The Hey You Lady

(this entry was originally posted June 18, 2014, at another blog site.) Life took an unexpected turn … I’m now the lady with cancer.   I’m still sister/daughter/niece/aunt/friend/colleague.  And now it’s different. I started chemo. Therefore, I receive attention I didn’t get before.   I accept I have to slow down. A week ago I would take a book to Starbucks on a whim, and sip iced coffee for hours. I would spend time shopping for shoes, going from store to store, and end up not finding what I want. This week, I do my shopping in bed, online, with a bottle of water at my side. Getting out of bed means, well, getting out of bed. As much as I want my “last week” life, the vise grip pain in my legs, feet, tips of my toes, convinces me the Starbucks and mall shopping is so-last-week. I find myself dependent on others for tasks that only a week ago I was able to do on my own. It’s humbling in ways, and in other ways, well, I can get kind o...

Isaiah 20:2-   At that time the Lord spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, “Go, and loose the sackcloth from your waist and take off your sandals from your feet,” and he did so, walking naked and barefoot. In this passage God sends Isaiah to give a warning to Israel.   In addition to using words, God instructs Isaiah to do something more.   God instructs him to walk naked and barefoot for three years!    Certainly, Isaiah felt uncomfortable about what he was being called to do, but remained obedient.   The message, Isaiah was delivering far outweighed the embarrassment of being uncovered. Sometimes when we feel the prompting of God’s Spirit to share how Jesus has changed our lives we may feel uncomfortable with what God is asking us to do.   We may feel embarrassed or ashamed to “expose” our past to others for fear that we may be ridiculed or rejected if people knew what we would rather keep hidden.   We all hav...

Psalm 145:3  Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom. All throughout history there have been men and woman who were considered great for one reason or another.   Thomas Edison was a great inventor; Madame Curie, a great scientist; Michael Jordan, a great basketball player.   Those who grew up in the 30’s and 40’s are said to be of the Greatest Generation.   And I can’t forget - Al and Martha Thuente are great parents (I ought to know – they’re mine)!   Usually what makes a person great is his or her accomplishments or reputation of doing good things.   But a person’s deeds and goodness have a limit.   No matter how great someone is, he can   only know so much, can do so much, can give so much, because his wisdom, ability and resources are finite.   Greatness can only be so great.   When we think of God, his greatness is limitless.   Even the greatest of men could not have created...

All throughout scripture God assures of us the promise that He is always with us.   He gave that promise to Jacob, to Joshua, the people of Israel.   And Jesus gave us that same promise before his ascension into heaven.   Not only is God’s presence promised to us, but also His love, the patient, kind, faithful, enduring, never-failing love, is ours as well.   The passage that says it in a way no other does – spells it out, if you will – is Romans 8:38-39 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. These words are a wonderful assurance of how secure my relationship with the Father truly is.   Ever since I have known and experienced God’s love, I cannot imagine life without it.   I have not even tried to imagine...

Psalm 139:23-24    Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.   See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. The apartment where I live is on the edge of a fairly upscale neighborhood.    The homeowners have for generations taken pride in their property, keeping their houses in top condition and their landscaping in beautiful shape.    Except for one.    This particular house is on a double-sized lot, boasts 6 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, an elevator(!) and guest/maid quarters, making it much larger than the neighboring homes.    In talking to some neighbors I learned that the owner was an older man who lived there.    His wife died years ago and their two sons have lives of their own in different parts of the country.    I do not know what kind of work the man did for a living, but I am told he was the male version of the “cr...

(I've decided to pull out some blog posts from the archives ... this one is from July, 2006 ... ) Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the  work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested  from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. - Genesis 2:1-3 God rested. I read this passage, and wondered, How does God rest? I asked a Really Good Friend this question. He told me, "God sits in his La-Z-Boy recliner with the remote control, and surfs through 1,000 channels and still can't find anything good to watch!" hmm.... Man  is  created in the image and likeness of God ... but I was looking for an answer from the deeper end of the Think Tank... Our lives can be hectic at times. Whenever I finish a task when I am at work, I take a moment to reflect upon what I did....