Monday, June 4, 2012
Hertzler Doings-June 4-11, 2012
Mon.-Good day. Ticker tape-time to read, exercise, work in old house, garden, outside, planted Jasmine plant, cleaned and organized the top of Phil's dresser, made cornmeal in an iron skillet in the oven and Caesar salad for supper.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
What's in a name?
First Chronicles 4 tells us a litttle bit about Jabez.
"Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name, Jabez, saying, "Because I bore him in pain."
Jabez loved God and his mother and didn't want to cause pain to either of them or anyone else for that matter.
Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, "Oh that you would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that your hand would be with me, and that you would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!"
He asked God to deliver him from the very meaning of his name!
It is true that wounded people wound others.
We try to give them understanding.
"They've had a rough life. No wonder they are acting like that."
(It helps to ease our own suffering from what they've done,
and besides, we, too, want understanding when we behave not so wisely.)
We hesitate to call their failings 'sin' or 'evil.'
We want to call it brokenness.
And sometimes we are broken and have not sinned.
But sometimes brokenness unhealed can lead to sin.
Jesus came to heal the broken-hearted.
Jesus came to cleanse us of our sin.
He 'fixes' us. Either way. In all ways.
Jabez would have been a likely candidate to get involved with evil and cause pain.
He would have had numerous reminders every day that he was a real pain in the you-know-what.
But he wanted to rise above the obvious result
of the cause and effect equation of his life.
And he did this by crying out to God.
Jabez asked God to keep him from evil within him and all around him so he wouldn't cause pain to others.
He also asked God to bless him and enlarge his territory-his property-his area of influence.
He asked that God's hand would be with him.
'Redeem me from my name.
And bless me too.'
You and I are not victims of our circumstances.
I mean, in actuality, we can be,
but we don't need to live up to our names or
our difficult circumstances
or our negative upbringing.
We are of God, Little Children.
And we have overcome the world
and its evil and its natural consequences of pain!
We are not of our names or of our past.
We. Are. Of. God.
And God is powerful and mighty.
He is kind and compassionate.
He is faithful and true.
And we are of Him.
Holy, Holy, Holy God.
While browsing on face book the other day,
I noticed that a blessed mother had posted a picture
of her son taken in a church-like setting.
He stood behind a microphone and she wrote something like,
'This is my son, ministering the Father heart of God.'
And I read it and wept, just as I am weeping now.
For this son of hers has struggled with the loss of his father
through no fault of his own.
His father abandoned the family when he was young
and he longed for his father
but there was no having him.
His name,(I'll call him 'Jeb'), took on the meaning,
"abandoned by my father."
But, then, there was God.
And in his pain, Jeb called out to Him.
For if our mother and/or father forsake us,
then the Lord will pick us up. (Ps. 27:10)
And that's what God did because that's what God does.
He, too, lives up to His name.
For He is called a Father to the fatherless.
God changed Jeb's name to mean "Beloved of God my Father."
And now, Jeb is out there,
revealing through his life and words
the great love of God His Father.
Oh Beloved.
Sometimes, God changes our names,
and thus changes the meaning of our names.
Like when He changed Abram's name to Abraham
and Jacob's name to Israel.
But sometimes, we keep our names
and He uses the meaning of our names
to bring about a longing for change,
and then, like Jabez, we cry out to Him.
Sometimes, we make a name for ourselves that
symbolizes the pain we have experienced or caused others.
But even that name can be changed through God's redemption
and blessing.
"And so God granted Jabez what he had requested."
(1 Chron. 4:10b)
"Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name, Jabez, saying, "Because I bore him in pain."
Jabez loved God and his mother and didn't want to cause pain to either of them or anyone else for that matter.
Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, "Oh that you would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that your hand would be with me, and that you would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!"
He asked God to deliver him from the very meaning of his name!
It is true that wounded people wound others.
We try to give them understanding.
"They've had a rough life. No wonder they are acting like that."
(It helps to ease our own suffering from what they've done,
and besides, we, too, want understanding when we behave not so wisely.)
We hesitate to call their failings 'sin' or 'evil.'
We want to call it brokenness.
And sometimes we are broken and have not sinned.
But sometimes brokenness unhealed can lead to sin.
Jesus came to heal the broken-hearted.
Jesus came to cleanse us of our sin.
He 'fixes' us. Either way. In all ways.
Jabez would have been a likely candidate to get involved with evil and cause pain.
He would have had numerous reminders every day that he was a real pain in the you-know-what.
But he wanted to rise above the obvious result
of the cause and effect equation of his life.
And he did this by crying out to God.
Jabez asked God to keep him from evil within him and all around him so he wouldn't cause pain to others.
He also asked God to bless him and enlarge his territory-his property-his area of influence.
He asked that God's hand would be with him.
'Redeem me from my name.
And bless me too.'
You and I are not victims of our circumstances.
I mean, in actuality, we can be,
but we don't need to live up to our names or
our difficult circumstances
or our negative upbringing.
We are of God, Little Children.
And we have overcome the world
and its evil and its natural consequences of pain!
We are not of our names or of our past.
We. Are. Of. God.
And God is powerful and mighty.
He is kind and compassionate.
He is faithful and true.
And we are of Him.
Holy, Holy, Holy God.
While browsing on face book the other day,
I noticed that a blessed mother had posted a picture
of her son taken in a church-like setting.
He stood behind a microphone and she wrote something like,
'This is my son, ministering the Father heart of God.'
And I read it and wept, just as I am weeping now.
For this son of hers has struggled with the loss of his father
through no fault of his own.
His father abandoned the family when he was young
and he longed for his father
but there was no having him.
His name,(I'll call him 'Jeb'), took on the meaning,
"abandoned by my father."
But, then, there was God.
And in his pain, Jeb called out to Him.
For if our mother and/or father forsake us,
then the Lord will pick us up. (Ps. 27:10)
And that's what God did because that's what God does.
He, too, lives up to His name.
For He is called a Father to the fatherless.
God changed Jeb's name to mean "Beloved of God my Father."
And now, Jeb is out there,
revealing through his life and words
the great love of God His Father.
Oh Beloved.
Sometimes, God changes our names,
and thus changes the meaning of our names.
Like when He changed Abram's name to Abraham
and Jacob's name to Israel.
But sometimes, we keep our names
and He uses the meaning of our names
to bring about a longing for change,
and then, like Jabez, we cry out to Him.
Sometimes, we make a name for ourselves that
symbolizes the pain we have experienced or caused others.
But even that name can be changed through God's redemption
and blessing.
"And so God granted Jabez what he had requested."
(1 Chron. 4:10b)
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Buckle Down Thanksgiving List
I keep forgetting to keep my thanksgiving list going.
And it's important, you know.
Not only will Danielle treat me to frozen yogurt if I reach a thousand thanks by the beginning of July, but it also helps me to be thankful.
I mean, I am helped when I am thankful. It changes my perspective
and perspective is just about everything.
I mean, it's all about me, you know.
But, I also think that God appreciates being thanked.
I know I appreciate it when my children thank me.
Especially for the little things that take noticing in order to be grateful for them.
So, this is my final list.
I have spent too much time looking back to see what number I have reached.
This is the final hurrah and then I probably will begin again,
but I don't think I'll number them this time.
So, 220 more thanks until I reach 1,000.
#781-790
A night at home, alone.
Wild Baby Turkeys scurrying about in the pen Dave Plank built us.
Cleansing Stream and the feeling that this is 'home' for us.
Hummingbirds buzzing like fighter jets over my head.
Lucy.
Angel's patience. Lucy barks at her face and pulls at her tail. Back and forth.
Love at home.
Coyotes that haven't attacked our cattle. Heard a pack of them just down the lane, howling, the other night. Makes us uneasy.
Michael's video of the bear he just saw over at HV.
#790-800
-The beautiful rain throughout last night.
-yellow squash beginnings.
-Chicken's and their silliness.
-Dishwashers
-Air conditioning
-Big bathtubs
-Uncle Ed and Aunt Rhoda and their RV and the re-ignition of our travel dreams.
-Sherri's beautiful big house and the way they share their porch and property.
-That if 'those people' keep calling our number and don't leave a message, I'm going to push 'talk' and give them my Aborigines Holler. It worked before...
The last two pages in 'Jesus+Nothing=Everything.' I read it to the fam this morning.
801-810
-When we were down at the river, Sunday eve. I grasped the roasting fork at it's tip, wanting to pull it up, but Phil had just pulled it out of the fire, which I found out soon enough. He offered his cup of cold tea and said, "Put your finger in that," which I did but it still hurt like crazy. I thought I'd have to come up to the house for burn ointment. Michelle's friend, Miriam, was there. She said that her mother always told her to rub a burn on her hair. So. I took my hand and ran it through my hair and the pain stopped immediately. I kid you not. And it never blistered nor did it hurt ever again. God is amazing. There is some kind of oil in our hair that even helps with burns. He thought of everything, didn't He.
-Lucy, running to me, because of the big fighter jets flying terribly noisily overhead. She hides in my lap.
-Lucy's hiccups. I say "Boo" but it doesn't work. Giving her a treat does, though.
-Lucy, very interested in the tap-tap-tapping of the keyboard. She pushed something and now everything is very small. Time to sign out tonight.
-a tournament quality volleyball net being put to use in our back yard by Philip and his Sasquatch
-Lori's help with pricing homeschool books
-everyone's kindness in Appomattox
-Susan's clean room
-Phil catching up on rest
-the joy of seeing someone else's vacation pics on fb. Feels like I'm there.
811-833
-Philip's joy about future fishing dates
-D's good news phone call
-Phil's ingenuity-his pants tore down the front and he used duct tape to fix them because he was going into the 'nun' area with Brother N., who thought that the nuns shouldn't see so much leg. haha!!!
-Alli's rippling laugh
-Michael's car fixed/passed inspection
-Susan helping someone to make up their mind to buy a lawn mower
-electricity
-Sweet Frog
-Matt's tears
-Beautiful storm
-teenage girls
-Amy H. sitting beside me during grad.
-Travis wanted to sit beside his 'mama'-(me)
-Phil is back home
-Pastor Betty's sermon-the kids wanted her to be their speaker
-a class that had come through fire without the scent of smoke
-that I should just trust God and those close to me, and also trust that if there is anything that needs to be revealed, He will show it to me.
-Sat. afternoon nap with Lucy.
-Jenny L.
-Michael thanking us for buying a farm...'...we eat our own eggs and sausage...' etc.
-That having a farm has taught us to fix things ourselves. And Michael was able to help Rich G. by fixing his tractor
-beautiful cooler day
-Susan's 'Your flower garden is so pretty, Mom.'
834-845
-river thoughts and verses I found. 1 Chron. 23:5-'...and 4,000 praise the LORD with musical instruments, 'which I made,' said David, 'for giving praise.' David made the musical instruments for the many instrumentalists! That's amazing!
-11 Chron. 3:6-'And he decorated the house with precious stones for beauty...' Solomon went beyond making the temple functional and made it beautiful. We, too, are the temple of God.
-11 Chron. 20:31-33-'So Jehosaphat, 35, was king over Israel for 25 years. He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD. Nevertheless, the high places were not taken away, for as yet the people had not directed their hearts to the God of their fathers.'OK. How does this work? We can do what is right but if our hearts are not directed towards God we won't destroy the things in our lives that set themselves high against Him? I don't understand this because it says that they did right in the eyes of the LORD. Maybe the point is the comparison between doing the right things and having our heart long for God and what happens as a result of that longing.
-For the words, 'I will live and not die...'
-tears
-ministry to the strong
-that Christ is our Rock; nobody else can be.
-Phil's dresser top organized with baskets, blue jars, etc. It's as good as its going to get and he's happy with it
-Jasmine plant reminder of my mother and of other's sympathy and love
-cheerful family
-ok. 11 Chron... The king himself did what was right in the eyes of the LORD but the people did not direct their hearts towards God and so he did not tear down the high places because they still wanted to worship their gods. Was it fear of man?
846-
-Rosalee's newsy e-mail
And it's important, you know.
Not only will Danielle treat me to frozen yogurt if I reach a thousand thanks by the beginning of July, but it also helps me to be thankful.
I mean, I am helped when I am thankful. It changes my perspective
and perspective is just about everything.
I mean, it's all about me, you know.
But, I also think that God appreciates being thanked.
I know I appreciate it when my children thank me.
Especially for the little things that take noticing in order to be grateful for them.
So, this is my final list.
I have spent too much time looking back to see what number I have reached.
This is the final hurrah and then I probably will begin again,
but I don't think I'll number them this time.
So, 220 more thanks until I reach 1,000.
#781-790
A night at home, alone.
Wild Baby Turkeys scurrying about in the pen Dave Plank built us.
Cleansing Stream and the feeling that this is 'home' for us.
Hummingbirds buzzing like fighter jets over my head.
Lucy.
Angel's patience. Lucy barks at her face and pulls at her tail. Back and forth.
Love at home.
Coyotes that haven't attacked our cattle. Heard a pack of them just down the lane, howling, the other night. Makes us uneasy.
Michael's video of the bear he just saw over at HV.
#790-800
-The beautiful rain throughout last night.
-yellow squash beginnings.
-Chicken's and their silliness.
-Dishwashers
-Air conditioning
-Big bathtubs
-Uncle Ed and Aunt Rhoda and their RV and the re-ignition of our travel dreams.
-Sherri's beautiful big house and the way they share their porch and property.
-That if 'those people' keep calling our number and don't leave a message, I'm going to push 'talk' and give them my Aborigines Holler. It worked before...
The last two pages in 'Jesus+Nothing=Everything.' I read it to the fam this morning.
801-810
-When we were down at the river, Sunday eve. I grasped the roasting fork at it's tip, wanting to pull it up, but Phil had just pulled it out of the fire, which I found out soon enough. He offered his cup of cold tea and said, "Put your finger in that," which I did but it still hurt like crazy. I thought I'd have to come up to the house for burn ointment. Michelle's friend, Miriam, was there. She said that her mother always told her to rub a burn on her hair. So. I took my hand and ran it through my hair and the pain stopped immediately. I kid you not. And it never blistered nor did it hurt ever again. God is amazing. There is some kind of oil in our hair that even helps with burns. He thought of everything, didn't He.
-Lucy, running to me, because of the big fighter jets flying terribly noisily overhead. She hides in my lap.
-Lucy's hiccups. I say "Boo" but it doesn't work. Giving her a treat does, though.
-Lucy, very interested in the tap-tap-tapping of the keyboard. She pushed something and now everything is very small. Time to sign out tonight.
-a tournament quality volleyball net being put to use in our back yard by Philip and his Sasquatch
-Lori's help with pricing homeschool books
-everyone's kindness in Appomattox
-Susan's clean room
-Phil catching up on rest
-the joy of seeing someone else's vacation pics on fb. Feels like I'm there.
811-833
-Philip's joy about future fishing dates
-D's good news phone call
-Phil's ingenuity-his pants tore down the front and he used duct tape to fix them because he was going into the 'nun' area with Brother N., who thought that the nuns shouldn't see so much leg. haha!!!
-Alli's rippling laugh
-Michael's car fixed/passed inspection
-Susan helping someone to make up their mind to buy a lawn mower
-electricity
-Sweet Frog
-Matt's tears
-Beautiful storm
-teenage girls
-Amy H. sitting beside me during grad.
-Travis wanted to sit beside his 'mama'-(me)
-Phil is back home
-Pastor Betty's sermon-the kids wanted her to be their speaker
-a class that had come through fire without the scent of smoke
-that I should just trust God and those close to me, and also trust that if there is anything that needs to be revealed, He will show it to me.
-Sat. afternoon nap with Lucy.
-Jenny L.
-Michael thanking us for buying a farm...'...we eat our own eggs and sausage...' etc.
-That having a farm has taught us to fix things ourselves. And Michael was able to help Rich G. by fixing his tractor
-beautiful cooler day
-Susan's 'Your flower garden is so pretty, Mom.'
834-845
-river thoughts and verses I found. 1 Chron. 23:5-'...and 4,000 praise the LORD with musical instruments, 'which I made,' said David, 'for giving praise.' David made the musical instruments for the many instrumentalists! That's amazing!
-11 Chron. 3:6-'And he decorated the house with precious stones for beauty...' Solomon went beyond making the temple functional and made it beautiful. We, too, are the temple of God.
-11 Chron. 20:31-33-'So Jehosaphat, 35, was king over Israel for 25 years. He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD. Nevertheless, the high places were not taken away, for as yet the people had not directed their hearts to the God of their fathers.'OK. How does this work? We can do what is right but if our hearts are not directed towards God we won't destroy the things in our lives that set themselves high against Him? I don't understand this because it says that they did right in the eyes of the LORD. Maybe the point is the comparison between doing the right things and having our heart long for God and what happens as a result of that longing.
-For the words, 'I will live and not die...'
-tears
-ministry to the strong
-that Christ is our Rock; nobody else can be.
-Phil's dresser top organized with baskets, blue jars, etc. It's as good as its going to get and he's happy with it
-Jasmine plant reminder of my mother and of other's sympathy and love
-cheerful family
-ok. 11 Chron... The king himself did what was right in the eyes of the LORD but the people did not direct their hearts towards God and so he did not tear down the high places because they still wanted to worship their gods. Was it fear of man?
846-
-Rosalee's newsy e-mail
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