Not So Rose Colored Glasses

Have you ever put on a pair of prescription glasses? Everything appears distorted at first but then after awhile the images kind of come into focus. Not real clear, but enough to see. Imagine if you forgot that you put the glasses on. After awhile your eyes would conform to the destructive lenses. You would think that your view was unobscured but actually your eyes would be deteriorating with each day you continued to wear the bad lenses. Eventually it would appear that you would need to put more "corrective lenses" on so that you could see clearly.

The world continues to add corrective lenses where they are not needed. Sin has become the acceptable way of life. The world is lost and sin is habitual. Think about it. In 1939 Rhett Butler used the famous last words, "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn". Since then, more and more swear words have made their way to daytime television. Even children's animated movies have "adult humor" within them. One little compromise at a time. The world conforms to the cultures of the current time.

What compromises are you making? It happens all of a sudden and sometimes you don't even realize that you've done it. Think about Samson, the strong man of the Bible and how Delilah pestered him daily until he gave in and told her where his strength lay.

Instead of taking the glasses off and seeing how God wants us to see things, the world just keeps adding more corrective lenses in hopes of making things clear, when in reality they are just making things worse. Take the glasses off, look into your hearts and listen to what God is saying.

©Crackerberries 2008

Steel Walls & Skinny Dogs

When ever I’d go to the bank or the post office or the grocery store, I’d always be sure to use the pen they had for irresponsible people. If I liked the pen or it wrote well, I’d absentmindedly drop the pen in my purse after writing out the check. If someone were to speak to me about it, I’d defend myself by saying, “Oh, I’m sorry, I must have thought it was mine.” If I got away with it, I’d justify it in my mind by telling myself, “don’t worry about it, people do it all the time, they have plenty more pens to put out there”. But I knew it was wrong.

When I was a little girl in the first or second grade, Cricket was hit by a car. Cricket was this great, big fluffy cat that I could barely lift. She died in my arms and I was devastated. I cried and cried and I was hugging my kitty and wouldn’t let her go. My father wanted to bury her and I didn’t want him to. Either my mother or my father told me that I had to let him bury her so the angels could come and carry her away to heaven. At some point after my beloved kitty died, I was looking out into the back yard and I remember seeing two white angels floating above the ground where Cricket was buried. I don’t know whether I dreamt that or it was my vivid imagination kicking into overtime mode or what it was. Maybe it was my mind building up a wall of justification so that I could deal with the death of Cricket.

Every year when I was young I remember Santa Claus would come to our house on Christmas Eve and inundate the tree with so many gifts that if you were to ask me what my favorite childhood Christmas gift from Santa was I can’t think of one that sticks out in my mind. We were so spoiled. One year Christmas Eve came but Santa did not. I believe it was the year that my parents were divorced. Although my sister and I found out the truth about Santa that year, I wanted to believe it was because we were naughty and we didn’t deserve gifts that year.

Even after remembering what it was like to find out the truth about Santa, when I became a parent, I did the same thing to my kids; played Santa on Christmas Eve until they were old enough to realize that Santa Claus doesn't really exist. Why would we do that? Why would we let our kids or anyone for that matter believe something that we know is not true? We justify it because it’s easier to hide behind a figment and go along with what everyone else is doing or saying rather than face the truth.

Once I understood the gospel and accepted Jesus I began to wonder about the people out there that have never heard the gospel, never read a Bible, and don’t know who Jesus is. “What happens to them when they die? If they don’t know, will they still go to hell?” Romans 1:18-19

Although sinful people mentally recognize the truth about God, they choose to suppress it but they are without excuse. It is so important for us to share everything we can. We need to tear down those steel walls and feed those skinny dogs the truth. Take the unbeaten path, take the road less travelled.

©Crackerberries 2008

Human Sorrows

Recently I came across this quote I wrote in an old notebook:

"One of the greatest sorrows of human existence is that some people aren't happy merely to be alive, but find their happiness in the misery of others"

~Stefan in "Lightening" by Dean R. Koontz

I'm forever writing things down and finding them later wondering why I wrote it down or what it meant to me at the time I wrote it. We have lists of things to do, notes to remind us where the lists of things to do are. I never know when I'm going to come across a quote, note, or list of something. When I found this one, I thought how terribly sad at how much truth there really is to it.

When do people pray? When something bad is happening, right? When do we hear from long lost relatives or old friends? When something bad is happening, right? When do the news people get all pumped up and out there everywhere? When something bad is happening, right? When do fire trucks, police cars and ambulances turn their sirens on? When something bad is happening, right?

I remember staying at my grandparents house as a little girl. My grandmother forever listened to a scanner. She was so obsessed with it that she even took it to bed with her. Whenever that thing would squelch, she would yell, "Hark! Wilson! You hear that?" And off we'd go. She packs my sister and me up in the car and my grandfather would obediently drive us to the scene, "just to see".

Last night we watched We are Marshall (okay, so it is taking us a little while to get caught up to new releases). This true story is about a community that looses most of the members of the football team in a plane crash in 1970. A tragedy. But Jack Lengyel takes the opportunity to turn the town's grief into something good. Great movie, if you haven't seen it, do.

One of the boys came over the other night with his girlfriend. They told us a story about being someplace they probably had no business hanging out at. They laughed about people that were pushing shopping carts around (that they stole from a local Wally World or grocery store) filled with empty soda pop and beer cans. They shared a story about one "bum" that came up to them and asked if he could have a cigarette. Their response was, "No, get the (explicit) away from here!" They said they wondered why he didn't just find a job. I said, "Did you ask him that?" Although they found humor in the failure of these "bums", once I put the question on them, they didn't find it funny anymore.

When something bad is happening to someone else we feel better about ourselves because it's not happening to us. But what makes us any better? Who is to say that we aren't going to end up like them or worse? When there is tragedy or misery in some one's life (no matter who it is) we should be doing all we can to be an effective witness and example to them. Life change is done by God, but we are here to ". . . go and make disciples of all nations . . . "! If we do our job, you can rest assured knowing God will do His.

The Unveiling

Last night while preparing din-din I finally found where that smell had been coming from. Tuesday I thought it was the macaroni salad. (You want to see something funny, give chickens pasta ... they love it!) Wednesday I thought it was the leftover turkey chili (no I did not feed that to the chickens, that's just wrong, although they do love my homemade baked beans). Thursday morning I came to the conclusion that it was the shrivelled up lemon that was stuck to the bottom of the crisper. Actually when I took that out of the fridge, the smell kind of dissipated so I figured that was it and yeah, the smell was gone. I even emailed my Tall Cool One and told him it was gone. But then he got home, opened the fridge and lo and behold, the stench was still there. "I can't find it, " I whined to my wonderful husband.

But then I did something that amazed me. I took the broccoli out of the fridge and set it on the counter while I prepared the pork that we were having with it. Immediately the smell waifed through the house. Although it was worse than our dog when he has gas, the vegetable had not perished.

People without Jesus are like me trying to find that stench in the fridge. Instead of looking in the obvious place they search and search to find the stench (the emptiness in their heart) with worldly things. It used to be shoes and handbags for me. I couldn't buy enough. It's cars for some people, and others their job, perhaps drugs or alcohol, trips and vacations. Anything to fill the void. 2 Corinthians 3:16 Nevertheless, when one turns to the Lord the veil is taken away. The smell in the refrigerator is gone.
Until next time,

The Refrigerator Stinks

Three days ago, I opened the fridge to a stench I can't quite figure out. I said to Tall Cool One, "something in the fridge stinks, smell it". He gives me a funny look as if to say, "if it stinks, I don't want to smell it". "But I can't figure out what it is," I tell him. "Oh, you'll figure it out," he assures me.

That was three days ago. I've been pulling everything out that could cause the fridge to reek and have been feeding it to the dog or the chickens. Not that anything has been bad or past the "use by" date. I just can't seem to figure out what is causing that icky smell. Even when I open the freezer I can smell it. Can stuff from the freezer cause an odor? Does stuff that has covers on it stink through the covers? There is a fresh box of baking soda in the fridge - I thought that was supposed to take the stinkiness away. What can that smell be?

I am going to find out what it is today, I assure you. If I have to take everything from pickles to ketchup out, I am going to find it.

Acceptance

Do you ever feel like you aren’t as important as you thought you were? An old friend forgets your birthday, your kids don’t need help tying their shoes anymore, and the boss forgets about secretary week. The grandkids have more important things to do than Sunday dinner at granny and gramps house. The list could go on and on but you get the idea, right? We all want that feeling of importance; to be accepted. Human nature; people do crazy things to feel accepted. Think about it.

I remember in high school I dressed and thought I was like a Valley Girl and I talked like totally like gag me with a spoon. Don’t ask … I don’t know why. Peer pressure? Not sure, no one else dressed or talked like that. After high school there were worse things that I did to feel that acceptance – no need for elaboration.

There comes a time in everyone’s life where the going gets tough and we just want to feel acceptance. We want to know someone cares and thinks we are important. There is. He is with us always. He may put circumstances in our lives to test our faith, but He walks beside us for ever and a day. Before I came to South Carolina, I trusted my horoscope everyday to guide me as to how my day was going to pan out. I know, scary isn’t it? Deuteronomy 18:10-12. I can honestly say that I did not know that reading my horoscope was an abomination. I am fearful now and constantly searching the Bible to learn more because I didn’t know that. I pray that God will lead me to the things I need to learn and to change in my life.

You know what bothers me more; trying to reach the lost. So many are conformed to the world and its seduction there is no room for their conscience to hear the Law. I fear for them because if I am saved by grace and my sins are still being revealed to me, what about all of those people that aren’t saved and that aren’t learning and that don’t know about the abominations?

We may not feel as important as we would like to some days. I know I have my days when I go out to the mailbox and there is nothing but a Piggy Wiggy flyer. But, God created every single one of us for a reason. Every one of us has an important job to do. If you aren’t sure that you are doing what He put you here for, maybe it is time to have a conversation with Him. Look to Him for that feeling of acceptance instead of the pagan world we live in.

Until next time,

Intro

Okay, so it went from a blog to a POJ and now Crackerberries. Whatever you want to call it is fine by me. It all comes from the same place ... deep inside my head and out through the bottom of my heart.

My first blog was posted on MySpace September 19, 2007 (myspace.com/chrismarriedbarbie). I made a commitment then to write every Wednesday and after reading through some of the archived posts, I can see how that commitment paid off. Thank God. Some of those first blogs ... ouch ... definitely a work in progress. Then I realized that is what the Christian walk is like. The more committed we are to learning, the more faithful we become which brings us closer to the Lord. Yet, it is a constant work in progress.

I used to think that once you were saved, there was nothing to worry about. Boy, was I way off base there. Every time I turned around there was something slipping out of my mouth calling some poor lost undeserving soul an idiot or cursing the telemarketer on the other end of the phone line for calling after 8PM. And then there is the children. What can I say about children? They test the limits with their parents that is for sure. That is what they were created for. Look up children in the dictionary. It says: to produce severe wrinkles; to make hair turn gray; to give an uncontrollable desire to scream and yell at the top of ones lungs. Not really, I'm just kidding but sometimes don't you feel like it should say that?

Anyways, last night I joined CSC (Circle of Sisters in Christ) with our church ... Calvary Chapel Lexington. I believe this is going to be an awesome Bible Study with a wonderful group of women. I have never been in a Bible Study before. I only came to Christ in March of 2007. I can tell you I have learned a lot, but there is always more one can learn. Heidi Hoppe will be teaching us through the Book of Proverbs. She said something last night (and I cannot even remember what it was, but whatever it was it brought me to posting Crackerberries as my new POJ/Blog). She made me realize that even though we walk the Christian walk and even though we are sinners saved by grace, the opportunity to stumble is always there. We still have hard times and the devil is still there trying to make us stumble. With CSC we can make a circle and hold hands and be strong for each other while learning God's Word.

So my blog that turned into a POJ that posted weekly has turned into Crackerberries that will post whenever God leads me.

Until next time,