Inspiration – Page 59

Examples

Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1). Whose example are we following? Christ is our ultimate example to strive for, although we will fail in our humanity! But thank God He understands our weaknesses, and is ready to forgive our many shortcomings.

Paul also wrote to Timothy, “Set an example for the believers…” (1 Timothy 4:12). Each one of us is an example to someone, whether we like it or not. If I belong to Christ, my life is not my own (1 Corinthians 6:19). What are others seeing in me and you, as we walk out our days? I pray they see Christ.

Wrinkles of Time

My husband and I love old things…old churches, old houses, old cars, old books… There’s a certain character to be found in something that has endured the test of time. This old split rail fence has been weathered and worn, but just look at the texture created over time! I love texture, too. It’s the main reason we have a cat. I may sound strange to you, but I also love the texture created by the wrinkles of age. In our society, young is beautiful. Of course I admire young beauty when I see it, but it’s only a superficial “skin deep” beauty. It doesn’t carry the meaning and character of wrinkles earned by living through many years– years of plenty and years of want, years of joy and years of sadness, years of love and years of loneliness. Wrinkles add such a depth to a person’s countenance, and sometimes tell a small piece of our story without us saying a word. Farmer, smoker, sun-worshiper, scowler, worrier…but my favorite wrinkles are the laugh lines. If you’ve found enough humor in this life to give yourself wrinkles from smiling and laughing, you’re someone I want to get to know!

The glory of young men is their strength, gray hair the splendor of the old (Proverbs 20:29).

As we age, we may not so much wear our heart on our sleeve, but we may wear our character on our face. What does your face say about your heart? If you’re not happy with what you see, it’s never too late to ask God to help you change your heart and your outlook. Today is a new day!

Water Rules

While walking along a pebbly beach at low tide, my eye was captured by the paths left by little rivulets of water running back into the ocean. When I was a child, I loved to imagine what it would be like to be tiny, surrounded by other tiny things that would in fact seem gigantic to me! Imagine these little paths in the sand as deep canyons cut by rushing rivers of water, strong enough to carry along large rocks and boulders. How would this landscape look to an ant, if it had the brain capacity to even think about such things? Smaller tributaries come together to form larger and larger streams and rivers, always finding the path of least resistance in the never-ending pull down. Water follows the rules. Continue reading Water Rules

Breaking Rocks

I’d love to know this boulder’s story. How did it come to be home to so many different types of living green things? I can see moss, grass, weeds, and what looks like it might even be a baby mountain laurel over to the right. The smoother boulder in the foreground seems pretty boring in comparison, with just a bit of moss clinging to it. Continue reading Breaking Rocks

Dropping Time

Ever wonder why evergreen trees seem to lose needles in the fall along with deciduous trees? I thought they were supposed to stay “ever green!” But after strong winds and rain overnight, my driveway was covered in pine needles and oak leaves. The needles aren’t green, either! What’s going on? Continue reading Dropping Time

All That Glitters

Up in the mountains of North Carolina, we camped along a rushing mountain stream. Exploring along the stream, we saw shining rocks everywhere! Of course the first thing to jump into my mind was a picture of a gold prospector from 1849 sitting alongside a mountain stream panning for gold. Here we were, in 2015, with shining rocks everywhere! We’d struck it rich!! Continue reading All That Glitters