Butterfly & the Buffalo

June 27, 2007

Butterfly & Buffalo

Years ago I was sitting at a conference listing to Gary Smalley speak when he shared a story about the Butterfly and the Buffalo. Not long into the story it became apparent that he was speaking about Coach Wonderful & I. Do we know this man I wondered? I could actually hear music as I listened to him describe the Butterfly gliding about. In my head I could hear the violins, the perky piano, the flute, the harps - the strings, the beautiful strings and happy, light melodious music. Then enter the Buffalo and I heard loud drums and tubas and the percussion instruments thundering, precise, slow, low and heavy. Oh my, I always did feel the earth move when Coach Wonderful walks into my world.

Mr. Smalley continued to explain that the butterfly has a keen sensitivity. It is sensitive even to the slightest breeze. It flutters above the ground where it can get a panoramic awareness of its surroundings. It notices the beauty of even the tiniest of flowers. Because of its sensitivity, it is constantly aware of all of the changes going on around it and is able to react to the slightest variation it its environment. Thus, the butterfly would react with swiftness toward anything that might hurt it. If a tiny pebble were taped to its wing, the butterfly would be severely injured and eventually die.

The buffalo is another story. It is rough and calloused. It doesn’t react to a breeze. It’s not even affected by a thirty-mile-an-hour wind. It just goes right on doing whatever it was doing. It’s not aware of the smallest of flowers, nor does it appear to be sensitive to slight changes in its environment. Tape a pebble to the buffalo’s back and he probably won’t even feel it. The buffalo isn’t ‘rotten to the core’ just because he goes around stepping on pretty flowers. In fact, the buffalo’s toughness is a tremendous asset.

Ok, I get it – so I flit about and he has the density of a rock. So how is a butterfly expected to get along with a buffalo that kicks up boulders on a regular basis?

A pearl to string: Through the GRACE OF GOD. Pebble pitching is out, dying to self is in. Let Scripture be your guide and learn the secret of respecting your buffalo which unlocks the love a butterfly needs to thrive and flit.

1 Peter 3:4 “Be beautiful inside, in your hearts, with the lasting charm of a gentle and quiet spirit which is so precious to God”.

Fill your heart with the Word and your soul will fill up with blessings and grace.
Singing in His Son shine
Lyndi

Never Give Up

June 20, 2007

NEVER GIVE UP

In the country of Armenia, in 1988, Samuel and Danielle sent their young son, Armand, off to school. Samuel squatted before his son and looked him in the eye. "Have a good day at school, and remember, no matter what, I’ll always be there for you." They hugged and the boy ran off to school.

Hours later, a powerful earthquake rocked the area. In the midst of the pandemonium, Samuel and Danielle tried to discover what happened to their son but they couldn’t get any information. The radio announced that there were thousands of casualties. Samuel then grabbed his coat and headed for the schoolyard. When he reached the area, what he saw brought tears to his eyes. Armand’s school was a pile of debris. Other parents were standing around crying.

Samuel found the place where Armand’s classroom used to be and began pulling a broken beam off the pile of rubble. He then grabbed a rock and put it to the side, and then grabbed another one.

One of the parents looking on asked, "What are you doing?" "Digging for my son," Samuel answered. The man then said, "You’re just going to make things worse! The building is unstable," and tried to pull Samuel away from his work. Samuel just kept working. As time wore on, one by one, the other parents left. Then a worker tried to pull Samuel away from the rubble. Samuel looked at him and said, "Won’t you help me?" The worker left and Samuel kept digging.

All through the night and into the next day, Samuel continued digging. Parents placed flowers and pictures of their children on the ruins. But, Samuel just kept working. He picked up a beam and pushed it out of the way when he heard a faint cry. "Help! Help!" Samuel listened but didn’t hear anything again. Then he heard a muffled voice, "Papa?" Samuel began to dig furiously. Finally he could see his son. "Come on out, son!" he said with relief. "No," Armand said. "Let the other kids come out first because I know you’ll get me." Child after child emerged until, finally, little Armand appeared. Samuel took him in his arms and Armand said, "I told the other kids not to worry because you told me that you’d always be there for me!"

Fourteen children were saved that day because one father who would not give up.

String a pearl: Today do you find yourself entrapped by fallen debris or ensnared by life’s hardships and struggles? Take heart, we are never cut off from God’s faithfulness. Our Father and creator will never give up on us. He is true to His character. He is reliable and trustworthy and can always be counted on. Lean into His Word for healing, direction and assurance.

Deuteronomy 7:9 "Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations…"

1 Corinthians 1:9 - God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.

Galatians 6:9 - So let's not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't give up.

Counting on my Savior,
Lyndi

Whack & Walk Game

June 13, 2007

The Whack and Walk Game

It took some mighty persistent coaxing (some say nagging) to get Coach Wonderful to teach me how to play golf. Or as my friend Yvonne calls it the Whack & Walk game. Finally, one morning he relented and off we went. The first hole was a par 3, 179 yards, and quite lovely. Coach Wonderful stepped up first and said, "Now watch me, and do the same thing." He hit a beautiful shot and landed on the green with about 30 feet to the cup.

I stepped up, whacked that little dimpled baby, causing it to hook way right, ricochet off a tree, bounce off a rock and roll up onto the green - dropping into the cup.

Coach Wonderful looked somewhat irritated, and said, "OK, now you know how to play, let's go home."

I didn’t do well in golf for some reason. I guess it wasn’t my game but at least I was consistent – consistently last. The good thing about last is it gives you a realistic view of how many fleshy mounds there are on the course.

We don’t have to whack and walk through this life. Nor do we need to be concerned that if we occasionally do something right we’ll have to stand on that alone. We have a Savior – one who will never leave us. Hebrews 13 tells us He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

I usually played golf on the sides of the course so if you find yourself in the thickets of life lean on Isaiah 10:34: “He will cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, And Lebanon will fall by the Mighty One”.

A pearl to string: I have learned that believing in Jesus is very much like belonging to a health club. You actually have to go to the club on a regular basis to gain the benefits.
And you need to be in God’s Word daily to walk closely with Jesus.

Turning in my 'whack and walk' game to be strolling with Jesus,
Lyndi

Fix-it Nation

Varlaam Monastery
Photo by Tom Dempsey








June 6, 2007

Fix-it Nation

A man was walking down the street when he came across a body lying on the sidewalk. He grabbed his cell phone and called 911.

The operator asked him where he was and the man replied,
"I'm on Sycamore Drive."

"How do you spell that?" the operator asked.

"S-i-c-k..." the man began. "No, s-i-c-a...no, s-i-k-a..
Oh forget it, let me drag him over to Lake street and I'll call you back."

We are a fix-it nation. Not everything we fix is a wise choice.

A pastor at the Helen Street Church of Christ in Fayetteville, North Carolina tells a story about a monastery in Greece perched high on a cliff, several hundred feet in the air. The only way to reach the monastery is to be suspended in a basket which is pulled to the top by several monks who pull and tug with all their strength. The ride up the steep cliff is rather nerve wracking. Ok it’s downright terrifying.

One tourist got exceedingly nervous about half-way up as he noticed that the rope by which he was suspended was old and frayed. With a trembling voice he asked the monk who was riding with him in the basket how often they changed the rope.

The monk thought for a moment and answered serenely: "Whenever it breaks.

"Oh my word! I come from a fix-it nation - we fix things that are wearing out. We don’t wait till they break. I hate it when people spill out of the basket.

When you think about it…… God operates in our lives in a similar way to how the monks deal with their rope. If we were to ask God when He will change our lives, His answer might well be, "Whenever you break!

"You see, our lives can only change once we have what the Bible refers to as a "broken spirit". As long as we remain arrogant and determined to do things our way, God can't shape us and mold us.

Have you ever watched wild horses running free? They are beautiful …… but useless. Like a wild stallion, we remain useless until we are "broken".

A pearl to string: "The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit." (Psalm 34:18)

Father God, I so often want to stubbornly do things my way. Help me as I strive to have a broken spirit, recognizing my shortcomings, humbly willing to listen to Your instruction. In Jesus' name, amen.

Letting go of the end of my rope and breaking in His love,
Lyndi