Two Very Good Things To Ponder

With all that clamors for my attention in today's high-tech world, it is good for a Bible-taught Christian to ask two questions periodically. The first would be "What has God been doing in my life?" and the second is "How am I doing at walking with Him by faith and growing in my obedience to His word?"

Yesterday was my first grandchild's 10th birthday; a perfect time for me to step back and think about how life was when she arrived ten years ago. My observation was a resounding "Wow!" In those ten years Mark and I have grown in our faith. This has happened against a backdrop of prayer and constant reminders that there is much we don't control, but we belong to a God who is sovereign.

 We have watched as our daughter has changed from living out the world's view of life to caring very much about what the Savior thinks she should be doing. She has become an amazing mother to her 10 year old daughter and 2 year old son. She is growing as a wife, an employee at her part time job and as a child of God. By God's grace she finished her bachelor of science degree through eight years of persevering, one course at a time. I am so amazed as I see her priorities lining up with what a "woman after God's own heart" would value. She is part of a warm, Bible teaching church family where she not only attends but serves. She is learning the value of not only carrying her own burden, but also helping others carry theirs. That brings Mark and I much joy.

To add to all these blessings, we now have a wonderful relationship with a sweet granddaughter who has come to be such a vital part of our lives. At supper the other night, I was telling her that Bebaw (Mark) and I want to be influences for God's kingdom in her life and her brother's. "Memaw," she said, "You already are; half the things I know about the Christian life, I learned from you and Bebaw." I smile to myself as I recall a memory. It was her response at 4 years of age when I explained what "All we like sheep have gone astray" meant. "Everyone is a sinner?" she queried. I nodded. "Even Bebaw?" (Her grandfather) When I again said "yes" she put her hand on her hip and asked "Well what did he ever do?" He still smiles when I tell that story.

Yes, our God has done much in those ten years. I am in a good place when I critique my own walk with Him and look for signs that I have grown in my obedience to Him in those years as well. If you ask me what there is left to accomplish in my heart, the list is still substantial. I want the next ten years, Lord permitting, to be marked by even more evidence that I am His obedient child, not perfect by a long shot, but confessing and forsaking all known sin in my life. I want to care about the things that the Savior has for me to do. I want to be that woman He had in mind when He created me.

Below is a copy of the email I sent out to my friends the night Summer was born. I am so glad that I kept it. Time has a way of robbing the mind of the little details that make a memory precious. I am thankful that our granddaughter is another proof that every child is a gift from the Giver of all good things.

Juno email printed Saturday, 8 Feb 2003 00:14:03
Subect: Summer is here!
Dear Ones:
How can I describe in mere words the joy that was mine today as I held our darling granddaughter for the first time? I've now joined the ranks of starstruck adults who babble on to anyone who will listen about their grandchildren! Oh well! Thank you for your prayers! God was listening and we had an amazing day.

Heather's day began with a great deal of anxiety over the surgery she was facing. I just kept asking God to use me to reassure her that she could do it and soon she would be looking into the sweet face of the little darling that had been kicking her all these 5 months. The anxiety came to a crescendo when they sent me to get dressed in OR garb and wheeled Heather into the OR suite and placed her on what she thought was the narrowest bed imaginable! She was sure she was going to fall off! She saw the bright lights, thought of every ER show she'd ever seen, and started to feel the panic rising inside her. She told me that she was thinking of telling the anaesthesiologist that he would have to put her asleep; she just couldn't go through with the spinal. Suddenly, she remembered her Aunt Carolyn, who had four C-sections, and had given her a pep talk the night before. She later told me "I thought if Aunt Carolyn can do this four times, I can do it once!"

I arrived shortly after that and before we knew it we could hear both the surgeon and the assistant exclain together "Oh my gosh!" (They were impressed with the size of Summer's head.) Heather looked at me and said "WHAT'S WRONG?" The circulating nurse quickly reassured us that all was well. They were just commenting on the baby's size.

Dr. Wolcott, not one to dawdle, clamped the cord and held her aloft for both of us to see and exclaimed "Here's your baby girl!" Heather and I were truly amazed and suddenly our hearts melted as we looked at this little (!) sweetheart and realized she was ours.
I'll close with the details: birth time: 1:06 pm, birthweight: 10lb 8oz; her length: 20 3/4 "
She has lots of thick dark hair and dark, bright eyes. We will have some pictures to share with you soon, but in the meantime, thankyou for your prayers and your love.
I'll close for now. It's after midnight, and as grandmothers tire easily, I'm heading up to bed and taking the grandpa with me!
Praise God for this gift of life!
love to all,
Jo

As I finish this post, it occurs to me how much God uses His people to love and support us in times of crisis. There are many Christian friends and family that have, over the past years, added their touch to invest in Summer's life. God works, and he uses His people to do what He has in mind. No Lone Rangers. I am grateful to be His child and forever a part of His family.

Redeeming The Time

I've noticed that often when I ask friends how they are doing, the answer I get is "busy!" Don't we often sense a pressure from the many demands on our time? We have so many choices and a multitude of "good" things call to us, but we truly only have time for a few.

I've heard women's Bible teacher Beth Moore say that it's not wise to try to do too much. We are better off to choose one thing and just make that our focus. Resist the urge to spread yourself too thin. Be excellent at one or two well chosen life goals.

The Scriptures set this very principle forth as a command in Ephesians 5:15&16: "See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time because the days are evil."
I want that for my life. I want to walk in wisdom, not foolishness. I want to be circumspect, cautious and intentional in my choices. I want to "redeem" or "buy back" my time, living in such a way that my life not only counts for temporal things, but those choices have eternal value as well.

So here's the question: How do I redeem my time? The life of Christ is my reference point. I look at how he budgeted his time while here on earth. I see right away that it was his habit to rise early and spend time in prayer with his Father. (Mark 1:35) I know he was no doubt tired from his long days of ministry, teaching and healing throngs of people. And yet he got up early. Out of that alone time with his Father came the wise choices that often seemed to go against the expectations of others. He drew wisdom and strength for each day from his time alone with God, and so can I.

I smile when I think of him overruling the disciples when they wanted to shoo the children away so he could spend time with the adults. He said "Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." (Matt 19:14)
I think of his timing in the death of Lazarus, his conversation with the despised Samaritan woman at Jacob's well and his care for his mother as he was about to die on the cross . All of these situations show our Savior making wise choices and "finishing the work" that his Father had given him to do. Never once do we read of his turning someone away with  the words "Can't you see I'm busy here!" How unthinkable! What a remarkable Savior we have!

When I purpose to begin each day by spending even a few precious minutes in God's presence, I am setting the tone for that day and redeeming the time I have been given. It is my desire that when my time on earth is up, I will meet my Savior and know that I have finished the work he had for me to do. After all, as someone once said, "The thing about life is that it is so daily!"

Put The Kettle On

I do enjoy a cup of steaming hot black tea. I take mine with a splash of milk, British style. Since I was a youngster, I've welcomed the call to "put the kettle on" knowing that it would be followed by the steeping and pouring of my favorite hot beverage. In New Brunswick, Canada, the maritime province where I was born, the cold winters bring plenty of reasons for visiting over a good cup of tea. The mild summers make tea drinking a year round practice. Even though I now live in the steamy South, thanks to air-conditioning, I drink hot tea even in the months of July and August.

At sixty years of age, I realize that there is much more to be appreciated here than just consuming tea. It would seem to me, that the very ritual of setting out cups & saucers, milk & sugar and the tea pot, (covered with a "tea cozy"), literally "sets the table" for a valued face to face visit with a friend or loved one. We stop and take the time to invest in one another, even if it's just for ten or fifteen minutes. It's a way of saying "Come, sit, and let me give you my undivided attention while we sip our tea." That is a rare thing in this era of cell phones and text messages!

Just yesterday, my eighty-two year old mother was wistfully observing : "You're never really alone with anyone these days! You don't have the pleasure of some one's undivided attention anymore. There's a constant stream of interruptions with messages that must be read and answered right away!"

I know exactly what she means. The urgent intrudes on nourishing relationships. "Just let me get this" is the antithesis of "Come, sit here with me, and let's catch up over tea!"

This blog will be my invitation to you to explore topics that will edify and refresh, much like a well-brewed cup of tea. Often, the best way to "redeem the time" is to stop multi-tasking and just be still. We'll consider truths from God's Word that we can take back with us into our fast-paced day. It will be a reminder of God's presence with us.

 So I invite you...come join me. You can easily imagine me at my computer with my favorite hot drink.