I Want to be Just Like You

You know how sometimes you get people on your mind and no matter what you do you can't shake their imagine out of your head? I have been thinking about my great grandmother Daugtery that way since I said I would post about her.

She was about five feet tall. When I knew her, she was wrinkled and slow. Her hands were gnarled with the effects of arthritis, but she still tended a half acre vegetable garden. She also kept a quilt frame up in one room of her home. She baked the best peanut butter cookies in the world, and made sure that everyone in the family got their very own plastic butter bucket full each Christmas.

Before I came alone, Minnie cared for her six children and her husband Ira. Ira had a stroke before age 50.  He was bed bound for seventeen years. Minnie worked all day nursing him, then she worked second shift at Cone Mills. She and Ira were married  fifty years before he passed away. I never meet him.

My grandmother Helen lived behind my great grandmother's house. When my parents would take me to visit my grandparents, I would pop in on Great Gram and sit and chat a while. She was hard of hearing, so I would have to yell  for her to hear me. I remember one conversation we had was about the gypsy wagon she used to see traveling down the road when she was a little girl. She was told not to go outside her yard because the Gypsy's liked to kidnap little girls and sell them to the circus. She never liked the circus. She was afraid of clowns, so she always stayed in her yard. She told me that there were still Gypsy's that took little girls, so I should always stay in the yard, which I did. Her yard was the best. It had a fenced garden that reminded me of Mr. McGregor's from Peter Rabbit. She had an apple tree with the sweetest apples and a plum tree that I stayed away from. You didn't mess with Gram's plums.

For a high school assignment, I interviewed Minnie Daugtery as the most amazing person I knew. I had to ask her about what she believed in most. She told me God in Heaven and his Bible were the most believable things she knew. Then I had to ask what she believed in least. She responded with, "No, man never walked on that moon!" Needless to say, I laughed. She got up from her chair, flapped her hands at me and left the room.

I loved the smell of my Great Gram's house. The best visits were on quilting days. Peanut butter cookies were baked. I would sit and watch her bent fingers thread the needle. She would stop now and then to rub her knuckles with Bengay. Her home smelled of menthol, baked goods and burnt wood. She cooked on a wood burning stove. Oh, she owned an electric oven, one of her son's had bought it for her. But she refused to use it!

Minnie never visited a doctor until she was 85. She had delivered all six of her children at home. When she became ill with stomach pains, she was taken to the hospital and a gall stone the length of her index finger was removed. She carried it home in a mason jar and set it in her kitchen window. She had lived alone in her own home until that surgery. Then, my grandmother Helen and her sister, who lived next door, took turns keeping Minnie in their home's at night. It was on one of those nights, I learned something new about my Great Gram. I was spending the weekend with my grandparents. I was fifteen. Great Gram was getting ready for bed. She said her good nights and stepped into her room. Then she began her bedtime prayers. She prayed aloud. As my grandparents and I sat at the kitchen table, they encouraged me to listen to Minnie pray. She thanked her Heavenly Father for all her daily blessings, each one mentioned in detail. She prayed by name for all her children, grand children and great grand children. I heard her call my name. (Gives me chills and brings tears to my eyes even now.) Grandma Helen told me she did this every night. She prayed for at least 30 minutes, then there was silence. She had gone to sleep.

I have thought many times about hearing my Gram pray for me. Oh, what a joy and comfort that memory brings. When I heard her the first time, I didn't know the Lord, but I knew she did, and I know she is with him now, in no pain, waiting for me to join her. She was the most humble person I have ever known. I can see her little frame in my mind's eye, throwing up her hands, walking out of the room.
I love you Minnie Daugtery. I want to be just like you!

There is no SHAME!

My new memory work is from Isaiah 40 verses 21-31. Today I am focusing on verse 23 because dwelling in God's presence is what I have been pondering these last few blogs. Verse 23 says, "That bringeth the princes to nothing; he maketh the judges of the earth as vanity." Just as the countenance of God can bring peace and comfort, it also brings judgment and destruction.

Psalm 80:16 "It is burned with fire, it is cut down: they perish at the rebuke of thy countenance."

Psalm 90:8 "Thou hast set our iniquities before thee, our secret sins in the light of thy countenance."

Revelation 1:16 says, "and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength."

The secret sins we want to hide, even from ourselves, can not be concealed in the presence of God.
The reaction to this revelation is what our society has tried to remove with it's except everybody doing anything and everything they want to do any where and any way they want. Don't correct children for wrong behaviors because nothing is wrong. Wear what you want. Do what you want.
There is no SHAME!

Yesterday afternoon, around 3:00, my husband and I stopped to full up with gas. At the pump next to us was a red sports car. Standing by that car was a young lady. School had just let out. I could see her bookbag in the backseat. What she was wearing made me want to jump out of the car and find her mother and shake her. But then, as I sat there, I realized that is the style of the day. It is what all the young ladies in all the public high schools, that do not require uniforms, are wearing. I almost wanted to cry. My grandmother would not have worn that to bed!

That's it! The standards have changed. Grandmother's are wearing shameful clothes and not setting the example. Oh, I can see right now this is going to be a soapbox issue for me. I am not a grandmother yet, but maybe I should go clean out my closet and begin praying that God will raise up some holy women in this land again. We should be more ASHAMED!

Do You Know His Countenance?

Wars, earthquakes, tsunamis, murders, kidnappings, tornadoes, both natural disasters and the acts of  natural man draw my mind to fear.

Psalm 4:4 "Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah"

Praying for the countenance of Jehovah to be upon me quiets my fears. They are replaced with a peace that cannot be understood or explained. I know he is in control and will not allow anything to happen to me that is not part of his divine plan. 

Psalm 4:5-6 "Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the Lord. There be many that say, Who will show us any good? Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us."

Having God's countenance upon you is a way of speaking about being in God's presence. Until rapture or death being in the presence of God is not possible without the WORD of God. The Holy Spirit indwells every believer and he uses his word to speak peace to the soul. If you spend too much time reading after others and not reading and memorizing his word you will be filled with fleshly advice and opinions that the Holy Spirit will not use. You may be able to calm yourself for a moment, but the peace will be short lived and not from God.

For nearly half my life I struggled with getting a good night's sleep. It seemed as soon as the lights went out my mind would wonder into all it's dark corners and closets. I would toss and turn most of the night visualizing all the bad events of the day. Even if my day was good, I would pick out an event I heard had happened to someone else and hit the instant replay button.

I decided one night to pray Psalm 4 before going to bed.

Psalm 4:7-8 "Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased. I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety."

God's countenance began to be with me. My sleep was not as restless!

Psalm 21:6 "For thou hast made him most blessed for ever; thou hast made him exceeding glad with thy countenance.

God's countenance brings peace.

Numbers 6:25-26 "The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee; The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace."

God's countenance brings blessing.

Psalm 89:15 "Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance."

The joyful sound mentioned in this verse is the sound of the music and noise that the Jews experienced at their feast. The Jews learned from God in the Old Testament how to worship and celebrate him with the feast. To be as blessed, we Christians are to learn how to worship and celebrate him through his word.

Do you want victory in your Christian life? Do you want victory over your fears? God's countenance will shine upon you when you look into his WORD. Put down the fake swords of self reliances and opinions of men and pick up the SWORD OF THE SPIRIT, the Bible. Read it, study it, memorize it and pray it.

Psalm 44:3 "For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: but thy right hand, and thine arm and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto them."

If you know Jesus as Savior you can have peace and be blessed by the countenance of God. But, if you do not know him the countenance of God will bring judgement and conviction of sin. Do you know his countenance?

Feel free to Slap me if I Need it

"Do you want your face to freeze that way?"

"If your lip were any lower you would trip over it."

"Whip that scowl off your face."

One's countenance or facial expression can be an indication of mood, emotion, or character.
The eyes are the window of the soul, is a shortened phrase derived from Latin which reads:
"The face is the picture of the mind as the eyes are its interpreter."

Countenance is first mentioned in scripture in Genesis 4:5.
"But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect, and Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell."

 The idiom "if looks could kill," comes to mind.

In Genesis 4:6 God asked Cain why his countenance had fallen. Cain first looked sad, depressed and dejected. Then his expression changed. A look of jealous rage flashed on his face. It was then he planned to murder his brother. God Almighty could see the thoughts and intents of Cain's heart.
I can see a sadness cross God's face.

How could Cain have washed these feelings from his mind and heart? If he would have expressed godly sorrow, if he had repented and offered a blood sacrifice, God would have excepted his offering. What is the difference in godly sorrow and worldly sorrow?

Proverbs 15:13 says, "A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance: but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken."

II Cor. 7:10 "For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but sorrow of the world worketh death."

Charles Dickens said, "Crying opens the lungs, washes the countenance, exercises the eyes and softens down the temper, so cry away."

Eccles. 7:3 "Sorrow is better than laughter: for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better."

Worldly sorrow draws attention to self. Self wants to be pitted and comforted in it's sorrow.

Godly sorrow releases our hold, therefore it conditions our pride. God allows circumstances that are meant to recondition our countenance toward him. Learning to wash our face in godly sorrow softens our countenance so others see his reflection and not the angry, pouting look of a selfish malcontent.

Godly sorrow should be private. It should be expressed between you and God alone. But if you should find yourself with a friend who feels the need to include you in this show remember Proverbs 27:17.

"Iron sharpenth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend."

Offering pity to the pitiful only encourages pride. Christ wants us to show compassion and weep with those who weep, but if the person is weeping just to draw attention to themselves and not because of a real grief, then be a friend and tell them to straighten up and pray about their feelings.
Sometimes a slap from a friend can work wonders.

Pondering a fallen countenance this morning:

After a difficult night's sleep, I got out of bed this morning with vivid images from the dream I had just had.

I was back in college helping a freshman get to class, when I saw a young man I knew standing in a food service line.

"Good morning", Sam. I said, as I approached the boy.

I carried a clipboard with a list of student's names and classes. Looking at that list, I could see Sam was skipping his first class.

"Sam, are you skipping class?" I asked.

"Yes."

As Sam spoke the word, a spot of red color appeared on the white tie he was wearing.

I asked him why he was skipping. He told me he was hungry and more red soaked into his tie.

"But I saw you earlier this morning in the breakfast line."

He walked out of the line mumbling something under his breath. More red color washed onto his tie. I followed him to the door of the class where the professor was sitting with a clip board and pen in his hand. He looked at the young man, spoke his name and asked why he had skipped the class. As Sam began to explain, the professor politely refuted all his excuses. The professor handed the clip board, with it's stack of blank paper clipped to it and the pen from his hand to Sam.

"Now, Sam, since you are new here, I will not leave you in the dark about the requirements for this class. However, since you refused to attend this morning, I will not be giving you the printed syllabus. I will dictate it to you. It is 50 pages long," spoke the professor.

At this point, Sam's tie was completely drenched with red color and his face was as white as the paper on the clip board. He fell to his knees dropping the clip board and his face began to droop. When the professor started listing the requirements for the class, Sam couldn't keep up and his face continued to droop until it puddled on the floor in front of him.

Talk about a fallen countenance. That young man went from simple embarrassment to total dejection in the course of a few events. At first, I felt sorry for Sam. After all, I knew him. I wanted to step forward and defend him. But then it occurred to me, it all could have been prevented.

Events happen in our lives that will make us feel embarrassed, dejected, blue, melancholy or guilty.

Who is orchestrating those events and what is His plan in doing so?

The young man in my dream was being irresponsible and he reaped the consequences. Should his reaction have been embarrassment and guilt or remorse and repentance?

Scripture has a lot to say about a fallen countenance. I will use the next few blogs to discuss those passages and hopefully remind myself how to keep my face off the floor.

Tabernacle with HIM!

As a little girl, one of my favorite games was tent camping. I would take a sheet outside, drape it over the rails of the porch or a branch of a tree and use sticks to stake it up. I would build a pretend fire and play outside at my camp site all day.

One of my favorite activities is camping. I love the sights and sounds of nature. I enjoy the simply pleasures of cooking over an open fire and sleeping outside. I am NOT a "camper" girl. Give me a tent and a sleeping bag. Ahhhhh, come on, let's make it more fun and just sleep outside under the stars. But, a confession is necessary here. Although I can talk about being able to enjoy sleeping on the ground, my body has long since past the ability to do so. Just the thought of the pain that would be mine the next morning keeps me from actually attempting it again. Not to mention, my husband Tony would whine about the bugs, heat and dampness, which would take all the joy out of the adventure. Nevertheless, I can remember back to childhood camping trips on labor day weekend and even a few times when Tony braved the elements with me so we could give our children a few tent camping memories.

This morning I studied a few places in scripture where the word tent or tent like structures are mentioned. I was overtaken with worship for my Lord when I realized his goodness to me in leading me to study this topic.

Isaiah 40:22 "It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in."

The Lord of Creation stretches out the heavens, much like I did with that sheet. He holds them by his unseen forces, allowing me to dwell here. All is safe and warm in the tent with my Lord. Even if the rains come and drench everything inside, he has the plan and will help me dry off and dry out and be ready for the next beautiful adventure with him.

Isaiah 54:2-3 "Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cord, and strengthen thy stakes. For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles and make the desolate cities to be inhabited."

It was his will to enlarge his tent of habitation to include the Gentiles. Praise his holy, wonderful and loving name. He included me and wants me to dwell with him for all eternity. Until that day, I can find refuge under the shadow of his wings. There, I am preserved as the apple of his eye, his joy and his delight.

Psalm 17:8 "Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings."

His pavilion gives me a place to rest and rebuild my relationship with him.

Psalm 27:5 "For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock."

I may never be able to enjoy tent camping again, but I can camp out with my heavenly Father. I can tabernacle with him and experience the all same thrills.

If You Only Imagine

As a child, I was often accused of thinking to much. Why was my favorite word. I never used it obnoxiously. I was just curious about how things worked or what things did. If the person I asked couldn't or wouldn't answer my question, I would lie in bed at night and dream up an answer. Along with this vicious cycle of thinking, I have a vivid imagination. I can picture events in my head. I can entertain myself for hours with games and stories in my mind. I have had conversations with historical figures and imaginary friends. And NO, I am NOT CrAzY!

It is imagination that drove Thomas Edison to try and fail over 2000 times to invent the light bulb. It is also imagination that has invented cars, televisions and computers. We have access to some wonderful things that were first invented in the imagination. However, there are some problems with the human imagination. It is not HOLY!

When God created man, he made him in his image. This is not only a reference to the physical characteristics of the man Jesus that our bodies are fashioned after, it is also a reference to patterns of thinking. God then gave Adam one rule to follow in the garden. Satan prompted Eve to ask why and they both give in to the imaginations of the flesh.

It is when imaginations become desires that we must judge them and cast them off or act and suffer the consequences.

Romans 1:21 "Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened."

Learning to judge thoughts and ideas with scripture will strengthen your heart toward God and will keep you from making mistakes that can cost you your testimony.

II Corinthians 10:3-5 "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds. Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ."

Do you imagine yourself as unworthy of God's love? What does scripture say?

I John 3:1 "Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knowth us not, because it knew him not."

I am God's child. I am a daughter of the King! He loves me!

Do you imagination yourself as an ugly creature? What does scripture say?

Psalm 139:14 "I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well."

Cast down those imaginations. Refuse to allow them to develop roots. Become thankful to God for how God has created you, with all your unique features and abilities. Practice obedience to Christ by developing a daily relationship with him through prayer and Bible reading. You will then be blessed with glorious thoughts of a heavenly home and a future that is far above what your imagination can think.