Moments of Grace and The Mills of God

Perhaps everyone has moments, difficult to put into words, i think just called Grace. When i was a kid, i had a Grace Fantasy, that my future husband and i would be in the kitchen in the mornings, the sun just coming through a window. we moved about, quietly each doing our own thing as we prepared for the day.  i only imagined us from the waist down. we moved perfectly in the space, aware of and in love with each other. it was Grace-filled.

One day around age 19 i read a book; Laurel's Kitchen, the best vegetarian cookbook ever
 (cream cheese stuffed pierogi omgood enough to make a peacher cuss) which had woodcuts to illlustrate the themes of the book. there was a simple woodcut, of a woman in a kitchen from the waist down;she standing at the counter, carefully cutting a cantaloupe with zigzags so she could stuff it with cottage cheese, close it up, and put it in a little cooler for her husband to take with him. The simple moment in Time that love is. awesome.

Today, Independence Day, i was standing at the kitchen counter, with a great bread knife slicing a thick crusty loaf of seseme seed bread. I was going to mix some summer savory just picked from the garden with some aMAZing farmers' butter, coat and grill the bread along with some corn and gigantihumongnourmous steaks outside to celebrate the 4th of July.

Earlier in the day i had been reading on a discussion thread about a man who has been getting battered about. He's been out of the military, where he had suffered the wounds that our soldiers are returning with...
and rather than being treated well by companies, bosses, and those who should be happy to have his skills, he has been being betrayed, cheated, and lied to.
He did not seem to have posted the sad string of apparent misfortune for any reason other than to fill folks in on the latest Trial sent his way. God must love him a lot to give him such burdens to offer.
 My guess is if he did not have a family he loves
 it would not carry such a weight of hurt or aggravation.
And
 the folks who knew him on the discussion thread all offered prayers, jokes, hugs and tears. if any one of them (or me for that matter, a complete stranger) was rich or a lawyer, he would have been offered anything he needed.

The point: several hours after reading the thread, as i stood cutting my bread,
 i was suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of humility, gratitude, grace, and prayerfulness.

[ I just walked into the store and bought what i wanted.

 i am not having to use blood sweat and tears to give my children what they need for a joyous holiday (no kids). I am not currently out of work, or being cheated out of my proper recompense. I have not given my all, a significant ALL, only to be treated badly and perhaps in ways which seem irrecoverable...now,  i am truly grateful each and every day, but-- ]

I stood at the cutting board
and prayed Hard for that man and all who he loves.
 I know that our Creator is Good.
And the Mills of God Grind Exceedingly Slow, but Exceedingly Fine.


Blessings. Time.  Peace...

(what if everyone on the planet asked our Good Creator to ease the burden of this man? i wonder what would happen...)

Ayn Mousa, Jordan--the Spring of Moses

Several years ago, Candace, Audrey, and I, amateur archaeologists, took a weekend off from excavating near Amman, Jordan, and visited the ancient city of Petra, where building facades and interiors are carved from the red sandstone of a dry, desert canyon. Boys pointed to their donkeys and asked, “Taxi, Madame?” Audrey and Candace hiked to the top, while I walked downhill in the morning, saving the uphill return journey, in the July afternoon heat, for a camel-taxi. (Hey, I wasn't born and raised in the hot Arizona desert for nuthin!)

Near Petra, we saw the tan, barren, rolling hills where Moses and the Israelite multitude spent 40 years camping, grazing their flocks, collecting manna, living, and dying. From an air-conditioned car we saw the black goat-hair Bedouin tents, and laundry drying on rope lines, as they’ve done for thousands of years.

After being on our dig for only a few weeks, we were thrilled to have hot showers, toilets, delicious meals, and bug-free beds in our hotel, the Crowne Plaza. There was such luxury after a few weeks of dirt and squalor that we felt like rednecks who had just fallen off the turnip truck. After 10 pm, we slipped out to the pool for a night swim—and what bliss!

Just beginning our return journey to Amman, we found a sign that read “Ayn Mousa, the Spring of Moses.” For several thousand years, predating Muslim times, this has been thought to be the place where Moses struck the rock for water, though God had told him to speak to it. Water gushed from the rock nevertheless, and the Israelites were saved yet again by God’s grace. (see story in Numbers 20:7-12.)

Ayn Mousa is a block building with a paved floor. It backs up to the base of a cliff, a boulder juts from the floor, and a stream of cool, fresh water pours from the base. (We drank some—it was sweet.) That water supplies the town around Petra, including our hotel and its pool. When we asked our supervising archaeologists if this was truly the Spring of Moses, they said probably not, but—who knew?—it could be the place.

I hope it is the same place, with its miraculous water flowing steadily for 3,200 years. I like the idea that at the hotel pool we were swimming in God’s grace, being cooled, refreshed, and exhilarated after our exertions.

Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you…have refreshed the hearts of the saints. Philemon 1:7 NIV

The desires of your heart

A Christian man (a church elder and Bible teacher) joked that when he died, he wanted to “come back” (be reincarnated) as my pampered cat. Sadly, he passed away at the age of 85, but happily, he accepted the gift of eternal life in his Lord.

Several ironies have captured media attention recently. A big-budget film called The Bucket List (the things you want to do before kicking the bucket – dying) was released in 2008; author and professor Dr. Randy Pausch, famed for his Carnegie-Mellon University “Last Lecture: Achieving Your Childhood Dreams,” succumbed to cancer; and Dave Freeman, co-author of 100 Things to Do Before You Die, actually died in an accident in his home, not on the horns of a Pamplona bull. (Dave Freeman CNN obituary)

Some people make lists of things they’ve dreamed of doing before they die: riding an elephant, running with the bulls, bungee-jumping in New Zealand, climbing Kilimanjaro, swimming in an Icelandic thermal lake, riding every roller coaster in America, or touring the Holy Land.

Others measure their lives in monuments such as walking their daughter down the wedding aisle, meeting a financial goal, patenting an invention, earning a scholastic degree, expressing music, dance, or visual art, or winning a prestigious award. Someone once said, “My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am.”

What’s on your “bucket list”? Have you made one? Making goals and keeping track of your progress in reaching them is actually a predictor of success. Just wishing and visualizing, but not acting strategically, won’t get your items checked off or that sense of satisfaction or reward when you reach accomplishment.

Your objectives, at least the priorities, will almost certainly change through the years of your life. The list you made 10 years ago will not be the same as the one you’ll make five years from now. But a list is the first step in your plan to reach the desires of your heart.

My bucket list includes:
1 Learn to speak French
2 Have my book published
3 Live and work a year in a foreign country
4 Play Chopin’s Fantaisie Impromptu at tempo
5 Learn to play drums and other percussion instruments
6 Discover every last ancestor on my family tree
7 Improve overall health by balanced living
8 Reach the bottom of the ever-growing to-be-read book stack

They’ll take application of tuition, budgeting, persistence, research, patience, and some risk-taking. They’ll take some phone calls, some first steps, some networking, some sacrifice. Probably a large sacrifice!

As Christians, we know that it’s not our goodness, performance, or ability to keep God’s laws that will make the difference at the judgment. It’s not even God’s grace plus our best efforts.

“This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, ‘It is through faith that a righteous person has life.’” Romans 1:17 NLT.

Faith in what? Faith in God’s ability – and desire – to fully love, fully forgive, and save eternally. Even our faith doesn’t come from internal fortitude. Faith itself is also the gift of God, as you’ll see in the verse below.

So what is the point of life-list-making in a Christian’s life, if it doesn’t get us to heaven? Glad you asked that! The apostle Peter made an all-purpose bucket list for use in this world:

"His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 1:3-8 NIV.

Notice that Peter’s bucket list is about BEING, not DOING, and that he said “make every effort… in increasing measure… effective… productive.” Sounds like a strategic plan to me!

Maybe we need more than one bucket list. There are lists for temporal accomplishments, the relationships we form along the way, and the eternal list (the one we can take with us, the treasure laid up in Jesus’ care).

What would you put on your list before Jesus comes? How about:
1 Positive and sunny
2 Sweet and humble
3 Ready with a soft answer
4 Encouraging and ever-thankful
5 Affectionate and compassionate
6 Patient and understanding
7 Forgiving and merciful
8 Seeking grace with every step
9 Honorable and upright
10 Discerning but not judgmental

This last list, not really a bucket list, but maybe a kingdom list, will have eternal consequences, but not only for the list-maker. Everyone on the planet will be blessed in some measure. You can’t really check items off this list, but they are worthy of pursuit!

The kingdom list of Peter’s, or the one you develop, will be about a state of being, which is what the psalmist is talking about: “Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.” Psalm 37:4-6 NIV.

It’s not about God providing a nice home, a great job, healing from disease, or a spouse if you pray hard enough or show enough faith. This verse is about the desires of your heart for commitment, trust, justice, and righteousness. These desires are about WHOSE you are, not WHAT you do. They are echoes of God’s desires for us.

So sharpen that pencil and apply it to paper. Make your bucket list, make your kingdom list, and maybe even a list that bridges both. Make a plan to accomplish your items. Live with purpose and forward direction. Don’t think so much about kicking the bucket, as “livin’ the life” with gusto. Do it Sans plus attendre, "without further waiting."

Sing With the Lord!

As a child in Christian school, I loved to sing the canon based on Philippians 4:4, “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.” Most people think it a cheerful song and a cheerful sentiment.

The Message Bible translates Philippians 4:4-5 as: “Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you’re on their side, working with them and not against them.”

Here, the Greek word for rejoice is not the word for exultation (agalliao). This rejoice is chairete, meaning joy, delight, gladness, gift, and grace. Our modern words, charity and charisma (gifts and gifted), stem from the root charis. The passage in Philippians is really about being gifted and giving. Give joyfully in the Lord always. Again, give! Paul says that by general prayer and specific petition, and with thanksgiving, we should present our requests to God, Who gives us everything, even transcendent, unimaginable peace. God gives us the ability, in Christ Jesus, to be true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and admirable.

In verse 10, Paul echaren (rejoices for their gift of love and fellowship) greatly in the Lord, because his converts love him in such a tangible way. He’s learned to be as satisfied as a calf in deep pasture, whatever the circumstances or situation, because he’s resting in God’s strength to accomplish everything. He thanks the Philippians for their generosity (their donations—not charis) in supporting the gospel ministry.

With a Greek Bible and excellent reference books, it’s fascinating to trace the word charis through Philippians, where Paul uses it so often. It gives us a colorful way of seeing God’s Word anew.

Today, as you will inevitably be singing that pretty round, think about all the ways you can give joy to the Lord, in gratitude and love for all He has graced you with, and given to you. And listen carefully for the ways He antiphonally responds with the second part of the round, “Rejoice! Rejoice! And again I say rejoice!”