Pure Jesus

A photo of a Santa hat.  A list of suggested amounts of cash.  “Holiday tip guide,” the headline read.  Then the TV lady said Christmas was about decorating.  And then there was the song playing overhead about sleigh bells and snow.  And still there is the steady stream of news reports concerning families’ crippling financial debt due to excessive purchases.  Ugh.  Sometimes I enjoy regular days more than holidays.  At Christmastime, the misguided aspects of our world seem to magnify, and I need to step away from it all.  So when intercoms sing about Jack Frost and chestnuts roasting, and when retail customers cram doorways and trample each other, and when choir programs highlight cute, little, red-nosed Rudolph instead of Jesus’ birth, I seek the Lord to impart His purity.  Matthew 1-2.  Luke 2.  They take me to Jesus.  It is for all our misguided notions that He came to this earth.

Among languages

If someone invited you to an event conducted in an unfamiliar language, would you go?  Perhaps Italian, or Japanese, or German? . . . I once saw a man exit a worship service because it was in Spanish instead of the English he presumed.  A bystander told the man Jesus would be present either way, whether the people spoke in English or Spanish, but the man would not stay . . . Regarding this, the Lord continues to teach me.  I speak, read, write, and pray primarily in English.  Yet when I worship the Lord with my Spanish congregation, even while I don’t understand every word humanly spoken in Spanish, I sense His presence as well.  Romans 8:26 talks about the Holy Spirit communicating with “groans that words cannot express.”  And I am thankful for the Lord and His unlimited ways of relating to us.  He transcends our human languages. 

The unforeseen

I once directed a youth group that seemed to minister to a particular mom even more than her young son.  I once was hired to teach English but sometimes found the task was more about prayer than any details of the English language.  I once directed a children’s choir on the assumption I would work with kids but soon realized how the Lord was blessing the adults.  I once taught English to a friend from another country but soon saw that the whole scenario included opportunity to acquaint this friend with the Lord.  God has opened doors for numerous positions based on an initial job skill, but in time He has shown His bigger purpose has been about relationships through that job.  Labels don’t tell whole stories.  I figure in actuality the Lord is stacking the blessings far higher than we can imagine.  Yet for us to tap into God’s bigger picture even the slightest bit is enough to thrill the heart and send us floating on joy.

From 40 to 32 . . .

“Only 32 hours?”  I was a little anxious.  It wasn’t the first time we’d dealt with a reduced workload.  We wouldn’t have 40 hours of work anymore, but we would still have income.  But then I remembered something.  A young friend had asked us to come to his house to test his new recording software.  He had requested a weekday, which at the time seemed unlikely.  But now with our 32-hour workweek, we did have an available weekday.  I made a phone call, set a date, and marked the calendar.  And, oh, how the day was blessed.  Playing the oboe required full breath, consequently cleansing me of anxiety.  All of my air poured into the horn.  Anxiety could steal none of my energy because every ounce of it was blossoming into a resonance that soon brought tears to my eyes.  Vibrato seemed to reach into all the nooks and crannies and bring joy to the full extent of my heart.  It was a transformation that I loved.  An experience I love to relive.  The Lord at work once again.

The weekday schedule

Decision time.  I felt surrounded by loose ends.  Work, Bible study group, music, exercise, writing.  It was the weekday scenario that left me uncertain.  Having prayed for days and weeks, still sensing no definite pull in any particular direction, I opted to stay where I was.  In the coming months, we saw my husband’s full-time job hold in place, which allowed for my part-time work.  The Lord so sweetly led our small Bible study group through some tender moments.  Some weekend opportunities for music arose, consequently easing the weekday concern.  A new writing idea came into play, which made me all the more appreciative for my part-time, rather than full-time, job.  And my exercise class experienced a new development, which has led me to pray all over again for how the Lord would schedule my time this next semester.  It was a matter of trust, and indeed His unseen hand was leading.  Psalm 121 says He will not let our feet slip. 

On the streets

“I was waving to my mom down there,” the girl told me, as she returned to our bench at the bus stop.  “My son is sick, and my mom is bringing him.  We’re headed to the hospital.” . . . We discussed her 5-year-old’s extended fever and lack of food and water.  She wasn’t frantic, but she knew her son’s body was very weak.  Here an opportunity to pray fell in my lap.  I was excited.  On a street corner near downtown, the Lord had orchestrated a meeting of two strangers who soon came to have prayer in common. . . . May the Lord thrill your heart to see His orchestration on the streets where you walk.

A complaint

Ugh.  I would have to take the long bus.  I could hear my fellow bus passengers calling their offices to say they’d be late.  Traffic was jammed on the highway.  Ordinarily, I can take 3 buses that connect so smoothly that I have less than 10 minutes total to wait between them.  Now I would have to take the long route.  My heart sank.  But then it lifted back up.  I began to ask the Lord how to use the extra time.  Before I finished praying, a new thought flashed through my head.  It was Tuesday, and I was pretty sure a particular security guard would be working.  And as events unfolded, yes, he was working, and we enjoyed a wonderful conversation.  I considered it inspired by God.  On this day, two things stood out.  I was humbled to realize what a blessing the Lord gave, even when I initially complained in my heart about the traffic jam.  And I remembered the Bible having a story where God answered a prayer even before it was finished.  In Genesis 24, Abraham sought a wife for his son and sent his servant to carry out the mission.  The servant asked God for success in his task, and before he finished praying, Rebekah appeared.  She became Isaac’s wife.  The Lord answered the servant’s prayer.  And today, He so graciously provided for me, even before my prayer was fully spoken.  Blessed again.

If I could only get some sleep . . .

I continued to wake up in the middle of the night and early in the mornings.  My attempts to take afternoon naps were to no avail.  A recent health problem further depleted my energy.  My body ached, and ibuprofen did not help.  I wanted to sleep, but I couldn’t.  This time, the rest I needed would not come in the form of sleep.  I continued to write, I continued to volunteer at the jail, and I still led Bible study and went to work.  I spent time with new friends, felt inspired to cook dinner more than usual, and found myself with unexpected energy to encourage someone else in the Lord.  Whereas I had been waking up in the mornings desperately preoccupied with figuring how I could get some sleep again, I now realized the Lord was energizing me as I continued to move.  I felt like I was running on empty, yet He rejuvenated me with the excitement that came with the different situations.  He gave me such joy that it sometimes overflowed through teardrops that also relieved my aches.  In this instance, instead of sleep, the Lord gave His version of on-the-job replenishment.  I had wanted sleep, though He wanted to show me something new.  His ways are higher than mine.

God orchestrates among the fruits and vegetables

I'm buying onions.  She's buying a watermelon.  Much of the time she lives in another country.  I rarely shop at this particular store.  For that matter, I’m usually at school at this time of day.  Yet we meet at the produce scale between the vegetables and the fruits.  She mentions writing.  I mention the book I published this summer.  And from there, we’re blessed to reminisce about how we first met 4 years ago.  I loved her insights into Abraham and Genesis.  She mentioned Paul, and I had just read Paul's words at the end of Acts the day before.  I could see the Lord weaving all kinds of threads between us.  He had turned an ordinary grocery store trip into an extraordinarily exciting 20 minutes.  Often I pray for the Lord to guide my words and my steps.  Today He blessed me by orchestrating wonder into some unlikely circumstances.  So sweet to know His presence.

"Is anyone honest?"

Last week, a man asked me this question.  I share occasional conversations with him at my bus transit center.  I love to see relationships grow, and what a pleasure to delve deeper this time I saw him.  He was in the midst of completing a written report for his job, and he had to choose between reporting honest numbers or reporting false ones.  I told him I believe at least some people intend to be honest, though certain questions do test our composure.  Have you ever squirmed to avoid spilling the beans about someone's surprise birthday party?  What about the sharply personal question about the weight I had wanted to lose last year?  All kinds of mental fidgets take place.  Yes, I do intend to be honest, and it's a humbling endeavor.  I ask the Lord to guide my words.  And I welcomed today's reminder that issues of virtue are still pondered in this world.