""But now ask the beasts, and let them teach you; And the birds of the heavens, and let them tell you." Job 12:7

Truly, I am not a fan or fancier of snakes.    Honest, I'm not! 

However, I am extremely fascinated by all of God's creation...including snakes. They are a mystery to me. How they move without legs!!!

Proverbs 30 says in verses 18 and 19:

"There are three things which are too wonderful for me,
         Four which I do not understand:

The way of an eagle in the sky,
         The way of a serpent on a rock,
         The way of a ship in the middle of the sea,

         And the way of a man with a maid"

Everywhere I look, I am mystified by God's creative handiwork. I am in awe of His infinite variety of species and sub-species. I am intrigued by the diversity, adaptation, survival techniques, camouflage, instincts, migration...the list goes on and on and on!

Okay, confession time: I was determined to be an environmental biologist, once upon a time.

But, aren't we all to some extent?  God has asked us to be good stewards of His creation:

Genesis 1:26 " Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.""

All of nature, human nature included, absolutely intrigues me. Even the snakes. I make no apology. Psalm 8 summarizes well my faith and philosophy in this regard:

O LORD, our Lord,
         How majestic is Your name in all the earth,

         Who have displayed Your splendor above the heavens!

From the mouth of infants and nursing babes You have established strength
         

Because of Your adversaries,
To make the enemy and the revengeful cease.

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
         

The moon and the stars, which You have ordained;

What is man that You take thought of him,
         

And the son of man that You care for him?

Yet You have made him a little lower than God,
 And You crown him with glory and majesty!

You make him to rule over the works of Your hands;
         

You have put all things under his feet,

All sheep and oxen,
 And also the beasts of the field,

The birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea,
         

Whatever passes through the paths of the seas.

O LORD, our Lord,
         

How majestic is Your name in all the earth!

Observing something as simple and slithery as a lowly snake causes me to worship Him, 

the Creator of all.

Romans 1:20 " For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--His eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse."

This One Thing I Do...

One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple. (Psalm 27:4)

I make a lot of "to do" lists. And, I remake my lists, over and over, as I re-prioritize and complete tasks, and new projects emerge. For quite awhile now, I've thought that I ought to have a "one a day" system for the things that are most important to me, such as:

1. read one chapter in my Bible each morning 

2. write one letter every day

3. exercise once a day

4.  make sure Ethan has 30 minutes in his stander every day

Alas, each day takes on a character of its own and my lists are altered accordingly.  The older I get, the more I realize that it is not so much what you do as how and why you do it.  Doing "the next thing, first", as my daughter would say, with cheerfulness and a servant's heart is more important than checking everything off the list, as though there's a prize at the end of the day for doing so. Doing all "as unto the Lord" is more important than trying to impress anyone with our capabilities and efficiency. Going about our duties for the good of others blesses ones' heart more than indulging self. And, last, but not least important is keeping the perspective eternal! 

While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. (2Corinthians 4:18)

That eternal perspective just makes all the difference in the world, literally.  For instance, am I so concerned that every last stick of silverware gets washed, that I become irritated at every interruption of the inquiring mind and heart of my child? Do I pause, dry my hands, stoop to face that boy and really listen to what interests him? Or, am I storing up clean dishes in heaven?!?!  Obviously, dishes must be washed or soon we would be eating off the table; but, the thought here is : "Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth."

Dishes are not eternal. Clean houses (in & of themselves) are not eternal. Souls are.  So, as we work at dishes or whatever it may be, our first priority must be to affect a soul for eternity...with a knowing smile, with a gentle touch, with a listening ear, with a compassionate heart, with a kind word or generous gesture...

Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead 

I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.(Phil.3:13)

What Can I Do?

This morning, I asked for prayer from my facebook community for our son, Ethan. He is sick, and being one with cerebral palsy and sensory issues, he thinks he's going to die. Of course, I'm concerned for him - that he doesn't go into seizure activity from the fever and stress, that he doesn't become dehydrated due to refusal of any food or drink, that he doesn't aspirate vomit when he's throwing a fit about hurting. (and the list goes on)

So, as I'm sitting here, keeping watch, working on a rag rug, praying, checking in on facebook, I see that many dear friends have responded with concern and reassurance that they will be praying. This just blesses my heart. I, myself, count it such a privilege to pray for the needs of others. I scan my "news feed" several times a day simply to be aware of the needs of others.

Often, that's all we can do. Pray. And, trust God to answer those prayers in a way that fulfills His purposes and that glorifies Him.

I started wondering what else is accomplished by being aware of the suffering of others, especially if we can do nothing, physically, to help them. The following is what came to my mind, though by no means exhaustive:

1. Knowing that there are people who are starving, should make us less wasteful, and more thankful.
2. Knowing there are people without family, without loved ones, should make us treasure our relationships to the point where we "submit one to another, preferring one another", laying our lives down for one another.
3. Knowing that some wander the streets, with no shelter, should make us good stewards of our dwelling places; and hospitable.
4. Knowing there are sick and disabled folks, should make us use our strength and minds for His glory.

What can I do?

I can live a faithful life of gratitude.

I can live "circumspectly"...


"So, then, be careful how you live. Do not be unwise but wise, making the best use of your time because the times are evil." (Ephesians 5:15-16)
"Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma."
(Ephesians 5:1-2)