Tuesday, June 26, 2007

His Hand and my sunburn

This past weekend I spent the day at the beach with a friend from my childhood, a dear friend but one I do not see very often. It was just the two of us and we had a marvelous time doing absolutely nothing. We spent the day on the beach relaxing in the sun. Pure delight! I actually relaxed with my head down, eyes closed, not even facing the water! Those of you who are moms know what a rare thing this is, to have no worries of where your sand covered munchkins are or what they are doing, not scanning the water thinking, "Could there be sharks?" (I have a shark phobia. I'm neurotic).

My friend and I laughed a lot this weekend as we shared memories. She was the friend that I did things with that if my daughter ever does I will really want to send her away to some cloister. They weren't regrettable things or shameful things just mischievous, life endangering things. For those of you who have been in my Jewels of His Crown seminar I will sum it up by saying we are both bright sapphires! Sparks were always flying.

Thursday, June 14, 2007

"The God of the Old Testament"

"The God of the Old Testament”

I shudder when I hear this phrase. I shudder because it is usually accompanied by, "Well, let's not forget the God of the Old Testament, He was a God of wrath, He laid waste to nations. He is a God not to be messed with." I

I shudder because I know I have used the phrase in this very same way. The way which says, "Let's not get too carried away with this Grace thing, let's remember our boundaries, we are just worms after all."

I have a friend whose father loves to use this term. She has grown up hearing it. When she has fallen short of his expectations he has used many verses in a very damning way. One day when a group of us were discussing the love offered to us on the cross she quietly asked, "Well, what about the God of the Old Testament?" I knew instantly what she was asking. She wanted to know how the grace that is ours in Christ Jesus can be melded together with the stories of the Old Testament. Is the grace of Jesus Christ, the redemption and freedom of the cross something new that God came up with in between Malachi and Mathew? Was Jesus simply God changing His tactics and moving to Plan B?

Monday, June 4, 2007

Of dog dishes and Jeshurun

My littlest one has been driving me nutty over the past few weeks. She is almost 17-months old and she is a pistol. This morning I learned she can maneuver down the stairs. I discovered this upon finding her in our basement, dancing in the dogs water dish and having a marvelous time. Mind you, I had seen her in the kitchen only moments earlier and thought she was still there until finding her at the crime scene.

She is a corker. Add to this the fact that she has the biggest blue eyes and a smile that just makes you laugh and you have real cause for concern. She is hard to discipline while keeping a straight face.