Month: January 2024

The disciples then rendezvoused with Jesus and reported on all they had done and taught. Jesus said, “Come off by yourselves. Let’s take a break and get a little rest. Mark 6:31 from The Message

When Randy and I got married in 1972, we received many gifts of what I like to call, “special occasion” items such as china, crystal and silver. However, one of the gifts that I enjoyed the most then, and still enjoy today is a crock pot. Before I left for a long day of teaching, I could just throw meat and vegetables in there, turn it on low, and it was ready and delicious when it was time for dinner.

In later years, the microwave became the way to cook a quick dinner, but it always lacked the flavor that slow cooking provides. It’s so easy to just microwave when we are in a hurry, but we sacrifice some so much the delicious elements that crock pot cooking provides.

It’s sometimes the same way with us in our lives. We like the advantage of having the ability to communicate quickly through emails, texts, and tweets, but the disadvantage is that it doesn’t cultivate in us a desire to think about things deeply. Just like the microwave, we lose much of the flavor a slower crock pot pace can provide.

A few days ago I was visiting with a friend who has been forced to slow down because of injuries. She had looked at the long recovery as a burden, but she has now realized that the crockpot life gives one a chance to slow down and catch up on the special things in life. Things such as reading a good book, compiling old pictures and writings, and taking time to reconnect with friends are so valuable.

We can’t microwave our personal growth; it takes a crock pot. When we take the crock pot method, we can gain a few things. First, we gain confidence in making decisions. There are many times when a snap decision is made, and it is something we regret in hindsight. We wonder if we made the right decision. and we become filled with doubt. When we use the crock pot method, we have time to think through our decisions and defuse any doubt. It can also give us confidence in making the next decision.

Next, the crock pot method gives us time to clarify the big picture. This encourages us to go back and ponder the things we’ve done and what we’ve seen. In order to keep from making the same mistake over and over, we have to stop and evaluate the process we used that led to our mistake. In other words, it helps us to see the whole picture and learn from it.

Finally, the crockpot method helps us to take a good experience and make it a valuable experience. It is said that we learn from experience. I would say that we learn from a valuable experience. An experiencee is valuable when it informs and equips us for what lies ahead.

In the above scipture, the disciples had been teaching and preaching, and they were on a microwave high when they reported all they had done and seen to Jesus. The Bible says that people were coming and going all around, and the disciples hadn’t even had time to eat. Jesus recognized that they needed to take a crockpot moment and process all they had seen and heard. He encouraged them to take a break and rest.

When we are in a constant hurry, it is a sign of an unprioritized life; one that is putting second and third things first. Jesus commanded us to rest every seventh day, but we want everything done today and we don’t have time for rest and reflection, so we use microwave maturity. In the process we are exchanging wisdom for information and depth for breadth. Just like crock pot cooking, depth comes slowly.

Jesus says Conme to me all ye who are weak and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Just like the disples, we have to learn that following Jesus can’t be done at a sprint; we can’t go faster than the One who’s leading. So, try some crock pot mentality this week, and savor the life giving experience of God’s grace and love.

Make a clean break with all cutting, backbiting, profane talk. Be gentle with one another, sensitive. Forgive one another as quickly and thoroughly as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:31

The project with top priority for me during these cold days of winter is cleaning out closets in the house. It is so easy to allow unused items to accumulate, and I have to really discipline myself to get it done. This past week as I emptied closets and went through items, I found things that my kids had worn years ago, little dresses Ashley had worn in my sister’s wedding, some of my Mama’s coats, and even some of the sweet little clothes I wore as a baby. My Mama kept everything!!

When I run across these items, it brings back a flood of memories, and I am tempted to pack them all back up, open the closet again, and put them right back to tackle another day. It’s important at times like these to be cathartic. When we are being cathartic, we are experiencing a process of cleaning out or releasing strong emotions according to Webster’s definition.

While assembling all the items to be donated and fighting the temptation to “rethink” parting with many things, it occured to me, that life can often be just like this experience. We are all guilty of harboring different emotions in our lives. Things such as resentment, unforgivness, anger, fear, guilt, and worry. We push the emotions into the closet of our lives and postpone dealing with them.

The thing is until we are cathartic and deal with whatever it is, we can’t move forward as we should in our lives. We have to get whatever emotions that bother us out of our lives and not look back. Don’t open the bag and take back all the things we have just closed up to give away. There comes a time when God says, “Because of the plans I have for you, you must put these things out of your life.” It seems straightforward enough, but it is not easy.

I take comfort in knowing that I am not the only one who has trouble being cathartic. I have a friend who says of situations that brought anger or hurt, “Just when I thought I was over it someone brings it up again, and it all comes roaring back into my life.” Yes, it’s not easy.

So, how do we clean out our closet and never look back? How can we be cathartic? First, it might be helpful to share the frustrations of the situation either with a close friend or even a counselor. Small groups can serve as counselors many times by providing confidants in which we can vent feelings, anger, and hurts that have been pushed down inside and pour it out.

Next, we need to set ourselves in a new direction. When we spend too much time focusing on ourselves, we get discouraged. We need to get our eyes off ourselves and try looking at the ways God can use us. He wants to give us a new purpose and a new direction!

Finally, we have to forgive ourselves for any perceived failures or mistakes. Whether it’s one mistake or failure or one hundred of them, God will pick us up and help us start all over again if we only ask.

Being cathartic doesn’t mean we have to let go of everything. Sometimes it just takes a little reorganization of our closets, our drawers, and our priorities. Start with one small thing at a time to achieve the goal.

Being cathartic helps us not only clean out our closets, but clean out our heart and souls as we take stock of our spiritual lives, our views on the world, and our sense of purpose. What things do we hold onto and what things can we clean out? Pray for guidance, wade into the clutter, and then let the cleaning begin!

Jesus reprimanded them, “Why are you such cowards? Such faith hearts?” Then He stood up and told the wind to be silent, the sea to quiet down: “Silence!” The sea became as smooth as glass. Matthew 8:26

This past week multiple storms passed through our area and the Southeastern United States bringing with them heavy rain, winds, and even tornados in some areas. When my sisters and I were growing up in South Georgia, storms were pretty severe in our area, and in order to weather them we practiced some very scientific methods to prepare ourselves for the worst of it.

We were all a little afraid of lightning, but the thunder was the most frightening. Everyone knows that light travels faster than sound, so we would wait until we saw a bolt of lightning, then begin to count “one Mississippi, two Mississippi,” and so on until we heard the thunder. According to our scientific Mama, that meant for each second we counted the storm was that many miles away.

I have read recently, however, that we had simplifed the process a bit. Evidently the total of seconds you count between lightning and thunder, you must divide that by five to determine when the center of the storm will hit! I still practice the old method of calculation, and it seems to actually work really well without getting the math involved!

Just like the storms in weather, storms come through every life and none of us are exempt. Most of the time these storms come with out advance notice, and we aren’t prepared for what lies ahead. Sometimes we think we would love some advance warning, but would we? Would it be better for us to be able to count down before bad times come in life and prepare, or would we really want to spend useless days worrying?

An unknown source said, Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. What would the knowledge of impending events do to our faith? The disciples from the above scripture experienced an unforseen storm, and these followers of Jesus were terrifed thinking they would die in the storm. All the while Jesus was in the hinder part of the ship asleep on a pillow. They awakened Him, and He rebuked the winds and the waves. The storm they were encountering was no surprise to Him, and He had it all in hand all the time.

We are much like those disciples when storms come our way, and we forget that God is still in control. Storms come in all areas of life including health, finances, friends, relationships, and so many other circumstances. There are reasons that we face storms in this life, but many times we don’t comprehend the purpose until after the storm has passed. Sometimes the storms come, and we never fully understand the exact purpose or reason, but our faith carries us through and we find our refuge and strength in Him.

I’ve heard it said that sometimes just the time we think things can’t get any worse, the storm in our lives intensifies. God knows how to get our attention, and in the midst of the greatest storm we have a tendency to wait until all our options have failed before we call on HIm. When we finally call on him, we realize that He’s been there all the time.

Years ago a storm devastated many families in Honduras. A reporter interviewed a woman who had lost everything. She said, “Yes, it was awful, and we have to start all over again, but the good news is that it brought our family back together again. We are closer than ever, and the community is bonding together like never before.”

The disciples did get through the storm and arrived safely on the other side. God wasn’t through with them yet! He had something else waiting beyond the storm. When the storms of life beat us down, it would be good to remember that there is life beyond the storm. God isn’t finished with us yet, either!

The words from a beautiful song say it best, When you walk through a storm, Hold your head up high, And don’t be afraid of the dark. At the end of the storm there’s a golden sky, And the sweet silver song of a lark. Walk on through the wind, Walk on through the rain, Though your dreams be tossed and blown. Walk on, Walk on, with hope in your heart, And you’ll never walk alone. Richard Rogers

This is the very day (year) God acted. Let’s celebrate and be glad! Psalm 118:24 The Message

This year as I was preparing the traditional New Year’s meal of black eyed peas, collard greens, sweet potatoes, cornbread, and pork, I remembered what a friend of mine does to enhance luck for the new year. This friend takes a shiny new penny (which has been sanitized), wraps it tightly in a small piece of foil and adds it to the pot of black eyed peas. The one who finds it is supposedly gifted with good luck for the upcoming year. It’s funny that something that would seem so obvious to see in a pot of peas is actually extremely difficult to find.

Randy and I ate the entire meal and did not find the penny. I stored the left overs, and it wasn’t until our second meal that it showed up! We celebrated our good luck while secretly relieved that we hadn’t ingested it without our knowledge.

The days of winter are upon us, and sometimes we long for things in our lives that make us feel that we are destined for a year of good luck! The days are short, dark, and sometimes lonely for many of us. It seems like a long time until spring.

The time from Christmas break until spring break was the longest for teachers and students during my career. We didn’t have all the “breaks” that are the norm these days, so we had to be creative and make each day special. In order to help make each day special, we named the days of the week thusly: Marvelous Monday, Terrific Tuesday, Wonderful Wednesday, Thrilling Thursday, and Fun Friday! Just like the penny in the peas, sometimes our good luck is hidden amongt the routine, rut, and busyness of each new day. It is up to us to make the days special.

I enjoy making New Years resolutions, but Randy has decided that his resolution for the year is not to make resolutions. I think that the resolutions give us a chance to look back over the year, count our blessings, and resolve to live every day in this new year with a fresh look at the potential that lies before us. We get to view each day as a gift from God, and celebrate the fact that today is one of the most valuable gifts we will every receive. When we receive a gift, what do we do? We thank the giver, unwrap the gift, and enjoy it!

Many times we find excuses for not living up to the potential that the gift of each day can bring. We are much like the story of a man who put an eagle’s egg into the nest of a farmyard chicken. The eagle hatched and grew up with a brood of chickens. All his life he did what the chickens did; scratched in the dirt for seeds and insects, clucked and cackled, and never flew more than a few feet off the ground. One day he saw a magnificent bird soaring gracefully above him. He asked the chicken next to him, “What is that beautiful creature?” The chicken replied, “That’s and eagle, the king of all the birds. Don’t give him any mind because you could never be lucky enough to be like him.” So the eagle took the chicken’s word for it and went back to being a chicken.

Who other than God should tell us that we aren’t lucky enough to live up to our potential? Who has the right to tell us that we can’t succeed or make an impact in the lives of others? Instead of looking for good luck in this next year in a pot of black eyed peas, a four leaf clover, or a horseshoe, we should look for ways to fulfill our God given potential in this world. We can never get back the days or moments that we miss, so we need to celebrate every day in this life and the people that God has placed in our path. This year is to be enojoyed not dreaded or regretted.

We have already found our good luck for this year when we realize that God has given us the potential to do great things this coming year! We are destined for a great year because God is with us!

Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you shall receive that your joy may be full. John 16:24

It is hard for me to believe, but the Christmas cards have all been sent and received, the hectic shopping is over, the packages have been opened, the carols have been sung, the meals have been consumned, and it is time to welcome a brand new year. The year of our Lord Twenty Thousand and Twenty Four is here whether we are ready or not!

During the height of the celebration where the candles are lit, the hymns are being sung, and the night is peaceful and full of love, it is easy to experience the joy that Christmas brings. Then, the lights come on again, the hymns fade away, and the reality of a new year hits us. What will it bring? How will we handle all that’s before us? How can we keep the joy in 2024?

When Handel wrote the Hallelujah Chorus, he did so with failing eyesight and the threat of dying in a debtors’ prison because of the mountain of outstanding bills. When he was aked later how he was able to complete his masterpiece, he credited one thing – joy! He said that he felt he would “burst with joy” at what he was hearing in his mind and heart. His work ended up being a cherished tradition and also a means for raising money for the poor and destitute. The joy of the Lord is our strength in 2024.

Embarking on a new year is much like the thought of entering a new and unexplored land. We just don’t know what lies ahead. As we enter the new year, there is a scripture which describes best what we should stand upon this year. “The land which you go to is not like the land from which you have come. The land which you cross over to possess is a land of hlls and valleys which drinks water from the rain of heaven. A land for which the Lord your God cares. The eyes of the Lord are always on it from the beginning to the very end of the year.” Deuteronomy 11:12

The beginning of a new year always hits me hardest when I pack up all the special Christmas things that hold so many memories and put them away for another year. I find myself smiling and remembering the sweet combined with the sad because in retrospect I can see God’s hand in it all.

When I was growing up in UMYF at our hometown church, one of the favorite songs was I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart. Down in my heart. Down in my heart. I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart, down in my heart to stay. I find myself singing it at different times of the day, and it does bring joy! The joy of a new year might seem elusive at this point, but we don’t have to dread what lies ahead. This year we can open our hearts to experience God’s love, mercy, faithfulness, goodness, and favor in our lives.

This year can be a year of stress, sorrow and struggle, or it can be a year of God given success, self worth, and growth. This year just like every year, God cares and is faithful, and as Jeremiah says, His mercies are new each morning. The Bible says it best, The joy of the Lord is our strength.

Happy New Year! Let’s keep the joy in 2024!