Temporarily separated.

Death is such an unexpected and terrible thing. At the same time is the expected in this sinful world. Today a girl I knew passed away. As I was reading about the news this incredible sadness filled my heart. She had been sick and just 4 days ago received the news that she had a matching donor and would be able to get well soon. Everyone was rejoicing with the news and gladly renewed their prayers of praise and thanksgiving. 4 days later things made a turn for the worse and now she's gone, leaving behind her husband and son. 


I was having a difficult time moving on with my day after the news. This world is so sad. How horrible that this husband and son had just lost their wife and mother. And how many other children loose their parents, or parents loose their children. There is so much suffering. I was asking God to come quickly. I want to go Home...In my heavenly home there will be no suffering or pain, no tears, no death. There will be no separation of loved ones. Can't wait...


But just then I had some music playing and one started...His eyes are on the sparrow... and He watches over me, why should I feel discouraged? The words of this song gave me comfort and the assurance of God's strength and certainty. Nothing in this world is certain, only He is, and He is there for me, every day, every moment of my life. 

I should know this. I've been through the experience of loosing my father at a young age. And as horrible and difficult that experience was and still is, God has carried me through in amazing ways and has been my stronghold. I know then that He will be Sara's husband and son stronghold as well. He'll carry them through this experience, giving them His amazing peace and helping them to hold on to the hope and assurance that their separation from her is temporary. One day, God will put an end to the suffering and we will be reunited with our loved ones. Can't wait for that day!

 

"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth... There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

Revelation 21:1,4

Old fashioned

This morning I heard the story of a couple in Iowa who were married for 72 years before dying in a tragic car accident this past week. They were both placed in the same room in the ICU and were holding hands when they died within an hour of each other. The husband, who died first, stopped breathing but his heart monitor showed that his heart was still beating. The nurse explained to the family that the monitor was picking his wife’s heart beat because they were holding hands.

What a beautiful story. Not only because of how their life together ended, but mostly because they got to share so much of their life with each other. 72 years… incredible! Think of the stories they got to write together and how their marriage impacted so many generations not only of their families, but also of us who learned of their story.

Who doesn’t want an experience like that in our own lives? For those of us who have started on this journey called marriage, don’t you long to share so many more years with the person you love? Almost no one enters marriage thinking that it will end soon or that divorce is how it will end. Pretty much everyone that gets married thinks it is it! You’re married for life! All our dreams come through the moment we say I do.

But then why so many divorces? Why so many broken homes? Why so much pain and sadness?

Where God has placed me at this time of my life, I have the opportunity to witness the results of broken relationships. The confusion, the shattered dreams, the tears, vanished hopes truly break my heart, but I believe that most of it comes down to this: choices! Our broken relationships are mostly the result of the choices we make.  Our choices pretty much dictate where we will go in this life including how good our marriage will be and how long it will last. And that doesn’t start the moment we say I do. It begins a lot sooner than that, before we ever even step a foot on that aisle. And it continues for the rest of our life.

That older couple from Iowa had 4 children. One of their sons said that his parents had an old fashioned marriage, where they had made up their mind to stay together until the end. If that is old fashioned marriage than I’m advocating for it and hoping that every marriage is old fashioned.

If a happy and long lasting marriage with the person you love is what you want, start making good choices today. Live a healthy life so your mind is clear to make good decisions, educate yourself, prepare well your future, choose well your friends, develop your talents. If you are already dating get to know your partner well and keep your body, that incredible gift from God, for your spouse.

If you’re already married remember to tell your spouse how much you love them. Those words are so important to be told. And not only tell them, show them. Think about their needs, make your spouse the most important person in the world. Make sure they know they are valued and valuable to you. Show them respect and never ever use words to bring your spouse down. On the contrary, build them up. Smile often, talk, go for walks, play, share, and hold hands. 

And to make sure we succeed at making good choices, there is someone who wants to help you, someone who is the definition of love, someone who wants to give you only the best and shower you with good gifts. That someone is God and He can’t wait to help you prepare for the rest of your life. Hold on to Him! That will be your best choice for sure!

Of course we live in a sinful world and it takes 2 people making good choices to have a long and happy marriage, but do your very best, starting today, to make sure your marriage relationship is one that lasts ‘till death do us part.’

http://acarelessdreamer.typepad.com/acarelessdreamer/love/

“Encourage one another, and build each other up.”
I Thessalonians 5:11

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
John 3:16

Immortal!

Today I was driving to town and decided to listen to the radio. The usual Christian station I like to listen to was playing music that I wasn’t so interested in at the moment so I started flipping through the stations. Another Christian station was having a program of questions and answers. Listeners could call in and some theologian would answer their questions. Many questions were coming in but one caught my attention not only because of the question but also because of the answer.

The listener said that as he was reading the Bible he came to the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. You can read about it in Genesis 18:16 - 19: 29. God looked at those wicked cities and decided that they needed to be destroyed. After talking with His friend Abraham about it, God rescued Lot from those bad cities and burned them down. The listener said that he found out that even though the Bible says that Sodom and Gomorrah would be burning forever, they obviously aren’t, so he wanted to understand this better.

The theologian then went on explaining his idea of hell and that even though the cities weren’t burning for ever, the souls of the wicked people were. He said these people have been tormented in the fire of hell since the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Now this idea does not come from the Bible for the Bible doesn’t teach that. And how unfair of God that those who go to hell now don’t suffer as long as the wicked people who died long ago. Somehow the theologian was able to explain this belief using his reasoning and not God’s word. Now what struck me was that the lady who was facilitating the program added some of her thoughts on the matter and ended up saying: there are only 2 things that are immortal, God’s word and us!

Her comment really saddened me because if there is one thing that we are not is immortal! Only God is immortal. In the garden of Eden God told Adam and Eve that if they ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil they would certainly die and that’s exactly what’s been happening to us since that fateful day. Satan is the one who has been deceiving us into thinking that no, we will not die, but we will be like God. And generation after generation we’re taught that we don’t die, that we are somehow immortal. And we explain this by separating our body from our soul even though God’s word makes no such separation. 

Now the good news is that one day we will receive immortality. By dying on the cross Jesus defeated eternal death and provided a way for us to have eternal life. One day Jesus will come to get His children and take them home and on that day He will get rid of our mortality and in the twinkling of an eye, in a flash, we will be transformed and clothed with immortality. I Corinthians 15:51-54 And those who have died believing in Jesus as their Savior will rise to meet their Lord face to face and live with Him forever. Can’t wait for that day!

I know this is subject of a longer study. There’s so much to learn about hell, immortality and what happens when we die, but I hope one thing. I hope that listener went back to his Bible and searched God’s word for the truth for only there will he find it. And that goes for me too. It’s obviously ok to talk with other people and learn of other people’s walk with Christ, but we need to be like the Berean Jews of Acts 17:11 who “received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.”

Now what about going to your Bible and see if what I’m saying is true as well? :)

“God, the blessed and only ruler; 

the King of kings and Lord of lords,  

who alone is immortal 

and who lives in unapproachable light, 

whom no one has seen or can see.”
I Timothy 6:16

It's a beautiful world!

What is beautiful around you? Are you so focused on your daily life that you forget to notice the beautiful things that surround you?

When I used to live in a small town in the south I remember being in awe of the big mountains that surrounded me. They were beautiful, majestic. We lived close to the desert and that had an incredible beauty on its own with miles and miles of sand dunes to play on. Sometimes we would travel up to the mountain tops and enjoy the nature there. I loved the mighty trees, little brooks, and a lake where on occasion we saw eagles or bears. The air felt cleaner and fresh. It was wonderful.

We also lived in the plains of the southwest and the land is so flat we could see for miles. In fact we could see a storm coming hours before it got to us! We didn’t get much rain so it was very dry, but at the same time the land had this unusual and unexpected beauty. There were lots of canyons and I loved seeing the layers of different kinds of dirt and rocks that formed those canyons. The thunderstorms were incredible! And I haven’t seen sunrises like there. They were breathtaking!

Living now in Alaska we are surrounded by amazing nature everywhere. The snow capped mountains are beautiful. There are lakes, rivers, waterfalls and little brooks everywhere. There is so much wildlife that the moose and bear sometimes pay a visit to their neighbors inside town. It’s a tense encounter for some of the neighbors... at least it is for me! During the summer the cities are decorated with incredible flower arrangements that draw our eyes to their amazing colors and beauty. Winters are calm, serene, the land becomes a winter wonderland and many nights the Northern Lights dance in the sky.

This year the Fall colors are incredible! I can’t get enough of all the different colors around me. Some of the trees now have yellow and orange leaves that contrast with the big evergreens. The undergrowth turns orange and red and the mature berries just add to the festival of colors. It’s amazing! We are surrounded by an incredible tapestry of colors.

As I sit by the kitchen window I can see the birch trees with their leaves mostly yellow. The contrast with the evergreens right beside them is amazing. We had a pretty big rainfall last night, so the ground is speckled with little birds feasting on worms and seeds. A little squirrel is trying to muster some courage to get close to the bird feeder to gather some of the sunflower seeds that fall to the ground. Little birds are busy flying back and forth and they fill the air with their songs.  Many of the leaves from the trees have fallen to the ground and now the lawn is covered with a carpet of yellow birch leaves. Once in a while a breeze blows and more leaves come down as if golden glitter was falling everywhere making the scene even more magical. In the distance I can see  fog resting gently on top of a hill.The air is so fresh and wet and the temperatures haven’t gone up past 45F. It’s a perfect Fall day!

Surrounded by this incredible beauty my heart is drawn to the Creator of it all. It’s impossible not to be in awe of Him. If I think this is so beautiful, what will Heaven be like? And how did the world look like freshly made from the hands of my powerful and loving God? It must have been incredible!! And to think that He did it all for me. God didn’t create Adam and Even in the beginning. First God personally crafted a beautiful place, a beautiful home for the very first 2 human beings. And on the seventh day He rested from the work of creation and simply enjoyed the day with Adam and Eve. Together they enjoyed all that God had made and given to them, 2 people whom He loved so much.

Take a moment and think of the beautiful things in nature that surround you. There’s beauty everywhere! It may even be the beautiful plants that adorn your home or the sky above. Focus on that more often. Focusing more on the beautiful nature God has given us gets our mind and heart away from ourselves and turn them towards our Heavenly Father.

Have a beautiful day!

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth...and God saw that it was good" 

Genesis 1:1, 25

"Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done." 

Genesis 2:1-3

September 11, 2001

I can’t believe it has been 10 years! September 11, 2001. I remember getting out of bed and checking my email and as I browsed the web I read the news about airplanes hitting the World Trade Center. At first I wondered if that was a very poor April fools joke, but this was September, not April. I turned the TV on and for the rest of the day my eyes were glued on the screen watching what was going on in New York. I don’t remember doing anything else but just staring at the TV in disbelief. I think the events were so horrible and unreal that my brain was having a difficult time processing what my eyes were seeing.

It has been 10 years and today the country remembers and mourns the thousands of people from all over the world who have lost their lives that day. We also remember the people whose lives were changed for ever and we also remember a country that was changed. Things are not the same.

But even though the country went through some changes one thing is for sure. It became stronger! The sleeping giant that was awaken at Pearl Harbor in 1941 became stronger on September 11, 2001. It’s people got closer to God and to each other. And as long as this giant remains connected to God, its source of strength, it will remain strong!

"It is God who arms me with strength and keeps my way secure."

II Samuel 22:33

Beautiful!

I think the beauty industry is guilty of false advertisement! Anti-wrinkle creams don’t prevent wrinkles. Anti-cellulite lotions don’t prevent cellulite. Orange is not a beautiful natural tan as much as those tan-in-a-bottle want me to believe so. Teeth so white that glow in the dark are not helpful for night sleeping. Shampoos that create volume stop working after a certain age (if they ever work.) Breast implants don’t last a lifetime. Clothes that look good on models don’t look good on me. Nail polish comes out after I wash my hands a few times!

The list could go on and on and on...

The beauty industry wants me to believe that they have the best definition of beauty and most of us spend 10, 20 or more years trying to reach that goal of perfect beauty. We forget that there’s a lot of photoshop in the beauty industry and unless you’re a model or Hollywood actor for a living, which most of us are not, it is a lost cause! We spend a lot of precious money and time trying to look like them and this has caused a lot of frustration and heartache for us who live in the real world.

Here’s what I’m learning about Hollywood beauty: it doesn’t last! It may last while you have the make up or the designer clothes on, but when those come off that’s it! No more being beautiful. At least not according to them. And what does Hollywood know about real life anyway?

So I’m campaigning for beauty in the real world. The beauty that lasts and doesn’t cost me much! Because here’s what I’m learning about true beauty...

The most beautiful feet are the ones who run to carry good news to a friend. The sexiest legs are the ones who walk for miles to bring some form of relief to someone far away. The strongest abs are the ones stretched by the months of carrying a baby in the womb.   The sexiest shoulders are the ones used for a friend to cry on. The most beautiful arms are the ones used to embrace a friend or loved one. Truly beautiful hands are the ones of those who work in soup kitchens or hospitals, who bring flowers to a sick friend or do anything in the service of others. The sexiest lips are the ones who speak words of comfort and encouragement. Beautiful eyes are the ones that only see the good in others. The sexiest hair is the one sold by the mother to feed her children or the hair that is growing back on a cancer patient.The most beautiful face is the one engraved with those wrinkles around the lips and eyes from smiling so much. The hottest muscles are the heart muscles, strong from loving much.

This is true beauty and is one that can last a lifetime without fading and without any creams or lotions. And tt’s free for that matter! And the Bible agrees with me (or do I agree with the Bible?) when it tells us to let our beauty come from our hearts and not with elaborate hairstyles or with decorating ourselves with gold. Will I still be beautiful when the hairdo gets undone and the gold comes off?

Have you realized that the Bible says that the beauty that comes from your heart is of great worth to God? It doesn’t say that about pretty skin. It’s time to redirect our focus and search and find true beauty. And sorry Dove, but you’re still not it! The only place I’ll find real beauty is in Jesus. Everything about Him is beautiful and the more I am with Him, the more I become like Him.

I may not have Brad Pitt’s nose or the curves of J Lo, but that’s not what beautiful is anyway. Here’s the truth about being beautiful and I hope I will always remember this:

The world’s most beautiful person is not the one who spends much time in front of the mirror, but the one who spends much time at the feet of Jesus.

I really hope that when I get older I’ll have those wrinkles around my eyes from smiling so much. I’m going to invest on becoming the world’s most beautiful person and that will last...well, forever!

“Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.” 

I Peter 3:3,4
 
“ But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord, And the Lord makes us more and more like Him as we are changed into His glorious image.” 

2 Cor. 3:16,18
 
“ Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through your world” 

Psalm 119:37

Annoying!

Not long ago I was reading an article about a study of the world’s most annoying sound. The article talked about many of the sounds that were studied but one came up clearly on top. It wasn't the sound of the sirens of emergency vehicles or the sound of a chain saw. It wasn’t the sound of someone learning to play the violin or of nails on a blackboard. No. The world’s most annoying sound? Whining! People from different cultures were given math problems to solve at the sound of whining and the stress was such that they had difficulty solving simple math problems.

As I read the article I couldn’t help but agree. Anyone who is a parent knows how difficult it is to deal with a whining child. It can drive us crazy! We patiently, and not so patiently at times, encourage our children to use their words and normal voices because it can be very distressing to hear the whining that comes out of these little people.

I realized though that whining is not just a child’s thing. Adults can whine too! And worse of all, as difficult as it is to admit it, sometimes I whine! Just recently I caught myself whining...to God! I couldn’t believe it! He’s been blessing me in incredible ways. I just posted about His incredible blessings to me these past few months, and I still found something to whine about. And my motive for whining? Rain!

That’s right, rain! It has been an incredibly wet summer here in the far north and the beautiful and hot sunny days of May and June are but a vague memory in my mind. All I can remember is that it has rained pretty much every day for the last several weeks with a few exceptions here and there, not enough to make an impression. So I have been complaining. I complain about it to pretty much everyone around me. And I look outside and complain to God and beg Him to let me see the sun. And every morning that I open a window and see the rain fall, I slouch my shoulders depressed and complain again to God that winter is coming and we didn’t even have a proper summer.

But children are a blessing from the Lord in more ways than we can imagine. Earlier this week my son opened the curtains of the window in his room and realizing that it was raining yet again, complained about it just the way I’ve been doing. It caught me off guard as I saw myself in him, and I suddenly realized that I needed to be more positive about it. Last night, as I was sitting outside under the covered porch listening to the rain fall, I asked God to forgive all my complaining about the rain and I asked Him to forgive me for inflicting on Him the world’s most annoying sound. I told Him how beautiful the rain was and how wonderful it was to fall asleep to the sound of the rain on the roof of the house. I noticed how fresh nature was all wet and how the little birds still filled the air with their songs. It was indeed beautiful. And I praised God that because of the rain we hadn’t had that many forest fires which meant no smoke up in the air. I can breathe nice, fresh air.

This morning as my son commented again on the weather I helped him see how beautiful it actually was. I directed his eyes to the fog that played between the trees and encouraged him to take in a deep breath of the fresh morning air. And we both thanked our Heavenly Father for the beautiful weather.

I know God smiled at this child of His who still has so much to learn and ended up giving us a gorgeous sunny day. We had a wonderful time playing outside and working on the yard.

And now as the day is over, I get to fall asleep to the sound of the gentle rain falling on the roof. My Heavenly Father is Amazing...

Photo by William Kasper

“Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.”
 I Tess. 5:18

“So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content.”
 I Tim. 6:8


“Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have.”
Philippians 4:11