What Are Things That Are Reborn?
I was at the dog park today with the smartest dog in the world. While he ran, played, swam and sniffed a thousand other dogs, I took a walk. There were hundreds of butterflies fluttering around today. Bright Yellow and black and big as your hand. It was so amazing. I Imagine Jesus knew I needed the reminder that He makes all things new. I think He has been hinting at this in the last week because there are a lot of frogs at my apartment. Not in the apartment, but in the grass and under the bushes. They are everywhere. I hear them at night when I walk Wagsley. I've even crossed paths with a couple of them now and again. I really love their songs. It's like a frog praise band of sorts.
Both these amazing creatures start out as something totally different than where they ended. The butterfly is a caterpillar and the frog is a tadpole. It reminds me of days when mom would take us to the park. There were a few places where tadpoles and pollywogs were abundant and we would wade in and try to catch them. Too much fun for us, and mom seemed to get a kick out of it, too. It was later in my school years that I learned tadpoles were baby frogs. Though mom might have mentioned it, I may have been too busy to listen to what she was saying.
There was another child's album when I was a teenager called Bullfrogs and Butterflies. There were many songs on the album about a place called Agapeland. The title song was a lesson about how we are born again when we accept God's free gift of Jesus. So the reminder today was also a reminder of that song. In fact every time I see a frog or a butterfly I am reminded of that song.
I read somewhere that music connects the soul to memories and to God. I think this is one of the reasons why Praise is so important. Today I have been under some stress. If you read yesterday's post you will have read about a notice I got on my door. That was bad enough, but I could deal with it. No worries, it was just an oversight on my part and we are all good. This morning however I had another notice on my door. I am not sure how open I should be about this, but lets just say it was a notice of a legal sort. No, I am not a lawbreaker and I haven't got a warrant out for my arrest. I was just delinquent on a bill because of this Covid pandemic nonsense.
The good news is, I took my lesson from the minor issue of the day before, which I handled horribly, and decided not to lose my cool. I know God is good. I know He loves me and will take care of me. I know He doesn't let anything come my way that I cannot handle. I just had to give it to Him. I went to the park and contacted a few prayer warriors I know to send prayers skyward. They are such awesome people. They prayed for me and I was able to relax and enjoy the time with Wagsley as if there was nothing looming over me. If you don't have prayer warriors in your corner, I suggest you get some.
I returned home and was exhausted, though I hadn't done anything different. I heard Jesus whisper, don't do anything now, just turn on the radio, lay down and praise me. So I laid down and song after song took me right to the heart of God. I felt as if I was laying in the lap of a really big man, like I was a baby without a care in the world. I don't know when it happened, but I fell asleep. I Imagined Jesus and I laying in tall grass watching clouds go by in silence. There was peace.
I woke up and a thought hit me. Remember when Elijah was afraid and ran away? He found a bush laid down and slept. God sent an angel to wake him up and feed him. Then he slept some more, and the angel woke him up and fed him a second time. God told him he would need food because he was going on a journey. Elijah walked 40 days on foot and rested in a cave and God spoke to Him again. Then God came in the small whisper. I'm not Elijah, but he was after all only human. The battles he fought were spiritual and taxing. He wanted to die. I Imagine Jesus was the angel of the Lord who woke Elijah and told him to eat. God didn't scold Elijah after his second nap, nor when he woke him in the cave. He reminded Him that he was NOT alone. Elijah went out of the cave in a sort of new birth. He was renewed in strength and purpose. Then God brought Elisha to learn and be his replacement. Elijah obeyed God and his reward was that he did not see death. How absolutely cool is that. I Imagine Jesus driving that chariot of fire to pick up the man of God and take him to heaven. What a sweet ride!
I don't know what to do about this second situation. But I know I'm not alone. I plan to Praise through it and let God show me how to proceed. It was my own decisions and faithlessness that caused this situation so if I pick this up and try to fix it, I am just going to fail. I Imagine Jesus has it all worked out. I'm going to wait for that quiet whisper, because that is where I know God is.
John 3:3 "Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”
1 Kings 19:11-12 "The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper."
Don't forget to check out today's song. I think it will make you smile. click the blue music note at the top of the page.
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