Tag: jesus

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The Vine (with a twist)

“I am the Vine….you are the branches.
Abide in Me…and you will live.”

John 15:5

This morning, checking my little flower garden beside my back porch, I discovered, much to my delight and surprise, that my favorite flowering vine had sent out a new little tendril, which had somehow reached, through mid-air, to a tall shepherd’s hook about a yard away from the blossoming vine. There was nothing but air between the vine and the shepherd’s hook to which it had now begun to wind itself.

I was delighted . . . yet surprised and puzzled. I know, from the growing bouquet of bright red, large blossoms, that the shepherd’s hook will soon extend that original beautiful “bouquet” further into the garden far beyond what I could have hoped.

I couldn’t help but think of the Words of Jesus, as He taught His dear followers, using a word picture they were seeing as they walked with Him in the countryside.

My dear, Good Shepherd Whispered to my heart the Words He had spoken to His closest followers as they walked along with Him.

I don’t know how that Vine reached across the space and onto that shepherd’s hook. I did not see it happen. But carried by nothing tangible, it had reached beyond where it was planted and blooming, and was now beginning to bring beauty to a plain old, rusty-black shepherd’s staff among the stones.

That’s what Jesus does with us . . . for us. Apart from Him…the Vine….we’re sure to become a shriveled, droopy, dying blossom. We’ll hit the ground eventually, and again become part of the earth.

But the blossoms still connected to the Vine continue to bring color and life and beauty to a landscape of rocks and dirt. A vine moves…extends…and nobody sees it happen. It simply does. And its blossoms will come, open,and bring beauty to a spot that had nothing but stones and a plain, rusty pole.

I am sure that I will soon see that Shepherd’s Hook “blooming” soon.

Our Good…GOOD Shepherd does that as He leads us to places beyond where we were planted. And through our lives that are wrapped around Him, beauty…color…fragrance…
will extend to the rocky places that had no beauty nor life before. It often happens in unexpected ways, and not by human orchestration. That’s part of what makes it so special.

No person can take credit for the new color and fragrance that has entered a plain, rocky place. He simpy chooses to share His surprises in unexpected places where He has brought new life and all ofits beauty.

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Talking to Myself

“For God alone, O my soul,
wait in silence,
For my Hope is in Him.”
Psalm 62:5

Do you talk to yourself?

I am in a stage of life that gives me a lot of quiet time throughout most days. I’m quite
comfortable with that. But I do find myself talking to myself quite often. Sometimes I even
answer myself. (shhh….let’s keep that just between us, if you don’t mind!)
I know that I am not alone in this sort of activity. I find comfort in reading the Psalms of David, and he talked to himself quite a lot, too. So I am in good company.

What do I talk to myself about? Stuff like, “Now, where did I put ?” “Why did I come in here?” “What should I wear today?” “Why do I have all this stuff?” “Why did I say
that?”

What do you talk to yourself about?

Sometimes we need to talk to ourselves, like David, and remind ourselves of Truth that we have learned through past mistakes, through experience, and through good advice we have gotten from wise people in our lives. We need to remind ourselves of Truth that God has whispered to us in the past. . . often repeatedly.

Some nuggets of wisdom that we can glean from David’s personal conversation with his soul are worth our own consideration, “. . . For God alone , O my soul . . . “ The deepest core issue is that my very innermost “self”, the part of me that will continue on forever, long after my earthly life is finished, must focus on God more than anything else in life. What things of this earth take up most of my thoughts?

Most of my time? Most of my worries? Most of my energy? When do you / I intentionally
Pause all the noise of our day, and simply listen to silence. When do you give your full
attention to the silence that allows the Still…Small…Voice of God to be heard by your soul.
“…Wait in silence. . .” How much “silence” is in your day? The TV is off. The radio is off. The
phone is silenced. The music is paused.

Who does most of the talking to your soul . . mind . . . heart?

Maybe you need to ask yourself what you are afraid to hear in that silence.
“… for my Hope is in Him.”

We are all very experienced in the ways we personally choose to avoid listening to His Voice. But…
Thank You, God! . . . He continues to listen for ours.