Contemplations ...
a compilation of essays and poetry
Offerings on this page:
Do you Think that God Cannot use you?
The Difference Between Rich and Poor People
Prior-i-Teas of a "Keeper of the Home"
ONE OF THE GIRLS IN MY CIRCLE SENT ME THIS!
Cindyann’s comments: This has made the email forward circuit, but in case you missed it, it is good and fun, if taken with a “grain of salt”! I am thankful for my circle that means so much to me, because there is an uncommon thread that runs through my circle; it is the Lord Jesus Christ! I believe He delights in our friendships and that they are holy in His sight.
GIRLS IN MY CIRCLE
When I was little, I used to believe in
the concept of one best friend. And then I
started to become a woman.
I found out that if you allow your heart to open up, you will be shown the
best in many friends.
One friend is needed when you're going through things with your partner.
Another friend is needed when you're going through things with your
parents.
Another will sit beside you in the bleachers as you delight in your children
and their activities.
Another when you want to shop, share, heal, hurt, joke, or just be.
One friend will say, 'Let's cry together,' another, 'Let's fight together,'
another, 'Let's walk away together.'
One friend will meet your spiritual need, another your shoe fetish, another
your love for movies, another will be with you in your season
of confusion , another will be your clarifier, another the wind
beneath your wings.
But whatever their assignment in your life, on whatever the occasion,
on whatever the day, or wherever you need them to meet you with their
gym shoes on and hair pulled back, or to
hold you back from making a complete fool of
yourself........
Those are your best friends.
It may all be wrapped up in one woman, but for many, it's wrapped up in
several.....one from 6th grade, one from high school, some from the
college years, a couple from old jobs.
On some days your mother.
On some days your neighbor.
On others, your sisters, cousins.
And on some days, your daughters.
So whether you’ve been my friend for 20 minutes or 20 years, Thanks for
being there for me!
Do You Think That God Cannot Use You?
(I got a list like this from a friend, but I edited it a bit)
The next time that you think God cannot use you, remember:
• Abraham was too old
• Isaac was a dreamer
• Jacob was a liar
• Joseph was abused
• Moses stuttered
• Gideon was afraid
• Samson had long hair and was a womanizer
• Rahab was a prostitute
• Jeremiah and Timothy were too young
• David had an affair and was a murderer
• Elijah was suicidal
• Isaiah preached naked
• Jonah ran from God
• Naomi was a widow
• Abigail had a lousy husband
• Job went bankrupt
• Peter denied Christ
• The Disciples fell asleep while praying
• Martha worried about everything
• The Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once
• Zaccheus was too small
• Paul was too religious
• Peter denied knowing Jesus, the Christ
• And Lazerus was dead!
- old
- Isaac was a dreamer
We do not have any more excuses! God can use is to our full potential. Remember always:
YOU ARE NOT THE MESSAGE; YOU ARE SIMPLY THE MESSENGER!
The Difference between Rich and Poor People
One day, the father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the express purpose of showing him how poor people live. They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family. On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, "How was the trip?"
"It was great, Dad."
"Did you see how poor people live?" the father asked.
"Oh yeah," said the son.
"So, tell me, what did you learn from the trip?" asked the father.
The son answered:
"I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end.
We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night.
Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon.
We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight.
We have servants who serve us, but they serve others.
We buy our food, but they grow theirs.
We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them."
The boy's father was speechless.
Then his son added, "Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are."
"Examine Your Priori-Teas as a Keeper of the Home"
(This is not an exhaustive list, nor required duties, but it will surely speak to you about using your time wisely. I have seen this list a couple of times and am not sure from where it originated, but I thought it was worth some thought.)
1. Do you have a morning
routine in the house?
2. Are your dishes washed and put away?
3. Is your cabinet top clear?
4. Is your table clear, when not dining, and do you have a centerpiece?
5. Have you cleaned your cupboards and storage areas and fridge in the last
3 months?
6. Is your porch clean and the entry way cheerful for visitors or people who
see it from the road?
7. Are your carpets clean?
8. Is your floor clean?
9. Is your living room ready for company?
10. Is your laundry washed, folded, ironed and put away?
11. Is your mending and button replacement caught up?
12. Do you bake bread?
13. Is your bathroom shining clean and does it smell nice?
14. Does your home smell nice?
15. Have you re-decorated or re-arranged in the last 3 years?
16. Are your beds made?
17. Are your sheets and bedding fresh?
18. Do you grow a garden, or anything, an herb, a tomato?
19. Are your drawers and storage areas organized?
20. Are your photos organized?
21. Are your computer files organized?
22. Is your correspondence caught up?
23. Do you make any of your own clothes?
24. Does your husband ever have to ask for an ironed shirt?
25. Are your books organized?
26. Do you go through your things regularly for garage sales or for donating
to a charity?
27. Are your windows clean?
28. Do you cook regular meals from basic ingredients?
29. Have you had anyone over for tea in the last month?
30. Do you read at least one good book or learn something new within the
year, or learned any new skill?
There was a couple that used to go to England to shop in the beautiful stores. They both liked antiques and pottery and especially teacups. This was their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary.
One day in this beautiful shop they saw a beautiful teacup. They said, “May we see that? We’ve never seen one quite so beautiful.”
As the lady handed it to them, suddenly the teacup spoke. “You don’t understand,” it said. “I haven’t always been a teacup.
There was a time when I was red and I was clay. My master took me and rolled me and patted me over and over and I yelled out, “let me alone, but he only smiled, ‘Not yet.’”
“Then I was placed on a spinning wheel,” the teacup said, “and suddenly I was spun around and around and around. Stop it! I’m getting dizzy! I screamed. But the master only nodded and said, ‘Not yet.’
Then he put me in the oven. I never felt such heat. I wondered why he wanted to burn me, and I yelled and knocked at the door. I could see him through the opening and I could read his lips, as He shook his head, ‘Not yet.’
Finally the door opened, he put me on the shelf, and I began to cool. ‘There, that’s better,’ I said. And he brushed and painted me all over. The fumes were horrible. I thought I would gag. ‘Stop it, stop it!’ I cried. He only nodded, ‘Not yet.’
Then suddenly he put me back into the oven, not like the first one. This was twice as hot and I knew I would suffocate. I begged. I pleaded. I screamed. I cried. All the time I could see him through the opening nodding his head saying, ‘Not yet.’
Then I knew there wasn’t any hope. I would never make it. I was ready to give up. But the door opened and he took me out and placed me on the shelf. One hour later he handed me a mirror and said, ‘Look at yourself. And I did. I said, ‘that’s not me; that couldn’t be me. It’s beautiful. I’m beautiful.’
‘I want you to remember, then,’ he said, ‘I know it hurts to be rolled and patted, but if I had left you alone, you’d have dried up.
I know it made you dizzy to spin around on the wheel, but if I had stopped, you would have crumbled. I knew it hurt and was hot and disagreeable in the oven, but if I hadn’t put you there, you would have cracked.
I know the fumes were bad when I brushed and painted you all over, but if I hadn’t done that, you never would have hardened; you would not have had any color in your life. And if I hadn’t put you back in that second oven, you wouldn’t survive for very long because the hardness would not have held. Now you are a finished product. You are what I had in mind when I first began with you.
I am not sure that this "garden" in the San Bernardino mountains really exists or if it is just an inspiring story. I could not find a picture of it nor could I find it when we visited there some years back. I suspect that at the very least someone has done such a thing and then a story grew or was changed over time. This story is feasible and it excites me, whether true or simply a possibili-Tea!
Several times my daughter had telephoned to say, "Mother, you must come see the daffodils before they are over." I wanted to go, but it was a two-hour drive from Laguna to Lake Arrowhead. "I will come next Tuesday, "I promised, a little reluctantly, on her third call.
Next Tuesday dawned cold and rainy. Still, I had promised, and so I drove there. When I finally walked into Carolyn's house and hugged and Greeted my grandchildren, I said, "Forget the daffodils, Carolyn! The road is invisible in the clouds and fog, and there is nothing in the world except you and these children that I want to go see bad enough to drive another inch!"
My daughter smiled calmly and said, "We drive in this all the time, Mother." "Well, you won't get me back on the road until it clears, and then I'm heading for home!" I assured her.
"I was hoping you'd take me over to the garage to pick up my car." "How far will we have to drive?" "Just a few blocks," Carolyn said. "I'll drive. I'm used to this." After several minutes, I had to ask, "Where are we going? This isn't the way to the garage!" "We're going to my garage the long way," Carolyn smiled, "by way of the daffodils." "Carolyn," I said sternly, "please turn around!"
"It's all right, Mother, I promise. You will never forgive yourself if you miss this experience."
After about twenty minutes, we turned onto a small gravel road and I Saw a small church. On the far side of the church, I saw a hand lettered sign that read, "Daffodil Garden." We got out of the car and each took a child's hand, and I followed Carolyn down the path. Then, we turned a corner of the path, and I looked up and gasped. Before me lay the most glorious sight. It looked as though someone had taken a great vat of gold and poured it down over
the mountain peak and slopes. The flowers were planted in majestic, swirling patterns-great ribbons and swaths of deep orange, white, lemon yellow, salmon pink, saffron, and butter yellow.
Each different-colored variety was planted as a group so that it swirled and flowed like its
own river with its own unique hue. There were five acres of flowers. "But who has done this?" I asked Carolyn.
"It's just one woman," Carolyn answered. "She lives on the property. That's her home." Carolyn pointed to a well kept A-frame house that Looked small and modest in the midst of all that glory. We walked up to the house. On the patio, we saw a poster. "Answers to the Questions I Know You Are Asking" was the headline.
The first answer was a simple one. "50,000 bulbs," it read. The second answer was, "One at a time, by one woman. Two hands, two feet, and very little brain." The third answer was, "Began in 1958." There it was, The Daffodil Principle. For me, that moment was a life-changing experience. I thought of this woman whom I had never met, who, more than forty years before, had begun-one bulb at a time-to bring her vision of beauty and joy to an obscure mountaintop. Still, just planting one bulb at a time, year after year, had changed the world. This unknown woman had forever changed the world in which she lived. She had created something of ineffable (indescribable) magnificence, beauty, and inspiration.
The principle the daffodil garden taught is one of the greatest principles of celebration. That is, learning to move toward our goals and desires one step at a time--often just one baby-step at a time--and learning to love the doing, learning to use the accumulation of time. When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we too will find we can accomplish magnificent things. We can change the world. "It makes me sad in a way," I admitted to Carolyn. "What might I have accomplished if I had thought of a wonderful goal thirty-five or forty years ago and had worked away at it 'one bulb at a time' through all those years. Just think what I might have been able to achieve!" My daughter summed up the message of the day in her usual direct way.
"Start tomorrow," she said. It's so pointless to think of the lost hours of yesterdays. The way to make learning a lesson of celebration instead of a cause for regret is to only ask, "How can I put this to use today?" So, stop waiting...
Until your car or home is paid off
Until you get a new car or home
Until your kids leave the house
Until you go back to school
Until you finish school
Until you lose 10 lbs.
Until you gain 10 lbs.
Until you get married
Until you get a divorce
Until you have kids
Until you retire
Until summer
Until spring
Until winter
Until fall
Until you die
"Power in The Blood" (I do not know who wrote this, but it will cause you to think.)
One night in a
church service, a young woman felt the tug of God at her heart. She
responded to God's call and accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior. The
young woman had a very rough past, involving alcohol, drugs, and
prostitution, but the change in her was evident.
As time went on, she became a faithful member of the church. She
eventually became involved in the ministry, teaching young children. It
was not very long until this faithful young woman caught the eye and heart
of the pastor's son. The relationship grew, and they began to make
wedding plans. This is when the problems began.
You see, about half of the church members did not think that a woman with
a past such as hers was suitable as a wife for a pastor's son. The
members began to argue about the matter, so they decided to have a
meeting. As the people made their arguments and tensions increased, the
meeting was getting completely out of hand. The young woman, who was
present with her fiancé, became very upset about all the things being
brought up about her past. As she began to cry, the pastor's son stood to
speak. He could not bear the pain this was causing his wife-to-be. He
began to speak, and his statement was this:
"My fiancée's past is not what is on trial here. What you are questioning
is the ability of the blood of Jesus to wash away sin. Today you have put
the blood of Jesus on trial. So, does it wash away sin or not?" Then,
one by one, the people began to weep as they realized that they had been
slandering the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Too often, even as Christians, we bring up the past and use it as a weapon
against our brothers and sisters. Forgiveness is a very foundational part
of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. If the blood of Jesus does not
cleanse the other person completely then it cannot cleanse us completely.
If that is the case, then we are all in a lot of trouble.
What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus!
"Cast your burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain
you. He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved." Psalm 55:23
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