Together As One

     This morning I watched as my arbor became filled with fluttering activity. All different species of birds together – flying in and out taking a waiting perch for their turn to be filled with the juicy ripe grapes that now dangle ready for consumption.

     When we have forgotten to fill their bird feeders they will group together and come asking for help – in their lack; but what a joy to watch it when there is an abundance. You can hear the chatter and singing, you can feel the anticipation and joy as they hop from one place to another waiting – anticipating – sharing.

     In lack and abundance they group together not caring about size or difference but together united on a focus for the good of them all.

Matthew 6:26 Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

     In the midst of the chaos, anger and hate currently harbored in our nation we have seen a momentary glimpse of what I witnessed with the birds this morning. A compassionate flood that has surfaced in the heart of people as images of great pain and loss have triggered a unity that only a few days ago was devoid. Now the united focus does not care about difference but to help those hurting and in lack. Together they are pouring out help – sharing from their abundance and even from their lack.

     Isn’t this the heart of Christ? To care for the hurting and broken? To pour out love and compassion on the most vulnerable?

     Stepping up, setting “our” lives on hold, giving from our abundance and our lack, helping in any way possible is what it is to be a loving human being. But we, as believers in Christ have a bigger assignment – it’s not just for a disaster – it is a lifestyle! A lifestyle of sharing our abundance into the lives that surround us that walk daily in lack.

     Unfortunately – just as the birds will revert back to their natural thinking – most people will quickly become cold to the needs and revert back to living their “own” lives with no thought to those still hurting and continually living in lack.

     But for now my heart smiles as I watch the birds united and full of joy sharing with one another – just as Our Heavenly Father must be doing now too. But also, with a renewed outlook on what my lifestyle needs to shift to – one of daily walking in a lifestyle of sharing – hopping from place to place waiting, anticipating and sharing as HE directs.

Isaiah 58:10 if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday.

Out of the Box Proposal

Recently my son set up a marriage proposal – his girlfriend unsuspectingly participating. A front row seat was acquired at a well known magicians show and the stage – literally – was set as the magician stepped down to take her hand, to be his assistant for a particular illusion. A huge box was seen to be empty as she checked inside and all around it – it was closed up tight and turned completely around. As the box was re-opened to her utter amazement, out stepped my son. Ring box in hand and with one knee pose he presented to her his request to be his wife. Her expectations of this night where totally blown out of the water. That box held a new life – a new abundance that was not expected.

Our expectations of life, of dreams, and even of God are mostly pre-packaged and boxed into our personal paradigm of tidy thinking. But, I have found that the older I get the less “boxed” those expectations seem to be. Over the years, most of those boxes have come up empty. Trusting God with all that was previously stuffed in them I have chosen to do the best thing. And that “best” thing is to take the empty boxes and close them up – better yet – get rid of them all together.

Ephesians 3:20 Now glory be to God, who by his mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of—infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes. (TLB)

Funny thing is, our God never seems to work within our exceptions’ or on our timetables. His plans and purposes for our lives can never fit in our small thinking, pre-packed boxes.

My Jesus likes to surprise us, to step out of the box and present us with new life options, outrageous abundance, and all things unexpected – His box is so much better then what we could ever expect. When we step out, say YES, accept the request for participation – watch out – we have just been given access to more then we can think or imagine. That’s just how good HE is!

Join me on stage to accept His proposal and allow your boxes to be blown away.