In God's Native Tongue

An Egyptian princess bathed at a river where she encountered a tiny babe in a tar-pitched basket. She furnished a home for the infant and named him Moses. There, in the royal palace halls, Moses most likely learned the skills of writing and reading. He would later write the history and laws of a nation, the first five books of the Old Testament. Some of our current laws are based upon those civil laws from so long ago.


The Bible reveals many such instances where the goodness of God is revealed as he moves ahead of a single life or nation to steer them in a specific direction. This week, we’ll finish up the series on the fruit of the Spirit. From the Galatians 5:22 list, we’ll consider the term “goodness” and how God’s goodness works in us and through us.

First, reflect on a list of synonyms which help to define the abstract word “goodness”: integrity (right thinking), righteous, moral, blameless, virtuous, and honest.

The picture of God’s goodness is like a set of parentheses – and that set of parentheses surrounds us. His daily provisions and goodness encompasses each person on earth. And through those God speaks every man’s language. Every time a bean plant sprouts and produces one hundred beans, God’s goodness speaks. Every time, microbes eat spilled oil in a gulf of water, God’s goodness speaks.

“The heavens declare the glory [wonder] of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands….there is no speech or language where their voice is not heard” (Psalm 19:1-4). General blessings drench the entire earth such as God’s rain falling on the just and the unjust, but God’s goodness also falls upon individuals. The beauty and order of the earth are spoken in God's native tongue. He creates. We enjoy. He also provides individualized care.

A wealthy Shunammite woman, a contemporary of Elisha the prophet, lived in the town of Shunem. When the prophet traveled through Shunem, he took his meals with her and her husband. Eventually, the couple built a room and furnished it for the prophet.

Elisha wanted to repay her and asked what he could do? Her contentment caused her not to make a suggestion, but Elisha’s servant Gehazi observed that her husband was old and she had no son.

Through God, Elisha promised an heir. The son was born, but when still a young lad, he died. The scene where Elisha appealed to God and the young lad’s life was restored is certainly a memorable Bible text.

Later, the Shunammite’s story continues in 2 Kings 8. God’s goodness, arranging, and timing are stamped on this event. Elisha had warned this Shunammite’s family to flee to Philistine because a severe famine was coming to her native land. So, her family lived in another country for seven years, and then returned to their homeland.

Back in her country, she and her son were on their way to see the king. Meanwhile, the king said to Gehazi, Elisha’s servant, “Tell me about all the great things Elisha has done.”

Gehazi had plenty of stories about God’s mighty arm of rescue, especially the time Elisha raised the dead. “Just as Gehazi was telling the king how Elisha had restored the dead to life,” in walked the woman and her son to “beg the king for her house and land” (2 Kings 8:5). The “just as” moment so inspired the king that he returned her home, land, and seven-years of earnings.

When you take your next breath, recall the goodness of God who orchestrated it. The next time you notice a pinkish sky, and the sun arising or bowing to nightfall, praise God who created the scene. The next time you experience the happy parentheses where God has cocooned you, bless his name. The next time you see the fruit of his Spirit in your life, give thanks.

He alone is worthy for his genuine love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control remain evident in our lives as God travels before us, behind us, and with us.

(Photo borrowed from http://summitpost.org/ )

When Love Branches Out

Our yard fence separates our home and lawn from the farmland surrounding it. A huge live oak inside our yard leans toward the front fence, and its afternoon branch-shade spreads at least 30 feet into the pasture. The cool spot that the shade creates has become a favorite gathering place for our small herd of cows and their little ones. And wherever the cows go, the egrets follow. Out of my office window, I have a view of both bovine and bird. This week, that scene gave me a visual about love.

Most of us have an understanding of love, but if asked to explain love then we have a more difficult time using concrete words in a description. I know it’s difficult because that’s what I’ve been brain storming about this week. But that’s when I paid attention to the cows resting in the shade, with white egret perched around. I said to myself, “That’s it -- when we can nap safely in someone’s shade that’s love.”

In the last few columns, we’ve worked our way through the list of the fruit of the Spirit -- “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22). Today, let’s consider love. It’s a broad term used to describe our passions for many things. We love chocolate and chocolate labs. We love mini poodles and mini bagels. We love movies and movie popcorn.

We word-sling love around as if its usage carries no obligation. John said, “My dear children, let us not love in words or tongue, but in actions in truth” (I John 3:18). Let’s look at one more familiar Bible text about love.

A listing of love-actions occurs in Paul’s letter to the Corinthian Christians. He describes this as never-fail love. He said that love is patient, kind, and that it doesn’t envy or boast. Love is also not proud, rude, self-seeking, or easily angered. And my favorite is that love keeps no record of wrongs. But there are more descriptions of what love does and the traits are coupled with that absolute word “always”: love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres (1 Corinthians 13:1-13).

You probably noticed the similarities in the description of the love-actions and fruit of the Spirit. As said before in this column the stellar qualities of the Spirit are innate and shared among the Godhead (Trinity). When God adopted us into his family through Jesus, we received the Spirit and can now bestow an active love upon others.

Some of the most beautiful scriptures in biblical poetry describe God as shading those within his care. When David fled from his enemies and sought refuge in a cave, he called to God to have mercy on him and said, “I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings” (Psalm 55:1). Another psalm says that God is the shade at your right hand, a picture of God near-at-hand.

Watching our small herd seek shade-shelter gave me an additional description of love. Shade represents protection, safety, rest, and times of refreshing. And so I must ask, who shades your life? Who among your family and friends provides shelter from blistering, energy-draining circumstances? Who comes along side of you when you can no longer help yourself? With certainty, I can tell you it’s not inanimate things that we “love” – like our chocolate, bagels, or popcorn. No. Real people provide our shade, the ones dedicated to love-lived-out, a Spirit trait.

As God-followers we also provide shady rest for family and friends. We simply surprise someone with a blessing because God’s generous spirit gave to us and we in turn give to others. When we witness the wilting of a friend, we know they must have shade to survive. They need a nap away from pressures and that’s when we cast a goodly shadow over them.

God has the ultimate loving wingspread, but he gifts his followers with like capabilities.

Who shades you?

Whom do you shade?

(Photo is of our home and shade tree last spring. Romemary and Lantana is now growing around house)

Everyday Faithfulness

A new preacher moved to town and took a bus ride to familiarize himself with the territory. He handed the driver his money, and as he sat down, he noticed the driver had given him a dime too much in change.


He pondered whether to return it or just accept it as a gift from God. The driver was busy greeting and letting passengers disembark, and the preacher argued with his conscience that the driver might not even want to be bothered for the amount of ten cents. But as the preacher exited, he handed the dime back to driver, “You gave me too much change.”

“Thank you, sir,” said the driver. “I recognized you from your picture in the paper when the church announced your arrival here. I’ve been looking for a church home, and I wondered what you would do if I overpaid you a dime.”

When the bus left and the preacher stood on the sidewalk, he trembled and thought in his heart, “Lord, I almost sold you out for a dime.”

Today, let’s consider faithfulness. If you’ve followed this column for the past few weeks, then you know we’ve been working our way through the list of attributes described as the fruit of the Spirit, found in Galatians 5:22. Consider the list once more as we get closer to the end of this study: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

I’ve heard from a few of you, and I thank you for your stories of how the practice of these godly attributes in everyday life has strengthened your character and witness for God.

Webster's New World Dictionary defines “faithful” as "maintaining allegiance; constant; loyal; marked by or showing a strong sense of duty or responsibility; conscientious; accurate; reliable; exact."

If one remains loyal then we could describe them as trustworthy, reliable, devoted, dependable, steadfast or dedicated. We practice faithfulness in areas of our passions. When a husband remains devoted to God and family, his faithfulness reveals itself over a lifetime of honoring God and his wife and children.

When someone regards good health as a way of honoring God, they remain careful to eat healthy foods, to exercise, and to care for the body that houses the soul God gave them.

When someone has a passion or drive for feeding the hungry, helping the poor, or visiting those in prison, they find ways to be faithful in the giving of their time to ease the suffering of others.

In ancient Israel’s customs, when a price was settled for a tract of land or a pair of oxen, one party would remove his sandal and hand it to the other signifying a solid pact or promise (Ruth 4:1-12). That’s all it took, a man’s word and a “sandal seal.”

Not too many years ago, our grandfathers shook hands on deals – called “a gentleman’s agreement.” These agreements depended upon the honor of the two parties, and were usually made when a price for something was set.

But a “gentlemen’s agreement” could also act as a disguise for wrong secretive acts. It is reported that in the 1930s the National Football League banned black players with a handshake, making sure that no agreement was on paper. And, African Americans were similarly banned from organized baseball with a handshake until 1946, when the Brooklyn Dodgers hired Jackie Robinson.

I love how Jesus furthered the explanation of “faithfulness” when he said to his followers, “Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ be ‘No’ (Matthew 5:37). Parents, this guidance can help your parenting.

As we move through the next few days, let’s keep the word “faithfulness” in our minds. Our culture demands that we, in good faith, sign our names to credit card purchases, marriage certificates, leases, or other agreements. But many smaller promises we make to family and friends aren’t recorded on paper at the courthouse. Be faithful even in the least of these small-promise-categories.

After all, bus drivers and others are watching. They want to see faithfulness lived out.

Kindness Arrives in Many Ways-July 9

In any home, when a kind woman buys the groceries, cooks them up, stores the leftovers, that home becomes blessed because she extends benevolence and care towards those living under the same roof. Most women don’t expect a constant “thank you.” They are pleased with a little help now and then. I’ve never heard of a husband being shot while doing the dishes. It’s the little things that count.

Within the framework of kindness, let’s consider those little things that count in everyday life. Those generous unexpected acts that other people do for us, when we’re least expecting a favor. Kindness is among the list of intrinsic values of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22.

Almost everyone has granted kindnesses and received many. Three things stand out in my memory as unexpected acts of loving kindness. One time when I had flower beds, my mother showed up and sat on the St. Augustine grass and weeded three gardening areas. I don’t even have flower beds anymore because of rascally weeds, but back then -- before I knew about blooming perennials and Texas native plants -- I had too many flower beds for a working woman and mother of children. My mother’s sacrifice of time lingers with a sweet fragrance.

On another occasion with Thanksgiving nearing, I was in the process of striping wallpaper from three huge rooms. If you’ve ever scored wall covering with a utility knife, sprayed it with warm water, and then scraped from the floor to the ceiling you know how much energy that takes. My gauge was low to near empty. My friend knew what I was trying to accomplish in a short timeframe before we hosted the holiday dinner. She phoned one day to tell me that she’d just made her mother’s famous cornbread dressing for me. It’ll feed 25 people and can be made weeks ahead and frozen until Turkey Day. Oh my! I still remember Doris’ kindness.

On another day, my husband, Dave, had left for work, but soon I heard his truck rumbling into the driveway again. He walked in the back door, took my hand and led me outside, never saying a word. Then he pointed skyward. There draped across the storm-strewn sky stretched a vivid double rainbow.

I could name so many more acts of kindness—sweet notes from friends, crayoned pictures from children; surprise cookies, cakes, and pies; and my son-in-law, who now shows up to mow and trim around those perennials. But there are even other more subtle courtesies—a tip of the hat from an older Texas gentleman; a driver who waves me through a busy intersection; a store clerk handles a return happily; my friend Pat, who on a rainy day blesses it by saying, “Enjoy the moisture.”

Has your mind just exploded remembering the kindnesses you receive every day? If you want to make up your own list, include anything that fits these descriptions: considerate, thoughtful, compassionate, sympathetic, generous, or extends good will.

Of course the best name to put at the top of your list is God. All of the descriptions fit his openhandedness and bigheartedness toward us. Through dawn of day and an infant’s birth, all the way through sunsets and last breaths on earth, we “live and move and have our being” in God (Acts 17:28).

And the best kindness of God flows through Jesus to us in reconciliation. We are taken back and forgiven even after our sins have separated us from God (Isaiah 59:1-2).

Being kind isn’t all that difficult -- really. We have a heavenly Father who daily supplies us with the initiative to be mindful of others, and in addition he still lives out extreme examples of kindness. Want to be more kind to others, just think of all the acts of generosity toward you and present the same favors to your family, friends, and strangers.

From God’s hand, to yours, to someone else -- you can put a double rainbow in someone’s day.

Self Control over Petulance-July 4

I learned something about deepening self-control through a narrative presented in Luke where Martha invited Jesus and his disciples into her home for a meal. Martha hoped to have her sister Mary’s help, but instead Mary sat and learned at the feet of Jesus. Martha complained, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself. Tell her to help me!” Although the New Testament reveals other good attributes, from the above meal incident, Martha’s been labeled a whiner.


One scholar deemed Martha’s state of mind as a “temporary petulance.” I think that defines a lot of what Christian’s struggle with in the area of self control. The word petulance describes one who is crabby, peevish, grumpy, irritable, or has a bad temper.

The Christian who has mastered “self control” has acquired both power and skills from the Holy Spirit to limit their thoughts, actions, and reactions. If we curb harmful thoughts then we keep negativism from increasing in our own mind or elsewhere. Let’s review the fruit of the Spirit and the privileged gifts: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control” (Galatians 5:22).

A follower of Christ under the control of the Holy Spirit has help in exercising authority over self. The fruit of the Holy Spirit remains opposite of the mean spirited spewings and actions that often make headline news. Merciful God grants his followers power to overcome bad habits and sin, and we no longer have to rely on human-spirit will power to overcome sins that easily get us off track.

I’ve mulled over that phrase “temporary petulance,” and I think it fits so many of the snits we humans have. When things go our way, we go through a day in relative calm. Why not? Life’s good. No one crosses, insults, or toys with our emotions. Then spouses, coworkers, or even strangers rub us the wrong way, and we get irritated.

Here’s an example of an aggravation that could plunge us into a “temporary petulance.” I had walked through a bank door, when I noticed an older man right behind me, so I held the door open for him. He marched past me and stood closest to the tellers. I stood back in wonder.

The teller asked, “Who’s next?” He never looked back, but moved up to the counter. Right then, I had a choice to make – to stew over having to wait or to ask a blessing on his day. I reasoned, how could I possibly know what was going on his life that made him neglect common courtesy? I didn’t know anything about him, so I excused him and backed it up with a prayer for his day.

I’m not telling you that to pat myself on the back. I’m telling you that to give God’s Holy Spirit a great big pat on the back. Blessing and praying for someone causing me a lengthy wait is not what I used to do. I used to fume a bit. Maybe tell someone else about his lack of manners. And the incident might have spoiled – because I allowed it to – half of my day.

You’ve had a thousand incidents of intended or unintended rudeness happen to you, too. Minor irritants can work us up into a small squall. You’ve seen how those dirt devils pop up on the landscape. They twirl in a dither, pick up bits of debris, and sling them everywhere.

Of course when everything goes our way, it’s easy to not get ruffled. But when trouble crimps the day, even then, that’s when we can ably control our thoughts, actions and reactions because we have the fruit of the Holy Spirit, faithfully remaking us.

This weekend, we celebrate Independence Day. We’ll salute our flag, and acknowledge the freedoms our country affords each of us. Why not take a few minutes to also re-pledge allegiance to Holy God, asking him to take away any rebellious spirit that wants to live independent of him. And ask for the determination to yield to his pure Spirit, who can teach and mold us to be better citizens in this beautiful land of the free and home of the brave.

Cultivating Patience

God planned that babies would arrive in nine months. We thought up instant milk formula. God told peach trees to produce peaches once a year. We thought up fast food and drive through. God ordered the earth to rotate around the sun once a year, and we invented the fast lane.


When any kind of trouble arrives, we want it over and done. Impatient, we want to trade those difficult days for our easygoing, regular life. The buzz words on the lips of on-the-go people are tweet, application, droid, and high speed. The words leisure, relax, languid, rest, and unwind have moved into the closet.

Some of us spend money we don’t have. Credit card debts mount because we want the vacation now. Rushing life, little girls wear clothing beyond their years. Speeding up their knowledge, boys are exposed to concepts kids were never meant to understand until they are older.

When confrontation arrives, instead of holding our tongue, some tell it like it is. We let them have a piece of our mind. No words barred. No holding back.

I commend those readers who have allowed God to instill and teach you patience. But for those of us, who haven’t quite opened the door and allowed patience to grow, we’ll consider that virtue this week. It remains noble to embrace this gift of the Spirit and good value that can be ours. We’ve already looked at joy and gentleness. Let’s read the list from Galatians 5:22 again and then think about patience, “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”

Our culture has coined the term “instant gratification” that somewhat defines the opposite of patience. Waiting tends to be tedious, and we may not do it well. But the patient person has learned to take his time, thoroughly complete a job, and work well with people who are not on his time table.

Sometimes our overcrowded schedules trigger impatience and even rude behavior. We’ve piled so many things into our days that if anything goes awry (and they do and will), then we get snappish, out of sorts, and ill tempered. And our family and co-workers tuck tail and hide away or snap back.

Ok. If you lack patience, you’ve probably zeroed in on at least one area where you lack self-control. It’s not enough to just identify the problem area. For betterment, one must practice patience. I’ll share four steps to aid in becoming more patient.

First, since patience is fruit of the Spirit, ask for wisdom, insight and guidance in embracing this value. The more I’ve contemplated that all these qualities are embedded in God, the more humbled I am. The only way we really receive patience is through him, and being aware of our own frailties. So, the first step is to ask for God’s help in overcoming impatience.

Second, watch for opportunities to make a “patient sacrifice” – step out of the checkout lane and let the next person go first, even when you are hurried. Wave someone into merging traffic. Let that semi truck, with his turn signal on, go ahead of you. That’ll slow you down as the driver shifts through 13 gears to get moving. He’s had to be patient with cars darting around him all day. Return the favor.

Third, practice patience in listening to those around you. Wait. Let them tell their story. Stop what you are doing. Look into their eyes. Really listen. Don’t be thinking of a comeback, a matching story, or an angry retort. Simply respond with a pleasant acknowledgement of what they told you. James says it well, “Be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry” (1:19).

Finally, practice patience through waiting. Wait to buy. Wait to respond, count to ten. Wait until mealtime to eat. Practice choosing healthier foods, not what you crave. You’ll train yourself away from instant gratification, and your waistline will thank you.

If waiting is torture to you, then plant a garden. Flowers, vegetables, or herbs -- plant them and literally put a sign on a stake that says “Patience Garden.” Waiting on blossoms and color and fresh vegetables will remind you of God’s timetable, his natural speed bumps. Each time you water, weed, or fertilize, the activity will remind you of your partnership with God.

He will plant patience and you can watch it grow.

Thank You, Gentle Dads

“Brimstone, damnation on top of hammeration.” In Walt Disney’s movie Pollyanna that’s how one parishioner described the minister’s weekly sermons. Because of his tirade, the flock departed each Sunday with open wounds instead of receiving encouragement to meet their work week.

Contrast that scene to the one in John when Jesus and his disciples dined together. “The disciple Jesus loved was reclining next to Jesus . . . . He leaned back on Jesus’ breast” (John 13:23, 25). This tender setting reveals Jesus, gentle among his beloved.

The disciples who lived with Jesus witnessed his innate gentleness. He touched leprous skin; he scattered a fallen woman’s accusers. He then led her onto a path of righteousness, “Go now and leave your life of sin” (John 8:11). Gentleness, fruit of the Holy Spirit, surged through Jesus’ time spent with his disciples. Gentleness is the opposite of harsh treatment or an “I’m right; you’re wrong” attitude.

On this weekend when we honor fathers, I’m reminded of the fruits of the Spirit, especially “gentleness.” Last week, we considered “joy.” And this week, let’s think a bit about an easy-going way.

Jesus, on a holy mission to seek and save the lost, exhibited in his daily walk the fruit of the Spirit. You recall the list in Galatians 5:22: love joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. And while on earth, he remained supremely superior in every virtue.

Jesus didn’t twist arms to get people to believe that God was God. Jesus never coerced acquaintances, but rather gave his listeners reason, through living example, to believe he was God’s son, to believe that he spoke the truth. In demeanor and teaching, he refused to lord over people.

Meek, not wimpy or unassertive, gentle Jesus salted the earth with the wisest kind of living. God longs for relationship with us, but his approach is not bullying, revenge, manipulation or scare tactics, but rather the practice of gentle love.

Fathers, you are privileged to present the nature of God accurately. A humility laden life has the power to lead a child in the way they should go. “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up strife (Proverbs 15:1). Message-seeds flung gently by sower-fathers into the lives of their offspring can fall on fertile “heart lands.”

Of course a godly father also knows when to administer appropriate discipline for misdeeds. We all make mistakes in parenting, but a father on a quest to embody the fruit of the Spirit will out-parent those who have no such goal.

Throughout the Old and New Testaments, the Holy Spirit left us word-pictures of God caring for his children. In the western world, we tend to use abstract words to describe God such as those which describe the fruit of the Spirit love, joy, kindness, etc. But in the eastern culture where the Bible originated, the people there often used metaphor in description.

So, the Bible is replete with word-pictures of strong, nourishing God described as a shepherd who looks for one lost sheep; a stable rock; or God stooping down, bending over like a dad, who scoops up a child and dries a tear. Also, God describes himself as engraving his beloved peoples’ names into the palm of his hand declaring, “I will not forget you.” He reminds them that their names are not on a stone monument stashed away somewhere, but on his very palms. Always before him (Isaiah 49:15-16).

Recently at an outdoor event, I watched as several elderly gentlemen hobbled to a wooden bench to sit side-by-side. One obviously had arthritis, one limped, one was simply stooped over – most likely from years of labor. Dads, you’ve done a lot for us. We know you have had us in your mind for many years, always wanting the best for us. You work hard, you provide, you nourish, and you give gentle answers. For mirroring our heavenly Father to us, we give thanks for you and to you. Happy Father’s Day.

The Sunny Side

Our two-year-old granddaughter Molly loves to be outdoors, and she wanted to go outside one day last week when we kept her. However the heat index was 104 degrees. Grandmothers melt at that level. Did you know?

She didn’t kick or scream when I told her, “No, it’s too hot, Molly.” But, disappointed, she did lie facedown on the cool pine floor remaining silent and sad for a few minutes. Then, up she came -- off to play again -- in her usual happy mood.

This winter, Jolie, our five-year-old granddaughter, went to school several days when gray skies ruled and outdoor temps ranged in the teens in South Texas. On the weekend, a sunny day finally came along, but the outdoor temps remained in the low 20s. Jolie’s mom looked up just in time to see Jolie walking out of their home. Clad in a two-piece bathing suit, sun glasses, and with a rolled beach towel under her arm, she was ready for fun in the sun. Young children don’t comprehend the seasons -- they just trust their eyes to tell them if it’s sunny outside.

As little ones grow up, they finally learn that you can’t always trust that the sunny skies will tell you the outside temperature. Sheltered by the indoors and looking out windows, our eyes don’t comprehend the freezing or blazing temperatures. Understanding the changing seasons does that. But Christians have received a permanent joy that has nothing to do with playing outdoors in pretty weather.

In one section of the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Galatians, he contrasts the works that come from our flesh, and the works that flow from the Holy Spirit, who abides within Christians and gifts us with power over the sins of the flesh

Paul calls gifts from the Holy Spirit the “fruit” of the Spirit. Notice that’s a singular fruit. Because the Holy Spirit abides in us, he brings along his nature which has plenty of nutritious goodness including: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (5:22). I love how Paul says there is no law against these, no throttle, no governor. Put them into gear as much as you want!

The one I want to focus on is joy. When we receive the Spirit of God, we receive the joy of God. God can gift joy because it is an innate quality of his. His abiding joy gifted to us does not depend upon sunny weather or circumstances. We can be in the throes of grief and still retain the joy of God. It may not bubble to the surface at those times, but it remains within us.

Because we have joy as a permanent gift, we are enabled to “enjoy” and “rejoice.” The prefix “en” means “in” or “into,” an act of taking in pleasure, from internal and external things. We can enjoy numerous things – from meditation on deeper things of life to the sight of a majestic mountain. The Spirit of God gifts us with the capacity to enjoy.

Also, the gift of joy gives us the ability to rejoice. The prefix “re” can mean once or repeatedly. We get to experience joy through one time events -- at a baptism or a wedding. Or, we rejoice again and again each time we see our loved ones or spouses or a sunrise. Bible reading can produce rejoicing, as the layers of God’s goodness become real to us. How many times have you rejoiced to see a child’s face light up with a smile? Take the hand of a young child and walk into any nursing home to see how aged, wrinkled faces react to someone so freshly molded from the hand of God.

A prophet wrote about how God, again and again, coos over us with satisfaction, “He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). The word “rejoice” means that this happens repeatedly.

Kathy Hardee writes a blog where she shares one encouraging scripture each day. Her blog header reads, “Imagine God draping His arm around your shoulders every morning, and then telling you one thing.”

I’d like to borrow her phrase to emphasize that joy should rise with the sun each day. Imagine God draping his arm across your shoulder every morning and telling you, ‘Today I gift you joy, supported by my other attributes of love, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”

The old song lyrics from 1927 advises, “Keep on the sunny side of life.” Jesus followers, that’s genuine counsel. You’re not fooled by the hot or cold of life, because you are in a permanent season of joy.

Contact Cathy at writecat@consolidated.net