Forward! Crawl!

By Anne C. Johnson –

“It’s a girl!”

I glanced up and searched my husband’s eyes. Joy shined through his tears. “She’s beautiful,” he whispered.

The nurse placed our newborn in my arms. My daughter’s bright eyes gazed at me. Though I doubt she knew what she was looking at, she seemed to be taking in everything.

Our precious daughter filled our lives with joy and awe. Sleeping was her nemesis. She fought us every time we laid her down for a nap. My husband would swaddle her and place his hand over her eyes, and at the same time he would massage her eyebrows. This process sometimes took an hour, and for his effort she would sleep for an hour or less.

We spent hours on the floor playing, rolling around, singing and engaging our daughter. When she began to coo at us, we would talk and read to her. During the early years of her life our schedules and focus seemed to revolve around her.

When the magical day came for her to leave the rug and venture forth, we were ready with camera in hand. Up on her knees she started rocking back and forth. Our world would never be the same again. Then the unthinkable happened. Our cute girl went backwards. For months we heard her scream out her frustration, as once again she had backed herself into a corner.

Spiritually, I too find myself crawling backwards. Sometimes I scream out my frustrations. Instead of listening to what God says about me, I fall into the old trap of caring and believing in what others say about me. This straying from God’s word causes my focus to veer from God’s truth. I begin to rely on other’s opinions of who I am and what I am worth.

At times I allow my focus to stray completely away from God. It is then that I have a sense of being backed into a corner, surrounded by doubt and self-loathing. I cry out for God to rescue me and surrender to Him these false beliefs.

Time and time again, God’s word carries me out of the corner of despair. “We are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:37 NIV).

I rediscover that I am loved. I am a conqueror not a quitter and I matter to God. The chapter goes on to say that nothing can separate me from God’s love.

Like my daughter, I need to practice keeping my eyes trained forward on God and His truth. Inch by inch becoming proficient at crawling forward toward my Heavenly Father and away from the snare of depending on others for my self-worth. God’s word is truth, and He created and called me to be His own. Focused on Him, I can move forward with confidence knowing that I belong to the Creator of the universe, and He loves me. I am one of His precious girls.

The Feeding Frenzy

By Diane Mayfield –

Five women got their bags packed and out the door by 6:15 AM to make a 7:10 flight from Vail to Fort Worth. We arrived at the airport in plenty of time to turn in our rental car, check our bags and go through security with time to spare.

We were on the plane, headed down the runway right on schedule. Then it happened. The captain comes on the speaker and says, “Folks, there seems to be a problem in the instrument panel. We have to return to the gate.”

The return to the gate ended up being a six-hour flight delay out of Vail. The good news is that we did get to disembark.

Once back in the waiting area, all five of us sit against the wall with our electronics plugged in and charging. We look like little ducklings (maybe not so little) all lined up in a row. It’s 10:00 and I am hungry. We all are. We’ve been up since five. In this tiny airport there is one choice for food, a tiny coffee shop with pre-made sandwiches. That was not going to work for me. I have celiac disease and have to eat gluten free.

I start the hunt. First I find out that I can have food delivered, but it must pass through security like everyone and everything else. Now I have to find the food. Pizza is the logical choice. It’s easy to deliver and many places now offer gluten free pizzas.

After about an hour of searching, I finally find a place open and close by that serves gluten free pizzas. The only problem is that a major bike race is happening and traffic is an issue. The restaurant owner wants a guaranteed order of $100 to deliver the pizza to us.

That is not stopping me. I’ll gladly pay. Then it hits me; everyone else is going to be hungry too. I shout out to other passengers in the waiting areas. “Anyone interested in purchasing pizza slices if I order it?” The number of yeses convinces me I would at least break even. I place the order, and forty-five minutes later, pizza arrives.

When I look at the slices, I know I can’t charge people the five dollars per slice I was going to originally. My four traveling companions, who obviously have better business sense than I, aren’t initially too happy paying the lion’s share of feeding the masses. That is until it is over and they witness with me what happens.

In the pizza frenzy and afterwards, the atmosphere in that waiting room completely changes. The dreariness of waiting shifts to lightheartedness, smiles and laughter. People come up to us and share some of their stories. Chatter fills the once silent room. The little children run by us and say hi. In an hour, a community is formed among strangers.

We all laugh, commenting that this is a little like feeding the five thousand.

Five sisters in Christ traveling home from a girls’ trip already full and rich with blessing, received another one. We built a memory that will carry us through the years of living life together. I can’t help wondering if that same sense of community occurred among the followers of Jesus that day He broke bread and fed the multitudes.

Proud

By Heather Allen —

He summons his advisors; he’s had a dream, and someone better tell him what it means. Magicians, sorcerers, astrologers, and enchanters are scratching their heads. How could they possibly know what Nebuchadnezzar dreamt? But it is their job to know. So they have two options: interpret the dream or be cut into pieces.

A guard comes for Daniel. The dream has not been interpreted, so Daniel’s life is required. Daniel pleads for time, and is granted it. He summons Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and together they seek the Lord. Miracles occur when we gather and pray. God gives Daniel an understanding of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and its meaning.

God has used a proud king’s dream to foretell future events. The dream involves a giant statue and accurately predicts the kingdoms that would rule from Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon until the end of days when Christ’s kingdom is established on the Earth. Nebuchadnezzar’s empire was represented by the golden head atop the statue. His empire would be the first of the last. Daniel tells Nebuchadnezzar that the kingdoms of men would ultimately be destroyed by the kingdom of God.

Nebuchadnezzar builds an enormous statue. I guess he was inspired by his dream. Perhaps he wanted others to see his greatness, his place as head of the empire. He decrees that the wise men and leadership of Babylon be rounded up so they can bow down and worship his statue. This time they can look forward to being thrown in a fiery furnace if they decline.

Someday this scenario will repeat. Revelation 13:15 says an image honoring the Anti-Christ will be constructed, and all humans will bow or forfeit their lives.

Somehow Nebuchadnezzar missed the import of his dream. His kingdom was temporary and would be crushed.

And that has me thinking. We as believers are given the same reminders. We are told to set our hearts on things above and to travel lightly, like strangers in this world. This world will pass in a flash. The next will last forever. Anything that is built for our glory will fall.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego stood when everyone else bowed. They knew the dream’s end. They knew that kingdoms built by men do not last. They were willing to stand alone. They laid down their positions and pride, willing to look foolish in order to walk right before God. They reverenced the true King. They would bow to Him alone.

These three men willingly walked death row. They were delivered and then promoted. The pattern repeats through the entirety of the book of Daniel.

I believe promotion comes from God, that a man who walks humbly with His maker is able to handle grander tasks because he has no illusion that he is able to accomplish them on his own. I also believe that God will lovingly keep us where we are positionally if promotion would fuel our pride rather than our dependence. Dependence enables us to stand when others bow. It enables us to walk a harder course, but in the end, we are choosing dependence over pride and life over death.

Hook Line

By Elaine James –

Tom’s flight landed on time, and before he knew it, he was driving off in his snazzy red sports car rental. He was on his way to a convention where he was slated to speak. Once he arrived in town, he was pumped up but troubled. I’m on time. Everything is going to be okay, except that I still need that “hook line” to open my speech – something funny. I also need a little pick me up. Coffee!

As he made his way into the drive-through lane, he remembered that he still needed to confirm the pronunciation and spelling of the town. He certainly didn’t want to embarrass himself by saying it wrong during his presentation.

He greeted the young boy at the window inquiring, “How do you spell this place, and can you pronounce it for me?”

With a slight hesitation, the boy spelled, “B-U-R-G-E-R-K-I-N-G, Burger King.”

Tom, by this time laughing hysterically, said, “No, son, I mean the name of this town!”

Earlier that morning Tom had prayed, “God, I need a funny hook line for my speech. Help!” Nothing came to his mind. He was on the plane thinking, I must come up with something funny. Still nothing! He prayed again, this time telling God, “I only have about two hours till I give that speech. Can you hurry it up a bit?”

In the past, I’ve found myself praying like Tom, telling God what to do and how much time He had to do it. I have prayed like this, “Lord, I am going right now to meet with someone. Make her think the same way as I do about this situation so there won’t be any conflict.” Then I would reason with God using Scripture, “You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it” (John 14:14 NIV).

Tom got his “hook line” with that funny story. Prayer does not always work fast even when I reason with God. James helped me out when he stated, “Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that” (James 4:15 NIV).

I have learned to pray about everything, but now I end my prayer with, “… if it is your will, Father …” I’m hooked! Remember, Father knows best!

PRAYER: Father I pray for _______. Your will be done. I know You know best. Thank You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Invitation

By Susan Dollyhigh –

I learned so many new things in first grade. Good things like reading and writing. And some not so good things – like what it meant to live on the wrong side of the tracks.

One morning my classmate, Elizabeth*, asked our teacher if she could give out her birthday party invitations. One by one, each girl smiled as Elizabeth placed the invitation in her hand. I waited for mine, and when Elizabeth started to sit back down, I naively asked, “May I have one too?”

I carried the invitation home. And that was part of the problem. Home for me was a mobile home on the outskirts of town. Home for Elizabeth was a fancy brick house downtown.

I was the oldest of four children and money was more than tight. Yet knowing how important this party was to me, my mother bought Elizabeth a Barbie doll. I didn’t even own a Barbie doll.

The next morning, my feet practically floated up the steps and onto the school bus. Elizabeth’s gift was in my book satchel, and I couldn’t wait to get to school. But when I stepped off the school bus, Elizabeth ran over to me, lowered her head, and said, “My mother said you can’t come to my party.”

I didn’t know what to say, so I reached into my book satchel, pulled out the gift, and placed it in Elizabeth’s hand. Throughout the school day, I watched in silence as the other girls jumped up and down, and talked about going home with Elizabeth.

My heart ached as the girls climbed into Elizabeth’s car that afternoon. Hanging my head to hide the tears, I walked to the school bus.

But I soon received another invitation from Someone who didn’t care where I lived. The Holy Spirit spoke to my young heart during a worship service, and issued an invitation from Jesus. When I accepted His invitation, my heart filled with God’s love. Even though I didn’t always understand why God allowed bad things to happen in life, I knew, I could trust Jesus to never, ever take away His love, nor His invitation to be my Savior.

Trust Jesus with your heart, He will never take back His invitation.

Bible Verse: See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!” (1 John 3:1 NIV).

Prayer: Father, thank You that we can trust You with our hearts, and that we never have to worry about You taking back Your invitation. Amen.

*Name changed

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