Of Things Fragile and Delicately Balanced, Of Things Not Promised Beyond This Moment

My sister is truly an amazing person. She has an inner beauty that resonates on so many different levels. She is loving, caring, compassionate and brings much joy and laughter into the many lives that she touches.

Being the only girl in our family, with three brothers, she is quick to let you know that she is the princess. But don't think for a moment that this means she is prissy, by any means. She has a zest--a particularly keen enjoyment--for life, that comes, I think, from an appreciation for all the blessings of God that surround her each and every day.

She lives with her husband in the ski country of the mountains of Colorado, and takes full advantage of the opportunities that she has to participate in outdoor activities like camping, hiking, biking, kayaking, snow-shoeing, and, of course, skiing. Well, that is, she has until recently.

Just over a week ago, toward the end of a day full of skiing the slopes with friends, she fell and broke both bones of her lower right leg. Very suddenly everything in her life changed. After surgery to repair the damage, her very active lifestyle was replaced with a very restricted one which included no weight bearing on the injured leg for eight weeks and continued therapy after that. Quite a change for someone who is always on the go!

It could have been much worse. She will recover. She will walk, hike, bike, kayak, snow-shoe, and yes, probably ski again.

But it has made me think about how fragile and delicately balanced our lives are, and how suddenly everything that we know can change. And it has also reminded me that we are not promised more than this very moment. And so we should live each moment to it's fullest, grateful to God for His blessings to us.

Where I live is much different than where she lives . . . or probably from where you live. But God's hand is evident in all things that surround us if we will take the time to see.

Where I live, each morning I have the opportunity to walk and appreciate the beauty of what He has placed before me in this moment.

When I live in this moment, I find that I can have hope for those things to come.

" The heavens declare the glory of God;

And the firmament shows His handiwork.

Day unto day utters speech,

And night unto night reveals knowledge.

There is no speech nor language

Where their voice is not heard." Psalm 19: 1-3 (NKJ)

Why Can't People Just Treat Me Right?

Have you ever thought, "I sure wish that person hadn't treated me that way!"? If you work with the public you probably feel like that a lot of times! I know that I do.

So, I was thinking about how I would like to be treated by others, and decided that I would write down a few of those thoughts and share them with you (in no particular order).

• I would like people to be kind and friendly, and invest a little of their time to show some interest in me.

• I would like people to be patient with me. I would like them to take the time to try to see my heart, because sometimes I say things that don't come out just right, or I do things before really thinking them through and I make a mess of it all.

• I would like them to recognize the good in me and assume that the areas that aren't so good are areas God already knows about . . . and that He is working on them with me.

• I would like for them to be helpful and supportive of me. I would like them to believe in my potential and encourage me to excel. I would like them to be gentle when correcting me and genuine in their compliments to me.

• I would like them to listen to me when I am trying to tell them something that is important to me.

• Mostly I just want to be sincerely loved and appreciated on a regular basis.

Now, no doubt if you were to make your own list, many of the things that I put on my list would show up on your list as well. But there would just as likely be things on your list that I might not have considered, so I would encourage you to make your own list.

Now, after you've made your list you could have copies made and give them out to everyone that you know or meet, and hope they start doing you right!

But that's not really how it works, is it? No, the list is for you. It's to remind you of what God expects from you when it comes to how you treat others.

You all know the golden rule: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." But how often do we really think about how big that assignment really is. To ask yourself in every moment of your dealings with someone else, "How would I want to be treated if our positions were reversed?"

What a different world we would live in if everyone followed the "rule!" But, while we can't make others follow it, we can impact our world by obeying God's command for ourselves.

"Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets." --Matthew 7:12 (NKJ)

Oh, and one other important thing to remember: the commandment is about doing . . . not about not doing, so it requires action on your part. You can't just "not do" and fulfill this commandment!

Words Once Spoken, Held Forever in the Heart

I saw an old friend, Mike Peterson, in church today. I probably haven't spoken more than a few words to him over the past year or so, but he greeted me with a warm embrace--evidence of the bond that remains strong between us, though our paths have moved us in different directions.

I was reminded of what an impact he had on me when I first came to the church. And then I was struck by how I still carry something in my heart that he said probably 17 years ago.

I had involved myself in the church by serving as an usher. Mike was the Head Usher at the church. He was a great believer in the power of prayer and before each service he would have all of the ushers join hands, he would say just a few words from his heart, and then we would pray for the service.

It was during one of those times that he shared four simple words with us, which he repeated several times:

"Refuse to be offended! Refuse to be offended! Refuse . . . to be offended!"

What else, if anything, that he said that day, I could not tell you. But those few words, spoken I believe under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God, went deep into my heart and have forever changed me.

"Refuse to be offended!"

And since that day have I always refused offense? No, I am ashamed to say that I have not. But why is it so very important for me to try to do just that?

I believe that it is for this reason: Offenses come at us every day in many different ways and from many different sources, from little petty offenses to major affronts. Nearly every time that someone speaks to us we have an opportunity to take offense with something they say. And that is just what the devil would like for us to do.

Offense is a trap because out of offense comes bitterness which steals our peace and our joy. And without joy, our strength is drained and we are trapped! And now, filled with bitterness and resentment, the road back to freedom is so much harder to reach, when we could have avoided the whole detour in the first place if we had only refused the offense.

So, here's how you refuse offense: You simply make the right choice. It's your decision. You can choose to be offended, or you can choose to love, the way God loves you everyday.

Even though we all do things to offend God every single day, His choice is to love us. Why should our choice be any different with those around us.

In I Corinthians 13:5b the Amplified Bible tells us a little about the God-kind of love that is needed to melt away offense:

"Love (God's love in us) does not insist on its own rights or its own way, for it is not self-seeking; it is not touchy or fretful or resentful; it takes no account of the evil done to it [it pays no attention to a suffered wrong]."

My challenge to you and to myself is to not be "touchy" and to not "pay attention to a suffered wrong." In loving others, like God loves you, you will find great freedom.