Glimpse of the future

Come in to the gate.  The beauty of the Lamb's table will all point to HIm-Praise and praise will fill the table.  Every cup will be brimming with life from the heart of the Lamb~ Love like liquid flows down the table like a river of warm oil into and over everyone seated. Mountain of icy difficulties beginning to melt finally cascade into the river from the throne of God but every tear will be celebrated by the angels and witnesses that looked on and waited for this moment. The Lamb, the Word, moved down to the guests with thick glorious oil embracing, restoring in a twinkling all the loss and pain of a fading memory~ fresh joy and vibrant waves brushed over once tired faces~youth returned with pure eyes of devotion kissing Yeshua's gentle healing hands. Jewels on chairs, floors shining and cups brimming all reflecting the glistening glory of the the new world. Songs will pour forth with notes unheralded; paint, brushes and pencils will touch on paper, turning into new masterpieces as all look onto His beauty~breathless~ praise unceasing~ His Glory shining brightly into every corner of every universe.......

Look to the Sky

Looking to the stars and the dark night so clear
I go back to the Lights of the Northern skies
How the greens and blues and pinks would appear
In deep, cold, shivery winds and sighs
The brush of the Creator would race through the dark
leaving behind a spectacle of  colors
Stars and blue velvet contrasted and sharp
Aurora Borealis praising Another.
Surrounded by Him once again I would be
We would chat away the cares and pain of the days
As I would behold His breathtaking beauty
Comfort would come and push out the dismay
Soon my eyes would remember the sleep
Snowy roads led home to the fire burning
Dreams came softly and cares He would keep
Hope again stirred by the Lights returning.

About Grief

Outlawed Grief, a Curse Disguised

by Jonathan Trotter on December 22, 2013

Living abroad is an amazing adventure, but it comes with some baggage. And sometimes, the baggage fees are hidden, catching you by surprise, costing more than you planned.  You thought you had it all weighed out, you could handle this, squeeze right under the limit.
But then it got heavy.  Your new friends moved away, or your child’s new friend moved away.  Far away.  Like other continents away.   And your kid’s broken heart breaks yours.
Someone died and you didn’t get to say that last, fully present, goodbye.  Family members celebrate a birthday, or the whole family celebrates a holiday, and you’re not there because the Pacific’s really big, and you’re on the wrong side of it.
Or your child can’t remember her cousin’s name, and she doesn’t even know that’s sad. 
And you realize there are just some things Skype cannot fix.
And you grieve, and your kids grieve.  Maybe.  But what if all these things happen again? And again.  You have another round of airport goodbyes, another holiday season with sand. Another Christmas with crying.
What if grieving gets old and annoying and time-consuming and exhausting?  What if it becomes easier to just not grieve?  To not let others grieve?
I’ll tell you what happens: Grief itself gets outlawed and a curse descends.  And everyone learns that some emotions are spiritual and some are forbidden.
Has your grief ever been outlawed?  Have you ever felt that your sadness or grief was “wrong and not very spiritual” and you should “be over this by now”?  If so, I am very sorry.  The prohibition of grief is a terrible, terrible curse.
Sometimes it’s outright, “Don’t cry, it’ll all be ok.”  But oftentimes, it’s more subtle (and spiritual) than that.  It’s the good-hearted person who says, “It’s not really goodbye, it’s see you later” or  “You know, all things work together for good.”
What if your kids miss grandma and McDonald’s and green grass, and someone tells them, “It’s for God,” or “It’ll be ok someday; you’ll look back on this as one of the best things that ever happened to you.” What if you tell them that?
Grief gets banned, and what was meant as a balm becomes a bomb, ticking.  The intended salve starts searing.
When loss happens, why must we minimize it?  Why are we so uncomfortable with letting the sadness sit?  Are we afraid of grief?
We sometimes act as if you can’t have grief and faith at the same time.  Sometimes, shutting down grief seems spiritual.  We tell ourselves and others, “Forget the past and press on.  God’s got a plan.  God is sovereign.”  We use Bible verses.
But banning grief is not biblical, and it’s not spiritual. 
Maybe we feel that grieving a loss of something or someone shows that we don’t have all our treasures in heaven.  Perhaps we delude ourselves with the twisted notion that if we had all of our treasures in heaven, our treasures would be safe, and we’d never experience loss.  And although this is crazy talk, we speak it to ourselves and others.
Does grieving really signal a lack of faith?  Would the truly faithful person simply know the goodness of God and cast themselves on that goodness?  No one would say it, but we sometimes treat the sovereignty of God as an excuse to outlaw grief.  I mean, how could we question the plan of God by crying? 
We may feel that grieving a loss that was caused by someone else (through neglect or abuse) shows a lack of forgiveness.  And although we know it’s not true, we act as if once a person’s truly forgiven an offender, the painful effects and memories disappear forever.
What if the loss was caused by parents or a spouse who decided to become an overseas missionary?  Does the goodness and holiness of their decision negate the grief?  Of course not, but sometimes we feel that the truly spiritual would recognize the godly sacrifice and be grateful.  As if gratefulness and grief are mutually exclusive.  As if a decision has to have 100% positive or 100% negative results.  Gray exists, after all.
Maybe you made the decision to move overseas, and it was a God-thing and your call was sure, but now it’s just really, really hard.  How will you deal with your own grief?  Will it threaten you, or will you courageously allow yourself to feel it?
Remember, grieving isn’t equal to sinning.
Sometimes, outlawed grief goes underground.  It becomes a tectonic plate, storing energy, swaying, resisting movement, and then exploding in unanticipated and unpredictable ways.  A tectonic plate can store a heck of a lot of energy.  Sort of like grief, once outlawed.  It descends below the surface. And sometimes heaving tectonic plates cause destruction far, far away.  Really smart people with even smarter machines have to do smart things to pinpoint the actual location of the destructive shift.
Have you ever experienced an earthquake like this, caused by buried grief?  It might not be obvious at first, but after a little bit of digging, you realize that the pressure and tension had been building for a long, long time.
So please, allow grief in your own heart and in the hearts of your family members.  If you’re uncomfortable with other peoples’ grief (or your own), you might want to look deep, deep down in your own soul and see if there’s some long-outlawed, long-buried grief.  If you find some, begin gently to see it, vent it, feel it.  Begin talking about it, slowly, with a good listener.
And if you come across someone who’s grieving a loss, please remember that they probably don’t need a lecture, or a Bible verse, or a pithy saying.  But they could maybe use a hug.

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Jonathan Trotter is a missionary in Southeast Asia, serving with the church planting mission Team Expansion.  Before moving to the field with his wife of thirteen years and their four kids, he served as a youth pastor in the Midwest for ten years.  In preparing for the field, Jonathan worked as an ER nurse in an urban hospital, where he regularly witnessed trauma, suffering, and death.  His little sister died when he was six, his mother died of breast cancer when he was seventeen, and his father died of brain cancer when he was twenty-five.

Broken Bridge

Bridges torn down long ago
rivers now uncrossed
distant banks seem far away
their purpose now is lost

Waters rush by unawares
beaches hiding distant land
phantom bridges calling home
where  connection once did stand

5 Attributes of inspirational leaders

5 Attributes of Inspirational LeadersDr. John C. MaxwellThe Sahara plays tricks on the eyes of its travelers. As the desert sun beats down on the sand, heat waves rise from the ground. Light bends as it passes through the superheated air, painting illusory pictures on the horizon. To thirsty travelers moving through the Sahara, it often appears as if an oasis looms in the distance. However, as the voyagers journey on, the oasis proves to be nothing more than a mirage.

Unfortunately, the ranks of leadership are inhabited by a host of mirages: people who look impressive from a distance, but end up being disappointments. After being fooled by a few mirages, followers become jaded about leadership. That seems as true now as it ever has been. Our trust in leaders has been shaken as politicians have reneged on promises, CEOs have squandered money entrusted to their firms, and managers have advanced self-interests above all else.

To restore society's confidence with those in power, leaders have to be able to inspire. I'm not talking about inspiring someone to buy into the corporate vision statement, to meet quarterly sales goals, or to work more efficiently. These aren't bad things, but right now, people are looking for a leader attuned to their personal needs. They want leaders who will encourage them, believe in their potential, and help them grow.5 Attributes of an Inspirational Leader
ATTITUDE OF SERVICE
To be an inspirational leader, you must adopt an attitude of service toward those you lead. This requires laying aside selfish interests to add value to another person. In the words of Martin Luther King, Jr., "An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity." When you serve, you awaken something magnetic inside of you. People are drawn to follow you because they know you'll find ways to make them better.
AFFIRMATION
To inspire means to have a positive view of others. If we're not careful, we become fault-finders, magnifying the flaws in everyone around us. Instead, leaders should emulate gold prospectors - always on the lookout for potential gold mines. When they find traces of ore, prospectors assume there's a rich vein to unearth, and they start digging. In the same fashion, leaders ought to search for the best traits within a person and commit to uncovering them.
One of the best applications of this idea is expressed in what I call the 101 percent principle: Find the one thing that you believe is a person's greatest asset, and then give 100 percent encouragement in that area. Focusing on a person's strengths inspires them by promoting confidence, growth, and success.

ATTENTIVENESS
Great inspirers know the desires of those they lead. As much as people respect the knowledge and ability of their leaders, these are secondary concerns for them. They don't care how much their leaders know until they know how much their leaders care. When leaders attend to the deeply felt needs of their team, the determination and commitment of each team member skyrockets.

AVAILABILITY
Leaders inspire by intentionally investing time in the people they lead. They make themselves available. People cannot be nurtured from a distance or by infrequent spurts of attention. They need a leader to spend time with them - planned time, not just a conversation in passing.

In our fast-paced and demanding world, time is a leader's most precious commodity. While it feels costly to give up, nothing communicates that you value a person more than the gift of your time. In addition, investing time to develop others has a way of reaping dividends. As Ralph Waldo Emerson remarked, "It is one of the most beautiful compensations of this life that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself."
AUTHENTICITY
To inspire, leaders have to be genuine. More than anything else, followers want to believe in and trust their leaders. However, when leaders break promises or fail to honor commitments, they reveal themselves as being inauthentic, and they lose credibility. Trust rests upon a foundation of authenticity. To gain trust, a leader must consistently align words and deeds, while showing a degree of transparency.