“WHERE ARE YOU, GOD?”

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“Oh Lord, how long must I call for help before You will listen? I shout to You in vain; there is no answer. “Help! Murder!” I cry, but no one comes to save. Must I forever see this sin and sadness all around me? Where I look there is oppression and bribery and men who love to argue and to fight. The law is not enforced and there is no justice given in the courts; for the wicked far outnumber the righteous, and bribes and trickery prevail.” (Habakkuk 1:2-4 TLB)

​It is so easy to lose sight of our purpose, get off track, forget the dreams, goals and visions that the Lord has given us. It is so easy to feel defeated when we experience failings, fallings and struggles. We can look around us and grow discouraged when evil abounds and the small battles we win, seem to never get us very far, because for every small ground we take, it feels as though the enemy has still more. These feelings are true in our individual lives, and we are not alone, (though we may feel like we are), it is true in our families, it is true in our ministries, it is true in our workplace, it is true all around us.
The prophet, Habakkuk looked around him and all he saw was evil, destruction, wickedness abounding. He grew discouraged and cried out to the Lord. Habakkuk was called to be a prophet to a nation whose heart was far from God. Idolatry was everywhere, horrible abominations were being committed even to the point of parents sacrificing their children as burnt offerings to false gods. He cried out, “Where is God?”
As I look around today, I see the same things going on described by Habakkuk. Lawlessness, the murder of children, violence, bribes, oppression, idolatry, abounds in a “nation under God”. In the battle for life, Christians have grown weary. Many have lost the fire, have grown discouraged, given up or become complacent. Many ministries are now struggling. Many businesses & organizations are struggling. Meanwhile the demons continue to steal, kill and destroy. Jesus warns the body of Christ, in the book of Revelation, to rekindle our first love, to not be lukewarm, to be diligent and persevering in the faith. “He who endures to the end shall be saved”.
​For many, the battle has grown long and we are weary. “Where is God?” Habakkuk has an answer:

“I will stand my watch and set myself watch to see what He (God) will say to me” (Habakkuk 2:1 NKJV)

​We need to continue to stand watch, we need to continue to set ourselves on the rampart, we need to watch and see what God will say. We need to wait upon the Lord, and not be found too busy and not be found asleep. A.W. Tozer once said:

“Many are too preoccupied to hear or heed. They never allow God’s call to become a reason for decision. Their relationship with God never becomes a personal encounter. As a result, they live out their entire lives insisting that they never heard any call from God. The answer to that is plain. God has been trying to get through to them, but their line is always busy! They are engrossed in a host of worldly pursuits. We have no time to answer God when He calls. When the important matters of the soul are at stake, the most useful thing we can do is to do nothing, even if only for a short time. There are times when we can go the fastest by not going at all. We can go farthest by standing still for a while. Then, too, we can talk the loudest by not saying a word. We will not be taking the Lord by surprise; He will speak His message.”

“Then the LORD answered me and said: ‘Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time; but at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.'” (Habakkuk 2: 2-3 NKJV)

​Then, when the Lord speaks, write it down, read it, run with it, wait patiently for it. In other words, when God speaks, we need to put our faith into action. Those that love the Lord, keep his commandments, true love for God is evidence by obedience to His call. Oswald Chambers says:

“Have I received a ministry from the Lord? If so, I have to be loyal to it, to count my life precious only for the fulfilling of that ministry. There is no choice of service, only absolute loyalty to Our Lord’s commission. The call is loyalty to the ministry you received when you were in real touch with Him.”

Be faithful to the call that God has given you, though it tarries wait for it. In Hebrews 11, we read of the heroes of faith that did great and mighty things for God and yet in verse 39 we read, “and all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise.” God had something better planned for them and for us! They still hung on to a future hope. We are then encouraged in Hebrews 12:1-2 “…let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and the finisher of our faith…”
​For those of you who have thought you hadn’t heard the call of God on your life, find a quiet place. Open the ears of your heart to His still small voice. Let God share His heart with you, He has been waiting.
For those of you who have labored long, you too need to find a quiet place, go sit up on the wall, watch and see what God will say to your questions of “Why?” “How Long?” “Where are You, God?” “Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears; For your work shall be rewarded, says the LORD.” (Jeremiah 31:16 NKJV)
​My brothers and sisters, seek the Lord once again, He will be found if you seek with your whole heart; ask and He will give an answer; knock and you will see doors open. He who is called you is faithful to complete the work He has begun in you.

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Those Drops… by Kathleen Dunn, ©

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Image

Can I really hold back the tears?

Can I really hold back the rain?

I may put on a hat to keep my head dry.

I may put on a coat so I won’t get a chill.

I may wear the right shoes so my feet won’t get cold… or so I am told.

I put up my umbrella, to give me additional cover.

Because all those harassing drops make me look something awful

After all, as you know, I have my appearance to keep up.

So I run to my car, my work and my house

To hide out & escape where it’s safe & it’s warm.

But alas, a few drops have fallen on my glasses

I can’t see very clear, my direction is cloudy.

I feel trapped, shut up inside, with no place to go.

But at least I’m safe & I’m dry for awhile.

Oh, Why does it have to sprinkle or pour?

Yes, I know we need it

…to water dry thirsty land

…to fill our rivers & lakes

…to purify & to cleanse

But every time the drops begin to fall

I just have to find shelter after all

So when it starts to come, I retreat inside

Tidy things up & organize.

As a child I remember, if you get caught in bad weather…

you might catch a cold, get sick & might die.

I never seemed to really understand why.

‘Cuz, I still got awfully sick even when I stayed inside.

Oh, but to be like a carefree child again & to play in the drops.

Let them fall…

so I can stomp in the puddles

so I can kick in the splash.

To be like a Child

Let the drops fall…

on my hands, palms upturned

& my eyes tightly closed

& my face heavenward

Let the drops fall…

on my tongue hanging out…

to water my thirst

to fill my dry soul

to cleanse me from my head to my toe.

ImageAnd if by some great miracle

Those drops turn to flakes…

What delight, what freedom, what joy

All my sins tho’ scarlet will be white like snow

Then I’ll lie down in it’s soft pillow white

And flutter a bit with my arms spread wide

For when I rise up I’ll see my angel behind.

Seek first…

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“Let us more and more insist on raising funds of love, of kindness, of understanding, of peace. Money will come if we seek first the Kingdom of God – the rest will be given.” – Mother Theresa

Too often I find myself caught up in the worries, concerns, and stresses of every day life. I found myself even more so throughout this past holiday season. Struggling with health concerns and as a result not able to work as often as I would have liked or needed to which then resulted in not enough finances to meet bills and basic necessities.
Sometimes God gives us strength and health to take care of things. Other times He allows us to be weak in order for us to rely on His strength and the strength of others. I too often find myself leaning on my own strength, trying to pull myself up by my own “bootstraps” so to speak. Yet when I lean on Jesus, trusting Him in ALL things, the strength of the Lord is often revealed in the strength of His body, the Church.
So I am humbled by not being the giver, but being the one given to. I am blessed by not being the one to lean on, but the one who needs others to lean on.
God is faithful even when I am weak, doubting, struggling, falling and getting up again & again. Because of the Lord’s mercies all my needs are met.
My family and friends are blessed not by what I give them in the way of material gifts, but they are blessed by my prayers, by my love, by just being me. So I will continue to raise my funds of love, understanding, care and by God’s grace His peace.
Thank you for allowing me to be honest, to be real, to be me.

Light in the Darkness

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People often find the darkness inside an Orthodox church a bit disturbing. I have heard other Orthodox Christians mention various reasons as to why this is so: to help us focus, to distance ourselves from the distractions of the world and other reasons. To others it just seems to be a place of darkness and with the darkness it seems on the surface to be contrary to what we think it should. After all shouldn’t being in Church be a place of light?
As the Nativity fast is soon upon us, my thoughts were turning toward preparing my heart for the coming of the Nativity of our Lord God and Savior in the flesh. That wonderful time of year that is for Christians a time of reflecting and remembering the birth of Jesus – Christmas. The Nativity season doesn’t end “officially” in the church until Theophany also know as Epiphany. This season is known as the festival of lights.
As a child raised in a Lutheran Church, we, as a family looked forward to the Advent services and especially the Christmas Eve services. During each Advent service we would light one special candle on Sunday to again prepare our hearts. Then came the midnight Christmas Eve services which usually started around 11:00 in the evening and it would end on or a bit after midnight. During this service all the lights in the church were extinguished and then each of the Advent candles were lit with a special Scripture reading. Finally it came time to light the Christ candle. Upon the Christ candle being lit, the Pastor would take his own individual candle and light his candle from the Christ candle. The Pastor would then light one of the candles of one of the other members of the church, who in turn would pass the lighting on to another, until each one of us had our own individually lit candle. By the time everyone had their own candle lit, the room was no longer dark. We were no longer sitting or standing in darkness.
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined.”  Isaiah 9:2, The Holy Bible, New King James Version
“Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people but the Lord will arise over you and His glory will be seen upon you. The Gentiles shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.”  Isaiah 60:1-3, The Holy Bible, New King James Version
Jesus said of Himself that He was the Light of the World. The scriptures have numerous references to God and especially the God-man Jesus of being light and in Him is no darkness. As Christians we are exhorted to let the life of Christ, the light of Christ, shine out of our own hearts and lives.
We have many artistic renditions of the Nativity with some very common themes that illustrate the Nativity story in paintings, sculptures and in the Orthodox Church icons. It is the Nativity icon I find many expressions of darkness contrasting light. The cave in which Christ is born is pictured dark and out of the darkness the light of Christ is shining. It was dark in the sky until Angels appeared and lit up the sky. And let’s not forget the magnificent Star, the Magi from the east followed to where the baby Jesus lay.
In the services of the Orthodox Church there are many reminders to help teach us eternal truths. One of the reminders is a darkened church. There is light in the surroundings, but the lights are strategically placed in front of icons in the form of candles: in the memorial boxes and small oil lamps (lampadas). There is usually a big light such as a chandelier hanging from the ceiling. In the evening Vespers service the candles and lampadas are lit, but the overhead lighting is off, until a certain moment when we sing a song that begins with “O Gentle Light of the glorious…”
I am not an Orthodox “expert” by any means, so hear are my humble thoughts on these expressions of contrasting light and darkness. Jesus came into a dark world as the Light of the world. Each time a candle is lit in front of an icon we remember the particular saint or angel as one who has the light of Christ dwelling in them. The “halo” around various saints and angels reflects the glory of God shining from their faces and their lives.
So much more symbolism in the candles, the flames, oil burning in the lampadas, everything to remind us that although we are in a dark world, we have the light of Christ with us always. And just as the light from the Christ candle is One glorious light – it is still passed on person to person. So the next time you find yourself surrounded by darkness look for the light, perhaps bring a light to someone else in darkness. Where do we get this light? We receive the light from the Lord Jesus Christ himself who even the darkness, the darkness is light to Him.

Good book on differences between Orthodoxy and other faiths

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http://wp.me/prN4b-iY
Are you an Orthodox Christian who wonders how to explain to your Baptist grandmother, your Buddhist neighbor, or the Jehovah s Witness at your door how your faith differs from theirs? Or are you a member of another faith who is curious what Orthodoxy is all about? This book will help you understand some of the differences.

Trials pass God through to me

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“There is nothing-no circumstances, no trouble, no testing-that can ever touch me until, first of all, it has come past God and Christ, right through to me. If it has come that far, it has come with a great purpose.” Alan Redpath

This quote was found in a fiction book I was reading and it really struck me at how true this is. If I can only remember that all things in my life God works together for good and for a good purpose for me. Most often it is in the trials of life that I grow the most in character and into the person that God wants me to be.

Too often I see negative things come my way and I have negative thinking that goes along with it. In light of this being “Easter Monday” I am reminded that the darkness of the cross was actually a triumphant act and especially in light of the resurrection. I am always trying to put myself in the shoes of the followers of Christ on Good Friday and how they must have felt to see Perfect Love crucified – without the knowledge of the coming resurrection. I have experienced loss, grief and death, but I have the knowledge and the hope of resurrection.

If I can hold fast to the Faith, then I can get through my own little crosses in this life with the hope and joy of resurrection.

Christ is Risen! In Truth, indeed He is Risen!

The Gift of Time

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 Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Fourth of July, the end of the summer and the beginning of another school year… time flies.  Time… the one gift we all have in common… the one thing we all have equal amounts given to us.  Time… we have all that we are going to ever get but something we never seem to have enough of.  The Word of God exhorts us to redeem the time.  We should be good stewards of all our resources especially our time.  Once we spend our time, it is gone forever.  We can not count on tomorrow.  It may never come.  We are to look to each day and make wise use of the time that God has now given us.
 As these thoughts come to mind, I am fully aware of how much time I waste every day, every hour, every moment.  How much time do I spend in prayer?  How much time do I spend in the Word?  How much time do I spend with those I love?  How much time do I spend in front of the television, play computer games, read the newspaper, or waste away.
I have been extremely discouraged lately, it seems I never have “enough time” to get all the things done that I want to do.  People just do not have “enough time” to give anymore.  The truth is, we do have “enough time”.  God has given us plenty of time.  He has given us all the time that we will ever need.  It comes down to priorities… do we use our time as God would have us?  Ouch!  Truth hurts!  Bottom line… we all have “enough time”.  It is how we choose to spend our time that shows us our hearts.

Mike in 1969 7 mos


The issue of time was brought very close to my heart.  My brother, Michael, was 26 years old and died in an accident in the mountains near Weaverville.  My brother, Michael and I were very, very close.  He had always struggled in his walk with the Lord.  The week before his death, he came through Redding from Sacramento to visit.  He was struggling again (here we go again, it seemed he was always struggling).  He was very confused about the direction he should take in his life.  He shared many personal, heart issues that, to my knowledge he had not shared with others.  We played games and talked.  Later, we listened to some of his favorite songs and then somehow the conversation turned to his reason for leaving Sacramento and why he was headed to Weaverville.  He told me he did not know what he was going to do, but he knew one thing, he was going to get away from everything and everyone that was hounding him and seek God in prayer for answers.
 The day before he died, he confessed his belief in the Lord Jesus Christ and he planned to go to church the next day.  He died less than 24 hours later. Michael’s time on earth ended.  Time, he did not know that he had so little time left — neither did I.
Mike and Kat 1994

Mike and me in 1994


Up to this time, I had not experienced the death of a loved one yet, let alone the death of someone so very close and dear to my heart.  With his death, God was a very real comfort to me.  The Lord rekindled my passion and fire for to live a pure life pleasing to Him and to reflect the light of Christ in me.  My deep passion and concern for lost or wandering souls deepened.  Death is a reminder that we do not always have tomorrow.  Death is a reminder that we need to always keep mindful to be faithful with the time we have and to redeem the time.  When I last hugged my brother and told him I loved him…  I did not know it was going to be the last time.  I almost made excuses.  His visit was unexpected.  I was busy and had other plans.  I thought, “I don’t have time.”  That day I felt God’s urgency that I needed to take the time for my brother.  Looking back, I am so glad I did.  I almost missed a very precious moment and memory.  I realize it was the Holy Spirit prompting me with the urgency and importance to drop all my plans.  How many times, have I missed the Spirit’s quiet calls?  I praise God that I did not miss that one.  I had a chance to comfort and encourage my brother, tell him I loved him no matter what, I had a chance to put my arms around him and hug him — for the last time.
 At the graveside services, the minister’s closing prayer had these words, “Thank you Lord for the gift of death”.  I though to myself how morbid.  He went on to say that the “gift of death” is a reminder to those of us who are alive that the time we have is a precious gift.  Death reminds us to say, “I love you” to those we love and not put it off to tomorrow, for we may not have tomorrow.  Death reminds us that “today is the day of salvation, now is the time”.  How many people do I get a chance to comfort, encourage, or simply share a smile or a hug?  How many times do I put off making a telephone call, or writing a letter, or saying those words of healing, hope and love to someone?  Help me Lord to be obedient to your gently leading.  Help me Lord, to take the time, to make the time, to redeem the time with everyone I meet.
(© August 1995 although first published in a local Christian newspaper, I have been reflecting on these thoughts again as April comes around once again. The month of my brother’s birthday. He would have been 42 years old and though “time” has eased some of the sharpness of the pain… I still find myself missing him, grieving him and I am once again reminded of the importance of family, friends and taking the time.)