Bumpy Monday - Forgotten (7/29/09)

Read chapter 8 of Deuteronomy.

Did you notice how much the United States has become like the people described there? We have plenty. And, we have forgotten the commandments of God. We are in a good land. Yet, we have forgotten that He is a holy God. We eat sumptuously. But, we have forgotten that He is a just God. We have a land that brings forth much produce. Still, we have forgotten He is a jealous God. We are full. None the less, we have forgotten that He is a perfect God. We are wealthy. And, we have forgotten He is a living God. By forgetting all these things about God, we are making our own false god.

It is our turn to pray as Moses did in the next chapter (9:18, 26-27). We must pray that we will not be destroyed. We must pray for remembrance. We must pray for mercy. I wonder what "work" God will do to the USA if we are subjected to Psalm 119:126 because we have made God's law void.

(Father God, I thank You for the bountiful land that You have provided these United States. I bless You for the good land which You have given us. I am thankful that we have eaten and are full. I praise you for the water, the wheat, and the honey. Oh, Father God, it is Your power that has made this possible. It is Your power that has made us wealthy. Please remember us and grant us mercy because we have forgotten You. I remember You, O LORD. I remember to walk in Your ways and to fear You. In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.)

Life Writing: Beekeeping

I remember watching Dad walk though Grandma E's field sowing Vetch seed because he read the bees would make good honey off of it.  You see, one of Dad's hobbies was beekeeping.  His hobby became a hazard in our lives when it was time to extract honey.  But, it was also a freedom when we could watch with awe the bees in the observation hive.  

Dad's observation hive was under the Osage Orange tree in the front yard.  This tree is also known by the common name bodark, an altered version of the French "bois d'arc".  We also called it the "horse apple" tree.  This was a dangerous location as the thorns of the tree are painful and the horse apples hurt when they fall on you.  

We normally didn't check in on the bees during the winter as they would be balled up trying to stay warm but spring time was a different story.  Those worker bees would be dancing and gathering nectar while the drones just lazed about.  We could watch through the glass as the workers drew out the honey comb and filled it with pollen or nectar.  Then, they would cap over their food storage.  

There was an added excitement when we were able to spot the queen.  She was slightly larger than the other workers with an extended abdomen.  She stayed busy laying eggs.  If the honey comb cell had an egg in it, it would be capped over so the egg would hatch and develop.  Bees are pretty efficient at keeping things organized.  Rarely would there be brood (developing larvae), pollen, and honey intermixed on a frame.  

Late summer was when we would harvest the honey from the hives.  This was an activity that took place inside and by hand.  Dad, Mom, A, and T all took turns at the extractor.  Yes, I took a turn or two also but not near as many as they did.  The extractor was a large round tub open on the top with wire baskets on the inside and a turn handle.  Dad would go out to the hive, smoke most of the bees away from the frame, place it in a temporary box and, when the box was full, bring it in the house.  Once in the house, Mom or Dad would cut the caps (which served as a tasty treat) off the honey and place a frame in one of the two baskets of the extractor.  Then, the crank would be turned which caused the wire baskets to go round and round.  As the baskets went faster and faster, the honey would be slung out of the frames and collect in the holding tank.  Mom would then fill the jars from the holding tank.  

It was beautiful sight to see the golden honey in the jar with light glistening off of it.  Some years we would work a booth at the County fair selling the honey.  Though, it was for our own use most of the time.  You see, we didn’t buy much sugar and honey sure does give Kool Aid a unique taste.    Most of the time I was okay with this hobby, it was only when an angry bee jumped on a hand, arm, or face and stung me that I really didn’t like it. 

Faith and Bella

Bella followed us blackberry picking from Granny's deep woods house.  She loved all the smells and was having a wonderful time.  She walked nearly a mile with us and then we decided to drive to another location for berries - wild berries.  Upon arrival, we parked and went a little way into the woods and Bella was nose to the ground checking every smell.

Bella

Then, she saw the rabbit.  She barked and started after the bunny.  We attempted to call her off for just a moment.  I told the berry pickers she'd be fine.  After all, she's a Bassett, they love to hunt.

Well, she found that rabbit again and off she went, barking and chasing.  She probably ran that poor rabbit for half a mile through the woods.  She was baying the whole time.  I told the berry pickers she'd be fine.  As long as we could hear her, she wasn't too far away.  I had faith.  After all, she's a Bassett hound.

Time passed and my faith evaporated.  When tried by time, my faith dissipated like a morning fog.  Poof!  Gone.  Vanished.  I started to worry.  I didn't want her to be lost.  I had to go looking for her.  I called.  She answered.  I called.  She answered.  Time and again, I called and she answered.  But, she was still deep in the woods.  Eventually, she grew quiet and I went back and forth looking for her.

Finally, I decided to head back to where she started chasing the rabbit in hopes that my faith had promise.  Just as we began down the trail to the spot, she came loping along.  Her tongue was hanging as low as her ears but she was a content doggy.  Yes, she did just what a good Bassett hound was to do.  I, on the other hand, learned just how weak my faith is.

(Father God, help me to have faith rooted deeply and strongly in you.  In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.)

Monocular Vision

I was born 7 weeks premature and my left eye was swollen shut.  In today's terminology it would have been classified as a birth defect.  The result was (and is) that my eyes do not work like most everyone else.  I didn't know this for many years.  It only started becoming apparent when I started driving.  I scared those riding with me because I tended to drive really close to the right side marker.  3D movies make no sense to me.  All I see is the fuzzy red and blue outlines.  Even the newer types of 3D imagery hold no fascination for me.  Why?  Only one eye focuses on the object.  My brain sees the two images but the one presented by my right eye is the dominate image.  The left image is background, fuzzy, almost non-essential.  Normal eyes see a blended version of the two images presented to the brain.  That is why 3D is exciting for most.

My physical vision causes me to think about my spiritual vision?  Do I have a blended worldview?  Is my vision a blend of worldly and Godly view so that neither is dominate?  Can I see each distinctly different as they truly are?  I'm thankful for this physical reminder to keep things in God's perspective.

(Father God, thank you for my abnormal eyes.  Thank you for using them to show me and remind me to look through Yours.  In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.)

Bumpy Monday - Considering Ways (7/22/09)

Haggai1:1-2:23

Consider your ways. Again, consider your ways. The Lord God is with you. Be strong the Lord of Hosts is with you. Consider from today and onward. Again, consider from today and onward.

In two short pages, God asks us to consider four times. Twice He tells us what to consider and twice He tells us when to consider. I teach 3rd-6th graders each week. Our public schools have fallen down on the job of teaching vocabulary and I love words. Words are my love language. So, I've come to the realization that many people don't understand what God is trying to say to us through His love letter, the Bible.

What does "consider" mean? What did it mean when the Bible was translated from Hebrew and Greek? Does it mean the same thing now that it meant then? A little research will show you that the word hasn't really changed in meaning over the years. Some words do but this one hasn't. When we consider something we look at it closely and think carefully about it.

So, God asks us to look closely at and think carefully about our ways. What are we doing? Why are we doing it? What is the desired outcome of what we do? This includes everything we do. Our ways are our day to day activities, our habits, our speech, our interactions, our money, our food, our clothing, our movies, our books, our friends, and so on. We are to look closely at and think carefully about each.

Remember that the Lord God of Hosts is right there with you. He sees your activities, habits, speech, interactions, money, food, clothing, movies, books, friends, and so on. As we consider our ways, do they please Him? Do they honor Him? Do they bring glory to His Name? Or, do we shame the fearful Name of God? Do we embarrass Him? Do we cause Him to turn away in disgust? He's right there with us. Consider it.

When are you to start considering your ways? Now. Then, continue on tomorrow and the next day and the next. That's pretty clear. Don't wait.

God repeated Himself. He said each thing twice. That's like saying, "HEY! PAY ATTENTION TO THIS! IT'S IMPORTANT!!"

(Father God, help me to consider my ways beginning now. Thank you for being there with me. Forgive me for the shame and disgrace that I've caused. In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.)

Life Writing: Getting Started and Squirrels

Welcome to the first installment of Life Writing.  I'm looking forward to sharing this endeavor with you.  Life Writing is writing about one's life.  It may be your own life in memoir or autobiographical style or it may be the life of someone else in memoir or biographical style.  For me, life writing is about capturing memories.  There is a distinct blur between fiction and non-fiction.  It's writing what you remember.  I started writing my life story several years ago.  I'm writing it scrapbook style and I'm on Volume IV.  I'll be posting specific excerpts here.  So...

Squirrel!

One winter Dad came home with a bunch of baby squirrels in his pocket, seven to be exact.   Mom raised five of those squirrels through the spring, feeding them from an eye dropper until they were big enough to drink out of a bowl.  One chilly evening, there was an escape.  We thought the poor squirrel escapee wouldn’t make it through the night.  Mom went to the store the next morning and when she got back, it was hanging on the screen door wanting inside.  They stayed inside in a makeshift cage until early spring when they moved to a large backyard cage my dad built just for them.

My brothers thought it would be hilarious to put the dog in the cage one day.  I calmly went and asked Mom if that would be okay.  She went straightway to discuss the situation with them.  I smiled a satisfied little sister smile until Mom chewed me out for tattling.  By the time those squirrels were old enough to fend for themselves, there were only three left.  On the day of their release back to the wild, two of them promptly ran across the road and up the transformer pole to the transformer.  The other lived to a fine old squirrel age next to the creek behind the trailer.

Tornadoes and Storms

Several days ago when doing the entry on Surround Sound, I came to the realization that storms are not a part of God's original creation.  Storms, specifically tornadoes, are destructive.  God creates.  And, what He creates is good - until we mess it up.  In the beginning God created and it was good.  (Genesis 1: 4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25)  By the time He was finished, it was very good.  (Genesis 1: 31)

So, initially creation was perfect.  I don't know that I can even imagine what that perfection was like.  The way I see things now is so marred by the negatives that I just can't imagine it.  The plants grew and produced perfectly.  In my mind, that means that every blossom produced a fruit.  Every leaf was perfectly shaped and there were no bug eaten holes in them - unlike the tomatoes and peppers on my back porch.

God had a perfect sprinkler misting system in this perfect creation.  There was no rain.  There was a mist that rose from the ground and watered the whole face of the ground.  (Genesis 2:6)  I imagine that to be similar to the way dew waters the ground.  Then, God created humanity.  He formed man out of the dust and breathed life into him.  (Exciting!)

Man promptly broke the one rule given to him.  And because of this sin, we no longer have perfect creation.  As time has passed, the decay brought by sin has resulted in several changes to the sprinkler system.  It took many hundreds of years and the sin of man was so offensive that God caused it to rain resulting in a world wide flood. Prior to that time, rain did not exist and the misting system was still working.

Just this week, deadly tornadoes have been spawned across Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri.  Earlier this year, deadly tornadoes rumbled across Georgia and Alabama.  While these storms can display the awesome power of God, they aren't what He originally had in mind for us.  The devastation of a tornado can remind us of God's justice to come.  It will come, it will come swiftly and it will leave nothing in its path.   (Proverbs 1:27)

God's voice does come out of the whirlwind.  It is strong and mighty.  It is a reminder.  "As the whirlwind passes, so is the wicked no more: but the righteous is an everlasting foundation." (Proverbs 10:25)  "Behold, a whirlwind of the LORD is gone forth in fury, even a grievous whirlwind: it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked."  (Jeremiah 23:19)

In Nahum, the prophet tells us,  "God is jealous, and the LORD revenges; the LORD revenges, and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserves wrath for his enemies.  The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD has his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet." ... Yet, "The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he KNOWS them that trust in him."  (Nahum 1:2-3, 7)

Tornadoes and storms won't go away until perfection is returned to this earth.  In the mean time, I will seek to honor God with my whole heart.  I'll be standing in awe of the power He mercifully withholds from judging me.  I will stand sheltered in His strong hold because I believe Him.

(Father God, you alone have the power to calm the storm.  I pray that you will sustain those that have lost much in this tornado.  I pray that you will use this to draw all men near to you.  In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.)