Hysterical Society

By Cynthia Ruchti –

Our local historical society stays busy resurrecting bits of history, restoring ancient artifacts, and maintaining a charming museum that draws more traffic than one would think for a small town.

The walls and displays and collections in the museum reveal a past, now invisible.

At one time, along the jaundiced-sounding, but intriguing, Yellow River, flourished a loud, but productive, lumber industry. It was so many years ago that no one alive today has sawdust on their shoes. A significant pottery business thrived, too, sometime in history. Fire destroyed most of the two-story buildings in town, twice, if I remember correctly. And out here where I live, eight miles from town, another village existed with a railroad interchange, or so the story goes. There’s no evidence in the landscape or the neighborhood. We can’t even see a dent where railroad ties must have been. But the historical society knows. And they’ll get the details right.

Devoted to preserving historical accuracy, they’ll inform me who was mayor when the first fire raged and how many times the physical therapy building changed hands before its current use—from mechanic’s shop to general store to fabric shop (that one I remember) to—Was there something between the fabric shop and physical therapy?

The historical society could tell me.

As respected as are the members of the historical society, I’ve sometimes wondered how popular a hysterical society would be. They’d laugh hysterically over the antics of the locals. They’d tell hysterical stories about the time the semi-trailer full of cheese broke down outside of town and the community youth group saved the day by rewrapping the cheese, earning enough money to keep the ministry going for another few months.

The laughing kind of hysterical society would gain a quick reputation…for preserving and restoring old joy.

In the book of Proverbs, we’re reminded about God’s thoughts on laughter. “Laughter doeth good,” He said, “like medicine.”

“Laughter doeth” is a nice historical and hysterical way of putting it, isn’t it?

PRAYER: Lord God, I sometimes act as if serious thoughts are the only valuable thoughts. But You told us it’s not only good and worthwhile but medicinal, healing, to laugh. Forgive me for the times I pushed laughter aside as a waste of time. Help me recall the history of the hysterical You’ve woven throughout life and find ways to give others the gift of laughter.

“A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones” Proverbs 17:22, NIV.

Talked Into It

By Cynthia Ruchti –

“Whoa! That is…that’s a unique color combination.”

I stood in my friend’s kitchen, trying to stave off the nausea induced by the wild, highly unappetizing faux painting technique on what she called the “accent” wall.

“You don’t like it?” she asked, eyebrows tented.

I used a trick I learned when my kindergartners brought home creative but unrecognizable artwork. “Tell me the story behind this.”

My friend burst into tears. “There’s no story! It’s a disaster! I hate it!”

“We agree then.”

“It’s not just me? It really is horrible?”

“You needed to ask? Jen, those garish colors just aren’t you at all! Who talked you into this?”

She paused for a moment. “The kitchen designer. Not only did she talk me into the circus-tent-in-a-tornado technique, but it cost me more than the glass-tile backsplash!”

Sympathy oozed out of me.

I’d been talked into a few bad ideas before, things I’d regretted a lot more than an accent wall that could be painted over. “Hon, what made you say yes to this? Didn’t the designer show you a sample first?”

“Oh, I saw a sample. Didn’t like it. But I thought I was the wrong one, the uptight one, the person with no taste. So I caved.”

“Love to talk to you more about this, Jen, but could we discuss it in the living room where I’m less likely to lose my lunch?”

Throughout time, God’s people have often been talked into things they knew were dumb ideas, or even spiritually dangerous ideas. No doubt they, like my friend, felt intimidated by the apparent—and false—wisdom or intelligence or good sense of the person insisting, “This is perfect for you. You need to try this—everybody’s doing it. Okay, you can hang onto that faith idea if you insist, but at least don’t let yourself go overboard.”

Regret doesn’t come from listening to God, but from listening to others who talk us into things that go against the wisdom of God.

PRAYER: Father God, I don’t want You to have to ask, “Who talked you into the pursuit of this nonsense?”(Isaiah 57:11—The Message). By Your Spirit, keep my head on straight and my ears tuned only to You.

BIBLE VERSE: “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure, then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere” James 3:17 NIV.

Spoiled Fruit

By Cynthia Ruchti –

My daughter cracks me up. Her sense of humor, like her two brothers’, has grown more acute and cute in her adult life. She has a wonderful way of viewing life’s difficult moments—especially as they relate to parenting—with an eye for the humor in the situation.

A couple of weeks ago, on a Saturday afternoon that already had too many “time outs” and too few naps, daughter Amy showed up for worship team practice with her mommy-self dragging on the ground behind her.

Before practice began, the worship leader asked if anyone had a prayer need. Amy’s hand shot up. Well, as quickly as a hand can shoot when it’s exhausted.

“Yes, Amy? A prayer concern?”

“I’m having a little trouble with the Fruit of the Spirit.”

“Which one?”

“All of them. Except meekness.”

Her comment sent a wave of laughter around the room, blessing other worshipers who came to practice lacking in one or more of the Fruits of the Spirit.

She knew she didn’t need fewer children, or another read-through of a Dr. Dobson classic. Even if her circumstances…and the attitudes of her precious children…didn’t change, her true need was for a stronger complement of Fruit. Fresh Fruit.

How many days do I search for an answer I think I need—a solution I believe I ought to be able to find—when what I really need is a trip to the Divine Produce Department?

PRAYER: Lord God, I’m in awe of the way You can use the simplest, shortest little quip to sting my heart and jump-start it back into proper rhythm—Yours. Thanks for the sweet reminder that all I ever need more of is You.

BIBLE VERSE: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23 NIV).

Excess

By Cynthia Ruchti –

“Whatever you don’t need, just leave it here.” That’s what I told him.

My husband was leaving for a fishing trip early in the morning. He knew better than to wake me, just so we could have one more kiss.

Leaving before dawn meant he had to go to bed the night before way earlier than my night-owl self could imagine. With my husband contentedly snoozing and dreaming of smallmouth bass and walleyes, I closed up the house for the night and made him the lunch I knew he’d need for the trip. But how large a lunch? Did he plan to stop on the way? How long was it going to take him to get to his destination? I should have asked before he fell asleep.

To make sure he had enough, I made him an abundant sack lunch and left a note. In addition to, “I love you. Have a great time,” the note also said, “Oh, the lunch? Whatever you don’t need, just leave here.”

When I got up the next morning, I saw the note with his own scribbled “Thanks! Love you, too!” added to the bottom. Several of the elements of the lunch I’d prepared rested in the fridge, waiting for someone else to need them.

Hmm. Made me think. I wonder if that isn’t a message the Lord communicates to His children. “I’ve prepared more than enough for you, given more than enough. Whatever you don’t need, just leave here for someone else.”

I think the Lord also says, “You’re carrying a load of things that aren’t helping. They’re weighing you down and making the trip more cumbersome than it has to be. If you don’t need them—and trust Me, you don’t—leave them here. With Me”

Who would argue? “But, Lord, I need that worry, that anxiety, that stress. I need that remorse, this extra bag of guilt for things You’ve already forgiven. Don’t I?”

A popular praise song reminds us that none of us has time for the upkeep of maintaining or hauling around cares and regrets that the Lord has already covered with His Love.

PRAYER: Father God, it’s the weight of a deadline that’s creating unnecessary baggage today. Thinking about it is making it worse than it actually is. I don’t need to haul that around when I’m trying to be nimble. Lord, help me leave it with You. And tomorrow’s care? I’ll need Your help with that, too.

“Casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for You” (1 Peter 5:7 KJV).

 

Identity Theft

By Cynthia Ruchti –

It happened on an ordinary afternoon. I made a small purchase at a local specialty store and paid for it with a credit card. Or rather, I tried.

“I’m sorry, ma’am, but the charge wouldn’t go through.”

“What do you mean? We can’t have reached our limit. We never have more than a small amount charged to our credit card, and we pay it off completely every month, on time.”

“Sorry. The machine says your card is denied.”

I had other means to pay that day, so I did. When I got home, I called the credit card company.

“Yes,” the customer service rep said, “there’s been suspicious activity on your card. We shut it down. Weren’t you notified?”

Suspicious activity? Someone was using our account number?

“It happens far too frequently,” the customer service rep explained. “We’ll get everything straightened out eventually, but it may take several monthly bills to work through which charges are legitimately yours and which were made fraudulently.”

I understood why people say they feel as if they’ve been violated when someone steals their identity. It was an affront on all counts—financially, a time waste, a headache producer, and what seemed a never ending pattern of confusion as it took many months to sort it all out.

The thieves caused so much grief unrelated to the money. As grateful as we were for a cooperative card company with which to work, I still mourned the time drain and inconvenience.

Identity theft happens every day. And sometimes we hand it over to the thieves.

We forget that we are daughters and sons of the King of kings, and act like paupers instead. We fail to show our “I belong to Him” cards when loneliness threatens. We cower as if we have no power bestowed on us from the Conqueror. We wander in confusion, as if it’s impossible to know where we stand with Christ, even though He’s told us we are His “workmanship,” His handiwork (Ephesians 2:10).

Is that how we act? Or do we allow voices other than the voice of God to steal the identity of who we really are in Him? It’s a mess when that happens…a violation against us. And it can cripple someone not just for a few months of paperwork-straightening, but a lifetime of unnecessary and unwarranted shame and regret.

PRAYER: Lord, help me implement Your plan to guard against spiritual identity theft. Make me wise to what weakens my defenses.

“The Spirit Himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God’s children, and if children, also heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ” (Romans 8:16 – 17 NIV).

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