Monthly Archives: May 2026

PERSPECTIVE, WHAT’S YOUR VIEW?

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Perspective. A mental view or outlook.

Recently my husband and I attended the funeral for one of my oldest cousins who passed away at the age of 88. Otto was born and raised in Millington and remained in that community his entire life, worked a variety of jobs and enjoyed many hobbies. His funeral was held in the church he attended all his life, St. Paul Lutheran and he was buried in the church’s cemetery nearby. Since we were in that area which is very close to Otter Lake, the last home where my grandparents lived, we took time to drive past the house where many childhood memories were created on Sunday afternoon visits. In contrast to living in the city, their country home offered trees to climb, berry bushes to pick ripened fruit, chickens to feed, kittens to cuddle, endless outdoor games playing with cousins. 

Driving past the house evoked all those memories, but they got tangled up in the disappointment of its present day condition. Gone are the fruit trees. The front yard is overgrown now with shrubs and tall grass. Old cars and a broken down travel trailer made for a sadly adorned front lawn. The lone garage door is crooked on its tracks. A house once teeming with energy and laughter, both wrapped in tremendous love and joy, is gone. And, a reality I had held on to for many years was also gone. As a child, I had always told people “how far back off the road the house sat”. Now, as an adult, I recognized that perception was not true. The house is much closer to the road than I originally thought. My ability to judge distance was skewed by childish measurements along with my grandparents admonishing us kids to never play near the road which stemmed from a tragic accident in the 40s which claimed the life of an older cousin.

So, my recent visit to their last home is giving me a good lesson on perspective.

Things are not always as they appear and life has many opportunities from which to learn and grow. Therefore, I made a quick investigation into scripture to see if God has anything to offer us regarding perspective. No surprise here, He does.

I found three very good takeaways. First, perceiving how we can view life. Proverbs 3: 5-6 says “ Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight”. Our commands given here are to “trust”, “lean not”, “submit”. The benefit of doing so is a “straight path”.

Secondly, a good perspective in life when we face trials and suffering comes from James 1: 2-4. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything”. It would never be my intention to underplay anyone’s suffering; I’ve had my share of trials and hardships. Life is hard at times and some experiences–those that are most painful– are beyond our control. How we respond comes from the ability to stand firm or cave to pressures. Once again, I think back to my Grandma Jewell whose last months of life were under the care of a nursing home as her body battled bone cancer. Often, in deep pain, she could hear other residents crying under the weight of their own suffering, and from the depths of her compassion for others, instruct the nurses to care for others first over her own needs or ask “do they know Jesus….” so she could pray for comfort and salvation.

Lastly, perspective points to thoughts of eternity. Colossians 3 1-2 describes it this way: “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” Once I came to fully understand the concept that Paul writes about here, it allowed me to coin a phrase I’ve often used to weigh the heaviness of situations. “In the light of eternity, will ‘this’ matter?” That simple question has saved me from many worrisome nights or agonizing over things out of my control. 

So, even though I feel sad regarding the disarray of my grandparents’ home in Otter Lake, I’m thankful for 14 years of memories with every Sunday visit, meals at their table prepared by a grandmother who cooked and baked during the week anticipating several of her children’s families to be at her table and spill into the living room of their modest home. I’m grateful for her example when facing death, for she had learned at a very young age to adopt the wisdom of Proverbs commands. Grandma Jewell trusted, she leaned on God during everything in life, and she accepted the path God laid down for her. Her path had sorrows, pain, and a fair share of disappointments I’m sure,  but true to her nature, she spoke mostly of life’s joys and hope, her hope in Jesus…and always with a twinkle in her eyes.

I think she’d be very sad to see, now, how her modest home in Otter Lake has become compared to the vibrant years she and Gramp tended to. Yet, more importantly, she’d wonder about the people living inside its concrete walls  and ask, “do they know Jesus?” 

FOLLOW JESUS, NOT YOUR HEART

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“So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.”  Galatians 5: 16 (New Living Translation)

Does anyone have a “sweet tooth”. I do.  Craving delightfully tasting desserts and candies is a great word picture that can describe our sinful nature, that inner drive to go against living in step with God’s Holy Spirit. Indulging in too much sugar can lead to becoming overweight or developing diseases such as diabetes or cancer. Living outside of God’s desires for us can lead to results that are very clear: “sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these.” (verses 19-21)

Quite the list isn’t it? Every one of those words describes behaviors that are full of ugliness and make no mistake defining what is objectionable to God. The human nature to sin is obvious within all of us; the person who is humble and willing to be honest can find themselves in one or more of the behaviors that Paul writes about here in his letter to the Galatians. 

Within the foundations of Celebrate Recovery, along with using the common 12 steps, is the use of Jesus’ own words from the beatitudes found in Matthew. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (Matthew 5: 6) which corresponds with steps 6 & 7: “Voluntarily submit to any and all changes God wants to make in my life and humbly ask Him to remove my character defects.”

“Follow your heart” has become a popular idiom encouraging people to make decisions based on deep emotions, intuition, and authentic desires rather than purely on logic. I would add it also means we are leaving God out of the process. While the exact origin of this phrase is unknown, its concept traces back to ancient philosophies and was popularized by 18th century romanticism and modern self-help culture. It’s a phrase that sounds wonderful, powerful and true, yet it’s actually dangerous as it most certainly leaves God out of decision making processes. I think this is why Paul wrote what he did, that we need the Holy Spirit in our lives to guide and keep us from straying into sin’s mire and muck.  Furthermore, Paul warns us that anyone living “that sort of life” will not inherit the Kingdom of God. So then,  how do we avoid being on the outskirts of God’s Kingdom? Thankfully, Paul answers that question.

“Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to His cross and crucified them there.” To belong, we confess faith in Christ.

“Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.” To follow, we need to surrender control and yield to the Spirit’s authority.

The key word is “every”. Not some. Not a few. Not what we are willing to give up. The total sum of “every”–when nailed to Christ’s cross–gives us freedom from our sinful nature, grace to pursue lives that chase after holiness versus carnal desires that only lead to destruction and separation from God.

As I work to get cravings for sugar under control concerning healthier lifestyle changes, I’m learning to read food labels that show me where “hidden sugars” may be present. Likewise, to be more faithful following a Spirit filled life, I spend time reading scripture where thankfully healthy ingredients abound which teach, guide, and fill me–all in pure form, no fake additives!

“Taste and see that the Lord is good…!” (Psalm 34: 8) 

UNDERSTANDING MERCY

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“No one is out of God’s reach. If His mercy was offered to the crowd who murdered Jesus, it’s available to everyone”. (Author unknown)

What does it feel like to be hit with a ton of bricks? I certainly hope I never find out the answer to that question, but if I were to wager a guess I’d have to surmise that the above statement gives a good definition to the query. 

To understand God’s immeasurable depth of love, we need to also study and comprehend the amount of mercy He carries as one of His attributes. Our source of information regarding God’s attributes can be found in much of the Old Testament books where countless times He spared life, even though there are also accounts of people being dealt consequences and punishment. Take for example, the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah as recorded in Genesis 19. 

I like how mercy is defined as “compassionate treatment, especially for those under one’s power”. Certainly, when we become followers of Christ it means that we have surrendered our lives to His authority, the supremacy of scripture, laying aside selfish desires to replace them with becoming more Christ-like as we journey with Him establishing and building our faith. 

By dissecting this sentence, we can determine 1) no one is incapable of God’s love 2) mercy is for everyone, regardless of behavior. I know–because I’ve been at fault–too often we–in our own flesh and sinful ways–exclude or put labels on “who” is deserving of God’s mercy, even to the point of judging a person’s relationship with Christ in regard to their salvation. When I’ve fallen trap to this line of thinking I quickly take myself back to a teaching I heard from Dr. David Jeremiah. 1) God is the only one who can judge a person’s heart for He knows our innermost being and 2) I can judge a person based on their actions and words, for both are visible to me. Calling these two options a plumbline for measuring my thoughts, putting them into practice has saved me a lot from inner turmoil or operating in a critical spirit.

Admittedly, it’s hard for me to fathom that some of history’s worst people could be in heaven. In my own life, witnessing by reading about Ted Bundy and later Jeffrey Dahlmer’s evil actions caused me to lay down judgement on their souls. Yet, before both men died there is credible evidence of each repenting from their sins, being assured of forgiveness, and counted as ones who would enjoy the rewards of eternal life. How then, do I have any right to place “qualifications” on who does or does not receive God’s mercy? God does not place any qualifiers on humans either in order to receive salvation, other than “believing in Jesus, placing faith in Him”. Paul, in his letter to Romans wrote, “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved”. In Paul’s words we find additional simply worded truths–declaring and believing delivers being saved from eternal damnation! No one but God can do that. 

You and I don’t have the right or position to determine who God gets to love or save. What we do have is the example of a loving savior who taught us to sow and reap the fruit of His spirit which is “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self control”.  (Galations 5)

I don’t know what heaven looks like but this is one thing I do know. Among the crowds gathered to worship the Lamb will be those who needed God’s mercy in greater capacity than me, maybe you, and for that I’m eternally grateful for every redeemed soul, regardless of previous sins while alive in the body. 

Furthermore, I imagine the people who made up the angry mob calling for Jesus’ death. In the years following His death and resurrection which became the foundation of the gospel message preached by His disciples….with Peter’s powerful sermon recorded by Luke in the Book of Acts…maybe, just maybe, some of those angry mobsters were in the crowd that day listening to Peter….and only God knows how many hearts and lives were redeemed because of “mercy”.