Singing to the Creation

Have you ever thought about how large a roll singing
plays in the world? We sing when we mourn, and we sing when we worship but most
of all we sing when we are happy. God intended it to be that way and shows us
by example how to rejoice and share our happiness.

Can you imagine the first morning Adam awoke in the
Garden of Eden and heard the birds singing? Can you imagine God walking through
the garden and humming to himself as he enjoys his creation? I must admit that
it is somewhat of a stretch of even my active imagination, but do you think HE
just might have?

God
tells us through Isaiah 49:13:
"Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into
singing, O mountains: for the Lord has comforted his people, and will have
mercy upon his afflicted."

Our son Kirk shared this little incident that happened
with our granddaughter Allison last week: "So I have picked up my 7 year
old daughter Allison and we are driving home. She is singing happily to herself
when she suddenly decides to talk about her future employment and career
options. She says to me, "I do like singing. But I also really like
science! I guess I could sing to the creatures I create." Apparently I am
the proud father of a budding mad scientist! "

If the mind of a child can imagine that, why not the mind
of God? There is a scripture we primarily read at Christmas time, but I want you to think
of it in a different way. What's the scripture? Luke 2:1-14: "And
the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of
great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the
city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; You shall find the
babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.  And suddenly there was with the angel
a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the
highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

I believe God was happy and rejoicing as the heavenly
host sang to His creation sharing his Joy. That's why the angels sang. 

So how often do you sing, maybe not to "your
creation," but sing because you rejoice or are just happy? James counsels
us: "Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy?
Let them sing songs of praise." (James 5:13) Maybe a better
question might be, are you happy in your life or with your relationship to your
creator? If you are, then sing, it's what God intended.

Sometimes you get a pit

Have you ever been enjoying a nice piece of cherry pie
and suddenly come across a cherry pit (seed)? I have, on several occasions in
my life. Pits are unexpected and sometimes painful; at the very least they are
a nuisance.

Life sometimes is that way also isn't it? That’s why
we have the saying in America, "Isn’t that just the pits?" You
know what I am talking about I’m sure. You are expecting a good day and along
comes a pit. Your life is fairly untroubled and an illness or accident pops up.
You are doing well at work and then you get the word your job is ending. Your
church life is going pretty well, and the preacher announces that he is
retiring. "Isn't that just the pits?"

I wish that we could find a way to make our lives always
fun, always joyful, always feeling good, but that just isn't the way life is,
is it? Often it seems we have the wrong idea that our relationship with Christ
is suppose to make bad things stop. That idea is strengthened by what we do,
say and sing to one another. I have always enjoyed singing the song Blue Skies
and Rainbows.

In case you don't know the words here they are: (1)
"Blue skies and
rainbows and sunbeams from heaven. Are what I
can see when My Lord is living in me. (2) Green grass and flowers, all blooming
in springtime, is works of the Master I live for each day. (3) Tall mountains,
green valleys, the beauty that surrounds me. All make me aware of the One Who
made it all. Chorus: Jesus is well and alive today; He makes His home in my
heart. Never more will I be all alone since He promised me that we never would
part."

That song proclaims how wonderful our life will be if
we only have Jesus in it and it is 100% right if you are just talking about
spiritual things. However the physical side of life keeps intervening with that
perfect life doesn't it? How is it that the apostle Paul could write, "I
have learned to be content whatever the circumstances" referring
to all of his physical challenges? (Philippians
4:11) In verse 13 he writes,
"I can do all this through him (Christ) who gives me strength."

Paul accepted the fact that bad things sometimes
happen in our lives, but he wasn't living his life according to what happened
to him physically. His hope and his ability to cope, was based upon what was
going to happen after he left this physical world.

Yes, sometimes you get "a pit" in life when
you were expecting to enjoy the cherry. Some folks give up or even get mad at
God because bad things happen. They seem to say, "When I became a
Christian I was only suppose to receive good things!" They will, but of
course God has promised good things in the spirit and that is what they really
struggle with.

So, can we still sing "Blue skies and rainbows
are what I see when my lord is living in me"? Yes, of course we can if we
understand what the promise is really about. Our promise is of a time to come
when there will be no more tears, no more death, no more suffering (Revelation
21:4). That's what Christians really live for, so if you are not, why not start
now? Your "pit" is coming, how are you going to deal with it?

It's all about the weather!

It seems that at almost any time of the year, the first
topic of conversation is the weather. In fact if any conversation every lags,
just ask about the weather to get it going again. Is it going to rain, it is
going to snow, how much snow is there going to be, is there going to be fog or
ice? Sometimes an optimistic person will ask, "Is it going to be sunny
today?," which leads to the question of how hot it might get.

I saw an interesting sign the other day that really got my interest.
It said, "TODAY'S FORCAST: GOD REIGNS AND THE SON SHINES". I mean,
think of the truth of that statement. Our weather is so unpredictable, so
changeable, it can change in a matter of minutes, but God is the one constant
in our universe.

I love what James has to say about God in regard to this in James 1:17. He tells us, "Every
good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the
heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows ". (NIV)

Our lives are full of shadows aren’t they? Loss of loved
ones, loss of jobs, economies which crumble, prices which climb, our ability to
pay for daily necessities, age sneaking up on us, abuses, betrayals, health
issues, and the list could go on an on. Shadows come and shadows go, but God is
constant, "he never changes or casts a shifting shadow".

As you are dealing with the latest crisis in your life, your
shadow, wouldn't it be nice to feel safe for a change, wouldn't it be nice to
be able to deal with the shadows? Could it just be time to look at your
relationship with God and start to put a light in your life?

I read a funny little saying the other day that said,
"If they don't want you to snack at night, why did they put a light in the
refrigerator?" In the same way, if God didn't want to light your life, why
did the creator of all light make it known to us that he is the light? Maybe
it's time you reconnect to "the Father of light" in your world. He
never promised to take away the shadows, but he will give us light to deal with
them as they come and go from our life. Why? Because, GOD REIGNS AND THE SON
SHINES.

SMALL ANNOYANCES

I
don't know about you, but I don't automatically think of scripture with every
event in my life. However the other day, as it does on occasion, it happened
that a scripture popped into my mind, in an unusual place.

The
occasion was when my wife and I were having lunch at our favorite Chinese
Restaurant. With the meal we received the standard "Fortune Cookie".
You know that little cookie with the small piece of paper inside with your
supposed future or life lessons described, usually in vague terms. Mine read,
"Put up with small annoyances to
gain great results".

The
scripture that immediately sprang to mind was 1 Peter 1:6-7, where Peter encourages us with these words:
"In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may
have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the
proven genuineness of your faith, of greater worth than gold, which perishes
even though refined by fire, may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus
Christ is revealed". (NIV)

The
human side of me says, "I love God and I don't need a test or a trial to
prove it". God says however, "Yes, you do!" Personally I don't
like the trials in my life. I just want my life to flow along smoothly without
any bumps in the road. I like it that way, but it's been rare where there has
been a period of time in my life that has been without some kind of trial which
tests the strength of my faith.

Another
scripture that comes to mind is Hebrews 12:11-12 where the writer
reminds us that: "No discipline is enjoyable while it is
happening, it's painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of
right living for those who are trained in this way. So take a new grip with
your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees".  (NLT)

Personally,
I'm looking forward to more "peaceful harvest of right living". God
expects us to show continual growth in our spiritual lives. That's why the
testing? To strengthen our reliance upon God for our help. To grow to a point
spiritually that we can say with the apostle Paul, "I no longer live, but Christ
lives in me." (Galatians 2:20)

So,
putting up with small annoyances is only one way our faith is tested, because
they can easily turn in to big problems. When they do, how do deal with that
"refining" of your faith? Isaiah put it this way in Isaiah 26:4, "Trust in the LORD forever, for
the LORD, the LORD himself, is the Rock eternal".

So
how are you doing? Personally, I'm still struggling and still growing and still
learning to "trust in the Lord
forever", because he is "the rock eternal."