She carries an alabaster jar of perfume.  Not the cheap stuff.  This is pure nard.  Worth a year’s wages.  Mary opens the jar and pours.  The sweet fragrance of extravagent love bathes the entire room.*

When was the last time you expressed love extravagently?  I don’t mean wantonly or recklessly – there’s a proper time and place – but generously, with joyous abandon?  Or are you holding back, linking arms with Someday...?

“Someday we’ll have them over for dinner.”

“Let’s get together someday.”

“We’ll take that family vacation someday.  The kids will understand.”

“Someday I’ll remember her birthday.”

“I’ll give him a call someday.”

Ever notice how “Somedays” arrive with the frequency of Haley’s Comet?  That calendars too often take precedence over caring?  That concocting excuses is more important than connecting?  Or that weeds of neglect wither the flower of friendship?

The truth is, “somedays” never come.  So plant the garden.  Cultivate that friendship.  Buy the gift, send the card, offer the hug.  Make the apology.  Slow down and think for a minute.  Is there a call you need to make?  A letter you need to mail?  An invitation to extend, an email to send  – or respond to?  Do it now.

Mary knew that extragavagent love is meant to be shared.  Put another way: What good is perfume if it never escapes the jar?

* Matthew 26:6-13, Mark 14:3-9, John 12:1-11.

By: Kristine  Lowder

Facebook @Kristine’s Klips

Twitter @ Road Diverged

“I will come for you.  No matter how long it takes, no matter how far – I will come.”

Nathaniel to Cora in The Last of the Mohicans

I can find renewed hope in what merely appears to be hopeless situations. “Now to him who by the power of work within us is able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or think, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:20-21 RSV).” Disappointment tiptoes in darkness of despair, hope marches in the light of God’s grace!

I’m now nursing a broken leg and will be on crutches till 1st February when I have to go back and see the surgeon. I spent 8 days in hospital and had to have surgery to have a rod and screws put into my leg.  Consequently my poor husband has had to look after me, the household, meals and the cats – when he struggles to look after himself some days.  My husband had an accident himself, only 8 months prior, resulting in spinal cord injury – much worse than my own injury.  He’s still recovering and is on painkillers. While he can now walk and use his right hand, he is still limited with things he can do – and easily.  What was supposed to be 3 weeks of Christmas holiday leave turned out to be a time of being a Carer for me.  He’s done a wonderful job but he hasn’t had to do it all himself.  And the reason why is because we have a support network of family, friends, neighbours and our church family.  Between them we’ve had shopping done, especially before Christmas, Christmas presents wrapped, the house cleaned, cooked meals provided, errands run, my business mail picked up, and support and prayer.  Without these people we would have been in a far worse state and my husband probably wouldn’t have coped.

Why have I brought this up? A friend on Facebook recently posted about the challenges she is having with her family of boys. One is nearing his teen years. She’s been a widow for a few years now and is struggling to manage her family and finds it a real challenge and very tiring. I asked her if she had contacted her local church and asked for help. Her response was that there are others with worse problems than her and she didn’t want to bother them. I told her she was wrong and that the church will only know there’s a problem and she needs help – if she tells them.

We are often told that God is concerned about every single detail in our lives and that He wants us to bring those concerns to Him.  Likewise I think it’s important we reach out to His people because who is better equipped to help us and be there for us, if not God’s people?

A Proverbs 31 Woman, in most cases, has a man, her husband, to look after her and care for her. But what about those who are widows or without their husbands for some reason? While she will still watch over the affairs of her household (Proverbs 31, verse 27) she is still very much someone who needs to be looked after.  In the Bible we’re encouraged to look out for widows and orphans – but if you don’t know they have a need, it’s unlikely you’ll be helping them.

If you know a widow (or widower), or single parent, especially one with young children, why not check on them regularly?  Particularly if they don’t have other family close by.  Unfortunately today so many are separated from their extended family members and are often hundreds of miles away. They’ll be appreciative of adult company and conversation and may not feel they can ask for help – so why not offer it anyway?  And if they say ‘no’, keep in touch – they may just feel that they can’t ask or accept, even when they are in need.

While some people seem to be able to maintain well-ordered houses all the time, mine seems to attract clutter the way refrigerators attract magnets (did I mention that I have too many of those as well?). Some of it, I have little control over. After all, I don’t live alone and I need to respect my husband’s and children’s needs and desires as well. I can encourage them to live more simply and to give away what they no longer need, but no matter how much I might want to, I cannot simply bag up all their possessions and bring them to the local thrift shop. Part of loving other people is making the sacrifice of living with their “stuff.”

Still, I can set a good example and reduce what is within my power to do so. Right now, the sheer amount of stuff is weighing me down. Mary Ann Otto writes of a similar problem in “Boxing Day,” featured in the January 2012 issue of U.S. Catholic:

We tend to store things long after they have outlived their usefulness. I am not sure why; perhaps we document our life with them. Maybe letting go of them reminds us of our own mortality, with the realization that we will not be taking a U-Haul with us into the next life.

Jesus warns us against storing up treasures on earth. There is a reason: I find the more I keep unnecessary items, the more difficult it is to be at peace and in solidarity with Christ’s teachings. I am often distracted by clutter, and there is little doubt others could benefit from my surplus possessions.

There is obviously nothing wrong with owning things. We all need some items – things that are necessary for life, as well as things that are simply beautiful and bring us pleasure, and those items which have a strong emotional value. Yet, most of us own many things that don’t fit into any of those categories, items that we don’t use and which could be doing someone else some good. Those are the items I’m seeking to rid my life of.

I want to live a generous life. This is one way to do that, a simple way to share what I have been blessed with. I have never regretted giving something away. I have found that generosity is always rewarded. If I am generous with others, I trust that when the time comes that I need something, others will be generous with me. I have definitely found that to be the case.

I know I will never completely get rid of all the extraneous items in my life. No doubt, a couple years from now, I will once again desperately need to do a major decluttering. It is one of those on-going battles. Letting go of things is not always easy, however, it is necessary, for both my mental and spiritual health. Let the bagging begin!

- Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur
http://spiritualwomanthoughts.blogspot.com

  The dungeon of disillusionment is cold, dark, and grim.  It’s the place where Hope dims and Peace and Joy fade into distant echoes.  This is especially true if you’re delivered into that dungeon by someone you trusted. 

Disillusionment occurs when we put our complete and total trust in another person.  When we focus our hope on a friend, a spouse, a child, sibling, parent, pastor, ministry, or church.  Being human with feet of clay, people stumble.  Fall short.  Abuse your trust.  Rip you off.  Betray you.  Leave you holding the bag.  Walk out on you.  The result is often disillusionment, first with the other person and then with God.  I know.  I’ve spent some time in that drafty old dungeon myself.

But have you ever noticed how some of God’s choicest messages arrive in the darkest dungeons?  A simple message from God can come at just the right time and place to touch a life and bring beauty out of ashes for His name’s sake.  His grace can drain out every ounce of resentment and melt all resistance so you can receive a fresh infusion of hope from the One who never leaves us nor forsakes us (Hebrews 13:5b).  This doesn’t mean that your pain magically dissolves and disappears.  But if you listen, He has a myriad of messages to give in a thousand different dungeons.  All it takes to hear is a heart willing to say, “Take these scars and use them for Your glory.”

If you’re camped out in the Dungeon of Dis today, can you yield your wounded heart to the Lord Jesus and trust Him to use this experience to bring you into a more tender and sensitive walk with Him?  In other words, what do you say when the Lord knocks at the door of your “dungeon of dis”?  How about:

 “Lord, please help me to see you in this abandonment, this rejection.  Please take the pain of this wound, this disillusioning experience, and use it to shape and chisel and mold me into a more refined reflection of your glory.  Amen.” 

By: Kristine  Lowder

Facebook @Kristine’s Klips

Twitter @ Road Diverged

Now, I know that I’m not alone in this, and in defence of all early-gift-givers, can I say it’s really not our fault!  Anyone who has ever given a gift to a child before will testify that the joy on their faces is the greatest gift a parent can receive.  And how do we know that we will receive this reaction?  Quite simply, we know our kids and the things that they like – it might be a long-yearned for doll or skateboard, or perhaps we have chosen something they have never before seen or experienced.  Either way, we know that they will be blessed through the gift we bring!  

It was with some surprise then that God pulled me up just this morning on his attitude to blessing me, his child.  My prayer was, “God I know I don’t deserve it, but I would really like to be blessed today, if that’s okay?”  Immediately the scripture from Matthew 7 came to my mind, 

⁹ “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰ Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? ¹¹ If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

Th revelation to my was huge!  I’ve been a Christian for nearly 30 years, yet still I equate the blessings of God with how good or bad I am!  My kids are not always little angels, in fact sometimes quite the opposite!  But that doesn’t mean that I refuse to see them blessed with gifts or hugs or kisses or my presence!  They don’t have to beg and grovel for my love because of their moments of disobedience or rebellion.  They are just kids!  They are learning, and I love them unconditionally!

In the same way, we are children of God, loved by him unconditionally and blessed over and over again because of this love, and in spite of our failings.

You don’t need to beg for God to bless you.  Just ask, and you can be sure that his blessings are already on their way!

I have kissed the precious faces of my own children; I ponder how much I have in common with Mary. “But Mary was treasuring up all these things in her heart and meditating on them (Luke 2: 19 HCS).” Words are insufficient to express our adoration for the incarnate Savior; I cannot place kisses on His face but I can demonstrate my love through acts of love to those I encounter. Colorful red and green Hershey’s Kisses are a seasonal reminder to follow Mary’s servant heart…

Shared by: Kristine Lowder- author, blogger, hiker, humorist, professional mom and lover of the Lord of the kings.

Blogging at: Roads Diverged

Twitter @ RoadDiverged

Facebook @ Kristine’s Klips

Newborns are totally dependent on parents and caregivers; God has blessed me with that role often since my first baby-sitter jobs at age 11. As a granny with college age grandsons, I anticipate a promotion to the rank of a great grandmother in the future. I might need my bifocals to view receiving blanket wrapped babies through a hospital nursery window, but my nurturing senses are as sharp as ever.

God is a proud papa peering through the heavens at the arrival of each newborn to His kingdom! “Do not be amazed that I told you that you must be born again. The wind blows where it pleases, and you hear its sound, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it is going, So it is with everyone born of the Spirit (John 3:7-8 HCS).” Angels rejoice and Father cradles them in His arms.

Shared by: Kristine

Bookish blog: Roads Diverged