The Savage Five

As I was running my last stretch of my new goal,  I looked ahead at my friend who has been joining me in the mornings and I tried to use her as motivation to finish with a final push. While I was thinking about catching up to her she began running.  I started to get discouraged that I may not make my new goal because in my competitiveness, I had used her as my goal. The gap between us was gradually getting larger and my resolve began to falter.  I realized that I needed to keep my eyes on the path in front of me because I was getting overwhelmed with the idea of running to the end of the course. When I adjusted my gaze to my own path I realized that there were many obstacles that I needed to be aware of so that I would not lose my footing. The Christian race should not be one of comparison or competition but one where we, with the Lord's help keep our eyes on our own path. When we compare ourselves to others and use their lives as a gauge for our spiritual growt...

I glanced outside this morning to find my garden immersed in a cloud of fog.  Fog is composed of little droplets of condensed water suspended in mid-air. Fog mysteriously envelopes everything in its wake and is in essence a cloud on the ground.  When light encounters fog it is distorted.  As light hits this medium it is slowed down and it's angle of travel is changed. Like fog our hearts, as they are encountered by the word of God, should change directions. The old adage of our culture is "follow you heart" but the Bible states in Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; The Hebrew word for deceitful means: sly, insidious, slippery, polluted and crooked. The Hebrew word for desperately sick is  ä·nash':   incurable, weak, sick and frail. So there you have it!  Don't follow your heart because it will lead you onto a slippery crooked incurable path of destruction but instead follow the Word of God. Psalm ...

As I sit and listen to the much need rain pouring down outside my window, I am thankful for rain in August. August usually brings with it a dearth of rainfall which negatively effects some of the gardeners production. Like the precious fruit of the gardener's harvest is dependent upon the clouds breaking loose and releasing a thorough drenching rain, so are the souls of the earth dependent upon showers from heaven that rain down what is needed to cause both salvation and righteousness to sprout. Isaiah 45:8 "Shower, O heavens, from above,  and let the clouds rain down righteousness; let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness may bear fruit; let the earth cause them both to sprout; I the LORD have created it. Our salvation and righteousness are the fruit of heaven  not the fruit of our hard work. It is nothing that we decided to do or not do one day and then walk in a way that is pleasing to God but it is non other than the divine sovereign pr...

We live in culture that thrives on self exaltation.  We teach and train our children from a young age that they can do and be anything and the impetus behind that is so that they will become seen by the world as important and glorious. The human heart is bent toward idolatry and self idolatry has taken front row as we are obsessed with selfies and pictures of our lives that emulate something special or different. As Christians, we have the mandate to be in the world but not of the world.  We are called to be distinctly different from the ideologies of the day. This obsession with self lends to the theme of the day that calls each of us to grow up big and glorious and do all the great and awesome things so that we are viewed by others as spectacular and glorious. Sunflowers are big and glorious but without the sun they would not exist.  Like sunflowers, our lives should be overshadowed by God's glorious son! As we stand in the light of His countenance, we grow gl...

I recently communicated with someone I follow on Instagram about a picture that He posted of his daughter.  He will sometimes take pictures of his daughter with their falcons as he is teaching her to be a falconer. My response to this picture was one of delight as I looked down at the image, I thought about how my heavenly Father thinks that I am precious and He delights in me as His daughter. We are precious in the sight of God, not of our own doing but because of the precious blood of Jesus that cleanses us from all unrighteousness. Our Heavenly Father looks at us as: costly, excellent, bright, clear, splendid, gloriously influential men and woman! Ephesians 2:10 says; For we his workmanship,  created in Christ Jesus for good works,  which God prepared beforehand,  that we should walk in them. God has given much thought of how He will be glorified through our lives.  He is our husbandman that waits for the precious fruit of t...

While helping a friend unpack, my children emerged from the basement of the house with a baby squirrel.  So cute and precious, my heart immediately wanted to take it home and hand raise the little guy. When I was a little girl, my brother rescued a baby squirrel from a tree and he brought it home and we hand raised him. Fred was the name that we gave him and soon he became a healthy, thriving little fella who would scale our curtains and climb up our legs to sit on our heads. So obviously, with such fond memories, and who allows their kids to raise a squirrel in their home, I decided to see if my husband was up for the challenge.  His immediate response was, "Are you going to feed him the tomatoes from your garden?" You see, since my tomatoes have started to come in, the squirrels in my yard have been relentless at stealing and eating portions of them, leaving me so angry and frustrated that I wanted to do them great harm. I made a hot pepper concoction to give th...

The tree- of- heaven or  Ailanthus altissimo, by it's common name seems like it would be a good tree however, this tree is a highly invasive tree that was introduced by a horticulturist in Pennsylvania in the 1700's. A tree once thought to be a good addition to the landscaping repertoire of the day has proven to be a problem. It was seen as horticulturist's dream because of it's ease of establishment, rapid growth and disease resistance.  However, over time some things have come to light. The tree- of -heaven's ability to grow rapidly means that its roots are rapidly invading the area where it is growing, preventing space for other trees to grow and thrive.  But that isn't the only reason that its a nuisance.  It produces chemicals that actually can prevent or kill other trees that are near it. This tree is also a prolific seed producer so it quickly can produce after its own kind. I call this tree a tricky tree because it has the appearance of being a...

One of my very favorite trees is the Bald Cypress.  This stately tree is strong in stature and of a large girth which gives it a majestic presence.  This tree is a confer or cone bearing tree and most conifers are evergreen however, this tree is deciduous, meaning it loses its needles in the fall. Before it sheds it's needles the Bald Cypress's boughs become heavy laden with sap filled cones.  What a fruitful and stately tree! Psalm 104:16 depicts just such a tree! The trees of the LORD are full of sap, the cedars of Lebanon,  which He has planted; ...  The word sap is the Hebrew word  אֶרֶז   ʼ erez  which means a cedar tree (from the tenacity of its roots). For the Christian, a life that is planted by God is stately and strong and is directly dependant on the root system. Revelation 22:16 shows us who our root is I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you  about these things for the churches.   I am the root...

Pollination of plants occurs in different ways.  Some plants do not rely on pollinators visiting them to ensure that they are fertilized and as a result there is no energy invested in producing fragrant filled colorful flowers. Wind pollination or Anemophily, is the transfer of pollen from one individual plant to another.  Grasses, pine trees, wheat, rice and corn are familiar examples. These plants are structured in such a way that when they are exposed to the wind, they have the potential to be reproduced. Their lives are not one of elaborate displays but humbly they wait for the power of the wind to drive the process of their lives so that they can reproduce after their own kind. Our lives were created in such a way.  As the Spirit of God moved during the creation, He spoke everything into existence and set their lives in motion. Our lives are dependent on the Ruwach ( רוּחַ)  or wind of God to breath on us.  Our lives are dependent on His drivi...

Late summer brings to the gardener much work, especially rampant are the weeds.  How these plants double in size overnight without rain is a mystery to anyone who is trying to keep their gardens free and clear of these life sucking invaders. That is why it is so important to keep a watchful eye out for weeds, so that they do not have the opportunity, especially during the heat and dearth of August, to run rampant taking the much needed water and minerals from the developing harvest. Hebrews 12:14-17  (MSG) encourages the reader to work at getting along with each other and with God. Relationships take work! Otherwise you'll never get so much as a glimpse of God.   Make sure no one gets left out of God's generosity. We must tend to our relationships, especially our relationship with God!  It is our responsibility, as believers, to strive for peace with everyone and holiness.   If we don't  do due diligence in our relationships with each oth...

I recently started running again.  It is hard and painful but I am seeing progress.  It has been years but as I continue on the path I grow stronger each and every day and I become more confident that I will be able to persevere. As I run I am thirsty.  I stop and partake of the water that is provided through a drinking fountain listening to the lyrics: As the deer pants for flowing streams,  so pants my soul for you, O God.   My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.  When shall I come and appear before God? I continue on my path with resolve and refreshed from the drink.  I know that God is with me. Isn't our walk with the Lord like learning how to run all over again? We feel like trail blazers however the worn path shows us that many have gone before us and they are cheering us on especially the Lord. Hebrews 12:1-15 in the Message paraphrases it in just this way. Do you see what this means--  all these pioneers wh...