SelahV Today

Taming the Dragon Lady

It could be said that I have a long way to go in this endeavor, I suppose.  I told you yesterday that a friend of mine rationalized about fellow-bloggers at the site where he blogs and said it's a "simple fact that every one of us who logs on...drags along this beast we call the sinful flesh with us."  I simply can't let go of that provocative assertion.  It's like cling-wrap that clings more to me than the bowl of leftovers I want to cover.  It certainly kept me from logging on and commenting.  I was so afraid I'd unleash my "beast" I not only stopped typing a comment, I stopped reading the comments.  I could not quell the hold his words had on my pscyhe, so I wrote a few posts and tried to purge the "beast" from my thoughts.  Then I got to thinking a bit more and decided "beast" is a bit too masculine a descriptor for a lady.  Perhaps "dragon" is better suited for me.

You know what a dragon lady is don't you?  She's a lady who drags on and on and on about an issue till she arouses the "beast" within a man.  I don't care how calm and meek and mild a man's personality is, if the dragon-lady appears and hovers for hours, eventually, the beast will show its teeth.  

My friend's post, most certainly, was intended to bring readers to a better understanding of taming the shrew, tongue, beast and dragons encountered in the life of blogging.  Most especially?  Us--our own shrew.  His challenging words literally reached out and grabbed this old Dragon Lady by the tail and carried me away from my decorating and devotional posts.  Can you tell?  Thus the need to tame it.  I do this by writing ad nauseum.  Normally, you wouldn't see what I write.  I write in my drafts.  I don't publish those thoughts as I release the dragon.  Oh, but sometimes.  Sometimes I tell my husband about the beasts who rouse my ire or pinch my nose.  I read the posts to him and give "highlights" of hidden agendas and back-stories on things going on in the blogworld.  Often, my husband is the greatest part of me.  He gives such sound calming advice.  He never lights a torch, very rarely gets emotional and always has some funny little quip that makes everything seem so silly in the scheme of things.  However, when the clingwrap won't let go of my fingertips, I turn to the only Person I know for peace-punch.

I feel the Holy Spirit tug my leash.  Does He tug yours?  Sometimes He urges me to keep silent.  Other times He urges me to speak.  Most often He settles me down till I pray about things, and walks me through the green pastures beside the still waters of His presence.  He's taught me several things since I started blogging in 2006.  I give a lot of thought to where I comment nowadays.  I use to follow several blogs and comment quite often.  Everything seemed soooo important.  Now, I mostly read blogs.  I get them in my feed-reader.  I don't get caught up very often in the streams of conversation.  They can get along quite nicely, or not, without me.  When I do read the comments, I find most conversations lack substance and tend to become a tit-for-tat kinda gibberish unbecoming a Christian growing in grace.  While some folks make very salient points and offer edifying ideas, the vast majority of conversations are little more than ego-padding, pride-punching competitions.  They can be quite humorous if you aren't too thin-skinned.

I've read several secular and political blog posts and find their streams absolutely outrageous.  They're filled with animosity, bitterness, rancor, cursing, and downright meanness.  Snarling, growling beasts of monstrous proportion abound.  It's plum scary.  Occasionally the "beast (or dragon)" in me wants to growl back or breathe out threatenings of fire and brimstone.  But I don't.  Why add more fire to coals already burned beyond recognition?  No one would heed my flames anymore than they do God's Word and warnings.  Doesn't seem like much moderating goes on in those blogs either.  Talk about beasts!  Whew!

So...can a beast be tamed and trained to exert its presence without indulging in fire fights with other beasts?  Of course. I've witnessed it in others.

I believe the Holy Spirit gives us the ability to tame the beast within us.  He gives us gentleness, self-control, kindness, humility, meekness and mercy.  He bestows wisdom, knowledge, faith and hope.  Jesus gives us new life and creates a new creature within us.  Therein lies the key to taming the beast (or dragon)--dwelling on the blessings and sufficiency of God rather than the curses and insufficiency of man.

When we encounters folks in life who want nothing more than to feed the beast within us--to goad, prod and taunt-- then it's time to ignore those folks.  Don't eat the tainted sinew or chew on bones offered from their hands.  If the Holy Spirit so leads us to speak to an issue broached, or respond to a comment placed into the sphere of conversation, then we must walk bravely into the ring of fire.  But only in His power and in His Spirit.  Otherwise, we end up becoming the beast we so desperately want to tame.  selahV

The POST that stoked the dragon lady: [TAMING THE BEAST by Hariette Petersen, SBC ENCOUNTERS/link]

To Get One, I Took Fifteen

Seriously.  Ever try to take your own picture and get one that doesn't look like you're road-kill?  I wanted a picture of my husband and myself and I hate to sit in those stoic, stiff positions that photographers put you in to make sure you are looking at them just right.  So yesterday, amid the dozens of pictures I took of my grandchildren, I grabbed my husband and said, "Smile." Snap.  "Keep Smiling."  Snap. "Keep Smiling.  Move closer."  Snap. "Opps, closer." Snap.  "Nope.  Smile."  I said smile and snapped so many pictures, so many times we were laughing hysterically into the camera as I held it at arm's length.  Among pictures of half our faces, chins, eyes, and cheeks, I finally captured one that didn't have us with our eyes closed and had almost all of both our faces.  You might ask why I didn't just get one of the kids to take a picture.  I did.  But I really wanted one with our whole heads and without their trademark fingerprint across the lens.  I wanted to capture the devilish mischief in my husband's eyes--the love, the goodness.  I could only hope I captured the joy I have in knowing that love.

Do you think God ever has the same trouble trying to capture just the right image of us as we live our lives with Him at our side?  Does he look at all the mistakes, the half-shots, the imperfections, or does He see me through the lens of His Son's sacrifice for me?  I kinda think it is the latter.  Nothing I do can be perfect enough--there's always going to be something missing--a hair out of place, a reflection in my glasses, a head tilted the wrong way.  I'll always have a shadow of fleshly pride or carnal flaw.  But when God looks at me, with His Son, I think He sees Jesus, in Whom I dwell and abide.  And we are one in heart, mind, and spirit. 

Wouldn't it be nice if we looked at others as if Jesus was sitting by their side?  guiding, teaching, forgiving, and loving?  Maybe if we did, we would be much slower to criticize, judge, or condemn.  selahV

BURDENS OF THE RACE

"We must distinguish between the burden-bearing that is right and the burden-bearing that is wrong.  We ought never to bear the burden of sin and doubt, but there are burdens placed on us by God which He does not intend to lift off.  He wants us to roll them back on Him." Oswald Chambers, Run Today's Race, 1968.

In life's race, some burdens weigh so heavily upon us, we are left immobile.  Illness tears at our bodies and twists at our ability to reason.  Attacks from others pierce our hearts and bleed our emotional will of strength to walk, let alone step forward.  Financial pressures and difficulty limit our resourcefulness to change a thing in our lives.  The relentless evil of this world does not slumber while we sleep.  And when we awaken our spirit is filled with doubts leftover from yesterday's trials.

Let this not be so.

"...let us strip off and throw aside every encumbrance (every unnecessary weight) and that sin which so readily (deftly and cleverly) clings to and entangles us, and let us run with patient endurance and steady and active persistence the appointed course of the race that is set before us." Hebrews 12:1b Amplified.

If I had been Joseph and my brothers tossed me in a pit and then sold me into slavery, I don't know that I would have become the person he became in Egypt.  He had some pretty heavy burdens in his life after that.  Slavery, separation from his beloved father and mother, false accusations, imprisonment.

If I had been Job, I don't know that I would have withstood the pain of loss, the physical misery, the betrayal of friends and the lack of support from my spouse.  I don't know that I could have risen above it.

Today, I face so many things in my own life.  As I inventory in my mind, the burdens I must endure, I sometimes want to give up.  I truly do.  Sometimes I want to forget this race of life, sit down on the side of the road and let my brothers and sisters run on by me.  Sometimes I lose the will to fight another day, another hour, another minute.  But in these times I find my Lord brings me a refreshing drink of water.

Sometimes He brings it through a friend who comments on an old post I've written.  Sometimes He brings it through a loved one's hug.  Sometimes He brings it through a verse in His Word.  And when He does, I stop and consider the burdens I must bear and the burdens I must set aside.  The one's I must set aside, I do, over and over again.  And the ones I must bear, I cast upon Him, and pray for strength to rise and take another step in the race He has "appointed" for me.  selahV

[© SelahV Today, hariette petersen, 2008]   

GROW IN TRUTH

"While our culture seems determined to doubt the absolute truths of God, we who believe in them must remain in them by remaining in Christ. Abiding in the truth will shape us. Sometimes fighting for it will misshape us."  Cyle Clayton on Veritas Vos Liberatit

Cyle has an excellent post on truth and the fight for it.  Very often to me, I find it best to simply rest upon the only Truth and leave speculations and battles to others.  Sometimes the truth is...we just can't stand the truth.  selahV

[© SelahV Today, 2008]

DWARFED BY WEEDS OF LIFE

What's the difference between a beautiful prize winning rose and a mutant dwarf of its kind?  Care.  Nurturing.  Protection.  Sustaining life-giving water.  And pruning.  Such is the case between my roses last year and my roses this year from the very same bush.

All last summer, my coral rose bush and peace rose bush bloomed profusely.  Even this spring the bushes were abundant with blossoms.  Then it happened.  Morning glories climbed up the stems and choked them.  I'm talking covered in twisting vines.  The bermuda grass that I had chopped out and held at bay all summer last year, jumped the cedar divide and grew beneath it and surrounded the bushes.  Dandelions, broadleaf grass, anonymous weeds and dead leaves clustered in the midst of the once immaculately tended bed.  Lack of rain and my neglect to water, left my bushes thirsting in a drought of the vinedresser's tending.  Failure to prune off the old, and make way for the new left dried blossoms and dried stems to sucker what goodness the ground offered to keep the bushes thriving.  The result was a dwarfed version of last year's roses.  They look like minature tea-roses.  Each bud was the size of a Junebug.  In fact some are smaller.

What did this tell me?

As a Christian, if I do not weed out the broadleaf grass that crowds out my time spent with Jesus and God's Word, I will end up producing smaller and smaller roses for His glory.  If I do not yield to God's chastening and pruning of yesterday's accomplishments and successes, I will succumb to pride and arrogance and find myself following my own futile way instead of the Lord's.  If I allow the dandelions of life to take root and grow and reproduce more of the same, I will forever be entangled in their roots that rob me of sustenance and life-giving water for my soul and mind.  If I do not tend to the soil in which I grow and keep it tilled, fertilized and watered with prayer and communion with Jesus, I will find myself slowly drying up, and eventually producing nothing.  Can a wild rose bloom without the touch of the Master's hand?  Can a tame one blossom without His blessing?  selahV

[copyrighted, SelahV Today, 2008]

STRUGGLES, DECISIONS AND OPPORTUNITIES

I've struggled with a lot of decisions the past few months.  One major decision was with my dog, Rowdy.  Should I amputate his leg or not?  Will he be happy with only three legs?  Will he be physically able with only three?  Well, he's doing okay.  It's sad to look at that patch where a leg once grew, but it's amazing to watch how fast that guy can get from one end of the yard to the other.  The jury's still out on how happy he is, but I'm sure it is what my son would have done if he'd lived and been faced with the situation.  So I take comfort in that.

I've been thinking more and more about my writing.  Exactly what is God doing with it?  Am I utilizing my time in the best way?  I have the talents He has entrusted to me.  I have gifts He uses that are most effective though my writing.  And I have a behind-the-scenes email prayer ministry that my writing allows me.  I love what I do.  At times I love it so much, I feel guilty.  But to feel guilty about something God has given me is ridiculous!!  So I've decided to stop feeling guilty about loving to write.

I recently decided to stop writing with one situation I had.  It really made no sense as far as utilizing my writing abilities because the more places I can have my writing viewed, the better off I am personally in getting read.  But, sometimes, and rightly so, I make decisions that really have nothing to do with me--but everything to do with what God wants me to do with Him.  He has a reason for me to move in this direction.  You know me (or if you don't), I think God is up to something with my writing.

Some folks want to know why--they want the scoop on me, so to speak.  Others are just concerned about me.  Still others are just curious.  And then there are others who had no idea I was writing any other place than here at SelahV Today.  In fact some folks didn't even know I have several blogs in my sidebar that are mine.  I have some reasons that led me to make the decision to leave my other writing situation.  But the "why" is in God's hands.  I am truly not certain why I did what I did.  I'm a firm believer in the Sovereignty of God.  I love Corrie ten Boom's quote:

"Every experience God gives us, every person He puts in our lives, is the perfect preparation for the future, that only He can see."

I've loved that quote for years.  I have lived seeing the truth in Corrie's wisdom when I reflect upon my life.  I don't devalue one single soul who has crossed my path.  I believe each and every person is significant to the plan and purpose of my life.  I don't know why and don't know how I will affect them.  But I know how many have affected me.  And a part of who I am is because of their presence in my life.  You are a part of my reason for being here today.  You.  You who read these words.  I truly believe that.  And I am grateful for you.  I am priviledged to have you stop by and read me regularly or occasionally.  I'm equally priviledged and honored if you take the time to comment.  But even if you don't, know that I think you are significant in God's plan and purpose. 

I may struggle with a decision.  So might you.  But our opportunities are endless when we place our struggles in God's hands and allow Him total control over the consequences.  We can truly change the world.  My desire is for the better.  selahV

[coyrighted, SelahV Today, 2008]             

WHAT DO YOU WANT...?

Tonight I babysat my darling little granddaughters so my daughter and her hubby could have a date-night.  Every time little 18-month-old Kinsey wanted a "yummy", she'd grab my finger and pull me to the kitchen to show me exactly what she wanted.  My daughter has a pantry and I'd open it and point to various things.  "What do you want?"  She'd stand there and shake her head till I found the thing she wanted.  She was quite adamant until I held up the right thing.  I do believe she knew every item in that pantry.

I was reading a few days ago of two blind men who were crying out to Jesus in a crowd.  "The crowds reproved them and told them to keep still, but they cried all the more." Mt. 20:31  Jesus stopped and called them, and asked, "What do you want Me to do for you?" (vs.32)

"Lord, we want our eyes to be opened!"  Jesus, in pity, touched their eyes and instantly they received their sight and followed Him." (vs.33,34)

I've pondered that a lot the last few days.  So many times I've come to Jesus with my requests.  Heal me, comfort me, guide me, strengthen me.  And Jesus answers each and every one.  Always.  Today I think of some other things I want from God's pantry.

~~the eyes of the lost to be opened.

~~the hearts of God's people to be broken.

~~the Spirit of the Lord to fill the land.

~~the children of God to love one another without reserve.

~~the Lord to be magnified, glorified and manifested in the lives of His people.

Today, I want a lot.  What do you want?  selahV

[copyrighted, SelahV Today, 2008]

   

MY LIFE IS A MEADOWLAND

The Lord is showing me so much about myself these days.  He's showing me how very important I am to Him.  He had a plan for me before I was even born, as I was being knit together in my mother's womb.  He has a plan for you, too.

I have a lot of favorite things.  In my previous post I shared the joy I find in a mountain brook.  Today I share my love of the meadowland.

I discovered today that I am a field.  God's field.  It was a marvelous discovery in God's Word.  I wrote a devotional today about it at the dailyIMPACT.  One verse led me to another.  Then my pastor preached on another field and I got even more excited.  I realized from the passage I read in Bible Study this morning and the message I heard from my pastor, that I am, indeed, a blessing to my Lord.  And so are you.

When I think of a field, I cannot help but recall the one shown in this post.  It's so alive with flowers each Spring, Summer and Fall.  And no human hands do a single thing to bring about the splendor you see pictured.

God is the Gardner--the Cultivator, the Designer of the beauty.  And just as God cares for this meadow, He cultivates me.  Each act of difficulty in my life is the slice of the Tiller's plow.  He digs deep into the soil of my soul and breaks up the hardness of my heart.  He rakes over the surface of my mind.  He makes a pile of the decaying leaves and when I repent, He carries it away as surely as the March winds carry the remnants of Winter's death.  And then He sows His seeds of goodness, love and joy.  He waters them with grace, patience and peace.  And they burst forth in life--His life manifested in me.  I am His field--His meadowland.  selahV

[copyrighted, SelahV Today, 2008]

DON'T FORGET...visit dailyIMPACT for the rest of this story.