Category: Faith

When I woke up yesterday morning, I could  hear a song playing in my head.  I hadn’t heard it in along time.  It comes for a 1965 Broadway musical called “On a Clear Day.”  Two of the crooners, back in the day, that made the song popular were Robert Goulet and Frank Sinatra.

“On a clear day, rise and look around you, and you’ll see who you are.  On a clear day, it will astound you that the glow of your being outshines every star.”  I was singing out loud yesterday afternoon and evening, as I was shoveling the driveway for the fifth time, trying to keep up with the hevy downfall.  Seriously 🙂

It was a very light-weighted, soft, glistening snow. . .and super-white in color.  Snow white.  Each pass I made with the shovel revealed the black asphalt surface underneath it.  Even as I made my way down the driveway, the asphalt behind me was already disappearing under the blanket of the persistent, continuing influence of the snow.

“Purge me with the purifying hyssop and I shall  be clean like a new, clear day:  wash me and I shall be whiter than snow. . .hide Your Face from the blackness of my sins; blot them out forever and ever.” One of the newbie Dumbo sheep, a first-timer at the meeting, is sobbing.  My Lily walked over and handed her some flowers just newly-picked from the valley.  Lily is holding her now, wiping her tears and whispering sweet words to her heart.  Her tears are flowing like a river. . .the dam has finally burst open.  For where the River flows, everything shall live.  There’s such a glow about her right now.  It outshines every star.

We just listened to the song.  The Dumbo sheep were doing their Sinatra impersonation as they were singing along.  “You’ll feel part of, every mountain, sea and shore.  You can hear, from far and near,  a world you’ve never heard before.”  That was pretty good.  Sounded just like “Old Blue Eyes.”  But you should hear their Divine Personation of their Father.  They sounded exactly like Him.  The Spit and Polish of their Dad.  They even act like Him.

“Of Him, and through Him, and to Him. . .are all things.”  God is the Part and Parcel of everything.  He is the Life Essence.  In Him, all things live and move, and have their being.  Every mountain, sea and shore. . .every man, woman and child. . .every snowflake and every shining star.  Are you hearing some things that you’ve never heard before?  Take heart!  Faith comes  by hearing new things.

“On a clear day, on a clear day:  you can see forever, and ever, and ever more.”  The eagles love these lyrics so much they’ve gotten the words tatooed on their hearts.  It’s because they have been given eyes to see forever.  They have their Father’s eyes to use as their own.  They can see Him now with their own eyes.  They have seen His Crown.  It reads, “Forever.”  Forever union with them.  Eternal, predestined love for them. . .always theirs, always arriving in time at just the right moment.  Blanketing their souls with a heavenly downfall. . .covering them with the Son’s snow-white robe of forgiveness and Life.

“Thus says the High and Lofty One that inhabits Eternity, whose name is Holy.  I dwell in  the High Place with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, who know that when they are weak, they are strong in My Strength.”  I’m watching some of the more studious sheep at the meeting today as they are taking out their pens and paper to take notes. They always do that  when thereis a sense that something deep is  coming.  They don’t want to forget what they hear.  I always reassure them that whatever God wants them to remember, He writes it down on the journal of their heart, never to be forgotten.

“He inhabits Eternity.”  He is continuously Living in Eternity. Everything that existed before the creation of the world, everything that has and will exist in time and everything that will come into existence after time. . .all of  this is always in His present view.  At this moment, He sees everything. He is infinite in His Wisdom, His Power, His Knowledge, His Presence.  He occupies the universe.  He can and does see  “Forever, and ever, and ever more.”

Nothing is new to Him.  Nothing is old.  Nothing comes as a surprise.  No unexpected changes. “He is the Same, yesterday, today and Forever.”  On a clear day, the day of His Power, His children can see Him, Who’s name is Forever.  They see what He alone can see.  Eternal Love.  Unconditional Love.  Forgiving Love.  Unmerited Love.  A no-strings attached Love. A Love that falls from Heaven and covers the black asphalt of the heart.  A Love that was always meant to be.

Freely given.  Freely received.  Free, Love.

“Golden child.  He’s as like his own Dadda as if he were the very spit out of His own mouth.”  I told my Lily about this story and she was a little squeamish.  “Another spit blog?” she asked.  All of the Lilies of the Valley speak their minds.  Good for them.

When I was a young boy, my mom would be constantly on the alert to any dirt smudges of any kind on my face.  When I watch the nature channels and see the animal moms continuously preening their young ones, licking them clean, I am reminded of my mother.  She’d simply lick her finger and wipe the dirt off my face.  Then she’d usually go hunting in my ears for whatever is it was that seemed to fascinate her. 🙂  It always took some doing to keep me still long enough for her to thoroughly do the job.

“Mom!  Do you have to?”  Yes.  She had to. I am teary-eyed as a I write this. I’d give anything to have here with me. . .to wipe the smudges on my face, and on my heart.  A mother’s love can do all of that.

The phrase, ‘Spit and Polish’ is actually defined in Webster’s dictionary.  “The practice of polishing objects by spitting on them and rubbing them with a cloth;  the action of giving something a thorough cleaning, polishing and refurbishing.”  As I was saying this, I noticed a big smile on everyone’s face at the  meeting today. . .and one of the newbie Dumbo sheep is jumping up and down, almost ready to fly, waving her hand and her ears.  “I feel that way when someone Loves me,” she said.  A touch or a kiss, a kind word or a hug, a little clean-up with some spit. . .makes everything right again.  The heart is refurbished.  Everyone nodded.  They know.

There are a couple, great spit stories in the Bible.  One in the Old Testament and one in the New.  Don’t worry Lily.  They’re not gross.  You will love them.

Poor old Job was in the midst of the worst experience of his life.  He had lost everything that was near and dear to him. . .his children were killed, his home was destroyed, his riches were stolen, his wife was bitter towards him, and his body was covered with painful boils.  He had lost the respect that others had for him.  Everyone blamed him for the calamity.  Even his “so-called friends” said it was his  own fault.  Job said about these friends, “They are children of fools, viler than the earth and I have become their standing joke.  They hate me and they treat me now like dirt.  They have abandoned me. They spit in my face.”

Definitely unloving behavior; but not hard to believe.  All those in attendance at the meeting today have lived at both ends of this story.  That’s why we always end our time together reciting the Lord’s Prayer.  “. . .Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. . .”

In the New Testament, in the Gospel of Mark, some people brought  a man to Jesus for “A Good Spit and Polish.” The man was deaf and had a speech impediment and they hoped that Jesus could refurbish him.  “They asked Jesus to put His hand on the man.  And He took the man aside, away from the crowd so that it was just the two of them.  He put His finger into the man’s ears and He spit. Then He said to the man, “Ephphatha”, that is, “Be  opened.”  And straightaway,  his ears were opened and the string of his tongue was loosed and he spoke plainly.”

The word spit in the original Greek language of the New Testament, means “the spit itself;  to spit;  to fly;  to make a new path.”  Like a mother’s love,  Jesus always flies to thoroughly wipe away every smudge, to provide His medicine for every disease and disability, to provide a new path, to generate a new man and woman. . .not just cleaned, polished and refurbished; but made into His very Own  Image.  His Spitting Image.

All pruned, washed and watered, little Lilies of the Valley.  Filling the air with the fragrance of Heaven.  Fitted with those wonderful big ears, all of you Dumbo sheep. Enabling you to hear His big Words of Love.   And those wings that mystically appeared, you soaring eagles, flying over the Rainbow. . .blessed with those eyes that see His Love and His Beauty, and eat from the Fruit of His Orchard.   “Daughters and sons. . .the very spit of the Captain of their salvation.”

Freely given.   Freely received.   Free, Love.

When was the last time you noticed that some of your behaviors are just like your dad’s or your mom’s?  Especially when its the one that you swore would never come from you to someone you love. Never in a million years.  No way.  And then, “Oh my gosh, I’m just like him.”  How did that happen? The long-timers at the meeting today will tell you how.  Generation.  One of the newbie Dumbo sheep looks distressed about what I said.  “I know Honey, we all love our parents and are grateful for what they’ve done for us.  They’ve done their best.”

Just this morning I searched for information regarding the origin of the phrase, ‘The Spitting Image’ on a web site called the The Phrase Finder.  Some believe it comes from the process of splitting wood down the middle to get exact mirror images for building furniture and musical instruments like the back of a violin.  This is called, ‘Splitting Images’. . .and when spoken in the original dialect, the letter L is left out, resulting in ‘Spitting Images’.

Other theories suggest it comes from a line of dialogue in a 17th century play.  “Poor child!  He’s as like his own dadda as if he were spit out of his mouth.”  Another speculation is a phrase from a 19th century book called the New Gate Calendar.  “A daughter. . .the very spit of the old captain.”  At the end of that century, there was another reference in a novel.  “She’s like the poor lady that’s dead and gone, the spit and image she is.”

It’s all about generation.  Webster defines the word to mean: “the act or process of producing offspring;  to originate something;  to form with accuracy;  to be the cause of a state of mind or action;  the formation of likeness.”  Most simply put, the next successive generation is the product of generation. . .mirror images of others. . .spitting images.

I’ve spent the last 35 years listening to people share with me the contributions that their family members have made in forming the character traits of their personality.  I’m shaking my head back and  forth right now, regretting every destructive, unkind, unloving moment perpetrated on my kids by my own insanity.  Who knows what they’re doing?  Everyone is trying to do the best that they can. Yet, there is a secret phenomena, like another dimension, creating the future. . .generating unwanted, unacceptable behaviors with those we love. . .and they are the last people in the world we would do that to.  “I’ll never be that way with my kids, with my friends, with my family,” we say with firm resolve.

We are generated from the loins of Adam, so to speak.  We are the fruit of his tree. . .and the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.  A chip off the old block. Just like your old man.  When Adam lost his innocence, he lost his immunity from sickness.  His mind, his soul, his spirit, his body were now susceptible to disease and decay.  In one moment, he brought upon himself and all future generations, total disability.  This disability is generated through the daily interactions and transactions that transpire within the family dynamics.   Seeds of trouble are sewn every day.  In many cases, the trouble remains underground until the first shoot appears and begins to grow into something unmanageable.   . .and hurtful to someone else.

When the Lilies of the Valley heard this for the first time, they thought it smelled a little fishy.  It wasn’t just them who were suspicious. In fact, the Dumbo sheep couldn’t believe they’re ears when they heard it.  And, if the eagles hadn’t seen it with their own eyes, they would have thought they were listening to a madman.

As I am the recipient of any unloving behavior, that behavior will enter into my soul and the emotional impact it has on me will be addressed as best as possible by the psychological assets that I am equipped with.  But there’s much, much more to it than what meets the eye.  It’s the violence of the behavior and the subsequent contribution it makes to the generation of it in the soul.  It becomes a potential time bomb, scheduled to go off when a person’s natural gifts are depleted. . .small p, patience. . .small t, tolerance. . .small f, forgiveness. . .small l, love.  The best resolutions to be different, the strongest resolve of the heart, only become the best laid plans of mice and men.  Anger becomes the spring from which all destructive behavior originates and does violence to someone’s soul.

We are convinced that “we get over things. . .that we’ve dealt with that issue and have moved on.” I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve heard myself and others say, “I thought I was over it.”  We all think that, to one degree or another.  Then the reality shows up. . .”She’s like the poor lady that’s dead and gone, the spit and image she is.”  Dead and gone?  Only sleeping in the graveyard in the soul.  .  .waking up at any given moment to replicate destructive behavior.

What is unloving behavior?  Seriously.  List a couple of behaviors in your mind.  It’s pretty clear.  All of us can answer that question.  My Lily just leaned over and said, “I only trust His answers.  My confidence lies only in what comes straight from the His mouth.”  He speaks in the book of Proverbs.  “The mouth of God is a well of Life;  but violence covers the mouth of  man. . .the souls of the generations of men since Adam shall eat violence.”   They feed each other violence. . .unloving behavior.

What is Loving behavior.  The newbie Dumbo Sheep all have their hands up and can’t wait to give the answer.  Can you see it?  Capital L, LOVE.  God alone.  The Father alone.  The Son alone.  The Spirit alone.  Together, alone.  The Father’s behavior is in choosing His children and authoring their lives perfectly, in every way, shape and form.  The Son’s behavior is best seen in the Light of His biography. “He made His grave with the wicked and with the rich in His death;  because He had not done any violence, neither was there any deceit in  His mouth, only Love.  Yet it pleased His Father to bruise Him. . .and open the door to heaven through Him, Who is the Door.”  He had not done any violence.  The Spirit of God’s behavior is in making all of this a present reality in the soul by bringing the very presence of God through Christ to it and dwelling in it.

The word violence in the  original Hebrew text means, “to be violent;  to mistreat;  to take from someone wrongfully;  to imagine wrongfully against someone;  to damage in any way;  to do an injustice to;  to deal wrongfully;  to use  for one’s own self-interest;  to oppress in any way;  to take something.”   Whatever is not Loving behavior, is violence.  God generates His own behavior. . .He reproduces what He alone possesses.  Man generates his own behavior. . .he reproduces what he alone possesses.  Both create spitting images.  Sometimes they appear to be similar. . .the Upper and lower case letters of the alphabet have a way of doing that.  The eagles are flapping their wings,  ready to fly over the Rainbow of His Love. . .because of what they see.

“But we all,  with wide-open eyes, see as in a mirror the glory and Love of God. . .and are changed into this same image as His Presence is made known to the soul. . .as His Words of Love feeds the heart and conforms the character into the very image of His Son.”  Like Father, Like Son, like sons and daughters.

“Rich child.  He’s like his own Dadda as if he was the spit of His own mouth.”  A Golden apple from the Golden Apple Tree.    Freely given.   Freely received.   Free, love.

     “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all?”  The mirror replied, “Thou O Queen, art the fairest of them all.”  Snow White’s step mother possessed a  magical mirror that continuously provided her with reassurance that she was the most beautiful sight to behold.  .  .Jeepers!  Talk about a sight to behold, seven dwarf sheep just showed up at our HA meeting today.  They know the story by heart. And they are all too familiar with what the full-length mirror says about them.    “Hi.  I”m Bashful.  Doc.  Dopey.  Grumpy.  Happy.  Sleepy.  Sneezy.  We’re recovering humans.”

Mirrors.  Webster defines them as, “a polished or smooth substance that forms images by the reflection of light;  something that gives a true representation of the object.”  From the moment we come forth from the womb, to the moment we die. . .we see our reflections in mirrors and they give us what we come to believe is a true resemblance of who we are.

Back in the late 50’s, when summer vacation would come, a bunch of us would hop on the bus to   the north side of Chicago and spend the day at the Riverview amusement park.  One of  the attractions was the “House of Mirrors.”  You would walk through a maze that contained dozens of mirrors that were imperfect and would reflect your image back to you in distorted ways that were fun to look at.  The Dumbo sheep don’t remember it being very funny.  They hated what their big ears looked like.   Even my sweet little Lily, the most fragrant of all of His flowers, has spent her life in that maze of mirrors, getting the wrong impressions of what she looks like. . .and who she is.

   

Mirrors are influences.  Man is the lower case alphabet letter m in mirror.  God is the upper case, Capital letter M in Mirror.  It is the difference between human and Divine.  Both mirrors are influences on our lives and in them.  The word, “influences” in the original Hebrew language of the Old Testament means, “a bond formed;  to lace and bind tightly together.”  Just picture a new-born baby entering the house of mirrors. . .seeing her reflection in the “Ooh’s and Ahh’s of the delighted parents and family.. Only good vibes.  Just healthy kharma.  Always sweet, careful words to the new little bundle of joy.  Good moments.  A true reflection on who they are.  Then the first steps are taken into the maze and the mirror image begins to change. It becomes distorted because the mirror itself is imperfect.  We become tied to the reflection and a bond is formed to the changing image.  A self-concept is created.

     “Mirror, mirror on the wall. . .what must I do to get you to say that I am the fairest of them all?”  So we adapt in the moment to each mirror, to each person who influences us and reflects something back to us about ourselves.  Keep in mind, that all of this is happening in the Riverview house of mirrors.  Altered images.  Images that are the creation of the mirrors themselves. False images.

Most of my life, I had simply become what I saw each day in the reflection of the people around me.  I was looking for acceptance and approval.  Wanting to be needed and valued.  Becoming what others wanted me to be, and yet still getting distorted views of myself which drove me to try harder to please others.  No wonder we medicate.  The eagles know.  Their wings were clipped for a long time. Nothing more tragic and sad than to see eagles earthbound. . .not able to soar above the rainbow.  Thank God their lives have changed.  Their wings have grown back, stronger than ever.  They’re ready for take-off.

“In the Book of Life, You have authored many difficult moments for me; but You shall quicken me again. You will influence me with Your Own Life and You will bring me up again from the depths of the earth to the mountain top of Your Love.  You will be my Mirror and shall make me Strong and Wise. I will become a Reflection of Who You are.  I will be conformed to Your image.  I will be Beautiful because it is You Who I resemble.”  Psalm 71:20-21.  You are the Fairest of them all.

As I was writing this, a song came into my mind.  It is a duet.  God sings it to every one of the sheep of His flock and they           reflect the song back to Him.  It’s an old Joe Cocker song.  Listen to it, sweet Lily. . .let His fragrance fill your heart.  Open up those big ears, flying Dumbo sheep. . .hear the wonderful things He says about you.  Fly over the Rainbow of His Love, soaring eagles. . .see yourself in the Light of His Grace and  Mercy to you.

   “You are so Beautiful, to me;  you are so Beautiful to Me, can’t you see?  You’re everything I hope for;  everything I need.  You are so Beautiful, to Me.”  The One True Mirror.  An Altered State, changed into His Image.  The seven dwarf sheep have been changed.  They have been given new names. “Love.  Joy.  Peace.  Patience.  Kindness.  Faith.  Power.  Now they  know exactly who they are.  Seeing God’s Beauty as their own.

     THE  DIVINE  MIRROR.    Freely given.    Freely received.    Free, Love

Back in the 70’s, when I was in my “flower child” stage of life, horoscopes were a serious hobby of mine.  I had purchased a couple books and routinely created horoscopes for friends and family.  I am smiling right now about what I just said.  Everyone in the room is grinning from ear to ear, but saying nothing.  The sheep are so gracious 🙂

I remember hearing of people going to parties where a fortune teller would be available for individual sessions.  “Why not?”  the little newbie Dumbo said.  Maybe it will help a little.  The future is uncertain. Maybe we’d get a glimpse into 2012 (or 2015).

“I know the thoughts that I think towards you, says the Lord;  thoughts and plans of peace and not of evil. . .thoughts and plans to give you an expected end.”  Sweet little Lily is jumping up and down with excitement.  “It’s a Divine Horoscope,” she said.   “What God says always, perfectly comes true.”  When He created the earth and all that was in it, He simply spoke it into existence.  “And God said, let there be light, and there was light.  He said, let the earth bring forth grass and seed and fruit trees bearing fruit, and the earth brought forth grass and seed and fruit trees bearing fruit.”  Everything arrives at just the right time as the Words come from His mouth.

When I think about resolutions for the new year and the hopes of change that go with them, I am reminded of the saying, “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”  I can see those growing ears on some of the newbie Dumbo sheep beginning to unfold, making ready for their first flight.  They have heard something New and they know something new.  One of them raises her hand.  She said,  “It’s the two alphabets again.  Where there’s a will, there’s a way. . .and Where there’s a Will, there’s a Way.”  The baby eagles that have just recently hatched and whose eyes are slightly open, see what she meant and nod with approval.

Man makes his plans for the future, but God directs his steps.  It’s a mystery.  The Will of God.  The will of man.  The Way of God.  The way of man. The mystery is addressed in a prayer spoken by most of us since we were kids. . .  “Our Father, Who art in heaven. Hallowed be Thy Name.  Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  In the Old Testament there are some  words that confirm this.  “He does according to His will in the vast army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth.  And none can stop or change His hand from doing it.”

One of my good friends said that he was not sad to see 2011 go because it had been a hard year with too many loves ones gone and people near him suffering. He went on to say that he hoped that 2012 will bring a year of joy, peace and comfort.  Another friend expressed himself this way, regarding the struggles of 2011 or other past years, “In the end, at some point I’d come to the realization (again) that it’s all choreographed for reasons much bigger than I can comprehend, and it’s always temporary, worse in my own mind than in reality, and it eventually withers away like everything else.  Sometimes it always takes me longer than most to get to the conclusion that’s inevitable!. . .I look forward to seeing the choreography sheet on the whole thing some day.”

Where there’s a will, there’s a way.  Man’s will energizes with a determination first in the mind as a good thought as to changes that need to happen.  Past failures usually keep those thoughts private.  But sometimes we say them out loud, usually to someone else.  Our spoken words have now given the will of determination within us more credibility and power.  The actions needed to be taken, are given birth. . .and our will is done on earth. We begin to do, what we had resolved to do.  Pretty cool, whenever that had happened for me.  The whole group of Lilies, Dumbo sheep and Eagles at the meeting today are nodding as they relate to it all.  We are all fortune tellers.  Planning our futures, telling ourselves what we need to accomplish and doing our best to make it happen.

Where there’s a WILL, there’s a WAY.  He is the Potter.  We are the clay.  “In eternal union with His Son, we were made a gift to Him and we obtained an inheritance; for the children of God had been  chosen and predestined before the creation of the world, perfectly according to His own choreographed plan. In this plan for us, He works out everything in agreement with the counsel and design of His Own Will.”  Ephesians 1:11  His perfect, loving Will for the future.  His perfect, loving Way for the future.

My friend’s wish-fullness for Joy, Peace and Comfort in the new year. . .they all arrive just because of the losses and trials and frustrations of life. He makes them work for our Good. . . for Joy, Peace and Comfort are Fruits of His Spirit, delicious to the taste and full of Nourishment and Love for a hurting heart.  They are Medicines for an ailing soul.  My other friend who is captivated by God’s choreography, ended his note to me with wishes and prayers for, “Happiness, Joy and proximity to the Lord.”   My friend is a fortune teller.

No matter what comes.  No matter what shape or form it comes in.  No matter who it comes from.  It all comes from God’s hand.  And in that hand is only Love, Joy, Perfect Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faith, Forgiveness, Power, Wisdom and the Ability to Endure all things. . .Divine Comfort, Divine Hope, Divine Sight to see and believe that the  future is in His Loving Hands.

Our wills are at work to find a way.  It is His unfailing work to hold us by the hand, every step of His Will, and His Way.  “It is God Who works in us, to Will and to Do, according to His Own Purpose for us.”  Philippians 2:13  He simply Speaks and it is created.  Every miracle was the result of Divine Words coming from the mouth of God.

Good Fortune for 2012.  Freely given.  Freely received.  Free Love.

     The room was pretty full.  As I looked around, there was quite a variety of God’s creatures.    All friends of the Creator.  “Hello, my name is Mike. . .and I’m a human.”  They all responded in unison. “Hello Mike.”  Another HA meeting.  Recovery.  Renovation.  Renewal.  A room full of hidden Treasure.  All wonderfully peculiar in their own way.

   “If you will obey My voice indeed and keep my covenant, then you shall be a peculiar treasure to Me above all the people.” Exodus 19:5

A peculiar treasure. In the Old Testament Hebrew language, the phrase “peculiar treasure” means:  wealth; jewel; special, the King’s favorite.”  And yet,  ask the HA members how often they feel that way about themselves.  They’re trying to live one day at a time.  .  .letting go, and letting God.  On the wagon, off the wagon.  Peace, distress.  Rest, anxiety.  Life, death.  Success, failure.  Constantly changing seasons.

We had a Guest Speaker today.  He knows all about Full Recovery.  As a babe, born in a manger, and as a Perfect Man, He Personified what True Sobriety is meant to be.  I see all the Dumbos smiling and those big ears are just waiting for those words from His lips.

       “You are a holy people in the eyes of the Lord, your God; and the Lord has chosen you to be a peculiar people to Him, above all the nations upon the earth.” Deuteronomy 14:2. 

A Peculiar People.  A Flock of Jewels.  Rich beyond Measure.  The eagles know its true.  The Breath of the Spirit has enabled them to soar and to see for themselves, the Son Who gave His Life and died for them.   .   .and now gives His own Life to empower them.  They can do all things through Him who gives them strength.

When I took the garbage out this morning, I noticed the wild zebra grasses in the front yard.  They are golden in color and in the winter season.  For all practical purposes, apparently dead.  But no more dead than Lazarus was, lying lifeless 4 days in the tomb. Jesus had said to His disciples that Lazarus was only sleeping. His words, “Lazarus come forth,” roused him out of his deep sleep, and he walked out of the tomb, alive.   The wild grasses are only sleeping.  They will revive in the Spring and return with all their beauty and splendor, as will all perennials.  .  .especially the sheep of His flock.

Webster defines a “perennial” as:  lasting indefinitely; impervious to change;  permanent; regularly repeated.  The youngest Lily at the meeting just raised her hand.  Yes, Love?  “Doesn’t the word Perennial begin with the letter P?”  From the mouth of babes.:)  The whole group smiled and nodded their approval.  He is the Perennial.  He alone is impervious to change.  He alone lived a life of permanent Obedience and Perpetual Love. . .over and over and over again.

        “Because of the Lord’s great Love, we are not consumed.  His Love and Compassion never fails.  It is new every morning. Great is Thy faithfulness.”  Lamentations

Seasons change and with the same words and power He used to raise sleeping Lazarus, He says “Come Forth,” and His sleeping, peculiar people are brought back through His Life and His Love.  .   .and to His Perfect Peace.

Union with THE Perennial.  Entitled as sons to His Divine Power.  His Divine Wisdom.  His Divine Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Forgiveness, Self-control and Faith itself.   The ABC’s of Life for His Peculiar people and  when they are wintering in their struggles and trials, they realize they can do all things through Him.  They are ready for anything and equal to anything through their Day Spring on High.  Jesus, the Savior of their soul and their Power for life.

     “You are a chosen generation, a royal and holy nation; a peculiar people. . .Who has called you out of the darkness of winter into the marvelous Light of the Spring.” 1Peter2:9 

    Just now as I was looking at verses in the bible with the word “peace”, I was transported back in time.  It was the week before Christmas and I was in first grade.  I am a little teary-eyed right now because thoughts of my mom just arrived.  She was always proud of any little accomplishments her eldest son would achieve.  The whole class attempted to memorize a portion of the Christmas story as told in the second chapter of Luke.  A few of us were able to reasonably remember most of it and we were sent to recite it all day to other classes.  I still remember much of it.

     ‘Long ago in a far away country, there were shepherds watching their flock by night.  And an angel came to them and said, ‘Fear not, for I bring you tidings of great joy. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior who is Christ the Lord.  You will find Him wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was a multitude of angles singing, ‘Glory to God in the  Highest, and on earth, Peace and Good Will toward men.”  Luke 2:8-14

  Peace.  In the biblical Greek language it means: “to join, union (reconciliation); to be one with another;  quietness;  rest; to set at one again.”  From the womb to the grave, we search for someone.  .  .or something to fill in the void in our soul.  We seek to make a union with whatever the world proposes will make us happy or content, or will bring fullness into our unsettled hearts.  We are born dependent.  We live dependent. . .and we die dependent.  We need something outside of ourselves to be at rest, to bring peace to our heart and quiet our soul.  And we need to do this continuously.

All the Big-eared Dumbos, all the Fragrant Lilies and all the open-eyed eagles are nodding in agreement.  The blind, the deaf, the lame, the sick, the depressed, the anxious, the guilty, the failures, the poor and needy. . . they all know it’s true.  We are lost without Another.  We are alone without someone or something.  .  .and we are always thirsty and hungry for it.

We are all the same.  We are part of a recovery group, whether we know it or not.  Some are active members and some are still without Dumbo ears and Eagle eyes.  The group is called Humans Anonymous.  The very  first meeting was held outside the Garden of Eden, after original sin entered into the soul of Adam.  He and Eve met regularly to work their program, admitting regularly that they were powerless and had a need of a Power greater than themselves that would restore them to sanity.  Their union with everything else had failed.

     “They (those things, those experiences, those other people in their life) have healed the hurt, the anxieties, the sadness, the unrest of my daughter only slightly, saying to her “Peace, peace; when there is no Peace there.”  Jeremiah 6:14  Only a momentary fix.  Promising instant relief, but only providing it for  a short time.  Then back for more.  Then something new. . .and more of that.

I had two beagles, who are now both deceased.  Bailey and Bobbie.  They loved people, and they loved food.  They couldn’t get enough of either.  I swear that if an entire, large bag of dog food were emptied out on the floor, they would have eaten it until they were too sick to eat. They had no sensibility as to what their personal needs and appetites could and would do to them.

“We looked for peace, but no good came; and we looked for a time of health, an behold. . .trouble came instead.”  Jeremiah 8:15

Good Will.  The Lilies are totally intoxicated with His Fragrance, just thinking about His Love and Good Will towards them.  .  . present in His heart for as long as He has existed.  Good Will means, “only and always Love;  well, done;  a life authored for His children that is always filled with His Kindness and Mercy;  filled with His own Peace.”

“My God will liberally supply your every need, according to His riches that are experienced in union with His Son.” Philippians 4:19.

Filled with the very Fullness of God Himself.  The Divine Alphabet to meet every need. What a Christmas Present. The Divine Presence in the soul.

    Peace on earth.  Good will towards men.  Such a Merry Christmas.

Could there be something that could happen anywhere in the universe and it catches the Creator by surprise?  We had a light rain last night. . .did He say, “Wow, I didn’t see that coming?  And how bout those Cubs?  I thought for sure they were going to the World Series. I had My money on the Cubbies.”

“Known to God are all His works from the beginning of the world.”  The phrase, “From the beginning of the world,” means before time. . .before the creation of the universe.  Everything that would arrive in time was known to God before Adam arrived.  Everything that would come into existence in every way, shape and form was always known by God. . .because He is the Author of Life.  He has written it all down in His book, called “The Book Of Life”

In the Greek language in which the New Testament of the Bible is written, the word “known”  means: ‘ have knowledge of; be personally acquainted with; be resolved; be sure; to command into existence’.  Put on those listening ears, little Dumbos.  Keep those eyes wide open, soaring eagles. It’s Rainbow time.  I can see the Lilies need no reminder of what’s coming.  His fragrance has already filled the room.

“Lord, You will ordain peace for us; for You have wrought (systematically and habitually make, and then do) all our works in us, and for us.”  Isaiah 26:12      Ordain.  It means, “establish before time; predetermine; predestine; surely bring about.”  Every day He turns a page in the Book of Life and peace arrives for someone He Loves.  Peace with God.  Reconciled to the King.  The prodigal returns to his family of origin. He was known and Loved by God for as long as God has existed. Always Loved. Too good to be true?  Too mysterious for all the doubting little sheep?  Remember, with God Alone. . .if it’s too good to be true, it’s true!

How Perfect is this peace?  How reliable it His word?  “‘He has made with me an everlasting covenant (a compact or deal made before time), ordered in all things and sure.  This includes all my salvation. . .”  2Samuel 23:5      Ordered in all things!   In the Hebrew language of the Old Testament the word ‘ordered’ means: “to arrange and put in order; to direct;  to furnish everything;  to ordain; to prepare ahead of time;  to set in a row.”  The ears of all the Dumbos, and those on the way, just perked up, and they smiled as they heard Him say, “Ive got all My ducks in a row.”

Back in 1979, when He hand delivered that little pamphlet with the scripture verse on the cover about peace, I was totally skeptical about the profitability of the Bible.  You know what I mean don’t you?  Every once in awhile, usually on a Saturday night, a few people from a Baptist church just down the street, would come in to the bar and hand out religious pamphlets with verses on them.  You can imagine the response they would get from my regulars.  I would politely ask them to refrain from doing it and they would leave. It must have been one of them who delivered His medicine to me.

The Dumbo sheep have told me that He speaks to them directly in their new hearts. The Lilies were overcome one day by His fragrance, a Fragrance of Life to them.  The eagles that soar into the Rainbow of God’s Love all agree that after He gave them eyes that see, He showed them His eternal Love.  He enlightened them to a Peace that He alone had provided for them.  He introduced them to His Son, the Divine Alphabet.  They all agreed that God’s Spirit alone has taught them everything they will ever need to know.  Every moment authored by God.  Every second coming in time as He turns a new page each day from The Eternal Book of life.  It’s really true.  Seriously.

Peace with God and the Peace of God.  “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more now being reconciled, we shall be saved by His Life (the Alpha and Omega, from A to Z. . .the Divine Letter P. . .His own Peace).

This Perfect Peace was meant to be.  Predestined by the Lover of your soul.  Free, Love.  Freely given.  Freely received.

     I had an unexpected  visit just 20 minutes ago from the Divine Florist.  It was a Special Delivery. It was one of His Lilies on the phone.  My daughter Rachel called.  She is usually attending a meeting and then spending time with a good friend on Sunday mornings.  Rachel is a friend of Bill W.’s.  She is one of God’s Dumbo sheep.  He Enables her to soar like an eagle and do the impossible.  He has Given her a New Heart.  The old one was broke.

She told me that she put a load of wash in the dryer and when she attempted to turn it on, nothing happened.  It wouldn’t work. It didn’t work. It couldn’t work.  It was broke.  It was incapable of doing anything that it was designed to do.  Her immediate reaction was to be frustrated and then concerned  about the prospects of either getting it fixed or buying a new one.  Her partner in life, Mark, was listening to her conversation with me and chimed in, “We’ll get another one.”  He was going to purchase a brand new dryer for her.  Just like the purchase made towards a new heart for the little flock of God’s sheep.

“O Lord, You have fully addressed all the controversies and troubles of my old heart. It is broken. You have Purchased a New One for me.  Your Son has paid for it in full. You have redeemed my life.” A Free Gift of a new Heart.  The old one doesn’t work and it can’t be fixed.  You are only on a life support system. You require radical, life-saving surgery. A heart transplant.

“A new heart will I give you and a new Spirit will I put within you.  I will take away (surgically remove with the cutting edge of the scalpel of your failures and weakness, with the sharpness of your despair and disappointment, the removing of your self-condemnation and guilt). Yes, I will remove the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart that is Full of Life.  It is My Own Heart that I give you. It is My Own Spirit that I will put within you.  I will accomplish and do for you, everything that I require from you.  After his heart surgery, St Augustine said, “Do for me what you command from me, and then command what You will.”  He for me.

I just received another call from Rachel.  She and Mark went out to Home Depot and already purchased a new dryer.  Mark was faithful to the promise He made to the one he loves. And so much more, God to His little flock of sheep, “Because of the Lord’s great Love, we are not consumed with the realities of a broken heart. His compassion never fails. It is New every morning. Great is The Faithfulness!”

My own human heart is filled with brokenness, disappointments, sadness, losses, loneliness, depression, fears, failures, anger, self-centeredness, addictions, constant hunger and thirst for things in life that only temporarily fill.  But he has kept His promise to me to purchase and provide a new heart for me. I am still recovering from the surgery, still recuperating from the Divine Ordeal, still being taught to rely on the Strength and Power of the New Heart. And Oh, He is such a Promise Keeper.

It is the Son Who Shines in the New Heart.  It is the Son Who made the purchase for the little flock.  It is the Son Who paid the price in full for the New Heart. It is the Son Who says, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me because I am the Voice of Good News to the poor, those without strength and helpless, and utterly broke. My Father sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to deliver them from their despair and guilt.  They are blind, but I will give them eyes to see; they are unable to do what is required of them, but I will do it for them and I will be their Strength and I will make them free.”

I found myself thinking of an old song this morning about a broken heart.  “Only Love can break a heart; only Love can mend it again.”  During the heart transplant, the old stony heart is disconnected and removed by the Divine Surgeon.  His Love breaks it and then His Love connects the New One.  The soul is mended.  A soul full of Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faith, Self-control, Power, Wisdom and Hope.