Page 262 was a Sunday which meant Bible study and worship with my church family.  The Bible study class I attend is still working through the book of Esther and today’s focus was on Esther’s request that the Jewish people would join her in 3 days and nights of fasting and prayer in preparation for her to go before the king on behalf of all the Jewish people.  Everyone was involved in seeking God as they waited for His plan of deliverance.  Many times we don’t recruit people to fast and pray about decisions that are made because we’ve already decided what the decision will be.  When we do ask for prayer, it is primarily wanting people to join us in seeking God’s blessing on whatever it is we’ve already decided to do.  We rarely seek genuine intercessors — those with a practice and reputation of going before God and listening for His answers — because an answer is not really what we’re looking for.  Esther was in a specific place at a specific time for a specific purpose but that purpose could not be met without first going to God in earnest, urgent prayer seeking direction on what the next step would be and how to go about taking that step.

Following the Bible class, our worship time included a message from David has he continued his series from Nehemiah.  Nehemiah also found himself in a position to make a difference for the Jewish people by paying attention to God’s plans and fully seeking God for the courage and wisdom necessary to be a part of that plan.  Part of the message talked about the opposition that surely comes when you are involved in doing the work of God and shining His light into the darkness.  While darkness cannot overcome light, the spiritual darkness we encounter will always push back against light.  When we shine the light of truth into darkness, we can be sure that we will ruffle a few feathers as those in darkness do not want to see truth.  As I think about the varying degrees of difficulty I’ve had in ministry over the years, most often the source is some form of leadership that has taken offense at my holding fast to truth and integrity while expecting the same from them.  That particular light will make many people squirm as it begins to reveal compromise with the world and excuses for behavior that is not consistent with our word.

After the church service, we had lunch and then relaxed for a while at home before heading out for some family time at Lake Michigan.  Today’s photo comes from the Lake Michigan shoreline as I caught a bird coming into the beach for a landing.  As I watched the bird, I thought about some preaching advise I had heard years ago.  The advise was something to the effect that a good sermon was like a good flight — you need a smooth take-off and a smooth landing with as little time between the two as possible in reaching your destination.  They went on to say that the ride can get a little bumpy along the way and people will soon forget that it wasn’t ideal; but botch the take-off or landing, and it is likely people will never forget.  While it is probably not the best preaching advice that I have ever received, it is a story I think of whenever I struggle with how to conclude a message.  This bird glided in to a point just above the ground and then allowed the air currents to hold it aloft while it slowly extended its feet and settled in for a landing.  Prayer allows us to glide on the currents of God’s Spirit and has the power to keep us aloft as we gather our feet underneath us and wait to plant them exactly on the spot that God has planned for us to be at.  When my life pursuit is knowing God and I acknowledge Him in all my ways, He is the one who makes my paths straight and leads me to land at just the right spot.

I pray that you and I would seek God fully and join with other in seeking God for all direction and timing in the decisions we face.  I pray that we would continually grow in developing a lifestyle of prayer that defines both who we are and how we do things.  I pray that we would learn to rise of on wings like eagles as we grow in our practice of waiting upon the Lord.

Page 261 was a Saturday filled with a mix of routine and special events.  I woke up at a normal time and Susan was ready to get up and get dressed for the day.  After I got Susan her meds and breakfast, I spent much of the morning catching up on some messages and correspondence related to the prayer ministry.  Eventually it was time to fire up the pellet grill for our Saturday lunch tradition of mushroom bacon cheeseburgers.  Once lunch was done, it was time to get ready for a busy late afternoon and evening with the potential of two events to be at.  

The first event was the outdoor wedding of my niece and her now husband.  After a rainy start to the day, the sun had broken through the clouds and it was a beautiful evening for a wedding.  The sky was mostly blue with the occasional fluffy white cloud to provide what I call sky texture.  Even though I never feel like I belong, I know that is simply the wiring in my mind messing with me, it was a good evening to be with family.  I took my camera along and tried to get some photos without feeling like I was invading anyone’s personal space.  Some of the pictures I took were easier than others and there were photos I would have liked to have taken that I just couldn’t bring myself to do.  Eventually the setting sun drew my attention outside and I drifted into my comfort zone of landscape photography with no people involved. 🙂  Today’s photo on this page was taken of the setting sun shining across a field of soybeans.  This photo represents the farm life I grew up with as the beauty of nature abounded everywhere we went and there didn’t seem to be much need to search for it.  I eventually headed back to the wedding party and took some more photos before it was time to head for home.

As I headed for home and didn’t take the route that would lead through Bourbon, it was clear that Mary Jane had hoped we would stop by the second event for the evening, our 35th high school reunion.  Not that it was actually the 35th reunion, because the class doesn’t get together on a regular basis, rather it marked 35 years since we graduated from Triton High School.  I really had no interest in going as I am one who left high school when it was over and never looked back.  There was nothing about high school that I have ever missed and I had never known how to be a friend or have a friend.  I had married the one classmate that I had fallen in love with and the idea of a reunion with people that I went to school with but was afraid of because of who I am, didn’t seem that appealing.  Yet for my wife’s sake, I headed east when we got to Plymouth and we showed up to a class reunion in progress.  Susan was her usual charming self and Mary Jane made the rounds but I felt out of place as I only recognized the few people that I have seen occasionally over the years.  It’s not that I was bullied in school or treated poorly, I was just so afraid of people that I never learned, or saw a need, to build friendships.  After what seemed like hours there, but I’m sure it was a fairly short time, it was time to head home and get Susan to bed.

As I reflect on the day, I am once again amazed that God uses someone like me to accomplish good work for Him.  Sometimes I know that He uses my specific wiring to accomplish His purposes and many times I think he accomplishes His purposes through me in spite of me.  There are many days that I wish I could be more like a “normal “person — whatever that is.  There are days that the internal struggles seem intent on eating me alive.  The fear is obviously irrational because it is a fear even of people I have no reason to be afraid of.  Yet the fear is also real — at least to me.  At its worst, there is a sense that the fear and darkness will take over and whatever is really me will be lost forever.  All of the internal struggles are often magnified by my share of “Job’s friends” who tell me I just need to trust God more, or I need to confess some sin, or because I keep facing dark and difficult times there must be a problem in my life that I’m not dealing with.  While I believe Job’s friends meant to be helpful, they were so off-base in their evaluation of what was going on that they were not only unhelpful, they probably added to Job’s misery.

I pray that you and I develop good routines that honor God and give value to our family.  I pray that we would celebrate the bonds of marriage with those who enter into it — but not just on their wedding day, but on each day of life they have together.  I pray that we would find ways to stretch beyond our comfort zones without breaking.  I pray that we would honor our families in ways that give their wants and desires priority.  I pray that we would pay attention to the heart of God and the heart of people when we give advice.

Ahhh . . . another Friday.  On a workday that began at 6 this morning I’m taking a break at 8 PM to write today’s page while the floor scrubber recharges.  My morning was filled with the usual cleaning, a little writing, and a lot of outside work with the weedeater.  The lawn work and cleaning up after it took me until mid-afternoon and then it was time for a late lunch and a short visit to the river.  After shooting a few photos at the riverwalk, it was back to work to begin the afternoon/evening rounds of getting the building ready for Sunday.  

The photo today was taken in the gardens by the river.  I look at it and think, “Even the sunflowers are a bit sad that summer is coming to an end.”  Some days it is really hard to hold your head up and you begin to wonder, “Why bother?”.  This lone sunflower was hidden in the weeds and probably rarely seen, yet it caught my eye as I scanned the area for things to photograph.  I noticed it because of its beauty and brightness.  It wasn’t until after I had photographed it and looked at it for a while that I even noticed its head was drooping and the flower petals were not able to stand up.  

I think many times we tend to live that way.  We become so distracted by the everyday routine of life that we don’t notice all of the people around us that are “hidden” in plain sight.  People we walk past every day and don’t really know who they are.  Sure, we may or may not know their name, but we really don’t know them.  And then there are those who do catch our eye, at least for a moment, and with the glimpse we get we tell ourselves that they are doing okay.  They look fine.  They don’t need anything from us and we don’t need anything from them.  And on we go, never stopping long enough to realize that the slump of the shoulders, the droop of the head, the halting footsteps were all signs of a weight that they shouldn’t have to carry alone.  And then there are those rare times when we notice the weight someone else is carrying but we settle for the easy way out with the “church answer” — or at least half of it.  We tell them to “cast their cares upon God” and let him carry their burden — and then we walk off thinking we’ve done our good deed in pointing them in the right direction.  But that is only half of the “church answer”.  The other half is where it gets practical — and tough.  We should not only point them in the right direction, but we should step in and “bear one another’s burdens”.  Far too often, if we even notice, we settle for giving words of comfort and encouragement in a way makes us come across like the friends of Job.  Sometimes words are the answer.  Sometimes, words by themselves seem empty and unhelpful.

James says, “Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.”  (James 3:13)  If we want to live as those who are wise and understanding, we must learn to pay attention not just to our words, but to our actions and attitudes.

I pray that you and I would pay attention to those around us who tend to go unnoticed.  I pray that we would lift up the weary and wounded.  I pray that we would strengthen the weak.  I pray that we would listen to the lonely.  I pray that we would comfort the hurting.  I pray that we would bear one another’s burdens.  I pray that we would do all of this through the power, strength, and ability that comes from having God’s Spirit within us.

After a long workday yesterday and and another long one expected tomorrow, page 259 became a personal retreat day as I loaded up my kayak and headed to Potato Creek for the morning and into the early afternoon.  There was a light breeze so the water was just a bit “choppier” than I prefer but not enough to keep me off the lake.  The air temperature was a little cool to begin with, but ended up being almost perfect weather for kayaking — not too hot, not too cold.  As I loaded my camera equipment into the kayak and set up my tripod in front of me, the water was beginning to sparkle as the sun made its way over the tree line.  The sky was filled with a beautiful mix of high-level wispy clouds and low-hanging cotton ball type clouds.  Today’s photo was taken about midway through my 4 hours on the water today.  I will typically set my small camera on the tripod at the front of the cockpit opening and then carry my “good” camera in a bag between my legs.  One of the keys, at least for me, in capturing photos that I like is to have a variety of options to choose from.

Today’s journey around the lake was filled with a variety of birds just waiting to be photographed along a shoreline filled with trees beginning to change into their fall colors.  Each dip of the paddle into the water opens up a new perspective in viewing the creativity and wonder of God in creation.  It is that ever-changing view around me that keeps me snapping photos — today’s trip yielded a little over 200.  While many of them are similar to each other, no two are identical as they are each taken at a different time and place, even if the difference is small.  Yet not a single one of them, nor the collection of all of them, gives a full picture of the park or my kayak trip.  I only see a part of the whole picture and no matter what I would do, I don’t have the ability to see each detail that is present around me.  I see in part, God sees in full.  I know in part, God knows in full.  

As I paddled around the lake, my mind reflected on the journey that I’m on called life.  With each day, week, month, year that passes, I get a little wider glimpse of what God has already seen from beginning to end.  But even as the view widens, there are parts past, present, and future that I don’t yet see and may never see or understand.  And some of the parts that I do see sometimes haunt me and I wish I could erase them from my mind.  They say that you never really erase information from a computer, deleting a file simply takes away the ability to access it easily.  My mind seems to be that way.  Bad things happen, hurtful things happen, hard things happen and I turn them over to God and pursue His help in moving on and moving forward in life.  I make progress, sometimes even good progress, and then the right (or wrong) words are spoken, things are done, circumstances pile up and all of a sudden the pain of those “deleted files” is back with a vengeance and I find myself struggling just to keep my head above water.  Susan was watching Lion King the other day and there is a scene where the monkey character whacks Simba in the head with his staff and tells him it’s in the past, it doesn’t matter anymore.  I often identify with Simba’s response as yes it’s in the past, “but it still hurts”.  I’m still learning and I know I stumble around at times, but the only solution I’ve found for those times when the hurts of the past return is to once again turn them over to God and press on.

I pray that you and I would know the value of spending time with God away from our normal distractions and make it a practice to do so.  I pray that we would enjoy the view of life God gives us while we keep in mind that it is just a partial view.  I pray that we would seek to understand our fellow believers who have a different, and also incomplete, view from where they’re at.  I pray that we would learn from the journey God is leading us on and when the pain of the past returns, trust God to once again carry us through as we take these hurts to Him.

Page 258 has been a long day as I began the day early with the morning cleaning and finished the workday doing tomorrow morning’s cleaning after teaching a children’s class tonight.  In between the two cleaning times were a variety of normal maintenance issues and a lot of work on the lesson for tonight’s 1st – 3rd grade Bible class.  As I worked at my desk late this afternoon, a pair of cardinals were playing in the underbrush in view of my office window and would peer out at me every once in a while.  I would also occasionally catch a glimpse of a tiny green hummingbird and a small yellow bird of some kind but both of those wouldn’t stay in one place long enough to take their pictures.  The birds outside my office window always serve as a reminder of God’s care for His children which exceeds the care and provision He provides for the birds of the air.

I suppose that reminder was fitting as the lesson focus I was working on throughout the day was about praising God.  As I introduced the lesson, I compared bragging and praising.  When we brag, it is us saying how great we are.  When we praise, it is us saying how great someone else is.  When we praise God, it is all about us proclaiming His greatness that exceeds all others.  I also compared praise with giving thanks.  While the two are closely related, they are not necessarily identical.  When we are hungry, we can be thankful for a meal even if it isn’t our favorite or hasn’t been prepared all that well.  Our gratitude reflects our appreciation for something that has been done.  Praise, on the other hand, is generally more focused on the who and how.  When we are served a meal that is our favorite and it has been prepared perfectly, we may well be thankful but we are also likely to praise both the meal and the one who prepared it.  God wants us to live a life that reflect expresses both thankfulness and praise.

As I wrapped up my day and checked my website stats, I found that it has had 150 page views today!  While for some websites that is not much traffic at all; given that my average is 3 or 4 views a day, this was a huge leap.  As I looked at the stats breakdown, it appears that the majority of the page views were from a single person going through page by page looking at the weekly prayer guides I have posted.  There are many times I wonder why God has me writing and if the work I do in sharing these writings have a real purpose beyond what God teaches me through my efforts and the time I spend with Him writing.  Usually at about the time those questions begin to grow to a distracting point in my mind, God provides a small glimpse into how He is using something I’ve written.  Today that glimpse was a reader from Nigeria devouring the weekly prayer guides.

I pray that you and I would know and understand God’s love that cares for us in ways that exceed our imagination.  I pray that we would be people of praise as we spend time with Got telling Him about our view of His greatness.  I pray that we would be faithful in doing the things God calls us to and sets before us.  I pray that we would be mindful of how God will use others to encourage us and use us to encourage others.

Page 257 began with the early morning cleaning and prayer time that most of my workday mornings start with.  There is a peaceful atmosphere in an empty, quiet building even while cleaning — at least once you get used the the random noises the building makes. 🙂  Once the cleaning was done and the building ready for the day, I spent some time working on material for a 1st – 3rd grade class I will teach on Wednesday evenings at the church.  It’s been a long time since I’ve taught elementary students, and even longer since it was early elementary.  I suppose this could be fun or this could be a nightmare for them and me both. 🙂  

As I worked on the lesson I had some phone calls and messages to make and respond to.  These ended up taking the rest of the morning as I shared with people some thoughts and ideas for growing in their prayer life and increasing the level of prayer in their churches.  While I’m not a big fan of the telephone, these are conversations I can have for hours on end.  There is something refreshing to my spirit to know God is using the gifts and insight He gives me as I spend time with Him.  Because our culture, and human nature, is so fixated on quantifying and measuring results in a manner that can be proven, a prayer-based life and ministry can be difficult for many people to accept even if they know they should.  When prayer is our focus and strategy, God tends to do things in a way that He gets the credit and it is nearly impossible to prove prayer had anything to do with it.  Yet, because prayer by its nature aligns our will with God’s, there is nothing more powerful on earth when it comes to accomplishing the will of God in the manner in which He desires.

After finishing up the workday, I headed out for a late lunch then headed home.  By early evening, we decided to take advantage of the pleasant weather and head to the riverwalk to shoot some photos and enjoy some family time together.  The sun was beginning to set as we finished our walk and I got some sunset photos, including a few through the decorative grasses in the park.  The sun shining through the tops of the grass clumps make them glow with the light of the sun just as God’s light shining through us ought to make us glow with the light of His Son.  

I pray that you and I continually grow in our practice of prayer as a lifestyle.  I pray that we would find an inner peace as we spend time with God throughout each day that he gives us.  I pray that we would seek to live a prayer-based life in everything we do.  I pray that every decision we make would be done through a life of prayer that seeks to know and do God’s will in all things.  I pray that we would live in a way that the light of Jesus shines through us so that others would see Him.

Page 256 was the beginning of another work week.  The alarm went off before 6 AM this morning so I could get the pellet grill fired up and some pork put on it to cook all day for pulled pork in the evening.  Once that was up and going, it was time to head to work and get the building cleaned and ready for the day.  Sometimes as I write these pages I feel as if I’m a broken record — repeating the same thing over and over again.  In a way, that’s true.  Most of us have routines of life that surround us as we get up each day and prepare for whatever that day may bring — which often carries a strong resemblance to the days ahead of it.  Routine in and of itself isn’t necessarily bad whether it’s in our work life or in our prayer life.  The deadly element with either one is when our routine creates an emptiness in what we do.  Some people do the same work for so long that they operate almost on auto-pilot without giving much thought to what they are actually doing.  The same can be true in our prayer life when it becomes such an ingrained part of who we are that we find our self going through the routine of prayer without really talking and listening to God.  For me, combining prayer with my routines of work helps to keep either of them from becoming empty practices.  The work of cleaning keeps my prayers focused on the people who will be using the areas I am working in.  The act of praying while I work helps to keep me focused on a greater purpose than just keeping things cleaned and maintained.

Once the building was ready for the day, it was time to settle in for my Monday writing routine.  I began by writing yesterday’s page as it was rather late last night by the time we got home from Lake Michigan and I had gone through most of the photos taken.  After yesterday’s page was written, I worked on the prayer guide for next week.  As I spent time with God, the subject of humility kept coming to mind so I began a search through scripture as I prepared to write the prayer guide with a focus of humility.  Sometimes we tend to think of humility as having a low view of self.  In fact, Biblical humility is just the opposite.  True humility is having a proper view of our self in relation to God.  It’s a view that puts Him in charge but lifts us up as having great value as His child.  When I know the value I have as God’s child, I find that pride and self-promotion are unneeded and have no place in my life.  

After the prayer guide was written, I spent some time finishing the writing of the final week of devotions in the “Devotions For Those Who Serve” series I have been working on.  This series contains 13 weeks worth of daily devotions with each week covering a topic related to how God would have us serve.  Today I wrote the final 3 days of devotions focused on serving with purity.  As we consider God’s command that serving others is a part of every Christian’s life, there are characteristics that help us to serve in a manner worthy of the calling we have in Christ.  The draft copies of week’s devotions in this series are available in pdf format from the Impact Prayer Ministry website.  I’m still working on what the finished print product will look like.  Considering either separate booklets for each week or a book compilation of the devotions for all 13 weeks — or perhaps even a combination of the two. 🙂

By the time my writing was complete it was mid-afternoon and, with the early start to the day, time to head home.  When I got home I fixed some lunch and then spent some time going through yesterday’s photos.  The photo I chose for today’s page stood out to me as I thought about today’s writings.  While there are times the lake front water looks dirty and uninviting, yesterday it was sparkling clear as it rolled onto shore.  While the water temperature was enough to keep most people out, the appearance of purity made it attractive to a few brave wave-jumping people.  Our purity, or lack thereof, as we serve will often make a difference in how inviting Jesus looks to the people who are watching our life.

I pray that you and I would seek to do everything with purpose.  I pray that our prayer life would help us to have focus in our work life.  I pray that our daily work would be filled with prayer.  I pray that we would live in humility in all that we do.  I pray that our view of ourselves would match God’s view of us.  I pray that we would seek God’s help in living wit purity in all aspects of our life.  I pray that our purity in serving would make the gospel of Jesus inviting to those who are paying attention.

Page 255 was a Sunday so the morning was spent in Bible study and worship at the church building.  Our adult Sunday School class is going through the book of Esther and this week we covered chapter 3 where Haman begins his plot to exterminate the Jewish people.  While the story is one of God rescuing His people, using a person put in place just for that moment, it is also a story of how pride and arrogance can eventually destroy us.  Haman used his position of power and influence to shine the spotlight on himself.  His pride was appalled that not everyone thought as highly of him as he thought of himself.  His anger at Mordecai’s refusal to bow and worship anyone but God ended up being a path that led to his own destruction.

After the Sunday School class, I had a great time of worship at Deer Run where David began a series from Nehemiah with an initial focus from chapter one on the prayer life of Nehemiah.  The opening of Nehemiah is one of my favorite prayer texts for many of the same reasons that were brought out in the sermon, although the thing I find most appealing about his prayer life is his occupation — he was cupbearer to the king.  Not a prophet.  Not a priest.  Not a king.  Not in “professional ministry”.  A worker.  A (somewhat) ordinary guy.  An exile.  A professional ministering where he was at, and doing so through prayer, regardless of why he was there or how he got there — kind of like what Esther ends up doing after a little encouragement.

After the church service, we headed to lunch then spent some down time at home just relaxing.  It was such a beautiful day, with the sky filled with puffy white clouds, that we decided to head out to take some pictures.  Our first stop was South Haven to photograph some lake scenes with the lighthouse.  As we drove down the street from downtown to the beach, the most notable feature was the plastic “tent” covering the lighthouse — so much for lighthouse photos there.  I did get some photos I liked and a short video clip of the gentle waves coming ashore so it wasn’t a wasted trip.  We left South Haven and headed down to St Joseph where the lighthouse they were working on much of last summer was uncovered and ready to be photographed.  We stayed there through the sunset and then headed home with a stop at Five Guys for supper.

As I reflect on the day, I wonder if you and I are more like Haman or more like Esther and Nehemiah.  Do we think more highly of ourselves than we ought or do we put the needs of others above our own?  Do we expect others to think more highly of us than they should or are we willing to serve others according to their need?  Do we allow our pride and anger to drive our actions or do look to God for direction and purpose in what we do?  Do we manipulate those around us in order to get our way or do we spend time in fervent, reverent, honest prayer in order for God’s will to be done in and through us?  Do we think more of our position or more of how God can use the position He has put us in?  I don’t think any of us would readily say we’re more like Haman, but what do our actions and attitudes say about us?  

I pray that you and I would humble ourselves before God, and others, as we seek to serve Him with our whole heart.  I pray that we would seek to honor God by the way we live no matter where we happen to be.  I pray that we would live in such a way that we are ready for the day the sun sets on our life here on earth and we enter life in the presence of God.