In honor of Thanksgiving , our pastor started a series on gratitude.  During his sermon on 11/2 he said "Its not about being faithful; its about looking to the faithful one." That really resonated with me.  When I've been rattled to the core, sometimes I don't feel faithful.  I know what I think and believe intellectually, but what I feel is something completely different.  Those times when you think of all the scriptures that tell you to be joyful, peaceful because God is in control but what you really feel like is an ill-fated passenger hanging onto the back end of the Titanic hoping for a miracle.

Having said that, I can also see where current me is way more peaceful and joyful than five-years-ago me would have been in the exact same circumstances.  I'm not as quick to feel like I need to take matters into my own hands.  I'm more willing to relinquish control and remind myself that God is up to something even when it feels like we're sitting ducks.  We're in a holding pattern now.  Roman is on his way, so I already know everything will be shaken up with his arrival (bye-bye sleeping for 4-5 hours in a row; until we meet again).  We're waiting for that time when God is ready to move hubby out of his current job and schedule into something different.  

So what do I do when I don't feel all that faithful?  Remember, first and foremost, that God is faithful enough for both of us.  The Holy Spirit within me already knows my heart is weary and prays for me on my behalf (Romans 8:26-27).  How exciting to think that 1/3 of the divine trinity prays for me!!  What if I told you it's not just 1/3, but 2/3 of the trinity that prays for you.  Oh yes, go read John 17:6-26 where Jesus, Lord and Savior, carried YOU to his Father's throne is prayer!  Go ahead and marinate on the gravity of that one for a moment, I can wait...

I will leave you with this about looking to the faithful one. Go read Job 38-42 and take in the full exchange between God and Job.  Try to answer the questions that God poses to Job (who by the way was someone who looked to the faithful one, even when he was lost in despair).  Watch how things end up for Job and his friends in the end and ask yourself - what kind of difference does it make to look to the faithful one?

I am not one of those folks who can run around saying "Happy Memorial Day."  Why?  Because it's equivalent to running around on the anniversary of my Great Grandmother's funeral saying "Happy Funeral Day!"  Memorial Day is very personal for us, we have those friends who gave the ultimate sacrifice; they died upholding of the oath they took.  It is our job to uphold their legacy, ensure none of them are forgotten, and celebrate a life well lived.  So yes, we will BBQ today; even in the rain.  We will eat, drink tea, and be merry with friends because if our comrades were still alive, they would be here too!  We will tell stories of the old days and remember the shenanigans of years gone by.  In our hearts, these men and women will live on until we take our last breath and meet them in glory!

Yes, my #lampandlight study should be moving into Galatians, but in honor of true heroes, we're going to focus on my husband's favorite verse.

John 15:13 - Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

In John 15, Jesus was talking with his disciples about loving each other the way he loved them.  That included being willing to die for the sins of every human who ever lived.  Why is this significant to many who have served?  On the surface, it's pretty simple.  To die in place of another is a demonstration of love beyond what most of us will ever know.  It's also incredibly honorable.  Jesus threw himself on a grenade (God's wrath) to save sinners.  Much in the same way, many men and women  have willingly stepped into harms way to protect their brothers and sisters in arms.  Not just during the conflicts my husband has been a part of, but every conflict in the history of the world and every corner of the world.  

Now, that is just one meaningful verse out of an incredibly meaningful chapter.  If you read all of John 15 (which you know I'm going to tell you to do) Jesus begins by giving the disciples and illustration about grape vines.  The most concise way to explain it is Jesus tells them he is the grape vine and we are the grapes.  God the Father is the "vinedresser" or what we might simply call a gardener.  God is pruning away the bad fruit so the vine will produce more good fruit.  I like John 15 because it's a reminder that if we are genuinely chasing after Christ, we are going to be pruned.  Areas of our lives that do not bear good fruit are going to be pinched off.  That area will heal and then produce better fruit then it ever had before!  

Then we get into the section that contains verse 13, were Jesus reiterates that the greatest commandments are to love (God and one another specifically Matthew 22:36-40).  Jesus also explains to the disciples why are not servants but friends.  Jesus has chosen them to go and bear fruit for him.  

I hope that my life bears that kind of fruit.  I pray that my life is lived in a way that honors the legacy of the men and women who demonstrated the greatest kind of love, a shadow of my Savior's love for all of us.  

Live big today, for each person who wishes for just one more day.