Pollyanna, FDR, and the Psalmist

When I was young, I read and re-read the Pollyanna books. Written in 1913 by Eleanor H. Porter, the first book introduced Pollyanna's "Glad Game," which consisted of finding something to be glad about in every situation. When, instead of the doll Pollyanna had hoped for, a pair of crutches arrived in the Christmas gift barrel, her minister father made up the game—in this case, be glad for the crutches "because we don't need them!" Her name has been used so often to describe untiringly cheerful people that it has entered into our common language as a term for being excessively optimistic! Scholars and writers and politicians use "the Pollyanna principle" to describe people who unfailingly look on the bright side and hope for the best, regardless of how things look.

The perpetually happy little girl in the series has been given—unfairly, I think—a reputation of foolishness by those who might prefer to predict doom! She is actually in very good company. President Franklin D. Roosevelt had a motto in the Oval Office of the White House: "Let unconquerable gladness dwell." Is that an admonition? A goal? A prayer? Whatever the intended message, it was not mere foolishness. It reflected the hope and determination of our national leader during a bleak time in American history. FDR faced crises on both the home front and an international level, and he did so with bold optimism.

David expressed gladness in many of his songs. "I know the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me. No wonder my heart is glad, and I rejoice. My body rests in safety. (Psalm 6:8, 9 NLT) "For you make me glad by your deeds, O LORD; I sing for joy at the works of your hands." (92:4 NIV) "May all who search for you be filled with joy and gladness in you. May those who love your salvation repeatedly shout, “The Lord is great!” (40:16 NLT) "Let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. (Psalm 5:11 NIV)

Gladness is not just a game, although Pollyanna had a great idea. Gladness is not just a motto to live by, although that's worthwhile too. Gladness is a God-thing.

MaryMartha

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

What Achan Learned about Sin

After Moses' death, Joshua led the children of Israel. He had just staged a triumphant coup over the well-protected city of Jericho, and "the walls came tumblin' down." Full of their success, a few men went as spies to observe the enemy's strength in the next target city, little Ai. Being assured by the men of an easy victory, Joshua dispatched only about three thousand men to take the city—and they were soundly routed by the enemy.

Joshua, stunned by this unexpected outcome, ripped his clothes as a sign of grief and fell on his face to the ground. "God, why this defeat?" he asked. "Did You bring us here to be run off, after all, by our enemies? When they hear of this, they will laugh at us—and laugh at You because you couldn't deliver your people."

It wasn't God's fault! He had given explicit instructions that everything in the city of Jericho was to be offered up to Him. "Be careful that you don't get greedy and take for yourself something that is set apart for God. That will make trouble for everyone." But a man named Achan couldn't stand to see all those wonderful things go to waste. He saw a fine woven robe, two hundred shekels of silver (worth, by my calculation, about $1000 in our present currency) and a wedge of gold (over a pound = $16,500 in today's market). Seeing them, he desperately wanted them. Surely it wouldn't make that much difference . . . So he took them.

There was a problem, however. If he wore the robe, he would be conspicuous, and it would be obvious to everyone that he had confiscated some of the prohibited loot. Furthermore, he had nowhere to spend the silver without being suspected of some kind of mischief. And how would a wanderer, just in from the desert, come up with a bar of gold anyway? Since there was nothing to do but hide them, Achan buried the beautiful garment, the silver, and the gold in the earth under his tent. Did his crime pay? Not so much. Only the guilty knowledge that he had forbidden goods that he couldn't enjoy.

An act of disobedience was the source of the army's defeat, God explained to Joshua, and He showed him how to identify the guilty party. The leader called out from the twelve tribes the tribe of Judah. From that tribe, he singled out a clan, then a family, and finally an individual—Achan. The punishment was death.

Joshua took Achan and the stolen items, all of Achan's family, all his livestock, his tent—everything connected with him. In the Valley of Achor, the people stoned Achan and his family and burned their bodies and their possessions. They piled a great heap of stones over them that remains, the Scripture says, to the very day the account was written. Ever after, the place was called "the Valley of Trouble. Did Achan's crime pay? Yes, a horrible price, paid not only by Achan but also by all connected with him.

My favorite part of this story is almost hidden in two other portions of Scripture. They give the antidote for the sin and failure represented by the Valley of Trouble. Recorded in the book of Isaiah, many years later, are God's loving words to the very same tribal line of people. "I will bring forth descendants from Jacob, and from Judah those who will possess my mountains; my chosen people will inherit them, and there will my servants live. Sharon will become a pasture for flocks, and the Valley of Achor a resting place for herds, for my people who seek me." (Isaiah 65:9-10) Another prophet contemporary with Isaiah confirms that Trouble Valley's reputation was reversed. Hosea also spoke of the Valley of Achor with a tender message of God's love and pardon for a disobedient nation. There I will give her [Israel] back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt." (Hosea 2:15) A gracious God turned the Valley of Trouble into a place of rest and hope!
Someone reading this may be looking into your own Valley of Trouble at the pile of stones there, marking the place where you encountered defeat. What do you see—

A monument to your inadequacy?
A memorial to your failure?
A symbol of more of the same to come?

You can't disassemble it; it will always just be there. Can you approach your great heap of stones—the memorial of your trouble or failure—and look past it to God? What do you think He sees? Could it be a gateway of hope?

God can transform the most difficult places of our lives into something entirely different, something with meaning and purpose. There is great hope as we look beyond our shortcomings to the great outpouring of God's grace.

MaryMartha

Read or re-read: Failure
Forgive Your Past
Things Mama Taught Me: Be Sure Your Sin Will Find You Out

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Holy, Holier, Holiest

How would a school get the reputation of being "America's Holiest University"? I'm reading a book written by a journalist who attended there, and that's what he called it. There were rules: no drinking or smoking, no cursing, no dancing, no R-rated movies, and so on. While many young people thrived under that careful discipline, does observing rules really create holiness in a university—or, for that matter, in a Christian?

In the eighteenth century, John Wesley and his brother Charles were leaders of a group of young men at Oxford University, derisively called "The Holy Club" by other students. They met frequently for prayer, study and discussion, and to question one another about their Christian duties and their motives for performing them. Yet even the methodical practice of "holy living" did not produce the genuine state in John; it was not until almost ten years later, on May 24, 1738, that John experienced conversion while listening to a reading of Martin Luther's preface to the Epistle to the Romans.

In the Old Testament, people and things were declared holy because of their relationship to a holy God. They were devoted to Him or dedicated to Him, and God desired them to demonstrate that relationship in practical ways. The New Testament understanding of holiness differs only in the fact that Jesus came to show how it is done perfectly. Without flaw or failure, He exemplified a holy, rightly-related-to-God character. All His conduct was that of a person separated from sin and consecrated to God. The Apostle Paul makes our own responsibility clear: We are to avoid relationships that are forged in darkness rather than light; we must refuse to be driven by values that are incompatible with our commitment to God. Then, "'I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters,' says the Lord Almighty. Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God." (II Corinthians 6:17-7:1)

What was perfect in Jesus is for us a lifelong exercise in love. "May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones." (I Thessalonians 3:12, 13)

So it turns out "doing holy," even with the best intentions, is not the same at all as being holy.

MaryMartha

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Influencers in My Life

I have known Faith since I was a child. She was well-accepted in our community, and had a special place in our home as she helped my busy parents in the rearing of six children. She was instrumental in my school life too, where she encouraged me to be responsible and kind. She helped me memorize Scripture verses for vacation Bible School, and I learned to rely on her for assurance in spiritual matters. She sometimes smoothed the pathway of relationships with my siblings, but she also chided me when I was in the wrong! She has lived up to her name as a faithful friend throughout my entire life.

And Will? He was never not a part of my life! I didn't really get to know him until I was several years old, perhaps two or so, but he was there from the beginning. Although good-hearted, he sometimes got me into trouble by devising mischief for us to perpetrate, and those are the times Faith got after me! He probably had a more substantial effect on my life than anyone realized—good, for the most part. When I was in my teens, he was one of the main reasons for my determined efforts to excel at everything I attempted. He may have pushed a little too hard sometimes, but without him, I might not have persevered. I am grateful for his steadfastness.

Faith and Will wed about the time I entered college. That was a surprise to me because I had often noted their dissimilarities. I watched their lives over several decades, however, and saw how harmoniously the two worked together. I learned a great deal through their combined influence. One of the most important things they did was to encourage me to become closer to Grace, their mutual friend. Faith had introduced me years ago, but I did little to nurture the relationship and Grace is not one to be pushy. Consequently, I did not really know Grace very well until I was into my middle adulthood. Her loving attitude and gentleness have helped re-shape some of the rough places in my life.

My FAITH has found a resting place,
Not in device or creed;
I trust the ever living One,
His wounds for me shall plead.
Refrain:
I need no other argument,
I need no other plea,
It is enough that Jesus died,
And that He died for me. --Li­die H. Ed­munds, 1891

I can hear my Savior calling,
I can hear my Savior calling,
I can hear my Savior calling,
“Take thy cross and follow, follow Me.”
Refrain:
Where He leads me I WILL follow,
Where He leads me I WILL follow,
Where He leads me I WILL follow;
I’ll go with Him, with Him, all the way.—Ernest W. Blandly, 1890

Thro’ many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis GRACE has brought me safe thus far,
And GRACE will lead me home.

The Lord has promis’d good to me,
His word my hope secures;
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures. –John Newton, 1773 (?)

MaryMartha

A Miracle or a Workable Plan

A co-worker arrived on the job one morning, years ago, and told us that he had stopped to talk with a man whom he saw every day sitting on the steps of an apartment building. It had become obvious that the fellow was waiting for something or someone, and finally my curious friend decided to find out what he was expecting.

The answer was very simple—to the waiting person—but it left my co-worker speechless. The man needed money, and he believed God was going to send Ed McMahon and the American Family Publishers crew to award him the sweepstakes prize. We laughed a little at that misguided faith, but actually it was more sad than humorous. The chance of winning a major prize in such a contest is less than one in fifty million. How many of those millions do you suppose are thinking that this is the miracle they've been praying for? The chances are good that the winner of multiple millions of dollars will thank God; winners often give a nod to Him. But think of how many others will not get the "miracle" they wanted, and if they really expected it to happen, they may be a little miffed at God.

Miracles do happen. It is very clear to me that only Divine intervention could produce the outcome we experience in some of our human affairs. We see grace and good far exceeding anything we could create, and we see catastrophe averted that we ourselves were unable to prevent. But I have found that it is helpful to be open to every kind of possibility, not the supernatural alone, and to pray, "God, please give me a miracle or a workable plan." During many months, I pleaded in this way regarding a financial need that was reaching critical proportions. I did not have a startling, all-at-once answer, but slowly an idea began to develop in my mind. I pursued it and found there was a reasonable hope of success—in other words, a workable plan. And now, much later, I know that it was indeed God's way of answering. Just because the solution God had in mind required extra effort on my part does not mean it was any less an answer to prayer than winning the sweepstakes prize.

Answers don't come in the same way for everyone. Maybe the man sitting on the apartment steps will some day win an amazing amount of money. Or maybe there will be a job he can do or community resources he can find. If we depend on God, He will give us the miracle we need—or a workable plan.

Amber Waves of Grain

O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
"America the Beautiful," Katharine Lee Bates

Except for the part about purple mountains, this is so true now in Kansas in June! There is something very satisfying to me to see the wheat fields in this area beginning to ripen. When I drive between towns, I keep watching for the first evidence that harvest has begun, and sometimes make a special trip into the rural community where I grew up so that I can see the familiar process once again. Just this past weekend, I was able to do that. I get a thrill out of seeing the wide reel pulling the grain into the combine's inner workings and thrusting the straw out the back end. When the bin on the combine is full, the grain is augured into a waiting wagon or truck and hauled to the elevator. City kids visit the bakery to see flour turned into bread; I like to see rain and sunshine and hard work turned into amber waves of grain!

But I'm especially interested in "red" waves of grain. The reddish-brown fields were probably planted with one of the varieties of Turkey Red Wheat. Some lines etched in the marker placed along US-50 east of Walton by the Kansas State Historical Society tell the story of that wheat.

Children in Russia hand-picked the first seeds of this famous winter wheat for Kansas. They belonged to Mennonite Colonies preparing to emigrate from the steppes to the America prairies. A peace-loving sect, originally from Holland, the Mennonites had gone to the Crimea from Prussia in 1790 when Catherine the Great offered free lands, military exemption and religious freedom. They prospered until these privileges were threatened in 1871. Three years later they emigrated to Kansas, where the Santa Fe R.R. offered thousands of acres on good terms in McPherson, Harvey, Marion & Reno counties, and where the legislature passed a bill which exempted religious objectors from military service. Within a month after landing in New York the Mennonites planted the red-gold grains their children had selected. The harvest was the first of the great crops of hard Turkey Red and its derivatives that have made Kansas the Granary of the Nation.

Although not a descendant of this particular group, I have a certain sense of pride in the fact that these were "my kind of people," God-fearing farm folk!

It's clear to me how dependent we are on farmers, and how dependent they are on the weather and other mercies of God. "He never left them [the nations] without evidence of himself and his goodness. For instance, he sends you rain and good crops and gives you food and joyful hearts.” (Acts 14:17)

Those waves of grain in the fields are a reminder to me of God's faithfulness!

MaryMartha

Scripture quotation is taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved.

A Place to Honor a Name

Work continues to progress on the new arena being built in our city. Now it has a name. It cost a homegrown bank over seven million dollars to purchase the right to have its name connected to the building for the next twenty-five years or so. The bank's name, in its familiar colors and style, is now boldly displayed on the main entry side of the structure. It is not unattractive at all, but $7,500,000 is a lot of money! You really have to pay if you want a place named for you!

In contrast, King Solomon built the Temple specifically to honor God's name. "I am planning to build a Temple to honor the name of the Lord my God, just as he had instructed my father, David. For the Lord told him, ‘Your son, whom I will place on your throne, will build the Temple to honor my name.’ " (I Kings 5:5 NLT) Solomon did not design the beautiful and costly place of worship and then sell the naming rights. It was named for God, as it were, because it was built for the express purpose of honoring Him.

In a generation or two, the arena will likely be re-named to acknowledge someone else's civic contribution or financial underwriting. Another name will hang on the front of the building, the bank's millions long forgotten. Or maybe disgruntled tax-payers who have been the ones footing the bill will have their way and it will be named the People's Arena or something like that!

Not so for the house of the Lord. When the Temple was finished and dedicated, the Lord said, “I have heard your prayer and your petition. I have set this Temple apart to be holy—this place you have built where my name will be honored forever. I will always watch over it, for it is dear to my heart." (I Kings 9:3 NLT) While Solomon's temple no longer exists, it was merely a "shadow" anyway, as was the tabernacle before it. "They [the priests] serve in a system of worship that is only a copy, a shadow of the real one in heaven. For when Moses was getting ready to build the Tabernacle, God gave him this warning: 'Be sure that you make everything according to the pattern I have shown you here on the mountain.' ” (Hebrews 8:5 NLT) That is how it can be said that the Temple will honor the name of God forever. In the Revelation of Jesus Christ to John, the apostle writes, "The main street of the City was pure gold, translucent as glass. But there was no sign of a Temple, for the Lord God—the Sovereign-Strong—and the Lamb are the Temple. The City doesn't need sun or moon for light. God's Glory is its light, the Lamb its lamp!" (Revelation 21:22, 23 MSG)

What a glorious place will eternally honor the name of our God!

MaryMartha

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved. Scripture marked MSG is taken from The Message. Copyright © 2003 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Practice Makes Perfect . . . Sense

"Practice makes perfect," my teachers used to say. They wanted me to make, over and over again on my lined tablet, the ovals and strokes of the Palmer Method of Penmanship. I know I was very young; is it possible I learned cursive writing before or at the same time as manuscript? I understand that the inventor of the method recommended that it be taught exclusively, no printing first, so we dutifully practiced. My handwriting is legible— not perfect, but quite legible—and that came from that early practice

Ignace Jan Paderewski, one of the best-known musicians of his time (early twentieth century) as well as an influential Polish statesman, practiced his piano music endlessly. It could be argued that his performances were already "perfect," so why practice further? But he said, "If I miss one day of practice, I notice it. If I miss two days, the critics notice it. If I miss three days, the audience notices it."

Doctors and other medical professionals and attorneys may have spent a lifetime in their profession, and what they do is still called "practicing." There are bad jokes, of course, about why their work is a "practice," but in this instance, the word is not to be confused with rehearsing so as to acquire a competency. It is the practical application of the theories and skills presented in their training; the professionals are putting into "practice" their knowledge.

I wonder why we hear of "practicing Buddhists" and "practicing Jews" and other kinds of "practicing" believers, but we may never have even thought of the term, "a practicing Christian"? What would keep us from "practicing"? Have we decided it's just not possible to be perfect? Is it too hard to keep at it every day? Have we not learned anything that we could put into practice?

Because organized religions have certain customs and observances associated with them, the followers who adhere to these actions are said to be "practicing" their faith. Christians profess to be following Christ, in personal relationship with Him. Wouldn't practicing Christians be actively doing just that? Maybe not perfectly, but legibly. Every day, too, because otherwise our audience will be able to tell. And applying what we've learned in our heads to the action of heart and hands.

Practice makes perfect . . . sense.

MaryMartha

Run-In Sabbath

If you use an online dictionary and your cell phone's programmed directory, you miss the accidental combination of words or names used as guide words that sometimes is pretty funny and sometimes pretty meaningful. On my way to looking up something else today, I ran across "run-in Sabbath" at the top of a page. That sent an immediate message to the blog-creating part of my brain!

We say, "I'm going to drop by the post office on my way to work."
"Could you stop off and pick up the dry cleaning?"
"While you're up, please bring me some more popcorn."
"I'll look in on Grandma today and see if she's okay."

These all imply that, incidentally, while aiming at doing one thing, we will also take care of something else.

So, once or maybe twice a week, "Run in and say 'hi' to the pastor and God"? Let's hope we're more focused than that!

MaryMartha

The Temple of God

King Solomon who succeeded his father David as the king of Israel was able to carry out what David had wished to do but could not: he built God's house, the Temple. It's not that God needed a place to live; indeed Solomon said in his dedication prayer, "But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built! . . . Hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive. (I Kings 8:27, 30 NIV)

Solomon's heart, and that of David before him, was to build a house, not as God's residence, but to honor the name of the Lord, a place to which the people would turn for prayer and praise. Stephen, the New Testament martyr, recounted the story in his witness to the high council before he was stoned to death: "David found favor with God and asked for the privilege of building a permanent Temple for the God of Jacob. But it was Solomon who actually built it. However, the Most High doesn’t live in temples made by human hands. As the prophet [Isaiah] says, ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Could you build me a temple as good as that?’ asks the Lord. ‘Could you build me such a resting place? Didn’t my hands make both heaven and earth?’" (Acts 7:46-50 NLT)

But God is not just in the far-off heavens, removed from our lives here on earth, for the prophet also says, "Thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.' " (Isaiah 57:15 King James Version) The God who could not come to live in the magnificent temple built by the king will dwell in the body-temple of those who humbly receive Him!

David had drawn up plans for the Temple and had amassed huge quantities of gold and silver as well as bronze and iron, precious stones and marble for the building. Solomon had cedar and cypress timber floated downriver to the site; he had additional stone cut and finished at the quarry so that the building could be erected without the irreverent sound of hammers and axes. The description of the finished work is in elaborate detail; it must have been breathtaking to see!

And yet, we are God's chosen dwelling place! What an amazing plan!

MaryMartha

Scripture quotation marked NIV is taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Scripture quotation marked NLT is taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved.

Things Mama Taught Me: "It Will Turn Up"

On the Futility of Stressing

Don't you just hate it when you lose something and a helpful friend or family member asks, "Well, where did you leave it?" Duh! If I knew where I'd left it, I'd go right there and retrieve it!

My mother had an alternative to frantic searching. She would calmly say, "It will turn up." "Turning up" seems to suggest that the lost object had a will of its own, and just would keep staying hidden until it finally decided to let itself be found. The truth is, she understood that frenzied rummaging around sometimes distracts us from the thoughtful consideration that might lead us to discovery. Sure enough, usually whatever I was trying to find did eventually surface, sometimes even in a place where I had already looked.

There just are not very many things in our ordinary lives that are improved by going into panic mode. Some things do require quick action: a fire, a personal threat, a close call on the road. And some things require deliberation: an impending decision, a weighty responsibility. But in none of these is panic useful. The ability to rise to a challenge or to take advantage of an opportunity does not come from fear, but from trust. "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." (II Timothy 1:7 King James Version) Just as agitated searching may hinder rather help, so unsteady thinking may keep us from the very understanding we desire.

Few situations—regardless of how desperate they make us feel—are improved by our "going bananas." Mama knew that.

MaryMartha

Words Like Honey

"Kind words are like honey—sweet to the soul and healthy for the body." (Proverbs 16:24 NLT)

Research in the last few years confirms what the Wisdom Writer already knew: Honey is great stuff! Composed primarily of carbohydrates and water, honey also contains small amounts of a wide array of vitamins and minerals. Recent interest in antioxidants suggests honey in our diet as one more added source. It is thought that honey encourages the growth of "good" bacteria in the digestive system, and there is some evidence that honey may assist in the body's assimilation of calcium. Greek and Roman athletes are said to have used honey to increase their strength and stamina, and modern science corroborates those findings; honey is found on many training tables and in "quick energy" foods used during and after exercise.

But that's not all. According to the National Honey Board, honey is an effective antimicrobial agent, useful for treating minor burns and scrapes, and for aiding the treatment of sore throats and other bacterial infections. Cleopatra of Egypt regularly took honey and milk baths to maintain her youthful appearance, and Queen Anne of England is supposed to have used a honey and oil concoction to keep her long hair thick and shiny. Modern manufacturers have followed suit, using honey in everything from hand lotions to bubble baths. Honey presents a wholesome, natural image, but that is not the whole picture. Honey is a humectant, attracting and retaining moisture, which makes it a useful ingredient in skin and hair care products. It also acts as an anti-irritant, making it suitable for sensitive skin.

With all this information about honey, I gained a better understanding of how effective kind words can be. Can they aid the soul? Can they make a difference in one's health? The Scripture indicates they can.

• Congenial conversation—what a pleasure! The right word at the right time—beautiful! (Proverbs 15:23 MSG)
  
• Timely advice is lovely, like golden apples in a silver basket. (Proverbs 25:11 NLT)
  
• A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare. (Proverbs 15:1 NLT)
  
• Children of Zion, celebrate! Be glad in your God. He's giving you a teacher to train you how to live right—Teaching, like rain out of heaven, showers of words to refresh and nourish your soul, just as he used to do. (Joel 2:23 MSG)
  
• “ 'Don’t be afraid,' he [the Man in Daniel's vision] said, 'for you are very precious to God. Peace! Be encouraged! Be strong!' As he spoke these words to me, I suddenly felt stronger and said to him, 'Please speak to me, my lord, for you have strengthened me.' ” (Daniel 10:19 NLT)

There are many more benefits of honey-words. But I have to go now and have a spoonful of honey!

MaryMartha

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved. Scriptures marked MSG are taken from The Message. Copyright © 2003 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Slightly Imperfect

Yesterday I was browsing through the catalog of an online store and came across their "Slightly Imperfect Store." What a great find! There were items for slightly imperfect Christians, slightly imperfect academics, slightly imperfect children (available for selection by age group), and slightly imperfect parents. At last, just what we need for the world we live in!

Just kidding! The sales were actually for "slightly imperfect" Christian books and scholarly tomes, "slightly imperfect" children's resources, and "slightly imperfect" parenting and home life guides. "Slightly Imperfect" caught my eye first because it is so true! We would like to think that there is such a thing as a perfect Christian or perfect parents with perfect kids. There isn't, but that is no reason to give up!

Our understanding of "perfect" is just not perfect! The call to perfection in Scripture is not to life with no mistakes or failures or "bad calls." It is the expectation that we will seek to be complete, thoroughly prepared, full of integrity, mature. This requires a process of growth, sometimes painfully achieved! "And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires. In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (II Peter 1:4-8 NLT)

"I ain't what I oughta be, and I ain't what I'm gonna be, but thank God, I ain't what I used to be!" With gratitude for having come a long way already, let's acknowledge that we're still slightly imperfect and like Paul, "press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:14 KJV)

MaryMartha

Scripture quotation marked NLT is taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved. Scripture marked KJV is from the King James Version.

"You're Not the Boss of Me"

An interesting dynamic exists between me and the dog that lives next door. Layla (Laela? Leila?) is one of those intense creatures who must bark at everything that catches her attention. Never mind that the cat across the street or the mail carrier who comes every day or the car that has stopped in front of my house has absolutely nothing to do with her—she must announce her notice of them loudly and incessantly. Mostly she stays inside the house, but on nice afternoons she wants to be in the yard which is, I might add, only a few feet from my window. Mostly I try just to ignore her until she goes back inside.

Now Layla's owner is a good neighbor, and I hesitate to do anything just because of a dog that would change the human dynamics of the situation. The problem has not yet escalated to the point where I feel I need to do a personal intervention. That's especially true since I have found something that is quite effective. When the continual barking is more than I can tolerate, I've learned to say to her very sternly, from my porch or back yard, "Layla!" Usually I say this just once, sometimes twice, but there are no threats or yelling. Just, "Layla!"

The dog barks twice more and then stops completely. This has happened over and over, so that I think to myself, "She's saying, 'You're not the boss of me! I wanted to quit barking just now anyway. So there!' "

Can a dog really be that clever? If so, they're not all that different from people, huh?

MaryMartha

The Invaders

In the back yard of the house where I used to live was a huge old tree, home to birds and squirrels and the provider of deep, cooling shade. But it was dying. To be exact, by the time I called in a professional, it was mostly already dead. The tree service man came twice to examine it before arriving at a conclusion. He was as reluctant as I to pronounce it hopeless, but at last he said surgery would not be of any significant help. The tree must come down because it was endangering the homes—my neighbor’s and mine—that it had sheltered for so many years. In a storm with high winds or under the weight of ice and snow--a distinct possibility here in Kansas--the battered old tree could drop its heavy limbs on the roofs beneath it.

I was sad, of course. The wide-spreading branches had been trimmed back many times through the years to keep them away from utility lines. The sewer had had to have intruding roots removed, as well. But cutting down the wonderful old tree had never been considered, its assets far outweighing the burdens it imposed. How, all of a sudden, did it become such a liability?

My old tree, like others in this area, had suffered some real hardships in the previous few years: drought, a spring with early warming followed by a deadly freeze, hail that stripped off the leaves. While it was in a stressed and weakened condition, the elm beetles moved in. They feed, the tree surgeon told me, on a vital part of the branches, the food-carrying inner bark. With these essential tissues damaged, the very life of a tree is compromised. But that alone is not what killed the tree. The beetles carry on their wings the fungus responsible for the deadly Dutch elm disease. Without harming the beetle itself, the fungus spreads and infects the whole tree, sometimes causing its death in just a few weeks.

How like the opportunistic attacks our spiritual enemy makes upon us! When is his most effective invasion made? When we are, sort of like the tree, in a stressed and weakened condition. We may have weathered the severest of storms without failing. We may have suffered some hardships by “toughing it out.” We may have had a useful, productive life. But during a time that would not seem all that traumatic--weariness, physical weakness, financial stress or whatever--Satan attempts to invade our souls.

He does not frequently come with temptation to those things we would readily recognize as evil, nor is he likely to attack our foundational confidence in Jesus as Savior and Lord. So what does he do? Like the elm beetle, he subtly attacks the inner source of strength, the food-carrying system. He delights in the distractions that interrupt an attitude of attention to God. He insinuates that time spent in prayer or singing or quiet reflection is dispensable. He brings into question our intention and our ability to live the Christian faith. He attempts just to wear us out!

Then in the spiritually weakened condition that results, is it any wonder that all kinds of invaders move in—fear and worry and discouragement and anger and other nasty things—to infect our innermost being? Guard the "food-carrying system" and you will have to worry less about those invaders!

MaryMartha

Things Mama Taught Me: "Two Wrongs Don't Make a Right"

In the grammar of our language, two negatives used in a sentence result in a positive statement. "I am not unhappy," means that I am happy to some extent or at least neutral. "I don't like for there to be no answer," means that I do want an answer. In mathematics, too, multiplying two negative numbers gives a positive number. There are times, though, that this rule does not hold true, for my mother insisted that getting even for a wrong (a "negative" occurrence) by repaying with another wrong did not make for a happy, positive result.

The Lord says this, "Let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!" (Amos 5:24 NIV) Made in His likeness, we too want justice. We detest corruption, we want the rules to be fair, we expect wrongdoing to be dealt with. So often, like the children we once were, we want to see to it ourselves that wrongs are made right. And too often, we try to make things right by perpetrating another wrong. Instead, the Scripture tells us, "Don't hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you've got it in you, get along with everybody. Don't insist on getting even; that's not for you to do. 'I'll do the judging,' says God. 'I'll take care of it.' Our Scriptures tell us that if you see your enemy hungry, go buy that person lunch, or if he's thirsty, get him a drink. Your generosity will surprise him with goodness. Don't let evil get the best of you; get the best of evil by doing good." (Romans 12:17-21 MSG)

I’m not sure there is such a thing as justice brought about by humans, since it is clearly an attribute of God. We all want it, but we sometimes do poorly at achieving it for our society. I am called upon as a child of God to live justly myself: "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6:8 NIV) But I will not be able to fix my world by becoming the judge who can determine what is just and right, and the jury who will decide if others have kept the rules or not, and the enforcer who will mete out appropriate rewards and penalties. My "rules" just won't work for everyone, everywhere, all the time. Nor will responding with actions motivated by anger, hatred, or fear toward those who are unjust resolve the issues.

"Two wrongs don't make a right." Act justly. Love mercy. Walk humbly with God.

MaryMartha

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Scripture marked MSG is taken from The Message. Copyright © 2003 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

You may be interested in reading another entry, "Revenge Doesn't Work." Click here.