, hitching rides for weeks until she had a downpayment on a
car - teaching her children what strength is and how important hard work is compared
to relying on the "easy money" that left them on the streets.  Not that all is well, but if
we look, we can see God shining bits of light through the darkness.

I recognize that this world was not meant to be heaven...and that any moment of joy
at all should be returned as praise.  The book "One Thousand Gifts" by Ann Voscamp 
speaks this message in beautiful, heartfelt prose.  A young mother, married to a pig
farmer in Canada  tells of trying to raise five children without getting caught in the
doldrums of unending chores and thankless moments of dealing with the demands of
children.  Recognizing that she is missing so many blessings, she sets upon the task of
watching for and making a list of one thousand ways she is blessed, until thanksgiving
becomes a way of life, smoothing the bumps in the road with a new way of seeing the
path. This book affected my own thankfulness sensitivity deeply.

 

And so as I began to recognize the praise welling up in me as I thank God that I can
still move my often aching body to the Zumba beat, I also recognize that it has taken
me years to begin to seelife from God's perspective.  To watch and pray (Mk. 14:28)
in the sorrows, and to lift up amazed gratefulness for the glimpses of heaven that we
forget we don't even deserve but that keep us from going under in the hard times is
the way to persistently remain in an attitude of hope and praise. There are so many
blessings that we  often overlook: the quiet of the morning, the smile of a friend, the
easiness of being with family.  And Zumba! Try it you might like it!

Holy Spirit
(taken from Cream for Your Coffee by Sherrill Schlimpert, available on Amazon.com)

Holy Spirit!
So that's what this is!
This wanting to shout
   to everyone that lives
With the joy!
The beauty!
I feel in my heart,
A joy I've recognized only in part.

I've felt it before -
In the heart of young love,
In springtime,
In nature,
All sent from above.

But for so many  years,
I sought it in circumstance,
And despite many tears,
I never stayed long enough
At my Savior's feet
To hear His calming Word,
His perfect heartbeat
That gives rhythm
To such a day as this.
Whether it be sunny or dark,
I can feel His bliss.

It's what I have searched for
My whole life through,
Knowing somehow, someday,
I would find it in You.
It's the Spirit!
Your Spirit!
That's been here all along.
Down deep in my heart
I've heard the sweet song
Of the Spirit,
Your Spirit!
Down deep in my soul,
That gives me these days
When I feel solid and whole.

And it's that same Spirit!
That inspires me now
  to take pen in hand
  and furrow my brow.
And allow thoughts to form
From deep in my soul.
It's the Spirit!
Your Spirit!
That I finally know!

Help me to see it
See it clear
Wherever you send it,
Which releases all fear.
Let me flow with it,
Dance to the beat.
Of the Spirit!
Your Spirit!
That makes me complete.

 

 

 

 

 

The Circle of Life

                                                                                                                    

                        

 
To everything there is a season...I'm reflecting on that as I watch some of life's passages changing right in front of my eyes.  Often changes are barely preceivable - such as when you look in the mirror and think, "How did I get this old?"  But sometimes big changes happen dramatically.

My family is currently experiencing fall, spring and winter at the same time! My son has recently found the woman of his dreams and will be married this summer, my daughter has delivered a precious new granddaughter into our midst, and my mother at 92, in the winter of her life has been peacefully waiting reunion with her husband in heaven and was granted her passage on May 29.

When my faither died at age 62, I remember one sympathy card that said there is nothing that will make you look more closely at what you really believe than staring into the grave of a loved one.  Having said my goodbyes to my mother more than once totally believing she has gone to a better place, watching the new love that has bloomed in my son, and witnessing the miracle of a new, perfectly formed baby has done that for me.

Life surely is a journey - and for me, only makes sense in the light of my faith.  Knowing God has our days numbered, our trials planned for good, and enough blessings to give us glimpses of heaven brings a serenity and appreciation for both the good and the not-so-good days along the way.

It brings such comfort to know that the simplicity of the Serenity Prayer really does give us a blueprint for taking life as it comes...to accept the things we cannot change, have the courage to change the things we can, and have the wisdom to know the difference.  It was an especially great comfort to see a devotional book based on this prayer at mom's bedside the last visit I had with her.  She truly did have the serenity to accept what she could not change at age 92.

So for now, I am basking in the blessings of the fall and the spring and rejoicing that the winter did not bring too much suffering but rather a peaceful fading.  And I wait with expectancy for the seasons to continue to circle - for the spring and fall to fade, for the winter to pass, and for new blessings and trials to continue to emerge with the ever-present opportunity to define my faith, to test it, and confirm it. 


The Circle of Life

Seasons come and seasons go,
Spring becomes summer, winter - fall.
It's beyond our control.  We don't write the script.
It's only God that reigns over all.

Babies are born,
Marriages made,
Death comes to each one
Defying plans that are laid.

And so if we finally accept
What we must
And take what we're given
And forget our lust...

For more than we're granted,
We'll have peaceful days,
Accepting the hardships,
Being ready for praise.

For the circle of life
Comes and it goes.
It includes winter
But in its throes

We must not forget
Any blessings that come
Giving us glimpses of what
Are only some

Of what is in store
If we faithfully keep
Our eyes turned toward
Him who will keep

Us under His wing
Until that day
When the circle stops
And in heaven we'll stay.

 

Glimpses of Heaven

Oh, what peace we often forfeit.
Oh, what needless pain we bear.
I'm reminded of the ageless hymn
As I forget to turn in prayer.


I get so caught up in the cares of earth,
In the busy and hassle of living.
I wonder how often I look right over
The reminders of heaven God's giving.

Gifts that stir our hearts,
That we often look right past
Reminders of beauty fleeting now,
But of what will ultimately last.

For God opens the heavens
To allow us bits of seeing beyond the now,
Of moments of beauty that stir our hearts
And help us to see how...

We can live above the pull of the world,
To brave its cares and woes.
A moment of beauty, the light of the sun
Can lift us high from our lows.

Glimpses of heaven to remind us
That what we see now is not all.
One day we'll live well beyond
What's been left here after the fall.

So we must watch for the God winks,
The moments He sends to restore.
We must look for them, seek them and savor
Knowing in heaven there will be so much more.


A Glimpse of Heaven in the Winter

To my cold-natured bones there are some days in the winter that are just plain too cold for a walk. But then I'm faced with the sad, pleading eyes of my little silky terrier, scampering over to stand at full attention any time he sees me start to put on my shoes. After days of being cooped up in the house and the tiny fenced-in area off of our deck, that litle doggy is straining with all of his soul to find freedom even if it is at the end of a leash.

So after a week of temperatures below freezing, I couldn't ignore the pitiful stares any longer - it was time to give in and take him for a walk. And so, on went my long underwear and layer after layer up to my hooded coat and scarf across my face to brave the elements on a freezing, though sunny, day.

We set off and the cold hit my eyes - the only exposed area allowed - bringing tears and taking away my breath. So, slogging through the remnants of a recent snow, we jogged up to the nearby field - my little guide dog gleefully leading me, straining at the end of the leash.

We left the rows of houses with closed doors keeping in their warmth, and turned onto the gently rising slope of the field, and I am rewarded. A hillside of fairy frost, glistening in the sun that has risen just above the swell of the hill. The sparkling perfection of winter creation takes my breath away, this time not from the frigid air, but from the amazing beauty.

And the creator speaks.

I raise my eyes to the beauty of this hill from whence cometh my help. And I am reminded of Col.3:2 - Set your minds on things above, not on this world.

I think of my morning with thoughts filled with the protection of my comfort, not willing to persevere after the discipline to exercise or to brave the elements. And I think of how my shepherd is also beckoning with soulful eyes that look more deeply into my heart even than those of my devoted little pet - of how they both long to lead me to higher places!! And how I'm often reluctant to venture out.

Those moments He surprises me with beauty are what I call glimpses of heaven - gifts on earth that give us a peek into what the New Earth will be like...endless fields of glistening, sun-kissed beauty, perfection, glory, light and above all, His presence unveiled.

I've seen these glimpses before - in the laughter of my grandbaby, in the etherial colors of a sudden rainbow, in the strains of a hymn that touches my soul. I've seen it at the shore of the vastness of the ocean, in the shared prayer among believers with hands grasped in the warmth of true fellowship, in a moment before the fire with a cup of tea, in the fragile buds of springtime.

And I'm reminded of how I often have to focus to really see these gifts. I have to stop and open them before the moment vanishes. I have to look beyond the dailyness of dealing with the world, to be ready to stop for a moment to be still and know that He is God. (Is. 51:3) And yes, when I am nudged - to put on my snow boots and walk with Him.

It will be easier to see in the spring - I long for the season of new growth. But I must remember, He is there even in the winter.

Have a Mary Christmas - the Making of a Christmas Poem (scroll down)

It's been a busy fall for me. I asked God to bless my lifecoaching business - and was reminded again that we have to be careful what we ask for!!!! I sure got it this year! He's blessed me to the point of breathlessness! I've totally been amazed at what God has done in both the clients I volunteer with at Love, Inc. as well as my personal clients. Having the opportunity to walk alongside people's lives and getting the privilege of hearing their story is such an honor and blessing. I get to see God working everyday miracles in many more lives than just those in my inner circle.

I've finally put my finger on what is so exciting to me about all this. It's transformation. It's the miracle of lives that change for the better instead of staying stuck in the same old ruts. It's lives that have been so transformed from the ordinary responses of the world that you can't help but see God's work. It's the young woman with cerebral palsy who has become paralyzed and legally blind with a 3 year old and an 11 month old to care for. Even though as a nurse, she was the major bread winner and is now on disability, the amazing faith and determination she exudes is surely nothing other than other-worldly. It's the single mom who has lost her business due to health reasons, but is starting back up and not giving up. It's the young mom living in the government housing who got a sudden burst of goal-setting, taking on 2 jobs to get out of her surroundings, but as the going got tough, recognized her goals don't have to be given up. She's now tweaked the timetable of reaching those goals now that she has seen that her kids need her at home in the evenings. It's also the woman who thought she had finally found love, who has battled through the dark tunnel of rejection and shattered dreams to realize God is her first bridegroom and who gives her all she really needs (even though she still would like a man with skin on here on earth.) And, it's the girl who hasn't been to church since she was a child, but is finding solace only there after losing a young friend unexpectantly is a tragic accident.

And that's why this Christmas, Mary's response is what stood out to me like the star in the east. "Be it unto me as You have said." What a response to the realization she was to suffer disgrace and shame and heartbreak. "Be it unto me as You have said." What a response to model after. To be able to submit in quiet grace to whatever is put in our path. Mary couldn't have understood all of what carrying that baby was to mean. But because she did, she allowed us all to be saved from utter damnation.

"Be it unto me as You have said." How hard it is for me to have that attitude even when faced with much less discomfort. Instead, the response is usually, "Why me?" , "How long will this last?", "Take this from me, Lord."

A Mary Christmas. I wonder what that would really be? For now, I just pray that I can begin to understand what facing this life like Mary would look like. I begin with gratefulness for all the comforts that I have been blessed with; and a relinquishment of worrying about all that is not right ; resting in peace that He has it all under control. Even when the situation looks really bleak. That's a Mary Christmas spirit. That's peace on earth. May you have a Mary Christmas.


Have a Mary Christmas


The angel came to see her,
and Mary bowed her head.
In humble submission she whispered,
“Be it unto me as You have said.”

This part of the Christmas story
is not the part we sing of most.
We love to hear of the baby
and the singing of the heavenly host.

But Mary shows us the position
we should assume to celebrate
the birth of this Savior
who came to secure our fate.

Not one of just thankfulness,
boasting of the blessings that we’ve been given,
but one of ubmitting to the pruning
we may receive this side of heaven…

To accept that all is not well
here on planet earth,
even though we sing of peace
as we celebrate this birth.

For the peace we have, like Mary
does not depend on gifts under the tree,
or the absence of pain,
or perfect tranquility.

The peace we have is a sword
that cuts through the trappings of earth,
so that even in suffering
we can rest in its amazing worth.

Like Mary we can face
what we can’t always understand,
knowing whatever comes is bestowed
from a sovereign hand.

She walked in quiet trust
though being shamed and misunderstood.
And then the hardest path of all -
seeing her Son sacrificed for our good.

And so as I reflect upon the mother
who bore much to bear this Son,
I feel thanks toward her and the Father
for giving us the One

That is our whole salvation,
that came to wipe our every tear.
And so a Mary Christmas is what
I wish for you this year.

(If poetry speaks to you, be sure and check out Cream for Your Coffee. They also make great stocking stuffers! Just email me at sschlimp@hotmail.com