Is your perception of me merely a reflection of you?

“They think you are stuck up.”  

The words of a friend cut through me like a searing knife. 

“They said you snubbed them when you walked by.” 

She was talking about a group of girls from the opposing team we were playing at a high school basketball game in 1976. I walked by the group while on my way to the concession stand. The thing was—I didn’t snub them. I was actually completely intimidated by them, so I kept my eyes on the path directly in front of me, trying my best not to trip over my fear.

Our perceptions of others, we learn, are not always reality. Perceptions can be biased, often skewed by factors such as our background, culture, past experiences, misinformation, attitudes and even emotions, and are often the very reflection of our own messed-up selves.

"We see the world, not as it is, but as we are." -- Talmud

Healing the Wounded Heart (A Prayer)

Father God,

Though so many of us try to hide it with a smile, we know that inside we are broken and bruised, wounded by issues of long ago and left unchecked. We are the walking wounded plagued by feelings of hurt, neglect, abuse and abandonment. Many of us have attempted to find relief by our own methods but instead found ourselves feeling even emptier, even spiraling into depression. 

We learn that sins of omission (neglect, abandonment, etc.) are just as damaging to the soul as the sins of commission. Emotional wounds become so deeply embedded that it begins to feel "normal", setting ourselves up to continue to cycle.

Infection extends into relationships and marriage like a virus, spreading a new strain of sin-saturated remnants stained by years of buried emotions. Deep-seeded anger follows closely, while anger’s close companion, bitterness, begins to rot the soul and distressing the body.(Heb. 12:15)

But, You, O God, desire healing for Your children, (Ps. 147:3)  and are greater than all of our hurts, all of our neglect, all of our abandonment, and all of our rejection. You are more than able to comfort us in all our afflictions. (2 Cor. 1:4) You lead us in paths of righteousness for Your name’s sake. (Ps. 23:3) You desire righteousness for us, Father, (Matt. 5:6) for sin and righteousness cannot coexist.

Thank you for revealing Your righteousness to us, bringing light to darkness and exposing areas of sin in our lives. Thank you for walking with us through the valleys of past hurts, (Ps. 23: 4) not to revisit our pain, but to reveal Your healing through our forgiveness. (Matt. 6:12) Lack of forgiveness is sin, creating ugly and festering wounds in our lives in which all the perfumes of religious activities cannot remove, but only superficially mask. (Romans 8:6)

Your mercy and grace, O God, and Your forgiveness completely remove the deep underlying roots of the disease of our souls, as Jesus Christ, the Balm of Gilead, brings restoration and healing to the wounded heart. You restore us to the joy of Your salvation, Father, granting us a willing spirit to sustain us. (Ps. 51:12, Ps. 149:4) Your compassion and mercy reveal the hurts of those who have hurt us, helping us to understand their own pain. Hurt people often hurt people. Thank you for helping us to forgive as You have forgiven us.

Your Word tells us that our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. (1 Cor. 6:19) You bring us out of the midst of sin, (Col. 1:13) and desire for us to touch only that which is clean, and nothing that is unclean. (2 Cor. 6:17) You are my Father, God, and I am your daughter/son. Blessed be the name of the Lord, in all the earth. (Ps. 72:19)

Thank you Father, for Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God and Light of the world, (John 8:12) Who shines the light of righteousness into the dark corners of our lives (2 Sam. 22:29) revealing those things You desire to remove as You lead us in Your paths of righteousness. Thank you for Your forgiveness as we forgive those who trespass against us.

In Jesus' name, amen.

State of the Heart Address: From the Word of God

(Mouse over scripture links for full verse. May not work on mobile devices) 

Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you, today and always. ( John 20:19)

The more things change; the more things stay the same. (Eccl. 3:15) Nothing takes Me by surprise. (Is. 46:10)

I know the times are difficult, and there are times you feel like giving up, but I will show up and take care of you as I promised. (Heb. 13:5) I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. (Jer. 29:11)

What do our lives and popcorn have in common?

One evening several years ago, as I fixed popcorn on the stove for my kids (the old fashioned way), an inadvertent blunder became fodder for an object lesson I used years later as a friend and I led our church's junior high and high school youth group.  

We had been discussing personal and spiritual "boundaries" in the group, so I decided to reach back into my kitchen from years before for my popcorn mishap to demonstrate the chaos of a life without boundaries. Ushering all the students into the church kitchen, I pulled out a large pot, added oil and a scoop of popcorn kernels. After turning up the heat, I began visiting with the kids, making sure all were out of reach of any splattering hot oil. This time, I intentionally left the lid off the pot.

Fish Out of Water

I remember feeling unique as a child. Actually, strange is a better word. I even wondered if my parents adopted me, but similarities in familial features negated that idea. Later, I learned of the “middle child” syndrome and strongly considered that. Then someone “enlightened” me to Type A and B personalities, left-brain, right-brain, and a host of other diverse personality traits and human behaviors, which only added to my character confusion. 

Pubescent personality phobia is likely a typical quandary for many youth, but I continued to carry this unanswered confusion with me well into adulthood. As I look back now, I think perhaps that a large portion of that quandary lay in the fact that God had called me out as His child, and I neglected to assume the proper position to which He called me, leaving me feeling like a fish out of water for many years.

Showroom Religion

While traveling one weekend, a friend invited me to stay with him and his wife. They lived in a very beautiful home in one of the “large home” regions of that city. Following a tour of the home, I decided to freshen up before dinner in the guest bathroom.

Have you ever been in one of those bathrooms that was so beautiful, you weren't quite sure what to do with yourself?

Atop the rich marble counter was a large silk floral arrangement. Scattered about was an array of antique pictures, a few candles, a tall, slender, and dimly-lit lamp, a frosted glass fragrance mister, and a fancy tissue dispenser and counterpart hand mirror.

Near the sink was an ornate pedestal-style soap dish with a harmonizing blend of beautifully foil-wrapped individual soaps (Was I supposed to actually use one?). A complementary towel ring was close by, holding an ultra-plush crewel lace edged towel and matching washcloth. (Was I supposed to use those?) I turned around to find a matching bath towel perfectly draped over the oil-rubbed bronze towel rack.

With no room on the counter to place my travel bag, I set it on the floor . . .

Performance Police

 

I am so thankful for our highway patrol, and for the safety in which they so dutifully work to ensure on our highways. However, as I traveled home from a neighboring city recently, minding my own business and rockin’ out to Praise and Worship music, I noticed in my rear-view mirror what appeared to be a highway patrol unit closing in more rapidly than at normal speed, but without flashing lights. 

My speed was set on 65 . . . okay, 66. I knew my tag was in date. I had not run any red lights, crossed any lines, nor had I cut anyone off in traffic. Yet, he followed so closely for several miles and I guessed he might have been running my tag; for what reason, I did not know. Therefore, I waited to see what would happen, but was—in the meantime—more nervous than usual, (why is that) making my journey home much less enjoyable than I usually find it to be.

My relationship with Christ?

"My relationship with Christ? 
Wha-ya-mean? 

~~♥~~

“Tell me about your relationship with Christ?” 

My "relationship" with Christ?  swish . . . swish . . . swish . . . swish . . . 

I could hear my heart beat in my ears.  

The words caught me off guard as the unsuspecting woman seated next to me innocently prodded my empty soul. My failed attempt that afternoon in 1983 at a Christian Women's event haunted me for years to come, as I stumbled through carefully chosen words and actions.

• I've known about Him since I was a child
• Gone to church "most" of my life (when my parents took me) 
• Currently looking for a church (straight up lie) 
• God is good! --- Nod and smile --- He's so good! --- Nod and smile!!  

God's word in Ecclesiastes tells us "There is a time to speak and a time to be silent". (Eccl. 3:7) This is one of those times I should have remained silent and didn't; but then again, I wouldn't have had this story to write today, would I?

Don't Settle for Walking Trees

Mark 8:22-25

²²And they came to Bethsaida. And some people brought to Him a blind man and begged Him to touch him.

²³ And He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when He had spit on his eyes and laid His hands on him, He asked him, “Do you see anything?”

²⁴ And he looked up and said, “I see people, but they look like trees, walking.”

²⁵ Then Jesus laid His hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.”

Those Embarrassing Moments!

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes…” (Romans 1:16)

As I headed out the door that bitter cold Sunday morning, I grabbed my long wool coat for added warmth over my favorite denim skirt and knee boots. I loved this skirt because it was fun to walk in—long, full, and "free" feeling--nothing tight or creepy-crawly, and no worries while crossing my legs. The only thing I had to watch for were windy days, or what is known as a "skirt alert" day. And there were to be no skirt alerts issued for this day.   

Or so I thought. 

Free Indeed!

 FREE INDEED! - John 8:36

I will never forget a story I heard years ago about a man who told of a puppy he found while out for a walk one morning. The dog lay whimpering in the ditch completely entangled in a heavy nylon cord. Unable to free himself, the dog now lay helplessly in pain on the side of the road. 

The man approached the desperate dog with a great deal of compassion, speaking gentle, soothing words attempting to calm the puppy’s obvious apprehension for the man. Carefully studying the direction of the constricting cords bound tightly around the puppy’s legs and body, the man searched for a loose end to liberate the entangled puppy. The cords however were unyielding, and each tug in one area only tightened the cords in another, causing the puppy even greater pain.