Tag Archives: father

A Carl Sighting

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There has been a Carl sighting. He was spotted hanging out the window of a big black truck. If you look close enough, it appears that he seems to be very happy with his situation.

This morning, my husband called Carl’s name as he left the house. Carl immediately jumped down from his comfy bed and followed my husband out the door to the driveway where the big black truck was parked. It didn’t take any prodding by my husband to encourage Carl to be placed on his favorite seat.

I have tried to encourage Carl to get up out of the bed on any given morning but if he isn’t ready to get up, he ignores me. On the other hand, if my husband just looks in Carl’s direction and says his name, the little fawn colored dog will show no hesitation to follow him out the door.

Why will Carl only respond to my husband and no one else? We can ask this same question of sheep and how they will only respond to the voice of their shepherd.

As I was reading John chapter 10, I was perplexed by the illustration of Jesus as he refers to himself as the shepherd and the people who follow him as his sheep. How could these curly haired animals teach me how to be a better follower of Christ?

John 10:3-5 “He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.”

In the same manner, if Jesus is my shepherd, I should hear his voice and follow Him. But what about all the other voices I have heard in my life and followed? In today’s world, I have been particularly distracted by the many voices screaming from my computer, television, and iphone.

Instead of allowing these devices to feed me what the world wants me to hear, I have been trying to use them to feed me what Jesus wants me to hear. Christian radio when I wake up, Bible study, and prayer will hopefully keep me in tuned to Jesus’ voice.

Carl’s response to my husband’s voice reminds me of the curly sheep that will only respond to the voice of the shepherd. So instead of getting aggravated with him, when he won’t budge when I call, I hope that it will remind me to listen intently for the voice of Jesus.

 

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A Robe for the Scarred

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It was clear. Carl was devastated. His human father had left him behind. Every Saturday and Sunday morning, Carl had the opportunity to sit in the front seat of the big black truck and ride down the road with my husband. But not this Sunday. This morning, Carl had been left.

Maybe my husband was just too preoccupied to call for Carl to get up from his bed and join him. But after the backdoor closed and the truck’s engine began to purr, Carl began to whimper. I tried to console him but it was clear that he was a hurt little puppy.

With his ears down and head almost touching the floor, Carl slowly made his way back to his bed. I tried to pet him but he turned his head away and closed his eyes.

There is no relationship like the one between a child and a father. Given that we get our first glimpse of who God is from our father, it is crucial that earthly fathers give their children the time and attention needed to raise them up to love God.

But as we all know, there are fathers that are just too absorbed with their own desires and needs which leaves the children emotionally wounded. 2 Kings 16-18 tells the story of a king and his son and how the desires of the father could have destroyed the future of his son.

It states in 2 Kings 16:3, “Indeed, he made his son pass through the fires.” Did I hear that right? Yes, Ahaz made his son Hezekiah pass through more than one fire. This was a sacrifice to a pagan idol and typically the child would die. But Hezekiah didn’t. So without burn units and medication to help with healing, Hezekiah lived with both the physical and emotional pain of a self-absorbed father.

Once Ahaz died, at the age of twenty-five, his son Hezekiah became king over Judah. Given his upbringing, we would guess that he would follow in his father’s footsteps. But he didn’t. Instead of worshipping idols, Hezekiah did what was right in the sight of the Lord.

If anyone had reason to be bitter and angry it would have been Hezekiah. But from all accounts, he trusted God with his past. With scars from the fires, God placed a robe on this young man and he ruled for twenty-nine years. And isn’t this what God wants to do with all our broken and scarred souls? Place a robe on them and adopt them for His own. All we need to do is turn from blaming others and trust God with our lives.

My husband came home and Carl ran up to him and rubbed his body against his leg. It was clear that Carl had forgiven my husband and just wanted to be near him.

In this lifetime, Carl may never wear a robe and I probably won’t either. But I am going to put my order in for one that I will wear when I reach my eternal home.

 

 

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The Waiting Room of Life

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Carl spends a lot of his waking hours waiting. On any given day, you can find him waiting for someone to come home or for someone to put those wonderful morsels of food in his dish and lower it to the floor. No matter what he is waiting for, he doesn’t like it one bit.

The time we spend waiting is just as annoying for us humans as it is for Carl. No one likes to wait in a long line or be stuck behind an accident on the interstate. Some of us stay prepared for these unexpected times of waiting with games on our phone or glaring at Facebook to keep our mind occupied while we stay wedged in time.

It’s not the short inconveniences that cause us to scream out to the Lord. It’s the times when we want closure to a situation or a response to an unanswered prayer.  Days, weeks, months, and sometimes years can go by with no sign of an end to the waiting. How we approach these circumstances can define our relationship with God.

Hannah was one woman that had to live day after day with unanswered prayers and the endless ridicule that came with being a barren woman. To make the situation even more interesting, there is a phrase in 1 Samuel 1:6 that can cause many to struggle. “Because the Lord had closed her womb.”

Why would God close the womb of such a righteous woman? Why would He create a situation that would cause Hannah to spend years waiting for a child? And even when Hannah received confirmation from the priest that she would conceive and have a child, the Bible states in 1 Samuel 1:20 “So it came to pass in the process of time that Hannah conceived and bore a son.” Instead of an immediate response to her prayer, she had to continue to wait.

Romans 8:28 states, “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.” If this is true, why does God take his time in answering our prayers?

If we examine what is happening in the process of waiting, we will be able to understand God’s intent.  Isn’t it during the period before our prayers are answered that we rely more on God than ourselves?  Don’t we pray more and spend more time in the Word to try and locate what God is trying to teach us?

I am so thankful for stories like this one to encourage me when I feel the agonizing pain that comes with the unknown. If Hannah had had a baby without effort, she may never have dedicated her son Samuel to God. If she had been blessed with children, her husband Elkanah may not have had the opportunity to demonstrate his unconditional love for his wife. But most importantly, Hannah may not have sought out God and trusted in his sovereignty.

Carl continues to wait and still doesn’t understand why he has to spend so many countless minutes with his face pushed up against the screen door in hopes of the sound of footsteps. But hopefully, I will feel a little more closer to God and his will when I am left in the waiting room of life.

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Storms In Our Lives

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Carl has done it again.  His separation anxiety continues to be clearly displayed. This time, Jay’s new recliner was attacked and the chair lost.  Because Carl cannot be trusted in the house when we are away, he and Bee have been banned to the porch and back yard. If they want to come in, they can only come into the pantry where a gate closes off the rest of the house.

Another storm of life. Compared to other storms, this is minor but it is still a storm for us. And with the storm, questions about why it continues and how to get out of it rise in my mind. Why would God continue to set up storms for us?  We pray that God will take away the storms, but they keep coming. I believe the answer to this crucial question can be found in Matthew 14.

Jesus just fed the five thousand and he then makes his disciples get in a boat and travel ahead of him to the other side. After dismissing the crowds he takes the time to go up on a mountain and pray. While Jesus is praying on the mountain, a storm comes up. The waves are bashing against the boat and the disciples are feeling like they are going to die. Then what happens next is crazy. Jesus walks on the water towards the boat.

I wonder what I would have thought if I was trapped in a boat during a horrific storm and saw a man walking towards me. I am sure I would have been terrified and just wanted to close my eyes and pray that it would all go away. It is clear that these men had absolutely no control over their situation and were forced to rely on God.

Peter is the only one that demonstrates the faith needed to walk out on the water. But when he realizes his situation and takes his eyes off Jesus, he begins to doubt.  At that moment, he begins to sink and cries out to Jesus. And our savior did what he does best. He reaches down and saves Peter. Once they are back in the boat, the wind dies down.

There are a couple of events that took place here that can help us understand a little more about our Lord. First, notice that he made the disciples get in the boat even though he knew there would be a storm. In the same manner, God may create storms in our lives. Not to harm us but to encourage us to draw closer to him.

But it is what Jesus did after he made the disciples get the boat that brings me comfort. He goes to the mountain and prays. Which is what he does now when we are going through storms.  He is sitting at the right hand of God the father interceding for us as we fight off the squalls.

It only gets better here. After leaving the mountain, he comes to the disciples in the midst of their storm. He hasn’t abandoned them but draws near in the worst of times. All he asks is for us to do is to take our eyes off the storm and place them on him. Peter was able to do this for a moment but then he shifted his attention. Once he lost focus, he began to sink and cries out to Jesus.

The Bible in Matthew 14: 31 states, “Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught Peter. You of little faith, he said. Why did you doubt?” I am so thankful that Jesus is willing to reach down and pull me out of my mire during the storms of my life. All I need to do is ask and believe that he has my best interest at heart. Even when no answers can be found. I just need to trust him.

As for the storm with Carl. Jay has covered the hole with masking tape and we have been able to let go of the anger towards our little dog. This storm has helped us realize that the stuff that we own has no eternal value but forgiveness does.

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Dropped Blankets

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I can hear the hum of the washing machine and the soft sound of the refrigerator. Other than these familiar noises, all is quiet. Carl and Bee have finally settled down after a rough housing episode that included Carl holding onto the blanket that Bee was sleeping on and dragging her across the floor. With teeth bared and a distinct growl, Carl was determined to claim the blanket, even if that meant pulling Bee around and around until the blanket was pulled out from under her. Bee appeared to be just as determined to hold her ground and refused to abandon ship. Finally, Carl crouched on the floor and looked up at Bee and as if all the fire had left his body, he dropped the blanket.

I sometimes wonder why we drop our blankets and turn away from the yearnings of our heart. Why is it that one minute we can be bound and determined to pursue a dream and then just leave it, like a blanket sitting in the middle of the floor. Recently, I had a thought that would change my world. An idea that wouldn’t leave my mind. Over the course of several days, I contemplated it and even shared it with friends. After receiving positive feedback, the idea grew like a snowball being rolled over fresh fallen snow. The next step to my idea involved action, the kind that once in place wouldn’t be easy to reverse.

As I contemplated my dilemma, a scripture in Isaiah came to life. One that I knew in my heart was meant for this situation. It states in Isaiah 54:2 “Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back: lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes.”  I now wonder if God is telling me to move forth and enlarge my vision for my life.  To not only dream the dreams but live them to the fullest.

Time will only tell.

But for Carl, he seems pretty content that he dropped his blanket, climbed up on his cot in front of the fire, and is resting peacefully.

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Faith is a Funny Thing

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He did it again. Once again, we woke up to a puddle of pee on the mat in the kitchen. Carl is almost a year old and doesn’t want to go out in the rain to urinate so he relieves himself inside where he can be nice and dry. For the last couple of months he has been so good but we also haven’t had a lot of rain. Will he ever be house trained?  It is hard to have faith that he will, but I just have to believe.

I wonder where this faith comes from. Experience sure doesn’t demonstrate that Carl will stop his bad habit and make his way through the doggy door when it is raining outside. Does the faith come from conjuring up pleasant thoughts about the day that our two dogs will never have an accident in the house? If I work hard enough with Carl, will he stop this aggravating behavior and be forever perfect?

Faith is a funny thing.  We think it all comes from us but does it? I always thought that it was my job to have faith in God and in my salvation. This morning I read two scriptures that blew this theory right out the window.

In John 20:11-18 Mary Magdalene goes to the tomb and finds Jesus’ body removed. Now here is a woman who has been with Jesus throughout his entire ministry and heard repeatedly his claim that he would be killed and rise from the dead. Now if anyone should have faith in the resurrection it should be her. But here she is weeping over the fact that she believed that someone had taken the body. The actual thought that Jesus had been resurrected had not entered her mind. Then Jesus presents himself to her and she still doesn’t recognize him.  Then he does the coolest thing! He calls her by name. He actually addresses her personally. Only then does she believe.

Jesus had to intercede before she believed. And all this time, I thought it was all on my shoulders to have enough faith to make it through the pearly gates.

I then turned my Bible to Psalm 23 and what I saw took me by surprise. The first couple of verses talks about what the shepherd does. Not me.  In verse 2 he makes me lie down and leads me. In verse 3 he restores and guides me. He does all the work. Not me.

The knowledge that He chose me to have the faith that resonates in my heart provokes a sense of gratitude towards my Lord and Savior. And if I pray with faith for all things, He will listen. Which leads me back to my little white dog who has been doing his business outside for the last couple of rainy days. But either way, I will forgive him when he does make a mess and keep loving him.

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The Very Steps We Take

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The rocky path was hard to maneuver but I found if I kept moving, I could almost glide over the rocks and stones that lay under my feet. But if I slowed down and thought about the obstacles that lined the path, it would cause me to stumble and almost bring my pace to a halt. I knew I had to stay calm and continue even when a huge bolder was glaring out at me. My husband was now far ahead of me and I had to quicken my pace to keep up. I definitely didn’t want to be abandoned in the middle of the woods with no one to come to my rescue if I did fall. So my only option was to keep going forward. Turning back was not a choice.

Recently with the publication of my first book, I have realized how important it is to move forward and not focus on all the obstacles that keep rising at each turn. I am not surprised by them but definitely would have preferred an easier route.

It is at times like these that I peer into the word to find sense to this life and my own particular journey. Today I have found a gem when looking through the Message version of the Bible. Proverbs 20:24 states: “The very steps we take come from God; otherwise how would we know where we’re going?” This little verse brings so much comfort to me as I go down this bumpy road. Knowing that each step I take has been directed by God gives me the confidence I need to glide over the rocks and stones of this life.