Saturday, August 24, 2013

GIFTS OF THE HEART

I have so missed writing my blog!!! So much going on in my life right now prevents me the time to write.  Yet today as I was cleaning out some cabinets, going through some old journals and writings of mine, I ran across this piece I wrote in 1984!!!!!  I remembered these events like they were yesterday and still remember how much these special "gifts of the heart" touched me.  So I decided to share this with you today in hopes that it will inspire YOU to be a "people angel" too, and share a gift of the heart with someone who crosses your path in need of that special touch.

Do you love presents?  I do!! I am still a child at heart, I guess.   The sight of a gayly wrapped package always excites me, especially when MY name is written on it!  I have received some wonderful gifts, too. Just this past CHRISTmas my mother gave me a set of gorgeous crystal. . My mother in law has made me several ceramic pieces which I will always treasure.  My sweet husband has always showers me with wonderful gifts.  Our first CHRISTmas he gave me a beautiful gold heart necklace which I still wear.  And many, many more gifts, too numerous to mention.

But, you know, as wonderful as these and all the hundreds of other lovely gifts I've received are, they can never compare with the gifts of the heart which I've received.

You see a gift of the heart is more than an earthly treasure which "moth and rust can corrupt and thieves can break through and steal". A gift of the heart is eternal and its memory never fades.

I will never forget the first time I realized I'd been blessed with a gift of the heart by a "people angel".  I was in my early 20's and my people angel was my mother.  We worked at the same place, but we usually arrived at different times.  She came an hour early to enjoy her coffee and newspaper and I usually arrived a minute or two late because, unlike her, morning is NOT my time of the day.  However, this morning was different.  It was Wednesday and on Wednesday we both arrived an hour early to attend devotional services.

My husband and I had had a disagreement the night before and had not yet settled things.  My heart ached and I hated the silence between us.  All the way to work I had poured out my heart to the Lord.  As I walked into the building, Mother stopped me and handed me the most exquisite red rose I'd ever seen.  All she said was "I brought you something!".  She smiled and walked away.  She had no idea what she had done.  She had no idea that she'd just delivered a gift of the heart.

Big Deal, you say?  It WAS a big deal to me!  I was heartsick and I had cried unto the Lord and to me that red rose said "I heard you, my Child.  Everything is going to be ok."  And in just a couple of hours, my husband called and invited me to lunch and everything was made fine.

My most recent gift of the heart came just days ago.  As I said, I'm a child at heart.  I love birthdays and think they should be celebrated with all the pomp and circumstance possible, whether you're one or one hundred.

Well, my 32nd birthday came and went as uneventful as washday.  Oh, I received some lovely gifts from my family and they all wished me "Happy Birthday".  But that was over and done with in 5 minutes and that was it for my birthday celebration.  My husband had to work that night so our usual birthday dinner was off.  No cards arrived in the mail.  No calls came until after 7:00 pm and NO BIRTHDAY CAKE.  

Now no birthday cake should not have bothered me for I had not had one since I was 13.  Oh I had had cakes, ice cream or pies every year.  But not a G E N U I N E birthday cake complete with candles and "HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAT" written on it!  And for some reason that missing cake this year just did me in.  I thought this year might be different.  In fact, I had almost bought myself one, but I changed my mind at the last minute.  I just felt so alone, so forgotten and just plain unimportant.  I was really in despair.

The next morning, I woke up thinking, "Well forget it.  It's gone til next year...maybe NEXT year will be different."  But I just couldnt' shake the blues.  A friend called and after a few minutes of conversation she asked what was wrong.  I told her I didn't really know...I was just low and didn't care for anyone or anything that day.

That afternoon about 5:00 pm, someone knocked at my door.  When I opened the door there stood that friend along with another close friend of mine.  They both smiled and said "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! Sorry we're a day late!"  In their hands was a real honest to goodness birthday cake with MY name on it and candles too.  The tears began to flow and the despair was washed away in a flood of love and concern.

That was a gift of the heart!  The cake itself was temporal and was gone in a day, but the love and concern that it represented will never leave my heart.  I had not mentioned WHY I was down to either of them, and had not mentioned birthday cake to either of them.  Yet they had sensed a real need in my life and they responded with a gift of the heart.  They could not not have known that NOTHING they could have done would have thrilled me more.

A gift of the heart originates in the heart of God and is transferred to the heart of a people angel by His precious Holy Spirit.  More often than not, the people angel has no idea the impact a small insignificant deed or word or gift will make on their recipient.  But to the one on the receiving end, it almost always comes as a direct response to a heart that is crying out in despair or grief or heartsickness.

If we are available and in tune with God's Spirit, we too can be a people angel.  There are those around us every day who are in dire need of a gift of the heart.  And when God impresses you to go to someone or call someone or bake someone a cake, even if you don't know why, do NOT suppress the urge.  God may be calling YOU to be a people angel and to make delivery of a gift of the heart.

Now that was almost 30 years ago, yet I have been blessed by many gifts of the heart since then.  And I've delivered a few of my own.  The invention of email has really been a great tool for delivering those gifts.  I can't tell you how many times I've felt impressed to email a friend or to forward a devotional that I thought might bless them, only to receive a reply that said "You have no idea how much I needed that today!"  And they were right.  I didn't.  But God did.  So I again I say to you.  Be sensitive to the Holy Spirit.  When you are prompted to send a card, an email, make a visit or take a gift, DO IT.  Don't ignore the urge, even if it seems odd to you.  I guarantee you, you will be a blessing as you deliver that gift of the heart.

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

JOURNEY TO EASTER

Journey to Easter

Like me, most of you are busy with your day to day lives. We have our daily schedules which are overly full, then we add to that the "extra-ordinary" things that are occuring....babies being born, children getting married, people moving from one location to another, doctor visits, family illnesses, deaths, special projects we are undertaking, preparing our yards for spring.....the list could go and on! All of these are just part of life. Yet in the midst of all this busyness, we need to stop and reflect upon the significance of this coming Sunday..... Easter.

That day changed MY life..........has it changed yours?


I'd like to invite you to take a journey with me this week, back to Jerusalem, back to the roots of the first Easter. Let's take a few moments for the remainder of this week and reflect upon how Jesus, the centerpiece of Easter, spent his last week on this earth. Maybe by doing that, it will help us to truly appreciate Easter and make it truly a day to celebrate.


This past Sunday was Palm Sunday. What does that mean? Well, scripture tells us that on Sunday, Jesus arrived in Jerusalem and entered the city on the back of a donkey. So why is that such a big deal? Let's look a little further:


Matt. 21: 1-7
"When they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethpage at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, telling them, 'Go into the village ahead of you. At once you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you should say that the Lord needs them and immediately he will send them' This took place so that what was spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled,
"Tell Daughter Zion See your King is coming to you, gentle, and mounted on a donkey,
even on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden" (Is 62:11, Zec 9:9)

The disciples went and did just as Jesus directed them. They brought the donkey and the colt; then they laid their robes on them and He sat on them."

The Roman leaders (who were then occupying Jerusalem) had probably paraded through the streets earlier that day. It was almost time for Passover and everyone would be entering the city in preparation for it. It was customary for the Roman royalty to come through in a fine chariot, the red carpet rolled out before them, the colors flying, a parade of great splendor! But when Jesus comes, he comes riding on the back of a lowly donkey, with borrowed robes for a saddle. He was probably followed by a rag tag group of followers, children, lame, poor, who were all expecting Him to become their king, roust the Romans from Jerusalem and FINALLY set up his kingdom. They laid palm branches and their coats on the road for him to ride in on, it was the best they could do. They had great expectations, yet little did they know what the week would bring as they shouted Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna to God in the Highest!!

When He arrived in the city, he was not bowing and waving, cheering on the crowd and enjoying his moment of triumphal entry. No, he wept. He wept for Jerusalem. Luke 19: 41 says "As He approached and saw the city, He wept over it ..." He wept because they had hardened their hearts. He wept because they would not believe He was their Messiah. He wept for their loss.

Today Jesus comes to man and too often man does not recognize Him. They are looking for someone or something different and they fail to see Him as He really is. He has come to seek and to save that which is lost. John 3:16 says "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that WHOSOEVER believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life." Many are expecting something else from life. They are looking in all the wrong places. When what they really need is Jesus and He is right in front of them, yet they cannot see. It breaks His heart.

Even those of us who are His often miss seeing Him. We are so busy with our everyday lives that we miss the evidence of His presence all around us. I encourage you this week, TODAY...to look around, to realize how God is with you every moment of every day. He is in the small things and the BIG things! See him in the beauty of spring. See him in the blessings He loads you with every day. See him in the answered prayers. See him in the unexpected blessings that seem to just come from nowhere. It is NOT coincidence, it is NOT luck, it is your Heavenly Father who loves you and loves to give you good gifts. And even in the midst of your storms, He is there. He is holding your hand, watching over you, caring for you, meeting your needs before you even realize you have one.
This week, LOOK FOR HIM.. Be aware. Do not be asleep as those in Jerusalem were! Dont' miss the blessings!! Open your heart this week. Ask God to help you SEE Him as you have never SEEN Him before. If you don't know Him, ask Him to reveal Himself to you. He will!

Easter is coming!!!