enthusiasm

“The secret of genius is to carry the spirit of the child into old age which means never losing your enthusiasm.” Aldous Huxley

Have you ever been around people who are just excited to be alive, breathing and moving? Their positive energy flows through them like a refreshing wave from the river of life. They have discovered a way to fall in love with all that is around them, to embrace their creativity and gifts and just want to share them with the world.

What we experience from life is often right before us and we can make the choice to be critical and judgmental or enthusiastic about the events, circumstances, people or direction our lives take. But there’s just something infectious about enthusiastic people. They are upbeat, complimentary, want others to share their joy. Being joyfully contagious is positive.

Acts 3: 1- 10 tells us the story of Peter and John going up to the temple in the afternoon to pray. One day, they encountered a man who had been lame from birth and who begged at the gate called Beautiful. When he saw Peter and John entering the court, he asked them for money. Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!”  So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.

Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.”  and taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong.  He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God.  When all the people saw him walking and praising God,  they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

Fellow humans! If you are breathing, walking, singing and able to do so, then jump up and praise the God who make all those things possible! Your exuberance for life can influence others who desperately need to be filled with wonder and amazement too! What a beautiful thing.

1 Thessalonians 5:16 Rejoice always

IMAGINE

“With color, for the price of a pot of paint, people can express their own style and individuality. But as with style, a gift of color has to be developed by experiment. If you don’t dare, you are doomed to dullness.” Shirley Conran

Oh, how many of us have slipped into the quiet comforts of wearing PJ’s all day or secluding ourselves in our safe havens, not venturing out because it’s easier or maybe because of fear of becoming ill. We keep asking the why’s of what is happening during this when of our lives.

The colors of our world are showing as grey flickering screens with the mute button on or the sound perpetually turned down so we can’t hear. We sit in the silence devoid of color or aliveness. Our pots of paint are stagnating as they sit unopened on our counters and we have hidden our brushes, waiting for better days to come.

Maybe it’s time to break forth like the dawn, to emerge from our homes, and rip the masks off our faces as we grab a brush and start to paint again! It’s time to rejoice in the days of bright sunshine and warm winds. It’s time to venture into nature and live in the full color of the bursting buds and blossoms. It’s about living in the color of laughing red lips and rosy cheeks. It’s about walking into the green and browns of the countryside and stretching our arms upward to the vast blue sky. Perhaps it’s time to be vibrant in our actions and shine the light on someone else’s dull day.

It’s time to shine for Jesus and live our lives in living color! What are you waiting for? Go experiment with life and share the good news!

“Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven. MSG

latin

Easter is my favorite celebration. Some people love Christmas with its glitter, snow and gifts. Some love Thanksgiving with feasts of food, but Easter is about birth, new beginnings and Spring.

The Latin word for spring is “stirps” and for birth, it is “genus”. Ironically, both words have common meanings and refer to offspring, race, family lines. I was so privileged this week to become a grandmother to a beautiful boy named Isaiah. The family line will continue for another generation. It is a new beginning as a family for my son and daughter-in-law and grandson. It is spring and this season is bursting with blooms, blossoms and new life. The sun crosses the equator from south to north and what used to be the beginning of a new year is as innocent as the dawn or a child.

It’s when the sleeping seeds beneath the ground awaken and stretch their arms to break through the earth and touch the sun. Like a baby waking from the womb into the bright world. The birds flit from branches on trees to gather twigs in their beaks to build a nest for their young. The ice on the rivers and lakes crack along the shore to melt into the fresh springs as they thaw. It’s when nature comes alive to warmer days and hopes of new beginnings urge us to escape from our abodes and embrace the days.

Like my grandson, bursting into the world and ready for life, let us rejoice and celebrate our spring. Newness, beginnings, hope for beautiful days ahead. Easter, the celebration of the quintessential person who left the glorious perfection of heaven and came into the world as a helpless babe. He lived a perfect life so he could freely give himself to death on a cross to pay the full penalty for sin, so whoever believes in Him might have eternal life. That’s reason to celebrate because on the third day, He rose again! He is risen indeed! And now He lives in us. New life in Christ everyday.

He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again. Luke 24:6-7

remarkable

Many people have had remarkable experiences during their lifetimes. My grandparents were of that generation that endured many winter storms and depressing times and yet they survived and lived to tell about those events. Others have yet to encounter situations or circumstances because they are either too young or inexperienced with life. Regardless, life does take us on a rollercoaster journey of pain, joy, fulfillment, disappointment, regret and positive choices. The thing is, we can attribute our life events and choices to either coincidence or providence that got or will get us to where we need to be.

Coincidence is that remarkable concurrence of circumstances. We just happen to have that five dollar bill in our pocket when we were short a few dollars on a purchase as we stood at the till at the coffee shop. Coincidence is when my brother was on holidays in Australia and ran into our aunt and uncle at the hotel he was staying at. We see examples of coincidence in so many movies where the plot is manipulated. The boy meets girl scenario or the train robbery timing. What a coincidence we say!

On the other hand, there is providence, the foreseen care and direction of God or as some prefer, fate or the gods to control people’s lives. But Divine Providence is taking the good, the bad and the ugly and making the person or situation blessed, orchestrated by the Divine. There are countless examples in life and certainly in the bible that demonstrate this concept. Take Joseph for example. His brothers were jealous, his father showed favoritism, the slave traders made money off of him, his employer’s wife tried to seduce him, the king’s cup-bearer forgot him and he endured years in a prison. And yet, he and his family were blessed, reconnected and saved because of Joseph’s eventual position. That’s Divine intervention or providence!

Divine Providence - our God - takes everything and works all things together by plan, not coincidence for those who believe and trust in Him. It’s not a coincidence that He is in control of the universe and our lives. Can you think of instances in your life where there was only one clear reason that things happened as they did? I can because I believe in miracles. It’s God’s hand.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

kinda’

You could say I’m kinda’ one of a kind woman with a kindness about me.

I have a picture framed in my home with the words “Kindness Changes Everything” and I truly believe it does. When we are gracious, kindhearted, showing goodness and are sympathetic toward others, we are demonstrating to the world that we care. This interpersonal skill - showing care and sympathy or empathy for others - is instinctual according to researchers (Di Salvo - Scientific America, 2017) They discovered that research shows kindness is the most important predictor of stability in a relationship.

Even though KIND snacks, a food company from New York City (2004) is a popular choice of food, KINDness is a choice we make when we want to show a specific kind of behavior. Even though kind also means a group of people with similar characteristics, wouldn’t it be amazing if we all showed kindness through our actions everytime we encountered another human?

My girlfriend sent me a little story today told by Katharine Hepburn that clearly demonstrates what kindness can do. Apparently, when she was a teenager, her and her father were standing in line for circus tickets. There was a family ahead of them that impressed her. There were eight children, all probably under the age of 12 and even though their clothing was neat and clean, she could tell they didn’t have much money. The children were well behaved, excitedly talking about the clowns, animals, and acts they would be seeing. It would be the highlight of their lives. The husband and wife were smiling at each other, obviously happy and in love.

When the ticket lady asked how many tickets, the father proudly stated, “eight children and two adults.” Then she stated the price. The man’s lip quivered and he asked her, “how much did you say?” She repeated the price. It was obvious the man didn’t have enough money, but how was he supposed to turn and tell his children that they couldn’t go to the circus. Katharine’s dad saw what was going on. He reached into his pocket, pulled a $20 bill out and dropped in on the ground. They were not wealthy by any means either, but her dad picked up the bill, tapped the man on the shoulder and said, “Excuse me, sir, but this fell out of your pocket.”

The husband understood. He looked right at Katharine’s dad, took his hand, squeezed the $20 and said, “Thank you, thank you, sir. This really means a lot to my family.” Katharine and her dad went back to their car and drove home as there was no money for them to attend the circus. She recalls that even though they didn’t get to the circus that night, what her and her father felt was a joy inside from a kindness displayed that the circus could never produce. The value of giving, caring and kindness blesses others.

There are different ways to practice kindness. It creates a sense of community; a willingness to share. Even being kind to one’s self is important. It is an attribute mentioned several times in the bible from Jesus’ miracles to God’s blessings and kindness to us here on earth. We are to practice it daily.

After all, isn’t that what the golden rule is all about?

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4:32

women

Yesterday was International Women’s Day. It was a day I had the privilege to listen to two inspirational women on a Zoom session and it was the day my dearly loved aunt passed away. But in fact, everyday should be celebrated.

We are creatures of sensitivity, creativity and flexibility. We are emotional and passionate and our fierce love consumes us when we fight for justice. We are the gentle rain and the thunderstorm because we speak as such. We are the sunrise and the sunset because of the beauty we display. We are the ocean wave that continually slaps along the shore being there consistently for someone somewhere or the fresh mountain air in lungs that give birth to new creations. We are patient. We are strong. We build families and support each other. We were made of love, for love, to love ourselves, each other and a world that desperately needs it.

Memories of my mother remind me of the endless days when she was tired, but she would still have so many tasks to complete while we were sleeping in our beds. She always gave of herself for others to have a better tomorrow. And when she laid her head on her pillow, the thousand prayers uttered from her lips and the worries and cares were sent heavenward as she finally rested. Many women, the world wide, giving of themselves for the betterment of others. From generations ago who sacrificed and endured so we could have better lives, and I am thankful and grateful, as I too have known denial of myself to give to others. It is the woman’s heart beating in her breast.

We have given Mother Nature the attribute of a woman and countless cultures revere the femininity. Tears can flow from her and laughter from her lips. Woman is practical and spiritual. The bible shares many stories of women of faith. Rahab welcomed spies to save others, Ruth ventured to a new land and Mary trusted God to carrying the Savior of the world in her womb. We carry the Holy Spirit within us. Let’s share that with the world and as the great Psalmist, David writes in the Psalms:

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
    the holy place where the Most High dwells.
God is within her, she will not fall;
    God will help her at break of day.
Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;
    he lifts his voice, the earth melts. The Lord Almighty is with us;
    the God of Jacob is our fortress.

. Psalm 46: 4-7