Focus on One

It's Sunday afternoon - actually, at the moment, not quite afternoon, but we'll pass 12 o'clock in a few minutes. I just got up from an after church nap. Toni and I tend to go to the earlier of the two services at Roseville Covenant Church, so even after having talked with friends and acquaintances after services, there's plenty of time for a rest before lunchtime.

When I got up I took a look at the My Utmost for His Highest devotional for the day, and the topic was "The Teaching of Disillusionment." It has to do with learning, sometimes through painful experience, to have a clear and realistic view of how limited and fallible people are, even those we think of as strong and admirable. This brings us to the point where there will be limits to how much we will expect from other people, and that "there is only one Being" that is reliable in the end "and that is the Lord Jesus Christ."

I'm thankful for how the Word of God continually brings me back to that One. No church, no community, no pastor, no friend, no wife or husband, no son or daughter or grandchild, no mother or father, or, obviously no politician or government, no work/job or financial security, and no health care system is able to truly satisfy any of my needs. They will all fail me at some point. Jesus, the One God in human flesh, the One who we learn of from the Bible, He's the Only One who I can really depend upon. When I trust in Him I will not be disappointed. He will bring me safely through--even when I feel otherwise. It's good to be brought back to Him.

I'm not sure right now what Toni and I will be doing for the rest of the day. My nephew Nicholas Grivna is competing in a state meet of the "Minnesota Swimming" organization -- I might bike down to the University of Minnesota to see him in one of his relays later on. Before that there are lots of projects I could keep busy with here at home.

Then tomorrow I'll be back at work. Join me in asking the Lord to always me (and you) focused on Him and His ways.

equalsharing.com

What I Think I Need

I wasn't able to sleep so I got up, after spending quite a bit of time in bed, ate a very early breakfast and read a daily devotional from Oswald Chambers. Then I wrote this on facebook:

What is there that I think I need to have in order to make life worthwhile? When I know Jesus and his love and the promise of resurrection that I share with Him, I can let go of whatever that is and simply love and serve with all my will, with all my deep and meaningful feelings, my mind and all the ways I use the various abilities and strengths He has developed in me. When I keep my focus on Jesus, and as long as I have the basics of life, I need not pursue anything else. This brings freedom and joy to every day. All my actions are guided by His call -- as long as I keep Jesus in the center of my plans. This is a great challenge, something I hope and pray I will allow the Lord to plant grow in my heart as long as I live. (written as a reflection on today's My Utmost for His Highest https://utmost.org/sanctification-1/)

Time to go back to bed! God's peace to you tonight.

equalsharing.com

Applying Bible Verses To Every-Day Life

When Jesus says, in Matthew 11, "Come to me, all you who labor..." and "Take my yoke..." etc., how does that connect with work, as in our every day work-for-a-living that we do except when we've got a day off?

Tomorrow I'll go back to my work at Metro Transit. This week "Bus Operators" like me will pick the routes we'll drive from mid-August through early December. It's a decision I make in consultation with my Lord.

When we come to Jesus with our burdens, when we adopt his attitude toward life, we receive Jesus' promises: "I will give you rest." The "yoke" we take on, that is, the duties that we "do" day after day--they become better fitting for us. Jesus says: "My yoke is easy (well fitting) and my burden is light."

I've experienced joy in my work for many years. I attribute that to Jesus and give him thanks.

---------
I started this post yesterday -- late Sunday morning -- when I was here at the cabin alone. I began it as follows:

Toni and I are up at her parents' cabin again this weekend. She's been here all along, I came back yesterday afternoon.

It's very quiet right now. The rest (Toni, her parents, her brother, Kelly and Abigail) went into town for church. I didn't want to go there again this week, last week I went with Toni's parents (Dick & Jo) last Sunday while the others stayed home. Now I'm here while the others are gone. Charlie's sleeping on the couch. It's only me and him here.

The church Dick & Jo go to in Hayward is one they served (as pastor and wife) back in the late 1950s and early 1960s. That church reads scriptures on Sundays following what's called "The Revised Common Lectionary." So, as I often do when I with people who are going to churches that use a pattern of readings, I looked up and read what they'll hear. I asked Toni and David if they would remember  also went online and listened to the "Sermon Brainwave Podcast" for today - a podcast that's part of the "Working Preacher" website that I looked at quite often when I was preaching from the lectionary, back when I was serving ELCA churches (until August 2010).

Also (writing now on Monday morning), I asked Toni and others who went to church yesterday to take some notes on the sermon. The reflection at the top of this post came out of time spent with the scripture texts those family members heard and the notes my brother in law David sent to me.

How will you apply the Word of God to your life today? Let me know if I can help.

equalsharing.com

Demolition Update

Written Tuesday:

It's about 11 AM on the fourth of July. I'm about ready to go back out into the demolished kitchen. One thing I need to do is to continue to cut the wire mesh that runs along the length of the soffit -- where it meets the ceiling and wall. All of that needs to be carefully taken out. Thankfully I've got a "multi tool" -- Bonita Garthus gave it to me when we were in Cokato -- that will do the trick.

Before I do that though, I'm going to start the process of moving the temporary wall that I put up between the kitchen and living room. I don't need to move it far, just a few inches at the top so I can get to the edge of the beam that runs through the length of the house. We have a very nice cove ceiling in the living room and we want to preserve that. So I'll need to get more plastic out -- I've got a lot stored up -- to make a second line of defense against the dust.

I'll work on that for most of the rest of the day. Kelly and her daughter, who are staying downstairs during these days when our renter is gone, will be going up to the cabin to join Toni and her parents and brother. When she goes I can begin work to take out the low (at the level of the soffit) ceiling over the back door.

Our contractor was here this morning for a half hour. I got some advice and encouragement from him. I also was reminded how long it will take to get the kitchen done once he starts his work. That will be about 5 weeks.

Now it's Thursday evening. When the contractor was here on Tuesday he told me I needed to remove some 2x2s and 2x4s that were running along the wall and ceiling. They were what the soffits were attached to. I got rid of those yesterday and today, so now I'm ready to tackle the one remaining soffit near the back door.

I thought I'd go out and do some more demolition tonight but I'm weary. I'll wait until morning. Tomorrow I'm off from my bus driving job.

If you want to see more, take a look at the video posted at this link.

Good night.

equalsharing.com

God's Arrangements

It's the end of another good day. I'm home. I drove my regular morning and afternoon routes. Tomorrow, July 4, I've got the day off.

Toni and others, including our three kids and four grandchildren are still where I was over the weekend, at my in-laws' Durphee Lake cabin. One of my kids asked if I was sad that I had to come home last night, but I wasn't.

The Lord arranged things so I would be here, at home, for most of this week so I could continue, and, hopefully, finish, getting this house's kitchen area ready for the contractor to begin his remodeling work. He used my tardiness in asking to use vacation days today and two other days this week so I could do this. I'm thankful that He's in control.

Our contractor will come by tomorrow morning so I can get some advice and get a good idea of when he'll be free of his other projects so he can start putting our kitchen back together (in a new way). I'm confident that it's all in God's good timing. I'm not anxious at all.

(See tomorrow's utmost.org for some scriptural wisdom about "worry.")

equalsharing.com