Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Uphill Friends

I have started running.  I'm pretty sure the reason for this has something to do with turning 40, so let me just state, I despise running.  Making matters worse, I live on a mountain so running consists of me dying most the time, with one particular hill I just can't conquer.

Enter my dog Truman, my loyal, Clifford of a dog who outweighs me by about 60 lbs and makes up for in strength what he lacks in intelligence.  He's the perfect uphill friend as holding onto his leash makes the incline so much easier.

Last week, with Truman at my side, I took on the hill.  About half way up I started to slow, ten more steps and I was about ready to keel over when all of a sudden Truman started motoring up the grade.  It was as if he said, "Oh, no, we're beating this one.  Just put one foot in front of the other, friend, and I'll pull.  I'll pull you up."  

Monday, October 1, 2012

A God who Rises

Yesterday while in church, I watched a mini-sermon unfold a few rows in front of me.

The sermon began when I heard a child's cry from the nursery and watched as a young mom instantly changed her posture from relaxed to alert. Her neck seemed to get a bit longer, her head tilted ever so slightly bringing her ear closer to the noise. It was her baby, and she was ready to rise.   

It was a living picture of one of my favorite verses, Isaiah 30:18, The Lord longs to be gracious to you,  therefore He will rise up to show you compassion. Each time I hear this verse, I picture God being like me and my friends as young moms at McDonald's Playland. We'd hear a child cry and all of us would come to alert. Just like the mom in church, we'd begin to rise. Following this metaphor, I am in awe to again write, The Lord longs to be gracious to you,  therefore He will rise up to show you compassion.

The God of creation rises for me.  As if being raised for me wasn't enough, He now rises.  He hears my cry, He rises (Psalm 34:18). He sees me fall, He rises (Deut 33:27).  I'm not sure what the rest of my day holds, but my God will rise. 

I don't know what you are facing today, but I pray for you all the same. I pray that whether you are playing happily or hurting with deeply scraped knees, you will claim and rest in the truth that Our God Rises. No matter how loud or soft our cry, no matter if we have caused our pain or are merely a victim of it,  our God rises.

So there you have it, my Sunday morning sermon brought to me by a tender mom and her not so happy little one.

PS.  And please don't tell my pastor he was upstaged by a one-year-old!