“Just Do It” is a phrase Nike coined in 1988. It’s a slogan to inspire athletes to out run, out train, and out move. The apostle James used similar words to inspire Christians hundreds of years earlier.
The Bear That Came to Town
Last fall my husband and I spent a week in Avon, Colorado. One day while we were in a restaurant, we saw a crowd gathering outside around a crabapple tree. They were pointing toward the top of the tree and snapping pictures.
Leap of Faith
I grew up in Miami, Florida in the 1950s and have some great memories of that time. Life was simple, safe, and carefree. I moved away from my hometown after college, but one of my friends stayed on and became a federal judge there.
Sandcastles
When my grandchildren were little, we vacationed one summer at the beach. During that week I rediscovered the simple joy of building sandcastles.
A Teachable Spirit
The young man sitting across the table confided, “When I was twenty-five, I thought I knew everything and was bullet proof. Nothing could hurt me, and no one could teach me anything. In the past few years I’ve discovered neither of those was true.”
Destiny: Where Am I Headed After I Die?
We’ve come full circle from the dust of creation to the “ashes to ashes, dust to dust” of death (Genesis 3:19). One for one we die, that much is certain. Inevitably then, the final big question will hang in the air: where am I headed after I die?
Morality: How Do I Know Right from Wrong?
Ladies, all the answers to the big questions seem to radiate out from my God belief. Certainly that is true about the moral question: how does one know right from wrong? Standing on God’s truth gives the believer solid footing, compared with the slippery slope of the flat-out untruths and half-truths of secular insight.
Meaning: What Brings Life Meaning?
The big, big questions bleed into each other, don’t they ladies? Of necessity, meaningfollows my answer to being. Once I understand that I live and move and have (my)beingin God, I can more easily determine what will bring meaning to life for me.
Origin: How Did I Come into Being?
The apostle Paul is on a roll. The city of Athens was a junkyard of idols(Acts 17:16, MSG), befitting the myriad of gods they represented. Add to that this detail: “The Athenians had a foolish notion that they were self-produced, and were the aboriginals of all mankind…that the first men sprung up in Attica like radishes.”* Laugh not, ladies. One wonders if our culture has taken a step back in time—oh, not graven images, but idols of fame, fortune, and self; not radishes per se, but persistent theories of evolution.
Big, Big Questions
The shower was running, the music blaring, when I walked down the hall to the bedroom: “How deep is the ocean? (How high is the sky?)”* Exactly, I said to myself in light of the lunar eclipse of the evening before. How could a Blood Moon turn red in the shadow of the earth? Space.com tells us this much: “Sunlight scatters to produce the red colors of sunset and sunrise when it enters Earth's atmosphere at a particular angle.” Does it not make you pause for a moment to wonder at the majesty of creation?
A Thirsty Soul
The sad houseplant looked like how I felt. Forgotten, parched, brittle and malnourished. I had been so busy these last few weeks with all the responsibilities of keeping a family fed, clothed, and content, that I’d neglected that plant. I rushed it to the sink like a heart attack victim to the ER. Refreshing water flowed, but the soil was so hard and dry that the life-giving liquid just ran off into the sink. No matter how heavy the flow or how long the water ran, it just poured off the surface, wasted and unappreciated. I finally placed the weary plant in a pan of water to soak and hoped that the leaves would rise, the color would return, and the plant would be vibrant again.
Wholesome Talk
Mean words. Potty-talk. Critical comments. It was the beginning of a long summer, and I purposed to tackle the issue of the ugly mouth I heard coming from my children. For that summer, my children and I focused on the verse above. We memorized it. We talked about it. We defined words and explained concepts within it. We looked for it lived out in others. We noticed the opposite qualities lived out in others. And most importantly, we asked God to help us walk out this verse in our family relationships. That was hard for a big sister with a huge vocabulary that could slice and dice, and a little brother who had strong, fast arms, fists and feet!
Taught by God
I was desperate. Except it was really more like, “DESPERATE!!!!” My precious treasures were just toddlers.
Hindrances
Are you hindered? I am…or at least I feel like it. A lot! Webster defines hindrances as things that impede, stop or prevent…to hold back, to delay action…to interfere with activity or progress. Yep. Seems like I live there!
Walk Worthy
I love this action verb “walk.” In fact, I love a good walk…..one that awakens my senses and gets my blood pumping. I love a walk in the early morning hours when darkness becomes light and I can think through the day ahead. But the best kind of walks are those sweet evening walks with my beloved better half….how I love him and enjoy every moment in his presence. I particularly cherish time alone with him, hand in hand, discussing the day or our plans and dreams or our concerns for the children. That brief get-away sustains me, nourishes me. It reminds me of his love for me. It makes me feel secure and tenderly cared-for. It renews and refreshes my love for him, and my heart is open to his words, instructions and longings.
Unexpected Blessing
Before leaving East Texas, I had a dentist appointment. When I shared the details of our move with my dentist I found out she had taught at the dental school in Houston. Without hesitation she recommended a dentist she knew and had as a student. I quickly put the contact information in my phone so as not to lose it.
Be Prepared
I am learning all sorts of lessons by living in a huge metropolis in South Texas. Of course, most of these lessons come by trial and error. One such experience happened while driving back in from out of town.
A Good Example
Amid the feverish unpacking of boxes I heard the chime of the doorbell. When I opened the front door I discovered our teenage neighbor standing there with cookies, flowers, and a card in her hands.
Right in Front of Me? Or not?
Seeing a church right down the street from our house delighted me. I could not wait to go there. After our visit, I had no doubt about the “God-centeredness” of it. Friendly members, ministries reaching out to the community and the world, great worship, I could go on and on.
Called
Living in a new area, I was excited when a lady from a church we had visited calledand asked me to attend an event there that night. At first I had some excuses why I should not go, but then I thought, why not, and off I went.