Seasons

Snow-capped mountains

Fading into clouds come low

Grey skies above

The world seems small today

 

Changing seasons

Summer becomes fall

Fall turns into winter

 Temperatures dropping

 

Bare tree trunks and branches

Leaves long gone

The death that always comes

The death that winter brings

 

At least it looks that way

But deep inside

Life still breathes

Waiting for spring to come

 

A world covered in white

Until the day comes

That it all changes

Snow melts

 

To reveal new life

That was buried deep within

Bursting forth in glorious colour

Bright, beautiful, new

 

Without the winter

Without the death

That winter brings

We would miss spring

 

The new life bursting forth

Would be unnoticed

In the busy-ness of life

As we hurry through each day

 

We all have favourite seasons

Each beautiful in its own way

And each one needed

To see the beauty of the others

 

Snow-capped mountains

Reflect the brilliant sun

Blue skies above

The world seems big today

 

Spring has come

New life has come

Five Minute Friday: Tree

I sat and looked at the trees around me. Barren branches reached for the sky. Only a few orange leaves still clung bravely to the branches. I wasn't sure how much longer they would hang on.

At first glance the trees looked dead. A sure sign that winter was on its way.

Wishing away the cold, my thoughts turned to spring. In just a few months, there would be life on the barren branches of the trees in front of me. Life that burst forth from within. Brilliant colours. Fragrant.

Then I realized something. We need the winter to appreciate the spring. These barren branches I was looking at right now are necessary. Without the contrast, I would miss the beauty of the new life that spring brings forth. The new life wouldn't catch my eye and look so grand without the barrenness of the branches now.

The same is true in our walk with God. We all have times when things feel dead - when there seems to be nothing growing in our lives. But it is those times that prepare us for the new life God wants to bring within us. New life that we might miss if things were always easy.

It was getting too cold to stay out any longer. But the image wouldn't leave my mind. The image of new life bursting forth from what looks to be dead and barren.


It's that time again. Five Minute Friday . . . except mine is a Saturday post this week. Joining in with the others over at Lisa-Jo Baker's blog for five minutes of writing on a given word. No editing or overthinking, just sharing what comes with each other. Today's word was "tree."

Abide in Me

Abide in Me,

Apart from Me you can do nothing.

Abide in Me,

That’s the only way to grow strong.

Abide in Me,

Then you will know My love.

Abide in Me,

So I can heal your wounds.

Abide in Me,

And I will protect you from destruction.

Abide in Me,

New life will burst forth from within.

Abide in Me,

You will make it through anything.

Abide in Me,

I will be the Strength you need.

Abide in Me,

With Me you can do anything I ask of you.

Abide in Me,

And your life will never be the same again.

God Delivers

Previous posts in this series can be found here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, and Part 5.


The righteous person may have many troubles,
     but the LORD delivers him from them all;
He protects all his bones,
     not one of them will be condemned.

Evil will slay the wicked;
     the foes of the righteous will be condemned.
The LORD will rescue His servants;
     no one who takes refuge in Him will be condemned.
                                                           Psalm 34:19-22


No matter what challenge comes our way, God promises that He will deliver us from them. We will not be destroyed by whatever it is.

But the way God delivers us from those challenges may not look like we expect. God delivering David didn't mean that God took Saul out of the picture. David was still on the run from Saul. It took time for David to become king of Israel. But, even during this time, David was sure that God would deliver him from his troubles.

We live with the same reality. God delivering us from all our troubles may not be immediate. It might take time. We might have to be patient while we walk through challenges. God doesn't promise that He will deliver us immediately. He promises that He will deliver us. We just may have to wait for God's timing because, even if it doesn't look ideal to us, it is best.

God Listens and He Cares

You can find the previous posts in this series here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.


The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them;
     He delivers them from all their troubles.
The LORD is close to the broken-hearted
    and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
                                                Psalm 34:17-18


God won't leave us on our own when we find ourselves in trouble. He is listening for our cries. He wants to rescue us from those troubles.

When we are broken-hearted over things God doesn't leave us alone. He is there. He cares for us. God wants to take our broken hearts and mend them. God loves us too much to leave us alone with our broken-hearts. He loves us so much that He will heal our wounds if we allow Him to.

Sometimes life will make us feel down. We can feel crushed and bruised. The good news in the midst of that is that God desires to save us in those times. He wants to come in and be exactly what we need in those times. In fact, He promises that He will do just that.

God Looks After His People

Another post in the series on Psalm 34. You can find previous posts here: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.


Taste and see that the LORD is good;
     blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him.
Fear the LORD, you His holy people,
     for those who fear Him lack nothing.
The lions may grow weak and hungry,
     but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.
Come, my children, listen to me;
     I will teach you the fear of the LORD.
Whoever of you loves life
     and desires to see many good days,
keep your tongue from evil
     and your lips from telling lies.
Turn from evil and do good;
     seek peace and pursue it.
                                    Psalm 34:8-16


God cares for those who follow Him. He will provide what is needed when we choose to follow Him.


Taste and see that the LORD is good . . ."

We are invited to experience God's goodness. It's not something we have to just agree with in our heads - it's something we can know from experience.


". . . blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him . . ."

We can take refuge in the midst of the storms of life in God. We can find a safe place to hide in God. Hiding in God doesn't mean we won't face troubles. We still will face hard times in life. But we don't have to face them alone. We have somewhere safe to be - protected in God's arms in the midst of the storm.


". . . fear the LORD, you His holy people, for those who fear Him lack nothing . . ."

David again reminds us that fearing God is important. When we honour and respect God for Who He is, He provides for our every need. We will have everything we need. It doesn't mean we'll have everything we want, or even think we need. But, God will make sure we have everything we need to do what He has for us to do.


". . . The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing."

God will give us good things when we seek Him first. Following God is the best way to live. I don't want to preach some kind of prosperity gospel, because I don't believe it's true that life will always be easy and we'll have every earthly good when we follow God. But, I believe that God will give us every good thing we truly need when we seek Him - every good thing that He knows we need.


". . . Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD . . ."

David was prepared to teach others how to follow God and give Him the honour and respect that He should get because of Who He is. That is the job of each of us - to help each other better understand what it means to fear the LORD.


". . . Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies . . ."

The way we talk has huge implications in our lives. We need to pay attention to what is coming out of our mouths. Evil talk has no place coming out of the mouth of a follower of Christ. Neither do lies. The power of our mouths to do harm or to do good cannot be over-stated. It is incredibly powerful - that is why we have to be so careful about what we say.


". . . Turn from evil and do good . . ."

It's not enough to just turn from something. We need to turn to something else. If we just turn from something and don't replace it with something else, we will quickly find ourselves turning back to exactly what we turned from in the first place. We need to turn from doing things are evil and replace them with things that are good. Not because it's about doing things to earn God's favour, but because it's about doing the right things because we follow and love God.


". . . seek peace and pursue it."

Peace isn't something that just comes our way. It is something we have to chase after. It won't come our way by accident. Peace will only come our way if we seek it.

God Saves

Part three of a series on Psalm 34. You can read the intro here and part one here.


I sought the LORD, and He answered me;
     He delivered me from all my fears.
Those who look to Him are radiant;
     their faces are never covered with shame.
The poor man called, and the LORD heard him;
     He saved him out of all his troubles.
The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him,
     and He delivers them.
                                               Psalm 34:4-7


After declaring the need to praise God in the midst of all circumstances, David moves on to a reminder that God will come to those who call out to Him for rescue.


"I sought the LORD, and He answered me . . ."

David looked to find God in the midst of His situation. When trouble came his way, he called out to God. And when he called out to God, God answered him. God is listening for the cries of His people because He wants to answer them.


". . . He delivered me from all my fears . . ."

God doesn't want us to live in fear. He wants to provide us with freedom from the fear that can hold  us back from what He has for us. When we call out to Him in the midst of circumstances where we are full of fear, He comes and rescues us from those fears. All He asks to deliver us from those fears is that we come to Him with them.


". . . Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame . . ."

Choosing to look to God in the midst of any circumstances we may face changes everything. When we look to God we reflect His glory and goodness to the world around us. No matter what we face, we can reflect God to the world around us. We just have to choose to look to Him.

Another amazing thing happens when we choose to look to God . . . He removes the shame we may be feeling. When we go to God with everything and ask for His forgiveness and His strength in the situation all shame is removed. Shame can hold us back from God has for us. He is waiting to remove it, because it's not of Him. He removes that shame when we go to Him with it.


". . . The poor man called, and the LORD heard him; He saved him out of all his troubles . . ."

Everyone can call to God. There's no social standing that would prevent us from calling out to God and being heard by Him. Whatever the situation, we can call to God for rescue and He will come to rescue us from it.


". . . The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them."

Every time I read verses that talk about fearing God, I have to stop and think about what that means. It's not language we commonly use today. And when we do talk about fear it's not in the way being spoken of here. To fear the LORD is to show Him respect and awe for Who He is.

Those who show God respect and awe for Who He is are protected by God. He sends His angels to protect us from harm - from attacks of Satan. God delivers us from Satan's attacks who is out to harm us.

Five Minute Friday: Grace

It's that time again. Five Minute Friday. This week's word is "grace."



The greatest gift we could ever receive . . . grace.

And it truly is a gift. There's nothing we can do to earn it.

All we can do it accept the gift. And allow it to change our lives.

God's grace is the greatest thing available for us all the time. He gives us what we don't deserve.

But, we often try to do everything we can to earn His grace. We try to be good enough. We try to do the right things . . . say the right things . . . and we wear ourselves out in the process, because no matter what we do we can never earn it.

The only way for God's grace to make a difference in our lives is for us to accept the gift.

The gift has been offered to you. Will you accept it freely? Or are you still trying to earn it?