I watched him worshiping from my seat in a pew further back in the sanctuary.  We were all singing the closing song but he was joyous, I could tell that even from my considerable distance from where he was and despite the fact that I wasn’t wearing my glasses.  I didn’t need them to see clearly what was taking place before my eyes.

It was more than just his outstretched arms and uplifted face that gave him away.  He moved about singing, clapping, offering his hand and hugs and his very heart to those fellow worshipers seated near him.  I watched him freely bestowing his hugs of encouragement, of affirmation, of acceptance, of love to any and all that he could reach.  Aren’t we all looking for those very things?  And this man was freely giving these things and so much more with each and every hug.

Some would say he’s a simple man, limited in this life.  I can’t understand his speech but I can hear his heart.  He is not influential nor important by our cultural standards. I know him to be a faithful and loving father in the most difficult and challenging of circumstances.  A lesser man could not have stayed the course as he has done.  He is faithful in his Sunday worship as well, blessing the rest of us by his presence.  His joy in knowing Jesus is overflowing and contagious.

We are told in God’s word that to whom much is given, much is required. Now it doesn’t seem to me that this man was given much of anything in this life.  But he gives all of himself freely and fully to God in worship every Sunday.  He holds nothing back from God nor from others.  What a joyful servant he is.

Watching him worship today, I had to ask myself; considering the abundance I’ve been given by my Creator, am I giving freely for God all that He’s entrusted me with?  Am I using every gift and ability He’s given me for His glory and to lift others up?  God has given me so much, but for a reason.  Why would I hold anything back?  “To whom much is given much is required”,  continues to echo in my mind as I write this.  This gentleman taught me something today without speaking a single word.  No words were required, his actions said it all.

Give it all for God, hold nothing back for yourself.  (after all,  what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his own soul?  Mark 8:36)  My fellow worshiper hasn’t been given much but he offers all that he is up to God and then some.  He will hear “well done, good and faithful servant”.   He is last but he will be first, he is the least of these,  he is who Christ came to seek and to save.  He has been found and is showing others the way.  He has found his highest calling in Christ alone.  Oh that I would not grow weary in living out my calling as he does, holding nothing back.

Complete trust, complete obedience, resulting in complete joy now and in the age to come.  Thank you dear brother in Christ,  for fulfilling your God-given purpose here on earth and blessing those of us who know you in the process.

“But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.  He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things- and the things that are not- to nullify the things that are,  so that no one may boast before Him.”  (I Corinthians 1:27-29)

sincerely,                              Grace Day

 

I hadn’t seen her for awhile, but I don’t get to our exercise class that regularly myself, so that didn’t really tell me anything.  She was probably traveling, hiking in Montana most likely.  But when I looked over later, she was there in her usual spot.  She had slipped in unnoticed.  Something was different today, though. It wasn’t her demeanor, which was as engaged and as vibrant as usual. No, it was the portable oxygen she carried with her and was hooked up to that was new.  Still, she barely missed a beat as we went through our various routines to the music.   No mountain for this woman, merely a molehill.  No match for this indomitable spirit, no way, no how.  And I was inspired once again, on an ordinary day, going about my ordinary routine, by an extraordinary woman I am privileged to know.  Yes, yet another indomitable spirit showing the way for those of us who would live our lives with purpose and courage every day, not just now and then.

I never know when and where inspiration will strike,  how and how often it will find me.  But I am always grateful when it does.  I am grateful for every encounter that inspiration and I share, its what keeps me going.  Inspiration shows up when I least expect her,  when I’m not looking for her and when I need her most.  She takes many forms, wears many disguises. May I never fail to recognize her.

I have written about these people before in an earlier post.  There are so many stories I could not recount them all.  A younger woman with MS comes faithfully and you would never suspect this (disease) is her battle unless you got to know her.  One woman with Parkinsons came consistently for years.  She was such an inspiration, with such a sweet, strong spirit about her.  One gentleman has returned to class after heart surgery, another returned after serious injury from a bicycle accident.  This is the Indomitable spirit in action for all to see.

It is this Indomitable spirit that younger (more entitled) generations would do well to take note of and begin to emulate.  This attitude towards life pervades their thinking, is perfected in their persistence and ultimately prevails in these inspiring, indomitable lives.   They just keep on showing up, even when it is hard.  And there in lies the victory.

I’m glad they keep on showing up because I am inspired by their mere presence. I’m sure each of you, dear readers, have those people you cross paths with daily, in the course of your everyday schedule that are so much more than meets the eye.  If only you knew their stories.  (and we’ve all got one)  May you be inspired by the “Indomitables” that you are fortunate enough to encounter every day in your own lives.  God created us as so much more than just these physical bodies,  it is our spirits that shine through and connect with others.  Thank you, all you Indomitables; keep on lighting up our world and showing us how to live with patience and persistence, until God’s good purposes ultimately prevail in our lives.

“For God has not given us a spirit of cowardice (fear), but a spirit of power, of love and of self-control.”   II Timothy 1:7

sincerely,                  Grace Day

 

 

 

 

There are those things in our everyday lives that make no sense but we accept them anyway because, well why do we?   Take for instance a small size drink at Starbucks. If that’s what you want, you need to order a “tall” in order to get the smallest size. In what world does that make sense? If you want a medium sized beverage you must request a “grande”.  Sounds like you are getting a giant-sized, top of the line whatever it might be, but no you are just asking for a middle of the road, average sized something when you request a “grande”. What terminology could be left for you to order something bigger than the “grande”?

Remember when butter was bad?   Well, it’s back, has been for awhile.  Now margarine has the bad reputation.  Eggs were out, but no longer.  They are not only back, they are practically a super food in their own right.  And coffee has made a comeback, coffee  has crossed over from the “out”to the “in again” list and is now supposed to be associated with good brain health, memory, cognitive function etc.  Who can keep up?

State fair foods are fun.  You can get deep fried Twinkies (or just about anything deep fried) and specialty items like the doughnut burger, three doughnuts with two bacon burgers in between, topped off with mac and cheese.  Who thinks these things up?  I think the same people who create and market all the different diet plans available to us for the choosing.  Or maybe they’re in cahoots with those who invent, make and market every kind of exercise machine imaginable.  As our food choices continue to expand, so the barrage of diet plans and exercise programs grows also, keeping pace.

Remember the fear we were entering another ice age?  I guess we got over that one or did we just replace it with fear of global warming?  And those wind turbines the ecologists love so much?  What about all the birds they are killing? Aren’t you supposed to be protecting them?

And let me just say, its tough being a consumer (of anything).  In fact, it’s downright exhausting, not to mention time consuming.(pun intended) The magazine, “Consumer Reports” proves my point, we need a magazine to help us shop for stuff.  Personal Shopper is actually a job title, maybe even a career choice.  Just try picking out toothpaste when your basic brand doesn’t exist anymore, because every thing is an additional choice; from extra whitening to enamel protection to tartar control to help for sensitive teeth to a flavor and don’t forget fighting plaque or killing germs.  (I personally look for the one that doesn’t kill germs or fight gingivitis). I mean, why not just put all the desirable qualities into one product?   We’d still have to choose gel or paste, mint or whatever flavor, brand-Colgate, Crest or whatever and size etc.  Who has time to sort through it all?  Don’t get me started on mouthwash.  (This makes shopping for shoes look relatively simple by comparison.  You don’t have to read minuscule labels, just find a size that fits and a look you like.)

And food?  How do we make a choice?  There are so many things to consider.  For instance,  salt/low sodium/reduced sodium/no sodium,  sugar/sugar free/no sugar added/ 1/3 less sugar (less than what?),  gluten or no gluten, fat free/ half the fat/low fat/no fat, milk/whole/low fat/skim/soy milk/almond milk/coconut milk etc. Whole grain/multi-grain or what?  unwhole grain?  Organic/all natural/no preservatives or artificial additives etc.  Do you know how many different kinds of apples there are?  I remember when Cheerios were just that, Cheerios, period.  Now there’s Honey Nut, Multi-grain, Apple-cinnamon, Protein, even Chocolate Cheerios. (is this last one a breakfast food or dessert?)  And Oreos?  How many different kinds of Oreos do we need? I counted FIFTEEN different kinds of Oreos in just one store.  That’s not all the varieties of Oreos available, only those available at that particular store. There is now a “thin” version of many Oreo flavors and for those not content with the “double stuf” varieties there is now a “mega stuf” Oreo also available. I kid you not, I could not make this up.  How much is enough?

V-8 juice was just that, a red vegetable juice drink.  Now there are too many varieties to count, compounded by the fact that each flavor has its own low sodium and/or “lite” version with less sugar. Usually the original of anything is by far the best, just like the first movie is better than all its subsequent sequels. But marketing dictates we keep trying to reinvent the wheel. Its a wonder anyone ever gets out of the grocery store in a reasonable amount of time and with any amount of sanity left.   And to complicate matters further, when we have found a product we like, that works for us, meaning we don’t have to read the label every time to see what we are getting, they change the packaging so we don’t recognize it as the product we’ve been buying all these years.   Why did it need a new look anyway if it was selling well?

The only constant is change.  My favorite restaurant is long gone.  Places I love undergo renovations and remodeling,  when I liked them just as they were.  Sometimes the new is not better.  Why do we “fix” things that aren’t broken?  And in the process of “upgrading” so many things, we completely ignore things that are broken and need our attention.  These are all points to ponder, but who has the time?

Phones and computers and such are practically out dated by the time they’re available for purchase.  We are a consumer driven culture and we are put in the role of consumer whether we like it or not. If we’re not careful, being a consumer will consume us and it often does.  Well, this started as a “ponder” but is sounding more like a “rant” by this point.  I apologize, but I am a weary and a wary consumer wanting not to be consumed by this culture of consumption.  (how appropriate with the holidays almost here)

In this season of giving thanks,  I am most grateful for the eternal, abiding, constant presence in my life, of my Creator, Heavenly Father, God.  He does not change like shifting shadow, He is from age to age the same.  He is faithful even when I am unfaithful.  I can count on Him and I do.  God is my constant in this ever changing world.  “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”  (Hebrews 13:8) I can count on that.

Here’s hoping our consuming doesn’t consume us,

sincerely,                 Grace Day

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I think manna is my missing “m”  in mtothe5th,  its the sixth “m”, if you will.  But it definitely belongs there, a symbol of God’s mercy, one of His miracles provided daily for the Israelites as they wandered in the desert.  Maybe the Israelites considered the manna too mundane to be a miracle. ( a mundane miracle would certainly be a contradiction in terms, can a miracle even be mundane? something predictable, something ordinary?) After all, it wasn’t cheesecake, or philly steak, or dark chocolate.  And it was a daily occurrence, (except for the Sabbath) so maybe they ceased to see the manna as the miracle that it was.

The manna represented God’s care and provision for the Israelites, it was His mercy towards them, demonstrated new every morning.  It was literally their daily bread.  This miracle of the manna reminds me of what it says in Lamentations 3:22-23  “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.”   The manna was new every morning while they were in the desert, they could count on its appearance without fail, because the God who provided it is faithful.

So why didn’t the Israelites recognize the manna for the miracle it was?  A gift from God every morning to sustain them, they did nothing to contribute to its appearing every day, they didn’t plant it or grow it, they simply had to gather it every morning after it fell from heaven.  All they had to do was to receive it, preferably with a grateful heart.  But they were grumbling rather than grateful.  They didn’t earn it or deserve it, yet still it was there day after day, evidence of God’s faithfulness to them even in the midst of their unfaithfulness.

Granted, forty years is a long time to be living on manna, but it beats the alternative. They were in the desert forty years because of their rebellion to begin with, yet the manna was the miracle of God’s mercy manifested new every day,  day after day. Do I miss God’s miracles in my life because I’m looking for something “other” than what He’s graciously giving me each day?  Do I consider what He bestows too mundane to be a miracle?

Jesus taught His disciples to pray “give us this day our daily bread”.  He also told them
“I am the bread of life.  He who comes to me will never go hungry ,” .  At the last supper Jesus broke bread and gave it to them saying, “this is my body given for you;”.  Jesus was in the miracle of the manna as surely as He is the bread of life, our daily bread and our once for all time sacrifice broken on the cross.  The Israelites  were awaiting their Deliverer, their promised Messiah; they just didn’t recognize His presence in the daily delivery from heaven of the mysterious manna, which sustained them until they reached the promised land.

The manna became common place to them,  always the same, predictable, like the rising of the sun or the spinning of the earth through space.  I don’t want to take my every day miracles for granted.  The miracle of another day, of forgiven sin, of a relationship with my Creator that I did nothing to earn.  The miracle of mercy experienced new every day.  The miracle of second chances and reconciliation. (even the miracle of a parking space and well behaved students ).  Every new day is a miracle in itself and Jesus is our daily bread, our manna, our miracle from heaven to sustain us for another day.  We just have to receive Him.

Lord, even though I’m walking by faith, help me to walk with my eyes open to the manna of Your daily miracles and to gather them in, give You thanks for them and to remember them.  Your miracles may be in one time dramatic events like the parting of the Red Sea but they are more often in the repetitive, ordinary events of our daily lives, hidden amidst the mundane, there for us to recognize and rejoice over.  May I be found grateful, not grumbling.

sincerely,                   Grace Day

 

 

 

 

These don’t seem like very peaceful times, nationally or globally.  All we have to do is to turn on the news and we are reminded of this fact, if indeed we had been able to forget it for a moment.  Of course, throughout history people have been convinced that they were living in the most turbulent of times.  And they would have been right.  Peace has always eluded mankind, ever since our fall from grace chosen by Eve and Adam in the garden so long ago. At that point, when they chose disobedience to their Creator, they were no longer at peace with themselves, with each other or with God.  Everything had changed in that instant.  Sin had entered God’s perfect world, and peace was no longer a part of it.  Peace was no longer the norm.

Peace eludes us on an individual level, we don’t experience peace personally. We are often at war with ourselves, we are our own worst enemy. (if I can’t get along with myself, no wonder I have trouble getting along with others.) Then peace eludes us in our personal relationships.Peace escapes us in our families, in our neighborhoods, in our churches, in our schools.  We don’t experience peace in our communities, in our states, in our nation or in our relationships with other nations. Because we don’t seek peace and pursue it on an individual level, we don’t experience peace on any level, from the personal to the global.

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.”  (Matt. 5:9)   We are called to be peacemakers but how many of us seek peace and pursue it on a daily basis?  We are given some good advice in Romans 12:17-21, “Do not repay anyone evil for evil.  Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody.  If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.  Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath,  …  do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

As far as it depends on me, live at peace?  Can anything I do really make a difference? That’s where it has to start, with me.  Not only with my actions but with my words.  In my earlier post, “Walking Wounded” I addressed the incredible power words have in our world.  We need to watch our words carefully.  With the election just days away, I pray for peace no matter the outcome.  We may not see our preferred candidates win but peace prevailing in every state, in our cities, in our streets would be a victory for each and every one of us.  To know that we can leave our homes for work, school, church etc. in safety and without fear of violence is the gift that peace bestows.

I long for peace in the world but it has to start on an individual level, it has to start with me. While the media may be focused on those things that divide us, I want to be reminded of those things that would unite us.  We all need to unite in pursuing peace instead of attacking those hired to protect us and keep the peace.  I am hopeful for a more peaceful world as the gospel of peace is translated into more languages and shared with more people around the world.  There will come a time when, “They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.  Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.”   (Is. 2:4)

The world has not known a time free from conflict,  but we can continue to pursue peace in our personal lives and in every sphere of influence that is ours.  We can and must make a difference.  A little kindness goes a long way toward this end.

sincerely,                         Grace Day

 

well, technology and I continue to do battle on a daily basis.  And technology continues to win most of the time. Technology usually gets the best of me, leaving me confused, discouraged, and longing for things to be simpler, clearer or at least more user friendly.  I mean one wrong click and things can go awry at an alarmingly fast pace and I’m left wondering what if anything will fix the mess and put me back on track. Technology has the upper hand.  No matter how much I learn, she advances far faster than my futile efforts to close the gap between us.  She is always  out of reach, taunting me, telling me I will never catch her, let alone master her.

So, she has the fear factor going for her, keeping me in my place.  Additionally, she surrounds me at every turn, making herself inescapable.  There is no where I can go to get a rest from technology, she is everywhere.  She has made herself necessary even as I have been trying valiantly, (but without success) to get through a day without her, so that I can avoid the battle.  The battle that will leave me worn out and wondering where I went wrong this time and what I could do differently at our next encounter.  No matter though,  technology always has new moves with which to block any attempt I might make to use her to accomplish even the simplest of tasks.  She can turn these seemingly simple tasks into monumental challenges.  Technology turns my molehills into insurmountable mountains every day, leaving me looking for the miracle that will lead me out of the maze.  Otherwise, technology once again holds me captive, an unwilling prisoner unable to free herself from the confusion and chaos that is technology, as she runs circles around me yet again.  (That must be her victory dance)

And passwords?   Let me just say, passwords are the bane of my existence.  I mean, everything requires a password.  Who can keep them all straight?  Having the same password for each account, membership or whatever is not advised.  And the requirements vary for passwords for different things.  Some require including capitalization, some require numbers as well as letters,  there are length requirements as well.  My user name and password often don’t match, so I seem to be always creating new passwords so I can access something of mine that I need.  It is a process without an end in sight.  Yes, I know, write them down, you say.  I do, but then I have to remember where is the all important place where I have hidden this top secret information away to keep it safe?  The question, safe from whom? comes to mind.  I have no specific answer to that question, but passwords continue to be required from me nonetheless.  They are safe from me,  that much is clear every time I have to remember one and have no clue what brilliant, memorable password I changed it to the last time.

And so the cycle continues.  I’m glad God doesn’t require a password from me, like say when I want to pray, to spend time with Him.  He already knows my thoughts, He knows my name.  He knows my user ID and I don’t need a password to prove I belong to Him.  My name is engraved on the palms of His hands and He knew me before I was even born.  I’m relieved I don’t have to log in,  that’s where I get stopped cold every time by technology and I can’t even get the access that I need or desire.  But our Creator is available 24/7 to us and without a “log in” requirement.  This is good news to me for sure.  After being totally frustrated and shut out of where I want to go by technology, I enjoy immensely the immediate access and total freedom I have in Christ to live, move and have my being in Him who created me and sustains me every moment.

Technology may be a thorn in my side but at least I don’t need her to access what is most important to me.  Prayer doesn’t require a password, just that mustard seed of faith and a willing spirit.  Our heavenly Father is ready, willing and able.

“Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.”  Isaiah 65:24

“Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”   Jeremiah 33:3

sincerely,                Grace Day

 

 

Recently, as I was driving to my dentist appointment, I realized I was looking forward to it and had been all day.  It would be a break in my busy day,  my only chance to literally put my feet up for a few minutes and rest.

So my question is, if I am looking forward to my time at the dentist, what does this say about my day?  Seriously, if my dentist appointment is the high point of my day,  what does that tell me?  Is my day that bad?  Or is my dentist that good?  These are points to ponder for sure.  I’m supposed to be dreading the dentist, aren’t I?  I mean,  its not a spa, after all.

So I will give the credit to my dentist, ( really to my hygienist ) rather than the blame to my day. Not many days are bad enough to make the dentist look good all on their own.  It’s  Sheila who makes me feel welcome, comfortable, cared for and at ease when I go to the dentist.  And that is no small feat considering that the dentist is most often a dreaded and put off appointment for most everyone and considering my own personal aversion to pain and any possible discomfort.

This is truly an everyday miracle amid the mundane and I’ll give thanks for it.  They show me compassion and mercy there and the miracle occurs.  (also, that anti-anxiety gas stuff doesn’t hurt either.)  My dread is replaced with my anticipation of a relaxing respite in my day,  while getting the health care that is important and needed.

So,  a shout out to Sheila, with my thanks and gratitude, for doing more than just her job, but caring about her patients as people in the process.  And to everyone working there for creating that kind of an environment,  one we don’t necessarily expect to encounter when we enter.  Pleasant surprises are always welcome!

sincerely,                      Grace Day

ps.     they also have my all time favorite game,   ms. pac  man in the waiting room

Forgiveness, its a tough topic.  We all need it and we all need to give it as well.  But it’s just not that easy.  We’ve all been hurt, we’ve all been wronged, treated unfairly, treated unjustly,  maybe we’ve experienced harm at the hands of others.  Sadly,  maybe there have been those times when we were the one causing the hurt, inflicting the pain or perpetrating the injustice upon another person.  So we may find ourselves in need of forgiveness as often as we find ourselves needing to extend our forgiveness to someone we know.

Peter asked Jesus about forgiveness saying, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me?  Up to seven times?”  Jesus’ answer was, “I tell you not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”  (Matt.18:21-22)   This is also translated seventy times seven,  either way expressing that we are not to put a limit on our forgiveness of others, just as God’s forgiveness towards us is infinite and without limit.  This is very good news because I know I can’t go a day without needing my Heavenly Father’s forgiveness many times in the course of that day.  And I may also be called upon to offer my forgiveness to others often in the course of that same day.  So I become both the forgiven and the forgiver.  It is precisely because I am the forgiven that I can also be the forgiver. Because I am forgiven by my Heavenly Father, (1 John 1:9), I can practice forgiveness and become the forgiver of those who wrong me.

God’s love leads me to do this.  He compels me to forgive, He commands me to forgive.  And He empowers me to forgive, to obey Him in practicing forgiveness towards all.  In the Lord’s prayer we ask to be forgiven our sins just as we forgive those who sin against us. The two actions are linked and cannot be separated in theory or in practice.  If I refuse to forgive, how can I expect to be forgiven?

Yet, sometimes I hold on to my hurt, to my anger, to my injury at the hands of another. Someone has wronged me, I have suffered an injustice and I refuse to let it go.  I wear it as a badge of honor, I have suffered, I have been mistreated.  But the badge becomes a burden, the bearing of which destroys the bearer.  Jesus was mistreated,  He was falsely accused, persecuted  and unjustly put to death.   Yet His words as He hung on the cross were, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”

The religious leaders of that day brought before Jesus a woman caught in adultery.  The laws of that time required death by stoning for such an offense.  They asked Jesus about this woman and his reply was,  ” He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. ”    John 8:7

 

I have no stone in my hand to cast,                                                                                                 only my sins both present and past;   but                                                                                                     I have no stone

I am the woman at the well,   I am the leper,  I am lame;  and                                                                 I have no stone

I have logs in my eyes, I have pride, I have shame;   but                                                                           I have no stone

I am the blind man by the roadside,   I’m the beggar by the pool;   and                                                  I have no stone

I am the rich young ruler, I’m thought wise but am a fool;   and                                                                I have no stone

I am the woman who poured perfume,  I’m the Pharisee who prayed;                                                     I have no stone

I am Peter who denied Him,  I am those who should have stayed;                                                              I have no stone

I have a heart that’s hurting,  I have many a regret;   but                                                                              I have no stone

I have the joy of His forgiveness,  I have the hope His love begets;   but                                                  I have no stone

I have feet that refuse to follow where He would bid me go,                                                     I have sins of scarlet,  His mercy made them snow;    but                                                                             I have no stone

I have the joy and comfort of His unending grace,  I have the hope that on that day I’ll see Him face to face;      but                                                                                                                                    I have no stone

I have hands full of the good gifts,  God alone can give;                                                             Forgiveness,  His greatest,  for eternity will live                                                                                                I will never have a stone

Your debt is not large, though it caused me much grief;                                                              In releasing you, I find my relief;                                                                                                      I will never have a stone to cast,                                                                                                      God has forgiven me my past;                                                                                                                              I have no stone

The religious leaders accusing the woman slipped away, one by one,  until just Jesus and the woman were left.  Then Jesus asked her,  “Where are your accusers?  has no one condemned you?”  She answered Him,  “no one, Lord”   and Jesus told her, ” Neither do I condemn you; go, and sin no more.”

“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”  Romans 8:1

sincerely,                       Grace Day

 

 

Mark Twain was onto something when he said,”youth is wasted on the young.” Why is it that we lose our hearing just when we have learned to listen well?  Why does our eyesight become cloudy just as we are seeing things more clearly than we ever have before?  Why does our voice grow faint just when what we have to say has the value experience bestows?  Why does our heart grow weak just as our love for others grows stronger than it has ever been before?

Our steps may falter even as our resolve grows firmer.  Time takes some things from us for sure,  but it deposits more than it withdraws.  Time takes from us the tangible, giving us in exchange the intangible.  Now we know that what is seen is temporary and what is unseen is eternal.  (2Cor. 4:18)  So to lose what is temporary and gain what is eternal,  seems an excellent trade-off to me.  While our bodies are growing weaker, our spirits are growing stronger.  Our minds may cease to remember the multitude of minutia that is part of our daily lives, yet our hearts will retain the reality of our identity in Christ, whose we are and where we are going.

Proverbs 16:31 says, “Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained by a righteous life.”  If more of us believed that, maybe we wouldn’t spend our time and money concealing our crown of splendor with the magic of hair color.  Not all cultures feel the need to conceal their crowns of splendor as we do.  Its a matter of focus,  do we focus on what we are losing or what we are gaining each day?  If we lose our self-centeredness  and gain empathy we are the richer for it.  If judgement is replaced with mercy the gain is ours.  God wants to give us something better than what time has taken from us here.  God’s gifts are eternal and they are always good.   (James 1:17)

God promises that He will renew our strength, that we will soar on wings like eagles; we will run and not grow weary, we will walk and not be faint.   Isaiah 40:31   This is what He will do when our hope is in Him (and not in ourselves).   All I can say is, thank you Lord,  I need You every hour.

sincerely,                                     Grace Day

Let me just say that I have a love/hate relationship with technology, with most of it being hate, if truth be told.  Today was no exception.  I almost cried in the Verizon store, but willed myself to wait until I was safely alone in my car.  Its the things we don’t anticipate that blind side us when least expected.  I went in to the store for a multitude of miniscule problems with my service and left with a loss.  A loss I had miraculously been spared only a few weeks prior.  A loss I didn’t see coming.

Silly, the things we hang onto.  Or is it?  I would say I’m a saver. (That’s the politically correct term for hoarder, isn’t it?)  Emails, voice mails,  letters, notes, cards with kind words in them from friends and family,  these are things I treasure and hang onto.  (I wrote in an earlier post, “Walking Wounded”, about the profound power of the word, both written and spoken.  Perhaps this explains my attachment to these things.)  So it should come as no surprise, dear reader, that I had several saved voice mails on my trusty flip phone.  These treasured voice mails were from my children in years past, saying such funny or sweet things that I had never been able to erase them.  Every time the prompt would come around to delete or resave, I would always press resave, thus preserving them for another twenty some odd days.  And this had gone on for years now.

I think its wise to hang onto what’s good and encouraging to get us through the tough, rocky times.  It’s during those times that we need to remember what was good and its that remembering which gives us hope and gets us through.  With my children grown and living in other states,  such were these voice mails to me, reminders of something precious to me.  They had survived several different phones and as recently as two weeks ago,  the loss of the phone in Lake Michigan.  In that instance, as you may recall from my previous post, my contact list had been lost but the saved voice mails had survived intact.   They were all there.  I considered this nothing less than a miracle.  There was something so comforting about the continuity of being able to access them despite the loss of my phone and the fact that this was a totally new, different phone.  At that moment, let me tell you, boy did I love technology even though I didn’t understand how it worked.  I didn’t care,  I had my saved voice mails, that’s all I needed to know.

Then came today.  Apparently, Verizon decided to change something about the voice mail systems on phones that were not smart phones or whatever.  This would include my flip phone.  The unsuspecting customer, such as myself, had no choice in this matter.  There was no opt out or do you want this new system?  It was automatically done for/to you  and on my phone the prompt was to set up a new voice mail, totally starting over.  The old was already gone and there was nothing I could do or could have done.  Something has been taken from me without my consent.  How keenly I feel the loss surprises me.  It is part of my history they have taken.

Now my head is telling me this is no big deal.  But my heart refuses to agree.  They are battling it out even as I write these words.  And these are the words running through my head now, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”   Matt. 6:19-21

That’s the bottom line,  that’s the real truth.  Any treasure I have here is subject to loss,  whether from theft or decay or from technology/big business that I don’t understand and don’t have any control over.  Loss is inevitable.  My real treasure, my eternal treasure, however is secure from loss of any kind.  It is being kept secure for me, safe from theft and decay, I will not suffer loss of heavenly treasures as I do earthly ones.  “For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”  Romans 4:18

And so I have both comfort and hope in these truths.  My mother’s heart will continue to feel the loss and my consumer’s  indignation at something taken from me without my consent may persist.  But neither are ultimately any match for the powerful truth of God’s Word reminding me where my priorities, my treasures and my heart belong. They belong with Him and there they are forever kept secure.  There I will no longer suffer loss.

sincerely,                                           Grace Day