The Difficulty of Faith

How do you feel when you talk to God? Do you believe He hears you? I do. The Bible says that God heard the Israelites' prayer because they trusted in Him. When you pray, do you expect an answer? Do you expect to receive what you've asked? You should. We are told to pray expectantly, believing that God will hear and answer us. Do you look for the answers to your prayers? Or do you chalk it up to coincidence when the very thing you asked for in prayer comes? I've begun to make note in my journal of the things I've asked of God, so that when those things come, I will know they are from Him. I sometimes forget who God is, and that with Him, nothing is impossible. I foolishly don't pray for those things that are, to my limited view, impossible. I forget that God parted the Red Sea, and turned water into wine. I forget that He has done amazing things in my life, and in my friends' lives. This is why I write my prayers down--to have a written record of the faithfulness of God in my life.
Praying in faith, expecting an answer, praying boldly and confidently is certainly not easy. It would be much easier to do something visible . . . to work and sweat and toil for what I want. If walking 100 miles would make my friend's cancer go away, I would do it in a heartbeat. But it won't. Only God can heal my friends. He made their bodies, and only He can fix them. Science and medicine are God's slaves. He uses them for our benefit. We pray earnestly and boldly that He will employ His slaves to our immediate benefit, and we believe-we must believe-that He will.

A Disney Visual of Spiritual Warfare

We humans are fickle creatures, with a natural bent to following the lusts of the flesh and eyes, and the boastful pride of life. No human is above this bent. I am reminded of that anytime I watch Aladdin. Abu, Aladdin's pet monkey, is completely dazzled by jewels. He is overtaken with their beauty and charm, and forgets all else when in their presence. I am just like that. So many things captivate me and make me loose my senses. So much beauty and brightness in the world, dazzling, charming things. Yet all these dazzling, charming things eventually turn pale and lose their charm. I choose to serve God, who gives us a beauty not of this world, but a beauty that can never perish, spoil, nor fade. Once He has given us this beauty-this everlasting beauty-no one can take it from us.

The Wild and Wacky World of the World-Wide Web

The other half of my heart is out of town for the evening, and that leaves me at home alone with my dog and my thoughts. My readers, I think, are well acquainted with my intelligent and literary dog, Rufus, so I will use this post to reflect on my thoughts. My thoughts have sometimes been revolving around this very surreal cyber-world of which I accidentally became a part. You see, I didn't intend to have a blog, and I didn't even know what one was. After cursing the computer, and pushing all of its buttons (literally), I was finally able to leave my clever little comment on my friend's blog, but only after having set one up for myself. (I don't think I could have done it if I tried-it was all adrenaline. It's amazing, the things you can accomplish out of anger and spite.) Anyway, I've been writing on this blog for nigh 3 years now. Most of my commenters I know. One I have been falsely accused of knowing, due to our witty repartee. Some, I know only by pen name and pseudonym, making me think I may be seeing these people at church every Sunday. These people who know so much about me, and I about them, could unknowingly share a bench at church, or share a table at the local coffeeshop. And the person I know only through the blog, we may have (probably did) cross paths several times. Oh, the strangeness of being known to some only by my amateur arm wrestling stage name, The White Wave!! At a (rather opulent) party recently, I found a friend I haven't seen in years. The subject of blogs came up, and the fact that I have one, and it turns out she is a regular reader! And I "recognized" her husband as "that guy" who always comments on a blog I always comment on. Strange world. I do appreciate all my readers, and I love the comments, and I pray for you all, knowing you, like me, are a real person, too.

A Recluse in the Middle of Town

I know. Community. Enjoying getting out and meeting my neighbors. I also like to stay home and read. In fact, a feel like a whole different (sad) person if I don't have a good book. I am not at rights with the world unless I am in the midst of an all-encompassing, written drama. I am currently in the midst of the drama of Notre dame of Paris. I was in such raptures over Gutenburg's printing press last night, that I could have written an ode, a sonnet, a love song in honor of it. Victor Hugo reminds us that without the printing press, the Great Reformation of Luther, Zwingli, Tyndale, and Wycliffe, would have been little more than a small schism, a few guys in the pub sharing their plebian ideas. It is because the ideas of those guys, the idea that the Bible should be printed and available to the masses, that I became a Christian.
I don't think highly enough of this interweb and blogging stuff to even remotely compare it with the glories of the printing press, but it has brought about much rapid sharing of information. For instance, if I came across a really great pudding recipe, I would share it with all the friends I would see that week-which isn't too many. If I remembered, I would share it with the friends I'd see in the following weeks. Only if the recipe were amazingly spectacular and unique would I call or write friends across the country and share it with them. NOW, however, I can share the recipe with every one of my friends, instantly. And not only my friends, but anyone anywhere in the world will be able to read my recipe.
So, since I now have the capability to share my thoughts, I will do just that. I am very sad to see some gray hair on the head of my little dog. That means he's getting old. He will soon pack up and go to college, get married, and leave his poor master and mistress who raised him from a pup, all alone in their little house. I suppose that is just part of life, every life. I see myself getting older, and my friends getting older with me. But for now, in the same way that I enjoy my little dog every day that he is with us, I enjoy my friends every day, and pray that we can enjoy our friendships for many days to come.

Star's Hollow, or, The Summer of Community

I've been watching Gilmore Girls and daydreaming about living in a quaint, sleepy, little town like Star's Hollow. There's something very comfortable in knowing the people who live and work near you. There's a feeling of safety and security, not to mention sweet simplicity, in that. I like knowing my neighbors and having watched their kids grow up. I like that the once little boy across the street who used to come and have lemonade with me on the porch is now a man in college studying for his degree. The town where I live hosts many outdoor events in the summer. The Mr. and I are having fun rediscovering the old-fashioned fun in getting out and seeing our neighbors. I am finding that community doesn't come to you-you have to go out and find it, make it, and be a part of it.

On Life and Living.

Several circumstances have made me step back and look at life from a different perspective. I have seen personally that there is much merit in what the Bible teaches about living for today and not worrying about tomorrow. In fact, I was going to save this post to post it tomorrow, but now that I think about it, who knows what tomorrow may bring? Maybe someone will benefit today from reading this post, as I am benefiting from writing it. What do I know? I know that I am alive today, and that I have a home wherein I can entertain and feed my friends, and I know that I can give hugs to friends with hurting hearts. I can call my dad today. I can write to my sister today. (Although I won't since I have heard from a reliable source that she has written to me, so I will wait for her letter to arrive and respond immediately. And if an out-of-control Fed Ex truck comes careening into my bedroom tonight, and I am rendered unable to respond to her letter, she will know that I love her.) I can make tea and invite a friend to share a leisurely afternoon with me. I can write to a dear friend on the other side of the country and brighten her day. I do just need to live for today and not worry about tomorrow. I need to focus on all the good things I can do, and do them.

Rufus' Patio

Mr. & Mrs. M. have finally recognized me for what I am: the cutest one in this family with the magnetic personality, the reason people really come over here. Let's face it, I run the show. Giving me the recognition and respect I so deserve, I have finally been given my own space. A place to rest my royal little self. I now have an outdoor patio, completely furnished. Please see the photos of my new digs by scrolling down and clicking on the green Flickr photo badge. You'll see how fit my patio is for my royalness.

Cartoons and the Coming Together of Ideas by Neural Comprehension.

One sad fact has come to my attention as of late: the local Ben & Jerry's closed due to a rat infestation. Now, I will have to get my Chocolate Fudge Brownie at the grocery store. I didn't even know rats liked ice-cream, but I should have. It's so obvious. Tom & Jerry clearly taught viewers that mice really like cheese. It is really no wonder, then, that they also like ice-cream. Don't you see? DAIRY! So cats' liking milk is becoming less of a surprise. An obvious connection: furry rodent-like animals and dairy. So there's my little nugget of wisdom for today. Definately food for thought.

I also wanted to share some thoughts on the amazing, delicate, complex and fragile human anatomy. Since I was diagnosed with a neurological disease many moons ago, I have read all I could find about the brain and its function in the body, and what can go wrong with it. It has been one extreme thrill ride!!! As a Christian, fully believing that my body-all of it-was created by a Holy Creator, the anatomy books that I study are much like devotional books. I am constantly reminded of how loving and powerful my God is by the complexity and diversity of human body structure. So many organs are required to perform so many varied tasks at the precise moment they are needed! The thought of the body, and of its Creator, is truly awe-inspiring. Even in reading this post, your eye muscles are moving your eyes back and forth, the muscles inside your eyes are constantly readjusting themselves to keep the screen in focus, your spine is keeping your body upright in your chair, your diaphragm is making room for your lungs to expand as they fill with air, and the neurons in your brain are firing off, as you are thinking about these things and being intellectually stimulated.