Tag: love

Pelican Landing

make a difference, life, inspiration, Mother Teresa,My friend Teresa shared with me about a walk she took on an overcast day recently. She stopped to rest at a nearby lake and reflected on the quietness and beauty that surrounded her. That is when she took the picture that accompanies this post.

Moments later a pelican flew in and landed on the lake. Teresa watched in awe as this large bird landed so smoothly there wasn’t even a splash.

The pelican swam towards her and she noticed that it was leaving quite a wake behind. A thought occurred. If this pelican could leave such a wake, she wondered what kind of a wake her life was leaving.

Each of us drops many pebbles into the water of life. We may never know what we have done to make a difference in someone else’s life. Who we are and what we do has a greater impact than we are aware of.

Mother Teresa said, “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” This is the kind of life that pleases God and will leave a wake that is far reaching.

Do not despise these small beginnings, for the LORD rejoices to see the work begin, (Zechariah 4:10 NLT)

How is Your Water Level?

water-level-sign

Not all lakes in Alberta are natural bodies of water. Many are man-made lakes, often in the form of a reservoir. Several of these reservoir lakes are near to the area I reside in. They are used for recreational purposes such as boating and swimming.

One that we frequent has a dam that controls the water level. As the summer progresses, more water is released and the shoreline recedes as the water level rises.

The various public entrances have signs posted warning that the water levels fluctuate. My husband and I looked at the sign and then talked about fluctuation affecting our spiritual lives as well.

There have been times when we have felt filled to overflowing with the love of God. Then there have also been times that we are dry, parched and longing for a drop of his cool, refreshing water.

What we need to remember is that this change is of our own making. God remains constant. His love for us does not fluctuate. I need to search deep within for the dam that is blocking my ability to access this. Only then can I release it and let his abundant love and blessing pour over me again.

Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” (John 7:38 NIV)

Frost Heaves of Life

frost-heaveThere is a creek close to my house with a paved path that runs alongside it. Many people enjoy walking and biking along this path.

This spring when the weather warmed, removing all traces of frost from the ground, a hole appeared in a low-lying area of the pavement. Over a period of several weeks the hole became so large that a portion of the path had to be closed.

My understanding is that the damage was the result of a frost heave. When the ice crystals in the ground melted, the ground became soft.  This undermined the surface, causing collapse.

My life has sometimes suffered this same kind of effect. There have been times when bitterness or hurt feelings have caused my heart to grow cold. This frostiness permeated my life and soon my demeanor was bleak and cold.

The act of forgiveness was able to melt the ice and warm my heart again. What I needed to remember was the damage the frost had done. It had undermined the loving kindness I wanted to exhibit. Repairs to relationships didn’t happen instantly.

Over time, as I let the light of Jesus shine in and through me, his radiance filled in the hollow spaces. What had once been undermined was now restored. The warmth of his love was then able to overflow and spread peace in my life and to those around me.

“‘“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”’(Numbers 6:24-26 NIV)

My Hourglass Life

God, love, inspirationDuring a recent dental check-up the hygienist asked if I was brushing my teeth for a full two minutes. After telling her that I really didn’t know, she gave me a cute little timer. It has a smiling tooth on each end and sand that takes two minutes to flow from the top to the bottom.

This got me to thinking of an hourglass and how it relates to my life.
When I was much younger my only thoughts of hourglass were related to the ideal body shape I wanted to achieve. Since that was not in the realm of possibility I filed this word in the recesses of my mind.

Now that I’m much older, and hopefully a little wiser, I view the hourglass in a totally different way. The sand is representative of the sands of time, slipping away. I have no idea how much time is left but I do know that it is less today than yesterday.

For this reason I need to make the most of each day. Unlike the sand in the hourglass, I can’t turn my day over and get the time back again. I don’t want to watch passively as the sand/time slips away.

No loving words should be left unspoken and no kindness left undone. God has given me a certain number of days and I don’t want to waste them. I need to consciously look for ways to use my time to reflect his light and love.

A person’s days are determined; you have decreed the number of his months and have set limits he cannot exceed. (Job 14:5 NIV)

Heart of Stone

Heart stonesFor some reason I don’t feel the need to search for shells on our beach walks this year. Since this has been my focus for several years, it comes as a surprise that this desire is gone.

There have only been a few things gathered from the shore during our daily walk and it’s been my husband doing the gathering. It’s not shells he’s picked up but stones. The stones have been buffeted and shaped by the elements until they now resemble a heart. The shape is more distinct in some than others, and one has a piece missing from the side, but they are hearts nonetheless.

Out of the millions of shells and stones deposited on the shore, it’s amazing that our eyes are able to pick these out. It seems that here, as well in many other areas of life, we are drawn to hearts and the love that this shape represents. Not just on Valentine’s Day, but throughout the year, this shape brings thoughts of love to mind.

Finding them on our beach walk is like receiving a message of love from God. Evidence of his love is all around me. To make sure that I fully comprehend this, he has also drawn my eyes to the hearts he has placed as reminders for me.

The hearts of stone though cold and hard are a symbol of the heart God has for me. He has given me a warm loving heart of flesh so I am able to share this love with others.
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. (Ezekiel 36:26 NIV)

Nativity Sets

hand carved, love, familyWe have two nativity sets in our home. One is very traditional. The children in the family have enjoyed this set for years and played with the pieces, talking to and rearranging them.

The second one is far more precious to me. It’s wooden and hand carved. My brother loving made this for my mother many years ago. It always held a place of honour in her home. Even when she was aging and no longer had the enthusiasm to put up any Christmas decorations, this set was always displayed.

To me, this nativity set is priceless. It isn’t traditional because Mary and Joseph are standing together and Mary is cradling baby Jesus in her arms. To me this is much more personal than looking at the baby in a manger. Mary is holding Jesus close to her heart.

Thinking of Mary holding Jesus close to her heart in the hand carved set, I relate this to God holding each of us close to his heart. He isn’t just sitting back watching us. Instead he is tenderly holding us, guiding us and showing his love by his very presence in our lives.

When I look at the nativity sets in my home, I am reminded anew of the miracles of love that Christmas represents. One is the miracle of family and the love shared between them. The other is the great love of God which enables us to fully experience all of the other gifts he blesses us with every day.

Not only on Christmas but every day, let us give God our honour and praise as we remember the love that came down from heaven to reach out to us.

God loved the world this way: He gave his only Son so that everyone who believes in him will not dies but will have eternal life. John 3:16 GWT

The Spirit of Giving

family, love, memoriesAt Christmas the emphasis is often placed on gifts. The malls are crowded as people search for the perfect gift to give to loved ones. Budgets are often ignored and spending runs rampant.

This puts an incredible amount of stress on people. I remember being worried that I couldn’t find or afford the latest toy that my children wanted. While this seemed important at the time, neither my son nor daughter can remember gifts received when they were children.

What they do remember is time spent together as a family. Their Christmas vacation was spent playing board games and doing jigsaw puzzles. We did simple things, but we did them together. It was the love and laughter of family that was most important to them. This is something that money can’t buy.

Love is the reason we have Christmas. God loved the world so much that he sent his only son. Christmas is the celebration of the greatest gift ever given. This was given freely, sacrificially and generously to all of us. All God asks in return is that we love him and share that love with others.

I pray this Christmas that I may have a heart like His and my giving will follow his example and be pure and selfless.

In this spirit, I have a gift for you. I would like to give you a copy of my book, Inspirations From the Everyday. Let me know you’d like this and I’ll be happy to send you a code to download an ebook from iBooks. This is my Christmas gift to you.

For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 NLT

My Little Lunch

God, love, offeringI was spending the day with a friend. When we started to get hungry I reached into my bag and pulled out two muffins. When I offered one to her she said, “Are you sure? I don’t want to take your lunch.” I quickly assured her that the reason I brought two was so we could share.
Reflecting on this, I realized that out of my abundance it is easy to share. The more difficult task is to share when I don’t appear to have anything extra to give. This is where submitting to God and trusting him for the outcome comes into play.
The things that God asks me to share aren’t necessarily material things. I have learned first-hand the power of a caring heart. Taking the time to really listen to someone can make a huge difference in their life. God has given a limitless supply of love. All he asks is that I share his love with others.
Talents and abilities are also gifts that God has given me to share. On my own there are few things that I can accomplish. When God prompts me to do something on a larger scale than what I’ve done before I become frightened. Insecurities and self-doubts become magnified in my mind. It is only when I give my meager gifts back to Jesus that they become multiplied. He will never ask me to do anything that is beyond his power to accomplish through me. I need only to submit. When I stop trying to do things in my own strength and let God work through me, I am in awe as how he takes my little lunch, my meager offering and uses it for his glory.
“There’s a young boy here with five barley loaves and two fish. But what good is that with this huge crowd?” “Tell everyone to sit down,” Jesus said. So they all sat down on the grassy slopes. (The men alone numbered about 5,000.) Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks to God, and distributed them to the people. Afterward he did the same with the fish. And they all ate as much as they wanted. John 6:9-11 (NLT)

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