Trusted Treasures...

Have you ever held a piece of fine crystal? Or a dandelion puff, or baby bird? Or something so delicate and fragile that is can only be held with purposed hands, cupped gently, held loosely, openly, open lest any pressure of control cause it to be lost.

This is the same with some moments of our lives when we are trusted with treasures. Sometimes our own, but if we are willing, the most precious are others. Those once-in-a-lifetime moments. The ones with no do-overs. The ones that catch us off guard and we must fight the internal battle to keep hands open as we receive the sacred, often broken, and with every fiber of our being resist the gripping desire to fix. Somethings can’t be fixed; somethings shouldn’t be fixed. We must, in those moments, be what is needed – strong, courageous, utterly selfless.

These most priceless, trusted treasures most often bring heartache and to be trusted with them means your heart will be battered. It also means that you will have a front row seat to the awesomeness of God. Those who dare to trust us with their treasure are brave. Brave beyond all knowing! Willing to release the most intimate of themselves into the hands of another, oh, even the thought takes my breath. We who receive must reverence the moment, honor the request. Bear the weight with all the dignity it deserves. In that moment, with open hands, we must let go. Let go of our wants, our desires, our hopes, even our own pain and hold ever loosely that which we have been entrusted, for the day will come when all that will remain is the memory. And we, we must not have left our mark, but rather, helped them leave theirs…

There is a time to weep, and a time to laugh

There is a time to mourn, a time to dance

There is a time to be born, and a time to die

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When the pain get too big

There are times when the heartbreaks of this life collide with our weakness and the pain gets so big that even breathing is hard. It’s like being dragged under by the surf and tumbled over and over until up is down and you’re dragged along the bottom and raw wounds meet with salted surf and the searing pain of it is only a faint echo of the pain within your soul and you gasp for breath and flail helplessly, like a rag doll, until you’re eventually released upon the shore coughing up the brine of your own tears… This is where I have been. Literally on the verge of tears at every moment. Memories, regrets, sorrow, missing, aching, loss - churning, growing to tsunami intensity threatening to overwhelm. Today I received a devotional from a Jewish Messianic site challenging us regarding the Sabbath. Oh, how my soul yearned for it. A Sabbath, a rest. But the to-do list haunted and I headed to the shower to start the day. All the while rest was beckoning to me… What h

It matters not

It matters little who I am. Each one of us has a story to tell, a life filled with love, loss, heartache, joy & laughter. I am just a busted up pitcher. Yes, the image that came to your mind - whether one you pour iced tea from, the one with the chip on the lip so it spills as much down the outside of your glass as gets in. Or the little creamer pitcher your gramma had in her hutch, the one with the broken handle that has glue globbed on it's listing side. Or the one that you pour oil with, the one with the faint crack you overlook because you never think to replace it while you are shopping. Oh, or maybe it's the purple plastic juice jug that hit the heating coil in the dishwasher... melted a hole an inch from the top but you never fill it that full anyway. No matter what image came to your mind, that's me. The true value of a pitcher is not it's appearance or even its purpose but it's what the pitcher holds that is precious. The sole purpose of the p

Un-becoming

Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure"-- for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. [Rev 19:7-8] We’ve all been to weddings. Everything focuses around the bride. My favorite moment is to watch the groom as he catches the first glimpse of his bride, he’s overcome by her beauty – she’s prepared herself specifically and especially for this day. Now imagine, how does the bride of Christ prepare herself to be radiant for her beloved? Righteous deeds, good works… As I pondered this passage and how it applies to this season, I heard “Un-becoming” . I sense that this season we are in is a cleansing period, a time of preparation. UN becoming who we’ve become; busy, weary, anxious, overburdened, chameleon – being who others want or expect us to be. Lost, depressed, frustrated, needy. And instead, shed the shackl

The Cost of Freedom

Memorial Day I once thought I understood the cost of freedom. I’d heard the family stories, my momma named for her uncle shot down over France, I’d been to the parades and ceremonies, could repeat great quotes, I’d seen the movies… But then a few years ago I walked among the names – name after name after name, reaching far, even unto the horizon; and the faces of sons and daughters and mothers and fathers – determination in their countenance, fear in their eyes, aged beyond their years. One caught me as I walked by, gripped my heart and dragged me up close. He stared at me, wanting me to see, wanting to be known. Though his lips unable to speak it, his lifeless eyes told of the horrors he’d seen, the death he’d lived, the life he’d taken. He was just a boy, once full of life, now, full of death. He begged “Remember me.” And through tears I vowed I would never forget him. Him without a name, an ordinary face – just one among many… And then I stood, in reverential silence as mirr

Broken Pitcher

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