YOU KNOW WHERE TO FIND ME

"If you want to see us, you know where to find us."
Mom

Mom and Dad bought a trailer and spent warm-weather-weekends parked in a campground near Hayward, Wisconsin--3 hours away from us. "If you want to see us, you know where to find us." At the time, Mom's words hurt. My husband's back injury prevented us from traveling 3 hours there and 3 hours back. And, we couldn't afford to stay overnight.

That being said, Mom's expression isn't uncommon, and it may be understood two different ways: "I'm there for you, wherever, whenever. . . (Or) . . . I'm only semi-available."

In my early twenties, Mom invited me to call collect (reverse the charges) whenever I wanted to. I took advantage of that many many times; often in tears. She was always there. She paid to listen to me cry! She was a woman of wisdom, and she paid to share it with me.

Today, I have a friend who listens to silence while tears fall down my face, and when gasping for breath won't let me talk. Our relationship says, from either of us to the other, "If you need me, you know where to find me." I text. She texts back: "Need to talk? Can we take a couple minutes to pray?"

"If you need me . . . you know where to find me."

I can't help think about my relationship with God--My side and His. I'm afraid that sometimes, though I'd never say it out loud, my attitude is, "If You want me, You know where to find me." It's not that He is unimportant to me . . . it's just that I've got so much to do. My list is . . . long.

Then I think of God. What a different story! 

"Come near to Me and I will come near to you." (James 4:8 NIV slightly paraphrased)

"He who keeps you will not slumber. " (Psalm 121: 3b NKJV)

"Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (Hebrews 4:16 NIV)

No matter the time--No matter the situation--good news, bad news, tears, smiles, just to spend time with Him--He's there. Always there!

I need only to whisper the name of Jesus or turn my thoughts toward God, and He is there; ever allowing me to be . . .

Utterly Dependent on Him Who is Utterly Dependable,
Lonnie

NOT AFRAID TO LAUGH

" All these years her immediate reaction has been to throw herself on the Lord and the Scriptures. As a child I (Gigi) remember her leaving her Bible open in a prominent place, so she could just get a verse every now and then."
Hanspeter Nuesch
Ruth and Billy Graham  p. 108

No matter what part of the world Billy was in, he also kept his Bible open. For him, an open Bible expressed his desire to stay connected to God.

Yet, with Ruth and Billy's serious committment to God's Word, Cliff Barrows and his wife portray Ruth as a woman who was "tremendously fun." Ruth's childhood is described as a happy one. "The Bells (Ruth's family) laughed a lot; this positive atmosphere had a great deal to do with the parents' strong faith."

How often do you associate laughter with faith? Yet, if we trust God with the details of our lives, rather than thinking that "we" have to fix every problem of our own and everyone else's, won't the absence of worry give room for laughter?

And if laughter punctuates our days, won't we be easier to live with? And won't unbelievers more likely be drawn to us? Won't WE be happier?

A picture of Ruth, from an earlier book about the Grahams, comes to mind. She is climbing on the roof to get to Franklin's room. As I recall, Franklin's door was locked and it was past time for him to get up. Ruth crawled along the roof, into his window, and threw water in his face. Please tell me you're laughing. I love that picture! My mom would too; only she'd be sorry that she didn't come up with the idea herself.

I want to follow Ruth's model--to be a serious student of God's Word--to be someone who, like her, is committed with every fiber of my being

YET

NOT AFRAID TO LAUGH!

And, I can if I remain . . .

Utterly Dependent On Him Who Is Utterly Dependable!
Lonnie

NOT DEFEND MYSELF?!

"His dependence on God also allowed him to remain calm even when criticized. Graham once noted in his diary that his greatest victory was that his Lord had given him the strength not to defend himself but to pray for those who criticized him unjustly. He usually felt a deep peace as a result."
Hanspeter Nuesch
Ruth and Billy Graham   p. 98


Not defend myself?! I can't even imagine. In fact, I've warned my husband and a couple friends whose opinions I greatly value: "I WILL defend myself. BUT given a little time, I'll think about what you've said and likely change my actions/behavior."

Even as I write this, I've been criticized--unjustly. I did defend myself. And I'm still defending myself--in my mind. I am NOT experiencing the peace that Billy experiences. Because I haven't turned it over to God. I haven't prayed for that person.

But it's not too late. I'll start TODAY.  

Ruth and Billy very intentionally refrained from participating in the criticism of spiritual brothers and sisters. Ruth felt that "Satan trembles when he sees the weakest believer upon his knees but that he laughs without restraint when saints bash other saints." 

The Graham's response to attacks, toward them, was to turn the matter over to God and go about the ministry God had called them to.

We've heard it said that "we" are the only Bible some people will read. In reading this incredible book by Hanspeter Nuesch, I'm getting a real sense of what that looks like. Millions have been blessed by the ministry of the whole Graham family; but I suspect the greater blessing might be in the way they lived their lives behind the mininstry.

I expect to spend a couple or few blogs with the Grahams. I've so much to learn from them. And what I write about, I remember.

As I close today's blog,  I remind myself that I cannot live this Christian life in my own power. I was never meant to. I am created to be . . .

Utterly Dependent on Him Who Is  Utterly Dependable,
Lonnie

UTTERLY DEPENDENT

"If I am prayerful, God makes me prayerful; if I have graces, they are God's gifts to me; if I hold a consistent life, it is because He upholds me with His hand . . . Do I live before men a consecrated life? It is not I, but Christ who liveth in me . . . Do I feed on the Word? That Word would be no food for me unless the Lord made it food for my soul and helped me to feed upon it."
Charles Spurgeon
Morning By Morning

I am both encouraged and convicted.

The conviction is familiar: pride.

As a new Christian, I was apparently (and rightly) told that I needed to memorize God's Word. Well, I was a poor student. I still am. That's why I "buy" books . . . so I can underline, highlight, and write notes in the margin. That's also why I work at the library. I can take books for a test-drive and not waste money on ones that head different directions than I expect.

At any rate, in those early Christian days, I asked God to help me read the Bible so much that it would become very familiar. I imagine that I miss Bible reading no more than one day a year. And, sometimes, I wonder how people can struggle so to have a Quiet Time. But you see . . . my Bible reading, my consistency is a Prayer Answer! Spurgeon would agree: "Whatever I have, all my goodness is of the Lord alone."

David would agree: "My goodness is nothing apart from You." (Ps. 16: 2b)

I can take no credit. I can offer up much thanksgiving to the God who makes my life rich with His Word.

I'm encouraged, too. The Christian life requires many disciplines--many of which I fail miserably. But if God is the Source; if He gives the strength and ability. I am not hopeless. I am just growing. I am just . . .

Utterly Dependent on Him Who Is Utterly Dependable,
Lonnie

FOR CHARACTER'S SAKE?

" . . . I've yet to find Jesus saying to the afflicted, 'The reason you suffer from hemorrhage  (or paralysis or leprosy) is that God is working to build your character.' Jesus did not lecture such people; he healed them."

Philip Yancey
The Question That Never Goes Away

I would love your thoughts on this one.

 I don't remember the exact context of sermons, but I may have left church with the impression that the crises of my life were, indeed, for my character building. And it seemed that Romans 5: 3-4 provided further proof:

"Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope."

So, part of me agreed with Yancey; a large part of me wanted to. But, there was still that verse . . .

I re-read Yancey's page a few times. He even mentioned Romans 5; but he did so from a different angle.

"When they wrote to believers who were unjustly persecuted for their faith, Paul, James, and Peter stressed suffering's redemptive value (emphasis mine).

I think I can deal with that. What seems to change is the origin of the struggle--the suffering. From one side, God causes the struggle to produce character. From the the other side, He uses the struggle for our good.

In the last two or three years, I've heard more and read more about the Christian Struggle. As strange as it sounds, I've been encouraged. I guess I have begun to take the pain less personally--less like God is picking on me.

While I reread and rethink Yancey's words, I ponder the change it makes in my relationship with God. Who I am more likely to approach? Who am I more likely to feel loved by? Who will I be more desirous of pleasing? I think the God of compassion and infinite understanding, rather than the one who causes pain to "teach me a lesson."

God, You are amazing and I am . . .

Utterly and Gratefully Dependent on You,

Lonnie

PROGRESS NOT PERFECTION

" I wonder," he pondered, "if Dan ever considered what I would be like if I wasn't a praying man." (emphasis mine)
Henri Nouwen/Sue Mosteller
The Only Necessary Thing

Dan accused Henri of preaching beautiful theories, but not living them. Because Henri was unable to stop and talk with Dan, when he asked, he called Henri rude and selfish; then added, "And you are supposedly a man of prayer." 

Sue found Henri drinking coffee and crying.

The truth hurt. But Dan's comments stung!

However, somewhere in his ponderings, Henri must have awakened to another truth. He wasn't all he should be . . . but he was better than he used to be.

Me too, because God allows me to be . . .

Utterly Dependent on Him,
Lonnie

SHEEP, SMILES, AND JAMES T.

"The issue is never, 'Are you qualified?' The issue is always, 'Are you called?'

I make this distinction between qualified and called with aspiring writers all the time. Too many authors worry about whether or not their book will get published. That isn't the question. The question is this: Are you called to write? That's the only question you need to answer. And if the answer is yes, then you need to write the book as an act of obedience. It doesn't matter whether anyone reads it or not."
Mark Batterson
The Circle Maker

I'm out praying today.

I AM writing a book. It's about sheep. Well, sort of. It's really about me--and you too.
"We all, like sheep . . . " Isaiah 53:6
"We are his people, the sheep of his pasture . . . " Psalm 100: 3

I've read every book I can find on sheep, with more emphasis on those without Christian leanings. I wanted to see what the relationship was between shepherds and their sheep. It's been a sweet journey. Every time I pick up one of those books (I HAD to buy them.), I feel enveloped in a strange sort of contentment and in God's love. 

So the book,  We . . . Like Sheep, is a devotion book.

Years ago, I wrote a children's book for a writing class: To Catch A Smile. I love this book. It's about Jacob who considers himself way too boring for Jesus to want to spend time with him. He hides behind a tree and watches other children play with Jesus. It was some time before I realized that "I" am Jacob.

James T. Now, there's a fellow you can't help but like. He's a cross between Mr. Green Jeans off of Captain Kangaroo and my husband, Ray. He always travels with his dog; his first adventure being to a town with no signs. Not a sign anywhere, including store fronts. He accidentally walks into a dress shop and quickly backs out before answering the lady's question: "How do I look in this dress?" He visits another town without manners; people don't even know what manners are!

Yup. James T. and I are buddies. Though I haven't pulled him out of the file for a while, he makes me smile.

Batterson's quote could be discouraging, I suppose. Yet, more than discouragement, I accept his words as permission. I absolutely feel "called" to write; and so I will. 

 My prayers aren't whether I "should" write; they are more about asking what I should do with what I write. There are some huge hurdles toward publishing. That world has changed a lot since I had articles and children's stories published in magazines.

And so I pray, because I am . . . 

Utterly Dependent on Him Who is Utterly Dependable,
Lonnie