Category: 10 Minute Breather

Devotions

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On Being Burned

“What is that smell?” My six year old son asked. He was smelling the surface of the table in our homeschool room while we were trying to read our devotions. 

Of course this led to each one of the boys taking turns coming by that spot of the table and getting a whiff of the strange, stinky smell that Charlie first noticed. 

“Ok, let’s focus back on our reading,” I told them after they each wrinkled their noses at whatever the smell was. As they read, I went and got our all purpose spray and a paper towel to clean the spot on the table not wanting to test it myself. 

“‘Mom, I don’t like how that smells either,” my sensitive-nosed Charlie informed me of the spray. With a shrug I tried to get back to where we all left off. 

After finishing our reading and putting out our candles (we have a really cool snuffer that we use to put out our candle flames), Charlie complained that he could still smell the awful smell. His oldest brother was by him and sniffed, ‘It’s you Charlie! It’s…” he leaned in toward Charlie’s head, “…it’s your hair!” 

Both the brothers smelled it and scrunched their faces, “Ew! It’s something funky in your hair!” Charlie was only able to feel it and had me check it out. As I leaned over to check out the smell for myself I realized what it was. 

“Your hair is singed!” I said to him. “You must have leaned over your candle too closely and now your hair is burnt. That’s the funny smell!”

We then noticed the little pieces of hair from his front bangs fallen around his face and shirt. “Time to go shower and rub shampoo on it, buddy,” I told him. “That should take care of the smell.” It did help, but we had to add some good smelling oily hair product to it to help get the last of the burn smell away. 

Have you felt the fire lately? As we all know and have witnessed, there are little fires everywhere. Have you seen the way people talk to each other on social media? Have you been burned by a co-workers harsh words? How about a promise forgotten? Did someone betray your trust? Did you get backed into a corner? Perhaps the people you love the most let you down. 

When we experience the burn in our lives what happens? Sometimes, like Charlie’s hair, we notice the smell. Something just stinks. It’s odd and leaves us unsettled. We also feel a sting when we get right into the heat of it. And most often the sting or stink doesn’t go away for a while. It leaves behind a lasting stench or blister that annoys and distracts us for a time.

In my household we very rarely intentionally hurt each other. But we are often frustrated with one another. I can feel burned by my husband for a harsh look or even the lack of a look. He can feel burned by me when I leave the house a mess after he’s had a long day of work. Sometimes our kids burn us when they roll their eyes at a legitimate concern of ours. Sometimes the burn is big and sometimes they are just a series of little burns that build up.

Let me ask you this. When you are in the midst of these times, do you recognize the battle? Are you able to peer through all the smoke and see the enemy for who they really are?

“In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” (Ephesians 6:16)

Do you recognize the depth of the fight? This battle is deeper than the person in front of us or behind a screen. It’s spiritual. The verse above is taken from the text in Ephesians that tells us what it means to put on the whole armor of God. Why do we need a full suit of armor? 

Because even when we aren’t expecting it, the tiniest flames fester and can cause us pain. Because if we don’t take the precautions to put out the flaming arrows, big or small, they will eventually destroy us and those around us. In this metaphor we are to make FAITH our shield. Believing in and trusting God is a shield against the hurt that Satan seeks to inflict.

In Proverbs chapter 3 it says, “Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.” It’s an inner shield! The heart must be bound up with love and faith. Read on and we learn not only does this help us find favor with others, but we are directed to the ultimate trustworthy one, our Creator.

Friends, when you find your hair is singed, the air stinks, and blisters emerge; 

Don’t give in to the burn. 

Don’t let it close you off. 

Don’t go and burn someone else’s hair. 

Rather, cover that heart shield with a dousing of faith and love. Shampoo away the stink and forgive. Put some ointment on the blister and heal. Trust God to put out the arrows that will likely keep coming. Trust him to fight the battles because they belong to him. (1 Samuel 17:47)

*Original post made for Collaborative Blog “Campfires and Marshmallows” in January 2021

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Power to Grasp

When was the last time you dealt with a power outage? Many times it comes during a storm where lightning strikes a power line, a transformer, or even a specific house. The communication lines are down and neighborhoods go dark. Usually in areas where a quick front or storm came through, work crews are able to get to the site of the problem quickly and repair what wasn’t working. We cheer out loud or silently in relief, when we hear and see things click back on. 

Perhaps some of you have been part of an outage that lasted much longer. Maybe a hurricane came through, an earthquake, or even civil unrest. Those situations become more emergent as an interruption to basic survival needs for an extended period of time leaves people stressed, uncertain, and even fearful. Food starts to spoil, clean water runs out, safe areas now feel unprotected, and getting from place to place becomes laborious without fuel or electricity for transportation. That’s not including the storm destruction left behind. It’s why people from out of the area, watch the news in horror as regions under distress are shown in images across the screen. We rush bottles of water, diapers and clothing to rescue workers who are able to get in to the affected area. We give donations for food, medical help and pop-up housing. No power in the midst of destruction is a deep, dark mess.

Without power, in the midst of any part of our life, leaves us wringing our hands as we try to keep calm, uncertain of what to do next. Coal, sun, wind, or other resources are giving us a way to plug in in the physical world, but we also have a spiritual need to plug in to a greater, sustaining power for our soul. We can feel ourselves cracking when we are lacking in this area.

Ephesians 3:14-19 from the NIV reads as below:

“For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”

I have read that part about “how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ” many times before. I took comfort in that poetic phrase of deep love God has for me. But I missed something. In the phrase right before it, Paul the writer says “I pray you may have power to grasp…”. 

When someone tells you “Jesus loves you!”, do you ever think, “well thanks but how does that help me feed my children today”? Knowing in our minds is different than the grasping in the depths of our spirit. “Grasping” means to hold on tightly. In order to hold on tightly to the understanding of this love we need POWER. 

If we go back in the beginning verses we see where the power comes from. First, we have the Father and his all his great resources who gives the Spirit to you which strengthens you in your inwardly and then Christ can live in your heart through faith. The Three in One, God the Father, Son and Spirit, HE gives you this ability to power up.

….To walk through the storms with love in your heart.

…To look at the destruction and still find peace.

…To have enough strength to take care of the people around you even when its hard. 

Plugging in to this power means searching for connected and grounded outlets. 

  1. Find a Bible-believing church with a community of people who care for each other
  2. Read a devotional that you can subscribe to or pick up at a library or book store 
  3. Join a weekly Bible study or small group where you can struggle through scripture together and build deeper relationships 
  4. Set aside time for focused prayer with God

Power outages happen suddenly. Life gets stormy sometimes. Take comfort that God’s power is your power. When your tower is struck, plug back in. He is always in service. 

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Projects and Perspective

“Charlie, you can use this book in the Coloring Room,” my middle son said to my youngest about his new Pokémon coloring book he received for his birthday. 

“Coloring Room?” I asked.

“Yeah, it’s where all of our desks are.” He responded. Of course I knew what he was talking about. I had just finished rearranging the new open bedroom space (now that they are all sharing one room) so each of the boys had a tidy desk space and storage for their utensils and paper. I just hadn’t considered calling it the “Coloring Room”. 

It is not unusual for me after finishing a project to debrief, clean up, rest for a day, and then jump right into another. They are not all the same (I prefer to change it up) but I can’t seem to stop. 

I write regularly and have at least one of those projects in the wings. I like to refinish furniture and even dream up new things to build (I currently have at least 3-4 of these in my own home I’d like to do), I rearrange rooms regularly, (I had to fight to sit down and write first before working on one of these), I have digital family memory projects on the list, and usually there is something I’m committing to with the church or school that uses this creativity. As a good friend said after showing her one of these, “You always have a project.” 

To be honest, I hadn’t really thought about that before. But it’s become clearer recently as my boys have moved beyond the really young years of childhood, that I am rarely without some undertaking or plan to improve space, function, or perspective. 

Perspective. It is defined as a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something. It’s a point of view. In this world where there are lots of points of view it can be extremely overwhelming to navigate.  Sometimes I feel like a spy who approaches a bunch of laser lines protecting a treasure piece, ready to alarm if you cross them. Most of the time, I would just rather turn around and go back home. No thank you. That’s too many points of view and I’m not trained enough to get through that.

But there is that treasure. There’s something important enough to get to on the other side. I have to decide that whatever it is, is worth the risk of attempting to work through the lasers. 

Perspective though. It hits me again. As I sit in my home and look at my living room I think, “this chair might work better over on this side of the room. The couch can be moved in front of the window and if I shift everything to the left THEN…”

…”the kids have more play space for their toys.”

…”we can better watch movies together.”

…”it’s more open to move between our kitchen and living for having people over.”

Pick the ending, but the reason I move and change things has a greater good at the end of it. I work at the plan until I’ve achieved what I was looking for. I never publish a blog until my point is clear to me. If it’s muddled and uncertain, it stays in the drafts waiting for the right type of lightbulb. I try to start projects when I know I have the time to work and finish them. Some take weeks or months but others can be done in days. And once the vision comes, watch out, I start to get antsy if I don’t get to work on it soon. 

I believe that this brainwork of creativity in my own home and life is like training exercises for whatever comes next. Maybe you aren’t doing this in the creative realm, but all of us have some sort of improvement plan going on in our lives. Be it work, family, play, world or self, we want things to be better. 

I believe God uses these things to help move and shift our point of view. 

As we dream and visualize he teaches us how to to hope. 

As we discuss the plans with others he teaches us about compromise and flexibility.

As we prepare to start he teaches us the importance of building foundations. 

When we finally jump in to work he teaches us how to enjoy the moment.

When we screw up or hit a hard spot he teaches us patience, humbleness and forgiveness.

When it takes longer than we thought he is teaching us endurance.

Finally, when we are crossing that last laser it can end with success or perhaps, not the way we thought. The alarms are sounding. What do we learn from that? That it was all a waste? 

Honestly, as I wrote about in another blog, God doesn’t waste things. So something is learned here either way. If I was successful and it turned out well then I learn gratefulness. I could pat myself on the back and also feel pride, but pride focuses on me and what I was able to do. When we see the reality of God behind all of our days and nights, abilities, gifts of work, home and food, I’m just thankful I got to be part of his working, life-giving plan. It’s not me, it’s him.

And what about when it falls apart? What happens when the paint on bookshelves isn’t sticking like it should? What happens when we don’t raise enough funds? What happens when people are angry at me for the changes I made? What happens when all was working well and then I fell back into my bad habits? Was it not successful?

Maybe not in my nearsighted vision. But even failure has a measure of success. We learn about control or our lack thereof. We find that this new way may need a different set of guidelines. Or maybe it just needs another year of time. We realize this was not a finish line but a readjusted starting line. Failure often teaches us what success cannot. If we surrender the frustration and pride of all that was lost at Jesus feet and then follow with faith in the next steps, it is likely a new perspective will come to play and new work will begin again. 

You know what else? All those lasers, are no longer so scary. I have learned how to navigate life in ways I never knew I could. But I had to act. I had to follow. I couldn’t stop after dreaming. I realized that Jesus shifted some of those points of view in the process. He molds me. He molds others. The projects and plans I have are often part of something bigger. I blink back tears because I am part of something I can’t even understand. The whole of this plan, that I cannot see, is beautiful. I know because the the nature of the one who leads me is perfect and beautiful. 

Go work your plan, your project, your calling to make things better. But do it with humble thanks and praise. Because the Lord of the Universe is using you for HIS good and perfect plan.

Now that’s perspective!

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Holey Socks

No socks were harmed in the making of this blog. Trust me. They already existed.

“Wait!” I yelled to my middle son running out the back sliding door. “Put on shoes or take off the socks!” To which he almost always responds by taking off his socks and throwing them inside. 

I realize the better choice would probably be for him to put on shoes but he loves to be barefoot so I let it happen.

But not sock-footed. These cushiony, tightly fitting pieces of material are not meant for sidewalks, they are meant for shoes or inside the house on floors. Or if you prefer, for running down a slick hallway and sliding in mid-dance. Sidewalks and rough outdoor grounds pull those threads apart quickly and my wallet could use a vacation from sock-purchasing. As I wash all these boy loads of laundry I pull apart the already cleaned socks (yes I know I should probably do this before a wash– my first clues are all the grass fragments that spill out after I pull them back out) I find holes all the time. I sometimes sit there thinking, should I put them back in the drawer? Is there enough decent fabric to squeak out a few more uses? Am I being wasteful of all the good sock that is left if I pitch it? 

(Isn’t it funny that all these and many more thoughts take up space in our heads? Tell me I’m not alone.)

Here’s what struck me with holey socks. My boys can certainly put them on again and again even with holes, but ultimately their function is limited. It’s also really annoying when a toe sticks out or you feel the opening in the bottom of the heal. The openings leave you subject to blisters, dirt, rocks cuts and scrapes and they certainly do not warm nearly as well. Why wear them at all? Even if I’m trying to get as much wear out of them as possible, they end up annoying me more than saving a few dollars is worth. I want socks that do their job! 

Haggai was a prophet in the Old Testament who brought the temple and worship of God back after the the Israelites had been in captivity by the Babylonians. They had started the job of rebuilding the temple many years before but were stalled out because of politics and pressures from neighboring nations. Even more accurately, they stalled because they were in a bit of a slump. Coming out of captivity left them in a place where they had settled for less than; maybe because they just didn’t know how to turn life back around. Maybe because they were a bit apathetic. God rightly speaks to them through Haggai about their willingness to build beautiful homes, plant crops, eat, drink, cloth themselves and yet none of it is enough for them. He even says,

“You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.”

They had what you could say was a bad bunch of holey socks. They were covering themselves with their basic needs and even frivolous ones, but they were still uncovered. God could have left them that way. It was their choice to live that holey life. 

But he didn’t. He came down, spoke his stern yet loving words through a prophet. Words of wisdom. “Give careful thought to your ways.” This is said multiple times in this small book of the Old Testament. They could no longer afford to be on their own doing whatever they pleased. God’s protection and peace is not something he forces on us, but gives freely when we listen and obey. In the time of Haggai, the people did listen. When they turned back towards God, he stirred up the spirit of leaders and the temple was rebuilt and the people returned to worship. Also, through lots of careful instruction and obedience the Lord promises to bless their efforts because they rid their lives many of their inward-focused ways.

If we feel like God has removed peace and productivity in our life, we need to give careful thought to our ways. Perhaps I’ve not really been walking in the truth. Perhaps, there is wisdom I need to seek from the Lord. Let’s not be mistaken to think God as cruel, but rather, what is he withholding because of my apathy? because of my willingness to settle for less? What is he teaching me?

We each need to know, God does what he does out of love. Like a parent to a child, we serve up certain consequences to curb future unwanted behaviors. Not because I love to see my child in pain. No! Exactly the opposite! Because I want them to avoid the pitfalls that would steal their joy and peace. We, like the Israelites, are precious to the Creator and God of the Universe. When we realize all he has done and all he longs to do for us, there is no time like the present to obey wholeheartedly and quickly. I can’t afford not to.

Now, if you’ll pardon me, I think I have some holey socks to throw away. 

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Wasted

This month I’ve had a new-found freedom. I have 3 kids in school 3 days a week. 3 days! I haven’t been regularly kid free like that in 8 years! With this freedom suddenly comes new ideas and excitement, but also responsibility. I know that with this precious time I must use it to be productive with the things that are just easier to do on my own. Grocery shop, meal plan, pay bills, workout, paint furniture, meet a friend for coffee, clean and organize every closet in the house–you get the idea. If I do all this in my kid free time, ideally I should be available for my kids when they get home for homework, free time, or activities. 

You want to guess how many days I’m THAT productive? Maybe 1 out of 3 a week? Or what about the day I spent curled up reading a book? ( I was trying to get it finished to take back to the library.) Sometimes, I look back at my day and think “I wasted so much time doing this or that, I should have been doing…” fill it for yourself. 

There are lots of moments in our life where wastefulness creeps in. And I would say there are a lot of moments where we  become very frustrated or guilt-ridden about these.  What about the job I took and then didn’t really work out? What about all the classes I took for a career that never happened? What about the house that we just fixed up and then had to sell? What about the day I spent perusing the internet instead of doing the work I should have been doing? These times of waste can bring in a sense of unworthiness and burden. Unworthy for not living up to our own expectations or that of others. Burdensome because we keep struggling to prove our usefulness.

In John 6: 1-15 Jesus performs a miracle with food. 5000 men and then even more women and children were following Jesus around because they had seen him do healings and other miracles. They wanted more. Jesus is setting the stage to teach the disciples and us important spiritual lessons in a very visual way. They have nothing to give everyone but a small boy’s lunch and Jesus prays over the food and has the disciples start to distribute it to the crowds. After they all eat and are full (5000+) he says this in verse 12, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” 

Jesus gave the gift of bread to the people at this gathering. They all received what they needed and had leftovers. Instead of leaving it for the birds, they gathered it and had 12 basketfuls of pieces still! 

Friends, when Jesus gives gifts, they do not go to waste. He sees it all and pays attention to the smallest of details. Sometimes my day spent perusing the internet is actually part of a gift. A gift of free time and rest. A gift to get new ideas and reach out to a couple friends. Perhaps the degree I received isn’t being used like I thought, but the hours I spent learning those concepts and ideas strengthened my mind for new lessons. 

Satan sneaks in with the temptation to look at what we’ve done and been through as useless trash. But God reminds us that he picks up the broken leftover pieces and can still use them. They are parts of the gifts originally given but now look a little different.

Your work, your life, your efforts are not waste. Jesus was perfect his whole life and then was killed for it. But it was not a waste. Putting all the sin that he took on the cross to death was necessary for eternal life for all of us. He knows the needs. He’s walked the walk of frustrating days. He’s felt the temptations and weights Satan throws on us. But he showed us the grace on the other side. Take hold of it. Hear his words.

“Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.”