Hiding Place

Where were they?


All winter long,
the robins did not hop about
plucking worms and bugs from the soil,
nor did they sing to each other
among the trees or in the fields.


To the best of my knowledge,
there were no robins.


Suddenly, 
out of nowhere,
there are thousands of them!


They are all so very, very busy,
and they are everywhere,
and their rounded bellies
boast telltale signs 
of more robins in the near future.


So, where were they all winter?

"Look at the birds of the air, 

that they do not sow, 

nor reap nor gather into barns, 

and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  

Are you not worth much more than they?"  

~Matthew 6:26

"You 

are my hiding place;

You 

preserve me from trouble; 

You 

surround me with songs of deliverance." 

~Psalm 32:7

Spring Gleaning

   Such a tremendous encouragement to read through a few biographies of women of great faith that have gone before us!  Following are a few clips to offer a flavor of the rich Christian heritage from which we may glean and gain valuable insight in to life in Jesus.

   Their stories are an important reminder that life is never easy and that God alone is our hope.

   Please note that much of what is written is not in my own words, but gathered from a variety of sources which are not noted.  ~ae

Amy Carmichael (1867–1951)

Missionary to India; founder of Dohnavur Fellowship, a society devoted to saving neglected and ill-treated children.

In many ways an unlikely candidate for missionary work, she suffered neuralgia, a disease of the nerves that made her whole body weak and achy and often put her in bed for weeks on end.

Much of her work was with young ladies, some of whom were saved from forced prostitution, providing a place of sanctuary for more than one thousand children who would otherwise have faced a bleak future.

In 1931, Carmichael was badly injured in a fall, which left her bedridden much of the time until her death. Amy Carmichael died in India in 1951 at the age of 83.

Quote:  "Blessed are the single-hearted, for they shall enjoy much peace. If you refuse to be hurried and pressed, if you stay your soul on God, nothing can keep you from that clearness of spirit which is life and peace. In that stillness you will know what His will is." 

Quote:  "But God is the God of the waves and the billows, and they are still His when they come over us; and again and again we have proved that the overwhelming thing does not overwhelm. Once more by His interposition deliverance came. We were cast down, but not destroyed." 

Quote:  "I wish thy way.
And when in me myself should rise,
and long for something otherwise,
Then Lord, take sword and spear
And slay." 

Quote:  "Do not fight the thing in detail: turn from it. Look ONLY at your Lord. Sing. Read. Work." 

Quote:  "Bare heights of loneliness...a wilderness whose burning winds sweep over glowing sands, what are they to HIM? Even there He can refresh us, even there He can renew us." 

Quote:  "Satan is so much more in earnest than we are--he buys up the opportunity while we are wondering how much it will cost." 

Frances Jane Crosby  (1820–1915)

Blind all her life, she saw over 8,000 poems set to music and over 100,000,000 copies of her songs printed.

Born in a one-story cottage, her father died before her first birthday. At six weeks old, she caught a slight cold in her eyes, and as a result of poor medical treatment her sight was destroyed completely.

At age eight, she wrote her first recorded poetry: “0 what a happy soul am I! Although I cannot see, I am resolved that in this world, contented I will be. How many blessings I enjoy, that other people don't. To weep and sigh because I'm blind, I cannot and I won't!”

Quote:  "Mother, if I had a choice, I would still choose to remain blind ... for when I die; the first face I will ever see will be the face of my blessed Saviour."

Mary Mitchell Slessor  (1848-1915)

Missionary to Africa.

When she was 11, she began working 10 hours a day to help provide for her family.  Her father was an alcoholic, but she was extremely close to her mother as they prayed continually for God's provision and protection.

She was not well-educated, but loved to read the Bible most of all, studying Jesus and his life in the gospels.

At age 27, she sailed for Calabar (in present day Nigeria) where she became a school teacher.  After three years, she was sent home on furlough because of malaria. When she returned, she lived with the people she served.  Her childhood of poverty made this lifestyle seem fairly normal.

Witchcraft and spiritism and cruel tribal customs were hard to fight against. The tribes thought that twins were a result of a curse caused by an evil spirit who fathered one of the children. Both babies were brutally murdered and the mother was shunned from society.

Rescuing many twins and ministering to their mothers, she was continuously fighting against this evil practice, often risking her life. The Lord gave her favor with the tribesmen, and Mary eventually gained a respect unheard of for a woman.

Quote:  "Lord, the task is impossible for me but not for Thee. Lead the way and I will follow."

Quote:   "Why should I fear? I am on a Royal Mission. I am in the service of the King of kings.

Esther John (1929–1960),  born Qamar Zia

Pakistani Christian nurse who was allegedly killed by a Muslim radical. 

She attended a government school and, after the age of seventeen, a Christian school. There she was greatly moved by the faith of one of her teachers, and she began to read the Bible earnestly.

While reading Isaiah 53, she chose to leave Islam and adopted Christianity. She faced many problems from her family, who migrated to Pakistan.

Her Christian faith grew secretly.  Eventually, she ran away from home, fearful of the prospect of marriage to a Muslim husband.  She worked in an orphanage and took the name Esther John.  

She evangelized in the villages, travelling from one to the other by bicycle, teaching women to read and working with them in the cotton fields. At times her relationship with her distant family seemed calm but sometimes her anxiety was troubling.

Today, Esther John is remembered with devotion by the Christian community with whom she lived and worked"

Quote:  "In an age where conversion to a new faith provokes fear and hatred, leave all other ties; Jesus is calling.”

Up Close and Personal

I can catch a passing reflection of myself

as I pass by a window,

a puddle,

a waxed car,

or a piece of tin foil.

If I stop for a longer glance,

I might notice that my hair needs brushing.

If the lighting is just right,

and if I strain my eyes into the distorted reflection,

I may be able to see well enough

to seize a stray bit of lettuce

that took refuge between my two front teeth.

But…

if I take the little concave mirror

out of my purse

and hold it really close

to my face,

I am able to see every pore,

every mole, every eyelash,

and every imperfection.

When I look into God’s Word,

what do I see?…

a distorted passing reflection?

a glance lengthened enough to fix what's messed up?

or a keenly focused attention on the Person of Jesus,

up close and personal?

~ae

“But prove yourselves doers of the Word,

and not merely hearers who delude themselves. 

For if anyone is a hearer of the Word and not a doer,

he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror;

for once he has looked at himself and gone away,

he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. 

“But one who looks intently

at the perfect law (Jesus), the law of liberty,

and abides by it,

not having become a forgetful hearer

but an effectual doer,

this man will be blessed in what he does.”

~James 1:22-25

Being Right

In being right

I have been wrong;

in being wrong

I have been right.

What?

Insisting I am right

without listening,

without regarding relationship,

without considering the whole picture,

without love,

is wrong.

Realizing that I am wrong,

and taking action by repenting,

apologizing, submitting,

desiring to learn, to grow,

to love,

is right.

~ae

“And when I came to you, brethren,

I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom,

proclaiming to you the testimony of God. 

For I determined to know nothing among you

except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. 

I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling,

and my message and my preaching

were not in persuasive words of wisdom,

but in demonstration of the Spirit of power,

so that

your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men,

but on the power of God.” 

~I Corinthians 2:1-5

“If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels,

but do not have love,

I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” 

~I Corinthians 13:1

For God Only

My soul 

waits in 

silence for 

God only.

There lay my daughter’s art project;

a cookie sheet with an assortment of makeshift tools;

a screw, a pocket knife, a pencil,

a pair of nail clippers, a large tack, paints,

and a coffee mug containing

a few art brushes soaking in murky water.

Etched onto the face of a slab

of dried plaster of Paris,

accompanied by a few simple flowers

and gentle swirls,

these words speak a simple truth.

But… it is broken.

A few inches off the bottom,
including the petals of one flower,

have been portioned off

and remain separate.

Attempts have been made

to fit the jagged edges together

with various adhesives,

but to no avail.

As I try to grasp the depth

of the meaning of these words,

my heart is sad that

such a lovely piece of art

with so moving a phrase

is wasted.

Suddenly,

more profound to me

than its beauty and creative simplicity

is the fact that it is broken.

It is only when I am broken

that my soul may truly enter

into the purest silence;

that of waiting

for God only.

“My soul waits in silence for God only.”

The Lord is my shepherd,

I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside quiet waters.

He restores my soul..."

~ Psalm 23:1-3

My Pity Party... Wanna Come?

If you’ve ached from your head to your toes’s

and your symptoms cried for diagnosis

and you sniffed and you coughed

‘til your glasses fell off,

then you went to get scripts for some doses.

And you vowed to take each pill with care

so the doctor won’t give you that stare;

then you found a nice spot

and drank fluids a lot

and pretended that dishes weren’t there.

After all that, your brain's in a fog

and your only companion’s the dog

and you’ve nothing to do

that appeals to you.

So, just write something lame on your blog.

Halls of Fame

Walking through the halls

of the elderly care facility,

the endless rhythmic sounds

of oxygen cannulas,

droning televisions,

nurse call buttons

sought to lull my senses.

Yet my eyes could not avoid

the abundance of brokenness, frailty,

shadows of those who once were whole, 

vibrant, capable people

making significant and generous

contributions to society.

I struggled,

longing to be encouraged,

to see beauty

amid eyes that are dim,

hands that are bent,

minds that are disconnected.

My daughter came around the corner

with lilting step and charming smile,

her hours of work in the Alzheimer’s wing completed.

On the drive home,

she delighted in sharing stories

of the talkative advances of one who was normally quiet,

of the benefits of singing to the residents while she puts them to bed,

of the sweet little lady that actually noticed her new shoes…

In a flood of realization, it became clear;

my eyes are dim,

my hands are bent,

my mind is disconnected.

In anguish, I cry out to You, Lord;

please give me Your eyes to see,

Your hands to serve,

Your mind to be understanding.

~ae

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 

the Father of mercies 

and God of all comfort, 

Who comforts us in all our affliction 

so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction 

with the comfort 

with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”  

~II Corinthians 1:3,4