In 1973 we bought our six acres virgin-forested dream property and because we couldn’t afford to build a house we moved a modular home onto the property .
Shortly after we moved there, I befriended a girl at Eaton’s where I worked and one day she asked if I would be willing to keep her five month old baby for the week-end. I was happy to keep her sweet contented baby but I found he had a funny little habit. He was teething and his way of dealing with the pain or discomfort was to pinch a little piece of your skin between two of his sharp baby nails and twist. It could be quite painful !!
I put him down the first night and he went right off to sleep .
That night I dreamed that I was holding him and he was doing his pinching thing on my little finger. Because I had found a reason for the pain I did not immediately awaken from it , but when the pain persisted I came out of my dream and opened my eyes……
I found myself looking into the eyes of a little field mouse that had a piece of my little finger between his teeth! I had my hand beside my face and the little mouse was sitting on my pillow just a few inches from my nose !
Well… you don’t have to ask !!
I let out an appropriate screech .. frightening the little mouse and jarring Vic out of his sleep !!
He refused to believe that a mouse had been biting my little finger until I showed him the teeth marks and then screeched again when I saw the mouse sitting on top of our closet door.
We thought our modular home was well built… and so it was – for a modular home- but there were little cracks that we could not even see that must have looked like open doors to the cute little field mice that were in abundance in the forest we had claimed as ‘home’.
It took us many months to find and close off every tiny crack, until finally they could no longer find a way in !!
I tell this story …because I think my little mouse preaches a good object lesson!!
We live our lives in what we think are beautifully comfortable ‘modular homes’ but we have an enemy seeking entrance … He can find cracks in our life that we are not even aware off. The enemy is lurking hoping to find some way to exercise his evil intentions in our hearts. Some things may seem sooo small .. hardly significant but the crack left open will allow the enemy’s influence in.
My story gives a very literal meaning to “Give him your little finger and he will take your whole hand!”
And so he will.
If we are honest with ourselves, we know that Satan is not the real enemy , is he ! The real enemy is our own fleshly inclinations and desires, our character flaws and weaknesses. Satan just takes advantage of our 'cracks' that he can use for his own evil desires against us !
We allow a little selfish reaction here…. an unloving act here… an indulgence there… a fleshly desire … an angry word… doubt, fear, sin… Oh… so many cracks we have never closed off !!
The Holy Spirit will point out the little cracks in our life that need to be dwelt with … but are we sensitive to His gentle nudging? Do we hear His convicting voice in our hearts?
“How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word.” (Ps. 119:9)
Monday, March 17, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
Grace - An Invitation
I was six years old in my first year of school attending a small one-room school in the country.
The year was 1953, long before the days of school playgrounds with sophisticated toys and sports equipment. We devised our own games and imaginary play .
I remember coming back to school one day, after being home sick, to find that some of the girls had constructed a play house in the back of the schoolroom. Where they got the cardboard and other material from, I do not know. I do know that it looked much grander to my six-year-old eyes than what it could possibly have been in reality.
How I longed to see the inside of this castle and to be included in the group of girls playing there.
Although I had not been invited, I hesitantly approached the playhouse hoping to be allowed in.
The leader of the group of girls stood watching me as I slowly came closer, and I was hopeful that she would invite me to come join their play. The playhouse was up on a platform which allowed her to look down on me. She waited until I stood at the foot of the stairs and then she haughtily spoke these words.... "I'm the queen of the castle and you're the dirty old rascal."
The words stung - tears filled my eyes and I turned away, feeling the pain of rejection.
The "queen's" name, ironically, was Grace !
Was this my first example of God's grace?
I remember clearly the first time I heard a radio sermon on the predestination of God. The pastor explain clearly how God ordained some people to hell and some to heaven. The teaching made a deep impact on my mind. Dad after day , on the lonely mile-long walk home from school I pondered the questions assaulting my heart and mind. If God had predestined who should be saved and who should not -- then I had no reason to hope that I should be included in the 'elect'.
Who was I but one of the insignificant ones.
I had accepted Jesus when I was eight and knew the joy of being forgiven and had experienced the reality of a changed heart ... but now I doubted. Had I taken something that was never intended to be mine? Had it simply been the desire of my heart that led my imagination to believe that I could be saved ?
The more I dwelt on my questions of doubt, the more convinced I became that my 'joy' had been based on nothing more than a futile hope and I had never really been saved at all and worse... never would be.
Fear took hold of my heart, fear that I was one of those predestined for hell and there was nothing I could do to change it .
The lies of the enemy embedded in doubt and fear accomplished their finished work over the next years until finally I turned my back completely on God - finding a kind of peace in simply denying His very existence.
Then in 1979 I had an experience with the Lord that forever changed me. I came face to face with the reality of His love in a way that would forever fill me to overflowing leaving no room at all for doubt that I was accepted by Him.
I was overwhelmed by His mercy and grace. I was not arbitrarily chosen to be one of His elect but I was accepted in the Beloved by His foreknowledge that I would come.
Whosoever !! One of my favourite words. Not for a select few did Jesus die, but for the whole world.
Whosoever may come! It is not His will that "any should perish, but that all come to repentance." (II Peter 3:9)
His will, that all come to His outstretched arms. "Him that cometh to Me , I will in no wise cast out." (John 6:27) No one will ever walk up to Jesus and be turned away. His grace is freely extended to everyone who comes!!
Whosoever will ! But is not even the 'willing' of God? Yes, for to every man has been given a measure of faith. Faith to EVERY man, and a free choice.
When I seek God, when I 'will' to believe Him, then He has already by His foreknowledge chosen me, predestined me to His elect by the sanctifying work of His Spirit.
"Many are called , but few are chosen." (Matt.22:14)
By God's will ? NO ! by the will of man -- a hardened heart or a seeking heart -- the choice is personal for every person.
God's grace is open to every 'whosoever' that was ever born !
How great is God's grace ! How wonderful His Father love.
How can we limit His invitation when His command is to go into all the world calling every man to come to the One who will reject no-one.
Is the way narrow? Yes.
But the door to salvation is open to 'whosoever' knocks!!
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3:16)
The year was 1953, long before the days of school playgrounds with sophisticated toys and sports equipment. We devised our own games and imaginary play .
I remember coming back to school one day, after being home sick, to find that some of the girls had constructed a play house in the back of the schoolroom. Where they got the cardboard and other material from, I do not know. I do know that it looked much grander to my six-year-old eyes than what it could possibly have been in reality.
How I longed to see the inside of this castle and to be included in the group of girls playing there.
Although I had not been invited, I hesitantly approached the playhouse hoping to be allowed in.
The leader of the group of girls stood watching me as I slowly came closer, and I was hopeful that she would invite me to come join their play. The playhouse was up on a platform which allowed her to look down on me. She waited until I stood at the foot of the stairs and then she haughtily spoke these words.... "I'm the queen of the castle and you're the dirty old rascal."
The words stung - tears filled my eyes and I turned away, feeling the pain of rejection.
The "queen's" name, ironically, was Grace !
Was this my first example of God's grace?
I remember clearly the first time I heard a radio sermon on the predestination of God. The pastor explain clearly how God ordained some people to hell and some to heaven. The teaching made a deep impact on my mind. Dad after day , on the lonely mile-long walk home from school I pondered the questions assaulting my heart and mind. If God had predestined who should be saved and who should not -- then I had no reason to hope that I should be included in the 'elect'.
Who was I but one of the insignificant ones.
I had accepted Jesus when I was eight and knew the joy of being forgiven and had experienced the reality of a changed heart ... but now I doubted. Had I taken something that was never intended to be mine? Had it simply been the desire of my heart that led my imagination to believe that I could be saved ?
The more I dwelt on my questions of doubt, the more convinced I became that my 'joy' had been based on nothing more than a futile hope and I had never really been saved at all and worse... never would be.
Fear took hold of my heart, fear that I was one of those predestined for hell and there was nothing I could do to change it .
The lies of the enemy embedded in doubt and fear accomplished their finished work over the next years until finally I turned my back completely on God - finding a kind of peace in simply denying His very existence.
Then in 1979 I had an experience with the Lord that forever changed me. I came face to face with the reality of His love in a way that would forever fill me to overflowing leaving no room at all for doubt that I was accepted by Him.
I was overwhelmed by His mercy and grace. I was not arbitrarily chosen to be one of His elect but I was accepted in the Beloved by His foreknowledge that I would come.
Whosoever !! One of my favourite words. Not for a select few did Jesus die, but for the whole world.
Whosoever may come! It is not His will that "any should perish, but that all come to repentance." (II Peter 3:9)
His will, that all come to His outstretched arms. "Him that cometh to Me , I will in no wise cast out." (John 6:27) No one will ever walk up to Jesus and be turned away. His grace is freely extended to everyone who comes!!
Whosoever will ! But is not even the 'willing' of God? Yes, for to every man has been given a measure of faith. Faith to EVERY man, and a free choice.
When I seek God, when I 'will' to believe Him, then He has already by His foreknowledge chosen me, predestined me to His elect by the sanctifying work of His Spirit.
"Many are called , but few are chosen." (Matt.22:14)
By God's will ? NO ! by the will of man -- a hardened heart or a seeking heart -- the choice is personal for every person.
God's grace is open to every 'whosoever' that was ever born !
How great is God's grace ! How wonderful His Father love.
How can we limit His invitation when His command is to go into all the world calling every man to come to the One who will reject no-one.
Is the way narrow? Yes.
But the door to salvation is open to 'whosoever' knocks!!
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3:16)
Friday, March 7, 2008
The Lesson of the Hawk
"Does the hawk fly by your wisdom, and spread it wings toward the south?"(Job 39:26)
This morning I saw this hawk sitting in a tree behind our house and of course a bunch of crows squawking and harassing him.
I called Vic and asked him to come quick with his zoom zens and snap some photos. He did and the above photo is the result.
I thought I remembered reading about hawks in the bible and looked up the reference to find God Himself speaking about the hawk -- Job 39:26
How beautifully the hawk flies ! And so she should... her wings were designed by the Greatest Designer of Wings by His infinite wisdom !
But it was the second part of the verse that caught my attention. "it spreads its wings toward the south". What was the meaning here ?
I did a little research and came up with the following.
When it is time for the hawk to molt its old feathers or grow new ones it needs to warm its body so the pores open to allow the process to take place.
It accomplishes this in one of two ways. If the south wind is blowing it spreads its wings into its warmth, or if there is no south wind then it beats its wings to create a breeze while facing the warm rays of the sun.
There is an object lesson here , is there not?
We too need to 'molt'.
"..You have heard Him and have been taught by Him ... that you put off, concerning your former conduct , the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lust, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God in true righteousness and holiness." (Eph. 4:21-24)
We are to 'molt' -- putting off the old man and putting on the new man. The old man is , of course, our old sinful character and the new man is the new godly character we are to grow into.
How do we do this ? How do we let go of our old 'feathers' ? Is it not as we yield to the 'wind' of the Holy Spirit ? As we spread our hearts out before Him, we invite Him to reveal our sin and selfish desires.
And what do our 'old feathers' look like?
"Now the works (feathers) of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissentions , heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like..." (Gal. 5:20,21)
How do we grow new 'feathers' ? Is it not as we look into the face of the Son ?
"But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord." (II Cor. 3:18)
We are told what our new 'feathers' will look like.
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness , self-control...." (Gal. 5:23)
The hawk cannot grow new feathers until it molts its old ones.... so also we cannot put on the character of Christ until we 'molt' our old sinful self!
If the hawk refuses to molt, its damaged old feathers would cause the hawk to lose its ability to soar effortlessly in the sky and eventually it would become earthbound.
So we also. If we hang on to our old sinful habits and characteristics we too will lose our ability to soar in God's kingdom and will be in danger of Paul's warning... "..those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." (Gal. 5:21)
Next time you look up into the sky and see a hawk soaring above you ... remember the lesson of the hawk, and look for the 'South Wind' blowing in your life and look to the Son to warm your heart.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
A Common Language
One of the amazing wonders of this world is that the Creator of it all desired to communicate with His creatures.
God could have finished His creation , and gone on to other things leaving His creation to fend for itself. He could have stepped back and simply watched man struggle to survive.
But no....God wanted to communicate with man, God desired to teach man to know Him !
"But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me." (Jer.9:24)
John Milton Gregory, first president of the University of Illinois , in his 1864 book “The Seven Laws of Teaching” said, “The language used as a medium between teacher and learner must be common to both.”
What a simplistic statement – of course if I am to learn anything from a teacher I need to be able to speak the same language!
Did you ever stop to consider that God and man do not naturally share a common language?
"But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." (I Cor.2:14)
Natural man cannot understand God.
So the only way God could communticate with man was to create a common language between them so that man would be able to grasp the lofty things concerning God and His spiritual realm.
In His wisdom and love He ‘wrote’ a language specifically designed for this purpose.
What was this language that transcends time and the limitation of man’s intellectual ability to understand things that are unknown ?
It is the language of parables --- a language built on “it is like”. This language allows God to speak of the invisible , unknown things of God’s kingdom by comparing them to the things all men know and understand.
The biggest ‘parable’ God wrote is His creation. It is His picture book that peoples of all nations can ‘read’.
"For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse." (Rom.1:20)
Even after men have 'read' what God has written in creation...and they open His Book to read His written word... God still speaks in parables... through stories... saying "it is like..."
"Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
I will open my mouth in a parable." (Ps.78:2)
And when Jesus came He spoke as He heard His Father speak….
"And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying..." (Matt.13:3)
"All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them. That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world." (Matt. 13:34,35)
How often Jesus began His teaching with the words..…””It is like this…” explaining the unknown by comparing it to what is known and familiar to man.
A common language between us… did you ever stop to consider how precious that is ? If God ever spoke to us on His level of intelligence ….we would not understand a word He said.
I once wanted to demonstrate to a woman’s group I was speaking to how important it is that God ‘dumbed down’ His divine level of intelligence to be able to communicate with us.
To illustrate my point, I put together an English sentence…
“Scintillate, scintillate, diminutive superlative body, with speculative impetus I vacillate contemplating your definite composition.”
The sentence contains only English words yet the meaning does not easily transfer from speaker to listener, does it. Not one woman could tell me what I had said.
When I told them I had merely said “Twinkle, twinkle little star , how I wonder what you are”, they laughed in disbelief.
I think that it is a wonderful evidence of how much God loves us – that He would make sure that He could communicate His truths to our minds and hearts in such a way that we would understand.
How carefully should we observe His parables… and study them diligently to understand the spiritual Truths they are meant to teach us !!
God could have finished His creation , and gone on to other things leaving His creation to fend for itself. He could have stepped back and simply watched man struggle to survive.
But no....God wanted to communicate with man, God desired to teach man to know Him !
"But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me." (Jer.9:24)
John Milton Gregory, first president of the University of Illinois , in his 1864 book “The Seven Laws of Teaching” said, “The language used as a medium between teacher and learner must be common to both.”
What a simplistic statement – of course if I am to learn anything from a teacher I need to be able to speak the same language!
Did you ever stop to consider that God and man do not naturally share a common language?
"But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." (I Cor.2:14)
Natural man cannot understand God.
So the only way God could communticate with man was to create a common language between them so that man would be able to grasp the lofty things concerning God and His spiritual realm.
In His wisdom and love He ‘wrote’ a language specifically designed for this purpose.
What was this language that transcends time and the limitation of man’s intellectual ability to understand things that are unknown ?
It is the language of parables --- a language built on “it is like”. This language allows God to speak of the invisible , unknown things of God’s kingdom by comparing them to the things all men know and understand.
The biggest ‘parable’ God wrote is His creation. It is His picture book that peoples of all nations can ‘read’.
"For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse." (Rom.1:20)
Even after men have 'read' what God has written in creation...and they open His Book to read His written word... God still speaks in parables... through stories... saying "it is like..."
"Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
I will open my mouth in a parable." (Ps.78:2)
And when Jesus came He spoke as He heard His Father speak….
"And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying..." (Matt.13:3)
"All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them. That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world." (Matt. 13:34,35)
How often Jesus began His teaching with the words..…””It is like this…” explaining the unknown by comparing it to what is known and familiar to man.
A common language between us… did you ever stop to consider how precious that is ? If God ever spoke to us on His level of intelligence ….we would not understand a word He said.
I once wanted to demonstrate to a woman’s group I was speaking to how important it is that God ‘dumbed down’ His divine level of intelligence to be able to communicate with us.
To illustrate my point, I put together an English sentence…
“Scintillate, scintillate, diminutive superlative body, with speculative impetus I vacillate contemplating your definite composition.”
The sentence contains only English words yet the meaning does not easily transfer from speaker to listener, does it. Not one woman could tell me what I had said.
When I told them I had merely said “Twinkle, twinkle little star , how I wonder what you are”, they laughed in disbelief.
I think that it is a wonderful evidence of how much God loves us – that He would make sure that He could communicate His truths to our minds and hearts in such a way that we would understand.
How carefully should we observe His parables… and study them diligently to understand the spiritual Truths they are meant to teach us !!
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