Which Way?

Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: 

"I am the LORD your God, 

who teaches you to profit, who leads you in the way you should go.”

Isaiah 48:17, ESV

Since I have a difficult time making decisions, even simple ones, I notice (and photograph!) directional signs that offer a variety of destinations, such as this one I discovered on Sanibel Island, Florida in 2009.

Rarely, for me, are decisions as simple as A or B? 1 or 2? Left or right? 

Instead, I see a myriad of possibilities, as on the sign, and I try to evaluate each one. If I take this route, thus and so might happen. If I choose this, then the result will be….

Because of my angst with decision making, I love Bible verses that assure me God will guide me down the paths He thinks best for me. A particularly favorite passage is Isaiah 30:20-21, ESV, “…but your eyes shall see your Teacher. And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, 'This is the way, walk in it,' when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.”

That’s exactly the kind of clear direction I need! Do you need that clarity, too, Dear Reader? If so, let’s learn to listen carefully. He is with us. He is speaking!

Like a Bubbling Brook

The words of a man’s mouth are deep waters;

the fountain of wisdom is a bubbling brook.

Proverbs 18:4, ESV

When I read the above words, pictures of bubbling brooks I’d taken through the years immediately flashed in my mind. Although I didn’t fully understand the meaning of the words in that verse, I was strangely drawn to them. So, the following day, I read Bible commentaries to help me understand the meaning. Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible was particularly helpful because as I read that interpretation of the verse, I began to understand why it had captured my attention.

Let me explain. For the past few weeks, I had noticed (and been awed by) the way various writers (of the Bible and self-help books) seemed to be telling me the same thing every morning during the hour or more I spent reading the Bible, reading devotional books, praying, writing, etc.

Even though the Bible and the other books were written by various authors in various centuries, the “message of the day” was basically the same! And, even more astonishing, each one related to what I was experiencing at that time. How is this possible? I wondered. How do they know how to write so specifically to my need on any given morning? How do ministers and hymn writers do the same kind of thing?????

According to John Gill, the famous Puritan pastor, here’s how the process works: The doctrines (teachings) a godly person absorbs and fills his heart with and which his mouth utters are like “waters,” waters that are pure, purifying, and refreshing. “Deep waters” make no noise and cannot be easily plumbed. Out of this abundance of wonderful “water" in a godly person’s heart, his (or her) mouth speaks. And the wellspring of wisdom within such a person is like “ a flowing brook; like a spring of spiritual wisdom and knowledge within him; like “a well of water, springing up unto everlasting life; and from [there] it flows freely and constantly; communicating itself liberally unto others, and ministering grace to the hearers, for their edification” (instruction, enlightenment, guidance).

I am indescribably grateful for such persons. And I long to be one of them.

©2015 by Johnnie Ann Gaskill

The Blessed Life

A member of the camera club volunteered to provide transportation to the site of an upcoming photography shoot. So, a week or so before the group was to go there, I said to him, “Since you’re kind enough to do the driving, why don’t you choose the time you want to leave and get back?”

In that easygoing, polite manner of his, he said, “No. You tell me when you want to leave and when you want to come home, and I will get you there.”

During the three-hour trip to the gardens, he talked briefly about the highly stressful job he had retired from. With a slow grin, he said, “That’s why I try not to make too many decisions now.”

Even the heavy traffic in Atlanta didn’t appear to stress him. He stayed relaxed and kept the conversation going. Throughout the day, he remained calm, unhurried, accommodating of the group’s needs—and grinning, as if he knew a wonderful secret. As I observed his attitudes and actions, I thought, The phrase ‘No hurry. No worry’ describes him perfectly!

When, a few months later, I found the following quote in the Jan. 14^th devotional reading in Streams in the Desert, I thought of him--and others who seem so at peace as they go through life, no matter how stressful it becomes.

“This is the blessed life—not anxious to see far down the road nor overly concerned about the next step, not eager to choose the path nor weighted down with the heavy responsibilities of the future, but quietly following the Shepherd, one step at a time.”

Indeed, “the blessed life” is that of a calm and quiet spirit that lets the Shepherd choose the path and then meekly follows Him, wherever He leads, one step at a time.

Recipe for a Happy New Year

Note: I scheduled this to post on Jan. 1st, but (due to some error, probably on my part), it didn't post on that day. Even so, this "recipe" is good on any day of the year!

When my daily Bible reading brought me to 2 Peter 1:5-8, I realized that passage was the “recipe” for a useful, fruitful life. As I thought about all the “ingredients” required, I remembered having read a similar “recipe” in one of the many cookbooks I’ve collected through the years. I located it, typed it, and then thought, Hmmm. I’d like to include a photo when I post the recipe.

I hurriedly gathered some of the things I’d need if I were making something edible. Then, I took the photo you see below. I had a good time “playing” with the setup. Most importantly, I’ve realized that all the ingredients listed in the Bible verse and in the recipe below are necessary. Best not to leave any of them out—if we want life to turn out right!

Recipe for a Happy New Year

Clean thoroughly 12 whole months.

Divide into 365 parts/days; set aside, preparing just one day at a time, as follows.

Mix well into each day:

1 part patience

1 part work

1 part courage

Add to each day:

1 part hope

1 part faithfulness

1 part generosity

1 part kindness

Blend with:

1 part prayer

1 part meditation

1 part good deed

Season each day’s mixture with:

A sprinkle of fun

A pinch of play

1 c. good humor

Pour mixture into a vessel of love.

Cook over radiant joy.

Garnish with a smile.

Serve with quietness, unselfishness, and cheer.

Yield: 1 Happy Year

~~ Unknown

…applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness love. For if these qualities [faith, moral excellence, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love] are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless or unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Peter 1:5-8, New American Standard Bible

Come to the Light

Upon awakening in a hotel room that was as dark as a moonless night, I delighted to see the outside light shining underneath the pinch-pleated, room-darkening drapes. I smiled as I also noticed the bit of electric light slipping through the space around the edges of the bathroom door. I eased out of bed, reached for my cell phone that was on the nightstand, and took a picture.

Upon hearing the snap of the shutter, my sleepy husband mumbled, “What are you taking pictures of?”

“The light! I love it!”

He groaned and rolled over in the bed. Knowing he wasn’t loving the light as much as I was, I snapped only three or four pictures before entering the bathroom to shower and dress for the trip home. In that room there was abundant light!

I wasn’t sure what the “message” about the light would be, but I knew it would come to me. Sure enough, it came the following morning as I busied myself in the kitchen. It was in the words of an old song, “The Light of the World is Jesus,” written by Philip P. Bliss in 1895. All I could remember of it was the refrain:

Come to the light, ‘tis shining for thee;

Sweetly the light has dawned upon me.

Once I was blind, but now I can see:

The Light of the world is Jesus!

I realized anew that by continually coming to Jesus, I can have as much light for life’s journey as I want. Although there’s much darkness (evil, sadness, suffering, etc.) in this world, there’s light available for the journey, if only I will open the door to my heart and pull back the “drapes” of my mind to receive His light. How much light I have to walk by depends on how wide I open myself to Him, how eager I am to walk in the light instead of stumble around in the darkness. Dear Reader, let’s come to the Light. It’s shining for us!!!

©2015 by Johnnie Ann Gaskill

Wait! Watch!

“Is your church having a Watch Night Service?” a friend asked.

“I haven’t heard about one,” I responded.

That question set me to thinking about Watch Night services I attended while growing up in the beautiful north Georgia mountains. Each New Year’s Eve around 10 p.m., our family would meet with other families at the little country church, and together we would worship as we waited for the arrival of the New Year. We’d sing hymns and pray. Some folks would stand and testify about the blessings the Lord had given them in the past and how they trusted Him to be faithful to them in the coming year.

Those simple services stand in stark contrast to the way so many people celebrate today. Back in those long-ago days, we knew nothing about “toasting” in the New Year, of being among the thousands who gather in large cities to celebrate, of needing “designated drivers” to get us home, and so forth. We celebrated quietly, with hearts filled with gratitude to our gracious God—and with our hands, figuratively speaking, in His, trusting Him to lead us and to guide us in the coming year, as He had in the past.

Even though Watch Night Services are pretty much a thing of the past, I continue to celebrate the coming of the New Year in a similar manner in my own home. As the old year draws to an end, I sit quietly and reflect on the ways God blessed me in it and thank Him for His mercy and grace. I ask Him to take care of me in the New Year and to show me the paths He wants me to follow, since what was said to God’s people centuries ago as they prepared to enter the land He had promised to them can be said to me—and to you, Dear Reader:  “You have not been this way before” (Joshua 3:4).

Since we, like they, need Him to lead us, let’s wait quietly and watch eagerly for Him.

©2014, Johnnie Ann Burgess Gaskill 

This is the Bible my Daddy and Mother gave me for my birthday in 1978.
It is one of my most cherished possessions.
My parents knew that the Word of God
would show me how to live a good and godly life,
as it had shown them.

Gifts Are Waiting!

The Sunday before Christmas, our pastor preached a wonderful sermon about “The Gift of Prayer.” During the message, he said we are the ones who lose if we reject God’s invitation to confidently “draw near the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16, ESV). Whether we stubbornly refuse the gift of prayer or simply neglect to draw near to God, we miss out on the wonderful gifts God wants to give us, gifts He has already prepared for us, gifts just waiting until such time as we turn to Him and ask for them.

Upon hearing that, I immediately thought about the Christmas gifts that were wrapped and waiting in my house. How sad—unthinkable, actually—that the intended recipients of those gifts would fail to express any interest in receiving them, that they would go on their merry way without paying any attention to me and to the gifts I've lovingly provided for them. Yet, we do that same kind of thing when we fail to pray. For example, the Bible clearly says, “You do not have, because you do not ask. ³You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions” (James 4:2b-3, ESV).

Dear Reader, all sorts of wonderful gifts are in God’s storehouse of blessings, gifts with our name on them, gifts just waiting for us to humbly ask God for them and then gratefully receive them. Let us, then, draw near the throne of grace every day!

Let the light shine!

As my husband started to put up our Christmas tree, I said, “Oh, hold off just a few minutes, please, so I can wash the windows before the tree goes up.”

Within a few minutes, the living room windows were sparkling clean—inside and out. Cleaning them wasn’t absolutely necessary, since they weren’t all that dirty. Even so, I wanted to do all I could to showcase the tiny white lights on the tree, hoping they would delight folks driving down the street. I know I’m always affected by the sight of soft light in a window, especially on very dark nights. Such light conveys a feeling of peace, of warmth and coziness, of simplicity and timelessness, of …. Thus, I’m happy to let light shine forth from my windows so that others can enjoy it and know that there is life within these walls, that people live here.

Even more appealing than light shining in a window is the light that emanates from people who truly love the Lord Jesus and have a close relationship with Him. Such persons have an inner glow that is obvious to all. Folks are drawn to him or her, eager to know what is producing the glow, the peace, the gentleness, the joy, the love…. The cleaner the windows of the soul, the brighter His light shines forth.

You are the light of the world—like a city on a mountain, glowing in the night for all to see. Don’t hide your light under a basket! Instead, put it on a stand and let it shine for all. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.

~Jesus (in Matthew 5:14-16, New Living Translation)

Like a Birdling In Its Nest

¹He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
            Will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.

²I will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress,
            My God, in whom I trust!”

³For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper
            And from the deadly pestilence.

⁴He will cover you with His pinions,
            And under His wings you may seek refuge;
            His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark.

Psalm 91:1-4, NASB

On Dec. 14^th, as a friend and I talked about our favorite devotional books, we mentioned Streams in the Desert. Later that day, I ordered that book for my Kindle but didn’t begin reading it until the following morning. The moment I read the poem at the end of the devotional for that day, I felt compelled to share it with others, especially with a friend whose one-year-old great grandson had been hospitalized the night before. I knew it contained good advice for her—and for all of us!

Trust and rest when all around you

Puts your faith to stringent test;

Let no fear or foe confound you,

Wait for God and trust and rest.

Trust and rest with heart abiding,

Like a birdling in its nest,

Underneath His feathers hiding,

Fold your wings and trust and rest.

Dec. 15^th reading, Streams in the Desert, written by L. B. Cowman, edited by James Reiman, ©1997. Original was published in 1925.