The Wood's Edge by Lori Benton: a Father's Day devotional

As a tribute for Father's Day, I thought I'd go back to one of my favorite novels of the year, The Wood's Edge by Lori Benton. (Yes, the year is only half over, but I know a masterpiece when I read it). 

As the author mentions in the dedication, this book ended up having much to do with fathers, including birth and adoptive fathers, as well as our Heavenly Father. It tells a poignant tale of a father's love for his children, imperfect though our human fathers' love may be.

Benton's story begins when two women give birth in a British fort amidst battle during the French and Indian War - the wife of Major Aubrey to a dead son, and Good Voice, the Indian captive, to twin sons, one white and the other dark. In a rash moment of grief and love, the major steals the fair twin and leaves his dead son in its place, sparking a wildfire of grief and guilt to wrack two families for decades.

Major Aubrey serves as an adoptive father not only for his abducted son, but for a young, orphaned girl he rescued in the midst of battle. He feels that rescuing Anna was the one truly right thing he's done in his life, thus he shares a very close relationship with her. On the other hand, his son William is a constant reminder of the worst deed he ever committed, and the guilt constantly eats away at him, holding him back from embracing William as he should. The guilt taints all his relationships, including that with his wife and close family friend Lydia, and as a result, he holds himself aloof in spite of his love. To top it off, he is not allowed to grieve the death of his beloved little son, because in the eyes of the world, his son lives.

While Good Voice, the mother of the twins, is anguished in the abduction of her son, her husband, Stone Thrower, is eaten by hate and thirst for vengeance. I think some guilt plagues him too - he was unable to protect his wife and save her from being carried away to the British fort where all the problems began. Good Voice initially demands vengeance, wanting her son back, and he takes up the cause. But as years of failure pass, he falls into alcoholism, thirsting for revenge and strong drink, while she grieves and forgives. The obsession with finding his abducted son causes him to neglect the child that remains, and the love he feels is frequently buried under hate and demon-rum.

Both sons feel unloved by their fathers. And I have to say, their fathers are not prime examples of loving dads. And yet, their fathers are real examples of dads - imperfect men who have made mistakes, whose imperfections sometimes bring out other emotions that mask the love they feel. Whose pasts cast a shadow over the present, shadowing their love also. Dads that could be ours.

The only perfect father in the story is God the Father, and He's the only perfect father we'll ever see too. While His children - be they thieves, abusive, self-destructive, alcoholic, or neglectful - make foolish choices, hurting each other and themselves, He loves them still, showing that love by using His hand to work the heartbreaking circumstances for their good. As Romans 8:28 says: And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Thankfully, that promise does not expire when we - or our fathers - make mistakes.

Given the various examples of fatherhood expressed in the story, it begs us to look past the places where our own fathers have erred - all the foolish, destructive things they may have done - and see the love instead, even when they have a hard time expressing it in a loving manner. Recognize that love before it's too late, and love them regardless.

Dreams to dream - a theme of 2014

Word had it, way back in the beginning of the year, that 2014 would be a year of double-open doors - that doors that once were shut will be flinging open.  Dreams that have long laid dormant will be pursued. That it's time to push for your dreams.

I could see it in friends - and myself - who pushed to actively pursue their dreams: from picking up a paper route to save up and pay for midwife training, to giving away and selling possessions in preparation to move to another state, to wading into the world of art by investing in prints of paintings.

And I could see it in the books that were being published this year.

Why dreams?  Why are they so important?

There are dreams we already have that God honors, and there are dreams that God gives us that we never expected would become a dream.  I have always loved studying wildflowers and seeking them out in ditches and swamps, but I never expected God to give me a dream - and the ability - to draw them, not when I made it through school as a decent but by no means impressive artist.  And I never expected that clearly God-given ability to translate to animals, when I'd always struggled to make them anything but cartoons.

God gives us the opportunity to pursue both kinds of dreams, sometimes even together.  And sometimes they are not particularly compatible, like art and my love of languages. At the moment, my desire has been focused on art, as have time and opportunity, and so it seems like languages have gone by the wayside.  But just because one dream eclipses the other now does not mean that we should give up on either - God gives us dreams for a reason, and I don't believe He will let them be lost.  Who knows when that dream will once again become a burning desire, and suddenly doors will open to pursue it?

(Added December 31, 2014): Suppose you have a dream, something you're passionate about, but you don't know how to pursue it, or your present attempts have failed? I have to add these words from Elizabeth Camden, since it puts it so much more clearly than I could describe it. In her new release, Beyond All Dreams (Bethany House, 2015), the author writes (in regards to a boy with a passion for painting):

"If you don't make it as a painter, funnel that passion into something else, but it doesn't have to die. . . If you don't make it as a painter, perhaps you'll be a great teacher. Or a museum curator. Maybe you'll become a rich industrialist and fund a museum. Just don't limit yourself by thinking you already know God's purpose for you." (134)

God has ways of using our dreams that we don't expect or even imagine.

Given that the fiction this year has overwhelmingly touched on dreams, I compiled a list of those that stood out especially to me, so read and be inspired:  

A Beauty So Rare by Tamera Alexander (Bethany House, April)

While Love Stirs by Lorna Seilstad (Revell, May)

Meant to Be Mine by Becky Wade (Bethany House, May)

Here to Stay by Melissa Tagg (Bethany House, May)

In Perfect Time by Sarah Sundin (Revell, August)

Playing by Heart by Anne Mateer (Bethany House, September)

A Bride in Store by Melissa Jagears (Bethany House, September)

Surprised by Love by Julie Lessman (Revell, October)

What dreams are you pursuing?

That Jesus came to heal and to save

Luke 4:18-19

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,

Because He has anointed Me 

To preach the gospel to the poor;

He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,

To proclaim liberty to the captives

And recovery of sight to the blind,

To set at liberty those who are oppressed;

To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord."

We have been praying for a young cousin who had a valve replaced in his heart a few weeks ago, since he grew out of the previous one put in as a baby.  However, during a recent checkup the doctors discovered that a bubble had formed between valves, and it needed to be removed as soon as possible.  What was hoped to be a four-hour surgery became the work of ten hours, and his recovery is not going as smoothly either.

Through this time friends, relatives, friends of friends, churches of relatives, missionaries across the globe - people have been praying everywhere for his healing, that his heart will work properly and he can go back to being the active teenager he was a few weeks ago.  A while back at my prayer group, a friend reminded us that "Jesus came to heal and to save" (one of her common sayings), which in turn prompted a discussion how hard it seems to be to believe that Jesus heals - and that He healed everyone who came to Him (Matt 12:15).  

Jesus came to save us from our sins.  I wholeheartedly believe that, and I have no doubts that I will be in glory with Him some day.  I do not believe that He needs to re-save me every time I sin and ask for forgiveness.  He has saved me to eternity.  He has saved our cousin to eternity also.  The moment I accepted that free gift of salvation, I was saved. 

Jesus came to heal  - to heal the brokenhearted and proclaim recovery of sight to the blind.  I believe that He came not just to save us, but to heal us.  Look at His miracles - He healed everyone.  But it is hard to believe that He still heals everyone - sometimes we see healing, but  . . .  not always.  Sometimes He answers our prayers affirmatively, but sometimes our loved ones don't heal.  Examples of friends and relatives who were not healed have piled up into a mountain of discouragement. 

A friend brought up the point that as Christians, we really don't treat salvation and healing the same, even though Jesus came for both.  He saved us once and for all by dying on the cross - the moment we accept that free gift from God, we are saved.  It doesn't need to happen again and again.  So why do we not treat healing the same?  Accept that we are healed and believe it?  And while we are at it, accept that we are free from oppression and no longer captive to the world?  Then live in that firm belief, just as we believe we are saved? 

In any case, it is indisputable that Jesus came to preach the gospel to the poor, to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, and to set at liberty those who are oppressed.  To me, that means He came to heal everyone. 

So we declare:

God, You came to save us from our sins; You came to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed.  That is why You were here on earth, and that means that in Jesus' holy name You have already healed my cousin's physically broken heart.  We ask for increased faith to believe it, and as You lifted Peter up when he was sinking on the sea, catch us and lift us up when our faith wavers.  And while we're at it, a little evidence to his healing would not go amiss - astound the doctors with an unprecedentedly quick and complete recovery!  Amen!

Jody Hedlund's "Rebellious Heart" - when should we rebel, and when should we submit?

Based on the courtship of John and Abigail Adams, Jody Hedlund's Rebellious Heart is a beautiful romance set amongst the first rumblings of rebellion prior to the American Revolution, when the British were abusing their authority over the colonists and cracking down on their laws of importation.  Benjamin Ross is a poor country lawyer, the son of a farmer, lacking the wealth and good birth needed to improve his reputation.  The younger daughter of a well-to-do clergyman, Susanna Smith improves her mind the best she can on her own, unable to have the education she desires - the education her younger brother takes for granted.  Ben and Susanna do not get along very well, as he thinks she's snobbish and she disagrees with his traitorous politics.  However, when Susanna finds a young woman in need of help, she feeds, clothes, and hides her, even though she is clearly runaway indentured servant, and therefore illegal to help.  Trying to find a way to protect Dotty from her cruel master, she turns to Ben for legal help, which introduces them to an unexpected friendship and places them in a dangerous game of keeping one step ahead of the man chasing Dotty. 

While Ben and Susanna are first friends before they are lovers - enjoying matching wit, debating politics, and working together to rescue Dotty - the author does an excellent job at creating an ever-present romantic tension between them.  Their friendship, though, is what holds them together while Ben is still pursuing another woman and Susanna is caving to her parents' preference.  It is a slow route to love, and certainly not without trials and stumbling blocks, but it is a sweet romance and solid basis for a relationship. 

One of the biggest issues in the book - and it is one that has probably plagued Christians since Paul first wrote about it to the Romans (if not since Jesus provided the ultimate example) - is the command to be subject to the authorities, for God has placed them over us.  But what is one to do when the authorities abuse their power?  How far should one go before one says "enough!"? 

Even though in New Testament times the authorities of the temple not only allowed but encouraged moneychangers and the sale of animals for sacrifice in the temple courts!, Jesus came twice and chased them out - once at the beginning of His ministry, and once just before they crucified Him.  God made the temple a place for worship, to honor Him, not to provide a lucrative business for the corrupt leaders.  As Jesus proved, ultimately, God's authority trumps man's authority - sometimes, to honor God, we must break from the authority of sinful man.  

In Susanna's case, her decision essentially comes down to this - which is worse: to be brought before the courts for showing compassion, or to stand before God in the judgement and answer why she failed to help those in need?  Her heart leads her to the right decision, even if her mind balks at the thought of the consequences.  Jesus says in His word, "Behold, I send you out as sheep amidst the wolves.  Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless a doves" (Matt 10:16).  In protecting Dotty, Susanna is compassionate, harmless, and if anything, righting wrongs - but to elude the Wolf, she and Ben must be wise as serpents. 

Hedlund has written an excellent novel - not only is the plot thrilling and the romance sweet, but she has imbedded so much to ponder spiritually.  We may not be on the cusp of revolution ourselves, but the tension with authority still bothers us today, whenever officials fail to choose the godly path or their corruption would have us join them.  Thankfully, Jesus says, "all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth," so we can always appeal to His higher authority when our leaders fail.  5 out of 5 stars! 

Thank you to Bethany House for providing a free copy of this novel for the purpose of review; I was not required to make it positive, and all opinions are my own.  

How to love in spite of "unchristian" emotions

What do you do when someone you know, especially a friend, even a christian, grows increasingly unlovable?  How do you still love them when you have increasingly unchristian emotions, like bitterness, frustration, and anger, towards them?  A friend's cry for help over a friend (of my friend), led me to do some thinking about the subject.

Before we go any further, just remember that you know that you know that you know that you know who Jesus is.  And since you know who He is, you know what comes from Him and what is truth.  So don't doubt yourself, and even if you do, look in His word.  The bible will go a long way toward reminding you who He is!

That said, ultimately, you can't fix your friend, no matter what you do - God has to do that, and your firend has to be willing; just remember that he is not your responsibility.  However, I'm pretty sure you still need to love him anyway.  If there's one point marriage counseling and all the marriage advice books pound in one's head, it's that love is not an emotion, it's an action.  Bitterness, however, is an emotion - and you can still feel bitter at someone and love them anyway.  You can't really help emotions - even Jesus had emotions, like anger. 

1. Guard your heart first
So though you can't fix your friend, you can at least take care of yourself.  As a spiritual wreck, you're no good to anybody.  Think of "unchristian" emotions as temptation - the temptation to act in an unloving way.  You can choose to act on them or not.  Remember: being tempted is not a sin (Jesus was tempted but didn't sin; He was angry, but didn't sin in his anger!), it's acting on that temptation that's the sin.  While the bible doesn't say all that much about emotions as such, it does talk about temptation:

A. "No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make you a way of escape, that you may be able to bear it." I Cor: 10:13.  So if you're about to explode, crumble, lash out, or whatever - just get out of there.  The bathroom is a grand excuse when others might fail.  Note, also, it doesn't say anywhere in the bible that God won't give you more than you can handle - He does that all the time, it's why He's here - it proves that HE can handle it.  You just won't be tempted beyond what you can handle. 

B. "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation.  The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."  Matt 26:41.  So one major way to guard yourself is to pray, pray, pray.  Pray that God will guard your heart in this incredibly difficult situation, as well as change his.  Your job is to look after yourself first, because if you are dead, what good are you to anyone else?

C. "Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him."  (James 1:12).  God will bless you for not acting on your frustration and bitterness (and remember, retreat is recommended in the bible, ergo it is not sin when it prevents you from sinning).

2. Show Love Anyway (the tricky part)
It can be super hard to show people love when you're frustrated and they make you unhappy.  I don't know how much time you can spend with your friend and still be whole-hearted, so you have to figure that out yourself, but in what time you can give him, always love, even if you only spend one evening with him every other week. 

Try to show love through what truly makes him tick (not to pander depression neediness, since I don't think that helps overly).  For useful advice, Gary Chapman's The Five Love Languages comes to mind; while geared toward married couples, it has sound advice on how to show love to anyone.  The five "languages" are physical touch (hugs are good), quality time (that might be hard when he makes you not want to spend any time with him, but activities that he enjoys that leave less room for talk might work), words of affirmation (honest compliments that you really mean), gifts (self-explanatory), and acts of service (help them out).  Usually people have one or two that are especially meaningful to them.  Sometimes it feels a little clinical when you don't actually like the person in the moment, but you're still showing God's love and not acting on sinful impulses.  It means God is winning in your life, and using you to touch his at the same time!  Win-win, even if it's not the most fun.  And remember, take care of your spiritual health first!

3. When in doubt, Get More Help
Not so much for yourself (well, do that too, whenever you need it), but if there's anyone in a position of higher authority whom your friend respects, see if you can talk them into talking with him.  I'd say that as a friend alongside him, you are too much on the same level as him, but appealing to a respected higher authority might help him.  If nothing else, it should remove some of the burden from your shoulders.   Talk to pastors, professors, grandmas, bosses - anyone your friend looks up to. 



Above all, trust Jesus.  Trust His word.  And pray, pray, pray, and fast for their heart, that they would open it to the love of God, and that that love would be made clear in His actions and your own. 

When I am Weak, He is Strong

Being ill for three weeks can really bring a person low.  When no one is really sure what it is, and nothing is curing it, it seems even worse.  And it's even worse yet when it comes on two days after a lovely afternoon devoted entirely to spending time with God - tea and a picnic with a place for Him, painting the dragonflies He provided for entertainment, His Word for some spiritual bread; but mostly, spending time knowing He was there enjoying it with me. 

Thankfully Jesus came to heal and to save, and to be our strength in time of need.  After eight days of fairly high fever (102's), and even a foray into the 103's, plus eventually a cough, I went in to a clinic and was diagnosed with probably an upper respiratory virus, even though the temps were on the high side for a virus.  A couple days later I came down with an extremely painful throat, so on day 13 I was in again for strep test, which, to the great surprise of the nurse practitioner, came out positive.  Thus I was prescribed amoxicillin to take care of it.  It didn't.  At this point, it was a question of, "God?  Can I please be well?  It's up to You, since nothing is working!"

 Well, He didn't just fix me, but He has given me wise friends who know more of infections than I do, and when I began coughing out orange and brown sputum, my friend in med school sent me in to Urgent Care.  It was something of a fiasco, but I did see a doctor in the end, and he diagnosed me with a lower respiratory infection of Streptococcus pneumoniae.  This is not to be confused with the Strep A that causes Strep throat; this is far worse.  It can easily lead to pneumonia, and it is the leading cause of bacterial meningitis, among other nasty problems.  It's not something you want infecting your body.  But the doc prescribed the super antibiotics, and God has see fit to take care of my infection through that. 

Throughout the 21-day illness, I had to rely on God for getting things done (and for making sure my husband picked up the right groceries and did what I needed him to), and I had to rely on Him for comfort in my distress of an extremely painful throat and high fevers.  Even for keeping the first round of antibiotics down, when they wanted terribly to come back out of my stomach in the middle of the night.  And He was faithful.

It makes sense to me that it was an attack, pure and simple: the devil does not like us to spend time improving our relationship with Jesus.  He'd much rather we be too busy.  I admit during the illness I was not up to reading my bible as faithfully, and my prayers were pretty centered on "help me feel better, please," but God remains faithful through it all, and He continues to bless us for our love. 

"Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake.  For when I am weak, then I am strong."  2nd Corinthians 12:10

Lights in the Firmament

Genesis 1:14-15
 Then God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years; and them be for lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth"; and it was so.

When one thinks of lights in the sky, what does one think of?  Primarily the sun, the moon, and the stars.  Genesis even continues to describe that on the fourth day of creation, God specifically hung those great lights in the sky to "give light on the earth, to rule over the day and the night, and to divide the light from the darkness" (1:17-18). 

However, those are not the only lights God put into the sky.

On a warm, summer evening, with stars glittering above in a cloudless sky, streaks of green danced in front of the Big Dipper and across the northern sky.  In some places even a touch of pink flirted with the with the green, as they streaked and darted in front of the stars. 

Of course, Aurora Borealis is caused by the solar flares from the sun, and there is a scientific explanation of how it works, so technically you can say that it is part of the sun, but it does no justice to the mysterious beauty God has created.  Isn't the hand of God something that He can take a bands of green light like water color and paint them across His wide canvas in restless streaks that never cease their rippling dance across the heavens?  The Northern Lights are just one more example of our Creator's creative genius. 

Sweeping, dashing, dancing, flashing,

Green shoots across the sky;

Heaven's canvas painted o'er

Like water colors spilled on high.

Leaning back to look straight up,

I see it flash as lightning will;

The green streaks move with swiftest speed,

Racing for the sky to fill.

Lower down horizon-way,

It, restless, dances with the stars;

The Dipper fades 'neath verdant waves

That change to ripples, sweeps, and bars. 

Then the colors move and travel on,

For nothing there is permanent,

 But God's great hand still holds the brush

To paint Aurora 'cross the firmament.

God's Grace in an Unexpected Flood

Tischer Creek (turned raging torrent)

Job 38:8-11, 25-28, 34-38

“Or who shut in the sea with doors,

When it burst forth and issued from the womb;

When I made the clouds its garment,

And thick darkness its swaddling band;

When I fixed My limit for it,

And set bars and doors;

When I said,

‘This far you may come, but no farther,

And here your proud waves must stop!’

“Who has divided a channel for the overflowing water,

Or a path for the thunderbolt,

To cause it to rain on a land where there is no one,

A wilderness in which there is no man;

To satisfy the desolate waste,

And cause to spring forth the growth of tender grass?

Has the rain a father?

Or who has begotten the drops of dew?

“Can you lift up your voice to the clouds,

That an abundance of water may cover you?

Can you send out lightnings, that they may go,

And say to you, ‘Here we are!’

Who has put wisdom in the mind?

Or has given understanding to the heart?

Who can number the clouds by wisdom?

Or who can pour out the bottles of heaven,

When the dust hardens in clumps,

And the clods cling together?”

Trailhead of Congdon Park

Duluth, Minnesota, is a city on a hill – from the base of the hill, where the waters of Lake Superior lap (or pound) the board walk along the shore, all the way up the 800-foot elevation gain to the flatter top that was once a giant swamp.  Its foundation is granite, shallowly topped with red clay that offers just enough depth to make the woods flourish.  It is known for some of the strongest blizzards in Minnesota, where the Lake creates her own weather to suit her preferences.  It tends to be cooler and rainier in the summer than in the inland parts of the state, but it can certainly hit 90 degrees on a sunny July day.  Superior whips up some incredible storms with ocean-sized waves all year round, and the winter storms offer some of the best Lake surfing for extreme surfers.  Despite the quantities of water Duluth handles on a regular basis, there is one thing one does not expect in this city: flooding. 

Congdon Road

In the recent rains that covered the entire Minnesota northland, many areas received seven to nine inches of rain in the course of two days or less.  If it were winter, we’d be talking ten feet of snow, making the Halloween Blizzard of 1992 a minor snowstorm.  However, this was pure water—water that had nowhere to go but straight down to the lake. 

The shallow clay could not begin to handle the waves of water that flowed in rivers down the streets—above and below—causing up to a swift six inches to run on top of the tar, and masses of water that blasted the clay out from underneath roads in a desperate push for the lake.  Duluth’s thirty-odd creeks more resembled rushing torrents as they raged to the lake, many exceeding their banks and running down the streets instead. 

Behind the University of MN Duluth stadium

Up on top of the hill, the water was much slower to move, and parking lots and roads became lakes.  One car dealership in the city discovered all their cars completely underwater.  Basements flooded, gardens washed away—yet some places look entirely untouched.

Overall, most roads are fine (perhaps a little worse for wear, but typical Duluth roads are hardly perfect anyway).  With a few detours, one can basically get wherever one wants.  However, some streets have gaping holes or no longer exist entirely.  The zoo lost all but one of its petting zoo critters, but the more exotic creatures were safe (though not necessarily in their pens). 

Vermillion Road, at the intersection with Hawthorne

Vermillion Road

Miraculously, God kept everyone safe.  Even a little boy who was sucked into a culvert and washed up six blocks away was basically uninjured.  For a disaster of this magnitude, where children and teens were playing in the streets, tubing in parking lots, and kayaking around the east end of the University, putting themselves in danger of being swept away to drown in the raging creeks or muddy red Superior (and in danger of waterborne disease from the bubbling fountains of the sewer), God made a major miracle in preserving the life of all His children. 

Genesis 9:11: “Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy all the earth.”  The landscape is changed, but God’s promise to all creation still stands—we were not destroyed, but preserved.

God bless Hope for Duluth!

Samson's Source of Strength

Then she said to him, "How can you say, 'I love you,' when your heart is not with me?  You have mocked me these three times, and have not told me where your great strength lies."  And it came to pass, when she pestered him daily with her words and pressed him, so that his soul was vexed to death, that he told her all his heart, and said to her, "No razor has come upon my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother's womb.  If I am shaven, then my strength shall leave me, and I shall become weak like any other man."   Judges 16:15-17

Of course, Samson fails to mention that he has already broken most other aspects of the Nazirite vow (detailed in Numbers 6):

1. No alcohol, vinegar, or anything from grapes (Samson threw a feast for his wedding - questionable whether he kept his vow)
2. No Shaving your head (which Delilah takes care of)
3. No going near dead bodies (Samson voluntarily comes back to fetch honey out of the dead lion)
4. If one should have a sudden death in one's vicinity, one must take seven days to cleanse oneself and then shave one's head to begin the Nazirite vow anew (Samson did not do this regarding the lion, his fresh jawbone of a donkey, or any men he killed)

Essentially, shaving the head was the final straw for Samson.

"If I am shaven, then my strength shall leave me, and I shall become weak like any other man."

However, it was not just Samson's strength than left him - in verse 20, it says,"The Lord had departed from him."  

Samson's strength was not in his hair - his strength was in the Lord.  By breaking his vows without atonement, he was forced into cleansing and atonement, for the Lord had left him.  In time, yes, his hair grew back and the Spirit of the Lord filled him once more, but his strength truly was the Lord, not his hair.  What if he had had the sense to tell Delilah the true source of his strength, that it was not in anything he was capable of doing himself, but rather in his God?

Would he have died in revenge for his eyes?

Or would the Lord have found even greater uses for a man who relied on Him for his strength?

And likewise, oughtn't we give credit where it is due?  That our strengths and talents are not of ourselves, but rather of the Lord our God?

Regarding the Posted Poetry

On occasion, or occasionally for an occasion, I feel the urge to to jot down a bit of poetry - whether it is is to commemorate an event, or I simply have a line running through my head that needs a bit more development.

The story of Sonja, my duckling, is an example of the former - in May of 2011, I discovered a lone duckling in the parking lot of a Dairy Queen, and as the poor wee thing would not survive the cool night without her mother, who was long gone, I brought her home and placed her under a heat lamp in a box that was currently devoid of the oranges it once held, and I took time to cuddle and comfort her in the days that followed.  If you are familiar with Sergei Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf," you may remember Peter's friend the duck was named Sonja.  One morning, after nearly two months under my care, my child was gone - most likely to the river, where we often went down to play and dig up leeches and water insects and snails.  I never saw her again.  Incidentally, her head was turning green, which is a rather bad sign for a female (indeed, an indication she was not a female at all).  I shall soon post the poem about Sonja's life that I wrote as sequel to her "birth" poem.

"The Wanderer's Prayer" is an example of the latter - where I had some ideas floating around in my head, and maybe even a rhyme or two.  One hears of such people as Nickolai Rimsky-Korsakov, the Russian composer famous for "Scheherazade," "The Golden Cockerel," and "Flight of the Bumble Bee" (the theme song of the Green Hornet), who could actually hear in color; what would it be like to sense things with all five senses that to our meager knowledge can only be sampled using one or two of the senses?  Hear things that we can only see, or taste what can only be felt?  As I hashed out the poem, I realized (perhaps subconsciously at the time, but ten years later I now know) that it is not enough to find those answers, nor are the questions even the goal of what I seek; without the Holy Spirit walking with me, it would be utterly pointless - "vanity" and "grasping at the wind."  On this Earth I cannot hope to truly taste the night and day, nor see music flow or hear a path's glow, but in that day when there is a new Heaven and a new Earth, who knows what will be possible?  Yet even that cannot be the goal of my life - to go to a perfect place with streets of gold when my body gives up its last breath.  Who doesn't want to go to Heaven and forgo eternity in the Lake of Fire?  But the destination is not what is important; the journey is.  Spending my time wandering with Jesus, Savior and Friend, letting Him be my guide, seeing what he wants to reveal to me - that's the real treasure.  It's not about Heaven - it's about Him. 

John 3:8 acknowledges that "the wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes.  So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."  I don't know who all is walking with the Spirit - that is in their own hearts to choose; the Spirit will go where the heart is open to receive it.  But I do know that I have chosen Jesus as my walking companion, and every day I want to be walking with Him.

God bless!