When I was a child my parents had a small farm and fishing lake in Loveland, Ohio. The lake was a pay lake called “Lake Cast-A-Line.” (It has since been drained to make a subdivision.) I can still remember being allowed to give a lamb a bottle of milk in the kitchen. That lamb was one messy eater, but I was delighted! I was perhaps 4 years old? Due to my Dad’s poor health we had to move by the time I was 5.
The milk was mixed from powder and perhaps explains why that scent draws me to this day?!
Has the Lord assigned someone to feed you? Here is your challenge: Have you thanked them?
Here is John Michael Talbot singing Psalm 23. I wore out the album, I bought the CD. I about wore that one out also. I listen to this collection regularly even today!
Trust in the Lord. He will keep you, feed you and shepherd you forever.
But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.
2 Thessalonians 3:3 NIV
May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.
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.”
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.”
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?
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.
John Denver, may he rest in peace, wrote “Anne’s Song” with part of the lyrics being:
“You fill up my senses like a night in a forest, like the mountains in springtime, like a walk in the rain, like a storm in the desert, like a sleepy blue ocean. You fill up my senses, come fill me again.”
I often think of this as a love song between myself and the Trinity. Bob and I took a walk on a paved trail above Harsha Lake at Eastfork Park last week. It was such a delight to my soul. Brought refreshment on the deepest level. When we first arrive at the parking lot Lucky cries and whines in excitement. Bob teases her to be a good dog while we walk and she remains in the car. She would likely tear up the car and try to break a window if we ever left her behind!
Besides being a bright sunny day with flawless blue skies, the first thing we heard after we crossed the bridge was a Bob White!! As a child I would lie in bed on spring and summer mornings and hear this distinctive bird calling. As the website https://www.farmanddairy.com/columns/can-the-bobwhite-quail-come-back-to-ohios-fields/35205.html reports, “Bobwhite fell by a devastating three-quarters in the 20 years between 1984 and 2004, a dismal crash that illustrates the trouble quail are in.” AND “Bobwhite quail are just one of many sub-species of quail but the only one native to Ohio. The call of a bobwhite quail, just two notes in length, sounds just like the word “bobwhite.” Though we never laid eyes on it, the song was unmistakable! I could have stood there for hours!
Also heard the Wood thrush, though we never saw it. I heard thrush all the time at our last home. Charming, bell-like song.
Wild geraniums were in bloom as was a white violet and white clover.
The Honeysuckle fragrance was strong and enticing. The dog roses were competing in the most fragrant category.
A bullfrog burped in the pond through the weeds. Do you get the idea of “God fills up my senses”?
Red-winged was putting its entire being into his song.
But ah, the Great Blue Herons always capture my heart. In the distance one was wading along the shore of the lake. If it turned sideways it would seem to vanish. Then another one in flight came right in front of us. Neither of us were able to get our cameras out fast enough!
The video below was made in the Philippines. Honestly, it is so difficult to get a good video, in focus of these giant birds in flight, I just had to share this one. They remind me of a prehistoric being! Maybe related to the Pterodactyl? Steve Vantreese of The Paducah Sun writes:
“He is more pterodactyl than tweety bird, a killing machine to all manner of smaller beings that will fit in that bayonet of a beak.
“The great blue heron is our top shelf predatory wading bird hereabouts. The long-legged thing is the largest North American heron — not a crane — and well adapted to habitats all over our continent.
“Our great blue is a relative whopper, weighing as much as a goose but more elongated. This heron is up to about 4.5 feet long, and that is about the height at which it stands on those lanky bird legs. When it flies, it spreads those wings an impressive 6 feet or more.”
As we turned towards the return walk up the path the burbling stream reminded me of my constant access to living water.
The sun was getting hotter but a cool breeze accompanied us.
Lucky was going nuts with her beagle nose to the ground. All the scents of other dogs who were walked here, but more so the wildlife that traverse this path when humans are not around!
I saw one milkweed shoot along the trail and instantly missed our milkweed garden at the other house. Perhaps we can grow some here if the new backyard garden ever gets put in?
Never once heard the Bobwhite on our return walk. My senses drenched, we returned home with one exhausted dog. Not that the walk was too long for her, I think she wears out her brain sniffing!
Not treasures in plain sight, but perhaps treasures in our ears and eyes!?!
What? you might be asking? What in the world does that mean?
Then a wind went out from the Lord, and it brought quails from the sea and let them fall beside the camp, about a day’s journey on this side and a day’s journey on the other side, all around the camp, about two cubits deep on the ground. 32 So the people worked all that day and night and all the next day, gathering the quails; the least anyone gathered was ten homers; and they spread them out for themselves all around the camp. 33 But while the meat was still between their teeth, before it was consumed, the anger of the Lord was kindled against the people, and the Lord struck the people with a very great plague. 34 So that place was called Kibroth-hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had the craving. 35 From Kibroth-hattaavah the people journeyed to Hazeroth.
Numbers 11:31-35
The people wandering in the desert were complaining about only having manna to eat. The Lord God had given them a heavenly food, unknown before or since, a food to nourish and sustain them. They complained and he brought them quail to eat. The quail lay all around them about 2 feet deep and the minimum they gathered was “enough to fill the bed of a full sized pickup truck to overflowing, mounded high.” They gathered much more than they could possible eat. Perhaps their plan was to dry them or preserve them with salt? We are not told. No language scholar here, but thankfully the references translate Kibroth-hattaavah for us. It means, the graves of craving. While the meat was still between their teeth, the anger of the Lord was kindled against them. Yikes.
Have you asked the Lord for something other than what you have? Has He given you that very thing? Have you been greedy about it?
Many years ago I was leading a study about these verses. Me, being the Queen of object lessons, decided we needed one for this verse. So we made a tombstone out of “Fimo” type clay that can be baked. Then we took alphabet beads and spelled out the name. Baked it and placed it in a prominent location to help remind us that there are consequences for acting on our cravings. The beads did not hold up well to the baking, but the idea worked.
Grave of Craving
Amused that it is now in my display of tiny things and the carved wooden pliers are pointing to it! (Lord, perhaps pulling out my cravings is like pulling teeth?) And those tiny glass birds could represent the quail, though I did not consciously place them for that. Oh Lord, remove my inordinate cravings with Your holy pliers, I pray.
The grave of cravings. What would you bury in that grave? Or would you be the one in the grave, the one who craved things inordinately and gave in to the greediness of wanting more than needed? I confess, I waver between the two.
All things are lawful [that is, morally legitimate, permissible], but not all things are beneficial or advantageous. All things are lawful, but not all things are constructive [to character] and edifying [to spiritual life].
1 Corinthians 10:23 Amplified
I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive.
1 Corinthians 10:23 NIV
Yes, Lent is over and the Easter season continues with rejoicing, Alleluia! That does not mean my self discipline ends. If I crave anything more than God my walk is in jeopardy. Here is a video with a little preaching from Keith Green.
Are you putting cravings to death or are you in the grave of craving? If you are stuck remember “a rut is just a grave with ends kicked out.” Ask the Lord to help you worship Him above all else. He is faithful to do just that.
Did you get a Chocolate rabbit? What part did you eat first?
Years ago when I saw this in a hospital gift shop I purchased it immediately. Fondly remember my mother teaching us about “hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil.” Now bunnies demonstrating their limited abilities after someone ate the ears, ate the eyes, ate the mouth. Ha!
Has your Lenten discipline brought you to a new place in your walk with Jesus? Or like so many New Year resolutions have you already forgotten what you were aiming for in what you ‘gave up’ for the 40 days of Lent?
I hope and pray that the Easter Season brings you into a closer and richer fellowship with the One Who died for each of us. He lives! He lives! Christ Jesus lives today!
How many playground rhymes do you remember? Some of these popped into my brain this week. If I am ever in a nursing home wing for Alzheimer’s I hope these songs and rhymes help restore me to some form of sanity. (Here Bob might chuckle “Sanity is too much to hope for even today!” Ever the tease. He is oldest of five kids. I’ve learned how to give it back!)
My Dad worked for the N & W railroad. Mom wasn’t the only one who sang in the car! Daddy taught us this one.
I left my wife
Alone in the kitchen
With 28 children
And nothing but gingerbread left
Left, left, right, left
Oh it ain't gonna rain no more no more
Ain't gonna rain no more
How in the heck can I wash my neck
if it ain't gonna rain no more?
I woke up in the morning
the bread was hard and stale
the coffee tasted like tobacco juice
from the US county jail, OH ( with gusto!)
So what poems or verses are in your memory bank?
A my name is Alice
and my husband's name is Al
we live in Alabama where we grow apples
How far in the alphabet did you get? Do you remember? Was this for jump rope or bouncing a ball against the wall and passing it under your knee when you hit the A words? Ah! memory lane can be fun sometimes.
Treasures in Plain Sight, A Christian Blog 