Page 123 started the work week off with an early morning to get the building ready for the school week.  After the normal Monday morning cleaning and building prep tasks, I settled into some prayer time and writing as the weather was not favorable to outside work.  In spending time with God, we prepared the prayer guide for next week that will be focused on the gentleness that is a part of the fruit of God’s Spirit.  When it was completed, I spent some time working on writing more of the devotional pages for the “Devotions For Those Who Serve” series I am working on.  I now have 8 weeks of devotional material written for what is currently a planned 13 week series.  

As is often the case when I get into a “writing zone” with God, time just slipped away and before I knew it 2:30 had arrived and I had been at work for 8 hours before realizing that lunch was probably overdue.  With a meeting scheduled for the evening, I headed to a late lunch then went down to the riverwalk in Mishawaka to spend some time with God taking pictures and enjoying the beauty of nature even under a cloud-filled sky.  One of the first sights when I arrived was a goose who was paying an incredible amount of attention to its reflection.  A couple weeks ago a goose, likely the same goose, in this spot was attacking the visible reflection but today it seemed like they had decided to get along.

As I thought about that goose, my mind began to reflect on the passage from James where God says that if we hear His Word but choose not to do what it says, we are like a person who looks into a mirror and walks away forgetting, and not doing anything about, what we observed. When this goose first looked into the mirror weeks ago it saw a rival, or perhaps a threat to its mate who was on a nest of eggs nearby.  But whether it was a hatching of the eggs or a familiarity with the recurring reflection, somewhere along the line the goose became more comfortable with the presence of this “intruder” and no longer made any attempt to chase it away.  How often do we see something that we initially recognize as danger but when we don’t remove it completely from our presence, or remove ourselves from its presence, we became accustomed to it and then eventually accepting of it?  

Do we avoid looking intently into the perfect law of God’s Word because we don’t want to be convicted of changes we ought to be making in our life?  When we gaze into the mirror of God’s Word, do we like what it reveals about us?  Does what we see seem so threatening that we don’t even realize it is a reflection of who we really are?  The mirror of God’s Word can reveal even the parts of our life that we think are well hidden.  When it does so, we are left with a choice about how we will respond to the truth that God’s Word contains.  Today’s time with God was a struggle for me.  Not that it was difficult to spend time with God, but that it seemed to reveal a sadness within me that made me feel all alone.  As I walked through the park in the midst of God’s beauty and creativity, questions of worth and purpose began to flood my mind.  I began to wonder, is it my reflection that I don’t like or is it something more sinister?  Am I accomplishing the purpose in life God created for me?  Am I being faithful in being who God wants me to be?  Am I doing the things I should be doing?  These are questions I struggle with more often than not.  While there are many times that I want to hide this questioning side of my life, I’ve come to believe they are actually good questions that are not only helpful to me but also helpful for others to know that they are not alone in their questioning.  

I pray that you and I would pay attention to the reflection we see when we gaze into God’s Word.  I pray that we would make the necessary changes in our lives that such a reflection would indicate needs made.  I pray that we would realize we never walk alone, even and especially in our times of discouragement and doubt.  I pray that we would realize God’s great love for us that He would call us His children.

Page 122 was not only a Sunday, it was the first Sunday of the month which meant I got to preach at the North Wayne Mennonite Church in Dowagiac, Michigan this morning.  🙂  This morning’s sermon was taken from Philippians 3 and titled, “The ACT of Joy”.  As we unwrapped the third chapter of Philippians, I shared about the Attitude of Joy, the Commitment of Joy, and the Treasure of Joy.  While joy is a part of the fruit produced by God’s Spirit living in us, it is a process that begins in our mind with an attitude that sees beyond the day to day circumstances of life.  If our thought-life is the seedbed of our actions, our attitudes are the soil in which our thoughts either grow or die.  When we take on the attitude of Christ Jesus, who humbled Himself in obedience to the Father, we allow our thoughts to grow into actions that are filled with the deep abiding joy that can only come from God.  Taking on this attitude of joy is a daily commitment that decides to represent Christ well in all circumstances no matter what.  Paul counted all of his credentials that the world would have seen as valuable to be nothing more than garbage.  Instead, it was the opportunity to share in the sufferings of Christ that Paul viewed as having great value in not only identifying with Christ, but in sharing in the joy of the resurrection through sharing in His suffering.  Our attitude and commitment of joy leads us to the treasure of joy that is found within the family of God as citizens of heaven.

Following the church service, it was lunch at Subway followed by some Sunday afternoon relaxing.  By late afternoon, the cloud cover had become less intense so we headed to Mishawaka for an evening stroll on the river walk.  Even under gray skies, the colors of spring stood out in the trees and shrubs lining the walk.  Perhaps the gray skies make them even more noticeable than they would be on a bright sunny day.  As I thought about it, I think that is the lesson that was at the heart of this morning’s sermon about joy.  It shouldn’t be that difficult, or even that noticeable, to have joy when we are living in the beauty of everything going as we would like — as if that’s possible. 🙂  The true value of having the type of joy that is produced by God’s Spirit living in us is that it becomes impossible to hide it when the skies of our life darken and the storm clouds prevail.  When we have joy at those times, the people around us notice.  When people notice our joy in the difficult times of life, we are given opportunity to give an answer for the hope that lies within us.  God’s Word says that when we have that opportunity, we must give that answer with gentleness and respect to everyone who would ask.

I pray that you and I would seek God’s joy in our lives each day that we live.  I pray that we would guard our hearts and minds through consistent time in God’s Word and prayer.  I pray that we would live with a daily commitment to living with an attitude of joy in all circumstances.  I pray that we would recognize the great treasure we have, not only through our relationship with Christ but also in our relationships with fellow believers.  I pray that our joy in the midst of difficult circumstances would be used to represent Christ well in all that we do.

As with many Saturdays, page 121 came in at least two parts.  The first part was an unwinding at Steak-N-Shake for a late/early dinner following Friday’s work as page 120 ran right up to the start of page 121.  After spending the first hour of the day eating and unwinding, I headed to bed for some much needed sleep.  After sleeping in, the second part of the day was a low-key, relaxing day as the chilly temperature and light rain made outdoor activity not so desirable.  We did make it out to run some errands during the day, but much of my day was spent relaxing and going through the photos I took yesterday afternoon at Potato Creek.  

The photo included on this page is one that I took yesterday.  After a little research, I believe it may be a yellow warbler but I’m still at the very beginning stages of learning to recognize and identify the birds that I have the opportunity to photograph.  Regardless of what it actually is, its beauty in both appearance and song is incredible.  In the past three days I have seen and photographed a blue, a red, and a yellow songbird that were all new to me.  I’m pretty sure they are not new to the area and I very well may have been in their vicinity before, this was just the first that I noticed.  While it is nice to learn more about the subjects of my photos, my knowledge doesn’t influence them being what they were created to be.  They share their beauty and sing their songs whether I know what they are or even know if they exist.

In a recognition driven society, we can learn a lot from the ways of the songbirds.  Even among the birds, there are those who tend to draw my attention in greater ways than what these small birds do.  When I head to the park, I first look for the bald eagles, or the osprey, as their size and beauty in flight tend to draw attention and makes them easy to see.  The lesson learned though, is not so much about my reaction but about the faithfulness of each of these birds doing what they were created to do regardless of my knowing what they are or even knowing they exist.  Watching them go about their day singing their songs of praise, and knowing they do so whether I notice or not, makes me evaluate why I do what I do.  God says that if I do my “acts of righteousness” to be seen by people, then what little recognition that comes from people is all the reward I will get.  God’s desire is that we live in such a way that Christ is lifted up to be seen by others.  I’m afraid that far too often our praise and songs ebb and flow in direct correlation to how much recognition we receive.  How would our lives be different if the song of our life was consistent regardless of who was watching and who knew our name?  Some of the most beautiful lives I have known are those who have lived their life each day doing what they were created to do.  To do so with no thought of notice or recognition is an act of humble service and obedience.

I pray that you and I would seek to honor God through our faithful practice of worship, especially when no one is watching but God.  I pray that we would seek to be what and who God created us to be without concern for the titles and labels our human nature often desires.  I pray that we would pay closer attention to who others are in Christ than to who the world says that they are.  

Page 120 is a Friday so it is a long day for me.  As I have often done on Fridays, I am writing today’s page while I’m at work letting the floor scrubber recharge so I can finish my weekend cleaning.  I did something this morning that I rarely do — I hit the snooze button on the alarm clock and didn’t get to work until 6:30 AM.  Part of the morning delay was an extra 10 minutes of sleep and part of it was stopping to get fuel for the mower so I wouldn’t have to go get it later.  After the morning cleaning routine, I took the trash out and started mowing.  Even with a sweatshirt, windbreaker, and hat, it was rather chilly all morning.  Mid-way through mowing the back lawn, the moisture in the air was thick enough that it felt like drizzle even though nothing was really getting wet.  Once the back lawn was done, I came inside to do some work on one of my writing projects while I warmed up with a cup of hot coffee.  I was able to outline another 31-day devotional journal and begin laying it out in book form.  After completing each day’s focus page, I worked on the cover layout.  The photo with today’s page is what I’m currently looking at for the front and back cover spread.

Once warmed, I headed back out to finish mowing with the addition of gloves to my mowing attire.  Now my mind was set on the topics from the book I am writing and I began to feel a bit melancholy that I’m here and not there.  I began to silently sing, “This world is not my home, I’m just a passing through.”  As that song played and replayed in my mind, I thought about the hymn that was sung as a decision song way back when I first made a public decision to follow Christ when I was in fourth grade.  The words are still some of my favorite, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus.  Look full in His wonderful face.  And the things of earth will grow strangely dim.  In the light of His glory and grace.”  When I fix my gaze on Jesus and set my mind on a destination that is an eternity with God, the stuff of this world has an ever-decreasing hold on me.  Once the mowing was done, I finished up some office work and headed to lunch around 2:30 to begin a break before coming back to to the weekend cleaning tonight.  Much of my break was spent taking a leisurely stroll at Potato Creek State Park with camera in hand looking to capture images of different things that would catch my attention.  Compared to most of my hikes there, I didn’t cover much distance but found a good variety of God’s creation to photograph. 

After my time at the park, it was back to work at 5 PM to start getting the building ready for Sunday.  As I worked on the cafeteria room floor, a person came to let me know a toilet had evidently overflowed and the men’s bathroom was flooded.  Sure enough, all of the toilets were filled to overflowing and at least one of them overflowed for quite some time.  As I mopped and mopped up water and then mopped and re-mopped again to clean and disinfect, I had to wonder how things could get so bad without someone reporting that there was a problem.  And as a sense of frustration began to build, God brought the words of the song back to my mind — “And the things of earth will grow strangely dim . . .”.  It was as if He was reminding me that this wasn’t nearly as big of a deal as it was starting to become in my mind.  I think so many things are like that.  The urgency, the unpleasantness, the mess, the tediousness, the ugliness, the so many other things begin to make whatever it is seem so much larger and so much more important than what it really is.  So, the clean-up is done.  The bathroom smells clean.  The rest of my days work continues to get done.  And God continues to lead me home.

I pray that you and I would never lose sight of where our real home is.  I pray that we would keep the troubles of this life in proper perspective.  I pray that we would always take time to enjoy the journey as we travel with God toward our heavenly home.

Today’s page had me seeing red . . . sometimes in a good way and sometimes not so good!  Since I began writing these daily pages I have often noticed themes of lessons God is teaching me, but today is the first that the theme was a color.  And for those that know me, the surprise is that the color wasn’t yellow!  🙂  Today began in the usual workday fashion with cleaning bathrooms, sweeping floors, and making sure the building was ready for the school day.  The rain had not arrived yet, so my plan was to finish the mowing on the property today so it was done in case the rain did show up yet this week.  As I finished up the things I needed to do in the building and was ready to head outside, Susan had a moderate seizure that required my attention and assistance to keep her from harming herself or destroying my office.  This one was moderate in both severity and length which translates into a recovery time that would not be brief, but would also not be violent.

As Susan came out of the seizure and no longer needed my direct help, I changed up my plans to stay inside and do some writing so I could keep an eye and ear on her.  The prayer guide that I didn’t get written on Monday, because I began the mowing that day, was able to be written this morning.  I also received an email about some workshop sessions I will be leading at a student conference this summer, so I spent some prayer time seeking direction in developing what God would want those workshops to look like under the broader topic of developing a prayer life.  As I worked at writing and lesson development, the lawn outside my office window was covered with small songbirds.  I believe most of them were white-throated sparrows but there were a few birds in their midst that had me seeing red!  One of them is in the photo with today’s page and I believe he is a house finch.  It is interesting how we tend to use the color red.  We use red as a warning, a message to stop, an attention-getting flag in a bullfight, a light and vehicle color for safety purposes on emergency vehicles, a color signifying we are overdrawn in our accounts and out of money, and in people — a sign of embarrassment or anger.  Yet on this bird, it was an expression of beauty.  

Later in the day as Susan and I went to lunch, I found my fuse getting short in regard to traffic and the way people were driving.  As my anger with people began to build, I thought about seeing red in the form of the beautiful birds from the morning.  Even with an occasional beak stuffed full of dandelion fluff, these songbirds went about their day joyfully singing praise to a God who has supplied their every need.  As I look at my own life, and a mouth that is often stuffed full of much goodness that isn’t dandelion fluff, I find myself repenting of not joyfully and continually praising God who has supplied all my needs.  When I am “seeing red” in a negative way, it is because I am not seeing clearly a God who has given grace and mercy from Himself to me in times when I deserved His anger.  Seeing red should be a warning to me of a need to examine my heart and my attitude.  It should be a reminder that without God crediting me with righteousness through the blood of His Son, I am hopelessly overdrawn in my account with Him.  It should be a message to stop and patiently wait upon the Lord so that He can renew my strength.  It should be a motivation to get my attention and get me moving in the direction God is trying to lead me.  And at times it should be a sign of embarrassment or anger that directs me back to God when my life choices are not what they should have been.  But most of all, the color red should be a thing of beauty as it reminds us of the blood of Jesus which has cleansed us from all unrighteousness!

I pray that you and I would find the times when we are “seeing red” to be of great value in our life.  I pray that we would recognize the incredible goodness God has given to us as He meets our every need.  I pray that we would learn to pay attention to the warning signs that God places in our life.  I pray that our attention is always directed, or redirected, to God when we find ourselves “seeing red” and that we would find beauty in the forgiveness we have possible through the blood of Jesus.

Today’s page followed a night when I finally got some uninterrupted sleep from the time my head hit the pillow last night until just before my alarm went off this morning.  With a mind and body that has been trained for early morning work, most mornings I find myself awake by 5:30 even before the alarm goes off.  After the morning cleaning and building prep, I headed out to begin the week’s mowing.  Mowing the lawn areas that border the parking lots is much easier if I get it done before people start arriving for the day.  It is also less distracting to the students if I can get the mowing done outside the classroom windows before the school day starts.  Today that meant mowing in the chilly pre-dawn hours under an overcast sky that never really brightened much the entire day.  Eventually the cold air got to me and I headed inside to warm up with some coffee and to continue some writing.  

When my work day came to a close, I grabbed a late lunch and headed down to Potato Creek for a photography hike.  With an overcast sky and cool weather I decided to walk completely around the lake.  My phone evidently had some GPS reception issues because while it was timing my hike from the beginning, it didn’t actually start recording the path and distance until 2 miles into the walk.  So, what is normally about an 8 mile hike shows up as 6 miles with a terrible pace.  While the overcast sky made the day not so great for photos, it was a beautiful afternoon for a hike as the entire route was accompanied by a magnificent symphony of birds.  After making it around the lake, I drove over to the east end of the lake to see if the bald eagle had come out for his evening fishing expedition.  Sure enough, he was perched in a tree waiting for me to snap some photos before he headed home for the evening.

God calls us to speak and live in such a way that our words and actions benefit others according to their needs.  While such a directive from God seems clear and straightforward, it is so contradictory to our human nature that we readily come up with excuses as to why the needs of others are less important than our own.  If we do things for the benefit of others, who looks out for us?  We know where we are headed but we want to make sure we receive the credit for every effort we put forth.  It has often been said that most groups of people would be amazed at what could actually be accomplished if each person in the group didn’t care who got the credit for the good being done.  When we make it a point to look out for the good of others, we also learn that there is greater satisfaction to be had in serving others than in seeking your own glory.  If our goal as Christ-followers is to help others come to know Him, then it is Christ we must lift up and make visible in the way we interact with others.

As I take, and make, time to enjoy hikes and walks throughout various parks and outdoor spaces, I discover that God has set the example of giving according to the needs of those you serve.  The soothing songs of the birds, the beauty of the wildflowers, the majesty of the eagles all reflect God’s goodness and all are His gifts for the benefit and enjoyment of His children.  God’s greatest gift of all was the payment of our sin penalty by sending Jesus for our benefit.

I pray that you and I would continually grow in our pursuit of doing good according to the actual needs of those we serve.  I pray that we would seek God’s help in destroying every root of pride that seeks our own glory and credit.  I pray that we would acknowledge God’s goodness in meeting our greatest need through the blood of His Son, Jesus.  I pray that we would gain great peace and pleasure from the beauty which God surrounds us with according to our need to see a glimpse of His beauty.

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Page 117 was ushered in overnight with some loud storms rumbling through the area.  After two nights in a row of interrupted sleep, today seemed to have a tough time getting up  to speed.   The morning included the usual cleaning and building prep, minor maintenance tasks, and some writing.  After lunch with some friends, I finished up my work at the building and headed home by late afternoon.  Even with an overcast sky, we headed down to Potato Creek for an evening walk.  One of the eagles was out but too far away to get any decent photos.  As we walked the trails we were able to enjoy many spring flowers and singing birds.  

My interest in photography has opened up a view into the incredibly vast and diverse world that God has filled with so much beauty.  Today’s sights included several different woodpeckers, including the one pictured on this page.  For me, it is a beautiful sound to walk through the woods and hear the tap-tap-tap of a woodpecker working away on a tree.  Today included three different types and sizes of woodpeckers, each with their own sound which corresponds to their size.  From the quiet tap of the downy woodpecker to the startling rat-a-tat-tat of the red-headed woodpecker, it is fascinating to see how each of them end up with perfectly round holes drilled into the trees they are working on. The small birds in particular get so involved in their work that sometimes they completely disappear into the hole they’ve created in the tree.  Not surprisingly, though, that hole doesn’t appear in an instant.  Rather it takes continued work and a steadfast commitment to keeping at it without giving up.

We could learn a lot from the creation of God if we were paying attention.  That shouldn’t surprise us though.  The Bible tells us to consider the lilies of the field, consider the birds of the air, even consider the ant.  We consider God’s care and provision for the things of nature and we learn to trust Him to care for us and provide what we need.  We consider the work ethic that exists within the wildlife realm and we learn the value of faithful, consistent work.  Many times when we do listen to the instructions God has for us, we begin to follow them but give up when the results don’t happen according to our schedule.  In my experience, the good work that God has created in advance for us to do is usually a lifetime series of small steps designed to draw us closer to God and reveal Him more clearly to the people around us.  Some days all we can do, and all we need to do, is to simply keep pecking away at the work that is in front of us.  That day, the results may not be what we expect but if we don’t to that day’s work we will never accomplish the work God has called us to.

I pray that you and I would take note of the examples that God has given us throughout creation.  I pray that we would understand more fully the eternal perspective that God has in regard to the work He has given us to do.  I pray that we would not become weary in doing good but trust God that the harvest will take place according to His schedule.  I pray that we would faithfully commit to doing the task at hand regardless of how big or small it may seem.

Page 116 began the work week on a short night’s sleep due to a car alarm going off in the neighborhood very early in the morning.  It seemed like I had hardly gotten back to sleep when my alarm clock went off, calling on me to get up and meet our pest control person while the building is basically empty.  As he did his inspection and service, I began the morning cleaning process to get the building ready for the start of the school day.  As I finished up inside and got the trash around to take out, the sun was beginning to rise over the eastern horizon as it spread its light across the sky.  

With a forecast of rain, I changed up my Monday routine and headed out to work on more of the brush clearing at the front of the property.  It was a beautiful morning to spend on the tractor, leveling ground and pushing back brush to continue making the building more visible from the road.  I was able to clear it back to a point where I need to do more cutting so it was a good time to take the loader bucket off the tractor and drop it off at a friend’s shop for some repair/rebuild work.  By the time I got back to the building, my work day was nearly done so I finished up some inside work that needed done and headed home.  Since the rain still hadn’t arrived, I put some pork chops on the pellet grill to smoke while we headed down to the Mishawaka Riverwalk to take some pictures and get our family “Waist Management” walk in.  🙂  With so many trees and plants in full bloom, the walk was a beautiful reminder of the goodness that God has created for us to enjoy.

As I think back over the day, I’m reminded of the beauty that stretched from the beginning of the day to the end.  My mind also lingers on the loader bucket that I’m finally getting some repair work done on.  The front edge is completely worn down, the metal has cracked down the center, the bottom has bowed to such an extend that when the center of the leading edge is on the ground the sides are a good six inches off the ground.  I don’t know of any single incident that caused it to be in such bad shape.  The serial number shows that the tractor and loader was put into service sometime in the late seventies or early eighties so it has seen a lot of time and use over the years.  Every hour running the leading edge over concrete and asphalt pushing snow has slowly worn down, and worn off, the original surface.  Every tree stump pushed out put a little more stress on the metal.  And while it was never noticeably worse after any given project, all of the wear and tear has added up to a need for renewal.

Is it sounding familiar yet?  Sometimes we have an incident in life that wears us down so quickly that we immediately know we need renewal, but most of the time the wear and tear on our spirit is more gradual and unnoticed until we reach a breaking point.  The good news is that we don’t have to let our spirit go without regular maintenance and even if we have, God has the ability through His Spirit in us to completely renew and restore us.  The process is generally less drastic if we spend regular time in prayer and God’s Word, allowing it to renew us daily.  But even if we should drift, we are never beyond restoration if we are willing to repent and turn to God in complete submission and obedience.

I pray that you and I would pay attention to the cares of the world that tend to wear us down.  I pray that we would daily be renewed by the power of God’s Spirit so that the wearing down does not accumulate.  I pray that we would never conclude that we are too far gone for God’s restoration process to be effective in our life.