Small Town America

Memorial Day is a day chosen to remember all those men and women who have given their lives for our freedom  From the Revolutionary war to the war in Afghanistan, we have continued to sacrifice the lives of our best people.  One day is hardly enough to be grateful for that sacrifice.

My two brothers were military and so was my husband.  Thank God, they all came home safely.  My cousins fought in the Korean Conflict, my brother in the Cuban Missile Crisis, my husband and many friends in VietNam.  Grandfather’s in WWI and II and Great grandfathers in the Civil War.

Some were injured, some were prisoners of war, some were traumatized for the rest of their lives.  Some never made it home, some came home  a different person, some only want to forget while others want to remember.  One thing is for sure, war and conflict affects them all.  You can’t watch your buddies get blown to pieces or fall on a bed of bungi sticks and not feel something.

Memorial Day is a time when we visit the graves of our fallen heroes.  We put flags and flowers on the graves to honor them.  We say a prayer for their families and play taps to remind us of their complete sacrifice.  What does that all mean?  Is there not a better way to honor these men and women, and even sometimes children?  Is there something we can do to make the world a better place?  Is there a way to stop all this killing and maiming of our loved ones?

Reach out a hand to help a neighbor or take a friend out to lunch; speak encouragement to those who are depressed and give hope to those who have lost hope.  Touch some lonely heart and smile.  The little things do matter.  It doesn’t take a lot of efffort to change the direction of someone’s day and one person really can make a difference.

Matthew 5:9 tells us, “Blessed are the peacemakers; for the shall be called the children of God.”  As His children we should always strive to walk in peace.  God’s very presence should bring peace to a situation.  Many times in the scriptures the disciples would use, “May the God of peace be with you.” as a farewell greeting.  The peace of God passes are human understanding.  He is peace manifested in the earth.

With all the wars and unrest in our world today, it is hard to find the way to peace.  God has shone us that He alone is the source of that peace.  He has given us wisdom that we may break down the walls of misunderstanding and the horrors of uncontrolled power in the hands of men.

In Ephesians2:14, it says, “For He is our peace, who has made us one and broken down the middle wall of partition between us,” so why can’t we grasp that concept?  As long as men and women crave wealth, power, dominance and control it will be difficult to live in peace.  Our individual peace must come from within , for Jesus is our source.

Have you ever had to walk somewhere in total darkness? It can be a bit un-nerving.  I remember as a child when the construction workers were working on the road in front of our house, they used smudge pots to shed enough light so one didn’t fall over their mess during the night.  They were ugly, round and black balls filled with oil and a wick to burn.  They smelled awful, but they did give a little light.

Many nights the neighborhood kids would play hide and seek or tell spooky stories by the light of those smudge pots.  At times we even tried to roll them over or blow them out, but they didn’t go easily.  To be all alone during the late night with only these lights was quite scary.

Christians  often experience these same feelings of dread and fear as they travel through the dark places in life.  The world is a place of darkness.  Our society is full of dark things and dark ideas.  Some times we stumble and fall in the ditch in that darkness.  Sometimes we allow ourselves to trip and fall into these places where the light does not shine.

But, I have good news for you.  Jesus is our light.  His light is bright and revealing.  It is beautiful and eternal.  His light can guide us through the darkest places in this world.  No one can put out His marvelous light.  In John  8:12 Jesus said, “I am the light of the world: he that follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”

Jesus tells us in Ephesians 5:8 “For you were at one time in darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.: walk as children of light.”  We don’t have to stumble our way through life if we walk in His light.  We don’t have to fear the unknown when we trust in the all knowing One.  We don’t have to yield to the dark things of this world when we are consumed by the light of God.

In I John 1:5-7  it says, “This is then the message we have heard of Him and declare unto to you, that God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all.  If we say that we have fellowship with Him and walk in darkness, we lie  and do not the truth.”

“But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”

So let’s choose this day to walk in His light.  In this way we will never have to fear the darkness.  We know He will always bring light to the situaton and grace to you.

I love to look out my windows and see what the nature world is doing in my yard.  This fat bunny comes almost every day to find what he can under the bird feeder.  Sometimes I put cut up fruit in the backyard so they can have a treat.  However, we don’t want to let the robins have our strawberries so we have to keep them covered up.

We have a blue bird house right outside the bedroom window.  A little sparrow has made her nest in there this year.  Early in the morning and around sun down I can watch mama sparrow as she feeds her little ones.  She brings them all kinds of surprises.  If I make too much noise, the impatient birdies have to wait to eat.  I tried to get a picture of them, but they would not co-operate.

I think it’s amazing how God can keep all things in order and care for all His creation.  It tells us in Matthew 10:29,that His eye is on the sparrow and that not one falls from the sky that He does not see.  If He cares that much for a silly little bird, how much He must care for the ones created in His image.

Our God sees all things, hears all things and understands all thing.  He is never late, never gives bad advice, and never stops caring for His children.  So why do we still not trust Him?  This little bunny trusts God, even if he doesn’t know that he does.  It’s built into his nature.  The animals of the field have no one else to care for them.  They all depend on God’s grace and provision.  Oh, that we all could walk in such complete faith.

As I sit listening to the rain on my roof, I am reminded of how fresh and sweet everything smells after the rain.  Our gardens really need a good drink from Heaven.  Often we feel hot and parched in our spiritual walk.  We just need a good drink of the living water that only  Jesus can give.

As the earth becomes dry and cracked when it needs water, so we can become tired and grumpy when we need a drink from Jesus.  It sounds like a simple comparison, but Jesus also taught with simple stories in order that all would understand.  We tend to make Kingdom principles too difficult and hard for people to relate to.  Jesus knew that if people couldn’t understand His message of love and salvation, they would be unable to respond to it.

It doesn’t take a college degree to understand that when the ground is dry, we need to give it some water.  So it is with spiritual refreshing.  We know when we are feeling dry and listless, and we know that spending some time with Jesus is the only way to get refreshed.

We used to sing a song at church that went something like this, “There shall be showers of blessing, showers of blessing we need.  Mercy drop round us are falling, but for the showers we plead.”  We need more than a few ‘mercy drops’ to be victorious in today’s world.  So Jesus, bring on the rain!