Rough Roads

They are thinning a forest nearby. Heavy machinery has thundered up and down a dirt track and it is now a very wide, very rutted muddy mess. As I walked just now, I had to focus on the ground in order to plan the best path and avoid slipping into the puddles of muck. 

I came out round the back, still rutted but the obstacles were rocks and roots rather than slippery mud. Still required some attention but not so much. I could focus on the horizon and still have the path in my peripheral vision enough to navigate without mishap. 

Finally I was back on the tarmac, and I could forget about the path altogether and just walk on.

Sometimes life takes us through the muck, and we have to focus on life in order to get through it safely. Sometimes we walk among familiar challenges which still have potential to trip us up, but which we can keep an eye on without giving them our total focus. Sometimes we walk a smooth road, paved and prepared for safe travel. 

As long as we walk with a Faithful Companion, we should arrive safe.

Sunshine or Shade?

Standing in the shade of a building this morning, I shivered and complained of the cold. Don responded that it was a beautiful day.

It is. He is right. The sun is out, doing its best to dispel the cold from its wintry distance. The birds are singing. The bulbs are up and the snowdrops are out and spring is on its way. 

It is so easy to complain of one thing and thereby miss the blessing of something else. Mea culpa. 

Focus. It’s no good focusing on what I don’t like because then I miss the wider picture and the blessings that go with it. 

The news is filled with dismal stories from round the world, but I’ve just been reading about how people are like grass, which withers and dies in the blink of an eye. Powerful people who wreak havoc across the nations will not be around forever. 

I don’t want to focus on situations which steal my peace and rob me of my joy. I don’t want to ignore them either, because I believe we are all to seek justice for the vulnerable and oppressed. One way to do that is to bring them before God, the Sovereign Lord who comes with power.  

Believing in the power of prayer, I have hope that things can change. 

The other thing I read in this Isaiah 40 passage is that those who have good news need to get out and share it. Jesus is good news. 

The good news of Jesus puts everything else into the shivery shade.

A Quieter World

What a delight to awaken to a quieter world, where the trees stand straight and tall and only the barest breath of wind ruffles the branches. Sometimes life blasts us. We bend in the strength of the onslaught and sometimes can’t make any headway at all. Our dreams grow distant and our plans appear unattainable.

That’s when we need to be rooted to the promises of God. We need to have enough of his promises in our larder that we can chew on them in those stormy times. ‘I know the plans I have for you, plans for good...’ ‘If anyone is in Christ she is a new creation.’ ‘I call you friend.’ ‘I will never leave you.’ ‘I can do all things through Christ.’ 

I see a lot of trees have been uprooted in the plantings round our place. Some have broken off but mainly the fallen have been uprooted, taking down a whole circular carpet of earth and a bed of roots – lots of roots, but shallow. Not getting a proper grip. Not planted deep enough to maintain stability in the fiercest onslaught.

Sitting in the stillness, remembering that God is God, sensing his presence, feeling his touch, experiencing his breath as he inspires me again with his Spirit...that’s the food and water my soul crave. May you take time today to be still and know that God is God. He loves you and me, truly, madly, deeply. The future is promising. It is all good. Wow.

Happy Groundhog Day!

Happy Groundhog Day! 

Best known for its appearance in the eponymous movie, since when it has the connotation of a day of tediously repeated monotony. Times in my life when the repetition of chores has made me mutter something about it being Groundhog Day – just last November as we worked against the clock to prepare my mom’s house for sale, for instance. I think any mother or father whose sleep is constantly broken by a crying baby can feel caught in a Groundhog Day scenario.

In the movie, the actor was stuck on repeat because of his aggressive and offensive attitude. The ‘spell’ was only broken as the truth slowly dawned and he recognised his character needed improving. He changed his attitude and became a better person, and then he was freed to move on in his life, which looked a lot different than it had before.

We can make our own prisons and find ourselves stuck in them. Recognising the walls we’ve built round ourselves, wanting them destroyed so we can move out into the light ... it’s called repentance. By God’s grace, when we turn from those things in us which bind us, Jesus sets us free to move out into life in all its fullness. Stepping into his freedom now.

Amen.

OK, so I know I indulged in a bit of a moan about the stormy winds this morning, but the truth of the old expression ‘every cloud has a silver lining’ is being demonstrated in the most amazing sunset sky.

I was awestruck as I drove back home from Westhill, and nearly stopped the car to admire the rainbow colours scalloping the watery edges of a splat of grey cloud in the western sky. The sun’s rays struggled but failed to penetrate fully and the result was a swish of pastels shifting and changing in the wind.

Now, about an hour later, the colours have deepened into rosey reds fading to grey and darker as night moves in. 

The heavens declare the glory of God. Amen.

Wind Power

The unrelenting rush of wind powers around this house, whines down the chimney, whistles through the vents. The effect on me is to root me firmly to my seat. I’ve no desire to be buffeted and bashed by flying detritus nor feel the insecurity in every step as I push against a raging wind.

Suddenly I remember being a child, exhilarated by the strong Santa Ana winds which blew in from the desert occasionally. I remember the laughter and sheer joy of feeling the power of the wind in my hair, blowing my skirt, tearing at any papers I might be clutching as I walked home from school.

Is it the cold edge on the northeastern Scottish wind that puts me off, or have I lost some of the sheer joy of embracing every new day with bravado and expectation of good?

A one-year-old is (hopefully) unacquainted with the pains which may accompany a rash move. They crawl up the stairs with no thought as to what will happen if they decide to take a rest and sit back. They reach up to grab the edge of that bit of cutlery that juts out over the corner of the counter, not realising that the sharp blade of the knife could do them irreparable damage. They need constant monitoring to protect them from danger.

It’s a challenge to help them maintain their courage while gaining worldly wisdom.

God has that challenge with each one of us. The adverse winds of life can so intimidate us that we avoid all risk. In avoiding all risk, though, we miss out on a lot of beauty and exhilaration. 

A few years ago I snorkelled at the Great Barrier Reef. Cautious in the water because I am not a strong swimmer, I prayed hard for God to set me free to enjoy the experience and not be intimidated by the vast horizon of nothing but ocean. He did. He set me free and it was one of the best experiences of my life.

We are considering a holiday in an area where danger is not far away. A wind is blowing which disturbs my peace about this, but my prayer is that God will restore that peace and give me real joy in the experience. The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it. He guides and protects and delights in our embracing every experience with expectation of good, and joy.