Category: Challenge

Posted on in Amazing Creations, Book quotes, Challenge, Collection of Quotes, Faith, Just do it, Nature, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth

Shepherd

Our neighborhood women are starting a study of the book entitled “A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23” written by W. Phillip Keller, first published in 1970. I have led this book as a study once or twice before and most all participants have enjoyed it immensely.

Writing the introduction, Keller said “First of all I grew up and lived in East Africa, surrounded by simple native herders whose customs closely resembled those of their counterparts in the Middle East.” He goes on to tell how he became a shepherd for about 8 years. Then even later, as a lay pastor he shared the truths of this Psalm with his “flock” every Sunday for several months.

If you have not read this book it is a great one. Twelve short chapters, easy reading with much meat included!

As with most books, this one has a variety of cover art. You can purchase it used on Abebooks or Thrift. Almost every new book seller still carries it. Worth the read. So powerful the lessons included between those pages as relates to us as His sheep.

Here is a photo of my old copy:

If you get a chance to obtain a copy read along with us. I will try to post something each week about our study. I will go out of my way not to break any confidences from the group, just share Keller’s powerful lessons.

This week we will likely cover the introduction only. Chapter one has many Scripture references that are not noted. I will be posting those next week.

Posted on in Amazing Creations, Challenge, Faith, Humor, Memories, Nature, Poetry

Baking in Early Spring

I wrote this in 2015 when we still lived on Siesta Drive.

Goldfinch in early spring
Marshmallow Chicks for Real © Molly Lin Dutina 2015   

It’s the time of year
bakers make cupcakes
with green coconut frosting
a marshmallow chick on top.

Deck banisters are lightly coated with frost
Six goldfinch in spring plumage
not yet brilliant summer yellow
wait for chance at the feeder.
Hill in background covered
with King Edward daffodils.

Bakers have nothing
over reality!
Summer Goldfinch
photo by r m dutina

I once called goldfinch in summer plumage “Flying daffodils.” Look about you. Never know when you, too, will discover a …. and just now the tapping on the window screen … revealed right next to me a young goldfinch in full summer plumage picking insects from the edge of the screen. Oh my! He surprised me!! pink feet and all!! At least I think it was a goldfinch! No camera nearby.

“And He who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also He said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

Revelation 21:5

“For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign LORD will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations.”

Isaiah 61:11

…treasures in plain sight! June, 2022

Posted on in Challenge, Faith, Just do it, politics, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth

From Edges of His Ways to Ukraine

From Him, who loves me now so well,
What power my soul shall sever?
Shall life, or death, or earth, or hell?
No; I am His forever.
~J. G. Small

This snippet of poetry was in The Edges of His Ways one day. Such a tidy reminder that we are His and nothing can stop that fact.

What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? 32 Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? 33 Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. 34 Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us.

35 Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? 36 (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) 37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:31-39 NLT

When I pray for the Ukrainian people on the run from Putin’s war I am reminded that the ones who trust in Christ have the right attitude. “Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? 36 (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) 37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.” This is not something the world can comprehend, but God knows that ones who are His.

Please pray for the Ukrainian people. Pray for the end of the destruction and slaughter. Pray for peace.

Posted on in Challenge, Faith, Just do it, Poetry, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Writing Life

Find the Focus

Have you ever been discombobulated? One guy on Christian radio asks if that means most of the time we are combobulated? Free Dictionary by Farlex says there is no such word. Well discombobulated means befuddled, flummoxed, confused. There are times I forget my most important thing, writing about my relationship with the Lord and how you can have a relationship with Him, too.

Find the Focus© 2014 Molly Lin Dutina

Cannot find the clipboard
poems in process of revising.
Cannot find the journal
life in process of being noted.
Where is my concordance
trying to find that verse
Never finished notes in my Bible
negligence has made this worse.

Too often cover important 
with mundane and lowly
Help me find the focus 
to tell forth the eternal and holy.

Fighting back the darkness
bearing forth the Light
partake in eternal struggle
get any pen, any paper
note on computer 

The Calling compels me 
to herald the glad tidings:
God wins.

The poem shows my remorse at losing track of trying to put my spiritual journey into words. At least ten years before I wrote the poem above, my cousin, Peggy, gave me this verse about writing.

The LORD answered me: Write down this vision; clearly inscribe it on tablets so one may easily read it.

Habakkuk 2:2 CSB

Oh Lord, that I might always take up Your challenge about writing as purpose for my heart and soul. May You be blessed by my attempts and may I always be willing to listen to Your edits and changes. As Toby Mac wrote and sang, “Come and steal my show!”

Some of the best lyrics were not listed in the video. Are you willing to yield the things below to God?

My life
My plans
My heart, it’s all Yours, God
My dreams
My fears
My family, my career
Take it away

Posted on in Book quotes, Challenge, Faith, Journal, Memories, Poetry, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Yield

Who Rules on The Plain of Self?

Have you ever taken your life back once you said God could be in charge? In 1981 I did just that. Here in 2022 I have no recall of what the circumstances were. I would love to say that was the one and only time I ever did that, and that would make me as the saying goes, “one big fat liar.”

The Plain of Self © June, 1981 Molly Lin Dutina	
I’m still fighting,
Prodding, kicking,
Scratch and claw.
Why do I fight so hard
And not just let go?

I’m still trying to control and direct.
(Where is the flow of the Spirit?)

Lord, Your patience awes me.
I confess my error of trying to exert my influence.

May I snuggle in Your arms again, please?
It’s cold out here on the Plain of Self.
drawing by Katherine Brown

I was delighted to see this come up when I was searching online for pictures to populate my writing. I own one of these prints! Your are His lamb too and He will hold you!

Jesus Calling for June 7 reads in part: “Who is in charge of your life? If it is you, then you have good reason to worry. But since I am in charge, worry is both unnecessary and counterproductive.” And then Sarah Young goes on to share the advice she heard from the Lord: “When you start to feel anxious about something, relinquish the situation to Me. Back off a bit, redirecting your focus to Me. I will either take care of the problem Myself or show you how to handle it. In this world you will have problems, but you need not lose sight of Me.”

 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

John 16:33 NIV

So who is going to rule on your plain of self? Have you yielded your all to Jesus Christ?

Posted on in Amazing Creations, Challenge, Faith, Journal, Memories, Nature, Poetry, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Yield

Poetry Again

Stand and tip, uncertain if Molly took this one or Robert
Perhaps I Could Ask You Just to Stand and Tip? ©1990       Molly Lin Dutina 

Lily pads at the pond		
Grow on stalky stems
Leaves unfold an opened palm
Cupped at center point
Summer shower starts to drop
Mercurial glistening spheres
Gathering in the center spot
‘til bulbous weight smears silver drops
Into glistening globs
And tips the leaves so full
To pour their contents overboard
And rising from the spill
Stately shielded lily-hands
Begin the cycle once more

Keep my stem flexible, Lord
My hands open and cupped
Eager to receive Your all
Questioning not Your skill
Only trusting the power of Your love
To melt my rigid will

Drench me Lord 
In Your shower of love
Let me gather and drink my fill
Then spill over on those around
And rise to await Your will

Send water of Your Spirit
To tip me over, pour me out
Then wash over me once again
Fresh cleansing by Holy Words

Shine Your light through
This enshrouding mist
Color me with covenant this:
Abiding presence and constant love,
Indwelling grace that conquers sin
Transfigured rigid I
Yielded and bent
In Your service	
Spilling forth rivers of living water	
And giving rest to croaky voiced frogs	  
Who, when Spirit-kissed,
Become priests and kings	
Singing their praises to You.

Perhaps You ask me just to be Your lily leaf
Stand and tip

When I prayed this morning and asked what the Lord would have me share this week this poem came to mind. You might be surprised to know I had a little difficulty finding it as I have named it several times over the years since 1990! Bob and I have returned to the Nature Center several times to try to capture this photo again. I honestly do not remember if he took the photo above or if I did. It requires having lily leaves you can reach in full foliage, right after a rainfall with the water remaining on the leaves. Not an easy feat. 
Will you take the challenge of the leaves and poem? Are you willing to stand and be drenched? Then spill the goodness over to those around you? Would you have your rigid I yielded and bent to the Lord's will? Are you willing to serve croaky voiced frogs? 

I write to you as the Lord's lily leaf. I will gather the dew of heaven, stand and tip for your refreshment. May you be blessed this week!
r m dutina

Posted on in Challenge, Faith, Just do it, Memories, Music, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Yield

Powerful Oldie, Still Pertinent Today!

Amy Grant recorded this song years ago. It was written by Bannister E. Brown. The contrast Bannister draws between the old creation and the new creation is worth thinking about and is mentioned many times in Paul’s New Testament writings. Are you making decisions to walk in the New? Jesus made a way as the “second Adam” for us to choose this new way of living.

So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. 

Galatians 5:16-17 NIV
The You Tube link is below.
Old Man’s Rubble Lyrics
Are you living in an old man’s rubble
Are you listening to the father of lies?

Are you walking with unnecessary burdens
Are you trying to take them upon yourself?
If you are, then you’re living in bondage
And you know that’s bad for your spiritual health

And are you trying to live by your emotions
Are you putting your faith in what you feel and see?
Then you’re living just to satisfy your passions
And you better be careful ’cause you’re being deceived

CHORUS: Are you living in an old man’s rubble
Are you listening to the father of lies?
If you are then you’re headed for trouble;
If you listen too long you’ll eventually die

Are you puzzled by the way that you’re behaving
Do you wonder why you do the things you do?
And are you troubled by your lack of resistance
Do you feel that something’s got a hold on you?

Well deep within you, there’s a spiritual balance;
There’s a voice of the darkness and a voice of the light
And just by listening, you have made a decision
’cause the voice you hear is gonna win the fight

CHORUS

If you’re living as a new creation
If you’re listening to the father of light
Then you’re living in a mighty fortress
And you’re gonna be clothed in power and might

But are you living in an old man’s rubble
Are you listening to the father of lies?
If you are then you’re headed for trouble;
If you listen too long you’ll eventually die

If you’re living as a new creation
If you’re listening to the father of light
Then you’re living in a mighty fortress
And you’re gonna be clothed in power and might

But are you living in an old man’s rubble
Are you listening to the father of lies?
If you are then you’re headed for trouble;
If you listen too long you’ll eventually die

But if you’re living as a new creation
If you’re listening to the father of light
Then you’re living in a mighty fortress
And you’re gonna be clothed in power and might

Our choice. Daily. Even hourly.

Your Choice, rubble or obey the Father of Lights!

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.

James 1:17 NIV
Posted on in Amazing Creations, Beagle, Challenge, Faith, Nature, Prayer, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth

Walking Lucky

We ventured off our usual evening walk and took to the side street that leads to the bank, dollar store and post office. I came upon this sad sight and thought of all the nest builders in God’s kingdom who abandon their efforts for other, lesser things.

So sad

Have you given up too soon on your efforts to sanctify a place in your heart to meet with the heavenly Father and Savior of your soul? Have you forgotten to invite the Holy Spirit to commune with you in the center down silence place? Have you set aside a few minutes each day to truly get quiet?

Are there truly more important things than this?

Further along our walk towards home, Lucky and I came upon this.

Robin’s egg blue looking dismal

There is life and that more abundantly (John 10:10) awaiting you in your relationship with the One from on high. Please do not let the enemy of your soul kill, steal and destroy that life.

There are times when I wonder what I am going to write the next time I sit before my computer. Then the material is dropped before my eyes and I wonder anew at the Lord’s power. Abide, wait, commune, listen, pray, reach out to the Lord and He will meet with you. He promised.

Posted on in Challenge, Faith, Just do it, Prayer, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Yield

Jeremiah 6:16 Contemplation

Recently I was asked to write a devotional for one crochet and knit group that I attend. I had been reflecting upon the following verse for some time. We had a lively discussion and everyone seemed to enjoy the time we spent looking at this verse. Perhaps you will, also?

“Thus says the LORD: Stand at the crossroads,

and look, and ask for the ancient paths,

where the good way lies; and walk in it,

and find rest for your souls.

But they said, “We will not walk in it.”

Jeremiah 6:16 NIV

What does this say to you currently, in 2022?

Read the passage again slowly, perhaps even aloud.

Reflect on your current journey and write a thought to correspond with each line. What do you think this means?

Stand at the crossroads

And look

And ask for the ancient paths

(Ask) where the good way lies,

And walk in it,

And find rest for your souls.

But they said, “We will not walk in it.”

To me the first line means – wait, don’t move, just stand

“And look” not moving, just looking and listening

“And ask for the ancient paths” again, not moving, how did the ancients do my situation, ASK

“Where the good way lies.” Wait! There is a good way through this I might have missed on my own?

“And walk in it” Oh, do obedience in the moving forward

“And find rest for your souls.” Now that is a tremendous reward to find.

My “life verse ” is Isaiah 30:15

For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel:

In returning and rest you shall be saved;

    in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.

But you refused

Isaiah 30:15 NRSV

So here it is again – The people said, “We will not walk in it.” That dreadful song refrain “I did it my way!” Disobedience, even when shown the best path that leads to rest for the soul. So human. So wrong.

What choice will you make at the crossroads? Move ahead in your own power or look, ask, ask again, before you walk forward? It cannot hurt to “wait and ask for the ancient path, where the good way lies.” Are you willing to try this method?

Posted on in Challenge, Faith, Just do it, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Yield

Go to Mt. Zion, Not Mt. Horeb

When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.”

Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.”

The people remained at a distance, while Moses approached the thick darkness where God was.

Exodus 20:18-21 NIV

Most of us would be delighted to have God speak to us! I believe this is where we repeated the sin that began in the garden. The people told Moses to go to God and tell them what He had to say. I find that amazing! Yes, I want my Pastor to go to God and tell the congregation what He has to say, but my prayer is that what my Pastor says will simply be a confirmation of what we have heard already from God!

If not, then why did Jesus have to die?

He (Jesus) said, “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 

John 14:12-13 NIV

The Holy Spirit will speak to us. Jesus promised. He also said:

“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. 20 On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.

John 14:15-20 NIV

We are not alone. He provided the sacrifice to indwell us with the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, the Helper to be with us forever. Jesus asked the Father to send us this Advocate, and He did. All of this was actually done in the Book of Acts and the miracle continues on today!

Build an altar, a sanctified place within you to meet with the Trinity. Pray and listen. Wait and learn. Ask for help and the Helper will teach you. Jesus will not disappoint you in this.

I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

John 15:5 NIV

Remain, abide, stay with God in this holy place. I literally base my life upon these verses and the experience of Christ in me, the hope of glory. (Colossians 1:27)

How is that altar/nest coming along for you? I would encourage you to not be afraid of what God wants to speak to you. We live under the New Covenant that our Father provided through Jesus Christ.

You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.” The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.”

But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

Hebrews 12:8-24

We are to approach with trust and deep respect (sometimes translated as fear). We come to the place where Jesus has invited us, this new covenant place. Oh beloved of God, do not resist meeting with Him in your inner sanctuary. Open your heart to this holy fellowship. Thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly and they are cheering you on in your spiritual progress.

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

James 4:8 NASB