Posted on by Lois Stephens · 3 Comments

Poetry on Fire, Part II

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The Psalms, a poetic masterpiece that guides me in my quest to know God more.

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Psalm 16, A Michtam of David.  Herein lies a beautiful hidden secret in the title of this psalm.  For the Hebrew word Michtam, rendered “a sculptured writing of gold” in the Septuagint, speaks of God’s divine nature permanently engraved upon David’s heart.  I am a living letter, sculpted in gold by my Creator God.

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Psalm 11, Song of the Steadfast.  “Lord, don’t you hear what my well-meaning friends keep saying to me:  “Run away while you can!” (v.1, TPT).  Sometimes I can be my own best “well-meaning friend”.  Today I remind myself to stand firm and not run from the enemies of my soul.  Lord, I will face each one with courage & grace for I have placed my trust in you.

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Psalm 3, Covered by the Glory.  A song written by David as he runs for his life from his own son, Absalom.  David sings out to God his Shield, translated in ancient Hebrew as Taker.  God, my Taker, shields me by taking me into Himself.  In challenging times, sometimes I just need to step back into God.

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Psalm 5, a song written by King David for the Chief Musician upon the Nehiloth.  As a flutist myself, I love that this song was written to be played upon the Nehiloth, or flute.  This same Hebrew word can also be translated inheritances.  The gift of music is a beautiful inheritance given by the Chief Musician Himself–a gift for which I am very grateful.

Today and always, may our wrap-around God surround you in favor and cover you under His canopy of kindness & joy.

Love & Peace.

Posted on by Lois Stephens · 3 Comments

Irreverent in the Reverent

Everytime that line is spoken....

I giggle from the pew of the conservative, mainline evangelical church in which I am seated. The president of our company just shared from the pulpit a joke our dearly-departed colleague told at a recent staff meeting.  I’m sure our friend is laughing from heaven’s balcony at the retelling…

And the Lord said unto John, “Come forth and receive eternal life”

              …but John came in fifth and won a toaster.

I glance at the minister seated behind the pulpit.  Stone faced.  Guess he doesn’t think it’s funny.

Was the joke inappropriate to tell at a memorial service—in a church setting?  Maybe … to some, anyway.

As for me, I’ve always been strangely drawn to just a tad of the irreverent in the reverent.  Love to kick over the proverbial sacred cow—those traditions of men that are believed to be good and necessary without ever questioning “the why”.  And often the kicking over comes about from a good dose of good-natured humor.

I like the way John Piper puts it,

“… the challenge in life, as in so many other traits, is to become a joyfully, holy, seriously happy kind of God-centered, Christ-exalting, Bible-saturated person so that, out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth laughs.”

So, in honor of my slightly irreverent colleague, whose life was taken way too soon, here’s to you, my friend …

Q:  Did you know they had automobiles in Jesus’ times? 

A:  Yes, the bible said the disciples were all of one accord.          

* * *

Several children found a dead robin. Feeling that a proper burial should be performed, they secured a small box and some cotton batting, dug a hole in the back yard, and made ready to dispose of the deceased. The minister’s 5-year-old son was chosen to say the prayer. And so with great dignity, he intoned, “Glory be to the Father…and unto the Son…and into the hole he goes.”

* * *

Father O’Malley answers the phone. “Hello, is this Father O’Malley?”
“It is”
“This is the IRS. Can you help us?”
“I can”
“Do you know a Ted Houlihan?”
“I do”
“Is he a member of your congregation?”
“He is”
“Did he donate $10,000 to the church?”
“He will”. 

* * *

:-)

“A cheerful heart is good medicine, …”  Proverbs 17:22.  Thanks, Craig, for bringing cheer to my heart.  You will be missed.

 

Posted on by Lois Stephens · 2 Comments

Poetry on fire

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The Psalms—a mirror into my soul.  A divine pathway into the presence of God.  Songs ablaze; poetry aflame.  Causing my spirit man to burn.

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Psalm 23, The Good Shepherd.  “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”  Do you know that the Hebrew word for shepherd can also be translated best friend?  The Lord is always looking for those he can call friends.

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Psalm 11, Song of the Steadfast.  “And with a glance, his eyes examine every heart.”  Do you know that the actual Hebrew word for eyes is eyelids?  Some believe the eyelid symbolizes the lid of the ark of covenant, called the mercy seat.  The Lord examines every heart with an eye of mercy.

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Psalm 32, Forgiven.  A poem written by King David after he had an affair with the wife of his most loyal soldier, then had him killed to try to keep her pregnancy a secret.  Yet, God still calls David a man after his own heart.  Forgiven & forgotten.

Today and always, may our wrap-around God surround you in favor and cover you under His canopy of kindness & joy.

Love & Peace.

Posted on by Lois Stephens · 2 Comments

Place a lawgiver over them

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The law of God is not a set of rules to test our obedience, but rather meant to reveal patterns of relationship that reflect God’s own nature.  

In the New Testament account of the woman caught in adultery, the law of the day required that both the man and the woman be accused.  The law also required that there be two witnesses to the act.  In this case, the requirements of the law were not being met and the woman, whether guilty or not, was being held unjustly.

Jesus responds to the unjust act by demonstrating his God-nature of faithfulness to the unfaithful woman.  He calls her up to a higher standard of life.  The only stones touching the woman that day were the foundation stones of God’s rule, attended by the witnesses of love and truth.

Jesus did not diminish the law but raised it to be representative of the very nature of God. 

Justice, most simply, means putting things right again.  Jesus is always interested in the wronged party.  He comes to make right that which is wrong.  He comes to restore relationship.

“…Place a lawgiver over them.”  Psalm 9:20 (TPT)

 

 

 

 

Posted on by Lois Stephens · 6 Comments

Have I ever felt persecuted when I’ve been contradicted?

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This statement has me thinking.   Have I ever felt persecuted when I’ve been contradicted?

Persecuted—a strong word.  Never has my life been threatened because of my political or religious beliefs.  There were a few times when I was treated unfairly by those who contradicted me—misunderstood and misrepresented by those who didn’t agree with my way of thinking.  Not sure I’d call that persecution, though—more like an opportunity for some needed character development on my part, I’d say.

And then there’s the flip side.  Have others ever felt persecuted when I’ve contradicted them?  My guess is yes, most likely.  I recall some strong reactions from others with whom I disagreed–involving words like close minded, judgmental, disloyal and deceived.

But I rather focus on those times of honest, direct and respectful heart-to-hearts, when we’ve come through to the other side with no bruises, no wounds and no battle scars.  Thankful for those precious times when two agree to disagree and still remain open to relationship for the sake of love.

The bible tells the story of two brothers named Jacob and Esau.  Jacob and Esau had a disagreement that led to a broken relationship lasting many years.

The evening before reuniting with his brother, Jacob wrestles all night with “a man” (who really is the Angel of the Lord).  Jacob calls the place “God’s face”, because he saw God face-to-face and lived.

At daybreak, Jacob leaves his wrestling match and moves on to meet his brother.  Upon seeing Esau, Jacob cries out, “To see your face is like seeing the face of God”!

Sometimes God hides Himself in our disagreements.  Sometimes He hides Himself in those who contradict us.  Sometimes we just need to keep wrestling through until we can see God’s face in the face of the contradiction.   That’s not persecution—that’s love.

Have you ever felt persecuted when you’ve been contradicted?  Try envisioning your brother, and your difference of opinion, coming right out of the heart of God.   It may give you a new perspective worth exploring.

Posted on by Lois Stephens · 5 Comments

There’s a song in my soul

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Do you know that there is technology today that can take a sample of your DNA and translate your gene sequence into music?  I was created with a song in my soul–a spiritual melody that is uniquely mine that I get to share with the world every day.

Speak out to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs … Ephesians 5:19.

What song is coming from your DNA?  Go on, sing it like you mean it.  Somebody needs to hear it.

Music is Life. Thats why our hearts have beats.

Love & Peace.

The words of this song have been haunting me for a very long time …

 

 

Posted on by Lois Stephens · 16 Comments

I Am Not Color Blind

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It’s been years now, but the memory-moment when I first saw her still runs deep.  Sitting cross-legged on the bed, with pink sponge curlers in her hair, she looks up as I enter our college dorm room.  Me, a middle-class white girl from the suburbs; she, a lower-class black girl born and raised in West Philadelphia.  Our eyes meet for a split second and then both our heads drop silent.

I grew up in white privilege; she grew up among the working poor.   We had a lot to discover about each other, and that we did.  A critical juncture; a defining year that gave me a new perspective beyond my own safe little world.

Amazing how God arranges life experiences to add in the missing pieces.  A divine appointment; a God set-up that added something needed, something of value, into the core of my identity.

My world got a whole lot bigger that year.  And I will be forever grateful to my West Philly roomie whom I grew to love, honor and respect.

Fast forward to last weekend…

We enter the retreat center where I am one of three invited speakers.  Seated beside the other speakers—all beautiful, strong and gifted African American women, I am feeling my “white-ness”.  I’ve heard these women speak before, with incredible power and passion.  They can raise the roof with their fiery-Pentecostal preaching.  An expectation to conform and perform begins to emerge from within me.

Conform and perform—I’ve done it before.  Not proud of it, but true.  Caved to my own internal pressure and took on another’s identity to be approved and accepted.  Yet in the process, I lost something invaluable—the gift of myself.

And then it hits me—my college roomie, this is the lesson we learned together.  I can honor and celebrate these African American women without pretending to be one of them.  By staying true to myself, I give room for others to stay true to themselves.

I quietly walk to the podium and begin sharing God’s love from my heart—in the way I do best, in the way I am designed.  People are moved by the gentle power of love—tears flow and healing comes.  I am a cool drink of water in the fiery heat of the day.  Different, yet the same.

I am not color blind.  God gave us color and the ability to distinguish between colors.  It’s a gift that I plan to celebrate more.  When we celebrate our differences by not pretending they do not exist, we celebrate the multi-faceted nature of God in whose image we all were created.  

Different, yet the same.  Hard to explain.  A divine mystery from the heart of God that I one day hope to understand better.