Why Are We Here?

What is the meaning of life?

Why am I here?

Have you heard these comments?

I just want to blend in. 

I don't want to be singled out. 

I don't want to be different. 

Or

I want to be myself. 

I don't want to be like the others. 

I want to be famous. 

Or

I just want to help others. 

I just want to make a difference. 

I want to discover something important. 

So what is it that we really want out of life?

• happiness
• fame
• fortune
• family
• security for the afterlife 

You know, I really can't answer this question outside of Scripture, for it is because of God that I am who I am and that I have any value. Without Him I am nothing. Because of Him my life means everything. 

Does that mean that I am the product of a cookie cutter mold and that all believers are the same? Absolutely not. 

Does that mean that God knew exactly what he was doing when he made me with this personality and temperament? Absolutely. 

Tonight I leave you with a quote from Ralph Emerson. It's a good springboard to what I want to share tomorrow from II Peter. So stay tuned. 

The purpose of life is not to be happy.

It is to be useful, 

to be honorable, 

to be compassionate, 

to have it make some difference 

that you have lived and lived well. 

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Just because I like MY nails painted....

Poor little Cassie. 

She needed her toenails trimmed in a major way. But, bless her heart, she's the kind of girl that would have been just fine with a trim and then a jaunt in the park. Not me.

She patiently waited as I trimmed a little and then a little more -- I'm always afraid I'll make them bleed. 

Then she endured my filing them with an emory board. You can't have sharp edges on your nails!

Then, the insult of all insults -- I painted them

PINK! 

When we were all finished, she exitedly went running around outside, glad to be free from the torture. 

But when she came back in, she curled up on my bed in a little ball -- feet all tucked under -- as if to say, "Don't you dare do anything else to my toes! You've embarrassed me enough for one night!"

 

How many times do we do things like this to our friends and family -- impose what we think is appealing onto them? 

I don't know, maybe you aren't guilty of such a thing. I know there are times when I think something should go a certain way or be done with a certain touch and I just assume everybody else feels the same way. Many times it isn't really a big deal -- everybody just goes along and it turns out fine. But sometimes, feelings get hurt -- people feel like you're about the bossiest human they know -- people wonder who put YOU in control, etc. 

As Thanksgiving approaches, I'm reminded of the first European settlers and the native Americans who helped them survive. It was imperative to show each other respect and to learn to share the land. 

I don't think it's any different today. We mustn't expect pink nail polish where plain ol' ordinary ones will do nicely. We must respect each other and learn from one another. And...

Be thankful for God's provision. 

The Treasures of Life

It's been over three months since my mother passed away. It seems like a hundred years ago. And it seems like yesterday. 

Sometimes I go into her room and I can still smell her there.

Every day I see her things in our home -- her great aunt's hutch, the picture of her and daddy in the alps, the books she was reading before she got so sick -- and I am reminded of her love for life and her devotion to her Lord. 

She was proud of her country. She would have wanted to stay up until the wee hours of the night on Election Day to see the outcomes of the different races. She appreciated the privilege and the responsibility to vote. 

Mother was a writer. I read a few entries in one of her journals last week -- she had such a way with words. So I was thrilled tonight when I came across some Advent devotional guides she had written in recent years. I had already found two or three of them. But now I have a total of seven! And four Lenten guides! 

What a treasure. 

She was a treasure. 

I miss her. But she is doing right now what she had so desperately longed to do for many, many years -- praising God with all her heart. I can't wait to do the same. 

Spiritual Seasons

Are there Spiritual seasons -- periods of growth and dormancy?

As long as the earth remains, there will be springtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, day and night." Genesis 8:22

Well, from a scientific point of view, the above statement is true. In order for the earth to function properly, it must revolve around the sun and it must rotate on its axis. Therefore during earth's life as we know it, there will always be seasons, polar opposites, daylight, and dark.

What is spiritual SPRING?
It is a time of awakening and new growth. Sometimes it is when we have first come to a saving knowledge of the Lord that we find ourselves in springtime. But spring doesn't only come once in our spiritual lifetime. Sometimes the best growth spiritually comes after a hard pruning or a time of dormancy. But spiritual growth requires sunshine (or sonshine) and rain (living water) and God supplies them both.

Ask the Lord for rain in the springtime; it is the Lord who sends the thunderstorms. He gives showers of rain to all people, and plants of the field to everyone.  Zechariah 10:1

Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear.... Hosea 6:3 

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! II Corinthians 5:17

SUMMER?
Summer is a time to sink the roots down deep into the spiritual soil -- to become well-grounded and strengthened.

The waters nourished it, deep springs made it grow tall; their streams flowed all around its base and sent their channels to all the trees of the field.  Ezekiel 31:4 

It was majestic in beauty, with its spreading boughs, for its roots went down to abundant waters. Ezekiel 31:7

The Lord called you a thriving olive tree with fruit beautiful in form.... Jeremiah 11:16

AUTUMN?
This season is marked by the falling away of things from our lives -- hurts, habits, hangups, etc. When we listen to the Holy Spirit and allow Him to cut some things away, that can be painful and yet liberating. Autumn is also typically a time to separate the good from the bad -- the seed from the chaff.

The land yields its harvest; God, our God, blesses us. Psalm 67:6

The Lord will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest. Psalm 85:19

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.  I John 1:9 

His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.  Luke 3:17 

WINTER?
Winter brings rest and peace. It may be a bit dark and cold, but it should remind us of our dependence upon God and that He is in control.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darknes has not overcome it.  John 1:5

...even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day for darkness is as light to you.  Psalm 139:12

Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.  Psalm 46:10 

Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this:  He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun.  Psalm 37:5-6

Trust in the Lord foreer, for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal.  Isaiah 26:4 

Yes, because of our human nature, we find ourselves in various seasons spiritually as our lives progress. It is important to keep our focus on the Lord no matter which season we are in. We should look to the positive in our current season and look forward to what the Lord will bring in the next. And we should take comfort in knowing that He is in control.

Seasons of Life

 

I've done a little reading about the seasons of life. I've heard people comment about being in a particular season but I've never really looked into what those seasons might be.  

I've thought about these possible seasons:

• childhood and development
• young adulthood, the quest for career, the quest for a mate
• young family, friends getting married, friends having children
• older family, older generation (parents, aunts, uncles) dying, empty nest, grandchildren, declining health
• retirement, siblings dying, spouses dying

But this seems too chronological for me. 

Perhaps as we go through the different phases of physical maturity and natural decline we experience different things that require a response from us and these times become the seasons. 

Now I don't know anything about Adam Sicinski or IQMatrix, but here's an excerpt of what he says:

• Summer: A season for rewards, celebration and fulfillment.
• Autumn: A season for survival, mistakes and problems.
• Winter: A season for reflection, hibernation and planning.
• Spring: A season for learning, opportunity and dynamic thinking.

http://blog.iqmatrix.com/seasons-of-transformation

Interesting. 

So how long does one season last?

What determines how we move from one to the next?

Do they go in order like our natural seasons do?

Or can they skip around?

Do some people live in a "climate" that only produces one or two seasons?

Natural seasons progress pretty rhythmically whether we want them to or not. Do our personal seasons change on their own or do we have any control over them! 

Are there spiritual seasons?

If so, do they stand alone or are they intertwined with life's seasons?

According to King Solomon there is a season for:

• giving birth and dying
• planting and uprooting
• killing and healing
• tearing down and building up
• weeping and laughing
• mourning and dancing
• throwing stones and gathering stones
• embracing and refraining from embracing
• searching and counting as lost
• keeping and throwing away
• tearing and sewing
• being silent and speaking
• loving and hating
• war and peace‭‭ (from Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3:2-8‬)

Think about it. 

Tomorrow we are going to look at some scripture regarding spiritual seasons. I think that will answer some of today's questions.

Seasons

I love the seasons in Kentucky because I love change. I don't think I would like to live in the seasonal extremes of Siberia or the Sahara desert. 

What do you like about the seasons? Is it the variety? Is it the beauty? 

For some people, it is the anticipation of what is to come.  For instance, in the heat of August it isn't uncommon to hear, "I can't wait for fall to get here." Or after a long stretch of freezing temps, you might hear, "I'm so ready for spring!"

Which season is your favorite?

Me? I've thought about this question before. I love the beautiful flowers of spring. I love going to the pool and the very long days of summer. I love the gorgeous trees and milder temps of fall. And I love winters that are full of back to back snows. 

 

But really and truly, I think my favorite season is the one I'm in. So fall it is. 

Happy Autumn, everyone. Let's celebrate. 

Henny Penny

Do you remember the story of Henny Penny or Chicken Licken? This was the one where an acorn falls on the chick's head and he automatically assumes, "The sky is falling! The sky is falling!" 

Can you name some of the other characters in the story?

• Cocky Locky
• Ducky Lucky
• Goosey Loosey
• Gander Lander
• Turkey Lurkey
• Foxy Loxy

Well, we have had our own little Henny Penny at our house for about the past 13 years or so. 

 

This isn't really him but it's a close double. 

Henny came to us when Lizzie was about five. Lori Reisig had rescued this little fellow from the parking lot outside of the JC Penney's. She said he looked like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders or like he felt that disaster was eminent. Hence the name, Henny Penny. But Lori couldn't keep him so she gave him to our Lizzie for me to take care of (you know how that goes). 

Henny disappeared 6 days ago -- he was NOT a wanderer. He had been losing weight and had gotten very frail. But he seemed happy enough -- purring and talking to me often. Unfortunately, I think it's safe to say that Henny probably wandered off to find a place to die. 

I hate that. Every day I've gone out to check around for him, hopeful that he will come around the corner or meet me by the food bowls. It's not looking good. 

If this is true and Henny is gone, that means that we are down to three pets at our house -- one skidish little rescue dog, one fat indoor rescue cat, and one svelte outdoor hunter-cat (also a rescue). It's a little bit sad. I wonder if the remaining animals wonder where Henny is. Will my hunter miss having the warmth of his body in the cat bed at night this winter? 

Henny was a pretty good ol' boy. I'll miss him.