Category: waiting

Oct 28

When God was Ten Days Late

I distinctly remember when God was late…in fact, I was certain He was exactly 10 days late.

Dec.’93

It was Christmastime 1993 and it appeared our family soon would be homeless.

Our home, which had been on the market for nine long months, finally had sold. But the house on which we had a contingency contract–and really wanted–was purchased 10 days earlier.

We had  to be out of our house in 60 days, but already had seen every house in our price range within the 100-mile radius of our girls’ school district. There absolutely was nowhere else to look.

I figured someone in our church family would take us in, although the five of us might have to split up.

I was crushed.

Really, Lord?  You couldn’t have saved that house for a measly 10 more days?  I whined,

Our Realtor said he would talk to a couple who had withdrawn their house from the market after only posting it for a week.

“Let me see if they’ll agree to just one showing,”  he suggested.

They did, so we saw the home and quickly made an offer.  However, selling their house was contingent on them getting to buy a specific nearby house.

As negotiations continued the next night between the two homeowners, I remember forcing myself to pray for God’s will to be done…when I really just wanted to beg Him to get us this house!

I was relieved when two contracts were signed that night and we had a place to live, but troubled because I couldn’t see how we could pay the extra $40 a month for the new mortgage.

Honestly, Lord, I still don’t  understand why You let us lose the other house. It had an in-ground pool and wouldn’t raise our payments. It would have been perfect, I whined again. 

I was about to find out how imperfect my plan had been.

Brian and Mary Reigart, the former owners, were a little younger than we, but their kids were much younger–4 and 1 compared to our girls, 11, 13, and 15. Our families hit it off and the Reigarts visited the small church my husband pastored.

“When we attended that Sunday morning, it was such a moving experience that I couldn’t stop crying,” remembers Mary. “You said it was the Holy Spirit.”

The Spirit kept touching the couple as they began attending regularly and asked Ralph to baptize them. Soon our kids were swimming in their in-ground pool and we were vacationing together–they paid for places we couldn’t afford and we provided three free babysitters, which Brian and Mary seemed to think was an even trade. (It was many years later when our girls realized they had been unpaid help…they thought they were just having fun with two adorable kids!)

“So many memories I treasure,” Mary said as the four of us recently enjoyed a 2.5-hour tea luncheon. We reminisced of days when Brian and Ralph ran the Pigeon Hills. And when Mary and I studied (and laughed) together in our Wise Women group.

Did I mention that immediately after we moved into our new house, I got a raise at work…yep, $40 a month. Oh, and a few months later we drove by the “lost” house and saw a huge sand mound in the front yard nearly obscuring the house. We never could have afforded that $10,0000 septic remedy.

I like how Brian summed up our 30-year friendship: “You never know how God will be working. Even while we were taking our home off the market, God brought the Eibs into our lives to purchase it. And through that process He started a relationship which has blessed our family for 30 years and it is still going strong.”

I think I better retitle this blog: “When God was Right on Time.”
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Open in your browser to hear a beautiful song which perfectly describes what I experienced when I thought God was ten days late. “Four Days Late” with Juanita Du Pleissis, ©1997 by C. Aaron Wilburn and Roberta Wilburn

 

 

Sep 09

When Eagles Get Too Wet

If you’re wondering how I’m feeling after my August mini-sabbatical set aside for renewal and refreshment, I can describe it in two words:

Wet eagle.

No, not wet beagle…wet eagle. And I don’t mean a damp eagle, I mean a really soaking wet eagle.

Confused? Let me explain.

Four days before our scheduled family vacation the first week of August, my husband developed back pain so severe he couldn’t even stand straight. His chiropractor–after twice attempting adjustments–sent him to orthopedic urgent care. X-rays were negative and the diagnosis was sciatica with an Rx for six days of tapering prednisone.

Back at  home I parked my usually very helpful husband into a La-Z-Boy recliner and began caring for him while I finished all the packing for our week-long trip to a lakeside cabin coincidentally named “Eagles’ Landing.” Unfortunately, all that extra walking, leaning and carrying exacerbated my two medical issues: a plantar plate tear on the bottom of my foot, and the post-herpetic neuralgia in my back (think burning shingles pain which doesn’t go away).

I’ll spare you the play-by-play of our health saga, but more than a month later, we now know Ralph has a herniated L4 disc. Thankfully, he can stand up straight, but still has a long way to heal.

Meanwhile, my pain persists, which brings me back to wet eagles.

Did you know that an eagle’s estimated 7,000 feathers are not fully waterproof?  If they get saturated with too much moisture, these majestic birds actually get waterlogged and become aerodynamically unable to fly.

And if this occurs when they’re on the water–perhaps fishing for prey which fights and pulls them under–the eagle doesn’t have the lift necessary to take off. So it must start swimming toward land as evidenced in the link to this amazing 9-second video IMG_3615 taken recently by our friend Chris Gaffga as he kayaked on the Potomac River beside a too-wet-eagle.

After climbing ashore, Chris’s eagle spread its feathers and waited on the rocks for the sun to dry them before attempting to fly again.

That leads us to an important truth. While bald eagles normally soar up to 10,000 feet and golden eagles up to twice that high…

Sometimes even eagles can’t soar. 

I wanted to “soar” last month, but it didn’t happen. And I know many of you can relate. You or your loved one is dealing with a chronic condition. Or facing a serious diagnosis. Or reeling from life-altering circumstances. Perhaps you’ve felt water-logged for months, years or even decades.

Physically, some of us or our loved ones aren’t going to “soar” again here on Earth, but I believe spiritually we all can be lifted above the turmoil.


He gives power to the weak
    and strength to the powerless.
Even youths will become weak and tired,
    and young men will fall in exhaustion.
But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.
    They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
    They will walk and not faint.--Isaiah 40:29-31

Image by rise-a-mui from Pixabay

Even if the physical deliverance doesn’t come in the way we prayed, God can give us emotional strength and spiritual power to not grow weary or faint. Who knows? He might send an eagle or maybe a  whole flock of them to carry us.

In the meantime, keep swimming, keep flapping, and keep trusting in the LORD. I’m right there with you…while I wait for the Son to someday dry my feathers.
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Open in your browser to hear “Lead Me to to the Rock” by Carly Fletcher.

 

 

Apr 08

Should I “snooze Jesus”?

I don’t know if you’re on Facebook or not, but I have to be honest that much of the time lately I wish I wasn’t.

Don’t get me wrong. I love hearing from readers around the world who have been encouraged by one of my books and take time to let me know and share a little of their story. I love photos of old friends whom I don’t get to see in person often (or maybe ever!). And I love updates from cancer survivors and their families.

But I dislike intensely (that’s the phrase my mother made my brother and me use instead of “hate”) all the political posts, especially those which are not factual. And I really intensely dislike the lack of compassion I see, including from some of my Christian brothers and sisters.

So when a FB friend (not someone I know in “real” life) kept sharing posts which I felt fit both those categories, I decided I did not want to see these popping up in my feed any more. Easy enough, to remedy right?

Well, what I hadn’t really considered was the fact the first part of the “friend’s” online name was “Jesus.” Here are the choices I was given:

 

I’m sorry the photos are a little blurry, but I was laughing so hard when I read the options that I think I shook my phone.

“Snooze”Jesus for a month? Is that like hitting the alarm button, going back to sleep and ignoring Him?”

“Report the post” and they “won’t let Jesus know”? Pretty sure that’s not going to work.

And worst of all: “Unfollow Jesus” but “stay friends?’ Don’t we become friends because we are following Him?

When I finally stopped laughing, I starting seriously thinking about whether I unconsciously have chosen any of these options in my relationship with my Lord Jesus.

And the answer, I’m sorry to say, is yes.

I do “snooze” Him at times as I “ignore” His quiet whispers to spend more time with Him.

I do “see fewer posts” from Him when I skip reading my Bible and play word games instead.

And I always do want to be His friend, but I don’t always choose to follow the way I know He wants me to.

So these are the questions I’m asking myself in these turbulent days: Have I “snoozed”Jesus lately? Am I following Him or a political party? Is His Word prioritized in my day–both reading it and living it? Would the King of Kings give my FB posts a thumbs-up?

I’m finding that more than ever I need to guard what goes into my mind and heart so I can better control what comes out in my words and actions.

Proverbs 4:23-25 offers great wisdom:

Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.
Avoid all perverse talk; stay away from corrupt speech.
Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you.

Whatever struggles we face today, Hebrews 12:2 gives us the answer:

And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.
We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion, who initiates and perfects our faith.

Please worship the Lord with this beautiful rendition of “Turn Your Eyes (Jesus We Lift Our Eyes to You) by Sovereign Grace Music. (Open in your browser to play the music video.)

 

 

Feb 25

Anyone need a “One-Minute Pause?”

I know those of you reading this blog have many burdens on your hearts. Some for friends and family. Some for crises you’ve heard or read about. And others for situations which haven’t even happened, but you fear they will.

Me, too.

And sometimes it feels overwhelming.

That’s why I’m so thankful I came across bestselling author and counselor John Eldredge’s “everyday practices for a world gone mad.”

“You’ve got to release the world…people, crises, trauma, intrigue, all of it,” Eldredge advises. “There has to be sometime in your day where you just let it all go. All the tragedy of the world, the heartbreak, the latest shooting, earthquake–the soul was never meant to endure this…It’s way too much. Your soul is finite. You cannot carry the sorrows of the world. Only God can do that. Only He is infinite.”

When I first read those words, I felt such relief. All of the day’s sad/disturbing/painful stories were too much for my soul to bear.  And that was ok because it’s not my job to bear them.

“Somewhere, sometime in your day, you’ve just got to release it,” Eldredge adds. “You’ve got to let it go.”

We do that, he says, by stopping throughout the day for a “One-Minute Pause” as we pray:

“I give everyone and everything to You, God.”

I love how The Message Bible paraphrases the call of Jesus to lay down our burdens:

Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life.
I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it.
Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you.
Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.
Matthew 11:28-30

Eldredge describes the One-Minute Pause as an invitation to “benevolent detachment,” which is the ability to let things go–“not so much physically, but emotionally, soulfully.”

It’s not a call to stop caring, but to surrender all those cares to the One who ultimately is in control.

This releasing of our heartfelt concerns to God helps clear out our “cluttered soul,” Eldredge explains.

It’s a “turning over into the hands of God whatever is burdening us and leaving it there,” he adds.

We empty our souls of the burdens we never were meant to carry and the Lord fills our souls with what we always really needed: Himself.

Go ahead and breathe deeply. Then take a One-Minute Pause to pray:

I give everyone and everything to You, Lord.

Then pray it again every time you find yourself trying to carry the burdens your soul never was meant to bear.

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Please open in your browser to hear  “Come to Me (The Rest Song)” by Steven and Hannah Musso. (Click on CC at the bottom for Closed Caption lyrics.)

CC

Jan 28

Why I Never Pray on My Knees

I’ve been pondering knees lately.  My knees, my husband’s knees,  even the “bees knees” (whatever that old expression means).

I’m not exactly sure why knees are on my mind.

Maybe I’ve been watching too much football and all those kneel-downs before the game or as time runs out (like THE Ohio State Buckeyes did on their way to winning the College Football Championship last week–oops, how did that get in here?)

Our posture–whether standing, sitting or kneeling–often can reveal the intentions of our heart.

Many years ago I heard a humorous story about a little girl who was reprimanded at school for repeatedly standing up in class. Her teacher insisted she must sit down, which the girl finally did, while loudly muttering “I’m still standing up on the inside!”

Kneeling can symbolize many attitudes–surrender, reverence, repentance, humility. Desperate prayers of weary folks often are voiced on bended knees.

Image by Yvonne Huijbens from Pixabay

The New Testament doesn’t command kneeling, but does mention many examples of it.

Servants falling on their knees begging for mercy.
A kneeling mother asking Jesus to favor her two sons.
A rich young ruler on his knees inquiring how to inherit eternal life.
A gratefully kneeling, no-longer-hemorrhaging woman.
The Apostle Paul on bended knee, crying out for a blessing on God’s people.
Peter kneeling in prayer petitioning God to heal a little girl.
Jesus refusing to kneel down and worship Satan.

Kneeling days are long gone for my 78-year-old husband and me. He’s had three knee replacements (not a typo–one had to be done twice because of an infection) and can’t put full weight on all that metal, ceramic and  plastic.

Thankfully, I haven’t had to have any knees replaced–nor do my 71-year-old knees hurt–but for the past several years I’ve had an issue with my psoas muscle (yeah, I never heard of it either). Despite spending a couple thousand dollars on imaging, physical therapy and chiropractic, I cannot go down on my knees without causing severe lower abdominal pain which lasts for days.

I still bow my head and my heart in thankfulness to start and end each day, but now you know why I never pray on my knees. 

Perhaps you do literally pray on your knees. Or maybe you’re like my husband and me and physically unable to. Or you don’t go down because you know you can’t get back up!

Take heart, a new day is coming when our hearts and knees will be bowed:

Therefore, God elevated Him to the place of highest honor
and gave Him the name above all other names,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:9-11

In the meantime, I’ll be sitting down as I surrender myself to the Lord. And I’ll stay seated while I cry out for His grace, mercy and healing on friends, family and weary folks around the globe whom I don’t even know.

But I can tell you that even if I’m sitting down…on the inside I’m still kneeling.
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Open in your browser to hear the song “Fight on My Knees” by Evan Croft.