Go Light Your World

"And God said, Let there be light: and there was light, " Genesis 1:3.  How we love the light!  (Except when I'm trying to sleep, which is why I bought a sleep mask the other day. Now I have misplaced it and have to suffer through my husband's reading light or computer work at his bedroom desk.)

Almost every time we leave the house, our route takes us down a street a block over that has beautiful, old-fashioned light posts.  Not just light posts, they are more like the lamp posts of days gone by with their graceful globes and wrought iron posts.  Once a grand neighborhood, it is time-worn now, but still with several substantial mansion-like brick homes.  A peaceful sense of calm comes over me as I imagine the unhurried  past, even the times of gas lights and lamp lighters.

"Look, they have finally fixed the light," my husband remarks as we come to the intersection near our house on the way to church.  He is right.  After more than a month, city workers have finally removed the 4-way stop sign anchored by sandbags in the middle of the road, power trucks have come and gone, and the traffic signals are  working once again.  It was tiresome for all to have to stop and wait for each to take his turn at the busy intersection.  For a change I am happy to see even a red light.

The other night at our Bible study, an elderly lady spoke up.  "I have to tell you about a miracle that happened to me in church yesterday!" she said exuberantly.  "I have never been able to see the preacher unless I am practically on the front row.  If I sit anywhere else, he is just a shadow moving around." 

She went on to say that she was sitting near the back with some friends, when suddenly she realized she was seeing the minister clearly, as if in a globe of light.  Every move he made and every facial expression was clear to her, helping her to understand everything he said.  "I just thank God for giving me that miracle!" she said wonderingly. 

They say that candle light is the most flattering light for the human face.  The gentle glow enhances dinners, and talk flows easily, warm and sparkling in the intimate illumination of candles.  It is interesting that Jesus uses the candle as an illustration of our light as a Christian.  "Ye are the light of the world.  A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.  Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light to all that are in the house.

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven,"  Matthew 5:14-15.  Go light your world!

I am a Promise, I am a Possibility

January is a busy month for us, with three granddaughters choosing a January birthday, all within 10 days, at that.  One granddaughter turned 21 on the 21st, with the next turning 14 yesterday, and the youngest celebrating her 10th birthday tomorrow.  Different ages and different stages, but all excited with the joy of living.

The grown-up granddaughter just started a new job, and we peeked in at her at work yesterday as she confidently and competently checked out groceries in her position of cashier at one of the supermarkets.  She is taking a break between completing a degree in December and beginning further studies later on, meanwhile decorating a house of her own!

I called my fourteen-year-old granddaughter last night to wish her a happy birthday.  She was bubbling over with excitement, fresh home from after-school activities and looking forward to the birthday cake waiting on the counter after her favorite meal bubbling in the crock-pot.  "Mimi, I tried out for track today!" she said, her voice full of enthusiasm.  "I came in 2nd in the hundred-yard dash!"

A few minutes later, I talked with her mother.  Her husband had picked Rachel up, and after seeing her run, told Amy, "She was an antelope!" I don't doubt it.  This formerly languid youngster had shot up tall and won ribbons and medals in cross-country running last year.  A beautiful child, she is sometimes plagued with teen uncertainties, so I'm glad for this activity that is a real confidence builder for her.

The 10-year-old is glad to have a double-digit birthday at last, and is getting ready for a minstry trip with her parents.  As the youngest of several siblings, Mackenzie is already an aunt with 3 baby nephews, a big helper and joy to everyone. 

"But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children," Psalms 103.17.  That is a wonderful verse and promise that I claim.   "Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children," we are told in Psalms 128:6.  I only wish I could see them more often!

Posterity

My heart is singing!  My daughter confided a secret to me in a hushed voice over the phone yesterday.  With a dramatic pause, she told me she had discovered my teen granddaughter can sing!  Oh, I remember that feeling when I recognized she herself could sing at about age 12!   "Mama, she sounds just like me!" she intoned unbelievingly.

"But I thought she could always sing!" I exclaimed.  "She sings in youth choir!"  Then she told me her daughter says she only lip-syncs in choir!  Ooh, shades of when her mother was young and too shy to sing in public without my prodding.  My daughter has a lovely voice, with many saying she was their favorite singer...when you could get her to do it.  I must admit she has overcome most of her voice-shyness by now, unlike the times she used to get stomach aches when  she performed.

"How did you find out she could sing?" I asked.  Amy said she actually knew it when her little girl was four years old; she recognized a special quality in her voice.

"But I hadn't heard her sing in 10 years!  She's  been hiding it!"  She said she would not have found out, but her daughter had gone into her bedroom and recorded a novelty song popular among her friends.  "She didn't want us to hear it, and only did it to let us know she had learned the words," Amy explained. 

How exciting!  My granddaughter is not only beautiful, smart, and accomplished in sports, but now I find she is musically talented as well!  Well, only her mother will be able to relate, understand her hesitance, and help her develop this gift.

Why do kids do this?  I still remember when this grandchild was four years old and in VBS.  Her sweet face scowled at the audience at the commencement program, and I was convinced she didn't get a thing out of Vacation Bible School.  The theme had been "Brave Believers," taken from heroes of the Bible such as Daniel, The Three Hebrew Children, and other well-known personages. 

Then one day she, her mother and baby sister were in our pasture when  the horses began galloping full speed toward them.  Amy picked up the toddler and raced for the gate, then turned and saw the 4-year-old holding a big stick up in front of the horses and the horses coming to a sudden stop right in front of her!  When asked how she did that, she replied matter-of-factly, "I'm a brave believer!"

This is also the child who completed her training in "White Horse Riders" Bible program at age 10 so she could go on a mission trip with those who qualified to an Indian tribe in New Mexico.  Her first trip on an airplane, she has flown many times since, most recently on a trip to France last summer.  Her world is expanding.  How will God use her?  I will wait and see, praying. 

Invisible Cloak

When our son, Jamie, was little, he was enamoured of super heroes.  His favorite plaything  was a cape.  My supply of bathroom towels was always being raided and I was often enisted to find and fasten a safety pin on one draped around his impatient 9-year-old shoulders.  One year he even received one for a special day (birthday or Christmas, I don't remember.  I also don't remember if I gave it to him or just suggested it to his married sister when she asked for a gift idea.)  I just remember his "yes!" grin when he put the huge black thing around him.

This came to mind the other day when we were tending our chickens, and I thought of the day some 30 years ago when I went into our backyard and was shocked to see all his father's flock wearing paper capes!  Jamie had somehow fastened a napkin around each feathered neck.  They were dashing about a bit awkwardly, as if uncertain whether to fly or escape their extra wing. 

Now his little girls are in that stage; I have a birthday photo of 6-year-old Anne-Marie in her super-hero cape in accordance with her party theme.  In the kaleidoscopic way time has of overlapping memories, I can see myself watching "Max and Ruby," a cartoon I viewed daily as I baby-sat with my then pre-school granddaughter 10 or 11 years ago.  In retrospect, Jamie as a kid reminds me of Max, who didn't say much, but always came up with unexpected ideas that left him with a self-satisfied little grin.

"Look, Howard," I pointed out to my husband that day last week at the chicken pen. "I believe that chicken is sick!"  She was standing motionless apart from the others, her feathers slightly ruffled and her dull-colored comb flopped down listlessly.  The other hens were sleek and energetic with their red combs a bright contrast to their lustrous white feathers.  She did peck at the food a bit, and I saw her at the water feeder, so at least she was eating and drinking.

"Remember how shocked we were when we went out one day to look at your chickens and they all had crooked necks?" I reminded my husband about his long-ago flock.  We had consulted a vet immediately and found out the condition was called "wry neck".  Thankfully, the medicine we got to put in their water made them as good as new in a day or two.  I don't remember what caused it, but it probably crossed my mind that our caped crusader could have been behind it with his costume enthusiasm!

At any rate, our hen is now okay, and our son is now a crusader for the only real super hero, our Lord Jesus Christ, whom Jamie proclaims weekly from his pulpit.  He has a hero's heart.

Circle of Influence

"Could you give me a ride to church?" an elderly member of our congregation called to ask.  Of course!  She didn't like to drive at night and we were happy to pick her up for the midweek service.  We made small talk on the way, and she told me she had talked to the couple who usually takes her to church who is away in Wyoming.  They had gone there to be with the wife's mother, who was having surgery.

"I wonder why she doesn't live here near her daughter?" I asked, to which our passenger said, "Well, she has a son out there. And she works, too." 

"You mean she has a job?" I exclaimed.   "How old is she?" 

"She's about my age," she answered.  Well, our friend is only 84!  I asked what kind of job, and she replied that she worked for the school system.  "She is a "grandma," she explained.  I asked if that was like an assistant teacher, but she said, no, she was  there only for the children.

I thought perhaps it was a volunteer position, but my knowledgeable source said it was a program that involved having a grandma for each room.  "They pick them up and bring them home, and they get paid, too!"  From what she said, the grandmas are there just as a comforting, calming presence for the kids, evidently giving reassuring hugs, a welcoming lap or just a listening ear. 

What a great idea!  Helping a senior citizen feel useful and filling a need in the lives of children whose parents are often overworked and over stressed in today's world!  I love it!  Kids need Grandmas!  I keep two of our grandchildren after school for a couple of hours three days a week.  If we have to do a short errand on the way home, they protest, "No!  We wanna go to your house!"  Our son told me they said, "We love it over there!"

Other than making them a snack and letting them watch TV, or on nice days watching them when they play outside, I don't do much except go about my routine.  But they are content and happy!  Most of my children and grandchildren live far away, so my husband's and my  "grandparenting" is mostly long distance.  It is nice to be reminded once in a while that our influence is still felt and appreciated, though, as in a phone call I got this week.

"Mom," my daughter said, "I find  myself speaking your wisdom all the time!"  What?  She said, "At work, I hear myself say something, and I think, That sounds like Mom."  She went on to say she shared with her co-workers that her parents weren't real strict, but saw to it that the kids  had a good moral and spiritual foundation, and that that is the way she raises her children.  "I remember you saying, 'Pick your battles,'" she said.(I laughed, not remembering saying that, but  interpreting it to mean, "Don't sweat the small stuff.")

The next day a granddaughter called, wanting to talk to Pa-Pa.  She loves to discuss spiritual things with him.  At the end of the conversation, I shared a bit of my experience with her, and the following day she phoned to say how that had helped her.

At our Bible study the other night, we read the scripture in John 6:28 when the people asked how they could do the works of God.  Jesus replied, "This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom who he hath sent."  Simple and brief, but it encompasses everything.  Kind of like influencing children and grandchildren.

Hat Box

"Mom, are you having a nice day?" my son, Greg,  spoke over the  phone.

"Yes, I'm actually in Stillwater, looking for a birthday present for Allison," I said.  His daughter's 21st  birthday would be in a few days, and was I looking for leg warmers.  I'd seen some cute ones recently, but I just found out the store here was out of them.

"Oh, that's great!" Greg said.  "You know what she really wants?  A hat.  She was looking for one when she went with me to Oklahoma City the other day."  When I asked what kind, he said, "A fedora.  A feminine looking fedora with a narrow brim."

I could see a selection of women's hats on the wall in the accessories department across the store, so I thanked him and went to browse through them.  I found several cute hats, but I wasn't sure what a fedora looked like.  I was pretty sure it wasn't a cloche, though one I picked up was pretty in raspberry felt. Suddenly I spotted what Greg seemed to be describing. It had a narrow brim and was decorated with silver studs circling the base of the crown.

"Could you tell me if this is a fedora?" I asked the sales associate.  "What do they look like?" I questioned further.  He said he had no idea, but he took it and went to check with a lady who knew more about hats.  When he came back, he reported that it was a fedora, although his supervisor said they usually had wider brims.  "Then this is  what I want," I said decidedly. 

Today was Allison's birthday, and we were invited to come over and have supper and birthday cake with their family.  The hat was still in the bag on the bureau in the bedroom waiting to be wrapped.  I didn't have a hat box, so I bought tissue paper, thinking I could make a pouffy parcel, accommodating the hat and adding a bit of mystery.  That was unsuccessful, so I looked around for a box, finally spotting one that was the right height and only a little too big when I surrounded the hat with tissue.  It made a large, festive present.

The little kids were excited about the gifts and kept urging their big sister toward my box that she left tantalizingly for last. Her delighted smile told me my granddaughter loved the sophisticated black hat, smart and stylish on her head as she modeled it for us.  "Is that all?  A little hat?" the six-year-old frowned, looking expectantly for something more. "In that big box?"  she gestured incredulously.  We explained  that the box had to be roomy, but to her, a big box meant a big gift.

Alerted by several people on Facebook, one a teacher, I just looked out at the gorgeous moon, glowing with a ring around it.  I learned that the effect is created when light is refracted from ice crystals in the upper atmosphere.  Quite a show!  Now that's a big gift in a big package!  I hope Beth is up to see it!

Glimpses

I had just finished my blog yesterday and still had the computer on when our son called and asked if I wanted to Skype with the girls.  Yay!  A moment later I was looking at the sunny faces of our dear little granddaughters, 3 and 6.  Little sister Maddie had a book that she wanted to "read" for me. 

She turned the pages of the picture book about getting dressed.  She delighted in chortling out the page-wide scribbled word that was a clue to the excuse for not wearing a selection:  "Too PURPLE," (written in purple),  "Too ITCHY," too...polka-dotted, etc.  until finally a satisfactory outfit  was found on the last page.

Not really reading the words, sometimes my bright little red-head would get creative.  Of a skirt with animal prints, instead of "too spotted," she said, "Too CHEETAH!"  (I remember being surpised when they were here at Christmas and she walked over to a ceramic animal I had always called a leopard and correctly said, "A cheetah!")

I reminded blonde kindergartner Anne-Marie that  Valentine's day is coming up, and she would probably soon be making paper hearts for Valentine cards.  "I already helped Allie make one at church," she said, to which my surprised reply was, "You already made a Valentine?"  "No," she replied, "We made a card for a homeless person!"  When I asked her if she knew what a homeless person was, she said wistfully, "A person without a home," a serious expression in her usually sparkling blue eyes.

It is so rewarding to watch the different personality traits in children.  Anne-Marie has always been compassionate, tender and caring.  Maddie is exact, determined, and deliberate.  She makes sure you understand exactly what she is saying, and that things be done a certain way, which was difficult before she learned to talk!

I'm sure God will use each girl and her gifts in the way he has already planned. The Bible says He knew us before we were ever born and knows the plans He has for us. Jeremiah 1:5; 29:11. "How precious are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!" Psalm 139:17.

Well, my plans are to see them February 17, on a special occasion when their father will be recognized and receive his ministerial credentials in a licensing ceremony at their church. He is currently pursuing a Master's degree in Greek and Hebrew.  Already a Youth Pastor for a Chinese congregation, apparently God has even more plans for Jamie in the future!