"I See You"

I am super happy every morning to be able to get up and usually straight away go out on my back deck and fill my bird feeders. The birds here in East Tennessee are hungry, let me just say, and have voracious appetites but they are also beautiful. Ive seen multitudes of blue jays, cardinals, red headed woodpeckers and finches. They're all so beautiful in their brightly colored suits and they are all vying for position at my feeders. The blue jays are the bully's of sorts as they are the largest so they make sure all the others wait their turns until they are quite full. When the jays leave the others then feel safe to come and eat. But the ones that melt my heart every time are the patient, sitting on the sidelines, little brown sparrows. They wait patiently until all the others have eaten and then get their fill and fly off to their next adventure. 

Sometimes in my life, if I can be honest here, it has felt like I am living out the brown sparrows life. The big guys, the ones with wealth and power just swoop in and rule the day so to speak. They get the best things, and have the pick of whatever they choose. The others are right there behind them to get or attain what the power players haven't gotten. And then, here I am, the brown sparrow, patiently waiting on the sidelines to get whats left over. 

In truth, as the Lord reveals to my heart, even though the other birds are bigger, more beautiful with their colorful suits, I "see" the brown sparrow and I make sure she has what she needs. She patiently waits, so I wait and watch and I make sure always that she receives what she has need of. 

So, God "sees" me! He "sees" you in whatever place or suit you find yourself in. The truth is that God sees us all and takes care of us accordingly. But if you are feeling a bit like I have at times, like a little brown sparrow, just know that God will also provide for you what you need when you need it. Sit back patiently on the sidelines if you must but you will have what you need when the time is right.

It says in Luke 12:7  "Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows."

There are days when you may feel like a "plain Jane" or in this case, a brown sparrow, but take it from me and the Word of God, "He sees you"! 

“Breaths That Matter”

I have a wonderful memory that I hold tight to that occurred quite a few years ago. I was very privileged to meet a lady whose last name was “Short” and to be a part of a two woman team who shared Jesus with her. She was a middle aged woman whose husband was no longer around and she lived alone and as fate would seem to have had it, she had just been diagnosed with cancer. My friend and I were happy to sit with her talking for hours about Jesus and she was very hungry and ate up every word and scripture that we shared. As was the custom of the church that we were attending at that time, we called our new friend “ Sister Short”. As time waits for no one, Sister Shorts’ time on this earth was very brief after our encounter. I will always remember the day that she went to be with Jesus. I was sitting with her in her hospital room holding her hand and praying. It was the most dismal rainy and dark day outside so she asked if we could pull the window shade down in her room. As she lay in bed holding my hand, I heard her say, “I want to see Him!”. So I began to pray that she indeed would see the face of her Jesus. Mind you, I had my eyes completely closed as I prayed and it was pretty dark in that room as well as outside. Then, the most miraculous and wonderful thing happened. A bright light came and flooded the room. I could tell even though my eyes were closed that there was the brightest glow but somehow I couldn’t manage opening my eyes. The light lingered for just maybe 10 seconds and then I was able to open my eyes. It was still very dark in the room and I looked over at Sister Short and as you may have already guessed, she was gone! Gone home to be with her Jesus because with her last breath she asked to see Him. With her last breath she called out her request and as I complied as well with my lips, her breaths pleas were heard and honored. What a beautiful beautiful moment that was for her, and for me as well. 

What comes to mind right here is that the things that we say with our last breaths, “matter”. They matter as much as all of the things we say in our lifetime of breaths. Here’s the important  question that we must ask though, “Are our words sweet? Are they kind? Are our breaths being wasted in angry words? Are our words ones that remain and impact for good change?”

I’m not trying to condemn anyone who happens to read this but my desire is to pose the questions that we all may seek to “do it better”. After all, if we do not seek to change always for the better than the breath that fills our lungs may indeed have become polluted. Let’s always be willing at least to examine and filter out the polluted breath until it once more becomes sweet in the nostrils of our creator.

Another example, and I think our ultimate example, of the breaths that matter is the story of Jesus and his crucifixion. As the account in the book of Luke reads, Jesus was nailed to a cross between two thieves or robbers. One of the thieves was openly ridiculing Jesus while the other thief stated, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? (Speaking to the other thief) We are receiving the due reward for our sin, but this man (Jesus) has done nothing wrong!” Then with his final breath ( the breath that mattered most in his case) he asked Jesus, “ remember me when you come into your kingdom?” And with one of Jesus’ final breaths he answered, “Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise”! 

How beautiful again were the final words that were breathed here! They breathed “life” for that thief who was crying out for forgiveness. They whispered love beyond what was deserved. The words of the thief that were breathed were words of hope and anticipation for what was to come and they were answered and met with a resounding “ yes” from our Lord and Savior. 

I can still hear Sister Short saying, “ I want to see him” and when the light flooded into that hospital room she was met with a resounding “ Yes “ by her Lord and Savior. How amazingly beautiful and sweet was the very air in that room in those moments. It changed everything! 

When we were created in the beginning of time it says, “ the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and ‘breathed’ into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul”. (Gen 2:7) Gods very breath was breathed into us to bring about life and our breath is part of what sustains us in this life. No breath, no life! So, if breath is the very essence of life then the words and things that we breath in and out on a daily basis matter. Words are indeed life and death. They build up and give hope or they tear down and pollute. Initially we were dust, a bunch of dirty polluted molecules that didn’t matter but then God breathed his breath, his life into us to make something of the dust! Wow! So, it matters! It matters what we do with the life, the very breath that we’ve been given! With our first breaths, our last breaths and all the in between breaths, let’s speak LIFE! Let’s use the life giving flow that is vital and let’s be what Jesus was to the thief who cried out. Let’s breathe what matters. . . . HOPE!