Sending Flowers to God

I'm a note sender. I send get-well notes and missed-you notes and especially thank-you notes. I love the latter. I hope that my tiny inscription brightens someone's day as much as they brightened mine when they did whatever it was that made me feel special. When someone goes that extra mile(s), I send a gift like flowers.

Yesterday I was overwhelmingly blessed by God in a visible way. (I know we are blessed all the time by things we just don't notice or don't even know about). I mean, it was if God was just pouring and pouring and pouring out more than my mind could hold.

How do I thank God for that? I felt I needed to thank Him an equal amount as was the blessing. But, that seemed impossible.

God, how do I thank you?
I can't send you flowers - You created them.
I can't write you a note - You inspired the very Word.
I can't bake you cookies - You are the Bread of Life.


Lord, what do you want from me to show you just how overwhelmed I am? I know you don't give us blessings to bribe us to do something for you, but if I can do anything, let me know!

...Had many sons... many sons had father...

Abraham.

So, I'm suppose to have his faith because, well, we all know that Jesus had faith, duh. So, when he was talking about faith in the Bible, he couldn't really use himself as an example. So, he used Abraham, for one.

Have you seen those cholesterol commercials where people walk around wearing signs with their cholesterol level? Well, that's how names were in biblical days. Adam means "man." The every popularized Jabez, for example, meant sorrowful things for poor ol' J. (Too bad he's not around to benefit from the profits his name has created today!) Abraham walked around as "father of many."

Shame. Embarrassment. If I were Abe, I'd feel horrible every time someone asked my name.

"Thank you for dining at Red Lobster, sir. Your name, please?"
"Father of many."
"Great! And how many will be at your table tonight?"
"Just me and Sarah."
"'Left the kids with a sitter?"
"Um, no. No children" (head down, embarrassed)

Let's liken it to my painting skills. I have none. I can't paint a picture to save my life. It would be like a museum hearing that I was a great artist & asking to display my art. Then, me giving them my best work, which consisted of connect-the-dot and paint-by-number pieces.

God promised Abraham many children. Abe didn't know when where or how & was sick of waiting. He was sick of being embarrassed, ashamed of the "lie" his name was telling.

Let's skip many parts of the story & fast forward to Issac - the promised son.

So, after years of mental torment (as I see it anyway), Issac was born.

"Why, here's one of "father of many's" sons right now! Hey, Issac!"

I'm sure Abraham loved Issac. He redeemed him to the world. No longer was his name a lie. Issac proved Abraham's faith - like the rain proved Noah's - to the world. Oh, what a precious relationship Issac must have had with his dad.

"Oh, Lord," Abraham must have prayed, "thank you for Issac! He's just perfect. I love him so much. Look at his hair and eyes! He looks just like me. Oh, and Lord, he loves being with me. We have fun together, and... what? What's that, Lord? You want me to sacrifice him?"

Did Abraham cry? Did he doubt God? Did he go to Sarah and ask for advice? Did he pace the floors wondering if he'd missed God? Did he wonder if God was punishing him for something?

No. Genesis 22:2 says "God said..." and verse 3 says that Abraham acted on what God said.

So, it's taken me a while to get to this point, but, here's where I want to be.

So many times we hear God. But, what he tells us seems crazy - even may seem to completely contradict what we heard him say before. It makes no sense. We don't understand.

So, we pace the floor. We ask former Sunday school teachers, the pastor, and the church janitor what they would do. We contemplate if we actually heard God. If we were in Genesis 22, there'd be thousands of verses between verse 2 & 3 telling just what we'd did to figure out if God was really speaking.

It seems so difficult for me to think that God wants me to have that kind of faith. I'll be honest, I just don't see how that kind of faith is possible.

God's never let me down.
God has no record of telling me something to do then failing me.
God has never broken a promise to me.
In fact, God has done so many "impossible" things in my life.

Why shouldn't I have that kind of faith? I can't think of a reason.

______
My name means bringer of truth. While God didn't give me this name, he did give me the name Christian - like Christ. Oh, Lord, please help me to live up to that name! Let me never shy away from it or be ashamed! So many promises come with that name. Praise the Lord! Let me have the faith of a mustard seed - even if I'm only starting out with the faith of the tiniest molecule of life! Birth in me a faith that can move mountains and give me the willingness and even the audacity to act upon that faith.

A Cup of Ocean

When I was 13ish, we went for a family vacation to Galveston. It was my first trip to the beach and I remember getting so excited when we topped a hill and I saw the ocean on the horizon. Large and magnificent - it was more than I could comprehend. Our hotel faced the water and every morning I'd just stare outside.

Grabbing my beach bag and tanning lotion (13 year olds don't wear sunscreen - c'mon!), we'd head to the sandy beach. I'd jump right in the waves, my dad right with me, but my mom would sit under the shade of an umbrella. She wasn't scared of the water and knew how to swim, but she just was content under the umbrella. We'd offer to dip a cup into the ocean and bring it to her, just so she could say she'd been in the ocean.

That's how some Christians are. They know how to "get" God and they've been in His presence. They've seen others dive into worship and swim in His blessings. They've got this whole God in front of them with all these blessings, but they are content with their cup of Sunday service.

James 4:8 says "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you."

I like to think of that verse like this:
~Give God a cup, and He'll pour a cup of Himself into it.

God is a massive Ocean of salvation, blessings, promises, healings, gifts, and too many et ceteras to add on. Why just give Him a cup? Dive in!

King's Table

I was reading last night about how Mephibosheth ate at David's table (David was the king) and it was apparently an honor to eat at his table.

But, when I picture this scene in my head, the table is long - at least 40 feet - and narrow. David sits at one end with a feast of colorful fruit, thick roasted chicken legs, and large glasses of wine. Mephibosheth sits at the other end - at least 40 feet away - with a tiny piece of bread.

Surely, this is the wrong picture.

2 Samuel 9:11 - Then Ziba said to the king, "Your servant will do whatever my lord the king commands his servant to do." So Mephibosheth ate at David's table like one of the king's sons. Hmm, eating at the king's table meant you were treated as a son or daughter of the king. They had special privileges. In fact, they were in line for the throne...

1 Kings 4:27 - The district officers, each in his month, supplied provisions for King Solomon and all who came to the king's table. They saw to it that nothing was lacking. Eating at the king's table means you lack nothing. In fact, you don't have to go out and get what you need.... it's supplied for you.

Jeremiah 52:33 - So Jehoiachin put aside his prison clothes and for the rest of his life ate regularly at the king's table. You don't have to be who you were. Jehoiachin was in prison! Not only did he get to eat at the king's table, but he didn't have to eat there as a prisoner. He was able to cast of his old clothes - his old self!

2 Samuel 9:13 - And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king's table, and he was crippled in both feet. Mephibosheth, in many eyes, was worthless. He couldn't even get from one place to the other! The King didn't care!

Luke 22:14 - When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. Jesus reclined with his apostles. They were his closest friends. He confided in them. He told them of blessings. He prepared them for work and for his kingdom. They had to have been close - spiritually and physically - because Jesus was able to break bread with them, talk with them, and recline with them.

Lord, Your table looks beautiful! I can be treated like your daughter there. Oh, how I’d feel your love! And You’d provide for me – everything I need. I’d lack nothing! You’d treat me for who I would be – not for the sinner I was (and deserved to be treated as). You’d look beyond my faults, even faults others so readily expose. And, Lord, You’d share with me. You’d commune with me, telling me things I long to hear and you long to tell me.
Luke 22:35 - Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, 36 like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. 37 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. 38 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready...
Lord, find ME ready! I want my lamp to be burning! I want to be ready for service! Use ME for Your glory. I desire to recline at your table. Lord, I wait for your blessings.