Stephanie B. Blake's Blog, page 4

Deadly Words

I remember when I was in grade school and some child was being bullied and was brave enough to say to the bully, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." In trying to get the other child (or group of children) to stop, the bullied child was trying to imply their taunts were not getting anywhere.
We now know those poor children were wrong. Words can hurt you. Not only can those words hurt, but countless numbers have been so adversely affected the damage to their self-esteem lasted for a lifetime. Withdrawal and depression often result from being bullied in the past.
The most serious consequence for this callous behavior has been suicide. New words have even been created for this terrible outbreak. "Bullycide" refers to a suicide committed as a result of being bullied. Cyberbullying is so prevalent that new laws and policies are being developed to try to control it.
Statistics are staggering. At the time of this writing, nearly 30 percent of students are bullies or victims of bullying, bully victims are between 2 to 9 times more likely to commit suicide than non-victims and in Britain at least half of suicides among young people were related to bullying.
Relationships have been crushed and lives have been destroyed because of words. Even in America, where the law clearly states that one is innocent until proven guilty, the mere accusation of a crime can ruin a life.
The Bible is full of warning about this very thing. The verses that have to do with our controlling our tongue - our speech - are abundant throughout scripture. Once when I did a detailed study of Proverbs, I was taken with the number of references to the words of the wicked and the terrible consequences of those words.
Jesus was on the receiving end of this kind of evil. He was human and I am certain those words hurt. His bullies eventually had Him hung on a cross. For your sake and for mine, He allowed this to happen so that we could be with Him someday where words will never hurt us.
Jesus said, "Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted and by your words you will be condemned" (Matthew 12:34-37).

The Owners of the Instruments

My husband and I once had lunch in the home of two lovely young ladies - sisters - who use their musical gifts in the church where we were serving. These ladies had left their home country to come to Vienna in order to study with the best teachers to help them sharpen their skills on their instruments. It took a lot of sacrifice for them to get accepted into their schools. They and their family were also sacrificing a great deal to keep them there. God miraculously provided for them. They were honoring Him with their lives and their gifts. Philippe Mercier - French artist. In public domain both in France and U.S.A.
In junior high school I played viola and then violin in our orchestra. When I moved, there was not an orchestra in the next school. There was only a band. So I didn't continue with violin lessons, but I had played long enough to know how very difficult it is to get a good sound out of the instrument. I had just gotten past the squealing stage when I had to quit.
These sweet girls played the violin and the cello. They had purchased what they could afford. Their instruments were not the best. Neither were the bows. The violin player even laughingly described the crookedness in her bow.
I can attest to the fact that these girls made beautiful music come out of those instruments. They told us others had tried to play their instruments but always complained stating they didn't know how these girls were able to play with them. The girls admitted that the music was not the same when others tried to use their instruments.
The Touch of the Master's Hand by Myra Brooks Welch is a well-known poem that describes an auction where the bid for an old violin increased one thousand fold after an old man came to the front and played a sweet melody on it. The difference was the touch of the master's hand.
In the case of my two friends, the master's touch was so intimate that each of them was the only person who could make beautiful music come out of what others considered an inferior instrument.
I belong to Jesus. In His hands I can be an instrument of usefulness - but only in His hands.
for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).

Door Jam

Occasionally my husband has been asked to teach a Bible study at the United Nations in Vienna, Austria. As might be expected, the facility is very secure. It takes special permission to get in. There are security guards when you leave.
After he finished one day, I followed him out through the revolving door. Revolving doors are comprised of three or four panels. I think this one had four. My mistake was that I followed him into the same panel. The spacing in these revolving door panels must have been designed for just one person. I should have known that since the security is so tight. I barely fit behind him.
Unfortunately, my big bag did not fit. I was able to get out of the building myself, but my purse was hung in the revolving door. You can imagine my chagrin at having to make my husband wait for me while I asked a guard for help. The guard tried unsuccessfully to retrieve my purse from the inside. He finally had to go to the control room and ask the engineer to release the control on the door. Then he reached in, got my purse and told me to come back through and retrieve it.
I made an embarrassing mistake, but I got over it. I was much more fortunate than 492 people who perished in flames in a 1942 fire in the Cocoanut Grove, a popular night club in Boston, Massachusetts. One of the reasons for the large number of deaths was the single revolving door at the entrance. As the panicked mob attempted to use the door to escape, it became jammed, trapping many of them between the door and the crowd pushing toward it.
Jesus is the Door to Heaven. There is no entrance except through Him. There is no possibility of a door jam because He greets us one by one as we come to Him in faith.
If we don't go through the Door, we would spend eternity in everlasting flames. When the end of time has come, there will be no need for security. There will be gates of splendor but they will never be closed. 
And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband....It had a great and high wall, with twelve gates...In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it; and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life (Revelation 21:2,12, 25).

Ladies and Gentlemen

The British television series Downton Abbey has been an overwhelming and surprising success. Not only is it extremely popular in England and America, but it is one of the most viewed exports in Australia, Norway, Belgium, Israel and Iceland and is also a hit in Sweden, South Korea, the Middle East and many other countries. The writer and actors of this series have been blown away by the response.

Richard Munckton from Windsor, Melbourne, Australia posted to FlickerThe New York Times described Downton Abbey as a "British dramedy of manners." Could it be that one of the reasons for its popularity is the refreshing reappearing of good old-fashioned manners - something that has become rather scarce in this day and age?

I know I appreciate it when manners are practiced - when men hold open a door for a woman, when children say "please" and "thank you." Unfortunately, because it is not as common as it used to be, when someone is practicing good manners, they stand out.

Speeches and formal announcements still begin with Ladies and Gentlemen - a greeting considerably more distinguished than Women and Men. When a man is called a true gentleman, that is meant as a compliment. When a woman is referred to as a lady, her gentle characteristics are recognized. Not every woman is a lady, nor is every man a gentleman.

Ladies and gentleman are people of character. Every young female is a girl and every adult female is a woman, but it takes effort to be a lady. Every young male is a boy and every adult male is a man, but it takes work to be a gentleman.

God wants His sons and daughters to be people of good, gentle character. He can even take people with very rough, crude backgrounds and transform them into ladies and gentlemen.

Iris Blue's testimony is a wonderful example of what God can do. She was a very rebellious young person, ran away from home, got involved in drugs and was sentenced to eight years in prison on armed robbery charges. Her attitude in prison was so bad that she had to serve an even longer sentence. After leaving prison, she continued on her path of rebellion until a young man told her about Jesus Christ and how He loved her. She responded to His love and her testimony is that she "knelt down a tramp and stood up a lady."

God's design for Iris was to transform her so she could share HIs love with others, which she does.

True manners are not pretentious. Ladies and gentleman practice manners because they are considerate of others and have a gentle spirit. That is how we should represent our Father. It is part of the the fruit of His Spirit.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:23). Let your gentle spirit be know to all men. The Lord is near (Philippians 4:5 NAS).

Reboot

I am not high-tech savvy, but I have discovered one thing. Rebooting solves a lot of problems. When your computer or e-reader is frozen, when the electronic camera on either doesn't work or if an accessory plugged into your device decides to stop functioning, reboot.

I have read that rebooting becomes necessary when your computer develops system problems because of running into an endless program loop or your internet connection breaks down. Shutting off your computer and restarting it can stop the loop or repair the connection.

Life is like that as well. Sometimes we allow negativity to loop over and over in our minds until we become non-productive.

As I travel, I often  visit with someone undergoing a problem, they are often frozen in that endless loop of negative thinking. Sometimes he can't see a light ahead because present circumstances are so dire. Often she can't forgive herself for something she has done. Maybe he believes his life is useless because he had not been able to accomplish his dreams. She may tell me how her parents, husband, co-workers give her such negative input that she believes that she has nothing to contribute to her family or her job.

It may be hard to believe, but these conversations are with Christians - people who should know better. It is Satan that wants us to believe the negatives in that endless program loop and be incapable of stopping the loop and repairing the connection.

I listen with a heavy heart to these conversations, pray about any advice God may have for them and without exception have told them that what they need is to go back to the place where they met God in the first place and remember the joy they encountered when they first met Jesus and made Him Lord of their lives. Sin can for a time disturb our connection with God. It is up to us to recognize it and ask Him to restore the joy we once knew. We often need to reboot.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me (Psalm 51:12 NIV).

When The Construction is Done

National Construction

I travel quite a bit in Europe. There are cities I return to time and again and lately have noticed construction everywhere. Road construction, new skyscrapers, remodeling - you name it. Many European cities are currently under construction.

Even though it sometimes makes getting to my destination more difficult (construction crews
slow traffic down, roads are rerouted, sidewalks are blocked because of building cranes, etc.), I am thrilled to see construction in these cities I have come to love. It speaks of prosperity and growth.

Much of this construction has been possible because of the investment by the European Union. The EU invests, rightly so, because the pay off will benefit all of Europe. Where there is construction, there is progress. Inconveniences experienced during the period of construction will be worth it.

Home Construction

I have watched my husband do remodeling and construction work on our home. Skill and patience is required for the process can be very labor intensive. When construction is completed, not only is there a great feeling of accomplishment but we are able to enjoy the benefits of the completed project.

Personal Construction

Ruth Bell Graham, driving through an area where construction had finally been completed, came upon a sign - "End of Construction. Thank you for your patience." She told her husband, Billy, that she wanted that inscription on her gravestone. And so it is.

Author Billy Hathorn/ Comment: I took photo at Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, NC with Canon camera/Date 7/12/2012/ source Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, NC

When I am able to return to the European cities where I have observed construction and when my husband completes a building project, I take great pleasure in the result. The projects were worth the wait and the investment of time and money.

Believers in Christ can only glorify God when we yield ourselves to His patient construction work. He does it all. His investment includes our creation, our salvation through Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit working in and through us. 

God continues working with us until He has completed the goal He had in mind. Certainly, we must try His patience during the process. We should thank Him for His long-suffering toward us. When the work is complete, He will call us home - just as He did Ruth Bell Graham. 

The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:6). For it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).

When Killing is Necessary

I love my home state of Texas. It is a land of plenty with an amazing array of beautiful landscapes and a large variety of wildlife. That includes snakes - lots of them. I do not love snakes.

In the years I have lived in Texas, I have encountered all four major poisonous varieties of snakes indigenous to our state: rattlesnakes, coral snakes, copperheads and water moccasins.

When our sons were young, we lived in a city that was also home to all four of these snakes. Within a block of our home was a lake. One of the largest water moccasins I have ever seen was found in front of our house. He was dead by the time I discovered him. He had been run over by a car.

While I was mowing one day, I encountered a coral snake in our back yard. Both the snake and our dog were headed for the shaded area underneath our deck. Before our pet saw him, I was able to kill the snake by running over it several times with the lawn mower.

Our sons were taught by their Boy Scout leader to watch for beds of rattlesnakes in the woods behind our house. I warned them to never pick up a stick without checking to make sure it was not a snake. I didn't take my own advice. I was cleaning around the base of a tree one day and the "stick" I was about to pick up moved. Thankfully, I had a hoe in my hand and was able to kill the baby rattlesnake.

We no longer live in that city and my sons are grown now with children of their own, but they must continue to heed my warning about snakes. In the area where we live now, I am still finding snakes. I found a dead one by a wood stack in our back yard. We are also clearing a piece of land outside of town and I have encountered two copperheads there. Both were hidden underneath a pile of leaves that I was raking.

I had been working the better part of the day and was close to quitting when I saw the first one. It was motionless but very much alive. I had my wits about me enough to say a prayer. "Lord, do I leave it and go home or should I kill it?" Immediately, I heard Him say,  "If you leave him, he will be here when you get back." I didn't want to see him again, so I killed him with the shovel I had close by. Several days later, I uncovered the other one and didn't have to ask that time. I killed him too.

I have wondered about the way the Lord answered my question. Instead of saying, "leave him," or "kill him," He said, "If you leave him, he will be here when you get back."

I believe it is like that with sin in our lives. We shouldn't just ignore temptations and walk away - imagining they will not continue to hang around. We must be just as diligent to get rid of sin as soon as it rears its ugly head as I was with those snakes.

In each case, when I encountered a snake, God had provided a tool for me to use to kill it. He has given us the sword of the Spirit, which is His word, to confront temptation and sin. Just as Jesus responded to Satan with the Word of God when He was tempted in the wilderness, so should we.

John Owen, who wrote a little book called Mortification of Sin in Believers (based on Romans 8:13), put it this way: "Be killing sin or it will be killing you."

for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live (Romans 8:13).

Reflections and Images

On a calm day by a riverside, I snapped an extraordinary picture. Since I am not a good photographer, this was a total surprise. I didn't see the beauty of the picture until after I had taken it.

I didn't take this picture with a normal camera. It was taken with my Kindle Fire, which means I actually took it backwards (the Kindle Fire's camera is a front facing camera designed for the user to take a picture of himself). I was just playing around with the Kindle Fire and wanted to take a picture of the skyline in front of me.

Instead, I got much more than I imagined. Although clouds were casting a shadow on the landscape, the sun peeking through the clouds and branches made it possible not only to capture the skyline, but also its reflection.

On another day, I was experimenting again with the camera feature on my MacBook Air. The camera works the same way as the Kindle Fire's camera. This time, I took a self-portrait facing my computer with my back to a mirror, making an interesting picture.

This double image got me thinking. I did some research on how mirrors are made. With the help of a chemical process, a sheet of glass is coated with silver or aluminum. What is important is to make sure it is polished to perfection, removing any impurity. If any dip or impurity is not polished out, there will be distortions in the mirror.

Jesus the Image of God

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation (Colossians 1:15).

Jesus came so that we might see God the Father. He is not a reflection of God. He is God. When we see Jesus, we see God. "He who has seen Me has seen the Father" (John 14:9). Any picture of Jesus includes an image of the invisible God - a little like my self-portrait. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God....In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men (John 1:1, 4).

Like the sun shining through the clouds to reveal the reflection of the skyline, Jesus, the Light of the world, shines through our dark clouds of sin. The resulting reflection exposes our sin nature. Those of us who see ourselves as God sees us, ask Him for forgiveness and trust Him as Savior.

Just as the impurities left in the glass distorts the mirror, sin in a Christian's life distorts the image of Christ. God is constantly working on polishing out those impurities so that His Son can be seen ... but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy" (1 Peter 1:15-16).

God choses to reveal Himself to a lost world through His children. for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light (Ephesians 5:8) A little like the double image in my picture, when the world looks at a committed Christian, they should see the reflection of Christ in him. Others should be able to see Him by the lives we live and the love we express.

For those He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren (Romans 8:29).

New Life from What Seems to Be Dead Wood

I am always amazed at what nature does during spring.

I often see trees and bushes during the winter that I think should be cut down because they look really dead to me, but when spring rolls around, voila - new life appears on those branches.

The trees and bushes are still the same ones that were planted years ago, but there is a dramatic change in spring. Spindly sticks on dormant bushes are fed by water, sun and nourishment in the soil and come to life.

The ground that is totally brown during winter starts to green up in spring. Even some weeds are really pretty - clover, wildflowers, etc. There are times I am reluctant to mow my grass because I know I am going to mow over something beautiful (like bluebonnets in Texas!).

Gardens lighten the spirit and bring beauty to the world. When the drab, brown ground of winter is refreshed by the new green of spring, it seems that all things are possible.

We are somewhat like those dead branches. We need Someone to give us life. Without Jesus, we would stay in the dark throes of our winter forever. Reborn, renewed and refreshed by His Spirit, we can blossom and produce fruit.

With God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26 NASB). But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved (Ephesians 2:4-5 ESV). Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come (2 Corinthians 5:17 NASB). "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5 NASB).

Glimpse of a Future Reality

Noah's Ark Animal Sanctuary - a nonprofit dedicated to caring for abused and neglected animals - houses over one thousand rescued animals on their 250 acres in Locust Grove (just south of Atlanta), Georgia. Among them is a trio who has garnered such attention that their story appeared on world news.

In 2001, a lion, tiger and bear were rescued from an abusive environment in a drug dealer's basement in Atlanta. The staff at the sanctuary tended to the wounds of these three and in time, they were completely healed.

Knowing that each one of these animals is a predator and could easily do harm to the others, the attempt was made to separate them for their own safety. The staff was not successful at that attempt.  Leo the lion, Shere Khan the tiger and Baloo the bear would not be separated. So they have lived together for twelve years. They suffered together, they came to the sanctuary together and together they will stay. An unlikely friendship, to be sure, but a foretaste of what God has planned for the future.

God gave the prophet Isaiah a vision of a time when that kind of friendship will be routine - when the Lord Jesus Christ will reign forever on His earth. As an animal lover - but realistically cautious when it comes to dangerous animals - I am eagerly looking forward to that day.

www.facebook.com/NoahsArkAnimalSanctuary

And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little boy will lead them. Also the cow and the bear will graze, their young will lie down together and the lion will eat straw like the ox (Isaiah 11:6-7).