RATS

In the beginning God created a lot of things, including rats. During our time in Mississippi I shared a space with a medium size dead rat. This was more enjoyable than sharing the same space with a small alive rat. More enjoyable for me, not that rat.

Since I often pray that God is good and just I know deep within my inner man that rats are good. Good from God's perspective. They have a reason to exist on the earth. It may be they are like cockroaches. Rats and cockroaches can be used of God to cause a holy fear that leads to prayers of protection and deliverance.

I had a night in Mississippi when, according to one youthful critic, I was the "scaredest" he had ever seen. After listening to rats chew on the corner of our dwelling for about an hour I suddenly felt something jump on my face. In the spirit of Sampson I grabbed the intruding villein and wrestled it off my face and to the side of my cot. In an our bust of anger and hostility I was horrified that I had been accosted by a corner of my blanket. I know some people who have blankets that love them and comfort them. Mine joined in union with the rats to terrorize me.

But in the end I got to align myself with scripture. I arose and turned on the light over my bed. True to the nature of light the darkness was pushed back. Now the dark and forbidding corner that was filled with chewing noises was converted. God is light and in Him no darkness dwells. Do you think that God created light in the first place to drive out the "chaos" (darkness, mess, rats) in Gen. 1?

In my "Manly" ways I asked if my new night light was a problem to anyone else in the hut. I was thankful that this group was home schooled and well trained in not imposing their will on adults. Just a few moans and groans and the rest of the night was full of light and peaceful ratlessness. While I learned to deal with my issues with light, many of the young men learned to sleep with their sleeping bags and pillows pulled over their eyes. What a great night for learning!

If you ever have trouble getting out and bed and going to work, just bring a few rats into your room and allow them to live and breed. This one simple action will greatly help you get and out bed and look forward to get going in the mornings.

Winning Picture Goes Here

This is not the winning picture but one from another trip.

Salsa and tasting life

Does salsa taste better if you have all your teeth? I had to have some of my teeth pulled when we were poor and young, just starting off in life. We could not afford to have my teeth fixed, we just had them pulled. But now that we are old(er) and.., I'm still having my teeth pulled.

But does life, I mean salsa, taste better with all your chewing tools? Do we miss out of tasting life because we have holes in our mouth?

Years ago I was at home eating a granola bar and when I bit in, one of my teeth broke off. Later on a fishing trip in South Dakota we were "going light" on lunch and just having granola bars. Guess what. I bit the bar and another tooth broke off. Health food attacks me for sucking up to ice cream all those years.

I just got back from working in Mississippi. Some of the people there have holes, places missing. I think there is a lot of life, a lot of God, they are missing as they try to chew up the meal they have been served. I went to help them out, but you know, I have some teeth missing in my own mouth. Most dental work is not transferable with some one else. I don't know this for sure but when I look at my neighbors dentures, I don't think they will fix into my mouth. It seems like we can encourage one another but the chewing is left up to the individual.

I know we all miss out on things because of the losses we have suffered. But when we get to heaven I think most of us will realize it was not the salsa we wanted anyway - it was the chip!

Happy chewing and watch out for those granola bars.

Troubles come a knocking

A window of hope
That experiencing God now, in the moment
Is worth more than all pain
What faith calls forth such great hope
The reality of His love being enough
I am so needy, needy of stupid things
Can holiness cover stupidity, weakness

New man, not of earth
What will feed you and your kin
Who will shelter you, love you
Are you able to care for such devotion
Do you truly call for it

I would love to love my son
Even in his weakness I would love him
Yet in weakness I do not
God has no such weakness
God is love, He is not loving
No shadow exist in Him, no lack

Responding now and always to my need is He
Opening doors, windows and ways
By virtue and obedience, I live a prayer
By humility I an set in His place
Pain and sorrow the doors to greater virtue
No shameless suffering
Just transformation

New, New Year

So with the past in mind
And hope ahead
I take my new life
and innocently and wisely
live

Merry Christmas

What a great season. Even those who do not believe in Jesus Christ try to be like Him and give good gifts. This is just a sample of how a little light can shine in the darkness. God redeeming materialism to celebrate His Son.

Transformation

How many people have been robed of their ability to live and now just exist?

Think about all those people who spend their thought life, their emotions and feelings all bound to “getting through the day” or “making it until Christmas”. They live to make it to some point in life, like a graduation or job position, only to find nothing more than themselves when that achieve these goals.

Man was made to walk with God and that walk is at the very foundation of our life. I, almost daily, find myself in conflict with people who want me to give up my life and enter into existence with them. They fill their time with events, relationships, plans that are full of flutter and excitement, but have no reality. They spend years of their life trying to please and fulfill others and even more years of worry and anxiety over their inability to do so.

The way of transformation and Godliness is so foreign to us that I wonder if there will be faith on the earth when the Lord returns. So few people can even bear the weight of living in this life I wonder how they will bear the weight of the reality of heaven?