Just a thought by coppi

Just a thought by coppi – written in 2015

A light house does not blow fog horns but it only shines.  

When I read the above I thought of our walk as Christians.  Does our life reflect the light  of Jesus.  St Mark 4:21: and he said unto them, is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed? And not to be set on a candlestick?  A candle beams its flickering light so we may find our way in the dark as does the Lighthouse.  As Christians we should let our light shine & walk in the light of Christ.  We need not blow fog horns but just shine & let the Holy Spirit beam through us.  Proverbs 20:27 The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord……i grew up in a very legalistic religion & if we did have a little light, it was totally blown out with dos & don’ts & lots of fear. 1 John 4:7: Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God….10: herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us & sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 1 John 4 is filled with scriptures of love.  The pendulum swings both ways but should be in balance.  I guess my desire is not to be a fog horn but a flickering light for our Lord.

Mark 4:39 – then He arose & rebuked the wind, & said to the sea, “peace be still”!

“Father, the sea is big & my boat is small, but I feel safe because you are here in the boat with me”.  Daniel Schantz

Do you ever feel your boat is a kayak & you are peddling with all your strength to keep it moving?  Back in my days in Dallas, TX, I used to work with the Chaplain at the V.A. Hospital.  He would send me to different floors where people were in dire need of healing & a message of hope.  It seemed every room was filled with death.  I struggled with being there & what to say until I came to the conclusion I wasn’t there for me but for others.  I crawled out of the kayak & got into the boat with Jesus.  Each room I enter, I would say “you know the need of this person, give me the words to comfort them & give them hope”.  I volunteered there approximately 1 – 2 years sometimes 3 times a week.  I thought I was helping them but truly listening to their life stories, they ministered to me.  When you know your time is near & if Jesus doesn’t heal you, it’s amazing what is important & what isn’t to you……Many lost their fight for life but others made it.  The V.A. Hospital was like a big sea of swirling winds until I saw Jesus move within the hearts of mankind & bring peace to their souls.

Just a thought by coppi

Just a thought by Coppi

“I choose to trust what I don’t understand to the God who does.”

Truly, I have had to say the above quote many times in my life because I do not understand the many goings-on in  my surroundings.  My mother used to say to us when we would ask about something we did not understand and why a good God would allow that to happen – “God is weaving a pattern, and you will understand it in the great by and by”.  As I watch the news and see all the tragedies that I do not grasp and probably will not in this lifetime, I remember what my mother said and the scripture in Isaiah 29:16 – “How foolish can you be? He is the Potter, and he is certainly greater than you, the clay! Should the created thing say of the one who made it, “He didn’t make me”? Does a jar ever say, “The potter who made me is stupid”? (NLT).  So to sum it up, i guess I will know and understand when my life is over and I stand before our creator and view the entire pattern he has woven.  Until then I choose to trust what I don’t understand to the God who does.

Just a thought by coppi

In order to protect our hearts from the pain and wounds of the world we both consciously and subconsciously build walls. These walls take all sorts of forms. Some walls are built for appearance so that outward beauty covers up inward brokenness. Some walls are built to be strong and tough so that pride and strength cover up inward vulnerability and self-consciousness. Some walls are built in order to blend in so that people pass us by altogether and never try to know us. Whatever wall we choose to build, one thing’s for certain: the walls might guard us from harm, but they also keep us from ever experiencing true life.  Greg Denison First 15 April 11, 2018

I looked up the definition of walls and found there were many kinds of walls – load-bearing walls, non-bearing walls, a high thick masonry structure forming a long rampart or an enclosure chiefly for defense, a mass of people or things formed in such a way that you cannot get through or past them, etc etc; but the walls I was interested in are the walls we build around us to protect people knowing our real self.

I liked Greg Denison analysis of walls we build around ourselves to keep disappointment, hurt, pain, etc from creeping into our souls.  Maybe you are one of the blessed that have not had to deal with hiding behind walls but I have.  I can remember every hurt I endured through life, I would say “not again” and up went a wall.  I can remember one time in Dallas, Texas, when I was trying to be accepted and please the world, I prayed; “Jesus, what do you want me to do and be”? Deep within I heard “Be yourself”.  It took many years to finally realize that is who He created me to be – ‘myself’.  In Ps 139:14-15 God talks about how he knew us before we were born and how wonderful his workmanship was in creating us to be exactly how he wanted us to be.  “Be yourself”.  If that is enough for God, I guess it’s enough for me.

Jesus is the perfect example of what it looks like to live a life of significance because he was wholly surrendered to the will of the Father. At the end of his ministry, he had only a few followers that stood by him. He never wrote a book or even traveled more than a few hundred miles from where he was born. Rather than considering him successful, the world killed him. But he made the biggest impact of anyone in all of history. 

Just a thought by coppi

Jesus Heals our Pains ….Henri Nouwen. Spoke to my heart this morning………..

How are we healed of our wounding memories? We are healed first of all by letting them be available, by leading them out of the corner of forgetfulness, and by remembering them as part of our life stories. What is forgotten is unavailable and what is unavailable cannot be healed. . . .

By lifting our painful forgotten memories out of the egocentric, individualistic, private sphere, Jesus Christ heals our pains. He connects them with the pain of all humanity, a pain he took upon himself and transformed. To heal, then, does not primarily mean to take pains away but to reveal that our pains are part of a great pain, that our sorrows are part of a great sorrow, that our experience is part of the great experience of him who said, “But was it not ordained that the Christ should suffer and so enter into the Glory of God?” (Luke 24:26).

”A man’s heart deviseth his way; But Jehovah directeth his steps.“

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭16‬:‭9‬ ‭ASV‬‬

The talented writer C.S. Lewis understood how to view interruptions and how they were a part of the real life God has for us. He wrote these

words:

“The great thing, if one can, is to stop regarding all the unpleasant things as interruptions of one’s ‘own,’ or ‘real’ life. The truth is of course that what one calls the interruptions are precisely one’s real life—the life God is sending one day by day.”

And if you accept this, each day can be an enriching experience with the prayer,

“Lord, how are you going to interrupt my life today?”

“I don’t know anyone who likes being interrupted. It doesn’t matter whether we are talking or in-the middle of doing something – we don’t like being interrupted. Interruptions mean having to stop what you are doing and adjust to the interruption. If we want to encounter God, we had better be ready for interruptions.”

Interrupted!  Yes!  I get up early every morning to have time “with God” – is what I call it. I do not want to be interrupted by anything.  I want solitude.  No disturbance.  Tom, my husband, brought me a cup of coffee, which I definitely need in the morning to awaken my senses.  He graciously handed it to me, and left me in my thoughts. Next thing:  I reached up to put my coffee back on table, missed the coaster, and my coffee cup filled with coffee flew on the floor. Coffee was everywhere – under both our chairs, trash basket etc.  it definitely was an interruption!! I had to get out of my “thoughtful” chair and clean everything up. What a mess!  That was the end of my quiet time.  ‘Real life’ 1is what C. S. Lewis calls it.  It was unpleasant for sure, but real life throws us lemons at times; it’s up to us to make lemonnade out of them. 

Just a thought by coppi

“By admitting your inadequacies, you show that you’re self-aware enough to know your areas for improvement…and secure enough to be open about them.” –Adam Grant

I have been at this a long time—-every since I took a course on “A way out”.  It’s risky but worth the effort. I had to rip off all my masks and be me, “1warts” and all. Acceptance was big in my life.  The risk of not being accepted made life easier….no more masks, one was enough “me”.

Just a thought by coppi

Jesus points out in Matthew 10:29-31: “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

Sparrows don’t sow or reap and they don’t store and hoard. God feeds them. Provision is not dependent on our works, it is dependent on God’s grace. Sparrows don’t worry about what they are going to eat and drink.

The sparrow is used as an illustration of God’s control over all things. If nothing happens to a sparrow without him then we can be assured of his care for us.

Outside our front door, we hung a beautiful reef decorated with greenery and flowers that pop.  This time of the year, we can always count on a mother and father wren to build a nest for their wee babies. Last year they built  their nest in our garage in an empty basket we had on a shelf;  this year in our reef on the front door! We watched as this mother and father wren anxiously watch over this nest.  What amazed me is that a wren is a very tiny little bird, but made a noise that could be heard through our neighborhood.  Finally after a month or so, the big day came – two tiny baby wrens fell out of their nest ready to start their journey in the world.  Mother and father could be heard rejoicing over their birth.   My analogy as I watched with excitement over this joy and protection of how mother and father protected every occurrence and outcome of the birth, my thoughts wrapped around how our Lord protects and guides us in our journey here on earth.  We are like sparrows/wrens in God’s eyes – and, He cares and loves us. 

Just a thought by coppi

Yes, the journey ahead includes deep waters. But the scripture promises, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you…” (Isaiah 43:2).

And, He will not forsake you. 

Just a thought by coppi

“Being consumed by what people think of you is the fastest way to forget what God thinks of you.” – Craig Groesche

Of course I like people to enjoy me and to be accepted by them, but the fallacy is when I am consumed by if they do or if they don’t.  I remember what a dear friend of mine told me – “Coppi let your expectations come from God, not man, and you will not be disappointed”.  The world is full of snow flakes (mankind) with different personalities: “Personality: refers to the enduring characteristics and behavior that comprise a person’s unique adjustment to life, including major traits, interests, drives, values, self-concept, abilities, and emotional patterns.” Acceptance of people and their way of life is unconditional love – the other is trying to mold yourself into their life by not being who you are and being a people pleaser.  I think I was a little of both – a friend told me once and I quote him “what difference will it make forty years from now”.  Twenty some years ago, I wore myself out trying to be the ambassador of the world; it wasn’t until I gave that position over to God that my life was not filled with so much angst. Yes, today I still desire to be loved; however, my biggest quest is to please God and let his guidance direct my life, and I believe if I do that God will take care of all my desires.  Ps 37: 4 – delight yourself in God and He will give you the desires of your heart”.