Who Will Be King?



Buckingham Palace

 When the royal wedding between Prince William and Katherine took place last spring, some interesting thoughts occurred to me about inheriting the throne. Using the common names by which we know them rather than their formal names, the succession is this:

1. Queen Elizabeth, presently reigning

2. Elizabeth’s oldest son with Philip, Charles,

3. Charles’ oldest son with Diana, William,

4. William’s oldest son, then younger sons; otherwise oldest daughter, then younger daughters. BUT if no heirs are born, Henry (“Harry”) if still living or his oldest son could succeed his brother.

The point that  most interested me was who got left out by the sheer accident of birth order. Elizabeth had a younger sister Margaret, now deceased, but her son is presently fourteenth in the line of succession and will soon be pushed further down by the arrival of heirs born to the eldest child of the eldest child of the eldest child, and so on. Elizabeth has two other sons, and Charles and Diana had another son, “Harry.” These men have less claim to the throne than the younger sons that William might have. Furthermore, no matter how many people might prefer William over Charles as their sovereign, that is not how it works! After Elizabeth, Charles will be king, unless he precedes the Queen in death or he chooses not to serve. There is no official list of those who are line to succeed, but researchers suggest that there are several thousand people potentially in line for the throne! It’s not going to happen!

No amount of wishing it were different is going to change this order which has been established by descent and by law. How wonderful it is then that entering the royal family of Heaven’s King is a simple matter of choice! “To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.” (Revelation 1:5, 6)

No one is left out of the royal lineage, all are welcome to join in succeeding to the throne! “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.” (The Christ in Revelation 3:21)

Amazing!

Mary Martha

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

“I Feel” ≠ “I Am”

"You talkin' to me?"

On Monday morning after the weekend change to Daylight Saving Time, I felt like not going to work. I felt that I had not rested enough. I felt cross, grumpy, out of sorts.



I told myself, “But you do not have to act out what you feel. You do not have to think, 'I am cross, I am grumpy, I am out of sorts!' “ And you know what? After another cup of coffee and telling my co-workers good morning with our accustomed cheer, I didn't feel so cross and grumpy and out of sorts.

Lesson learned: I do not have to give to my feelings the authority to regulate what I am!

MaryMartha
 
 

"To Sleep, Perchance to Dream"



Everybody's got to sleep!
And dream too, maybe?

I'm not a Joseph or a Daniel, and so I don't claim Divine origin for my dreams. However, sometimes when my thought "censor" is off-duty, I get a bit of insight while I'm asleep. (If that turns you off, close the page.) Here goes! 

An acquaintance of mine from fifty years ago, a woman I had not even thought of for perhaps forty years, left her eight- or nine-year old son with me while she went out for the evening. He was an absolute terror! He was totally out of control, and I am no stranger to unmanageable children. Finally in desperation, I called the mother. She had been partying, and much to my dismay, she was incoherent from too much alcohol. She was no help at all, because she couldn't even drive to come for the child.

 I will take him to the police station and just leave him there, I thought. They will deal with the situation appropriately. (Now I wouldn't even consider such a thing in my waking life, but in my dream it seemed like a plausible option.) Except . . . Well, that was like deserting him. Not good at all—but whatever shall I do with this wild child?

My mother who was sitting nearby while this was happening spoke up very timidly. "Well, I feel some responsibility for him . . . " she said hesitantly. And just then the phone rang.



"This is So-and-So," the caller said, giving me his name. "I am Dr. Isaac's son, and I am right now leaving the gathering where I've been." He was on his way! "Ah!" I thought. "The voice of reason."



And then I woke up.

 

That wasn't really Mary and her son that I knew long ago, I realized. And that was not my mother. It wasn't Dr. Isaac's son, and it wasn't really the person who was me in the dream. All of those responses are choices for the real-life ME! When faced with a truly impossible situation, I can choose any of those four options.

 

►I can ignore it and go my own way, regardless of my personal responsibility.

 

►I can shove the situation onto someone else and let them decide how to handle it, even if the outcome will not be beneficial.



►I can, without any guidance or gifts for doing so, involve myself in caretaking that I am unsuited to do.

►I can carefully turn the problem over to someone who is both capable and dispassionate—who has "the voice of reason."



I don't know what I decided to do in my dream. But I know what I will try to do in real life!



MaryMartha



Art from http://www.sxc.hu/ 

Things Mama Taught Me: "Don't Get Mad"

I'm not sure my mother ever told me specifically that it was not okay to get "mad," but if not, I know I picked it up from her own way of life. I cannot think of any time when I recognized that she was angry. Hurt, yes. Frustrated, yes. Even unhappy. But not mad. I now realize that Christians who feel they dare not let inconvenience or displeasure make them angry often cover that emotion with others they consider less dangerous. I should know; I became a poster child for that self-deception.

Anger is a useful human emotion. Like pain, it warns us that something requires attention. Rather than prohibit it, the Bible denounces selfish, misdirected, out-of-control anger. It uses words like wrath, malice, strife, hatred and so forth to describe that family of negative responses and warns us to put them away.

The person who denies their indignation at injustice and avoids every kind of conflict may be as difficult to live with as the person who is angry about everything and ready to do battle. The first is cowering behind a wall of "niceness" so that no one knows what they are really thinking. The second is advancing with tanks and machine guns to do away with an enemy that may be as small as a beetle! Both have some personal work to do on their way of facing life; both need to find respectful, helpful ways to express the dismay and frustration and anger they are feeling.

Lots of people talk and write about how to "fight fair" in relationships, so no lengthy discussion is needed here. The point I want to make is that we must free ourselves from the misconception that it is wrong for us to feel what we feel. Especially in crisis moments, we may be quite surprised at our initial response. No matter. The Holy Spirit is not there to squelch that human emotion, but to guide us, if we're willing, into fruitful resolution or into amicable disagreement.

MaryMartha

Art from http://www.sxc.hu/

No Turning Back

I remember singing often, while I was growing up—as we rode in the car, or at youth services,

I have decided to follow Jesus,
I have decided to follow Jesus,
I have decided to follow Jesus,
No turning back, no turning back.

The world behind me, the cross before me,
The world behind me, the cross before me,
The world behind me, the cross before me,
No turning back, no turning back.

Though none go with me, still I will follow,
Though none go with me, still I will follow,
Though none go with me, still I will follow,
No turning back, no turning back.

--Attributed to Sadhu
Sundar Singh, India, early 20th c.

I could sing that very earnestly. What was there for me, after all, as an eight-year-old or a fourteen- or seventeen-year-old, to turn back to? Now, with advanced age and much more experience, I still ask, "What could there possibly be that is worth turning back to?"

The children of Israel, faced with the uncertainties involved in taking over the Promised Land from the giants who lived there, lamented to Moses and Aaron. "Then the whole community began weeping aloud, and they cried all night. Their voices rose in a great chorus of protest against Moses and Aaron. 'If only we had died in Egypt, or even here in the wilderness!' they complained. 'Why is the Lord taking us to this country only to have us die in battle? Our wives and our little ones will be carried off as plunder! Wouldn’t it be better for us to return to Egypt?' Then they plotted among themselves, 'Let’s choose a new leader and go back to Egypt!' ” (Numbers 14:1-4)

Those who had gone ahead to spy out the land returned with proof that the land was fabulously productive. Two men of faith assured the people, "The countrymen there are powerful, but we are well able to overcome them!" Still, motivated by fear and a complaining spirit, the Israelites began to talk of stoning their leaders—until the Lord intervened and sent them back out into the wilderness to wander for forty years, one year for each day the spies had spent exploring the good land ahead of them.

We wouldn't deny our Savior, but we might cringe at the prospect of change. We might pull back when faced with challenge. What if Columbus had not said (in the words of American poet Joaquin Miller), "Sail on! sail on! sail on! and on!" What if Winston Churchill had not given the commencement address that has inspired various valuable (mis)quotes? "Never give up! Never give up! Never, never, never!" What blessing and provision we miss, if we close our eyes to what is before and us and turn back to what is only safe and familiar!

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.

Art from http://www.sxc.hu/

Weeds

Grass is good, right? And the blooming redbud trees are good too, aren't they?

Yes, except where I want to plant ferns, hosta, and lamium. So then "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" in the garden as it is elsewhere. When grass and redbud sprouts grow where I don't want them, they are "weeds" even though they're not ugly.

Weeds, whether they are dandelions and henbit or a nice ground cover like vinca minor that's gone crazy, have to be dealt with. They compete with more desirable plants for water and nutrients and for space to grow. They're not unlike the many things in our busy lives, calling for our attention. Sometimes "good" is the enemy of "best."

"Good friend, take to heart what I'm telling you; collect my counsels and guard them with your life. Tune your ears to the world of Wisdom; set your heart on a life of Understanding. That's right—if you make Insight your priority, and won't take no for an answer, searching for it like a prospector panning for gold, like an adventurer on a treasure hunt, believe me, before you know it Fear-of-God will be yours; you'll have come upon the Knowledge of God." (Proverbs 2:1-5)

MaryMartha

Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright © 2003 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Art from http://www.sxc.hu/

Figure the Cost

As I worked on my "lawn" project (see yesterday's post, How Does My Garden Grow?), I begin to realize just how much bigger it is than I could foresee. It is more time-consuming, harder work, and more costly than I anticipated. But just so you know—I'm not quitting!

This afternoon's experience reminded me of one of Jesus' teachings. "Is there anyone here who, planning to build a new house, doesn't first sit down and figure the cost so you'll know if you can complete it? If you only get the foundation laid and then run out of money, you're going to look pretty foolish. Everyone passing by will poke fun at you: 'He started something he couldn't finish.' " (Luke 14:28-30) Each person must consider the cost of following Jesus before beginning, for it involves taking up one's cross. We must count the cost first. I'm so glad that I chose long ago to walk with Him until we've finished the job—whatever that takes.

Working in the yard is a serious endeavor for me, considering that often God talks to me there.

MaryMartha

Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright © 2003 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Art from http:www.sxc.hu/

D-Moments

The employer of a friend of mine uses a disciplinary measure called D-Day. If a person has too many unexcused absences, for example, they are assigned an unpaid day off and must demonstrate their desire to continue working for this organization by their written statement to that effect. That D-Day is a "decision day."

Although we probably don't take furlough days and write essays about why we want to continue holding our position, we usually face lots of minor decisions. Maybe D-moments? Shall I stop for my favorite caramel latte (three dollars) or shall I bring along a cup of coffee from my own kitchen? Shall I remind the middle-schooler—again—to take her homework to school or make him/her take the consequences? Shall I park here in the handicapped space—I'll only be three minutes, tops—or shall I find a spot farther away? (Now you do know what's right, don't you, and besides you won't have a choice about paying the ticket.) Shall I maintain control of the TV remote, or shall I share? Shall I buy show tickets for the whole family or not?

Sometimes our choices are between equally attractive options; sometimes they are about choosing what is wise. Sometimes our decisions reflect our sense of responsibility and fairness, sometimes our sense of fun. We may opt for the sensible, or we can throw caution to the winds. Sometimes we have to consider what is right as opposed to what is convenient. Not to give undue seriousness to these little actions, but a hymn written over a hundred fifty years ago reminds us that little D-moments do add up to something meaningful.


Little drops of water, little grains of sand,
Make the mighty ocean and the beauteous land.

And the little moments, humble though they may be,
Make the mighty ages of eternity.


Little deeds of kindness, little words of love,
Make our earth an Eden, like the heaven above.

So our little errors lead the soul away,
From the paths of virtue into sin to stray.

-- Julia Carney, 1845

MaryMartha

Art from http://www.sxc.hu/