LOL 7-29 Law Or Love?

Just for kicks, I used the topical index in the back of my Bible to compare the number of references to "law" with the number of references to "love." The former filled 2 columns of one page; the latter, every column of a page and a half. Since the Bible is God's inspired Word, wouldn't it make sense that He would want more to be written about topics He feels are more weighty than topics that are not? And isn't that why when Jesus, asked by a Pharisee (a group known for living their lives to the letter of the law), "which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" answered with what I believe is one of the most beautiful answers ever given? "LOVE the Lord with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind... And the second is like it. LOVE your neighbor as yourself. All the LAW and the prophets hang on these two commandments." (Matthew 22:37-40). Law? Yes. But more so than law, LOVE. To those of us guilty of measuring our holiness by how religiously lawful we look to others, perhaps we would should instead, measure our holiness by how much we love. To loving without exception as we, in turn, have been loved... LOL.

LOL 7-28 the Lord's Outlook on Life

I don't know about you, but with all the concerts and plays I've attended in my lifetime, I've never once sat in first class seats... But after looking again at this photo I took yesterday of my view of Matagorda Beach, I realized God gave me the ticket to the best seat in the house- His house. For several hours yesterday, I sat in a front row seat and watched the most amazing show on earth- majestic waves that rolled in without ceasing and crashed upon the shore; dozens of different seabirds that dove and plummeted for food; busy little sand crabs that tossed sand to the left and right as they tunneled into the sand; an ever-changing horizon of azure blue sky and wispy white clouds and aqua-green sea... From God's outlook, His Creation is the best show on earth. The best part? This wasn't just a one-time performance. God offers us the best seats in the house every moment of our life... We simply have to take a seat, open our eyes, and wait for the show to begin. To my front row seat moments at Matagorda Beach... LOL!

LOL 7-25 Lessons Of (a turtle's) Life

I laughed at this little box turtle I spotted on the road on my morning walk. When I passed by him, he immediately ducked inside the safety of his shell. Thirty minutes later, on my return trip, the turtle was still tucked inside his shell and hadn't moved off the road. Had I not pushed him over to the road's edge, a logging truck or other vehicle might have driven over him. We humans tend to act just like this turtle-fear of pain and natural instinct force us to retreat into our personal shells for protection. And that's fine... For a very short while. For if we stay there too long, we endanger- rather than protect- ourselves. We can all learn a valuable lesson from turtle- If you hide out in a shell long enough, you might just lose your life. LOL!

LOL 7-18 LOLInspirations

This is my newest crop of shells, ready to be worked into pieces of jewelry. However, they didn't come to me looking like this. I had to first remove the shells from their natural environment and scrub them free of the grime that marred their individual attributes- it is only then that I can fully assess their potential. This first step in working with shells reminds me of what I do as a teacher. Each year, a new crop of students shows up in my classroom. It is my job to take them out of their natural environment of "just let the tide take me where it will" and challenge them to reach their full potential- to get them to share their unique gifts with others. But in order to do so, I often have to scrub away at the layers of accumulated academic and emotional grime that hides many students' potentials. Only then can I show them how their individual qualities- scarred or flawless, vibrant or subdued, simple or complicated- can be worked into masterpieces of art. Thanks, Danny, for the beautiful treasures you brought back for me from your Gulf Coast vacation. LOL.

LOL 7-15 Life, Other, and Lids

I love the "other" option on this lid. It gives people like me who hate labels the freedom to choose something other than the preordained, cookie cutter mold choices. For example, sometimes I start with a Diet Coke, then refill my cup with water. Where's the punch-in designation for that choice? Or what if I'm in a crazy mood and I add a zest of Orange Crush to my Diet Coke? I'd be lying if I punched in Diet. See, the problem with specific labels is that people attach their own connotations and judgements to them and their connotations and judgements often don't align with mine. It's kinda like that in life, too. Once you or someone else identifies you with a label, you're open to everyone else's interpretation of what they think is really inside you. Tell you what... For those of you that want to label me, I'm going to make it easy for you. Just punch "other." That way you'll save yourself a lot of incorrect guesses and for those of you that are "others," like me, LIKE this post. Thanks, McDonald's, for the inspiration. LOL...

LOL 7/8 Links Of Loopholes

I love using square knots to weave jewelry. When woven right, the links of loopholes tighten into perfect symmetry and form beautiful patterns. Key, though, is making sure the two middle strands always stay tight- if I let them droop, no matter how I might tighten my loopholes, my final pattern will end up looking disfigured and knotty. Then I have two choices- I can compromise the piece's beauty and just ignore the flaw or I can undo my work and try again. I like to look at my life in the same way. Each day is like a single loophole... Another knot in the pattern of my life. Critical to the look of my finished life will be those two strands- I see them as what Jesus said were the Law's greatest commandments: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind" and "Love your neighbor as yourself." When I hold these two strands firmly each loopholed day of my life and tighten my choices around them, I form beautiful, symmetrical patterns that are pleasing in God's eyes. But when I let the temptations of this world compromise that tautness, my patterns look disfigured and unbalanced. Then, again, I have a choice- ignore the flaws as if they don't exist and compromise the final witness of my life or "undo" them by asking for God's mercy. Only then can I "unravel" my "loose" choices and reweave them again. Inspired by God's continuous hand in the crazy loopholes of my life. LOL...

LOL 7/7 Lessons of Looking up

I love this old temperature gauge. It's hanging on one of my porch's pillars, right outside my kitchen window. Manufactured originally as a catchy advertisement for RC Cola to promote their cold drinks as a remedy for hot weather, I've come to love the upward pointing arrow on the sign as my symbolic reminder that when my personal stress temperature heats up, I need to look "up" to find relief. God has proven time and again that He is my "best by taste test"... All other things that I've tried to substitute could never quench my thirst when I was spiritually, physically, or emotionally stressed. Now, when that red mercury of life starts to rise up a little too high, I turn my eyes heavenward, drop my knees earthward, and bow my head in prayer. Only through my faith can my thirst be quenched. Thanks, RC Cola, for the inspiration. LOL...

LOL 7-3 Losing Oneself in Literature

"Ink on paper is as beautiful to me as flowers on the mountains; God composes, why shouldn't we?" ~Terri Guillemets
Call me crazy, but I've just spent the past five hours sitting at my computer and writing... By choice. No movie could have engaged me more. No caffeine could have hyped me more. No comedian could have filled me with more genuine laughter than that with which I have laughed over crazy parts I've written into my pages. When I am "unhinged" and inspired, there is no other high for me that compares to what it's like when I write. I feel satisfied. Complete. Purposeful. Perhaps it's because- as Guillemets points out in this quote- God created all of us to compose something. For one, it might be music. For another, art. Still others, delicious recipes, life-saving vaccines, beautiful gardens, sturdy bridges... When we merge our talents with our passions to create, perhaps it is then that we are closest to our Creator. I thank God that He has gifted me with the power of words and the imagination to paint with them. LOL...