By Lynna Clark
Here is my simple prayer:
“He will not forget how hard you have worked for Him, and how you have shown your love for Him by caring for other believers as you still do.”
Hebrews 6:10
By Lynna Clark
“I know LORD that our lives are not our own.
We are not able to plan our own course.
So correct me LORD,
but please be gentle.”
-Jeremiah 10:23,24
By Lynna Clark
My sweet man has always wanted to live somewhere that he could step outside at night and it be so dark that he could gaze at a blanket of stars. Unfortunately we live inside the city limits, so even when he goes out back in the middle of the night, the brightest light he sees comes from the gas station on the corner. Now that the trees around us have shed their leaves, even the stoplight is visible. Behind us the church has put up security lights facing our house which light up our back deck considerably. Good times.
Not that I’m complaining. I’m just making honest observations as to why David can’t see the stars like he wants. It’s really ironic. I mean, has our world ever been any darker? Holy cow! I don’t even listen to the news any more. I figure the Lord can sort that mess out without me. Thankfully NOTHING catches Him by surprise. Which brings us to our thought for the day.
Philippians 2:14 & 15 says: “Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean innocent lives as children of God shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people.”
So apparently the world has been dark for centuries. Our challenge is to shine in the midst of all that darkness. According to those few verses we can do that by refraining from complaints and arguments. Add to that clean living and suddenly we shine brighter than the gas station on the corner.
I like it.
Now if I can just refrain from making all those “honest observations” perhaps I can shine too.
By Lynna Clark
This is the year! 2024 is when you will FINALLY read the Bible cover to cover. Even the maps! But not the Concordance. That would just be weird. As it turns out, it’s a LOT of reading. You’re five days into the new year and already you find yourself three days behind. But you’ll catch up! Honest you will!
May I humbly make an observation? If not, stop reading here.
This is your exit. This is where you will jump off the guilt train. When reading Scripture becomes a chore, then you might need a different plan. Can I make a confession? I’m not sure if chemo caused it or just plain getting old. But currently I am dealing with a large amount of brain fog. For whatever reason, I have a really hard time hearing the words coming off the pages. I seem to have the attention span of a puppy in a yard full of squirrels. Focus is just not happening.
So! Here’s what I’m trying and it seems to be working. I hold my Bible to my chest and get as still as I can. Since it’s all I can do not to look out the windows at the birds on the feeder and the neighbor’s cat and the plethora of squirrels jumping from limb to limb and my bottle tree as it catches the light…
Wait. Where was I.
Oh! I was clutching a real Bible with honest to goodness paper pages which have notations of trials past and answered prayers. I was hugging it to my chest with my eyes closed and I was waiting. Silently asking God for the Words. This week the word Philippians came to mind. One “L” and two “P’s.” Philippians.
So I opened there.
After the intro I read one small paragraph and didn’t hear a thing. So I read it again. Then again. It began to be clearer. So I read it again and asked God for help. More meat was found on that bone. So I stopped and wrote the blog Certain of the Good Work. It wasn’t astounding but it was definitely a word from the Word.
Here’s the thought for today. Let’s not go through the motions in our relationship with God. Let’s not start the day by giving Him His marching orders or by instructing Him on how to handle the things on our mind. Let’s rest in Him. Let’s listen. Let’s pay attention as best we can. Let’s go so far as to ask God for this from Philippians 1:10a.
I want to understand what really matters.
Bless the Lord!
Lord, You are MY Shepherd.
I have every single thing I need, and plenty besides!
You allow me to rest in peaceful places. You gently lead me into thick grassy meadows. I lean on You and rest in Your care.
You renew my strength when I have nothing left. When cancer and sickness sap every ounce of energy I have, YOU dear God are the lifter of my head.
You guide me along right paths bringing honor to Your Name. Yes Lord! Make it so!
Even when I walk through the darkest valley…
Like when we lost our first grandson before he took a breath; when sickness took hold of our frail bodies; when we lost our ‘forever home’ and the security of our jobs, I admit… I’ve been really afraid at times.
But You dear God, YOU are faithful. You are close beside me! I know You are with me even when I can’t feel Your presence.
Your rod of protection will strike down my enemies. Your staff of comfort will keep me on the right path. You treat me so well that those who doubt my walk with You have to admit how blessed I am.
You honor me! Why in the world would You do that when You know what’s in my heart? I don’t understand why You’d pour oil on my head. Is it to heal my wounds or to give me a glimpse of days ahead when we rule and reign together?
My heart overflows with the joy of Your presence! You alone are so good to me!
I have no doubt that your goodness and love will track me down all the days of my life. When I think of being pursued by the One Who knows me best, my heart overflows!
And THEN I get to live in the home You’ve lovingly prepare just for me!
OH GOD! How blessed I am to know You! Praise Your sweet holy Name!
As we walked toward the house I called David over to see what was poking through the leaves. “Look! Here’s more!” Like a kid finding Easter eggs I get so excited to see hosta coming up each year. As we rounded the house a few bright tulips nodded approval as we moved pine needles out of the way in search of more hosta. My favorite chartreuse variety springs forth a little later. It’s barely starting to show. Azaleas are full and brightly blooming along with the dogwoods. I thought to myself, “Too bad everything doesn’t look its prettiest all at the same time. What a show that would be!”tulips
David however, being the positive one of us commented. “I’m glad they don’t all bloom at once. Now we have stuff to look forward too, just like life.”
Soft white dogwood petals drifted to the ground like snowflakes. Easter has passed so they have permission to let go. Orange breasted robins play in their midst in anticipation of babies to come. Bright green grass fills in the muddy spots where snow once lingered. All of nature joins together in a song of worship as even the rocks cry out, “He lives, people, He lives! Why sit hopeless with your curtains drawn when a soft spring rain falls, sweetly watering all He’s created? For if He dresses us so beautifully and feeds us so well, will He not also take care of you?”Hosta3
As we moved indoors I sat by the window watching the rain fall as the birdbath filled to the brim. Dogwood petals continued to float softly downward. Soon my favorite tree will be clothed in the bright green leaves of summer. Daffodils which were the first to announce the coming spring have too quickly wilted. Though they’ll be back next year bringing hope at the end of winter, they too confirm that not even this season will last forever.
Someday we’ll meet the Lord face to face. As beautiful as this earth is, heaven is bound to be breathtaking. That’s probably when everything will finally bloom at once, for the Lord is surely saving the best for last!
We’ve really got a lot to look forward too!
By Lynna Clark
I got a call from my granddaughter Kianna the other day. In the midst of delivering pizza to NAPA, the auto parts store, she was verbally attacked by a customer. It seems because Kianna was wearing a mask the lady in line decided that my granddaughter was in need of enlightenment. She accused her of being brain washed by the media, questioned her heritage and political persuasion, then proceeded to tie everything together with a sound cussing.
Sorry. I exaggerated a bit when I used the term “lady.” The strange overheated woman leaned in close and coughed on my granddaughter in hopes that she would realize a mask could not protect her. Never mind the fact that Pizza Hut requires masks on all their personnel. So I did what any Godly grandmother would do. I tossed several shovels into the back of the truck and headed to NAPA. As Kianna and I continued to talk I asked her how big the woman was.
“I think we can take her,” my lovely granddaughter replied.
“Alright honey. Here’s the plan. I’ll whack her in the head with my shovel. You hit her again for good measure. I’ll take her arms, you grab her legs and we’ll drag her into the woods. Between the two of us we can dig a hole deep enough to cover her crazy. Then I’ll explain to her that germs, politics, and brain washing are not the only dangers in our society.” I imagined pointing my finger in her face to drive my point home. “Now you lay there and think about what you’ve done!”
Kianna seemed pleased with the plan. The only problem is that she lives in Illinois and I live in NC; approximately seven hundred and twenty one miles apart. Even as fast as I drive the woman would likely be gone by the time I got there. Oh how I wish I could shake her ‘til her teeth rattle and explain the futility of a life lived in anger. I mean really! What the heck? What she doesn’t know is that my granddaughter just graduated high school in a year that was less than ideal. The child works two jobs and saves every penny toward college. When she is not delivering pizza she takes care of a beautiful little girl with severe autism. Instead of answering her attacker, Kianna took a step back and celebrated the $5 pity tip the guy who ordered the pizza gave her.
I couldn’t get there in time to make good use of my shovel, so I offered a bit of wisdom instead. Since she is headed to New York for college I reminded Kianna that the Lord is preparing her for big city life. “He’s promised to equip us for the things He asks us to do. Maybe He knows you need to get used to all those swear words.” She nodded and laughed. “Then I should be good to go for a while.”
I don’t have any idea how to end this story. Maybe the moral is as mentioned earlier: Living a life filled with anger is futile. Perhaps we should all leave our sharp words and shovels at home. Maybe we could even tip folks extra good to help make up for some of the ignorance going around. Or maybe we could just take a step back and hope to God that crazy is not contagious.
By Lynna Clark
My mom-in-law used a handful of catchy phrases that she deemed appropriate for certain situations. For example: If someone thought they were “all that” and dropped the ball at church or a family function, she would remind us that “One monkey don’t stop the show.” If something hurtful happened she was quick to remind us that “What doesn’t kill us will make us stronger.” When plans changed unexpectedly we knew we could count on her to say, “When God closes a door, He opens a window.”
I think my favorite, and her wisest saying was that “Things won’t always be this way.” In 2020 after the year most folks have had, I believe we can all shout a loud “Halleluiah” to that!
I hear talk about our new normal.
Nope.
I refuse to let this become my new normal. I look forward to handing out all the hugs I want; to smiling without hiding it behind a mask; to watching television without all the fearful warnings and even better, without the political ads filled with lies and character assaults.
I think we’re better than this.
I think this year has been a wakeup call to remind us of how good it is to work hard, send our children to school to professionals who know stuff; to shop for groceries without looking at each other suspiciously; and best of all to worship without fear. Let’s return to THAT normal!
After all, what hasn’t killed us has surely made us stronger!
PS:
While the proverbs of my beautiful southern mom-in-law are very wise, she would agree that Scripture is wiser still. May the Lord strengthen us to rest in His promises.
“The Lord is good, a Stronghold in the day of trouble. And He knows the ones who trust in Him!” – Nahum 1:7
Amen!
By Lynna Clark
A few years back, David decided to sell his motorcycle. It just seemed like time. I knew he was sad about it. Except for it, the man’s never had a toy so to speak. Poor guy hardly had Pepsi money for years. Though it was a wise decision, it didn’t feel good.
We decided together that a different “toy” might be a good solution. So he picked out a nice camera in order to take up a different hobby. One of our daughters bought him a book to go with it; Nikon D3400 for Dummies. He was not offended. In fact, one look at the camera told him he needed help.
Quickly he was able to set up his new toy for easy shots. But he knew there was so much more to the camera than that. So he hunkered down for several days in his spare time to study the book. When I asked how it was going he sighed. “I guess I should have gotten the Nikon book for Morons.”
Of course the word moron is pronounced “MO-ron” here in the south. I couldn’t help but laugh.
Like a lot of folks, the older we get the more we realize how little we know. Like why in the world would our bank change the way our online statement and bill-pay looks. Don’t they understand that if it is not broken, they don’t need to fix it? I just now got used to how things work. Then my phone updated and installed a different calculator. I know it sounds small, but I like a running total. I do not want to have to hit equal after every entry. Dang stupid update. Then I got my laptop repaired and that guy installed a different document program. Now spellcheck is gone. Word look up is not there. No dictionary or thesarasus is built in. I probably didn’t even spell thesarasus right. I had no idea how much I used those things until I couldn’t.
Aggravation!
I really don’t mind learning things unless it’s forced on me. Maybe that’s why trials are so hard. It feels a bit like being hoisted onto a 3000 pound bull and being told, “All you have to do is stay on.”
Okay…
So my prayer for today is from Psalm 90:12 and 17:
“So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts to wisdom.” And while You’re at it Lord, please “make our efforts successful.”
That’s probably enough to ask for one day… especially when dealing with a couple MOrons.
By Lynna Clark
David opened the can and put it on the seat between us. His reward for going grocery shopping was a tiny splurge on cashews. We headed home when suddenly a little dog ran out into the road. David hit the brakes and screeched to a stop. Someone’s pet was spared that day, but the cashews slid forward and dumped head first, scattering across the floorboard. He looked at me and said, “Next time the dog dies.”
It’s like dropping toast. It will always land butter side down. I heard that if one were to strap buttered bread to the back of a cat they would spin indefinitely because cats always land on their feet. Could this perhaps be a source of alternative energy?
Why not? Who would’ve thought we’d use left-over French fry oil for fuel? Maybe someone should try buttered cats.
My apologies to animal lovers everywhere. I’ve just confessed that my husband loves cashews more than dogs and I would butter a cat to propel an engine if it would save me a buck.
Sorry.
Have you noticed when watching a movie like Quigley Down Under [which is one of my favorites] that the disclaimer at the end says “No animals were harmed in the making of this movie.” Never mind the poor guy being dragged behind the horse… or the Aborigines being pushed off the cliff. Just so you know the horse is okay.
I may sound mean and uncaring about animals, but I’ve been known to set a dish of milk out for a stray kitty meowing at my back door.
I wonder if she’d like a piece of buttered toast to go with that.