A Spider Lily in the Middle of the Yard
Bloom where you are planted. It’s the best way to get your beauty noticed. . . and to keep from getting mowed over. 😉
Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. – Luke 12:27
When I was a small child, I used to play in the back yard with a friend named Benji. I don’t remember much about Benji. We moved away when I was 6. I remember even less about Benji’s dad. But there was one incident involving Benji and his father that has always stuck with me.
It happened one hot summer day in Benji’s side yard. Continue reading »
I woke up this morning with weeds growing in my brain. Saturday mornings are a time when I sleep in a little bit, and if I am not careful, the weeds can take hold while I lay in bed contemplating the day. When I feel the weeds growing, I know it’s time to crawl out of bed and do something about it. I reach for the weed-killing Word, and talk with the Master Gardener.
Weeds are a constant battle for me, but my garden is too important to ignore them. They only get tougher to iradicate if I let them grow. Vigilance and quick action is the key to a healthy garden.
“Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
– Mark 4:18-19
Flies! I hate ’em. They really know how to mess up a lunch at the park. Buzzing around, landing on my hamburger, gnawing on my fries, sipping on my straw, they drive me crazy! Where did all these flies come from anyway? I can only assume they’ve been breeding on the junk thrown in the trash cans. But they are not satisfied with that. No, they have to come out of the trash can in search of MY food. They refuse to let me eat in peace.
The real issue is that the trash cans are too close to the picnic tables. People are too lazy to walk far to toss trash, so they make a free fly smorgasbord right next to where they set the good food. Now nobody is happy but the flies. They can have rotten food for the main course, then chow down on my hamburger for desert.
That’s the problem with living too close to the trash. You end up constantly swatting flies. And in the end, even the good stuff gets spoiled.
Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.
– John 12:42-43 NKJV
I was in an upscale shopping center. An out-door mall of sorts with parking in the middle and shops on each side. The parking lot was full of BMWs, Mercedes, and Lexuseseses. (I’m not sure how to pronounce, much less write the plural of “Lexus.”) I even spotted a Jaguar and a Porche. Clearly, not the same vehicle mix as the Wal-Mart parking lot.
It was obvious that the folks in this shopping center had the resources to do a lot of good. Perhaps many of them did. Or perhaps they spent all their income on cars. I can’t throw stones. I spend a lot of my extra income on “toys” like a boat, a camper, and a swimming pool.
However, this particular walk through the automotive cream-of-the-crop did get me wondering what the world would be like if all that money was spent on something else. Kind of a what-would-Jesus-drive thought. But with the exception of a borrowed donkey or perhaps a fisherman’s boat on occasion, the only transportation Jesus had was his feet. Even my 1999 Chevy van seems extravagant compared to that.
So what would Jesus drive? Well I think that depends on where He lives. Does He live with me? Is He really my Lord? Am I allowing Him to do with me as He wills? Does everything I have REALLY belong to Him? If so, then I only need look in my driveway to know the answer. If you want to know the answer too, just peek out your window when you get home tonight. Can you see it? Whose car is that in your driveway?
A Dead Butterfly
A Live Moth
There were two bugs in our house this morning. Well, maybe even more than two, but two that I noticed. One was a dead butterfly someone had brought in and laid on the counter. The other was a live moth that most likely flew right on in, uninvited.
I heard this morning that Christopher Hitchens (famous atheist, author, and journalist) has terminal cancer. With respect, I would ask him and others with similar beliefs two simple questions:
When you get to the edge of space, the very end of the universe, and you take one more step, what is beyond the edge?
When you go to the very beginning of time, the very moment time began, what was happening the split second before that?
What is your answer? My answer is: God.
My dog stares at my while I eat. She has no manners, no pride, and no sense of shame. She unabashedly stares and begs, watching my every move, hoping I might, by some act of particular mercy or grace, offer her a small tidbit for her eternally empty stomach. It’s very annoying.
Annie watches us eat
Why does she do it? Because she is a dog and that’s what dogs do. She knows that any food worth anything comes from the master’s table, so she waits and stares. Why does it annoy me? I guess because it makes me feel a little obligated to share. What I fail to realize is that she is just a dog. She does not think I am obligated to share. She just hopes I will. And so this morning she sat and waited patiently for the crust of my toast, with or without jelly.
The whole episode reminds me of the story in the Bible where the Canaanite woman comes to Jesus for help. I’ve always thought it sounded like He basically calls her a dog and says it’s not His place to help her. Consider this scripture: Continue reading »
On the news this morning, I heard a story about a judge who had ruled that the people of California were in error when they voted that same-sex marriage was unlawful. I know this may not be typical content for my blog, but I can’t help but write a few thoughts about it. As I see it, there are two issues at the heart of the matter. 1) Can the state define marriage. 2) Can the state provide privileges to those involved in marriage.
I say the answer to both questions is yes. The state must be allowed to define the terms used in the making of it’s laws, or those laws are meaningless. If the state cannot define “marriage,” “free speech,” “discrimination,” “obscenity,” “religion,” or “life” then how can it’s laws which use those very terms have any meaning? This is also at the heart of the abortion issue. But while many Americans may not agree what constitutes human life, most Americans DO believe “marriage” should be defined as the union of one man and one woman. For those of us who look to the Bible for ultimate truth, we can go along with that definition. (Although it might be a little more difficult to defend the “one” part based on biblical history.)
Secondly, once defined, can the state give special privileges to the institution of marriage? I say, certainly. The state does that kind of thing all the time. Government organizations, schools, religious organizations, scientific communities, professionals (such as doctors, lawyers, etc.) are all endowed with certain privileges because of their affiliation, license, or organization membership. A marriage may be a small organization, but it is one none the less. And, ANYONE of age can join that organization. Just because a gay person does not WANT to marry a person of the oposite sex does NOT mean he/she does not have the right to do so. I don’t want to go to medical school. I don’t even like the site of blood. But I can use a thermometer and I would like to be able to write my own perscription for antibiotics. Even so, it would be silly of me to cry that my rights are being denied just because I can’t make my own definition of “medical doctor” as “one who can use a thermometer” then write prescriptions and practice medicine with all the state-sanctioned rights of other doctors. If you want to join the club, you have to pay the dues and live by the club rules.
So, there’s my argument. It may not be the typical reading for my blog, but it is what’s on my heart this morning. I believe it is also a matter dear to God’s heart. He laid it out pretty clear in the first few pages of His Book. It’s obvious that He cares about the issue, as well as the people on both sides of it. So should we.
There is a Chick-fil-A near where I work. I don’t know how much chicken they sell on a week-end, but during lunch hour on a week-day they sell a boat load. I have never seen a fast food restaurant run more efficiently.
I went there for lunch on Friday. After enjoying a delicious “number 4,” I sat and watched the drive-thru line for a few minutes. It was amazing. Continue reading »