This is the Corrupted Version?!

Rick and I have spent some time last week and this on two different trips to the coast. One to Northern California (Fort Bragg) and one to Central California (Santa Barbara and Morro Bay area).

As we were driving north of Santa Barbara on Highway 101 today, the sun was sparkling on the ocean, a cool breeze stirring tantalizing scents and teasing the palm tree tips, Rich Mullins filling our 4Runner with his classic Creed. I mused, "It doesn't get ANY better than this!"

Then suddenly I thought, "Oh yes, it does!"

This glorious earth with all its breathtaking beauty will one day fade away and be replaced with the Real Deal. This is only the corrupted version!

"All creation anticipates the day when it will join God's children in glorious freedom from death and decay." Romans 8:21

"But we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world where everyone is right with God." 2 Peter 3:13

"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared." Revelation 21:1

I can't begin to imagine what the new world will be like! All I know is that He will be there, and He is more beautiful than the finest day here...

Bittersweet Day

Today's is my youngest child's 18th birthday. Correction: she's not a child anymore!

Legally, in the U.S., you bear responsibility until they turn 18. But, actually, you never quit being a parent. In some ways, the role gets harder when your children are adults. The decisions they make are more weighty, yet your jurisdiction over them diminishes, and sometimes disappears!

It is comforting to me that my children have a Heavenly Father who doesn't take note of the "legal" ages. They have been in His care since conception, and He will continue to watch over them until He brings them to their eternal home.

So... today I celebrate my new-found freedom, but also mourn the passing of a season.

Use It or Lose It

For most of my adult life, I've been active -by design. I've either body-surfed, bicycled, walked, took aerobics classes, cross-country machined, or did resistance training. I've always lived by the axiom, Use It or Lose It.

Last year, I began experiencing pain at the gym. Not the usual did-too-much-today type of pain, but a definite ouch!-type of pain. After six months of trying to push through it, I talked to my Internist, who eventually sent me to a Rheumatologist. I won't bore you with the details, but blood tests and a detailed history suggested Lupus. Treatment: anti-malarial drugs (!) and rest, lots of rest. The M.D. said that the pain I feel is actually damage to my connective tissue, so pushing through it is not a smart idea.

Not what I wanted to hear! I love being active; it was part of my almost-daily routine. And we are always told, Stay active to be healthy! I pouted, 'All those years of being active have ended here??!'

Well, after six months of rest and medication, I am starting to feel somewhat better. So today, I laced up my trusty Asics and ventured out to our local community college where they have a great new cushioned track (see photo). I did a mile of medium-paced walking. I can say it was uncomfortable, but not too painful.

I am elated... it appears I won't have to Lose It after all! =D

Pointing the Finger

Rick and I, and several young friends of ours, went to Sacramento today to attend a conference with one of our favorite people, John Piper. Time fails to give a fair overview of the exceptional teaching we enjoyed, but one jewel in particular glittered.

If you are a parent, or have ever had a youngster in your charge, you've probably had the following experience. Your very small child, perhaps the age of my grandson Caleb, is toddling by your side and you spot a fluttering butterfly some distance ahead. Excited to share this wonder, you point to it, exclaiming, "Look! Look at that!"

Catching your excitement, the youngster fixes his gaze onto your outstretched finger, not aware of its purpose. Smiling, you say, "No, no... LOOK at the butterfly! Not my finger..."

Poor little tyke... he's locked onto your finger! He can't understand that the finger is not the object, it's only a tool pointing to something beyond.

Everyone loves nature! It's amazing, glorious and intriguing. Who hasn't been transfixed by the nighttime stars and planets, marveled at the height and majesty of an ancient redwood tree, felt humbled by the roar of the ocean? Plants, animals, rocks and elements--- too many to number or comprehend.

All fingers, all pointing. Pointing to the amazing, glorious and intriguing God. He has taken great joy in creating nature to point us to Himself.

"God has put this knowledge in their hearts. From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made. They can clearly see HIS invisible qualities, HIS eternal power and HIS divine nature. So they have no excuse whatsoever for not knowing God." Romans 1:19 and 20, NLT, (all-caps: mine)

The next time you sigh as a gentle breeze caresses you, or your heart swells watching playful dolphins frolic, lift your gaze from the temporal to the Eternal... He's so much more!

Jingle All the Way!

I've been singing all evening, ever since I got an email from my just-turning-one grandson! He wanted me to know that his Mommy and Daddy had purchased airline tickets to come home for Christmas from Singapore. So, we've got the date and place of arrival.

I've never enjoyed Christmas as an adult; truth be told, I've barely endured it. I've never seen that it had a lot to do with Jesus. The attention due Him always seems lost in the tinsel and tension. I love to celebrate Him all year long!

This year, I can hardly wait until December hits, even with all the traffic and to-do lists. Something much better than watching for Santa and his sleigh will keep my eyes riveted to the sky... an adorable little tanned boy named Caleb on a Boeing 777. He is the only gift I want this year!