Author: bonniejeancarr

Many years back, I treated myself to a new set of plates for everyday use. I chose Lenox’s “Butterfly Meadow” luncheon plates. Of course, there is symbolism!! My hubby loved butterflies and meadows, so if I were to succeed in getting his approval for smaller size plates, this facilitated my effort. For me, the meaning was deep. God created the intricacies of butterflies and meadows in all their spectacular beauty. Neither the butterfly nor the meadow “micromanaged” their beauty or their existence. GOD did it all for them!! When we gaze at the butterfly and the meadow we see the absolute reality of peace, happiness and beauty. HUMMM, GUESS GOD IS THE SOLE (AND SOUL) CREATOR (AND MAINTAINER) OF ALL THE BUTTERFLIES, THE MEADOWS, AND “OUR” EXISTENCE, BEAUTY AND PEACE!!

Now this was only half the reason for my choice of new everyday plates. What led me to the store was the reality that in my life, there was too much on my plate. My life’s usual way of handling this was to give myself a bigger plate!! However, God finally had enough of my way and decided to change my way to HIS way!! God told me that what I really needed was a SMALLER PLATE!! Yep, instead of thinking I was to just keep increasing what was on my plate, HE told me I needed to get a smaller plate, and both GIVE HIM and TRUST HIM with all that was on my plate!! Thus, as a forever reminder of God’s message, I purchased a set of SMALLER plates with which to set our daily table!! AS I was buying the plates, God also reminded me He had already paid for the plates, and the receipt read 2Corinthians 12:9 – “MY GRACE IS SUFFICIENT FOR YOU, FOR MY POWER IS MADE PERFECT IN WEAKNESS”. When I am at my weakest, God’s grace (and for me His greatest grace is the ability to let go and let God!!) reminds me of the meaning, the power and THE GIVER of smaller plates!!

Twenty-First Century life revolves around technology; and we wonder why God, as the influencer of our lives, has diminished. Pondering recently as to what one element of technology bears the most responsibility for man’s loss of relying on the Almighty’s guidance and perseverance to lead, restore and empower our lives, I decided upon the RESET function.

Wikipedia defines “reset” as: in a computer or data transmission system, a reset clears any pending errors or events and brings a system to normal. Yep, now isn’t that the perfect picture of how the vast majority (both Christian and non-Christian) of mankind thinks today? Why work at getting rid of an issue and improving yourself by mastering an obstacle if you can just abracadabra it away? Technology eliminates and erases. God creates and restores. Modern day humanity wants not to be accountable but excusable. Today’s society wants to have misdeeds and challenges instantly reversed, not steadfastly worked through and surmounted. The significant differentiating factor lies in what is orchestrated by Satan versus what is scribed by God.

Let’s look to Christ for deeper, clearer insight. Neither in the Garden of Gethsemane, Mount Calvary, nor anywhere else in the Bible did Jesus push the reset button. Instead, His life testified that the road to redemption and eternity is paved by enduring and rising above mistakes, pain and suffering. Christ refused a reset. His choice was to conquer all that beset Him. Isn’t this God’s call not only to His Son but, also, to all His children?

Satan’s world lures us to want and expect troubles and woes to vanish at the snap of our fingers. God guides us to understand our trials and tribulations will best disappear by overcoming and moving beyond them. Truth is, like our brother Christ, we have to go over our intimidating mountains, through our dark tunnels, across our barren deserts and rise from our deep valleys to reach the gates of heaven. However, not one of us is alone as we make our journey. God the Father is above us; Christ is beside us, and the Holy Spirit is within us.

There’s not a reset on earth that delivers the peace and triumph of pushing forward through all of life, knowing the promised reward of eternity in heaven awaits us at our finish line. Resets keep us planted on life’s starting line. Only plowing through life’s journey gets us to the finish line. Satan’s hang out is on this world’s starting line. Christ chose to hang on the cross so we can cross heaven’s finish line. The choice of continually returning to the starting line or persevering to the finish line is each of ours to make.

Will your fingers choose to push a reset, or your heart and soul pull you forward, through and into God’s presence and present that lies beyond the intimidating mountains, dark tunnels, barren deserts and deep valleys of earth?

Housed in my garage and nestled in an X-large bucket are over a couple hundred golf balls. They are rescued strays from my daily walk beside a golf course. Two lessons of wisdom do these golf balls hold for me.

Why do I bother to find stray golf balls and cart them home? I do this simply because I heed God’s warning that many of His children (my brothers and sisters) have gone off course and are lost. Thus, I ask myself is God calling me to ignore lost souls or to seek them out and yearn to help bring them home. For each little round sphere I find on any given day, I not only claim it, but I also vow to wish that many people who cross my path a God blessed day. It warms my heart how many, at first, seem startled by my words yet, immediately, smile and wish me the same. As those I greet leave my sight, a prayer is offered for their journey to be not solely on course but, also, “soul”y heaven-home bound.

Wisdom’s lesson here is no child of God is an island when it comes to walking a path strewn with lost fellow men. It might take eyes to find the lost; but what truly is needed are hands to pick them up, hearts to hold fast to the value of the lost and souls to pray them back on course and homeward bound. To be such eyes, hands, hearts and souls is God’s calling for both me and you.

Crazy as this sounds, whenever I spot a lost ball, I’ve learned to look close around for a second. Why? Because quite often where there’s one, there’s two. Every time I discover a second close by stray, I chuckle, look up to heaven and proclaim “Got it, Lord! Yep, they needed to go back to the Bible but didn’t.”. Let me explain.

My “two close by golf ball discoveries” tells me that the player. after hitting the first wayward shot, immediately, took a second swing and, with no correction having been applied, naturally repeated the same mistakes and landed the second ball in great proximity to the first off-course swing. Lesson is if we don’t go back and learn to reset and correct mistakes, our human nature will keep landing us in the same off-course direction. In order to get back on course, a golfer needs to pause, re-establish proper basics, trust their power to their learned, technical skill and then swing for the stars. In correcting their mistakes, all children of God need to do the same. They must stop before persistently going any farther off course, re-establish the fundamentals of their faith, trust God’s ability to re-navigate their lives through His forgiveness, grace and love and then reach for the heavens.

We cannot correct our mistakes on our own. On the contrary, only by owning God’s word, the Bible, and owning up to all it teaches can we disown our mistakes. Thus, the second wise lesson off-course golf balls have taught me is mistakes are often repeated unless we go back and heed the fundamental truths of God’s “B”asic “I”nstruction “B”efore “L”eaving “E”arth — His Bible.

A trip to visit my South Carolina grandbabies is never complete without a visit to The Olive Garden. Next to Chik-Fil-A’s playroom, it is their favorite restaurant. In case any of you gourmets are wondering, it’s the breadsticks and yummy macaroni and cheese that ranks top.

Our last “top spot” outing, however, served us more than carbs. We, adults, all ate “crow”. The server of this hard to swallow Vittel was none other than my four-year-old grandson, Zachariah.

Anyone who has ever been to The Olive Garden knows by the end of your meal, there’s more plates on your table than grains of salt in your shaker. Such was the case for us, with actually a couple of plate towers even rising amongst the dishes.

As we, adults, rose to leave, Zachariah inquired, “where are you going?” His mommy responded, “home”. Quite irritated, my young grandson scolded, “We can’t go home”. His mommy replied, “the bill and a thank you token for the kind lady who helped us is paid. Time to go home”. Now fully upset, Zachariah, pointing to the table and in his outdoor voice reprimanded, “Look at OUR mess. We can’t leave this mess. We need to clean it up.”.

Out of the mouth of a four-year-old came a universal shortcoming — even for us, Christians. Cleaning up our mess is something from which we so naturally try to sneak away. Sadly, I’m not just referring to a messy table but, also, the messes of our lives.

Why is it so hard to cleanup our messes? Maybe because we look to ourselves and lack of our own ability, instead of gazing upon our Lord and the sufficiency of His power. It takes humility to clean up our wrongs. It, also, takes pride in God to admit we need His help to clear away the messiness we have caused.

To this Grammy, my greatest awe in Zachariah’s rebuke was his ability to stand up, even in the midst of a crowd, and confront what was in his little mind — an inexcusable retreat from cleaning up a mess with his nametag on it. He claimed his mess, wasn’t about to walk away from it and would have himself carried his mess all the way to the kitchen sink to get things washed clean. So why do we, adults, struggle with carrying our messes to where they can be washed clean?

Zachariah’s mess could be resolved in a soapy sink. The messes of our lives need to be absolved in the font of God’s forgiving waters. After putting the table in better array, we entrusted the busboy’s tray to transport our mess to a soapy sink. Our lives’ messes, still in total disarray, can, also, be carried away and fully cleansed, if we just place them in the hands of our God.

“I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols.” Ezekiel 36: 25 (NIV)

A week ago, I was celebrating the marriage of a young man, whose family (many years ago) became my (and mine’s) adopted family. This family’s Godly love and caring accompanied me and mine through so many storms and, by our sides, they also shared so many of God’s blessings. Thus, it was such an honor and cherished moment to now stand by their side as their firstborn pledged his love of God and his bride.

So many moments of the ceremony touched my heart and soul but none as deeply as their pledge of unity. In introducing the unity ceremony, the celebrant declared there are different ways of portraying unity. Some couples choose candles, others prefer sand; but this bride and groom embraced a personal, unique way. The minister continued that the bride goes by “PB”, the initials of her name. The groom is often called “J”, the initial of his first name. Thus, as the symbol of their unity, they chose “PB&J”. Peanut butter and jelly, once joined together, meshes into one inseparable entity. It’s a beautiful metaphor for a husband and wife becoming one. However, the celebrant was far from the end of sharing the deeper meaning beneath “PB&J’s” chosen expression for their unity. He continued that Christ is the Bread of Life — the wrap that sustains and nourishes all lives. Symbolizing their recognition of Christ as the source of their heart and soul and pledging themselves not only to each other, but also, to Christ, “PB&J” joined hands in holding a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and, simultaneously, enjoyed a bite of it.

Never again will I ever consider a “PB&J” sandwich as plain, ordinary and mundane. Quite the contrary, from this day forward, a “BP&J” sandwich is a heavenly feast symbolizing Christ as the life-giving source of my daily bread. I share this story with you, hoping it feeds your soul as it did mine.

“Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty’.” John 6:35 (NIV)

Look at our world today. It’s spinning out of control. (Sidenote: out of our control but not God’s!) As I listen to others’ concerns and fears, they all seem to end with “things have to get better”. I disagree. Things don’t have to get better. They need to change.

Mankind has to stop thinking if things were their way, all would be better. Wrong!!! Our way doesn’t matter. Our likes don’t matter. Our wants don’t matter. Only God matters; and God’s way is never to just get better but to change. Christ’s miracles were a result of lives changing to faith, hope and trust in Him, not through sicknesses getting better. Sickness was completely gone, only when lives changed. Again, our world doesn’t need to get better. It needs to change. We need to change!!!

I live in Florida, so you better believe, loud and clear, I hear members of society screaming “I want ‘so and so’ to lead, and then things will get better.” Good people live in Florida, and I love living in Florida and being surrounded by so many strong Christians. However, it’s time for us, one and all, to stop shouting whom we want and begin to soul search to discover whom God needs to lead our Country — and most critically His children. When, and only when, this is our search will both our Country and God’s children (us) be founded and grounded in peace, prosperity and God’s Golden Rule for living on earth.

This blog is not meant to be a soapbox lecture but a Bible based reminder of how, when and where strength, leadership, peace, prosperity, love and family take seed and grow.

“If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all His commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all nations on earth. All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God: you will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock — the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. The Lord will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven. The Lord will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The Lord your God will bless you in the land He is giving you. The Lord will establish you as His holy people, as He promised you on oath, if you keep the commands of the Lord your God and walk in obedience to him.” Deuteronomy 28: 1-10 (NIV)

I repeat, look at our world today. Nothing will get better until WE CHANGE — change back to God’s people, who live according to HIS will and HIS way.

In calling us to His purpose, Christians holdfast to faith that if God brings us to it, He will bring us through it. However, if the world brings us to it, what then? Maybe when the world, or ourselves, bring us into unwanted times and trials, we most need to know (and deeply believe) that God shows up and brings us through all. God does not appear as saving grace, an anchor in the storm or our undefeatable force only when He has steered the course. God is a Father to all prodigal sons, and He is chasing after each of us when our course is lost — either because we abandoned our compass or the world led us astray.

“Then Jesus told them this parable: ‘Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home’.” Luke 15: 3-6 (NIV)

Both you and I know we are God’s sheep. We just need to also remain cognizant that if and whenever we are facing any sense of feeling wayward, unredeemed or overpowered by challenges, God will search, find and bring us through any and everything we are facing.

So much of our lives today is not from God or of God; but God’s presence never abandons us. His power never runs out, and His arms forever carry us and bring us through all adversity, no matter who, what or where is out to destroy us.

“I am the Good Shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me — just as the Father knows me and I know the Father — and I lay down My life for the sheep.” John 10: 14-15 (NIV)

If anyone on my street wants to describe me, they often define me as the lady with the HUGE garbage can. To no one does it ever enter their mind that wise thinking resulted in the size of my garbage can. That is until last week.

My sweet, snowbird, next door couple invited me over for lunch. Between bites, the husband’s conversation mentioned he needed to start filling their garbage can with trash they would not be taking back North with them. Casually, I offered my garbage can for anything that would overflow their container. Instinctively, his male rationale kicked in, and he blurted out my distinction of being the live-alone widow who twice a week pulls the largest size made, residential garbage can to the curb. The look on his face broadcasted, “are you aware that you have not a family-size, but an apartment-size garbage can?”. My retort comically educated him that my choice actually was not man deduced ignorance but woman’s brilliant logic.

Not by accident, but out of genius thinking, I calculated the size of my garbage can; and the calculation equaled the enormity of my fear of prowling beasts of the night. Honestly and simply speaking, I absolutely don’t want any possums, coyotes, racoons, etc., etc., etc., anywhere near my abode – let alone pilfering through my worldly garbage and making a mess of my discarded cast offs. Thus, intellectual deduction equaled no creature of the night would choose to attack my heavy reinforced obstruction over a neighbor’s light weight, easily toppled hindrance.

Many a time on garbage day, when I’m out before the garbage truck has made its round, my neighbors’ driveways (with the judged “appropriate size” can at the curb) find their containers topsy turvy with the “once” contained bags shredded and their garbage strewn everywhere. The goliath at my curb, so far, successfully remains upright and battle scar free!

Stretching this scenario, may I add, sometimes the battle is best won by setting up a line of defense meant to keep a war of destruction from being able to begin. What’s more, this strategy not only works against possums, coyotes and racoons but also against the most feared of all prowlers of the dark – the devil. Back to the story at hand!

Man’s life produces not only physical garbage but also sinful rubble. Housed in tight lid closures, man’s physical garbage, never to be seen again, gets hauled away to a landfill. Comparatively speaking, man’s sinful rubble is to be carried to the ash heap at the foot of the Cross and left there, never to be taken up again. However, what kind of protection barrier do we employ to ward off the devil’s prowl, which prevents our sinful (and forgiven) refuse imperfections from getting to their, once and for all, burial ground?

Possums, coyotes and racoons thrive on ransacking our physical garbage before it can be swallowed up by a landfill. Satan flourishes on spewing our past wrongs at our feet, so we linger in guilt over forgiveness, resulting in our sins never getting buried at the foot of Christ’s Cross. Thus, too often our sinful garbage lays sprawled in our midst and not disposed of for good as intended, and granted, through Christ’s Crucifixion.

Possums, coyotes and racoons can be deterred by my oversize, physical, store-bought container. However, only Christ’s purchase on the Cross can contain the devil, carry off the garbage of my sins and bury them, once and for all, at the landfill called Calvary. Though this is Christ’s gift to me, I have to choose Him as the container to carry my sinful garbage to the dump. Similarly, your choice is yours to make. My prayer is we all choose the Supreme Size Christ to contain, cart off and bury all our forgiven sins.

We are not called to teach our children not to hurt, but rather we are called to teach our children how to heal. Peace and happiness are not “not to hurt” but “to be healed”, and only God can heal.

No human can save another from hurting, but every Christian can lead another to God, who can heal all wounds.

No one of earth can glue the broken pieces of a hurting sole back together. Only our God in Heaven can re-cement the fragments of a soul.

The world entices with quick, manmade fixes that disappear even faster. Only our Divine Lord holds the eternal promise: “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds”. Psalm 147:3 (ESV)

Why then do so many, even Christians, run for healing to false stars of the world and not our true Father in Heaven? Our land will never know healing until we first reach for the Hand of the one and only Healer.

For weeks, “Speaker of the House”, as I’ve dubbed my favored nine-month-old baby where I volunteer, and I have been in a war of words. He keeps screaming “Da, Da, Da, Da, Da”; and I keep correcting “Ma, Ma, Ma, Ma, Ma”. Whenever I walk into his sight, this ball of energy looks me straight in the eye, smiles and unleashes his “Da, Da” litany. My “Ma, Ma” retort only encourages him to turn up the volume and continue his chant.

While “Speaker of the House” and my fiery debate is a game we both love playing, it is, also, grounded in a sincere empathy on my part. You see, I volunteer at a home for young and alone pregnant/recently delivered girls and their babies. These bundles of blessings have a loving mother, but daddies do not exist in their lives. My personal admiration for these young women choosing life and to raise their children on their own is strong. Thus, my heart breaks when they hear their little ones’ first word is “Da, Da” not “Ma, Ma”. From this root grows my intense effort to re-write the universal order of first word uttered by a baby. That was until the night God reminded me, He is the Creator of life, and His order is not flawed – nor is it negotiable. From this, the following was perceived.

“Da, Da” is the first recognizable. sound a human being speaks. Mankind, in their self-centered thinking, assumes the baby is referring to a human father; but is this fact or fiction? Could it be that all human beings were created to FIRST and foremost recognize and call out to “Da, Da”, their Father in Heaven?

What God wants most from each and every one of us, His children, is a “Da, Da” Father/child relationship where, in all we say and do, HE is our first – not last. Never again will I overlook the prospect that a baby’s first word is meant to praise Creator “Da, Da” in Heaven, not a human father on earth. From our first word to our last breath, God created us to praise His name and proclaim our love for Him. Why do we overlook, forget or ignore this?

After God’s lesson, which broadened my perspective on first words, He assigned me homework. While the young moms at the home all appreciate the energy this old grammy is exerting to teach their babies to say “Ma, Ma”, I am now charged with reminding them that God, our “Da, Da”, wants us all (regardless of our age) to call His name as a first response, not a last resort. “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:13 (ESV)