Ponderings...

• Self-help books -- Trust in God first; don’t turn to him as a last resort. (See Proverbs 3:5-6.)
• Tape measure -- Consider only God’s standards; don’t compare yourself to other people. (See Luke 18:9-14.)
• Rearview mirror -- Don’t live in the past. You’ll miss out on what God is doing in your life now. (See Philippians 3:12-14.)
• Gavel -- Instead of judging others, pray for them, help them and team with them. (See Luke 6:37-38.)
• Life vest -- Don’t be overly cautious spiritually. Peter experienced Jesus in a real way because he dared to step out of the boat. (See Matthew 14:22-33.)
• Garage-door opener -- We think we’re networked but often isolate ourselves from our neighbors. God intended for us to live in community with one another. (See Hebrews 10:23-25.)
• Handcuffs -- Don’t offer excuses about why you can’t help out. God can do amazing things through -- and despite -- us. Just follow him, with no excuses. (See Mark 6:35-44.) --Gregg McCaslin

Without fail

I was once young and now I am old, but not once have I been witness to God’s failure to supply my need when first I had given for the furtherance of his work. He has never failed in his promise, so I cannot fail in my service to him. -- William Carey

A New Year’s blessing

May God make your year a happy one!
Not by shielding you from all sorrow and pain,
But by strengthening you to bear it as it comes;
Not by making your path easy,
But by making you sturdy to travel any path;
Not by taking hardships from you,
But by taking fear from your heart;
Not by granting you unbroken sunshine,
But by keeping your face bright, even in the shadows;
Not by making your life always pleasant,
But by showing you when people and their causes need you most,
and by making you anxious to be there to help.
God’s love, peace, hope and joy to you for the year ahead.
-- Author unknown

Epiphanies

The word epiphany means to show forth. Epiphanies, both large and small, tend to be private events — yet events with great significance for the public. Trying to share the details with another of an epiphany is fraught with complications. The words are never quite right, and even the most sympathetic listener cannot fully bridge the gap between description and what is was like being there. Most of us keep our personal experiences of the Holy to ourselves. Who would believe it? And who would really understand? The irony is that epiphanies are made for sharing, even as they are impossible to communicate fully.
--Father Thomas Rosica (zenit.org)

Waiting to blossom

A song called “The Rose” (written by Amanda McBroom and made popular by Bette Midler) encourages listeners to keep the faith, even when the source of our hope isn’t visible.

In the depths of winter, we especially need the reminder that beneath mounds of snow lie seeds already being prepared to burst forth “with the sun’s love” into springtime flowers.

When you’re in the cold depths of despair, grief, illness or other struggles, remember the deeply buried seed. Beyond your view, God’s love is already tending that seed, readying it to blossom into healing, new friendship, joy and life.

Living above the weather

Have you ever boarded an airplane in a snowstorm? The sky is gray with heavy clouds. Snow is coming down hard, with no sign of letting up. Plows clear the runway and unfamiliar machinery de-ices the wings. Passengers might consider it madness to fly in such weather.

But the pilot knows the storm is earthbound. Past the clouds is glorious sunshine. The plane can fly above the weather, if only it can get off the ground.

When troubles overtake us like a storm, we may wonder in the midst of the darkness if God still cares or if he is even there at all. But if we believe that God, like the sun, is unchanged in good weather and in bad, we can ride it out. For storms are earthbound, but we are not. -- Kari Myers

Home away from home

I spent five months as a college exchange student in Spain. The Sunday after I arrived, I walked to a nearby church, hoping worship would ease my homesickness. At first it didn’t. The vast cathedral was a different denomination from my home church. No one welcomed me, and I couldn’t comprehend all the Spanish.

As the priest began reading the gospel lesson, however, I recognized the account of Jesus’ baptism. It struck me powerfully that, because our denominations shared the same lectionary (series of Scripture readings for worship), six hours later my pastor-father would be proclaiming this very passage at my home church. He would do so in a different language and to a different congregation, but it would be the same good news — indeed, the one gospel — proclaimed in my hearing.

I felt less homesick then, comforted that through Christ, the Scriptures and the church, I was connected with other Christians, even from far around the world. -- Heidi Mann

A time to ponder

New Year’s Eve is like every other night; there is no pause in the march of the universe, no breathless moment of silence among created things that the passage of another 12 months may be noted; and yet no man has quite the same thoughts this evening that come with the coming of darkness on other nights. -- Hamilton Wright Mabie

Bible Quiz

In the book of Judges, a cycle is repeated many times: The Israelites do “what is evil in the sight of the Lord,” God hands them over to an enemy nation, they cry out to the Lord and he appoints a judge, or political/military leader, for them. Under the judge’s leadership, the Israelites conquer their adversary and prosper — until they start doing “what is evil in the sight of the Lord” all over again.
Who was not one of these judges?

A. Deborah
B. Ehud
C. Esau
D. Shamgar

Answer: C (See Judges 3–5.)

The guide

Picture a man stumbling along in a heavy fog, completely disoriented. Then, off in the distance, he sees the light of one small lamp. Its glow is sufficient neither to burn off the fog nor to illuminate the obstacles that might be on the ground between the man and that lamp. Still, it is a steadily burning lamp. Something within the man prompts him to believe that if he heads toward it, he will be going in the right direction. That “something” we can call “faith.”

While heading toward the lamp, he finds another lost man whose eyesight is so poor he can’t see the lamp. The first man takes the second by the hand and helps him toward the lamp also. The act of reaching out to another we can call “love.”

And the lamp that draws him? It’s called “hope.” -- The Wired Word (August 7, 2011)

updated January 14, 2012

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