More Than Summer

Philippians 4:8: "Finally brothers and sisters, whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, if there is any praise.....think on these things"!

My friend and I had walked until we came to a group of mailboxes and a woman shuffling through the envelopes she had just retrieved from one of them. A small boy was sitting on the curb with both hands holding his chin and seemingly his face, from falling into the gravel below. It had not been a particularly good week for young Joey, his mother told my friend and I. She described the events that had placed the frown across her sons face after we asked why the boy was so sad. I watched him as she spoke and found myself lost in his eyes; a bright green almost the color of the newly forming buds on some of the trees trying to explode with the announcement of spring. "What could I do to cheer him up", I wondered.

Behind us were some really tall trees with branches extending out over the street providing shade for us to stand in. My mind caught the vision of what would become a permanent and pleasant memory for me. In less than an hour we had a truck, ladder and two strong and willing contenders looping the rope over one of the branches and back down to where we gathered. Joey did not say a word and the frown was intact although his eyes sparked with wonder as he watched. A short but sturdy stick was attached to the end of the rope. "Joey, will you come and try out this swing for me", I asked reaching my hand to him? "Alright", he said the frown beginning to slide from his face. "Hold on tight", I told him, and I pulled him on the swing as far as I could. I released him, the swing and the rope. With long, slow glides the boy flew through the air. Because the tree was so high, the extension of the swing would not move fast but it was a glide that surely mimicked riding on a cloud. "Yaaaahoooo"! At last the frown had completely dropped from Joey's face and he laughed and giggled for a least an hour on that swing.

We said our goodbyes and as we turned down the driveway to leave, Joey ran to me and wrapped his arms around my legs, squeezed tight and said, "Thank you lady, thank you. That swing is,.... well it is..... it is.....MORE THAN SUMMER"! The frown I first saw had been replaced with the biggest smile full of appreciation and joy beaming like the summer sun. More than summer, he said. I understood what he meant. I often think of that day and the young boy I met that one time. It reminds me to think about the good things in life, especially when I host a frown across my face from a difficult day. I think on that day when I am not feeling so joyful. It was a simple moment but to me it still fills my heart with a smile. Philippinans 4:9: "Those things which you have both learned and received and heard and seen in me, do; and the God of peace shall be with you".

It was the God of peace who moved me to make that swing. It was the God of peace who knew a young boy needed something to kiss him with a smile. Have you had such a moment when you were moved by the God of peace to do something simple for someone you do not know?

For a young boy the best day is a day in summer full of play and freedom and fun and friends, lemonade and lazy afternoons reading books and getting dirty and staying out until dark catching fireflys in a jar. I hope Joey remembers that day. What about you? Do you need something good to think about today? Close your eyes, imagine yourself six, that swing, the air on your face, gliding as if on a cloud. It's MORE THAN SUMMER! What does that thought do to the frown on your face?

Retain or Contain, that is the question?

Scott cut the small branch from the fruitless tree. He dipped the cut end into a solution that helps promote growth and laid it aside. Then with a very sharp tool, he cut deep into the trunk of the fruit tree. Carefully he pressed the prepared branch into the opening in the trunk of the fruit tree. I watched all of this wondering who figured it out? Some fruit farmer or a tree expert? And why did Scott pick that particular tree trunk to place that fruitless branch into? As it turned out, that newly grafted branch is now my lemon tree. Every year it produces more and more lemons. The juice from these particular lemons is of course sour as it should be but interestingly it has a sweetness to it as well.

The fruitless tree had pretty leaves but never flowered and never had lemons. It did not contain the necessary genetic structure within to bear fruit. It is considered a lemon tree but I must say, that is a trespass of the name. The grafted branch completed its' transformation and grew into a good transplant size, full of blooms. The new tree contained all the good genetic structure of a productive fruit tree. It's branches are full of fruit. I knew when I saw it that lemons were on their way to my glass. I love fresh lemonade.

John 20:22b,23: "Jesus breathed on them and said, receive ( contain) the Holy Spirit. Who so ever sins you forgive, they are forgiven, and who so ever sins you retain, they are retained".

I was intrigued by this verse and looked up two words: contain: to incorporate, hold in, bear, carry, comprise or represent. retain: to remember, think of, hold, keep on, continue.

I recently watched a friend work through a betrayal situation in her workplace. Most of us face such difficult circumstances many times in our lives, whether with work, family or friends. As a believer in Christ, she is constrained to forgive. Sometimes forgiveness is easy and other times resentment seems to pop up in the soil of our hearts like one of those thorny weeds that is almost impossible to dig out. My friend and I decided we want to be like my new lemon tree. In our past, we were like branches from a fruitless tree. Jesus came and cut us free from our old lives and grafted us into His fruitful tree of life. Now we are new trees altogether. Like my new lemon tree, we became containers for the fruit bearing dna that is in Christ. Our lives now contain the fruit of His Holy Spirit. We are not retaining the genetic dna of our old lives. Resentment and bitterness are produced when forgiveness is absent. By forgiving, we stop retaining the bitterness of the past. In His words, we are not retaining the sins of our past. We are completely new creations. II Corinthians 5:17: "Therefore, if anyone is (grafted) in Christ, he/she is a new creation altogether, the old moral, spiritual condition is passed away. Behold, the fresh and new one has come".

We can choose to remember, think of, continue or keep on in the old ways of our old life. We can retain trespasses but that would be like the new lemon tree with the fruit bearing dna refusing to bloom and produce lemons. My tree is a completely new kind of lemon tree.... it was grafted into a completely different kind of tree trunk. The life force flowing through it now is carrying, contains and is incorporating fruit bearing into every new branch. Lemons are on the way! That is inevitable!

So if... I am a new creation.... and the one I am grafted into produces love, patience, kindness, gentleness, joy, peace, long suffering, goodness and faith, then those fruits will be in me. I now contain the life force of the one who contains that fruit. I am grafted into the perfect love of God the Creator. My wounds have been dipped in the healing oil of Holy Spirit and I am pressed into Christ. I am a NEW sort of tree... I am a holy fruit bearing tree. I am in Christ and He flows through me. I choose NOT to retain sin. I choose to contain Him. Harvest time is near. Get the baskets ready, the pickers of coming! What about you. Are there fruit trees in your life that DON'T produce the fruit their name inclines? Are you producing the kind of fruit others would want to enjoy?

The Ultimate Pining

I saw the gleam of proud tears edging her eyes. She struggled to push back a river of emotion while watching her beloved grandson receive the pin and title of Registered Nurse. Her neatly combed hair and the rosiness of her cheeks help to conceal her 89 years. My eyes were on her as I knew she could not hear the speaker. I watched ready to share with her what he was saying but she seemed content with her own silent speech. Her heart and mind were full, I am sure, of the many words she would say if she could speak to the audience, of how wonderful her grandson is. It was a beautiful ceremony and the words of the oath taken by all the newly pinned RN's graduating on this night, still ring in my mind. "In the full knowledge of the obligations I am undertaking, I promise to care for the sick with all the skill and understanding I possess.......... sparing no effort to conserve life, to alleviate suffering and to promote health". I was struck with wonder at what the actual wording was. Jesus Christ spoke to the Father in Heaven when He pledged His life for the healing of the world. We don't know the words but we know the action he carried out. Isaiah 53:3-5 AMP; "He was despised, rejected and forsaken by men. A man acquainted with grief and sickness.... He bore our sicknesses, weaknesses, and distresses and carried our sorrows and pains (punishment), yet we considered Him stricken, smitten and afflicted by God. He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was laid upon Him and with His wounds we were HEALED".

There were several graduating students who received special awards for extraordinary accomplishments above and beyond the required courses and practicum. Jesus went beyond what any human could possibly be expected to do to acquire good health for humanity. He was crucified. He went quietly to a death He did not deserve. Not only did He not receive any awards from man, they even mocked and spit on Him. I can't help but imagine the angels all lined up with their best apparell... you know the dressy wings as opposed to their every day wings. I am sure in my playful mind, they must have halos that are embellished for special occasions and ones that are camoflaged for battle and then kaki for everyday use. On that day... when the Son of God went to the cross carrying the sin nature of humanity they surely dressed "all out" for the three day celebration.

We who are alive today and have the priveledge and right to take what Jesus Christ obtained for us... healing... deliverance, redemption and salvation in its' fullness; we have no award plaques or honorariums to offer Him. What we do have is our faith, love, trust and worship. We can in effect offer our own lives up to Him as living sacrifices, allowing Him to lead us in our services to those we come in contact with. Read the book of Hebrews for a glimpse!

Had we been able to see the Ultimate Pinning service in heaven, we would have more fully understood what Jesus Christ intended when He took His pledge of sacrifice and service. No one knows what the face of the Father looks like. He, the Son saw it. In my imagination I see the same thing I saw in my mothers' face the other night, only to a billion squared. Pride and esteem for the one He loved. I am grateful for the small way I was shown what millions see every day in the lives of physicians, nurses, fireman, policemen and service people in all walks and careers. People who sacrifice much to help obtain the smallest to the greatest helping hand for others. I am most grateful and forever will worship the one who gained all that pertains to life and health for me and humanity; Jesus Christ my Lord. He underwent the Ultimate Pinning on the day of Calvary. He's on the job and His schedule is 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. When you press His call button.... He is there. Just reach for Him... He will show up. He pledged His life to do so!

What about you... have you considered what He did for you... even if you have not yet believed?

One Liners

In December I had my first time in New York! "A goal without a plan, is just a wish", to quote a one liner. My husband watched for an opportunity and as it presented itself, we made a plan. Hooray, my wish became a reality. I was excited to finally be in New York and one thing on my "To Do", list was to go to Babars Grocery Store. I entered with my cup of Starbucks coffee in hand and strolled through, taking in every thing I could. To be in New York for me was a fulfilled wish. "Please take my picture right here", I asked a sales girl, while standing under a sign that reads .. CASH ONLY. As she focused, I quoted the line I had repeated so many times through the years..... "I have no cash". That line of course being one in a favorite movie, "You've Got Mail". Often I have taunted my friends to at least a smile by quoting lines from movies or other places. "You've Got Mail", happened to be a movie that for some strange reason always gave me hope. "You went expecting to meet a friend and the enemy showed up"! That being another line from the same movie, I often have felt that way. I go somewhere thinking I will be seeing friends, only to face the sharp end of the enemy's sword. We all face those times when we ourselves cannot coin a great saying that will resonate with the emotion and concreteness of the moment. One liners where ever they come from seem to help us cope. "I'll make him an offer he can't refuse", really says it all when we are determined to get someone to do something. "Houston, we have a problem", we say when things are not working out with a plan we are sure would have worked. Who can forget this one.... "You're gonna need a bigger boat'? O my how that one could bring a shiver up and down your spine.

With all this in mind I was reading what is for me, a most famous one liner, "Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God". Hmmmmmm. I was curious so I did some research and discovered that manna was like bread. It was sweet, and arrived on earth when the Israelites were hungry... Exodus 16. God had to let them get REAL hungry. We're talking stomachs growling and juices burning with a lot of acid indigestion from an empty gut I'm sure. He wanted to impact them with a one liner I think. He spoke not in words but with a thin wafer that was like coriander seed, and the people ground it up and made loaves with it. Every day it showed up and would spoil if left for the next day. Each person was allotted approximately 119 ounces per day. That's enough bread to really put a spread on the ole waist.

In Mathew 4:4: "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God". The Israelites were living on bread alone for a while. They called it manna. So just what was that stuff? Could it be that it was a physical picture of the bread of life that was to come? Interestingly, the amount each person was to have was 1/10 of an ephah.... a tithe, so to speak. So... God gave a tithe of life sustaining bread... to the Israelites and Jesus was the FULL LOAF? When we take in the consecrated bread, is it not the representation of Him who is the bread of life? Could it be that God was showing forth the one to come who would be the greatest ONE LINER of all time?

Yeshua, the Hebrew for Jesus, is the one liner that when spoken, changed the world. That one liner stops time, moves mountains, heals diseases, delivers captives, rescues those in danger, and restores lives. I could list a thousand more things that are impacted by the one liner that was spoken from God's mouth.... "This is my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased".

There are times in my life when I am so weary and so low.... down and hurting and fearful and wounded and worried and sad. There is one word that I know from experience I can just think of and my entire being is moved into peace..... Jesus! We can live by every word from God as every word spoken refers to His Son... THE LIVING WORD... Jesus. It is my conviction that God loves one liners as I do. The greatest one liner of all...... Jesus. It makes me smile, gives me comfort, soothes my troubled soul and brings peace into every situation I face. I really love that! How about you?

His Righteousness Becomes Ours

I began this blog to write what I call stow-ries. The greatest stow-ry teller was Jesus. So this morning I began again, "reading the red and praying for power", as suggested by Pastor Cho years ago. Being a man who has seen the result of great leadership in that he has the largest Christian church in Korea, I think his suggestion a good one. Recently a friend told me she was going to do the same. So today I will discuss the first red letters/Christ's words, as recorded in Mathew 3:15. Jesus came from Galilee to John to be baptized in the Jordan river. John tried to prevent Him realizing he, John, needed to be baptized by Jesus. Jesus said:" Permit it to be for now, as it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness".

Have you ever been in a situation where you KNEW you were the more qualified, talented, capable, person for a certain task, or job and yet there was one you were serving or helping to do that very thing? Oh I have. The human and really prideful thing to do is to try to get your own ideas or plans worked into the arena, thus allowing you to gain the prize; glory! How beautiful a lesson in life this passage in Mathew is for all, whether a Christian or not. In the business world life becomes a 'dog eat dog' routine. Has anyone out there ever really eaten a dog? Well I haven't in the real sense of 'roasted retriever with mint sauce'. I have however, stepped on and over someone, trying to get myself seen as the MOST QUALIFIED person in the field. I am intrigued by the humility I find myself needing and wanting this morning as I contemplate the words, "fulfill all righteousness". Jesus identified Himself with John's mission NOT his position.

I have offered myself as a helper to a dear friend who instructs children in the good things of life, the Bible. I have a considerable amount of grey hair and years of seniority in the area of teaching but I am constrained today to take this lesson in heart with me as I go serve. May I lose sight of my own expertise, catch the vision of my friend, and not reach for glory but identify with her mission. In that one small way will we not be fulfilling righteousness? What are your thoughts on this