Living Fragrance

Not Forgotten

Not Forgotten, by Twila Paris:

When you think your dream is dying
He has not forgotten you
When your body aches from tryin'
He has not forgotten you

When you worry for tomorrow
Even though the sky is blue
See the sun is shining
He has not forgotten you

When July feels like December
He has not forgotten you
When it's painful to remember
He has not forgotten you

When it seems you can not win
And there is not much left to lose
He has got a plan
And He has not forgotten you

He is faithful
He is with you
He is listening
He is love

If your tired flesh has squandered
What your spirit would have saved
And your aimless feet have wandered
Far from all you truly crave

Turn and run toward your Father
Do not wait another day
See His arms are open
And He is calling out your name

And hope will spring eternal
In the homes of those who know
That loving arms will follow
Every where we go

And even in the darkness
His promises are true
Keep this in your heart
He has not forgotten you.

Not worthy of the garbage can

Sometimes if I'm trying to get a point of discipline across to one of my older kids and they don't seem to taking it in, I have them write about the lesson they need to be learning. I think it helps them to really think about things to put it into their own words. Anyhow, a few days ago I was sorting through papers and found this that my son David, seven, had written after complaining about his lunch one day. As a parent sometimes you just have to laugh.

 

To write love on her arms

Sometimes I find you at work with your loom, weaving away in my thoughts, creating a beautiful pattern in my understanding. Always there's a loving smile curling your lips as you bend over your craft. Look at that! Listen to this! you seem to say.

Today I saw you through a chat with my children. Tattoos were the subject at hand! I told them about henna art, and we agreed that it would be a good sort of tattoo for us. Plans were made to do it someday... I think I'd like a rose on my arm, eldest girl said. It would be nice to write the word love, little brother added.

Was it a coincidence, dear weaver, when a few hours later I came across Renee's story? Her arm, though raggedly scarred by abuse, now also shows forth a rose. Friends took her in and wrote love on her arms.

What is it about arms? With skin so tender, they often bear the brunt of anguish and self-hatred. Not so many years ago, my arm knew that hurt too.

So would you come, Lord, to your broken ones? Would you cover the scars of life gone wrong like only you can? You, my God, give beauty for ashes! You sing redemption songs.

And me, I am in your workshop. I thrill at your invitation! Rise from your loom and pick up your pen and come write love on my arms.

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To Write Love on Her Arms is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery.

Photo: Margo Conner

Kingdom Comes

Kingdom Comes, by Sara Groves:

 

When anger fills your heart
When in your pain and hurt
You find the strength to stop
You bless instead of curse

When doubting floods your soul
Though all things feel unjust
You open up your heart
You find a way to trust

That's a little stone that's a little mortar
That's a little seed that's a little water
In the hearts of the sons and the daughters
The kingdom's coming

When fear engulfs your mind
Says you protect your own
You still extend your hand
You open up your home

When sorrow fills your life
When in your grief and pain
You choose again to rise
You choose to bless the name

That's a little stone that's a little mortar
That's a little seed that's a little water
In the hearts of the sons and the daughters
The kingdom's coming

In the mundane tasks of living
In the pouring out and giving
In the waking up and trying
In the laying down and dying

That's a little stone that's a little mortar
That's a little seed that's a little water
In the hearts of the sons and the daughters
The kingdom's coming

The Bible Experience

I have been love-love-loving the gift that my husband gave me for our tenth anniversary last month. The Complete Bible Experience audio Bible had been on my wish list for some time and I was so grateful to receive it! It will be a blessing in our family for years to come, I know. Have a look:

Celebrating Saint Francis

The other day my daughter and I spotted an interesting notice outside our neighborhood Catholic church. It said that they would be having a blessing of the animals this weekend! Hmm... just how does that go? Would folks lead their dogs and cats down the isle by leash to receive a pat from father? Caged birds and rodents carried in arms, and livestock - what of them? Perhaps they would have to do it outside. Grace would have loved to have gone to see it all; I told her maybe some year, if we ever get a pet.

I had to smile when we received an email today from one of our pastors, Ben, who keeps Christ Community abreast of happenings on the church calendar. Today was the Feast of Saint Francis, patron saint of animals and the environment. Ah... that's the why behind the blessing this weekend.

So, here's to Saint Francis of Assisi - gentle lover of the Lord and His creation, founder the the Franciscan order, a man thought to be the first Italian poet (!), and the author of one of my favorite prayers:

 

Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace;

where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,

grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;

to be understood, as to understand;

to be loved, as to love;

for it is in giving that we receive,

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.

Amen.

A delightful children's book we came across earlier this year: The Song of Francis and the Animals. So very beautiful.

(Photo taken on a recent trip to the mountains of Tennessee.)

Here and now

"When our depravity meets His divinity it is a beautiful collision [...] It is the collision of our fallen state and our Maker's transcendence. It is a rendering of our mortality and eternal life. It is about the tension that exists in the living of life, here, where the sky meets the broken earth." - David Crowder

"Suffering, pain, sorrow, humiliation, feelings of lonliness are nothing but a sign that you have come so close to Jesus that He can kiss you." - Mother Teresa

"All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs. But it's not only around us; it's within us. The Spirit of God is arousing us within. We're also feeling the birth pangs. These sterile and barren bodies of ours are yearning for full deliverance. That is why waiting does not diminish us, any more than waiting diminishes a pregnant mother. We are enlarged in the waiting. We, of course, don't see what is enlarging us. But the longer we wait, the larger we become, and the more joyful our expectancy." Romans 8:22-25 (The Message)

"Popular Christianity says, 'We must succeed.' The book of Revelation say that success cannot be marked, it is impossible. the New Testament conception of spirituality in the world is a forlorn hope always, by God's design. Take the parable of the sower, only one-forth of the seed sown brings forth fruit in this dispensation. We are determined to be successful; the apostle Paul says we are called upon to be faithful (1 Corinthians 4:1-2). In this dispensation it is a day of humliation in the lives of the saints as it was in the life of our Lord. We have to remain steadfastly patient to God through the whole thing." - Oswald Chambers

"Once heaven has our attention, a fervid anticipation for God's ultimate reality begins to glow, making everything earthly pale in comparison. Earth's pain keeps crushing our hopes, reminding us this world can never satisfy; only heaven can. [...] Suffering keeps swelling our feet so that earth's shoes won't fit." - Joni Eareckson Tada

"Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." Psalm 30:5

Our Happy Home ~ Hallelujah, we are on our way. Hallelujah, we are on our way to God. From Egypt lately come, where death and darkness reign to seek our new, our better home where we our rest shall gain. There sin and sorrow cease and every conflict's o'er. There we shall swell in endless peace and never hunger more. Jerusalem, our happy home. Would God I were in Thee. Would God my woes were at an end, Thy joy that I might see. We soon shall join the throng. Their pleasure we shall share. And sing the everlasting song, with all the ransomed there. There in celestial strains enraptured myriads sing. There love in every bosom reigns for God Himself is King. (Anonymous folk hymn, from 1616.)

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The Sower. Vincent Van Gogh

 

Spinning

You! Who is like you?

In you I spin in circles of paradox, like a skater with that move: dip down low in arabesque, then stretch up high. Caught up in a whirl of motion, but not lost within the swirl.

You. You lay me bare and reveal that there's no good thing within. But just as I bow down low, you lift up high. You tear down to rebuild, strip to dress. And sometimes, it happens in a moment. I'm caught up in a whirl of you, Gracious One. Breath taken away with the motion, but not lost. I am alive!

Like the lamenting man with his face in dust found:

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:22,23

And I live for the praise of your glorious grace. All wrapped up in you, I spin.

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Related posts from the archives:

Certain signs of grace

Bones in Green

Etsy

I was talking with a friend the other day and discovered that she had not yet heard of Etsy, a website for buying and selling all sorts of handmade things. I love it - too much! I like to help support artisans with small businesses, and you can find the most unique, beautiful things there. I think it's a great place to shop for gifts. Anyway, I thought I'd post the link in case there are others out there who haven't discovered Etsy yet.

A few of my favorite shops I've found over there:

Pesky Cat Designs

hollygems

The Intrinsic Garden

Image: Make Words Grow by Linea Nongrata

For the personal archives

Please, feel free to skip over this post...

I see my blog largely as a personal place where I can make record of my journey. It is by no means exhaustive in its telling, but just a collection of memorial stones left here and there, helping me remember the terrain I've tread, and most importantly, what God has done.

Below is from a sheet of paper that keeps slipping out of my Bible - I want to record it in a more permanent place before I lose it. It is a gift of words and affirmation bestowed from dear friends in our old small group. Such a gift, and a very precious "stone" to me. 

This is who I am, and this is who I am becoming, all by the grace of God.

                                                           * * *

What is it about Miriam that you find attractive or that you admire? Why do you want Miriam to be on your side in this war against the powers of darkness?

Miriam, you have an unbelievable care for people that makes them feel valuable and special. You are filled with grace and truth and this is evident in how you relate to and love people. Through that you pass on hope and impart faith to others that things are going to be okay. Regardless of circumstances, you convey God is good and compassionate. You are a living epistle where others can see God's handwriting and fingerprints on your life. You are also an incredible artist and can open up hearts in ways most of us can only dream about.  - T.B.

Miriam, you are a woman of grace. You have such a heart of kindness and gentleness. You take people where they are at and love them well. You are a beautiful woman of worship - in so many ways. Your life drips of Jesus. You are so gifted in the arts - all kinds of art - it's incredible! You are an encourager and your words speak life to people so powerfully.  - M.B.

Miriam: Living life at the feet of  Jesus, a desire for the peace of God to flow out of you, a revered daughter of the King.  - A.S.

Miriam - a worshiper. Gentleness and peacemaking. Devoted to motherhood, friendship, being a godly wife. A persistent soldier in the war. Unfaltering faith in the goodness of God and a constant encourager to the Bride of Christ. Dances as a child and reflects the Gentle Shepherd in word and deed. Is the epitome of true beauty.  - C.H.

Miriam, you are beautiful and sweet. What I admire about you is your thoughtfulness. You are the most thoughtful person I know. You're considerate of others and sensitive. You are honest and loyal and have a wonderful history of lifelong service and worship of God. You've always believed in Him and always knew you belonged to Him. You have kept yourself pure. You are faithful, loyal and never give up. You are willing to humble yourself and be the first to day "Forgive me. " You show character and poise. You are gracious and graceful. You have Martin Luther's conviction and stolidity. You cannot join in when others criticize this denomination or that movement of the church. You see value in various expressions of the church. You are a good servant and considerate partner. To the church in the battle you bring your heart for worship and dance; artistic creativity; a gift for teaching, especially to little children. You bring purity of heart and life and sensitivity to God's heart. You bring good sense and compassion. You bring honesty and powerful soft-spokenness. You are reasonable and thoughtful, prudent, yet also passionate. - P.K.

Miriam - has a spirit that is regal or royal expecting the best of others; not in a naive foolishness. Spiritually a "high tower" of safety and learning to be a warrior. - C.H.

Miriam Kujak: Your gentleness is an attribute that I believe is your strongest quality. It somehow shows off a beauty of God that the church doesn't get to see much of anymore. Honestly, Miriam when I think of you I just think of the work "beauty". You have all of these rich qualities that so many wish they could possess... wisdom, gentleness, caring, goodness, kindness. People can look at you and know you belong to God's kingdom. You are beautiful. - T.H.

Miriam - softness (ability to remain calm and speak out of the kindness and sweetness of your spirit), compassionate heart (ability to see an opportunity to encourage someone in need and follow through on it). - J.S.

Miriam - A) dancing princess, gifted, prophetic, artist, warm hearted, sweet hospitality, intense devotion, mercy B) the more we see the more we fall in love with you, you are esteemed way more than you comprehend. - M.W.

Miriam - You are wonderfully talented in so many ways: art, dance, intellect, and your love for others. I feel that you see others as God sees them. You very much have a mother's heart fo others, without losing your own personality and interests. You always have such wonderfully wise insights to share with the group, and you are so giving of your time to help others, and to pray for us. Thanks for sharing yourfeelings, concerns, and hurts with us. We treasure the times that you are with us... you are such a help to us all. - J.H.

Miriam - Sweet Miriam. I love your gentle confidence. I love your willingness to serve. I love the peacefulness you carry in yourself and in you home. I want Miriam on my side because she always says the right thing to make me feel loved and appreciated. Miriam is kind. - J.W.