Within the Forward Push of Time

minutes tick away
turn into hours then days
and silently
within the forward push of time
blossoms become tiny bulbs
hidden baby mangoes
soak in sun and sap
swelling as the weeks slip by

even without rain

strips of clouds float northward
while we wait for dark ones
to splash respite
someday they will come someday
our Lord is healing his parched land
that burns and yearns
for rain and fruit
that time will come

even when we fail to see it coming

What are you hoping for as a new year pushes its way into place? I wrote “Within the Forward Push of Time” in a bleak “winter,”  a “dry season” actually, when we still lived in Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa. We were used to brown Christmases there, because the rains would have already stopped and most trees would have lost their leaves. The harvest was over and we were now waiting eagerly for March when rains would begin again and the first mangoes would ripen, bringing what we had been longing for. It was always like a miracle: the trees would become richly ornamented with dark orange blossoms in starry fans,  tiny green buds would appear and slowly grow into those longed-for mangoes before the rains arrived! The trees’ root systems were able to find water we could not see.

Here in southern Michigan, we might have wished for a “white Christmas” that didn’t come, but now we are getting snow! All we had to do was wait.

Waiting is often yearning, a deep desire for change, for an answer to prayer, for healing to come. With so much chaos and distress going on in our world, we know we cannot count on human leaders to resolve all the problems. Loved ones drift away from following the Lord, and our only hope is for the Lord to break through barriers and draw them back to himself. The job market dwindles and we wait for the right opening to come—how long will that take? Or it could be time to choose a new path forward; which direction is the right one? Maybe physical pain or debilitating disease is crunching hope for relief.

But if all is well and you have special plans for the new year, you still want the Father to hold you and guide you step by step.

Whatever your situation, wait on him. There may be tiny buds growing almost out of sight, fruit on its way. As time moves on ahead we will see what he has planned. We need to trust him like the psalmist did:

130:5 I rely on the Lord,

I rely on him with my whole being;

I wait for his assuring word.[1]

33:20 We wait for the Lord;

he is our deliverer and shield.

33:21 For our hearts rejoice in him,

for we trust in his holy name.

33:22 May we experience your faithfulness, O Lord,

for we wait for you.[2]

[1]  The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible (Biblical Studies Press, 2005), Ps 130:5.

[2] Ibid., Ps 33:20–22.

The Unthinkable Happened

There was one night 
when the division of dimensions 
was ripped open 
and the unthinkable happened. 
God, the Spirit, the Word, 
took his first breath 
as a tiny fragile human,
having spent nine months
in utero, being enfleshed,
now emerging as the maiden’s
painful contractions
pushed him out
into the material world 
he had spoken into being.

Incredible! All because of love
for scandalous, rebellious people,
all because justice must be served!
Yes, the heavens ripped open
as the heavenly beings 
saw this amazing
joining of God to humanity!
One was sent to reveal the news,
then, for a moment,
those exulting crowds of angels
(overwhelmed by the miracle)
were suddenly visible
and audible—
so while the villagers slept
or huddled indoors,
it was the shepherds
in the fields, on guard,
who saw the messenger, 
gasped in wonder
at the sight and the song
of the massive choir
and their message of hope.

This chorus had never been 
heard before by human ears,
no one had seen such a mass
of watchers, of singers
from that other dimension.
And then the opening closed.
The world was still, waiting.

But the shepherds had to find
this newborn savior,
whatever that might mean—
who could understand?
who could unravel this mystery?
And they did find him
just as they’d been told,
and were gripped with wonder.
How could they be silent?
Wonder overflowed and so
they told any who would listen.

Did those who heard believe?
Did they think the shepherds mad,
these unimportant workers who said
they’d heard heaven’s angels sing
and had seen the baby 
whose birth tore the screen apart?
Do we believe? 
Do we comprehend
the true significance
of that bonding so momentous: 
heaven and earth, 
God and humankind?

I doubt that most of us truly comprehend the deep meaning of God becoming human, but we try and try, and each effort takes us to a place of greater inner tingling and emotional gratitude. First of all, we usually don’t really get the crucial necessity of a perfect sacrifice in order for us to be completely forgiven and made new. God tried to explain this through the detailed laws regarding sacrifice in the Old Testament, and he underlined the necessity of punishment for wrongdoing and his willingness to forgive truly repentant people through the prophets and the way that he dealt with the wicked kings.

We sing “Mary, did you know . . .” to underline our own lack of understanding—we know that she could not comprehend all that was involved with Jesus’s birth. She did not know that he would save her, and all who believed in him, from their sins, that he would be murdered then raised to life to accomplish that. She did know that he would be the powerful loving God-sent one that would bring justice to earth, pulling down the rich, proud rulers and lifting the poor to their rightful place. His attention to her, using her, was a sign of that change that would eventually turn the world upside down. We are still waiting for that to be completed. But Jesus, God the incarnate, is indeed our Rescuer, our Way to being reborn and inheriting eternal life! Her prayer, written in Luke 1, moves me deeply; I can relate to her joyful hope. He is still at work here on this waiting earth:

And Mary said,

“My soul exalts the Lord,

1:47 and my spirit has begun to rejoice in God my Savior,

1:48 because he has looked upon the humble state of his servant.

For from now on all generations will call me blessed,

1:49 because he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name;

1:50 from generation to generation he is merciful to those who fear him.

1:51 He has demonstrated power with his arm; he has scattered those whose pride wells up from the sheer arrogance of their hearts.

1:52 He has brought down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up those of lowly position;

1:53 he has filled the hungry with good things, and has sent the rich away empty.

1:54 He has helped his servant Israel, remembering his mercy,

1:55 as he promised to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”[1]

[1] Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible (Biblical Studies Press, 2005), Lk 1:46–55.

God Offers Us His Warm Embrace

God, who fills the universe,
who made it all, the stars and space,
did choose to put mankind on earth
and focus on this tiny place.

The perfect world he made for us
was broken by our parents' sin,
and nothing we try is enough
to heal it, make it whole again.
	
Our God, whose heart is endless love,
could never leave his children lost.
He left his palace up above
to be a man, at a huge cost.
	
Scrunched into human form, Jesus
would usher in God's Kingdom come,
to put an end to what kills us,
for he would die, God's holy Son.
	
This baby was no accident,
born in a stable, far from home;
Messiah, chosen one, God-sent,
his death killed death, made us his own.
	
Alleluia! We sing God's praise!
He offers us his warm embrace,
If we accept, we have our place
In his Kingdom come -- amazing grace!

Just think about it: God wants to hug us and bring us into his Family! And to make it possible, he came in human form to live in troubled times with minimal resources that most of us now consider essentials: furnaces, electricity, cars, computers, the Internet. He chose that time for his own reasons and showed us the fervor of his love—the extent he would go to in order to give us an open door to his Kingdom.

Do we shrug and turn away, choosing to live our lives our own way in the limited time span we have? Or do we jump into his arms and live a life covered with his love and the promise of forever with him?

Absolute Light






You, Lord, are Light: 





original 





essential light 





clear all the way through 





absolutely pure 





absolute 





with no dark edge 





no shading 





showing capriciousness





or shallow inconsistency





and yet — alive!





Vital from core to cosmos





filling space with Being





the One Who Is





and Was





and Is To Come





overarching time





yet entering it





thereby giving time





relevance





piercing the dark





of souls and worlds





slowing lightspeed





to a moment —





thirty-three years —





so we could see you.





Eyes unaccustomed





to glory





we gasped





at the brightness





snapped eyelids shut





against the glare





and so refused





healing





laser surgery





that remakes lenses





gifting us with Sight.





Myopic





we still prefer





our blurred world





(familiar)





to the terrifying





unknown universe





unveiled to reborn eyes.





The risk





of leaping into Light





and living there





is only taken





by the desperate





who know they have





nothing to lose





or occasionally





by the lucid





(seen as simple)





who plunge like children





into space





and find it





packed with Presence





dense with Light.





Let you in a crack





and darkness splits





wide open—





Light explodes





the shadows





and what is left





is forever . . .





When I grew up enough to realize what it mean to actually take that plunge with wholehearted commitment, I began to experience the difference it makes to walk in the Light:





But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. (1 Jn. 1:7 NIV)





We not only can see where we are going and who is with us, but we are freed from the weight of sin, guilt carried hidden within. Jesus’ blood makes us clean and makes it possible for us to live a life characterized by his love, which offers welcome space to others and substitutes peace for conflict. 





Someday we will actually see him as he is, in all his glorious absolute light!  For now, we have the privilege of belonging to him and absorbing the richness of his goodness. Or, as some do, we could choose to avoid the risk of the leap, and keep on trying to find our way in the dark. If you haven’t already done so, I urge you to take the leap. I am witness to the benefits and the joy of walking life with him, the one who is pure light.

	


	





	

		
Choose the Light of Life!
	


	
	

		






He made a world from love of life 
and beauty, work and rest.  
For rest he made the night. 
For work, the day, 
and governing them both 
he made the light: 
a sun to silt the day with gold, s
a moon to silver through the lovely dark.

His hands plunged deep into
moist earth, newly made  
and healthy, rich with promise.
With tender care and staggering intelligence
he blended atoms into cells, a body--
Adam, Earth-one, firstborn human. 
His Spirit, hovering, whispered love
and filled the body with a soul
from his own breath of life.

Then from that same flesh, 
kindly put to sleep, he levered out
a rib and gently, with delight,
he made the woman, counterpart.
And Adam knew he was a man
and she his mate, his love.

They ruled. They basked in light,
laughing in sunshine and moonbeam
alike. They talked with God.
They fingered stars. The earth
responded gladly to their touch,
grew green. They rested by clear water,
picked fruit from bush and tree . . .

until they reached too far.

They fell, and stumbled into death.
Now daylight heat grew out of bounds, 
the sun’s rays sucking beads of sweat
or hiding, letting in the cold.
And night became a flickering menace,
sometimes silken with slivered 
shafts of light, or sinister, 
sheltering snakes in the grass.

But, loathing the deceit 
that threw his humans into hell,
the Father crafted a way out.
It would take Light, real light, 
to cut through glitter and mirage, 
hallucination, solutions leading nowhere.
It needed Truth, to show up deceit
as sham.  The lie had birthed 
a wretched race that lived to die.
His Word of Truth would be
the Breath of Life and Love
sent to recreate creation. 

And so the Spirit blew,
winds shifted, a child was born.
This new Earth-one came to life
to live among the darkened ones, 
a flame they either loved, 
and huddled close to know, 
or hated for its piercing heat—
so snuffed it out, not knowing
this was Light, unchanging, 
source of every other light,
the very Glory. Snuffing backfired.
It burned anew, and flamed,
and Life and Light broke through
and there was nowhere left to hide.

Be shown up for what you are,
Adam, Eve! And either choose to see
this Truth or turn your backs! 
And then your shifting shadow
is the shape of all your instability, 
false starts and stumbling, 
and leaps that land on nothing.  
You embrace the Fall in all your falls,  
tumbling helpless as water, slave to gravity.
Down. Lost. To the grave.

But if you breathe in Word of Truth,
you breathe in Life and are restored—
to grow in health and wholeness,
to belong to a new humanity 
that walks in glowing sunlight daily
but is never burned. You see the Way. 
Through nights of patient waiting,
the path stays lit before you.
Snakes in the grass slip aside.

You watch in hope for your beloved
Earth-One, invisible, yet bright
in every sudden flash of insight,
whose quiet passing is marked
by the wind breathing Life.
He will return in person.  
And you will come to rest 
in a world of peace made new,
where Light and Truth are loved
and snakes no longer threaten.

Right now I live the story every day.
Tempted, choosing “just this once,”
I fall. Each fall births wretched death;
peace is perturbed, life sickens.
Turning to the Light, healed 
by flaming purifying rays,
I find fertility: life birthing life, 
growth to green the world, 
healing for me and for the nations.
This is the answer: choose Life!





Advent is a time of reflection for those who have chosen to live in the Light. Let’s set these weeks aside to express deep gratitude for that breakthrough moment in earth history when the Word, who was and is the Light, was born to rescue us from the dark!





In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created. 4 Life was in Him, and that life was the light of men. 5 That light shines in the darkness, yet the darkness did not overcome it. . . .10 He was in the world, and the world was created through Him, yet the world did not recognize Him. 11 He came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him. 12 But to all who did receive Him, He gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in His name, 13 who were born, not of blood, or of the will of the flesh, or of the will of man, but of God. 14 The Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We observed His glory, the glory as the One and Only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.  (John 1:1-4,10-14 CSB)






	


	





	

		
Just What We Need
	


	
	

		








When our hands are empty, 
fill them up, we pray— 
not too much, 
not too hearty a ration, 
or we may topple 
and then fall.

You set the table in desert lands
as well as on mountaintops.
We need you!
When poverty strips away
our access to food
it’s you we call!

And you come, Father, to your kids
and feed them with just
what they need.
You said you would! You do
provide in your time
what is good.

When your loved ones lose their way
you pursue with mercy.
You find us,
fill our cups to the brim
just like you said
you would.

We set our hope on your manna,
what you provide every day,
sustaining us.
We pray that our siblings
will have it too,
as they should.





Reading through Numbers lately has underlined again for me how prone we all are to complaining. What we get may be adequate, but just not what we really think we deserve. They had daily manna, which evidently had a sweet delicious taste, but they got tired of it. “Why don’t we have all the variety we used to have in Egypt?” they grumbled. Each time there were consequences to their ungrateful attitude. God was saving them from slavery, bringing them to the land he had promised them, but the journey was long and tiring. They let their yearnings overwhelm gratitude for this rescue.





When we have too much good stuff, we may stop realizing that all of it is a gracious gift from God. We may stop depending on him and think that our own efforts have brought us prosperity. When we have just barely what we need, or not what we think we need, we may get surly and complain. But if we are walking close to our Provider, we turn to God and beg for his help. It does remind us that we are dependent on him. And we learn to be grateful for all the “small” ways he is showing us that he is paying attention to our predicament. He knows and he cares. Like the sauce that is being poured onto rice in the photo from a church feast in Tiepogovogo, he knows what blessing to pour onto us and how much would be the right  amount at that moment.





One day in October as my sister-in-law and I walked along the gravel road surrounding Piatt Lake, in the forest in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, suddenly a doe leaped out of a driveway on the left and kept loping into the woods on the right. She was out of sight, but what an unexpected gift she was for us! Her calm swift response and grace as she lifted her body into the air gave us joy. Then I wondered: what was she looking for down by that cabin? Was she hungry? desperate?





Autumn is indeed the season when the animals and birds prepare for winter. It is amazing how what they find now can sustain them. Squirrels are running all over the city here in Detroit, grabbing bits of this and that and scurrying away.





So it is with us, too, as we serve our Master wherever he has placed us. There are times when we can keep on keeping on, day by day, receiving just what is needed to maintain our productivity. But sometimes we see a winter coming as resources peter out and the scenery looks bleak.





It has been this way during the past few months for the Bible translation project that I’m involved in. Our Father has kept us forging ahead through thick and thin since 1998! We suffered several bleak seasons (war, cancer, back issues, fire) but each time the Lord pulled us through. The Nyarafolo people are a small ethnic group in Africa that few people in the United States have ever heard of, but the prayers and ongoing gifts of certain friends and churches who have never even met them provided the sustenance that allowed us to give the Nyarafolo two-thirds of the Word in their language: the Pentateuch, Psalms and New Testament iin 2021. The translation team did not want to leave it at that; they have a passion to complete the Old Testament too!





So we began pressing forward, applying for long-term support and extremely encouraged by the way so many donors kept on giving. Then we recently discovered that a source of major funding for this project, one that had brought us to that major finish line, was not going to be able to help us as planned.





Here we are, translating key books right now (Proverbs, Isaiah and Jeremiah), and hanging on a thread which is the hope that somehow the Lord will find a way to send us the sustenance needed for this critical season of searching. And we just heard that yes! He is sending what can take us through this “winter”—we will wait on him for ongoing provision after that! Even this much, all coming from individuals, is an amazing answer to prayer.





Are you needing some kind of sustenance right now? Maybe it is financial, maybe it is encouragement or healing . . . the list of needs we humans may face is long. We need to remember that our Father is our provider, the one who will accomplish his purposes. His love for us shows up in many ways we don’t even notice—rippling lake waters, bird calls, a doe’s graceful leap into the woods or a stunning sunset. Noticing them lifts our hearts and turns our eyes to the Creator and Sustainer of everything.





Practicing gratitude is also what should accompany our petitions (what we are begging God to do). So just as we are pleading with God to keep this translation project on the move, we are thanking God with all that is in us for his provision of just what is currently needed! Times may be hard, but each day is another gift that comes with his blessing. We really do need to focus on what truly matters, being grateful for our Lord’s gracious attention to his loved ones. Thanksgiving is tomorrow, a great reminder that comes every year. May every day also become a day of thanking God for everything!





15 Be very careful, then, how you live– not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. 18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.  (Eph. 5:15-20 NIV)

	


	





	

		
Gentle in the Storm
	


	
	

		






In the middle of this whirlwind 
may gentleness become 
the strong, long root 
that fixes me to 
what is true, 
that calls to others
to come to you
to find that inner confidence,
that deep ironic peace,
that stands against the gale.

Only you, living in me, can take
my frail impotency and
empower it to heal
when all around
injustice rules 
and wipes out hope
in every innocent.
Lord Jesus, keep me rooted
in you, inside the storm!





I was praying, feeling desperate. Once again I was truly in the middle of a storm in Côte d’Ivoire, back eleven years ago! The country was in political and social disarray, and we were tying to continue the work our Lord had given us in the community when, inside, our hearts were fractured.





Been there? Does this resonate now?





When fierce winds whip through the land, only the trees with roots stretched deep into firm soil stay standing. We, too, only find stability when our hearts are firmly  rooted in Jesus, our Rescuer, Rock, Refuge, and source of peace. He is still the Prince of Peace!





To be firmly “rooted” we need to live our lives in a way completely devoted to him:





 6 Therefore, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, 7 rooted and built up in him and firm in your faith just as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. (Col. 2:6-7 NET)





Gratitude comes from experiencing his reliability and goodness. We are serving the One in charge of our lives and the world. But in addition to living our lives for him, we experience his work in us, changing us so that our faith is constantly strengthened. We know he is really right with us. We know he is reliable in every situation. Being rooted, we are drinking in his sustaining grace and power, that “living water” that never runs dry. Gale-force winds cannot uproot us. And being “built up in him,” we are being formed into the structure he desires. Like a house on firm foundations, we cannot be swept away like a house that is built on sand. As Jesus said:





“Everyone who comes to me and listens to my words and puts them into practice– I will show you what he is like: 48 He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep, and laid the foundation on bedrock. When a flood came, the river burst against that house but could not shake it, because it had been well built. (Lk. 6:47 NET)





There is key information there: we need to be solidly built up in Christ, our firm foundation. Firm in our faith, we must listen to his words and actually do what they say: “put them into practice.” The more we digest his teachings, and listen to his daily messages and promptings, we are collecting the building blocks we need to become strong. When chaos hits, we won’t just tumble.





Yes, he is our safe place, our place of rest. I am sustained by the imagery of him directing our lives in such a way that we find release from carrying our loads of worry, or of resentment and anger, when we take them to him:





 28 Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke on you and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy to bear, and my load is not hard to carry.” (Matt. 11:28-30 NET)





We should not come to him with trepidation: he is gentle, completely approachable, inviting us into his company. His “yoke” refers to his instructions—a yoke directs the animal wearing it. Christ promises to guide us, and his guidance is not a whip but gentle pressure that shows us how to live. He is also humble, not vaunting himself like the religious rulers of his day but inviting his followers to join him in being submissive.





If we are walking with him, letting him guide us with his instruction, then we are to be like him!  Paul was learning this and shared it with churches he was teaching:





I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live worthily of the calling with which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. (Eph. 4:1-3 NET)





Our “calling” is to do what we are instructed to do with humility and gentleness—not by domineering or using harsh words. That does not keep unity or peace. When are practicing gentleness we not only spread peace but experience it:





 Let everyone see your gentleness. The Lord is near! 6 Do not be anxious about anything. Instead, in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4:5 NET)





Gentleness is not what comes to mind as a first reaction when we find ourselves in the middle of some kind of storm. Anxiety or aggressive push-back are two natural responses. Instead we are to live our lives in prayer in every single situation! Thanksgiving accompanies prayer for protection and peace, because God answers. He gives us that inner shield from the chaos in a way that cannot be explained. It only comes from deep attachment to him, living life in his “yoke,” living out our calling “with all humility and gentleness.”





So let’s not let the chaos rule our lives, our thinking! Let’s make sure our heart roots are firmly embedded in the rich and strengthening sustenance that comes from walking life in submission to the Prince of Peace, responding with gentleness and humility to the harsh stabs that may come through words or actions. This is a lesson Christ has been impressing on me recently, constantly reminding me to respond gently because that is being like him, and actually can calm anger that is aimed at me.  This does not say one must not respond at all, just that we are to respond with humility, gently. Jesus did that over and over while being attacked by the religious leaders. The Old Testament underlined this too:





A gentle response turns away anger, but a harsh word stirs up wrath. (Prov. 15:1 NET)





Do not let yourself be quickly provoked, for anger resides in the lap of fools. (Eccl. 7:9 NET) 





So this is my prayer:





In the middle of this whirlwind
may gentleness become
the strong, long root
that fixes me to
what is true,
that calls to others
to come to you
to find that inner confidence,
that deep ironic peace,
that stands against the gale.

	


	





	

		
Prayer Like Waves
	


	
	

		






I’ve been crying out to you, 
my Lord, my Father and my King, 
over and over and over again 
like ocean waves rolling in to crash 
and humbly recede into the mass 
of other currents, like other prayers.

This one overwhelming longing
will not let them stop. I beg:
Please bring my loved ones home
into your arms, into your Family!
I am distressed, seeing their confusion,
their blind eyes fixed on faulty paths!

And you keep on reminding me:
I hear you! I’m the Shepherd,
loving my faithful ones, all ninety-nine,
but always seeking the stubborn one
that wandered off. I know where they are.

So trust my goodness, my infinite wisdom!
I could grab lost Paul and turn him around;
I can grab your loved ones and cut right through
the tangled conceptions trapping them.
I am full of love; I will hunt them down!





Every time I’m at a beach I am entranced by the rise and fall of waves, their incessant pounding and the foam that crowns them then gets left behind as the wave bows and retreats. And another wave is already on its way!





Heartfelt prayer is like that. It doesn’t stop. It doesn’t give up. Love for others pushes intercession, whether they are suffering physically or emotionally, but especially if they are struggling spiritually and have wandered off of the One Way Home.





Is it okay to keep begging the Father to intervene? When you are longing for good for someone, yes! Paul underlined it clearly this way:





14 And we urge you, brothers and sisters, admonish the undisciplined, comfort the discouraged, help the weak, be patient toward all. 15 See that no one pays back evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good for one another and for all. 16 Always rejoice, 17 constantly pray, 18 in everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.  19 Do not extinguish the Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt. (1 Thess. 5:14-20 NET)





When you live like this, always concerned for those around you, and doing what you can to kindly help them (even if that includes pointing out wrong behavior), you are also to “constantly pray.” You ask for God to work in their lives for their good, and that turns your heart to him and his guidance. What should be done next? How should you reach out to them? You are his servant.  What is he telling you is your part in all this? His Spirit is in you to guide you, so that even if you are at a loss about how to pray he will take care of that for you:





26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how we should pray, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groaning. (Romans 8:26 NET)





And you are not to ignore what the Spirit says. He will give you direction, because there is “a time to rip, and a time to sew; a time to keep silent, and a time to speak.” (Eccl. 3:7 NET) Only our Lord knows which of those ways we should act, moment by moment.





Just do not quit praying! Our Father is not irked by our ongoing requests! Instead, he wants us to keep our hearts focused on him, knowing that only he can accomplish what we are yearning to see happen. He does direct us:





Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding. 6 Acknowledge him in all your ways, and he will make your paths straight. (Prov. 3:5-6 NET)





Acknowledging him means to know him and what his directives are. It means paying attention to him all the time, every step. This strengthens our faith, and brings joy. That is why in I Thessalonians 5:16-18 it says:  Always rejoice, constantly pray, in everything give thanks. “Rejoice” and “give thanks” are bookends to faithful prayer! Our trust in God increases, eyes on him. We come to him with our concerns and thank him for listening, for caring, for being the Good Sheperd who will leave his huge flock in good pasture and go out chasing down the wandering sheep. Jesus himself said:





“Which one of you, if he has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, would not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go look for the one that is lost until he finds it? 5 Then when he has found it, he places it on his shoulders, rejoicing. (Lk. 15:4-5 NET)





Amen! May it be so!  This is the loving Shepherd that we count on. Let’s trust him and his wisdom! As our waves of prayer roll in, one after another, they leap high and drop fervently on their destination, producing a lovely froth of foam: joy and gratitude.

	


	





	

		
I Am Yours
	


	
	

		








Because you love me, forgave me,





               chose me and then sent me,





               want to use me,





I bring the only offering I can:





               my self, my soul, my life.





You set aside the Levites for yourself,





               a wave offering to you,





               committed to serve,





a living sacrifice for ongoing worship.





Me too, Yahweh: I am yours!





Every single part of me is yours.





               I hand each one over,





               presenting it





as priests of long ago did, every day,





               when they set out the bread.





My face and all its faculties are yours:





               a mouth to share your words,





               bring peace, speak life;





eyes devoted to noticing your acts





               handwritten in nature.





My ears are listening, open to





               what you are saying to me:





               promptings or love!





My nose yearns to differentiate





               true incense and pollution.





My brain delights in learning





               all about you, Lord, and





               your Word to us.





My thoughts bow down to you,





               ready to be transformed.





My chest is yours, and all it holds:





               my heartbeat, blood pump,





               life-giving air,





plus loving comfort for the little ones





               who need a resting place.





My arms are ready to reach out,





               to grasp, to work for you,





               to hug, to give.





My fingers want to be your tools





               to write, create, caress.





I give you all the organs in my trunk:





               womb of compassion





               and new births,





all that nourishes, and the parts





               that sort out junk to throw away.





My legs are yours, to follow you,





               to run or dance with joy,





               to walk or leap,





to take my feet wherever you may send





               these Good News messengers.





I give you all that makes me counterpart





               to my precious Adam,





               what brings release





yet ties us firmly, makes us one:





               faithful companions serving you.





When I’m asleep, may all my dreams





               accomplish your desire





               to give me rest.





              When I’m awake, I’m in your hands.                





            Use me, infuse me with yourself!










Have you ever wondered how there could be a “living sacrifice” –the offering of a person who is alive, but sacrificed? Contemplating this led me to personalize it in this poem written many years ago. You might phrase each poetic verse a bit differently, but we who are “in Christ” are indeed called to be a living sacrifice!





It is an interesting conundrum with deep meaning that Paul dug into several times:





Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God– this is your true and proper worship.  (Rom. 12:1 NIV)





Here is another translation of this verse, which underlines that “worship” also has the meaning of serving God:





Therefore I exhort you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice– alive, holy, and pleasing to God– which is your reasonable service. (Rom. 12:1 NET)





When we were translating the book of Numbers I was learning all sorts of new things about the sacrificial system. The one that struck me personally was the consecration of the Levites to serve in all the duties that supported the priestly work in the tabernacle. They were not priests, but workers devoted to serve Yahweh:





. . .and Aaron is to offer the Levites before the LORD as a wave offering from the Israelites, that they may do the work of the LORD. (Num. 8:11 NET)





Here is the NET note that explains how a wave offering made the Levites a living sacrifice:





15 tn “The Hebrew text actually has “wave the Levites as a wave offering.” The wave offering was part of the ritual of the peace offering and indicated the priest’s portion being presented to God in a lifted, waving motion for all to see. The Levites were going to be in the sanctuary to serve the LORD and assist the priests. It is unclear how Moses would have presented them as wave offerings, but the intent is that they would be living sacrifices, as Paul would later say in Rom 12:1 for all Christians.”





This now makes so much sense! Yes, we cannot know how a person can be “waved,” but the imagery definitely relates to the way that a person can be presented to God as a sacrifice, devoted to serve him as a living being. The Levites had to be willing to be offered this way. So do we. The verses that follow “present your bodies as a living sacrifice” in Romans 12 plunge into detail about how we are all a part of the church of Christ, “one body” in which the members have different ways to serve their Lord:





 6 According to the grace given to us, we have different gifts: If prophecy, use it according to the standard of one’s faith; 7 if service, in service; if teaching, in teaching; 8 if exhorting, in exhortation; giving, with generosity; leading, with diligence; showing mercy, with cheerfulness. (Rom. 12:1 CSB)





So, like the Levites who were offered as a wave offering that consecrated them for service to God, we must also be consecrated to serve him. We are not just “set apart” to take care of ourselves, although that matters. We are not just to take comfort in church attendance. We are not just to bear the name “Christian.” We are to serve our God whole-heartedly, doing whatever he tells us to do.





This requires being completely devoted to him. Paul has already taken the image of being a “sacrifice” in a different direction earlier in Romans. We do die! We die to our old sinful nature and are raised to new life in Christ, life that includes being his “instruments to be used for righteousness”—service that is done for his totally just and right purposes:





 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 We know that since Christ has been raised from the dead, he is never going to die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10 For the death he died, he died to sin once for all, but the life he lives, he lives to God. 11 So you too consider yourselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its desires, 13 and do not present your members to sin as instruments to be used for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who are alive from the dead and your members to God as instruments to be used for righteousness.  (Rom. 6:8-13 NET)





We do have choices in all this, even after presenting ourselves as a “living sacrifice” to our Lord, “alive, holy and pleasing to him”. Although we know that we have left behind the old life of allowing sin be our master, we are prone to give in to temptation. The NET note for Romans 12:1 ends with this sad observation: “As has often been quipped about this text, ‘The problem with living sacrifices is that they keep crawling off the altar.’ “





Our will has to be actively engaged, which is why Paul begins Romans 12:1 with “I urge you.” If we want to be “all for Jesus,” we must choose to give ourselves over to him and then consistently remember that we are consecrated servants, every part of who we are now lifted to God. How would you write out your understanding of what this means to you personally? We are each different, made in God’s image and reflecting different aspects of him with all our different giftings. This is what pleases him, and it is a life worth living!





I wanted be a “living sacrifice” and pondered what that meant, years ago, several times. It keeps hitting me more deeply—I hope it does you, too!






	


	





	

		
Wait and See
	


	
	

		






Wait, he said. 
When it is the right time 
we will see with our eyes 
what he has planned, 
wonders in answer to prayer. 

Ask, he said. 
Always be faithful in prayer,
aching hearts pleading for mercy,
allowing him to do his good work.
Amazed, we will yet see his wisdom.

Intercede, he said.
Invite him to intervene
in the hearts of his sheep.
Inertia, distress, wandering are not
invincible to the Shepherd, the King.

Testify, he said.
Tell of the answers we've seen,
take time to remember his mercies.
To the end of all time he stays tuned
to the hearts of his dear ones.





I’ll bet you’ve been in one of those spaces where you have no idea what is going to happen next in your life plan. I have. It is easy to fall into that sense of inertia or distress. It can also be a time of learning that what God has told us about himself is true: he will show us the way we are to go. We need to focus our trust on him.





Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. (Ps. 42:5 NIV)





Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life. (Ps. 143:8 NIV)





When he comes through, in his way and his timing, we are blown away.





A few days ago I visited a nearby coffee shop with my friend Chrysanthea (to the right in the photo above). She said the owner had grown up with her brother, and she wanted me to get to know his venue. We were enjoying a special “healthy” drink when Tye walked in and came over to talk. He told us the story of the way God had provided this spot for them just when they needed it most, and how it had become a blessing to many. I was deeply touched!





Tye and Keyona Barnes (at the Café counter in the photo) had a consulting firm going strong until the day in April 2021 that Tye slipped while playing outdoors with his kids, and ended up with a broken tibia and two blood clots. Then COVID hit and he caught it. He was incapacitated for a while, their firm shut down. Keyona set up a tent on their front lawn and sold cupcakes. Things seemed bleak.





But they heard about a small business at 12041 Dexter Avenue that was closing. The price for the building was way beyond what they could pay, so they offered a much smaller amount—and the owner agreed to let them have it! Even getting those funds required a work of God, and he came through. They rehabbed the building, decorating it to fit their theme: In Harmony Café: Sweets & More. They had no staff but themselves the day they opened, but others walked in to work with them, saying the Lord had moved them to come and help. Tye had thought they were unprepared for a Grand Opening that the Detroit mayor had offered them, but suddenly they had personnel and were ready. The mayor held the Grand Opening and a crowd came to celebrate with them.





While Tye was giving me details, Keyona came over and sat with us. Her smiles communicated her heart. And Tye said something I just had to write down: “I see a move of God in this place!”





Yes, we could feel it: peace. They had had no training in how to run a coffee shop; one contact actually brought them a book with instructions on how to do it. Another piece of wonder came with the news that the previous owner (before the business that shut down and sold to them) had been running a Christian coffee shop too—there is an item on the menu named after them. That sense of a blessing covering them has continued to encourage them.





If you would like to see a short video that tells their story, here is a link:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEwxE8rUyCI





I could relate to this sense of God moving with purpose in a place he has chosen for his loved ones, opening it up as a unique answer to prayer, one that even comes with his blessing handed on from those who used to be there





In 2002 we were evacuated from the country of Côte d’Ivoire after civil war broke out, with the rebels taking over the northern region where we were serving in mission. Once in the States we kept waiting for word that the unrest was over and we could plan our return. That wasn’t happening. Some singles and a couple had gone back and were finding ways to continue ministry there, but we still had a teen-aged son with us, a minor, so were not allowed to do that.





While in the waiting game, where could we live? We had not prepared for this dilemma. The family who had taken us in eventually needed their basement apartment, our temporary home, for some of their family. That was when friends in Detroit offered to show us some old houses being rehabbed by Central Detroit Christian, a non-profit supported by our church. The first two were disappointing, neither one calling to us. Then we walked into this house on Burlingame Street that still contained some rubbish left by street people who had made use of it. The inner walls were being torn down and replaced. My husband Glenn and I were astonished at the wave of peace that swept over each of us. Yes! This was the right place! We had no funds saved for such an investment, couldn’t even muster the down payment for the mortgage of $70,000 we needed. The Lord provided that unexpectedly from two different couples!





We moved in in August 2004, as soon as it was habitable. A few weeks later a woman living across the street walked over and asked if she could see what renovations had been done—she was excited, because she had grown up in this house! She told us that she’d been one of 10 kids, their father a pastor who was nicknamed “Pied Piper” because whenever he was walking down the street all the kids would run out to follow him. (We found out later that the pastor owned an ice cream shop down the street and gave free cones to kids!)





We felt again that this was a miraculous provision for us: a house that had been blessed in the past by some of our Lord’s servants lives, had been “lost” for years, and now was redeemed (bought back!) for his purposes. And we have seen that come true. We had to wait for him to show us next steps. We had to ask for provision and guidance. He came through, and the years have revealed many reasons why he chose this location that would be home for our son and still be waiting for us in these our “retirement” years.





What a great reminder this has been: our Lord Yahweh is love, a loyal and kind love (hesed) that takes care of his people like a good shepherd cares for his sheep. Yes, he takes us through the rough dark valley and into the green pastures where he provides all the rest and nourishment we need (Psalm 23). He actually loves doing this for us! Wait for it!





The LORD takes delight in his faithful followers, and in those who wait for his loyal love. (Ps. 147:11 NET)