Chris Fabry's Blog, page 10
June 30, 2012
A Blog For A Friend Who Lost His Job and I Called Him and Said "Call Me" and He Hasn't Called Me So I Wrote This
Fear. Gut-wrenching pain. Excitement. Freedom.
These are some of the feelings my friend is probably going through today on this first day of unemployment. We worked together for many years and then I was let go. Now, 13 years later, he faces the same fate.
Since I have walked this road before, though the circumstances were certainly different, I thought I would write a few thoughts that might be helpful to him and others who are going through some upheaval in life.
On this, the first Saturday of life without a job, it’s easy to despair. You have been untethered from something that gave you security and worth for a lot of years. But your worth doesn’t come from the place that employed you, it’s much deeper than that, and you have to mine for that as if for gold.
You were placed on this planet for a purpose. There are things God had for you to accomplish that you couldn’t have if you hadn’t been employed by your former employer. But the converse is also true. There are things God has for you to accomplish you couldn’t accomplish there. That’s why you’re here, in this barren place.
You will be hit in the face each day with the feeling that you have been cut off. Put out to pasture. Rejected. You have to fight this and overcome it with the truth.
You have been given freedom.
If you’ve ever seen The Shawshank Redemption, you know how hard it is for those who have been institutionalized to go back into the regular world. I know you won’t write, “Brooks was here,” on the walls of your house, but you’ll be tempted to think, “What would it be like to be back at the old routine?”
This is why you must begin a new routine. Go for a walk early in the morning. Keep a journal. Read the Bible. Do something at the start of your day that you didn’t have time for when you had to hop in the car. You have two hours a day that you don’t have to commute. That’s freedom. That’s wonderful!
Don’t forget the coffee. I know this is something you enjoy and I don’t have to mention, really. But now you can drink it with your wife at the shop around the corner, instead of alone in the car listening to NPR or whatever you listened to while driving. And forget the White Hen Pantry. Nothing against them, but branch out to a different brand. Do something java wild.
I think your wife is going to help you see this if you don’t already, and that is, she didn’t love you because you were employed. We don’t think you’re valuable because of what you can do. (Pardon me while I don the sweater and deck shoes.) You are special. There’s no one in the world like you. And while you have a great contribution to make as you move ahead, God didn’t just make you to do stuff or accomplish things. There’s much more to it than that.
Resist the urge to think you have to “settle” for something. Some job. Some new way of life. You’re not “settling” for something, you’re searching. And each day I pray you will find something you didn’t know was out there. Some factoid. Some new snapshot of grace.
When freedom comes, it has responsibility attached to it, as well as a healthy dose of fear. It’s as old as the children of Israel wandering in the desert, thinking how great it was back in Egypt. Look at American history and you’ll find those who were resistant to leave the cozy confines of British rule and taxes.
Freedom isn’t easy. It forces you to think harder about life and the future and where you’re headed. But for some reason, God has chosen not to let someone else tell you what to do with your life.
Good. There is life here, and health, and excitement. You’re going to find something here you didn’t want to look for. Abundant life. But abundant life is messy and hard and uncertain. Unpredictable. And there are questions that will pop into your head you never wanted to ask again.
Good. Great! You’re alive. You feel something inside.
You don’t need me to tell you this, of course. You’re a lot smarter than I will ever be. But truth is truth.
This new path of life will lead you to places of the heart you may never have been. (I know you’ve been without a job before, but not at this stage of life.) Places where you thought you trusted God. Places where you thought you knew the answers. And you probably do, at least on paper, but as you enter these dark woods and you’re tempted to give in to the fear, you’ll see the truth more fully because it’s not something you just know in your head.
This is your time to explore and rejoice and lament and trust and do all the things of living you may not have done while everything was neat and tidy and ordered. And here’s the really weird thing, if you stop fighting against that feeling, the gut-busting, whirling, churning feeling you get when you wake up and realize you don’t have anywhere you have to go, when you embrace that freedom and the possibilities, even for five minutes, you’ll be on your way.
I can’t wait to see what God will grow in your heart through this time of tilling and fertilizing. The best crops grow in the burned out places of life. Or where the manure is spread the thickest. I know it’s not where you want to be. But trust me, for some reason, it’s the place you need to be.
Why? I have no earthly idea. In my own version of the world, this never would have happened. But here’s the bottom line. God is sovereign and this wasn’t an afterthought. Perhaps you’ve just been thrown into a pit by your brothers. What they meant for evil, God meant for good.
And no matter what happens from here on out, you win. The end of this exploration can only be good since he’s in charge. (I’m sounding more Reformed every day. Go figure.)
Take a deep breath. Let it out slowly. Get the coffee. Hug your wife. Take a walk. Clear your throat. Trust Him. And repeat as often as is necessary.
These are some of the feelings my friend is probably going through today on this first day of unemployment. We worked together for many years and then I was let go. Now, 13 years later, he faces the same fate.
Since I have walked this road before, though the circumstances were certainly different, I thought I would write a few thoughts that might be helpful to him and others who are going through some upheaval in life.
On this, the first Saturday of life without a job, it’s easy to despair. You have been untethered from something that gave you security and worth for a lot of years. But your worth doesn’t come from the place that employed you, it’s much deeper than that, and you have to mine for that as if for gold.
You were placed on this planet for a purpose. There are things God had for you to accomplish that you couldn’t have if you hadn’t been employed by your former employer. But the converse is also true. There are things God has for you to accomplish you couldn’t accomplish there. That’s why you’re here, in this barren place.
You will be hit in the face each day with the feeling that you have been cut off. Put out to pasture. Rejected. You have to fight this and overcome it with the truth.
You have been given freedom.
If you’ve ever seen The Shawshank Redemption, you know how hard it is for those who have been institutionalized to go back into the regular world. I know you won’t write, “Brooks was here,” on the walls of your house, but you’ll be tempted to think, “What would it be like to be back at the old routine?”
This is why you must begin a new routine. Go for a walk early in the morning. Keep a journal. Read the Bible. Do something at the start of your day that you didn’t have time for when you had to hop in the car. You have two hours a day that you don’t have to commute. That’s freedom. That’s wonderful!
Don’t forget the coffee. I know this is something you enjoy and I don’t have to mention, really. But now you can drink it with your wife at the shop around the corner, instead of alone in the car listening to NPR or whatever you listened to while driving. And forget the White Hen Pantry. Nothing against them, but branch out to a different brand. Do something java wild.
I think your wife is going to help you see this if you don’t already, and that is, she didn’t love you because you were employed. We don’t think you’re valuable because of what you can do. (Pardon me while I don the sweater and deck shoes.) You are special. There’s no one in the world like you. And while you have a great contribution to make as you move ahead, God didn’t just make you to do stuff or accomplish things. There’s much more to it than that.
Resist the urge to think you have to “settle” for something. Some job. Some new way of life. You’re not “settling” for something, you’re searching. And each day I pray you will find something you didn’t know was out there. Some factoid. Some new snapshot of grace.
When freedom comes, it has responsibility attached to it, as well as a healthy dose of fear. It’s as old as the children of Israel wandering in the desert, thinking how great it was back in Egypt. Look at American history and you’ll find those who were resistant to leave the cozy confines of British rule and taxes.
Freedom isn’t easy. It forces you to think harder about life and the future and where you’re headed. But for some reason, God has chosen not to let someone else tell you what to do with your life.
Good. There is life here, and health, and excitement. You’re going to find something here you didn’t want to look for. Abundant life. But abundant life is messy and hard and uncertain. Unpredictable. And there are questions that will pop into your head you never wanted to ask again.
Good. Great! You’re alive. You feel something inside.
You don’t need me to tell you this, of course. You’re a lot smarter than I will ever be. But truth is truth.
This new path of life will lead you to places of the heart you may never have been. (I know you’ve been without a job before, but not at this stage of life.) Places where you thought you trusted God. Places where you thought you knew the answers. And you probably do, at least on paper, but as you enter these dark woods and you’re tempted to give in to the fear, you’ll see the truth more fully because it’s not something you just know in your head.
This is your time to explore and rejoice and lament and trust and do all the things of living you may not have done while everything was neat and tidy and ordered. And here’s the really weird thing, if you stop fighting against that feeling, the gut-busting, whirling, churning feeling you get when you wake up and realize you don’t have anywhere you have to go, when you embrace that freedom and the possibilities, even for five minutes, you’ll be on your way.
I can’t wait to see what God will grow in your heart through this time of tilling and fertilizing. The best crops grow in the burned out places of life. Or where the manure is spread the thickest. I know it’s not where you want to be. But trust me, for some reason, it’s the place you need to be.
Why? I have no earthly idea. In my own version of the world, this never would have happened. But here’s the bottom line. God is sovereign and this wasn’t an afterthought. Perhaps you’ve just been thrown into a pit by your brothers. What they meant for evil, God meant for good.
And no matter what happens from here on out, you win. The end of this exploration can only be good since he’s in charge. (I’m sounding more Reformed every day. Go figure.)
Take a deep breath. Let it out slowly. Get the coffee. Hug your wife. Take a walk. Clear your throat. Trust Him. And repeat as often as is necessary.
June 24, 2012
A Very Happy Return
He paid $25 for it in January, this leather holder for his Kindle. My son, the voracious reader. It broke because the holder was plastic and he kept taking it out and then putting it back. To his defense, the thing wasn't designed well and I figured the plastic thing would snap a long time ago.
“You shouldn’t have taken it out so much,” I scolded.
“I know,” he said, his eyes downcast.
“We can tape it,” I said. "That'll hold it."
He looked at me like I had five heads. “Put tape on my Kindle?”
“I’ll see if I can return it.”
I went to the store where he bought it, a big box store. They get returns every day. There was a young girl working there, younger than most of my daughters. I had witnessed a scene at the counter the week before with people returning something. The process didn’t go well. There was yelling and accusations and hands thrown in the air. I decided I would not act that way.
“My son bought this here a while ago and I don’t have the receipt.”
“How long ago?” she said.
“Like, January.” I was trying to speak her language, with the “like” at the front of the sentence. She looked 12. Seriously. I was returning a broken Kindle holder to a 12 year old.
“Well, our return policy is usually 90 days, but if you can find the same thing over there we could switch it out by using your driver’s license.”
“Okay, I’ll go look for it.”
“The only problem is, we clearanced those holders. You have to find the exact same one.”
The most knowledgeable 12 year old I have ever met.
I went to the Kindle holder department and found them. She was right. They now made them without the plastic thing at the top and with a sleeve you slide your reader into because, I deduced, a lot of people broke that plastic thing at the top. It was flimsy.
I returned with the sleeve kind and showed it to her. She opened it, compared the two, and said, “Yeah, this is different.”
Then she looked up at me, looked me in the eye with something akin to the little Who girl who got out of bed and asked the Grinch for a drink of water. I think it was Cindy Lou.
“I’m sorry. I can’t switch these out.” She frowned, as if I had a disease she couldn't cure.
I could have stomped and fumed and fussed, and if I had, and offered to pay the difference, I probably could have gotten my way. The customer is always right and all that. But there was something pure and innocent and righteous about those eyes and her honest attempt to help me. And it's not fair that a store should replace something after 90 days that broke because it was used too much.
“I understand. I thought I’d give it a try. Thank you for helping me.”
She smiled and looked as if I’d just offered her tickets to see (insert whatever pop star Cindy Lou likes). Taylor Swift? Coldplay?
I went home, got out the Super Glue, and went to work. I had saved the plastic thing just in case. I glued it, then popped my Kindle out of its cover, which is exactly like the one my son bought but is in better shape, and clicked his device into my holder.
“There, good as new,” I said, handing it to him.
“I won’t take it out so much, Dad,” he said.
After the glue dried, I took my e-reader, gingerly pushed it into my son's holder, expecting it to crack...expecting the glue to give, but instead I head "SNAP."
Good as new.
“You shouldn’t have taken it out so much,” I scolded.
“I know,” he said, his eyes downcast.
“We can tape it,” I said. "That'll hold it."
He looked at me like I had five heads. “Put tape on my Kindle?”
“I’ll see if I can return it.”
I went to the store where he bought it, a big box store. They get returns every day. There was a young girl working there, younger than most of my daughters. I had witnessed a scene at the counter the week before with people returning something. The process didn’t go well. There was yelling and accusations and hands thrown in the air. I decided I would not act that way.
“My son bought this here a while ago and I don’t have the receipt.”
“How long ago?” she said.
“Like, January.” I was trying to speak her language, with the “like” at the front of the sentence. She looked 12. Seriously. I was returning a broken Kindle holder to a 12 year old.
“Well, our return policy is usually 90 days, but if you can find the same thing over there we could switch it out by using your driver’s license.”
“Okay, I’ll go look for it.”
“The only problem is, we clearanced those holders. You have to find the exact same one.”
The most knowledgeable 12 year old I have ever met.
I went to the Kindle holder department and found them. She was right. They now made them without the plastic thing at the top and with a sleeve you slide your reader into because, I deduced, a lot of people broke that plastic thing at the top. It was flimsy.
I returned with the sleeve kind and showed it to her. She opened it, compared the two, and said, “Yeah, this is different.”
Then she looked up at me, looked me in the eye with something akin to the little Who girl who got out of bed and asked the Grinch for a drink of water. I think it was Cindy Lou.
“I’m sorry. I can’t switch these out.” She frowned, as if I had a disease she couldn't cure.
I could have stomped and fumed and fussed, and if I had, and offered to pay the difference, I probably could have gotten my way. The customer is always right and all that. But there was something pure and innocent and righteous about those eyes and her honest attempt to help me. And it's not fair that a store should replace something after 90 days that broke because it was used too much.
“I understand. I thought I’d give it a try. Thank you for helping me.”
She smiled and looked as if I’d just offered her tickets to see (insert whatever pop star Cindy Lou likes). Taylor Swift? Coldplay?
I went home, got out the Super Glue, and went to work. I had saved the plastic thing just in case. I glued it, then popped my Kindle out of its cover, which is exactly like the one my son bought but is in better shape, and clicked his device into my holder.
“There, good as new,” I said, handing it to him.
“I won’t take it out so much, Dad,” he said.
After the glue dried, I took my e-reader, gingerly pushed it into my son's holder, expecting it to crack...expecting the glue to give, but instead I head "SNAP."
Good as new.
June 15, 2012
Father Movies/Summer Movies
As heard on Chris Fabry Live! on Friday, 6/15--here is a good list of films for dads and families. Viewer discretion advised. Thanks to Bob Waliszewski of pluggedinonline.com for many on the list, as well as listeners!
Ben Hur
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
UP
Father-ish movies:
Courageous (fatherhood is a calling)
The Rookie (Morris as good dad, tensions with own father)
Finding Nemo (overprotectiveness, passionate pursuit of a prodigal)
Searching for Bobby Fischer (support vs. competitive pressure)
Fiddler on the Roof (traditional dad and three dating daughters)
Mr. Holland’s Opus (musical dad trying to connect with deaf son)
October Sky (not a model dad, but father-son issues are core)
Fiddler on the Roof
The Lion King
To Kill a Mockingbird
Life is Beautiful
Field of Dreams
Hoosiers
Father Goose
The Sound of Music
Superman 1978
Swiss Family Robinson
Father of the Bride
Faith Like Potatoes
Summer Movies for the Family (check age-appropriate ratings):
Akeelah and the Bee
Because of Wynn-Dixie
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
Charlotte’s Web
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe
Dolphin Tale
How to Train Your Dragon
March of the Penguins
The Mighty Macs
Miss Potter
Nancy Drew
Nim’s Island
One Night with the King
Prince of Egypt
Sarah’s Choice
Secretariat
Soul Surfer
That Thing You Do
To Save a Life
The Ultimate Gift
War Horse
What If…
Ben Hur
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
UP
Father-ish movies:
Courageous (fatherhood is a calling)
The Rookie (Morris as good dad, tensions with own father)
Finding Nemo (overprotectiveness, passionate pursuit of a prodigal)
Searching for Bobby Fischer (support vs. competitive pressure)
Fiddler on the Roof (traditional dad and three dating daughters)
Mr. Holland’s Opus (musical dad trying to connect with deaf son)
October Sky (not a model dad, but father-son issues are core)
Fiddler on the Roof
The Lion King
To Kill a Mockingbird
Life is Beautiful
Field of Dreams
Hoosiers
Father Goose
The Sound of Music
Superman 1978
Swiss Family Robinson
Father of the Bride
Faith Like Potatoes
Summer Movies for the Family (check age-appropriate ratings):
Akeelah and the Bee
Because of Wynn-Dixie
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
Charlotte’s Web
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe
Dolphin Tale
How to Train Your Dragon
March of the Penguins
The Mighty Macs
Miss Potter
Nancy Drew
Nim’s Island
One Night with the King
Prince of Egypt
Sarah’s Choice
Secretariat
Soul Surfer
That Thing You Do
To Save a Life
The Ultimate Gift
War Horse
What If…
June 14, 2012
Steve Saint
Steve Saint was on the radio program two weeks ago. On Tuesday, 6/12, he was in an accident that left him paralyzed. For the Christianity Today article click here.
I’ve been praying for him and wondering what God is doing in his life. Hasn’t he suffered enough? He lost his father, he lost a daughter, he’s gone through health challenges, and now this?
Then I looked at Romans 5 today and envied Steve Saint. Not envying what he is going through, no one begs for this kind of suffering. But envying what God is still doing. That God counts Steve worthy to go through yet another trial.
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.
Steve can’t stand, though I’m praying he will soon. But he is standing in the grace that God has poured out through his Son. He was justified and given peace with God. This puts Steve in a place of perfect contentment because of what God has done and is still doing.
And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.
Really? Rejoice? When you’re paralyzed? When you don’t know if you will be able to regain movement in your arms and legs? Yes, because the rejoicing doesn’t come in circumstances, it's revealed by the hope given by God.
Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
The hope God gives comes to life when we embrace the suffering we go through. The suffering can turn us away from God, but it can also turn us toward him. And this difficulty can be used to produce perseverance and a deep character that trusts even when it can’t see. And that character leads us to real hope. That hope is available to everyone, no matter our difficulty or struggle. That hope is available for Steve Saint, and I’m praying—no, I know he embraces it today, even with arms that can’t move.
I’ve been praying for him and wondering what God is doing in his life. Hasn’t he suffered enough? He lost his father, he lost a daughter, he’s gone through health challenges, and now this?
Then I looked at Romans 5 today and envied Steve Saint. Not envying what he is going through, no one begs for this kind of suffering. But envying what God is still doing. That God counts Steve worthy to go through yet another trial.
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.
Steve can’t stand, though I’m praying he will soon. But he is standing in the grace that God has poured out through his Son. He was justified and given peace with God. This puts Steve in a place of perfect contentment because of what God has done and is still doing.
And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.
Really? Rejoice? When you’re paralyzed? When you don’t know if you will be able to regain movement in your arms and legs? Yes, because the rejoicing doesn’t come in circumstances, it's revealed by the hope given by God.
Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
The hope God gives comes to life when we embrace the suffering we go through. The suffering can turn us away from God, but it can also turn us toward him. And this difficulty can be used to produce perseverance and a deep character that trusts even when it can’t see. And that character leads us to real hope. That hope is available to everyone, no matter our difficulty or struggle. That hope is available for Steve Saint, and I’m praying—no, I know he embraces it today, even with arms that can’t move.
June 10, 2012
My Grandfather's Eggs
I can't help but think of my grandfather on Sunday mornings like this. He died when I was a boy, but I still remember him staying with us at our home, in one of the back bedrooms. He had pared his life down to only a few possessions, clothes, his tobacco pipe, and a black and white TV.
He watched Walter Cronkite on that TV and while my brothers watched "The Invaders" and other spooky shows, I would go into his room and watch Red Skelton.
My grandfather had a farm with chickens and apple trees and pigs and rows of sweet corn and other vegetables. What I remember most about that house is two rooms: the kitchen and the sun room at the front. The sun room had a checker board and other games and I spent time there playing with things and taking in the aged smells of old trunks. I imagined they were filled with letters from famous dead people or maybe gold. There were pictures of my grandmother, long gone, and other relatives who were distant memories.
In the kitchen was his iron skillet. It seemed to fill the room. He would cook on a gas stove and get the skillet scalding hot, then cook eggs and onions. Though I can't remember much interaction with him, I imagine him telling me to sit down and eat. He had a heavy German accent. My brother was skinny and had to jump around in the shower to get wet. My grandfather would say, "Eat! Eat! You vill dry up and blow avay!"
He cooked a lot of eggs in that skillet. And this morning, when I put the butter in the pan and smelled the onions, I thought of him again.
He watched Walter Cronkite on that TV and while my brothers watched "The Invaders" and other spooky shows, I would go into his room and watch Red Skelton.
My grandfather had a farm with chickens and apple trees and pigs and rows of sweet corn and other vegetables. What I remember most about that house is two rooms: the kitchen and the sun room at the front. The sun room had a checker board and other games and I spent time there playing with things and taking in the aged smells of old trunks. I imagined they were filled with letters from famous dead people or maybe gold. There were pictures of my grandmother, long gone, and other relatives who were distant memories.
In the kitchen was his iron skillet. It seemed to fill the room. He would cook on a gas stove and get the skillet scalding hot, then cook eggs and onions. Though I can't remember much interaction with him, I imagine him telling me to sit down and eat. He had a heavy German accent. My brother was skinny and had to jump around in the shower to get wet. My grandfather would say, "Eat! Eat! You vill dry up and blow avay!"
He cooked a lot of eggs in that skillet. And this morning, when I put the butter in the pan and smelled the onions, I thought of him again.
June 8, 2012
Non-Fiction Reading List
As heard on the program 6/8/2012, here is a list of books recommended by guests, callers, emailers, and some on Facebook. Also, at the bottom, is a list of classic non-fiction books provided by Dr. Rosalie DeRosset of the faculty at Moody Bible Institute. Happy Reading!!!
Mark Buchanan, Your God is Too Safe, Your Church is Too SafeThomas Watson, All Things Work Together for goodMartin Lloyd Jones, The Sermon on the MountRichard Sibbs, The Bruised ReedSurprised by Oxford, Carolyn WeberPrayers for Today, Kurt BjorklundMark, The gospel of passion, Michael CardEric Metaxas, Bonhoeffer, Amazing GraceDynamics of Spiritual Life, Richard LovelaceAll Is Grace, Brennan ManningBeautiful Outlaw, John EldredgeKendra Smiley, Do Your Kids A Favor, Love Your Spouse, The Journey of a Strong Willed Child. (Live FREE coming this summer!)Dwelling with Philippians: A Conversation with Scripture through Image and Word by Elizabeth Steele Halstead, Paul Detterman, Joyce Borger and John D. Witvliet Philip Yancey, Finding God in Unexpected PlacesAnn Voskamp, One Thousand GiftsFoolproofing Your Life – Jan Silvious Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence by Sarah YoungRadical and Radical Together by David Platt I Never Thought I'd See the Day by David JeremiahThe Meaning of Marriage- Tim and Kathy KellerMercy Rising, Amber RobinsonThe Truth About the Lordship of Christ by John MacArthurMere Churchianity by Michael Spencer.Forgotten God by Francis ChanNot a Fan" by Kyle IdlemanI Really Want to Change...So Help Me God by James MacDonald
Life without Limits by Nick Vujicic
The Valley of Vision: A collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions by Arthur G. Bennett
Ravi Zacharias, Deliver Us from EvilAlistair Begg, Pathway to Freedom
Tramp for the Lord, Corrie ten Boom Resolution for Women - Priscilla Shirer
Indivisible - James Robison and J.W. Richards
Driven by Eternity - John Bevere
The 5th Diamond - Irene Weisberg Zisblatt and Gail Ann WebbSun Stand Still by Steven FurtickBoundaries by Henry Cloud and John Townsend
C.S. Lewis, Surprised by JoyThe Emancipation of Robert Sadler by Robert Sadler with Marie Chapian.
OTHER BOOKS FROM FACEBOOK AND NOT MENTIONED ON AIRBold Spirit: Helga Estby by Linda L. Hunt House calls and Hitching Posts by Dorcas Hoover The Pink Pagoda by Dr. James Garrow Jack Burbridge, From Crime to Christ Unplugging from Religion: Connection with God by Greg AlbrechtBeing God's Friend by Oswald Chambers. Desperate Depencency by J. Kirk and Melanie D. LewisBold Love, by Allender and LongmanJen Hatmaker, "7"Evidence Not Seen by Darlene Deibler RoseC.S.Lewis, Surprised by JoyDon't Waste Your Life by John Piper. Go and Do by Jay MilbrandtSlave - John MacArthur The holiness of God - RC SproulThe Lord Our Righteousness by Obadiah GrewThe Everlasting Righteousness by Horatius BonarLike a Mighty Wind by Mel Tari
66 Love Letters, Larry Crabb
A Path Through Suffering, Elizabeth Elliot
Choosing Gratitude, Nancy Leigh DeMoss
Heaven Proclaims His Glory: A Spectacular View of Creation Through the Lens of the NASA Hubble
Bringing Up Girls, James Dobson
Called To Controversy, Ruth Rosen
Second Hand Jesus, Glen Packiam
Paul: A Man of Grace and Grit, Charles Swindoll
GOOD QUALITY CHRISTIAN NON-FICTION LIST FROM Dr. Rosalie DeRossetAugustine. The ConfessionsAnselm. Cur Deus Homo (Why the God Man)Athanasius. De Incarnacione (The Incarnation: note forward by C.S. LewisBarnes, Craig. Yearning (wonderful book on longing)Baxter, Sidlow J. Awake My HeartBlamires, Harry. The Christian MindBonhoeffer, Dietrich. The Cost of Discipleship; Life TogetherBunyan, John. Grace Abounding (spiritual biography)Carmichael, Amy. Edges of His Ways; Rose from Brier; etc. (India)Calvin, John. The Institutes (Ford Lewis Battles edition)Campbell, Will. Brother to a DragonflyChambers, Oswald. My Utmost for His HighestCharnock, Steven. The Existence and Attributes of ManChesterton, G.K. Orthodoxy; The Everlasting ManColson, Chuck. Loving God; How Now Shall We LiveCurtis, Brent and John Eldredge. The Sacred Romance ( a must read on longing)Dark, David. Everyday Apocalypse:The Sacred Revealed in Radiohead, the Simpsons, and other Pop Culture IconsDawn, Marva. Reaching Out Without Dumbing Down (anything she has written)Demarest, Bruce. Satisfy Your SoulDobson, James. Love Must Be ToughDowns, Tim. Finding Common Ground (on art and preaching in evangelism)Dunlop, Cheryl. Follow Me As I Follow Christ. wonderful guide to teaching children in the church) Eliot, Elizabeth. These Strange Ashes; Passion and Purity; A Slow and Certain LightEllul, Jacques. Propaganda; Money; etc.Fee,Gordon and Douglas Stuart. How To Read The Bible For All Its Worth. Forsythe, P.T. The Soul of PrayerFoxes Book of MartyrsFrankl, Victor. Man’s Search for MeaningGire, Ken. Windows to the Soul (very inspiring about the personal effects of literature in life)Guiness, Oz. Doubt; The Dust of DeathGundry, Stanley. Love Them In (the theology of Dwight Lyman Moody)Guroian, Vigen. Tending the Heart of Virtue (a wonderful treatment of capturing a child’s imLarsenagination)Holmes, Arthur. All Truth is God’s Truth*Hovestal, Tom. Extreme Righteousness: Seeing Ourselves in the PhariseesHunt, Gladys. Honey from a Child’s HeartJames, Carolyn Custis. When Life and Beliefs CollideKoessler, John. Stranger in the House of God (very poignant well-written contemporary memoir)Larsen, Scott and Philip Yancey. Indelible Ink (well-known people give their favorite books)Laurence, Brother. The Practice of the Presence of GodLewis, C.S. The Problem of Pain; The Four Loves; Mere Christianity; A Grief ObservedLloyd-Jones, Martyn. Of Preaching and Preachers; Spiritual Depression; Sermon on the Mount; etc.McCullough Donald. The Trivialization of GodMuggeridge, Malcolm. Christ and the Media; Jesus Rediscovered; Trumpeter for God; Something Beautiful for God (on Mother Theresa)Nouwen, Henri. Genesse Diary; etc.O’Connor, Flannery. The Habit of Being (her collected letters); Mystery and Manners (lectures on writing and Christianity)Packer, J.I. Fundamentalislm and the Word of God; Knowing GodPike, Kenneth. With The Heart and MindPlantinga, Cornelius. Not the Way It’s Supposed To BeRoseveare, Helen. Living SacrificeRyken, Leland. Windows to the World*; Triumphs of the Imagination*; Realms of Gold*Ryle, J.C. HolinessSayers, Dorothy. The Mind of the Maker; Are Women Human?Sire, James. How to Read Slowly*
Stott, John R. Your Mind Matters; etc.Schaeffer, Francis. The Christian Manifesto; etc.Sibbs, Richard. Works of Richard SibbsTozer, A.W. The Pursuit of God; The Knowledge of the HolyVeith, Gene Edward Jr. Reading Between the Lines*; State of the Arts*Weil, Simone. Waiting on GodWiersbe, Warren, ed. Treasury of the World’s Greatest Sermons; Preaching With ImaginationWoolman, John. JournalZylstra, Henry. Testament of Vision*=books on how to interpret what you’re reading
Mark Buchanan, Your God is Too Safe, Your Church is Too SafeThomas Watson, All Things Work Together for goodMartin Lloyd Jones, The Sermon on the MountRichard Sibbs, The Bruised ReedSurprised by Oxford, Carolyn WeberPrayers for Today, Kurt BjorklundMark, The gospel of passion, Michael CardEric Metaxas, Bonhoeffer, Amazing GraceDynamics of Spiritual Life, Richard LovelaceAll Is Grace, Brennan ManningBeautiful Outlaw, John EldredgeKendra Smiley, Do Your Kids A Favor, Love Your Spouse, The Journey of a Strong Willed Child. (Live FREE coming this summer!)Dwelling with Philippians: A Conversation with Scripture through Image and Word by Elizabeth Steele Halstead, Paul Detterman, Joyce Borger and John D. Witvliet Philip Yancey, Finding God in Unexpected PlacesAnn Voskamp, One Thousand GiftsFoolproofing Your Life – Jan Silvious Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence by Sarah YoungRadical and Radical Together by David Platt I Never Thought I'd See the Day by David JeremiahThe Meaning of Marriage- Tim and Kathy KellerMercy Rising, Amber RobinsonThe Truth About the Lordship of Christ by John MacArthurMere Churchianity by Michael Spencer.Forgotten God by Francis ChanNot a Fan" by Kyle IdlemanI Really Want to Change...So Help Me God by James MacDonald
Life without Limits by Nick Vujicic
The Valley of Vision: A collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions by Arthur G. Bennett
Ravi Zacharias, Deliver Us from EvilAlistair Begg, Pathway to Freedom
Tramp for the Lord, Corrie ten Boom Resolution for Women - Priscilla Shirer
Indivisible - James Robison and J.W. Richards
Driven by Eternity - John Bevere
The 5th Diamond - Irene Weisberg Zisblatt and Gail Ann WebbSun Stand Still by Steven FurtickBoundaries by Henry Cloud and John Townsend
C.S. Lewis, Surprised by JoyThe Emancipation of Robert Sadler by Robert Sadler with Marie Chapian.
OTHER BOOKS FROM FACEBOOK AND NOT MENTIONED ON AIRBold Spirit: Helga Estby by Linda L. Hunt House calls and Hitching Posts by Dorcas Hoover The Pink Pagoda by Dr. James Garrow Jack Burbridge, From Crime to Christ Unplugging from Religion: Connection with God by Greg AlbrechtBeing God's Friend by Oswald Chambers. Desperate Depencency by J. Kirk and Melanie D. LewisBold Love, by Allender and LongmanJen Hatmaker, "7"Evidence Not Seen by Darlene Deibler RoseC.S.Lewis, Surprised by JoyDon't Waste Your Life by John Piper. Go and Do by Jay MilbrandtSlave - John MacArthur The holiness of God - RC SproulThe Lord Our Righteousness by Obadiah GrewThe Everlasting Righteousness by Horatius BonarLike a Mighty Wind by Mel Tari
66 Love Letters, Larry Crabb
A Path Through Suffering, Elizabeth Elliot
Choosing Gratitude, Nancy Leigh DeMoss
Heaven Proclaims His Glory: A Spectacular View of Creation Through the Lens of the NASA Hubble
Bringing Up Girls, James Dobson
Called To Controversy, Ruth Rosen
Second Hand Jesus, Glen Packiam
Paul: A Man of Grace and Grit, Charles Swindoll
GOOD QUALITY CHRISTIAN NON-FICTION LIST FROM Dr. Rosalie DeRossetAugustine. The ConfessionsAnselm. Cur Deus Homo (Why the God Man)Athanasius. De Incarnacione (The Incarnation: note forward by C.S. LewisBarnes, Craig. Yearning (wonderful book on longing)Baxter, Sidlow J. Awake My HeartBlamires, Harry. The Christian MindBonhoeffer, Dietrich. The Cost of Discipleship; Life TogetherBunyan, John. Grace Abounding (spiritual biography)Carmichael, Amy. Edges of His Ways; Rose from Brier; etc. (India)Calvin, John. The Institutes (Ford Lewis Battles edition)Campbell, Will. Brother to a DragonflyChambers, Oswald. My Utmost for His HighestCharnock, Steven. The Existence and Attributes of ManChesterton, G.K. Orthodoxy; The Everlasting ManColson, Chuck. Loving God; How Now Shall We LiveCurtis, Brent and John Eldredge. The Sacred Romance ( a must read on longing)Dark, David. Everyday Apocalypse:The Sacred Revealed in Radiohead, the Simpsons, and other Pop Culture IconsDawn, Marva. Reaching Out Without Dumbing Down (anything she has written)Demarest, Bruce. Satisfy Your SoulDobson, James. Love Must Be ToughDowns, Tim. Finding Common Ground (on art and preaching in evangelism)Dunlop, Cheryl. Follow Me As I Follow Christ. wonderful guide to teaching children in the church) Eliot, Elizabeth. These Strange Ashes; Passion and Purity; A Slow and Certain LightEllul, Jacques. Propaganda; Money; etc.Fee,Gordon and Douglas Stuart. How To Read The Bible For All Its Worth. Forsythe, P.T. The Soul of PrayerFoxes Book of MartyrsFrankl, Victor. Man’s Search for MeaningGire, Ken. Windows to the Soul (very inspiring about the personal effects of literature in life)Guiness, Oz. Doubt; The Dust of DeathGundry, Stanley. Love Them In (the theology of Dwight Lyman Moody)Guroian, Vigen. Tending the Heart of Virtue (a wonderful treatment of capturing a child’s imLarsenagination)Holmes, Arthur. All Truth is God’s Truth*Hovestal, Tom. Extreme Righteousness: Seeing Ourselves in the PhariseesHunt, Gladys. Honey from a Child’s HeartJames, Carolyn Custis. When Life and Beliefs CollideKoessler, John. Stranger in the House of God (very poignant well-written contemporary memoir)Larsen, Scott and Philip Yancey. Indelible Ink (well-known people give their favorite books)Laurence, Brother. The Practice of the Presence of GodLewis, C.S. The Problem of Pain; The Four Loves; Mere Christianity; A Grief ObservedLloyd-Jones, Martyn. Of Preaching and Preachers; Spiritual Depression; Sermon on the Mount; etc.McCullough Donald. The Trivialization of GodMuggeridge, Malcolm. Christ and the Media; Jesus Rediscovered; Trumpeter for God; Something Beautiful for God (on Mother Theresa)Nouwen, Henri. Genesse Diary; etc.O’Connor, Flannery. The Habit of Being (her collected letters); Mystery and Manners (lectures on writing and Christianity)Packer, J.I. Fundamentalislm and the Word of God; Knowing GodPike, Kenneth. With The Heart and MindPlantinga, Cornelius. Not the Way It’s Supposed To BeRoseveare, Helen. Living SacrificeRyken, Leland. Windows to the World*; Triumphs of the Imagination*; Realms of Gold*Ryle, J.C. HolinessSayers, Dorothy. The Mind of the Maker; Are Women Human?Sire, James. How to Read Slowly*
Stott, John R. Your Mind Matters; etc.Schaeffer, Francis. The Christian Manifesto; etc.Sibbs, Richard. Works of Richard SibbsTozer, A.W. The Pursuit of God; The Knowledge of the HolyVeith, Gene Edward Jr. Reading Between the Lines*; State of the Arts*Weil, Simone. Waiting on GodWiersbe, Warren, ed. Treasury of the World’s Greatest Sermons; Preaching With ImaginationWoolman, John. JournalZylstra, Henry. Testament of Vision*=books on how to interpret what you’re reading
June 3, 2012
Right Where I Said I'd Be
I let her out at Target. Just to run in and find something.
“I’ll be right here,” I said.
I’ve been saying that for thirty years. “I’ll be right here.”
Except in the past week or so that hasn’t been as comforting. I’m writing another story and living with someone who’s writing a story is like living with a person who has one foot in reality and another in Narnia.
I pulled to the side of the building where I thought there would be shade and parked. I turned on the book I’m listening to, something to cleanse the mental palate.
Wait a minute. If she comes out and I’m not in front, she won’t be able to find me. And it’s 110 in the parking lot.
Relax. She’ll call me. She has a cell…
The phone was next to me. She’d left it in the car.
A few years into our marriage I acquired this ability to finish her sentences, read her mind, figure out exactly what she’d be doing at any point of the day. Now I can’t even figure out what I’m doing half the time. And reading her mind? It was an illusion at best.
I pulled to the front of the store but didn’t have a good line of sight. I pulled into another row of parked cars, then a third. I backed up so I could see the front door better.
I used to be able to anticipate when she’d be done with a task, shopping, going into the school, whatever it was. I would have the kids in the car, sleeping, and I’d pull up just as she walked out the door and she would get in like I was the prince and she was the princess and our timing was perfect.
I looked at the store. People coming and going. Nobody was waiting in the car for them.
I took a breath. It just felt right. I could see her going through the checkout line, signing her name, getting 5% back and feeling good about it. Walking past the Starbucks to the automatic doors.
I put the car in reverse.
And I swear I’m not making this up, on a stack of whatever you want me to swear on, I swear she was coming through the crosswalk with that white bag and the red circles.
She got in.
“Told you I’d be here,” I said.
“I’ll be right here,” I said.
I’ve been saying that for thirty years. “I’ll be right here.”
Except in the past week or so that hasn’t been as comforting. I’m writing another story and living with someone who’s writing a story is like living with a person who has one foot in reality and another in Narnia.
I pulled to the side of the building where I thought there would be shade and parked. I turned on the book I’m listening to, something to cleanse the mental palate.
Wait a minute. If she comes out and I’m not in front, she won’t be able to find me. And it’s 110 in the parking lot.
Relax. She’ll call me. She has a cell…
The phone was next to me. She’d left it in the car.
A few years into our marriage I acquired this ability to finish her sentences, read her mind, figure out exactly what she’d be doing at any point of the day. Now I can’t even figure out what I’m doing half the time. And reading her mind? It was an illusion at best.
I pulled to the front of the store but didn’t have a good line of sight. I pulled into another row of parked cars, then a third. I backed up so I could see the front door better.
I used to be able to anticipate when she’d be done with a task, shopping, going into the school, whatever it was. I would have the kids in the car, sleeping, and I’d pull up just as she walked out the door and she would get in like I was the prince and she was the princess and our timing was perfect.
I looked at the store. People coming and going. Nobody was waiting in the car for them.
I took a breath. It just felt right. I could see her going through the checkout line, signing her name, getting 5% back and feeling good about it. Walking past the Starbucks to the automatic doors.
I put the car in reverse.
And I swear I’m not making this up, on a stack of whatever you want me to swear on, I swear she was coming through the crosswalk with that white bag and the red circles.
She got in.
“Told you I’d be here,” I said.
June 1, 2012
Summer Reading
Here is a list of some of the books that were mentioned on the air on June 1 during Chris Fabry Live.
Here is a list of some books mentioned on the air on June 1 during Chris Fabry Live!
Our guests were: Julie Cantrell, author of Into The FreeTina Ann Forkner, author of Rose House and Ruby Among Us
Gina Holmes, author of Crossing Oceans, Dry as Rain
From Facebook: The Mark of the Lion Series by Francine Rivers, Anything by Robin Jones Gunn
Dannah Gresh mentioned Donna VanLiere's The Good Dream on her blog
Tina mentioned: The Outsiders, S. E. Hinton
Julie mentioned: books by Barbara Kingsolver
Madeleine L'Engle, A Wrinkle In Time
Temptation, Travis Thrasher (Solitary Series)
also, the 7 Hour Series, Teardrop
Blue Moon Bay, Lisa Wingate
Almost Heaven, Not In The Heart, Chris Fabry
Harriet Beamer Takes the Bus, Joyce Magnum
Stardust, Carla Stewart
Embrace Me, Lisa Samson
Chasing Mona Lisa, Tricia Goyer
A Sweet Haven Summer, Courtney Walsh -- Suggested by Deborah Raney, author of After All: A Hanover Falls Novel
Where the Red Fern Grows, Wilson Rawls
Peace Like a River, Leif Enger
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Betty Smith
Redeeming Love, Francine Rivers
Bonnie Calhoun, Cooking the Books
Historical fiction by Tamera Alexander and Kim Vogel Sawyer
Illusions, Frank Peretti
Loving, Karen Kingsbury
Sheep Tales, Ken Davis
Bathsheba, Jill Eileen Smith
The Robe, Lloyd C. Douglas
Till We Have Faces, C. S. Lewis
Chasing Sunsets, Eva Marie Everson
(suggested by author Pam Meyers)
Pam also suggested going online to find a database of books by genre, author, or title. The site is: www.FictionFinder.com.
Chosen: The Lost Diaries of Queen Esther by Ginger Garrett
Madman by Tracy Groot
The Last Disciple series by Sigmund Brouwer and Hank Hanegraaff
One Tuesday Morning series by Karen Kingsbury
Charles Martin, The Dead Don't Dance, Thunder and Rain
Lee Strobel, The Ambition
Dinner with a Perfect Stranger, David Gregory
Here is a list of some books mentioned on the air on June 1 during Chris Fabry Live!
Our guests were: Julie Cantrell, author of Into The FreeTina Ann Forkner, author of Rose House and Ruby Among Us
Gina Holmes, author of Crossing Oceans, Dry as Rain
From Facebook: The Mark of the Lion Series by Francine Rivers, Anything by Robin Jones Gunn
Dannah Gresh mentioned Donna VanLiere's The Good Dream on her blog
Tina mentioned: The Outsiders, S. E. Hinton
Julie mentioned: books by Barbara Kingsolver
Madeleine L'Engle, A Wrinkle In Time
Temptation, Travis Thrasher (Solitary Series)
also, the 7 Hour Series, Teardrop
Blue Moon Bay, Lisa Wingate
Almost Heaven, Not In The Heart, Chris Fabry
Harriet Beamer Takes the Bus, Joyce Magnum
Stardust, Carla Stewart
Embrace Me, Lisa Samson
Chasing Mona Lisa, Tricia Goyer
A Sweet Haven Summer, Courtney Walsh -- Suggested by Deborah Raney, author of After All: A Hanover Falls Novel
Where the Red Fern Grows, Wilson Rawls
Peace Like a River, Leif Enger
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Betty Smith
Redeeming Love, Francine Rivers
Bonnie Calhoun, Cooking the Books
Historical fiction by Tamera Alexander and Kim Vogel Sawyer
Illusions, Frank Peretti
Loving, Karen Kingsbury
Sheep Tales, Ken Davis
Bathsheba, Jill Eileen Smith
The Robe, Lloyd C. Douglas
Till We Have Faces, C. S. Lewis
Chasing Sunsets, Eva Marie Everson
(suggested by author Pam Meyers)
Pam also suggested going online to find a database of books by genre, author, or title. The site is: www.FictionFinder.com.
Chosen: The Lost Diaries of Queen Esther by Ginger Garrett
Madman by Tracy Groot
The Last Disciple series by Sigmund Brouwer and Hank Hanegraaff
One Tuesday Morning series by Karen Kingsbury
Charles Martin, The Dead Don't Dance, Thunder and Rain
Lee Strobel, The Ambition
Dinner with a Perfect Stranger, David Gregory
May 24, 2012
Feather Lessons
I walked into the garage after taking Tebow on his morning excursion and heard the sound. The garage door had been left open, something I don't recommend in the desert. You never know what will crawl in there and make itself at home.
I headed for the laundry door and saw it by the refrigerator. The still, lifeless body of a bird. Tebow wanted to attack. I guided him into the house and took a closer look.
I'm not a bird enthusiast—I can't tell you what species it was, but I can tell you to my untrained eye it was stone cold dead. Expired. This was a late bird.
Not a sparrow falls and all that stuff. God cares for you more than birds. All that went through my head and out again. It takes faith to believe that and I had work to do, I didn't have time for faith.
I've heard you shouldn't touch dead animals, so I went inside to get a plastic bag to move its form from the concrete.
When I returned something had changed. Legs twitched, eyes fluttered. The head moved back and forth. But the poor thing was on its back and a wing dangled. There was really no hope.
I picked it up with the bag, as gently but firmly as I could, and passed by the trash cans and other garage accoutrement. Outside I put it on the ground in the yard which is nothing but gravel. The poor thing at least deserved some grass, but grass have I none.
I left him there, on his back, his legs wiggling, eyes darting, head moving. He was easy prey. But there was no hope. He was flat on his back and couldn't get up on his feet. And if he did get on his feet, that damaged wing would keep him from flight.
Behind me, on the garage roof, the same type of bird chirped and called. Maybe it was a Zig Ziglar type, calling encouragement and positive statements. Perhaps it was one of Job's friends. Or maybe the bird was chirping, "Curse God and die! More worms for me!"
The bird flew away and I moved into the open door to watch. It was almost as if I were looking at my own life, my own journey. Somehow the bird had gotten into the garage and had smacked the wall or a car and was now on its back, ready for the plastic bag. No hope. Just waiting for the predator to carry it away.
Then something happened. Not with the twitching bird, it was still on its back, still helpless and flailing. No, something wonderful. It was another bird—the same type, perhaps the one from the garage, perhaps another, and it flew near the injured bird. I wanted my camera. But I was frozen. You'll have to trust me on this.
This second bird came near the injured one, but not too close. And then it turned and walked away, toward the road. Almost as if it were ignoring the injured bird. Almost as if it were saying, "If you're going to stay there, I'm out of here." How cruel. Insensitive.
And then it turned. I swear to you, it turned. Or maybe this is a fiction writer's view of the story. Maybe I'm making this up to fit the template of what I wanted to happen. But all I can do is describe it.
The injured bird tried to get up. It skittered and flailed with its legs and attempted to right itself, but it couldn't. I thought about helping it, putting it on its belly instead of its back, then I thought better of it. Perhaps this is the mother bird in me. My inner sparrow.
The bird on the road was further away now. The bird on the ground flailed, jostled, and with a wing movement flapped itself onto its belly. Then the legs moved and it stood and walked across the rocks, the damaged wing dangling. And it caught up with the bigger bird on the other side of the road, and then the form changed—the wing was brought back to the body so that the two, other than the size of them, looked the same.
The two birds moved into the cactus and mesquite and scrub, up a little hill, around a cholla, and disappeared.
I didn't witness the flyover. I don't have independent knowledge of the bird's return to the air.
Somehow, I don't need it.
I headed for the laundry door and saw it by the refrigerator. The still, lifeless body of a bird. Tebow wanted to attack. I guided him into the house and took a closer look.
I'm not a bird enthusiast—I can't tell you what species it was, but I can tell you to my untrained eye it was stone cold dead. Expired. This was a late bird.
Not a sparrow falls and all that stuff. God cares for you more than birds. All that went through my head and out again. It takes faith to believe that and I had work to do, I didn't have time for faith.
I've heard you shouldn't touch dead animals, so I went inside to get a plastic bag to move its form from the concrete.
When I returned something had changed. Legs twitched, eyes fluttered. The head moved back and forth. But the poor thing was on its back and a wing dangled. There was really no hope.
I picked it up with the bag, as gently but firmly as I could, and passed by the trash cans and other garage accoutrement. Outside I put it on the ground in the yard which is nothing but gravel. The poor thing at least deserved some grass, but grass have I none.
I left him there, on his back, his legs wiggling, eyes darting, head moving. He was easy prey. But there was no hope. He was flat on his back and couldn't get up on his feet. And if he did get on his feet, that damaged wing would keep him from flight.
Behind me, on the garage roof, the same type of bird chirped and called. Maybe it was a Zig Ziglar type, calling encouragement and positive statements. Perhaps it was one of Job's friends. Or maybe the bird was chirping, "Curse God and die! More worms for me!"
The bird flew away and I moved into the open door to watch. It was almost as if I were looking at my own life, my own journey. Somehow the bird had gotten into the garage and had smacked the wall or a car and was now on its back, ready for the plastic bag. No hope. Just waiting for the predator to carry it away.
Then something happened. Not with the twitching bird, it was still on its back, still helpless and flailing. No, something wonderful. It was another bird—the same type, perhaps the one from the garage, perhaps another, and it flew near the injured bird. I wanted my camera. But I was frozen. You'll have to trust me on this.
This second bird came near the injured one, but not too close. And then it turned and walked away, toward the road. Almost as if it were ignoring the injured bird. Almost as if it were saying, "If you're going to stay there, I'm out of here." How cruel. Insensitive.
And then it turned. I swear to you, it turned. Or maybe this is a fiction writer's view of the story. Maybe I'm making this up to fit the template of what I wanted to happen. But all I can do is describe it.
The injured bird tried to get up. It skittered and flailed with its legs and attempted to right itself, but it couldn't. I thought about helping it, putting it on its belly instead of its back, then I thought better of it. Perhaps this is the mother bird in me. My inner sparrow.
The bird on the road was further away now. The bird on the ground flailed, jostled, and with a wing movement flapped itself onto its belly. Then the legs moved and it stood and walked across the rocks, the damaged wing dangling. And it caught up with the bigger bird on the other side of the road, and then the form changed—the wing was brought back to the body so that the two, other than the size of them, looked the same.
The two birds moved into the cactus and mesquite and scrub, up a little hill, around a cholla, and disappeared.
I didn't witness the flyover. I don't have independent knowledge of the bird's return to the air.
Somehow, I don't need it.
May 12, 2012
What My Wife Wants For Mother's Day
I looked at her and said, "You have not because you ask not."
She said, "Okay, here are some things I would like for Mother's Day."
The plan: Queen for the Day.
THE TOP 15 THINGS ON ANDREA'S MOTHER'S DAY LIST
1. Mom will not think about Tebow and his food, stool, or kidneys. (Tebow is our dog.)
2. Unlimited time in for self-pampering. (And not thinking about Tebow.)
3. Someone to clean the kitchen counters and wipe cabinets. (Looks easier than it is.)
4. Have the compost watered and turned. (They'll be doing this to me in a few years.)
5. Some type of non-killer clothing…like shorts, T shirt, dress. (This will be a future blog.)
6. Foot bath using the detox bucket. (Some people have a bucket list, she has a detox bucket list.)
7. Foot massage at home. (As opposed to one at those expensive foot massage mega-stores.)
8. Laundry all taken care of…folded and put away on Sunday night so I wake up to very little laundry. (No comment.)
9. Someone to make a batch of soap. (This is beginning to sound like Little House on the Prairie.)
10. Sweep out garage… this is asking a lot if it’s hot. (We'll get Half-pint to do it.)
11. Help me organize the soap room. (Seriously? This is on your Mother's Day list?)
12. Help me organize my desk/office area. (I guess if the soap room is there, this is bound to show up.)
13. For food: I would love a blackened salmon with a vegetable on the side…also a green juice. (You're making me hungry.)
14. I would love to have a day where there is no fighting and everyone is happy with their life. This, too, is asking a lot…especially if it’s hot. (This may sound subtly manipulative and coercive, but hey, it's only one day a year.)
15. Time alone to work on my week ahead….a whole day of rest for my weary brain. (You deserve it!)
She said, "Okay, here are some things I would like for Mother's Day."
The plan: Queen for the Day.
THE TOP 15 THINGS ON ANDREA'S MOTHER'S DAY LIST
1. Mom will not think about Tebow and his food, stool, or kidneys. (Tebow is our dog.)
2. Unlimited time in for self-pampering. (And not thinking about Tebow.)
3. Someone to clean the kitchen counters and wipe cabinets. (Looks easier than it is.)
4. Have the compost watered and turned. (They'll be doing this to me in a few years.)
5. Some type of non-killer clothing…like shorts, T shirt, dress. (This will be a future blog.)
6. Foot bath using the detox bucket. (Some people have a bucket list, she has a detox bucket list.)
7. Foot massage at home. (As opposed to one at those expensive foot massage mega-stores.)
8. Laundry all taken care of…folded and put away on Sunday night so I wake up to very little laundry. (No comment.)
9. Someone to make a batch of soap. (This is beginning to sound like Little House on the Prairie.)
10. Sweep out garage… this is asking a lot if it’s hot. (We'll get Half-pint to do it.)
11. Help me organize the soap room. (Seriously? This is on your Mother's Day list?)
12. Help me organize my desk/office area. (I guess if the soap room is there, this is bound to show up.)
13. For food: I would love a blackened salmon with a vegetable on the side…also a green juice. (You're making me hungry.)
14. I would love to have a day where there is no fighting and everyone is happy with their life. This, too, is asking a lot…especially if it’s hot. (This may sound subtly manipulative and coercive, but hey, it's only one day a year.)
15. Time alone to work on my week ahead….a whole day of rest for my weary brain. (You deserve it!)
