My Peephole View of the World

We often say things are not what they may seem.  Through years of living we generally gain the wisdom of learning how NOT to trust every sales gimmick that comes along; how NOT to be swindled by conmen; or how NOT to believe every charlatan that claims to have found the fountain of youth.  “I wasn’t born yesterday,” some old-timers may say with a snicker. 

Sometimes people need time and opportunity to show their true colors. Maybe you’ve met someone that for any number of reasons, poor timing or a clumsy moment, didn’t impress you favorably at first? Yet, over time, perhaps their true character emerged and you got a completely different impression. Deep and lasting friendships can evolve through even the rockiest beginnings.

We can’t trust our emotions or first impressions. Largely through making mistakes, we develop an ability to distrust initial reactions and wait for further evidence. Prudence teaches that fools rush in, but wisdom is patient.

I was thinking about this the other day in the car, trying to back out of a crowded parking space.

The side view mirror of American cars warns:  “Objects in this mirror are closer than they appear.”  In other words, don’t rely on this view alone.  What you see here is not totally accurate. 

Just like life, I thought. When you’re in a tight spot, you need to consult another mirror.  If you're hemmed in by your circumstances, under pressure, stressed or confused, you have to seek a different viewpoint.

Spiritually speaking, my side view mirror is my emotions. What errors I would make if I drove my life decisions by what I see through the glass of my emotions. If I gauge where I am in life by the mirror of how I feel, I could be miles off from reality, and going in the wrong direction!

So, how about looking to the rear view mirror? Focusing on personal history isn’t a sufficient guide either, in itself. The failures of my past could hinder forward progress.  Fears crop up and anxieties flood my mind if I let the past dictate my future.  I need something better to help me drive forward in life with a clear and healthy perspective.  

As I try to navigate life with all its challenges and changes, I only have a little peephole view of the full reality.  I could spin my wheels turning from one little mirror to another and still be missing a crucial perspective. How limited is my scope of view!

But the LORD Jesus is True North in every storm. He offers complete unbiased correction to all my emotional ups and downs. My Shepherd guides me flawlessly and always sees the full picture.

Proverbs 3:5-7 says,“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes...” (NIV)

In the Message version, this reads: “Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own.  Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go:  he’s the one who will keep you on track.  Don’t assume that you know it all. Run to God!”

These verses sum up a boatload of wisdom for living. And don’t you love the good news that as you seek to honor God and rely on Him, He promises to straighten out your mess! He will show you the way forward and guide you through it all. Only God sees 360 degrees simultaneously, as well as past, present, and future of all things. He alone knows what's best for you. 

“He will direct you and crown your efforts with success,” in the Living Bible.  In the Amplified, “He will make your paths straight and smooth [removing obstacles that block your way].”

Trust Him! Don’t trust your memory, your experience, your emotions, or your peephole view--a mere fragment of the whole picture. 

Seek God. He has a much bigger view!

Glimpses of Glory: Baby Steps

I went to women’s Bible study for the first time in months and it felt like a wonderful little fall reunion. Many faces I hadn't seen in about a year.  

The lesson was on worry and I knew right away, this is God’s plan for me to refocus my heart on this essential foundation. I’ve been letting it slip! 

Like a kite twisting in the winds, sometimes pointed up and rising, and suddenly taking dips and nose-diving toward the ground, my faith and fears do constant battle. 

It’s back to the famous Sermon on the Mount. Nothing new. In fact, I’d been visiting some of the very same verses in recent days.  Don’t worry. Look at the birds and flowers of the field. Aren’t you worth more than these?

I listened pensively as several women shared. Some said it gets easier with age, but I sat there grappling with my own apparent inability to stay in the zone of trust! How come I know these things so well and forget them so easily? 

With various physical pains stabbing at my shoulder, heal and wrist lately, and concerns about security after losing a job five months ago, I’m not seeing a good foundation for building my dreams here.

I confessed to everyone that I’m grappling with trust even after all these years. I miss my husband’s words of assurance and his shoulder to lean on. I feel alone in the ministry God's called me to and the weight is on my shoulders at times. I keep forgetting that the Lord carries the yoke, but I keep taking it back. 

Oh yes, I give it to God and even rebuke the devil. I’ve been moving forward with every opportunity before me. But the point is, it doesn’t come easy. Maybe two steps forward, one or two back. 

It feels like I’m back to baby steps in my spiritual life, walking through new challenges and asking God to hold me up. 

Lord God, help me stay in the zone and take this one day at a time. No matter what it feels like, no matter how painful, no matter how ridiculous it looks, I intend to keep going until I see you face to face! No matter what!

Tears were in my eyes when we closed in prayer, and I asked God simply to hold me up and help me remember it's one step at a time. How can he love me? How does he put up with me?

My face was in my hands, tears were in my eyes, when I became aware that one of the women’s toddlers had tiptoed over to me. He stood right under my face and peered up and said, “Hello!” 

I opened my eyes.  Such a perfect and innocent little face! Blonde curls and and big blue eyes were peering up at me sweetly. Chubby bare feet reminded me of my own tiny clumsy adorable feet and the baby steps I’m taking. 

“Hello sweetheart!” He touched my heart so, I just wanted to scoop him up! He was absolutely angelic! I saw no fault in him whatsoever. 

Oh dear God! It doesn’t matter that we take such faltering steps. You know exactly what I’m made of and yet, you love me still! You are moved at the sound of my little voice. 

Thank you for loving me, Father!

I need to recognize hardship as part of God’s plan. Show me one baby step at a time, Lord. Even if it’s not what I expect!

I will be content to know that you love me, you know my needs, and you won’t fail. 

You have all my tomorrows figured out.

Part III - Ride the Wind

I keep writing about the wind because I need to stay focused on the power and presence of God while my life is in transition.  It's been remarkable to observe this simple but profound illustration that is physically present, all around us. I've been contemplating its silence, its unpredictability, its force, and of course, its illustration of the invisible yet omnipresent God I love.

Wind can be a gentle refreshing on a hot day, or it can snap giant trees in one frightful blast of hurricane strength. Wind takes different forms, from a breeze to a cyclone! Like Jesus, the first time he came as an infant, then riding on a humble donkey, but the next time he will come as a king, with a blast in the skies bringing judgment with his armies. A time for all things, from sweet mercy to severe judgment.

No wonder Jesus referred to the wind when he met a confused priest in the middle of the night and introduced him to heavenly things. (John 3) Wherever you are on the planet, wind  illustrates and reminds us of the all-powerful and gentle, the essential and life-giving Spirit of God who created it.

Yesterday afternoon as I sat on my favorite Adirondack chair in the yard chewing chicken stir-fry and mulling over a tangle of jumbled thoughts, a little white puffball floated down from the pines and hovered before my eyes. It was fairy-like, like Peter Pan’s Tinkerbell.

It was about an inch in size, perfectly rounded and whole, and strikingly silent and peaceful. It came down from the trees above me, danced right in my line of vision for about five seconds, then flitted off, obscured in the garden. I’ve never seen one like it, and God’s timing, as always, was impeccable. I wanted to take a picture but it was gone with a breath of air, leaving me to ponder the sweet sense of God’s smile peeking over the treetops at me.

I laughed out loud. Lord! You know my anxious thoughts and sent this sweet reminder of your presence. Thank you, Father!Oddly, there were no others to be found, though I watched for them. I had even been searching the web for such an image to illustrate the presence of the wind for previous posts. 

It strikes me as I’m recording this little episode, how God delights to surprise and uplift us. And how many times in my life that occurs when I am busy chasing thoughts around my scattered brain! It’s as though God himself is interrupting my mental ping pong to make a point. As if to say once again, “Karen, I’m still here. You are not alone. Rest in my presence.”

The Lord calls my attention to something fabulous, and liberating, and delightful. He brings pure JOY into a muddled moment. God’s presence, and the reminder of his omniscience over the details of my life, scatters every impulse to worry or fret, when I am doing just that!

Why bother to figure out my way since I have no power to complete it? It’s like wrestling with a map in foreign terrain, turning it this way and that, looking for street names and dinky numbers and you realize you are lost. Life can be so confusing!

Then, the Lord pulls up in a limo and says with a wink, “I’ll take you where you need to go. Hop in.”  This is the modern version of Matthew 11:28-30. It's an invitation to find rest for my soul by coming to him.

Rather than sitting in the driver’s seat and stressing over all the details, He’s at the wheel and invites you to ride shotgun as a travel companion, and enjoy the trip! Which would you rather do?

Choose to trust God. You can rest in the presence of the ever-present maker of the wind and let Him direct your path. Proverbs 3:5-6 says, "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." 

God, help me to remember that you’ve got it. You’ve got me. You’ve got the plan and the whole map in clear view. 

With Kate Hudson on an Alpine Adventure

The other night I came home from a late meeting and flipped through a few channels to see if there was anything of interest on TV. Suddenly, there was Kate Hudson alone in a cable car that had stopped halfway up the side of a mountain while a helicopter hovered overhead. Her exit? She had to go out the open door and down on a rope! So much for the fear of heights and dread of helicopters! I was hooked.

EXTREME CHALLENGES
Hiking with this MacGyver of the mountains, Bear Grylls (not Girly!) led her from one incredible feat to another in the Dolomites Mountains of northern Italy. They faced extreme dangers, climbed over waterfalls and rappelled over rocky cliffs. Being tied together, Kate spoke of the need to trust her guide even when filled with fear. She heroically pushed herself as they explored a dark passage through an abandoned mountain tunnel with headlamps.

At first it seemed she was more sure of herself. “I went to sailing camp,” she said sweetly. “I can do knots.” But gradually, all fortitude and self-knowledge were put to the test as the terrain and challenges increased. Many times she would resist and question him. “Seriously, this is insane,” or, “Wait a minute! I’m tied to you! What happens if you fall?” To which he would respond, “Don’t worry, I won’t.”  Gingerly, she followed, doing exactly what he said. “Follow my footprints in the snow,” or, “Don’t look down.” She was amazing!

WILD EXPERIENCES
For food, Bear twisted off the head of a pigeon and they roasted the meat over fire started by the gunpowder from a bullet they found in the tunnel. Another time, they tasted ants scavenged from a mound of dirt near their tent. Is there anything he wouldn’t attempt?

It all culminated with a sheer drop, straight down to a waiting craft loaded with supplies and a road out. As her fearless leader disappeared over the edge and descended out of earshot, she had to wait on that ledge for a tug of the rope to signal that he was on the ground. It must have felt interminably long before the rope tugged. Then, she took hold of the rope, hoping the tree would sustain her, and proceeded over the rocky edge. I wondered, how much grit and determination stem from the fact that she is a mother of two who desperately wanted to see her children again?

FINAL APPRAISAL

“Well done,” Grylls would say, cheering her on. He never wavered, remarkably capable, patiently instructing her every step of the way. When she finally reached bottom, the tears spilled over and she couldn’t speak.  It must have been overwhelming to realize what she had done and how far they had gone to make it to the ‘end of the road.’

MY GUIDE
I too, am on a journey that started 42 years ago the first time I read the Word, spoke to God, and heard his voice on the tundra of Alaska. And just like Kate, my guide has tested me in regard to all my fears. There were fears of running out of money and starving, of leaving the relative safety of American soil, learning an unwritten language, living in a cannibal tribe, facing countless episodes of malaria, separation from my children—and even the fear of never being able to walk again as I lay in a third world medical facility bed.

Do you feel unsteady at times? Don’t you wish God would give you the roadmap?

I’m here to tell you, the Lord Jesus has been a trustworthy and capable guide. He is the Bear Grylls of all time and there’s nothing he can’t do! His Holy Spirit instructs and protects me on the perilous places and counsels me to trust Him. Also known as the Comforter, he patiently walks beside us every step of the journey.

He knows the ropes. He knows the way. He will see you through!

My legs get wobbly at times, but the Lord has called me down this path. As I've left a secure paycheck to follow what the Lord is calling me to do, I am getting back into the unchartered territory. Now the question is, do I truly trust my guide? Am I going to follow in his footsteps and trust my weight on these ropes? 

This is a journey we must all take alone. Only you get to choose who you trust. But only you will reap the rewards of trying, so I urge you to do it. Don't turn back from the fears.

Psalm 16, a song of David, were certainly recorded in the midst of perilous circumstances. He penned these lines as though planting a stake in the ground, and they echo with visual concepts that could have accompanied Kate on her trek across the mountains.

“Keep me safe, O God, for you in you I take refuge…

Lord, you have assigned me my portion… and made my lot secure…

I will praise the Lord who counsels me; even at night…

I have set the Lord always before me.

Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;

My body also will rest secure, because you will not abandon me to the grave…

You have made known to me the path of life;

You will fill me with joy in your presence,

With eternal pleasures at your right hand.”

I, too, want to hear that “Well done,” when I reach it to the end of my journey. Don’t you? If we’re going to make it, we need to go despite our fears and trust the One who leads us.