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Hit the Ceiling

April 6, 2016 by juliebcosgrove

Have you watched a loved one or friend go round and round in circles? You want to help, but they won’t respond. In their anxiousness they keep circling over and over, making the same mistakes and trapped with no way out in sight.

courtesy of Church of the Holy Apostles

courtesy of Church of the Holy Apostles

In the church where I work, there is a meditation garden, called a Garth,  surrounded by a covered breezeway.  My office window looks out onto it. Yesterday, a chimney sweep flew into the breezeway. It circled around and around, flying up to the ceiling and back down over and over. After about three passes, I tried to swing my arms to get it to divert to the left and out into the garden’s open sky. But it just continued on it’s frantic course.  I realized, even  though my efforts were noble and kind, I made things worse.

I worried the thing might die from exhaustion or break a wing as it kept banging against the ceiling looking for freedom from it’s plight. But my presence made it panic even more. My good attempts futile.

Discouraged,  I went back to my desk. And yes, I prayed for the little guy.  Within a few minutes, a juicy bug or perhaps the spring-flower filled breeze coaxed the swift into the garden. It lifted its wings and soared to freedom.

Lesson learned. Sometimes the best we can do is pray and let God coax them out of their circumstances. He knows what will get their attention even when we do not.

And the coolest thing? God made those fragrant flowers or tasty bug long before the swift became trapped.  He knew when they would come in handy to entice the little bird at just the right time. Will he not do even more for those for whom we pray?

For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end.     Psalm 48:14

Posted in Devotional, Life Experiences, Nature | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments »

Plan B

March 29, 2016 by juliebcosgrove

My niece, Melissa, texted me about the way God spoke to her on the way to worship one rainy Sunday when her church had big outdoor plans for worship. She inwardly sighed and told God she wasn’t going to stress, and she knew it would be okay because He was in control. They’d just go with Plan B. “It was then I realized my Plan B was God’s Plan A all along.”

PLAN A???

PLAN A???

That struck me as profound. How often do we conjure up our Plan A and then expect God to bless it?  We are doing His will, right? So surely He will nod and approve of the way we’ve fashioned it. The hours we’ve spent on things going just so. Oh please, don’t let anything go wrong…

“We’ve got this, God. We can do it. You’ve equipped us. Reach down, bless it and make it all go according to plan…our plan.”

Uh, huh. Human nature strikes again.

Judas had “A Plan”. Yet Jesus didn’t fit into it the way he wanted. No militant Messiah to defeat Rome.

Abram had “A Plan”. Take a servant as a concubine and produce the son God promised him.

Jonah had “A Plan”. Run as far in the other direction of where God wanted him to go.

Even the Apostle Paul had “A Plan” but admitted the Holy Spirit intervened and prevented him and his companions from traveling to that city after all.

Every once in a while God shakes up the plan I have carefully plotted in my head  n order to remind me that I vowed in my prayer time to let Him be in control. Oh, yeah. I did, didn’t I? Right, Lord. Got it.

courtesy of Michael Shake Dreamstime Stock Photo

He flips my apple cart with all the fruit neatly stacked in rows. I gasp as I watch them tumble. With a whimper I clench my teeth. Why did You let this happen, Lord?  I see chaos with apples rolling willy-nilly, and He sees the path He wants me to follow.

As I pick up each one, it slowly becomes clear. I turn to look back at the cart and see the distance I traveled was purposeful. He shows me Plan B. What seems impossible happens. The apples line up in His pattern, not mine. Each apple  gathered in my skirt is a blessing. The ones on the ground were best left alone.

My frustration, over all the ways my feeble Plan A  went wrong, evaporates and I smile. Like my niece, my Plan B was His Plan A…the right one all along.

Posted in Christian, Life Experiences | 2 Comments »

Tears – No Words

March 25, 2016 by juliebcosgrove

thumbnail[2]It happens every year.  I can’t get through Holy Week without crying. My mourning clutches my chest.

As a church secretary, typing out the Passion Narrative chokes me up.

Maundy Thursday when the congregation goes quiet, the nave darkens, and the priests strip the altar of all adornment, then wash the bare wood, symbolizing the  preparing  for Christ’s death and burial, the teardrops cascade down my cheeks and my throat closes.  When the tabernacle is left wide open and the body and blood of the reserved sacrament is not present…yet, my lips quiver.

I hear my Lord whisper, “Will you not stay awake one hour?”I see His agony in the garden as He accepts the Father’s will. I feel His heart break when Judas kisses him,when Peter denies Him,  and the crowds yell to crucify Him. I hear his lasts gasps of breath on the cross asking God to forgive me. The idea unnerves me and humbles me. He did it all for me. He did it all for you, too.

You can read about the gruesomeness of his torturous death. You can see the films about it. But at one moment during Holy Week, I hope you go beyond viewing to feeling it in your soul. I hope you remember the old spiritual, “Were You There?” and answer as I do.

Through shimmering eyes I gulp my response – “Yes, every year.”

I’ve read the book, and I know how the story ends. But the point is, it never does. Jesus died for those that day watching at Calvary. He also died for me, for you and for the generations to come. His sacrifice is eternal.

Were you there? Are you there? Your Savior loves you enough to be there, hanging in torture. He will continue to love you enough to go into Hell, defeat death and rise again in glory before ascending into Heaven and preparing a place for you.. One day, He will love you enough to return and bring you home.

Have a blessed Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Resurrection Sunday…every year until Our Lord comes again. Maranatha.

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From Salvage…

March 15, 2016 by juliebcosgrove

I’ve been watching a show on Netflix- Salvage Dawgs. They take old things and re-purpose them. What others see as trash, worn-out or useless, they see of value. One of the workers said they take a piece from salvage to salvation. Aren’t we the same way?

Kerrville, Tx cross made out of re-bar iron

Most of Lent is a pensive time. We examine our walk and see where we come up short. What sins have we harbored? What bad habits have we taken up and what things should we release? All this introspection could be a downer, except for one thing. We know Our Lord is in the salvage to salvation business.

Without Easter, there would never have been Lent. Living this side of the Resurrection, we know the Good News that is coming as we weave through the Gospels and journey from Nazareth to Galilee to Jerusalem to Calgary. Sunday will come. We are not lost causes. God sees us not as the junk we’ve made ourselves but as what we can potentially become – a re-purposed work, restored to our originally intended glory through the efforts of the Son.

Guess that old saying is true. God doesn’t make junk. He re-purposes it to His glory into something desired and valuable.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Salvage to Salvation. Praise God!

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Umbrella

March 10, 2016 by juliebcosgrove

courtesy of faithshare.com

courtesy of faithshare.com

For the past several days we have had waves of rain in North Texas. Thus, I have been carrying a pop-out umbrella in my purse…just in case.  It caused me to ponder… how’s my spiritual umbrella?

Umbrellas do not stop the rain or even slow it down, they divert it.  They act as a circular barrier. They move with you so, as you go, the rain drenches the umbrella instead of on you.

Now, some  people find it a hassle to carry an umbrella. They dash through the rain trying to stay as dry as possible. Others stroll along as they get soaking wet as if accepting that as their fate.  Not me. I want protection.

Scripture is our umbrella. It will not stop the stormy days in our lives, but it will shield and protect us when they rumble through. God’s Word covers us in a peace that isn’t affected by circumstances. But we have to be prepared. It is up to us to carry it with us. We can choose to dodge the rainstorms of this life on our own, or resolved that we are inevitably doomed to get soaked. Or, we can open up God’s Word and seek shelter underneath it’s Truth.

Look at an umbrella. It is cloth covering spikes that start in the center and branch out. Christ is our center and branching out of Him are peace, trust, assurance, mercy, grace, everlasting life – all the reminders we need when we are faced with a sudden downpour of negativity, hurt, tragedy or despair. His love is our refuge, our shield, our strong cover against trouble (to paraphrase Psalm 46:1).

The next time your life darkens and thunder rumbles, what will you do? Dash to find shelter on your own, trudge through it with a frown, or  pop open the Word of God and be sheltered?

 

Posted in Christian, Life Experiences | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments »

Sing It

March 1, 2016 by juliebcosgrove

Recently, this verse was part of my daily devotional readings.
“Be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.”  Ephesians 5:18-21 (ESV)
sing-praises-to-god-2_coloring_page_png_468x609_q85 (1) 

I love to sing, except I can’t. I never learned to play anything but the radio, even after painful months of guitar,piano and ukulele lessons. I don’t read music. I have no idea how to make a high C or a B flat. I don’t even know if I am a soprano.

I recall going to a sing-along of Handel’s Messiah (my all time favorite)  with my niece. The choir master said if we didn’t know our voice range, perhaps we’d just better not try  to sing-along, but instead sit back and listen. Heartbroken, I did.
But my car is more forgiving. With the windows rolled up, I zip down the road with the Christian radio station on, singing praise songs to God. It lifts my spirit, soars my soul. Nothing alters my mood more than a foot-stompin’ hymn or a hand clapping song about my Lord. Some touch my heart as if they were written just for me. A prayer answered, a heavenly message received in the fifteen or so minutes I happened to tune in. Totally a God-orchestrated moment that would drop me to my knees if my foot wasn’t planted to the accelerator. Music is my worship catalyst.
If you feel the negative grouchies oozing into your day, turn on a Christian radio station. Mine is commercial-free, listener supported,  88.3 The Journey out of Keane, Texas. If you are not blessed to live near Fort Worth, TX to receive it through the airwaves, you can stream it live on your phone or computer.  Forget the songs about heartbreaks and cheating, or the angry lyrics about what is wrong with our world.  Instead, fill your mind with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. It make “giving thanks always and for everything” a lot easier!
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picture from: http://twistynoodle.com/sing-praises-to-god-2-coloring-page/

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Running on Empty

February 23, 2016 by juliebcosgrove

My cousin posted this sign on Facebook-

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How true.God will never leave us empty.

Maybe you have felt as if you’ re running on fumes. But you have to keep going. There has bound to be a filling station just up the road. You watch for the signs. The gauge teeters on the E.  Your eye shifts to the tachometer to see how many miles you have gone. Your brain calculates how many more you possibly could go before the engine dies. You hiss a prayer and tap the steering wheel. Come on,  come on. I need you now. Where are you, gas station?

If only you had taken the time to stop and fill up before you headed out. But you were running late. It started to rain. You didn’t want to get fume smells on your hands.  You were too  rushed to notice the gauge. Whatever the excuse, the fact remains… you didn’t.

Please, God, please. find me a gas station. I need to refuel.  You begin to promise you won’t do this again, but you know you will.  Then you see it. The sign. And guess what? It advertises the  cost to be twenty cents cheaper a gallon. Ha!

God’s Word fills us. We need it daily. We should never go out without a full tank of His promises, love, mercy and grace in our hearts and minds. But we do. Our lives get hectic. We dash down the road. We keep telling ourselves, I’ll read my Bible when I find the time…soon.

Over the past four years since I began this blog, God has been faithful to find ways to show me He is there, He cares. Even when I am rushed and running on empty- there it is . A sign.

And that sign draws me back to not be satisfied with just a few gallons to get me by until I have time, but to make the time to return in prayer and study to be filled up.

Are you on fumes? Look for His sign to draw near, make a turn off your busy path, and stop for a while to refuel.

 

 

 

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Winds

February 18, 2016 by juliebcosgrove

Today it is very windy in North Texas. We are under a Wind Advisory. As I notice the tree branches outside my window, I think of my life.

ID-100210229

There are times when, like the branches, everything seems still. Calm.

But other times, things shake up a bit. I feel bent in a new direction. Jostled.

However, as with the trees, I have firm roots… I call it faith. I have learned to dig my to spiritual toes deeper into the soil and hang on during the windy days in my life. I pray nothing will topple me. I can almost feel God holding me up as events whip around me.

Wind does some good things for trees. Wind shakes off the dust and pollen. (Yes, a lot of us are sniffling because of that.) Leaves and tiny twigs fall that are either dead or perhaps too thick, not allowing light in.

During those times in my life, is the same thing happening? Are some bad habits being swished away as I rely more and more on my Savior for strength and stability? Perhaps I shake the dust off my routine prayer and mediation time to read the Bible more – really read it, inwardly digest it, and put into practice its truths.  A few dead things I have been carrying around with me fall to the wayside.

Today is a windy day. Thank you Lord for reminding me that is a good thing. Shake me up a bit today. I think I need it.

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Walking right through

February 2, 2016 by juliebcosgrove

Jesus rejected at Nazareth by Alexandre Bida

Jesus rejected at Nazareth by Alexandre Bida

As I sat in church and listened to the Gospel lesson, one verse jumped out at me. It was the passage about Jesus being rejected in his own hometown. He angered them so much the mob dragged him to the edge of the cliff to throw him off….But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way. (Luke 4:30)

That is the verse which grabbed my heart. Can you picture it? These men all yelling at once, turning to each other, egging the others on. The voices escalate. A few curse words and shoves ensue. Their angst brewed to a tempest in a teapot and hey were so caught up in their anger and hurt they didn’t notice him pass through them, calm, quiet, unscathed.  Reminds me of those old Westerns barroom brawls.  The two cowboys who started it shakes hands, shrug  and walk out, leaving the others in the midst of their ruckus.

I wonder how many times I’ve gotten so caught up in the moment that I fail to recognize Jesus standing there.  Do I let my anxiety, anger, hurt or frustrations consume my attention to the point  that I not only do not hear the message He has for me but perhaps turn my anger towards Him?  Like the men in Nazareth, do I want Jesus to do things my way more than I want to listen to His wisdom?

.Jesus backs off.  Not out of fear for His well being, but because He knows, as any of us do, when someone is riled up they lose any ability to think rationally. No use trying to talk any sense into them. He lets lets me stew in my juices a while.

Emotions are not bad in and of themselves. But when we simmer  on issues and stir them into swirls of bubbling gripes, do we not lose perspective? We cannot think clearly through the problem because our brain is clouded. Worry, frustration, anger fogs the reality. Molehills loom into mountains.

If only we can take a slow, deep inhale and exhale, perhaps we can simmer down and then open our faith ears to His message, learn the lesson, feel His healing power. The difference between the men at Nazareth and those at Capernaum was one simple thing- reception.

The next time, I hope I remember this Gospel lesson, stop and say, “Wait Lord. Come back. Sorry. I’ll listen to you now.”

Posted in Biblical, Devotional | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

Hang On!

January 27, 2016 by juliebcosgrove

A friend of mine wrote she felt like she was hanging from a bungee cord, dangling from God’s hand.

Graybit-RTW-Travel-Bungee-Jumping-Salute-Africa

2014/07/Graybit-RTW-Travel-Bungee-Jumping-Salute-Africa.jpg

 

I thought about that. Fear and worry of the unknown teeters us to the edge. We lose our bearings as the present fogs into mists of “what if”.  Sometimes we slip.

But He gives us the means to hang on. He is our lifeline.  We may dangle for a while, but we will never fall all the way to the ground.

There will be an upswing. When we look up and cry for help, He will pull us back into His merciful love. As our hearts pound out of our chests, we will sigh and whisper, “Thanks, Daddy. I’m sorry I ever doubted. Sorry I tried to leap into the unknown on my own without You leading me there.”

Then once again we will nestle in safety…until the next “what if” whispers in our ears.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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