positive thoughts

We are about to part for the summer, so I wanted to give you some positive thoughts you can glance at now and then, just to remind you of who you are in Christ and there are people who love and care for you–even on your worst day!

As women, we have a special place in this world because we are the ones who “hear” what cannot be said, and “see” the hurt that is not shown on the face.  Our hearts are tuned in and turned toward others…not just our family, but our friends and co-workers.  Don’t take that for granted.  Use the gift of caring to benefit those around you.  That, indeed, will make you special to everyone, and you will have that “feel good” feeling inside, too!

YOUR ASSIGNMENT FOR SUMMER:  When you have time, glance at this post and see if any of these quotes ring true to what may have happened in your life.  You might even think about sharing which ones meant something to you when WOW starts up again.  That would be such fun!!!!

Here goes, dear friends:

“Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.”  Marcel Proust

“The truth is that our finest moments are most likely to occur when we are feeling deeply uncomfortable, unhappy, or unfulfilled.  For it is only in such moments, propelled by our discomfort, that we are likely to step out of our ruts and start searching for different ways or truer answers.”  M. Scott Peck

“Friendship is born at the moment when one person says to another, ‘What!  You too?  I thought i was the only one.” C.S. Lewis

“The fact that I can plant a seed and it becomes a flower, share a bit of knowledge and it becomes another’s, smile at someone and receive a smile in return, are to me continual spiritual exercises.”  Leo Buscaglia

“Life is an adventure in forgiveness.”  Norman Cousins

“Who, being loved, is poor?”  Oscar Wilde

“Happiness often sneaks in through a door you didn’t know you left open.”  John Barrymore

“Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.”  Sir Winston Churchill

“If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one.”  Mother Theresa

“You can never get enough of what you don’t need to make you happy.”  Eric Hoffer

“Every day brings a chance for you to draw in a breath, kick off your shoes, and dance.”  Oprah Winfrey

“Now and then it’s good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy.”  Guillaume Apollinaire

“What makes us special is not our body, but the signature of God on our lives.  We’re his works of art, created in his image.  Significant, not because of what we do, but because of whose we are!”  Max Lucado

by Cindy Best

what is real value?

Did you know the most important characteristic of money or anything used as “currency” is that it must have NO value in itself?

Consequently, all of our paper currency that we put into bank accounts, stock markets, bonds, etc., is, by definition, worthless.  Otherwise, if it had a value, we would be reluctant to let go of it!

Think about it–all the paper we hold at the store is worthless.  It only has value because of the “value” the government places on it.  Before that, it had value only because of the gold “reserve” that backed it.  That is why our whole economy rests in what the government in power says is the value of our money.  It could, in fact, become entirely worthless overnight.

This is not a scare tactic, but we know it to be true because it has happened in many countries, especially after a war.

Spiritually speaking, we find value in our faith only if Jesus Christ is behind it and “gives” faith a real value.  The Bible teaches all that we hold in our hands (our good deeds, kindness, honesty, fidelity, etc.), is worthless as spiritual currency.  The only “price” that will allow us into heaven is faith in Jesus Christ…and we cannot pay for that.  HE is the one who paid the price, the entry fee to heaven.  He is the one who backs our spiritual currency.

Our currency is indeed worthless and has no value in itself.  The “pockets of our lives” are full of worthless money.  Often we think we should hold tightly to what we do and have to show how “rich” we are in our own resources.

But in order for our faith to have value, it has to be totally separate from us and our works, and only valuable because of Jesus Christ and HIS value.

Jesus Christ has in fact made us priceless!

Praise His Name!

by Cindy Best

a master mechanic

One of the Bible study programs I participated in years ago taught me about using a “wheel” as an example of life in Christ.   I remember it still, because riding a bicycle was a very big deal in my young life and I still enjoyed it for years as a young adult.   As a kid, I remember using a clothes-line clip to attach a playing card near the spokes on the bike wheel and then hearing the “click, click, click” as the wheel spun round and round while I pedaled!

The illustration of spiritual life that I learned put Christ as the “hub” of the wheel and prayer, Bible study, fellowship and service to others as the four spokes keeping the wheel “in balance.”  This tidy picture in my mind provided me with a goal for my Christian life, and I set off to head my soul in the model of perfect alignment with God’s Holy Spirit.

Well, to continue this analogy, I’m sure you’ve taken your car in to have the wheels rotated and balanced.  But did you know that right after an automobile tire has been perfectly balanced, as soon as it is driven even the short distance of a block, it begins to lose its balance and is on the way to wobbling badly again?

Such a mechanical principle applies to our spiritual balance, too.  We think we have everything perfectly arranged in our lives and then daily life begins and every hour comes at us just like the pavement affects the tire.   Bumps, ruts, slippery spots and little rocks jar the tires and perfect balance is lost.   It doesn’t take long for our every-day problems, hurts, anger and frustrations to jar us loose from perfect balance in Christ!

Since we just went through a spiritual “high” celebrating Easter and feeling blessed clear down to our toes, we don’t expect despair to hit us by Tuesday.  But we must learn to take our out-of-balance wheel of life to the Master Mechanic (the heavenly Mr. God-wrench) and let Him make us perfect again for the next day.  And our repair is free and gone and forgotten about because God keeps no record of what put us in the repair shop!

My prayer for us all is that as each day challenges our faith and commitment, we will rely on God to put things in perspective and balance.

Even when we fail, God declares us to be in perfect balance with Him.

So praise His name!

by Cindy Best

be like a baby

This past Sunday, the message given by one of our pastors focused on what Jesus said to one of the people interested in Christ’s teaching.  What Jesus told him he had to do was puzzling.  He had to be “born again.”  Now how could that happen, since you can’t crawl back into your mother’s womb?

That question sparked a thought which took me further down the road with the scripture.  What would it mean to be a baby again?

It means I’d be totally helpless.  I couldn’t feed myself.  Clothe or even wrap myself for warmth.  I couldn’t get a drink of water, and actually at the moment of birth I wouldn’t even know “how” to drink…newly birthed children need to be taught how to suckle and swallow.  I couldn’t even turn myself over, let alone crawl or walk.

In fact, a baby does not live long if left all alone.  If I were a baby once again, I’d need lots and lots of support and care.

God’s Word gives us a pretty accurate picture of what it means to be that newborn in the Kingdom.  As a new baby, we have the Words of God to feed us: 1 Peter 2:2 says, “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation.”

And we get a special water to drink, too:  John 4:14 tells us that Jesus explained “whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”

Our ability to have something to wear comes from God too.  Because we know Matthew 6:28 & 29 tells us, “why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.”

And learning all we will need to know to get along doesn’t come from within our own mind.  God promises us, in John 14:26, “the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things.”

Also, just because you are born and a baby doesn’t mean you know how to sustain your world.  In fact, your very existence originated not from you, but your parents.  You were created by others and your continuance in life as a babe (or babe in Christ) comes from God.  Colossians 1:16 tells us that “by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible… All things were created through Him and for Him.”

And even though you have an awesome spiritual teacher, you have no power of your own to keep breathing, thinking and moving.  Verse 17 in that same chapter of Colossians continues, “and he holds all creation together.”

So, back to that original train of thought, of being born AGAIN.  In order to understand what spiritual life means, I must be a baby in God’s hands.  A baby in order to know the Truth.

NOT a scholar.

NOT a saint.

NOT a rich person.

NOT a philosopher.

NOT a teacher.

NOT a great athlete.

I have GOT to be a baby.   I have GOT to acknowledge I didn’t–could not–create myself.  And I can do nothing to make myself live and grow.  My entire being and existence comes from God…and it is a gift.

Ephesians 2:8

“For by (God’s) grace you have been saved through faith, and that is not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.”

HAPPY EASTER!

by Cindy Best

how close is God?

Not too long ago I drove down a road and came to one of those “T” intersections.  I could go left or right.  What direction would be the correct one to get me to my destination?  I wasn’t sure.  And if I took the wrong one, I could get good and lost.  Uh-oh.

This predicament brought a thought to my spiritual mind.  I don’t know about you, but I struggle a lot with knowing what God would have me do.  Will I make the right choice?  Will I go the right direction?  Will I be “lost” and wandering around, making wrong choice after wrong choice?  If I make “that” turn, will God be left behind wishing I’d come with Him?

In comes the theological words Omniscience and Omnipresence.

Simply put, God knows everything ALL THE TIME and THROUGH ALL TIME.  And God is present ALL THE TIME EVERYWHERE and THROUGH ALL TIME.

So….because I am His child through Jesus, God walks with me ALL the time, through all time, and is just as present at the intersections of my life as He is taking a left or right turn WITH me.  HE is Omnipresent in my life, every second and every direction.  He never leaves me!  HE is always BEFORE me, seeking me to follow Him, but HE is always BESIDE me, too, equally the same.

I know, that’s really difficult to grasp.  Especially when we don’t “feel” we made the right choice.  But, it may comfort you to  know, as it does me, that this One who is not limited by time or space is always working for my/your benefit.

He is everywhere at every time, working non-stop for my good.  He is the author and finisher of our faith.  He makes all things work together for good.

He IS good.  All the time.

I know I’ve learned this concept before, but somehow it never gets old to know that God is WITH me, not just ahead of me wishing I’d turn His way.

When we look at the cross, we see the “FINISHED” work of Jesus.  Where God reached back into time, from the creation of Adam, and reached forward at the same moment to the last soul saved on earth, and took care of everything.  FOREVER.  We live in the grace of that moment in time…God NEVER forsakes us, leaves us without guidance or spiritual access.

Rejoice and be glad and trust Him for guiding you each step of the way!

by Cindy Best

forgiveness means . . .

F -       freeing my soul of anger in order to receive the fullness of God’s grace

O -      owning up to my personal sin

R -       releasing my right to hold onto anything separating my spirit from God’s Spirit

G -       giving God all my tests of faith

I -        inviting God to control my thoughts, my mouth and my life

V -       valuing His love for me above all other love

E -       emptying myself of all pride and becoming humble in order to walk with God

N -       never allowing Satan to work through me to hurt another believer and steal my joy

E -       enjoying God’s presence and peace as He lavishly bestows it

S -       saying “this is the day God made for me, and I will rejoice in it”

S -       satisfying my longing for acceptance, value and self-worth in the Cross of Christ

I pray that as we head toward Easter Sunday in a few weeks, we think of the awesomeness of having God, through Jesus, die for us.  In that horrible crucifixion death, He conquered Satan and evil not for His own glory, but because the Lord God Creator of all things wanted US to be with HIM forever.

And why would he do that?  For the Bible tells us we are evil, vile, and lower than worms in our own right.  But because He FIRST loved US, we have the chance to become the children of God!  To be joint heirs to the Kingdom of God and to rule with His Son!

There is NO hope without Christ.  No happiness, no healing.  Only sorrow and pain.

Because Satan, the Evil One, is the exact opposite of God and offers only the opposite of all God offers, eternal life can be summed up in two ways:  With God we have an eternal home and family, and the Light of the Son shines always.  Without God we face being eternally alone, in a pit with no one around us, and in the dark blackness of sin forever.

May we sincerely and truly honor Him and His death by dwelling on the love poured out to us on that cross.   As the song says, “I believe in a hill called Mt. Calvary, I believe whatever the cost.  When time is surrendered, and earth is no more, I’ll still cling to the old rugged cross.”

by Cindy Best

labels

As I cut a label from a new purchase, I thought about all the hundreds, probably thousands, of labels I’ve read over my life.  You have too!

There are labels that tell us if we can use a microwave, freezer, oven or dishwasher.  More labels tell us if we need hot or cold, color-safe, warm iron or no iron.  Then there are the labels that tell us not to step on the top step, not to use something outdoors; and if it’s an electric item there are even more labels.

And I’m sure you can think of a ton more!  Like food container labels to know what we’re eating.  Then there’s those labels which warn us not to “remove under penalty of law”…..

Besides the labels we read every day, we face labels placed on people.  Labels placed on ourselves.  In fact, our culture seems obsessed with labels.  People are Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, Independent; or they’re on the “right” or “left” of “middle-of-the-road” or “apathetic.”  Then there are those labeled as highly intelligent, and those who are learning disabled.  Personality traits have labels: introvert, extrovert or over-sensitive or over-bearing; aggressive, passive.  A pessimist or an optimist.  On and on and on….

Life comes at each one of us in minute-by-minute segments that make up a 24-hour day, and we each do the best we can making decisions in those minutes.  Sometimes it’s decisions in split-seconds!  Life is not a test where we get multiple choices to be right.  If we pick choice “A” we rarely get the chance to go back and pick choice “B.”  What is done is done, for the most part.  And labeling what we did as “good” or “bad” isn’t wise in any respect.

Jesus was labeled.  He was a “healer” and a “prophet” and a “teacher.”  Then there were those who labeled him a “trouble-maker” and a “blasphemer” and just a “carpenter.”  And because of labels, he was crucified.

Maybe the reason Jesus the Christ did not call himself by any label is a hint to us today.  His example is there for us to imitate.  He loved and felt compassion for everyone who came to him, even little children.  And lepers and prostitutes and soldiers and notorious sinners.  He never labeled any of them.

But he did say–three times–”Woe unto you” to the ultra-”righteous” Pharisees and followed it up with words such as “brood of vipers” and a few other choice descriptions.  If there was ever a label…

I think what I’ve learned this week as I’ve thought about labels is that they’re generally not good.  And not something I should be quick to apply to people.  I know I don’t want to have a label slapped on me because of one aspect of my personality or education or particular view on some subject.  I only want to be labeled a “child of God.”  How about you?

planning ahead

With all the blizzards and tornadoes the Midwest is known for, it is definitely wise to make plans for yourself and family.  We can’t stop weather systems from forming, but we can be wise enough to know what we need in case of an emergency.

I’ve learned to have candles with matches right next to them, and not just dinner candles, but the big jar type candles which last for hours…ever had to read a child books while you waited for the electricity to be restored?  Think ahead on that one.  Even battery-operated candles–they look decorative and serve a purpose and are available as tea lights or full-size, look-like-wax.  Then there’s the good old standby flashlight with a drawer full of batteries.

In the winter, it never hurts to have several cans of soup, tuna, peanut butter and a loaf of bread in the freezer.  And, of course, several gallons of water for each person.  We went through one spring ice storm without power for a full five days…no hot meals and the first two days, we couldn’t get out our driveway because of the huge tree limbs blocking the way, so no restaurant food either.

And little children don’t understand the concept of tornadoes, so it is important to plan how you will describe such an event to them and be prepared to ask them which toy will make them feel good in the basement, or inside a bathroom.  And as for you, what treasure would you absolutely die to have back…take that with YOU!   For me, it’s my children’s photo albums, and I know right where they are.  Also tell older teens, if they are at the mall when a siren goes off to head for the bathroom area where the support walls are plentiful….do NOT try to drive home!

Planning is important for emergencies and, of course, for just plain getting through life.

Sometimes I want to NOT plan…only sit and let life happen.  Usually that only comes about if I’m lucky enough to get a vacation away from home.  It seems my mind has to get away from the house, even if I have time off, because within the confines of the four walls, I “will” find something to plan.  Ack!

My point in all this, however, is that as children of God, we have the greatest plan of all.  We have our eternal future taken care of…no savings needed, no food, shelter, clothes, schedules.  Nothing.  God has our every need thought of and provided, ahead of time.  Nothing will surprise God.  Do you think when we get to heaven he will say, “Oh, I didn’t know you were coming today!”   No way…God knows and has prepared a place for you.

A place under His wings of shelter, peace, provision.  A place with no tears.  A place of purest love.  A place more beautiful than our eyes can envision.

Prepared?   Oh, yes!   He is.

Blessings to you today.  And God’s comfort on your soul.

by Cindy Best

pine trees

My favorite place to vacation is in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado.  To me, that is the closest place to heaven on earth.  There, I can see mountain streams with the sparkle of diamonds on the water where the sun shines on it almost every day of the year.  And listening to its babble as it flows crystal clear over rocks and tree limbs relaxes me like no other sound.

The Aspen trees have leaves that rustle in the wind and the pines brush against one another and have their own special sound.  I love it, love it, love it!

Something I found out not too long ago was that the gorgeous, tall  and stately pine trees reaching toward heaven all have very shallow roots.  In fact, so shallow, they need to grow close enough to one another so their roots can intertwine.  Only in that way do they withstand the high mountain winds and thunderstorms that could make them sway so badly they twist and fall.  They literally hold one another up.

I think those pines are a good example of how we as Christians should come alongside one another and provide intertwined spiritual roots to help each of us stand strong against the storms of life.

What would happen if we could, without even knowing what others’ problems were, just always be available to reach out and “grab hold”–underground as it were–of them and help them survive!  What an amazing difference that would make in the lives of our friends.  That kind of love and unconditional support would also draw untold thousands to churches across our land looking for what it is we Christians “have.”

Of course, as believers in God’s plan and gift of grace through Jesus Christ, we have this kind of support available every second of every day.  So, I’ve decided to challenge myself to reach out and support anyone who wants to grow along beside me…would you be willing to reach out to others, too?

I think the pine trees have become my example of how very important we are to one another.  This week, try to reach out to someone else, even if it’s only a “hello” across the aisle at church, or a smile at someone in the grocery store.  You never know what burden is undermining their roots where you cannot see.  Touching your roots to theirs could make all the difference to them, and to you!

by Cindy Best

watering the garden

Spring is just around the corner…can you smell it?   In fact in some states, flowers are already being planted and even blooming!

At this time of year, when the sun stays out a bit longer and shines a bit warmer, my thoughts always turn to bedding plants and what kind I want to try in my garden.  How about you?

I’ll let you in on something, though, I have no green thumb whatsoever.  Whatever plants grow in my garden do so in spite of me.  Oh, I’ve had a shelf full of gardening books and magazines, some of which make it look sooooo simple.  Not!

One of the things that I’ve never gotten right, I guess, is watering the right amount at the right time.  The perfect balance escapes me.  So my plans have to be hardy and pretty much capable of fending for themselves.  I’ve learned to stick with the “natural” plants common to this area of the country and many of them can withstand drought and early frost.

Oh, I’ve lost more than a few, especially in that brutal winter we had a couple years back.  But the wildflower seeds I planted are now taking hold and they’re going gangbusters, especially the Pink Cone Flower or Echinacea.  Also, my Honeysuckle Vine and Wisteria are about to cover the Pergola built over my front walk, although the Wisteria has yet to bloom after five seasons!

At any rate, as I said, I get to thinking about growing things and that leads me into what I don’t know about growing things!  And since I like pretty flowers, I go to the local nursery often and let the owner guide me to what might work where.

Going to scripture is kind of like that for me at times.  It’s great to have a consistent study time about specific topics or books, but I also know that finding out what works where and how in the “garden of my life” is a good thing, too.  If you feel your life is a little dry, try watering liberally with the Spirit.  The good thing is you can’t “over water” with the Spirit of God, nor can you go to it at the “wrong time.”

Spiritual watering is a way of growing things in my life that I don’t have to worry about.  I let the Master Gardener take over my soul’s garden and when I do that, I am overjoyed at what He produces….even out of the tiniest seeds!  It doesn’t take much for beauty to abound, and I can even “share” some of it with friends and the beauty keeps growing and growing.

I bet you can think of things in your soul’s garden that you can relate to read seeds, dirt, fertilizer and water, too.  While you are planning on what you’d like to see grow in your yard this season, think about what new things you’d like to learn in your spirit, too!  We might even find we have a bouquet of beauty together.

by Cindy Best