Charred Lemons

I wish I had something really profound to say today but I'm a little sleepy since I've been up on and off since 1:30 this morning!  When life gives you lemons you make lemonade, right?  Even when they're charred!

We have dogs.  And for whatever reason, they decided that they needed to go outside at 1:30 in the morning.  Which meant I had to get up...ugh!  But, had they not decided to take a jolly jaunt outside I wouldn't have noticed that the house seemed to be warming up, nor would I have noticed the funny "hot" smell or the fact that the Air Conditioner was not shutting off in it's usual cycle.  Usually when this happens it is a sign that the condenser tray is not draining fast enough and water is backing up.  So I pulled the top cover and checked but it looked fine.  It was pretty hot outside and it seemed to be blowing semi cool air so I figured we would be o.k. until 4:00 when my husband Kenny got up for work.  By the way, did I mention we are under a heat advisory which means the afternoon air temp is supposed to hit around 100 before factoring in the humidity?  Yeah, we had a toasty day ahead of us!

Four in the morning is a hard time for having a good time!  Kenny got up and I told him about the AC blowing unusually warm air.  So he checked the top, just like I did-nothing there.  That meant checking under the house which meant unscrewing the skirting by flashlight to check the drainage line.  With flashlight and broom in hand he crawled under.  It was unusually wet.  So he crawled back out and went under the porch to check the outside drainage line-dry as a bone.  Meanwhile, he had me turn off the Air Conditioner inside the house.  The outside compressor shut off but the blower fan did not.  That was not a good sign!  We cut the power at the fuse box and then opened up the bottom.  It was wet.  So Kenny started taking it apart.  He discovered that the water had not run in to the drain, it had run straight down to the bottom of the furnace and the wiring and relay switches were wet, which caused them to char and just about completely charred and melted the relay switch for the furnace.  The furnace and the AC were both running at the same time.  Really bad would be an understatement!

Fortunately I am married to a guy who builds airplanes for a living and whose favorite weekend hobby is turning wrenches on vehicles.  He has the uncanny gift of being able to reverse engineer anything he takes apart!  So that's what he did!  He took the whole shabang apart, created his own schematic and then went in to town later in the morning to get the parts to fix it.  I have air conditioning again!  Woo hoo!

Kenny still needs to build the solution to the initial problem but he already has a plan, he just needs to get the pieces parts to build it and install it below the condenser coils. 

My husband-my hero!  Not only is he good looking, he's pretty handy to have around!  Pass the lemonade.  Pardon the charred taste.

Storm Clouds?

I'm not going to write a long piece today because what I read this morning speaks for itself. From The Message paraphrase of Ezekiel 22:

"The leaders among you became desperate...They grabbed and looted leaving widows in their wake.  Your Priests violated my law and desecrated my holy things.  They can't tell the difference between sacred and secular.  They tell people there's no difference between right and wrong...Your politicians are like wolves prowling and killing and rapaciously taking whatever they want.  Your preachers cover up for the politicians by pretending to have received visions and special revelations...Extortion is rife, robbery is epidemic, the poor and needy are abused, outsiders are kicked around at will, with no access to justice."

Needless to say I stopped right there and started to pray.  Is the storm coming full force or is there hope for a tide of change? 

Here's the answer I got to my question.  Matthew 17:20 from the Wesleyan Study Bible:

"...For truly I tell you if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you."

 Father God, I believe that you are in charge of ALL things.  I have faith that you can work all things for the good of those who love you.  Although it may look like storm clouds are gathering I believe that you will turn them in to showers of faith, wisdom and blessing.  My hope in leaders is like a mustard seed but my hope in you knows no bounds!  Nothing is impossible for you!  Your will, Father, and your will only be done in this place I pray.  Amen and Amen!

"Elemental P" A Life with Meaning

When you are a parent of a child with Asperger's (Autism Spectrum Disorder) you sometimes have to get creative in order to get your child to do what he needs to do!  My son Randy was not fond of washing his hands.  He would turn on the water, stick a finger in and then proclaim he was done!  After trying all sorts of things I finally came upon something that worked!  I told him that he had to put both hands in the water, rub them together and sing the ABC song.  Once the song was done, he was done and he could turn off the water and dry his hands.  Since he enjoys singing he was delighted with this idea and continues to sing the ABC song to this day!

One day, I noticed that when he sings L-M-N-O-P it sounds like he is saying "elemental P" and I thought "hmm...that's interesting" and kind of let it go at that.  The Spirit though, kept nudging me and I had a very clear impression that I needed to pay attention to this because there was a lesson just waiting to be revealed!

Elemental P-what could it possibly be and why is it so important?  Well guess what happened this morning when I was reading in Proverbs?  I made the connection!  Chapter 9 makes a clear distinction between Lady Wisdom and Lady Folly.  In The Message paraphrase Lady Wisdom prepares a meal and goes out to a prominent place and asks:

"Are you confused about life, don't know what's going on?  Come with me, oh come, have dinner with me!...Leave your impoverished confusion and live!  Walk up the street to a life with meaning."

A life with meaning!  Elemental P!  It's not one word, it is many words and all of them are connected to wisdom!  So I made a list.  It is by no means complete, but these are words that jumped out at me in regards to living a life with meaning.

Purpose:  Who am I and why am I here?  At some point in time everyone asks themselves this question.

Plan and Picture:  What is God's plan for my life?  How do I fit in to God's big picture?

Prayer and Praise:  Prayer being a two way conversation where I ask but I also listen.  Praise where I worship and bring my thanks and remain awed by the wonders God has created. 

Promise and Peace:  Promise meaning I listen to what God is saying to me and believe what is being said-that it will come to pass.  Peace-that I understand that even though challenges still exist I rest in the peace of knowing that God is fully in charge.

Perception and Parallels:  Another word might be discernment.  When I read God's word what is it saying to me?  Am I making the connection between how this verse or story from the past is still relevant today?  Can I see the parallel and apply it to something happening now? 

Person:  When I look at other people do I see them as God sees them?  Or do I judge them by worldly standards?  Am I being asked to do something in their lives?  How do I help them connect to a life of faith?

Parameters and Pace:  Boundaries are set for a reason.  To follow Jesus means to accept parameters for my own good!  Pace-do I let God take the lead or do I try to rush out ahead?  Running the good race does not imply a sprint.  It's more like running a marathon and any runner knows that if you don't want to hit the wall you have to pace yourself!

Honestly, I've blown the opportunity in each and every item on this list at one point or another!  I've been impatient, I've pushed too hard!  I have forgotten to be thankful.  I've whined, griped and complained.  I haven't liked the answer to a question.  I have had to confess my folly and ask for forgiveness.  That's the beauty of Grace, you can fall flat on your face and God will still love and forgive you if you ask Him!  Even your failures on your life journey can bring you closer to wisdom!  The closer you get, the more you realize that yes, your life does have meaning!  You were put here for a purpose.  Part of the journey is getting your ego out of the way and listening to the plans that God has in store for you!  My darling friends, my prayer is that you find your "Elemental P" and have the courage to follow and trust God!  

It has been an interesting lesson indeed! 

Your Business is Life, Not Death...Life is Urgent

I enjoy The Message Paraphrase but sometimes I have to go back to my NIV or Wesleyan Study Bible to see what The Message is talking about.  The phrase that I used as the title comes from The Message paraphrase of Luke 9:60 which, in the Wesleyan Study Bible reads:

"Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the Kingdom of God."

The comment in the Wesleyan Study Bible on this particular section is:

"The Cross is crowded out by the cares of life."

What is this business of life?  Why is it so urgent?  Every person's experience is different but, personally, I have recently had this sense that in the United States we are literally talking ourselves to death!  We're not using words of life but rather words of death.  Hopelessness, helplessness and despair.  There's plenty of doom and gloom to go around-the economy is bad, Congress seems to be doing nothing, the President seems to be unclear about a plan or direction.  Even in our own church, our leaders focus on decline and lack of resources!  I think we are all pretty clear on the challenges we face considering the fact that we hear about it in endless news reports!  There's an old saying that says you get what you expect, meaning you get what you focus on.  What has been our focus as of late?  Death.  Death of jobs, death of growth, death of the American dream, death of working together, death of hopes, ideas and possibilities. 

Our business is not death!  Our business is life and it is urgent business!  Jesus was very clear when asked what was the greatest command.  First, love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind.  Second, love your neighbor as yourself.  Do for others what you would have them do for you. 

How do you do the first?  Seek God's Spirit first!  Praise, worship, prayer and Bible study put you in a position of peace, love, joy, hope and faith.  You open yourself up to the possibility of new God given ideas and insights!  It's not about what you can do, it is about what God can do in you and through you!  When you take the focus off of yourself, it's like climbing to the top of a mountain where your view suddenly expands!  Praise, worship, prayer and Bible study are tools.    They help you seek God's Spirit.

That expanded view brings us to the second part of the greatest command.  We all want to be loved, cherished and respected.  We all want to be treated kindly.  No one wants to live a life of fear, a life of lack, a life of insecurity, a life that is so unstable that we go from crisis to crisis with no end in sight!  Fear, in my opinion, is the greatest driving factor behind self obsession.  It causes us to do whatever we can to protect ourselves and to protect what little we have.  It raises the question of "what's in it for me?"  We are so afraid of losing something that we are not willing to step out and give.  We become so entrenched that we choose not to work with others for the good of all.  The second part calls us to focus outward-to treat others kindly.  It could be as simple as offering a word of encouragement.  It could be as simple as taking the extra produce from the garden and bringing it to the local food shelf.  It could be as simple as risking some of that hard earned money and helping a local entrepreneur with a good idea expand his small business.  It could be as simple as mentoring a parolee and helping them get a solid start on a new life.  The list is endless but the point is simple.  How do you want to be treated?  That is how God expects you to treat those around you.  The Spirit of God is loving and forgiving and generous.  It guides us on right paths, corrects us when we stray and gives us vision and purpose.  It is not a spirit of despair it is a SPIRIT of LIFE!

It's time to start speaking life!  It's time to get our moral compass back on track and start focusing on the greatest command!  That doesn't mean we put on rose colored glasses and bury our heads in the sand and ignore our problems hoping that things will get better.  It means we stop the finger pointing and the blaming.  It means turning our focus from ourselves and this narrative of fear and death and instead focusing on God and climbing that mountain towards the bigger view.  It means using our God given creativity and acting on God inspired ideas.  It means rolling up our sleeves and working together!

Our business is life and it is urgent!  It's time to start acting like it and it is time to start speaking words of life! 

What Do You Have In Your House?

It's always fun to get reacquainted with a favorite Bible story!  In Second Kings, chapter four Elisha is approached by a widow whose husband was in the Prophet Guild.  Her husband had just died, she was left with a mountain of debt and the individuals were coming to collect and she had nothing to give them!  Now if that isn't a story that people can relate to today!  You could substitute I've lost my job and they are coming to foreclose on the house and you have a modern day parallel! 

It was a desperate time for this woman!  The outlook was bleak.  I imagine she felt very cold, very gray, but she had a little hope-a little blue sky!  She would go and talk to the great Prophet Elisha!  Surely he would know what to do!

Now Elisha could have listened and said "wow, that's sad, I'll pray for you."  Instead he asked "what do you have in your house?"  The widow said "nothing, oh wait, I do have some oil."  Ah ha!  Here was a way that Elisha could help her help herself.  He told her to go and get all the jugs she could lay her hands on and pour the oil in to them.  The oil didn't stop running until she ran out of jugs.  When she came back to him and told him, he said "go and sell the oil, pay off the debt and live off the rest."  The widow already had what she needed but she was so overwhelmed by the problem that she needed somebody else to point out the solution! 

Modern day life!  The problems come fast and furious, the domino effect kicks in, you go from one crisis to another and you are so busy dealing that you can't stop and think!  How can it possibly get better, you wonder, even if it is only to yourself!  You want to hang on to that blue sky hope but the storm clouds are closing in around you! 

Here's a thought, stick with me-there is a method to my madness!  What do you have in your house?  I'm not talking physically (although that is a possibility).  I'm talking figuratively.  I'm talking about that creative spark of imagination that lives within you!  What idea lives inside of you, that has been right in front of you that you haven't done anything with but could get you out of the rut of living crisis to crisis and instead live in abundance and blessing? 

Pie in the sky you say?  Let me tell you about my hometown of Waterbury, Vermont.  Back in the late 70's/early 80's Waterbury was considered a bedroom community.  You slept there but you worked elsewhere, usually in manufacturing.   About that time "outsourcing" came in to vogue and suddenly those jobs disappeared as the corporations decided to move manufacturing elsewhere in order to up corporate profits.  "Down sizing" also became an oft quoted buzz word as well.  There was a figurative sucking sound as peoples livelihoods went down the corporate drain!  Main street started looking pretty empty and people started moving away to find jobs.  Gloomy would be an understatement! 

There were some individuals though who had some ideas that were just crazy enough that they might just work!  Why not try to court some small businesses and see if they would be willing to come to town?  And while they were at it, why not come up with some ways for the community to celebrate and have fun together?  Waterbury always did fireworks on the fourth but how about having a parade and including the elementary school marching band?  Why not use the newly rehabbed park during the worst time in winter and have a friendly winter croquette tournament?  And why not see if those quirky crunchy granola guys by the names of Ben and Jerry might like to come to town?  And while they were at it, why not see if there was some way to help that gourmet coffee guy and the boat captain's wife running the cider mill expand? 

Long story short, Ben and Jerry's did come to town, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters and Cold Hollow Cider Mill did expand, a lot of small businesses were started because there was community support. Waterbury became a place that you wanted to be because there was always something going on in town!  Wednesday night Farmer's market with a free concert so you could picnic in the park with your family.  Historical Society lectures at the local library.  In the winter there was Cabin Fever Follies at the elementary school and the now famous Winter Croquette tournament in the park.  Throw in the church dinners and events and you had a local calender of events section in the newspaper full to the brim!  Waterbury was not alone in this pro-active approach, there were many other towns that did very similar things! 

Did every venture succeed?  No.  However, many did thrive and grow.  The overall moral of the story here is that the community took a look at what they had and decided to celebrate the unique and the quirky-the things that made life interesting!  In doing so they brought a sense of togetherness and hope and vitality.  It wasn't easy, there was a lot of planning and hard work involved.  Good ideas require planning and hard work! 

Whether you are a church leader, community leader or an individual I think it is well worth asking the question that Elisha asked the widow.  Take a deep breath and then ask yourself, what do I have in my house?  Be creative and look at the things around you with a new set of eyes!  Then get to work, because you have a lot of jugs to fill!

Weekending-What I've learned this week (and some good blogs to read)

When you have children time seems to move much faster!  Today is my daughter's birthday.  It seems like we just celebrated her younger brother's birthday and Father's day.  And did I mention there was a wedding in the midst of all of this?!  As of tomorrow my oldest step-daughter will celebrate her one week anniversary!  The rest of the summer shows no indication of slowing down!  I've also discovered that a mild but extended fibro flare is far more exhausting than a short intense fibro flare!  I will survive but I sure would love to get a pain free night of sleep!  There but by the grace of God go I...

Second, I have discovered that I have more readers of this blog than just my daughter!  Thank you to all who have chosen to stop by and listen to my stories!  I appreciate each and every one of you and I hope you feel free to comment on the blog!

Along the blog line I have discovered that the top 3 blog posts on my blog are:

 Deep Spirited Friends
What Are You Being Asked to Do?
The Future is Bright Thanks to the Millennium Generation

I've also learned the importance of double-checking the spell check because it is a bit quirky!

Last, I've read some great blog pieces this week from around the Methoblogsphere!  I think you will enjoy reading them!

Robert McDowell at Nikos posted a great video with his blog post
"A New Country and Methodism"
John Meunier wrote a really great piece about what churches can learn from diners
Chicken and Dumplings
My dear friend Ann wrote a wonderful piece after reading one of my blog posts
The Web of Exchange
I really enjoyed this piece from Jon at Caffeinated God Talk about an experience he had as a youth minister Redemptive Empowerment
Last, but not least, Dan Dick tells a modern day parable about our obsession with numbers
An Unlucky Parable

Have a blessed wonderful weekend everyone!  Remember to celebrate the freedoms we enjoy and also remember those who serve in order to protect our freedom!

The World is my Prayer Closet

As a Lay speaker I have had to do my share of pulpit-fill over the years.  If I had to pick a general thread  that runs through the sermons I have preached it would be how scripture relates to my everyday life.  A good friend of mine asked me how I am able to make that connection.  She said to me "ya know, I read the words but I just don't 'feel' them!" 

Honestly, I don't always feel the words either!  More times than not, however, I do make a connection.  I tend to start off my Bible reading with an expectation that I'm going to get something out of it that I can use in my everyday life.  I'm not sure when I first started thinking that way but if my various Bibles with their multi-colored highlights and handwritten notes are any indication it's been many years!  I do believe though that I can point to one thing that pointed me in that direction-a book called "Experiencing the depths of Christ" by Jeanne Guyon.

I "rediscovered" it on my bookshelf yesterday.  I had read this book about 20 years ago.  The copy I have is an "updated to modern English" version of a book originally published around 1685.  It is a book about prayer and the discipline of praying.  The first type of prayer that she talks about is "praying the scripture".  It is a process where you pick some scripture and read slowly and pause to see what you experience-what message you believe is being conveyed.  I love these quotes:

"Praying the scripture is not judged by how much you read but by the way in which you read."

"In praying the scripture you are seeking to find the Lord in what you are reading."

"Plunge into the very depths of the words you read until revelation, like a sweet aroma, breaks out upon you."

In essence, she describes exactly the process that I use!  I have found over the years that the more I do this, the more I get out of my Bible reading!  I have been using this method all of this time without consciously realizing!  For me, it was a wonderful realization and a relief because I've had this sense that I needed to be doing more!  I've felt rather guilty because my life doesn't allow me the chance to lock myself away in a prayer closet for extended periods of time.  My study, my prayer, my praise come in bits and snatches because I have a family to take care of and needs that must be met! 

God is faithful!  He meets me where I am at and takes those small seeds of offering and waters them and makes them grow and bloom!  Life becomes a continual prayer.  Even when everything is going haywire and things are falling down around me I can still experience peace and joy and praise because God is there!  He is still leading, guiding and orchestrating even when I am not aware! 

It reminds me of Psalm 1:2-3:

"...their delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law they meditate day and night.  They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither.  In all that they do, they prosper."

My life in this world is my prayer closet!  Whew!  What a relief!