Restoration and Reflection

“And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” II Corinthians 3:18 (NIV)

I saw a billboard recently that was mangled by the wind and flying trees from a devastating storm. I shook my head in amazement at the destruction that was evident and I thanked God once again that our home was spared. As I continued on my way Papa began to speak to my heart. He reminded me that people’s lives were a little bit like that billboard; for what was originally created to bring awareness of its sponsor, now lay in ruins, crushed by unforeseen circumstances; a testament of the devastation it had endured through circumstances beyond its control.

A billboard is deliberately designed for a three-fold purpose: to draw the eye for interest, to attract attention to a message and to ultimately influence a specific reaction. Similar to this billboard our lives too were intentionally created by God’s loving design for a purpose; to experience a loving relationship with Papa God and then to reflect an accurate picture of who He is to the rest of the world. Our grace-filled lives are meant to draw the eye for interest to our Creator! Our faith-walk is intended to ultimately influence others to check out the God we love.

A billboard’s reason for being is never for itself; it exists for the benefit of another, so we too were created for Another and thus our true meaning can only be found in Him. We were brought into existence to convey honor and glory to the One who died for us.

How do we do that?

Our life reflects who He is when we obey His commands and love Him first and others second. When people watch our lives unfold they should be viewing His message and not ours. Just like the blank billboard has little to offer its sponsor on its own merit, so we too find our worth in being a reflection of our Savior. We have no light of our own, but as believers we can function as an excellent source of reflection.

Sounds easy enough, but then the daily grind of life happens and a precious one who was created to bring glory to their Creator can get crushed by the unforeseen circumstances that are beyond their control.

Then what?

What will happen to the mangled billboard? You and I both know the answer; eventually the city crew will dispose of it because it has outlived its usefulness.

But what about us?

Remember I said earlier that we were similar to a billboard, but not identical and this is where the similarity ends. People, no matter what destruction they have experienced are ALWAYS worth the restoration process! As His precious sons and daughters, Papa sees our potential through His eyes of love. He fixes the broken pieces, replaces the missing parts and eventually, if we stand still as He works out the kinks, we are made new and brightly reflect His glory.

What if your life feels like that crushed sign?

The good news is that Papa is in the restoration business! He has a plan and timetable for every renovation. Be patient and know that every moment is a hands-on event, i.e. His hands are ALWAYS on you.  But even in the midst of the devastation and destruction we can still reflect who He is. While we are waiting to become all He’s created us to be, we can glorify His holy name. Don’t believe me? Think about it...have you ever had something catch your eye on a sunny day and you realize it’s just a shard of broken glass or even a bit of shiny trash? Somehow it’s enough to reflect the sun and no matter where we are in the renewal process, we too can shimmer by reflecting the Son to this darkened world, because all the broken pieces of our lives serve as a glistening mosaic of praise when lifted up to our King!  

Let’s pray.

Papa, how we long to bring You honor, but at times our lives feel crushed by unforeseen circumstances that are beyond our control. Please come and begin the restoration process in us so that we can reflect the goodness of who You are to our lost and dying world. Amen

SNUGGLE UP

“Come close to God, and God will come close to you...” James 4:8 NLT

Morning had come, the sun was shining and I was sitting on the loveseat, writing a devotional, my computer was balanced precariously on my lap and I was busy typing away. I glanced across the room and on the couch all curled up was Bella, my Sheltie. She looked peaceful as she slept and I continued to write.

I’m not sure what woke her up, but she jumped down and I remember thinking; “She must want something”. To my surprise though, she jumped up on the loveseat and instead of laying at the other end like she usually does, she came close and having nestled right beside me, allowing virtually no space between us; she proceeded to close her eyes again.

I stopped typing and I looked down at my faithful friend of six years and I thought “Hmmm, she didn’t want anything-she just wanted to be close to me.” This small gesture on her part touched my heart and I began massaging her little furry neck, looking for a way to give back just a bit of her devotion.
And it was then that Papa spoke to me...

He said “Isn’t it nice when someone just cannot stand for there to be any distance between you and them; that they don’t come for a blessing from your hand, just for a closeness to your heart? And when that happens, don’t you just long to bless them in any way you can, because you know that they love you for you and not for what you do for them? Well that how I feel about My children too. I want them to temporarily forget about My blessings and just want to be with Me. I long for them to refuse for there to be any distance between us. I desire for them to be willing to leave their safe comfort zones and come to the place where I am; not where my blessings are; where I am!”

He said; “Sandy, just like your heart was so stirred by Bella’s love that you stopped what you were doing and touched her waiting life with your hands of blessing, so I too long to touch your waiting life with My hands of blessing when you choose to leave your comfort zone and come where I am...with no thought for promises, no hope for blessings; just Me!”

I wonder how often we spend our “quiet time” being anything but quiet. We come before God with our wish-list in hand and begin reciting it to Him and call it prayer. But oh how His heart longs for us to become so enthralled with Him that we forget to give Him our list, because our needs and desires get lost in our heart’s passionate quest to be close to Him; not for what He can do for us, but just to snuggle.

Webster’s Dictionary describes snuggle; “to draw close especially for comfort or in affection.” When was the last time we snuggled with our Papa God? He’s waiting with a loving heart and open arms for us to leave our place of comfort, lay aside our wish list and just snuggle up and bask in His enveloping presence.

Hey everyone, I’ll race you there! Get Ready, Get Set, GO! Ready or not Papa, here we come!

Lord, we long to be close to You in ways that we have yet to ask for or even dreamed of. Give us revelation knowledge of Your great love and how much You want us to snuggle up. Help us to leave our comfort zones and close the gap that we have heretofore been content to remain between us. Remind us to lay aside our wish list and soak in Your sweet and transforming presence. We long to seek Your heart instead of Your blessings. We do love You Papa, but please help us to do it better! Amen

THE DELAY-Part Two

Delays. Everyone’s life gets, well...delayed with them! Sometimes in the midst of our deferral we feel like we’re the only one though. However Abraham was delayed in receiving his promise, Joseph was delayed so he could save a nation, Moses was delayed from delivering God’s people, Daniel’s answer was delayed, David’s reign was delayed, Jesus’ ministry release was delayed in the wilderness. Ummmm, I’d say we are in good company!  Well, last week we talked about the delays that we all experience and how we need to trust that Papa God has our ultimate good in mind-even when we can’t see it. We also learned that trusting God’s heart means that we can trust His plan for us...even during the detours of life. So today let’s look at just a couple blessings that we can experience RIGHT NOW if we find ourselves in the midst of a delay.

1. Delays make you stop forging ahead. We see this as negative but think about it for a moment; when you are at a railroad crossing and the bar comes down with its flashing lights...aren’t you glad the bar delayed you from crossing the tracks at the same time as the multi-ton train? In Numbers 22:22-33 we read about how the prophet Balaam’s life was saved by way of a donkey’s delay! Postponements while not convenient are sometimes vitally important and who is to say that the l-o-n-g d-r-a-w-n out delay that you are wrestling with right now isn’t one of these critical deferrals?

2. Delays give you time to consider your options. Sometimes we have our spiritual blinders on as we run down the paths that we’ve selected-come what may. We are so busy trying to control our corner of the universe that we miss better options that are waiting for us-if we’d just take the time to look. But like the White Rabbit in Alice in Wonderland...we rush ahead singing “I'm late, I'm late, for a very important date.  No time to say "Hello, Goodbye".  I'm late, I'm late, I'm late!” And although delays have a tendency to stop that outward running, we must also allow our Father to use these deferrals to calm our inner rushing as well. If not, we may miss those better choices because we’ll be too busy declaring to God “You’re late, You’re late for my very important date! No time to say ‘Hello, Goodbye; You’re late, You’re late You’re late!” Thankfully though, delays quiet the voices that accompany the rush of life, so we can carve out the time to seek His face and listen for His eternal perspective-so we can select His very best options! This enables us to glean the unique and treasured nuggets found in delay.

 3. Delays should make you turn to the Keeper of Time. This is true because they remind us that we are not in control of our universe>>>He is! Not only does God declare in Isaiah 55:9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts”, His plans are so much better than ours too! And if you are in need of further proof, consider I Corinthians 2:9 which offers this amazing promise “...No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined the things that God has prepared for those who love him.” Close your eyes with me and meditate on that for just a minute or two. Just close your eyes and let your heart move from every long-held dream, from every aching desire and then let Papa whisper that His plan far outweighs, completely out glistens, entirely out sparkles even our wildest imaginations! What we can desire for ourselves or for those we love, pales in comparison to the passion of His heart and the workings of His hand!

What we “lose” by delays are more than offset by the unique blessings that they can position us for. So the next time a delay seems perpetual, let’s remind ourselves, that trusting God means trusting that His timing is exactly what we need to position ourselves for the rich rewards of being right where His perfect love determines is best, even if it comes “out of season”.  

Isaiah 64:4 declares; “Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides You, who acts on behalf of those who wait for Him.” Oh the riches of a trusting heart who embrace this promise without restriction...for He who hath promised is faithful beyond our imagination and is oh so worthy of trust with every delay that He sends! So we can accept to our deepest levels, without reservation that with Papa; the best is always yet to be; so that we may we from the depths of our hearts proclaim; I will “wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD” because “...the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of His heart through all generations. (Psalm 27:14, Psalm 33:11)

Papa, I choose to trust you in seasons of delay. In those moments help me to stop forging ahead without regard, remind me to use the delay to seek Your better options and strengthen me to turn more fully to You; the Keeper of Time itself...help me to rest in confidence that Your perfect plan for my life includes perfect timing as well. Thank you Papa for never leaving me to wait alone; I believeand am thankful that You are with me for this ENTIRE life’s journey. In Jesus Name, Amen.

THE DELAY-Part One

 “The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness...”, “I will wait for the LORD...I will put my trust in Him.” 2 Peter 3:9, Isaiah 8:17

As I stopped to catch my breath after my morning run I happened to look at what was left of our flower garden. Considering it was November I wasn’t expecting a lot. : ) However, much to my surprise, there at the end of the garden was a huge, GORGEOUS peach iris! I stopped in my tracks and took a closer look. I snapped a picture of it because it was so beautiful! Of course it was no more lovely than all the other irises that bloomed in May, but I promise you I enjoyed this one so much more; because it was blooming out of season.  Almost immediately Papa whispered to my heart; “The fruit that is awaited the longest is always the sweetest and people’s lives can bloom out of season just like this flower and what is delayed can end up being the loveliest of all!”

That word took my breath away! I teared-up and sat down on the steps and began to look with fresh eyes at all the delays I have experienced in my life. Precious friend I know that you have had them too! Deferred promotions, s-l-o-w-e-d down healings, held up wisdom, postponed releases, overdue “special some ones”, yes the treasured hopes we have waited for for so long...the burning questions left unanswered...the promising dreams that have been out of our reach for so long that they seem to be fading from the clear view of our hearts. When everything within us longs for God to step in and move, but all we hear is the hollow echo of our pacing feet and the ringing sound of our unanswered questions...what then?

We may quote Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them”, however the “good” of delays is sometimes swathed in the shadowy places and we are left to wonder what if anything is happening for our betterment. But there is a saying “Trusting God means trusting in His timing too” and I believe that this is a lesson that we not only need to learn, but one that we must choose to remind ourselves of on a regular basis...because He knows best.

We’ve gotta remember that God doesn’t operate on our timetable. In my 40+ years of loving Papa, I’ve found that His timing and mine rarely agree. Of course He’s always right...but I want things like yesterday! Have you been there? : ) Yet our Father is lovingly, but resolutely moving at His determined pace. Nothing you or I could ever do will “hurry up” God. He fully perceives all aspects of past, present and eternity; we on the other hand only catch glimpses through our tiny window of earthly existence (and even those are filtered through the lens of human frailties and personal life experiences). He is not only the ultimate time keeper; He’s also the Keeper of Time itself! He clearly distinguishes the beginning from the end and He fully realizes what we need and when it’s the best time to release every single blessing.

I guess the question we need to answer is; Will we have confidence in His plan? (including His timing) Honestly though, an even deeper question lurking behind that query is; Will we trust His heart? If we can unreservedly believe His love for us, then the first question becomes a “no brainer”. And think about it, if we can rely on Him as the Captain of our eternal salvation; is He not even more worthy of trust for the temporal details of our earthly existence? i.e. How can He be deemed capable to secure our eternity, but somehow fall short to be entrusted with our earthly hopes and dreams? Truth declares that He is faithful for BOTH!

 Sometimes though we wonder if the delays we experience negate the goodness of Papa’s plan for us...but look at it this way...If someone is throwing a birthday party for you and because of its elaborate design of “amazingness” it has to be pushed back for a few days; does that mean its worth or “goodness” factor is truly diminished just because it came “out of season”? Not by a  l--o--n--g--s--h--o--t! And in a simliar way we have to aggressively trust and envision that the promised good of Romans 8:28 is being actively crafted on a daily basis by our loving Father, even when the days seem d-r-a-w-n out past what stands to human reason!

But when delays drag on, do I ever long to insert my own timetable? You bet! I’d be a liar if I said otherwise, but that’s just my limited perception talking. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to worship a God who can’t out think me in every way! Lol Isaiah 55:8 states speaking of God;  "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways," declares the LORD.” I don’t always see the benefits of delay on my own...BUT if I trust that He loves me and that He allows deferrals for my ultimate good, then there must be some redeeming qualities in the detours we call delay. Later this week we’ll take a peek at the benefits of delay. For today, let us make the quality choice to expect that His all-seeing eye captures the entire vista of the perfect plan He’s crafting for us AND that His loving heart will make certain that not a single blessing escapes us as we dare to willingly submit to the times and seasons of our lives!

Papa God, We know in our heads that You hold our lives safely in Your hands but sometimes when our unanswered questions and the delays to our dreams drag on, it weighs us down and makes it difficult to trust in the perfectness of Your plan...please come and remind our hearts that You are actively working out everything in our life for our eventual good. We trust You but help us trust You more. In Jesus’ Name, Amen