Tag: hope

The Carpenter and the Crossbeam

~ Barbara ~ Leave a comment

The son of a carpenter, Jesus grew up feeling the grain and inhaling the fragrance of hewn wood. It is not a stretch to imagine Him hefting a hammer or pulling a saw to construct…what? A table? A chair or a baby’s cradle? Woodworking was not His calling, but it was His trade.

Years later wood became a symbol of His calling when He was forced to carry a crossbeam up to Golgotha. This time the wood Jesus held was not to create something useful, but to accommodate His death. It hurts to think about it.

The severity of His suffering, coupled with the humiliating shame, causes me to squirm. His attitude makes me even more uncomfortable—no objecting, defending, ranting—just quiet submission. And here’s what I find really unbearable. Jesus created that wood. He created the hill on which He would die. He created the Jews who condemned Him, the soldiers who mistreated Him, the thieves who hung next to Him.

Jesus, Creator God, suffering and dying by the products of His own creative power. How great was His love for us that He would pay such a price—a price we cannot calculate or fathom.

We call tomorrow “Good Friday”—only so because Easter follows. Our sins are erased from the record. The door to a merciful God is open wide. Our forever is secure.

Jesus, thank you for carrying that crossbeam.

Finding Hope, 65 Meditations for a Broken Heart

Image from freelyphotos.com

News Alert (3 of 3)

~ Barbara ~ 4 Comments

Current Headlines

  • Israel has warned that Hamas in Palestinian territories, as well as Iran, is likely to take advantage of the Ramadan season to start another violent uprising. 
  • Senate passes $460 billion package to fund the government
  • Putin warns the West that Russia is ready for nuclear war
  • FBI director warns of ‘very dangerous threats’ at border, smuggling network with ‘ISIS ties’
  • US-funded report issues urgent AI warning of ‘uncontrollable’ systems turning on humans

How do these headlines make you feel? Worried? Anxious? Powerless?

The God who is all-powerful is not wringing His hands or searching for plan B. Psalm 2 tells us He sees nations conspiring and people plotting but is neither worried nor anxious. Actually,

The One enthroned in heaven laughs;
the Lord scoffs at them (verse 4).

If we are impressed by weapons and armies, stymied by governmental decisions, frustrated by our inability to change things, we are looking for power in the wrong places. Psalm 33 corrects our vision:

No king is saved by the size of his army;
    no warrior escapes by his great strength.
A horse is a vain hope for deliverance;
    despite all its great strength it cannot save.

It is not a vast military or strong defenders or powerful weapons that give us hope. It is confidence in the God who is over all and controls all—read verse 18:

But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,
on those whose hope is in his unfailing love.

When the psalmist asks, “Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain?” (Psalm 2:1) God’s answer reverberates above the tumultuous earth,

“I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain” (verse 6).

Fear not. Focus above. Feed on the Psalms.

Finding Hope, 65 Meditations for a Broken Heart

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixaby

News Alert (1)

~ Barbara ~ 2 Comments

Whether we diligently follow the news or can only bear to take occasional peeks, we are not unaware of the troubling headlines that reveal a distressing view of our world.

Read enough?

Media headlines are enough to upset us during the day and keep us awake at night. We feel helpless and may wonder if God sees all this. Friends, read on.

From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind;
from His dwelling place He watches  all who live on earth—
He who forms the hearts of all,  who considers everything they do.
But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear Him,
    on those whose hope is in His unfailing love.

Psalm 33:13-15, 18

We are not without help. God sees, watches, considers. Hope not in leaders or armies, but in our powerful God who has the ability to create with a word and destroy with a breath.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixaby

Finding Hope, 65 Meditations for a Broken Heart

We All Need Light

~ Barbara ~ Leave a comment

About eight months ago we had solar panels* installed. It’s been great—crank up the air, turn on the space heater, flip on the lights—it’s free! Until last month.

It was a gray, gray January. I searched my weather app for any hint of sunshine, but the only consistent prediction I saw was rain. We did not receive the power of the sun’s rays—we received an electric bill instead. Yes, there’s a point to this story but, first, let me digress.

I was disappointed in the book cover I chose for Finding Hope—it was not as sharp as I imagined it to be. I had polled friends and family for their choice out of six possibilities. Few chose the one I used. However, I noticed that each one hovered there first, then reason took over and moved them on to a brighter cover. I realized that what initially drew them was the light—glowing from the windows and shining in the sky. They saw light in the darkness and it attracted them. Since that is the point of my book, I opted for the lights and their promise of hope.

Dark circumstances and gray Januarys affect us beyond reason. We know there is a sun behind the clouds, but it’s depressing to not see it. We know there is a God of love behind our situations, but we despair when we can’t sense His presence. When we don’t absorb His light, we pay the consequences.

It is critical for us to position our sensors above the clouds and focus our faith on the Light we cannot see. The clouds will break, hope will come, and we will be found faithful because we believed despite the dreariness of our current view.

The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalm 27:1

*A shout-out to Henry at Trinity Solar.

Finding Hope, 65 Meditations for a Broken Heart.