God Listens!

Happy Earth Day!

Sprinter?

2 Thessalonians 2: 16-17
May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.

What happened to spring? Most of the Midwest states have experienced a new phenomenon called "sprinter" (spring & winter.) We're wondering where the pleasant sixty-five degree temperatures have hidden. Where the sunshine went to rest. We've had a sun-kissed day here or there, but only a tantalizing taste. No full blown, run outside and dance in the breeze kind of day has arrived. The result—downhearted folks who need a boost of tulips blooming without snow laced over them.

When winter hangs on well into April, we become restless and discouraged. This is much like seasons of life, where darkness seems to hang over our heads. Maybe the tragedy of loss, discouragement from what seems like every side, or the results of sin drags me down. Or the melancholy feeling of defeat or failure. The good news is spring does finally come. Yesterday, I heard the birds twittering their welcome.

Through the darkness, God will encourage and refresh our hearts. His robins will sing a song of joy. Regardless of the situation I'm in, I have wonderful hope in Jesus. I may feel discouraged and alone, but I'm not. Jesus is with me, and he strengthens me. Pray for his encouragement and open the Bible to his verses of grace. He's the light in the darkness. The spring after winter.

Like the essence of spring, Jesus refreshes my soul.

Here's Hoping

Encouragement

Fear is a Liar!

Isaiah 41:10
So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Isaiah 41:13:
For I am the Lord your God
who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.

I stood on the platform wearing a harness attached to a long, heavy cord. All I had to do was step off, and fly through the air. Across the lake, my daughter, Hannah, and husband, Tim, waited for me to glide across the zip line and meet them on the other side. I'd cheered Tim on as he took the trip just moments before. But for some reason I couldn't take the leap. It wasn't like I'd never zipped. I'd taken this same line a year or so before. And I loved it. But this time, instead of embracing the excitement, fear gripped me. My anxiety peaked. I couldn't let go. Much to my disappointment, Hannah's friend and co-worker, Rachel, had to help me out of the harness. I climbed down the steps and trudged around the lake to meet my family.

I'd been defeated by fear, one of the most frustrating feelings in the world. Sad thing is, the fear wasn't real. I'd ridden the zip line before and had no problems at all. How many times do we create fear in our minds. When this happens the story gets bigger and bigger. Most of the time the very thing we fear is never realized. Have you heard the song Fear is a Liar? How the liar wants to stop us from moving forward. He wants us to doubt God. He wants us to be paralyzed in our tracks unable to follow God's lead. But guess what! God doesn't want to let that happen. If we turn our fears over to him through prayer, he will walk us through every single fear.

I flew to Hannah's last month and yes, I had some fear. Not so much of the flight itself, but more the whole layover, getting on a different plane idea. My fear came to fruition, I missed my flight from Philly to Greenville, through no fault of my own. I admit, I panicked, cried and wanted to crumple. But guess what. God had my hand. He led me to a lovely young lady who got me on another flight and even gave me a much needed hug.

God knew my fear and he lifted me up. Whatever you're afraid of, turn it over to God. He's just waiting for you to ask.

Winter Picnic

A haiku for National Poetry month...