God said to Moses, “I’m going to rain bread down from the skies for you. The people will go out and gather each day’s ration.                                                                                                                                                    Exodus 16:4-5 (The Message)

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.                                                                               Isaiah 55:8-9 (KJV)

Manna. Yes, it’s a thing. Most of us are familiar with the stories in the Bible that God miraculously provided food for the wandering Israelites as they trekked through the desert on the way to the “Promised Land”. Many people are understandably skeptical of this amazing provision, but it turns out that scientists have actually identified what they believe is the food that nourished the Israelites. They call it Manna.

Actually called mann-Rimth, the Rimth shrub is the Bedouin name for the Haloxylon salicornicum. The secretions we call “manna” are also called “honeydew”, which is the product of the digestion of insects as they munch on these plants which are found all over the Middle east.

I found it quite interesting that there is a very logical potential explanation of a miracle. Can God provide things for people in ways that we cannot explain? Uh, yes. It happens all the time. I do not know the particulars of how this all happened, but the general point of what the Bible tries to say is that God is able to do things which are inexplicable to us. People actually eat manna today, and it does provide nourishment with a sweet taste like coriander seed- so the consumers say.

So, I don’t get particularly hung up on the details of how God provides. I just know that he does, and we don’t always understand it.

Prayer: Lord, you work in ways that are higher than ours, we just accept that your plans are for our good, Amen

“But watch out! Be careful never to forget what you yourself have seen. Do not let these memories escape from your mind as long as you live! And be sure to pass them on to your children and grandchildren.                                                                                                                Deuteronomy 4:9

Funny how things come to us from our past- sometimes in the most unexpected ways. As I was munching the other evening on crackers and salami (yes, I know, not so nutritious), I flashed back to sitting in the kitchen, with my dad, eating saltines, topped with bologna and a dab of mustard. We called it “poor man’s hors d’oevres”.  I would listen to Cincinnati Reds baseball games on the radio with him, and sometimes we would score the game. That is, we would keep track of every at-bat, every out, every score in the game.

This flashed back with absolute clarity to me, and I am guessing I was 11 or 12 years old when we did that. This time together did not happen often, because the games usually started at 8:05 PM, and they would last until 10:30 PM or so. This was a rare occurrence because my dad had to wake up at 3 or 4AM to go to work in the bakery. Usually, he was long ago in bed when the games were being completed.

I write this because I am pretty sure that dad was not aware that he was helping to imprint on me a memory that has lasted for 60 some years. Yes, we as parents do leave indelible marks on our kids. Hopefully, there are great experiences and fond memories that are left as legacies. As the saying goes, “more is caught than taught”. Ordinary encounters can have way more meaning than we think.

The memory I shared above was not an exceptional experience. It is a fond memory, but it was a very ordinary thing. Yet look how I recall it! So, I guess the moral of the story is this- hanging out with kids and grandkids, even doing very mundane stuff, can be building memories that last a lifetime.

Happy 4^th of July to my American readers. Enjoy the day, and build some memories.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the legacies left to us. Help us to pass them on to new generations, Amen

When three of Job’s friends heard of the tragedy he had suffered, they got together and traveled from their homes to comfort and console him.

Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and nights. No one said a word to Job, for they saw that his suffering was too great for words.

Job 2: 11,13

There was a movie decades ago starring Peter Sellers titled, Being There. It was vintage Peter Sellers, a veteran comic who had been in the very successful Pink Panther movie series in the 1960’s. In the movie Being There, he played a clueless gardener who was taken, because of his silence and naivete, to somehow be a brilliant, wise person.

The movie was funny, but it pointed to a larger truth. Silence, often just by itself, is golden. In the book of Job, Job was beset by calamities right and left. He refused to be shaken by it, but he was comforted, at least initially, by friends who agreed together to visit their friend Job, and just be with him.   

They were a wonderful comfort to him with their presence. Then they decided to weigh in on why he was having troubles. That is where they made their mistake. Instead of being a comfort, they became a source of irritation. They tried to judge his actions, and ascribe to those actions why God was punishing Job. They meant well, I suppose, but they had become terrible “comforters”.

When they just sat with Job and were sad and lamented with him, they were of great comfort. When they started judging, they became the problem.  

So, the lesson is- just being there for someone, not offering advice or solutions, is a great gift. Do not discount the value of “being there”.

Prayer: Help us Lord not to discount the value of just “being there” with friends, Amen

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life
  Proverbs 13:12 (NIV)

I recently saw a couple in marriage counseling, and at the end of the session, I wanted to give them some added encouragement. They have been struggling for some time, and I felt that they needed an extra boost. So, I told them that I have seen, literally, multiple hundreds of couples over the years. Based upon my experience, I told them that there was every reason that we could be successful in our endeavors, and that they have worked hard and shown perseverance. I further suggested that if they continue to work the plans we have all laid out, there is no reason that the marriage could not only be restored, but that it could prosper better than they had ever imagined.

I said this because I believe it. I also said it to give them hope, because they had seen little hope over the past several years. I noticed that the wife had tears in her eyes, and then she just let them flow. She thanked me for the confidence I had in them, and for saying out loud that this marriage could be renewed, and that it could prosper like it once had.

One of the most important jobs that counselors can do is give hope. The belief that things can get better is often just the impetus needed to make that positive change happen. Without hope, people can give up, and so, to the extent that we are able, we must continue to give people hope for a better future.

Prayer: Lord, you have given us hope for a future. Help is to spread that to others, Amen.

Getting wisdom is the wisest thing you can do! And whatever else you do, develop good judgment.                                                                                                                                         Proverbs 4:7

I love this from chapter four in the book of Proverbs, but I must admit that when I was a young Christian, I did not really care for it so much. Actually, I didn’t really understand it. The point was, I was early on my journey to wisdom, and being young (and less wise) I did not get it. Not that I totally get it now, but I am much farther down the road now, so at least I know how to pursue wisdom.

Essentially, wisdom is seeing the world the way God sees the world, not the way the “world” sees the world. Once we understand that the most important thing is to see the world the way God sees it, it becomes apparent that, indeed, wisdom is supreme. We need, at all costs to see the world the way God sees it, or we will miss everything.

Once we se that God’s ways are higher than our ways, that they do not always reflect basic human impulses or intuition, we can get on with submission to God’s way of thinking- wisdom.

I have listed just a few examples of the “world’s wisdom” and “True Wisdom” as I understand it:

World’s Wisdom                                                                    True Wisdom

Work to gain heaven                                                             Faith in Christ alone

Gentleness = Weakness                                                         Gentleness = Strength

Take charge of your life                                                        Give your life away

Life ends at death                                                                   Life extends beyond death

Hate your enemies                                                                  Love your enemies

Man is self sufficient                                                             We are God dependent 

Hide your faults                                                                     Confess your faults

The world evolved without a Designer         The world was created/evolved by a Designer

Look out for #1                                                                      Esteem others higher than self

Prayer: Father, your ways are higher than our ways, your thoughts higher than our thoughts. Continue to give us the wisdom to know you better, Amen

And a small rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses to go, even though the winds are strong                                                                                      James 3:4

I recently saw some clients in marriage counseling, and I asked them, “What is one little thing you would like to change in your relationship?” I emphasized “little thing” because I meant, a little thing- some small behavior that one of the partners would like to change in her/himself, or in the partner.

After some thought, each partner came up with a little request. They did a great job in naming a small behavior that they would like to be different. I encouraged them with this tried-and-true counseling statement – change one thing, change everything.  

What that means is, changing one small behavior has a cascading effect on the relationship. One small change means that the person is committed to a different way of connecting. One small change means that larger change is possible. One small, consistent behavior change means that everything can actually improve.

So, to change one thing, one very small thing, has big implications for growth and change!

Prayer: Lord, give us trust in small changes to make big differences, Amen

And that’s about it, friends. Be cheerful. Keep things in good repair. Keep your spirits up. Think in harmony. Be agreeable. Do all that, and the God of love and peace will be with you for sure.

II Corinthians13:11-13 (The Message)

I have written in the past that political rhetoric, over the years, has risen to bombastic and even ridiculous levels. This noise is around us at seemingly every turn, so what can we do for respite? How can we build some margins around us so that we can restore some peace amidst the chaos?

Here are some ideas for building those margins:

• Erect some boundaries on social media. Take a respite of a few days from Facebook, Twitter, etc. and the myriad of social media which engulfs us. It will be OK to do that, trust me.
• Make sure you make time for exercise, just for you. Walk outside, do the treadmill, do your aerobics in your own home- whatever you do. Just do it (to co-opt a phrase).
• Get into nature. Visit a lake, a woods, the mountains, a beach. Enjoy God’s marvelous creation.
• Exercise silence. Nothing wrong with being silent. In fact, silence can be very healing.
• Journal your thoughts and feelings. It is just your time to go inward.
• Listen to music, it can soothe your soul

These are just a few ideas which can be restorative. Let me know what works for you!

Prayer: Father, you want peace for us in all ways. Give us the desire to seek your peace, Amen

(def.):

a seemingly absurd or self-contradictory statement or proposition that when investigated or explained may prove to be well founded or true:

“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.”                                                                Isaiah 55:9

One of the things, maybe the biggest factor, in my admiration of how God works, is the way that the Bible turns things upside down. Actually, it is the way that the Bible describes how God turns things upside down. Let me give you a few of the many examples in the Bible:

• The last shall be first (Matthew 20:16)
• The poor of the world to be rich (James 2:5)
• The meek shall inherit the earth (Matthew 5:5)
• When I am weak, then I am strong (II Corinthians 12:10)
• Rejoice in suffering (James 1:2)
• The weakest and youngest are to supplant the older and stronger (David chosen as future King); (the story of Jacob and Esau)
• The story of David and Goliath (I Samuel 17)
• Rich to be humbled (James 1:10)
• Those who lead must first be servants of others (Matthew 20:27)

A reasonable understanding of the ministry of Jesus was that he came to turn religious thinking on its head. He criticized the religious leaders of the day because they had lost the spirit of the law, and the message of the heart of God.

It is not just these isolated instances (cited above) that point to the truth of how God works. The fabric that they weave in the Bible is one of paradox. What we logically think is the way things should work, turn out to be, in God’s economy, exactly backwards.

So, maybe it was the rebel in me that was drawn to this type of thinking when I was a teenager and young adult. But maybe now it is the truth of how I believe God works that keeps me thinking that way.

Prayer: Lord, your ways are higher than our ways, Amen

“Folks are usually about as happy as they make their minds up to be.”                          Abraham Lincoln

 Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way, you will fulfill the law of Christ.                    Galatians 6:2

On the surface, these two sayings, at first, may seem somewhat at odds with one another. Paul in Galatians is saying we need to watch out for one another and carry one another’s burdens. That other wise elder, Abraham Lincoln, in his own homespun way, is saying each person can determine their own level of happiness- it does not depend on the actions of those around us. We decide if we are going to be happy.

Well, both are right. Lincoln is speaking a truth when he says that we essentially will determine our level of happiness- it is not up to the world to make us happy. I see too often that some people blame those around them because they are not happy, or fulfilled, or prosperous, or whatever.

Paul, in Galatians, was reminding his little group of believers that they were interdependent, and that they were to be supportive and loving to one another, and to share the burdens when they became overwhelming for a brother or sister. Paul essentially said, when the burdens get beyond a person’s ability, it is your job to help them carry it.

So, we need to be responsible for our own happiness, but we also need to look out for a brother or sister in need. Makes sense to me.

Prayer: Lord, give us the wisdom and empathy to see when others need us, Amen

Show me your ways Lord, teach me your paths.
 Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior,
   and my hope is in you all day long.                                                                               Psalm 25:4-5

I was talking with a client recently about her anxiety, and the control she tends to exert in order to mitigate that anxiety. It works for her, to a degree, but it can be costly to her relationships. The reason for this is that she projects onto others, at times “the right way to do things.” While her systems and somewhat rigid rules are often helpful for her in controlling her environment, and therefore lowering her anxiety a bit, those around her sometimes feel controlled and judged by her.  

This is often invisible to her, and understandably so. She talked about her need to tell her husband where he was falling short Biblically, and she was sincere in wanting the best for him. Unfortunately, he has felt that he cannot honestly share his spiritual journey with her because he feels that she will try to veer him back onto the “right course” (her course).

This client began to see that trying to shape her husband’s spiritual journey is not her job, but that of the Holy Spirit. She needs to trust that the Spirit of God can do the things that she cannot do. She wants the best for her family, and she is sincerely working on this.

Bless her on this journey. You see, this is part of her spiritual journey as well, and to the extent that she can let go of her need to control her husband’s path, both will feel freer on that spiritual journey they are on.

Prayer: Lord, we trust that you can and will lead us into your ways because you love us, Amen.