God2Share

It was seven pages of a heart conversation.

An expression of love and gratitude written from my mother to hers.

The letter was dated December 31, 1958.

It seemed so fitting to find it on Thanksgiving Eve.

This treasure surfaced last night as I was searching for old pictures.

There is just something about seeing my mother’s handwriting….

Insert ugly crying here.

Before texting and emails, there was the lost art of letter writing.

As I read her words, I could hear her voice narrating the letter aloud as if she were sitting right beside me.

She was in “sentimental mood” as she put it, missing those she could not be with during the holiday season.

I know this ache.

Many of you know it, too.

So she did what I always knew my mother to do: she put her thoughts on paper.

Sometimes her thoughts came in the form of a letter, sometimes a poem.

But they always came from her heart.

Heart conversations to those she loved.

This particular letter had been addressed to my grandmother, Mom’s brother Dick and his wife Jane, and their two children, Dicky and Faye.

She had a word for each of them.

Pride for Dick, for the husband and father he was, with a “wonderful faith in God and mankind.”

Love for his wife, Jane for teaching her about the virtue of patience.

And a heartfelt poem to my grandmother, because “they have not yet thought up words to describe you.”

She was grateful for each one of them in her life and took the time to tell them just that.

Paul wrote letters as well.

He had a word for God’s people and shared his gratitude for their role in sharing the Good News.

Heart conversations.

“Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God.  Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy, for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now.  And I am certain that God, who began a good work within you, will continue His work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. So it is right that I should feel as I do about all of you, for you have a special place in my heart. You share with me the special favor of God, both in my imprisonment and in defending and confirming the truth of the Good News.  God knows how much I love you and long for you with the tender compassion of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1: 3 – 8

Friends, words of love and gratitude are timeless.

And on this Thanksgiving Day, know from the bottom of my heart I give thanks to my God for all of you.

Blessings in heaps!

It’s that time of year again.

The clocks are turned back, and instantaneously 5:00 pm feels like 9:00 pm.

There seems to be more darkness than light.

Where did the sun go?

The sun feels further away, even though I know that it is still there.

This powerful force is the earth’s primary source of energy.

It provides warmth to our bodies of water, our land and our atmoshphere.

Absorbing the sun’s rays seems to provide warmth to our souls as well.

But this energy is not only absorbed by the earth, but also can be reflected back into the atmosphere.

This is referred to as the albedo effect.

Albedo lets us know how much of the sun’s energy actually gets here and affects the earth’s temperarture.

A planet or a moon with a low albedo absorbs the radiation that falls on it and does not reflect anything back into the atmosphere.  

As a result, it does not shine brightly.

But a planet or moon with a high albedo reflects a lot of light back into the atmosphere.

Some surfaces tend to be a very reflective, such as snow.

It reflects back that energy that falls on it.

I love to see God in the details of our lives.

Somedays, there seems to be more darkness than light.

And on those days, I am tempted to ask “where did the Son go?”

He feels further away, even though I know that He is still there.

Jesus is my primary source of energy, providing warmth to my soul.

And just like having a low albedo, on the days I am self absorbed, I do not shine brightly.

I do not reflect His light or love back into the world.

But if we allow Him to, He will make us like snow.

“Take away my sin, and I will be clean. Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Make me hear joy and happiness. Let the bones that You have broken be full of joy.  Hide Your face from my sins. And take away all my wrong-doing.

Make a clean heart in me, O God. Give me a new spirit that will not be moved.   

Psalm 51: 7 -11 (NLV)

Just like the snow, I can then reflect back His love and light into a world that needs His energy.

Friends, we all experience dark days when the Son feels far away.

But He is always there.

Absorb His light today and remember to reflect His love back into the atmosphere.

Amen.