Life Cycles - Martin Wiles

For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. 2 Corinthians 5:1 NLT

The days of getting up and being ready in fifteen minutes have vanished.

Although I’m in relatively good health, my life cycle has changed. This fact dawned on me one morning when it seemed I simply could not get ready. 

A diagnosis of glaucoma and dry eye disease means I must use three types of drops daily. One twice a day, another once a day, and still another several times a day. Keeping up with the schedule taxes my brain. 

Patches of extremely dry skin also resulted in a prescription cream that must be applied twice daily for two weeks, with two weeks off before repeating the treatment. 

And then there are the pills I swallow. One to control my acid reflux. A daily aspirin because I’m over fifty, along with the daily vitamin to make sure I get what I might not through food. Add a beta blocker to regulate my Tachycardia. Finishing off the list is another over-the-counter acid reducer to help the prescription-strength one. Of course, there are more for other age-related issues, but you get the picture.  

I shouldn’t complain—and usually don’t. Others are worse off than me. My wife has a pouch full of medicine she must take daily to deal with health issues far more severe than mine. And those with rare diseases or other life-altering medical issues can top her—such as my brother who has Parkinson’s. 

Reading what Paul says is comforting—and should be for all who have reached the later life cycle or are suffering with life-altering medical challenges. I may not spend as much time as some do dolling up certain parts of my body or toning my muscles, but I don’t neglect it through unhealthy habits either. Regardless, my body will do what bodies do: age, change, and eventually die. 

We can’t keep these bodies alive, but God can—and will. Just not in their present form. When we die, or when Christ returns, our bodies will be transformed and fitted for our eternal home. A home where no pain, sickness, disease, medicine, or death will inhabit. Nor will there be any more life cycles.

Enjoy the life cycles—despite the changes they bring. They mean you are one step closer to eternity. 

Father, give me grace to endure the changes I must face as I gracefully age. 

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Keep Your Lamp Burning – Kristen Whiteley

Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning. Luke 12:35 NIV

The words haunted my soul in a deep-down, glorious way. Who shall abide the day of his coming? As I listened to this particular aria from Handel’s Messiah, the operatic refrain echoed through my mind and heart. I suddenly wondered, as I folded laundry, if I was ready for the Lord’s coming? If he sundered the sky right now with otherworldly light, would I be overjoyed? Frightened? Heavy-hearted or grieved at all about how I have spent my time?

The words of Luke sprang into my epochal thoughts: “Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning.” I think of an Old Testament Israelite priest dressed in fine linen and bearing the costly stones representing the twelve tribes of Israel on his breastplate, continually interceding for the people, bearing up the ones whom he wore over his heart. He dressed for service. He also had to keep the lamp in the Tent of Meeting always burning. The sign of God’s presence in the fire would never be distinguished as long as the priest fulfilled his service. 

Eschatology has a time and place, but the simple command of the Lord tugs more persuasively at my heart. As an ambassador of Christ, how am I serving the Lord and his people? Is my lamp ever-burning for Jesus? Are my words a sign that his Presence indwells me? Are my actions proof? 

I think those who shall abide his coming are the ones who remain faithful to the end, dressed for service, ready for action, watchful, hearts aflame. 

When we get up in the morning, even as we dress for the day, let us dress ourselves for service, ready for whatever God might have us do. 

Lord God, may we who proclaim your name keep our lamps burning, that we may be ready for your coming. In the name of Jesus, amen.

Kristen Whiteley agrees with her father that poetry is a way of seeing the world. In between discipling three young children and home-keeping, she leads worship and writes as a way to process her ponderings. Kristen is passionate about creation, the cross, community, classic literature, and homesteading.

If you seek hope and healing because of hurts you have faced, then Hurt, Hope, and Healing is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

Investments with Guaranteed Returns - Martin Wiles

Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Matthew 6:19 NLT

He thought I earned big bucks, but his smile turned to confusion when I told him I made nothing. 

Prior to our Sunday evening service, I talked with one of our sound technicians who had recently returned to college. Knowing I had taught grammar, he wanted to share a website he had discovered that improved his writing. 

In our conversation, I mentioned I was the Managing Editor for a popular devotional website. As I described my responsibilities, he said, “That must pay pretty well.”

I returned his smile and said, “Here’s how much it pays,” and formed a zero with my fingers. 

His confused look told me he didn’t understand. So, I explained. I love editing and grammar. I also love investing in the lives of other authors, sharing the benefit of my knowledge and training with them. As many editors have helped me, so I want to assist others. Their work—which will be posted on websites and in journals, books, and newspapers—will outlast me.  

Jesus doesn’t say having possessions is wrong, but he warns they can steal our focus from more important things. Things don’t last, and things can turn our focus from spiritual pursuits. We live in a throwaway age where stuff lasts less time than it once did. Rather than focusing on holding on to earthly playthings, Jesus says we need to store our belongings in heaven. But how?

As I post my own devotions online and assist other authors in doing the same, I’m making an eternal investment that will outlive me. Long after I’m dead, my words for the Lord will circulate and continue to influence people’s lives. 

I store treasures in heaven through spiritual disciplines. As I pray, read God’s Word, fellowship with other believers, share my faith, and use my spiritual gifts, I send rewards ahead to my eternal home. 

Storing treasure in heaven also takes place every time I do anything that will outlast me. When I invest my spiritual heritage in my children and grandchildren, I store treasure in heaven. Hopefully, they will follow my example long after I’m gone. When I mentor a younger person in their spiritual journey, I send treasures to heaven. They too will outlive me and carry on the faith. 

Heavenly investments won’t rust, break down, or be stolen. Invest in eternity, not earth. 

Father, guide me to those pursuits that will send treasures to my heavenly home with you. 

If you seek hope and healing because of hurts you have faced, then Hurt, Hope, and Healing is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

Taco Salad

 

Ingredients

1 POUND GROUND BEEF

1 HEAD LETTUCE

2 CUPS SHREDDED CHEESE

2 TOMATOES (DICED)

1 SMALL BOTTLE CATALINA DRESSING

     

1 LARGE BAG DORITOS

1 ENVELOPE TACO SEASONING

Directions

COOK GROUND BEEF AND DRAIN.

ADD TACO SEASONING AND COOK AS DIRECTED. SET ASIDE.

CHOP LETTUCE AND PLACE IN A LARGE BOWL.

ADD TOMATOES, CHEESE, AND MEAT. MIX TOGETHER.

ADD CATALINA DRESSING AND COVER THOROUGHLY.

WHEN READY TO SERVE, CRUSH LARGE BAG OF DORITOS AND MIX IN THE SALAD.

I invite you to try my book Hurt, Hope, and Healing in eBook or paperback. If you seek hope and healing because of the hurts you have faced, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

What a Walk - Martin Wiles

And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him. Genesis 5:24 NKJV

He was the first to do what I longed to do . . . but probably never would. And what a walk it was. 

In his book, Walking with Spring, Earl Shaffer details his account of being the first person to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail—a footpath extending more than 2,000 miles from Springer Mountain, Georgia, to Mount Katahdin, Maine. The new trail was a mess and not as well attended as it is today. Nor did he have the modern equipment available presently. 

I once dreamed of taking a walk like Earl. Taking six months off from work and living in the wilderness, enjoying God’s creation. Although I’ve hiked numerous sections of the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Virginia, I’ve never hiked the entire trail. Now, age and health concerns would prevent me from doing so. 

Enoch took a walk of a different variety. A walk with God. And when his time came to leave this earth, God just took him. He didn’t have to pass through the scary experience of death. He merely disappeared into God’s hands and entered heaven. 

To take a walk with God means going in the same direction as he does. God is characterized by holiness and righteousness. Walking with him means we must pursue the same traits. While we can’t be purely holy and righteous in practice as he is, we can be in position by accepting what he allowed his Son to do on Calvary’s cross: pay for our sins. When we accept that act, Jesus’ righteousness—which was as pure as God the Father’s—is applied to our lives.  

Walking with God is often taxing, as it was for Earl Schaffer as he maneuvered a rough and unkempt trail. But God promises to walk with us and give us the power to make it through the rough spots. 

Taking a walk with God requires obedience. Jesus says if we love him, we will obey his commands. Doing so isn’t always easy, but he will give us strength to do that as well. 

When we walk with God, we can also expect rewards. God gives us the desire to serve him, the power to obey his commands, and then rewards us for his accomplishments through us. The assurance of his presence and love now and throughout eternity keeps us taking another step. 

Walking is good exercise. Take a daily walk with God and reap the benefits.

Father, thank you for the privilege of walking with you. 

If you seek hope and healing because of hurts you have faced, then Hurt, Hope, and Healing is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

A Collision of Raindrops and Sunshine - Anita van der Elst

When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth. Genesis 9:16 ESV

As my husband and I drove out of a nearby hillside neighborhood, we saw it in the distance. The unmistakable arcs and colors of a double rainbow. But not a surprise to see since a sudden rain shower had come while the sun shone brightly at the same time. A collision of raindrops and sunshine. 

I wanted to capture a picture of it on my phone, but the foliage was too thick, so down the hill we went, chasing those rainbows. The result was a lovely image of two rainbows, one slightly fainter in vibrance, shining against a dark blue sky.

Reading this promise from God, it occurs to me that when I see the rainbow, he and I are seeing it at the same time, an activity we do together. We are in relationship. The rainbow draws my attention to him. 

God promised never to send another flood to punish wrongdoing. However, our sins remain a barrier between God and us. In paying for our sins by dying on the cross, Jesus made it possible for us to be in relationship with God. We are forgiven and washed clean. In rising again, Jesus defeated death forever. A collision of justice and grace.

Now, instead of seeing my sins, God sees me through Jesus. The light of Jesus shines from my heart, and because of Jesus, God promises eternal life in heaven with him forever. 

Make sure you have entered into that relationship with God through trusting in Jesus. 

Anita van der Elst finds joy in creating with words, believing God gifted her with the desire to do so. Married to her best friend, Edward, since 1976, she is a proud mom of four adult children and Oma to three of the most delightful grandchildren ever. Other joys in her life include bringing beauty to Facebook through photos she takes on her iPhone, exploring the state parks in the PNW, facilitating a small group of women, and participating in a Bible study.

I invite you to try my book Hurt, Hope, and Healing in eBook or paperback. If you seek hope and healing because of the hurts you have faced, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

Toys in the Tub - Martin Wiles

Late one afternoon, after his midday rest, David got out of bed and was walking on the roof of the palace. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath. 2 Samuel 11:2 NLT

Baths may clean us up, but sometimes toys in the tub get us into trouble.

Resting outside the bathtub in our spare bathroom is a plastic container with numerous bath toys: a rubber duck, a sailing boat, several balls, a bar of Ivory soap, and cars. The normal toys kids play with when they bathe. 

And when they were young, all our grandboys loved to play with them when they bathed. They loved the bubbles MeMe put in the tub. They hid the toys under the bubbles, then held them in the air and watched as the water squirted out, hollering and laughing. Occasionally, they splashed water on the floor, which drew a sharp rebuke from MeMe. 

King David also knew a little about bathing and getting into trouble. He wasn’t the one bathing. Bathsheba was, but he was the one who looked when he shouldn’t have. The play on words is interesting: Bathsheba bathing. Some suggest she bathed here on purpose because she knew the king’s practice of walking on his roof. Whether or not she intentionally provided the temptation, David fell into the traps of lust, adultery, lying, and murder. One year—and several consequences—passed before he finally confessed.

Our world is filled with play toys—not that we bathe with but that we encounter daily. Technological gadgets, possessions of all sorts, hobbies—and the things we need to enjoy them—sporting activities—and the money we can spend watching them—movies, video games. The list of play toys available to those who live in developed countries is endless. 

Some of the play toys are sinful—and others have the potential to be. Bathsheba’s bathing wasn’t a sin, but if she did it hoping the king would do what he did, then it became sinful. David’s accidental glance wasn’t a sin, but when he lusted and acted, it became one. Satan is a master at wrapping innocent things in sinful paper. 

Only God can give us the wisdom to play with the right toys and to keep them in the proper perspective. We can’t trust our own judgment. It’s skewed by our sinful nature and our propensity to gratify our selfish desires. 

God may not ask you to throw your toys away. He may simply want you to see them with different eyes or use them more productively. 

Father, guide me in using my toys so they won’t grab my attention away from you and more important things. 

If you seek hope and healing because of hurts you have faced, then Hurt, Hope, and Healing is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.