From Strength to Strength...Consider the Lilies

 “… Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.”   Matthew 6:28-29

It’s August and the summer days are waning. If you’re anything like me, you are still hanging onto the season…feasting your eyes (when you can) on the beautiful lush landscapes…and still enjoying the long daylight hours.  As I’m writing this I’m sitting outside and also smiling at the sounds of neighborhood children playing a crazy game of kickball next door.  There are a couple squirrels running along the back fence and a brazen little rabbit, is poised in the yard, taunting my golden retriever.   The birds are chirping their evening melody and I’m still noticing the faint aroma of someone’s charcoal grill…and evening meal, nearby. 

My senses are taking in all the peace and it becomes a prayer. 

Some have called this a prayer of consideration: one in which we purposefully raise our minds and hearts to God, while still steeped in the concrete circumstances of our world.  It’s a prayer of awareness, acknowledging what we are experiencing and sharing it with our God, Who is within and around us.
 
Jesus did this a lot as He used His awareness for object lessons in His teaching.  Here He contrasts the magnificent beauty of field lilies, wild flowers much akin to our colorful anemones…with our needless worry over daily provision. 

What are you seeing, hearing, smelling, feeling right now?  How about earlier today or during your morning run or walk…or even your drive into work? 

I have a dear friend who worships many mornings at the magnificent sunrises she experiences on her way to the office.  She then snaps phone photos of them.  What a wonderful reminder later, during a low point in her day, as she’s able to once again gaze upon the images she had captured that morning. 

What simple ways can you incorporate prayers of consideration into the concrete circumstances of your world?  They’re all around you. 

 “Consider the lilies…”  

Resources for Going Deeper:
​​"Busy Lives & Restless Souls" by Becky Eldredge

From Strength to Strength...Hospitality a Spiritual Practice? Indeed it is!

Summer, 2017 is well on its way and so are the picnics, backyard barbeques and … if you are so blessed, pool parties.  On my neighborhood walks it’s not unusual to catch the wonderful whiff of hamburgers grilling and the sounds of love and laughter in the air.  It’s so inviting … yes, and also comforting to feel the sense of welcoming and safety these represent.

 
There’s something else about these summer gatherings that is now unique in our culture.  They seem  relaxed and unhurried.  Hurry, a norm in most of our lives now, … has been defined by Eugene Peterson as an act of violence against time.   Wow!  Just sit and ponder that one for awhile!

Consequently, when we create safe, open, unhurried spaces where friends (or strangers) can enter and experience the welcoming Spirit of Jesus Christ, ... we are practicing hospitality.
 
When we can sit with another, face to face, in an unhurried fashion, we are offering the gift of presence.
 
When we are willing to offer a cold drink and simply relax and listen to a friend who needs to process, we are acting as Christ to him or her. 

This summer try welcoming guests with all of your heart, lingering at the door when they leave until they pull out of the driveway, and then spending a few extra minutes praying for them before you move on.  Who knows, you may have “…unwittingly entertained angels.”  (Hebrews 13:2)
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‘Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.”
Romans 15:7

From Strength to Strength...My Cup Overflows

The shelf in my kitchen cupboard reserved for cups and mugs is overflowing.  This seems a bit silly, for my large family has long since been launched, and while guests come often, they rarely arrive in large groups.  Yet every time I deal with that shelf (usually after unloading the dishwasher) I come to the same conclusion.  All the cups must stay because they all represent something important.​ 

I’m smiling as I think about those vessels that have special purpose:

• Some are gifts from one of my children.
• Others are simply remembrances of special places I’ve visited or frequented.
• Still others simply have a comforting “feel” as I hold them.  

Ahhh and speaking of comforting “feels”, … some of the mugs are set aside for that hot, delicious coffee wake up, especially on more leisurely mornings.  Others can be allowed to hold only hot aromatic teas for mid-afternoon perc-ups or evening relaxation.  My goodness, I even have two huge mugs that are reserved for hot soups on cold winter nights and other mugs that are reserved for serving special people.  And…last but certainly not least, I also have a mug that a dear friend just leaves at my home for her frequent visits.

 

Silly?  Am I alone in this fetish or do any of you relate?  Do you have a cupboard shelf of vessels waiting to be filled to overflowing?

 

You know there really is a spiritual message in all of this.

 

Are you filled to overflowing today…pouring out to different people in different ways? 

 
“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be God and not of us.”  2 Corinthians 4:7

“And of His fullness have all we received, and grace for grace.”  John 1:16

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies: you anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.  Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”  Psalm 23: 5-6

If this speaks to your heart today, do share it.
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God bless you all!