Troubled By Taffeta

"What did she say?” I asked Cathy while we were watching a television program. One of the main characters, a high school girl, had been ironing a dress and ruined it. Apparently one is not supposed to iron dresses made with taffeta.

"Taffeta"; replied Cathy.

"That's not a word!" I said, wondering if I had misunderstood what the person had said.

"Actually it is a word"; Cathy said as she looked surprised that I hadn't heard the word before.

"I know that's not a word!" I said grabbing my phone to look it up on my dictionary app.

"Actually IT IS a word"; Cathy said as she looked surprised that I hadn't used the word in a sentence or read it before.

I searched for in the dictionary and I discovered that apparently it is a real word and has been used since 1325.

The word taffeta means:

"a medium-weight or light-weight fabric of acetate, nylon, rayon, or silk, usually smooth, crisp, and lustrous, plain-woven, and with a fine crosswise rib effect. Any of various other fabrics of silk, linen, wool, etc., in use at different periods"

"Am I the only person who hasn't heard of or used the word "taffeta"?"; I thought to myself and set off to take a poll.

Several times over the next several weeks I randomly asked friends and loved ones if they had ever heard the word taffeta and ALL of them had; except for the stranger I asked who replied; "Yo no hablo ingles"

How is it I made it this far in life without hearing this word? Even as I type this blog spellcheck recognizes it as a real word!

 

While telling my dilemma to one of my daughters, she joined the rest of the world in letting me know that it was indeed a real word. I felt a little better when her husband said that he hadn't heard it before.

My latest was discovering that I all these years I had been spelling “doughnuts” wrong; I always spelled is as “donuts”!

So, how do you REACT when you don’t know something that “EVERYONE” else seems to know? Angry? Defensive? Explosive?

Well, at least I know what the word “circumlocution” means; do you? Oh you do? Never mind…

How do you FEEL when you don’t know something that “EVERYONE” else seems to know? Awkward? Left out? Stupid?

Do you withdraw or draw closer?

Do you take the opportunity to learn and to grow? Or do you use it as another reason to believe you don’t matter?

Just because we don’t know EVERYTHING doesn’t mean that what we do know isn’t important or valuable.

It’s amazing how quickly not knowing something can cause us to go into a tailspin; as though our validation comes only from others opinions of us.

When this happens; we need to look deeply at how we are allowing wrong thoughts to influence what we think about ourselves.

We need to let Jesus bring affirmation and validation in way that ONLY He can bring it.

We need to RUN to Him for validation, affirmation, and purpose.

We need to run to the Word of God to allow it to transform what we think to what God says about us.

The Word of God says:

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord.
“And My ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.

For just as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so My ways are higher than your ways
and My thoughts higher than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9)

“How precious are Your thoughts about me, O God.
They cannot be numbered!
I can’t even count them;
they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
You are still with me!” (Psalm 139:17-18)

“Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
 Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.… (Psalm 139:14)

“See how very much our Father loves us, for He calls us His children, and that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1)

Are you struggling with thoughts of rejection; and in need of affirmation and validation that you are loved?

I know that you may feel worthless at this moment and really need some encouragement and hope in your life. I know that nothing seems to be going right for you and you conclude that you need to quit. But don’t quit before God is done with your situation. He really can fix anything!

I know that right now all you might be feeling is sadness and you don’t see any way out of your current situation. I really do know; I, too, have been there a couple different times in at life. I know what it is like to struggle with wanting to end the anguish NOW and feeling that there is no hope. But there is HOPE that things can change. They really can; I promise you.

Have you had enough of what this world has to offer and want true freedom?

Someone is waiting to talk with you. Call either:

1-888-NEED HIM or 1-877-2GRAHAM (1-877-247-2426).

NOTE: “circumlocution” means: a roundabout or indirect way of speaking; the use of more words than necessary to express an idea.

All Scripture is from the New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Clingy

It is that time of the year when we will soon lose the north side of our house. In a very few weeks, we will no longer easily be able to look out some of our windows.

Very soon we will no longer be able to get into the side door that goes to our basement. Why? A clingy ivy.

Normally when one thinks of “clingy” it comes across as something that is bad.

Not everyone likes it when ivy is clinging on their house. We just gotten used to it over the years.

And no one likes it when clothes are clingy after they come out of the dryer; or else we wouldn’t use static sheets or fabric softeners when we do the laundry.

And who loves it when children are clingy?

You know the type; they are always aware of where one of their parents is and notices the moment that the parent is not in sight. The child gets emotional because they NEED to be right with them NOW and they become unhappy to the point where they panic as tears fill their eyes because the parent is away.

We see this as a stage that they need to get over and rid of lest they grow into a clingy adult and then…

As much as no one likes a clingy child; even more so NO ONE likes a clingy adult! If it continues into adult relationships, sometimes this will lead to someone filing a restraining order.

And yet, according to the Bible, our Heavenly Father encourages and exhorts us to be clingy children with Him! It is something that is desired and necessary in our relationship with Him!

Deuteronomy 10:20 (NKJV) says;

“You shall fear the Lord your God; you shall serve Him, and to Him you shall hold fast, and take oaths in His name.”

That phrase “hold fast” in Hebrew means “to cling”:

dâbaq “A primitive root; properly to impinge, that is, cling or adhere; figuratively to catch by pursuit: - abide, fast, cleave (fast together), follow close (hard, after), be joined (together), keep (fast), overtake, pursue hard, stick, take.”

We see it again in Deuteronomy 11:22 (NKJV):

“For if you carefully keep all these commandments which I command you to do—to love the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, and to hold fast to Him…”

The New Living Translation (NLT) translates Deuteronomy 11:22:

“Be careful to obey all these commands I am giving you. Show love to the Lord your God by walking in his ways and holding tightly to him.”

The Living Bible (TLB) translates Deuteronomy 11:22:

 “If you carefully obey all the commandments I give you, loving the Lord your God, walking in all his ways, and clinging to him.”

According to Deuteronomy clinging is part of what He requires of us for our success, victory, and growth.

Our Heavenly Father is saying that part of us following Him is obeying His commandments and CLINGING to Him.

How do you cling to Him?

·        Spending time each day by praying and worshipping the Father.

·        Spending time reading the Bible which is His Word

Our Heavenly Father WANTS His children to CLING to Him! He doesn’t see it as something negative!

He is waiting for you to respond to His mercy and grace that has already been extended to you through Jesus Christ. And you can; today. And it can make all the difference in the world as you look for hope in your present world. Let Him be the Father you cling to!

Need further help? Someone is waiting to talk with you. Call either:

1-888-NEED HIM  or  1-877-2GRAHAM (1-877-247-2426).

Waiting for A Harvest

It’s that time of the year again when gardens are tilled and seeds or plants are planted, watered, and then we wait…and wait… and wait…

If you think about, it’s amazing how long it takes for the seeds to germinate; and then how long it takes from germination until we see flowers. Then how long it takes until the crops come up and we can eat the produce…

It’s several months until we see anything for all our labor; if we see anything at all, because there are many conditions beyond our control such as weather and the quality of the plants and seeds.

This is true for all crops including flowers, trees, and vegetables.

Another huge factor is the condition of the soil; is it clay, sandy, or black? Each serves a different purpose depending upon what type of crop is planted.

But it should noted that the condition of the soil didn’t come that way by chance. This soil was prepared by the gardener ahead of time in anticipation of what was to come.

In fact, it takes a tremendous amount of work to turn untamed land to good soil: Rocks must be removed (again and again), thorns pulled up, and hard places roto-tilled to loosen up the soil, because even the best soil must be broken before it can become beautiful.

And then, as I said, we wait…this is how things grow.

So, is it worth it???? Is it worth all the arduous work just to even prepare the soil to receive the seed or plant? And why must we wait; why can’t things happen faster?

If you’ve done gardening for any length of time you know that the answer is “yes”, that it is worth all of the hard work that goes into preparing soil and planting for the future harvest.

Being able to pick rich and fresh produce from soil less than one hundred yards from the kitchen door is so very much worth all of the effort and the waiting period!

And before you know it, it’s State Fair Time! Time for ribbons and trophies!

But what about areas of our lives where have been waiting for a harvest?

We are not naturally good soil for God to plant into us His Word

“But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness to him: nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14)

 

Too many Christians are content with remaining un-tilled soil. We delude ourselves by thinking that the condition of the soil doesn’t matter.

We don’t want God to point out where we need to be changed. We prefer to remain rocky and weedy. We prefer to try to grow things despite the resistance in our lives

None of us are beyond God’s ability to change us. But His change takes time: - It doesn’t happen in a single day. Even so, He can change us from a desert land to a fruitful garden

My friend Rev Bob Tolliver wrote:

“Trees do not grow year-round. In the Spring, life begins to flow and leaves begin to appear During the Summer a new layer of fiber slowly begins to form under the bark.

In the Fall, the new wood has created a new "circle" from the most recent growth and begins to mature. Interestingly, it is during the most desolate and severe season that the hardening and maturing takes place ---- the winter.

During those times, it appears that life is gone and the tree is dead, but the life as simply retreated to the roots leaving the outward appearance of death.

All of that to say that perhaps the most important seasons of our walk with the Lord are during those times when we feel we have spiritually "flat-lined" and have lost any ground gained.

Just the opposite is true. It's through those "dark nights of the soul" when we can become the most mature ---- if we don't fight it.”

Soil that was called “good ground” didn’t come that way by chance. This soil was prepared by the GARDENER ahead of time. But it was not the soil that did the work

To be good soil that receives God’s Word: I must be open, receptive to God and His Word. There can’t be resistance or reluctance on my part to having stones removed. I must welcome it daily. I must allow it to change my thoughts, attitudes, prejudices.

Secondly, every area of my life needs to be reachable/available. ALL the ground in a garden is tilled for fruitfulness. ALL areas of my life need to be tilled by the Holy Spirit. This takes time, but it must be done. Again, He is the One who will do the work; we cooperate.

The key ingredient to good soil being productive is how much God is really in control of our lives, and how obedient and responsive we are to His Word.

The Holy Spirit has come to help us bear fruit to be productive, appointed to bear fruits that honor the Father. And there will be a bountiful harvest of divine fruit because my Heavenly Father has been working with great skill in His Garden and I chose to respond to His work in humility and with my heart.

Our Heavenly Father has a Garden that He has been working on; a garden that He is proud of, filled with blue-ribbon produce. A Garden that He longs to share with the world. It’s the lives of you and I!

"And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart." (Galatians 6:9 NKJV)

Breathe

by Jonny Diaz

Alarm clock screaming bare feet hit the floor
It’s off to the races everybody out the door
I’m feeling like I’m falling behind, it’s a crazy life
Ninety miles an hour going fast as I can
Trying to push a little harder trying to get the upper hand
So much to do in so little time, it’s a crazy life
It’s ready, set, go it’s another wild day
When the stress is on the rise in my heart I feel You say just

(chorus)
Breathe, just breathe
Come and rest at My feet
And be, just be
Chaos calls but all you really need
Is to just breathe

Third cup of joe just to get me through the day
Wanna make the most of time but I feel it slip away
I wonder if there’s something more to this crazy life
I’m busy, busy, busy, and it’s no surprise to see
That I only have time for me, me, me
There’s gotta be something more to this crazy life
I’m hanging on tight to another wild day
When it starts to fall apart in my heart I hear You say just

(chorus)
Breathe, just breathe
Come and rest at My feet
And be, just be
Chaos calls but all you really need

(bridge)
Is to take it in fill your lungs
The Peace of God that overcomes
Just breathe
Let your weary spirit rest
Lay down what’s good and find what’s best
Just breathe

(chorus)
Just breathe, just breathe
Come and rest at My feet
And be, just be
Chaos calls but all you really need
Is to just breathe
Just breathe

© 2015 Centricity Music Publishing (ASCAP) / So Essential Tunes & Not Just Another Song (SESAC) / Wordspring Music, LLC & Tony Wood Songs (SESAC)

Savoring the Lamb

As I sat in my home office late on a Friday afternoon I was joined by Cathy who asked; “What do you need?” It had been another busy week of ministry during which there always seemed to be one more thing to do. I had just expressed my ‘frustration’ of getting to the bottom of my “to-do list” only to see that somehow one more thing had been added.

 

Every suggestion from her seemed (from my perspective) to be met with an apathetic response; something that I really had no intention to do. Realizing what I was potentially communicating, I stopped, turned, and said; “Yes, let’s go to the gym early and then get some take out.”

 

We decided that what would feed our souls the best would be take out from one of our favorite restaurants – “Beirut Restaurant” in West Saint Paul, Minnesota. It specializes in Lebanese cuisine and over the years we have always experienced great service and great food.

 

So, before heading up to the gym, we made the call to the restaurant to place our order to be picked up in a couple of hours. This would give us ample time to go to the gym, shower, and not feel rushed.

 

As it turned out, I ended up staying longer at the gym and returned to find Cathy about to head out to the restaurant to pick up our food; despite my protest that I was planning on making the trip to pick it up. Cathy insisted that I stay home to take a shower so that when she returned we could sit down and enjoy our meal while it was still hot.

 

Having some extra time after I took a quick shower, I decided to make the coffee table in our family room a little more ‘romantic’ by bringing down a nicer table cloth and candles; which I lit to set the mood just in time as Cathy returned from her trip to pick up the food.

 

Maybe it was the person whom I was with, maybe it was the fact that we were eating by candle light, or maybe I had simply found a way to slow myself down by eating the food more slowly than I normally do to savor every bite…

 

But for some reason the meal of charred lamb, humus, tabouli, flatbread, onions, rice, tomatoes, lettuce, and garlic (lots of garlic!) …tasted so much better than all of the other times we had eaten food from that restaurant in the past.

 

As I was enjoying eating the lamb, awareness came over me as to what it was that I was eating. I realized that a lamb had been raised to be slain for my benefit. In my mind’s eye I could see a little lamb and for the first time in my life I had a deep appreciation that a lamb was raised to be slain for me.

 

Just before a meal is eaten, it is commonplace to thank the Lord for His provisions. Sometimes the praying person will think of and thank the person who prepared the meal.

 

Today my mind was totally aware of the person who raised the lamb, the person who killed the lamb, the person who cooked then lamb, and the person who brought the lamb to me.

 

Tears came to my eyes as I much more slowly savored the piece of lamb that I had been chewing and offered up thanks to my Heavenly Father for providing this lamb for my benefit. I was truly grateful for what had been sacrificed for me and all that went into this meal.

 

As I sat there in the dark illuminated by only the candle light, I thought of another meal I had eaten during the previous week; one at which another lamb had been sacrificed for my benefit…

 

It was a communion service, or Lord’s Supper, that I had shared with some of my co-workers…

 

Maybe it was the people whom I was with, maybe it was the fact that we were eating by dim light, or maybe I had simply found a way to slow myself down by eating the bread more slowly than I normally do to savor every bite…

 

But for some reason the meal of earthy bread that had been dipped in sweet grape juice tasted so much better than all of the other times I had eaten it before.

 

As I was enjoying eating the bread, awareness came over me as to what it was that I was eating. I realized that this bread and juice represented a lamb that had been raised to be slain for my benefit. In my mind’s eye I could see what these elements represented and I had a deeper appreciation that a Lamb was raised to be slain for me.

 

Just before the communion elements are eaten, it is commonplace to thank the Lord for His provisions; I listened deeply to every word as the prayers were offered up for this meal.

 

Tears came to my eyes as I much more slowly savored the piece of bread that I had been chewing which represented the Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ and offered up thanks to my Heavenly Father for providing this Lamb for my benefit. I was truly grateful for what had been sacrificed for me.